Me: Well, here it is. The last chapter to Family Sacrifices

Knuckles: All of our suffering has led up to this

Rouge: Finally the nightmare will end

Me: C'mon guys, it hasn't been that terrible, has it?

Everyone: ...

Me: Geez, you guys make me sound like a dick

Sonic: ...You are

Me: ...Oh yeah, I forgot. Well, whatever, fuck you Sonic

Sonic: HEY!

Tails: Don't worry, it'll be over soon

Shadow: Seriously, can you start the damn story so we can all see what happens to me?

Me: What's the hurry Shads? Why don't we all just enjoy our time together first?

Shadow: IF YOU DON'T START THE FUCKING STORY NOW, I'LL BREAK EVERY BONE IN YOUR BODY AND RIP OUT YOUR EYES

Me: Well damn, chill out dude

Sonic: You okay there buddy?

Shadow: Huh? Wha-what?

Rouge: I think you need a breather Shadow

Shadow: S-sorry, he just drives me crazy sometimes

Knuckles: We know but that's no reason to lose it

Me: Yeah seriously. Anyway, I'll take care of the disclaimer this time. I, PyraohXBlaze, do not own Sonic the Hedgehog and Co. They are all owned by Sega.

"What do you mean he's going to die with Metal Sonic!" Rouge shrieked.

"Metal Sonic's head is still active, even with the rest of his body destroyed." Tails answered. "Shadow wants to make sure he's truly finished."

"He's not going to have enough time to get out." Knuckles retorted.

"Sonic! You've got to go in and get him out!" Tikal begged.

"I'm already on..." As Sonic went to take a step, the golden aura around him suddenly disappeared and his golden fur reverted back to blue. He collapsed onto his knees and gasped for air.

"Sonic, what happened?!" Silver cried.

"I ran out of energy. I'm too exhausted and I can't move."

"You need to rest." Amy replied as she helped Sonic stand.

"But I need to get to Shadow."

The Lab

Thirty seconds were counting down on the monitor as Shadow stood there, foot on top of Metal Sonic's head. They glared at each other with hatred.

"How dare you. How dare you make a fool of me!"

"You did it to yourself. You committed three sins."

"Is that so?"

"One, you attacked my friends. Two, you attacked my wife and daughter. And three, you pissed me the fuck off!"

Shadow added pressure on Metal Sonic's head before he completely smashed it. The light emitting from his eyes faded. The ebony hedgehog breathed a sigh of relief.

"Finally, it's all over." Shadow looked over at the time. "Fifteen seconds remaining. I think I can still get out of here."

At that moment, Super Shadow's golden aura faded and his fur returned to black. His legs buckled and he fell flat on his face.

"Dammit" Shadow looked up one final time at the timer. "Ten seconds huh? Well, I guess this is it for me.

The ebony hedgehog closed his eyes and waited for the embrace of death.

"Tikal, Emily...I'm sorry I won't be there to help you."

Sonic and Co.

Emily woke up because of a sudden feeling in her belly. She couldn't tell what it was, but she knew it was bad. Maybe she was just hungry. As she looked up, she noticed her mother with tears in her eyes. Tikal seemed to be screaming towards the weird place she was locked up, but Emily couldn't understand her words. She only knew that they were loud. Emily began to whimper, bringing Tikal back to reality.

"Oh Emily sweetie, mommy's so sorry for scaring you." Tikal cooed, trying to fight back more tears. "It's just that daddy is..."

Everyone looked on with sorrow as a mother tried to explain to her infant that her father was going to die. Cream latched onto Tails, crying into his chest while the young fox could only hold onto her. Big came over and gently patted the poor rabbit's head. The Chaotix all bowed their heads in sorrow while Chaos looked on towards the Lab. Blaze and Silver wanted to say something but chose to remain silent, fearing anything they say would make things worse. Sonic began punching the ground as his tears forced themselves out. Amy tried to comfort him but her own tears began to fall. Omega started to walk towards the Lab, only to be stopped by Rouge, who sadly told him he would never make it in time. Knuckles was the one who stepped up and embraced his cousin. He knew words wouldn't ease this wound, so it was the best he could do.

"Guys, there's only ten seconds left." Tails announced in a low tone.

"Please..." Tikal cried as she gripped onto Emily. "Shadow, please don't die!"

As if something snapped, Emily's eyes began to glow green. Slowly she floated out of her mother's grasp, much to Tikal's shock. The rest of the group were just as stunned as they watched the infant float above them and face the Lab.

"Emily, what are you..." Tikal was interrupted by her child suddenly disappearing. "W-where did she go?"

"S-she used Chaos Control!" Sonic replied.

"But that means..." The echidna was cut off once again, but this time by a loud explosion. "No..."

No one could hear her whisper, but everyone could see her horrified look.

"NOOOO! EMILY! SHADOW!"

"Stop Tikal!" Sonic shouted over the explosion, trying to stop her from running into it. "You can't go in there."

"My baby and my husband are in there!"

Knuckles and Silver helped Sonic restrain her. Sonic was too weak from his fight and Tikal's love for her family was giving her an immense amount of strength.

"Please Tikal, you have to calm down." Silver pleaded.

"Tikal, pull it together!" Knuckles growled.

"No, I need to help them."

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing you can do."

Tikal finally stopped struggling and collapsed on the ground. She let her tears slip out as she hugged herself. The others could only look on in sorrow as the explosion died. No one dared to utter a word in fear of making things worse. After what seemed like hours, but was only mere minutes, Knuckles stepped forward.

"I'll go down there and check things out."

"Wait!" Sonic called out, struggling to stand properly. "I'll go with you."

Not wanting to argue and waste anymore time, the echidna nodded and sprinted toward the demolished laboratory with Sonic following close behind. All they could see was a pile of rubble and destroyed robot parts.

"Do you think he..." Knuckles started.

"I don't know Knuckles." Sonic sighed. "I just don't know. Let's just start digging."

"Right. I'm sure we'll fi...Wait, do you hear that?"

The hedgehog and echidna turned their heads towards the sound.

"It sounds like a baby."

"You don't think...?"

The duo ran as fast as they could to the sound. They followed the muffled wail to a large piece of the ceiling from the lab. Knuckles picked up the debris and chucked it aside to reveal a crying Emily and an unconscious Shadow in a green shield.

"Emily!"

"Shadow!"

"But how did they survive that explosion?"

"It must have been Emily's power. When she was in that capsule earlier, she must have absorbed the energy from the Chaos Emeralds and used it to create a shield around her and Shadow."

"That's great…" Knuckles picked up Emily and rocked her back and forth, her crying beginning to cease. "But is Shadow doing okay?"

"Let me check." Sonic kneeled down towards the ebony hedgehog and placed an ear on his chest. He let a sigh of relief when he heard a faint but steady heartbeat. "He's alive."

At that moment, Shadow began to stir. He let out a groan before fluttering his eyes open.

"Ugh, what happened?"

"Shadow, you're awake!"

"But how? I thought I wouldn't be alive let alone awake."

"You can thank your daughter for that."

"Huh? Emily? What is she even doing here?"

"She came for you. Just before Eggman's lab exploded, she used Chaos Control to reach you. When we found you, she had created a shield in around you to protect you."

Shadow looked over at Emily, who was giggling at him. He chuckled as he reached out to pet her head.

"My little angel..." A tear slipped out of his eye. "Thank you."

"C'mon, everyone is waiting."

"Right, let's..." Shadow began to stumble before Sonic caught him.

"Easy there, I got ya."

"Thanks...Sonic."

"No problem buddy."

Tikal and Co.

Tikal waited impatiently at the top of the hill, praying she would see her family again. Everyone else stood behind her, not having the heart to tell her to look away.

"They have to be okay." Tikal muttered quietly.

"I'm sure they are." Rouge replied. "So why don't you take a break."

"No! I'm not going to rest until I see them."

"Tikal, I understand but..."

Rouge sighed as she just let it go. She knew it was pointless, so she decided to hug her friend. Tikal didn't flinch, but to Rouge it seemed like she leaned into the embrace. Rouge knew that even though Tikal was putting on a brave face, she was tearing up on the inside. Tails looked towards the lab and saw a glimpse of red walking towards them.

"Hey, I think I see Knuckles"

Everyone looked towards the lab as well with anticipation. Soon they could see the top of the echidna's head. Tikal watched with pleading eyes as her cousin came into focus. Her eyes widened when she realized he was holding something. She then took notice of Sonic behind him, holding up a dark figure. When she realized who it was, she looked back at Knuckles and saw he was holding a familiar infant.

"It's them." Espio broke the silence as Tikal ran out to intercept them. "They're okay."

"Emily! Shadow!" Tikal ran as fast as she could. The others following right behind her. She stopped right in front of Knuckles, who was smiling at her. He gently placed the smiling infant in Tikal's arms. Emily giggled as Tikal nuzzled her cheek

"Oh Emily sweetie. You scared me so much. I thought I would never see you again."

She turned to Shadow, who let go of Sonic so he could stand. Tikal's eyes began to water as she stared more at her husband's face.

"Why do you like making me worry." Tikal cried as the group caught up. "I thought I lost you."

"I'm sorry." Shadow walked towards his wife and placed his hands on her waist. I had to make sure Metal Sonic was gone for good."

"So you were willing to die with him?!"

"It's not like I wanted to. I had every intention of trying to get out, but my body wouldn't respond. Fighting that hard in super form took a lot out of me."

Tikal remained quiet. She remembered Sonic's exhausted state after he reverted back to normal. Sonic looked down, knowing Shadow was telling the truth.

"Shadow, please promise me you'll never do that again."

"You know I can't do that."

"But Shadow, you..."

"Tikal!" Shadow startled everyone with his harsh tone. "My family is all I have left in this world. I refuse to let some madman come in and take you all away from me. I know you would rather me stay safe but I can't do that when my family is in danger. I will make any sacrifice I have to make as long as my family is safe. Please understand that Tikal."

The echidna stayed silent before she walked up to her husband and hugged him. She remained careful not to squish Emily, who was clutching onto her shirt.

"I understand Shadow. I just don't want to lose you or anyone."

"You won't. I'm strong, our friends are strong, and you're strong. No matter what we face, we'll do it together. Isn't that right Sonic?"

"Heh, yeah. I couldn't have said it better myself."

Everyone let out a laugh, seeing how the battle was now over. After things settled down, Rouge broke the silence.

"Not that I don't enjoy these beautiful moments, but can we go home please. Fighting for my life while pregnant kinda took a lot out of me."

"You're not the only one Rouge." Amy replied.

"Oh my goodness! I can't believe I forgot!" Tikal exclaimed.

"What's up?"

"Our house is destroyed. Where are we going to live?"

"Don't sweat it hun." Rouge replied. "You can stay with me and Knuckles until your house gets fixed. Isn't that right Knuckie."

"Of course."

"Are you guys sure?" Shadow questioned. "We don't want to be a burden."

"Shadow, we just took on a psychotic robot trying to blow up the planet...I think we can handle housing you, your wife, and your child."

"Heh, I guess you're right. Thank you Knuckles."

"It's no problem, really."

"You don't know how much this means to me, to us. Not just the house. All of you risked your lives to helped us. Thank you."

"It really means a lot to us." Tikal added.

The group smiled warmly.

"We're a family remember?" Rouge stated.

"We'll always support you guys no matter what." Sonic replied.

"It's what we do." Knuckles finished.

"Heh, you're absolutely right." Shadow said with a chuckle. He looked at Tikal, who was smiling back at him. Emily gained his attention by giggling and grabbing his chest. He smiled as he kissed her forehead. "C'mon, let's go home."

Sonic and the others nodded and began their journey back home. The weight on their shoulders now lifted. The fight was over. They all could finally live peacefully.

One Year Later

Tikal was sitting beside Rouge, who was holding her baby gently. She watched as Emily played with her toys in front of her.

"It's a wonderful feeling isn't it" Tikal stole a glance at the ivory bat.

"You can say that again." Rouge sighed. "I'm just nervous. What if I do something wrong? I don't know how to raise a child.

"You're not doing it alone. Knuckles, Shadow, me, and everyone else will help you along the way. That's what family does..."

"Tikal!" a voice boomed. "Me and Knuckles are back from the store."

The echidna smiled warmly as her husband greeted her.

"We do whatever it takes to help each other out."

Me: And there you have it. The final chapter. Guys, it's been fun

Sonic: Define "fun"

Tails: Because it seems like you enjoy torturing us

Me: Oh Tails, you silly fox...of course I enjoy it

Tails: I don't know why I bother

Me: Me neither

Tikal: Well, at least you ended the story with a happy ending. Thank you for that.

Me: ...You're welcome Tikal

Amy: What's the matter?

Me: I'm not used to praise from you guys

Knuckles: You would hear it more if you were actually nice

Me: Yeah...it's a shame that'll never happen. So anyway...

Cream: Please Mr. Pyraoh. Can you say one nice thing?

Me: *sigh*...I'm really going to miss you guys now that the story is over and I enjoyed our time together

Rouge: Awwwwwww

Silver: He does have a heart

Me: Fuck you guys

Blaze: Aaaand there it goes

Me: Anyway, that's it everyone. I hoped you enjoyed this last chapter of Family Sacrifices. Of course, please Read & Review. Positive criticism and no negativity. Speaking of, Shadow...anything to say?

Shadow: The story was okay

Me: Hmph

Sonic: Seriously Shadow, you could only come up with that. You're lame

Shadow: *pulls out Gatling gun* Oh Sonic, you just had to say something, didn't you

Sonic: Me and my big mouth *gets chased*

Blaze: Had to end it this way?

Me: It wouldn't feel right if I didn't.

Amy: Why can't you just leave Sonic alone

Me: Because he asks for it

Amy: But...

Tails: Don't question it

Me: Sooo, guys, I guess I'll see you some other time. Maybe in another story. Bye guys

Rouge: Gonna do anything about those two?

Me: Deal with Shadow and a Gatling gun? Nope, I'm leaving that alone. You can get shot if you want to, but I prefer the holes I already have on my body.

Knuckles: Fair enough

Tikal: Goodbye everyone

Amy: Hang in there Sonic

Sonic: SOMEONE FOR THE LOVE OF CHILLI DOGS, PLEASE HELP ME

Shadow: STAY STILL AND I WILL HELP YOU

Me: Don't worry, it'll be okay. See ya!