Narrator's POV

"Ah!" Gasped two hedgehogs at the same time as they sat up from their bed. One was made of flesh and bone, the other was made of nothing but air.

Nightmares, visions, dreams...

Those things were filling their minds all the time.

Scourge's POV

I tightened my bow tie to my neck, also straightened my sleeves and jacket. I grabbed the bunch of roses I had bought and walked outside.

Narrator's POV

The green hedgehog walked up a hill with his roses and placed them under a tree, where he last saw his love smiling. He sat down by the tree.

"Hi Shadow." Said the emerald being. There was no answer of course. The green furry gave a quiet laugh as he looked down at the green grass. "Hm, people think I'm crazy because I talk to you. I don't listen to them because I know you're actually here listing to me. I miss feeling your finger tips against my own." The furry looked at the setting sun. "It's beautiful don't you think?"

Shadow's POV

"Ah!" I gasped. "Who said that?"

"Said what?" Maria looked back at me. I shook my head.

"Nothing, I must be hearing things." I told her.

"That's silly." She laughed and keep walking with my hand in hers.

"Where are we going anyway?" I asked her.

"You'll see..." She smiled.

"I miss you..."

"Hm?" I turned to Maria. "Did you say something?" I asked her.

"Yeah, I said you'll see." She said. "Looks like you need to clean your ears silly." She laughed.

"Maybe."

"I love you, and I want you to know that. Wether we're near or far, I'll always love you and only you. We're in love..."

There, I kept hearing this voice, a male voice. He keeps saying things to me. Where's it coming from?

"Love..."

'Who are you?'

Narrator's POV

"Ah..." Gasped a green hedgehog. "Did you just?" He looked at the tree. "You whispered to me Shadow." Scourge shook his head and laughed. "Ha, what do you know? Maybe I really am going crazy." He got up. "I'll see you later love." The green hedgehog started walking down the hill.

Shadow's POV

"Love..."

Is it another spirit? A bad spirit? Is he trying to trick me? Is it Scourge? Pff, no that would be rubbish...

'It can't be Scourge... Can it?'

"We're here." I shook my head and paid attention to Maria. We were in front of two golden gates with vines that wrapped themselves around the gates. The vines began unwrapping themselves from the gates, and the gates started opening.

"What is this place?" I asked.

"It's where where The Candle Maker lives." Maria said.

"Candle Maker?" I asked. "H-hey!" I jumped up a bit when I noticed Maria was running into the dark. "Maria! Wait for me!" I cried.

"Come on!" Her voice echoed. I never told anyone this, not even Maria... I'm terrified of the dark. If I'm by myself in the dark I will brake down into a puddle of fear, if there's someone with me in the dark, I won't be as scared. I took a step inside, something pushed me lightly toward the dark. "Ahh!" I yelped and jumped back. I looked behind me. A vine had pushed me.

It had a beautiful purple flower. It seemed to signal me to walk in. I swallowed and walked inside. The gates began closing. The place was pitch black.

"Maria... Maria, where are you?" I whispered. "Maria... Oh man." I squinted, I couldn't see, not even my hand in front of my face. I could feel my face becoming hot, and my nose begun to sting. My eyes started to water... I fell down to my knees. "Maria, why'd you leave?" Tears splattered, I could hear them echo. I began sniffing, letting tears run down my muzzle onto the ground. My stare was fixed on the ground, but something caught its attention.

I looked up and there was a small light. "Maria?" I sniffed. I got up and ran to the small light. "Maria!" But there was no Maria, it was just a small candle. It was floating. I reached for it, but it moved away. I walked to it and followed it, it began to lead me somewhere. When it finally stopped, it was still dark. "You took me no where?!" I shouted, the candle burned out. "No, no, no wait!" It was completely dark again.

But then, thousand of candles light up. Thousands of them, they light up.

"Shadow!" I turned around. Maria stood there with someone.

"Maria!" I ran to her and embraced her, I dug my head into her stomach.

"What took you so long?" She asked.

"I got a bit lost." I told her, hiding my blush in her dress.

"Well, Shadow...welcome to The Candle Realm!" Her voice echoed. We're standing on a huge platform made of wax. The candles all around us were lit, some were out, but they floated around us. Behind the candles were waterfalls falling, falling and going. "Shadow this is The Candle Maker..." She said looking at a tall figure who had its back to her. The Candle Maker turned to me.

She was beautiful. There were beautiful designs carved into her wax body.

"Greetings!" She smiled down at me. She floated and flew like a super hero. "What brings you two young ones here?" She asked. I jumped up as she had spooked me. She was behind me upside down, her hair fell long under us.

"Candle Maker, I came here to show Shadow his candle." Maria explained.

"Wait, I have a candle?" I asked.

"Silly hedgei, every living organism has a candle. Why do you think all these candles are here?" She laughed. "Oh right, Shadow the Hedgehog right?" She asked. I nodded. She flew high above us searching for my candle. "Let's see... Nope, nope...ah! Nope... I know it's somewhere around here..." We heard her. She could moved candles out of the way like Silver could move things with his aurora, but she didn't have aurora. "Come on, come on... I know you're here..." Candles flew everywhere, but we're neatly organized by themselves. "Oh! Where has my head been? It's over here..." She flew over to the section that had all the burnt out candles. "Here he is..." She flew down to us, holding my candle carefully. "Shadow..."

I flew to her. My smile faded. "It's out..." I said.

"Yes, that means you're not alive...but a spirit. Everyone's candle is here. Even Maria's." He made a motion forward with her hand, another unlit candle came to her. "See?"

"My candle." Maria smiled widely. "Aww, it's been a while." She held it.

"Well, if everyone's candle is up here, where is Scourge's?" I asked here.

"It's here." A light candle came to her. "See he's still alive and breathing."

"Wait, can't his candle share light with mine so I'll be ali-" She laughed, then she stopped suddenly.

"No, no it can't." She said with a straight face.

"What? Why?"

"Sweetie, it doesn't work that way. You can't just take a candle to light a unlit one, it's against the rules. Plus, the lit candle has to decide wether it wants to light the other or not."

"Well, Scourge wants me back with him. He misses me."

"But does he think it's the right thing? What if he thinks you're in a better place? What if he thinks you can start a better life up here?" She raised a brow. My ears laid back.

"You're right. I don't know if he really wants that. Maybe he does think I'm in a better- Wait, Scourge's candle..."

The Candle Maker looked at me, then the candle. "Oh, this is another candle. Some just got here." She smiled. I sighed.

"Thanks for the advice..." I said. "Come on Maria." I grabbed her arm, but she tugged me back.

"Wait! It states in Section 402, Chapter 847, Page 85,380, 3rd paragraph that other souls can give other souls their souls by lighting a candle."

"Huh?" The Candle Maker and I asked.

"Well, for example... I can give Shadow my soul to light his candle, that way he'll live again."

Narrators POV

"But Maria, your soul would disappear." The Candle Maker stated.

"Maria, I don't want you to disappear. Not like I did."

"Shadow, it's the only way."

"But I don't want you to go..."

"There..." We looked back at The Candle Maker. "There is however another way."

"Really?" The candles dimmed, and The Candle Maker started to glow, her voice got lower.

"It is said that under the Candle Realm lies The Land of the Forgotten... All the forgotten souls go down there, there's no light, everything is gray and faded. The souls turn to dust and there is nothing but ashes there. You must go through the many traps and tests before you reach the Forgotten Castle. That's where King Forgotten, will allow you one wish."

"Why?" Shadow asked.

"Because, no one dares to travel there! Ever!" There was loud thunder. Then everything went back to normal.

"Why'd you go all dark?" Maria asked.

"It makes the scenery better." She said.

"Okay..."

"You guys have to be carful if you wish to go down there. You are not ready for your journey yet." The Candle Maker stated.

"Yes, we will try to prepare for it." Maria stated.

"Who says we're not?!" The black hedgehog shouted as he had jumped off the wax platform and was free falling toward The Land of the Forgotten.

"Shadow! Wait!" Maria jumped off as well, The Candle Maker tried to catch Maria but couldn't.

"Come on Maria! Whoooo!" Shadow laughed.

"Wait! You're not ready!" The Candle Maker shouted as she leaned over the wax platform.

"Yeah!" Maria cheered.

"Oh kids..." The Candle Maker sat on the platform and shook her head sighing. "May the Spirits be with you..."

Thus the journey of our two young heroes to bring Shadow back begins. It may seem like games at first, but they do not know what waits for them at the bottom. As The Candle Maker stated, they are definitely NOT ready for that journey.

May the Spirits be with them...