Project Shadow

**Project Shadow** (プロジェクトシャドウ, *Purojekuto Shadō*) is a project in the *Sonic the Hedgehog* series. It was a medical research program conducted by the United Federation over fifty years before the events the Black Arms' invasion of the world for researching immortality.

The results of Project Shadow produced two creatures endowed with immortality: the prototype named the Biolizard, and the final product, Shadow the Hedgehog. However, the project was shut down by the military when it was deemed too dangerous, which indirectly resulted in the deaths of Gerald and Maria Robotnik.

"*.*"

—About Project Shadow.

## Creations

### Space Colony ARK

*Main article:* *Space Colony ARK*
The former home of Gerald, Maria, the would-be commander of G.U.N., and various researchers and soldiers, the ARK was a gigantic space colony where great research was performed. The entire place also worked as a life support system for Maria. While Gerald focused on making inventions for the good of mankind, little known devices of mass destruction were being made (the Ultimate Life form and the Eclipse Cannon), mostly under the influence of the military and preparations against Black Doom. Others who lived aboard the ARK included Shadow (who protected the ARK from danger), the Biolizard and Emerl. When Shadow was deemed a threat to humanity however, the ARK was shut down with several casualties. The ARK was later rediscovered by Dr. Eggman, who used it as a temporary base.

### Eclipse Cannon

*Main article:* *Eclipse Cannon*
The Eclipse Cannon is an extremely powerful weapon that is located inside the "nose" of the Space Colony ARK. It is powered by Chaos Emeralds, and can destroy planets or even pierce stars with all seven. Gerald built it to destroy the Black Arms when they would return to Earth after fifty years, but after he went insane, he reprogrammed it to send the ARK flying into the Earth the next time it was activated with all seven Emeralds. Eventually, it was used for its original purpose.

### Artificial Chaos

*Main article:* *Artificial Chaos*
Artificial Chaos are Gerald's first noteworthy creations. They resemble Chaos and are most likely modeled after him as Maria states that Gerald created them based on "a god of an ancient culture". The Artificial Chaos are made up of a core (the head, shaped like that of Chaos 0) and trillions of nanobots that both protect the core and provide the body for it. While the Artificial Chaos seen had red, half-closed eyes and red marking on their heads, the ones in *Sonic Adventure 2* have larger green eyes and an emblem on their foreheads.

### Biolizard

*Main article:* *Biolizard*
Biolizard was the Prototype of the Ultimate Life. It was a giant lizard hooked up to a life support system. The Biolizard was deemed a failure as it went out of control and had to be sealed up. After Gerald went insane, he programmed the Biolizard to stop anyone from hindering the ARK crashing into the Earth, but it was stopped.

### Shadow the Hedgehog

*Main article:* *Shadow the Hedgehog*
Perhaps Gerald's most brilliant achievement, this was the finished result of Project Shadow, the immortal Ultimate Life form who would never age. Shadow was created after Gerald had gone into a pact with the alien leader Black Doom, using his alien blood to create Shadow with a promise that Shadow would help Black Doom retrieve the Chaos Emeralds 50 years later. However, Project Shadow was cancelled a week after Shadow was created, and Shadow was eventually captured and hidden away by G.U.N.

### Heal Units

*Main article:* *Heal Units*
Portable box-like devices that send out energy that replenish health and are still used to this day by G.U.N.. The Heal Unit may have inspired the creation of the Heal Cannon, a Bazooka-like weapon that fires shots with the same healing capabilities. Maria Robotnik feels it is Gerald's greatest creation.

### Bomb Units

*Main article:* *Bomb Units*
The Bomb Units are portable and highly explosive box-like bombs. These are used to break walls and find secret passage ways. Their design is very similar to the Heal Units' design.

## History

### Past

#### Beginnings

Project Shadow was conceived over fifty years before the Black Arms' arrival on the world by the President of the United Federation at that time (13 presidents ago from the current one) under the premise of achieving "mankind's ultimate eternal dream: researching for immortality. However, the true intent for the project was to discover an "immortality formula" which could be used to develop weapons. The President personally requested Professor Gerald Robotnik, the most brilliant mind of his time, for assistance. Initially, Gerald refused, believing that they were crossing the limits that man should not tamper with and that they would use his research for war. However, Gerald realized that he could co-opt the program in order to find a cure for Neuro-Immune Deficiency Syndrome, an incurable and fatal disease afflicting his beloved granddaughter, Maria. As such, Gerald eventually accepted the request in the end and agreed to led the project on the Space Colony ARK, an orbiting facility isolated from the world. There, all advanced research on the project was strictly confidential. The project codename "Project Shadow" was derived from the attempt to create a being which did not exist, making it as intangible as a shadow.

#### Research and prototype

At first, everyone thought that Project Shadow was far too reckless and far-fetched to have ever been fabricated by Gerald's gifted mind. In the beginning, Gerald and his colleges researched the Chaos Emeralds, resulting in the creation of the Chaos Drives which were a test to apply chaos energy to living beings. After that, Project Shadow moved into its next phase which was to create an immortal lifeform dubbed "The Ultimate Lifeform." Once the prototype was completed, the main project could be started.

During development, Gerald needed help with his work and as such made contact with Black Doom, the alien leader of the Black Arms race, during the fifty-year return of the Black Comet. In exchange for the seven Chaos Emeralds being delivered to him in fifty years, Black Doom assisted Gerald with his research, going so far as to provide genetic material for the project in the form of his own blood.

The project eventually produced the "Prototype of the Ultimate Lifeform", dubbed the Biolizard, which was made in the image of a lizard. At 12:30 A.M. on the 27th of January, the Biolizard was brought to life, its eternal engine and Chaos Control-inducing organ working normally. The Biolizard demonstrated many of the desired traits as it grew, including: regeneration, restoration and self-reproduction, much to the researcher's thrills, though it required a Life Support System fueled by Chaos Drives to remain viable. However, while the researchers' joy over the Biolizard's evolution went to their heads, the creature would prove to be a burden. In addition to having an unexpected and exponentially fast growth rate, the Biolizard was like a primitive animal, reacting violently to the Chaos Emeralds' power, and lacked the strength to walk, although its tail and neck were strong. As such, it was kept it under observation. Eventually, the Biolizard became too unruly, causing many problems onboard the ARK.

Over time, the development of the ultimate lifeform continued and shifted. Using the DNA of Black Doom, Gerald created a new version of the prototype, but using a more desirable physique for the creature.

#### Unease and completion

Because of the Biolizard's violent nature, people started to doubt Project Shadow and began questioning its continuation and the safety of the ARK's residents. Eventually, private information about the project somehow leaked to GUN, presumably by one of the few who were concerned about the Biolizard. Since the nature of the project made the government uneasy, they considered cutting funding. In an attempt to keep Project Shadow going, Gerald offered the Gizoid, an ancient robotic superweapon he had discovered, to the government as a bribe. Unfortunately, the bribe did not work and the Gizoid went on a rampage on the ARK.

Project Shadow was eventually completed after years of research when Gerald produced a more advanced version of the prototype of the Ultimate Lifeform with Black Doom's DNA: Shadow the Hedgehog, whom Gerald imparted with a heart and personality similar to that of Maria in the hopes that he would not become a weapon. In addition to possessing immortality, Shadow did not need machinery to live, could complete tasks alone, and possessed both high intelligence and hos own identity. Shadow himself became close to those living on the ARK, especially Maria who shared his curiosity of earth, though he would occasionally ponder about what his true purpose was.

#### Shutdown

Fearful of how dangerous and costly Gerald's experiments were, the military plotted to take possession of Shadow. The top ranking officials of GUN, who had a strong disliking of the research on the ARK, formulated a plan (codename "ARK's Indestructible Seal") to shut down the ARK by taking advantage of its current situation. Making up a public story that a biohazard had occurred within the ARK research institution for ostensible purposes, all of the colony's residents were to be evacuated while the research facilities were sealed. The plan's true purpose however, was to close down the ARK's research facility, destroy everyone and everything (except Gerald) related to Project Shadow, and blame Gerald as the cause of the accident.

Sometime after the completion of Project Shadow, the ARK was invaded by GUN Soldiers in a violent coup d'état, evacuating civilians and killing researchers. During the attack, Gerald put his finishing touches on Shadow. As GUN's Special Forces rushed the ARK's research institute, Gerald had Maria escape with Shadow, and ran in the opposite direction to draw attention away from the two. In the ensuing chase, Maria and Shadow got to the escape pods, but Maria was shot by a soldier when helping Shadow escape. Mortally wounded, Maria ejected Shadow to earth in an escape pod with her last strength. Meanwhile, Gerald saw the pod being ejected from a window.

Despite the complications, the military's plan went along. Within a week, the residents of the ARK had all been moved back to earth, the ARK's research facilities had been frozen, and the people involved in Project Shadow, except for Gerald, were announced as victims of the accident told to the public. The plan was completed when the Biolizard was sealed away in the deepest part of the ARK. The ARK was then sealed off, probably to prevent the Biolizard from falling into the wrong hands.

#### Aftermath

With the operations about Project Shadow ceased on the ARK, Gerald was taken to Prison Island to continue his research under military control. The military later retrieved Shadow and brought him to Prison Island for Gerald to continue his work, but when Gerald learned Maria had been killed, he went mad with grief. While it was thought that he was continuing his research with Shadow, Gerald secretly created a program that would cause the ARK to fall to earth and destroy it as his revenge at humanity, going as far as to brainwash Shadow to make him carry out his revenge. When the military began to fear how Gerald might retaliate, however, they incarcerated him on Prison Island. Knowing only the danger of Project Shadow, the military sealed the island and abandoned the professor's research. Gerald was subsequently executed while Shadow was placed in suspended animation on Prison Island.

## Synopsis

### Legacy

Over fifty years after the shutdown, Dr. Eggman learned of the existence of Project Shadow after discovering the diary of his grandfather, Professor Gerald. Reading of a "top-secret military weapon" that was shut down by the military because they feared it, Eggman retrieved the weapon, Shadow the Hedgehog, from Prison Island to use him for world domination. This set in motion a chain of events that initiated Gerald's doomsday program, but Shadow overcame Gerald's brainwashing and saved the world, as per Maria's last wish.

It was soon later revealed that Black Doom had his own, non-humanitarian agenda in contributing to Project Shadow: his goal was to produce an agent who would gather the Chaos Emeralds for him fifty years later so he could invade earth and enslave the human population at this planned time. Ironically, Black Doom was the only one who got what he wanted from Project Shadow, only for it to backfire on him spectacularly: while Shadow did collect the Chaos Emeralds as Black Doom wanted, Shadow learned the truth of his past and instead of using them for Black Doom, he used them to become Super Shadow to defeat Black Doom and destroy the Black Comet using the Eclipse Cannon, thus thwarting his invasion.