Veritas Dolor
by CousinGreek is a Sonic the Hedgehog one-shot themed around Shadow. The story is darker than canon, including mature themes such as torture and sexual abuse.
The story is an angst piece about Shadow's past and how it's troubled him. Shadow has a lot of repressed memories that are probably better left repressed.
This fanfic provides examples of:
- Adaptational Angst Upgrade: Shadow's backstory is even worse than in canon. He doesn't handle it stoically.
- Ambiguous Time Period: The flashbacks to 60 years ago feature Nat King Cole's version of "When I Fall In Love" from 1956.
- Appropriate Animal Attire: Shadow normally wears nothing but his shoes and socks, however he wears a G.U.N. uniform for ceremonies.
- Bittersweet Ending: Shadow is talked out of his suicide, but Rouge knows that it'll happen again sometime in the future. She just hopes he'll be able to stop himself if she's not around for him someday.
- Dark Fic: It's a Shadow fic where he is Driven to Suicide due to his Dark and Troubled Past.
- Mature Animal Story: Shadow is a depressed and suicidal Funny Animal with a lot of baggage in his past.
- Patchwork Fic: Veritas Dolor is game-based but Funny Animal characters are called "Mobians".
- Rape as Backstory: A good chunk of Shadow's trauma comes from being assaulted by G.U.N. members while he was partially sedated.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: Shadow works as a G.U.N. agent. It doesn't help his PTSD seeing his comrades killed in action.
- Shout-Out: Though not a Song Fic, the fic does contain the lyrics to Nat King Cole's version of "When I Fall In Love" as a mood setter.
- Talking Down the Suicidal: The climax revolves around Rogue talking down Shadow on the anniversary of the ARK massacre.
