Maria Robotnik is a character that appears in flashbacks for Shadow the Hedgehog, the video games Sonic Adventure 2 and Shadow the Hedgehog, and the anime Sonic X. She is the granddaughter of Professor Gerald Robotnik, and is the cousin of Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik. Maria suffers from the illness known as "NIDS" (Neuro-Immuno Deficiency Syndrome), which was incurable at the time. Gerald takes on Project Shadow in order to save her. Soon after Shadow is created, the two bond deeply, though it is short-lived as G.U.N. soon raids the ARK, fatally shooting Maria. Before she dies, she encases Shadow in an escape pod and asks him to bring hope to humanity and give humans a chance to be happy. This experience scars Shadow for life, but ultimately his determination to keep his promise to Maria leads him to become friends with Sonic and save the Earth multiple times.