Maria Robotnik (マリア・ロボトニック Maria Robotonikku) is a fictional character from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. She was a young human, the granddaughter of Gerald Robotnik and the cousin of Dr. Eggman. Born and raised on the Space Colony ARK, Maria suffered from a terminal illness that made her unable to leave the place of her birth and go down to earth. To save Maria, Gerald worked on Project Shadow in hopes of finding a cure for her. Gerald's research produced Shadow the Hedgehog, who Maria became close friends with. When G.U.N. later shut down the ARK, Maria was killed by a GUN Soldier while trying to assist Shadow in his escape from the colony. Her passing had a big impact on Shadow's psyche and proved to be an event that would strongly influence the fate of the world in the decades that followed.