"What is wrong with this timeline?" Ritsuka muttered to himself as he watched the fight unfold in front of him. Cu Chulainn, one of the greatest heroes of Irish Mythology, was fighting a hedgehog claiming to wield Caliburn. Well, it was less he claimed it, and that the sword itself claimed that was who he was.
And the two were evenly matched!
"Heh, you're not bad, Saber!" Cu complimented as he thrust his lance at Sonic, who quickly parried it with his sword.
"You're not so bad yourself!" Sonic complimented back with a grin. "But, you're just a little too slow!"
Too slow was a bit of an understatement. Cu Chulainn was a hunting dog, and he stalked his prey with a ferocity few had ever seen. With honed instinct and natural talent, he attacked the hedgehog, trying to sink his fangs in.
The head, the throat, the stomach, the heart. The hound snapped at them, his red lance his fangs. Each attack was fast, faster than human comprehension. Even the afterimages of Cu's thrusts were naught but a blur. Against any prey, they would be ripped apart, helpless to fight back.
However, he was a dog chasing the wind. No matter how fast he moved, no matter how much he howled, the wind was one step ahead of him. Parry, dodge, parry. The hedgehog, despite his short stature, despite his shorter weapon, had no trouble facing Cu Chulainn. While Cu's afterimages were blurred, Sonic's all blended together into a trail of blue light. Their weapons clashed against each rhythmically, a song of battle created from their assault.
And then Sonic leaped.
The hedgehog curled up into a ball, spinning with Caliburn aligned outwards. The two became a spinning ball of steel and spikes, one crashing down on Cu. Gritting his teeth, Cu took Gae Bolg and spun it like a helicopter blade. A wall of red death now stood in front of him.
The two weapons clashed. Sparks of lights danced around them, growing brighter and brighter every second they clashed. The very air around them was being sliced.
In reality, the clash took but a few seconds.
To the ones watching, it seemed like it was an infinite amount of time.
Finally, the two broke apart. Sonic stood just outside of Lancer's range, the two staring each other down. A tense silence filled the air as the two refused to move. After half a minute, Sonic had enough.
"Well, was that all the energy you got?" Sonic taunted.
"Sonic, now is not the time to be cocky!" Caliburn reprimanded.
"Nah." Lancer stated. "It's just a bloody shame. You're a lotta fun. But now, I'm being told I gotta end it." Lancer said, taking a few steps forward before he took a stance.
Ritsuka's breath caught in his throat as he recognized the stance. It didn't hold any of the playfulness Cu had earlier. No, this was a blow that would bring victory. Lancer crouched, like an animal ready to pounce, and the air froze.
It was not a metaphor.
The mana in the air froze. Cu's gaze pierced Sonic as he prepared to strike.
"Gae..."
"SONIC!" Caliburn called out.
"On it!" Sonic called out in a serious tone, the first Shirou and Ritsuka ever heard. And in that one split second, all they could see was the wind left behind from Sonic.
"BO-" Before Cu could finish, he stopped. His eyes narrowed as he realized something. In the split second it took Cu to attempt to finish his attack, Sonic ran out of his range. Even if he was to thrust, his spear wouldn't reach him. Because he wasn't able to fully unleash Gae Bolg, his ability to reverse cause and effect didn't matter.
He was truly too slow to get Sonic this way.
"Not bad, but that's not the only way I can use this!" Cu yelled, leaping away from Sonic.
There was over 500 meters between the two now. Sonic and Cu both crouched down, looking as if they were ready to speed blitz each other.
"You ready to go?" Sonic asked Caliburn.
"Wait a second." Caliburn stated, causing Sonic to look down at the weapon. "He is about to unleash his Noble Phantasm. You should do the same." Sonic looked over to Shirou and back to Cu.
"Alright. Which one do you think we should-" Before Sonic could finish, Caliburn began to glow with a golden light. "Whoa..."
"You know what to do!" Caliburn called out as Sonic took a stance, raising the Sword of Selection over his head.
Cu took off, his body truly a blur. He sped to Sonic like a whirlwind. In that very moment, the two were in their own world. Everything around them seemed frozen, like time itself had froze. They were now in a world only the fastest could live in, where only these two could compete.
The moment Cu got 300 hundred meters from Sonic, he took a leap into the air, a trail of red and blue left in his wake. He climbed up to the heavens, raising the spear over his head. Space distorted as he drew back like a bow. What was once thrust would now be thrown.
"GAE BOLG!" He smashed his lance down towards the Earth, down towards Sonic. It was a blow that could not be endured, could not be avoided. It was a spear that would cause certain death to anyone less than the absolutely extraordinary.
And so Sonic made no attempt to dodge it. The light in his sword shone brightly, like a beacon in the night. It was a sword of selection, a sword that chose the future king of Britain. It was a sword that chose the hope for the future of the entire world. And so long as the two fought, there was always hope.
"CALIBURN!" Sonic called out as he swung his sword, releasing a bright beam. The streak of gold and the streak of red didn't clash. No, they passed right by each other, headed straight towards their target. It was at this moment, Cu realized he made a mistake. For while he was in the air and unable to dodge, Sonic was on the ground.
It wouldn't matter under normal circumstances, but in this world of the fastest, it meant everything. For Sonic could still act after firing his beam.
The golden light soared to heaven, as though it was singing its victory!
The red spear plummeted to the abyss, as though it lamented its defeat!
The blue hedgehog rocketed to the skies, flying past his own beam and straight for Cu!
The red spear collided into the ground, exploding so harshly that it toppled over trees, cracked the buildings around them, and turned the road into a crater. The explosion illuminated the blue hedgehog, who rammed into Cu's chest, bouncing off of it and higher into the air.
"That was fun! If you ever wanna try again, just come and find me!" Sonic said, giving Cu a cheeky salute before Caliburn's beam struck Cu. The beam carried the Servant far into the sky, the brilliant glow of the attack rivaling the stars. Sonic hit the ground, watching the light die down. Whistling, he looked down at his sword.
"I didn't know you could do that, you overgrown letter opener." Sonic said with a chuckle.
"If you ever stopped for five minutes and just asked me, I could have told you." Caliburn repremanded. "But you're just too gung-ho about rushing headfirst into danger."
"Eh, it all turned out alright, right?" Sonic said with a grin before walking over to Shirou and Ritsuka. "Yo, you two doing okay?"
"I... you did amazing!" Ritsuka commented. He didn't know what to make of Sonic, but right now, he seemed just as reliable as Artoria or Arthur.
"Are you okay?" Shirou asked as he looked over Sonic.
"Yeah, don't worry about me, I'm doing fine!" Sonic said with a grin. "That was fun, ya know!"
Suddenly, a new voice rang out, calling to them.
"Well, well, well, Onii-chan." The three turned to see Illya standing behind them with an innocent smile. "If you and your friends are having fun, do you mind if we join in?"
"Illya..." Shirou muttered as he tensed up. Ritsuka meanwhile tensed up for a different reason. Behind Illya stood that same immovable giant. He loomed over everyone, his shadow seemingly swallowing thing around him. He was the hardest person to overcome in this War... the mighty Heracles. The air was tense, Illya's stillness almost taunting the other three. She was fully confident in Heracles, and had every right to. After all, he was one hero even more famous than King Arthur.
Did they even have a chance?
Sonic seemed to think so.
"You know, you look like this knucklehead I know." Sonic joked towards Heracles. The giant barely acknowledged the taunt. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't. He was Berserker, a warrior of madness. Even coherent thought was hard for them, there was no way he could banter with-
"Master..." Heracles suddenly spoke up, causing everyone to freeze. Ritsuka's eyes widened. Illya's Heracles's could talk?! Meanwhile, Sonic himself started to sweat a little. That voice... he knew that voice. No... it couldn't be... could it? "I know you wish me to hold myself back... but that hedgehog there..." He lifted one of his gigantic hands, pointing at Sonic the Hedgehog. "I must use my full power against him. Nothing less will take him down."
Illya paused, staring up at the giant. This was the first time he ever spoke like this, the first time he believed he needed his full power. That hedgehog must have been real trouble despite his looks. "Are you sure, Berserker?" She asked. The giant nodded in response. With a sigh, Illya turned back to the others. "Alright then. Berserker... get them."
Heracles smiled, and slowly reached up to his face. The giant grabbed his chin, slowly ripping it off. The heroes gasped as they realized something. The great hero Heracles was just a disguise. The man threw the suit to the side, walking towards them, the ground shaking with every step the man took. Shirou wasn't sure what was going on.
The man was much smaller than Heracles, looking like just a normal Japanese man. He wore a white gi, and not much else. Nothing stood out about him. He looked like someone people could find in their local mall strip dojo. By all accounts, he should have been less scary than Heracles, the greatest hero of Greece.
However... Shirou found himself freezing up, and to his own horror, even Sonic seemed shook by the man's appearance. For some reason, the man just caused their primal instincts to scream out. His immense presence was like an ocean, one that swallowed drops of water like Shirou and Ritsuka whole. The only one who could match his sheer intimidation was Sonic, and even he was struggling. This man was dangerous, he would kill them... they must run... they must... play...
"Oh, you are a knucklehead I know, just not the one I was thinking of." Sonic weakly joked. The man's eyes narrowed, before answering with only three words.
"Sega Satān, shiro!"
