Chapter 3: Kick the Rock!

Behold, a scene unlike any the world- ours or another's- have been host to. A street, deserted with the exception of four beings. An invisible line drawn, dividing the group into two sides. On one side, the fastest and coolest thing on two feet, Sonic the Hedgehog. Accompanying his was his best friend-slash-sidekick Miles "Tails" Prower, the two-tailed fox. Opposite of them was the tiny Master of the Holy Grail War, Illyaseviel von Einzbern. And at her side…

"RAAARGH!" Berserker swung his sword down at the dynamic duo before him. Sonic leapt to the side, pulling Tails along to avoid being crushed by the stone blade. The weapon crashed into the pavement, the force of its impact creating a fissure in the ground. A mere second later, Sonic shot from where he had left Tails and at Berserker in a spinning ball. His motion was so fast that the rage-filled Servant couldn't see it coming.

WHAM!

Sonic's body shook as he rammed foot first into Berserker's forehead. The Heroic Spirit, however, didn't react in the slightest. After a moment, Sonic fell back on the street, seemingly paralyzed.

"Sonic!" Tails exclaimed in alarm.

"Ow, ow, ow, okay, ow…" Sonic muttered, rubbing his legs as he pulled himself up. He heard a rushing sound and zipped away from Berserker's sword before it crashed into the pavement again. He then had to rush to another spot as Berserker charged. And again. And again.

It was like a repeat of his scuffle with Lancer over the Gae Bolge, with the Servant trying and failing to reach Sonic, but there were few crucial differences. One, the Servant still had his weapon. Two, Berserker's heavy body meant that their game of Cat-and-Mouse was causing more damage to the street than the one with Chu Chulainn. The area shook as if being hit by mortar shells. But the most striking difference of all was Sonic's suspicions that if Berserker got his hands on him, even Power Rings wouldn't be enough.

"You'll need to do more than that if you want to beat my Berserker!" Illya called out tauntingly, "After all, he's the legend of Greece, the mighty Herakles!"

So much for going after his heel. Sonic thought as he slid under Berserker's legs. Recoiling off of a street light pole, Sonic slammed into Berserker's back. Because the Servant was already slightly hunched over from a previous strike, this caused Berserker to…stumble slightly, before standing back up to turn and glare at Sonic. He lunged at the Hedgehog, who once more zipped out of his range of fire. Within a second there was no more street light.

Tails watched the spectacle, stunned at all the destruction being caused. "Oh, man! This is getting intense!" He looked around worriedly. "I hope no cops show up…"

Illya must have heard him, for she said, laughing, "Oh, you don't have to worry about any non-Mage interference, Mr. Fox! I already cast a Boundary Field to keep them out. And I certainly don't sense any of the other Masters around," She began speak in sing-song. "You're on your own~"

Tails gulped up, and found himself bouncing slightly as another of Berserker's missed strikes shook the pavement. While Sonic's was too fast to be struck, every miss made Berserker angrier. And the angrier Berserker became, the stronger and more powerful his blows became. In time, even a near miss would have repercussions.

Landing next to Tails, Sonic panted. "Okay, this isn't working," Raising his voice, he yelled, "Time out!"

Amazingly, Berserker froze. Off to the side, Illya cocked her head in confusion. "What? What is it?"

"I just got a question," Sonic said, "Do you have Herculoid here go out people-hunting, or whatever?"

Illya scrunched her face up and puffed out her cheeks adorably. "Fuuh! Don't be mean! I'm not some weak Mage with poor Circuits! I'm the strongest Master with the strongest Servant! I don't need to send Berserker out like Lancer or Rider's Master!"

"That's all I needed to hear," Sonic took Tails by the arm. "Later!"

And in a flash they were gone, leaving behind a trail of dust in their wake. Although it was hard to tell due to the night's darkness, a increasingly small dot could be seen on the horizon. Illya and Berserker blinked uncomprehendingly at what happened.

Then Illya caught on. "Hey! Get back here!" Fuming, she turned to Berserker and pointed down the road. "Go after them, Berserker!"

Berserker didn't even bother to nod. The pavement under his feet cracked from the pressure as he took off in a run, following after the escaping heroes. With each step he took, another crack in the street was made, making it seem like someone had taken a sledgehammer to the road.

"…Hey, wait for me!" The Einzbern Master cried and ran after her Servant, and proceeded to demonstrate a vocabulary too advanced for her apparent age.

Further ahead, Tails tried to keep his grip on the Mile Electric with his free hand as Sonic pulled him by his other arm. Although it was hard to tell with their velocity, he thought he heard something behind him. Daring a peek over his shoulders, the fox saw none other than Berserker bearing down on them! Although Sonic was faster, the mad Servant had a far longer stride, and no need to go around obstacles. Precious seconds spent jumping over hydrants and going around mailboxes gave the Heroic Spirit time to close the gap.

"Sonic, he's catching up!" Tails yelled in a panic.

Sonic groaned. "Figures. Okay, here's the plan. I'll keep Bizarro-kles busy. You fly around and look for a CCS."

Tails nodded. While he was still a bit worried, the fact that Sonic hadn't given up raised his spirits. As he began to spin his namesake limbs around, he said, "Let's re-sync our comms before I go!"

"Right!" Sonic pulled up his glove and Tails', revealing wristwatch like bands with small screens and speakers, and pushed the buttons. After a minute, a cheerful 'Beep' was heard.

Tails took to the sky, giving Sonic a wave before going off and away. Berserker didn't even give the departing fox a glance. His mind, diminished by a rage that was not entirely his, was completely set on the Hedgehog.

Get the Hedgehog.

Catch the Hedgehog.

Crush the Hedgehog!

While this high-speed high-stakes chase of life and death was being run, Shirou and Saber were taking a leisurely walk back towards the Emiya estate. The only part relaxed about them was their pace, however. Many questions were buzzing through their minds as they tried to consider on what course they should take for the War, especially now that they knew that the city would be attacked by giant robots. They were lucky the first one had appeared at night, and in a relatively deserted area. It would have been a disaster if the battle had taken place in daylight. Though, admittedly, a robot wasn't likely to expose the existence of Magecraft, it would be impossible for them to fight in public.

And then there was the robot itself. It was big, dangerous, and could even put Saber on her guard. Shirou knew that if it hadn't been for the Power Ring Sonic lent him, the robot would have killed him then and there. The Emiya Master glanced at Saber, walking alongside him with a neutral expression on her face. While she appeared disinterested, Shirou suspected that his Servant was thinking about the dangers the robots presented. He didn't want her to risk herself again. Not for him.

Before he could express these concerns, Saber spoke up. "Shirou, I would like to ask something of you."

"Huh?"

"If Dr. Eggman sends another machine to attack, I want you not to interfere," She said, "The next time a robot appears, please run away. Do not risk yourself."

Shirou stared at her wordlessly. How could she ask that? After the way she risked her own life! But before he could respond, a faint whirring noise caught his attention. Looking up, he saw something orange flying in the night sky.

"Is that Tails?" He asked, pointing.

Saber looked as well, and with her superior senses saw that's exactly who it was. "Tails!"

For a moment, it seemed like the two-tailed fox didn't hear them. Then, he turned back and lowered himself to the Master and Servant's level.

"Saber! Shirou!" Tails said, "Quick, do you know if there's a construction site around here?"

Shirou was baffled by Tails' request, as well as the harried tone he said it in. "I-I think there's a building being built east from here, but what do you want to know?"

"Did something happen?" Saber asked, "Where's Sonic?"

"That's what I'm talking about!" Tails, flying off. "Sonic's fighting a Servant! A giant monster called Berserker!"

Berserker!

Horrified, Shirou chased after Tails. "Tails, wait! Saber, we-!" Looking back at his Servant, he saw that she was already in motion.

While Saber knew that a confrontation was inevitable, she couldn't believe how quickly her rematch with Berserker had come. Not that she had been in any particular hurry to fight the monstrous Servant. Neither she nor Rin or Archer had come up with a plan to counter the godly might of Herakles at this time, their planning sidetracked by the appearance of Sonic and co.. It was definitely too soon for them to consider another fight with the Einzbern Servant. That said, they also couldn't allow Sonic to face that behemoth on his own. Changing back into her armor, the lady knight increased her speed as she followed Tails.

Sonic, meanwhile, had fallen into a rut. Without Tails to weigh him down slightly, the Hedgehog was having a better time keeping ahead of Berserker. His superior speed was such that even the Servant's large strides weren't enough to bridge the gap. But a Servant's strength did not come just from their myths- the power of their Master had to be taken into consideration. A Servant was not just brought into the world by their Master, but that Master also gave them the Mana needed to utilize their Noble Phantasm, or even exist. What made the Berserker class so dangerous was that they consumed Mana without pause, and often enough killed their own Masters from tapping the well dry.

But Illya was a far superior class of Master. She had been designed by the Einzbern family to process the maximum amount of Mana a living being could manage. And she was so skilled that she had perfect control over her Servant. Berserker did not have to worry about his energy. It would only be a matter of time before Sonic tired out and be at the giant's nonexistence mercy.

Sonic, however, wasn't patient enough to wait for that to happen. Thanks to his previous "running duel" with Lancer, he already had a decent understanding of the city's layout, so a plan was beginning to form. Taking a quick turn, Sonic led Berserker off of the street and down a park path. He zipped past a garbage can, banging it slightly as he grabbed something sticking out of the top. Berserker knocked it over. Sonic checked the banana peel he had snagged and was happy- though a bit disgusted- to see that it was sufficiently aged. Spotting a railing that went down, Sonic put his plan into motion. Dropping the peel, the raced over to the top of the stairs and ducked. Had Sonic been summoned to Fuyuki as a proper Servant, his luck skill would have been A+, for against all odds Berserker stepped on that peel. Ordinarily, slipping on a banana peel would have only tripped someone up momentarily, but Berserker's momentum had sent him airborne, causing him to fly over Sonic's head and down the stairs. Berserker bellowed and raged as he tumbled. Had he not been consumed with fury, the hero Herakles could have easily caught his balance. But the Berserker-class' strength was in a way its own weakness, empowering the Heroic Spirit at the cost of its sanity. Flailing, Berserker pulled out the railing out from the stone as he tried to stop himself, and ended up wrapping himself in metal.

Sonic watched this with disinterest.

"I must be getting old, the banana-peel gag used to be funny," He remarked. There was a loud crash and a car alarm blared, causing him to wince. "I hope that was insured," his communicator beeped. "Tails?"

"Sonic! I found a CCS! Just follow the GPS to my position!" Tails voice blared over the tiny speaker.

"Got it. See you there."

The screen flickered, then showed an arrow that spun around before pointing in one direction. Sonic looked that way and nodded. Before running, he glanced down and saw Berserker glaring at him, having pulled himself from what used to be a Toyota. Sonic gave a the Heroic Spirit a mocking wave before speeding off, and the Servant resumed his pursuit.

CCS; Convenient Construction Site. To the imaginative warrior with plenty of ingenuity and no weapons, a building zone can turn even the most one-sided of fights around. Jackhammers, cement mixers, and even And in large cities, there was always at least one construction project being held. And at night, security was always lax. This was why no one raised a fuss when a two-tailed fox boy arrived. Tails gave a quick look around and was happy to see that everything he and Sonic would need to take down Berserker had been left out by the typical lax standards. But he would have to set things up, first. By the time Shirou and Saber reached the site, Tails was hard at work, dragging bags of cement across the yard.

"What's he doing?" Shirou asked.

"I do not know for certain, but if I were to guess, I would say he is setting up a trap of sorts," Saber replied. She had already materialized her armor. "A skilled warrior also utilizes the terrain to their advantage." Still, it was obvious that despite their talk last night, Sonic was underestimating the power of a Servant- especially since that Servant was Berserker. Mundane traps would do little to slow the Heroic Spirit- they would, at worst, make him angry.

"Shirou, go help Tails," Saber ordered, summoning her sword. "I will be on guard in case any enemies appear."

Shirou nodded. "Right. How long do you think we have before someone shows up?"

Saber sensed a presence approaching and closed her eyes in consternation. "None whatsoever."

The both of them turned and saw a huge dust cloud on the horizon, accompanied by a subtle series of tremors. In seconds Sonic the Hedgehog had arrived. As he entered the compound, Sonic leapt over the Master and Servant, landing near a water cooler. After giving himself a quick drink, he ran over to where Tails was.

"Need a hand, shorty?" Sonic asked.

"Sonic!" Tails looked around. "What happened? Where's Berserker?"

A loud crash answered Tails' question. Gulping, he turned to look at the source of the noise. Berserker stood at the entrance, more specifically, he stood at the new hole in the fence surrounding the site. Before him stood Saber and Shirou, who were both tense and confused at the monstrous Servant's appearance. But mostly confused. Mostly because Berserker now had several jagged pieces of metal and glass stuck in his hair. Not to mention a bumper sticker with the phrase "Wide Load" had gotten stuck on his chest.

"Uh, new question…what happened to him?" Tails asked, pointing. "Did he fall into someone's car?"

"Pretty much."

Berserker must have heard Sonic, for he directed his red-as-the-flames-of-Hell-eyes at the Hedgehog and put all of his terrible rage into one fearsome glare. He then raised his mighty stone sword- which now had a stop sign impaled on the end- and charged. Sonic shoved Tails and leapt away, just in time to avoid being crushed by the impending blade. The bag of cement, however, lacked the Hedgehog's mobility.

PWASH!

A cloud of grey powder enveloped Berserker, and for one brief moment only his Red Eyes of Doom© could be seen. Once that moment ended, the mad Servant stormed out from the cement and made another charge at Sonic.

"Terrrrya!" Saber screamed as she leapt into action. The lady knight put herself between Berserker and Sonic and swung her sword as hard as she could. Blades- one invisible to the naked eye and the other carved from stone- met, and the air shook from the impact. Saber knew that if she blocked entirely not only would her sword be destroyed, but she might lose an arm. Instead, she tried to parry the blow, and succeeded…in not losing her blade or arms. She was simply blown away by the sheer force of Berserker's swing, but managed to avoid being knocked off of her feet. Off to the side, Shirou rushed to Tails' aid, helping him back onto his feet.

"Are you all right?" The red-haired Master asked.

"Sh-Shirou?" Tails blinked, "What are you doing here?"

Shirou looked to where the Servants and Sonic were. "Helping, I hope…"

Berserker had taken another swipe with his mighty sword, which Sonic and Saber had to dodge. And dodge. And they kept dodging, because Berserker would not stop swinging. It was difficult business, as Berserker's speed and strength meant that even close calls had enough force to create small gusts. Luckily, the sheer power Berserker put into his attempted blows was also a godsend in disguise. Swinging around Berserker's umpteenth attack, Saber thrust her sword downwards at Berserker's feet. She knew this wouldn't hurt the mad Servant, but with his momentum...

Her plow worked. Berserker tripped over her blade, and though the force of the collision almost knocked it out of her hands, it was worth the sight of watching the Fifth War's Strongest Servant stumble. Not one to let an advantage slip, Saber retracted her sword and prepared to strike. She did not know if her attack would work, but it worth a chance.

Before she could act, Berserker had pushed himself back up, forcing himself into an awkward handstand using the speed of his fall. He was on his feet in a second and bearing down on Saber. It was then that a blue blur zipped by and snatched Saber up, pulling her away. Berserker tried to follow- and fell down. Somehow, his legs become entangled in a chain. The raging Servant fumbled for a minute before snapping the links.

"Jeez, and those were good chains!" Sonic groaned as he helped Saber up. He looked up to her. "You got any ideas?"

"Yes," Saber replied, taking a stance. "Run. I will hold Berserker off, while you take Tails and Shirou-"

"Okay, that's not going to happen for two reasons," Sonic interrupted, "One, it's taking two of us just to keep tall, dark and ugly there distracted. No way you can do it on your own. And two, I'm not going to just leave you here all alone."

"This is my battle, Sonic," Saber insisted, "Servants are meant to fight."

"Maybe," Sonic considered, "But unless you've got a plan besides 'hit him real hard', I'm not sure this is a fight you can win. What's to stop him from just mowing you down and chasing after us?"

Saber gritted her teeth. She hated to admit it, but she didn't have much of a plan for fighting Berserker. That Heroic Spirit was not a warrior who could be felled by a single opponent or normal tactics. Her only hope was to keep Berserker occupied while the others made their escape. It was a small hope. A very small hope.

"Hee hee- HAH -hee! See now?"

A very small figure staggered into the construction zone. It was a person our heroes had seen before, but there was something different. Her white hair was frazzle and tangled, her cute features dripping with sweat. Her arms hung loose at her sides. Slumped over, Illya dragged herself over to a pile of lumber and sat down on one of the planks.

"My Berserker is…HUFF…the strongest Servant there is!" She tried to gloat between gasps of breath, but the pain was too great and she fell on her back. "I'm just…just gonna lie here while he kills you…"

Did she run all the way here by herself? Shirou thought as he loaded more cement. Tails had told him his plan for dealing with Berserker, but he wasn't sure how well it would work. It sounded like something out from an anime. But nothing else seemed to work on Berserker, so the only other option was…

Illya.

Shirou knew that in order for a Servant to exist in the world, they would need a constant flow of Mana from their Master. Ergo, the easiest way for a Master to defeat a Servant would be to cut off that supply. And that would mean killing that Mage.

Illya was exhausted. Her Servant was preoccupied. Even a half-trained amateur like Shirou could do it.

But would he?

Illya was aware of Shirou's eyes on her, and could accurately guess his thoughts. Will you take this chance, Big Brother? Are you truly… A bitter feeling welled up inside. Kiritsugi's chosen apprentice?

…His favorite son?

It seemed like an easy solution. It could solve so many problems. Shirou knew it.

"Shirou, quite spacing out and help me!" Tails yelled.

…And he also knew that there was no way he would sink that low. Illya, as he saw, was a child, albeit one with a very disturbing thought pattern. There was no way Shirou could bring himself to harm a child. Also, Mage or not, she was in no condition to fight back. Shirou knew he was being excessively naive, but he couldn't in good conscious attack a little girl while she was in that state.

But as he helped Tails with his own plan, he wondered if there was anything else he could do to help...

While this most dangerous of dances was going on, another encounter was about to be had on the other side of the city. Team Archer continued their journey back to the Tohsaka Mansion, blissfully unaware of what Team Saber had stepped into, and what was trying to step on Team Sonic. That was not to say that their little walk was anything peaceful. Recent events had turned Rin's nerves to maximum power, and with a lack of enemy to fight she turned her pent-up antagonism on Archer. Archer, for his part, knew that Rin was only ranting to blow off steam and was doing his best to both ignore her and stay aware of their surroundings. The giant robot may have scared off Rider, but that didn't mean the city was safe- if anything, the inclusion of giant robots had given the bowman reason to wonder what else was hiding in the shadows.

"…And why are you dragging all of that junk with you?" Was how Rin ended her tirade, giving the large bag Archer had a scornful look.

"It's salvage," Archer replied. He had a feeling that they would be having this discussion many times. "We'll need it to fix the plane."

The bag in fact contained many parts- gears, circuit boards, and other miscellaneous bits of technology that were once contained within the robot that attacked Homurahara Academy. Archer, with some help from Shirou, graciously helped himself to the remains- it wasn't every day that the chance to loot an alien machine just fell into one's lap. But more importantly, he thought that the salvage could be used to finish the repairs to Tails' plane, The Tornado. While countless years as a Counter Guardian had given him the personality of hard deadwood, he still enjoyed the little things in life, like cooking and repair jobs.

But all that didn't distract the Heroic Spirit from one very important fact; They were being followed.

"Besides, wouldn't you like to be the first Mage to have an alien vehicle in your backyard?" Archer asked, and sent the following telepathic message. Someone's watching us, but don't react or change the subject.

To her credit, Rin played along. "I don't want that loud roaring machine fixed, Archer. It almost destroyed my house, remember?" What is it, a familiar of some kind?

"That was an accident, Rin," Archer set the bag down and began to ruffle through it. "Like magecraft, technology is only as good as the person using it. Take this, for example," He held out a piece of bent and jagged metal. "With the right application, this scrap could be a tool for defeating out enemies."

And with that, Archer threw the metal as hard as he could at precisely 7 o'clock. The scrap flew into a dark alley, knocking over several garbage cans. This had the net effect of flushing out their observer, who landed in the center of the street.

Knuckles the Echidna bunched up his fists and glared at the Servant/Master duo before him.

"Another one!" Rin yelled, tensing.

This guy must be Knuckles. Archer thought, and relaxed slightly.

This turned out to be a big mistake. Knuckles charged at the two, a punch in motion. Archer grabbed Rin and pulled her out of the way, allowing the spiked fist to hit the pavement harmlessly.

CRUNCH!

…Although, given the size of thecracks forming around where said fist landed, the term "harmless" would be a matter of debate. Knuckles, for his part, seemed to suffer no such injury.

"Hey! What was that for!?" Rin shouted, "What did we do!?"

Knuckles got up and took a boxing stance. "I know what you've got in store for Sonic and Tails. There's no way I'm letting anyone put my friends under their control! I don't know what kind of war you're fighting, but you can count us out!"

Archer quickly realized what Knuckles was getting at. Oh, God. He thinks we're the bad guys.

Rin also figured that out. "No, no, no, you've got the wrong idea, little red guy," She put on a friendly and inviting expression. "See, we're friends with those guys. Why don't you come with us, and we'll take you to see Sonic."

Knuckles wasn't moved. He recalled what Caster had said earlier…

"Oh? You're going out?" The cloaked woman asked.

Knuckles nodded. "That's right. I need to find the Chaos Emeralds if I'm going to get home. My friends are out there, too."

"Hmmm…I wish you luck, then," Caster said, "If you find anyone, feel free to bring them here," She smiled in a sinister manner that Knuckles didn't pick up on. "I would be more than happy to offer them asylum."

Knuckles blinked, then smiled. "All right, I'll keep that in mind."

"Oh…one more thing. There are many dangerous people in the city right now…some who will not hesitate to take advantage of a kind soul like yourself..."

With that in mind, Knuckles said this in response, "Yeah, right, like I'm gonna fall for that. How dumb do you think I am?"

Rin gritted her teeth. Figures that the third one would be just as difficult. But I'm prepared this time. Concentrating, she cast a hypnosis spell and sent it at Knuckles- and found it was rebuffed. Wha-!? it's not working!?

Knuckles charged again, and this time Archer jumped into his path. Projecting his swords Kansho and Bakuya, he crossed them to block Knuckle's fist with their blunt side. To his amazement, he found himself being pushed back by the force of the blow.

Holy crap, he's strong! The bowman thought.

Rin was concerned for other reasons. Why didn't the spell work? Does he have a natural immunity to Magecraft, or…

At the Ryuudou Temple, the Servant Caster watched Knuckles and Archer face off through her crystal ball.

Ho ho ho, nice try, Master of Archer, The witch thought triumphantly, I've already put Knuckles under my control! But I doubt you would have succeeded, in any case. He has impressive spell resistance, that Knuckles. I wonder if it has anything to do with those Emeralds…or being from another world…

Caster did not doubt Knuckles' story for a second. While modern-day Mages would have been skeptical of his claims, Caster was not. She had come from the era of the Gods, and knew that such things were possible. And the power she sensed when the outsiders first appeared…there could be no denying it. It was very convenient that Knuckles wandered onto her doorstep. She had been able to bewitch him as soon as he went to sleep. However, her good fortune ended there. Her divinations had shown that the rest of the off-worlders had already been discovered by the other Masters. Saber and her Master in particular had developed a rapport with the one called Sonic. That wasn't good. Sonic was already strong and skilled enough to fight a Servant on even grounds, and with those Power Rings was basically immune to fatal blows. And if he had the same spell resistance Knuckles had, making him her thrall would be next to impossible. She suspected that the only reason she won the Echidna over was due to his own natural gullibility. Sonic seemed a bit more cynical. She would have to be cautious in dealing with him.

But if Knuckles found one of these Chaos Emeralds and brought it back to her…Caster smiled.

Archer jumped to avoid another of Knuckle's charges, and the Echidna slammed his fist into a nearby lamp post, knocking it over. While in the air, Archer threw Kansho, hoping to knocking Knuckles down with the blunt side of the sword. No such luck. With his other fist Knuckles punched the sword away! The magnetic connection between the two swords allowed Kansho to return to Archer's grip as he reviewed his options.

If Rin hasn't already tried putting this guy under her control, then his spell resistance must be higher than what her Magecraft can handle, The bowman thought, And since he won't listen to reason, the only thing to do is knock him out. But with what? Archer had plenty of swords at his beck and call- If one considered the ability to materialize anything he kept in his memory that- but most of the ancient weapons he could Project were of the "Kill the enemy in one blow' variety. And as appealing as OHK-ing Knuckles sounded at the moment, Archer knew that he would get complaints from the moral guardians. Too bad I didn't find a healing shiv in my life.

Rin had a similar dilemma. The spells she had stored in her gems were mostly offensive, and ever since the encounter with Berserker she had tried to store spells capable of bringing down elephants. (Given her luck so far, they would probably make the giant ticklish) She didn't have any healing magic capable of undoing the damage those gems could cause. And there was the chance that Knuckles had one of those Power Rings, meaning that any Jewels she shot wouldn't be effective anyway. It would be a waste of a spell either way, and quality jewels for the Tohsaka Magecraft didn't come cheap.

Worse, the brawl would undoubtably attract the attention of other Servants and Masters. If that happened, there were two likely outcomes; 1) They might jump in and make the battle even more confusing, or 2) would use the opportunity to spy and learn more of Archer's abilities. And in the Holy War, information could save or end lives. If they were lucky, Sonic might hear the ruckus and come by to quell Knuckles' antics…but luck was in small quantities lately.

But luck was a quirky thing, especially in this universe. Knuckles smirked, and said, "I could do this all day- but I've got Emeralds to find. Do yourselves a favor and keep clear of Sonic, or any of my other friends!"

And with that, Knuckles ducked down, curling up into a ball. Then, (much to Archer and Rin's shock) he began to spin dash! The Echidna then shot off into the darkness of the night, far out of sight.

"He can do that too!?" Rin cried out in shock.

"Looks like," Archer remarked. He didn't dematerialize his swords, but he no He shot after the Echidna, but found no trace of him. Reinforcing his eyes, he that some distance away there was a fresh hole in the street. "He must have gone down into the sewers. Want me to go looking for him?"

Rin sighed, slumping against a wall. "No, don't bother. We got lucky that he attacked us while we were alone. If we chase after him, we might attract more attention. We're going to need that stupid Hedgehog if we're going to calm him down. Let's get back to the mansion and come up with a plan."

She only hoped that Shirou's walk to his own house was peaceful, at least.

This is probably the least peaceful night yet, Shirou thought as he loaded the last bag of cement into the truck. And what was worse, he had a feeling that nights in the future would be even less peaceful.

"Okay, I think we've got enough," Tails called out, "Now, we just need to start this bad boy up and- Uh, oh."

"What's wrong?" Shirou ran over to the truck's cabin, concerned.

"There's no key! I'm gonna have to hot wire the truck. Hold on."

Shirou didn't know how a fox could hot wire, but as he looked back at where the Servants and Sonic were, he wished it was a skill he had. Watching Sonic and Saber dancing around Berserker put the teenaged Mage's nerves on the edge. He hated not being able to help. But he knew that he lacked the speed or skill to keep up with the brutish Servant. Last night's little encounter with the stone ax had been very educational in that regard. Also, Shirou wasn't eager to get torn up all over again. Still, there had to be something he could do to help. Being stuck on the sidelines was the worse.

The sound of an engine roaring to life broke into the Mage's thoughts.

"Okay, we're good to go!" Tails called out, "Now, all we gotta do is get Berserker into position," Tails poked his head out the cab window. "See if you can get their attention!"

Shirou nodded, and began to wave his arms at the ones fighting Berserker. Although, "Fighting" would be a very generous term to use. Sonic was doing a serviceable job of staying out of Berserker's reach, but only because didn't stop, whereas Berserker's charges involved crashing into things, and spending crucial seconds getting back up. And Saber, while lacking the speed and brute force of either, had her experience and instincts as a warrior to help predict Berserker's next move…although the fact that the Grecian warrior wasn't even paying attention to her at this point helped to a degree.

The fact was that the battle had devolved into yet another game of of Cat-and-Mouse, Holy War edition©. And more importantly, both of the game's protagonists were too busy trying to avoid crushing death to really notice anything Shirou could do. The Master of Saber realized that this after the third wave.

I could shout, but I'm sure they wouldn't hear me, Shirou thought, And if they did, Illya might catch on and give Berserker a warning. I need to get their attention without actually giving a clue as to what we're doing…

Well, Sonic probably knows what we're working on. I wouldn't be surprised if he came up with this scheme to begin with. And Saber might pick up on it. I wish I had some magic that could be used to send a signal...

And that's when Shirou's mind went back to what Sonic said last night…

Sonic brightened. "Now, that sounds awesome. You just snap your fingers, and it's there?"

Projection…was it worth another try? And what would he create? An image of a bow appeared in Shirou's brain. It was rather dark, and ominous-looking, but still a bow nonetheless. Shirou honestly didn't know why such things were occurring to him- and whether or not he would succeed.

Another crash alerted him to the fact that Berserker had another near-miss. And from the looks of things, the missed hits were getting nearer or nearer. The fight was beginning to wear down on both Sonic and Saber, while Berserker's energy was just as relentless as it always had been.

Feeling his muscles tighten, Shirou realized that he couldn't afford to dither on the subject. The time had come for action. Holding out his hand, he began to form Mage Circuits, silently hoping that this time the spell wouldn't go out of control like it did the night before.

"Trace On."

That same hot-rod feeling returned, as did the horrible burning sensation in his nerves. But this time it was subdued, more subtle. In the back of his mind, Shirou wondered if this was because his skill was improving…or that his pain receptors were becoming dull. In any case, energy began to swirl around his hand, condensing, taking form. Shirou tried to force out all distractions, putting every ounce of his brain on the image of the bow.

"Shirou, what're you- Whoa." Tails stopped talking when he saw what was taking place.

The thing in Shirou's hand was a bow, sort of. It was definitely bow-shaped. But it wasn't the bow that he had intended. The weapon he held had too many jagged edges, too many superfluous points. It looked like something a child would draw up.

Of course an amateur like me would get it wrong, Shirou thought, I just hope it works…!

Picking up a stray pipe that had been lying on the ground, Shirou loaded his 'bow' and took aim. It was hard to hold, and he had to spend a few seconds adjusting his grip, but in short time he was 'in the zone', his mind excluding everything but his target. Even the slight buzz in his nerves and hot-rod feeling in his back couldn't distract him.

Shirou released the bow, and the pipe flew at Berserker. It could not have hurt Berserker. It would not hurt Berserker. The Heroic Spirit of Herakles had been blessed with unbreakable skin by the Gods themselves. By his divine relation to Zeus, nothing less than an attack that had the rank of A could break that defense. A measly pipe, fired from a poorly-Projected might as well have been a fly ramming itself against a brick wall.

But even a fly might be noticed if it flew into someone's eye, just as the pipe went at Berserker. It had done no damage- A fly against a wall, remember- but just like any other person, Berserker did not like having his eye poked. Grabbing the pipe before it could even fall to the ground, Berserker promptly bent the metal into a series of knots, grumbling with fury. In the scant seconds as he did, Sonic and Saber looked over to the pipe's origin, and saw Shirou gesturing wildly towards the cement truck. Meanwhile, Berserker finished his work with the pipe by crushing the mutilated thing into a ball and chucking it into the distance. There was a soft sound like glass breaking, but no one paid attention to that. More engrossing was that Berserker now had Shirou in his sights! And from the increased intensity in his eyes, the monstrous Servant had figured out just who sent that pipe into his left eyeball.

Saber was the first to act. Knowing that trying to block the giant was a futile and more-than-likely painful endeavour, she slammed the hilt of her sword into the joint of Berserker's right leg. No matter how big or divinely enhanced he was, Berserker still had the normal (Relatively speaking) build of a human being, so this act caused his leg to ache and trip him up. And because Berserker began to put himself into motion when this happened, the massive Heroic Spirit's tumble sent him rolling far across the lot, stopping just a few feet away from the cement truck's back. Before he could get up, Sonic slammed down on his head from above. It didn't hurt, but it did force Berserker to kiss the dirt for a few seconds more.

"Let 'er rip, Tails!" Sonic yelled, and zipped off of Berserker's noggin.

Just as Berserker pushed himself up, there came a beeping noise. Looking up, the Heroic Spirit saw that the cement truck's mixer was rising, and out from the opening a great deal of wet concrete poured out- onto him!

As Berserker writhed, trying to shake the wet cement off of him, Sonic began to zip around him. By doing so, he created a small tornado, a tactic he used to send robots flying. The cyclone his speed create wasn't strong enough to lift Berserker, but it WAS enough to lift and cover the cement. Combined with wind created by the hedgehog-created tornado, it didn't take long for the immense Servant to be completely cloaked in concrete. Once he was done, Sonic stopped and took a few steps back to observe his work. A tense hush fell over the scene as the gang watched to see what would happen next. Saber gripped her sword, ready to attack.

They did not have long to wait. The cement mound shook, before exploding as Berserker burst free of his makeshift prison.

"Awww, man!" Sonic groaned, shielding his to avoid being hit by the shards. "I was kinda hoping that would work!"

Illya laughed. "Hahaha! Nice try, blue boy! But my Berserker can't be beaten by such simple tricks like that! But don't give up yet, I want to you and Onii-chan to struggle a bit more-"

A piece of rubble, thrown into the air by Berserker's violent escape from the concrete, hit Illya in the head, cutting her off. A lump growing and her eyes spinning, the Einzbern Master fell down onto the ground. As the dust settled, Berserker rose to full height, looming over all that were present. Then, he glanced over at Illya. The angry scowl on the servant's face grew even darker as he shot Sonic a glare.

"Hey, for the record, YOU did that." Sonic defended.

Still glaring, Berserker stomped over to where Illya lay. Then, with a tenderness that was uncharacteristic for his class, he gently picked Illya up, cradled her in his arms, and stalked off. The ground shook with each step, but Berserker made no motion against the heroes. He stopped once at the edge of the compound, but all the Servant did was look over and deliver a very powerful glare at the four, before resuming his trek. Once Berserker was out of sight, they all stopped holding their breath. Little did any of them realize, that Berserker's surprisingly lucid decision to take Illya home would become the source of a new legend in Fuyuki; The Legend of the Child-bearing Neanderthal.

"Whoa…who woulda guessed that tall, dark and gruesome had a soft side underneath those unbreakable muscles?" Sonic asked, letting out a somewhat nervous laugh.

Saber sighed. "This isn't funny, Sonic. We came very close to dying." Still, she inwardly reflected on the shocking action of Berserker. Berserkers were supposed to be nigh-impossible to control, and, from what she knew, would not stop until their opponent was dead. Did Illya, with her remarkable power, instill a command to focus on her safety into Berserker's mind?

"I just hope he doesn't hurt anyone," Tails said, hopping out of the truck's cab. "Is everyone all right?"

"We are not seriously injured," Saber replied.

"That's good," Tails looked around at what used to be a construction lot. "Man, this place is a mess."

"Tell me about it," Sonic chuckled, "I Think someone should tell Berserker to ease up on the collateral damage."

Shirou took in the wreckage. Berserker's near-misses had indeed caused a lot of collateral damage. Orderly stacks of materials had been strewn about. There were large fissures in the ground where Berserker's sword had landed. The only piece of equipment that hadn't been broken was the cement truck. It looked more like an army had taken a bat to the place.

"We need to get out of here," The young Mage said, "I couldn't put up a Boundary Field, so someone must have heard the fight and will come to investigate."

"Well, the night's still young, so I think I'm gonna take one last look around the city before calling it quits," Sonic decided, "Tails?"

"Yeah, another hour wouldn't hurt," Tails agreed, and looked towards Team Saber. "Are you two going to be all right on your own?"

"We will be fine," Saber replied, "We are going to go straight home."

"Y-yeah." Shirou hoped Taiga and Sakura wouldn't be too upset with him being out this late…

"You do that," Sonic nodded, "Be careful. Let's go, bro!"

Sonic ran off, with Tails flying after. Once they were gone, Saber felt her legs give out. As she fell, her armor faded away to show the casual clothes Rin lent her. Shirou just barely caught her in time.

"Saber-!" He gasped.

"It's nothing," She gasped unconvincingly, "Just a little…tired."

Shirou realized that with the scant Mana he provided, Saber was forced to use up her own energy. Fighting all these battles…first against Rider, then the robot, and finally Berserker…it was too much. And she wasn't fully recovered from fighting Lancer!

Rather than saying that aloud, Shirou began to help Saber walk. As they marched, he felt a small bit of unhappiness and resentment for himself. He just wished he was a little bit stronger…!

Far in the distance, Sonic and Tails were also a bit perturbed over what had happened.

"We got out okay because Shirou and Saber helped us," Tails remarked, "But what about Knuckles? As far as we know, they're completely clueless about this 'Holy War', thing."

"No kidding," Sonic agreed, "It would suck if one of these evil Masters got a hold of them."

Amy took a sip of her tea. "So, let me get this straight. In this world, you've got wizards and witches who are supposed to stay hidden."

"The term is Mage," Bazett corrected, "And yes. Magecraft is supposed to remain secret. Ordinary people are not allowed to know about it."

Amy and Bazett were no longer in the Fuyuki Hospital. Although Bazett still hadn't fully recovered, she felt that staying there with her new friend was too much of a risk. While the Irish Mage seemed to have successfully hypnotized the entire hospital staff into forgetting Amy existed, there was always a chance that someone would notice and cause a disturbance. Furthermore, she wanted to discuss the situation with the pink hedgehog in private. To that end they retreated, in the dead of night, to the hotel Bazett had checked into at the beginning of her stay in Fuyuki. She knew that she would have to relocate- She didn't know how long she would have until Kotomine learned she was alive, and wanted to avoid a fight with him until she was fully recovered- but she hoped that the two of them had at least one night to rest.

"Right, right…" Amy muttered, "And…there's this contest between 'Mages' that involve summoning magic ghosts…?"

"Close enough."

Against all of the training she received at the Mage's Association, Bazett filled Amy in on the Holy Grail War, if only to answer her questions about Bazett's injuries. While she knew it was a risky measure, she felt she owed the pink hedgehog something for saving her life. What's more, Amy would better appreciate the need to remain hidden if she knew what lurked in the shadows. It would be easier to hide Amy if the red-skirted hedgehog girl was willing to play along. In return, Amy had regaled Bazett with the tale of how she appeared in this world. A week ago, the enforcer would have found the story hard to swallow. Regrowing an arm while inches away from death's icy grip had done wonders for her suspension of disbelief.

Amy put down her cup. "Okay. So, where do we go to find that Kotomine guy?"

Bazett blinked. "What?"

"You're friend was taken away by this guy, wasn't he?" Amy asked, "So, if you want him back, we just gotta…" She lifted a large mallet up and slug over her shoulder. "…Give him what-for!"

Where did she get that hammer!? Bazett tried to get a hold of her thoughts and the direction of the conversation. "That…that's very nice of you to offer, but Kotomine is a dangerous man. He used to be an executor for the Church's Burial Agency," That got a blank look from Amy. "That's the branch that specializes in killing vampires."

"Oh, cool."

Bazett felt a headache. "The point is, he's not someone you can just swing a large hammer at. He's a skilled combatant."

"Oh, don't worry about me," Amy twirled her hammer. "I've got a few adventures under my belt. This gal's taken down more than her fair share of killer robots. How hard could one kung-fu priest be?"

You'd be surprised. Bazett thought, and said, "Look, I can handle Kotomine on my own. You don't need-"

"Sure I do!" Amy cut off, "We're friends, aren't we?"

Bazett was stunned. How…how can she say that so easily? We've known each other for less than a day! Trying to suppress a headache, she said, "But what about those other friends you told me about? Don't you want to find them first?"

"I do, but they can take care of themselves! Those guys eat robot armies for breakfast!" Amy boasted, and gave Bazett a concerned look. "But, this Kotomine guy almost killed you, right? Sounds like you could use some help!"

"He caught me off-guard." Bazett muttered.

"And just think how much harder that'll be if you had someone to watch your back!" Amy added without missing a beat.

As she looked in Amy Rose's eyes, Bazett realized that nothing short of hypnosis would convince her new companion to stay in the room and out of trouble. And Bazett had already tried hypnosis earlier; Amy's natural spell-resistance was higher than what Bazett could cast, due to either the latter's recent brush with death, and the former being from another dimension. Had she been a researcher, Bazett would have been intrigued, and determined to dissect Amy and discover her secrets. But there was no time for that.

Sighing, Bazett said, "Fine…you can come help. But you need to follow my instructions." At least this way I can keep an eye on her. I just hope this doesn't implode on me…

Amy nodded. "You won't regret this, Bazett. We'll beat this evil priest, get your friend back, and then find my man Sonic!"

"Just like that?" Bazett asked wryly.

"You know it! In fact…" Amy began to look thoughtful, "I wouldn't be surprised if Sonic's already taken Kotomine down."

"He's been taken down?" Dr. Eggman asked.

Things had been going very smoothly aboard the Egg Saucer. Under Eggman's supervision (Which mostly consisted of him yelling at robots), all of the essential repairs had been completed. While the mobile base was unlikely to take the skies yet, it was also unlikely to sink under the water. And now that the crucial components had been fixed, Eggman could send his remaining Badniks out to collect more animals to turn into robots.

Then he learn that Arms wasn't coming back.

"Yes, sir," Orbot replied, staring at his computer terminal. "According to this readout, Arms is no longer functioning."

"Hmm," Eggman rubbed his chin in thought. "That's odd. None of the news reports mentioned that. You'd think someone would notice a giant robot being destroyed."

"Maybe they're saving that for sweeps?" Cubot suggested.

"News networks don't have sweeps!" Eggman snarled, and pointed dramatically at Orbot. "Where did Arms crash, Orbot?"

Orbot typed. "This is where Arms' signal ceased, sir."

On the larger screen, a map of Fuyuki City appeared. In one section, a glowing dot appeared. The computer zoomed in on the section, showing a detailed layout of Homurahara Academy. Before the main building was a flashing icon that resembled Eggman's head. Unlike the other emblems that were printed on the doctor's machines, this one was crying.

Eggman clasped his fingers evilly. "So…the Chaos Emerald is there, eh?"

"Well, actually, we don't know if there's an Emerald…" Orbot began, but was cut off by Eggman leaping to his feet.

"With the vital repairs to the Egg Saucer complete, there is nothing to keep me here!" Eggman declared, gesturing erratically. "I will go forth and bring home the prize! We leave at once!"

"Weren't we gonna watch monster movies tonight?" Cubot asked, "I already made the popcorn like you ordered me to."

Eggman looked down and saw a large bowl of popcorn had been placed next to his command chair. The smell of melted butter reached his nostrils, unhampered by the mustache. After a moment's thought, Eggman sat back down and picked up the bowl.

"Okay, we leave tomorrow." The mad doctor decided between mouthfuls of popcorn.

As the house lights dimmed, the largest screen lit up. A woman's voice was then heard speaking.

"Coming up on the obscure movie channel, Attack of the Evil Robots From Another Dimension!"

"How prophetic!" Eggman chortled, spitting out a few half-chewed kernels.

Orbot sighed and picked up a brush and dustpan. "I hate it when he talks with his mouth full."

TO BE CONTINUED

Tiger Dojo:

Taiga: Rising from the sea! Descending from the skies! It's the Tiger Dojo! Welcome back, children! Fujimura Taiga-sensei, presiding!

Illya: (Wearing a bandage) And the Number One Student, Illya! Ugh…my head hurts…

Taiga: Are you all right, Illya-chan? That was a nasty bump you got in the main story, after all.

Illya: No, I'm fine! A little thing like this won't keep me from saving the people from your half-assed education!

Taiga: Very good, Number One Student, very- Wait, that was an insult! (Hits Illya)

Illya: Awk! You monster, striking an injured woman…!

Taiga: Our first question comes from Vladimir-Spider. "Question about Shirou's tracing, will he be able to trace the rings? Even if they aren't swords, he is still able to trace pretty much everything, though swords are easier for him. Same comes to Chaos Emeralds. I mean, if Shirou is able to trace Caliburn, which supposedly holds the amount of power far exceeding his own, then I think tracing any object is not a problem for him."

Illya: I doubt Onii-chan could do anything like that. We have no idea what Chaos Emeralds or Power Rings really are, after all

Taiga: As for Projecting Caliburn, it was a bit easier for Shirou because his origin is Sword, having contained Avalon for ten years. Our next question is from Element-Overlord. Huh? Didn't this guy write to us before?

Illya: "Would it be possible for Shirou to get a form like Super Sonic?" Boy, a lot of people are sure interested in Onii-chan all of a sudden. Doesn't anyone care about this adorable heroine?

Taiga: Huh! A Super Shirou, hmm? Such a thing could be possible, if all seven Emeralds were found. However! While we cannot confirm nor deny the possibility of a Super Shirou appearing, I do have a picture of a Super lllya right here!

Illya: Really? Let me- Hey, what is this!? This is just Prisma Illya, and someone drew a yellow fireball around her!

Taiga: That's all of the time we have left for now. Please give us your support as we await the next chapter! Good bye!