Chapter 27: Deeper

Fighters for Japan's air force witnessed an unidentified flying object speeding out from Kyushu and towards international waters. Due to the immense velocity the UFO was moving at, none of the pilots or their equipment could a fix on its exact appearance. The most they could determine was that whatever it the size of a small child or so. If they could have taken a better look, they would have seen an actual child being carried by some kind of jet turbine with arms, legs, and a head. The only reason why the poor girl wasn't being torn apart by the G-forces was that the machine seemed to be contained in a bubble of energy that shield the both of them from the wind resistance.

It all began barely five minutes ago…

The Servants were going out to confront Gilgamesh. Sonic and Shirou's groups were going out to fight off the robots. All that left were Sakura and Illya, who would remain inside the castle. It bothered Illya that she was forced to babysit Rin's traumatized sister, but decided that remaining in Shirou's good graces would be enough. At the very least, it would give her something to hold over Tohsaka once this was all over.

If she lasted that long, anyway.

It was ironic, actually. Both girls, designed to act as vessels for the Holy Grail so their clans could achieve the glory that was the Heaven's Feel. But while Sakura had been spared from her fate, Illya's was still ambiguous.

There was a crash that caused some plaster to fall from the ceiling. While Sakura flinched, lllya just rolled her eyes. She missed Berserker.

"One of Eggman's robots probably snuck past everyone else," Illya stated calmly, "Don't worry about it."

"Why aren't you worried about all of this?" Sakura asked, "Servants fighting is one thing…"

"All mages- all Proper Mages- are trained to handle any sort of danger," Illya said standoffishly. "But if it bothers your that much, I, as the mistress of this castle, will repel the intruder."

Illya turned to face whatever weird-looking automaton had lucked its way past the defense force of Servants, mages and mascot characters. She had a confident, mayhaps overconfident, smile on her face. It was the look of a cat who was just found a one-winged canary.

Only this time, the 'canary' was actually a falcon.

Sakura, whose time in the archery club had given her somewhat better eyes for tracking targets, was the first to see it coming. Illya, her guard down from hubris, felt the wind rush out as a metal fist collided with her gut. It was a calculated blow, just enough force to knock her out, but it held back enough so as not to cause serious harm. Illya fell into the robot's arms.

"Let her go!" Sakura shouted, her concern overruling her shock and fear. She picked up the piece of plaster that raised it over head with intent to strike.

Then the robot looked at her.

And Sakura stopped, because unlike the comic and cartoonish eyes used on the majority of the Badniks, or the blank stares of the more 'normal' robots, these eyes bore into her. It was a stare that was both intense and and yet it glazed over her. Those eyes told her that she was both not a threat and what would happen if she tried appear as one.

There was a sound like a jet engine warming up, and the robot, with Illya, were encased into what seemed like a bubble of light. And then they were gone, a hole in the wall being the only sign of where they went. There were several walls, actually, creating a path all the way to the outside of the castle.

With a gasp, Sakura ran out towards the doors where the rest were.

Agent Stuart was finishing up what he hoped was a decent report for the Fuyuki case. It took a great deal of creative interpretation, but he figured that he had found a way to summarize his findings in a way that was both factual, but not liable to get him cashiered by his superiors or killed by this secret society Emiya and Tohsaka had mentioned. It helped that they had already found the dead bodies underneath Fuyuki Church, otherwise it would have been impossible to blame it all on Kotomine.

That was not to say that they were done, of course. Eggman was still out there. And from what he had heard, there seemed to be another incursion of his robots in the region where the Einzbern Castle was. It was uncanny that Eggman could somehow get his robots passed military patrols and radar without anyone catching wise. While the larger automatons could be seen (Although not stopped, unfortunately), the smaller robots seemed to just appear in the country without any warning. It was almost they were coming out of thin air.

It was then that Stuart's cell phone rang. Stuart retreated to a private place to take the call privately. Since it was to the number he used for his civilian identity, he assumed it was from someone involved with Homurahara Academy.

Putting on his most casual tone, Stuart answered the phone. "Hello, this is Stuart."

"Mr. Stuart. This is Saber, speaking," The soft but steely female voice replied, "We need your help."

Stuart briefly felt a moment of panic, but forced himself to be calm. "Ahh, is it for the reopening of school?"

"It's about Eggman," Her tone was clipped. "We need to know where he is. We know that you're an agent for the government. I heard your voice feeding questions to the officer interrogating Shirou, Rin, and myself. Archer also discovered you while investigating your base."

Stuart had no idea how to respond. While an agent's cover being blown on the field wasn't a total anomaly, to hear it happen so quickly was unheard of.

Still, there was no reason for Stuart to just let it go on. He opted to play dumb. "I'm afraid I don't know what you are talking-"

"Eggman has kidnapped one of our friends," Saber interrupted, "We need to find his base for a rescue mission."

That shut Stuart up. Before his brain could reactivate and have his mouth ask for more questions, Saber spoke again.

"I don't think the military is happy to just allow Eggman to attack this country without retaliating," Saber went on, "If they have gained any insight on the whereabouts of his hideout, we would like to have it."

"You can't expect me to give you confidential information like that out of hand," Stuart protested, "I could be fired at best, and arrested at worst."

"Mr. Stuart, when we first met, we were both pretending to be less than what we are," Saber said, "But I was not lying when I said I came to this land to aid Shirou. I am willing to risk it all to protect this nation, just as you are."

Stuart recalled the battle of Homurahara Academy. He remembered that the military had been unable to stop Eggman's relentless assault on the school. And he remembered the strange lady that appeared with Sonic to fight against him.

Stuart sighed, and, choosing his words carefully, said, "I would love to help, but we're having trouble locating Eggman ourselves. The military can't launch a suitable search effort when we're trying to stop giant robots from entering the country from the north-west. They always come in from the north-west."

"…Understood." The connection broke.

Once it was over, Stuart sighed and leaned back against the wall. He had just broke at least five regulations in one sitting. I just hope this pays off.

"Agent Stuart?" An aide came up with a report in hand. "You might want to see this…"

Once they had gotten Stuart's rather subtle directions, it was easy to plot out a course towards Eggman's base. Tails confirmed that the direction Eggman's sub-bosses kept entering the city in was on the same pathway the Flying Torpedo flew on from the harbor. All that was left was to arrange a battle-strategy. It was obvious that Gilgamesh's timely appearance at the raid meant he and Eggman were now working together. Which meant that the rescue of Illya needed to be more intelligent than 'Rush in, wreck stuff, find her and get out.'

"I am going," Saber decided in a voice that once ruled Camelot. "I can defeat Gilgamesh while the rest of you find Illya and stop Eggman."

"Oh no, you're getting all of the fun," Lancer protested, "I'm going too."

"Ditto." Archer said. His face was without emotion, but his voice carried an undertone of threat if his demand wasn't met.

"So I guess we're all going?" Shirou asked. He didn't like the idea of having to travel anywhere with Archer and Lancer, but Illya's safety was more important to him than his own comfort. He could stomach their presence if it meant saving his sister.

"Uh, actually…" Tails began, but was summarily ignored.

"You're staying," Archer ordered, "This will be hard enough without having to protect your weak ass."

"Guys?" Tails tried again, to no avail.

"You don't have to trouble yourself on my behalf." Shirou shot back.

"We have no idea what Eggman's base is like," Rin considered, "We should all go, for strength in numbers."

Tails finally gave up talking and put both fingers in his mouth. Before he let out a shrill whistle that, in sequence, caused their ears to ache and their eyes to focus on him.

"Great team spirit, guys," Tails said, "But…this isn't a airline jet."

Part of the problem was that the Tornado could only hold a small amount of people, due to its weight-limit. And even then they had to take into account how to keep the bi-plane's agility in the air. While it could hold the entirety of Sonic's group, there was some difficulty determining who else could come.

"Rin, Bazett and I could come," Shirou suggested, "Once we're at Eggman's base, we can summon our Servants with our Command Seals."

"Not enough room on the Tornado," Knuckles commented, "I don't think you guys are used to standing on the wings like we are."

"I can do that." Archer put in. Lancer had an eager expression that indicated he was more than willing to give it a try as well.

"But can you fly effectively with two grown men hanging on?" Bazett asked, "I doubt Eggman will just let you approach his…Saucer without retaliating."

"Yeah, that's gonna be tricky," Tails conceded, "I've been able to keep Sonic in the air when fighting Eggman's air forces, but with three guys…"

A lightbulb turned on in Rin's head. "What if Archer and Lancer go in astral form? Then their weight won't effect the Tornado at all!"

Tails scratched his head in thought. "Yeah, that could work, I think."

"What about the rest of us?" Shirou asked.

"Hey!" Amy spoke up, "Maybe that agent guy Saber called could loan us a plane, or something. I mean, the military is probably planning to take down Eggman too, right? They must have something ready."

"It did not sound that way," Saber admitted, "And, Mr. Stuart is bound by the laws of this state and the rules of his position. I doubt he could arrange anything fast enough."

"So, we just send the Servants," Bazett decided, "We Masters will remain behind and focus on providing them with Mana so they can help fight against Eggman's robots and Gilgamesh."

"What about the Chaos Emeralds?" Shirou tried one last tack, "Can't we use them to teleport to Eggman's base?"

Knuckles said, "Only if we know the exact location. Just the general direction won't help. And the only reason you and Sonic were able to find us after escaping the Matou place is because your Emerald homed in on the Emerald Avenger had."

"Our enemy is both Dr. Eggman and Gilgamesh," Saber said, "We can't afford to be reckless."

Shirou looked down, frustrated. He couldn't argue with the logic, not for lack of trying. He could feel the heat of the Fire of Fuyuki, once again unable to help anyone. After all the training he did and progress he made, he was still useless when it counted. He fumed.

Sonic, who had been uncharacteristically quiet during this debate, hopped down from where he was sitting on the Tornado's wings. He walked up to Shirou and patted the back of his legs. "Tell ya what. Next, if one your budsgets kidnapped, you can go and I'll stay behind."

"Actually, I'd rather it was someone like Archer or Lancer staying behind." Shirou replied, which got a few laughs. But not much.

And so, Archer and Lancer faded from sight as they entered their astral forms. Saber sat in the backseat of the Tornado and Amy Rose awkwardly squeezed in to sit on her lap. It was a somber moment, as not only were the departing heroes leaving to face Eggman, but Sonic's group would possibly be leaving the universe. Both Eggman and Gilgamesh were dangerous on their own, but together the potential for disaster was skyrocketing. Splitting them apart with Chaos Control would be the only chance the universe had for survival. So the takeoff was delayed so everyone could say goodbye.

"Be careful, Amy." Bazett warned, "And thanks for everything."

"You're welcome," Amy said, fidgeting on Saber's lap. "And dont worry about us. We do this sort of thing all the time!"

Rin, meanwhile, was giving the main engine of the biplane was a suspicious look. "Are you sure the Tornado can make the trip? If you get into trouble, you won't be able to land for repairs."

But Tails wasn't worried. "This baby can handle anything. If worse comes to worse, we'll just crash-land on the Egg Saucer."

"Right..." Rin looked away, biting on her lips. After a moment, she reached up, grabbed Tails, and pulled him into a hug. "I'm going to miss you." She whispered.

Tails chuckled awkwardly, but still smiled and patted Rin on the back. "Right back at ya."

Knuckles had taken a seat on the Tornado's back end. He noticed Sakura was still looking at her feet, obviously despondent at having lost Illya.

"Hey," He called out to Sakura, "There wasn't anything you could do. Don't bring yourself down. Leave it to us, we'll get her back.

At his words, Sakura couldn't help but smile faintly. She hadn't been particularly close to any of Sonic's group, but she deeply appreciated how their presence and actions had change their fates...especially her's.

But Shirou wasn't smiling. He hated not being involved in something like this. It was his thirst for justice taking hold...or, according to those more cynical, it was still unresolved amounts of emotional trauma bubbling up. But truly, those were just excuses he focuses on to avoid the truth...

As he looked up at the Tornado's wing, where Sonic had retaken his place, the Hedgehog didn't seem particularly happy about how things were going either.

"It's too bad we couldn't see enough of your world," Sonic remarked, "But it was nice while it lasted."

"From what you've told me about yours, our world isn't that impressive." Shirou replied, a bit hollow.

Sonic gave Shirou a knowing look and said, "Every world is impressive. The trick is to learning to see it."

Shirou hadn't thought about it like that.

"Shirou," Saber spoke up. While she knew that Sonic's words may have helped, they wouldn't be enough to settle the dissatisfaction brewing in her Master. She had seen enough of Shirou's life in her dreams that what he truly hated was being useless. Hopefully, her words would put him at ease. "Please make sure our victory meal is prepared," She flashed him a comforting, confident smile that had every ounce of her Rank B Charisma poured in, "For we'll need it when we return."

Shirou felt his heart lift, albeit slightly. Off to the side, both Rin and Sakura felt twinges of jealousy in their souls.

The noise filled the air as Tails started the biplane's engine. Shirou, Rin, Sakura and Bazett quickly got away so the Tornado could take off. The last Shirou saw before they vanished over the horizon was Sonic's and Saber's eyes, looking into his.

Feeling frustrated and impotent, the humans only remained at Illya's Castle for a short while. Shirou tried to distract himself by cleaning a bit of the rubble caused by Eggman's attack, but found he had no motivation. So, with Bazett at the wheel, the Masters and Sakura drove back to Fuyuki. None of them spoke to each other.

When they arrived back at the Emiya Estate, they just drifted apart. Rin and Bazett sat at the table. Sakura busied herself by making some tea for everyone. Shirou found himself wandering. He ended up in the more unused area of the Estate, near the rooms Saber and Sonic had been given. While Saber's room was almost bare of anything beyond basic amenities, Sonic had turned his room into a little man-cave. The blanket to set up a makeshift hammock. It was a wonder that fabric hadn't gotten punctured by Sonic's quills. There were also slightly tattered magazines scattered here and there. Sonic must have picked these up during his runs around the city. No doubt

Saber's room, on the other hand, didn't have any magazines or reading material. According to Rin, the Holy Grail supplied Servants with general knowledge of the modern world, so Saber already knew how to coexist in the present time period. (Shirou had been briefly disappointed that there wouldn't be any 'adjustment hijinks.) However, while cleaner and more orderly than Sonic's room, it wasn't devoid of personal flavor. Sitting on the bed was the stuffed lion toy Shirou had given to Saber. And off in the corner was the Kamen Rider helmet she had taken from the school's drama club. Shirou debated whether or not to return it when he heard a voice from behind him.

"The Shonen manga I understand," Asassin commented, leafing through a discarded book. "But why would a cross-country runner be interested in cars?"

Shirou whirled about, and sure enough, there was the Servant Assassin. He had thought that Assassin, having lost his Master twice over, would have vanished from lack of Prana. But given that both of those Masters had held Chaos Emeralds briefly, 'lack of Mana' was obviously going to take longer than expected.

"I assume Saber isn't with you?"Assassin asked pleasantly, "If she were, she would have sensed my presence and come here."

This was bad. Shirou knew he didn't stand a chance against a swordsman who could fight equally with Saber. Them again, if Assassin had come with terminal intentions, he wouldn't have revealed himself the way he did. Unless he wanted to be polite and thought murdering someone while they were self-aware of it to be more honorable. Assassin was strange like that.

Sensing Shirou's unease, Assassin said, "Oh, don't worry, Master Emiya, I am not here for battle. I have no Master of my own and no urge to pursue the Grail."

"So why exactly are you here?" Shirou asked, still wary.

Assassin leaned against a wall and looked at the ceiling. He said, "Ever since the death of my second Master, I've been using my remaining time to explore and take in this era's wonders. I'll admit, having foreword of it thanks to the Holy Grail spoils it all a bit, but there's a difference between that and experiencing it with your own senses."

"Are you having a good time?" Shirou was a little annoyed at Assassin's intrusion, but a bit curious as well. What did the modern world look like to a samurai?

"Oh, it's been lovely," Assassin replied, smiling cheerfully. "Although…"

"What?"

"I've recently discovered something…unusual," Assassin was no longer smiling as he said this, "Something that does not fit the information provided by the Grail."

This intrigued Shirou. "So, why come talk about this with me?"

"Because, I've heard from a reliable source that you are quite good with machines," Assassin answered, "So…can I count on your help?"

Out on the ocean, the waves churned. The currents of the sea were disrupted, numerous boats were nearly capsized, as a great forced caused the water to explode out. It was if someone had taken a giant rock and thrown into the Sea of Japan. Or the rock was going in the opposite direction…

On the Egg Saucer, Eggman watched as his robots installed the final component on his Genesis Ray's new power source. He had been a bit concerned when Illya had arrived at the Egg Saucer unconscious, but a quick examination showed that she had simply passed out and was in no serious danger.

For now, at least.

Eggman's stoic expression slowly shifted to manic glee as he watched the needle on the power gauge rise from the "E" (For empty) towards the "M" (For 'Maximum Power"). Finally, something's going right for once! His grin faltered when the arrow suddenly stopped at the halfway point. "What the heck?"

"And how are things going, Doctor?" Was how Gilgamesh announced himself as he entered the room.

Eggman tried to shift his scowl into a smile, but it came out looking like a grimace. "Splendid, splendid! Putting that girl in the siphon chamber as well as the Shadow have brought up our energy output by leaps and bounds."

Gilgamesh smirked and sat down on a magnificent throne that appeared to have a solid gold frame work and what seemed like the most comfortable pillow as a cushion.

"Well, that's to be expected," Gilgamesh replied, resting on one arm. "Not only does she have the most active Mage Circuits of all the Masters, but she's also containing the souls of at least half the War's Servants."

And if my theory holds water, we won't even need the rest! Eggman thought greedily.

"Of course, even if she had all of the Servants, we wouldn't be able to manifest the Grail here," Gilgamesh continued, "For that, we still need Fuyuki City's leylines. The Grail's container must be over one of the intersecting leylines in the city."

"Calculating our ETA," Orbot announced from another terminal, "We should be at the city within at least two hours."

"Hey, Mr. King Servant Guy," Cubot called from his station, "Can we go to anywhere in Fuyuki, or is someplace specific?"

Gilgamesh smirked. "I've already given you the exact coordinates we need to bring my plan to fruition. If you follow the King's orders exactly as they are issued, our victory is assured."

"And if we fire the Genesis Ray at this exact spot, the reaction will compensate for our limited power?" Orbot asked, pointing to a flashing dot on a map.

"Precisely," Gilgamesh answered, "And when the beam of change strikes, it will spell the end of this corrupt and disgusting world and the birth of a true paradise- something worthy of me."

"I couldn't have said it better myself." Eggman half-purred, half-growled. In truth, while he appreciated Gilgamesh's support, he was quickly getting tired of the so-called King of Heroes' ego. The only thing appealing about this partnership was that it would soon be ending.

Before the banter could go any further, an alarm sounded.

"What was that?" Gilgamesh asked, frowning. "Is something malfunctioning?"

"No, that was a long-range proximity alert," Orbot replied, "It seems that something is approaching us."

"Focus our auto-binocs onto it and transmit the image on our main screen." Eggman ordered.

Orbot did so, and when the display lit up, it showed the ocean's horizon. However, there was a dot in the center of the screen. After a moment, the size of that dot increased, and its shape became more pronounced.

It was the Tornado, of course. And standing on the wings was Sonic the Hedgehog. In the back, Tails could be seen piloting, with the second seat of the cockpit awkwardly shared by Amy Rose and Saber. Knuckles the Echidna was determinedly hanging onto the tail of the plane.

Eggman twirled his mustache. "Ahh, here comes Sonic and his merry band," He picked up the microphone of a ham radio and began issuing orders. "All forces, prepare for battle! All ready and available Badniks are ordered to be deployed to their assigned positions!" Hanging up, he turned to Gilgamesh with an wicked grin. "It's showtime!"

And Gilgamesh smiled just as wickedly.

"Are we there yet?" Amy asked from her tentative position on Saber's lap.

"Does it look we're there yet?" Knuckles growled. He wasn't too happy about being stuck in the back.

"I don't know, it's all cloudy out-"

"Something's coming!" Saber shouted, heading off a potential argument.

That something was in fact a squad of Badniks designed to look like a cross between fighter jets and purple falcons, coming out from the clouds and at the Tornado.

Tails yanked at the yoke, and the bi-plane tilted back and went upwards to avoid a collision. As it did, the Condors swung around and tried to match the Tornado's height. Spotting this, both Sonic and Knuckles leapt off of the bi-plane and systematically smashed the attacking robots. Tails pulled the Tornado into a somersault and swung under the falling heroes and caught them on the wings. Sonic and Knuckles gave each other a thumbs-up, pleased with their handiwork.

"Not a bad appetizer, huh?" Sonic remarked, and flashed Tails a grin. "Cool flying, bro, as usual!"

"We must be getting close to Eggman's base!" Tails reported, "My radar is picking up a huge object!"

And Saber, with eyes superior to mortal beings, pointed. "You are more right than you know. Look!"

The clouds parted, and the crew of the Tornado saw it. The 'huge object' they approached was a gigantic maze of factories and complexes, situated on a massive circle. On each building, Eggman's insignia leered at all who could see them. Even from a distance, they could see hundreds of dots that were robots racing about the workings.

"Hey, Amy!" Sonic called out, "We're here!"

"I can see that, thanks!" Amy responded.

Taking out the Piko Piko Hammer, Amy got out of Saber's lap and positioned herself on the Tornado's tail. In the sky, they could see what seemed to be an endless swarm of flying Badniks en route to intercept them. Tails went into evasive manuevers, and Saber was surprised to see that he didn't even have to call it out, as Sonic, Knuckles and Amy grabbed hold of the bi-plane to avoid being thrown off. They dodged a slew of missiles, and once Tails righted the Tornado, Sonic jumped off and smashed a trio of Nebulas that were closing in. As Tails swung the plane to catch Sonic, Knuckles then jumped off and glided towards an Turtloid. Slugging the driving robot to pieces (releasing some sort of parakeet), Knuckles took the time to stretch as he waited on top the riding robot for the Tornado to get closer. Once it was, he slammed his fist down on the riding robot, and glided back to the biplane. He missed the wings, but grabbed hold of the landing gear which he used to climb back on time. Afterwards, he shot Tails a dirty look.

"Sorry, Knux!" Tails called out, "It's hard to keep track of two guys at once!"

A squad of at least twenty Condors began to circle the bi-plane. While Amy managed to smash one or two that got a bit too close with her hammer, Sonic and Knuckles took a more direct approach. They both jumped at the same time and began to smash the surrounding Condors with their Spinball forms. To Saber, it looked like a bunch of seals bouncing balls with their noses before exploding. Unfortunately, they were too far away from the Tornado when the two of them ran out of robots, and plummeted downwards.

Amy shrieked, but Saber yelled out, "Tails, fly after Sonic! Leave the plane to me!" and without even giving the fox a chance to respond, grabbed him and flung him at Sonic as hard as she could. She then planted herself into the pilot's seat took hold of the yoke. Her A-Rank Riding Skill kicked in, and Saber directed the Tornado towards Knuckles. Briefly stunned by the abruptness of Saber's actions, Tails went into helicopter mode and flew at Sonic, catching his friend by the hand. Once Saber had caught Knuckles, she swung the plane around for Sonic and Tails to hop on.

"This is incredible, Saber!" Tails cried, "When did you learn to fly?"

"My Riding Skill allows me to control anything besides a Divine Beast," Saber explained, "If I can put it between my legs, I can steer it to its utmost ability!"

As Tails took his place back in the pilot's seat, he had this odd vision of Saber sitting on top of a jumbo jet, holding a pair of reins attached to the nose. And judging from Sonic and Knuckles' grins, they were thinking the same thing.

Why does everyone smile like that whenever I explain my Riding Skill? Saber thought, confused.

As they approached the Egg Saucer, Saber stood up. She glared down at the massive structure as Tails swung the plane around. She could see a large open area where a majority of the Badniks were beginning to gather.

"Archer! Lancer!" Saber called out, "We are getting off here!" And to Sonic she said, "We Servants will draw Eggman's attention while the rest of you infiltrate the fortress to find Illya. Is that an acceptable plan?"

"Just don't get so worked up you explode the whole place up with your magic sword!" Sonic replied, flashing Saber a thumbs-up.

Nodding at Sonic and returning his smile, Saber leapt from the Tornado. A moment later, both Archer and Lancer re-materialized and followed after her. Normally, such a jump would have resulted in the jumper plummeting into the ocean depths, the Heroic Spirits soared through the air. Eggman's robots, detecting the higher energy concentrations, turned their attention away from the Tornado and towards the Servants, moving to either capture or prevent the Servants from reaching the Egg Saucer. Naturally, they failed abysmally. Not only did the Servants easily destroy whatever robots that came their way, but they used the force of the Badniks exploding to propel themselves closer to the Egg Saucer. From a distance, it would appear that three streaks of light, red, blue, and gold, were leaping from one explosion to another.

"Look at 'em go," Sonic commented, "I'm almost jealous at how easily they're doing it."

"I'm taking us in, guys!" Tails announced, "Hold on to something and can an eye out!"

Knuckles then pointed, "Incoming!"

Sonic and Knuckles grabbed onto the wings, while Amy hunkered down in the passenger seat. Tails jerked the yoke, and the Tornado tilted on its side to avoid a missile that rocketed past it. Eggman's robots may have been focusing on the Servants, but the anti-aircraft guns were of a different mind. Another missile came at it, and then another. The Tornado quickly found itself twisting and turning about in the air to avoid the onslaught of ballestic death.

"You know, I'm starting to feel unwelcome!" Sonic yelled.

"Don't worry, we're almost through!" Tails exclaimed, "I just need a place to land the Tornado!"

"There!" Amy cried, pointing. "I see an empty spot at four o'clock!"

"Going down!"

Once they landed on the deck of the Egg Saucer, the Servants found themselves facing an immense crowd of Badniks. Instead of the more esoteric robot designs, the army was made up of Egg Pawn subtypes. Besides the typical Egg Pawns, all armed with either shields, bazookas, or spears, there were the larger units, robots that were were almost bigger than Berserker, armed with proportionally-sized hammers. There also Flappers, Egg Pawns that were hovering in the air. Their facial designs did not allow the expression of emotions, so they stared blankly at Saber, Archer and Lancer.

The Heroic Spirits of the Knight Classonly regarded their foes for a second. Then, they moved. And as they moved, the robots exploded, one by one, but so quickly that it seemed like one continuous burst. Saber and Lancer were the first into the fray, slashing and stabbing robots as they ran.

For Saber, this was nothing new. She had fought alongside Sonic in defending Fuyuki from Eggman's robots time and again, so the initial thrill of destroying robots had begun to dull. What pushed her through the sheer drive and determination to succeed. To Win! She cleaved through the Egg Pawn horde as they were butter to the hot knife of Excaliber. Saber had dispensed with the Invisible Air that normally hide the size and legnth of her sword; such subtleties would have been wasted on the unthinking machines. A pair of Egg Hammers attempted to sandwich her between their hammers, but Saber jumped up and delivered a powerful kick that took off one's head, and used the recoil to fly at and decapitate the other.

But while Saber was as stoic as ever, Lancer was the opposite. The thirst for battle that had been suppressed by Kotomine's orders to watch and wait was awakened, and the sheer amount of opponents only served to whett his appatite. He pushed his speed to its absolute maximum, and skewered multiple Egg Pawns in one thrust. They had no hearts for his Gae Bolge to target, but Lancer had no need of his Noble Phantasm for them. Some slightly more intelligent Egg Pawns attempted to blast Lancer from a distance, but his Protection From Arrows skill allowed him to effortlessly block and avoid their shots. At one point, Lancer stabbed his spear into the ground and spun around like an Olympic gymnast, swatting robots in a circle before righting himself and resuming his charge.

Archer, meanwhile, fought a different sort of battle. He stayed in the back, and watched as Saber and Lancer swooped in and decimated the robots. The ones on the ground, anyway. His sharp eyes took in the airborn Flappers.

I Am The Bone Of My Sword

The air around Archer shimmered, and multiple swords appeared, floating within his general proximity. Archer took one sword, Projected his bow, and let the sword fly through the air. One Flapper exploded, and the others followed suit. They were replaced by more flying Badniks, but those too were destroyed by Archer's volley of Broken Phantasms. Once the air was looking a bit clearer, Archer moved to shooting out the Egg Pawns that further in, that were trying in vain to shoot Saber and Lancer from a distance with bazookas. It didn't take long for the robots to realize that the torrent destruction were coming from somewhere. Archer heard the sound of rockets from behind him and jumped to the side to avoid being blasted. Coming up where a trio of Egg Robos, their guns blazing. Archer fired a slew of swords, destroying them, and took stock of the surroundings.

Those robots snuck up behind him, but they didn't come out from the horde Saber and Lancer are fighting, Archer thought, So where did they come from…?

Then he saw it. A hatch opening up on the deck. Another Egg Robo came out, and was instantly destroyed by a Broken Phantasm. Archer glanced back at the brawl. He looked at the hatch.

Tails found an empty spot on a deck further away from where the Servants landed, and brought the Tornado and Team Sonic (& Knuckles!) took off into the Egg Saucer.

"I always feel a little worried whenever we leave the plane unattended," Tails remarked, even after he set the clamp. "What if someone takes it?"

"That only happened once," Sonic assured his little buddy, "And Big said he was sorry about that."

"The only one who's going to be sorry right now is Eggman," Knuckles smacked his fists together. "Here comes the welcome wagon!"

"Another one?" Amy asked, and swung her hammer into an [Badnik], "I thought Saber and the others were keeping Eggman's bots busy."

As they ran across the pathways, jumping over barriers and floating platforms, they came across a railing that seemed to separate those who chose to go forward from those who wanted to go backwards. Sonic was on in in a second, followed by the rest of the team. Their momentum carried them forward as they skated along the railing, screech of their heels grinding against the metal filling the air. It was almost so loud that Sonic didn't hear what Tails said at first. Once they had jumped off and flew about seventy feet before landing on a different pathway, Tails repeated himself.

"If there was a terminal, I could find out where Illya's being kept." Tails said.

Sonic held up his hand signaling that he was about to stop, and did so. They four of them were now standing on a catwalk. Putting his hands over his eyes, he peered around, he could flashing lights and hear soft explosions in the distance. Apparently, the Servants' battle was still going on.

"Well, we're not going to find anything like that out here," Sonic decided, "Let's check the central building!"

They took off running again, and soon jumped off the catwalk and onto a powerline. The metal tubes that moved energy throughout the Egg Saucer were as wide as Eggman's stomach, and the four were able to keep their balance even at high speed. As they ran, a squad of quartet of Snail Blasters were stationed on a smaller pipeline higher up. As they took aim, Amy spotted the Badniks out of the corner of her eye.

"Bogies at nine o'clock!" She exclaimed, "Jump!"

Team Sonic (& Knuckles!) did jump, narrowly avoiding the Snail Blasters' cannonfire. While they were in the air, Sonic launched a Homing Shot and destroyed the Badniks one right after another. Once he was done, he launched another Homing Shot to get back onto the powerline. He soon caught up with the rest of the Team.

"Show off!" Knuckles shouted back at Sonic.

Tails then squinted. "Here come some more!"

A trio of Egg Pawns holding up thick riot shields were up ahead. One held up a sign shaped like Eggman's head with the word "STOP!" written in big red letters.

"I've got this," Knuckles snorted, and took the lead.

Swinging his fists, Knuckles plowed through the Egg Pawns, smashing their shields like basal wood and knocking them off the powerline. One landed relatively intact, only to for its head to be cut off by the stop sign falling down at an angle.

The powerline began to turn away from the central building. As they jumped off, Knuckles saw some Flappers flying in their direction.

"Look who showed up!" He yelled, jerking a thumb.

"Hang on!" Tails cried.

Tails grabbed Sonic and Knuckles' hands, while Amy grabbed hold of their feet. Spinning his tails at maximum speed, Tails slowed their fall just enough that the Flappers just soared beneath them. Tails let go and the team continued on. The road to the central complex was littered with the usual pitfalls, along with mounted laser turrets and flamethrowers.

"We're almost there!" Sonic announced, "Get ready! There's probably a sub-boss waiting for us at the entrance, or something!"

Amy smacked an approaching Egg Pawn. "What kind of robot do you think it will be?"

In his control room, Eggman stared at screen, showing the overview of Egg Saucer's layout. On one section, two glowing dots were zipping about. In another section, another dot was seen running towards the central building of the Egg Saucer. Adjecent to the overview display, there was a smaller display showing a side layout of the Egg Saucer. There was a dot going into the underground sections.

Eggman turned his chair towards the two figures behind him. "All right, boys? Shall we draw straws?"

&Break&

"All right," Rin declared, standing up. "We're moving."

Since returning to the Emiya Property, the ladies had been sitting around the table, drinking tea in silence. So, Rin's declaration had the same effect as would popping a balloon in a library. Sakura and Bazett jumped slightly and looked to the Tohsaka Master

Sakura asked, "What do you want to do mean, Nee-san?"

"I mean we're not to just sit here and do nothing!" Rin said fiercely, "We're going to the Ryuudou Temple!"

Bazett caught on. "Absorbing the Leylines intersecting there will help our Servants in their battles." She explained to the confused Sakura.

"It's not normally done because remaining in a public space would make a Master vulnerable to attack," Rin went on, "But since we're the only Masters left, that's not an issue we need to worry about. Where's Shirou? Saber will need more Mana than anyone."

It was at that moment that the women took note of an absence. Namely, Shirou's. They did a quick scan of the house and found no trace of its Master. They also realized that his bicycle was missing.

"Where the heck did he go?" Rin asked, her voice laced with irritation born of worry. "Doesn't he realize what kind of crisis we're In? Fine time to go grocery shopping!"

"Senpai was upset at being left behind," Sakura, reaching towards her mouth in concern. " You don't suppose…?"

In a stunning act of mental synchronization, the same exact thought passed through each of their heads. That thought was an image of Shirou, wearing ill-fitting combat fatigues, haphazardly trying fit in with a squad of actual soldiers, as they boarded a helicopter.

"Let's call that agent," Bazett decided, "We might be able to catch him."

They wouldn't be able to catch him. Shirou had no idea where he even was. Assassin had led him on a winding trail of back allies and side roads. In hindsight, he should have told the girls that he was going out, or left a note. He was going to get it when he got back, that was for sure. It would take at least three home cooked meals. Hopefully.

Of course, none of that was in Shirou's head as he looked at Assassin's discovery. It was some kind of high tech platform, with a circle of lights on the top. Attached to it was a small flight of stairs that would help climb on top of it. Alongside the platform was a computer terminal, which were flickering and making beeping sounds. It was like nothing Shirou had seen before.

"Well?" Assassin asked, "Can you figure out what it does?"

Swallowing, Shirou approached the device. He laid his land on the terminal. "Trace On."

Information flowed into Shirou's mind. It was almost too much. Compared to the robot that attacked Illya's castle, this machine, though much smaller, was far more advance. The sheer enormity of the designs almost overwhelmed Shirou, but the Master refused to buckle under the mental pressure. Through sheer determination, Shirou forced himself to decipher the various patterns and mechanics that made up the machine.

After a moment, he gasped, and fell to his knees. Assassin was quickly at his side.

"Are you well?" The Servant asked, concerned.

"Yeah..." Shirou muttered, shaking his head in an attempt to clear it. "It...this machine...it's some kind of matter transporter. It can teleport things... Eggman built it," As the buzz faded, Shirou stood up to look at the platform. "It's how he's been able to get his forces into the city unnoticed. This... this goes straight to his hideout!"

Assassin looked at the teleporter. If he was saying anything, Shirou couldn't hear it. His head was filling with ideas. Actually, just one idea. As if in a trance, he walked towards the terminal. After all, he knew how it worked...

To be continued

Tiger Dojo:

Taiga: Welcome, one and all, to the Tiger Dojo! I am your instructor, Fujimura Taiga!

Omochao: I'm Omochao. I'll be assisting in this Q/A.

Taiga: Huh!? Wha- where's Shishou?

Omochao: Who? I don't know what you are referring to.

Taiga: Ah, um, well, never mind! Let us go to the first question, from Vein Bloodborne: "Will Sonic enter his 'King Arthur' mode or even his Werehog mode?"

Omochao: That is unlikely. Sonic would have to be pulled into the story of King Arthur for the first, and the second requires Sonic to be exposed to a large amount of Dark Gaia. Our next question comes from Kenza. They ask, "What were Lancelot's last thoughts when he saw Sonic together with Saber and Shirou before dying peacefully?"

Taiga: Hmm...Lancelot mistook Sonic for King Arthur because of his Mad Enhancement impeding his judgement. I bet when he saw Sonic with untainted eyes, he was probably happy to see someone who might understand the burden his king once bore.

Omochao: Our last question comes from Shen; "Will Sonic use a sword?" Actually, I have an early sample of an upcoming chapter I've been authorized-

SKRREEEEEE

We interrupt this program for an emergency announcement. A large, unidentified flying object has been sighted approaching Japan. All attempts to communicate with this vessel have failed, and citizens are advised to be ready to evacuate if need be. We now return to our regularly scheduled show.

Taiga: -nd that wraps it up for our session! I will see you at the next practice!

Omochao: See you later, everyone!