Sonic kept running his hand over Chip's Bracelet, trying to get it to do something, anything really. But it remained unresponsive, warm against his skin, but that was about it.
"So, how'd you end up getting acquainted with a god? Even during my time, my old man only showed up a couple times". Cu asked, sitting on a chair. The group had set themselves up at a cafe that was moderately held together, with Mash declaring she'd look for anything edible within while Olga was setting up some kind of ritual circle.
"Not sure we're running on the same idea of gods here, my world has a lot of things called gods, but not sure if they actually ARE gods or just so powerful people called them gods". Sonic leaned against his chair, a thoughtful look on his face. "Chaos was called the God of Destruction, but he was just a mutated Chao".
"Chaos? Any relation to Greek Chaos?". Cu was wondering if that was another thing their world shared, it was already weird enough both of them had King Arthur.
"
I... Don't know? Is Greek Chaos a water monster?". At the Caster's confused look, Sonic explained further. "Chaos was a mutated Chao, and... Okay I'm not good at explaining this, basically there was this alien race called the Ancients once, probably had a proper name but...".
"Wiped out completely?". Caster asked grimly.
"Most of em yea, big threat, they managed to seal it away, and over the years they ended up becoming Chao, cute little fella's that are kinda animal-like, they can gain traits from those they spend time around. Anyway, Chaos was a Chao that got mutated into a form like the Ancients, but way more powerful, to the point he started getting called the God of Destruction". The hedgehog finished his explanation, most would have dozens of questions, but...
"Huh, interesting story". Cu was from the Age of Gods, he'd seen far weirder then a animal becoming some kind of Divine Spirit. "You sound pretty familiar with this Chaos guy".
"You tend to remember nearly drowning to a water monster". Sonic snarked back, his gaze shifting to gaze at the mountains in the distance. "...King Arthur, huh?".
"Aye, or at least whatever remains of her, not sure how much of that mud effected her... She hasn't even spoken since she got Altered... Yea, Alter, that's a good way to describe her".
Sonic frowned, this wasn't good. He wasn't stupid, he knew despite the name this world's King Arthur was going to be completely different from the illusion he had faced. This was the real deal-
"Does she have Avalon?". He asked Cu, who blinked and shook his head. "Phew, that's a worry off my head".
"If she had that sheathe, I wouldn't have even suggested fighting her head on". The Caster may enjoy a good fight, but an immortal opponent? How was that fair?
"FINISHED!". The sudden victorious shout of Olga caused them to pause in their conversation, looking at the completed ritual circle. "Hedgehog! Get over here!".
Raising an eyebrow, Sonic sped over, noticing how the circle actually seemed to resemble a Zodiac wheel. He could feel energy coming off it, but nothing more.
"Sooo what is this thing? Some kinda magic thing obviously, but why do ya need me?". The hedgehog asked, but Olga just rolled her eyes.
"Its a ritual to check you're Magic Circuits". The Director began to explain. "You have a contract with Kyrielight, but we have no idea how its possible. This will allow us check you're circuits and reduce any strain on them, now get in the middle of the circle".
"Alright". Sonic casually walked into the circle, which began to glow, a strange, itchy feeling fill his body. "Is it meant to be itchy?".
"That's... That's impossible...".
Huh?
Olga stared at the impossibility before her, the ritual she'd constructed was directly sending information into her brain regarding every detail. In truth, she could've just used Structural Analysis to check the condition of his circuits, but this ritual gave her far more detailed information...
Information that was impossible.
"Heellllooo? Olga, you in there?". The hedgehog waved his hand between her eyes, and she quickly snapped out of it to give him a glare.
"You're in perfect health, you don't have to worry about Kyrielight's mana, in fact, go ahead and contract with Caster, you have more then enough energy to spare". The Director kept her voice neutral, the hedgehog smirked and gave a thumps up.
"Thanks for the check up! I'll go do that... However it works!".
He began to walk away, but all Olga could do was stare at his back, her mind recalling what she'd just learned. He didn't have Magic Circuits, a Dragon Core, anything she recognized...
An endless storm of energy, uncontrollable, various energy that couldn't be named mixing together in a melting pot. An embodiment of life, a burning flame that refused to go out, an unstoppable force, freedom.
Seven shining gemstones, unlimited, dreams to reality. A larger gemstone, its beauty and power unparalleled, the controller, the Master.
CoRruPTiON-!
"Guh!". Olga gasped, brushing a hand across her forehead and feeling the sweat that had formed. "What... The hell is he?".
"No clue".
!
Turning around, the Director glared at the approaching Caster, who taped his staff against the ritual circle she'd constructed, causing it to break apart into golden sparks that floated away.
"He's strong, ain't nobody who can deny that, but its clear he's way more then just some random world traveler. Medusa may have been corrupted, but she was still a powerful monster and hero killer, yet he made it look easy". Cu smirked, a desire for battle in his eyes. "Honestly, if we weren't in such a mess, I'd already have challenged him to a fight".
"Is fighting all you think about?". Olga asked, trying to hide her nerves at the battle maniac's smile.
"Fighting, fucking, fishing, and feasting's all a man needs to enjoy himself". Cu laughed, before turning serious. "You need to be careful little miss, Shielder, me, and Blue can take some hits, so your the weakest link, and everyone know's to target the weak link".
"I know that! I'll set up a barrier and let you guys handle the fighting, that's what monsters are good for right?". The Director glared, but the Caster took no offense at her words.
"Of course! Now, how help me collect stones".
"What?!".
"You never cease to surprise me blue hedgehog. I thought that the capsule you were in exploded in space". A dark, black furred creature spoke. Resembling Sonic the Hedgehog, he was clearly a mobian, with black fur with red stripes, white gloves, and advanced looking shoes. The strangest thing was the golden rings around his feet and hands, they didn't seem to have a way to be taken off.
But it was his red eyes that burned right through him/her.
"You know what can they say, I die hard!". He/She responded cockily, walking alongside the dark hedgehog. Feelings of confidence, rivalry, and a small bit of worry/relief in his/her chest. His/Her eyes glanced to the yellow gemstone in his/herhand, radiating an aura of power and beauty unlike anything she had ever seen before. "You actually saved me, you know?".
"It was a Chaos Emerald, wasn't it? But, there's no way you could have activated Chaos Control using an Emerald that's fake". The black hedgehog's glare became more intense, she wanted to run away, but he only felt excitement. "So there's more to you then simply looking like me. What are you anyway?".
Chaos chosen hero/Champion of Gaia/The Spark of Hope/The Final Resistance/Hero of Mobius.
"What you see is what you get! Just a guy that loves adventure!". They were speeding up now, a jog that was quickly becoming a run. She could tell, both of them were nowhere near their max speed. Strangely, she couldn't help but notice how the other hedgehog moved, he seemed to be gliding instead of running? "I'm Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog!".
"I see. But you know, I can't let you live!". The black hedgehog glared, and now they were going fast, so fast she was starting to feel sick. "Your adventuring days are coming to an end!"
So fast, they had excited the tunnel and into...
Stars, so many stars, was that Earth? It looked so beautiful from up here, her breath was frozen in her throat. She wanted this moment to last forever-
"-Ash! Mash! Wake Mash!".
"H-huh? O-oh! Hello Senpai!". Mash Kyrielight felt woozy, struggling to stand up, she had... Fallen asleep? Oh no. "O-oh! I'm sorry Senpai! I was meant to be looking for food and-".
"Its alright, you've been dealing with a lot of stressful situations, and take it from me, awakening to new powers is tiring". Sonic grinned, entering the kitchen and glancing around. "Not sure cardboard is the comfiest bed though".
"A-Ah, I must've passed out, this is so embarrassing". Mash was crimson, this was no way for a Servant to act! Her Senpai was so reliable, and she... She wasn't...
"Hey! No time for frowns ya hear me?". The Hedgehog smiled gently, patting the Shielder on the shoulder. "Its your first time getting into this sort of fight, you have no idea how many times I've seen others have this sort of nerves".
"Are... Are Servant level opponents common in your world, Senpai?". She asked, and he actually took a moment to pause and think.
"Not for everyone, ya every hear that expression power attracts power? Well, its literally a thing with Chaos Energy. Chaos Energy users are attracted to each other and objects of power". Sonic began to explain as the two began to check around for food and water they could take with them. "For an ordinary civilian, Servants would be a massive threat that could wipe out entire towns or cities. Hell, I could probably do the same if I didn't hold back".
"Hold... Back?". That sounded hard for Mash to believe, Sonic was already so powerful and he was holding back!?
"I can shatter the sound barrier in seconds, the speed of light is a slow jog for me. If I didn't have Chaos Energy to negate the impact of my speed, I'd bring a storm of destruction wherever I run, and even then I have to be careful". The hedgehog hero explained. "Its something a lot of my friends and I have to worry about, being to strong and fast for everything else around us. Your average human and mobian just aren't built to take that kind of force. Its something you'll have to worry about to now".
"I... I never really considered that aspect of being a Demi-Servant, I suppose I thought things would remain the same". Mash admitted, it wasn't something many people considered when having a sudden increase in power. "Oh! Senpai! There are some crackers here!".
"Great! I found some water bottles, its not the tastiest but it'll fill our stomachs!". Sonic cheered, and the Shielder smiled as well...
Trying to keep out the thoughts of how useless she had been, and the strange memory she had seen...
...Who was that mobian, who had looked so similar and yet so different to Sonic?
"
So we've got three targets to worry about". Olga was drawing on the pavement with some chalk they had found in the cafe, a rough map of Fuyuki already made. "Caster, you said there were three Servants remaining?".
"Aye, Berserker, Archer, and Saber. We shouldn't have to worry about Berserker, he's been rampaging on the opposite side of the city, its Archer and Saber we'll need to face". Cu used his own chalk to mark down the positions of said Servants. "As already stated, Saber is King Arthur, and considering she's receiving direct support from the Holy Grail, she'll be able to throw around her Noble Phantasm without worry".
"What about Archer? Do you have an idea who he is, Cu?". Mash asked, more information would be good.
"Not a clue, bastard is shifty, never let anything slip about his identity, and his weapons are confusing as fuck. Chinese swords, a bow, Hrunting, and I swear that bastard used Caladbolg at some point". The Hound of Ireland was frustrated, despite his attempts he had no clue who Archer actually was. "Main problem is him sniping us, my Protection from Arrows can only do so much, Blue can out-speed em, but you girlies? You have no way to avoid his arrows".
Mash felt sick, again, she was going to hold her Senpai back again-
"Actually... Mash is gonna be our key player here". Sonic grinned, causing the Shielder to perk up.
"Senpai...?". She asked, and the hedgehog turned to her.
"Ever wanted to be a ninja?".
"Huh?". Confused looks emerged from everyone, while Sonic began to explain his plan.
Gray eyes looked across the city from his vantage point, while a chilly wind blew his short, spikey gray hair. The Servant known as Archer was a Japanese man with a tan, wearing what seemed to be gray body armor over his chests, his arms completely exposed. His lower body was covered in black trousers with bits of armor, and pieces of a red cloak.
Most worrying of all, his body had what seemed to be red, unnatural markings across it. Even having one directly under his left eye.
Archer, an unknown man from an unknown time. Unlike most Servants who were granted their status after completing great feats in life, Archer made his way onto the Throne of Heroes by making a deal with Alaya, to become a Counter Guardian.
For combat, he uses Projection to recreate weapons he has seen, although all are weaker then the originals. His trump card however is .
'Where are they hiding? They left the cafe around three minutes ago and were approaching, but now they've vanished...'. Archer kept glancing around, his current spot was one of the tallest buildings in Fuyuki he could find, but- "There!".
Traveling through the city at immense speeds was a blue blur! The hedgehog! Archer aimed his bow and was about to unleash his arrow when-
"A fucking boulder!?". Archer exclaimed, for flying through the air towards him was a large piece of rubble shaped into a vaguely sphere like shape. 'Caster! He must've used Runes to have this thing head towards me, in that case!'.
He unleashed his arrow, watching as the boulder was consumed in an explosion, but that wasn't what drew his attention.
No, that was the blue blur that was running all over the city in a random pattern, and as he moved...
'Caster's not just enchanting the rubble himself, he must've given the hedgehog something inscribed with runes and telling him to put them onto large pieces of rubble!'. Archer stared at the storm of rubble heading towards him. It didn't make sense, Caster should know he could easily shoot any of this out of the sky, so why... "A distraction!?".
Fine, if his enemies were trying to distract him, it was time to pull out the big guns. Pulling on his connection to the corrupted Grail, he felt mana fill him as he resisted the urge to gag. All mana had a taste to it, and the mana of this Grail was utterly vile, the most horrific thing he'd ever tasted.
"Ugh, gotta focus... Hrunting!". Holding the Projected Noble Phantasm, he felt as it began to shift, becoming less of a sword and more an arrow. "Lets see how they like this!HRUNTING!".
The Noble Phantasm was unleashed with a boom, aiming directly at the blue blur running about. Archer watched as he took a left turn, but his arrowed followed. Great, that should stop all the rubble from coming at him, so he just needed to deal with Cu-
RUMBLE!
It was at that moment Archer remembered, he wasn't fighting just the hedgehog and Caster.
"HYAAAAAH!". Mash Kyrielight broke through the the ground he had been standing on, slamming into Archer directly with her shield.
As he was sent flying, he could only think one thing.
'This has to be the most overboard distraction I've ever seen!'.
Mash Kyrielight panted as she watched the Archer Servant go flying, but showing his worth as a Heroic Spirit he managed to land on his feet with only a hint of shakiness. Senpai's plan had worked!
'I can't let him ever know I doubted him!'. The Shielder thought, it had seemed like such a wild plan. Distracting Archer with Sonic and Cu running around and planting papers with runic markings across any large rubble they could find, distracting their enemy with to many targets, allowing her to slip through undetected and perform a sneak attack!
"What kind of madman came up with a distraction like that?!". Archer exclaimed loudly, but despite his swords, he had already settled into a combat stance, two short swords appearing in his hands, those must be what Cu was talking about. "That shield... A shield's role is to defend, but they sent you in as the main attack force?".
"I... I won't fail Senpai!". Mash's legs were shaking, while Archer didn't have an aura like Medusa, he still excluded a sense of extreme danger. But...
SHE HAD TO DO THIS!
"Hyaaaah!". The Shielder charged at Archer, who avoided her first blow and attempted to go for a slash with his left sword, but-
A combat style focused on using the legs.
- Mash lifted her right leg up knocking away her opponent's blade and then lashing out with a kick that sent him stumbling back. Rushing forward, she watched as Archer Projected his bow, an arrow already ready and about to hit her.
"Caladbolg II!". Unleashing the Noble Phantasm, he was confident it'd deal with the Shielder, she was way to close to-
Mash had slammed her shield into the ground and used it for a pole jump! Leaping high into the air, she allowed the force of the explosion to send her higher and as she descended, she brought down her shield! Archer however managed to avoid the blow, but not the shockwaves generated by her landing.
'She's inexperienced, but she's using her skills well, whatever Servant she merged with, its powerful! Add onto that, some of those techniques... Is she copying from the hedgehog?'. Archer ducked under Mash's attempts to slam her shield into him, projecting his married blades as he dealt two slashes to her stomach, but it looked like she didn't even feel it! 'Shielder, of course her defense is through the roof!'.
'Archer is simply to experienced for me to defeat him normally, he seems to be receiving mana from an outside source, likely the Holy Grail, so I can't exhaust him by outlasting him. Despite being a Knight Class, his Parameters don't seem that high'. Mash analyzed the fight, her many years spent reading and studying under Da Vinci coming into effect. 'If I want to win, I need to strike a decisive blow!'.
The two began to circle each other, waiting for the other to make the first move, whoever ran out of patience first...
Archer made the first move!
Rushing at Mash, he slammed his blades against her shield, before leaping up and trying to strike her from above. Only for her to let go of her shield and grab onto his leg! Using her tight grip the Shielder dragged Archer down and dealt a fierce headbutt to his skull. Dazed, he managed to avoid her sloppy punch and land a cut to her left arm, before leaping back and Projecting his bow again, unleashing an ordinary but still powerful arrow.
Ducking behind her shield, Mash charged, deflecting or enduring the arrows she was hit with, she needed to be faster! Much faster!
Bzzz!
Mash's eyes widened as blue electricity flickered around her for a moment, it didn't hurt, in fact it felt comforting...
It felt like Senpai.
"HYAAAAAAH!". Rushing at a much faster speed Archer wasn't prepared for, she managed to slam him directly with her shield. The force of the blow was so much, that it sent him straight through the wall and-. "U-uh oh!".
Mash quickly began to run away as the building began to collapse, and then another nearby building, and...
"O-oh no...". Mash stared at the completely fallen apart neighborhood. "I... I did that?".
"Fully honest? Looked like it was one sec from crashing, you and Archer's brawl just made it lose its last legs". Sonic commented, oh, that made sense-
"S-SENPAI!? WHEN DID YOU GET HERE?!". The Shielder was in shock, when did he show up? Why didn't he join the fight?
"Around the time Archer started talking about a shield's role". Sonic grinned, looking over the battlefield. "You seemed so determined to take on Archer alone I figured you could handle him, and you did great!".
Senpai had... Let her fight alone?
Mash was conflicted, on one hand, that battle had been terrifying, on the other...
'Senpai believed in me, he let me fight a Servant on my own because he thought I could win'. Her heart was beating fast, Senpai believed in her, even when she didn't believe, her Senpai had believed in her. "U-understood Senpai! It may have been scary, but I can confirm Archer has been eliminated!".
"Yea... Eliminated...". Sonic looked a bit out of it, but shook his head. "Well, Cu's waiting with Olga a bit further ahead, decided it'd be better to keep her away from the combat. Lets go meet up with them!".
"Yes, Senpai!".
As Mash and Sonic began to walk, the Shielder didn't notice as the hedgehog slowed down and eventually paused, casting a look behind him.
"You can quit the playing dead act". He declared to the empty streets, but...
"Ugh, can't let a Servant fade away in peace?". A pair of gray eyes looked at the hedgehog hero from the rubble, Archer was still alive... If you could call missing parts of his left arm, chunks of his chest, and his right foot alive. One of his eyes was bloodied as well. "Your Servant won, even with the Holy Grail, that attack damaged my Spirit Core, I can't heal this damage and I'll be fading away soon enough".
"Liar, you have more in ya, you could've at least created another one of those crazy arrows". Sonic saw right through the Servants attempt to lie, those green eyes staring him down felt so...
Familiar.
When asked later if what he saw was real or not, Archer wouldn't be able to tell. Besides the hedgehog stood a ghost from his past, her green eyes staring at him with hurt and pity.
"You could've went a lot more lethal to, Cu warned us about some of your tricks, creating swords out of nothing, legendary weapons and all. Yet you only fought Mash with those two swords and a bow". The Hero of Mobius stared down the weary Hero of Justice. "I think, under all that corruption... You were hoping we could beat you, because that means we can beat Saber, am I right?".
"...Why ask a question you already know the answer to?". Archer asked, blinking as the ghost and hedgehog seemed to stand in the same place for a moment. "She... She's hurting, even under all that tyranny, she loved Camelot more then anyone else did. She's fighting because she believes as long as this Singularity stands, what comes next will never begin, and at the very least the memory of that dream will live on...".
"...I may not know what's coming next, but I'm not gonna hesitated to meet it. Whether that future's destruction or peace... I'll carve my own path through it". Sonic looked down, noticing something and smiling. "Because life? It finds a way".
Archer was confused, but as he looked to where the hedgehog stared, his heart skipped a beat.
"...Stop her, free her from this". Was all he asked.
"I will, that's a promise". Two voices answered in reply.
As Sonic walked away, he gave a final glance behind him, at the small patch of flowers that despite the destruction around them, still bloomed. A stream of golden glitter floated to him and into Chip's Bracelet.
"No matter what comes next, I'm gonna keep fighting for what I think is right. That's a promise from the Knight of the Wind".
This... This fought me, but I beat it. I wanted Mash to get her own time to shine, as Sonic had been taking a lot of spotlight, so she was the one to fight and defeat Emiya, who at the end got a scene with Sonic.
Next chapter is it, the final to Fuyuki, the battle against Saber Alter you've all been waiting for!