Chapter Text
Camelot was burning.
Sonic swore under his breath, Galahad squirming in one arm as Lancelot's hand dragged Sonic by the other. "Lance, I've got to go back...”
"Si-Love." The dark knight, apparently unslowed by the arrow still protruding from his chest, spun around with a dark look in his eye. "For once in your life, love. Do as I tell you."
Sonic skidded to a halt, looking back over his shoulder. "My people. Our comrades. We've left everyone!"
"Yes, my love. It is...rather too late. We must live to fight another day." Lancelot's tone was matter-of-fact, even resigned. His expression was anything but. "I pray, please, live. Save our son."
"I'm not the one who's about to collapse in exhaustion." Sonic glared up at him, hoping the firmness of his tone could make up for how short he was compared to the other knight. "I'm not the one who needs to save his energy."
Lancelot gave him a weak smile.
"We'll both get through this," Sonic insisted. He glanced down at Galahad, who was sucking his thumb and staring up at him with wide eyes. "All three of us.”
"Whatever you say, my King." Lancelot smiled. "Keep it to that."
"Trust me."
Sonic kept himself close to Lancelot as they fled Camelot. His mind kept flashing back to their friends, to the other knig-
Lancelot's sudden stop yanked him out of his thoughts.
"Lance? What's wro-"
"Traitor." The snarled word told Sonic all he needed to know. Before them stood a green hawk, spinning his twin wing blades with a smirk on his face. Lamorak.
"Knew you were too smart for your own good, Lancelot." He chuckled. "Made a break for it the second you could, huh?"
"My loyalty is to the king first." Lancelot drew his sword. “You?"
"Did you know," Lamorak began, "that Gawain's an ugly crier?"
Lancelot held himself steady, his composure unbroken. Sonic didn't have the same discipline, his eyes going wide in shock.
"That Bat of his died pretty quickly. Shame, I always kinda liked her. You know," his eyes flicked between Sonic and Lancelot, "they always say that love is your strongest weapon. You should have seen Gawain. Weak little nerd was crying like a kid when his head hit the ground. Love," he chuckled again, "What bullshit. It's only there to let you down."
Sonic felt Galahad begin to squirm in his arms, a tiny fist escaping from his swaddling and reaching towards Lancelot. Tears were gathering in the small child's eyes. That broke Sonic out of his shocked stupor, pulling the toddler close to his chest and stroking Galahad's quills as he palmed a loose quill.
"What do you want?" Lancelot's voice was steel.
"Isn't it obvious? The boss man wants all three of you. Don't know why, but hey, Fey." The hawk shrugged his shoulders, stilling his wing blades at his side and eyeing the two. “So. Who's gonna let me drag your ass back to the castle and Infini-" He barely finished before Sonic's quill lodged itself into the back of his throat, piercing the hawk's brainstem with enough force to sever it. Sonic tugged Lancelot into a sprint, ignoring the black blood dripping from his love's chest as the hedgehog focused on running.
Running. Sprinting. Speed.
Speed was what he could do.
Sonic barely noticed Lancelot directing them, the other knight's firm grip tugging them into a side tunnel before finally coming to a stop and collapsing against the stone wall. The hedgehog paused, glancing around him to take stock. Galahad had fallen asleep, albeit fitfully, against his chest. The young hoglet's face was streaked with tears, but he otherwise looked peaceful.
Lancelot was barely conscious, propped up against the stone wall.
"Lance?" Sonic reached towards his lover's shoulder. "You need rest."
"Could." Lancelot's voice was dry, exhausted. "No time. Must get you to safety." His hand blindly reached over, thumbing Sonic's cheek and chin with an unsteady hand. Sonic nuzzled into the touch.
"Lance..."
"Shh." The taller knight slowly shook his head, squeezing Sonic's cheek gently. "We both know." He took a deep breath, sighing through blood-flecked lips. "My love, I must tell you something." The older knight slowly shifted Galahad from Sonic's arms to his own, brushing the side of his son's swaddling. "This is important." The older hedgehog raised a shaking finger to his lips in a gesture of silence, looking up at Sonic with a steady gaze. "Inside his swaddling, a message for you. Read it when you are safe. Take my sword as well." Lancelot pressed Arondight’s sheath into Sonic's spare hand as he took Caliburn.
"My love. Take Galahad, and run. Run. Get him away from this kingdom. He is our son. Our love." His breathing shuddered. "Run, Sonic. Don't look back. Please, you must. Live."
"Lancelot. Don't-" His eyes were going damp, a lump building in his throat.
"Hush. Live for me." The hedgehog pulled him in for a brief kiss. "Please." He tucked Galahad into Sonic's arms. "End of tunnel. Fairy ring. Step in and think of a safe place. Love..."
A laugh drew their attention. A jackal, holding an axe over his shoulder and surrounded by a swarm of monsters, stood at the end of the tunnel. "Well, isn't that touching? Makes you wanna puke, doesn't it?"
Lancelot yanked Sonic, not only pulling the black hedgehog to his feet but also throwing his greatest treasures towards safety. "Run, my love. Run. I will hold him off."
The masked jackal threw his head back in a laugh. "Well, well. Not ready to die just yet, are you?" The monster swarm parted, letting the jackal step forward as a cocky swagger made its way into his step.
"Lancelot-" Sonic began to protest. Lancelot only smiled, giving him a final nod.
"Goodbye, my love. Give our son my love. And run." The knight turned away and drew Caliburn, pointing it at the jackal and his monsters. "And you. Jackal. Our fey blood may share ties, but your tricks are not enough. Come, now." He gave a thin chuckle, his teeth black with blood. "Let us settle this...like DRAGONS!!!"
The final word was said with a roar, as the older hedgehog shed his mortal skin for the last time. A beast, black and crimson, roared a final challenge to the monsters of the Underworld before charging the fey general. Sonic took his chance and ran, clutching Galahad to his chest as he fled, tears streaming from his cheeks. He stepped into the circle-
***
Tails groaned as he stared at his laptop screen as Amy and Blaze watched over his shoulder, the two of them feeling equally tired and disoriented.
"So," the fox muttered, pinching his eyes shut and giving his head a shake as if to order his thoughts. "Sonic missed your not date-"
"OUR. FRIENDSHIP. BONDING. EXPERIENCE." Amy glared at him. Blaze sighed from behind them, fighting the urge to bang her head against the wall. Tails continued on.
"-friend bonding experience. Then you called me to wake him up but I couldn't cause apparently, he vanished without a trace. And has been for 10 hours." Tails frowned. "Eggman or GUN?"
"Doubt it would be Eggman." Blaze was already scrolling through her phone. "He hasn't mobilized any forces in the past couple of days."
"I can try calling Rouge," Amy offered, already reaching for her communicator. "She would have the best idea if it was GUN."
"Thank you, Ames." Tails was already turning away, starting to gather tools and equipment on his workbench. "I've got a couple trackers on him, but knowing Sonic, he's probably far enough away that-"
***
"We...don't have a clue." Tails admitted it sheepishly, already blushing at Amy's looming glare and the impatient twitch of Blaze's tail.
"You." The pink hedgehog frowned down at him. "You, Mr. I-have-a-gene-sequencer-in-my-shed. Don't know where to look next."
Tails gulped. "I... Well..."
"Gaia, be good, at least tell me that it wasn't that nut-job Starline behind this. " The pink hedgehog glared at the yellow fox.
"No, he's been lying low since Surge hit his bunker." Tails muttered, frowning down at his Miles Electric. "But other than that, I just... don't know where to start looking!"
***
As the three friends tried to figure out their next step, a certain book that had been tucked back onto its bookshelf began to tremble. With short, stuttering jolts, the book began to push its way out of its shelf before tumbling to the floor. The tome's cover flipped open, and the pages of the book began to stir in a non-existent wind.
Blaze twitched as a strange chill crawled up her spine. Looking away from the table, the group was gathered around, her eyes scanned the room. "Does anybody else feel that... energy?"
Tails and Amy looked over at her curiously. Amy glanced at Tails, frowning slightly, "No? I don't feel anything."
"Yeah, me either, Blaze." Tail’s ears fell back as he put his Miles Electric aside on the table and stepped away. "Why? Is everything okay?"
"I thought I felt a Sol Emerald for a moment there, but that's impossible, they're back in my dimension." She stepped around the table, eyes still roaming the room, "And Sol Energy doesn't feel like this; It's not the same... sensation. It's still familiar somehow. Almost... similar to something I've felt before. Just a different power."
Her senses led her from the table and towards the house proper, the other two following closely behind. She followed whatever it was that was calling to her until she ended up in the living room, where she spotted an old, leather-bound book lying open on the floor, pages fluttering back and forth without any wind.
"What the...?"
The group carefully approached the book, with Tails moving to examine it, "That's strange... Why is this book-"
Blaze stopped him with a paw on his shoulder, "Careful."
"Why, what's wrong?" He turned to look at her, ears flattening in concern at how still Blaze was.
"Whatever this is, it's coming from that book."
Amy frowned, picking up a broomstick and using the handle to poke at the cover of the book, "This thing? It's just some weird old tome Sonic has had for years. I'm pretty sure I remember seeing it back at his old place at Green Hill."
"It wouldn't have started doing this for no reason, though, right?" Tails pointed out, glancing at Blaze, "So do you think that maybe..."
"Something to do with Sonic's disappearance, or a result of it. That's my best guess."
Amy let out a frustrated sigh, her grip on the broomstick tightening, "Ugh. Fine. Let's see what this stupid thing -" She squeaked as the book jumped into the air and began hovering. "What in the-?!"
Blaze grabbed Amy and pulled her behind her, summoning a fireball to her palm. Tails quickly pulled out his Miles Electric.
"What the heck is happening right now?" He squeaked as the pages of the book flew from the tome and began swirling in the air.
"That's what I'd like to know," Blaze growled.
The book started glowing brightly, forcing the trio to cover their eyes. When the light faded, the group was able to see that the pages of the book were now floating down to the floor. As their vision cleared, they were able to make out someone standing there, leaning on a long sword. A moment later, they were able to see exactly who stood before them, it was…
"Sonic?!" Amy yelped, her eyes widening and almost popping out of her skull.
"...Sonic?" Tails mumbled, blinking as his brain came to a screeching halt. The blue hedgehog before them certainly resembled their friend in several aspects. Similar height, similar facial structure, and the same fur color. Yet there were quite a few differences as well. His attire was the biggest change, dressed in what seemed like medieval-style armor that Tails was positive Sonic had never worn. He wore a gauntlet on one hand, and his ear was also pierced with a golden loop that Amy had never seen Sonic wear.
But the most obvious thing was what was held in one arm; a child, clearly younger than a year old. A small bundle wrapped in what appeared to be purple cloth with light purple swirls.
"Sonic?" Blaze called out, letting her flames dissipate.
At the sound of their voices, the blue hedgehog stirred, eyes blinking open tiredly before looking towards them.
"...Is this a dream?" He muttered, gaze going from one person to the next. "There is no way this could be real..."
Sonic dropped the sword on the ground with a clatter and collapsed to his knees. "It can't be."
Tail's brain seemed to catch up with reality again, and he jumped forward, grabbing onto Sonic's shoulders and helping the blue hedgehog steady himself.
"Sonic! Are you alright?"
Sonic glanced up at the fox and gave him a soft smile. "Tails?" His eyes then wandered past the three of them, taking in his surroundings. As his eyes caught sight of the walls of the room, he stiffened up a bit, "If this is a dream, I wish it would end. How cruel. To offer a glimpse of what could have been... to dangle a hope in front of me, but then snatch it away the moment I grab on." His voice hitched slightly as he tried to stand, stumbling again. Both Tails and Blaze rushed to keep him from falling over, "If this is one of Infinite's illusions, please! Let it end. I can't-"
"Sonic, what are you talking about?!" Amy rushed over, taking him from Blaze and guiding him to a nearby couch. "What's happened? Are you okay?!"
He shook his head, still delirious. "No. This can't be... It's just a trick. A cruel and horrid trick. Tails, Amy... Blaze..." He suddenly slumped over, his body leaning forward, covering the child in his arms.
"Sonic!" Amy's outburst caused the child in his arms to stir and then wake up with a loud wail. The pink hedgehog blinked, "Shit." She gently moved Sonic's arms away from the kid and pulled the small bundle into her arms, cradling the little one and hushing it soothingly, "It's okay, shh." She brushed at the kid's mane of silver-white quills and gently rocked them back and forth. The child hiccuped as the tears started to subside, wide eyes looking up at Amy in curiosity, reaching up at her with both hands.
Amy let out a soft 'aw' in response.
"Where did... Where did the baby come from?" Tails leaned in closer, looking down at the young child as it babbled up at Amy, tiny furred hand wrapping around one of Amy's quills and tugging gently.
"It's been 24 hours for us..." Blaze mumbled, looking over the unconscious Sonic with a frown, "But apparently, a lot longer for Sonic. He seems... older, more experienced. But I wonder how long he was gone, for him?"
Tails tilted his head slightly, frowning as he considered the possibilities. "...I'll do a full scan as soon as we get him to the lab, for now-" Tails jumped a bit as the book's pages flew back into a stack before landing on the book itself, the book snapping shut before dropping on the ground with a thump. The little one in Amy's arms was instantly distracted by the sudden movement, green eyes staring over at the book with a wide-eyed look of curiosity.
"...let's just get him to the lab, I can run the tests there." The fox muttered, gathering the book under his arm, and joined Blaze in carrying the unconscious hedgehog through to the hangar and to Tail’s workspace.
***
Tails stared at the DNA results as the two girls sat nearby, playing with the little hoglet. His tails twitched behind him.
"Guys." Tails slowly turned away from the screen, tapping on his Miles Electric. "You need to look at this."
Blaze moved the child from her lap into Amy's arms before walking over to stand behind Tails.
"What is it?"
Tails turned the screen towards her, "DNA results. I'm no expert in biology, but the computer says the baby and Sonic have a parental relationship. Which means..."
Amy had both a look of awe and annoyance at once, "It's Sonic's kid?!"
"Yeah. Apparently, Sonic has been...gone for more than 24 hours. A lot longer, from what I can tell."
"Time dilation. It must have to do with wherever that book sent him."
"And if it sent him there, then there's no telling if this child is from... this time. Or whatever time frame he was in while he was gone."
"...Can we stop acting like there is a nuclear bomb in the room and get to the most important question!?"
The two turned towards Amy, who was glaring at both of them, an accusatory finger pointed at them, "Who's the mother?!"
Blaze frowned, "Isn't that Sonic's business?"
"Like hell it is! I've spent a long time crushing on this guy, I think I deserve to know who his baby mama is!"
Tails winced, "You might not want to know..." He mumbled, pulling the second DNA result up.
"Try me!" Amy marched forward, marching past Blaze who was pinching her nose ridge at Amy's choice of words, "I can take it."
Tails spun the screen toward her, his own grim look giving way to a worried and concerned one.
Amy blinked.
Squinted. Rubbed her eyes. Re-read. Glanced back and forth between the little baby in her arms and the sleeping blue hedgehog. Slowly turned her head towards Tails. Turned back towards Sonic. Back to Tails. Baby. Sonic. Baby. Tails. Sonic. Baby.
"...Excuse me?" Her voice went up several octaves as her eyes widened even further, a furious blush building in her cheeks. "No, wait, hold on-"
***
Shadow was not having a very good day. That much was obvious. First, he woke to find that Rouge had used the last of his coffee beans to make a pot for herself (she knew better than to use his special blend, but the bat did love his taste in coffee). Then he found out that the GUN supply office had messed up his supply paperwork, so instead of getting an easy day of little paperwork and training, he was stuck doing double-entry paperwork, explaining the situation, and then trying to help fix it. Now his private comms were being blown up by frantic messages from Amy Rose, of all people.
Don't get him wrong, he didn't mind the girl but she could be... a lot. And the sheer amount of messages, along with their lack of clarity, didn't do much to help his already growing headache. But something told him, just from the sheer number of messages, that this wasn't something that she wanted to say over a comm channel.
Or Rouge was pranking him.
That could happen. It had happened. Shadow made a mental note to get his revenge on Rouge later, preferably when she couldn't retaliate. But until then…
The Ultimate Lifeform groaned and reached for his comms, taking a deep breath before flipping it open. "Amy. What is going on?"
"SHADOW!" Her voice seemed to wobble on the verge of tears, her next words a desperate plea, "Come to Tail’s place on the coastline. I-It's important!" Her comms cut out.
"...That was one way to get my attention," he muttered, looking over the horizon to where he knew the fox's coastal abode was before letting out a sigh. "Guess I better go see what the commotion is." A quick message to Commander Tower that he would be stepping away from the office to deal with an unknown Sonic-related situation, and Shadow snapped his fingers for Omega's attention.
"Omega, with me. Apparently, the pink one requires our assistance."
"Mission?” The robot straightened up, the weapon system in his arms spinning as he tilted his head.
"Not sure yet. We will find out when we arrive. Tail’s place on the coast. Ready?"
The two of them took off, in a blur of black, red, and gold, kicking up a massive amount of dust in their wake. "Mission accepted. Entering escort mode."
"Less escort, more assistance." Shadow corrected. "We don't know what's waiting for us." The two of them settled into a steady pace, approaching the cliff-side workshop of the fox as the sun sank into the horizon. The Ultimate Lifeform scowled, feeling his worry deepen. Amy only acted this desperate if something was really wrong with the hedgehog, especially since he knew the annoyance had only been missing for a day. He doubted that this was a kidnapping situation. Still, he didn't want to take any chances, a sentiment echoed by Omega as the two members of team DARK landed in the driveway.
"Engaging sentry subroutines." Omega's optics whirled, the robot scanning the front door. "No heat signatures detected at primary residence, secondary location indicates five lifeforms."
"Five?" Shadow grunted. That meant Tails, the cat, Amy, Sonic, and... Omega stated it was five lifeforms.
The robot behind him hummed for a second. "Unidentified signature. Small."
Shadow frowned. "How small?"
"Infantile levels." The robot replied, "Uninteresting combat target."
"Well, that's not concerning at all," Shadow sighed, pinching his nose as the door slid open. There was a flash of pink, and then a hand snagged Shadow and dragged him inside. The hedgehog yanked his arm free and glared at the pink hedgehog, who seemed to be fighting tears.
"Pleasetreathimwell-" She said in a rush, Shadow unable to decipher any of the words in her sentence. Amy sniffled and gently thrust something into his arms.
The Ultimate Lifeform looked down into green eyes that looked back up at him, with a tuft of white quills covering his forehead, before he couldn't stop the words that slipped from his mouth.
"...What the actual fuck?"
***
"OK, let's try this again. So. You're telling me," Shadow's eyes had yet to move from the child in his arms, the small one gazing up at him with eyes wide and curious. "That the idiot vanished for less than twenty-four hours, only to return with a hoglet that is at least a year old?!"
Shadow was having a hard time believing what he was being told. Granted, he believed that it had happened; it wasn't really something they could make up if they tried. But…
"The child bears a familial relationship to Sonic, according to DNA tests." Blaze gently prodded, moving to stand beside the chair that Shadow was sitting in. The black hedgehog frowned, gently bouncing the child in his arms as its small nose twitched at him. That couldn't be right, could it? The child looked like a certain blue buffoon he had the misfortune of saving the world with on more than one occasion. But the markings were throwing him for a loop. Those... white tufts of fur weren't at all anything he had seen on a hedgehog before. And the child's markings were different from any of their group. But the eyes were too green to be anyone's other than Sonic's, and the tan on the muzzle... even if the markings were unfamiliar. That just raised questions, questions that needed answering. Shadow sighed, "Do we at least know who the mother is? Since he's apparently been gone for... how long?"
Tails rubbed the back of his neck, "A few years at the very least, judging by this guy's age. That's only considering Sonic's personal perception of time." He let out a slow sigh, "As for the mother… well..."
Amy let out a quick hiccup from behind Blaze, her hands moving to grab at the princess' shoulder and squeezing tightly. "You don't want to know..." She mumbled, voice wet and weak.
Shadow gave her a glare over the child's head, noting how the little one curled into his arms more. "Don't keep me in suspense, Fox." His voice was cold, brokering no argument, "I've been patient long enough. Who is it?"
"You!" Amy wailed. "You're the mom! At least, that's what the DNA results say!"
"...Excuse me?" Shadow stared up at her, his ears slowly folding against his head as he stared down at the child in his arms. "What the hell do you mean it's me?! I can't be-"
"Well..." Tails rubbed the back of his neck, "According to the DNA test. He's definitely related to you and Sonic, so... it has to be one of you. And we know it isn't Sonic because he's male."
"I'm also male, or have you forgotten that?" Shadow rolled his eyes, still rocking the young child in his arms. "How the hell am I supposed to be the mother here?"
He glanced down at the infant in question, only to notice that the small child was not only looking up at him but seemed to be frowning at him. Shadow felt his quills slowly settle flat on his back. It was like something deep in the hedgehog's soul was stirring, itching at him in a way that was completely new to him. "Well, they are sorta cute." He muttered, his frown softening a bit.
"Yeah, and they've got your level of glares." Tails snickered, pulling his tails in closer and tapping at his Miles Electric. "How old do you think they are? Less than a year for sure, but still... They have a full head of quills..."
"...Six to nine months would be my guess," Shadow muttered, reluctantly handing the child off to Blaze, who had offered her arms. She held the child expertly, far more confidently than he had. She seemed at ease with the little bundle in her arms, letting the child play with one of her fingers.
"This is certainly a strange situation. But until he wakes up, we can't really do much of anything." Blaze looked down at the child with a small, fond smile. "They are rather cute, aren't they?"
"Sonic will come around, eventually. And hopefully, when he wakes up, he'll have some answers for us." Tails gave a wide yawn, shaking his head quickly. "Man, it's been a long day. I'm beat."
Shadow's eyes narrowed at the mention of the time, looking at the clock on the wall and standing up. "I'm late. I still have paperwork to do tonight." He swore under his breath, noticing his phone going off as he spoke. He pulled it out, glancing at the caller ID and wincing. Rouge, of course it was Rouge. With a heavy sigh, the black hedgehog answered it. "Rouge. What can I do for you?"
"Let me in. I want to see the baby."
"WHAT?!" Shadow spun, hissing at the laughing bat. "How did you find out this fast?!"
She only laughed louder in response. "Oh darling, there are no secrets that I can't find, you of all people should know that. Besides, Omega's been live-streaming everything to me. That baby is just the cutest thing ever!"
"The fuck Omega what is wrong with you?!" Shadow snarled, glaring over his shoulder at the robot.
Omega gave him a mechanical shrug, "Target known as Rouge the Bat is registered as family unit. Shared data when requested."
"...Fuck you both, I hate you. All of you. Including Sonic for... for whatever happened!" Shadow snapped, before glaring at the window that was sliding open, an equally smug bat on the other side. "No! No way, Rouge. I am not letting you in here-"
She was already slipping out of his grip, fluttering over the group's heads with a smirk. "Come on, Shadow, why wouldn't you let your dear friend and teammate Rouge in?"
"Oh my gosh!" Rouge's voice suddenly became high-pitched and squealing, the bat descending on the bundle of cloth and white quills that Blaze held in her arms. "Oh my gosh. Oh my goodness. Hi there, precious!" Rouge let out a laugh, gently caressing the infant's head with the tip of a gloved finger. Her smile turned into a full grin as she looked up at Shadow. "They have your markings, dear. Isn't that the sweetest?"
"They are Sonic's child," Shadow grunted, his eyes darting between the child and Rouge, before the corners of his lips dipped down in another frown. "What do you mean, they have my markings?"
Rouge blinked, before her gaze moved over his face and arms, before looking back down at the child. "You mean... Oh, dear. Those stripes are faded, aren't they?"
"Faded?" Shadow leaned a bit closer, ignoring the snickering from Tails in the background. "What do you mean by... oh."
The patterns on the child's arms and legs, with a little effort, one could realize that they were stripes. Very, very faint and faded, but still the familiar stripe pattern that Shadow knew well.
"Oh," Shadow muttered, not knowing how to feel about the whole situation. "This is going to be a bit awkward, isn't it?"
Tails was laughing and Shadow could even hear Omega's voice under the snickering. "Hysterics, current events indicate a 90 percent chance of total chaos and disaster." The bot announced, the slight warble in his voice giving away the AI's amusement.
"...Not. One. Word." The black hedgehog snarled, eyes glowing in irritation. "From any of you. Not. One. Single. Word."
He would figure this out, and when he did, he would deal with it accordingly. Starting with murdering a certain blue buffoon who was currently still out cold in the medical bay. Shadow didn't care where he had gone or what had happened. This was all Sonic's fault. He just knew it. It was always Sonic's fault. Or Eggman's. And this had way too much Sonic in it to be Eggman's doing.
There was going to be a dead hedgehog after Shadow got through with him.
That was a promise.
Edit::
Had someone send me a Lansoi pic on Tumblr. I'm pretty sure it's AI, but I like it.
