Chapter Text
Broken mask
.·:*¨ ✘The first year of Sonic’s rule✘ ¨*:·.
Sonic leans against the wall of the blacksmith’s shop. His eyes looking at the newly made weapons and shortly after falling upon the blacksmith himself. A twin tailed fox named Miles, he comes from a humble origin, grown to be a famous blacksmith and looks exactly like the brother Sonic left behind. Sonic feels a familiar instinct when looking at Miles, wanting to protect him and give him the world just as he has given to his younger brother back home. Another part of him wants to keep Miles close to rid himself of the guilt he has gotten ever since he accepted the crown of Camelot. The constant feeling of having abandoned his friends and his brother back in Mobius. These emotions seem to always be at its loudest when everything is slow and quiet around Sonic, and so he always goes to visit Miles when he feels like he is close to losing control of these emotions.
Miles has gotten used to the visits from the king. Though at first he had been tense, he quickly grew accustomed to the random visits from Sonic and even looked forward to them. He had been able to witness Sonic going from a knight without a true master, to the king of Camelot. It has been a strange growth to witness in someone who has become the friend of a blacksmith.
“You’re staring, why?” Miles asks, looking up from his work. He had been feeling Sonic’s eyes on him for a while now and started to get a bit uncomfortable. Sonic playfully smiles, his eyes having a spark and yet, Miles can tell there is something more underneath that bright expression. Unlike the knights, Miles seemed easily relaxed around him. Maybe it comes with his young age, but the moment Sonic told him to not worry about titles he went back to his casual speech and rarely bowed to the king. Miles only changed his behavior when there were customers, or when they found themselves in public and away from his forge. Clearly not wanting the public to know how close he actually is with the king of this kingdom. This allowed for Sonic to relax around him as well, allowing for Miles to learn how to read his expressions more thoroughly than those who serve him, and so he learned how Sonic is good at hiding any negative emotions and worries from those he promised to care for and protect.
“Nothing, just admiring your work,” Sonic hums as he pushes himself off of the wall. He walks closer to the fox, “Any chance you could make me something easy to carry that can break open the doors from my castle? Or a key that could change so it opens all the locked doors and windows with ease? I really wish to escape it more often,” he says with a playful grin. Miles shakes his head, “Lancelot will know I made it and will not let me get away with it,” he points out to the freedom seeking king. Sonic groans in defeat, understanding the fear for his knight. Though soon his smile grows again and he stops moving, “But you are saying you could make something like that.”
Miles takes one look at the king before sighing. Miles is confident he can make anything as long as he has the right materials, this is why he got his own forge two years before he became legally an adult. Now that he is the right age, fifteen, he already has grown a successful name for himself as a genius behind the forge, making anything as long as the pay is right. So he just gives a hum of confirmation to the King, focusing back on the work he was doing before.
Sonic walks around the forge as he continues speaking with a hint of mischief in his eyes, “And you really won’t make me one? I will pay you handsomely, you know I got the gold for it.” Miles stops moving and looks up, his tails low to the ground as he looks judgingly at the young king, “If I make you something like that, I will be the one on the other end of Lancelot’s sword, while you just get a stern talking to.” Sonic grins, “Don’t worry, Lance would not do that.” “Oh yes he will!” the blacksmith protests with some conviction in his voice. Miles had quickly learned that the knights are all kind, but also strict. He knows that if they find out how he speaks to their king, he would get in trouble with all of them and quickly will be reminded of his place in the kingdom. Still, he seen how they act toward their own king, if their king demands it they will always listen. No matter how they feel about it themselves. Miles knows that thanks to this, he will ultimately not be harmed, since Sonic protects him.
Sonic is quick by Miles’ side and pats his head as if it is the most natural thing to do. However, Miles pushes him away like he usually does, not a fan of the childish gesture. For a moment a flicker of rejection seems to go through Sonic’s facial features, but he quickly hides it behind a smile as he speaks again, “Trust me, I will keep Lancelot from harming you.” Miles chooses to ignore the rejection he seen in Sonic’s eyes and continues the conversation as if nothing had happened.
“Fifteen gold pieces,” Miles eventually says, looking away from the pleading eyes of the king. It is a ridiculous amount for what he is going to make, that amount would be able to allow him to stop working for two years if he wanted to. He knew that Sonic had this amount of gold, but also that his advisors would have some trouble allowing Sonic to just flaunt that much coin. “Fifteen?” Sonic seems surprised at the price, and curious to how Miles gotten to that amount. “It is the age I will be killed by some knights for making this. Thought it would make this whole venture a bit more poetic,” Miles says simply. Hearing this, Sonic can’t help but start laughing at the dramatics of the young fox. Though so similar to his brother, the blacksmith always seemed to hold a bit of a flare for dramatics, something Tails does not yet have.
He eventually calms himself, and nods, “Alright then. I will grab some gold~” he hums and just like the wind itself, the king is gone with a dust cloud in his wake. Taking a deep breath, Miles shakes his head and returns his focus to his work. Not long after Sonic’s departure the bell rings, surprising Miles with how quick Sonic has returned and questioning if he might just have taken the gold without telling anyone who works under him. He speaks as he turns to look at the one walking in, “Sonic you re-” he stops dead in his tracks when he notices a group of dark furred foxes and a wolf in his shop.
Quickly switching his attitude, Miles greets them with a smile, “Welcome to my shop. How can I help?” The four foxes start looking around, feeling the weight of the weapons that stand on display. The wolf however focuses on Miles and folds his arms, “I heard the owner of ‘Amber Forge’ is a twin tailed fox, is that true?” he asks the young blacksmith. Miles nods with a constant smile plastered on his face, though he hates it when people know him of his tails. “The one and only! I am the blacksmith of this forge and can make you anything as long a-” he is cut off once the wolf stops near Miles, having walked around the counter while Miles spoke. He grabs onto Miles’ throat and slamming him down onto the ground. The foxes quickly move from the weapon racks to Miles, holding his arms, legs and tails down to the ground and digging their nails into it deeply. Miles let out a yelp mixed in with a whine, his ears dropping down as he struggles against the weight of the wolf on his chest and the foxes that hold him.
The wolf leans in closer to Miles, grabbing his chin and forcing him to look into the wolf’s eyes, “You must be thinking by now ‘why me’ so the one mercy I will show you today, is to answer your question. You are the one remaining friend of the parasite that isn’t guarded or trained to protect themselves.” The wolf’s voice is low, his eyes full of hatred and hunger for Miles’ blood. The foxes snicker when they see Miles struggle hopelessly, unable to free himself from their grasp, unable to call for help.
He understands what is happening by the small bit the wolf revealed, and it terrifies him. Though Sonic was accepted by those living near the castle of Camelot, those living in outside villages and away from the protective walls of the kingdom have not yet completely accepted the otherworldly hedgehog. Many rumors have traveled through the kingdom of how Sonic became the king and how the one they had previously lost his crown. Some know the truth, but this did not always help. Knowing Sonic was summoned by Merlina, the same court wizard that wanted to see the kingdom destroyed, made many wary of the blue hedgehog's true intentions. However, these people were never angry with Sonic. Their lives have been saved and now they’re protected again by a king who cares. It has only been a few months ago since an organized group started spreading false rumors, bringing fear upon the people who live under Sonic’s protection and making those who have not met the king doubt his rule. The group even supposedly found the real king of Camelot, the one that truly has been chosen by the legendary sword excalibur. Miles and many who live near the castle know differently however, they have seen Sonic with Caliburn and know he has been truly chosen by the sword. It is the remote village that have never seen Sonic that are easily swayed by the lies and rumors of the rebellion.
Starting to struggle more, Miles questions how they gotten this close to the castle and if they plan to harm others, slowly infiltrate and take over the kingdom by force. He worries how big this organized group has gotten, if Sonic truly is safe behind the castle walls. Wishing to keep his friend safe, he finds the strength that has built up in his arms from all the work at the forge, slowly freeing himself from the grip of the foxes that hold him down. “Sonic is the true king of Camelot, he is kind and will protect everyone from the false king you wish to force upon us! He is no parasite, you are!” Miles exclaims, not ready to give up and definitely not going to give in. This seems to surprise the wolf, he bares his teeth and slams Miles’ head into the ground, making Miles dizzy and lose the strength he built up, and blurs his vision.
“You do not have to die for someone that isn’t even of our world, just tell me about the one you call Sonic and I will leave you with only a few broken bones. Just tell us a weakness or two, or something he cares about dearly we can use as leverage” the wolf says, giving Miles a way out if he so wishes. Miles just gives him an angry stare, not willing to give up any information on his friend. And beside Sonic being a friend, he is the King of Camelot as well, carrying a lot more importance than a simple blacksmith and so his life too is more important than that of Miles.
Digging his nails into Mile’s throat, the wolf lets his anger show even more. “Your loyalty is wasted on him, and your voice is not of use for someone who refuses to save themselves. Your death will mean nothing, not even to the one you try to protect. Your legacy lost, all because you did not give one thing away to crush a parasite plaguing this kingdom.” The words of the wolf hurt Miles, he questions how Sonic would react to his death, but knows that no matter the reaction, at least he will be alive to give it. If Miles dies here, it will only give away that the rebels have come into the city of Camelot and are on the move, it will give the knights the information they need to give the right amount of protection to Sonic and search for those who threaten his safety. So, Miles grins at the wolf, “No matter what you do to me, Sonic will beat your asses.” Mile’s voice is filled with pain and clear lack of air. Some blood has started filling his mouth, yet he feels confident in his choices. He knows that Sonic will not spill blood like these villains, that if Sonic were here that no matter his thoughts on Miles, he would have saved him before any blood could be spilled. In the end, he deep down knows that Sonic is truly his friend and that even though this friendship is the reason Miles will meet his end, he is unable to curse Sonic for befriending him and giving him the best few months of his life.
The wolf, now fully consumed by anger because of Miles’ loyalty to the Sonic, cuts his nail deep in his throat. Miles sees the world disappear in front of him, everything becoming dark and fuzzy. The nails in his throat makes the pain unbearable, yet he is unable to let out as much as a whine and just feel blood filling his mouth. Before his throat can be ripped out however, a strong gust of wind blows through the shop. The foxes are slammed against the walls and the wolf pushed kicked through the wall. A warm paw covers his neck, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. Miles focuses his energy in being able to get a bit of his vision back, when he does he looks straight into the concerned eyes of his friend and Miles smiles exhausted yet happy that Sonic has finally arrived, “You… slow poke.” Unable to hang onto his consciousness any longer, Miles goes limp in Sonic’s arms.
Sonic, who had returned with the gold coins, sits on the ground. He holds Miles close to him, the blood covering both Sonic and the gold coins that surround them. His quills have turned dark, a bit of brown colour mixing with the navy blue, and blue lightning sparks coming off of him, hitting the foxes that tried to sneak closer again. He does not look away from Miles, his breathing slow and the energy of his anger heavy in the air. It is the wolf that breaks the silence in the shop, walking through the broken wall, looking wounded but still able to fight. He grins, “I told the fool no-” The wolf gets cut off, just as he had cut off Tails before. Sonic appearing in front of him with blinding speed. The wolf hardly noticed him move, but he feels pressure on his rips as he is slammed against the ground. The now broken rips dig into his lungs and he starts coughing up blood. Eyes filled with terror when seeing Sonic stands over him.
Without a word, Sonic beats the wolf. He does not allow for the wolf to lose consciousness, instead he keeps waking him with the Mana that flows through his body. He grabs the nails of the wolf, taking them out of his fingers one by one. The wolf howls in pain and fear, struggling against the hedgehog’s might. However, to him Sonic never moves, his bones and nails seem to break out of thin air while the hedgehog watches without any expression on his face. The wolf opens his mouth to plead with the angered king of Camelot, but his tongue is cut before he can get a word out. Eventually with all the blood loss and the bone penetrating his lungs, the wolf let out his final breath and his body stops moving or reacting to Sonic’s silent attacks.
Sonic does not say a word, he does not even look like someone who just killed another living being. Instead he disappears in the blink of an eye, no blue streak being left behind or a cloud of dust. Instead he seems to almost teleport as he appears by Merlina with Miles in his arms. The court wizard let out a yelp, surprised at the appearance of her king in her garden. “Sonic what-” she stops talking as she sees the bleeding fox in his arms and the tears that fall down the cheeks of the royal blue hedgehog. “Please, save him,” Sonic pleads as the anger disappears and only fear and sorrow stays.