Elias woke up to the sound of a bird chirping.
Not a cosmic scream. Not an explosion. A simple, rhythmic chirp.
He opened his eyes. He was staring up at a blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds. He was lying in grass—soft, green, well-maintained grass.
He sat up quickly, checking his hands.
They were gloved. His fur was blue. His sneakers were red and white.
"I'm alive," Elias whispered. He patted his chest. No pain. No residual heat from being a living sun.
He stood up and looked around. He was in a park. A very nice park. In the distance, a gleaming city of white and gold spires pierced the clouds.
"Metropolis," Elias recognized it immediately. "But... cleaner? Brighter?"
He checked his internal System. The familiar chime rang, but the interface looked different. It was sleeker, more comic-book stylized.
System Reboot Complete.
Current Location: Prime Earth (Post-Genesis).
User Status: Active.
Elias frowned. "Post-Genesis? Did I reboot the universe?"
He checked his loadout.
Game Forms (Super, Dark, Hyper, etc.): LOCKED.
Reason: Incompatible Physics Engine.
"What?" Elias panicked slightly. "I lost everything?"
New Loadout Detected.
Source: Archie Archives.
Active Passive: Chaos Factor.
Description: The user is a living embodiment of probability. Luck is skewed 99% in user's favor. Reality bends to accommodate user's momentum.
Base Form Stats:
Speed: Immeasurable (Flash Step unlocked).
Strength: Scaling (Toon Force equivalent).
Durability: High (Rubber-hose physics).
Available Transformations:
1. Ultra Sonic (Locked - Emotional/Ring Requirement).
2. Solar Sonic (Locked - Environmental Requirement).
3. Polar Sonic (Locked - Environmental Requirement).
4. Eco Sonic (Locked - Environmental Requirement).
Elias blinked. He flexed his hand. The air around his fingers rippled, not with heat, but with... art. It felt like the world around him was drawn, and he was the ink.
"I traded the Game physics for the Comic physics," Elias realized. "I'm not just fast anymore. I'm broken."
In the Archie comics, Sonic's base form was ridiculous. He could run through time. He could vibrate molecules to explode things. He could survive falling from orbit by just landing on his feet and making a quip.
"Hey! You!"
Elias turned.
Floating down from the sky was Superman. But he looked different. His suit had a high collar, armored plating. It was the New 52 design? Or maybe Rebirth?
"Identify yourself," Superman said, landing with a thud. He looked younger, sterner than the Superman Elias had befriended in space.
"Oh boy," Elias sighed. "Memory wipe. New timeline."
He grinned. He felt lighter than he ever had. The heavy burden of the "Game" logic was gone. He didn't need to worry about ring counts or timers anymore.
"Name's Elias," he said, giving a thumbs up. "I'm just a passing hedgehog."
Superman narrowed his eyes. "You're radiating Chaos energy. A lot of it."
"Yeah, it's kind of my thing."
Superman blurred, moving to grab him.
Elias didn't just dodge. He stepped between the seconds.
To Superman, Elias didn't move. He just vanished and reappeared sitting on a park bench ten feet away, holding a chili dog that hadn't been there a moment ago.
"Want a bite?" Elias offered. "I think I just conjured this out of thin air. The Chaos Factor is wild."
Superman looked at his empty hand, then at Elias. "How did you..."
"Fate," Elias shrugged, taking a bite. "Probability. I'm the variable you can't account for, Supes."
He stood up, wiping mustard off his lip.
"So," Elias said, his green eyes twinkling with mischief. "Since this is a new universe and all... care for a race?"
Superman paused. Then, a familiar competitive spark lit up his eyes—some things transcended reboots.
"To the ocean and back?" Superman challenged.
Elias laughed.
"Make it around the world. Twice."
BOOM.
Two streaks—one Red and Blue, one pure Blue—shattered the sound barrier, racing into the horizon of a brave new world.
The tutorial was over. The game was beaten.
Now, the real story could begin.