Chapter Text

Chapter 1: Dreams (Part 1)

Abu Dhabi is a country known for its wealth in oil and finance, its environment consists of golden deserts and oases. A nighttime silence took over the dunes when the sound of an engine broke that tranquility, soon followed by another…

and then two more…

four more…

six engine sounds in unison began to roar. Then…

pah, boom, tsshh.

Something lit up the desert sands, and red, blue, and green colors illuminated the dark bluish sky. Nearby was the Abu Dhabi circuit, where there was a true fireworks display. Two similar cars were racing side by side down a straight. The roar of the two car engines echoed along the straight, and on the curve, one briefly went off track but returned without difficulty.

"This is an incredible battle here in Abu Dhabi, the two Rauka cars are delivering a true gladiator duel on the track." said one of the commentators.

“I can’t deny it, this is really a way to end a season, both drivers are only one point apart, whoever wins here, wins this year’s drivers’ championship,” the other one concludes.

Inside the cockpit of one of the cars, the driver was none other than Sonic, with his dark blue helmet adorned with yellow details and a shiny green visor. His eyes were focused on the battle when something called out to him very faintly…

“Maurice…”

“Mauriceee~”

At the peak of the battle, that voice starts getting louder and louder, until…

“MAURICE!”

12 years ago

What was once a cockpit was now a child's bed with a navy blue blanket covering him. Next to him, there were several posters of games and movies stuck on the wall. In front of him, there was a TV with a video game connected to it. Sunlight faintly illuminated the room due to the closed curtains, and Sonic's eyes were burning because of the light. Helena Hedgehog, his mother, woke him up…

“Maurice, wake up. I have a surprise for you,” she said in a comforting tone.

“Hmmm, what time is it?” Maurice, Sonic’s real name, asked, still sleepy.

“About 9 in the morning. Now get out of bed, sleepyhead—we’re going to your dad’s kart track,” she said as she left the room, letting him change into his casual clothes.

Maurice yawned and got up slowly, rubbing his eyes gently. He went to the wardrobe to choose what he would wear today. Among so many clothes, one caught his attention: the good old typical red sweatshirt he wears every day.

Outside the house, Helena was leaning against a black sedan, a little dusty but not too much, and she was seeing some messages on her phone when her son, Maurice, came down wearing his casual red sweatshirt.

“So? Did you have a good night's sleep?” she asked.

“I did, I dreamed I was driving a Formula 1 car,” he replied with an excited tone, but still a little sleepy.

Helena smiled slightly, curious about the dream her son had.

“Really? Tell me more about this dream.”

Sonic then began to describe the dream in detail, as if he had really lived that moment; to Helena, it was more like a vision than a dream.

A few hours into the trip, they arrived at the Anthony State Go-Kart Track in Montana, USA. Nearby, Jenson The Hedgehog, Sonic's father, was helping a young boy of the same age skillfully control a go-kart.

“You accelerate here and let go when you need to brake, got it?” Jenson asked the youngster with a patient yet firm voice, having been familiar with this world for a long time.

“I got it! Thank you, Mr. Jenson!” he said excitedly.

Jenson smiled lightly, proud of the boy’s enthusiasm.

“Heh, that’s how it starts. Now go ahead, have fun on the track.”

The boy waved and drove off in the kart, leaving a small cloud of dust and the sharp sound of the engine fading away. In the distance, his family’s black sedan was parked in a nearby lot; Helena and his son got out of it. Seeing his family, he felt a wave of relief, as if they were a calming medication.

"Dad!" Before he could think or react, Maurice ran straight to him, his eyes shining with excitement, and he hugged him as if he hadn't seen him in a long time.

"Hey, look who's here!" Jenson laughed, hugging his son.

"It's been a while since I've seen all this energy, huh?"

"I missed you," he said with a smile on his face.

Helena came up right behind, watching the two in a father-and-son moment with her husband's care and admiration.

"Good to see you like this, dear," she said, gently resting on her husband's shoulder.

"Hi, honey," he said, giving her a quick kiss.

"So... what's the surprise you two prepared?" Maurice asked curiously.

"Oh yes, first close your eyes..." Jenson told him.

"Okay?"

"Wait a bit and... you can open them." In front of him, his eyes immediately lit up, because it was nothing other than...

"Wow! A new go-kart!? You really did this for me?" Maurice asked, surprised by the gift in front of him.

“It was the least we could do, you always get the highest grades in the class…” Jenson said proudly.

“So we thought of buying this as a way to reward you,” Helena said, finishing her husband’s sentence.

Maurice was mesmerized by the go-kart in front of him; he had always seen them in racing videos on the internet or when visiting his dad at work, but he never thought he would have one for his own use. Words could not describe how happy he was about it.

“Thank you, thank you so much,” he said in an excited tone, with a lot of emotion in his voice.

“Don’t mention it, son, you deserve it…” Jenson said as he hugged him again.

“If you’re interested, there’s going to be a friendly race in 4 minutes on the track, go ahead and use your new kart.”

A few minutes after putting on the helmet and racing suit, Maurice entered the track with his new kart. There were several other opponents his age; some of them were talking with friends, others were focused on the track, and some were watching him like an enemy. Maurice positioned himself on the starting grid, taking the second-to-last spot, P9. As he settled into the kart, he closed his eyes and began to relax, focusing on a single goal: to win the race.

After a few minutes, three red lights turned on. At the same time, numerous engines roared intensely.

One turned off…

then another…

A few long seconds later, the last one turned green.

VROOOOM

Maurice stepped hard on the accelerator, the kart kicking up a light cloud of smoke from the rear tires. Right in the first corner, he overtook P8 with a dive down the inside of the track. In the fifth corner, he tried to pass on the outside, but P7 accelerated and closed the space, and they ran side by side until the end of the straight, when Sonic finally got past. In corner 7, a decisive overtake on the inside secured the move to P6.

On the fifth lap, Sonic pushed to the max on the longest straight, running side by side with P5. The two stared each other down, each challenging the other. They ran the entire straight side by side, without touching or slowing down. At the end of it, neither seemed willing to yield. In the final seconds, the rival braked sharply, a cloud forming from the front wheels, while Maurice braked more cautiously. He almost skidded but kept control and took the position.

The crowd in the stands erupted in applause, while Sonic's parents watched proudly at their son's performance, especially Jenson, who was impressed by his son's hidden abilities.

On the final lap, Maurice was in fourth place and engaged in a fierce battle for third, barely blinking around the corners or when he was very close to overtaking. He tries on the inside... Blocked. He tried to go on the outside... Blocked again. On the last turn, he managed to stay side by side, the crowd was ecstatic about the battle, his parents were anxious to see if their son would make the podium or not. Maurice pushed the accelerator to the max, but his opponent had a more powerful kart and crossed first, taking the podium, leaving him in fourth place.

The crowd went ecstatic at the end of the race, and Maurice's parents were proud of their son's performance, who had moved up from the back of the grid to nearly reach the podium. The two left the stands to go see him, thinking he would be excited about his achievement. In the pit area, Maurice was breathing heavily, frustrated with a mix of disappointment; if he had pushed a little harder at the end, he could have won that race… Before he could have more negative thoughts about the race, his parents were approaching him excitedly.

“Congratulations, son, that was an amazing race!” Jenson said enthusiastically to his son.

When he got close, he saw that his face was not showing excitement, but a mix of irritation, sadness, and disappointment.

“I could’ve been third…” Maurice muttered to himself. Jenson approached him in a comforting tone.

“Son, you have an extraordinary talent. Don’t be negative, many famous pilots didn’t succeed on their first try either….” Helena joined them.

“And the dream you said you had… I really believe it can come true one day.”

For a few seconds, Maurice remained silent, until he wiped away his tears and hugged both of them tightly.

“Do you really think I can make it?” They smiled, and Helena said...

“Yes, you can.”

End of chapter 1.