I was inspired to write this by the scene in Fate/Zero when Gilles de Rais has created his fortress level monster in the middle of the river. Lancelot (ahem, sorry, Berserker) and Gilgamesh have begun to fight one another and it struck me that I would have loved him to finish that fight. Obviously, in Fate/Zero, Arturia had to be the one...but in a lowly fanfiction? Game on! So I also wanted to focus on other characters as well, this isn't just going to one big fight story--I'm going to actually set it up in a rather unorthodox way. But in all honesty, this isn't a story about any one character...it will include most of the servants of Fate/Zero and perhaps others...maybe not!

Prologue

Arturia knelt on the ravaged battlefield, her knights lay as though they were broken dolls under the black clouds. She could name all of them with just a glance at their armor. Percival, Gawain, and Lucan...her knights were fallen because of her folly. Arturia's knights would be remembered only in history as fools who had destroyed each other when they had risen to the pinnacle of there glory. A tear trailed down Arturia's cheek. To love one's country so much, sacrificing everything only to be the cause of its fatal end.

She had given up all worldly pleasures save one to accomplish her dream for Britain. Her gender, her youth, her offspring to realize her dream and see it through to fruition!"

Arturia thought back, it felt as though she had already been here an eternity even though she had already left once for the Fourth Holy Grail War. The battles were clear to her: the dishonourable deeds of her master, the valor of Diarmuid, the might of the great Alexander! The cruelty of the despicable Gilles de Rais... the anguish of Lancelot.

Another tear traced down her face, and another. She was fated to fail, her life was a testament to that. Only when victory seemed absolute, did the traitors fully reveal themselves. As Kiritsugu did...as Mordred did.

"You were the greatest amongst the kings. All who served you... believed thus."

Those had been Lancelot's last words to her, what had finally broken through her emotional barrier. He was wrong, a good King must emphasize with her subjects--understand them and know them! Arturia had failed, she knew it! She had not given her entire soul into being the righteous King that she should have been. If only she could have won the Grail and erased her very existence and allowed her kingdom to thus flourish!

"No sacrifice...is too great for my people." Arturia whispered.

It would be better to be an unsung hero of the greatest kingdom than to be the forever celebrated King of a fallen one.

"Oh Camelot! I wish only to look upon your vast halls once more--"

She heard the steps of an armoured man behind her, so this was it. She did not resist, this was to be her lot. Her cheeks were dry as the unknown knight roughly pulled the king to her feet. He grabbed her wrists and held them firmly, turning her to face the darkened sun. To think her death would be to die at the hand of a coward. She could see the faint silhouette of a man over on a hilltop.

Arturia cried out as blood spurted from the painful wound. Shadowy clouds obscured identity of the archer from the king of knight's view. Who he was mattered little now, Arturia thought dimly, honor mattered little when it came to her death. Her life was worth nothing.

A second arrow slammed into her side, a much more excruciating wound that caused a fiery shock to run up her body. "Forgive me..." Arturia gasped in pain, the world spun in a red haze, "I never meant...to hurt anyone."

Third and fourth arrows, impossibly fast and accurate sank into her eye sockets, blinding her. Hot blood ran down Arturia's face. The king realized she would not die, her pain would never end. A fit punishment, perhaps even not punishment enough! Arturia thought grimly. The knight dropped her to the ground and wrenched the arrows from her body.

It took Arturia several minutes to realize they had left her alone on this hellish mound of bodies. Her face still felt wet from blood, and she knew her other wounds bled freely as well.

Hail fell, pelting her body with merciless ice. Her wounds screamed in agony as the ice struck the defenseless flesh.

Arturia crawled on all fours like a beast, aimlessly seeking shelter from the storm.

The knight suddenly pulled her back up, he hadn't left at all, Arturia dimly realized. He drove a dagger into her shoulder and slapped her across the face with his gauntlet, if Arturia had seen the dagger, she would have wondered at the strange design of the weapon.

The thick red hilt bore runes of a dark black metal that matched the actual blade itself. Golden runes covered the center of the blade and formed a thin oval. A red device was place in the exact center.

The knight jerked her head back with her hair, likely inviting the archer to further damage Arturia's face. Instead of an arrow however, spiked cuffs were driven into her forearms. Arturia gasped in ever more pain. She felt her bones splintering and piercing themselves through her arms. Sticky dark red blood seeped from her body and onto her dress, Arturia coughed more up and let it fall into the grass.

The worst pain finally did come from the strange chains, magical electricity suddenly surged into her body and burned her skin with fiery unmatched by any she had ever before felt.

A long scream sounded from Arturia, her throat suddenly raw and in excruciating pain. Arturia did not cease her scream, the physical pain proving more than she could bear.

Off in the distance, the archer nocked one last arrow. He slowly raised the bow and

et the arrow fly. The arrow struck the tortured king through the heart, piercing through armor and bone.

White light engulfed Arturia and the pain ceased, the woman opened her eyes. Before her stood the ruined house that had belonged to Kiritsugu Emiya.

Hello! How was my first chapter? I really hope it was pretty good! Please just take a couple moments to review me please! Telling me what I do wrong is the first step to fixing it!