Hi everyone,

Thanks for being patient. I read all of your comments and determined that a rewrite of the prologue was necessary. Hope you all enjoy!

Thinking, "Speaking"

Prologue: 3:00 a.m.

Clutching the massive hole in my abdomen, I winced as I dragged my beaten body into a shady alleyway. I clenched my right hand into a fist.One. Two. Three. I counted as I turned back to survey my enemy.

Fuck. I could've taken one executor even in my weakened state or maybe even stood up to two, but three was nigh impossible. With my sealing designation, I knew it was useless to negotiate with them. They would rather kill me and save my body for "preservation" than negotiate terms of surrender.

As I ripped another piece of my cloak off to stuff the growing hole in my stomach, I coughed into my hand and gagged. The metallic-sour taste of bile and blood filled my throat and mouth as I tried to breath. Resigning myself to the fate of death, I traced my Kanshou and Bakuya and turned around to face my hunters.

For what seemed like ages, neither my opponents nor I made a move as we looked for openings and weaknesses. They were utterly professional, body language giving away no weaknesses or hints to their future moves. As we circled each other, I directed the flow of prana into my legs in preparation for a surprise rush.

Digging my soles into the asphalt, I pushed off the ground to rush my leftmost opponent. Reacting immediately, the executor threw three black keys at me.

With my reflexes dulled from blood loss and my body broken and injured I stood no chance. The blades sunk into my body, piercing my lungs and liver.

Blood erupted from my wounds. Dark red streams flowed from my body once again yet I felt no pain. I knew I was going to die, so I continued charging at my opponent with the intent to kill.

Caught off guard by my animalistic mentality the executor put another key through my chest to put me down. Unfortunately for him, I could no longer feel pain. I allowed the sword to cut deeper into my chest as I hugged him and slit his throat.

Wasting no time, I charged the second executor and tried to tackle him. Allowing Kanshou and Bakuya to fade, I redirected my prana to my right hand. My fist glowed with green patterns as the magic ran through my circuits. Feeling my bones and flesh reinforce, I delivered a haymaker to my opponent's nose only to receive a black key through my right knee.

When I turn around I was expecting to see a cowed and intimidated girl only to see an smirking, confident woman. Knowing that close combat would no longer work, I jumped back in an attempt to put as much distance between my opponents and me as possible.

I picked up a loose chunk of asphalt from the redirected the flow of prana into the rock. Dodging three black keys from different directions, I cocked my arm back and threw the rock at the remaining male executor.

His chest exploded into a gory firework as his ribcage shattered and his heart exploded. Unable to process the reality of his death, the executor fell with his eyes wide in surprise.

Allowing her smirk to grow wider, the last executor readied her black keys as I regarded her warily. I reached deep into my life force and once again traced Kanshou and Bakuya, my favored blades. By then, my mana was nearly depleted and I had already lost close to a third of my blood. It was then that my body finally betrayed me; I collapsed into a messy heap as the keys that were stuck in my body were driven in even deeper.

The last executor approached me and cut her hand just to show me how hopeless my situation was. Whereas her cut healed immediately, I sorely missed the healing powers of Avalon, the sheath of my first love. Standing over my moribund body, she started saying words that I could no longer hear or understand. As I lay in a puddle of my own blood, I was unable to fend off my opponent's taunts.

Pushing the last of my life force into my arm, I focused on the seven steps of projection. Judging the concept of creation. Hypothesizing the basic structure. Duplicating the composition material…

The moment I completed the copy, I stabbed its jagged blade into my opponent's chest. Blood spurted all over my face and for once, it wasn't mine. A look of confusion then horror overtook my last enemy as she realized that the last weapon, Rule Breaker, negated her magical regeneration.

Allowing myself to fall back, a red, smoky haze started overtaking my vision. Saber, Sakura, Fuji-nee, Illya, and Rin, I'm finally going to see you again, I thought as I lost myself to the coming blackness and letting out my final breath.