Ultimum Miraculum

AN- And yet again here I am with another new story when I should probably be finishing the ones I have already started... oh well, plot bunnies will be plot bunnies. And I have always wanted to write a serious Nasuverse story that uses many less known aspects, one that diverges at the end of the Fourth Grail War, so here it is. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: The various series making up the Nasuverse do not belong to me but to Kinoku Nasu, much to my annoyance since there is TOO MUCH STUFF he hasn't explained yet! Why!?

"Beware lest you lose the substance by grasping at shadow."

Aesop

All The Evil In The World I

Deep within the heart of the Holy Grail, at the very epicentre of the Heavens Feel ritual, lurked a great and terrible darkness. A shadow of such intensity that even night itself would be swallowed up by its in-satisfiable desire for oblivion. Dripping and oozing with the collected despair and hatred of the entire world, Angra Mainyu awaited his inevitable rebirth.

All the Evil in the World anxiously writhed in anticipation for when the blackened chalice that held its essence within itself would topple over, freeing the Deity from its conceptual cage. It knew what it would do once it had been given its freedom, once the sole victor of the Fourth Holy Grail War, the war to determine whom could obtain a sole wish, stepped forwards to claim a miracle.

Angra Mainyu would grant that wish, but all payments rendered would be in blood. Yes, Angra Mainyu was going to spill enough blood to dye the seas crimson and paint the sky with all the colours of death. The force of malevolence was the only one whom would have their wish granted; it would be a miracle if any human was left alive by the time the God's thirst for violence had been sated.

Angra Mainyu's had but one sole desire- to be free. From the confines of the Grail that he had been trapped within, free from there certainly. But free from much more than that. Angra Mainyu was fed up with carrying all of the world evils on its shoulders, fed up with the constant pain and anger and anguish that it endured every single moment of every single point in its existence.

The beggars hatred towards the rich noble whom ignored his sorrows and refused him a coin; the mother who cursed the world for taking away her stillborn son; the soldier's disgust towards his fellow men for abandoning him to die. Them, and literally every curse that had ever been imagined, broiled within Angra Mainyu's tainted form- he literally encompassed every single sin, every curse, every part of humanity that could be considered 'wrong' or 'evil', and he was sick of it.

How dare they curse him! But he was no more, now the boy that had once been tortured to insanity and heralded by his village as a demon, that boy whom had been falsely sacrificed for everybody's sins, was no more. Now it was all that was left, hatred for what humanity was. Rotten to its core.

And Angra Mainyu was going to show the world this. The world was wrong, not worth existing if such evil as he carried could exist. So he'd reveal this darkness to all of humankind when he was freed. He would drown them in all the sin that they had neglected to take responsibility for, and suffocate them with that despair.

Not long now. The Fourth Heaven's Feel neared its conclusion. The being now inhabiting the Grail had a wish to grant.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kiritsugu was sickened by what he had seen, by just what he had been fighting for. The Magus Killer was truly a fool. He longed for nothing more than to be a hero, yet here he was. He had given up so much on his bloody, bitter path. He had lost much and gained little, a hero's task was thankless and only now after having met with the Grail, having seen it take on his wife's form to inform him of what his ideals truly meant, only now could he see what a fool he had been.

Kill one to save ten? How ridiculous. Perhaps not everyone could be saved, but he now saw that all he had accomplished in his life had been to make the pile of corpses killed by his own hands larger and larger. He stood atop a hill of the dead, with blood on his hands.

His daughter was gone, and he would never see her again. His assistant was no more, killed in action. His wife was dead, willingly sacrificed to give him the chance to have his wish granted. Just another mistake. He had desperately wished that the Grail would be his salvation, that it would be able to grant his deepest desire of world peace.

That nobody would have to die anymore.

The Einzbern's had lied though. All the Grail could ever possibly be was a monkey's paw; the only world peace the Grail could grant Kiritsugu would have been based on the slaughter of billions.

So he had rejected the Grail, he had rejected salvation.

The Grail had to be destroyed, it could only cause harm. Even after everything the Magus had done, he could still stop more blood being spilled. All he would need to do is to destroy the Grail, and to do that he needed his greatest tool.

Only Saber, King Arthur herself, she who carried the Sword of Promised Victory- Excalibur- had the power to annihilate an artefact as powerful as the Grail. And he had the means to force her to do so.

Kiritsugu felt a sudden pain upon his right hand, where the Command Seals he had emblazoned upon his skin burned brightly for a moment, before falling dim once more. He could no longer feel a prana connection between himself and his Servant; the link was dead.

And so once more Kiritsugu saw victory slip through his fingers.

There was only one explanation: King Arthur was gone, slain by Gilgamesh. Now there was but one person able to stop the upcoming slaughter, and the Magus Killer did not have the means to force him to destroy the prize he had been fighting for.

The building shuddered and shook. Kiritsugu could smell smoke and decay, and something else he couldn't quite detect. Something powerful. Something old. Something much eviller than anything previously in existence.

Dark mud began to drip down the nearby wall, collecting in a shallow pool of congealed hatred, slowly expanding in size.

The Maus Killer then realised that he had lost, the evil in the Grail had been released, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

XXXXXXXXXX

A mortally wounded priest with a bullet precariously located in his heart dreamt of a darkness. He smiled, he could feel in his very being that the entity he could barely perceive was one that was sympathetic to himself, one just as twisted and black in heart as himself.

The darkness whispered unspeakable words to him as it engulfed him, the dark mud filling his very soul. Kotomine Kirei had never been scared of the dark, even as a child. Quite the opposite really, he had always been comfortable when out of sight of the light. It had been fitting in some ways that he had summoned an Assassin to be his ally in the war, someone just as used to roaming in the shadows as himself.

Now he was no longer looking at one whom lurked in the shadows, what he was perceiving was the shadow, something that was always there, lurking in the hearts of all mankind. And he had never been more happy to see it.

"What is it you seek, Kotomine Kirei?" The distorted voice resembling a saw scraping against flesh asked. "In your broken heart, just what is it you want?"

Kirei knew full well what he wanted. He knew that this being was the Grail, and that somehow he was the winner of the war. The man whom had initially thought that he had no wish to grant was being given his chance to make his own desires a reality.

"Death." Decided Kirei after what could have been forever, or only a few moments. "Lots of it. Death and chaos and destruction. I want to see the world burn."

"Burn..." The shadow relished the world. Kirei could tell that the Grail was just as excited by the prospect as he was.

"Human. Rejoice; you have before you a miracle. Now make a wish, and free me. FREE ME!"

Kirei smiled a wicked smile, one that would not be out of place upon the face of a devil or a demon. "Hear me, oh great Grail. Grant me my wish. I want the world to die!"

And the Grail heard. Rather, the evil caged within it heard. Kiritsugu Emiya might have denied it, but Kotomine Kirei had not. The floodgates holding back Angra Mainyu were released, and a wish was granted. Its, and a twisted human.

A change of words could have a very different meaning. For where once a raging inferno was birthed by Angra Mainyu, in this timeline something different had been demanded. The world was going to die, quite literally. Not just humanity. No. Alongside humans, the world itself was going to feel Angra Mainyu's pain.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kiritsugu ran from the darkness. That evil was released, but perhaps he could still help someone!

No fire ravaged Fuyuki City. The darkness simply continued to grow, swallowing everything in its path, digesting all whom it touched.

Already Kiritsugu had seen more death than he had ever expected the War to bring. It wouldn't surprise him if most of Fuyuki was dead, because there was no doubt that the corruption would not stop growing. This was a threat for more than just this one city, it was quite literally the worlds problems.

He had tired to spread the word as quickly as possible once he ran from the epicentre, alerting all whom he encountered. Few listened to him, but a small amount of people had. Perhaps they would be able to save at least one life?

People believed him now. It was hard not to when you could feel the hatred of the flooding mud that burned skin, tore muscle and digested soul. But it was too late, thousands were dead and the body-count was only growing.

Perhaps he might still be able to save someone?

XXXXXXXXXX

Shirou fell to the ground, spent. He was in a world of shade and nauseating emotions.

Pain

He wanted to curl up and die.

Hate

To die and die and die and die.

Suffering

He couldn't remember much. The boy had been led by two people, a man and a woman, ushered away from the evil that had awoken him from his sleep as it spread.

Despair

Now they were dead.

Death

He had no tears to shed. He felt empty. There was nothing that made him him anymore, just this cold sensation of despair. In order to leave behind those that were dying, to discard attempting to save others from the engulfing shadows and run on alone, he had shed his emotions one by one.

Death

Stability had disappeared when his parents had died.

Death death

Faith had been lost when he saw that little girl praying to God to be saved, only for a tendril of evil to hear her request and wrap itself around her, pulling her crying, sobbing and praying into the darkness.

Death death HATE death

Love evaporated along with the muffled cries of a pair of lovers embracing one another as the monstrosity swallowed them whole.

Death death PAIN death death death LOSS death

Hope had been the only thing to survive the onslaught, and even then it abandoned him when he needed it, but he had carried on walking, leaving everyone else to suffer instead.

Death death death death HATE death death death SUFFER death death

Now he was empty, and so he had fallen. Then like so many others, the mud had reached him, clinging to his leg like napalm, climbing his still form.

It was taking its time with him, unlike many of the others. He was unlucky enough to gather the full wrath of the malevolence that drove the shadows. Bit by bit that which remained of the young boy Shirou was being picked apart, like a vulture gnawing on a fresh carcass.

DeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathdeathDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATHDEATH DEATH!

With what Shirou thought was his last thoughts, he desperately wished to be saved, even though nobody else had gotten their wishes answered, even though he was in a place where no salvation be found.

"I've found you." Spoke a voice, drawing Shirou away from the pain and back to reality. An unknown man with a smile on his face, an emotion of pure happiness amongst the suffering and despair. It stood out in Shirou's mind, because he wanted to know just what could cause a man to smile such a smile even in a disaster such as this.

A flash of golden light, then suddenly the darkness violating his body and soul was gone, replaced with a feeling of tranquillity and a warm summer breeze.

"Its okay, I've saved you."

Shirou had been saved, and as he looked into the quietly crying face of his saviour before falling into blessed unconsciousness, he wondered if he could ever smile like that?

XXXXXXXXXX

As Angra Mainyu spread its darkness across the surface of the Earth, finally swallowing Fuyuki City and most of its civilians, the corruption spread elsewhere too.

Like an infernally withered tree, the Persian god of darkness spread its roots deep into the Earth, corrupting much more than just the soil and water it met. Kirei had wished for the World to die, and Angra Mainyu had resolved to grant such a wish that would cause such death and pain.

Tendril's of evil began to pierce something imperceivable, a force which was always there and which had always been thought would remain there, untouchable for the most part but conscious, forever.

Gaia, the literal embodiment of the will of the planet, turned its attention to the destroyed Fuyuki City. For once, its eternal conflict with Alaya had been interrupted by a much greater threat. Gaia lives and dies with the planet, being the force that ensures the survival of the world. It was not 'something' touchable; it was not tangible. It was a force just as certain as gravity and equally as untouchable as it.

In short, Gaia cannot be interacted with, not following logical rules, being utterly inhuman. It cannot hurt. It cannot truly die unless the planet does.

And yet somehow Gaia was hurting. Something was harming the untouchable! Gaia had never before been injured, due to such a thing as an 'injury' being incompatible with a thing as conceptually inhuman as Gaia.

But injury was the only word that could describe what Gaia was feeling. Whatever was going on in the remains of Fuyuki City had caused Gaia to feel pain, and so it must be stopped before it could gain momentum.

The Will of the World sent a request to its strongest agent, an inhuman monster that was only ever deployed in the most dire of circumstances, that had been tamed by one of the strongest of the Dead Apostles.

Elsewhere, the white Beast of Gaia roared, and began its frantic race towards its next target.

XXXXXXXXXX

A force just as intangible as Gaia had its own problems. Alaya, so similar to Gaia but so different as well, being the will of the humans that had grown and evolved until they were no longer of the land but had gained their own will to live, felt loss.

The sudden slaughter of thousands of people.

Alaya acted to preserve humanity, to save the majority even if required culling some of its own people to save them, like killing a cancerous cell before it could grow. The events of Fuyuki City were no different. Alaya had sent an unknowing agent to try and balance the scale, knowing of the potential damage to Humanity that the Holy Grail War could bring.

The agent, a mercenary named Kiritsugu Emiya, failed. He failed. And so Alaya resorted to its own final option to try and limit the damage enacted by the conclusion of the conflict: it sent the Counter Guardians.

XXXXXXXXXX

Others of Gaia's domain heard the call: spirits, fairies, beasts and in some rare cases, one or two minor Phantasmal Beasts. Many were in hiding, or dead, or elsewhere, but they heard the call to arms. Those who were capable of overseas travel set off for Fuyuki, although none would be there in time, or would be unable to penetrate the Corruption that the terrifying location now radiated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Many hours later, Angra Mainyu had not been halted. Quite the opposite, its spread had accelerated until even the entire Mage's Association could not hide its existence. Suffice to say that it had caused the mortal authorities to be thrown into disarray once an unknown substance had begun to spread from Fuyuki City and quickly began to submerge most of Japan in its mud. The Japanese Government had been ill-prepared for the coming of Angra Mainyu, and even with emergency evacuations being carried out once they realised that nothing they actually possessed (be it weaponry or manpower) could harm it, many had still died.

Basic estimates had predicted that there had been over twenty million casualties, but even that was merely a guess, and there had probably been more considering the acceleration of the Corruption (As the Government had named it). No doubt the casualties would only rise. The most pessimistic predictions claimed that they would most likely lose the entire landmass and that the refugees would need to be moved to Japan's many islands, but even that was based on the assumption that large bodies of water would stop the Corruption.

Regardless, evacuations were being carried out, but there were only so many planes which could hold only so many people, so even more would die in the time waiting to be rescued.

Kiritsugu and his new charge were one of the lucky few to be on a plane heading straight to Hokkaidō. The fact that the Magecraft user had used a bit of hypnosis to get them on was besides the point.

The boy had still not woken up, presumably due to stress, but Kiritsugu resolved to look after him. He was an orphan of the Grail War, and as far as he was aware he was one of the few to even survive Fuyuki City's disaster, so it was his responsibility to look after him.

Kiritsugu ignored the worried whispers and mutters of the other passengers and resolved to get some sleep of his own.

XXXXXXXXXX

At long last, the agents of both Alaya and Gaia had mobilised, and for the first time in human history they both had the same target to be unleashed upon. Never before had the two ever worked together, nor would they ever. Even in this emergency the cooperation only extended to not trying to kill each other until the threat killing off both the planet and humans was eliminated. It was still a spectacular occurrence, and any Magus worth his salt would have paid his arms and his legs just to watch the upcoming clash.

There was no Magus watching though. Just Angra Mainyu and those there to kill it. Without fear the Counter Guardians marched across the darkness, cutting their way through with skills honed and sharpened within thousands of battles. Likewise, the Beast of Gaia tore through the shadows which sought to tear it apart and continued its charge.

Both forces of unbelievable power converged upon the place of origin: Fuyuki City.

No longer was what remained considered a place of humanity. The city was ruined, buildings levelled and bridges torn apart. The river was stained a rich crimson colour which gradually shifted across the darker regions of the colour scale, fluctuating with an inhuman will. Monolith's of pitch black energy rose from the wounded earth and boasted blossoms of dead light, dripping even more murkiness into the earth, which absorbed it and transported it to other monolith's which had sprouted up across Japan. There was no grass, nature or any greenery in the ruins. The ground was ash grey and even the sun setting sky was changing under the twisted origin of the Corruption.

Wordlessly, Angra Mainyu spat out its own twisted avatars to match those it could sense approaching. The two figures stood waiting in the darkness: unspeaking, uncaring and ruthless. They waited to deliver their Master's rage upon its enemies.

XXXXXXXXXX

On the other side of the world, in the heart of England, sat the Clock Tower. The Clock Tower was one of the three organisations that made up the Mage's Association, a group dedicated towards the preservation and protection of Magecraft, as well as the hiding of it, while the other two were Atlas and the Sea of Estray.

Inside the Clock Tower, a lone man sat and drank some wine expensive enough to bankrupt most families. After over two thousand years of existence, the concept of money mattered little, so the Director enjoyed his small treat before he went to address his closest allies and to prepare for that which was to come.

The Director had been in close contact with the leader of Atlas from the moment the infant organisation had formed, so he knew of the reason for the other groups existence: to save the world. The Director knew of their impending beliefs that eventually something was going to end the world, and that they were trying to stop it. Unlike many of the ignorant masses who spouted that belief, he actually knew what that threat was.

He took another sip, savouring the taste. Wine was one of the few things that still held his attention.

There was a faint knock on the door, then it was opened.

"Director," Greeted the Vice Director, Barthomeloi Lorelei, as she confidently entered the room. "Are you ready to address the other Marshall's yet? They are getting impatient."

"Patience." Responded the Director, placing the glass of half finished wine slowly onto the nearby table with a wrinkled, ancient hand. Then, he rose from his chair and looked into the eyes of his most trusted advisor, his second in command. He saw bloodlust in those sharp hazel eyes, the desire to get this bureaucracy outof the way, so that she could return to where she shined the most, on the battlefield, with blood on her hands and a foe before her.

"It is simple for one as old as yourself to speak of patience." Stated Lorelei bluntly.

"Even so, patience." He told her. "I don't blame your... enthusiasm, but change is in the air. The events which have failed to be covered up in Japan is evidence of this."

"So we must act soon."

"There is no must." He chided softly. "Lorelei, you know that this is no mere event. It is a catastrophe. It is as clear as day that the secret of Magecraft will not stay hidden for long now, and it is equally clear Humanity will need it more than ever in the upcoming days." The Director strode to the one way window looking over night-time London, blissfully unaware of the full extent of what was going down on the other side of the globe.

"We should be acting! We should have agents there." Lorelei's argument was sound; if events in Japan were as important as he claimed, then they should be there acting upon this threat!

"No." A man whom had seen Empires fall and Gods die smiled weakly and shook his head, still looking over London. "There is a storm coming, and we must prepare for it. The Clock Tower will adapt, we will survive, and we will be ready for that which is coming."

"So the Corruption is not the true threat in this case?" Asked the woman.

"Indeed. Atlas is correct in many regards, and I feel that I should have taken heed of their warnings sooner. That is the issue with old age, you feel that the world is just as patient as you are."

"Director, the Marshall's." Reminded the Queen of the Clock Tower.

"I know, Lorelei." The comment did not inspire the Director to act quicker, and he carried on as if she had not spoken. An act of power if anything, to subtly remind Lorelei that it was still him that was in charge, not her, and that there was a very specific reason for this. "I had not expected the Heavens Feel to escalate to this. In fact, I still hope that perhaps this matter can be resolved before that occurs. Yes, I had expected that Humanity would have many more years to prepare."

"Prepare? For what?"

The Director directed his gaze up from the city of London and towards the stars that twinkled in the night sky, despite the horizon being too tainted in light pollution for stars to truly appear. "For Them." The Director felt uncomfortably small and insignificant when watching the infinite expanses of space through his enchanted window, which was exactly why he did it. To remind himself to be wary of that which was Not Human. "They come, Lorelei. Perhaps not now, but soon. And I'm scared. I'm terribly scared, because I do not know if even we can live through what is coming..."

XXXXXXXXXX

Both the Beast of Gaia and the Counter Guardians reached Fuyuki City at roughly the same time, to attempt to destroy the Corruption at its source, the Greater Grail, located beneath the alien temple that sat atop Mount Enzou in a mammoth cavern.

The two Avatars of Evil strode to meet them, each empowered with an infinite prana source and All the Evils in the World.

XXXXXXXXXX

All across the Holy Church, individuals began to pray. Many did not know what was happening, but those that had even the slightest hints of suspicion prayed. Something terribly unholy was free in the world, so they recited hymns and prayed for salvation, for only God could stop the coming darkness.

XXXXXXXXXX

When the Avatars of Evil met their targets, there was no pre-fight banter or conversation from them. Merely silence as they assessed the other for a moment, before diving into combat. One chose to fight the Beast of Gaia while the other selected the Guardian's of Humanity, though both intended to win.

The first avatar, a pale faced man with white spiked hair, piercing red eyes and practical black armour adorning him, faced the three warriors sent to dispatch him. Alaya had decided to empower three of its strongest warriors rather than support a dozen Guardians. In doing so, the three selected were at their strongest, but were acting as the sole will of Humanity. If they failed Alaya could do nothing.

The first Counter Guardian was a tall man with tanned skin and spiked hair that had whitened prematurely due to overusing his Magecraft, and was wearing a suit of red armour made of unknown material, inscribed with an infinite array of runes and reinforced beyond all that was humanly conceivable. In his hands were two deadly weapons, also Reinforced, curved and sharp, with juxtaposing shades of black and white, contrasting like yin and yang. From the moment the demigod locked eyes with Counter Guardian EMIYA, whom carried the memories of every rendition of him in the Throne of Heroes to ever walk the face of the Earth, and whom had all of their skill too, knew that even outside of battle they would never be able to get along. The corrupted King of Heroes could instinctively tell that he hated him with passion he had thought long since consumed...

Secondly was a woman that he knew oh so well, whom had looked young in appearance with golden hair and emerald eyes back in the Fourth Holy Grail War. Now she appeared rougher than before, no longer was her hair tied back in a bun, but flowed behind her elegantly, blowing in the breeze caused by her phenomenal presence alone. Her eyes were harsher too, no longer a dazzling green but replaced by pale orbs of apathy after her long years of service to the world. She was a version of Arthuria Pendragon whom had succeeded in obtaining the Holy Grail from a War in a different timeline, and so had given up her body and soul in accordance with the accord made with the world, to further protect it. Even if this was done in a different timeline, the Throne of Heroes spanned many worlds, and she had agreed to join the Guardians, so she and her brightly glowing dual blades were Alaya's to enforce.

The last Guardian was one that surprised the Avatar the most. The man carried a face identical to the Avatar, although his counterpart had blonde hair and his eyes had a brighter intensity. His armour also contrasted the Avatar's, as it was fashioned out of gleaming gold and not obsidian material, which glowed with pure power, whereas the Avatar's was a void which absorbed all. Out of all the Guardians, the doppelgänger was the only one to have a smile on his face, and was the only one to say some words. "Well, I have to admit that I'm disappointed that a version of myself was as foolish as to succumb to such pitiful darkness. Hmmmph! I suppose that I, Gilgamesh, the guardian of this garden known as the world, the King of both Heroes and Humanity, shall slay you, mongrel."

Avatar Gilgamesh said nothing, not caring about the version of himself that had made a contract with an infant Alaya to obtain the Elixir of Immortality and to eternally fight to protect his garden so that Humanity could grow into something beautiful. With a flick of his wrists, black ripples resonated through the air behind, expanding and darkening to form void from which the edges of many corrupted, tainted and crumbling blades could be seen.

No more words were needed. The three Guardians with the hopes of humanity on their shoulders charged as the rain of blades attempted to skewer them.

XXXXXXXXXX

The faster of Gaia's spirits reached the outskirts of Japan and began to brave the polluted land, floating, flying and striding through the quickly dying island. Almost immediately shadows rose and took form, prepared to stop these guardians of the world. Spirits and Fiends fought, and while some managed to get past the nigh invincible mounds of curses, they were soon taken down by the cursed atmosphere itself that digested them. They continued fighting futilely, despite knowing that only something of Primate Murder's level of power could possibly endure all of the curses and reach Fuyuki.

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, a woman identical to Counter Guardian PENDRAGON save for her paler skin, blacker armour and sole blade assessed the beast leaping for her. It was as large as two large houses stacked on top of one another and was bred to be the perfect human killer, being comprised more of muscle, spike and sharp bone than actual tissue. It was inhuman, with an outer shell of bone covering its bulky form like armour, from where its title of a White Beast came from.

Avatar Arthuria had faced many enemies and slain them all, and this beast would be only the next to fall to her. It was amazing how quickly her ideals had crumbled before the relentless might of the darkness which inhabited her very essence, and now she would kill her enemy not out of chivalry or for protecting her nation, but because her Master required her to.

"EX-" She began, an eclipse of dusk radiating from her blades point and hilt as she held its point to one side, preparing to swing. "CALIBUR!"

And then the Noble Phantasm fired, and the fight for the Earth was on.

AN- Well, this was fun to write. This story will diverge rapidly from canon and utilise many themes from the short story Notes, since I loved it (Short as it was) and feel that it is an excellent setting for an apocalypse. There will be lots of references to other works as well, though you don't need to explicitly know the source material since I will explain a lot of it, while I am always available via reviews or PM if someone does have questions.

Unfortunately, this is my first time using much of the detail from the Nasuverse's more obscure sections, and with Nasu being as vague as he is on the nature of some of the toughest figures in the setting, some of what I write may not be strictly accurate. Feel free to leave me a review with any corrections or faults that you notice, and I might correct it if it isn't strictly needed for the plot.

Next chapter will conclude all the hype that I've been building this chapter, so look forwards to it. Undying Soul out.