A/N: This story is written by SuperNova23 ( u/2817228/SuperNova23) and I , so go check out his stories as well!

Disclaimer: We don't own the Fate franchise or the JoJo one. Which should have been obvious because otherwise this would totally be canon.


Why, why did I have to listen to Kuro! It's cold and this stupid outfit isn't exactly cold proof! "Ruby, can't I at least wear my coat? I am cold!"

"Illya-san, you are well aware that a coat would tarnish your Magical Girl image! Everyone knows that an outfit that leaves just enough to the imagination is a trademark of a proper Magical Girl! I will not let you compromise that because of a little cold!"

"But Ruby! I will get sick!"

"Oh, don't be such a child…"

"I am a child!"

"Will you two shut up? You keep this up, the enemy won't need to look to find us!" Rin snapped at them, her annoyance clear.

"Sorry Rin-san…"

As they reached the city limits and entered the woods, the albino felt a shiver run down her spine. It wasn't that she was afraid, it was simply that the forest was eerily silent. No birds, no animals, just the left-over snow and the unnatural stillness. Even the trees looked dead and the darkness surrounding them wasn't particularly helping soothe her fears. Unconsciously, Illya began walking closer to Bazett.

The walk to the cavern was unusually long and quiet. There was an aura of paranoia hanging above the trio- the short-haired Enforcer seemed to be prepared to pounce onto the first sign of danger, rip its limbs off and beat it to death with them, while Rin kept jumping at the slightest sound. Illya herself simply regretted ever going along with Rin's crazy plans.

Alright, maybe Rin's plan wasn't crazy at all. From what Illya had gathered, with Gilgamesh gone, they had no way of tearing through this world and onto the one they had come from. Ruby and Sapphire could only transport them to a Mirror version of the world they were currently in, as far as she knew, so managing to get to the rift and gathering whatever information needed to replicate it was crucial.

And yet she'd much rather be home and have some home-made cocoa. So sue me.

"Rin."

"Hm?"

"What type of data do you plan on gathering exactly? I imagine that if the rift isn't already closed, it cannot possibly be capable of transfer."

"Bazett-san is right! And we cannot replicate the rift without enough mana or the same power that created it and we have neither! Surely, an old hag like you hasn't forgotten that~"

Rin inhaled sharply. "Shut up! Who do you think you are calling an old hag you ridiculous, overbearing little pest?"

"My, my Rin, you are just like a violent ape, aren't you? This is why Illya-san is such a great Master!"

Fumes were coming out of Rin-san's ears and despite her eyes being covered by her bangs, Illya knew exactly how this would play out. "I'll show you violent!"

"Enough!"

Even Bazett-san can be such a muscle head sometimes…. Illya thought with a drop of sweat running down the side of her face. Bazett had restored order by chopping at the heads of the two fighting comrades, with enough strength for even Ruby to get a bump.

"Focus on the mission up ahead. We cannot afford to be caught off guard, so unless you plan to remain vigilant, we should call the mission off and return to base."

"Tell that to her!" both of the accused yelled, pointing at the other. Bazett raised her hand threateningly, which made both Rin and Ruby huff in annoyance but stay silent.

After that small episode, no one talked until they reached the Great Cavern.


Rin Tohsaka stopped a few meters away from the invisible limit. It wasn't an absolute line, but calculation by approach was the best they had right now.

Luvia and she had stayed up late the previous night, recalling the events before the battle and assessing the situation. They were extremely low on gems, the only asset worth mentioning being her father's pendant. The two magi had transferred a generous amount of mana inside of it in hopes of preventing a second scenario of the two of them being of no use in a fight. It couldn't possibly compare to the amount previously stored, but if they had learned anything in this world, it was that the tiniest advantage could make the greatest difference. It wouldn't be much use, but at least they would be able to offer more support than they had in the previous day's fight.

Rin bit the inside of her cheek.

It wasn't only that she was placing her faith in Illya- that wasn't something new. No, what she and Luvia had done, placing a burden too heavy for anyone on the shoulders of two children, that was bothering her. It wounded her pride and she suspected her nemesis felt the same. Even more so after yesterday.

Useless. We were utterly useless.

The Ainsworths had taken their pride and their gems. They had made this personal.

And he took my… No. Not now.

Slapping her cheeks with both hands to get a grip, Rin pulled out the small bracelet from her pocket.

It was something that she'd expect Luvia to have on. A teardrop-shaped small sapphire, encased in silver with a matching chain on it. Small, delicate, elegant, ridiculously expensive. And in this situation, very much needed. It had no mana of any significant worth, but if her own magic was added, it would be suitable. She wasn't certain why the Ainsworths didn't confiscate that bracelet along with every other gem they had in their possession when they were captured, but now it didn't matter very much.

A few feet away from her current position was the crater created by the battle between Illya and the eighth Heroic Spirit, with the marks of that battle still visible. She contemplated entering the cavern to search for any potential signs that someone from the other side may have left for them- she knew that the Church was keeping an eye out for any further disturbances and she assumed that their entering and never exiting to have been already reported by the creepy Sister. That and Bazett was a highly-valued operative of the Association. Her disappearance would certainly cause some heads to turn towards Fuyuki.

She pulled from her borrowed bag a square-shaped piece of fabric with small strings sewn in each corner. "Bazett. I need you to bring me four relatively thin sticks, about my height." she requested as she dropped on her knees and began drawing the formula with her finger on the ground. "Illya, be on guard."

"Yes!"

The amount of risk involved should be minimum, seeing as Julian Ainsworth had lost the Doll user of the Class Card Gilgamesh, the Class Card itself and Miyu. He currently had one Doll at his possession, which she assumed he wouldn't allow away from his side until he was ready to make his next move. Still, she couldn't depend on the Ainsworths licking their wounds and not investigating any small flaring of magical energy released.

She wasn't done drawing when Bazett returned with the wood, so she ordered her to put them beside her and stand by. The short-haired woman nodded her consent and stood on the opposite side of Rin, covering for any blind spots on Illya's part. When the Circle was finished to her satisfaction, she shoved the sticks in a square around the circle and tied the fabric in the middle, right above her formula.

Perfect.

"Bazett, Illya." she said sharply, calling for their attention. "I am about to begin. This shouldn't take long, but be on guard."

"Got it Rin-san!"

"Understood."

She focused back on the fabric and raised the bracelet above it. Please work.

"- Anfang!

Beantworten Sie die Forderung des Abgeordneten

Boden: zur Strömung

Strömung: zum Blut

Blut: zum Pergament –

Abschrift!"

To her immense relief, the gem in her hands gave a bright white light as it released the magical energy within it and her eyes looked anxiously over the shape the white fires would give.

As the flames went down, her shoulders relaxed.

"It looks like we have some waiting to do."

"What do you mean?" Bazett demanded.

"It looks that this particular cavern is the one belonging to our world, however there appears to be something wrong. I am not sure as to why, but it seems like even as it is right there, the cavern is constantly switching." she explained, untying the fabric and showing it to the Enforcer. The lines depicted there were not only slightly out of place, but some of those lines were half-way cut and seemingly replaced with either thinner or thicker pulsations and in one case, the line was entirely cut from the center. "That arrogant sow and I made some calculations yesterday night regarding the switches occurring. While we were back at our own world, it went back and forth at a rate of approximately four minutes, maybe three and a half. We have been here for…" she stopped and made a quick count in her head, "about four days in total. It seems that in Illya's case, the transportation affected time as well."

"Indeed." Bazett affirmed. "Kuro and I arrived about two days before we found Illyasviel, Tanaka and the Heroic Spirit Gilgamesh running away-"

"Strategically retreating!"

"-from the crater in the city." she concluded, as if Illya had not spoken at all.

Stifling a giggle at her pupil's hurt expression, the brunette went on with her explanation. "Well, either way, it appears that a rift such as this should have been mostly, if not entirely closed by now. At the very least that would have been the case in a world with a natural flow of mana. But as things stand in this one, the rift is not only still active for the biggest part, it is also completely out of whack."

"Yep, the old hag seems to be right." Ruby cut in from Illya's hand. "Rifts between worlds are a rarity under normal circumstances. However, this is a unique case. When Shirou-kun wished Miyu-san free, the Grail granted his wish by tearing this world's seams and pulling her to ours, along with the Class Cards. The Cards got trapped in the boundary however and that rift was closed. That said, places that have been torn in such a manner are always slightly weaker compared to how they used to be. After Gil-kun and Illya-san clashed in that same place with such high-density forces, it was easy for the repaired "curtain" to be torn once more, this time in an abnormally larger scale. "

"The stick's got a point. Normally, such irregularities are handled by the World itself, being immediately seen as a threat and mended automatically. It should have been the case here as well. My theory is that the mechanism is activated, but that the fact that the mana required for such a repair cannot be properly channeled anymore is causing the rift to become unstable."

"In other words, you are saying it is unusable. Is that right? Rin Tohsaka."

Rin lowered her head. "It is a possibility. The fact that I cannot conduct this measurement properly is a problem, seeing as entering the cavern unprepared could have serious repercussions." She folded the fabric carefully and put it inside the bag. "But this isn't an entirely wasted effort. For one, we now know that the Tohsakas are still the family that owns the administrator rights in this world. That means that there is a possible counterpart of mine alive that could be willing to help us." If they haven't been already killed off, or worse, allied with Julian. "And lastly, we have the measurements, which we can study more in depth back at base. Even if by approximation, we may be able to get something out of this." Rin pulled out a bento and a thermos of coffee from her bag. "Now, we just need to stay here for a while longer, to count the timing back and forth. I'd say we could use something to keep us going this late at night. How about so-"

No fair.

One cannot be too profound when Bazzet Fraga McRemitz's fist is coming towards their face.


What could possibly go wrong, is that it? Well, clearly, everything can go wrong! Thanks for nothing! "Schneiden!"

Ruby released another beam and Illya kicked the ground, trying to gain some altitude and evade the grasping hands below. After all, it was a lot easier to defeat her enemies when she didn't have to worry about them swarming her, something she couldn't say for Bazett.

Illya had to admire the brutal efficiency of her companion. Bazett seemed to be always one step ahead of her attackers, her strengthened hands and feet annihilating her opponents with a single hit, without a moment's hesitation. She had seen her fight before and had felt her strength first hand, but still couldn't help but be enthralled at the raw power the woman was emanating.

Truly, she is a Berserker woman!

Kuro's words rang now as true as they had that night they faced Gilgamesh for the first time.

Even so, nothing could change the fact that the short-haired woman was currently fighting a losing battle. Despite her prowess in hand-to-hand combat, there was no escaping that… army, for lack of a better word. Even if Bazett was capable of fighting on the same level as a Heroic Spirit Install, even she had her limits and Illya suspected that she would fall to her enemies' numbers long before they ran out, at the most ideal of circumstances.

Rin wasn't doing any better either. Without gems the brunette was severely weakened in terms of combat, however she did have one advantage over Bazzet's technique; Rin's Gandr shots could be fired in rapid succession and, seeing as these familiars were of no considerable level of strength, they were wildly effective. Sending several grotesque mannequins flying, the twin-tailed teen chanted a short spell that encased several dolls inside a medium-sized Bounted Field. Without missing a bit, she used her magically enhanced legs to dash forward and, grabbing a random puppet, she pressed her hand on its skull, steam rising from her palm and violently pushed it inside the barrier that allowed no one entering to get out.

The marked puppet walked forward shakily for a few seconds before, in Illya's surprise, exploding in tiny pieces and taking out every other puppet within, due to the force of the blast.

And while Illya had to admit that it was impressive, it was also futile. The large number of the flesh and wood familiars would not be easily deterred by the loss of a just a handful of its members.

It's as if they turned the entire city in their personal army.

Landing next to the Enforcer, Illya send another batch of their attackers flying, only for them to be replaced with twice that number. Even some of the less broken ones stood up once more. Creatures without a head or with missing hands…

"Illyasviel! Concentrate your attacks on their torso! They cannot stand again if they are in pieces!"

"R-right! Maximum output, Schneiden!"

Due to her attack's range it was more efficient in taking out more than one at a time, however it was of little use when the fallen were simply replaced.

This has to be some kind of joke!

"What are those things?" she asked as she shot an energy sphere at another that had come too close.

"You heard Shirou-kun's story, didn't you Illya-san?" Ruby replied, unusually serious. "I would assume that such complex constructs didn't succeed on the first try."

Illya felt the blood draining from her face. "You mean… these are…"

Endless dolls were coming out of the woods. Life-sized wooden puppets, most clearly defective in some manner, with the most grotesque of them going as far as having small layers of muscle attached to their otherwise wooden bodies, or even what seemed to be actual body parts. They weren't strong individually, but their numbers gave them an overwhelming advantage.

"Yes. But don't let that become a hindrance Illya-san. Look at them. Clearly, there is nothing left of who they used to be."

"B-but…"

"You heard Shirou-kun." the pink stick repeated. "It is impossible to transfer a consciousness without causing some damage to the ego, usually an extremely extensive one. A defective Doll is one thing, a mindless zombie is another."

All these people… The albino couldn't help but feel enraged at the sight of those mindless drones that stood up even when broken. The Ainsworths… how could they?

But there was no time to ponder on the morality of the Dolls' existence when they were about to be swarmed by them.

"Ruby! Can you contact Sapphire? We need help!"

"No, that is impossible in our current situation! I cannot support that mode while fighting and Bazett-san won't be able to protect both you and Rin!"

"You good for nothing wand!"

The battle went on and while the trio clearly had the upper hand in terms of skill, they were losing. Several times already, some puppets had managed to grab hold of them and land a few minor injuries. The real question at this point was how long they would last before they collapsed from exhaustion.

At some point during the fighting, the two mages had found themselves back-to-back, with Illya floating above them, creating barriers and smashing any enemies drawing too close. It wasn't doing much though- for all their best efforts, they were swarmed.

"There is no end to them…" Illya muttered, her voice cracking.

"Illya, listen to me."

"Eh?"

"Are you able to Install?"

"Absolutely not!" Ruby cut in with a tone that didn't leave much room for objections. "Illya-san's body is exhausted! I am still repairing damage she took because of the battle in the Ainsworth lair and her mana hasn't fully replenished itself! She is in absolutely no position-"

"Our only alternative is that we die here!" Bazett countered with a dark look in her eyes, as she punched an attacking doll. The Enforcer's eyes turned into slits as she seemed to momentarily focus fully on the albino. "And I don't plan on dying here." Without missing a beat, she whirled around and kicked another horizontally across its midriff, her leg slicing it in half as if it was made of butter.

"Install!" Please don't kill me!

This time, even Ruby forewent her usual flashy transformation scenes in favor of a faster result. Not so concerned now, are you, you selfish traitor!

As she clad herself in the power of the Heroic Spirit, the foreign memories and feelings washed over her.

"Th-this is…" she heard Ruby's disbelieving voice faintly, from above.

A magnificent palace that seemed as if made of crystal…

Masses adoringly cheering, holding out their hands and calling her name…

That's right, I'm…

A little boy holding up a childish picture of a family…

The pain in her chest as her head was placed beneath the blade…

The tragic, besmirched Queen. Radiance in the sky. Blessings upon the Earth. Happiness to the people.

Class Card Rider: Queen Marie Antoinette!

"This is too ridiculous, Illya-san!"

Eh? "Ruby! Where-"

"Up here!"

"Huh?"

Long pigtails ran down her back and Illya raised a gloved hand to her head, touching something… something…poufy?

"Illya-san, stop it! I am very tingly you know and it is really unbecoming of a lady to be touched in such an embarrassing manner…"

"Would you stop making this weird!"

"What are you doing?" the angry voice of Bazett put an end to their arguments. "Illyasviel, listen to me. We need you to use this Spirit's Noble Phantasm to the best of your ability!" she explained as she pushed Illya down and landed a kick on a doll's head. "If this Hero cannot take out several opponents at once, uninstall and replace it, but if it can," another couple of enemies went flying, "then clear a path for us. I will retreat to the forest with Tohsaka Rin and you can follow us from the air! Make sure to cut down any of those things trying to tail us." She ordered and retreated behind Illya.

"B-but wait a second, I don't- gah!" she shrieked as a human hand grabbed her chest and squeezed violently. Illya flushed scarlet.

"Oh my~"

"YOU PERVERTED FREAK!" she screamed as, in a sudden burst of kung-fu mastery, she drop-kicked the offending doll and sent it flying back, taking down several others with it. Illya instinctively grabbed the hat on her head, ignoring Ruby's protests –be gentle with me, Illya-san!- and threw it upwards with all her strength. There, she watched as the pretty accessory seemed to… float for a few seconds, like a jellyfish, before slowly descending on a puppet and-

Whaaaa-

The hat seemed to, for lack of a better word, absorb the puppet it landed on. Instead of simply staying on its head, the black lace that decorated the finishing of the strawberry colored accessory had expanded slightly and, as it fell, it seemed to completely swallow the doll in absurd speed, falling eventually to the ground. The oval patches of cream-colored fabric, encrusted with small pink stones and trimmed with the same black lace had briefly contorted and then returned to their original shape.

Illya watched flabbergasted as the white, butterfly-shaped bow in the front kept flapping its wings, the diamond in the middle seemingly trying to rip itself of.

"R-ruby…?"

And things became even more absurd as the hat actually jumped on the next doll in its vicinity and devoured it whole, then proceeded to do the same to the nearest one and so on, until it reached Illya and jumped on her chest.

"Gyah, get it away, get it away, get it AWAY FROM ME!" Illya screeched as she tagged at the thing, to force it to release its hold of horror on her strawberry-colored minidress.

"Illya-san, it's me! It's Ruby!" the bow flapped at her violently, trying to stop her from tagging it too hard. "Please relax! We need to-"

"Illyasviel! Do you really think there is time for a comedy segment?"

"Right, right!"

Bazett-san's angry voice snapped Illya back to the present. Taking a deep breath, she focused on Rider's spirit, completely in synch with her own and drew out her hidden power.

"Guillotine Breaker!"

As the rush of the magic enveloping her died down, Illya looked down at her mount. Made entirely out of crystal, the horse she was riding looked like the epitome of beauty. Delicate carvings of lilies decorated its entire body, each shining like a small star. She could feel the horse beneath her impatient to battle her enemies.

It only took the slightest amount of pressure from her thigh-high white boots for it to dash forward.

It was beyond anything Illya could have ever imagined. She clutched its mane tightly as it fell puppets left and right, giving her comrades a head-start. Illya knew there were limits to how many her horse could defeat, but at that moment, nothing could break her from the euphoric feeling that enveloped her. She'd take down as many as possible and return to the forest in Magical Girl form, if that was what it was required to buy the duo enough time to get away from the clutches of the crazy puppeet army.

And when we get home, she thought angrily, Angelica will have a few things to explain regarding this fiasco.

"Illya-san! Look!"

Ruby's worried voice snapped Illya out of her thoughts, as she turned her head to look at what had made Ruby so anxious.

Ahead of her, the sky above the great cavern seemed to be slowly breaking. "It's switching? Now?"

"Yes! Illya-san, you must turn this animal around, immediately! Otherwise we-"

"I don't know how to stop this!"

"What do you mean, you don't know how to stop it! Just make it turn around! Order it!"

Illya pulled at the crystalline mane in her palms. "Turn! Turn back!" she yelled at it, but the horse seemed to ignore her. "Now! Do it!" The horse didn't stop its rampage though- nor did it deign to obey Illya's order. "Ruby! Can we uninstall?"

"No, it's impossible! Your body wouldn't be able to handle-"

The wand never got to finish its sentence. Reaching its limit, the crystal horse beneath Illya, the beautiful companion to one of the most well-known historical Queens of France, came to a sudden halt and disappeared into a cloud of beautiful sparkles, sending its little mistress flying.

Straight into the shifting great cavern.

"Eh?"

The last thing Illya heard was the desperate cries of her partner.

The last thing she thought before darkness overwhelmed her was WHY?


A/N: I am not sure the spell Rin uses can work at any random place, but since I couldn't find more on that, here it is... Anyway, this is the last part of the prologue, so with that out of the way... [insert obligatory maniacal laughter]

Till next time!