Disclaimer: I do not own anything appearing in this story with it all belonging to its respective owners and I am not attempting to or making a profit in any way shape or form from this work of fiction.
Alright note here, this chapter is probably disorganized and I didn't have the time to proof read it, sorry if you find any typos.
"Archer, what is this!" Rin asked Shirou who seemed to ignore her as he held one of his hands out in front of him.
"Saber, don't try to interfere, I can handle both of them now." Shirou turned his head to see Saber lowering her weapon and stepping back and he quickly turned his attention to Rider and the shadow creature Sakura had created.
"I am the bone of my sword."
A black bow appeared in his hands and an arrow joining it and formed from a sword.
"Hrunting."
The transformed sword was named and the black arrow shot forward before turning into, the best comparisons, a bullet, or better yet, a missile.
Shirou didn't wait to see what happened as another sword appeared in his hands with this one having a spiraling blade and it quickly turned into another arrow.
"Caladbolg."
The transformed second arrow actually outpaced the first and Shirou saw two explosions strike nothing as Sakura was pulled out of the way of his shots by Rider as the shadow figure charged his position.
"Idiot." Shirou muttered as in a flash of light he had notched three more black arrows and fired them." Hrunting."
The shadow figure avoided them only for the arrows to turn around to strike it, throwing it forward as Shirou readied another arrow, this one a pure red.
"Gae Bolg."
The arrow was fired high into the air before coming down as a countless number that covered the area in front of Shirou and they were charged with energy.
At this point Shirou was panting from the attack but pointed a single finger at the shadow creature that seemed to persist in its attack no matter what he did to it. The many arrows in the ground rose out of it and were invisible to the eye as they launched forward and locked onto the figure.
Shirou let his bow vanish in a flash of light and let out a sigh of relief before the shadow figure rushed him and grabbed him by his head and slammed him into the ground with enough force to kill. The Magus was only dazed thanks to instinctive Reinforcement but the shadow figure shifted its arms into spiked maces that it slammed into Shirou, doing its best to turn him into little more than a bloody smear. Through it was stopped before it could do so by several swords shooting forward and throwing it off and Shirou laid there for a moment, his body healing but it was slower than he would like.
"This is going to take some time." Shirou muttered as he turned to Saber." You should probably stay next to Rin for this entire thing."
An arrow flew by Shirou's shoulder and would have pierced Saber's heart is she hadn't grabbed it and snapped it in half from her grip.
"On second thought I don't."
Shirou didn't answer her confused look as he turned around with his arms held out at his sides.
"I am the bone of my sword."
Two voices seemed speak the phase in unison and moments later Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in Shirou's hands and he rushed forward, dodging the attacking shadow figure as he raced forward and straight towards Sakura.
"Why aren't you dead?" Sakura asked quietly before turning to Rider." Why haven't you killed him?"
"I will attempt Master." Rider spoke after a moment and rushed forward, attacking Shirou head on with a chain dagger in each hand and thrown forward, aimed to stab into Shirou's sides only for Bakuya to deflect both as Shirou then threw Kanshou forward and it swung around Rider before striking her from behind and it exploded, throwing the Servant straight towards Shirou where he put Bakuya through Rider's stomach before forcing the blade up and drawing it out as Rider's throat, managing to almost cut her in half.
Shirou pushed down the already healing body before dodging the shadow figure as it attacked from behind and a new Kanshou appeared in his hands before he threw both blades, Bakuya straight towards the shadow figure and piercing it through the chest and Kanshou sweeping around to strike it through the back. Moments later Shirou leapt back as the two swords exploded and formed his bow in one hand with a flash of red light covering his free hand with three arrows appearing in it before aiming and firing them all at once moments later. The arrows were almost impossible to see at their speed and Rider only managed to avoid two of them, both aimed to strike her shoulders, with the last too close to dodge so she instead brought her arm up to block it, allowing it to be impaled near her wrist.
'Damn.' Shirou mentally cursed as his bow faded and he leapt back to avoid Rider's pair of chain daggers from taking out his eyes.
Rider ripped the arrow out of her arm while Shirou dodged her daggers and the wound healed itself.
"Alright, this is going to take some time then." Shirou told Rider at the sight of the Servant even standing after his attack with Kanshou and doing his best to cut her in half.
He held his arms out to his side and red light took the form of a pair of rapiers in his hands as flashes of red appeared in the air behind him.
"Master, maybe I should assist Shirou?" Saber asked Rin who waved her off." I may be bes…"
"Archer can probably handle this since he's using his Noble Phantasm so it'll take a few more minutes at best, if he doesn't and ends up about to die than you can jump in and save him." Rin told her Servant who sheathed her sword after a moment.
"If this ends badly then it will be on you." Saber told Rin before watching the fight once again.
Shirou charged Rider with the red light behind him fading to show a multitude of weapons hanging in the air and growing in number before with a flick of his wrist the weapons shot forward, shooting towards Rider who didn't try to dodge them as a black blob suddenly sprung up between her and the attack.
"What the hell?" Shirou asked, stopping himself as the shadow figure reformed from its blob state.
Shirou sent another wave of weapons forward as he retreated before Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands and once seeing an opening he raced forward and bisected the shadow figure at the waist and removed its head at the same time while dodging Rider's kick from the side, aimed to actually kick him in half, and respond with Bakuya thrown at her while Kanshou stabbed down into the shadow figure's falling head and kept it on the ground as Shirou called another pair of the swords to his hands and threw them out at the side. The black Kanshou spun towards Rider while the white Bakuya slammed into the top of the shadow figure's head to keep it from moving and separate its head into more pieces as well with the blades impacting Rider exploding.
Shirou would guess the fight would end with both his opponents down only to be mistaken as Rider charged out of the smoke and attacked him, tossing him back with a kick to his chest that sent him slamming into a dune of sand and scattering it into the air.
"I am the bone of my sword." Shirou whispered before a new pair of Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands and he kicked up to his feet before charging forward only for the shadow figure to reform and regenerate itself and hit him with arms changed into large hammers, tossing him into the ground some distance away and Shirou quickly pulled himself back to his feet, getting angry at this point but he quickly calmed down and after a moment sprinted forward.
"Alright, you're better than I thought!" Shirou told the two as Kanshou was thrown forward and would have taken off Sakura's head if Rider hadn't intervened and knocked it aside with one of her chain dagger and the other shot forward only for Shirou to knock it into the air with Bakuya as Kanshou arced back and he grabbed it in his hands.
"Kill him, kill him, KILL HIM!" Sakura screamed and Shirou threw both blades forward before grabbing a gold and black hilted longsword from nearby and rushing forward, allowing Rider to wrap a chain dagger around it before pulling it back and stabbing her through the stomach with it before an axe appeared in his hands and he buried it into her spine as he sidestepped her falling body.
Rider through sprang off her hands when she was about to hit the ground and charged Shirou from behind only for an arrow to pierce her throat moments later. The Servant attempted to continue to fight only for more arrows to turn her into something very similar to a hedgehog in moments.
"Shirou, kill her now!" Archer ordered as he dismissed his bow before sliding down the dune of sand he had shot from." I've got your back here!"
Sakura stepped back to avoid Shirou's lunge with a spear appearing in his hands before he was forced to dodge the shadow figure's attack from behind.
Shirou leaped up to dodge its wild swings and caught Bakuya and Kanshou as flew back into his hands and he turned them into explosives and shot towards the shadow figure which shaped its arms into massive blades made to rip things in to pieces. Shirou of course wasn't planning on dying in the explosion hiss words would cause so at the last possible second of his charge and right before he would have met the shadow figure's blades with his own he let Kanshou and Bakuya slip out of his hands and rolled as he hit the ground before sprinting off to escape the explosion that the two swords released when they struck the ground.
"Well, that was easy." Shirou commented only to have to dodge Rider's chain daggers before Archer tackled her from the side and they rolled in the sand with Archer's pair of daggers going against Rider's chain version.
"It's still alive dumbass!" Archer called back to him as both of his feet threw Rider away." It won't die that easily!"
"Damn." Shirou cursed as the smoke cleared to show the creature reforming itself even as it charged Shirou, its arms shaping themselves into lethal looking axes.
Archer charged Rider with a claymore flying into his hands and Rider chose to dodge the heavy two-handed blows that would shatter her arm if they stuck.
"I don't have time for this, let me take off your head already!" Archer snapped, losing his patience with the Servant.
Rider was silent and Archer cursed as he was thrown to the side by a kick as the after image faded away, Rider's extreme speed letting her pull something like that off.
'Damn, this is going to get annoying.' Archer thought even as he threw the claymore and a spear appeared in each hand before he shot forward as Rider dodge the sword and the two spears would have taken out her head but she avoided them and lashed out with her daggers, Archer cursing as he was barely able to dodge before a longsword appeared in one hand and in the other a crossbow appeared.
A bolt that turned out to be explosive tossed Rider to the side even as she dodged it and Archer aimed to punch through her heart for the Servant to stop his blow while airborne and dazed before she used their locked blades to flip and her heel would have caved in his head if he hadn't let the sword go and fired another bolt form the crossbow and a storm of swords followed it moments later.
Hoping he brought enough time the Servant concentrated.
'Shirou, I have a plan.'
'Busy right now.'
'That doesn't matter, now listen.'
Shirou ducked under a swing from a massive axe the shadow figure's arms had merged into. Spikes sprouted from its legs and would have torn open Shirou's entire stomach if a shield hadn't blocked it, the defense shattering to pieces in seconds but the short delay was all Shirou needed to get around the figure and Shirou threw his arms out to the side and with blinding flash dozens of swords hung around the shadow figure in everywhere direction.
"Die. Now." Shirou growled as he brought his hands down and the explosive swords slammed into the shadow figure only for it to charge out, its body smoking but unaffected as it healed.
'That's it?' Shirou asked as Archer finished explaining his plan and the Servant mentally sighed.
'It's on the spot just get it done.' Archer ordered him as he attacked Rider with Kanshou and Bakuya, cutting her to pieces in the sudden violent attack.' And please survive it all, I don't feel like being stuck with that Rin girl as a Master.'
The shadow figure charged Shirou while it screamed something incoherent and the Magus ignored it as a halberd appeared in his hands and he cut off its head before knives buried into its chest as he held his hands out in front of him as a red glow consumed them.
'And you're sure this is going to work?' Shirou asked, surprised the weapon forming in the light matched the image in his mind so well, it a perfect copy of what was obvious a Noble Phantasm, his own previous attempt at the same weapon less than stellar as he remembered the several flaws in the spear that lead to a decrease in its power, nearly a third of it gone.
'Fifty-fifty chance really but it will kill it, the spear is cursed.' Archer answered before having to dodge one of Sakura's shadow creatures from impaling him, the Matou Magus sent three or four dozen to delay him for a few minutes.
Moments later and with the light fading a red spear appeared in them and moments later he turned and threw it at Sakura. Well he would have if the shadow figure hadn't attacked him from behind and tried its hardest to rip his arm off and from the way it was showing its teeth probably eat it too.
The replicated Gae Bolg found its way towards the creature and pinning it to the ground as Shirou held his now bleeding shoulder.
"Archer, what the hell?" Shirou demanded as the Servant in his head grabbed him by his other arm and pulled him out of a healed Rider's attack from his side with the wounded arm, making it harder to block or deflect it." I thought you were watching my back?"
"I never said I would save you from stupidity." Archer answered as with a flash of red he held a pair of silver longswords in hand and Shirou soon copied him, only able to currently summon one as his arm healed rather slowly from the shadow figure's attempt to rip it off.
"Since these share identical styles we will have to work in tandem and since you've allowed foolishness to injure your arm I'll be doing most of the work." Archer told Shirou as he stepped forward." You can watch my back, not too hard a task as I will be keeping both of them in front of me."
"Got it." Shirou answered as the two rushed forward with intention to end this here.
The shadow figure charged forward as Rider stepped back and prepared to attack once given an opening.
Archer attacked first, charging the shadow figure as its arms changed into a pair of scythes that were swung wildly and without technique, something Archer was accustomed to and quickly resolved the problem by cutting off the creature's arms. He wasn't that shocked when it regenerated a second later with its arms now sharpened blades able to clash with Archer's own.
'So that's it?' Archer asked himself as he parried a blow with one sword and stepped forward with the other, missing his stab at the shadow figure's heart as it spun out of the way before attacking from the side only to have its arm cut off below the elbow, the creature screeching as it stumbled away from Archer before falling to the side at the sudden shift in weight.' It's a very malleable substance shaped into different forms for different tasks, impressive Sakura, even if you're bat shit insane right now.'
Shirou stepped forward once the shadow figure was down and blocked Rider's two chain daggers as she threw them forward with hi longsword as Archer then rushed forward and cut the chains connecting the nail like dagger to Rider's hands. The Servant cursed as she was forced to run from Archer before the shadow figure pulled itself back to its feet and charged Archer from behind with its arms shifting into something resembling scimitars only for Shirou to cut off its arms once again and then sweep down and do the same to its legs before lunging forward and stabbing through its neck and pulling to the side as it fell to remove its head with Archer attacking from the side in a blur of movement that shredded the body.
Rider attacked at this point but met two identical boots that threw her back with both then sending a volley of swords towards her.
"Is it dead?" Shirou asked as he looked down where the shadow figure was torn to pieces with Archer slipping behind him and shifted his mostly healed arm back into place in an instant, the arm having been dislocated when it was injured.
The surprise of it helped deal with the pain it brought and Archer stopped Shirou from falling from it by grabbing his sleeve and pulling him back up.
"Done yet?" Archer asked and Shirou growled.
"I hate you."
"The feelings mutual, now get yourself ready."
The shadow figure attacked with no warning only to be cut down by Shirou and Archer as Shirou then shifted his longswords into a spear as he brought his hands together and threw it forward, striking Rider in the side and the barbed spear tearing a piece of her out as it flew past as he then filled his hands with knives that he threw towards the shadow figure, hopefully killing it in the resulting explosion. Archer had moved up a nearby dune and formed his bow as he crouched with his eyes locked onto Rider as she healed from Shirou's attack.
"I am the bone of my sword."
A single arrow appeared in his hands and he quickly fired it at Rider, a Noble Phantasm he didn't care to remember besides knowing it was a sword turning into an arrow and a Broken Phantasm that engulfed Rider and most other things nearby in an explosion.
'Rider should be down for some time, the kid couldn't use it properly so his lacked power, mine don't.'
Archer was gone and next to Shirou again at the perfect time. With a nearly deafening screech the shadow figure pulled itself back together and charged forward, swinging its arms wildly as they shifted from weapon to weapon. Sometimes they were an axe, other times they were a scythe, and at other times they were anything ranging from a simple blade to a mace head.
Archer formed a pair of axes to take off its arms as Shirou lunged forward and with his two longswords broke its guard and threw its arms out to the side for Archer to strike. The creature merely roared as the axes bounced off of its suddenly too strong form and it slammed its head into Shirou, sending him flying back in a daze and crashing into Archer who caught him in one arm as he threw both axes forward and they sunk into the creature's chest even as a volley of weapons struck it from all sides as Archer rolled as he hit the ground and once he could get to his feet he threw the dazed Shirou into a ridiculously large sword you would only see in an anime.
'Why do I even have that one?' Archer asked himself as Shirou's arms shot out and he stopped himself from striking the blade by grabbing the hilt and with effort threw it forward moments later, it heading straight towards Archer.
The Servant dodged it with little effort, more subconscious than anything else, and the massive sword slammed into the shadow figure as it tried to sneak up behind him. The blade shattered into countless pieces on impact but succeeded in throwing the creature back and Archer and Shirou both capitalized.
"Caladbolg!"
Two of the sword turned into an arrow shot forward and slammed into the shadow figure one after the other, tearing away parts of it in the resulting explosion and Shirou and Archer both leapt back and waited for the figure to charge out of the explosion and they weren't disappointed. The shadow figure let out a roar as it rushed towards them with no plan at all.
"There has to be a limit, at some point, right?" Shirou asked Archer as a pair of longswords appeared in his hands.
"I honestly have no idea."
A spear appeared in Archer's hands in a flash of light and he threw it forward at turning it into a bomb, throwing the shadow figure into the air where Shirou threw his two swords at it, both exploding once they impaled the creature. It was thrown to the ground and Archer pulled a nearby sword out of the ground before rushing forward with Shirou following him. At least until he was stopped by a kick to the chest throwing him back as Rider followed after him, grabbing him by the throat in midair and slamming him into the sand with her other hand spinning a chain dagger before bringing it down on Shirou, aiming to slit his throat or something else close to or just fatal. Shirou managed to bring one of his hands up in time to allow the dagger to run across his arm and in his other he formed a katana that he slammed through Rider's side and he ripped it out through her back, cutting her spine and she went limp for the moment. Shirou quickly threw her off and sent a volley of swords after her only for the Servant to heal in time to avoid the majority of them but quickly left to heal and strike again when Shirou had formed his bow and was ready to fire an arrow at her.
"Shirou, stay alert!" Archer shouted at him as the shadow figure charged the Magus only for the arrow to instead be shot at it when it was bringing its scythe like arm down to take off one of Shirou's.
The explosion from the arrow threw it away and Shirou skidded back as Archer appeared behind him and kept him from moving any further with a hand on his back.
"You're better than I thought." Archer spoke after a moment before pushing Shirou to the side and catching one of Rider's chain daggers with his hands while Shirou called a pair of scimitars to his hands in time to block the shadow figure's attack seconds before it would have killed him and then removed its arms with two blades he called from nearby cutting them off from above.
Archer appeared behind the shadow figure and swung his chain covered fist, swinging Rider into the shadow figure and throwing them both back as two blades shot down from above and cut the chains before he could be pulled along with them. His bow formed with the chains around his hands falling away and he fired two arrows with each hitting a head each.
"So, any idea on how to kill that thing?" Shirou asked and Archer shrugged before Kanshou and Bakuya appeared in his hands and moments later changed into Overedge.
"I have one." Archer told him as Shirou recognized what was about to happen and charged after Archer as he sprinted forward.
"It's going to have to have perfect timing."
"Then get ready."
Archer rushed ahead and past the two as Shirou used Reinforcement to catch up to the two as he copied Archer's blades.
"Nine Lives."
Moments later Archer and Shirou's blades shattered against one another as Rider and Sakura's shadow creature collapsed to the ground and for now unmoving.
"Well, that might have worked." Shirou's words had him stepping away from Archer's blow to his head.
"We're nowhere near done, they'll heal from that." Archer told him as he looked at his smoking hands." I hoped to eradicate them with the nine blades but it failed."
"It could have worked if you would have told me we were going to be blowing up a sword each strike, I only caught on at the sixth hit I think." Shirou told him and Archer succeeded in hitting him over the head the next second.
"I thought you would figure it out, now get ready for another one." Archer ordered as the shadow creature let out a roar as it rose to its feet with Rider already gone from the sand." We'll attack it together this time."
"And Rider?" Shirou asked and Archer merely pointed to the side were swords rained down on a single figure in the distance, pinning them down for now.
"Then let's go." Shirou told him as he raced forward, calling Kanshou and Bakuya to his hands and using the same combination of Overedge with Berserker's axe sword as before.
Archer followed him and the two split at the last second, Archer appearing behind the shadow figure with Shirou appearing in front of him.
"Nine Lives."
Shirou immediately collapsed seconds later with his hands and most of his arms turned black despite the armor Archer had supplied at the last second for both of them.
"Yeah, it takes some getting used to but it works against something like this." Archer told him as he glanced at his smoking slightly burned hands.
'I put more power into that attack than I intended, my hands are actually burned from it.'
Archer decided to ignore his thoughts when he was suddenly ran threw by the shadow figure's arms turned into blades that tore a part of Archer's chest out with it when they were ripped out. The Servant growled as he spun around despite his injuries and grabbed the creature.
Shirou wordlessly understood the plan and so a storm of blades descended on the figure with chains wrapping around Archer's waist and pulling him out of harm's way at the last possible second.
Explosions rocked the ground nearby and both let out a sigh of relief at the sight before the shadow figure rushed out of the smoke the swords detonating created and both cursed as they called a pair of longswords to their hands.
"What will kill this thing?" Shirou asked as he then rolled out of the way of Rider's chain daggers from the side while Archer changed his longswords into a pair of scimitars as Shirou spun weapons identical to Rider's in his hands.
"This is going to take all day, give me time and I can bring them down for good." Archer told Shirou who nodded and his weapons shifted into claymores that seemed impossible to wield with one hand but he managed.
"Shirou, why don't you like me?" Sakura's sudden question and the fact that her voice was from right behind Shirou shocked both as Archer made the mistake of turning around, even if it was to attack her.
With a snarl the shadow figure attacked him from behind by pouncing on his back, its feet turning into the talons of a hawk and cutting through Archer's armor and reaching the skin underneath. Archer responded by a rain of swords falling on the figure, tearing it to pieces and off his back before Rider attacked him, the chains of two of her daggers wrapping around Archer and pulling him back.
'This isn't possible, I've worked the kid into using Unlimited Blade Works so this should be simple. So why are they even stronger than before, how is Rider even a match for me?'
Archer leapt back to avoid Rider's next attack and the sand around him on the dune he landed on was risen into the air as a dozen ballista rose out of the ground around him.
'I think I'll borrow a line from Gilgamesh here.' Archer thought with a small grin as he aimed the loaded ballista at Rider and the shadow figure.
"Know your place filthy mongrels, beneath my heel!" Archer shouted down to the two as with a swipe of his hand the ballista fired and from his modifications over the years they created a rain of projectiles on Rider and the shadow figure.
Nearby the King of Heroes felt a disturbance, one strong enough that he stopped walking near the edge of the forest.
'Someone just stole my line.'
Archer grinned as he saw the two fail to avoid the barrage.
'No wonder he talked like that, when you can do stuff like this you can say whatever you want and back it up.' Archer thought as the shadow figure roared and screeched at it was torn apart by his attack with Rider having already escaped it.
"Shirou, you didn't answer my question."
The somehow innocent and sweet tone Sakura spoke had to be some type of magic as he found himself questioning why he didn't answer.
"Why don't you want to be mine?"
Shirou found it impossible to speak, his mind growing blank as Sakura's arms wrapped around his waist and she rested her head over his shoulder.
"Shirou, don't you dare be an idiot!" Archer shouted at him as he formed his bow and loaded a special arrow when the shadow figure attacked him, shattering his arm with its arms combined into a single massive hammer they slammed into him from the side, throwing him into the sand and sending him skidding across it like a stone across water.
"Shirou, ignore everything but me right now."
Shirou found himself doing that as he turned his head to see the purple haired girl and found it growing harder and harder to think clearly if at all at the sight of her.
"We can sit down if you want, it looks like you're not feeling well."
'…' that was the status of Shirou's thought at this point, nonexistent as he obeyed Sakura and sat on the sand with the Magus following him, smiling as she looked at Shirou and smiling wider at the glazed look in his eyes.
"Good Shirou."
'How does this thing keep reforming?' Archer asked himself before driving a dagger into the creature's head and then cutting it in half vertically with a claymore falling down from above.
"Die already!" Archer snapped as he kicked the shadow figure away before pointing his movable arm towards the figure, red streaks that were weapons ripping it to pieces before Archer leapt back to avoid Rider attacking him from above.
He landed next to a spear that he picked up and threw with his usable arm before a crossbow formed in it and he fired the bolt, hiding it behind the thrown spear.
'This is becoming useless.' Archer thought as he saw the shadow figure rise to its feet, reforming from his attack once again.' I'm running out of ideas beside…that could actually work.'
Archer held his working hand out in front of him with a look of concentration taking up his face, red light flashing from it after a moment.
"I am the bone of my sword."
When the shadow figure charged him they were torn apart by dozens of blades impaling it from all around, the blades raising from the ground to attack them.
"Steel is my body and fire is my blood."
Archer grinned as a long weapon, a spear most likely, emerged from the light and he grabbed the shaft in his working hand.
"I have created over a thousand blades."
The light faded and Archer spun the golden spear in his hands.
The shadow figure charged him, ripping itself out of it blades keeping it back and its wounds healing in an instant.
'My own regeneration is weakened against this creature, I need to keep it down so there's only one way to do that.' Archer thought with a glance at his wounded arm, it still unmovable.' Even if this succeeds it will still hit me with something, probably take me out for a few minutes.'
Archer charged forward, meeting the shadow figure in seconds and slamming the spear through its chest even as the figure's hands turned into large scythe like blades that were slashed down on Archer, the tips of the blades digging into his back as the rest of it tore into his shoulders and nearly through them.
'Damn, Plan B I guess.' Archer thought as he looked down at the blood covering the ground at his feet.
Archer let the spear go before grabbing the shadow figure around the throat and ignoring its screeching and slashing as it ripped the blades out.
"Unknown to Death, Nor known to Life!"
Flashes of light surrounded the two for a moment before clearing to show a dozen red and gold spears hanging above them.
'For once my existence has benefited me, about damn time too.' Archer thought as he glanced at the swords.
"Die creature."
The spears shot forward and Archer collapsed into the sand in time to avoid them while the shadow figure was torn apart by the attack.
"Saber, go get Archer." Rin ordered as she watched both fights, if you could call Shirou falling into Sakura's arms one, from a nearby dune of sand and frowning at the outcome of Archer's." This isn't turning out the way I thought it would."
"It would be better if I stayed, I don't see Rider and she may attack you while I am gone." Saber told Rin who waved off her concerns.
"Just do it, I have a plan."
"Hopefully a better one."
With those last words Saber sprinted towards Archer who's eyes stared transfixed on the gears above him.
'Maybe this will kill me and if that happens the kid doesn't have to die.'
As quickly as the idea came to his mind Archer threw it away.
'I'm delusional from blood loss, he will always have to die, it's better than alternative.'
Shirou had seen Archer make his first attack with the gold spear on the shadow figure and knew he had ample time to stop him from being injured but he couldn't find any reason to move from his comfortable spot on the ground, laying his head on Sakura's lap with the purple haired girl running her hands through his hair, laughing and smiling the entire time.
"You were so easy Shirou and now your mine."
Shirou didn't respond so Sakura looked down at him, a confused expression on her face.
"Are you okay, Shirou?"
"Why…"
Shirou struggled to say even the single word and Sakura sighed as markings taking up her entire arm were visible with a red glow.
"Why do you have to ask me that?" Sakura asked as she laid her hand across Shirou's forehead and he immediately tried to move away but found the shadow material that Sakura seemed to be able to summon and shape in unlimited amounts binding him, not allowing him to move at all.
"Scream if you want because this will hurt." Sakura smiled at him as the markings on her hand changed from glowing to now a visible in black." I actually would prefer it, your screams are really nice."
Shirou chose to scream.
Unlimited Blade Works began reacting to the reshaping of Shirou's mind Sakura was attempting and Archer found himself shooting awake and screaming as pain shot through his body, one of the worse he had ever experienced and all focused around his head and it was growing with every second. The white haired Sword Magus ripped himself from Saber's grasp and stumbled down as he called a sword to his hand with a bow forming in his other. The pain was growing but he felt his arms move regardless of it and his Magic Circuits activated, sending Od running through the sword changing into an arrow in his hands.
Shirou began convulsing in Sakura's lap and she simply hummed as one hand continued running through his hair and her other helping with making him what she wanted.
'His hair is so soft, I wonder if its natural?'
Shirou was finding it harder and harder to do anything besides screaming at this point but the pain also brought him back or at least some of him.
He still struggled against his bonds to no effect but his mind was slowly returning, hopefully enough before Sakura finished whatever she was doing to him.
Gilgamesh sent another wave of weapons down at the fools attempting to interfere in some of the best entertainment he had seen in years.
"Learn your place mongrels!" Gilgamesh called down to the Servants joining forces in the hopes to stop him with their Masters nearby.
Berserker roared as he charged the King of Heroes only to be tossed back to the ground by a wave of blunt weapons. Gilgamesh had been controlling himself enough to avoid killing the Servants and rather enjoyed the game discovering how much damage each could take before death posed.
Well it was fun before filthy creatures formed a small army around them all, some even having what looked like demonic wings and raising into the air to meet him on Vimana, the Indian Noble Phantasm Gilgamesh enjoyed to fly.
"You creatures believe you may rise into the air?" Gilgamesh asked as he tapped his fingers on the throne and the wings folded out.
Roars and screeches were his answer and he merely smirked.
"Then allow me to show you your proper place."
Golden portals appeared on all sides of the aircraft and with a unneeded wave of his hands bullets tore apart the creatures around him and they seemed to disintegrate as the bullets hit them.
"You are not even worthy of laying on the ground in my world!"
Nothing could stop Gilgamesh and as he spotted the creatures surrounding the other Servants he rose off of the throne on the aircraft and with a wave of his hands more portals opened and missiles shot out, having the same effect as the bullets on the creatures that would dare to even exist in his world.
The battle, more like a slaughter, lasted all of a minute before Gilgamesh saw the last one be destroyed and he leaned back in his throne.
"Something is going to happen, I suggest you all leave here before it does." Gilgamesh called down to the Servants.
His warning wasn't from any sense of worry for those beneath him, more along the lines of the boredom everything would become if those who could entertain him in the future died now.
Shirou's screams ended as Sakura simply smiled down at him as she removed her hand to show black markings spreading from Shirou's forehead.
"There, now don't have to think at all. Isn't that perfect?"
There was no answer but Sakura seemed to have been satisfied at the lack of reply as she nodded.
"That's what I thought."
Archer let out a scream of rage as he collapsed to his knees on the sand as his Noble Phantasm began breaking down, the gears beginning to fall out of the sky and crash into the sand below, the sand itself blowing away in the harsh wind suddenly appearing. The wind even seemed to scream as it wreaked havoc on the world with the swords around it beginning to crack and the weaker ones were blown away as dust. joining the screaming wind.
'No...'
Archer found his strength leaving him, it growing harder to even keep his eyes from closing and that was only by knowing that if he did he would be dead.
'Dammit no…too close. Can't die yet.'
Archer dragged himself up with a spear nearby and spotted Sakura simply sitting with Shirou's head in her lap, his eyes completely blank.
"I am the bone of my sword."
Red light flickered around him but wouldn't hold, he was struggling to stay standing as the spear he was using to support himself crumbled to dust.
'That girl is destroying this place, just great.'
Archer knew the weapon he needed to fix the problem he found himself in but doubted he had the power to actually use it, definitely not at its full power but he reasoned to himself the attempt was at least necessary, he could build a plan from it later.
"Steel is my body and fire is my blood."
It began to steady and take a definite shape but Archer found it harder and harder to draw the usual strength from the aria.
'I am going to kill myself if I keep this up…'
"I have created over a thousand blades."
'…and for once it's worth it.'
His bow finally took shape but wouldn't hold for long and he knew for a fact that it would shatter if he notched an arrow, at least if he did it now.
"Unknown to Death, Nor known to Life."
He drew more power from his Noble Phantasm and a dagger took shape in his hand before changing into an arrow.
"Have withstood pain to create many weapons."
With some of his strength now back he had the energy to glare towards the smiling Sakura as he notched the arrow.
'She's going down, no matter what I have to do.'
"Yet those hands will never hold anything."
Rider and Sakura's shadow creature charged him at that point, a glare from the Matou Master sending them forward to kill Archer.
"Damn." Archer cursed as he stood no chance against the two, Sakura's hold on Shirou weakening him too much to stand properly, let alone fight them both while preparing his attack.
In any other time or path he could bring them down, especially with Unlimited Blade Works deployed, but now he knew it would mean death to even try to block one of their blows, all of his weapons weakened and little better than sharpened twigs, he doubted they could even be called that at his current level of power.
"Saber, defend him." Rin ordered and the Servant was glad to attack the shadow figure with her sword, using Prana Burst to held in cleaving its durable body in two with the wave of air the strike unleashed before the release of Invisible Air threw away both halves as she turned to Rider and a gauntleted fist slammed into her stomach and threw her far away.
"Finish your chant Archer, I will keep both of them away." Saber told the Servant who took aim.
Rider recovered from her impromptu flight and her chain daggers shot forward only for Saber to grab both weapons out the air as she let Excalibur go and use them to slam Rider into the ground before pulling her up and into the reforming shadow creature. Grabbing Excalibur out the air moments later wasn't difficult and Saber shot forward using Prana Burst to stab through Rider before ripping her sword upwards, tearing Rider in half at the waist and up before throwing her away with a kick and turning to the still reforming halves of Sakura's shadow creature.
"I don't care for what you are creature, retreat and I will spare you but attack and I will destroy you." Saber's warning was ignored as the creature charged her after putting itself back together.
"So be it." Saber charged the shadow figure who swung at her wildly to miss every time as Saber dodged them with little difficulty as she reached the figure." Excalibur!"
The sword absorbed Saber's energy and the light it released caused the shadow figure to scream in agony as it was finally destroyed.
'It's like I thought, weapons like Excalibur will destroy those creatures while anything else it could heal from, even cursed weapons.' Rin thought with a smirk at her guess proving correct.' But she can still summon an army of those creatures, something even Saber can't fight forever so I need something else.'
Her eyes turned to Archer and she wiped the grin from her face before turning to Shirou, his body limp for now.
'Both of them could work but only as diversions.'
"So as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works."
The world around them stopped its destruction and Archer felt the surge of strength enter him as the world around him rebuilt itself to his relief.
"Die!" Archer shouted as he released the arrow." Rule Breaker!"
Sakura giggled as she saw the arrow approach and looked down at Shirou.
"Stop it."
The markings glowed and Shirou raised an arm and swords rose into the air all around the two and intercepted it, shattering it.
"Now kill."
"Nnnn…"
The words wouldn't come out and Sakura frowned at Shirou, looking down at him from his spot on her lap.
"Why are you talking?"
The marks on her arm appeared again and Shirou's eyes widened in panic even as the rest of his body remained unmoving.
"Dammit no!"
A red blur shot forward, Saber intercepting Rider as she attempted to stop the charging Archer.
'I am not failing now!'
The dagger he had turned into the arrow appeared in his hands and blood spilled to the ground.
"What…what the hell?" Archer managed to ask as he drew the knife out." What did you do?"
"What it looks like." Sakura answered.
"You bitch!" Rin's unexpected scream brought Sakura's attention towards her." What the hell did you just do?"
Sakura merely shrugged as she held Shirou up in one hand, using him as a shield against the dagger.
"He jumped in the way for me, what's the problem?"
Before Archer could attack again a black sphere made out of the shadow material of the creature Archer and Shirou had fought against fired into the white haired Servant and erupted into spikes, tearing Archer apart in seconds. The only trace left was his armor and it was dissolving and gone before it hit the ground with his cloak seemingly acting as a grave marker, floating down to land where he had stood at.
Sakura tossed Shirou to the ground and looked on as he healed without her power with a frown on her face.
"Why did you do that, Shirou?"
Another black sphere fired into Shirou and created a worse wound in his stomach before the markings on his head glowed and the wound sealed itself shut with a hiss and a black vapor leaking from it.
"Saber, kill her!" Rin ordered and the King of Knights was happy to comply and charged the purple haired girl with Prana Burst, Sakura collapsing into giggles at the sight.
"Kill them!" Sakura ordered and an army rose out of the ground and the marks on Shirou glowed as she giggled and sat down next to him." Thank you for helping me Shirou."
The army Sakura created was armed in seconds and soon covered in armor identical to Shirou's with the mark Sakura had placed on the Magus glowing brighter.
"Shit, we're going to die in here." Rin cursed as the army charged Saber.
Just as quickly as they were summoned and armed they were destroyed by Excalibur's attack of light.
"I highly doubt that." Saber told her Master as she walked up to her." I can continue to fire those for some time, what matters is our escape from this place."
"Since Archer's dead and it still hasn't faded then it means we need to kill Shirou." Rin told her Servant after a moment and the King of Knight nodded, somewhat forced.
"I will kill him to protect you." Saber answered, already regretful at what she would have to do while Rin only laughed a moment later.
"We don't have to kill him, we just need to separate him from Sakura." Rin told her Servant." I'll also need to take him to so…"
"Did you just say you want to take him away from me!" Sakura's hands wrapped around Rin's throat moment later and lifted her into the air with Saber rushing forward only to be slammed into the ground by one of the fists of a massive shadow figure.
"No one will EVER take him from me!"
Gilgamesh sat on the throne of Vimana, taping his fingers as he thought about what to do.
He had been able to view everything happening inside Unlimited Blade Works ever since the Noble Phantasm was deployed but refrained, not needing nor wanting to know how the fight ended but the way events had turned had quickly gotten his attention and caused him to ignore all those that had arrived.
'That girl is going to be annoying, I wanted to kill the Faker myself and now she has him as a slave, opportunity missed I suppose.' Gilgamesh rose to his feet off his throne and deciding on something.
Sakura hummed to herself even as Saber tried to cut off her arms after freeing herself from the shadow giant only for her Shirou to stop Tohsaka's Servant and knock her aside.
He was for all intents now a mindless puppet linked to Sakura but it really didn't matter to her, the power she awakened would let her do anything and once Shirou learned how to behave he could have his mind back.
Maybe she should give him company?
Outside the Noble Phantasm Gilagmesh drew out a small golden key from a portal and looked at it for a moment.
'This will probably end in an annoyance for me but it is necessary.'
Gilgamesh seemed to slide the key into a lock seen only to him as with a flash of golden light a doorway appeared and he stepped through it, intending on fixing the most pressing problem.
His one source of entertainment and one of the possible opponents worth his time in this ridiculous war was at stakes and he would be damned if he let such an entertaining Faker die so quickly and to the whims of a possessed girl.
AN: Well read and review.
Peace.