It would be a lie to say that the Servant, Archer, was a fool. He was, in fact, quite smart. Smarter then what would most people would chalk up for him.

He wasn't so much a genius in the academic sense, though. No. Contrary to what high-school and college professors would say, Archer possessed a keen intellect, and a cunning eye that was beyond the scope of measurement. His intelligence did not stem from books, but rather from an animalistic, almost instinctive feel he had for the world around him.

His manipulation of his surroundings far surpassed the knowledge of any conventional woodsman or ranger that might've existed in the time before, when magic was respected, and man had not yet crawled away from the forests and into the cities. In fact, it meant far more than any knowledge mere mortals might've acquired in their lifetimes. He was, after all, a Servant.

The way his dark grey eyes would slowly and silently scan the surroundings, the way his calm, collected form would sleekly blend into the shadows and meld into the darkness was simply a credit to him. People might shiver at the way his eyes glared at them, but when they look, they would see nothing. They would not see the man who stood in the dark, just beyond the light, a haughty smirk on his face. They would not see the red cloaked man standing tall and proud, almost in plain sight of them, yet hidden just beyond where their senses could not reach.

He was a paradox in itself. Archer had realized that just then, as the bowstring in his hand grew taut.

Perhaps some font of memory sparked in him. A forgotten existence. A faint shade of remembrance loomed over him, for he grimaced ever so slightly.

He was a knight of the bow, who in the end, wielded swords. He was less of a knight, and more of what people would call a rogue.

"Well, why would that matter? I live and die as I please, don't I?" he whispered to himself.

He remembered what the haughty girl had said when he had first appeared. He was surprised himself. From shadows and nothingness, the magics the girl had summoned had conjured him into existence, to come crashing down on her living room.

How he must've looked then. The white hair flaring against the broken backdrop, his legs comfortably leaning against some rubble as he reclined on the broken sofa.

And the girl had kept cool at first, hiding away the anger he knew she felt.

Rin: "So, what are you?"

Archer: "Those are your first words? I guess I've been called to a terrible Master."

But that didn't stop him from poking at her. He didn't do it out of a childish desire to see this girl fume and rage. No. He wanted to see his limits. Archer was testing the water with his Master. She must've been powerful to summon a Servant. He wanted to test her and prod her, to know her weaknesses and strengths, and, yes, to see if she was worthy of being a Master, or if she was simply a burden who overestimated her worth.

He'd answered so sarcastically then, and so haughtily.

Archer: "Hm? Are you angry? No, I will respect your position, of course. I am called to help my Master win after all.

"My victory is yours, and I shall give you everything that I earn in this fight. You shouldn't have any complaints about this, right?"

"You wouldn't be able to use the Command Spell anyway. Well, you can leave the rest to me. You just worry about your own safety."

And what she done, this wildfire girl?

Rin: "I'm pissed! Fine if you say that, I'll use it!"

He could've laughed. The girl had actually used one of the command seals to make him listen to her.

It had been ineffectual at the end, but the display she made, the risk she took, all that just made him respect her more.

She was a Master who moved with both heart and mind, he could see. A Master who not only had ideals, but also the brains to make them come true.

And what did Archer have?

Nothing left. He was a broken man. The memories of his past life had flooded into him, and when he looked back at it, he was filled with derision and sadness. How naïve he had been to live his life that way.

All he had left with him now were two swords. The twin swords, Kanshō and Bakuya, the swords he could pull into existence and were to him, as light as air. But now, they weighed heavy in his thoughts.

"Archer!"

Was he still a Hero?

He who had the blood of innocents on his hands?

"Archer!"

Or was he simply a lost soul struggling to redeem himself?

"Archer! Return! You can't fight him like that!"

A nagging headache started in his brain. But he shrugged that off.

No time to muse, he thought. There was a fight to be had.

"Don't worry," he looked backward, grinning. "I am the servant you summoned. Naturally, I am the strongest."

He said it with absolute confidence, and trust.


Perhaps there was something wrong. Ilya furrowed her brow as she thought. Her hands dug deeper into the teddybear she held. Berserker had fought without her acknowledgement, when Ilya was still playing at the earlier scene of carnage they had swathed together. At first, she had chalked that up to a simple bystander who had unluckily seen her Servant walk the streets.

But this was different. Berserker suddenly started leeching extravagant amounts of energy from her, and while she had an almost unlimited supply of mana in her body, Ilya frowned, shrugged it off, and went back to playing with her Kuma-san. But when the energy useage had not stopped, she began to wonder what it was about.

And when she went to her Servant, she suddenly realized, and laughed out loud.

"Berserker, this is what you were using your energy for?"

The hulking monster was scarred in parts of its body, with black scorch marks all over. A few cuts and bruises also marked its chest, but apart from that, it was still the same Berserker Ilya knew and loved.

In contrast, the surroundings were torn to shreds. The street was littered with holes, and there was even an overturned car. A street lamp was broken and shattered, the light fizzing in and out.

And beyond this carnage, the shadow of a man in red.

A man with the bow.

Instantly, Ilya understood. She had fallen into her enemy's trap.

Berserker's shadow stood over her like a protective guardian, a magnificently statuesque king guarding his frail treasure.

She could not move from this spot without using Berserker as a shield, and if she did so, hey prey would escape.

"Servant, Archer?" Ilya said.

The man's stone cold gaze would not move.

"You seem to understand the situation you're in."

"As do you, Servant. What kind of Master would leave you?"

"Why, the Master who knows what's best for her."

The Servant grinned. "I do not wish to fight you, but I will. You know of me, and I know of you. We are equal in footing, but not equal in strength."

"Yes, I am far stronger," Ilya puffed her chest. "Berserker would smash you into bits!"

"But strength does not lead to victory," Archer corrected. The bow he held emphasized that point quite clearly, and the arrow he pointed, glinting fiercely in the sparse light, lent weight to his words.

"We are at an impasse," Archer continued. "If I launch my arrow, and it fails to kill your Servant, I will lose. He will rush me, and I will die."

"But if my Servant attacks first, and fails to stop the launching of the arrow, then I will lose? You won't even be able to hurt him!" Ilya laughed. She was sure of it. This was checkmate for the haughty Servant, and though she could not destroy his Master, at least she could rend this impudent fool limb from limb.

"Oh, but I don't need to kill your Servant."

"Oh?"

"Yes. You forget," the Servant Archer grinned, "I only need to kill you."

Berserker almost rushed forward at that. No one threatened his Master near him, and the deadly rage burned inside his frame. But Ilya kept a cool head. She acknowledged his threat.

"So we are at a stalemate. It would be of no use for your Master for you to die in vain, but if I make a reckless move forward, then I will lose this chess game."

"Correct."

"Then what do you suggest?"

Ilya hugged her bear tightly. The bear was fluffy and warm, inviting, unlike the horrid Servant who had his bow trained on her.

"You back off. And I will as well. There is no need for more blood, little girl."

And at that, Ilya laughed. She drew the white hair from her face back, and her red eyes were like fiery gems under the furrow of her brow.

"You expect me to believe you? Why don't I just kill you right now?"

"Would you take the chance? This is not a game. This is all about skill," Archer tutted, "and in this, I am superior. And if I should fail, and your Servant should fail, would you risk the exposure of this war to the outside world?"

"Fuyuki, the "Winter Tree," the quiet city, is starting to wake. It would not do for this. My Master has realized this, and has such, withdrawn and left me for rear-guard, knowing that I am more than capable of handling you at this moment."

"Impudent Servant! Do you know who you're talking to?"

"Yes. Another future loser if she continues this… or perhaps a still surviving player of this game, if she takes the offer I am giving."

At that, there was silence.

Certainly, this was an Archer.

And certainly, the class skill of Archer, Independent Action, meant that he could be doing this even without his Master's care.

What that meant for Ilya was that if she were to push through with this deadly game of heads or tails, if she were to make Berserker attack, it would have to be total annihilation wrought on this Servant's head. Slice the head off, and crush the body into the ground, else it might still survive to launch its arrow.

And when Ilya looked at the bow the servant held, she saw not an arrow, but a sword notched into the string, and held against the frame of the bow.

A unique Servant, this one was.

A deadly Servant.

Perhaps a bit too cocky, but the pride was well deserved. This one was a Servant she could not take lightly.

"Then go, Servant Archer, of a Master I do not know," Ilya smiled. "You have proven yourself to be strong, not like Kuma-san here."

She patted her teddy bear on the head, and in an instant, Ilya thought that the Servant tensed unnaturally.

"A bear?"

"Yes, a bear," she giggled. "The fate of a Master who did not know his place."

She smiled almost innocently, a heavenly smile given only by angels to those they favored.

"He didn't know how dangerous the war was. And so, he's now my pet, isn't that right, Onii-chan?"

She simply patted her teddy on the head.

"Goodbye Servant Archer. We shall meet again, and soon. You've just proven to me that my Berserker should crush you first."

With a little skip, she turned, and left. Berserker scoffed and followed his Master, wary of the Archer's movements.

Soon, the residents of Fuyuki would rise again. They would observe the carnage wrought today (the blood spilled, the destroyed lamps and upturned cars) and look upon it with sadness, never knowing the true sadness of their words.

They would look upon what happened with teary eyes and words of encouragement, never knowing that it was all simply a necessary step, a necessary sacrifice, for the power of the Holy Grail.


HELLO.

I finally wrote a chapter for Archer, because he's bad-ass that way.

Yes, no mention of Saber/Rin in this one. They simply just ran away. And no, I won't spoil the battle xD I might do that some other time. This chapter, I dedicated to exposing the Archer of my story, the haughty, strong bad-ass that I always envision him to be.

As I wrote this chapter, I almost turned it into the Berserker/Archer fight in the Fate route, but luckily, I avoided that. I have plans for both characters, and while it would be fun to see UBW in the middle of the street, that'd be kind of weird, wouldn't you agree? To look out on the street and see a graveyard of swords? xD

Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter will also be mostly dialogue as well, and this one, about Rin and Saber (as their presence was sorely missed)

GLHF

If you liked this chapter, like/favorite/review yada yada.

I'll see you guys next time!

~TalkToMoon

Edit: Also, I created the disclaimer of Chapter 1, as well as fixed a few stuff in between Chapters. I also put a book cover sometime before this chapter (it's an edited Fate/Zero background that I turned grey)

I'll probably edit this chapter again when I like it. Thanks again for reading!