"And where do you think you're going with my keys and without telling me?" Dr. Saltzman prodded as he rounded the corner in his sleeping robe and slippers. Hope froze like a deer in headlights. Slowly, she retracted her hand from the doorknob and turned to face him inch by inch. Her mind raced to try and come up with an excuse. But by the time she was square with Alaric, she had come up with absolutely nothing to say.

"Uhh, I know we've argued a lot lately, so I wanted to get you an oil change as a peace offering," she tried, wearing one of the fakest smiles Alaric had ever seen. He was far from impressed and his stone cold expression failed to flinch in the slightest.

"Really, Hope? An oil change? At 3 AM in the morning?" His tone was laced with sarcasm.

"Uh-"

"Hope. You don't have a driver's license. You are about to steal my car. And midterms are next week." As Alaric continued on, Hope deflated more and more. All she could do was pull up one sleeve to reveal a leather bracelet with a glowing blue gem at the center.

"If this thing is glowing, it means Shirou is in trouble. I'm leaving."

Dr. Saltzman swallowed his retort. "I'm going with you. And before you ask, no, you are NOT driving." Hope blinked in surprise. Dr. Saltzman was the one who kicked Shirou and Landon out in the first place. While Alaric's initial anger abated in the last two days, he gave no indication that he'd reconsider his decision. Hope was going to wait at least a week before bringing up the idea.

"You aren't going to quiz me the whole way are you?" Hope's eyes narrowed. There was always a catch - he taught her that much at least. Dr. Saltzman's answer was an evil smile that Hope withered under. Shirou and Landon were in Kansas the last time they spoke over the phone. It was going to be a very long and grueling 18-hour road trip.

Shirou Emiya instantly realized that he was dealing with someone who knew him intimately. It was clear they shared a deep bond just from her words and tone. Whenever he looked directly at her, the vestiges of love and loss would wash over him and threaten to shut him down entirely.

The Heiress to the Tohsaka Lineage of Magi was someone who held a profound part of Shirou Emiya's heart. A part of him wanted to run into her arms and hug her for the rest of his life. It was plain-to-see that the Malivore was responsible for his immense gap in memory. A certain Azoth Dagger clued him in and filled some of the holes in his mind, but it was still woefully incomplete. It didn't seem as those this woman used her Azoth Dagger that much even though she was its original owner. To her, it was just a decorative piece to line her workshop. At least Shirou managed to get the woman's name: Rin Tohsaka.

He wanted to learn more but unfortunately, the woman was currently trying to blow his legs off with blasts of highly concentrated Prana lasers.

Each one of her attacks would be enough to easily penetrate Shirou's Reinforced body. Rin Tohsaka did not spend 50 years trapped within Malivore curled in the fetal position doing absolutely nothing. She had over two dozen high-quality gems stored on her person when she was first thrown into the pit and she had super-charged all of them while within it. She was several magnitudes stronger than she was during the Grail War.

When the battle started, Shirou Traced twelve Black Keys. He wielded three in each hand and the remaining six danced around him in a protective orbit. After Tohsaka's fourth barrage of lasers, he only had two remaining and one of them was half-melted. The worst part of it was Shirou had yet to close the gap between them.

Tohsaka knew his fighting style. She was predicting his every move. The only saving grace was she wasn't aiming for instantly lethal attacks. She really wanted him alive so she could obtain Rulebreaker. Shirou was half-tempted to just give it to her, but he had a feeling that once this woman was totally free of the Malivore's influence, she'd become far more formidable and dangerous to his friends. He couldn't risk giving this woman what she wanted - not when she was so cavalier about sacrificing Hope.

"You never cease to amaze, Shirou," Rin complimented, her voice earnest. "You're tired, low on Prana, and Nature despises your Traces. I am well rested, I have a dozen fully charged gemstones, and I have a deep understanding of all your habits and tendencies. By all accounts, I should have blown off at least one your legs by now. But here you are, fighting on. I remember what Lancer said to Archer during the Grail War, but he was dead wrong. You really ARE worthy of being a Hero, Shirou."

Shirou took a desperate breath and didn't interrupt her. He needed every second he could get to forcefully generate Prana. His Magic Circuits were on metaphorical fire and steam visibly exuded from his body. At this rate, if he wasn't killed by all these Prana blasts, he was going to die from spontaneous combustion when his body's fatty acids caught fire.

Rin wore a teasing smile as if she were remembering a pleasant memory by watching him desperately refill his dwindling magical energy. When Shirou looked upon her expression, angry static filled his vision. He'd seen that smile so many times before, but where?! His Reality Marble no longer provided any other insight aside from the Azoth Dagger that belonged to her. Apparently, Rin Tohsaka did not use or even value the dagger as more than a ceremonial piece. The number of times she even touched it with her hands could be counted on all ten fingers.

"Shall we continue?" She asked rhetorically. Then Shirou was madly dodging again. He considered tracing Kanshou and Byakuya - even with his Tracing crippled, they'd last long enough for him to get close and properly engage the Heiress - but he'd be totally drained afterward. At the rate he was burning through energy, the talisman Josie charged would only last a few more minutes at most. Once his Reinforcement ran out, he'd truly be out of options.

Worst of it all, Seylah Chelon was still unconscious at the Heiress' feet. She'd easily get caught up in the exchange if Shirou were to try melee combat. Her frail human body would be torn to shreds by just remaining in the proximity of such a high-level battle. Using his bow or shooting swords was even worse. If the Heiress could deflect his ranged attacks and one of them hit Seylah, she'd be blasted into pieces. How could he face Landon if he inadvertently killed his biological mother?

Shirou had to pick: close combat or rescue the hostage. The answer was obvious.

"I am the bone of my sword," Shirou incanted. Rin's aloof expression suddenly grew much sharper. She took a step back adopted a Chinese fighting stance remanence of Bajiquan in preparation for a full-frontal assault. The Heiress exhaled a long stream of air as she Reinforced her body to a level comparable to his own and even superior in some ways.

'Is she a genius?!' Shirou inwardly complained. The Heiress could produce rapid-fire, Single-Action, long-range magecraft attacks rounded out with high-level Reinforcement and unarmed combat expertise. It was like he was fighting a ranged version of Bazett Fraga McRemitz!

Of all the enemies he hated, unarmed combatants were the worst. Shirou couldn't instantly analyze all their strengths and weaknesses through a weapon, so he had to learn first hand. Eye of the Mind (True) did not function to its full potential until a certain amount of information was obtained. Under normal circumstances, Shirou could bypass this problem by reading the full combat histories of his enemy's primary weapons, but unarmed combatants did not have one save for their fists so there was nothing to glean insight from.

Luckily, he had no intention of engaging her at all. He threw his two remaining Black Keys to intercept a Prana blast that would have ripped off his right leg then reached out with his left hand to grip the hilt of a dagger in mid-Trace.

"Carnwennan!"

The moment he called out the Noble Phantasm's true name, his vision was drowned in darkness. Carnwennan was a Noble Phantasm from Arthurian legends. It was among the weapons bestowed upon Arturia along with Excalibur and Rhongomiant and served to encase her in a shadow-dimension akin to a parallel world so she could traverse unheeded through enemy territory.

The problem was this Noble Phantasm had an effect similar to dimensional shifting and would take an absurd amount of Prana to use. Just Tracing it exacted an immense toll and drained Shirou down to nearly nothing. He had to use Josie's gem to actually activate it and most of the energy within was now gone.

To the outside world, he literally vanished without a trace. Within this shadow-dimension, time moved at a quarter of the pace and was entirely black. No magecraft he knew of could pierce this place of infinite darkness. Arturia could use it simply because her Instinct Personal Skill would guide her even if her sight was completely compromised. Shirou could fake it by relying on the Eye of the Mind (True) to memorize the entire area within his field of vision.

But he couldn't remain within this shadow-dimension for very long. It was akin to deploying an alternate world of shadows; like when he used his own Reality Marble, so the Prana requirements to maintain it was also absolutely obscene. Right now, he had about three seconds before he returned to normal reality.

He bobbed and weaved around where he recalled the last few Prana blasts were aimed then ran to where he remembered Seylah lay and prepared to pick her up. In order to interact with the outside world, he'd have to deactivate the Noble Phantasm.

Carnwennan shattered and instantly brought him back into normal reality. To Rin, Shirou had disappeared from her sight, but she recalled what Carnwennan was capable of and leaped back, switching to complete defense.

She knew while within the Carnwennan's pseudo-Reality Marble, time moved at a quarter-speed, meaning Shirou was 75% faster than he normally would be. Though she could still hit him with some of her wide-area-of-effect spells because it wasn't a complete dimensional shift, melee combat was an impossibility. At the speeds he was moving at, Shirou could appear out of nowhere and slit her throat with contemptuous ease. Moreover, Carnwennan showed it's true strength when used against mages thanks to the legend of Arturia stealthily killing the Black Hag. All of her spells would be reduced by a full Rank even if they did manage to hit him.

Instead of waiting for him to reappear, she abandoned her position and instantly leaped back as fast and as far as she could. The Prana cost to Trace, activate, and maintain Carnwennan's shadow-dimension were already extraordinarily high in their original world. Here, it would be at least doubled, maybe even tripled if Nature was feeling particularly fickle. If Rin could evade and outlast his Prana supply, Shirou would be forced to return to normal spatial reality completely drained of power. At best, he'd only be able to travel a few meters before he exhausted all of his energy.

While she retreated, she created a barrier around her body as fast as she could and prepared to blast Shirou with a Gandr the moment he came out to attack her. She was so focused on defending against any instantly fatal attacks that she failed to notice Seylah was still lying unconscious on the field.

When Shirou phased back into the world, picked Seylah up, and bolted for the exit, Rin cursed her stupidity. Of course, Shirou Emiya would try to save someone else even as his own death loomed ominously overhead. A storm of jewel-powered Prana blasts ripped through the air toward him. Rin didn't care about Seylah's life and if Shirou was trying to defend her, he'd only cripple himself. Even while carrying Seylah, Shirou dodged all of her attacks save a single one, which blasted a hole clean through his left kidney.

Out of reflex, he used the last vestiges of his Prana to Reinforce the broken and charred parts of his body near the gaping hole in his torso. Swords from his Reality Marble also began to fill in the bloody gap. He heard the Heiress scream his name as he withdrew from the warehouse.

Triad's alarms were already blaring and a few surviving guards were positioned by the exits, ready to engage. But his body was already fully Reinforced, so he managed to evade the hailstorm of bullets through a mix of dexterity and projectile prediction. To normal humans, it was as if he were teleporting in and out of existence. Their natural kinetic vision simply couldn't keep up with his movement speed. Even video cameras built to capture objects traveling at supersonic speeds would have difficulty recording him properly.

"Holy shit! He dodged all those bullets?!" Exclaimed someone in the front of the formation. By the time the soldier finished his sentence, Shirou had charged past their defensive line and broke through Triad's main doors. The sheer change in air pressure as Shirou ran past them blasted the guards aside like tumbleweeds caught in a sandstorm.

Rin sat in a comfy chair in her own personal laboratory funded by Triad Industries. She was surrounded by a variety of dissected mythical creatures and a few partially complete Mystic Codes made out of refined parts of their bodies. She even manufactured some high-quality familiars. She also had a few spare hearts stored in vats of liquid just in case Shirou had Traced Gae Bolg.

Although Rin had only been released from Malivore 36 hours prior, Triad Industries' upper echelon, Veronica Greasley in particular, had been quite accommodating. Rin was provided a workshop and access to all of Triad Industries' information network. Like the Necromancer, Rin was one of the rare cases of high-end thought spit out by the Malivore. But after losing the Necromancer, Veronica was willing to make certain concessions to maximize Rin's effectiveness, unsure when or if the Malivore would provide another resource like Tohsaka.

"Tsk, of course, he got away," Tohsaka clicked her tongue as she watched a video of Shirou speeding past the gates. "E-Rank Luck isn't as bad as he always said it was."

"He's a true monster, just like you said. No wonder all of our assets failed to obtain the relics," Ryan Clarke said from over Rin's shoulder. The short-haired blonde male wore a smug smile that Tohsaka was oh-so-tempted to rip off and reattach upside down.

Unfortunately, because he was one of the Malivore's offspring, Rin was forced to tolerate him - to a certain extent. She wouldn't allow him to trample over her pride. The Necromancer proved that an amount of deviation and independence from the Malivore's influence was given to those it spit out to do its bidding, so long as its servants worked toward completing their objectives. Rin would find as many loopholes as she could in its control to exercise as much autonomy as possible.

"Shirou Emiya is no mere monster. He is a Hero. If you make that mistake again, he will crush you like an ant. He's running on fumes, though. He won't make it out of the town. Deploy a retrieval squad. But we need him alive. That's our deal, Clarke," Rin reminded with a scowl.

"Oh yes, so we can find the mystical dagger that can break my father's hold on us? At first, I thought you were lying through your pretty little teeth, but after that glorious display, I'm more inclined to believe you now." Ryan reached out to caress her cheek but the moment he got within a millimeter of touching her flesh, he recoiled in pain as his skin started to boil angrily and flake off.

"Try touching me again and not even the Malivore's influence will keep me from flaying you alive, inside-out, and layer-by-layer you disgusting little mud-puppet."

"I apologize for overstepping, Lady Tohsaka," Ryan bowed low. "I'll lead the retrieval teams myself."

"Hoho? Serve me well and maybe I'll turn you into a real boy, Ryan Clarke, forgotten son of Malivore," Tohsaka taunted, quietly laughing as Ryan walked away, seething under his indifferent smile. Her laughter echoed infuriatingly throughout his mind. He'd get his revenge and put the Witch in her place once he was finally free.

Rin ran a finger down the frozen image of Shirou dodging his way through a hallway filled with armed guards. She played the recording back and forth, savoring each one of his expressions. Her cold and clinical expression melted into a childish, infatuated smile akin to what a girl falling in love would wear. It had been so long since she last saw him - 50 years for her, but it looked like he hadn't aged a day since they last met. He must have chased after her as soon as she was accidentally sucked into her own experiment. If only he'd submitted and helped her fulfill her desire, they could be embracing each other right now.

"You're mine, Shirou. I've claimed your Heart, Mind, Body, Soul, and your Future. Even if you barely remember me."

"This is it," Alaric announced as he parked and exited his car in the parking lot of a seedy hotel. They'd driven hard for 18 hours and with no breaks save gas and food. Unlike Hope, he was extremely fatigued. "Are you sure he's here?"

Hope nodded, staring at her talisman. "Up there, the third floor," she pointed to the corresponding room. "One of the best vantage points in the hotel," she instantly realized. Shirou would have definitely picked that spot as his base of operations. They made their way quietly up the stairs without alerting the hotel manager. Luckily, this place didn't use keycards, so it meant they could lockpick their way into the room.

Alaric pressed a finger to his lips to keep Hope quiet as he led them down the 3rd story hallway toward the door. With skills developed over a lifetime, he expertly undid the lock and slowly opened the door. What greeted his vision was an upturned table facing the door with Landon taking cover behind it. The teen trained Shirou's 9mm at Alaric's chest.

"Landon? Landon! Put the gun down, please!" Alaric pleaded. The shock faded from Landon's face and he stood up from behind his makeshift cover.

"Dr. Saltzman?!" He cried out in relief. Hope marched in afterward, her face stern. "Hope!" Landon jumped forward and drew her into a hug, which she gladly returned. She pulled away and looked around, her expression twisting into one of icy apprehension.

"Landon," her voice was dangerously calm, like the eye before a storm. "Where is Shirou?"

Landon swallowed and shook his head. "He went to destroy Malivore... by himself."

"What?!" Hope snarled, infuriated by Shirou's carelessness and Landon's weakness.

"I'm so sorry! He knocked me out when I tried to stop him!" Landon explained then pulled out the audio recording and Hope's talisman. Her face paled when she realized Shirou had left the tracking talisman with Landon. "I'll explain in the car, but we have to catch up to him. He went to a place called Triad Industries. It's in Georgia."

"Jesus, that's over 10 hours away," Alaric said, eyes wide. It was obvious that if something went wrong with Shirou's assault, he would likely be long dead before they even got there. Hope was the first one back in the car, her body a superhuman blur. They drove off quickly. The only saving grace was that the highways were clear of traffic this late at night.

"Why didn't you call?!" Hope accused, craning her head toward Landon in the backseat. She needed to vent.

"Shirou said his phone was being traced, so he destroyed it. The recording told me to just wait in the room until you got here."

"It didn't occur to you to use a payphone or something?!"

"Hope, lighten up. It's not his fault," Alaric demanded with a gentle sigh. Hope rounded on him in an instant, her anger and frustration peaking. "He was just following Shirou's instructions. Besides, if you need someone to blame, blame me. I'm the reason he left the school."

Hope slunk back into her seat, her emotions burning like cold fire. Why did every life that touched hers wither and die? Was she going to lose someone she cared about, again? Would life be so cruel as to take Shirou away from her just after they started to open up to each other? Would she be doomed to be alone for the rest of her life? Was her only role to be Nature's sacrificial tool to destroy the Malivore?

Those these questions remained unanswered, she knew the answer to one: if Shirou Emiya really was killed by Triad, Hope Mikaelson swore they would pay with their lives.

Author's Notes:

Tyonis with another update! In case it wasn't obvious by now, this is totally a love-tragedy in the making. Multiple people are bringing up pacing issues, and I think that has a lot to do with my overly varied chapter lengths. I'll try to establish some measure of consistency. I'm thinking 3,000-4,000 words per chapter will help the pacing. It'll slow down my release rate, but we'll see how it plays out.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited, and followed this story. I honestly did not think that my first fanfiction would become as successful as it is now. Thank you so much for your time and your words.

Time to answer some questions:

Suzululu4moe asks why Rin needs a sacrifice to activate the Second Magic. In this story, Rin doesn't have the Jeweled Sword or the Kaleidosticks. If she did, she could just blast her way out of Malivore. Simply put, Rin has no way to activate a dimensional transfer powerful enough to send her back to her original world without spending a stupidly long period of time studying this world's magical theory and possibly submitting herself to the whims of Nature and the Laws of Balance.

To summarize a long explanation: Witches gain their power because they are servants of Nature and anything that breaks Nature's whims is punished. In some cases, Nature would strip them of all their magical powers if they do something Nature really doesn't like. She can't risk Nature's retribution if it doesn't approve of the Second Magic for one reason or another.

The whims of Nature are horrifically inconsistent in the series, FYI. It's like trying to deal with a fickle Fae Queen than a mindless source of power like Gaia or Alaya from the Nasuverse. Rin does NOT want to have to enter into a "bargain" with something that inconsistent if she can just sacrifice Hope and be done with it instead. If Rin Tohsaka wasn't willing to trust the Holy Grail, she is for damn sure not willing to stake her entire magical heritage on Nature.

Rin believes that the magical energy released when using Hope's life to kill a super-powered Malivore right as all three seals are broken will have enough power one instance of the Second Magic. It's like using a nuclear explosion to power a spell. The best part is that said explosion was a Loophole created by Nature itself to neutralize the Malivore, so Rin thinks she will be safe from the ramifications of screwing with spatial and temporal reality by "piggy-backing" on it.

Requirecross asks if Shirou still has Avalon. Yes, but it's powerless without Saber. At this point, it functions as a conceptual weapon impervious to time or damage like it did in Fate/Zero when Kiritsugu had it prior to Saber's summoning.

Requiremore asks if Shirou saw more Noble Phantasms during his time between F/UBW and F/L. Yes, he has.

Requirecross asks how magic in Legacies matches up with Noble Phantasms. For the most part, Noble Phantasms vastly overpower Legacies magicks in the short term. However Witches are stupidly OP compared to Nasuverse Magi if you just look at their potential as spellcasters not through combat. Their enchantments literally last forever. They can create spells that grant them immortality. They can even raise the dead with near 100% fidelity.