It was the fiercest battle of the Holy Grail War, and it wasn't even officially part of it. But Giorno considered it a part of the War, if only because it happened directly after. Saber had sacrificed herself and her dream to stop the rampaging golem created by Caster, but yet she stood in front of him.
Giorno knew it wasn't the same Saber; for one thing, her armor was entirely different. And gone was the passionate fighting style she held, instead she moved with mechanical precision. He didn't know at the time however, that the girl in front of him was a Beast of Alaya, a Counter Guardian. Had he known this he might have paused in his fight against her, but he didn't understand the strength of the being before him, and so he acted as if she was no different from the Saber he remembered.
Had he known she was a Counter Guardian, maybe he would have lost. That split second where he doubted he could win against the force of the world itself could have spelled his downfall. But he was oblivious to this fact as an outsider to the world, and so he never once considered losing a possibility.
And when his fist cut through her Excalibur like it was nothing, he struck her down without hesitation. His punch landed squarely against her face, shattering the mask that covered her eyes.
His power was not one governed by this world's rules, a power that neared the realm of gods. In that instant the world shattered, his Requiem resetting the Counter Guardian to 'zero.' But she didn't disappear, quite the opposite actually. Not even Giorno could have predicted his power would cause such an odd aftereffect.
He broke her chains to the world with his requiem, and either through some strange function of it or his original stand ability, she gained a physical body. He had returned her to her base state, that of a living human. What this meant to the throne of heroes, to the Counter Force, he had no idea.
Was she a copy still, or had he restored her to her original form, removing her from the Throne of Heroes entirely. He often wondered that in the following years, both about her and also himself. Was he the copy of Giorno summoned by the Grail, or was he now the true Giorno Giovanna?
He awoke suddenly, the early morning light peering through his window. Slowly, he rose to a sitting position and rubbed his eyes. Even after becoming flesh and blood once more, he only dreamed of the past, the curse of a Heroic Spirit it seemed. More and more he was dreaming of that fight against the White Saber, even though he hadn't seen her since the initial fight.
She was out there somewhere, still living in this world, and he was entirely at fault. He was no stranger to being thrust into a world unfamiliar to him, and he wouldn't wish such a tragedy on even his worst enemy. So why then, was he glad she was still here? The thought of one day being able to fight against her again filled him with a determination like nothing else, he wanted to finish their fight from the war.
The pure Counter Guardian Saber had been immensely strong, but it was not a satisfying victory, for she fought with no emotion. That cold, empty shell of a hero wasn't the opponent he longed for.
Even with everything he had gained he felt empty, unfulfilled. He wanted to trade blows with her again, to cross ideals in their most pure form. Maybe then he could finally be free from his lingering regrets from the war, the last thread left dangling before him.
Giorno shuffled to the kitchen of his estate and pulled open the fridge, retrieving a plastic cup of chocolate pudding. One might assume if they saw the occupants of the house that these were for Shirou, but the truth was that Giorno bought them for himself. Peeling off the film covering, he sat down in the main living room and started to eat.
Shortly after he had done so and Shirou had wandered into the living room himself, still looking half asleep. When the boy caught sight of him with a pudding cup in his hands, his sleepy expression vanished and was replaced by annoyance.
"N-No fair Boss, that was the last one!" Shirou's shock was that of a normal child, if one didn't know any better, one might assume these two were normal family members, brothers perhaps.
For the first time in a long while, the Giovanna household had a peaceful day. The gang was running smoothly under the command of his three regional officers, the peace brokered with Raiga Fujimora's group had settled into a stable status quo, and there were no enemies to deal with.
It was, quite frankly, incredibly boring. Giorno spent the majority of his free time studying this world, learning the differences from it and his own. He had no magical ability of his own, but he dug into the world of magecraft nonetheless, not wanting to be ignorant of such a powerful force.
Shirou's training had reached a plateau, if he wanted to become a stronger Stand user, there was nothing he could do but use it. And with no enemy to speak of it wasn't like he got much of a chance to stretch his metaphorical legs.
Giorno considered all of this and more, trying to think of the best choice for the twelve year old boy in his care. While his physical training was quite high, and he knew all about Stands and Magic, he lacked a certain set of skills. Giorno figured now was as good a time as any, and turned his head to face the boy.
"Shirou, come sit down, there's something I'd like to discuss," his flat tone had no indication of emotion, but the boy followed his direction immediately as if threatened.
"Y-Yeah boss, anything!" Shirou smiled, but he was only forcing himself to do so, hiding his fear.
"Shirou, I think it's time for you to get a real education," Giorno leaned back, taking a more relaxed posture. "I think you should go to school."
Shirou stared at him for a good three seconds without responding, or even reacting. Finally, he unfroze, his face twisting into a puzzled expression.
"Why, I mean, shouldn't I focus on my Stand training? I still can't manifest the full thing for more than a second at a time-"
"You should expand your horizons Shirou, not everything has to be about Stands, or the Gang," Giorno stood up, turning to face the door into the yard. "Even I went to school for a time, it was a good life experience. And you don't have any friends your own age either, isn't that hard for you?"
"I-I don't need friends, I have the gang…" his tone didn't match his words, clearly showing that he wasn't confident in what he was saying.
"Consider it, that's all I'll say for now," Giorno slid open the door and stepped outside, leaving Shirou alone in the room.
''..!" Both Shirou and Giorno tensed up at the same moment, a wave of unease washing over them. It was this properties defense mechanism, a Bounded Field that warned of intruders with hostile intent. It was the first time he had actually felt it, but he knew it existed.
Giorno jumped back, a flash of white and silver crashing into the ground with immense force right where he had just stood. Shirou ran out of the house and stood next to Giorno, his body shaking badly.
Shirou was at a loss for words, his eyes unable to accept what they saw. He had only seen them once before, and even then only briefly, but he couldn't forget that sight. Standing before them, clad in pure white armor with a sword right out of a fantasy novel, was the Counter Guardian Arturia Pendragon.
It was like fate had conspired to bring them back together, for Giorno couldn't imagine better timing. Just a short time before he was dreaming of this moment, and it was finally at hand.
"Aberration, I've come for your head!" she raised her arm, pointing her sword towards Giorno. "Prepare yourself for the next life, if you'll even go there, you monster!"
Shirou stepped out in front of Giorno, to both his and Arturia's surprise. Every nerve in his body told him to run away, that he would die if he tried to fight, but he did it anyways. A hazy shape appeared at his side, and he stared at the intruder with a determined look.
"D-Don't think I'll let you hurt the Boss," Shirou threw his arms out as if to block her from Giorno, more symbolic than anything. "You'll have to go through me first, puttana!"
Arturia wasn't sure what to make of the situation, she had come to defeat her mortal enemy, but a small blonde child had interfered, and insulted her, in Italian. Her confusing only lasted a moment before Giorno pushed the boy aside and approached her.
"I accept your challenge, Saber," he answered her with a cold expression, as always. "But I'd rather not wreck an entire neighborhood on a personal squabble, let us take this fight elsewhere."
She looked ready to cut him down then and there without regard for any others, but his words gave her pause. Even as a Counter Guardian, she couldn't reasonably annihilate an entire town just to fulfill her duty, not after her conscious thought was returned to her body. Reluctantly, she had to agree with him.
"Very well, the park then, it should be relatively deserted after midnight," she lowered her sword and turned away, walking across the yard. "if you're not there however, I will bring the fight back to this place, be sure of that."
Arturia leapt, easily clearly the fence around the property. Giorno's posture relaxed and he sat down on the edge of the porch. Shirou stood, frozen like a statue. It had taken all of his willpower to stand up to her, and now he didn't possess enough to even more an inch.
Shirou fell to his knees, his breathing heavier than usual. He could feel the power within her, what was he thinking? There was no way he would have survived a single second against a foe that powerful.
"A-Are you really going to fight her?" Shirou glanced at Giorno, whose gaze blankly looked out over the horizon. "I mean, you must have beaten her before, so you can do it again, right?"
"I'm not so sure," Giorno stood up, stretching his arms out in front of him. "All I know is that I have to try, because she's my enemy. And it's not in my nature to let my enemies roam freely."
There was more to it than that, but he didn't care to get into it with Shirou at the moment. The boy had enough to worry about without long standing rivalries with legendary heroes.
It was exactly the turn of events he wished for, so why was he so hesitant? He still wanted to fight her, and there was no way he would lose, so why did something feel wrong in the back of his mind.
Giorno had no way of knowing the strange feeling of his was an instinctual sense of impending danger, or that more was threatening his city then a rogue Counter Guardian.
A nondescript black car drove steadily down a winding dirt road. Pulling to a stop in front of a building that looked more like a medieval castle then a house anyone in the modern era would live in, a man stepped out of the car.
He slowly approached the building, another figure from the car quickly following him, this time a young girl no more than fifteen, but probably younger. The man's long straight black hair swayed in the gentle wind as he walked, a long red scarf trailing behind him.
He was dressed in a fashion that both appeared as a modern man of business, but that also carried a classical style fitting one of high status. Along with his well defined features it would be easy to see him and assume he was of great importance, and in a way he was.
The girl wore a heavy coat over her small body, its huge sleeves dangling loosely at her side. Her face was obscured by a long hood, but anyone could tell by her body shape that she was a woman.
An elderly man greeted them at the door to the castle-like mansion, and ushered them inside without a second thought.
"You must be the investigators from the Clock Tower, I'm glad you could make it on such short notice," his words carried a kind tone, but there was an air of unease. Not surprising, considering the circumstances.
"I'm afraid I don't have all day, if you'd be so kind as to show me to the scene so I can get started," The man pulled a pack of cigarettes from his suit pocket, taking one and placing it in his mouth loosely. As if he remembered something important, he glanced over to the elderly man. "How rude of me, is this alright?"
"Yes, of course, the Master wouldn't have denied a Lord from the Association," the man smiled and started down the grand entrance hall towards a set of spiral stairs. "Follow me then, and I'll take you too him."
The younger of the two men lit his cigarette, not with a match or a lighter, but with a snap of his fingers. It was a wholly inefficient use of his admittedly subpar mana stores, but undeniably a stylish act that loud and clearly announced "I am a Magus" to any who witnessed it. This is of course, the entire reason why he did it that way.
Once at the top of the stairs, their guide stopped dead in his tracks, a fearful look in his eyes. Trembling, he turned to the guests and pointed at one of the doors.
"Second door to the left, if you will, I'd much prefer to stay here if you don't mind, it isn't a sight I'd care to see twice." The sight of the elderly man on the verge of tears was rather surreal, as he had been fine moments ago. The Magus blew out a puff of smoke and headed towards the door, the girl following him closely.
Pushing open the door, he was immediately assaulted with the stench of death, one pungent enough to alter the entire atmosphere of the room. He didn't really like this kind of work and would much rather remain at his instructor duties at the Clock Tower, but he reluctantly pressed forward.
On the floor, directly in the center of the room, was a corpse. More than just a corpse, it was a highly mutilated corpse that appeared to have been cut apart from the inside out. Kneeling over the body, he began his examination, while the girl with him stood in silence at the door.
"Same as the last one, as expected," he stood up, heading over to a desk in the corner of the room. "Poor bastard had every Magic Circuit ripped out of his body, from the looks of it while he was still alive at that."
The girl nodded, already familiar with the case they were following. The world of magic was plagued by a string of murders within the community that all followed the same pattern. Magi in relatively strong bloodlines cut down with ease, and their magic circuits removed.
Most likely this was the work of two or more assailants, for the necessary skills to both kill or subdue a powerful magus and then remove their circuits with spiritual surgery were possessed by relatively few suspects. But the investigation was going nowhere, the bodies continued to pile up, but the lack of evidence was astounding.
"Gray, what do you think?" the man turned to his young assistant, hold his cigarette between the fingers on his left hand.
The girl crouched over the body, her eyes darting around its wounds.
"An Executioner, perhaps?"
"Foolish girl, what would those stuffy old men of the Church be doing slaying Magi?" Of course, the thought had already occurred to him, but he denied the possibility more out of a strong desire not to get involved with the Church more than necessary.
But still, he was at a loss, he couldn't find a common thread between the victims outside of the fact they were mages, and what on earth could anyone need with this many Magic Circuits? It's not like you could just implant them into your own body, the shock of adding a foreign substance like that would kill just about anyone in seconds.
The only thing he could think of was a possible use in homunculi or, an even greater stretch, golems. But there were no mages alive with the technical skill to pull off something like that save for maybe one of the true Sorcerers. And he highly doubted someone of that power would bother with such a roundabout way as to murder lesser mages, so he was back at square one.
"An enforcer from the Association is also possible, though it's likely this avenue was already checked." The girl stood up with her last suggestion, clearly out of ideas.
"In any matter, there's nothing new to learn from this one either," The man left the room, leaving behind the grotesque corpse. Soon after, the girl known as Gray followed him, remaining silent. "Let us return to the Clock Tower for now, until a new avenue of investigation opens up."
And so the odd pair of magi left the castle behind, the trip having been just about as pointless as he'd expected. Really now, did the Tower think he had unlimited free time to look into every little problem they were having? Admittedly, this is more than a small problem, but surely he wasn't the only one who could handle it.
But that was a problem for later, for now, he just wanted to get back home. He'd had enough of playing detective for a while, but at the back of his mind he had a sinking feeling that this wouldn't be the end of it.
Zouken Matou was a very patient man, so patient in fact that he was willing to wait hundreds of years for a single plan to pay off. He had expected his current project to pay off after about ten to twelve years, so the current developments were rather outside of his calculations.
The Tohsaka girl had been adopted into his family line almost six years ago now, and ever since he had been working to turn her into a useful asset. The process was slow, but soon she would have become indistinguishable from a legitimate heir to his bloodline. Adding to this, after the spectacular failure of the fourth Holy Grail War, he had recovered the fragments of the previous vessel, and with a little work had integrated them into the girl's Magic Circuits.
He had intended to use her in a long term plan to repower his dying bloodline, and to achieve his ultimate wish, but things were taking an unexpected turn. Zouken was of course aware of the Holy Grail's corruption, but it didn't matter to him for his plans would work regardless. However, he hadn't expected that the blackened Holy Grail would have an impact on the Girl, or vice versa, but that was evidently the case.
The speed at which his false holy grail had formed was directly connected to her mental state, sometimes wildly accelerating due to her negative emotions. He had tried his hardest to stabilize the girl, but nothing seemed to work. It didn't help that her 'brother' did everything in his power to antagonize the girl.
Shinji was a problem, a pawn in his game that was less than useless. Born without any functional magic circuits, despite attempts to circumvent that, he was born without magic. Even more useless than his father, Byakuya, he did nothing but get in the way.
But the boy was a minor concern, for the issue with Sakura was getting out of hand. The corruption of the Grail was beginning to spill forth through her connection with it, only a little for now, but the evil contained within the Greater Grail was beginning to manifest. It was too soon, the next ritual had yet to begin, if she lost control now he wouldn't be able to control her.
And it would garner unwanted attention from the Magus Association if a crisis of that scale started now, outside of the known ritual of the Holy Grail War. He had to think fast if he was going to rein in the girl before it was too late.
The will of the Grail manifested as a black, void-like shadow. It had begun to attack those in the town with a high concentration of mana, draining them to near death. It was only a matter of time before it actually started to kill its victims, and at that point Zouken would be out of options.
Zouken wouldn't let a setback like this keep him from his dream, he would reach paradise, no matter the cost. Even if he had to make a deal with his enemy, he would survive, that was how he lived every day of his exceedingly long life.
He didn't want to do it, but there was one potential ally in this situation, a survivor of the last war. Kariya had died during the war, failing to get results, but not the Servant he had made a desperate contract with. From what he had seen, that man possessed a power that could fix things, it could possibly even repair the corrupted grail system.
The question then, was how to best approach him. It was doubtful he could walk into the man's front door and ask for a partnership. And at this point, the Servant was likely aware of who and what Zouken was, at least to some degree.
No, he would have to negotiate a deal that made it seem as if he had no choice, to make him feel obligated to help. Could he use the man's connection with Kariya perhaps? He wasn't sure if it would be a strong enough argument, but it was the best he had for now.
The immortal patriarch of the Matou clan began to work, the new machinations of his plan spinning in his mind. He put together everything he knew about the Servant reborn into the world, and the life he currently led. He was often seen with a young child around twelve, and then it struck him.
It seems that just maybe, for once, the boy he called his 'grandson' would prove useful. The old man chucked to himself, the sound being more terrifying than anything else. The elder magus left the room he was currently in, heading for the main library of the estate.
While Shinji could not actualize magecraft with his withered useless circuits, it didn't stop the boy from studying as much as he could. If he kept this up his entire life it might even be possible for him to become a well known researcher at the Association. But it most certainly would not, as the boy probably hoped, give him the ability to actually use magecraft.
As expected, he found the boy buried in a dusty old tome of general magecraft. As soon as he entered the room, Shinji looked up, his entire body freezing in terror. He might not be a magus, but he seemed somewhat aware of the nature of Zouken's body, his body warning him of the monster in front of him.
"Shinji, would you care to help your dear grandfather with a small task?" Zouken's mouth curled into a smile as he spoke, his hand reaching out to invite Shinji into his plot. Going along with whatever Zouken had planned was more like making a deal with the devil then anything else, but Shinji had no power to resist, and the boy nervously stood up and walked over to the man.
"W-Whatever you need, grandfather."
The moon hung low overhead, casting the lone man in an unearthly glow. He stood as still as a statue at the center of the empty park. The cold night air cut though his body like a knife, but the man appeared unfazed by the harsh fall weather.
The man was Giorno Giovanna, answering the challenge issued by the Counter Guardian Arturia Pendragon. His muscles tensed at every rustle of the leaves around him, his senses all primed for combat. The snap of someone stepping on a branch caught his attention, and he whipped around on the spot, but it was just a stray dog.
Against an opponent of this level, a single second of carelessness could cost him the fight, or even his life. So his battle senses were heightened to the maximum from the beginning, he wouldn't allow anything to slip past him undetected. So when the swordswoman attempted to catch him by surprise as he was distracted by a wild animal, it was actually her who was caught off guard.
"Muda!" He spun around, deflecting her sword with a roundhouse kick. "Sneak attacks don't suit you, you're not Assassin."
"I'm not Saber either," the woman replied to his jab, her expression hardening. "I was not summoned by the Grail into a Class Container, and as such my strength isn't limited to a mere Saber's."
She dashed forward with a burst of mana induced speed, clearing the gap between them in the blink of an eye. Her sword lashed out like it had a mind of its own, and it wanted nothing more than to claim his head.
She fought like a machine, her skills finely honed as a Beast of Alaya. The perfection of her sword technique, it was forged to do nothing more than cut down her foe. Unlike her style as Saber, which could be said to be an imitation of an emotionless fighting style, this was truly without passion. No anger or frustration seeped into her actions, even while she struggled against him.
It was boring. Giorno stopped even dodging her attacks, parrying her latest volley with a single arm. She charged, and he swept her aside with ease. The white clad swordswoman fell to the ground, her pristine armor becoming stained with mud. But still she fought without anger, suppressing all of her rage towards him.
This fight, this fated battle he had waited over four years for… this wasn't what he desired. The strength of Saber's attacks had been enough to be a threat even to him, and they only got stronger with her rage towards him. But this robotic style was painfully easy to avoid for him, even if it was technical perfection.
He slipped past her latest swing, stepping into a hard punch aimed for her abdomen. The force of his blow displaced the air around them, sending out a shockwave that scattered dust into the air. Arturia was pushed back, but she remained standing, her blade dug into the ground as an anchor.
She ran back in with an overhead swing, but Giorno caught it effortlessly in his hand, the power of his Stand protecting him from its sharp blade. Even Giorno, whose level of mastery of his emotions was near flawless couldn't hide his disappointment.
"Is this… all you're capable of, Saber?" Giorno pushed away the sword, easily moving it against her will. "You'll never reach me with resolve like that."
"Silence," She pulled back her sword, its blade shining brilliantly under the moonlight. "I am a Counter Guardian, my duty is to defeat threats to Gaia, I can't possibly fail at this task, the world itself is on my side!"
Arturia jumped, slashing through the mortal enemy she had set out to defeat. It was a perfect strike, too fast to dodge and too strong to block, there was no way he could have survived. But when she glanced down at her blade, not a single drop of blood could be seen on its edge.
"..!"
She turned around as fast as she could, but it was still too slow. She was struck from all sides by a series of blows too fast to follow, before being slammed against the ground with a powerful kick. Giorno placed his foot against her neck, pressing her into the ground.
"The resolve you held as a Servant is gone, have you forgotten what it was like to be a hero in your time as a Counter Guardian?"
She struggled against him, but his strength was too much, pinning her down was nothing to him. How, how was he so strong? Even with Alaya's power she was helpless against him, it wasn't possible. And he mocked her endlessly, talking about 'resolve' like he knew her personally. Her resolve was stronger than anyone's, the resolve to sacrifice everything for her country, even becoming a tool for the world to do so.
She had the resolve to keep fighting even though it brought nothing but destruction, or pain. The only memories she held as a Counter Guardian were those of misery, she would be summoned as a puppet of the world's will, cut down some threat without mercy, and repeat that endlessly.
She gave up everything, how was that not resolve? She gave her life for her country, and in death she gave her soul to the world. She would show him her resolve by defeating him, it was more than just her duty to the world that drove her, but her personal desire to settle things with him.
With a burst of mana, she threw him off of her, sending the flamboyantly dressed man flying into the air. Before he had time to recover, she leapt into the air, her sword cutting a deadly arc through the sky. Excalibur cleaved through his arm, severing it at the elbow.
But Giorno showed no signs of even feeling any pain, his facing remaining calm. With his remaining hand he caught his dismembered limb as they fell, a golden light enveloping it.
As soon as the two landed, an eagle flew from Giorno's position towards the Counter Guardian. She raised her sword to cut it down, but it changed course before reaching her, disappearing into the sky.
Giorno tore off a strip of cloth from his shirt, tying it around his severed arm to stop the bleeding. He looked over at his opponent, a spark that had been missing before lighting in his eyes.
"That felt more like our battles in the Holy Grail War, Saber," He raised his remaining left arm to his chest, pulling off one of his ladybug shaped brooches. "Show me that passion you had as the King of Knights!"
He dropped the broach on the ground without transforming it before rushing towards her, an action that seemed strange to Arturia, but she ignored it. Her thoughts were too focused on his words of the Grail War, what was he talking about? Sure, she had been summoned into the ritual known as the Fourth Holy Grail War, but she never once fought this man in it.
The realization dawned on her as she moved to counter his attack, the Throne of Heroes exists outside of time, and in a multiverse of endless possibilities. She suddenly realized why he insisted on calling her Saber, why he acted so familiar towards her.
But she wasn't the Saber of this war; if she was then it would be impossible for him to be here, as she was the only surviving Servant of her war. It was possible this man was a Master, but the density of his spiritual energy suggested otherwise. Everything began to click into place.
He was a Servant who broke free from the chains of the Grail System, that in itself wouldn't be enough for Alaya to intervene directly, but the method he used to do so was. The same power that turned her into an existence trapped between human and Counter Guardian, an ability that bordered on the domain of gods.
Giorno's hand, wrapped in the golden glow of his Stand, clashed against her shimmering sword, transforming into a deadly blade of his own. Despite not having a weapon, he intended to meet her as a swordsman, an offer she gladly accepted.
Their clash reached a level of ferocity that threatened to overwhelm even its participants, the air itself becoming thick with bloodlust. But something was still missing, even if Arturia's attacks had become stronger.
Giorno wanted to make her angry, it was that simple. In his fights against Saber, she had become incredibly heated, her normally restrained emotions bursting forth with no control. And this Saber, who held her emotions even tighter inside of herself, only made him want to break her even more.
"Unleash your Noble Phantasm, Saber," he leapt away, landing calmly in the distance. "Normal attacks will never defeat me, but if you truly possess the 'resolve' to strike me down, that attack might reach me."
"You're not good enough to waste my Excalibur on, don't make me laugh."
"Do you believe that, or do you just think you don't have what it takes?" Giorno posed, only able to complete part of it due to his missing arm. "I think you don't have the strength to do it, as a Counter Guardian you had no emotions, but now that you have them again…"
Her hands tightened around her blade's hilt, a small hint of frustration appearing on her face. He wasn't entirely wrong, now that she was in full control of her actions things were more complicated than before. As a Counter Guardian, she unleashed her full power with ease, collateral damage being of no concern.
"If you unleash the full power of Excalibur here, you'll blow away half of the city," Giorno slowly walked towards her, his hand raised as if inviting her to take it. "That is the 'resolve' you lack, Saber. You say this is your duty? Then do your duty, blow me away with the full power of the most famous sword in history!"
She couldn't deny it no matter how much she wanted to, he was right. She didn't have the resolve to slaughter innocent men and women just to kill him, but her anger against him was rising steadily. Soon, her logic began to be overwritten by her rage, the emotions she held back for fear of what she might do if she indulged in them.
Giorno could feel it; something inside of her had changed. The entire atmosphere shifted, making the bloodlust from before seem like a cheap imitation. Her true, dark emotions poured out of her existence, the anger burning in her eyes like nothing he had seen before.
Her power too began to rise, almost in proportion to her anger. Soon it was enough to overwhelm him, more powerful than anything he had felt from her before. It wasn't as much power as when she was a Counter Guardian in full of course, but it rivaled her powers as a Servant. But would it be enough to pierce him?
Her eyes were blinded by her hatred of Giorno, she no longer cared about anything else. As long as he disappeared from this world, she didn't care about the result of her attack. She poured mana into her blade, raising it above her head.
The smiling faces of her neighbors as she biked down the street flashed through her mind, she hesitated for a moment, but quickly resumed charging.
"Ex-"
She saw her boss at work, who acted inappropriately as a form of affection, who was always smiling. She saw her coworkers, the customers, and finally the face of a young child, desperately defending her mortal enemy.
Her power dropped without warning, her built up mana dispersing into the air. She couldn't do it, he was right. The thought that he of all people was correct about anything was enough to incite another blind rage, but instead, she started to cry.
She cursed him, for being so strong, and she cursed herself for being weak. But even then, she refused to give up. Wiping away her tears, she raised her sword in a normal stance. With a new resolve, she calmly looked towards Giorno.
"I'm not your Saber, you know that right?" she asked a question that had been burning inside of her for a long time, finally calm enough to learn the answer.
"It doesn't matter to me; I'm not an Archer either."
She charged in again, clearly intending to end the fight with traditional skill rather than trump cards. This was perfectly acceptable for Giorno, in fact, he had expected it. He raised his hand, and with a snap of his fingers, a golden flash appeared on the ground between them.
A rapidly growing fig tree slammed into Arturia with the force of a bullet, hitting her square on the chin. Confused, she was sent spinning through the air with no clue what had happened, but then she remembered an insignificant detail from before. The broach he threw away, he had positioned them on opposite sides of it!
An eagle flew out of the sky and dove towards Giorno, landing on his outstretched stump of a right arm, before transforming into a new, undamaged limb. Saber's vision began to go dark, the last blow combined with wasting so much energy on her aborted attack catching up with her.
She had never been in control of the fight; it was clear from this that he was toying with her the whole time. But as her conscious mind faded into the dark, she found herself not really caring, having spent all of her anger and frustration in the fight already.
Arturia's next thought was a confused feeling of waking up suddenly, and as her mind finally caught up with what she was seeing, she found herself back in her apartment. She blinked a few times, unsure of what had just happened, was that all a dream?
On her table rested a single object, a letter she didn't remember ever receiving. Picking it up, she opened it without hesitation. Inside the envelope was a single sheet of paper, containing only the words "well fought" on it.
Too distracted by the flood of confused emotions hitting her at that moment, she didn't notice a black shadow appear behind her, rising up in a strange form that resembled an octopus.
Giorno Giovanna too remained blissfully unaware of the danger that lurked within Fuyuki, one he would soon be well acquainted with.
Fuyuki city was peaceful; there was no supernatural crisis, no gang wars, and the crime rate was lower than ever. It's not to say there was nothing wrong, rumors of mysterious disappearances had begun to circulate, but nothing substantial had come out of any investigations into it thus far.
The swordswoman clad in white armor hadn't tried to attack them since that day, something that Shirou was thankful for, but his boss seemed disappointed. He wasn't sure why Giorno wanted to keep fighting her, and he was too scared to ask. The young boy was also preoccupied thinking about his current mission.
Facing down yakuza was easy, a dangerous rogue magus? Bring it on. But Shirou Giovanna was faced with a task he had no experience with whatsoever, and that terrified him. Today was the day that he started middle school.
He was a late transfer, managing to get in relatively easy thanks to Giorno's influence. Shirou wasn't worried about his actual performance in school; he had studied extensively at home. But walking into an unknown situation, one where he couldn't solve problems with brute force, made him nervous.
First of all, it's not like he could just tell everyone he was a gangster. The nature of his life up to now led to an awkward situation where the entirety of his past was off limits for introductions. It wasn't like he could go around talking about Magic or Stands either, so he was forced to improvise.
As he walked to the school he went over his plan in his head, trying to get his cover story straight. He wasn't sure if he would be able to act convincingly, but he hoped people would just assume he was nervous. Which he was, so at the very least, that part wasn't a lie.
So absorbed in his own thoughts, he paid no attention to where he was walking, and subsequently ran straight into an unknown obstruction. He tumbled to the ground, taking what was very likely another student with him. Shirou, being highly trained in physical activities was perfectly unharmed, but that wouldn't necessarily hold true to whoever he knocked over.
When he opened his eyes, he was gazing down at a small girl, probably in a lower grade than him, with eyes and hair that both looked strangely purple. Shirou expected her to react differently, possibly to cry or yell at him to move, but she merely stared up at him with a blank expression. Despite her lack of reaction, he removed himself from her as quick as he could anyways.
"S-Sorry, I wasn't paying attention," Shirou reached out his hand to her, offering to lift her up. The girl seemed confused, as if she didn't expect anyone to help her. Reluctantly, she took his hand.
The girl was much lighter than he anticipated, and the strength he put into lifting her easily pulled her off the ground. She fell into his body with a soft thud, and Shirou had the sudden realization that they were back in a compromising position.
"That's pretty bold of you for your first day," a strange new voice filled Shirou's ears, and he turned his head to face the source. A boy about his age, wearing the school's uniform was standing off to the side of the entranceway, leaning against a tree. "What do you think you're doing with my sister?"
"N-No, it was just an accident; I didn't mean to do anything bad!" Shirou hastily separated from the girl, his face flushing red. He waved his hands around frantically, trying to dispel whatever thoughts the boy was having.
Upon seeing Shirou's flustered reaction, the boy laughed, apparently quite amused with Shirou's suffering. Walking over to him, the boy's gaze shifted behind Shirou, towards the girl. If it wasn't for this he might never have noticed the girl had timidly hidden behind his back, was she more scared of her brother then the complete stranger who had just pushed her down?
"Sakura, what are you doing?" the boy's eyes narrowed as he looked at her, for a moment Shirou thought he saw signs of disgust in his expression, but it disappeared quickly. The boy pulled her out from behind Shirou, grabbing her hand forcefully. "Try not to be such an embarrassment to the Matou family, it reflects back on me."
Shirou stepped between the siblings, his expression cold as he looked at the boy with wavy bluish black hair. He held himself back, but in that moment he wanted nothing more than to punch that smug look off his face.
"You should treat your sister better, family is important."
"Hurmph," the boy ignored him and turned away, slowly walking towards the school. "You better hurry up, blondie, or you'll be late for your introduction."
Shirou had no choice but to run after him, not wanting to make a bad impression on his first day. He quickly looked back towards the girl, but she was gone from view. As he followed the boy up to his new school, a random thought crossed his mind, how did he know he was the new transfer student? It's possible he just assumed after not recognizing him, but he couldn't know everyone in school, right?
That concern however was soon replaced with the looming threat of having to give his introduction, and before he was ready he was standing at the head of the class, sweating profusely.
"B-Buongiorno, I'm Shirou Giovanna," stuttering uncontrollably as he spoke, Shirou felt like a complete idiot, why was something so simple this difficult? "U-until recently, I was studying overseas in Italy, and uhhh, now I'm not."
Unable to stand any more, he bowed in a Japanese style that clashed heavily with his use of Italian, before rushing to his seat in the back of the room. Somewhat unfortunately he found himself sitting next to the boy from earlier, who was too busy holding in his laughter at Shirou's expense to say anything when he sat down.
Through some incredible force of luck he was able to make it to the lunch break without doing anything else to embarrass himself. While looking for a place to sit, someone wrapped their arm around his shoulders and pulled him along. Surpassingly, it was the boy from earlier.
"Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot this morning," the boy swept his hair back with one hand while picking up an apple from his lunch with the other. Shirou didn't know it was possible for someone in his age group to look this smug. "Let's be friends, Shioru Chobanna."
"I-It's Giovanna," Shirou opened his lunch, which had been packed by Giorno before he left. In a plastic container was an elaborate pasta dish, everything about it screamed Italian as if making a statement. "I uh, don't know your name."
"Didn't I tell you before?" when Shirou shook his head, the boy sighed, taking a bite of his apple. "Shinji, Shinji Matou."
"L-Look, Shinji, not to be rude but… is there any reason for us to be friends?" Shirou's bluntness was enough to make Shinji burst out laughing, but he didn't know what was so funny about what he had said.
"I like you, you're funny," he grinned, placing the apple back on the table before leaning over it towards Shirou. "We're different from the rest, no one else our age would ask the question 'why should we be friends?' it's brilliant."
"I don't really get it, what does that have to do with-"
"Shh, just listen to me for one second," Shinji leaned back in his chair, propping his arm up on one knee. He wasn't wrong in that the two of them seemed more mature than the rest of the class for their age, both of them seemingly quite independent. "Earlier you said family is important, and I agree, but you know what else is important? Friendship, allies. I'm telling you that if you stick with me, I'll watch your back, and you watch mine, you understand?"
Suddenly, everything clicked in Shirou's mind. What the Matou boy was saying made perfect sense and it lined up with how he had lived his life up until now, if he thought of friends more as allies, then the concept made far more sense to him. Shirou looked at Shinji, he didn't seem like he'd be useful in a fight, but there was more than one way to be an ally, and he seemed popular with the other students.
"Maybe we do have something in common, Shinji," Shirou put down his fork, reaching over the table with an open hand. The blonde boy's handshake was quickly reciprocated by the Matou, who grinned.
The unlikely duo that formed that day would be one the rest of the school wouldn't soon forget. Shinji was quite good at spreading rumors, and anyone who crossed the two was subject to complete social destruction orchestrated by the Matou.
On the other hand, the socially dense Shirou Giovanna became something of a bodyguard; his abnormally honed fighting skills would have made him the terror of the school if it weren't for Shinji's influence. And while they originally joined forces to use each other as tools, it wasn't long before an actual friendship formed between them.
Shinji hadn't made a single comment about Shirou's home life after stopping by one day unexpectedly, and in fact he didn't seem bothered by it at all. Shirou had been worried their alliance would fall apart if he learned of the gang, but it seemed he already knew.
"When grandfather told me the new student was the son of a gangster, I was really worried you know?" Shinji was at the edge of the Giovanna estate dojo, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "But then I saw you act like a complete idiot in front of class, and all my worries went away."
"Thanks, I guess," Shirou wasn't quite sure how to take that; it seemed Shinji was a fan of underhanded compliments. "But I'm not the Boss's son, we're not related."
Shirou continued his training drill, practicing his sword technique despite the lack of an opponent. Shinji seemed interested in watching him so he had no complaints about him being here, but he wondered what he got out of it.
"Really? I'd never have known. I mean you look pretty similar to him, though I guess he's a bit young."
Their conversation switched to various other topics, but the gang was quickly discarded as one, Shinji not seeming that interested in it. Offhandedly, Shirou mentioned Shinji's sister Sakura, and the boy's expression darkened. Soon afterwards he said he had to get home and left, leaving Shirou alone in the dojo.
He had already seen their strained relationship before, but he wondered why they didn't get along. He wished there was something he could do to help them, maybe he should go over to their house one day and talk to her? Shinji didn't talk much about his home life, so maybe he wanted to keep it separate from their friendship.
It had been several months now, and Shirou had almost completely adjusted to his new life. Of course, he didn't slack off on his training, working harder than ever to improve his Stand. He had easily integrated into Shinji's circle of friends, mostly because they had become a nearly inseparable pair at this point. Occasionally, he would see Sakura watching them from a distance, but she never came over. It did seem as if Shinji was getting along with her better now, so he was happy about that.
Shirou, absorbed in his peaceful school life, was completely ignorant of the problem boiling underneath the current situation. He had no way of knowing that his existence in Shinji's life was having an effect on anything, or what it would lead to. For now, he was content to remain blissfully unaware of the trouble brewing in the background.
But there were those who took notice, and the powers in play would soon cross paths, for better or worse.
The instant school let out Shirou Giovanna was bombarded with invitations to play from the other students, but he casually brushed them off. Any other day and he would have agreed, but today he was on a mission. Today, he would talk to Sakura about getting along with Shinji, and he'd finally see if there was anything he could do.
This was prompted by an incident from lunch, where an angered Shinji had slapped the girl across the face. This was followed by a potentially friendship ending action on Shirou's part, that of punching his friend and ally without holding back.
The three of them had all ended up being berated by a teacher, but when she saw Shirou's last name on the detention sheet she had paled considerably and let them go. Shirou wasn't necessarily a fan of the special treatment he got for his connection to Giorno, but today it was helpful.
Though, in the time it took him to gather his things, the Matou siblings had disappeared from the school grounds. Shinji normally waited for Shirou before heading home, so the fact that he hadn't probably meant their relationship had been severely damaged. Oh well, if he could repair it at the same time as his relationship with Sakura then everything would be fine.
He was quite optimistic despite not knowing how he was going to fix this problem, but he'd figure it out when he got to it. Slinging his backpack over one shoulder he dashed out of the school, heading towards the Matou household. His physical fitness, honed to a degree well above what a middle school student should possess, allowed him to run a great distance in a short amount of time.
By the time he saw the Matou house ahead of him he had barely even broken a sweat, and he would reach there in less than ten minutes at this pace. However, he never made it to the Matou's, as the sight of a distinctive head of wavy bluish hair disappearing into an alley made him come to a stop.
Slowing to a walking speed, he entered the alleyway, trying his best to be stealthy. He figured it would be beneficial if he knew the mood of his targets before he approached them, and he could always play off his being there as a coincidence.
From where he was hiding Shirou couldn't see either Matou's face, but from their body language it was clear that there was tension. Shinji moved harshly, his entire body showing his anger, while the girl cowered away from him.
"Look here now, Sakura," Shinji backed the timid girl into a wall, slamming his hand next to her face to block off her escape. "Don't think that just because Grandfather is teaching you and not me that it makes you better than I am, or that you're a real Matou!"
The girl didn't respond, her eyes averting from Shinji's harsh glare. Normally, the girl would respond to Shinji without question, scared of making him more violent then he already was. But today she ignored him, a choice that only made things worse.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, answer me," Shinji placed his other hand on the collar of her school uniform, yanking the short girl towards him. "I guess I was right, you've misunderstood your position. You're just a tool, a disposable piece of trash for grandfather and I to use as we please, understand?"
Shirou was fuming; the rage building up within him was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment. How could he treat her like this? He was just about ready to burst out of his hiding place and stop them, when he noticed something unusual. A shadow spread out under Sakura, but it seemed to move like a living creature.
Shirou was suddenly reminded of the rumors in town of people disappearing, which were followed by reports of strange shadowy creatures. Both the police and Giorno had ignored them, as there were no signs of them being true, but what if… a bad feeling was starting to rise in his body, and his breathing grew shallower.
"You don't deserve it…" meekly, Sakura responded to Shinji, her words too cryptic for Shinji to interpret. When she saw he didn't understand, her eyes locked onto his, twisting into anger. "I said, you don't deserve it, anything! You don't deserve to be the head of the family, you don't deserve the friends you have, or your happiness!"
Shinji backed off, his eyes widening. He had never seen the girl act mad before, and that terrified him. Because he knew what she was capable of, unlike him, she possessed talent in Magecraft.
"I have to suffer, while you live happily? How is that fair?!" a black aura surrounded her, a line of red marking beginning to spread across her body. She convulsed in pain, her skin moving as if hundreds of worms were writhing under the surface of it. falling to her knees, she coughed painfully, but what spilled from her mouth wasn't blood, it was black mud.
Shirou's eyes shot open wider then he thought was possible, an image of a blazing inferno surrounding him. Why was this sight reminding him of that day? He had no idea of the connection between this and the disaster, but somehow his instincts were telling him they were connected.
If it weren't for his trauma resurfacing at that moment, maybe things would have ended differently, maybe he could have upheld his ideal of protecting everyone as a hero. But he was frozen, unable to act as his best friend's sister lost control of herself completely. He extended his shaking arm, trying to stop it in any way possible, but he couldn't manage to say anything, his words catching in his throat.
A vaguely humanoid shadow formed in front of Sakura, extending from her own shadow. It was a construct of pure magic, essentially a familiar crafted out of her magical element. Unlike most magi, Sakura possessed a unique element that wasn't one of the traditional five; her element was known as "Hollow."
The Hollow soldier that formed from her anger and hatred lurched forward, Shinji backed away slowly, his body shaking in terror. But he was too slow; the familiar lunged forward, driving its arm through the boy's chest. He was thrown back, mashing into the wall behind him with a sickening crunch as his body was broken. He fell to the ground, unable to move.
And then Sakura laughed, his eyes slowing a mad glint. The black mud pouring from her body enveloped her like a shroud of darkness, transforming her. What was one once an innocent looking young girl was now twisted and blackened, a dark parody of her former self. Her eyes turned an unnatural red; her hair color became a pale white, and the crimson lines of corruption spread further across her body.
Shirou's mind went blank, he couldn't think logically anymore. It was happening again, he couldn't save anyone, why did he think he could? No, that was just his fears talking, he had to fight them, to push past them like Giorno had taught him. He gritted his teeth and ran out of hiding, sliding to a stop in front of the twisted version of Sakura.
She seemed surprised to see him for a moment, but it soon turned to anger again. She was consumed by her negative emotions; all of her reasoning had melted away. Had she been able to think straight, she would have remembered who he was, what he meant to her. Shirou was the first person to genuinely be nice to her, whether or not that was accurate didn't matter; it was how it felt to her.
But she didn't remember any of that, in this moment her blind hatred only saw the boy who was friends with her disgusting excuse for a brother, and that made him guilty of the same crime. The agony wreaking her body only increased, she was too young, so she was unable to process the amount of raw energy flowing into her. If it wasn't stopped, it would surely tear her apart from the inside.
"Sakura, calm down," Shirou held out his hands to try and stop her, but every movement he made only angered her further. "Let's just talk about this, nobody has to get hurt!"
The Hollow Familiar appeared in front of him, its fist smashing into the ground where he had just been standing. Shirou's combat reflexes were higher than she expected, but now that she knew his speed it wouldn't miss again.
"Shiirou, why don't you just go die along with that stupid brother of mine!"
The shadow construct moved faster than before, its arm cutting down like a sword towards Shirou. It was an attack that would surely kill him, assuming he was a normal human. But Shirou Giovanna was far from human.
A blue flame erupted from his hands, and as soon as the monster's arm neared him, a shining steel blade intercepted it. In Shirou's hands was a sword, an antique looking katana in similar design to his instructor Taka's blade. No, it wasn't just similar; it was the same, right down to the nicks and scratches along the blade from heavy use.
Shirou pushed the construct's arm back with his blade, cutting down in an arc. His blade hit the shadow's body, but it shattered on impact without harming it. Panting, Shirou brought his hands out in front of him, another flash of azure fire appearing in his palms. This time, a European style hand and a half sword, also know as a bastard sword, materialized.
Sakura's face twisted into confusion, he should be dead by now, how was he alive? At that moment she hated the boy who defied her will just as much as her brother, or her 'grandfather,' she even hated him as much as her real family, who sold her into a life of suffering with no remorse.
"Why can't you just disappear?!" Sakura raised her hand towards him, a surge of mana gathering in her palm. She unleashed a bolt of pure energy, one with no other purpose but destruction.
Shirou blocked the spell with his sword, the blade disintegrating instantly. Disregarding that, he charged forward. He felt that in that moment, if he could just reach her, if only for a second, he could save her. But the familiar blocked his path, looking even more imposing than previously, had it gotten bigger?
"Move out of my way!" He clenched his fist, throwing a punch towards the shadow. At that moment, a silver fist appeared from behind him, crashing into the shadow with incredible force. The steel gauntlet-like fist blasted a hole in the shadow's chest, and it began to fade.
But when Shirou got near Sakura, she backed away from him, her expression turning to fear. He couldn't understand what was going on, so he pressed forward, desperate to save her. He wanted nothing more than to save her, but she was no longer willing to be saved. A blast of mana from the girl sent him flying, and when he stood up she had vanished into the darkness of the alley, possibly with the aid of that shadow creature.
Limping over to Shinji, he knelt down by his side, placing a hand on his neck. He still had a pulse, but it was weak. Forming a mental map of the town in his mind, he pinpointed the nearest emergency center and picked up his friend's dying body. Normally, he would call Giorno to come help, but he had no time to waste.
Dammit, Sakura had gotten away; he had failed to save her. But that only hardened his resolve; he would save Shinji, no matter what. With his friend in his arms, he ran faster than he ever thought possible.
Shirou nearly collapsed as he reached the door of the hospital, several staff members rushing over to him as soon as they saw Shinji. After a nurse had taken him away, Shirou slumped into a chair in the waiting room, and before he realized it he had fallen asleep.
He didn't know it yet, but this was the trigger of a much larger scale event, one that would threaten the city itself.