Chapter 24: Understanding
The rumbling of the Earth was not felt by Archer and Assassin.
Assassin's slash was intercepted by Archer's bayonet. Archer quickly followed up his parry by swinging his other bayonet around at Assassin's head. Assassin let the blow bounce off his hood and spun, closing in to Archer and stabbing him in the gut. Archer was able to backstep away from the strike, so it wasn't deep, but blood still spilled from the line in his stomach.
"That animal skin you wear… horse hide," Archer spoke, taking a moment to recuperate.
"That's what you said, isn't it? It's the only Noble Phantasm that can be said to belong to 'Guy of Gisbourne' and not 'Robin Hood'. The Capull-Hyde. It is immune to blows of C-Rank and below. As an Archer, I can't imagine your Strength being better than that."
Archer dipped his head, thinking. One of his bayonets disappeared, being replaced by his gun, which he pointed one-handedly at Assassin.
The shot missed, as Assassin had already been moving to avoid it.
"Tch. Such loud instruments. You think I'd let myself get hit by something so inefficient?"
"You will come to regret calling the instrument of your demise 'inefficient'."
"You place your faith in a gun? No wonder you died so pathetically."
Archer took off, stabbing at Assassin's shadowed face, causing him to move his head to the side. Archer was ahead, and aimed the gun underneath his other arm directly at Assassin's body.
Assassin kicked the gun away and returned with his own slash that barely missed Archer, who jumped to avoid it, going over Assassin's head.
He slashed downwards at Assassin, but Assassin intercepted the attack. Archer took advantage by ramming the gun into Assassin's face, making him stagger.
Archer fired, point-blank into Assassin's face. Assassin's head jerked to the side. Archer couldn't tell if he had hit Assassin or not, but the second his feet touched the ground, he stabbed his bayonet at Assassin's head, just to ensure he was dead.
Assassin bent backwards suddenly, letting the blade pass over him. He kicked out, slamming a heavy boot into Archer's gut.
Archer slid back, taking some distance, but-
Pain exploded into Archer's neck. The bolt from Assassin's crossbow ripped his flesh out, and blood spurted onto the ground around him.
For a moment, Archer couldn't breath. He reached up and placed his hand over the new wound, but blood still escaped past his fingers. It was just a graze, but the power of the crossbow still inflicted a grievous wound.
Archer didn't react fast enough as Assassin then stabbed him in his gut. This one was much deeper.
Archer grunted in pain and tried to attack while Assassin was close. Assassin caught his wrist and twisted, wrenching the bayonet out of his hand.
Archer whipped his gun around, but Assassin headbutted Archer, staggering him back, which gave Assassin enough room to kick the gun out of his hand.
Assassin pressed forward, pushing Archer into the wall and driving the knife deeper into Archer. Archer's insides burnt with more hot pain as Assassin twisted his knife slowly into him, causing Archer to cry out.
"So you can actually feel something? I wasn't sure if you were pretending before or not. After all, if this is all you can do to honor Johnny, he must've not meant a whole lot to you."
Archer spat out blood onto Assassin's hidden face.
Assassin chuckled and pulled his knife out by ripping it through Archer's side. More blood poured out onto the ground.
Archer fell to the ground in a heap. He couldn't stand. He could feel all the Mana he had leaving him. He couldn't die here, not like this. He couldn't let himself die to such a ruthless man.
His eyes spotted something off to the side. The woman was there. Assassin's Master. Her eyes… there was something alive in them. Her hands and feet looked weak but… she was reaching out.
She had taken hold of Archer's gun.
Archer breathed out. The world around them solidified, and cleared. The ambient noise of the cave, and of a battle raging in the forest came to them.
"Deactivating your Noble Phantasm? Or is it that you can't keep it up anymore? Fighting without a Master is harder than you thought, eh?" Assassin mocked, taking a few steps back while putting his knife away and taking his crossbow with both hands.
The Master pushed herself up against the wall of the cavern, gripping the gun with both hands. It didn't look like she was that familiar with firearms… Archer decided that he needed to give her time.
Archer pushed himself off the ground and onto his knees. "I… am… not… done…" Archer groaned.
Assassin loaded a bolt into his crossbow. "I know."
His head shifted slightly, but Archer could not tell where he was looking. If he shifted his head even slightly more… he would be able to see his Master with the gun.
"Look… look at me…" Archer snarled, trying to get to his feet.
Assassin snickered and shook his head. "You heroes. You always have to die so dramatically," he ridiculed. "It's a shame my Master summoned me instead of you. I'm sure she'd be much more impressed by your heroics than I am."
The Master looked to be fiddling with the gun, trying to cock it.
She unfortunately succeeded, and the loud metallic click of the weapon echoed throughout the cavern. The Master froze in terror.
Archer tried to leap forward as Assassin began to turn his head towards the origin of the noise, but his legs were slow and tired. He wouldn't make it in time...
"Assassin!" Saber, who Archer had forgotten was sitting off to the side, suddenly called out.
Assassin whipped around, pointing the crossbow at Saber, who recoiled. "It's her! She has the gun!" Saber cried.
Assassin turned, but by then, Archer was leaping forward and grabbing onto him. Archer found his strength failing him and Assassin threw him to the ground easily. Assassin aimed his crossbow over at the Master, and her eyes widened in dread as she scrambled to aim her own weapon at Assassin.
Assassin pulled his trigger first. Archer barely reacted in time, opening up a portal into the Spirit World directly in front of Assassin's crossbow. The bolt flew forward and disappeared into a shimmer of light.
The Master pulled her trigger. The sound ripped through the air. A small burst of blood came from Assassin's shoulder.
She had missed his head.
Assassin growled in pain and started to load another bolt. Archer grabbed his bayonet and threw it at Assassin. It pierced into his unprotected arm, and Assassin howled, more in surprise than pain, but he dropped the crossbow nonetheless. He pulled the bayonet out of his arm as the Master tried to reload and cock the gun once more. Her shaky hands fumbled the gun, dropping it onto the floor in front of her.
Assassin raised the bayonet over his head, and Archer raised his hand to stop it. Assassin rammed the bayonet through Archer's hand and into his stomach. Archer shouted in pain and tried to wrestle it out of himself.
The Master had picked up the gun and was now fighting to cock it. Assassin, in the meantime, brought out his knife once more, turning to the Master. Seeing the gun she held, he glowered. A moment later, he pulled his green cloak out of Spirit Form and wrapped it around himself, disappearing.
The Master brought the gun up, ready to fire. But Assassin was already gone.
Archer's hand slipped off the bayonet, as it was covered in blood. He tightened his grip and excruciatingly pulled it from himself, slowly.
The Master's eyes darted around the room, trying to see if there was any indication of where Assassin was going to strike from. There wasn't, from what Archer could tell.
The Master suddenly closed her eyes.
Archer had successfully pulled the bayonet halfway out of himself. He still had a long way to go, and the pain was only worsening as he advanced.
She opened her eyes, some strange focus to them. She aimed as if she could see him.
Archer only now realized that she could. She was his Master, her Master's eye would tell her his location whether he was visible or not.
She started moving the gun around wildly. Archer could only guess that she was trying to guess where he'd dodge. Without enhanced speed, she had no chance…
Archer let out a cry of pain as he fully, and finally, pulled the bayonet from himself. He was drained… but he had enough left in him to see this through.
Archer flipped, and using the bayonet as a crutch, began to drag himself along the rocky ground towards the Master and where he presumed Assassin was.
As if on cue, the gun was smacked out of the Master's hand. Assassin had closed the distance and disarmed her. Fear spread onto her face one more time.
Archer was determined to make it the last time.
Based on where the gun was flung from and the direction it took, Archer could tell that Assassin was standing directly in front of the Master now. He forced his muscles to work, leaping at where he determined Assassin was by pushing off the bayonet. But he didn't try to grab on to Assassin. He opened a portal into the Spirit World and reached his hand into the space where Assassin was.
And then he opened a second portal leading out of the Spirit World directly inside Assassin. He grabbed onto something, anything, and started to pull it out.
Assassin began screaming in pain. His cloak fell off him, revealing that Archer was reaching into a portal located in Assassin's back. Assassin started stabbing wildly behind him at Archer.
Archer held on and pulled.
The blade stabbed Archer through his cheek.
Archer held on and pulled.
It pierced his shoulder and neck.
Archer held on and pulled.
He gave one last titanic cry and ripped the thing out of Assassin. A bubbling ball of red energy. His heart, and Spiritual Core.
Archer fell to the ground, still holding onto it.
Assassin turned, the only wound visible on him was the one on his arm. He fell to his knees, struggling to breath as he reached for the core in Archer's hand.
Archer just let the core fall and roll deeper into the cave.
"No…" Assassin wheezed, desperately crawling for it. "You bastard… you can't…"
His form started to disintegrate into mud and shadow as he slithered over the ground toward the core.
"Not me… I…"
He reached as far as he could, and his hand scraped the core, but it turned to mush and flitted away into nothingness.
"I could've… been free…" Assassin rasped. He melted fully, and disappeared.
Archer turned his head, looking at the Master. She was still leaned up against the wall, covered in Archer's Bloody Cloak. She was shaking, and breathing heavily.
"Are you alright?" Archer asked.
For the first time by Archer's recollection, she looked at him. Tears formed in her eyes. Her eyes wavered, and she shook her head. No.
He pulled himself toward her. He forced his legs to move, to pick the rest of his body up. He didn't know how long it took him. Time seemed to be moving differently. Each second seemed like an hour.
He was dying. He didn't have much time. But he knew Remia was going to chew him out if he didn't make sure the girl would be okay.
He struggled to his feet. "Can you stand?" he asked. He wasn't sure if he asked her or himself. Either way, she responded with a silent stare.
Archer nodded. "Then I will carry you."
He leaned down and picked her up. She was light. Far lighter than he remembered humans being. She felt weak, and thin.
He turned, and started walking out of the cave, each of his wounds stabbing at him, taunting him. Daring him to drop her.
A golden light stopped him, originating from behind him somewhere. He turned to look at it.
The Final Holy Grail floated in the middle of the cave.
Archer was stunned at first. It was here. The dead man who had been shining… he was the vessel for the Holy Grail. And now enough Servants had died for it to manifest.
But he felt the Master cling to him.
He turned to leave the cave, and saw Saber, still huddled in a corner, staring at him. The golden light of the grail shone in Saber's eyes.
They were pleading. Go on, take it, they said. Take it and stop me.
Archer betrayed no emotion. Saber had sat there and done nothing to help this woman in his arms. Now he wanted Archer to take the Grail, not to reward Archer, but to end Saber's own misery.
Archer shook his head and turned fully to the entrance of the cave. "You were always a coward. Do it yourself."
Archer struggled out of the cave without another word.
Berserker's face clouded over with madness. Mana exploded out from him, and both he and True Saber tore down the hallway of the base, completely destroying the passage and making their own passages as they went. The whole base started to shake from their battle.
Chiaki immediately raised her hand. "Now, Berserker! Use your Noble Phantasm!"
The Command Seal on her hand flashed, and a red energy wave pulsed out before disappearing.
Uhlan smirked. "Making him go all out from the start... you were always the smart one.."
"I've gotten even smarter."
Dropping his smile, Uhlan took a few more steps into his office. "I can tell by your tone that you haven't forgiven me. That's to be expected. I don't expect to ever be forgiven entirely. However, I do have a plan to make an attempt at an apology."
"You think I want an apology?"
"You've yet to see it. I've spent five long years searching for a way to try and make it up to you. I knew where you were most of the time, I just never approached you because I knew you wouldn't want to see me. But I've found the answer. The perfect way to show you just how truly sorry I am."
Chiaki clenched her teeth. "You're not sorry. You don't care that you hurt me."
Uhlan furrowed his brow, incensed.
Seeing that only fueled Chiaki to go further. "You've been pushed down your whole life by Kayneth. When you finally killed him, you got to see yourself for the first time. And you realized you were exactly like him. So you come pretending to be sorry just to lie to yourself because you can't stand the idea that Kayneth still has an influence on you, even now."
Uhlan's eyes grew hard, and his foot started tapping. "Chiaki, I know it's hard to accept the idea that I'm not as evil as you think, but-"
"Hard to accept?" Chiaki spat. "You murder my father, rape me, torture me for years on end as I try to come to terms with my own feelings, and then you pop up out of nowhere, trying to tell me you're some poor redemption-seeking soul who spent 'five long years' trying to come up with a way to redeem yourself? All you've thought about is you, and how you can redeem yourself in your own eyes."
Uhlan was shaking with what Chiaki assumed to be rage. She didn't care. Uhlan continued, pushing his tage down. "I'm not saying the past five years weren't hard on you either, I'm saying that you aren't the only one to regret that night," he protested, taking more steps towards Chiaki.
Her fist moved on its own. It swung around and slammed into his jaw, ripping his head sideways. Uhlan twirled back as Chiaki withdrew her fist. He had dropped his cane on the ground between them, and was now holding his jaw as blood seeped out of his mouth.
"Then what the hell is that?" Chiaki shouted, pointing at the metal golem that looked like her. "You make that thing look like me, and you didn't think that maybe I might have an issue with it? That it might disturb me? I don't believe for a single second that you regret what happened that night, you just regret that I rejected you because of it."
Uhlan looked at her in total shock. He wiped the blood from his mouth. "You… what's wrong with you? You've never talked like this to me. You didn't lay a hand on me…"
Chiaki kept her urge to start shouting at him again contained. She reached up and unbuttoned a single button of her shirt and pulled her collar open slightly. By now, he was seeing the gold string that was wrapped around her entire torso underneath her shirt.
"That golden string Berserker had around his arm? It can be broken apart, it's just that its effect only stays with the largest piece. And the part he ripped off? That used to be the longest piece. Long story short, it keeps your little 'love spell' from working on me. So, for the first time ever, you're meeting the real 'Chiaki Nakazawa'."
Lightning curled around her hands as she brought them into a fighting pose. "So let's get real acquainted."
Uhlan stared at her hands. Then he stared at her. "Love… spell?"
Chiaki shook her head. She was tired of having to play games with him. He knew what he did. Chiaki dashed forward, throwing a hard right fist directly at Uhlan's still disconcerted face.
And then she saw herself standing in the way, blocking the attack. The maid had jumped in the way, catching her fist. Unlike when they had interacted when she arrived, the maid had no emotion on her face.
Chiaki, angered, poured more Mana into her fist, increasing the intensity of electricity, but the maid remained stone faced. That angered Chiaki even more.
She tried to force her way forward, but when that didn't work, she threw her other hand into the face of the maid. However, that hand, too, was caught by it.
"This golem was made from the Volumen Hydrargyrum, the most powerful Mystic Code that Kayneth possessed," Uhlan explained. "Its defense is impenetrable."
"Shut up!" she roared. She pulled back and thought briefly about pulling Remia's gun from her back pocket. She resisted, barely. She didn't want to reveal it yet.
"I don't know what makes you think I cast a love spell on you, but I assure you I did no such thing. I would never have done anything like that to you."
"Really? Love curses are too far, but rape is on the table?" Chiaki growled.
Uhlan's intense stare grew even more intense. "I'm telling you, I wasn't in my right mind that night-"
"STOP TALKING!" she screamed, lunging forward again. But again, the maid blocked her attacks. Her fury grew to new heights.
She began wailing on the maid as hard as she could, who stood and calmly blocked her attacks, over and over again. She let loose harder, faster punches.
"I PROTECTED YOU FOR YEARS!" she bellowed. "IN MY HEAD, I SIDED WITH YOU AND I HATED MYSELF FOR IT! ALL BECAUSE OF YOU!"
More. She needed more power. She borrowed more from the Magic Crests. She had to.
She kept punching and screaming. Her fists began to bleed. She kept going.
"HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU COME BACK!" she wailed, tears beginning to fall from her eyes.
She kept punching for as long as she could… but she had to stop eventually. She dropped to her knees, exhausted. Her voice was hoarse from screaming. Her fists tired from hitting.
The maid stood over her, unflinching. Chiaki could only look down as the tears blurred her vision.
She hated herself. She was too weak. She couldn't do it. She couldn't get to him. The gun wouldn't help. It would just bounce harmlessly off the golem. He was too powerful, and he hadn't even begun fighting yet. It was hopeless.
But there was a red blotch in her vision. She blinked away the tears for a moment. That's when she saw it.
There were two red things in her sight. The first, was the single remaining Command Seal on her hand. It resembled a sun or star, she supposed. The outer layers of the star had been used and left only the core. She was still a Master. Berserker was still with her. Berserker wouldn't give up. Neither would she.
And furthermore, she saw the object with which she could proceed. The second red thing in her sight...
Uhlan's cane was on the floor in front of her.
Made from the same spearhead they used to summon him, Uhlan had said.
Chiaki searched her memory, desperately trying to remember everything her father had ever said about Kayneth's Saber-class servant.
A hero of Irish Mythology. He actually fought with a spear and a sword at the same time but when summoned…
No, not that… she needed something else.
He had a rather rare skill called 'Mystic Face', specifically a 'Mystic Face of Charm' called...
Not that either. Come on, dad, what did the spear do?
The relic we used to summon him is actually a fragment of the spearhead of one of his spears. It nullifies any magecraft it comes into contact with.
That! That was it! The cane… Uhlan didn't say it had the same abilities, but the way he held it…
Regardless, it was the only chance she had to move forward.
"I can't stop you if you choose to keep attacking me like this…" Uhlan spoke softly, "But I don't want to see you hurt, either."
Chiaki let out a disdainful laugh. "A little late for that."
She snatched up the cane and shot to her feet, swinging it at Uhlan. The golem was still in her way, but as it reached out to try and stop her, the cane slammed into it. Chiaki felt mana surge from the cane and the metal golem buckled, as if it were just water. It melted into a puddle, and the uniform it had worn fell with it, letting Chiaki step toward the confused Uhlan with another strike prepared.
"Chi-" he was cut off by the strike to his face. This time, he spun onto the ground, face-first.
"I don't want to-" Chiaki kicked him, and beat him with the cane a few more times, during which he raised his hands in self-defence, but it did him little good.
"Please, just list-" Chiaki dropped on top of him, grabbing hold of the cane with both hands and shoving it, length-wise, into his throat. He pinned him to the ground and put all her weight onto the cane, trying her best to strangle him.
The fact that she had gotten this close to Uhlan… the fact that she was now strangling him… it was satisfying to a degree that Chiaki had never experienced before. With each passing second, she grew more and more comfortable with what she was doing.
It occurred to her that this idiot didn't want to kill her. That was why he was just staring up at her as he struggled to breathe. He could reach out a hand to try and stop her, to push her off him. But he wasn't. It was like he wanted to die.
Well, that was fine with Chiaki.
Uhlan started kicking his legs, perhaps involuntarily, as he struggled for air. He'd be dead soon. But no… she'd have to keep choking him long after he passed out for that to happen like this.
Luckily, she had a tool for this occasion.
She let go of the cane with one hand, but kept it pressed against his chin. He'd be able to breathe, but she'd have it close by in case he tried something. Uhlan coughed as he was 'released', and desperately sucked in the air around him.
With her new free hand, she reached back and grabbed Remia's gun. She pulled it out, turned the safety off and pointed the barrel at his forehead.
Uhlan just stared at her. There was fear in his eyes. That was good. Chiaki wanted him to be afraid when she killed him.
...
Wait. What?
She was going to kill him. She was… going to kill him?
She had been wronged. The man responsible was pinned and powerless beneath her and she had a gun to his head. She could pull the trigger at any time, and end his life.
And he just stared at her, unmoving. Why? Why wasn't he fighting? Why wasn't he taunting her, or telling her the horrible things he was going to do to her? Why was he…
Why was he just staring at her, waiting to die?
His eyes were so unfocused. They were looking at Chiaki, but they were… empty.
The mole under his right eye. She had always thought it was cute. It was the same one that Diarmuid had.
...a 'Mystic Face of Charm' called the Love Spot.
No. His eyes…
I've inherited a singular Spiritual Core from Diarmuid, enough to have the spearhead recognize me as its Master.
His eyes weren't filled with despair or fear, but confusion. He didn't know. He didn't understand.
It was at that very first meeting, she remembered, that she fell in love with him.
He had no idea that he had the Love Spot, too.
His whole life, every woman he ever met fell in love with him. He had no frame of reference for it, he just had it. He just thought that how those women acted was how they were supposed to act.
Chiaki furrowed her brow. This wasn't right. She wasn't supposed to be pitying him. She had the Ariadne Thread, she was free from that. She didn't have to love him.
And she didn't love him. She was disgusted and repulsed by him.
But… she pitied him, too. He didn't understand.
What happened to her… to her father… she'd never forgive him. She'd never forget it. She'd live with it forever.
But she didn't have to let it define her, either. She was more than that. She was more than just a bad memory.
Chiaki may not know who she was… but she knew that she wasn't a killer. Even a killer of people that deserve to die.
Chiaki clenched her jaw. It was the Love Spot that started all this. What Uhlan did was still his fault. But it wouldn't have happened the way it did without that thing.
She looked at the cane. It still had a point at the end. It was far from a spearhead, but she'd have to make due.
With the gun still placed against his head, she placed the pointed end of the cane at the space beneath his right eye, where the Love Spot resided. She lifted the gun away from his face and then slammed the flat end of the cane, ripping it through Uhlan's flesh and tearing out the Love Spot.
Chiaki felt Mana surge from the spear as it sliced through the Love Spot, destroying it. Uhlan only reacted slightly, stifling a cry of pain. The blood and flesh from the thing fell limply to the ground beside his head.
The second that she ensured that the Love Spot had been carved off him, she re-aimed the gun at him.
She stood up, the gun never losing its target. Her hands shook as she slowly took the cane away from his neck. He could only stare at her, blood running down the side of his face, that confusion still present. She stepped away from him.
"Get up," she ordered.
Uhlan struggled to stand, his hands going to his throat. "Than-"
"Don't speak. I don't want to hear it," Chiaki growled, shifting her feet as she made sure there was ample room between herself and Uhlan.
"Turn around and leave. I don't care where you go, or what you do, but if I ever hear of you or see you again, I will end you, do you understand me?" Chiaki commanded, putting her heart into every word.
Uhlan swallowed. He opened his mouth to speak, but stopped. His eyes focused on her for the first time. She could see him resist the urge to smile. He turned, and slowly walked out of the room and down the hallway.
Chiaki kept her eyes locked on him down the barrel of Remia's gun until she saw him leave from the base and into the cave, disappearing from her sight.
The gun fell from her hands and she crumpled to her knees. Tears spilled from her eyes. It was over. She'd done it.
She fell forward, her forehead hit the ground and she started to cry.
She never wanted to kill him. She wanted to just get him out of her head. And he was gone. And she never had to think about him again. She was free.
Sobs shook her whole body. Right now, she wanted nothing more than for Berserker to come and hug her. So many people were gone. Her dad, Remia, Archer, Tohsaka, Agnes, and soon...
Berserker.
Chiaki lifted herself off the ground, brushing the tears out of her eyes and sniffling. That's right. Their work wasn't done. Berserker was still fighting.
She looked down at the Command Seal on her hand. She ran her fingers over it. After this… it was over. But it needed to happen. True Saber needed to be defeated. They were so close to the Grail now… it just required one more move on their part.
She unbuttoned her shirt entirely and slid it off herself, then she unwrapped the Ariadne Thread that encased her torso.
She lifted her hand. "Berserker, by order of Command Seal… come to me."
In a flash of red light, Berserker, still Mad Enhanced, teleported into the room. He looked at her. Quickly, she reached out the Thread and wrapped it around one of his wrists.
The insanity in his eyes cleared away. He blinked and looked around the room for a moment. His eyes moved from the puddle of metallic liquid on the ground, to the blood and flesh on the floor nearby, to Chiaki.
He smiled. "You did it."
Chiaki smiled back at him and, in order to prevent him from seeing the tears that started to come down her face, she wrapped her arms around him, not even coming close to being able to completely encircle him with her arms.
Berserker put his arms around her, engulfing her almost entirely. "I'm proud of you."
After a moment, Berserker broke off the hug and knelt down, wrapping the rest of the Ariadne Thread around his forearm. "Unfortunately, we can't relax just yet. True Saber is still out there."
"So it worked? Your Noble Phantasm?"
Berserker glanced at her with a beaming smile. "Like a charm. He never suspected anything. He might still not. But who knows how long it'll keep him distracted. What about you? Still handling it okay?"
Chiaki shrugged. "Can't really tell… but the Magic Crests have handled it so far."
Berserker took a moment to look around her to her back. "They're…"
Chiaki furrowed her brow. "They're what?"
"They're gone. All but one. They've been used up."
"Which one's left?"
Berserker arched his eyebrow at her as he looked at her. "The small and pathetic one."
Chiaki shook her head and tried to slap him. He dodged, of course.
"But even that was flickering. There's not much time before it blows through whatever power that Crest has in it and then starts relying on you. Now that I've got this back, though…" Berserker smirked, nodding to the Ariadne Thread. He tied a knot at his elbow, completing his weave. He rolled his wrist around, making sure he had ample movement.
Chiaki took a moment to admire him. In spite of everything she knew about him… for a moment, and just for a moment…
He really did look like the mightiest hero of Greece.
Berserker looked back at her and gave her a wink before standing up, turning on his heel, and bolting out the door.
None of this made sense.
True Saber had killed Berserker three times now. The first time, he had incinerated him, the second time, he had beheaded him, and the third time he had ripped out his Spiritual Core and crushed it himself. Every time he did so, the body and the core would fade away into golden dust.
And yet Berserker stood before him yet again. It wasn't possible.
They had been fighting for quite a while now, and Berserker had gotten a few good hits in. It wasn't enough to cause any real damage, but his armor was beginning to break down.
True Saber stood his ground as he stared Berserker down across the wasteland that was once a forest. Behind him, there were still about a half-mile of trees that separated the wasteland from the town, but the destroyed area in which he now stood reached almost all the way to the cave entrance on the side of the mountain.
Though, there was a second hole leading into the base below that now, the one that True Saber had created when he threw Berserker out the first time.
And he saw a golden glow come from that second cavern. He tilted his head as, over the shoulder of Berserker, he saw something very unusual exit from under the mountain.
He saw two more Berserkers. One was just as insane as the other Berserkers he had killed, as well as the one in front of him. But the other one looked quite sane and had that golden string around one of his forearms. They both ran out from under the mountain and stopped, lining up with the Berserker in front of him.
That made three in total.
"Not bad. You killed three of them," the one sane Berserker spoke, cracking his knuckles.
"...How?" True Saber asked, unmoving.
Berserker smirked. "A little confusing, huh? I apologize, I needed to lend this golden string to a friend of mine, so I had to distract you for a little while until I could get it back. I have two Noble Phantasms, you see. The first, you see here, is the Ariadne Thread. I bet you can tell what it does already. My second Noble Phantasm, however, is a bit more complicated. It's not something I like to bring out, for the sake of my Master."
True Saber lifted his head slightly, keeping his eyes on the two insane Berserkers. "And what Noble Phantasm allows you to conjure up copies of yourself?"
"God Hand: The Six Labours. It only allows me to replicate myself five times. With myself, that makes six. You'd have to defeat me six times in order to truly kill me. Unfortunately, since it summons all five at once, the strain it puts on my Master increases proportionally."
True Saber gripped his sword a little tighter. "And I've already killed three of you. Do you think the three of you are enough to defeat me?"
Berserker laughed. "Of course not. I only need one of me to defeat you. However…"
Berserker got into his fighting stance. "We're a bit short on time. It's regrettable I won't be able to enjoy this fight fully, but-"
True Saber launched himself forward, trying to take Berserker's throat out immediately.
Berserker saw it coming, and slid under it. His fists rocked True Saber's head back. His blows weren't as powerful as his 'insane counterparts'… but they were far more precise. He was targeting the cracks in his armor that the other Berserkers had made.
The two mad Berserkers by his side converged on True Saber, swinging their arms wildly. True Saber ducked and tripped one, while slicing the chest of the other one, forcing him back.
The sane Berserker threw out a kick, smashing into True Saber's face yet again, and throwing him backwards. True Saber righted himself just as the mad Berserkers came at him. He gripped his blade with both hands and prepared himself. He dodged around their incoming barrage, waiting for the perfect chance to take one of them out.
But True Saber felt his world shift suddenly. The sane Berserker had snuck around him and was in the process of suplexing him.
True Saber flipped the sword around and stabbed him through his shoulder. Berserker growled in pain and dropped him, but True Saber realized only too late that he had left himself open to the two mad Berserkers.
One of their strikes got through, breaking his chestplate more than it already was, but he quickly returned his attention to them and started blocking their strikes. They were sloppy enough that True Saber didn't need a lot of reaction time in order to guard effectively.
True Saber countered one and sliced through his arm. It was one less limb he had to deal with.
He then pivoted on his foot, trying to keep his eyes on the sane one. Before he could get a lock on the sane one, however, he found his face repeatedly being peppered with quick jabs. True Saber sliced his blade upwards, intending to sever the arm, but cut air. Berserker then slammed a hard right into True Saber's head.
Berserker had obscured True Saber's vision with the jabs, making True Saber's next strike easy to counter. This Berserker was far smarter than True Saber had initially believed.
True Saber hmphed. He let the Mana within him burst out, forming it into his angelic wings.
He used the wings to block the incoming strikes of the two mad Berserkers behind him. He then twisted, throwing a roundhouse kick into their face and blasting them back. He used his momentum to return to the sane Berserker.
In a flash, he dashed round Berserker, attacking from Berserker's blind-
Berserker backhanded him, sending him flying to the side. True Saber righted himself and planted his feet, sliding along the ground.
If Berserker was able to see him, then True Saber just wasn't moving fast enough. He poured more Mana into his wings and took off, attacking from behind once more.
Berserker elbowed him, followed up by grabbing the back of his head and flipping him onto the ground. Berserker stomped, but True Saber rolled away and sliced at Berserker before he got hit.
Berserker managed to dodge, but barely. A wound now extended from Berserker's middle of his chest up to his cheek.
Once more taking off, True Saber began attacking from various angles. But Berserker beat him to the punch each time, slipping around True Saber's blade and unleashing devastating counterattacks.
"Your attack patterns are unimaginative! You're far too easy to predict!" Berserker roared at him, tossing him with some kind of wrestling throw.
If True Saber wasn't careful, Berserker would break his helmet soon. Without protections, all it would take is a single blow to the head from Berserker at full power to kill True Saber.
That realization caused True Saber to back off, to try and recuperate. Unfortunately, the two mad Berserkers had returned and were charging at him. The sane Berserker, too, joined them in the charge.
True Saber had had enough of this. He pulled the Chains of Heaven out and unleashed it on them, enveloping them in the golden chain. They all froze as soon as it touched them.
They all shared Lancer's one weakness. Divinity.
As True Saber tightened the chain around them, he approached the sane Berserker.
This Berserker was strong. But strong in a different way than Lancer was.
"You have my respect. You were truly a formidable opponent-" his words were interrupted by the sane Berserker suddenly reaching out and shattering the Chains of Heaven with a clamped fist. The world seemed to move slowly. True Saber was truly shocked.
The sane Berserker was suddenly jumping, towering over True Saber with a single fist cocked back, ready to strike him.
What… was happening here? He should've overpowered Berserker ten times over already.
Berserker slammed that pent up fist into True Saber, launching him back. True Saber righted himself. He saw the three Berserkers now running at him once more.
No… do not falter, as Samael has before you, True Saber told himself.
This was a test. A test of faith.
True Saber lifted his sword above his head as Berserker and his two copies got closer.
He had faith. He was second only to God himself. Only he was capable of saving the world. Did Berserker not understand that? This Berserker, noble as he was, stood in the way of the salvation of the world. And that could not be overlooked.
"Unlocking the second seal. Ascending to the Third Heaven. Achieving Shehaquim."
The holy energy of the heavens burst forward from the base, wrapping around the blade and spiralling into the sky.
Berserker was in front of him now. He would be obliterated at point-blank range. True Saber decided to keep his testimony to Berserker short.
"Farewell, Berserker," True Saber bid. He brought his sword down, unleashing the power of his blade at Berserker.
The energy flew forward, unmaking all in it's path. Even sound didn't escape this destruction, as the world itself became silent and bright around them.
But Berserker was not hit by it. He had rolled under the blade, letting the energy graze his back as he dodged the direct hit. The energy hurled past the sane Berserker and obliterated the two mad Berserkers behind him.
True Saber was not so blind as to not notice Berserker bringing his fist up into an uppercut. True Saber was far faster. Though he had one hand occupied with his sword, he still had one hand to block with, and his strength made it quite easy-
Pain.
The energy cut out, and a cacophonous roar filled True Saber's ears as the remaining energy flew forward and dissipated entirely.
He did not understand at first. He was feeling pain. Berserker was just standing in front of him.
True Saber looked down. Berserker's arm had pierced his chest, impaling him. Berserker wasn't aiming for his head. He was aiming for his body. He had targeted True Saber's head for most of the fight, just to bluff his way into a direct hit on the chest. True Saber felt foolish for falling for such an obvious ruse.
As blood seeped out from around Berserker's arm, True Saber looked back at Berserker. He had never noticed how Berserker towered over him.
True Saber's sword dropped from his grasp. It landed in the dirt and kicked up a cloud of dust.
Berserker placed his free hand on True Saber's shoulder and pushed, pulling his arm out of him. More pain followed, and True Saber fell to his knees. His armor cracked further, and shattered. Piece by piece it fell off, kicking up more and more dust around him. His mask came apart. He could not stop it.
Eventually, his armor was completely undone.
Silence, once more.
But once more, like last time, there was something that interrupted the silence. He could not hear it with the clashing of their attacks and the rumbling of the Earth beneath them, but… there was something coming from the town. True Saber turned his head towards it.
"Do you hear that?" he asked.
Berserker turned his head as well. "Yes. It's those bums singing Kumbaya. They do it all the time."
"S… singing?" True Saber spoke, wavering on his knees. Indeed, as he listened closer, the familiar sound came to him. He remembered it from the church belltower.
"Yes. Is there something strange about it?" Berserker asked.
"Is that singing…?"
"What?"
"It sounds to me that… they're just speaking. No different than you or I."
True Saber looked down and saw his sword lying on the ground. He raised his hand shakily and placed his fingertips to his forehead. "Forgive me Lord… I have failed you."
Berserker spoke up. "You did not fail. Maybe you just… misunderstood what side you were supposed to be on."
True Saber looked up at Berserker, letting his hand fall limply to his side. "No. I failed him by allowing myself to be summoned by the Throne of Heroes. He knew, back then, that it was pointless... yet he allowed me to do it anyway. I was curious, you see. I wanted to understand you humans. To know what you saw as 'beautiful'. To know who you saw as 'worthy'. To know why you so happily acted in sin. But now I see… that such an act of understanding is impossible. And will always be impossible."
Berserker only sternly looked at True Saber as he began to fade away. "I see… then my being here to see you off… would be a gesture you couldn't appreciate, either," Berserker spoke, almost regretfully. He turned and started to move back towards the mountain.
True Saber looked at the town wistfully. "You humans are so beyond me. I suppose your nature is just something... I am not meant to know."
True Saber became one with the dust around him, and disappeared.
Saber had sat there for a long time after Archer had left. He heard the crashing of battle outside, and saw Uhlan pass by in a trance, walking past the Grail as if he didn't even see it. The noises outside eventually died down, and he became alone once more.
He knew he had nowhere else to go. The Grail was his for the taking… but at the same time, he couldn't bring himself to stand and take it.
What would he even do with it? What could a weakling like him ever accomplish with that power? Well, that was just it, wasn't it? With the Grail, he wouldn't be a weakling anymore. He could do what he always wanted to.
Right?
Slowly, Saber stood. His heavy feet sluggishly moved towards the Holy Grail as it hovered in complete silence. His footfalls made him realize how alone he was.
He reached out his hand towards the Grail, barely grazing it with his fingertips.
"F-... Father?" he squeaked out of his lips.
If Angra Mainyu was in this thing… where exactly was he? He wasn't in the round part. Maybe he was within the 'stem' part of the cup. It must've been cramped, if that was the case.
He heard the sound of liquid filling something. He looked behind him. Had it started to rain again?
He felt something wet touch his hand and foot. He turned back around to see a dark red muck spilling out of the top of the Grail, despite the fact that it had been empty not a moment ago.
The muck seemed to come alive, and started grabbing at him.
Saber was terrified. But he couldn't move. And furthermore… knew he shouldn't. He closed his eyes, submitting. The mud spewed from the Grail, consuming him entirely and plunging his world into darkness.
This… was the end for him.
And the start of Azi Dehaka's reign.
Chiaki had found herself staring through the window in Uhlan's office into the Ley Line again. It was truly hypnotizing. And she found herself thinking about a lot of things, like who she was, and what she was going to do from here.
But when Chiaki felt the rumbling die down, she started to walk towards the entrance. She did her best to move around the rubble and misplaced Earth caused by Berserker and True Saber's battle.
She couldn't hide her excitement. She had thought up of a new wish for the Grail. She was eager to share it with Berserker. He would be on his way back soon.
She was broken out of her thoughts when she found herself at the cave entrance. It was dark. The sun had definitely gone down by this point, which would make traversing the cave a little difficult.
"Chiaki!" Berserker shouted from behind her.
She turned and saw him. "Are you okay?" he asked.
She nodded. "Why wouldn't I be? You won, didn't you?"
Worryingly, Berserker didn't smile. He hurried over to her. "None of that mud came back down here, did it?"
Chiaki arched an eyebrow at him. "Mud? What? What are you talking about?"
Berserker looked past her and into the cavern. "Good… doesn't look like it came this way. This may actually be the safest place for you right now."
"Berserker! Talk to me! What the hell is happening?"
Berserker looked at her, frowning. He seemed to think of what to say for a moment. Eventually, he just shook his head. "Something bad."
He moved past her and into the cavern. Chiaki followed, of course.
"Listen, you might think being ominous and vague makes you sound cool, but you're seriously starting to freak me out. Give me a straight answer here, what-"
She got her answer. They had entered into the main area of the cave, and could see outside into the night. Just outside the cave, shambling down into the 'wasteland' was some amorphous blob of mud, bigger than the mountain itself. The lights of the town illuminated it.
Its body was oblong, and shifting constantly. Its limbs, if they could be called that, were pale and bony, but disproportionate in size to the body. It didn't lift its torso off the ground, it just seemed to slowly claw its way forward using its comparatively small appendages.
It had three heads, each one having scabby flesh that might've resembled scales if it wasn't so mucky, and each one propped up on the end of a pillar of pulsating sludge that resembled a long neck. The heads twirled around and through one another, seemingly unconcerned for how a three-headed monster should have form.
Whatever it was, it was terrifying, and heading straight for the town.
"Saber…" Berserker glowered.
Chiaki looked at him. "What?"
"He took the Grail. What that thing is… I assume it's what the Grail gave him when he asked 'to become Azi Dehaka'."
Chiaki looked back at it, her heart sinking. "But that means… the Grail…"
Berserker shook his head. "Gone."
She just stared at it. This thing that was moving across the wasteland.
It wasn't fair. They had won. They were the last Servant standing. Why… why was Saber the one to get the Grail?
"No…" Chiaki murmured. "No, there's got to be a way we can get the Grail… undo his wish, somehow. Reverse it."
"Chiaki…"
Chiaki marched forward, towards the entrance. "It can't end like this! We've come so far! It's not fair!" Chiaki screamed. Her words echoed within the cave.
"Chiaki… it's going to be okay."
Chiaki stopped, and turned around. Berserker was slowly walking to the entrance as well. "I'll stop him," he spoke softly, "I won't let him hurt anyone."
Chiaki felt like she was going to throw up. She walked down the incline towards him. She stumbled over her words. "But wait… you can't mean… I mean, if the war is over, then…"
She stood in front of Berserker, blocking his path. He just started to move around her. She reached out and pulled on his arm, stopping him for a moment. "You're not… I won't let you."
Berserker smiled at her. He knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder. "Chiaki, you don't need to be sad. I said it before, and I meant it. You don't need me. You're free to live however you want."
That pit in Chiaki's stomach grew larger. She couldn't even cry, despite her desire to.
Berserker stood up and brushed her cheek with his massive hand. Then he turned and started walking away.
"We were so close…" she absent-mindedly lamented.
"This isn't goodbye. Not yet," Berserker reassured, staying a moment, still looking out at the monster on the horizon.
Her face became sullen. She could hear it in his voice. She knew it. He knew it, too.
"Isn't it?"
There was a brief moment of silence.
"I'll… see you around," Berserker said.
"Yeah," she replied, "See you."
She clenched her fists, and watched him leave the cave.