Silence enveloped the familiar Takamiya manor even as the cold winds of winter blew past its wooden walls. The one who is in charge is the eldest sibling whose eyes are closed, assessing what needs to be done next. His arms are crossed and deep in his thought.

"Nii-sama…"

The person in question sat across the siblings, whose eyes are darted everywhere. Glossy silver hair reached down to her waist and beauty that almost inhumane. Some may think that they have the privilege of such a visitor but her actions prior is the one bothering them. The beauty sitting just created clothes out of nowhere, copying the uniform of the younger

'Is she a magus? She has to be, she's like a walking mana battery at this point.' Shirou Takamiya thought, it's no surprise for him if he ever encounters a magician around these parts. What made him cautious of the girl was that he found her in the middle of a spacequake.

What are these spakequakes, you ask? For reasons unknown, there will be this random explosion happening in a vast area. Everything in its area of effect will turn to rubble and any unfortunate humans with it. That's where he found her with no visible scars on her body.

"Hello?"

If she was the one who had done the spacequake, he certainly made a mistake of bringing her here. Then again, there's no place for her to go anywhere and so as goodwill he brought her to the manor.

"Nii-sama!" a slam at the table took him out of his reverie and he faced his sister. Her blue eyes have a hint of annoyance at being left out. Mana Takamiya crossed her arms and huffed out before going back to her position.

"Mind telling me what's on your mind? You're awfully quiet."

"Well, we did just witness someone create clothes out of thin air. Even I have no idea as to what to do next," he admitted.

The young girl let out a sigh and looked at their visitor who is now reading the local newspaper. Her eyes bore into the letters embedded into the paper and intently looking it. It made the blue-haired girl wonder whether the girl can understand it or not.

"Where did you find her anyway?" she asked.

"Well…"

Shirou told Mana everything that has led up to his encounter with the girl. His sister does raise her eyebrows at some especially at the spacequake part.

"You're telling me you found this girl… unscathed in the middle of that spacequake?" she repeated and the redhead nodded.

"I know, right? She's laying there like a newborn child, all curled up."

While it is a bit troubling to see that someone survived a spacequake, it slightly bothered her was that her brother went his way to the district.

"I'm surprised no one questioned you on the way while you carried her here." she was sure that all of the commotions, people would have come out and see what's happening. But then again, it is a spacequake, they're really dangerous.

"The ambulance driver did but they immediately brush it off. I guess they saw me as someone who is just helping others?" he sounded a bit bashful at that part.

"You've always been like that since we were kids…" said Mana.

"Yeah, I guess so," Shirou replied, even in this new life of his, he just can't get rid of that complexity. "Back to the topic on hand, I'm thinking of surrendering her to the authorities first but…"

"You can't," the younger Takamiya argued. "She's obviously…" the girl lowered her voice down as to not the other party hear it. "Not human."

The eldest did consider that at some point, however, with the stunt that the silver-haired done, he's a bit hesitant. Granted that she will likely be put in some institution where she will be an experiment. There's also the possibility of an association similar to the Clock Tower existing that he never knew.

"She has the appearance of a human, I would like to think that she is the same as us."

"But we can't create clothes out of nowhere." Mana reasoned out.

"Technically, we can," the redhead said and his attempt of humor didn't faze his sister. "Just not the same way she does it, of course."

"She's already here in our home, wanna let her stay here for the time being?" the blue-haired girl suggested.

"I don't mind at all but we better ask her if she wants to do so." he turned towards the occupant who was still glued to the newspaper. "So, hey um…"

After noticing that the two of them is staring at her, the silver-haired girl glanced at them.

"I and my sister here would like to offer to stay here with us. Would you like that?" he offered and the girl tilted her head, trying to get around the words he just said. "Right, forgot that you can't talk right now or maybe understand us."

"Ah…"

As they try to get around the situation, the girl opened her mouth only for a grunt to come out. The younger sibling looked at the elder who shrugged at her attempts of communication.

"I'll take that as a yes then?" the teen guessed followed by his sister.

"I guess so."

A faint sound came from the stomach of Mana, causing her to stammer a bit. Evening already come without them noticing it and being the resident cook, Shirou made his way to the kitchen. The silver-haired beauty was also done with the newspaper and settled in silence.

To lessen the somewhat tense atmosphere, the younger Takamiya flipped open their television. When it turned on, the girl was caught by surprise and retreat a few steps away from it.

"Relax, it's just a TV, you can watch it for information or entertainment," she explained and with the help of the remote, she began to scroll to the lists of channels. Some of them, ranging from news, drama and action stuff. Mana doesn't really have any favorite channels to watch but most of the time she tended to watch news. There's also sport one's that she seldomly watch as her interest in them is mostly fencing matches.

Seeing that nothing dangerous come out of it, the girl also paid attention to the broadcaster.

The blue-haired girl accompanied her brother in the kitchen. "Anything I can help you with?"

Shirou kept quiet, chopping up some great amount of onion on the board. There's also some discounted beef sirloin wrapped in plastic that he has yet to open. The teen also brought out the red wine that their parents didn't manage to drink last time.

"Hey, you're not thinking of drinking this stuff, right? I mean you're still 17 years old." Mana warned.

"…I have a confession to make, sis. This might be the last time we will get to eat a decent meal. I'm considering going all out at this point." his voice sounded solemn.

"Just what are you talking about, I don't understand…"

"The spacequake destroyed the entirety of the shopping district. Which means..."

Realization dawned like a fast-moving truck against her. It would mean the quality of their meals would lessen than before since the district is now gone. Shirou could go to the nearby prefecture also and buy them but it's a bit much. As much as it pains her to admit, she's been spoiled because of him when it comes to food.

"After this, we gonna have to eat in moderation. We may have to eat rice doused with green tea,"

It was evident that her brother didn't like their predicament but at this age, one couldn't afford to be picky when it comes to food.

"Alright, but what's with the wine?" she questioned.

"Oh, I'll be using that to make this steak don. I'm not drinking it, mind you," he reassured.

Mana assisted Shirou with the food, removing the tendons from the beef and beat it with a meat tenderizer. She covered the meat on both sides with the chopped onion and leave for it for awhile. She was then instructed by him to cook the steak and while she knew how to cook noodles, it was different from cooking such.

"Make sure that it doesn't burn," he mentioned, preparing what seems to be the sauce and pops open the lid of the wine. "Watch this, Mana and you may have to stand back a bit. I'm about to do a flambé."

"A what?" was the only word she can mutter when suddenly her brother puts some of the red wine on the pan. "Woah! You're the one who's about to set the kitchen on fire!"

Her scream startled the girl who was watching and she saw the flames that writhed the kitchen. Curious as to what happened, she watched them with great interest.

"I guess we have an audience on our hands." Shirou noted and Mana shook her head.

"Showoff…"

The chaplain don steak as her brother called it, was served in a bowl. With the fried meat on top, some cooked onions, and dried plums, it was a delight to behold. But then again, it will be a grim reminder that this will be the last time she gets to eat such for quite sometime.

The trio sat with each bowl on their respective seats. The Takamiya siblings folded their hands and uttered a prayer and began to eat. The silver-haired girl watched them expertly put whatever it is on their mouth using a pair of tiny sticks. She looked at hers and attempted to mimic their actions only for the food to fell on her lap.

"Try using this instead," the redhead went back to the kitchen and took out a spoon and fork for the girl. "It may take quite some time getting used to chopsticks."

"This is how you use it," Mana demonstrated the use of silverware, something the girl picked up quite fast as opposed to the chopsticks.

Shirou watched with great interest as to what reaction the silver-haired girl may elicit. He has seen his sister and Haruko Homura squirmed with his food. Even his upperclassmen, Tatsuo Itsuka was so impressed that he suggested he be a chef in the future.

The first bite went to her mouth and the flavors unknown to her made her giddy all inside. The unusual sensation running all over her body was so foreign that she doesn't know what to do about it. Her knowledge of language was still limited but if she were to describe what she's feeling right now…

Comfort, warmth, and safety.

She was treated well enough here unlike those before them.

Their dinner was concluded with Mana being the one who would wash the dishes.

Shirou, on the other hand, sat alongside and the silver-haired beauty glanced at him and back at the tv. She's also focused much like on the newspaper at the broadcaster.

While the news is still buzzing about spacequakes, the redhead wanted to gauge the girl's reaction. He began to scroll through the channels one by one, stopping at a documentary about the first one that shows up on the Eurasian border. The landscape shown was the same one as they had before, albeit on a larger scale. The cameras panned to the epicenter of the spacequake where numerous scientists gathered.

"Ah…" he heard a sound of muffled pain from the silver-haired girl who is holding her head with her hands.

"Are you okay?" Mana said in a somewhat worried voice, kneeling before the girl. She then pointed at the television. "Is it the TV?"

"I think she meant is the news," Shirou replied, turning the thing off immediately. "She may have some memories of that place?"

"Perhaps, but she should retire for the night," the younger Takamiya helped the girl up and led her to one of the outer rooms. The brother was left on his own as thoughts ran on his head.

Realizers.

A piece of device that allows a non-magical user to create whatever is on their mind with their imagination being the limit. A user must have a chip embedded into their brain to properly utilize it and the Realizers themselves can have multiple forms according to the user's will. Then again, only a select few can be a Wizard as the Realizers themselves puts extraneous stress on a user's body.

Then again, the word "non-magical" is the key word. The likes of Elliot Baldwin Woodman and Ellen Mira Mathers who are pure-blooded magicians can take it more so than a non-magical one.

In one of the many facilities that Deus Ex Machina industries had in Great Britain, the director of said company stood. On the other side of the mirror stood two of his friends who wore prototypes of CR-Unit. He had ash blonde hair and his sharp eyes observed the two combatants below him.

Isaac Ray Pelham Westcott, DEM's director is watching two of his friends from behind the mirrors.

The male has a youthful appearance and has a refined blonde hair on him.

"Are you ready for this, Elliot?" the young man gazed at his opponent from across the room.

She was a woman right around his age and was one of the more prominent figures in DEM. She has long, pale blonde hair and her eyes have a deep blue tint to them. Her features suggested that she came from parts of Northern Europe.

"Do your best, Ellen," the teen smiled, starting the machinery that is attached to his body. The girl also did the same as her equipment began to flare up in life.

What these two magicians wore was a prototype of a CR-Unit dubbed as Combat Realizer Unit. With the help of Realizers, they'll be able to augment their physical abilities as they see fit. Paired with their magician ancestry, operating these would be less taxing.

Elliot took out his laser sword and Ellen readied the energy rifle that was made for her. Despite her wishes to have the same equipment as her opponent, none wasn't able to give her what she wanted. She's gonna have to settle with this… for now.

The young woman narrowed her eyes and began to fire a large beam of light against Elliot. The blonde-haired man wasn't fazed a bit by her attack: if a normal human were to go against it, they'll surely get hurt. But that's what Realizers are for, just by imagining what's on their mind, they can make it to reality.

Elliot stood motionless and as the projectile was about to hit the target, a protective barrier surrounded him. A few seconds later, the dust settled from the impact between the barrier and projectile. The young man still stood with his sword in hand. There was no tinge of surprise on Ellen's part, she deployed her Territory and a multitude of small bits floated around her.

The two bits began to fire to the blonde as he lifts off from the ground, his Territory still active. With the sword in his hand, Elliot weave left and right in an attempt to dodge them. His opponent has the advantage of having bits to shoot him down from afar and his odds of winning are slim.

"I'll finish this immediately!" Ellen screamed, commanding two of the bits to surround Elliot from above.

Their tips began to glow and fired lasers upon him, the young man clicked his tongue at his predicament. The Territory may be able to protect him but to deal an attack against the bits or the Nordic girl, he has to shut his Territory off. It will only allow his opponent to shoot him down with her rifle or the bits for that matter.

"Gotta take a risk then!" Elliot charged towards Ellen as he shut his Territory off and left an opening for the girl to shoot him. To let go of such an opening would be a waste and her Territory was now gone.

*CLANG!*

A loud sound could be heard, and for an instant, sparks flew. The blonde forced himself to accelerate further and his sword slammed into the Nordic woman's rifle, The long-range weapon was forced to be knocked aside.

"Kuh!" Ellen pulled her distance away from him and swept her left hand across. With that, the 4 bits that were on standby came flying at Elliot.

Getting past the lasers that can pierce through humans, he strikes them down, and he can feel the heavy metal being sliced in half. The blue and white sparks danced on the bit that was sliced in half, and it exploded a second later—one down.

"What the?"

Shock was evident in the face of the Nordic woman, rage seething from her as she deploys two of the bits that were on standby.

"Those things only move with your commands. You can't deploy the other bits as you need to concentrate on the ones you control."

Her eyebrows twitched a bit by his guess. More or less, Ellen will try to shoot him on an angle where he's slow and vulnerable. That's exactly what he wanted for her to do…

Ellen's CR-Unit is a long-range type, she has a massive advantage at distances. Once her rifle has been decommissioned, it's practically useless. There is still of course the possibility of hers having a weapon somewhere but with his speed, the woman won't be able to use it.

The Nordic beauty gritted her teeth as she helplessly watches Elliot's advance against her. Such an outcome was to be expected after all…

An alarm rang out and Elliot halted, his sword a few inches from Ellen's body. The voice of Isaac boomed through the speakers.

"I think that's far enough. We wouldn't want to damage those prototypes now, aren't we?"

The blonde man lends his hand to Ellen as a sign of respect to his fellow magician, however, she swiped it away. He heard her grumble as she left the training ground and Elliot let out a sigh. He knew how frustrating it must be for her to lose but then again, there's no reason for him to seriously hurt her.

He went on his way to have his CR-Unit be removed and while the results were desirable, there's still room for improvements. Machines that are empowered by the Spirit of Origin's own voluntary Territory. Albeit, nothing more than mere fakes, it still allowed one to become a Wizard.

He goes into his locker and began to change when he suddenly heard a knock on the door.

"Elliot, it's me." an all-familiar voice called his name.

"Geez… can't you just wait until I'm finished, Karen?" the blonde-haired man said as he changed into his pants. "This better be good."

"If you're expecting any news about [Deus] whereabouts, unfortunately, we don't," a pregnant silence took over them. DEM poured everything to locate the girl and while search efforts have been pretty slow. He's not that adamant to meet the Spirit, in fact he wanted for her to be under the radar.

"…I'm not talking about that." Elliot came out of the locker with a more casual attire and he was greeted by the stoic face of Ellen's sister.

Much like her sister, her features were similar to the pale blonde hair and blue eyes. Perhaps, the only difference between them is that Karen Nora Mathers wore circular glasses. She wore a formal suit as well.

"Hmm… we have many investors interested in our offer but it's too early to do any moves." the woman declared with Elliot followed suit.

"As long as they have their hands on it, they'll surely join our cause,"

"I wonder… come to think of it, you spar with Ellen a few moments ago. How did it go?" she questioned and her companion gave her a smirk.

"I won, of course, granted that she just have bad equipment at the time. Though I must say that your sister has gotten the hang of using a CR-unit for a short time," he noted.

"She does consider you as her rival, she'll do everything to surpass you."

Their rivalry stemmed way back on DEM's conception, granted that it was her older sister who declared it. The man simply shrugged it off but before he knew it, he began to enjoy the little skirmishes between them. If she were to be asked which one of them is stronger, she would have gone for Elliot. He has physical prowess and an excellent magician only second to Isaac (at least in the physical part).

"Let's talk about this at a later time and in an area where no one can eavesdrop," said Elliot and they both separate ways.

As dawn arrives at the city, Shirou began his morning jog, even as the cold winter settled in. Covered in his jackets, he left the Takamiya manor and trek the road towards the temple nestled in the mountains. Run by Buddhist monks, he often finds himself here most of the time. Aside from its peaceful environment, there's also a cave system underneath it and he wanted to check it out.

A 15-minute jog all it took and he's now at the steps leading up to the temple. Beads of sweat on his forehead, he climbed the stairs and stopped at the wooden gates. It was slightly ajar and he took a peek to see if the monks are already awake. No one is around yet, perhaps, they're still doing their morning rites?

The redhead stealthily made his way to the back of the temple, into the forest until he found the clearing. It was the only landmark nearest where he could go the cave system without the need to climb the hills.

Carefully he treads the slippery rocks and with his reinforced vision, he ventured deeper. The plethora of memories with most of them not being good assaulted him but he shook those thoughts away. Stalactites and stalagmites were all around him and some droplets fell on his head.

He paid no heed to them and that's when he reached the cavern. A large hole can be seen above, illuminating most of the area around.

About 5 months ago, this place was filled with magical energy, however, got drained dry when the Eurasian Sky Disaster happened. Shirou has a theory that all of them went through that spacequake but how it happened was beyond him now.

"Makes me wonder… will the disappearance of mana kill the planet?"

The reason for such thoughts to occur is that mana is important to the life of the planet. Without it, every living thing will slowly die, starting from plants and the concept of magic itself. Whether that concept can be applied to this world was still yet to be seen.

"I don't want to see that happen anyway," he muttered and he began his work on setting up a bounded field on the area.

-0-

Mana Takamiya was somewhat used to being alone with her beloved brother in their household. Their parents are often busy with their work outside Japan, being electrical engineers and all. That's why she was slight caught off guard when she found the girl that her brother brought home with him.

One would think that her brother finally took an interest in the opposite gender. A girl probably the same age as Shirou sat in the living room surrounded by books. Her silver-haired locks didn't hide the exquisite beauty underneath it and she wore one of her pajamas.

"Forgot that you're here," the blue-haired girl said. "You slept well?"

The girl nodded at her words and continued with her reading. Mana didn't want to impose on her, seeing how laser focus the girl is on the books. She began to heat some water and prepare some coffee. If her brother were to see this, he'll be like:

"Girls like you shouldn't drink this! Your growth spurt could be in danger!"

"That's such a stupid thing to say! I will grow into a proper woman in the future!"

She chuckled at the thought, mixing the hot water and coffee altogether. This will be the first time that she gets to drink one so she's a bit excited. She can actually tell that this one will be completely different. Mana doesn't know what to expect from it, Shirou likes to drink this stuff early in the morning.

While the smell comes off as strong, surely she can take it… right? There is some hesitation on her part whether to drink it or not. Maybe add some sugar in it just to be on the safe side. She opened the cupboards and took out a jar full of sugar, adding two teaspoons to it.

"That should be enough." she breathes out, took the cup in her hands, and sipped from it.

"Bleergh!" Mana coughed out at the bitter taste of the coffee. "It's terrible! How in the world can nii-sama stomach this!?" she indecorously asked as she reached out for a glass of water to wash away the bitterness in her mouth.

She may have disturbed the girl in the living room who was now curious as to what's the commotion about.

"Don't mind me, I'm just trying out some stuff here…" the girl rose from her seat and looked at the cup from which Mana drank. "Oh, don't drink it!"

The younger Takamiya snatched it away from her hands and a look of dejection was given to her.

'Why you gotta be so cute anyway?' she felt bad when she took it from the girl's hands.

She might make one for her as well and she took out another cup for their guest. Mana doesn't know what the silver-haired girl's preference was so she opted for some black tea instead. It didn't take that long for her to finish it, giving the piping hot drink to the who will consume it.

"Be careful with that, it's hot," the blue-haired girl warned and she took it on stride, slowly sipping on it. A look of surprise marred over her face upon tasting the drink and she slowly takes sips on it.

Mana also had her share of black tea and she heard the sliding doors being opened. The familiar figure of her brother, all covered with sweat, and his eyes darted on the numerous books in the living room.

"Someone's been reading, huh?" Shirou noted and also noticed that the two girls sipped from their cups. Its smell assaulted his nose and he knew that they brew some of the black tea leaves that their parents sent. "You could have just given her the cheaper stuff, you know?"

"It's just for today, no need to get all so work up on it." Mana countered and her brother let out a sigh.

The silver-haired girl went back to reading with the cup of tea in her hand.

"Let's not disturb her."

The younger Takamiya agreed as she prepared for their morning kendo bout. Mana went on ahead while Shirou changed his clothing in the bathroom. He took off his sweat-covered shirt and pants while his thoughts went elsewhere.

'I might as well put up some barriers around the home. With her presence here, who knows what might happen.'

His investigation around the city for anyone who might be a magus didn't bore any results. Then again, he could lure them out by doing magic on his own but there's also other factors he need to take in.

Are they the good or bad guys?

He was so engrossed with what needed to be done to strengthen their home that he didn't notice someone opened the bathroom doors. An ephemeral beauty clad in her sister's sleepwear holding a book and a cassette player. The young man was thankful that he just covered his lower body in time before she saw it.

"Ermmm… can I help you?" he asked.

"Ahh…" the girl alternately pointed out the book and the cassette player.

"I'm sorry but I do not know what is it..." Shirou paused when he saw the photos of a beach on the book. Now that he thought about it, the book she held contains pictures and a cassette that has information about the best tourist spots all over Japan. "Do you want to listen to that, I presume?"

The girl nodded vigorously at his guess and the young man pushed her outside the bathroom.

"Just wait for me in the living room, okay? You could also ask Mana to do it for you."

A look of confusion was all over her and the redhead resists the urge to facepalm. Clearly, she doesn't have any common sense or she's just that shameless, no, if anything else, her speech pattern is that of an infant. Curiosity sparkle in the girl's eyes everywhere around her and he was relieved that he's covered up below.

"Hey, wanna watch us do some kendo? I don't know if you're into…" Mana's voice echoed from the living room, clad in her kendoka outfit and her wooden sword on hand.

As if on cue, she saw her brother's vestiges, half-naked together with the silver-haired beauty. Her brother stood there motionless for a while and dashed towards the bathroom. The girl tried to reach out to him but the door was closed to her. The younger Takamiya wonder what the two talked about? Then the stranger ran towards her and showed one of the audiotapes about Japan's famous beaches.

"Were you asking him to explain this to you?" she wondered when she saw the cassette player that the girl held. "Hmm… well this is how you use it."

After showing her how to operate the cassette, she stood up and went back to the training room. Mana sat there while she waited for her brother to arrive.

"Hey," the familiar voice of Shirou reached her ears, all garbed up as well. "Ready to go for it?"

She didn't reply, opting to keep quiet as their bout begins. The sound of their wooden swords rang throughout the room. Both combatants knew that talking was out of the question at times like these. The young man thought that this would be a good time to clear up any possible misunderstanding earlier.

"I just wanna say," the redhead started whilst he parried every one of his sister's attacks. "What happened between me and the girl earlier…"

"Eh? Whatever could have happened between you and her?" Mana deadpanned, trying to find a hole in Shirou's defenses. Even when he's fighting, he's still focused on the fight. "It's not like I'm thinking that you would do deprave things with her."

"…The way you say it makes me think otherwise."

"Of course not, never in a million years that nii-sama would do such things. Though it makes me a bit concern about something."

"What is it?" he queried.

"You don't seem that interested when it comes to girls. Not that it's a bad thing but you know for the future?" she questioned and her brother only gave a smile before they bout again.

If her brother gonna be quiet about it, she's not gonna bug him to it. Mana's not afraid that Shirou won't have a girlfriend in the future. He may not have the best looks out there but he's a good man overall and knows his way around the house. Blessed whoever lucky woman was who would be with him, of course, once she gets a good look of them.

Deafening sounds of gunfire echoed out throughout the razed fields. Mages everywhere cast spells of all sorts, ranging from minuscule bolts of lightning to gigantic flame pillars. The battle with the daemons has been going now for days and it looks like it won't be over anytime soon. The monsters that the enemies created through the use of alchemy and demonology proved to be too much for them.

"All units, move to the east flank. If these things break through, we're done."

"We need reinforcements on the go!"

"We're being overrun here! Request immediate backup!"

Shirou Emiya stood on top of the east wall with his bow in hand, firing a volley of arrows on a Behemoth. A creature that greatly resembles that akin to sauropods and has the size of a rhino. The great beast toppled on the ground with a loud thud but even with its demise, more of them came out of the woodwork. Groups such as this we're not to be underestimated given their sheer size. They could mow down large machinery with their stampede.

"Rin Tohsaka and her companions need support. Shirou, head there immediately."

"Copy that," he then turned around to the men he was entrusted to. "Shoot down any homunculus you find and don't let them get through."

"Hurrah!" the men shouted gleefully and began to fire down below the east walls.

Armored soldiers bearing red olive branches, the very symbol that the European conglomerate used to represent themselves. With guns strapped to them, who would have thought that magic and modern weaponry will go hand in hand?

The redhead moved with intense speed with the help of Reinforcement to where Rin and the others were. From across the walls, he can make out 3 g on the air carrying some kind of transport. He ignored it for now and made his way to where the Tohsaka heir was.

"Rin!" he cried out, seeing that the young woman was surrounded by flying daggerquills.

The young heiress garbed in her Mystic Code, shooting the daggerquills with her Gandr. The magus joined in as well.

"How's the situation going?" he asked.

"What do you think? These things keep interrupting the ceremony, keep them off from us, will you?" Rin commanded and the redhead nodded.

The twin-tailed girl took out a gem on the hem of her skirt and threw it on the ground. A small barrier surrounded her and five other mages that composed her unit. Their job was to provide magical offense to others who are on the battlefield below. She commanded the five mages to follow suit.

She rose her hands and began to mutter a mantra of her own with others followed suit. The air outside the barrier began to pick up speed and sweat trickles down Shirou's forehead. Is it just him out of breath or the air thinning around?

That's when he realized that a massive tornado slowly formed from a distance. The others noticed it as well, with most mages retreating from the front lines. The funnel got bigger and flames also accompanied the disaster.

"All units fall back, I repeat, fall back!"

From his earpiece, the commander's voice rang out. Their comrades retreat to the extraction point one by one. There are still others out there… whether they can make it on time is something else. He should have retreated as well but with Rin still, here, he opted to stay despite the orders given to him.

"Shirou you better be retreating now or else!" the Tohsaka heiress strained voice reached his ears.

"And let you here all by yourself! You must be crazy!" the young magus countered, providing support to the people below who are now retreating.

As the fight goes on, an ear-piercing scream echoed throughout the battlefield. His eyes focused on the massive cloud on the horizon. There was something… ominous about how oddly shaped it was. Another scream yet again and he was sure that it came from the cloud and when it dissipated, he couldn't help but gulp down.

They've received intel that the conglomerate built some kind of golem. While it was never stated as to what type it would be, most of them assumed that it will be used to the frontlines as cannon fodder. They never expect it to tower everything in the area.

The golem stood about 6 stories high and what stood out to it are the two cores. One on its chest and the other on its forehead. It let out another roar and its shoulder appendages opened up and let lose a barrage of energy beams all over the place.

"Incoming!"

Shirou hastily projected Rho Aias, the shield of the great hero, Ajax, to protect himself. Once the attack was commenced, the golem began to make its advance towards them.

"All units fall back to the extraction point. We can't fight that thing now." the command rang out to his earpiece, dismissing the shield.

"I hate this," said Rin as she helped one of her subordinates on their feet. Aside from her, most of them are already spent maintaining that blazing tornado. "Let's get out of here."

"Right," the redhead agreed and as they were about to depart, his earpiece caught the voice of someone begging for help.

"Gah! Someone help!"

From across the wall, Shirou saw the vestiges of one of his friends that was trapped in some debris. The homunculus is getting near the man with their guns on hand. Shirou gritted his teeth, he could either follow orders and retreat or let him die at the hands of their enemy. Before he knew it, he was pulled in by Rin whose expression told him not to do whatever it was he had in mind.

The young magus gazed at her and the heiress looked away as he let go of his arm. She could only watch him from where she stood and fervently prayed that Shirou would come back alive. The heiress falls back to the extraction point while the redhead is cleaving his way to where the wounded man is. He narrowly avoided the gunfire and deflected some of the bullets with his swords.

"You look worse for wear, Kadoc!" he mentioned and the silver-haired teen who was trapped glared at him.

"No worse than you are, Shirou," Kadoc Zemlupus tried to play the pain he had in his foot which is trapped in the debris. He then notices the homunculus and the Behemoths closing in on them. "On your six!"

"I know!" the young magus said, carrying his limping comrade under heavy fire. "Mind casting some protection to us?"

Kadoc nodded as he muttered a mantra, encasing him and his companion in a protective barrier. Such defense would only deflect the bullets but not the rampage of multiple Behemoths. Add the golem who is now advancing slowly towards the walls, escape seems to be a fleeting dream now.

The gunfire suddenly ceased and the golem that the enemies deployed came to a complete halt. The two mages did not stop even if they knew something is up, the east wall is already a lost one to them.

"Looks like they're retreating," Shirou noted.

"Why would they do that?" Kadoc asked in bewilderment.

"Doesn't matter as long as we get out of here." the redhead added as the enemies took station.

The two mages made it back to the camp and they found it in complete chaos with everyone running around. They may be as confused as they are when the Harwey's stopped their advance against them. The redhead had taken in Kadoc to one of the medical tents to have his broken feet be treated. As he went out, he was greeted by Lord El-Melloi II with a look of slight disappointment on him.

"You disobey a direct order to retreat."

"As long as I have strength in my body, I will obey that order." Shirou countered and his superior lit up a cigarette, puffing smoke in the air.

"Do I have to remind you that the very strength we all possess is on loan from the lesser Grail? If you die out there, who knows what will happen." the young magus sighed, certainly this battle for the possession of the stolen Greater Grail has taken its toll on them. This 'secret war' had been ongoing for 2 years now and he felt that it wouldn't end anytime soon.

"What are you going to do? Tell her that I nearly die out there?" he remarked.

"No," Lord El-Melloi threw the spent cigarette on the ground. "Await further orders of your reassignment." he left the redhead on his musings and Shirou couldn't help but scrunched his face in annoyance.