Chapter 2: We set the world on fire
When they exited the portal Emiya's restraints dematerialized flowing like cherry blossom petals around him towards Alya. Emiya stood on his own two feet feeling the familiar flow of Alaya's mana through his system.
He looked around him only to find himself in the familiar scene of the fuyuki church run with the express purpose of facilitating the holy grail war. Alya who had dragged Emiya into this place simply looked at him as he steadied himself in the central aisle she turned and before she could get a word out Emiya asked. He knew this was all an illusion he was actually in a non-corporeal state of existence linking all possible realities and time lines together. It reacted to strong emotions and memories thus presenting itself as the church where so much had happened in his life and the life of another Shirou Emiya one that still believed in the dream of being a hero.
"What happened out there Alya? The magical leylines are all empty to the point that the ground was trying to use me as mana battery?" Emiya's voice had returned to its normal state as if the church had some special restorative abilities that even Emiya's eyes could not see.
"There is a tear in the flow of time." Alya spoke her voice eerily calming in the silence of the church. Emiya had encountered only one such specific occasion before in a reality where key points in mankind's history were damaged to point time itself was ripping itself apart to try and maintain some semblance of cohesion. He had stayed with an organization that was assembling heroic spirits from any era, region or timeline to help repair the timeline. The memories of those times came flooding back. He could barely keep himself from tearing up
"Oh, come on, she wasn't the same you know. She was from a different timeline." Her words cut deep into Emiya she was right the people he met were identical in so many ways but in just as many ways they were worlds apart.
"You thought of those two didn't you, such the ladies man." Alya's snide comment actually managed to break Emiya's usually stone-cold demeanor.
"It's not like that. I …the bonds we had were…" he responded through grit teeth because he knew the words, uttered she said were true. Memories as a senior heroic spirit that helped guide newer ones as well as serving as the cook for everyone from Master Fujimura to servants alike sprung out.
The dark church began to change into a brightly lit cafeteria with sleek shining flooring and walls making the place look futuristic as was intended by the designers at Chaldea.
"Our office loves telling us when people lie, but back to the business at hand. We have 3 events that are causing massive paradoxes in a singular timeline what's worse is the damage is far reaching. It's honestly a timeline I would relegate to try and serve from Akasha but the damage it's done will remain like the scars of an infected wound. It will fester and possibly cause more damage to timelines to the point that time itself is under threat." The tone of Alya was stern as if she were simply stating obvious facts to an uneducated child much to Emiya's annoyance.
"With your past experience with these types of situations you're the perfect guardian to be sent." Alya said sitting atop one of the many long tables at the cafeteria sliding her smooth and slender hand across the table.
"I'm gonna need more concrete details about the mission. I don't like going in blind, last mission was a complete and utter mess that nearly killed me without your interference." Emiya said begrudgingly admitting Alya's part in keeping him alive.
"The timeline is similar to most standard timelines except there is a major divergence after the second world war due to the rise of atomic power the United States harnesses this power as Earth's dwindling resources cause wide scale conflict across Europe, Africa and both Central and South America." Then as Alya explained this the room changed the two of them were now floating in an empty void Alya still in a seated position has mana flow through her body enveloping the entire space in cherry blossoms all flurrying around obscuring Emiya's vision. When the blossoms dissipated a large fully colored globe easily the size of a two-story house was slowly rotating in front of Emiya. Alya sitting on top of the rotating globe looking down on Emiya as she continued to explain the facts of the world he would be entering.
"The United States was not unrivaled though with the Chinese Communist party leading as strong Anti-American foreign policy eventually leading to a war between the two nations starting of with an invasion of Anchorage Alaska which was then repulsed and led to the invasion of the Gobi Desert region. "as she spoke large red streaks can be seen coming from Mainland China and landing directly on top of the tip of the state of Alaska with tiny explosions erupting on the surface. Then dark blue streaks began to push the red streaks back all the way to mainland china finally stopping within the Gobi Desert region between Mongolia and China.
"And finally, we have the war that changed everything. October 23 2077 Nuclear missiles detonated across the globe wiping out most nations in an instant the United States government manages to retreat with the help of powerful private sector personalities into underground bunkers abandoning anyone who had not prepared themselves for the eventual Nuclear holocaust that their own government felt like was an eventuality due to how prepared they had been in advance." Emiya watched as thousands of mushroom cloud explosions covered the entire world for a moment the colorful blue planet was filled with the reddish orange light of newly detonated Nuclear bombs but after that brief moment of color the planet looked grey and lifeless all the browns greens and even the blue oceans were now tinted with a sickly green color.
Emiya sighed this had not been the first time that he had witnessed an entire civilization end itself in such a violent and pointless manner. But he knew it was in man's own nature to destroy what he did not understand and sadly the most misunderstood being is man's own self.
"So, I'm gonna stop nuclear Armageddon from wiping out the world?" Emiya's tone was the usual calm and collected manner of speech he regularly used as he was sure that was the obvious mission.
"Not this time, Nuclear annihilation was always in the path of these people. You are to travel to the year 2277, our sight of the timeline beyond the year 2077 is fuzzy. But, 2277 is the exact year where we have lost all sight of time itself." Alya said lamenting on the difficulty of the task that she had placed.
"What am I supposed to do then, skulk about the timeline turning every stone till I find the pieces of time that are literally trying to destroy the multiverse?" Emiya's dry sarcasm drew a no response from Alya
"The events are large scale events so they shouldn't be hard to spot if you keep your ear to the ground. Just make sure you can guide it down the right path as we will be unable to supply you with intelligence nor excess mana. Alya responded confirming Emiya's fears of being sent in alone with nothing more than the hope that he can perform a miracle.
"As for mana, the timeline is far removed from much of the mystical aspects of it's world so mana is fairly scarce. You will have to retain physical form for most of the time and the use of mage craft will be fairly limited. "Alya continued, her words only adding to the difficulty of the task.
"This isn't the usual job you give me. Normally you'd get a team together, or a more experienced guardian so why give it to me." Emiya asked trying to figure out why Alya was so adamant that it be him that conducted the operation.
"We require someone who is highly motivated to see the success of this mission." Alya responded her voice turning cold as if she were mentally preparing herself to do something she wished she'd rather avoid doing.
"And what would motivate me to make sure the mission succeeds or not." Emiya said intrigued by the possibility that Alya could offer him something he desires.\
"Due to all the uncertainty the likelihood of success is slim to none, however should you succeed we are willing to sever our contract and allow you to move on to the afterlife. No return to the cycle of reincarnation you will be permitted to enter the garden of Avalon and…" Emiya shot her a glance of pure confusion, he didn't know what to feel he had accepted his fate as a counter guardian and believed in his role as a keeper of the delicate balance of the multiverse. But what Alya was proposing was a chance to reunite with Artoria in the after life and find true peace.
A final end to his millennia of service was right in front of him only the task left for him to do was one he knew was beyond his ability to succeed in. However, he knew what a certain carrot topped boy would demand of him. He knew that boy given the chance would leap into this danger in a foolhardy yet noble attempt to save as many people as he could.
Emiya sighed cursing his younger self for reigniting the long lost flames of his heroic fortitude. He looked Alya directly in the eyes and before he could say anything his body was reduced into pure mana and then transported through the world tree's roots.
AN: Thank you for all the positive feedback sorry it took so long to update this life got in the way for the most part plus I still don't have an editor so most of the technical stuff is being reedited by me in my spare time but if anyone is willing to volunteer my inbox is open. Any comments and suggestions are welcome and pls don't hesitate to make observations that could improve this work.