AUTHOR NOTES

Basically, I ran Re:Zero through an AI blender and had it twist, scramble, and mix the story up to its liking. It even created some unique rules. Keep in mind that an AI gave me the basic framework for the events to come along with a majority of the dialogue options and I simply wrote the details out and edited/filled in missing dialogue myself. All in all, I would say the AI did only 30% because it gave me the basic structure. I wrote everything out myself.

It is an intriguing mixture (at least to me) that capitalizes on some ideas from all the way up to volume 13 of the light novel (episode 38 of the anime or episode 13 of season 2). If it happens to resemble info or ideas beyond that, it's merely a coincidence. Then again, considering I only really fed it names, personalities, some rules, and a few plot points, it really is mostly coincidence anyway. Also, if there are plot holes, blame the AI! I did try to clean it a little by removing unnecessary information, but I also wanted to stay as true as possible to the original story it gave me. All in all, I think it did a good job, but there are a few things here and there that are a little...interesting, to say the least.

This is a story spanning several chapters worth of ideas so I'm going to do my best to adapt them!

Fun Facts: When I started this, I had to teach the AI how to even work with Return by Death which was...really difficult, to say the least. The thing about the stories it creates is, if the main character dies for any reason, the story ends and it refuses to add any more information until you restart with a brand new story. Because of how Return by Death works, it means the main character HAS to die, so I had to teach it what to do. I somehow managed so now Subaru can die for various reasons and restart at checkpoints!

Now on with the story!

Natsuki Subaru awoke with a start then slowly surveyed the room and its inhabitants. He found himself dressed in grey robes and resting in a guest bed within the Roswaal mansion, beads of sweat trickling down his face as his heart raced. Sharp eyes darted back and forth between the two maids standing to either side, his hands loosely interlocked with theirs.

"What's the matter?" The blue-haired one named Rem asked in a concerned voice. She tilted her head slightly and, when she did, her pink-haired sister, Ram, did the same.

"I was-" Memories flashed before Subaru's internal mind's eye.

A dagger thrust into the heart of the one he loved. She reached her hand out to him only to, last second, shove him out the door. He knocked on the door; kicked it, banged it-anything to get back inside. A voice from behind called out and he realized he would have to run. And so he ran and he ran and he ran, until-

Subaru's sharp eyes stared blankly forward as he opened his mouth to say something, but he hesitated. A small silence surrounded him as only a soft puff of air left his mouth. Eventually, he began to speak without really thinking his words through.

He would soon come to regret that decision.

"I was just...killed."

The moment those words left Subaru's mouth, the world came to a halt and his perspective shifted and twisted. Darkness flooded in from all directions until he could not even see his own body anymore. Suddenly, something began to take shape. It was a darkness darker than even the pitch-black world around him. A tall, dark, and cloaked shadow of an existence. It slowly neared him and he couldn't help but scream, although his voice never managed to leave his throat.

"I love you..." It spoke in a wispy, wind-chime-like tone. A voice gentle, but also vacant and extremely cold. The words rung hollow repeatedly through his mind, endlessly echoing its empty confession.

Just as suddenly as it had appeared, it vanished. Left in its place, instead, was a sense of dread, panic, and pain . A piercing pain struck his torso, worming inside and threatening to crush his very heart. He squinted his eyes shut, grit his teeth, and grabbed at his chest, clenching his fists to ease the pulsating ache with all his might.

Get a grip, Natsuki Subaru...

Subaru opened his eyes to reality, slack-jawed and still grasping his pained chest, then collapsed. As he did, he rolled off the side of the bed and came to a stop as his shoulder broke his fall on the wooden floor. The boy attempted to stand but could only manage as far as resting on his knees. His body felt almost elastic, like jelly, and refused to follow his commands.

He looked up through hazy eyes to see Rem rush to kneel by his side and call his name, "Subaru-kun!" Ram stood over her shoulder, her own arms crossed over her chest. The younger sister of the two picked him up off the floor and placed him back in bed. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I...think I'll be..." he started to say but his voice quickly faded as he lost consciousness.

"Gah!?" Subaru awoke with a start. No one was around but something deep inside of him knew-he knew he had overslept. As the boy peered out the window, he could tell it was now nighttime. Hurriedly, he got to his feet and ran down the halls.

Memories flashed in his mind. He knew what happened if he let his guard down and left everyone alone. He'd seen those horrors before.

Subaru quickly found his way to Emilia's room and, as he did, he noticed the twin maids standing near the door. Their faces held a dark gloom about them and, instinctively, he knew something terrible had happened in his absence.

"W-what happened?" he asked, his voice shaken. The two sisters stared at each other for a brief moment before returning their attention to him.

"Emilia-sama...is dead," Rem announced between tears that had begun to form and threatened to burst from her blue eyes any second.

"Emilia is-?" Subaru began to echo the blue maid's words. The boy mindlessly attempted to enter the room but was unable to force his feet to move any further. His legs shook and anchored in place. Memories told him he already knew what he would see inside. "I...I..." he whispered.

...I knew this would happen...

...Not again...

...Not like this...

"We must inform everyone immediately. Roswaal-sama needs to know what has happened." Ram spoke calmly but was clearly shaken herself.

A part of him didn't want to see the result of his failures with his own eyes, so Subaru posed a question to the two. "W-what happened...to Emilia...?" he spoke in a raspy, meek tone, tears threatening to overcome him.

The twin sisters stared at each other for a moment before one of them spoke up. "Emilia-sama...died in her sleep..." Rem explained. She could no longer contain her emotions and so her tears burst forth.

Subaru felt the world around him collapsing inward. The world he'd been trying to save so much-that world was no more. Once again, the world he knew was gone. In its place, now, was something he never wanted to see; never wanted to witness; never wanted to experience. He'd been trying to prevent it from occurring, yet here it was, taunting him for his shortcomings.

And thus, his feet finally drove his unwilling body into the room. He had to be by Emilia's side.

He had to-

There, he saw her beautiful, peaceful face staring upward as her body lay flat on her back against the wooden floor. The moon reflected the glimmer of a dagger stuck into her chest and blood pooled around her, staining her white robes crimson.

Seeing this, Subaru's eyes widened in horror. But... But... Rem had said Emilia died in her sleep. Was she just trying to ease the tension and alleviate some of his pain, or did she deliberately lie about it?

Who killed Emilia? Was it Rem, then? But it couldn't be. This wasn't like her at all! No way! It had to be someone else. Who killed Emilia, then? Who did this!? Who was responsible!? Why did this happen!? Why was he always so slow!? So stupid!? So foolish!? So useless!?

A deep, pitch-dark blackness grew within Subaru, threatening to extinguish his very soul. Try as he might, he couldn't control the feelings overwhelming him deep inside. He didn't want it to take over, he tried to fight it off with all his might, but... But ...

"She's...she's..." he spoke weakly, his voice tumbling forth. With a shaky hand and a wobbly stance, he managed to push himself to remain standing while balancing on the desk near the door.

It's all his fault. It's all his fault. It's all my fault for not-

She's. Gone. GoNe. GONE.

"...She's dead!" he roared with a voice unfamiliar to his own mind. A voice he didn't think his vocal cords could even make echoed off the walls. A raspy bellow of pure rage.

Black flames encircled his form, whooshing in every which direction, growing stronger and stronger with each passing second. He felt his blood boil as the shadowy conflagration fiercely sprouted forth. His eyes widened and stared blankly forward, full of unbridled anger at no one and everyone, as if a ghost were present on the other side of his vision.

Meanwhile Rem continued to stand there, shocked and bewildered at what was happening before her, until another voice filled her ears. "Come on, Rem! Barusu can no longer be reasoned with. He's going to burn everything!" Ram yelled as she grabbed her younger sister's hand and pulled her away from the flames. The two oni maids quickly backed away from Subaru's side in an attempt to not be consumed by the unsparing heat.

"I'll burn the world down!" Subaru roared once more, truly destitute of all reason, before collapsing to the ground. His sharpened, pointed, angry eyes were clouded by the blaze, causing him to squint. He reached a hand forward toward seemingly nothing, to no avail.

A sudden bright, white light filled his vision, blinding him. Silver-veiled, he briefly made out the form of a young girl with long, silver hair and a beautiful, though melancholic, smile.

"Emi...lia..." he rasped out weakly as the conflagration dance continued circling his body.

The bright apparition looked down at the pitiful boy before her. "I'm so sorry, but this had to be done..." the voice, like a bell, spoke softly, sorrowfully, almost mournfully.

Emilia...

Subaru could feel the darkness winning against him. His body ripped apart as the writhing black mass of flames burst forth once again. Then, his numbing body hit the floor with a heavy thud . In seconds, his skin and bones turned to ash. A twister of black sucked the dust and shadowy blaze up into nothingness.

This is the end for him, but his story isn't over yet...