Redgrave Anthony: Tout le passage avec Kotomine peut se résumer à "Kirei Kotomine essaye différentes méthodes pour manipuler Pyrrha et la contraindre à participer à la Guerre du Graal." Lorsqu'il dit que c'est le véritable Saint Graal garanti "100% miracle accordé par Dieu", ce n'est qu'une méthode parmi d'autres. D'ailleurs, dans le dernier paragraphe, Gilgamesh parle du Graal comme d'une "coupe empoisonnée" remplie de "Tout le Mal du Monde". Kirie sait parfaitement qu'il n'y a là qu'un rituel magique profane qui n'a rien à voir avec le Christ. Et il sait même que le rituel a très mal tourné... Ce n'est pas parce que Kirei est prêtre qu'il faut prendre tout ce qu'il dit pour parole d'évangile.
hnh058513: Excellent translation of Kirei's true intentions. You said in clear terms what Kotomine really thought.
TeotakuFantasia: "What kind of headache will befall Archer Emiya in the future" What are you talking about? Thank you for your interest. This series focuses on Pyrrha and Arthur so their interaction will continue in the next chapters. We will also have interactions with the other main characters... including the Servants and the Masters.
Author's note: the following chapter focuses on the abductions of children during the Fifth Grail War. So I chose, to illustrate it, a famous poem by Goethe which deals precisely with the abduction of a child by a supernatural force and his death.
ErlKönig
(Erl-king)
Who rides there so late through the night dark and drear?
The father it is, with his infant so dear;
He holdeth the boy tightly clasp'd in his arm,
He holdeth him safely, he keepeth him warm.
My son, wherefore seek'st thou thy face thus to hide? –
Look, father, the Erl-King is close by our side!
Dost see not the Erl-King, with crown and with train? –
My son, 'tis the mist rising over the plain. –"Oh, come, thou dear infant! oh come thou with me!
For many a game I will play there with thee;
On my strand, lovely flowers their blossoms unfold,
My mother shall grace thee with garments of gold." –My father, my father, and dost thou not hear
The words that the Erl-King now breathes in mine ear? –
Be calm, dearest child, 'tis thy fancy deceives;
'Tis the sad wind that sighs through the withering leaves. –"Wilt go, then, dear infant, wilt go with me there?
My daughters shall tend thee with sisterly care;
My daughters by night their glad festival keep,
They'll dance thee, and rock thee, and sing thee to sleep." –My father, my father, and dost thou not see,
How the Erl-King his daughters has brought here for me? –
My darling, my darling, I see it aright,
'Tis the aged grey willows deceiving thy sight. –"I love thee, I'm charm'd by thy beauty, dear boy!
And if thou'rt unwilling, then force I'll employ." –
My father, my father, he seizes me fast,
For sorely the Erl-King has hurt me at last. –The father now gallops, with terror half wild,
He grasps in his arms the poor shuddering child;
He reaches his courtyard with toil and with dread, –
The child in his arms finds he motionless, dead.
ErlKönig, poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
The night was advancing towards the third hour of the morning.
The streets were empty. The small provincial town had been asleep for a long time. The winter wind blew, cracking and moaning the trees that covered the hills bordering the strangers' cemetery. In the sky, dark clouds hid the stars. A light rain had fallen part of the night, cold and without energy. The drops had finally spaced before interrupting completely.
Coming from the ocean, a fine white fog rolled up the course of the Mion River. The scrolls of icy mist twirled between the houses with dark windows.
The silence was almost complete.
And only the light effects of the traffic lights brought some life to the damp streets.
Two cars appeared, slowly going up the sloping street. The vehicles, mid-range Korean models, parked on the side. Five people went down, three men dressed in dark costumes and two women dressed in strict outfits.
Despite the late hour, they had dark glasses, and a discreet communication device could be seen in their ears. Two of the men were carrying suitcases.
Without a word of consultation, like automatons, they went to a nearby house. One of the women knelt on the ground and pulled out pieces of colored chalk. A hand placed on the pentacle she had just drawn, the young woman concentrated:"Das Schließen Vogelkäfig Echo."
A thin membrane of red light covered the exterior of the house. The Boundary Field was in place. Whatever happens in the house, no one would hear outside and no one could get out.
The intruders were unaware of this, but all their actions were followed with a watchful eye by a Servant standing on top of Shinto's tallest tower. The winter wind made his red garment snap around him and shake his snow hair. While commenting on the actions of the strangers to Rin, Archer invoked a large black bow.
His Master was tense, on the one hand, the actions of the "men in black" were more than suspicious, and on the other hand, she feared to make a mistake by acting too early.
In the forest, on the other side of the houses that lined the street, a dark shape moved with the agility and silence of a marauding cat. Leaping into a tree, the shadow stopped on a branch. If someone had stood at the foot of the tree and looked up, he would have just seen an old coat of dark, torn fabric, wrapping something completely formless. When the figure leaned forward to better look at the kidnappers at work, the potential witness could have just perceived a white mask. A hand armed with a short blade of black metal emerged from the flaccid garment.
However, there was no one in the forest and masked by his Presence Concealment skill, Assassin even escaped Archer's piercing gaze.
Two Servants watched the children's thieves, communicating with their Masters, and waiting for instructions. Should they intervene?
However, before they could decide, a third Servant approached the house chosen by the kidnappers that night.
The hand of fate must have spread over the two twins living in the little house. The boy with the black hair, the girl with the red hair was peacefully asleep and it was written that their sleep would not be disturbed. Who knows, perhaps they were promised a great future that should not be compromised.
Oh, the name on the doorbell might tell you something.
It was written Fujimaru...
Pyrrha Nikos was walking mechanically. The day had been long, eventful, real emotional roller coasters. Since she had skipped a meal and should have been asleep for a long time, it was not surprising that her attention was slackening.
Fortunately, her Servant was more attentive. Especially since he had a caring friend who looked after him.
In front of Arthur, a sort of translucent window appeared. It showed a map of the neighborhood. Simultaneously the mental voice of "Blaise" resounds in his mind:
[Saber? There are people ahead of you. ]
[What kind of people?] Asked the Servant.
[Five Magi... and quite gifted by the standards of that time. ]
[It may be a simple coincidence.] Replied Arthur, but his tone was not really convinced.
"Blaise" sighed:
[The Magi are increasingly rare... five gifted Magi... in the middle of the night... in the middle of the Grail War! Yes, it is probably a coincidence " she makes fun of him" as it is a coincidence that Tuesday follows Monday every week! Saber, it's very noble of you to always hope for the best in others. But for me, it's called 'naivety' and for you, it's a suicidal attitude. If you had passed your sword through the bellies of a few knights whose names I would not mention, we would all live in a better world. ]
Arthur flinched. "Blaise" had hit where it hurt. Undecided, he turned to Pyrrha. The young Amazon had "heard" the mental exchange and held a yawn. Understanding that her Servant was hiding behind her decision, she straightened herself out:
[Are they in front of us?]
The light window moved to position itself in front of Pyrrha. The mental voice of "Blaise" gave some details:
[You are here.]
A red arrow positioned itself at the foot of the hill dominated by the Kotomine church.
[And the five Magi are here.]
The second arrow appeared in a nearby street. The red-headed Amazon didn't know much about the neighborhood, but it was a residential area for common peoples. All the streets were similar, lined with small detached houses typical of the Showa period. Here were married couples, small employees who worked in the large buildings of Shinto. What could Magi do here? There was nothing that could... She stopped at once, eyes-widened with sudden realization and concern... the abductions of children! It could only be that!
The Invincible Girl began to run, immediately followed by her Servant.
[Quick Saber! They are probably kidnappers! I think that, as in the last Grail War, a Master abducts children for...]
But her Servant did not let her finish. His features had hardened while his eyes blazed with anger:
[Understood Master, I on it. Join me, as soon as possible. Remember that any Servant could take advantage of being away from me to eliminate you! ]
And then out loud:
"Mana Burst!"
The energy of Arthur's Dragon Core spread throughout his body, amplifying his strength and speed. He wrapped himself in a silver glow that solidified in the form of his armor.
Left far behind by the acceleration of the Servant, Pyrrha smiled. She was happy with the reaction of the Heroic Spirit and at the same time sad. Happy to see her knight-servant so dedicated to protecting innocent children. But this kind of quick reaction... The Invincible Girl sighed... she felt Saber's anger. To take such a threat so seriously, her Servant had to be tormented by remorse. Had he failed to save children?
Arthur Pendragon suddenly turned down in front of the five Magi. He could have attacked them suddenly, without giving them a chance. But King Arthur was the paragon of chivalry. He never felt the urge to do something like that. With his outstretched arm, he directed the blade of his invisible sword towards the Magi:
"State your names and intentions clearly, or I will consider you my enemies!"
The five "men in black" turned to Saber. At that moment, he realized something. They looked so much alike, like twins, same blue hair, and same facial features. Mechanically, they turned to him without showing any surprise.
A mixture of grief and anger passed through Arthur.
His memory showed him an innocent and laughing young woman walking barefoot in the sea... the same woman barely able to stand, leaning on his arm... and then... his last vision of the homunculus woman when she was abducted by the Servant whom Arthur believed to be Iskandar.
His hands tightened on the grip of his invisible sword, but Saber unconsciously lowered his blade:
"You are homunculi!"
Arthur had extremely ambivalent feelings for the homunculi. On the one hand, he hated what they represented. They were instruments, toys used by Magi... Creatures generated in alchemic laboratories, they symbolized wonderfully the Magi's contempt for human beings and life in general.
On the other hand, Arthur considered the homunculi to be full-fledged human beings. They could laugh, love, give birth, and some could be wonderful people.
For Arthur, the creation of the homunculi was an abomination. But the culprits were the Magi, their creations were innocent children, victims of soulless monsters who used them as pawns and threw them out after use.
Knowing that the homunculi were only a few weeks old and that they could only understand what they were doing was wrong, Arthur was reluctant to attack them.
Unfortunately for the Servant, the "men in black" did not share his moral scruples. They had been ordered to eliminate anyone hindering their mission, and as perfect killing machines they immediately carried out their new mission:
The two women stretched out their arms and a circle of magic appeared in front of their palm:
"Eins, zwei, drei... für den König"
By reflex, Arthur dodged the multicolored projectiles in a succession of movements so fast that he seemed to be in several places at once. He had no reason to fear this attack, a variant of the Finn Shot. Has a Saber-class servant and having the power of the Red Dragon, Arthur had a Magic Resistance A-Rank. Only spells designed to injure dragons or cast by a Caster class servant could pass such protection.
He materialized in front of the first woman, preparing to stun her with a gauntlet slap but two of the men had thrown their briefcases and pointed at him machine guns.
With an incredible vivacity, Saber blocking all bullets with his invisible sword. The projectiles were not ordinary ammunition, they were infused Prana bullets. He caught a projectile in flight and examined it. The bullet was made of silver, engraved with a magic sign (a rectangle decorated with a cross pointing downwards) that radiated a blue light.
Blaise's mental voice echoed:
[These bullets are the result of alchemical transmutation. They are imbued with the dissolution power of the alchemical sign Tartarus. No matter remains stable attacked by such an alchemical sign. ]
Impressive...
At least, when we measured this arsenal of weapons and spells in the light of this era Magecraft.
But not enough against the most powerful class of Servant, represented in this war by the legendary King of Knights!
Unfortunately for Arthur, he had just made an error common to all who have reached its power level. He underestimated ordinary humans and even homunculi. He just forgot that whoever had sent the "men in black" was perfectly aware that his agents were operating during a Grail War and would eventually attract the attention of a Servant. He had therefore given them a weapon capable of fighting even a Heroic Spirit.
The four homunculi who attacked him only gained time while the fifth operated.
The man in black pulled a small vial out of one of his pockets. The glass container was filled with a brown liquid that looked like liquid mud. However, the glass was marked with an inverted capital A sign. The homunculi approached the side of the street. He gathered gravel in a small heap before opening the vial and spreading the liquid... The latter, fruit of alchemy, was a rare and powerful elixir known as Lithon.
Without the need for a great Formalcraft ritual, the contents of the bottle performed a magical operation that would have required hours of incantation and several powerful Magi.
The elixir and the gravel turned into a little black humanoid with red eyes... a gnome. Not the creature of child stories... no, an earth's elemental, as the mermaids are the spirits of water, the sylphs the spirits of the air, and the salamanders the spirits of fire.
When Pyrrha arrived at the site of the confrontation, she felt as though she had returned to Remnant. An entity consisting of pieces of concrete torn from the street, stones, and gravel was tearing itself away from the ground. The monster had a roughly humanoid shape.
"A Petra Gigas?"
Petra Gigas was boulders possessed by Geists, some Creatures of Grimm that resemble ghosts and are capable of "possessing" and controlling any inert object.
Blaise had heard her exclamation and replied via the mental link:
[Petra Gigas? I've never heard of this Phantasmal Species... anyway, it's not that. It's a Tectonic Entity, boulders possessed by a gnome, a Greater Earth Elemental. Only powerful Formalcraft and a lot of Mana can invoke this kind of Elemental.]
Saber had already begun to fight the Tectonic Entity. His invisible sword cut off an arm. The entity vacillated but immediately a flood of debris torn from the ground reformatted the arm.
Slow as any earth elementary, the Tectonic Entity struck Arthur, who ducked without difficulty, cutting a leg in the process.
Only the creature did not seem to be bothered. Debris torn from the ground immediately regenerated the damage.
[Pyrrha, you better get away.] Suddenly worried Blaise.
The Spartan Girl startled. She was so focused on the clash between the Tectonic Entity and Saber that she had forgotten that there were other opponents. The five homunculi approached her.
Pyrrha's hand touched her throat, untying the attachment of the rain cape. The garment fell to the ground and she appeared in her brass armor. Passing her hands behind her back, she took her javelin Miló and Akoúo, her shield.
[Blaise, I certainly cannot face Servants. But these are humans, I refuse to flee and abandon Saber! ]
Blaise's mental voice became urgent:
[Pyrrha, these are homunculi... a Magus is a human with Magic Circuits! But a homunculus is Magic Circuits that have been given a human form. No Magus of this era can face five homunculi at once! ]
Despite the situation, Pyrrha Nikos felt no fear, just excitement. She smiled with confidence:
[Good news, Blaise... I'm not a Magus. ]
"Eίμαι σίδηρος"
While the power of her Strengthening Magecraft filled the void in the bones and flesh to make Pyrrha stronger, faster, and more resilient, the Invincible Girl leaped forward:
"I'm a Huntress!"
Pyrrha ran forward dodging the Finn Shot fired by the two women. Her acceleration had been so rapid that the two pistol-bearers could not prepare for her arrival. Handling Miló transformed into a javelin like a stick, she struck the two men throwing them to the ground, snatching their weapons from their hands. But they rolled to the ground and rose immediately:
"Ein kleiner, ein großer!"
Their Magic Circuits lit up on their arms and legs, as they used their own version of Strengthening Magecraft. Drawing swords, they separated, each taking Pyrrha on either side, while the two women sent a new salvo of Finn Shot.
Turning Miló into a rifle, the Spartan Girl fired in the direction of the two spells casting women. Her shots whistle to the ears of the Homunculi... without touching them, but frightening them. Just before the men armed with swords reached her, Pyrrha jumped high and the blows cut off the empty air. She turned with a graceful stroke of the kidney holding Miló in both hands, again in the form of a javelin. As she blocked the sword blows and retaliated, throwing her opponents to the ground, the third male Homunculus had fired a gun from his jacket. While he hesitated to shoot, doubtless fearing to touch one of his companions he was hit by Akoúo. The shield (launched by Pyrrha while she was still between heaven and earth) struck the homunculus at the bottom of the neck, knocking him clean.
Rin Tohsaka swallowed. She used a Magecraft called Shared Perception to see the fight through Archer's eyes. And what she saw stunned her. Pyrrha Emiya alone faced five homunculi and largely dominated the confrontation!
It was... impossible.
Rin was one of the best Magi of her generation, a true genius from the prestigious Tohsaka lineage, her Magic Circuits had benefited from two hundred years of genetic selection. The heiress of the Tohsaka would probably have defeated one of the homunculi without a problem, two with difficulties... without the aid of her Magic Crest or her best gem Magecraft three would have been her maximum limit.
How this Pyrrha, belonging to no known lineage of Magi, could face five?!
[You still think she's an "ordinary civilian"?]
Archer's mocking mental voice made Rin turn red with anger. She tapped her foot to the ground, and crossed her arms:
[Okay, I was wrong... I had no idea she had such talents. ]
Fascinated, Rin continued to follow the fight. While Saber continued to cut the Tectonic Entity into pieces that were constantly being reconstituted, Pyrrha leaped, dodged, changing her weapon into a javelin, rifle, or sword with staggering rapidity. Her opponents could not adapt to these changes. Despite the number of her foe, the fight was completely one-sided.
After once again throwing the two male homunculi to the ground, the Amazon Girl jumped high to dodge the girls' Finn Shot. Falling back, one knee forward, she seemed to want to push the third male homunculus up into the ground. Faster than his subordinates, he dodged and straightened himself to strike Pyrrha with his sword. The blow sounded like a gong hitting Akoúo. Behind her, one of the other homunculi crawled towards an abandoned submachine gun. He straightened up pointing the weapon. Having transformed Miló into javelin, the Invincible Girl launched it without looking back... and the attacker dropped his weapon holding hands.
The javelin swirled in the air and was overtaken by Pyrrha, who turned it into a rifle, firing shots toward her opponents.
[What do you think of her, Archer? What is she worth as a fighter?]
Rin's question was met with a moment of silence, the Servant reflecting on his answer.
[It depends if you compare her to a human or a Servant. She is very fast, agile, very strong... according to human standards. But facing a Servant, she is rather weak. Tell me, do you know Pyrrha Emiya well?]
Surprised by the sudden change of subject, the heiress of the Tohsaka jolted and waved a hand in a gesture of denial:
[No more that much... we say good day and good-bye when we meet, hardly more.]
[So you won't mind if I kill her?]
Rin remained frozen a moment as she realized what he had just said, then:
[Archer, we won't kill the other Masters if we can avoid it, you hear me?! To win the Grail War, you will only go after the Servants unless I specifically order you to attack the Master! I forbid you to attack humans!]
Archer sighed and glanced at the hand of his insufferable Master. There were already only two Command Marks left. The last one had been now a shady print. He raised his hands in a gesture of despair:
[Okay, okay... you'd be able to waste an extra Command Spell to coerce me to obey. You understand at least that you let pass a golden opportunity to eliminate a Master?]
[Obey me Archer and let me the battle planning!]
[Master, you are a real pain in the ass...]
Rin acted as if she had not heard the last line. Archer was her Servant... but a very bad Servant, impolite, sarcastic, and disobedient.
Still, he was right.
If it was another Master, she might have let Archer kill him at safe distance. But she couldn't kill Pyrrha Emiya.
She had not lied to her Servant saying that she did not know Pyrrha more than that. But Rin was interested in Pyrrha because she was very close to Sakura.
Rin Tohsaka did not want to make Sakura unhappy even though... even though... her father had ordered her to forget that she had had a little sister... once.
A second Servant followed the confrontation and through his eyes, his Master discovered the capabilities of the fighters.
However, Assassin was more interested in Saber. The Knight of Sky Silver leaped everywhere around the Tectonic Entity, cutting, cutting and still cutting... His invisible sword broke the rock, tripping the earth elemental. But the earth continued to regenerate the entity. It was like Heracles facing the hydra of the Herne... a battle of attrition. But Assassin was not sure that the hero would triumph this time. Actually, Saber was already gasping.
As he stopped for a moment, the face of the blond knight showed a brief tension of pain as he touched his left shoulder.
The masked individual focused on the mental bond with his Magus:
[Master, Saber is already injured.]
A voice of a distinguished and somewhat arrogant woman replied:
[Yes, this is useful information. However, since the children are safe and another Servant is in charge of these annoyances, it may be time to resume your mission, Assassin. Don't you think so?]
Under his mask, the Servant smiled. A sudden heat had driven away the usual coldness of the Assassin. All his mortal life had been devoted to murder... his "gift" made that the Servant was born to kill. And he had been used to kill again, again and again. His mortal life had been nothing but a long succession of murders. In fact, the only happy moment of his life had been when the executioner's axe had made him pay for his crimes.
But his Master was not like all the people who had exploited his curse. Instead of ordering him to kill, she worried about children and even prepared a mission that would save a life.
The masked being touched the medallion that his Master had given him and began to run towards Kotomine church.
[We're lucky, Master. The fake priest probably has to focus on the confrontation. My chances of getting into the church without being spotted are better than ever. ]
Miló again threw the assailant to the ground. This time the homunculus remained motionless, properly knocked down. Pyrrha leaped forward to slip between the two women homunculi. Drawing daggers from their sleeves, they threw themselves on the redheaded Amazon. But the latter threw Akoúo before jumping back. The shield struck the first woman in the head before bouncing and hurting the second in the belly. The two women collapsed as the Oplon shield returned to Pyrrha's wrist... just in time to block the last two "men in black" attacks.
Wielding her javelin in quick movements, she leaped and turned around to deliver kicks and bashes. Struck several times, one of the opponents remained on the ground.
But the leader of the homunculi was more resistant than his subordinates. He leaned on his great sword and rose up with difficulty. Taking the blade with two hands, he concentrated:
"Nachläßt"
A wave of blue light will rip open the street for about ten meters...
The Invincible Girl had leaped high dodging the attack. She fell to the ground in front of the assailant and grabbed him to catapult him to the sky. Jumping to catch the homunculus, she hit him with an overhead kick that sent him back to the ground. He had just hit the ground... and very violently that Pyrrha landed on his back on her feet together! The impact of a cannonball would not have caused more damage, the ground lifted for three meters while the leader of the "men in black" was driven into the ground.
There was a moment of silence...
None of Pyrrha's opponents rose up. However, none of them had died.
[ ... Pyrrha... tell me... in your family, there are really only humans? No demigod... angels maybe? A demon? A little cute devil?]
The Invincible Girl just shook her head and smiled.
But Blaise did not accept her lack of an answer. Her mental voice was almost hysterical:
[It looked like a cat playing with mice... an ordinary human cannot beat five Homunculi! Strengthening Magecraft amplifies abilities... but for you to be so strong after a single-verse aria... it means that your natural strength far exceeds that of an ordinary human.]
Pyrrha just smiled without answering before turning to Saber. Her Servant continued to confront the Tectonic Entity.
"I am the bone of my sword
Steel is my body and fire is my blood
I have created over a thousand blades"
The Hero Emiya stood on top of Fuyuki's tallest tower. An incredible power gathered in a red flame that danced over his open hand.
He suddenly opened his eyes:
"Caladbolg!"
The red energy condensed into a sword whose blade resembled a sort of corkscrew. Taking it, he placed it on the rope and stretched his great black bow. The blade becomes thinner, taking a more aerodynamic form, turning into a kind of arrow.
Around the archer, a sort of blue vapor rose from the ground, as he concentrated his power inside the arrow he had just created. The latter was glowing red.
Suddenly, he released his bow and a red comet took flight at supersonic speed towards the stranger's cemetery where Saber continued to face the Tectonic Entity.
Pyrrha stopped with a grin of pain.
Her Magic Circuits had spontaneously awakened.
She held her hand to her head like a needle of fire sank into her brain.
Iron... Fire...
Her gaze diverted over the houses, towards the tall buildings in the distance, magnetized by the danger she felt. She saw a red flame flickering at the top of the highest skyscraper.
Iron... Fire... Danger!
Her Magic Circuits radiated like never before. Small green electric arcs appeared on her arms and legs. The sense of danger had released all her latent power.
Her gaze turned to the cemetery.
Between the graves, Saber ran, dodging an attack and raising his invisible sword... the Hero seemed to be walking... time was incredibly slow and the Tectonic Entity looked like a statue.
However, Pyrrha's actions were even slower than those of Saber!
The consciousness of danger directed at her Servant had incredibly accelerated her mind, but her body remained that of a young human woman. Slow... weak... fragile... at least compared to that of a Servant.
"Eίμαι σίδηρος"
Pyrrha began to run towards Saber. But even though her speed was accelerated by Strengthening Magecraft...The Spartan Girl was still too slow. Behind her a red light had just appeared... death rushed towards Saber. What could she do?
A mental voice seemed to echo in his mind:'... a single-verse aria'.
The trigger for her Strengthening Magecraft was a single-verse aria. There was a limit to what the simplest Magecraft could do.
Without thinking, she added two verses to her aria:
"στη μορφή του
το πιο εκλεπτυσμένο"(1)
All of a sudden, the Spartan Girl leaps forward despite the pain that was spreading in her body and her overloaded Magic Circuits. Placing herself between the earth elemental and her Servant, Pyrrha raised Akoúo which she reinforced with the maximum output of her Strengthening Magecraft. Caladbolg II arrived at this moment. The Fake Spiral Sword coils into a spiral that can penetrate any target by creating a twisting distortion in space when fired (2).
The Tectonic Entity was pierced through and through. Archer had aimed at the head thinking that the gnome was in this place and he was right... the Greater Earth Elemental was killed in an instant... so much so that such a creature could be described as alive.
The projectile then struck Akoúo. The Oplon shield was a Miscellaneous Mystic Code, an object charged with certain power and that Pyrrha had imbued with all the energy that she could draw from her Magic Circuits. In a riot of green and red light, the two powers opposed each other. But Pyrrha could not obstruct a Noble Phantasm... the shield exploded into a thousand fragments and the corkscrew arrow continued its course, barely slowed down, piercing the teenage girl...
The Fake Spiral Sword finally hit Saber penetrating his armor and sinking into his chest...
Saber remained stunned for an instant. Projected down to the ground with violence, he caught up with Pyrrha by reflex. Then an expression of horror appeared on his face. Without paying attention to the deep wound that Caladbolg II had inflicted on him, he looked at his Master's blood on his hands.
The girl's green eyes were cloudy and her chest was a bloody mess!
"Pyrrha!"
On the helicopter platform at the top of Fuyuki's tallest tower, Archer was stunned for a moment. Pyrrha Emiya tried to block his arrow! Of course, Caladbolg II was at A+ Broken Noble Phantasm, it was impossible to stop it for a human even as gifted as her. But her sacrifice had slowed down the arrow and saved Saber's life... temporarily.
Worried, Archer turned to Rin. The Tohsaka's heiress had followed the whole scene with his own eyes. She was shocked and surprised, unable to understand what had just happened.
"Master, Pyrrha Emiya threw herself on the trajectory of my arrow to try to stop it. It's not my fault if..."
The Red Devil Magus clenched her fists with anger and began to shout:
"You moronic idiot!"
Rin's reply made the Servant even more worried, but it was not addressed to him:
"Dumb girl... what were you trying to do? The Servants are DEAD peoples... what is the point of sacrificing yourself to save someone who exists only by the magical energy you provide?"
With tears in her eyes, Rin turned away:
"Poor Sakura... "
As she wiped her eyes, Rin looked at Archer:
"Come on, let's get out of here!"
Rin Tohsaka had just won a victory but felt only sadness and bitterness... Two people had already died because of her. All this blood for a wish... Is the Grail really worth it?
Pyrrha Nikos had the impression of falling into an endless dark sea, lower, always lower... Without curiosity or real feeling of existence, she did not struggle even as her mind was eroding, sucked by nothingness...
Suddenly a golden light pushed back the darkness around her.
In front of the young woman was a scabbard of blue lacquer and gold, a magnificent object adorned with letters of unknown writing. The Invincible Girl felt called, she reached out to touch the scabbard...
And the darkness was torn, overcome by a light older than the world.
(1) Its pronounced: "sti morfÍ tou to pio ekleptysméno" And it's translated: "in its most refined form." Remember that the first verse of Pyrrha's aria means "I am (made) of iron."
(2) In UBW, Caladbolg II explodes because Berserker has the reflex to hit the unstable (broken) Noble Phantasm. This is not the normal effect of Caladbolg II, which is certainly not "a tactical nuclear bomb," as some Fan Fic authors say. In the same anime, against Caster, Caladbolg II only pierces the magic shield of Medea, no explosion.