VercingetorixRex: Thanks for the review and yes, I would be sadly focused on the main plot (or as it was). Although, I have plans to sneak some of them if I found it interesting. Once again, thank you for the review.

Cage of Glory (FGO x Date a Bullet Fanfic)

Part 2

"Hibiki, just stay close and I'll protect you." Ritsuka assured Hibiki. "It seemed that I needed to take her down too."

Doll Master heard her threat and assessed her that she was too dangerous to live. With her hundred dolls, she can easily kill that girl with ease… and yet those shadow creatures kept on denying her prey.

*BANG*

Doll Master jumped sideways and barely got shot by that damned shadow's bullet if it weren't for her tenth doll taking the potshot. She was getting nervous and agitated enough, she was sure that they were powerful but not these powerful. She gritted her teeth in frustration. Could it be that she was wrong?

Then she ordered a couple of them to attack her blind side.

*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

And they were blown to smithereens. At this rate, she will be running out of the dolls. She was lucky that Ritsuka was defensive for a moment or else she would already have a hole on her forehead.

Why would the girl be willing to protect that worthless Quasi-spirit?

The further she tried to think rationally, the further she became frustrated.

At this point, this might as well be called for a draw; or if Ritsuka would be willing to step forward.

As Doll Master was trying to stall, another grim thought crept her mind. What if they weren't just powerful but also rumored to be actual Spirits?

As she scrutinized her opponent further, she couldn't mistake the actual abilities of Ritsuka's of summoning otherworldly Spirits and commanding them, which is reminiscent of an actual Spirit she had heard of.

The High Commanding Conqueror who reins Heroics and Villainous! She was about to have a heart attack upon thinking of it! Why didn't she think of it earlier? It wasn't enough that she didn't realize that those shadow Servants that the girl was summoning were reminiscent of Quasi-Spirits.

…

…

…

Doll Master's blood froze. Being a pawn was enough for her, and for someone who could possibly brainwash you to her own side was a thousand times worse, if only that ignorance was a bliss, which unfortunately wasn't too helpful for someone who was too aware of her situation at the moment.

*KABLAM!*

The unfortunate entrance of Biscuit Smasher interrupted Ritsuka's attention, who came flying down from the hole from the rooftop and down the floor, creating a crater.

And from another entrance, in came Kurumi with her weapons drawn.

"Did I miss something?" She cackled evilly as she set her eyes upon the frightened Biscuit Smasher. As if not getting enough attention, the majority of the known Quasi-Spirits eventually gathered in this building.

Even though the fight looks promising for Doll Master who could use this chance to ambush other Quasi-Spirits, she took the coward's route and ran away from the fight. It might have been a simple royal rumble but being involved with a genuine High Spirit might be too disadvantageous.

so Doll Master ran away with her tail between her legs. Better live up the next time. It's a good omen that no one remembers her after they started the scuffle between each other.

She ran toward the halls.

...away from the fight.

..into the light.

….and then into the nothingness.

Doll Master was distraught, betrayed. She thought that this would be just an ordinary game of death but she was being played.

She was played by the Queen herself.

"W-What is the meaning of this?!" She demanded the Queen herself, who promptly stood up after her royal throne. Her frosty heterochromatic eyes set upon the Quasi-Spirit in front of her, although, her attention was set upon Kurumi and Ritsuka, who seemed to have a showdown at the moment.

When the Queen won't respond, Doll Master repeated her question. "Why? You said you won't appear this time?" She said as she ladened it with her disbelief.

Queen just grinned in satisfaction. "Thank you Doll Master, for dancing just the way I wanted. Your usefulness has run afoul this time."

Doll Master just gasped at Queen's decision. Of course, Queen might have been as powerful as Ritsuka and Kurumi but she'll be damned if she will let herself be stomped down by anyone.

Without any hesitation, Doll Master threw a doll at Queen.

*BANG*

But alas, the bullet was faster than she could anticipate. The Doll has a big hole in it and Doll Master's clothing was immediately stained with her deep red blood.

Slowly and terrifyingly, Doll Master's existence slowly waned out until there was nothing left of her but that cute little doll she used as a weapon and a crystal that bears her recent memory.

Queen just took the crystal and observed its mirror-like quality. There, she saw Ritsuka Fujimaru herself, commanding some ghost Spirits for her stead. She smirked, of course her real target was Kurumi all along but she's not honest if she has taken interest in Conqueror.

By the looks of it, it shouldn't be possible for Ritsuka to be, well, here at the moment. But who cares! She was just glad that she have enough playmates to deal with and she's no brainer at complicated thought, though she wondered who is the mastermind behind all of these besides her.

Kurumi stopped dancing.

The stage was riddled with holes and craters, courtesy of her and Ritsuka, as well as their fellow enemies. Some were now fallen into the battle or fled before it could escalate. A wise choice indeed.

It was a miracle that Hibiki survived the gunfight, being flanked by Kurumi and the Last Master of Chaldea. Ritsuka's shadowy Servants dissipated as she breathed with ease.

"Is it finished?" She said, huffing between words. Kurumi only gave her a confirming glance. She eventually dismissed her weapons. The first thing after being in the heat of the battle was to search for the kitty cat. She was sure that she could find her in this restricting space.

"What do we do next, Kurumi?" Ritsuka opted to ask but Kurumi was already gone. Ritsuka was silently cursing as she realized that Kurumi was too focused on her own cat. Hibiki meanwhile was busy watching her in a fit of anger and then her calming down. Instinctively, Ritsuka held Hibiki's hand and dragged her away.

"W-where, are we going? Ritsuka-san?" Hibiki was visibly concerned.

Ritsuka answered straight. "I-I still don't know… face the Queen I guess." She decided at the last minute. She gave Hibiki a curious stare. "You happen to know where the Queen is?"

Hibiki just swayed her head in disappointment. Ritsuka sighed. The longer she was here, the more concerned she was about the outside world.

Ritsuka was now frustrated after the battle and the only one Spirit she trusted, that is Kurumi, chose to ignore all the commotion for just a cat.

Ritsuka weaved a path, with Hibiki tagging along. If Hibiki and Kurumi couldn't help that much, then she needed to increase her effort more and find someplace that she suspected is where Queen currently resides.

After a considerable distance, Kurumi found herself in an open field, with the kitty cat laying cautiously by the grass. She knew that Ritsuka, as well as that girl named Hibiki, can protect themselves for a moment.

This poor cat seemed to be lost, in this ethereal space. Its blue eyes were looking straight at Kurumi, who was currently crouching before the cute cat. Relief bloomed in the eyes of [Nightmare].

"What are you doing, here?" Kurumi cooed as she carefully picked her up and cradled her like a baby.

With all the weirdness that happened to her, Kurumi's only sole concern was the safety of one lost cat. She admitted that she didn't care that she and Ritsuka ended up in this dream-like world.

She believed that despite everything, she believed that the kitty cat was thoroughly innocent. The cat let Kurumi handle her carefully, as if it was fully believing that Kurumi has genuine care over it.

While busy cupping the cat by her shoulder and chest, Kurumi noticed a piece of paper not far from where she found the cat. Kurumi gave it a long stare, as if she was expecting to do something extraordinary, before she got bored and curious and eventually picked it up nicely using only one hand.

Reading its content only made Kurumi frown.

One more glance and then she eventually set her hands into fist with such malice, crushing the paper within.

Ritsuka and Hibiki already seemed to have already roamed the entirety of the campus; Principal's room, basketball court, all possible classrooms, teacher's lounge, everything.

Save for the church.

It was lucky that they rarely encountered Pseudo-Servants anymore, and even if they did, they wisely avoided their path. Seeing that they have no chance fighting her after witnessing the all-out brawl. She hoped that their recent reputation was enough to dissuade their other competitiors, seeing that they have no desire for that wish.

Ritsuka gulped as Hibiki looked up at her with concern.

"Are you alright, Ritsuka-san?"

Ritsuka just nodded. "Hnn. It's ok." Then she shifted her attention toward the huge door. "Do you think she's in here?" Her voice was tinted with worry.

Hibiki meanwhile just swayed her head. "No, I don't think there is someone there." She answered with such certainty but for Ritsuka, it doesn't hurt to take a peek inside.

The big door creaked, letting some light pour inside. Ritsuka's face peeked in slightly, her eyes carefully adjusted by the , Ritsuka could see rows and rows of long benches and an altar at the far side and obligatory dust floating around inside the church and windows of Kaleidoscopic colors lazily easing the atmosphere.

It's funny that this is the first time Ritsuka thought of traps inside the church and proceeded to walk in bravely, ensuring herself that there are no booby traps or sneaky enemies at the moment.

Her eyes were trained at all corners she could spot and of all the places that she needed to creep out, she wondered why being inside the church just made her uneasy all of the sudden.

"What are you doing?" Hibiki followed up behind her, intending to get as close as possible. She, too , felt uncomfortable for no reason ever. She subconsciously clutched Ritsuka's clothes due to the same uneasiness Ritsuka was feeling currently.

Their careful steps reached the altar itself and Ritsuka was examining its surface in curiosity. No oddities she has encountered so far and that means Ritsuka was losing hope on how to escape this dreaded dimension.

Ritsuka sighed as she was about to get out of the church and maybe, rendezvous with Kurumi outside. It seemed that the Queen wasn't here either.

Ritsuka's depressive face lit up when her ears perked up upon meeting Kurumi by the door and the first thing in Ritsuka's head that registered was that there is something odd about her.

"Hey there, Kurumi, glad you could join us shortly." Ritsuka raised a palm and greeted her naturally. Hibiki, who knowingly was attached with Ritsuka and Kurumi at their first meet, was now clutching even closer behind Ritsuka and solemnly buried her face onto his back.

"T-There is something wrong with her!" Hibiki hissed as she warned her. That was one of the confirmation Ritsuka needed to know to address the unknown before them.

The fact that whoever was in front of them wasn't Kurumi at all. Ritsuka felt tense when 'Kurumi' materialized a musket and was about to aim it at them.

*BANG* *CRASH*

The large, dreary window was broken and in came another Kurumi, the one that Ritsuka knew to the bone and even Hibiki acknowledged her presence as genuine. Big pieces of colored crystals lay waste around Kurumi.

Ritsuka really intended to dive away into the seats and summon another Shadow Servant. She still has this incessant fear that she might run out of mana summoning them and she doesn't know what threshold she must pass before consequences might mess her up.

Of course, the fake one hid behind those benches.

"I don't know who you are but I am certainly damn sure that you are not one of my clones." Kurumi stated in a serious voice, musket and flintlock aimed at the bench where Fake Kurumi was hiding from the crosshair.

The fake one didn't talk back but made a scathing response.

*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

Kurumi evaded instinctually.

"Kurumi!" Ritsuka exclaimed, her intention to help her blaring as it gets.

"Stay away and sit down, Ritsuka!" Kurumi ordered her for the first time. "She's one I need to deal with personally."

Ritsuka nodded and didn't dare to question anymore. Kurumi earlier was just bored and slacking lately, but now it seems that she is motivated for something. If Kurumi was serious about this then there is no way she would try to interfere in this fight. She promptly pulls Hibiki closer to her and crawls to a safer area.

The fake Kurumi seemed to be annoyed that Ritsuka was out of reach and that she needed to have a showdown with the real Kurumi.

*BANG* *BANG*

Kurumi intended for her to be pinned behind that bench but the fake Kurumi already sprinted to the other side, hails of hole followed her path.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Kurumi was gritting her teeth.

Even the new bench the fake Kurumi was hiding was short lived and it prompted her to jump to the next bench.

*BANG*

Fake Kurumi did a fleeting shot that bursted through Kurumi's thighs. Kurumi crinched from the pain and bit her lips from bearing the pain. Blood was flowing out of her leg.

Fake Kurumi smiled.

Through her bloodied teeth, Kurumi called upon her Angel. "Aleph!" and Fake Kurumi found herself frowning.

*BANG*

A single hole appeared on Fake Kurumi's forehead and she ceased living, her face of disappointment forever etched on the corpse. Blood poured out of the bullet hole.

Just to make sure that she is deader than dead, Kurumi opted to give the body a few more holes.

*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*

And all ended well.

"Dalet!" Kurumi shot herself and the wound on her leg was gone. Still, she wasn't satisfied with this anticlimactic victory. She looked down at the propped up corpse of herself. Kurumi's shadow begins to make its way to it.

She intended to devour everything about the Fake Kurumi and in a minute, there's nothing else left except for the tell-tale of a destroyed bench.

Memories, unknown memories. Set-up fragments. Clarifications of a certain individual. Kurumi felt her eyes twitch in annoyance. This stupid fight was just a set-up, for her to pass a message. It was all ridiculous and yet she wondered if everything was just a joke.

"Kurumi?" Ritsuka approached her, making sure that nothing else was threatening them. She was worried about Kurumi at the moment. She was sure that it was the real Kurumi she was facing.

Kurumi just gave her a disarming smile and tilted her head against Ritsuka's left ear.

"She's coming for you Ritsuka, Ellen will try to enact her revenge on you!"

Ritsuka just widened her eyes in realization after Kurumi retreated away from her.

What did she mean by it? Ritsuka was completely confused.

"Kurumi, what do you mean?" and before Kurumi could tell her, explain it to her, Ritsuka straight up disappeared.

There was no warning, Ritsuka was gone from that spot and Kurumi was furious. her warnings were half-baked at the moment and she felt solitary standing inside the church alone or she thought she was.

*CLAP* ~ *CLAP* ~ *CLAP*

A sarcastic applause, led by Hibiki alone.

"Well done..." she cooed.

Kurumi was fully expecting it. Afterall a kitty cat isn't someone to lie to. Her flintlock was aimed at Hibiki's head.

"White Queen." Kurumi stated her true name confidently and Hibiki just chuckled. Kurumi has had enough of pretenders lately.

"Don't you just feel bad being screwed up?" Hibiki said as she shed her disguise. A pair of heterochromatic eyes set upon Kurumi as she was fully dressed in a white militaristic uniform and a long skirt.

It is as if she was the true opposite of Kurumi herself. Even White Queen has the same weapon as Kurumi herself.

White Queen was smiling. "We both knew that her tell-tale scent was all over this stage play she enacted for you and Miss Conqueror herself. This is the first time she had a hands-on on your literal screw up."

Kurumi just squinted. She was well aware who the White Queen was referring to.

"This was supposed to be my… your personal conflict but when she tried to interfere, I fear that I have no choice but to comply."

"And you intend to seek sympathy with me?"

"By the Spirit, no..." White Queen said as a matter of fact. "I would shoot myself rather than being paired with you."

Kurumi gave her the giddiest grin she ever had. "That's better." Never have she thought to have someone agreeing with her.

White Queen seemed to be enjoying the tenseness of the situation. "I think I'm feeling generous all of the sudden so I will tell you why I'm willing to defy my own law.." She blinked in anticipation. "I would have to commit a gruesome killing on you and never let you land back to the real world" Her musket and flintlock were ready.

Kurumi was as thrilled as White Queen in terms of butchery. "You know, if we weren't some kind of puppets of fate… I could have been your best friend."

White Queen flinched upon hearing it but not enough to take notice of [Nightmare]. Of course, each of them shared sentiments with each other.

Both Clockwork eyes looked at each other.

"Shall, we dance!"

"Shall, we dance!"

Gunshots rang from the church as chaos burst forth.

At that moment, Ritsuka opened her weary-eyes, having awoken as if she were in some kind of a coma.

Raising her upper body, she felt just exhausted for some reason. Mashu was already beside her, attending to her needs.

She wasn't aware of what happened before that forgotten dream.

"Mashu… what happened?" She was curious enough.

Mashu just smiled at her. "You fell ill all of the sudden and were bedridden for a day. We were worried that it might be related to your core but it seems that you are ok."

Ritsuka was just clutching her forehead and indeed it was warm. Yes, she remembered the dream, but now it was slipping away from her mind. It is as if there is something important.

She felt annoyed that at the most important time, her body just went haywire all of the sudden and that the core that was inserted in her was to blame. Also, another note was that she was thankful that Nightingale wasn't involved… at least not yet.

Looking at Mashu, who shared the same thought; if Senpai did not improve the coming day, then she would be forced to rely on Berserker… or any Servants versed in healing. It was such a relief that she recovered naturally before it would escalate.

Ritsuka wished that tomorrow and the following days would be like this; no hidden shenanigans, no chaos, just calm, normal and being happy with her Servants.

The dream? it was already fleeting away… on the verge of forgetfulness.