Chapter 11: Questions

The four re-entered the front door of the dress-like structure.

"We have to beat that thing." Emu said.

"Indeed. I was about to say just that." Saber agreed.

They progressed down the same hallway that they passed through. It was no less strange than the last time.

"Based on what we've seen, that monster must be the Floor Master's Servant." Rin noted. "We can probably assume that it ate the rest of the Masters who stayed on the third floor."

"To think that there would be a monster that consumes people in order to repeat such a show." Saber said.

"If we take one's entire life as a performance, then the accumulation of one's habitual efforts amount to the preparations for that show." Saber went on. "Perhaps one might stumble at a critical scene or performance, but doing it over is fundamentally impossible. Even if one were to stand upon an identical stage, to expect the exact same results would be folly."

Takeru nodded his head.

"I see. Though I guess that monster doesn't really count, as it can just reset time, so it can continue to do the exact same thing over and over again. Normally, life is supposed to burn brightly once, but I guess I am an exception-"

"What a roundabout example." Rin cut in.

Saber tilted her head. "Was it?"

"Takeru is right. The rules of living don't really apply to it, as it has the power to loop time. Though it's not really a loop. More of a Reset."

Reset.

Emu remembered that word. He had similar experiences in the past.

"We retained our memories from that loop. Only time rewound. If that's the case, then it would be the same for our foe."

Rin smiled.

"They'll try much harder to kill us the next time, then." She said.

"But how do we defeat it?" Takeru asked. "If we beat it, it will just rewind time."

If only we had a Save energy item. Emu thought. But he doubted that this world would have an Energy Item like that. In that case, he would have to try other ways.

"Well, if there is a Servant, then there should be a Master." Emu said.

Rin nodded her head.

"That's correct. Therefore, we should split up. Search for any clues as the where the Master is."

As they were about to set out on their separate ways, Emu went over to Takeru and returned his Ore Eyecon to him.

"Hey, Takeru. For some reason, I have your Eyecon. Should I give it back to you?"

Takeru hesitated before pushing the Eyecon gently back to Emu.

"I must have given it to you for a reason. You keep it for now. I have a feeling that you'll need it."

Emu gave his thanks and set off to investigate.

Emu came across an abandoned campsite. There were empty crates and shelves covered in dust. On a mouldy table was a wooden cup. Emu picked it up to look at it.

There were Masters who fled back to the first floor. There must have also been people who couldn't flee…

Unnerved by the thought, Emu put down the cup.

For the sake of their wishes, they stayed here and fought that monster.

But what about me…?

He turned to look at a mirror. His reflection stared back at him grimly.

My wish…

The more he thought about it, the more his head grew fuzzy. He knew that he came here for a reason, but all those other desires of his-

No. Ours.

He shook his head. Then he reopened his eyes

Ah, that's right. Uncontrollable hatred. That's who I've become-

No, wait!

For a moment, he thought he saw a glint of purple in his reflection's eyes. Then it vanished as quickly as it came.

Well, there's nothing here. I should go back.

"To return to our earlier topic, I really do like ghosts."

They had met up again with very little to report, so they were continuing on the path they were on before. Rin was talking along the way.

"They're similar to Dead Faces, but not identical."

There it is again.

The words had been bothering Emu since she first said them when they arrived at the floor.

"If you had to compare Dead Faces to something, they're more like zombies." Rin continued. "Driven by negative emotions… numerically speaking, they should be zeroes, but they're unpredictable. Variable."

Zombies…

He touches his Dangerous Zombie gashat in his pocket again.

How appropriate.

"…but they're just rumours, right?" Takeru asked tentatively.

"Well, yes." Rin answered, giving a sly smile.

Emu shruddered

"They say they can't create anything." Rin returned to her ralk. "They simply exist to despise the living."

Emu was uneasy.

"Where do they come from?" Emu asked nervously

"Well, after someone dies once, they get rebooted by their grudges. They're corpses."

Rebooted, huh?

"They say it varies from case to case, though. Those who died too much while they were still alive, the dead living, those that started moving around despite not being alive, the living dead…"

Dan…

He remembered his former enemy. The descriptions Rin gave fitted him very well. It was him who used the Dangerous Zombie gashat.

Why could he use it, though…?

"Sounds complicated." Takeru cut in.

"The two types seem pretty different to me, but neither kind have any future." Rin continued.

"They can never return to how they were before, nor can they die and move on.

They simply loiter, stuck in place, stuck in time.

Ever vengeful. Ever reminiscing.

Until eventually, they lose everything that they used to be…"

"You like books, don't you?"

Emu was sitting in a teacup with Alice, who had a book open. Slotted between two pages was a blue bookmark.

"Yeah, I do! Until Onii-chan showed up, the books were my only friends!" Alice replied.

She turned a page.

"The books were the only ones kind to me."

She turned a page again.

"What a sad story." Emu commented.

"You know, children's fairy tales are often sad." Alice said.

Then she giggled.

"But Alice doesn't mind."

The pages of the book flipped backwards rapidly.

"After all, if something sad happens, you can always just go back to the first page."

Emu's head hurt a bit.

The flipping stopped at the page with the blue bookmark.

"See?" Alice asked, addressing Emu.

Emu laughed a bit and smiled.

"Yeah, you're right."

He then turned to Alice.

"I'm not very good, but would you like me to read it to you?"

Alice's face brightened and she smiled widely.

"Yeah!"

Back at the tea table, Emu had Alice on his lap as he read the book to her from the beginning. He felt a familiar sensation when he did this.

Ah, my doctoring days…

He recalled when he would do this to the other kids in the hospital. Every time he did this, he would always feel a warm feeling in his heart, and this time was no different.

It's nice to get away from everything.

"…and they all lived happily ever after." Emu finished the story.

Alice was surprised.

"It had a happy ending!"

"Yeah."

"Was that really how that story went?"

Then she smiled.

"But it was really fun!"

Then, Emu asked a question that was in his mind for a while.

"Why do you stay here?"

Alice looked up at Emu with a quizzical look.

"Why do you ascend?" she asked back.

Emu was taken aback. Alice's pink eyes pierced him with their gaze.

He sighed.

He opened his mouth to respond, then stopped. He tried to get the words out of his mouth, but he couldn't.

I… can't give a definitive answer anymore.

His mind ached. He shut his eyes for a moment until the pain subsided. Then he opened his eyes.

"Oh, how splendid!" Alice replied.

Eh?

Did I say something?

Alice shut the book and stood up, turning to look at Emu. She leant forward and put her hands of Emu's shoulders.

"Let's play tag, ok? You're it!"

She jumped off his lap and ran off into the distance.

Emu, still confused, obliged. He covered his eyes with his hands.

One…. Two… Three…

"How long do you intend to keep quiet?"

Emu peeked through his hands. On the other side of the table was Amari.

"That girl's your opponent, isn't she? She's the enemy Master. It's her you have to beat.

It doesn't matter how much fun you have with her. How much you play with her. How much you befriend her.

In the end, one of you is going to have to end up killing the other."

Emu wondered what she was talking about. Then, a searing pain flashed through his mind.

He yelled and grasped his head, shutting his eyes tightly.

Images flashed through his mind, as if they were being fast-forwarded.

We remember.

The first time he came to this place.

The first meeting he had with Alice.

The fun times they had.

Then, her story.

She didn't deserve to be here.

She didn't deserve to die.

"You're too naïve. You can only ascend by trampling the weak. Isn't that how you got here?" Amari continued.

Emu stood up.

"Amari."

He turned to her.

"Thank you. For reminding me."

Amari's expression remained cold.

"But if I kill her…"

He clenched his fists. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"I can never call myself a doctor ever again."

Rin, Takeru and Saber turned around. They saw Emu walking back to them, a determined look on his face.

"Maestro, why must you keep wandering off on your own?" Saber demanded.

Emu ignored her.

"Saber, you took part in a Holy Grail War, right?"

Saber tilted her head, then puffed out her chest with a smug smile.

"Umu!"

"Then tell me something. Was there ever anyone who managed to ascend without killing their opponent?"

Rin and Saber were taken aback.

"What?"

Then Saber piped up.

"Indeed. There was."

"There was?!" Rin turned to Saber in shock.

"It's extremely rare, mind you." Saber continued.

"If one's opponent abandons the fight, they win by default. In that case, the one who abandoned the fight-"

Suddenly, a wall exploded in front of them, and out stormed the Bugster Union. It had grown bigger since the last time they saw it, and it had even more appendages then before.

Saber, ever quick, whipped out her sword.

"There's no point fighting it! We have to find its Master!" Rin shouted.

The Union roared, and orange branches grew out of its sides. From those branches, scissors grew like leaves.

This is bad!

Before Emu could even take out his Driver, the Union launched a volley of scissors right at him.

"Maestro!"

Saber ran in front of Emu, lifting her sword to block the scissors.

A flurry of scissors then approached Emu from another direction.

Rin ran and materialised multiple layers of green code to block them. The scissors bounced off them, but there was no end to the onslaught.

Takeru tried transforming into Robin Hood Damashii, but could barely take the Eyecon out before it was struck out of his hand by a scissor. Then, the rest of the scissors cut him to pieces.

Rin maintained her defensive stance, but it was clear that it was too much to her. Cracks formed on the wall, then it burst, the walls breaking one by one until the scissors reached Rin and ripped her to shreds.

Rin!

His eyes glowed purple. His left hand blazed red.

Emu opened his eyes.

Where am I now?

Is this… them again?

He vaguely remembered the monster. The attack. The deaths.

"You wish to save that girl, then?"

A female voice.

Whose was it?

A door materialised into view.

"Very well. I shall show you the truth." The voice said.

"The truth that the girl hid from you all this time."

The sign on the door clicked.

It now read

Open