Fate/Kyon's Order: The Return
A Haruhi Suzumiya & Fate/Grand Order Crossover
by Derald Snyder
Part 24: Saving Meltryllis
"Demonic Sun Shower!" Suzuka Gozen called, the demon pillar getting shanked through several of it's eyes by an uncountable number of katana!
"Good thing she didn't get the chance to use that against us," Shiki muttered.
"And I thought you were the only one who could do that," Artesia said to Emiya Alter.
"Guess that's why BB made her a Sentinel to begin with," the blackened Archer sighed as he loaded his gun. "I am the bone of my sword. So as I pray, Unlimited Lost Works!" He fired a mana bullet that hit the wounded pillar dead center, the demon soon being ripped to shreds from the resulting explosion of swords! "Pillar terminated."
"Good work, everyone!" Ritsuka complimented. "Now, let's go after Melt-"
Just then, he was cut off as Arnold Beckman's visage appeared again. "What are you doing?! Is the Sentinel dealt with?! Serapix is starting to sink faster! By my calculations, we only have five hours left!"
"We had to deal with a demon pillar attacking!" Haruhi answered for her fellow Master. "Don't worry, it's dead!"
"Okay, good! Now hurry up and get back here so we can head to the planetarium together!"
"Sorry, but no," Ritsuka rebuffed him. "We're going after Meltryllis."
"What?!" Arnold cried in disbelief. "Forget about that Alter Ego! We don't have time! You need to get me- er, us out of here!"
"No," Ritsuka insisted. "We're going to save Meltryllis!"
"I don't think you realize who you're talking to," Beckman's tone went low and dangerous. "Who do you think is going to write the report on you when this is all over? That's right, me. Now I'm going to pretend you didn't talk back to me-"
"Oh, shut up!" Haruhi cut in. "I was wondering how long it would take you to drop your mask, you bastard! We viewed memories of some of your subordinates, you know! We know that you had everyone above you executed, and that you manipulated everyone so that YOU would be the last man standing! I am THIS close," she ranted on, "to saying 'the hell with you' and letting you get devoured by the demon pillar or whatever else! So if I were you, I would sit down, shut your mouth, and let us do our jobs!" With that, she made a slashing motion across her throat, the transmission cutting off.
"Nicely done, Master," Artesia complimented.
"I would've just hung up on him," Ritsuka said.
"You want me to silence him, just say the word," Emiya Alter suggested.
"Not now! We have to help Melt, remember?" Haruhi said. "So, uh, what's down there anyway?"
"SERAPH's garbage pile," Passionlip said. "Most likely corresponding to Seraphix's trash compactor."
"So different from where I was thrown," Shiki spoke up. "So how do we get down there without going splat?"
"I have some rope," Emiya Alter said. "Only about six kilometers, though."
"Let's hope that's enough," Haruhi said. "So who's coming down with us?"
"I'm not letting you out of my sight again, Master," Artesia insisted.
"I'm coming too! Us delinquents have to stick together!" Suzuka declared.
"...I'm going to stay here. Being treated like garbage once was enough," Shiki averted her gaze.
"Alright, the rest of you stay up here and hold the rope," Ritsuka instructed.
"Okay, good luck!" Tamamo Cat said as the four began their descent...
*Down below...*
Meltryllis couldn't move. Her legs had shattered upon impact, and now she could do was wait to be crushed... (Albrecht, my Albrecht... how I miss you so...) She recalled the times she had spent with Ritsuka previously, before it had all gone wrong... (I don't understand something, though... why didn't that other one come here this time? Even if Suzumiya is a friend of hers... Did she somehow remember what happened before...?) She felt herself blacking out as the crushers closed in...
But then, someone suddenly pulled her out just in time! "Gotcha! That was a close one!" Melt opened her eyes to see Ritsuka leaning over her!
"Master...!" Melt gasped in disbelief. "Y-you followed me down here?!"
"Are you okay?" Ritsuka asked.
"I..." Meltryllis felt her face heating up. "You. Hold my hand. Now. I don't have much feeling in my arms, though... You need to hold tight. Tight enough to break it."
"Okay..." Ritsuka complied, squeezing the Alter Ego's hand as hard as he could, Melt blushing and smiling.
"Could you save the romantic moment for later?!" Artesia yelled, she, Haruhi and Suzuka fending off an uncountable number of attack programs!
"Argh! I didn't think the student council would be THIS pissed at us!" Suzuka complained.
(Dammit, I don't want to use too much of my powers here, on the off chance we're being watched!) Haruhi thought as she cut down a canine-looking program. (That has to be a last resort trump card!) "Hey, what happened to the rope?!" she said aloud.
"The rope?" Ritsuka looked over- only to see said rope in a pile on the ground. "It's been dropped! We can't get back up!"
"SHIROOOOUUU!" Artesia screamed in rage, slicing through three programs! "I'm going to have a word with that fool!"
"If we survive this!" Suzuka appended. But then, Excalibur Galatine suddenly dropped out of the sky, unleashing a heat wave upon sticking in the ground, destroying several of the programs from behind! Not long after, Gawain himself came down, inelegantly landing in a pile of digital refuse face-first! Distracted by the sudden surprise attack, the remaining enemies were swiftly mopped up. "Not what I had in mind for a big damn hero save, but I'll take it..."
"Sir Gawain, what are you doing here?" Artesia said, pulling him up.
"Ugh... (ahem) Well, Beckman was getting a bit anxious, so I volunteered to go and assist you," the knight explained. "But when I got here, I saw a cut rope over a cliff, and came to a horrible realization, so I jumped down after you! 'Tis a good thing I am a Heroic Spirit, or I wouldn't have survived that fall!"
"Wait, no-one else was there?" Haruhi realized. "Where did Cat and Shiki and Lip go?"
"Down the trapdoors, of course!" A familiar voice replied. BB suddenly digitizing into existence nearby! "Didn't ever wonder how Emiya got back from the Dorsal Plane the first time? Because *I* sent him back!" Her eyes glowed a sinister red. "See, Emiya Alter works for ME now! He was just waiting for an opportunity to cut you all loose, so he could accomplish his objective!"
"What objective is that?!" Artesia demanded.
"Sorry, but I think you should worry more about yourselves," BB rebuffed her. "Down you go, down to SERAPH's deepest depths!" With that trapdoors opened under everyone, dropping them out of sight!
"Damn yoooooouuuu!" Artesia screamed as they fell into the darkness...
*Back at the sanctuary...*
"Arnold, p-please, calm down!" Mable insisted.
"How can I?! That stupid girl threatened me! ME! She wants to put this whole disaster on MY head! I just did what I had to to survive! I'm the only one who matters here!" Beckman ranted.
"If even half of what Suzumiya said was true, you should be more worried about whether you'll end up in a jail cell when all is said and done," Tristan warned. "But we can discuss that when Sir Gawain returns with the others..."
(Jail cell?! No, i can't let that happen!) Beckman's mind raced furiously. (If only I had something... wait! That toxin at the Command Room! Maybe I could use that to...! But that knight obviously won't come with me, or even let me go... dammit, I need a distraction so I can slip out!) At the moment, footsteps were heard, Emiya Alter entering alone. (Perfect timing!) "You there, Archer! I'm afraid I forgot something vitally important at the Command Room! Would you mind coming with me to-"
A single shot rang out, and Arnold Beckman collapsed with a hole in his head.
"AAAAAHH! What have you done?!" Mable screamed in terror.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Tristan demanded, placing himself between Emiya and the woman.
"Just doing my job," the blackened archer responded. "My mission from the Counter Force was to kill all surviving Seraphix personnel, so the experiments they worked on can never be repeated. I was just waiting for an opportunity to get the others out of the way first, so they wouldn't interfere..."
"You foul knave!" Tristan's eyes opened in anger. "I knew my liege never should have trusted you! Prepare for- GAHHHHH!" He suddenly screamed as a dark tentacle with red eyes pierced through him from behind! The knight promptly faded into gold dust that was absorbed by the creature!
"What the-?! What just happened?!" Emiya Alter gasped.
"Hahahaha..." a light, seductive voice echoed through the sanctuary. "My, you're as ruthless as ever, aren't you, Emiya? Just like you were in life... just like when you came after me..."
"This voice...! This Spirit Origin! No, it can't be!" Emiya Alter gasped in horrified realization.
"Oh, but it is... a long time ago, in an alternate timeline, a cult was founded, bringing peace and salvation to people from all walks of life, led by a nun who everyone believed to be a living saint, or even a messiah... and then you showed up to kill that person. All those innocent people... you slaughtered everyone of them, for they would not permit their leader to be killed... You were the only one who saw through me... the only one who saw what I would eventually become. Isn't that right, Emiya...?"
"No!" Emiya stumbled back, his gun quaking in his hand as he tried to aim. "Get away... STAY AWAY...!"
*To be continued...*
