Chapter 3: Failure

Archer let loose the broken phantasm, aiming not at his approaching alternate self but at the Master some ways behind him. Reality warps in on itself as the fake spiral sword rips through the air, the ensuing explosion sending tremors shooting through the ground and up into the building he was on. The Shielder was likely to prevent any lasting damage, of course. But that wasn't the point of the maneuver.

"My blood is of iron and my heart is of glass / Steel is my body and fire is my blood."

As the smoke begins to clear, the cry of the skeletal hordes fills the air, already starting to be drawn to the noise of the blast. This close to the mountain, there were near hundreds of them starting to converge. The rabid hound shouts something, before leaping into the approaching horde, the Shielder staying close to her master. That was them dealt with for the moment.

"I have overcome countless battlefields / I have created over a thousand blades."

Nearing the level of machine gun fire, arrows rained down from the dark heavens. Explosions ring out in the night. Though many missed their mark, he couldn't help but smirk viciously at the few that managed to get through.

"Not even once retreating / Unaware of loss."

His alternate self launches himself up onto the rooftop, the force of his leap leaving a crater in the street below. The black bow is cast aside, disappearing to dust before it even hit the ground. Hands wrap around married blades of black and white, before clashing against an identical set in a storm of steel and sparks.

"Not even once being understood / Nor aware of gain."

He stabs, he parries. He dodges, he slashes. This was no elegant dance of swords. Rather, it was a whirlwind of metal and fury, barely visible to the naked eye. The energy of the unholy chalice pulsed through his veins, bitter anguish fueling every single blow.

"He was always alone, intoxicated with victory upon a hill of swords / Withstood pain to create weapons, waiting for one's arrival."

Teeth bared and blood roaring, they separate for the briefest of moments, before dashing headlong into combat once again. One of them would be dead soon, this they both knew.

"Thus, his life has no meaning / I have no regrets, this is the only path."

Steel sings. He just wanted this endless nightmare to end.

"So as I pray… / My whole life truly was…"

The chants finish nigh simultaneously, the words disappearing into the darkness of the night. All sounds fade away. The world breaks apart.

"Unlimited Blade Works."


Twin realities collided against one other, each existence the very anathema of its opponent.

They stood under a sky painted red with blood, as rusted gears groaned in agony, slowly spinning their infernal chorus. Dense metallic smog blinded the sight and choked the senses, as a landscape of swirling crimson dust unfurled forevermore.

They stood under a bright summer sun. A cool breeze swept through soft green grass, the sight stretching out forever to the distant horizon. Beautiful flowers of blue and red, of purple and white, grew underfoot in this land of endless day.

These two worlds were nothing alike.

These two worlds had everything in common.

Blades of every shape and size imaginable pierced both crimson earth and verdant grass, littering each landscape in infinite steel. A spear, forged from a beast of the sea, that would always seek its mark. A sickle, the gift of a divine, designed to kill even those who cannot be killed. A sword, wielded by no less than three legends, unbreakable and indestructible. These were just a few of many such armaments, ranging from legendary to commonplace, scattered across these endless landscapes.

Archer's breath catches, even as he continues his assault. Blade locks against blade at the boundary where twilight becomes day.

He stares into eyes of molten gold. "How?"

This Saber form, this fool he could have become glares right back. "How do you think?"

Silence fills the air, as both sides refuse to give an inch, heels digging into rusted dirt and soft grass respectively. His shoulders heave, as a bitter chuckle leaves his lips.

"We failed her, you know?" he says, almost conversationally. "We failed them all."

They simultaneously disengage, throwing their blades at one another. As the married sets collide in midair, new weapons are drawn from the world around them.

"..." his Saber self says nothing, an ax-sword that could be better called a slab of rock crashing into the ground next to him.

"Don't believe me?" he sneers out, a color-shifting sword appearing in his hands as he rushes forward, a multitude of slashes being thrown out in less than a second. "Allow me to explain, then."

Even with the nigh-limitless strength of the corrupted grail fueling every strike, pushing him to his limits and beyond, he was barely holding on. He was sword-fighting a Saber, after all.

He shifts backwards and out of the way of an earthshaking downward strike, dust and dirt being thrown high into the air. The sword is thrown and exchanged for a red spear, which comes up to just barely deflect another strike. "Sakura Matou died alone, hoping against hope for her hero to come save her. He… you didn't, of course."

The Saber only grits his teeth, attacks becoming increasingly wild and ferocious. Every second is a fight to stay alive, to twist the knife in a bit further. After a few more heartbeats of relentless back and forth, he continues. "Illyasviel von Einzbern died crying, her heart crushed to dust. She wanted to see her family."

He hollowly chuckles, as he barely ducks underneath another sweeping blow, a new weapon being summoned to his grasp. Throwing out a few slashes and thrusts of his own, his mouth tastes ever more like ash. Why- why did his eyes burn? "Arturia... Arturia Pendragon died screaming, eaten by the grail and turned into her worst nightmare. She laughed as she cut you down."

The next name... refuses to come out. Stuck within his chest, like a jagged chunk of steel.

Eyes of blue, wide in pain and disbelief. Bloody lips mouthing a silent question.

He stumbles. It is only for the briefest of moments, and he recovers nigh-instantly, but the damage is already done. The ax-sword is brought around in an arc, before being thrown forward at supersonic speeds. The stone blade crashes into and through his own weapon, taking a good chunk of his torso with it. This is immediately followed by a series of flung blades, each one forcing him back a step as they bury into his flesh.

Why?

He drops to his knees.

Why you?

"R-rin Tohsaka… I-I..." His voice doesn't break. It doesn't. "She died betrayed, run through by her failure of a Servant, unknowing of the corruption that had taken him over."

He looks down at his trembling hands. They're red.

Always red.

His vision grows increasingly blurry, as he tilts his head back to take in the endless blue sky above. The shining sun, it was... beautiful. So beautiful. A gurgling laugh escapes his throat, tired and bitter, as a burning warmth begins streaming down his cheeks.

"Save her, will you?"

And then, nothing.


Ritsuka stumbles onto the rooftop, having gotten a piggyback ride from Mash up. Olga Marie and Cu follow a few seconds later.

A smile on her lips, she immediately runs over to where Shirou was standing. "Woah! I couldn't see much from where we were, but that was awesome!"

She turns and throws an arm around her shielder, a faint tinge of red immediately appearing on the demi-servant's cheeks. "Everyone was so cool! It was all wham! And kapow! And- and!"

Cu laughs quietly, idly scratching his nose. "Eh. There were shit ton of em', but they were only trash skeletons, Master." He sighs dramatically, beforing looking at Shirou. "Could it have killed ya to leave a piece for me? I wanted a go at the fucker too."

Olga Marie blows a stray hair out of her face. "Yes yes, that's all well and good I suppose. However, I still want an explanation about the Counter-Guardian alternate self."

"..." Shirou responds to none of them, just quietly watching flecks of white light swirl up and into the black night above. The final remnants of the corrupted archer.

She frowns ever so slightly, the euphoric high of surviving another battle dying down a bit. Reaching out to lightly touch her Saber's shoulder, she says "Are… are you okay, Shirou?"

The red-haired boy finally seems to register their presence, losing the faraway look in his eyes and looking down to give her a gentle smile. "Ah. Sorry about that, Master."

He turns to stare at the mountain in the distance. "I just made another promise, that's all."


A/N: Thanks for reading. Apologies for how short these chapters are, its just things like this are so soul-crushing that all my energy is sapped. Looking back, I agree with both KingAllen and TimeDriver. Chapter 2 is edited accordingly.

(Recommend 'Fate OST: Mighty Wind' for this next part.)