FATE/IRREGULAR SUMMONS
Chapter 18: Clash of Souls part 2
Chaldea
"Hah… hah… uuh…"
Connla appeared visibly strained as she slept in the infirmary. She was experiencing the battle in Fuyuki Church firsthand, and while she really wasn't feeling any physical pain, the stress of witnessing her other self being battered so badly had a negative influence on her. Beads of sweat rolled off her forehead and cheeks, which Cuchulainn Caster had to keep dabbing off with a damp cloth. He continued linking his Spirit Origin with hers, but he was starting to show signs of fatigue. Fortunately, Cuchulainn Lancer arrived immediately when Caster informed him of the change in Connla's condition.
"What's going on here?" Lancer wondered as he held his daughter's hand and established a connection between their Spirit Origins.
Caster gasped as he severed his link and sat back. "There's nothing wrong with her physically, but whatever she's dreaming about must be pretty damn terrifying for her."
"Think we should tell Nightingale?"
"Maybe. That woman will go crazy if she finds out the sheets are this saturated with sweat."
"Then I'll give the kid a bath. Go get Nightingale in the meantime."
Caster left to find the nurse, while Lancer carried Connla to the bathtub and washed her up. She continued breathing hard the entire time, and she was so dehydrated that he needed to give her multiple glasses of water. It bothered him that no matter how hard he called out to her, she would not respond whatsoever.
"Shit… You really are in a different world right now, aren't you?" Lancer cursed.
He heard the door creak open slightly, and he looked back expecting to see Nightingale or Caster. However, he jolted when he heard a burly fellow's voice declare, "Yo. Long time so see, Setanta."
"You're-!?"
Fuyuki Church
Within the rising plumes of misty smoke, several green flashes lit up the area like a spectacular light-show. Rin had used some of her gems to erect shields that blocked Medea's magic shots. When the temporary barrier dissipated, the Servent merely smirked and fired again.
"Acht!" Rin cried out and tossed more magic stones that broke to release their magic, generating another barrier. Medea's plan wasn't to kill Rin instantly. She wanted to make the girl realize how hopelessly outmatched she was, and then crush her the moment Rin was lost in despair. To that end, Medea would just keep using her lasers until Rin ran out of gems to sacrifice.
"Fu fu," Medea giggled. "Your struggling is entertaining, at the very least. I wonder how long you can last like this, though."
She unleashed another spell, and Rin leapt back while tossing more stones and shouting, "Sieben!"
Another barrier guarded her from the attack, and the sorceress murmured, "Oh my. You're fending my attacks completely. Unfortunately for you, you're wasting so many of your precious gems trying to protect your comrades. If you give up on them though, you can make do with protecting yourself instead."
Rin knew that was the case. Medea's magic covered such a wide range that she had no choice but to use her gems in a wasteful fashion. Even so, she refused to allow Shirou, Connla and Caren to be caught in the blast. She was certain that Soichirou was protecting, but the others would be destroyed if she didn't protect them.
Medea continued taunting, "If all you can do is block me, then the outcome is obvious. So then, what do you plan on doing?"
Rin clenched her teeth, then exclaimed, "Sechs! Ein Fluß, ein Halt!"
She threw some stones, and they shot for Medea in streaks of light. Then she rushed toward her and chanted, "Fünf, Drei, Vier! Der Riese und brennt das ein Ende!" †
Several red gems sailed toward the calm sorceress. Then, with nary a change to her callous smirk, she raised her hand and mentally commanded the stones to stop just inches from her palm. They shattered into tiny pieces, their magic rendered completely useless. Rin couldn't believe what she was seeing, and her pained expression showed it.
"Are you finished?" Medea asked boredly as she lowered herself to the ground. "You're more than welcome to keep trying until you run out of gems. Or are you suggesting that you have exhausted your supply?"
The teenaged Mage was at a loss. She had used her most powerful attack, and it had utterly failed. She concluded that even if she had used well over a hundred gems, it still wouldn't have been enough.
Medea shrugged and muttered, "Looks like you finally understand. Still, it wasn't a total waste. A tenacious little girl like you provided me with a modicum of entertainment. It's been a long while since I last fought a genuine magic duel. If only for that, I consider you worth the while. You must be frustrated to know that that's the best you can manage. Even so, it is the truth. Be proud knowing that a novice such as yourself forced the hand of a world-renown Mage such as myself."
She glanced over at Shirou and Connla, who were both collapsed on the ground by now. She raised her hand and said, "My Master will kill your friends before long. Out of respect for your determination though, I will eliminate you so that you don't have to watch them die."
"…"
Rin patiently listened to Medea's prattling for long enough. Then an unexpected smile crept on her lips as she murmured, "Stark, groß, Zwei!" ††
A single white gem was on the ground right before Medea's feet. She had failed to notice it before, but then it flared such an intense light that it momentarily blinded her. Rin immediately charged in, energizing her arms and legs with her magic circuits to enhance her strength. She leapt in and performed a powerful palm thrust at Medea's sternum, causing her to cough up blood.
This was the blood that Shirou witnessed before, and it totally surprised him. Caren and Connla were likewise as astonished. The one in most disbelief was Medea though, as she stumbled back and gasped, "You profess to be a Mage, yet you fight with your fists!?"
"Too bad for you, but the art of self-defense is a required subject for Mages nowadays!" Rin shouted and did a sweeping kick to throw Medea off balance. She struck her with another palm thrust, then punched her face so hard that it sent her flying back against a destroyed pillar.
Rin was about to go in for the kill, but then she heard Soichirou's voice exclaim in a calm manner, "That's far enough."
She shrieked and crossed her arms to block a much stronger punch than she could manage, and it made her fall several feet backwards. Shirou tried to run to her aid, but he was so worn out that he couldn't move very far. Not only was he exhausted, the intense burning sensation coursed through his magic circuits once more, causing him to wince in agony. It was so bad that small wafts of steam rose off of his burning flesh.
Damn it! Why is this happening now, of all times!?
"You slipped up," Soichirou said to Rin. "A true assassin kills in only one or two strikes. The fact that you needed four to merely incapacitate Caster betrays your lack of ability."
Medea warily rose to her feet and gasped, "I thank you, Master. Had you not intervened, I would have been defeated."
"Enough with the flattery. Your job is to wake Saber up. We made the mistake of underestimating our opponents, so we must have her destroy them without mercy."
Indeed, Artoria was fully passed out atop the magic circle at this point. She had expended too much strength resisting the Command Spells, and now only a simple order would prompt her into action.
"Yes, that is a wise decision, Master," Medea agreed and raised her hand with the intent of using a Command Spell.
"… Indeed," another man's voice broke through the silence. "If only it had come a few seconds earlier."
Connla's eyes widened when she heard that sharp, condescending voice. However, what the man spoke next caught everyone completely by surprise.
"Trace…"
Several swords materialized several feet above and behind Medea's head.
"On!"
The sorceress yelped when she noticed the blades too late, and they rocketed straight for her in such an intense flurry that it caused smoke to rise around her. It cleared out after a short while. However, the resulting scene was not something that anyone expected. Medea laid on her side, suffering from numerous cuts throughout her body. None of them were fatal though. She would not have been able to escape Archer's ambush, but somehow she survived. That was because everyone found Connla lying on top of the sorceress. While everyone was preoccupied with Archer's sudden appearance, the young Servant used a Ken Rune to fly toward the astonished Medea. She tackled her down just as the swords sliced through the air with reckless abandon.
"Tch," Archer grimaced. He went through so much trouble to escape Medea's constant observation, and Connla had to ruin it for him.
The girl gasped in anguish as she rolled herself off of the sorceress. She had sustained some non-lethal injuries herself, but her broken bones screamed for mercy even more than before. Medea's eyes were wide with surprise as she stared at Connla. Eventually, the woman uttered, "W-What are you doing?"
"Caster…"
After several labored breaths, Connla looked up and implored, "That's enough…"
"Why did you save me? I've done nothing to be indebted to you."
"That doesn't matter. You need to stop."
"Because I'm a witch? Is that what you think? That I'm a foul existence that should be punished as a traitor for all of eternity?"
"No. During this battle, I could sense it… Even though you could have exerted your full strength upon us, you never did. It was because of Mr. Kuzuki, wasn't it? He's too important to you. Not because he's your Master… but because he's the embodiment of your true wish. Am I wrong?"
Medea's jaw dropped lightly. She had no idea what this kid's True Name was, but somehow, she looked past her malicious nature and recognized her as a human being with thoughts, feelings and desires. The girl was much smarter than Medea gave her credit for, and those words made her pause in shock at her sagely wisdom. Was this Lancer some kind of wise hero from the Age of Gods who took on the form of a little girl to mislead her enemies?
Medea had a feeling that wasn't it. As she continued staring at Connla, she felt a faint magical power radiating from the girl's head. She couldn't see it for certain, but there was a type of sorcery directly augmenting her brain. She remembered the Runes that Connla used before, then realized what was going on.
Runecraft to artificially enhance one's intelligence. The flow of mana is so interwoven with her cranium that they must have been there ever since she was a baby.
For all of the horrible things she had done until now, a pang of disgust welled inside her chest.
How despicable.
She understood what it was like to have her mind taken over by someone else. Although Connla's affliction was vastly different than the brainwashing Medea went through in her first life, it was enough for the sorceress to relate with her. Connla's wisdom was not because she really was mature, but that she had been forced to mature. She was basically an adult trapped inside a child's body. For that reason alone, Medea decided to listen to what the girl had to say.
"Be honest with yourself," Connla murmured. "You don't really need the Grail to make your wish come true, do you?"
"I… wanted it," Medea quivered. "I wanted my life back… before I became known… as the Witch of Colchis…"
"I understand. But that's no longer necessary for you. I don't know what happened between you and your original Master. Regardless, you were extremely fortunate to be found by Mr. Kuzuki. He welcomed you as his Servant, and gave you the chance you were looking for. Even so, that chance wasn't really needed. You found someone who would love and understand you. That's what all human beings yearn for, isn't it? To be accepted?"
"…"
"Listen to me, Caster," Connla begged and snatched her hand. "We need your help. If we allow the Holy Grail War to continue, the happy life you've finally found will be destroyed. Not just yours, but billions of lives will end. Whether we're righteous or vile, Heroic or Anti-Heroic, the Grail will indiscriminately consume everyone in the flames of Hell. I'm not saying you should see this as some chance to vindicate yourself, nor to save all of humanity in a fleeting moment of heroism… But could you at least fight for Mr. Kuzuki's sake?"
Medea paused for a moment. She had no idea what Connla was implying about the Grail, but her pleas were undeniably heartfelt and genuine. She shuffled to her feet and stumbled toward Soichirou before gazing into his empty black eyes. He also heard their conversation, and was frankly curious about what the child Servant meant. Of course, he never expressed this and merely focused on Medea's strained eyes.
"Master," the sorceress whispered, then leaned her body against his. "What do you think?"
"My opinions are irrelevant. What do you make of Lancer's claims, Caster?"
"I do not understand what she means regarding the Grail. But if I listened to her, that would mean us surrendering, wouldn't it?"
"Such thinking is naïve. I can tell that you see something of yourself in her. As someone yearning to make connections with others, that must be satisfactory for you. I will go along with whatever you wish. Do not let your concerns for me cloud your judgment."
"Soichirou…"
Medea continued staring at him.
"Then… I will-"
CRACK!
No one realized what happened just now. Soichirou stood there, frozen in time like a statue. Rin and Shirou both had their eyes wide open and their jaws dropped. Caren raised her eyebrows and clenched her teeth. The hope in Connla's eyes immediately vanished, rendering her blank-eyed and stunned. Everyone watched as Medea collapsed onto her side without a word. They were especially focused on what caused her to fall:
A thin rapier had pierced clean through her head, instantly killing her.
Medea hit the floor with an unceremonious crash. The sword disappeared, allowing blood to seep out of both entry and exit wounds. A few seconds later, her entire body glittered purple and dissipated into particles.
Just like that, the Witch of Colchis was gone. No warning whatsoever.
Everyone except Connla turned their attention toward where the rapier originated from. They discovered that Archer was poised with his bow in firing position, and had projected the blade to wordlessly snipe Medea. He lowered his weapon and returned a hollow stare of his own to the crowd.
"Archer…" Rin murmured. Although she was stunned about Medea's death, there was something else of great concern she needed to address. "I had my suspicions… But is it really true…?"
"Trace On," Shirou said. "That's exactly what you chanted. You said the same words I do."
Caren remained silent as she stared at Archer. The man turned to face Shirou and replied, "If you understand that much, then you should already know my True Name."
Rin shook her head despondently. She wanted to say, "I don't believe this," but she knew the possibility was all too real. It wasn't just Heroic Spirits of the past that could be summoned – heroes from the future could become Servants as well. The likelihood of summoning a hero from the future was highly improbable since humanity did not know of their existences yet. However, if the summoner had some kind of connection with the Heroic Spirit's past, then the bond between them would be strong enough to allow such a miracle to occur.
This also explained why Archer possessed such a single-minded hatred for Emiya Shirou, and would attempt to murder him at any opportunity. Rin restrained Archer the entire time because she wanted to maintain their alliance, but it dawned upon her that she really, truly did not understand him until now. She had been an ignorant little girl bossing around a Servant she initially didn't want. She couldn't imagine how frustrating it must have been for him to tolerate her immature mood swings and fits of embarrassment whenever Shirou was the topic of discussion. With those restraints gone, Rin got to see what Archer was really like, and it made even her bones shiver.
Although he wasn't her Servant anymore, she still faced him as a Master and said, "Yes. I understand it now. At the same time, your actions are becoming less and less comprehensible. What was the meaning of slaying Caster like that?"
"Why else? Someone had to free Saber from that vixen's control," was the unperturbed reply.
Just as he claimed, the spell binding Artoria's wrists had already vanished, and she laid unconscious upon the dulled magic circle. Soichirou stared at Archer, then stated, "I would have ordered Caster to remove those restraints."
"I wonder about that," the Servant countered. "Allowing an unpredictable element like her to run loose would have been a poor choice on my part."
"So says the snake that slithered into our ranks."
"The Trojan Horse would have been a more fitting analogy, especially considering that a hero of Greek myth was killed."
"So her death was your goal all along."
"Yes."
Soichirou couldn't be angry with Archer's Machiavellian strategy. He too had been raised to employ cruel methods such as this in order to assassinate his target. Any sort of 'good' or 'evil' in such actions were meaningless to Soichirou. He was actually impressed with the effort Archer had put into executing such a crafty plan. In his opinion, he believed that if this Heroic Spirit had been summoned as an Assassin, perhaps the Grail War would already be over.
Soichirou took a few steps forward, passing by the catatonic Connla who was still splayed on the floor. Not once did she take her eyes off of the spot where Medea died. She heard the conversation between the others, but it registered as mere background noise to her. The futility of convincing Caster left her feeling dispirited about her mission as a Servant.
He stopped in front of her and said, "Do not lose faith. However brief it was, your words reached Caster. There's no denying that her heart was mended due to your acknowledgement. Continue on your journey without hesitation, and do not give in to the same pessimism that has claimed Archer and myself. That is your duty as a Servant, Second Lancer. Or rather…"
Both of their eyes locked upon each other's.
"… Constance Hortensia."
She said nothing in response. The fact that he had seen through her earlier disguise no longer mattered. All she did was nod slightly. He understood that she was still in shock to clearly parse his words, so he said nothing more in consolation and returned his attention to Archer.
"Wait a minute, Kuzuki!" Shirou objected. "Why do you still want to fight!? Caster is gone, so there's no reason for you to!"
"Correct. I have no reason. I never had any interest in the Grail."
"Then why!?"
Soichirou stood before Archer, then got into his fighting stance. "This is something I started. With no concern of matters over good or evil, I took it upon myself to join this battle. It is mere principle for me not to quit until I see things through."
Without another word, the calm assassin rushed at Archer. Even though Medea was no longer around to enhance his fighting abilities, he never concerned himself about being an ordinary human attempting to take on a Servant. Likewise, Archer did not care that he could merely disarm Soichirou. If anyone threatened his life, he was going to kill them. Murdering people like Soichirou was second nature to him at this point, and he demonstrated this by whipping his sword so quickly that the assassin's arm fractured a full second later. Soichirou expressed no pain as he attempted to snatch Archer's face, only for his chest to be run clean through by one of the bowman's blades.
With his heart destroyed, Soichirou stumbled toward a pillar and sat down as a lifeless corpse, his black eyes remaining frozen open. The ceiling just above the dead man lost its integrity and collapsed, crushing him beneath solid stone. All the others could see was a small puddle of blood. Shirou could not bring himself to say anything about his teacher's death. Instead, he approached the unconscious Artoria and kneeled over her. Once Medea died, the magic circle and enchantment binding her wrists were gone.
"Saber…" Shirou whispered.
She weakly turned to face him while moaning, "Shirou…"
As the pair were lost in their reunion, Connla noticed several glints of light shimmering behind Shirou. She glared at Archer, realizing he was about to kill them while they had their attention away from him. She raised her remaining arm and conjured several Ansuz Runes, shooting some small fireballs at Archer before he could launch the swords at Shirou's back. He grunted and leapt back to avoid them. She was covered in sweat, and she breathed hard while coping with the pain her broken bones caused. Even if three of her limbs were incapacitated, she still wanted to do what she could with the remaining one, and so diverted his attention away from Shirou and Artoria.
"What are you doing, Archer!?" Rin exclaimed. "Drop the act already! Caster's dead, so enough with the nonsense!"
Archer coldly scoffed, "You're not my Master any more. I don't need permission from you."
Suddenly, Rin screeched as she found herself trapped inside a circular cage of huge broadswords that Archer projected. He disregarded her and walked toward Connla, refusing to take his eyes off of the incapacitated child Servant.
"It would seem my priorities have been misguided," he murmured and stood tall over her. "Let me tell you this, Lancer. However honorable your desire may be to unite all of us Servants against the Holy Grail, the truth is that it is impossible. Humans possess a multitude of emotions and beliefs. Although beautiful in their own right, it is when they attempt to intertwine with other emotions and beliefs that the real ugliness of humanity begins to show itself. Not even we Servants can escape that."
"And so you just gave up?" Connla grunted.
"It's more like I tried too hard, and became exhausted of it all."
"Don't be ridiculous. Clearly you still have enough mettle to try and kill your past self. But that won't do either of you any good. Whatever happens in this timeline will have no effect on you."
"I would prefer to save myself before I can drown in the agony of treating humanity as the evil I defeat in order to become a 'hero'."
"So you've been looking for a proper enemy to slay. Then this is actually your chance. Listen to me, Archer. There is an evil lurking out there. If you could just let me explain, I can-"
Archer pointed one of his swords directly at her face, then retorted, "I've listened to you enough. You only lasted this long because I had to focus on taking care of Caster. With her out of the way, I intended to get rid of you next. If there's one thing I detest, it is unpredictable elements, and you are as unpredictable as they come."
She became absolutely horrified as she fixed her eyes on the glinting edges of the blade. "But…"
"Get out of my sight, Second Lancer."
He pulled his arm back, intent on stabbing through her head.
"Noli Me Tangere!"
Caren's pained scream echoed through the halls, and a long strip of red cloth whipped all the way across the room toward Archer. He vaulted back and leapt high, then summoned his bow and shot dozens of glowing red arrows at the Shroud of Magdalene. The fabric was punctured with numerous small holes, and Caren recoiled it around her arm while running to Connla's side.
"HYAAA~AAAH!" Shirou unleashed a fierce battle cry as he projected twin swords of his own, and he met Archer in combat. Although he was a human attempting to match blades with a Servant, Shirou somehow managed to drive Archer back with every furious swing and strike. The bowman grunted, mystified as to why the teenager could rival him. Then he remembered the strange thing that happened after he and Saber fought against Berserker several nights ago:
"I would have been able to repair his magic circuits and energize them so that his equilibrium wasn't so off-balance. This would have made him able to reinforce objects to their maximum limit, thus allowing him to become a much more proficient Mage."
"Then why don't you do so?"
"The job's already been done for me."
Archer grimaced upon realizing his mistake. He himself had determined that Shirou's magic circuits had been repaired and would function much better than ever before. Shirou wasn't quite on Archer's level yet, but it was safe to assume that he could be a match against a weaker Servant. Even so, the strain of using so much mana at once was beginning to cause the boy tremendous fatigue. Not only that, each time he hit Archer's blades, the vision of a barren hill kept appearing in his mind. Archer found an opening to violently kick Shirou away.
"As I thought. Your projections have gotten a lot better. Your imitations are no longer hollow constructs," the bowman declared. "Although you can only last a few seconds at best, your capabilities are most frightening indeed. The thing is, while your weapons are impressive copies, your attempts at being an imitation Servant will only result in your self-destruction."
Shirou clutched his head as his migraine intensified. A horrible ringing sound reverberated in his head, as if a jackhammer and a giant church bell were clattering and gonging inside his skull simultaneously. The visions of the empty hills turned into a field of endless blades. Shirou sweated so hard that he probably lost a liter of water from his body. The pain and sights were so tremendous that he would have gone mad with suicidal thoughts had he not tempered his willpower.
"It seems your ideal self is nearly within your grasp," Archer said as he approached Shirou. "But that's only because you have some unknown benefactor on your side. If you had been left on your own, you would never be able to accomplish anything no matter how hard you struggled. Or is it the struggle itself that gives you meaning in life?"
"Shut up!" Shirou raged and rushed at Archer once again. Both men engaged in a fervent duel of wits and blades, sending sparks flying about everywhere.
Meanwhile, Rin clasped her hands as she watched the exchange, and then whispered, "Archer…"
She glanced over at Artoria, who had also been listening in dumbfounded silence. Caren had to concentrate on keeping Connla calm, so she held the girl's hand while resting her head on her lap. That was when an idea began to form in Rin's mind.
The battle concluded when Shirou collapsed onto his back once more, and his shattered weapons disappeared into the ether. Archer stomped upon his chest to prevent him from getting back up, then said, "A suitable conclusion for a fool who strived to achieve the impossible."
Just as he tried to do with Connla, he raised his sword and glared at Shirou with murderous intent…
"I hereby propose!"
Rin's voice broke through the air, causing Archer to stop. The others turned their eyes toward her as she reached her arm out toward Artoria.
"Your fealty shall be mine, and my fate shall be yours! If you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason, then obey me!"
The bowman would have attempted to kill his former Master, but Shirou got back up and projected a new set of blades to strike Archer's sword. He snarled in frustration, not because of Shirou's tenacity, but because he understood what Rin was trying to pull off. Artoria slowly stood back up, then ran toward Rin's extended hand.
"Do so, and I shall entrust my fate to your sword!"
The Command Spell reappeared on the top of Rin's hand, and Artoria likewise reached out while declaring, "On my honor as Saber, I shall accept your oath! I accept you as my new Master, Rin!"
Their fingertips touched each other's, and a wave of pure mana rushed around the others like a storm. With the contract complete, Artoria was finally back in her full armored garb, and she sliced through the swords imprisoning Rin with no effort. Then, she turned her fierce gaze toward Archer, whom she believed had caused more than enough trouble for her to stomach.
He muttered, "Now what, Saber? if Rin is your Master now, it means you no longer have any connection with Emiya Shirou."
"My pledge with him still stands," Artoria retorted firmly, then brandished the invisible Excalibur. "Instead of worrying about me, you should think about how you're going to fight me when you have no Master to draw magical power from."
"Such confidence coming from someone who simply had their mana replenished."
Faster than a blinking eye, the two Servants rushed at each other and dueled. With Artoria's strength fully restored, she had no trouble keeping up with Archer's furious stabs and thrusts. She swung Excalibur and decimated one of his swords with no effort, then swung down hard and forced him to defend with the remaining blade. The force behind her attack was so amazing that it destroyed the ground beneath them, and smoke wafted around everyone.
"That's enough, Archer," Artoria demanded. "It is my turn to express concern for your well-being. You have no means of anchoring yourself to this world, and you have no supply of mana. What do you intend to do now?"
"Hmph. You should be an old hand at this by now, Saber. Have you forgotten the class ability that Archers possess?"
"… Independent Action."
"Correct. That means I can last two days or so without a Master. More than enough time to put down Emiya Shirou."
"Didn't you hear what Second Lancer said!? Killing Shirou will do nothing for you, yet you refuse to let go of that misguided obsession!?"
"Misguided?" Archer muttered deeply. "That should be my line. How long do you plan on clinging to your own misguided wish? You lament about your failure at leaving a legacy, unable to look back and accept that you did all that you could."
Artoria fell silent. Memories of the corpse-ridden Hill of Camlann came flooding back to her. That bitter end to her storied life had been the one thing she always dreamed of escaping. She wanted to relive her life as a better king for her people and pass away as a revered hero surrounded by those who loved her, rather than wasting away in a battlefield covered in the corpses of thousands of citizens who betrayed her, believing her kingship was cruel and fallacious.
"Saber…" Connla whispered. Unlike her, the young Lancer had been able to accept her loss to Cuchulainn and drifted into the depths of obscurity, barely leaving much than a short vignette behind. She had trouble understanding how such an amazing Heroic Spirit like Artoria still yearned to redo her history through the Grail's power.
Archer dropped his swords and simply muttered, "I am an archer. I wasn't really meant to be fighting with swords in the first place. Though I have to admit-"
He flexed his hand, and some sparks crackled around his fingers.
"My bow is just as much of a borrowed forgery."
"What do you mean?" Artoria wondered.
A potent burst of mana exploded around the bowman as he replied, "I'll show you my true nature."
"That's enough! I don't wish to fight you!"
"I am the bone of my sword. Unknown to Life, nor known to Death…"
The blue aura surrounding him intensified in brilliance as he said, "Saber, I'm certain someone will appear to free you from your delusion. I, however, am here only to kill Emiya Shirou. If you intend to get in my way, my inner world will not show mercy even to you."
"An inner world…" Caren whispered. "I see it now. Archer, your true identity is not that of a swordsman or a bowman. If you really are another version of Shirou, then you are actually a Mage."
"How astute of you, servant of the Church," he replied. "Indeed, that is who I was in life. And now, I shall show you the accumulation of my life's work. Witness my hollow regrets and absence of pride for yourselves."
Archer raised his arm and called out the name of his true Noble Phantasm:
"Unlimited Blade Works!"
The shining azure haze transformed into raging flames that engulfed reality itself. No longer were they inside the ruins of a dilapidating church. Instead, for hundreds upon hundreds of miles on end, all they could see was a barren wasteland where no trees or grass were allowed to grow. Thousands of different swords punctured the ground, thick nimbostratus clouds blanketed the steel blue sky, and massive gears rotated in endless cycles.
This was a Reality Marble, a forbidden type of Magecraft that allowed one's inner world to temporarily override reality and manifest in the physical realm. It was what clued Caren in to Archer's real nature as a Mage rather than a warrior. This world, Unlimited Blade Works, was his real Noble Phantasm, which basically functioned as an over-glorified storage for all of the weapons he had copied. Any other Noble Phantasm that he used would actually be derived from this one.
"This is…" Connla gasped quietly. "A world of hollow regrets…?"
"Now that you have seen it for yourself, would you like to try your hand against it, Saber?" Archer goaded. "I'll produce a convincing replica of your holy sword and have you experience its power firsthand."
"But if you do that," Artoria object, "you'll wind up destroying yourself."
"Yes, I would. However, when two holy swords clash, there's no guarantee that any humans in the vicinity will survive. If you fight my barrage of swords head-on instead, you'll doom both of my targets, Emiya Shirou and Second Lancer."
Everyone winced when they realized his two-pronged strategy. Artoria pondered what to do next. That was when, without any warning, Shirou angrily got to his feet and ran past the startled woman. He ignored the others' pleas for him to stop.
If the rules and principles of all the copying I've been doing so far are right…
Sparks crackled around his arm, and he trained his eyes on a blade to duplicate its properties.
"Trace on!" he shouted and generated an identical sword, which he swung at the incoming one. Both weapons were destroyed on contact, but he kept his pace up with the flying weapons, deflecting each one with incredible precision. He was forging blades one after the other, perfectly retaliating against Archer's barrage. Not only that, each projection was happening faster and better than the last one. He understood each blade's structure.
No, more than that. He understood the Reality Marble's structure itself. If Archer was indeed another Emiya Shirou creating this inner world, then this Emiya Shirou could likewise glimpse in its craftsmanship and dismantle it piece by piece. He would create the escape route so that Rin and the others would be set free of Archer's most powerful attack.
"I'm getting sick…"
Shirou crossed his arms, and a shining light flared around his hands. The Reality Marble crackled like static.
"OF YOUR CRAAA~AAA~AAAP!"
The light intensified until the entire world turned white.
† - "Six! A river, a stop! Five, three, four! The giant that burns at the end!"
†† - "Strong, large, two!"
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Aaaand I'm back from FGO grinding. I had so many AP restoring items that it was impossible for me to go through all of them, so I stopped early. Most of this chapter was prewritten though, so it didn't take long for me to get this posted. BTW, no Ereshkigal for me, but I snagged Altera, Abby, Gramps and Tamamo Caster before, so I'm happy with using Eresh supports for 2020.
Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year, everyone!