"Right then, how about we get down to business, girls?"
Under any other circumstance, Tohsaka Rin would have told the person who asked her that to shut up. In some alternate universe, she might have attacked said person with her gems. Unfortunately for the broke magus, however, this was not some other circumstance, and she was not in another universe; this was reality, and she had just angered an unstoppable force of nature.
She had had a bad feeling when Irisviel first stepped into the room, but she had not been expecting that. Or that or THAT either. Or what happened to Luvia. For the first time ever, she actually felt sorry for her rival. Somewhat.
Watching the two girls as they staggered to their feet, their faces pale and hair in disarray, the demon in human form that was Irisviel von Einzbern smiled. She was, or tended to be, a gentle and affable mother who lived with her loving family and had a good life. When her daughter's safety was in doubt, however, there was nothing in all of Heaven or Hell that could stop her.
"L-Lady Irisviel," Luvia panted, still traumatized from the 'punishment' she had brought upon herself with her supposed negligence. "I-I implore you to leave this matter in our hands-"
"Oh my," Iri said in a good-natured manner, smiling sweetly at the pair of skilled magi before her. "I guess I wasn't convincing enough earlier, huh?"
As she said that, a thin, glowing serpent flew out from under her sleeve. Without any discernable commands from Iri, the luminescent snake – which turned out to be an enchanted length of wire – coiled itself into what appeared to be a giant fist.
"When you wake up," she said cheerfully, with a smile that would melt any man's heart. "Be sure to tell me e-ver-y-thing, okay~?"
Rin and Luvia opened their mouths to say something. Perhaps to plead for mercy. Possibly to apologize for incurring her wrath.
Iri's massive fist swiftly ended that conversation.
"… And that's all of the information we have at hand," Rin said calmly, trying her hardest to maintain an air of dignified grace while ignoring the pain from the giant bruise on her head.
"Mm… I see!" Iri said happily. "So in other words, you're completely clueless at this point then?"
Rin looked like she was just stabbed with a knife.
"Please correct me if I'm wrong," Luvia interjected. "But would it be a mistake on my part to think that you might know more about this, Lady Irisviel?"
"Oh? What makes you say that?"
"You once mentioned something called the 'Holy Grail War' to Miyu and the others," Luvia pointed out, neglecting to mention she had only attained that information from asking Miyu. The young girl had been pretty shaken up about it back then, too, but that was not her main priority now. "We've looked into it on our end, an we've discovered that the Heroic Spirits' classes from the Class Cards are not entirely unrelated to this ritual."
"I see," Iri said, her smile slowly sliding off her face. "What about it?"
A brief flicker of something appeared in her eyes as she said that. Finding out about what she had told the girls was easy; looking up on something that was pretty much deliberately hidden from the rest of the world was not. To have been capable of researching about the Holy Grail War, however little, was an impressive feat.
I might have underestimated her a little, she thought. Just a tiny bit.
"As I understand, such a ritual never happened," Luvia replied. "Your daughter Illyasviel is connected to it somehow, and coupled with the emergence of Kuro, who appears to be a physical manifestation of suppressed memories… I can only suspect that you, as someone who knows about this ritual, somehow tampered with it. Am I mistaken?"
"… No, that's correct," Iri answered. "The Holy Grail War never happened, and now we're making sure it never occurs again."
"And yet, the Class Cards exist," Rin spoke up. "So does this mean that the-"
"No, that's impossible," Iri cut across her sharply. "As long as I'm here, it can't be happening."
"… Then the possibility of this being another Grail altogether?" Luvia asked, raising an eyebrow at Iri's words.
"It's not possible, since it requires a huge ritual to reproduce a proper Holy Grail," Iri replied. "I would know about it if it existed."
"Then what if the Grail came from another plane of existence?"
Turning to face the part-time maid that was Tohsaka Rin, Luvia and Iri took a moment to absorb what she had just said.
"What do you mean?" Luvia asked slowly.
"I've always wondered what the Mirror World actually was," Rin began. "It's clearly not a place in our dimension, and we required the two idiot sticks – Second Magic Mystic Codes – to enter or leave."
"What of it?" Luvia asked.
"So we know it's a separate dimension from ours," Rin went on. "But it's not a proper plane of existence since it became smaller the more cards we retrieved. So how did it come about? And these Class Cards – parallel versions of the Heroic Spirits that would have been summoned in the Holy Grail War that never happened here – how did they come about?"
"You do realize what you're suggesting is impossible?" Luvia questioned. "If the Mirror World was a parallel version of the one we live in, it can't possibly alter its size based on-"
"What if it's only a platform between parallel worlds?"
Luvia fell silent.
"What if this Mirror World exists because the parallel world where these Class Cards originated somehow resonated or connected with ours, and the Mirror World is the result of two overlapping realities?"
"That's… certainly possible," Luvia muttered. "So you're saying Miyu and the others accidentally jumped across to possibly another universe?"
"That, or maybe…" Rin chewed on a nail as she considered that thought. "… They were pulled over by something on the other side."
"What makes you say that?" Luvia asked, unable to keep up with her queer train of thought.
"The distortion," Rin replied. "It significantly vanished when they Jumped, and even the Eighth Card disappeared. The distortion clearly isn't something from our world, and it's definitely related to the Class Cards – in other worlds, the parallel Holy Grail. It's possible that it reacted to the Class Cards themselves and drew them in, pulling Illya and Miyu along."
"Now that you mention it," Luvia said. "Whenever we encountered the Heroic Spirit of the Class Card, it was always in a hostile, maddened state. Considering their identities after analyzing their Noble Phantasms, it's quite odd that these 'Heroes' would be so hostile towards us, especially when unprovoked. Do you suppose this distortion somehow… 'tainted' them?"
"But to interfere with the Servants like this…" Iri mumbled under her breath. "It'd have to be the work of the Holy Grail…But… it wouldn't, unless… a corrupt… Grail…"
She shuddered. For reasons she was unable to explain, there was a sudden and painful chill running down her spine at that thought. That unthinkable, impossible thought.
"Maybe that was what caused their disappearance," Rin concluded. "Of course, there's no solid evidence to back it up, so at this point it's just a hypothesis."
A heavy silence followed those words. There were still plenty of things to discuss, but no one opened their mouth to speak. It was not so much that they were unwilling to face more issues on top of their existing problems, but more of a silent resignation that they were powerless to the situation at hand.
Unfeeling towards their predicament, time marched mercilessly on, and the world continued to move forward. For a place she had once held such fascination towards, Iri could no longer see it as anything more than a hostile force trying its hardest to make her family suffer.
Please be alright, Illya, she prayed.
Lancer, otherwise known as Setanta-san, was a warrior. A fighter. A champion. A hero. He was skilled and fierce, unmatched in combat and the perfect spearman. He had braved countless battles, and had slain many great warriors who deserved to fall by his lance. He had lived through the tragedy that was his life until the bitter end, knowingly and happily tossing aside the prospect of a long life for honor and glory. He was a proud Heroic Spirit, and he was a legend.
Now, he was watching two elementary schoolgirls kiss.
Granted, that had not been his intention. He was merely seeking to speak to his… Master? About something when he noticed it. Specifically, he noticed two floating Mystic Codes outside the door to Illya's room.
"Oi," he called out. "What're you-"
"Shh!" the red one, Ruby, said immediately. There was a camera sticking out of her… body, he assumed. "Keep it down!"
"Nee-san," the blue one, Sapphire, said in a rather calm but exasperated voice. "I should like to think that this is going overboard."
"Oh, lighten up, Sapphire-chan!" Ruby said cheerfully. "Tormen- I mean, messing around lightly with my Master is what I live for after all!"
Lancer was just about to ask what the camera was for, when a rather familiar and panicked voice reached his ears. It was, surely enough, Illya's voice.
"W-wait a bit, Kuro!" she was saying, backing up against the wall like a frightened kitten. "M-my heart's not ready, and-!"
"What? You want me to disappear?" Kuro asked, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips. "After all that you said about wanting me to live… was that a lie, onee-chan?"
"Wha- You-" Illya stammered, evidently affected by the usage of that term. "Y-you're just saying that so you'll get your way…!"
"Well, if you're so unwilling, I could always ask Shirou," Kuro suggested, the look in her eyes more sly by the second. "I'm sure he would agree to help me, being the kind-hearted onii-chan he is…"
"N-no!" Illya shrieked, her cheeks a delicate shade of scarlet. "Absolutely not! D-don't you dare!"
"Well, there is a way to stop me," Kuro reminded her, edging closer to Illya. "And I'm sure you know what it is, don't you…?"
Lancer had no idea a human's face could look so similar to a ripe tomato, but he supposed there was a first time for everything. Before he could shrug off that thought, however, something very… odd happened.
Having seen Illya go limp and resigned to her inevitable fate, Kuro smirked, closed in, and planted her lips solidly on Illya's. The rest of their exchange was lost in a series of mild, suggestive and legally questionable noises.
Sapphire was observing silently. Ruby was filming with great enthusiasm while apparently breathing hard. Lancer almost dug his own eyes out.
He had always thought his Master was strange, but this was something else. A complete greenhorn to magecraft and the Holy Grail War aside, she had even gone as far as to suggest being friends instead of becoming Master and Servant. In the face of his staunch adherence to his own code of honor, she had put up no resistance. He had had no intention of defending that scum Kotomine – he had merely wanted to defend his own pride as a knight – and he had been perfectly prepared to be bent to her will by a Command Seal. But instead of doing that, Illya simply asked if they could just be friends. So yes, she was probably a little strange. But he did not see this coming.
"So… She swings that way?" he asked, in too much shock to realize he was speaking to a bunch of magic sticks. And that he was not stopping Ruby from filming any further.
"Please do not misunderstand," Sapphire said calmly. "It might appear to be like that, but Illya-sama is merely providing Kuro-sama with mana so that she can maintain her combat efficiency."
"Uh huh," Lancer stated flatly. "Well, I'm in no position to question my Mast- er, her preferences, so whatever. But-"
At this, he reached out and grabbed Ruby with one hand so swiftly neither Mystic Code reacted in time. The simple action actually shook the air with its sheer force.
"-what do you think you're doing filming it?" he asked, his voice low and dangerous as he tightened his grip. "Just because I lived in a different era doesn't mean I can't spot technology when I see it, you know."
"You're saying that now?!" Ruby asked, struggling in vain to escape his claws. "R-Ruby-chan won't give in to violence! No siree!"
"Delete it," Lancer ordered. "Or we'll see if your body or spirit breaks first."
Before Ruby could reply (possibly with a rather offensive remark that would have gotten her crushed and burned to cinder without remorse), the sliding doors opened fully, revealing a rather curious Kuro and, most unfortunately, an utterly mortified Illya.
"Well, well," she said. "Peeping on little girls, are we? What fine tastes you have."
"Whoa, hold your horses," Lancer raised a hand defensively as Illya's eyes began flooding with tears. "I just saw this one-" he gave Ruby a rough shake to emphasize his point. "-recording something so I came here to see what the fuss was about. Besides, you really think I'm interested in-"
"… Since when?"
Her voice was quiet, but there was a certain degree of danger in Illya's voice that made even Lancer go on alert. Walking over to the trio at the door, Illya repeated her question with barely suppressed emotion.
"… Since when have you been recording?"
She was visibly shaking at this point, though it was difficult to tell if it was because of anger or embarrassment. It was quite likely both, Lancer concluded, considering the crimson cheeks and teary eyes.
Instead of answering, Ruby merely gave off a 'click' sound and started playing what she recorded. That is, both visual and audio. Projected onto the floor like a high quality video.
The world went silent for a few seconds. Completely silent, except for the video of two elementary schoolgirls kissing playing from the camera of a certain Mystic Code.
In a voice loud enough to shatter eardrums, Illyasviel von Einzbern screamed.
Saber sighed, putting down the card that had been politely offered to her. Sure, she could feel traces of mana from it, but the Saber Class Card was, at best, just a Mystic Code. Nothing about it told her how it could have summoned that armor, sword and most importantly, provided the user with her identity (and according to said user, knowledge of Saber's entire life up till her death as well).
"… So what you're saying," she spoke up at last. "Is that what you wielded last night was not the real Noble Phantasm?"
Her conversation partner – a quiet, black-haired girl named Miyu – nodded.
"It's close, but not entirely the same," she said calmly. "After accessing… your… memories, I have a good idea how powerful Ex-"
"Please do not say that name out loud," Saber warned sharply. "We know not of any vile enemies that might be listening in on this conversation."
"Yes, I see," Miyu complied calmly. She was far too composed for a kid her age – a stark contrast Saber noticed between her and Illya. She actually reminded Saber a little of someone she met ten years ago, back in the days of the Fourth Holy Grail War. "I meant to say that I have a good idea on how powerful your Noble Phantasm is, Saber-san. But the Installed version I used can't reach that level of output."
After a rather brief discussion last night, Miyu had finally accepted the idea that using Saber's true name was a bad idea. 'Saber-san' was a result of that, and while it was an improvement, Saber simply wished she would drop the honorifics.
"Well, setting that aside," Saber went on. "While I have no objections about you using my power, I would like to request that you use it in such a way that does not compromise my identity. It would be advisable to use Invisible Air like I do to conceal it."
"But… I don't have that Noble Phantasm," Miyu pointed out. "The only weapon that comes out is the sword itself."
"I see," Saber replied. "That's troubling."
The conversation seemed to end at that, with neither side speaking up anymore. It was a blissful moment, allowing them a momentary period of relaxation to collect their thoughts. After the chaotic and confusing events of the night before, it was nice to have a little peace and quiet before eventually grilling Shirou for going to school in the middle of a war.
Said peace and quiet, however, was shattered by the refined screams of a young silver-haired maiden.
In a single swift, fluid motion, Saber got to her feet and practically flew out of the dojo. Miyu, who had to resort to her own human limits, followed shortly after, but Saber was already halfway down the corridor by the time the latter reached the door.
"Illya, are you-"
The rest of Saber's question went unasked. One could hardly blame her for that, since he had rushed into the scene expecting an enemy. What she got, however, was… something different.
At a glance, it was just Lancer, holding a Mystic Code in his hand that happened to be playing a video with questionable content. Right in front of him were the two girls who just so happened to be in the video, one looking downright mortified and the other blushing while brandishing a single sword in her hand. Whether the latter was intending to attack Lancer or Ruby was anyone's guess.
"Lancer," Saber said, a brilliant flame igniting in her stern eyes. "What is the meaning of this?"
"I'm just as confused as you are," Lancer said, dropping Ruby and raising both hands in surrender. "Hey, don't give me that look, miss King of Knights; I had nothing to do with this!"
Saber glared at the spearman for a good five seconds before offering him a slight nod. They may not have been well acquainted, but at the very least, they shared a degree of understanding as true warriors. Even without a verbal exchange, much was said in those five seconds with uncanny eloquence.
"Then the cause," Saber concluded, as Miyu finally caught up. Catching Ruby, who had been attempting to escape amidst the confusion, Saber looked at her like she was the largest cockroach she had ever laid eyes on. "Must be this cursed thing."
"E-eh?" Ruby asked innocently. The video was no longer playing – much to Illya' and Kuro's relief – but it did not erase the heinous crimes she had just committed. "What might you be talking about~? Ruby-chan is innocent as can be, don't you know~?"
While Saber processed the outrage she would express to that act, Ruby snickered in an oddly human but also clearly malicious way. Sapphire knew that snicker all too well; it was the sound her sister always made when she had a way (typically a bad one) to escape a precarious situation.
"An opening!" she declared triumphantly. "Simulation Mode, on!"
Silence. For a moment, everyone just stood there waiting for something terrible to happen. They simply waited her out, expecting something that would follow up with that queer command. But nothing happened.
"…Eh?" Ruby wondered aloud.
"Is this… Magecraft?" Saber asked, still gripping the Mystic Code tightly. "I do not know what fiendish tricks you have in mind, but the Saber Class's Anti-Magic is not so weak that the likes of you can surpass it."
"E-er…" Ruby mumbled nervously.
"Now, what shall we do with the troublemaker?" Kuro asked, positively beaming as she held up a replica of one of Archer's swords. "I vote we cut her up into tiny pieces~"
"Yes, that sounds acceptable," Saber replied coldly, applying more force to the winged ring thing in her hand.
"I-Illya-san!" Ruby pleaded. "Please help me! They're going to do horrible things to me!"
"Mm," Illya said monotonously, nodding to herself. Her eyes looked pretty dead right then, and even her smile seemed out of place. "Isn't that fine? Considering what you put me through…"
"Such coldhearted words without regret?!" Ruby exclaimed. "S-Sapphire-chan! H-help me!"
"I'm sorry, but you reap what you sow, nee-san," Sapphire replied calmly, floating over to Miyu.
"Et tu, Sapphire?!" Ruby cried. Those cries soon died down, however, as Lancer approached her as well, leaving her no room for escape. "Er… Well… T-that was all just fun and games, so no hard feelings, right? Y-you guys won't do anything to me, right? I'm just a fragile wand, you know!"
The look in their eyes told her they had heard her loud and clear. And then they proceeded to hear her louder and clearer.
Shirou groaned as he dropped the rug in his hand. Reaching for his chest and gripping a handful of his uniform, he sat down on the floor of the dojo in an attempt to catch his breath. It would have been understandable had he already started on cleaning the place, but the floor was completely untouched.
The odd sensation that had been causing him so much discomfort was still present even now, despite having had some rest after lessons finished (courtesy of Issei). He had initially blamed it on the lack of sleep, but Shirou was starting to wonder if it was something else entirely now.
Maybe it's because I became a Master, he wondered. Is this what Illya and Tohsaka feel as well…?
Taking a deep breath, which achieved absolutely nothing, Shirou picked up the rug again. If it was just some strange sticky sensation, then he could just bear with it; he could not just break his promise over a little fatigue, after all.
"Besides," he said aloud to the empty archery range. "It's been a long time since I came back here, so I might as well make the most of it."
The dojo, naturally, did not answer him, but it did not mean that he was alone. Within the shadows cast by the wooden roof, someone – or something – observed the young man, invisible to the human eye and deadlier than any force on Earth.
The sun began to sink over the horizon, casting a warm vermilion glow over the school. The gentle hue seeped into even the darkest corners, bathing Rider in its warmth despite her being in her astral form.
She watched the young child work tirelessly at the job that was not even his. He had no reason to accept her Master's unreasonable demands, and he had nothing to gain from such a deal. Yet, he carried on with such enthusiasm it actually made her hesitate.
He was, as Sakura had said, a nice person. There was hardly any evil in this man, and that was surprising enough by itself. The man was far too selfless for his own good – a trait in perfect contrast to Shinji's. Perhaps that was why he wanted Emiya Shirou dead.
She watched the light in enveloping the dojo die out, slowly giving in to the chill of night. The young man was breathing his last few breaths, and once the light died out, he would join the countless corpses she had left in her wake.
Forgive me, child, she apologized in her mind. Forgive me, Sakura.
The hours crawled by, and the unsuspecting boy continued at his task without pause. Depriving himself of the chance to escape, Emiya Shirou worked well into the night, finally finishing when it was almost completely dark out.
"That sure took a while," he said to himself. "Hope Saber and the rest aren't too angry…"
And that was it. Nothing more was said, and before he could even react to the sound of metal tearing across the air, something swift and sharp buried itself into Shirou's shoulder. Unable to even catch a glimpse of the weapon that had struck him, Shirou was slammed into a wall by the force of the thrust.
Coughing violently, Shirou glanced at the hole in his shoulder. The wound was rather large, but was strangely not bleeding. He had not felt the weapon being pulled out of his arm, and it had most certainly not penetrated his arm itself either. And yet, it felt like the weapon was still lodged inside his flesh.
Before he could dwell on it, however, Shirou's arm jerked forward by itself, pulling him along with it as though alive. Slamming him into another wall and knocking the wind out of him, the invisible weapon dug a little deeper, finally eliciting a yell from his lips.
"How's that, Emiya? Hurts, doesn't it?"
Through the hazy bits of his consciousness, Shirou recognized that voice. Despite the pain and utter confusion flooding his brain, he was able to let a fraction of surprise dominate his thoughts.
"S… Shinji?" he gasped.
"That's right; it's me!" Matou Shinji declared triumphantly, walking into the dojo with a woman behind him. "What do you think, Emiya? My Rider's pretty powerful, right?"
Shirou found himself staring at the strange woman named Rider, who seemed to be emanating a strange force he had become all too familiar with lately. Sporting long violet hair and wearing a lilac mask of sorts over her eyes, the woman had a strange symbol tattooed over her forehead. If not for the life-threatening situation at hand, Shirou might even have thought that her attire was inappropriate for a lady. But this was not some friendly introduction.
The woman was a Servant. He was sure of it. The sheer presence she possessed was enough to fill the dojo and overwhelm him, and she had not even moved yet. This was a foe out of his league, and not something any human could have a chance in defeating. Like Berserker, she was not someone Shirou had any hopes of taking on without his own Servant. But unlike Berserker, Rider did not reek of the same level of danger that the mad-enhanced behemoth had. Perhaps it had something to do with her not being a Berserker herself, but Shirou found himself unable to comprehend why exactly that was.
"You're… a Master?" he asked, slowly getting to his feet.
"That's right," Shinji declared, gloating over the fact. "I'm a true magus unlike you, and I'm going to be the one who win this War, Emiya. You small fries who got chosen simply due to the lack of talent should just give up and die."
"Why… are you…"
"But seriously, look at you," Shinji sneered. "Not even bringing your Servant with you to school in case something like this happened… Not that they would be able to defeat my Rider, but still… Since you're that eager to die, I guess I could always put you out of your-"
Drowning out the rest of his condescending speech was a multitude of loud explosions, blowing up the floor of the dojo. It would have incinerated Shinji too, had it not been for the swift reaction from Rider; sensing the danger and picking up her Master, she was able to pull him out of harm's way at the last minute.
Shirou, who was in the clear, managed to see the attack clearly. Not that it helped much, since all he saw was several beams of light blasting through the roof and obscuring his view of anything else, but it did give him a clear view of his supposed savior.
"To one-sidedly attack a defenseless Master… how deplorable."
Dark purple cloak. A deep-colored shroud masking her face, and a cape that spread out ominously like wings against the dark. She was not the image of an angel or a saint, but she possessed an aura that made her almost otherworldly, as though she was only wearing the appearance of a human being. This entity, although most certainly a Servant like Saber or Rider, sent chills down Shirou's spine despite showing no clear hostility towards him.
"Be at ease, child," Caster assured him with an enigmatic smile. "I'll protect you."
It kinda hurts me that the comical bits will be ending soon… Or rather, will be growing less and less from here on out. At least there'll be more plot, though, so I guess it all works out.