Here we go. The Lesser Holy Grail has been summoned, and something freaky is going on. It all comes down to this. Saber vs Archer. Kiritsugu vs Kotomine. Who will win? Who will be triumphant? Find out right now!

PS: I forgot about Avenger last count. She's still in it. Berserker didn't quite finish her off. What will happen to her? Wait and see.

Chapter 15: End of the War

(7:50pm, Outside Fuyuki Theatre)

Emiya couldn't believe how fast they were going. In only a few minutes they were nearly there. He was trying to think how things could go wrong when a whine echoed through the air.

"Hold on!" Saber shouted, as Invincible started swerving side to side. Bullets started flying towards them from three turrets. As Invincible jumped over the line of bullets, Saber threw two spells from his sword. They smashed into the turrets, reducing them to frozen scrap. Invincible charged at the last one, smashing it underneath with its hooves. As they rounded the corner they heard the buzzing of bees. Without slowing down, Saber threw Emiya at a garden bush, swatting aside mechanical bees with a wave of frost.

"Go find Kirei." He told Emiya. "I'll deal with Archer." He rode off, trampling the beehive turret under-hoof. Saber rode off, following a trail of turrets. Wasting no time, Emiya rushed into the theatre, hoping that Iri was still ok.

A foolish hope, but the last one he had.

Saber growled as Invincible had to dodge another blast of gunfire. It was clearly a trap, leaving a trail of weapons for him. But he had to kill Archer anyway. He just had to keep an eye out for him before…

"Fuck!" He yelled as a massive ball flew at them. Invincible dodged again, but as it landed it exploded into lots of small balls. Even a Night Elf would be hard-pressed to avoid them, and Invincible was no exception. Saber rolled several times before coming to stop. He knew that Archer was watching, but he just couldn't take his eyes off the explosion.

"That horse," He said, "was my best friend. I had to kill him once before, and you killed him again."

"I'm sorry." Archer said as he stepped closer. "But I literally have no choice. Kotomine's got dozens of Command Seals somehow."

"Really?" That was unusual. Archer was not doing this of his own free will. And from the reports Emiya had, Kotomine was as dangerous as him. Emiya might beat him in a fight, but he had to hurry to make sure. "Well, I'm afraid that I won't go easy on you just because you're being forced against your will." He swung his sword, but Archer blocked with a purple barrier. Saber screamed as lightning arced from it, while Archer swapped to dual-wielding claws. He rushed through the barrier at impossible speeds, slashing at Saber from all sides. Each blow seemed stronger than the last, until the blades exploded and blew Saber away. He rolled, then moved quickly as Archer fired with a lava gun. He backed away from the oppressive heat, before turning it into stone with frost. Archer pulled out a small disco ball and chucked it at Saber. He dodged, laughing at the miss. But as music started playing, he found to his horror that he was forced to dance. No matter how much he resisted he just wouldn't stop, leaving him open for several more shots. Thankfully his armour was tough enough to survive until the effects wore off, and he charged in again.

As Archer dodged his swings, Saber's mind raced. They had confirmed that Archer killed Rider. Their familiars had spotted Rider fleeing for a moment when his Reality Marble faded. Therefore, Archer had something dangerous. Something strong enough that he would only use it in another reality. But what?

"Tools of Destruction." Archer shouted, five weapons appearing around him. Saber had to run as four rockets fired at once from a green tube; large sparks fired from a purple-and-white gun; a beeping mine followed him from a triangular gun with three large claws; the fourth was a large orange gun with two panels sticking from the front; and the fifth, a living creature, attacked with…a belch? Regardless, Saber dodged to the best of his abilities. But the weapons were just too explosive. He grunted as lightning arced towards him from the second gun and he was thrown aside by the four rockets. The mine rushed towards him, the beeping getting faster and faster. It exploded, leaving several smaller mines that were consumed by the napalm of the fourth weapon. Finally, he was pushed away by the belch. As he rushed back up, Archer knocked him back down with a giant rolling electric ball. Heedless of the pain, Saber pushed against the orb in the centre, managing to get back on his feet and tossed it at Archer. He ducked before firing a disc at Saber, which caused a tornado to form. Saber stabbed Frostmourne into the ground to anchor him, but lightning struck him again and again.

He felt like screaming in rage. This fight was definitely in Archer's favour. Saber needed to get close to finish him off, while Archer could just keep peppering him with shots and stop him in his tracks. He had no choice. He had to summon the Citadel. He would do no-one any good if he died.

"The Damned Stand Ready." He shouted, wincing as he felt his mana drop. They were soon covered by the glowing sphere of his Marble, leaving them standing apart in Northrend. The Scourge swarmed out of every crevice and hole, nearly climbing over each other to be in formation. Before the final undead had risen, Saber was pointing Frostmourne at Archer. The intent was clear to everyone.

And The Scourge ran at Archer, ignoring the massive wall of weapons surrounding him.

(8:00pm, Fuyuki Theatre)

Emiya grunted as he slammed against the wall, coughing up blood from the impact. Even knowing that Kotomine was dangerous he had still managed to underestimate him.

"Not that much different from when Saber fought Lancer." He thought as he fell to the ground. He would've chuckled if it didn't hurt so much.

It had started off like he expected. Kotomine lured him to an underground room, where they had started their fight. He was fast enough and skilled enough to have blocked the bullets from the Calico, and had used Reinforcement to improve his Black Keys. He had already shown that Emiya's Origin Rounds were useless, as the magic he used was the multitude of Command Seals he had. But given their size, they would still be a killing blow.

He laid there in a state of shock, leaving Kotomine to think he was finished. The look on his face was priceless as he blocked the rounds with Kevlar sleeves. Mind you, he wouldn't be moving if it wasn't for Avalon. He had placed the scabbard inside himself just in case of such an attack. Using his Time Alter, he got back up and reloaded his Thompson Repeater, intent on finishing Kotomine off. As the Alter wore off, Kotomine moved as if to swat the bullet aside. He clearly wasn't expecting it to be strong enough to penetrate his hand. The force blew his arm behind him as the bullet exited through his elbow. They both stood there, panting in pain, glaring at each other. Emiya ran through the list of option just as Kotomine was. Satisfied, Emiya used Time Alter again but at Triple Excel, rushing Kotomine before he could react. As he swung his Repeater by the barrel, Kotomine only had time to block with his damaged right arm. The bone snapped as the heavy handle smashed into it. He grunted in pain before blocking Emiya's knife with one hand.

He wasn't sure how long he could keep it up for.

(8:15pm, Northrend)

Saber felt like screaming. Archer was too damned good. His weapons all had unusual effects that allowed him to decimate his troops. Anub'arak had fallen to the disco bomb and tiny explosive robots with wind-up keys. Kel'thuzad was wounded by a few slime creatures. The only consolation was that Archer only had a few weapons left. They had even managed to wear their way through his melee weapons, leaving him with only a wrench for support.

But Archer clearly wasn't done. He had activated one last barrier, a glowing red barrier, before pulling out an bronze weapon with a blue needle on the front. This had to be his most devastating weapon if he was saving it for last. Perhaps strong enough to destroy Northrend. And that barrier was standing after everything he had launched. He had no choice. While Archer's weapon charged, he collected his thoughts, ready to fire.

"Wrath of The Lich King." He shouted, swinging his sword. Icy-blue and green light blinded all as a wave of energy flew at Archer. He had fired off his weapon causing the wave to crash into a blinding white orb. The two forces struggled, but Saber had put all the mana he could spare into that blow. It sliced through the explosion, causing it to fade while the wave sliced through the barrier and Archer. He yelled as he faded away, returning to where ever he was going. As Saber collapsed from exhaustion, Kel'thuzad crawled towards him.

"My lord." He said as the Marble faded away. "Despite Anub'arak's passing to serve the Scourge, you do have to admit his dance was pretty funny."

It had been. Fittingly, the old scarab had danced like an Egyptian mural. But he got back up as he returned to Fuyuki. He couldn't stop. He had to find his Master. And he had to recharge and kill Avenger.

By The Damned this was going to be difficult.

(The Great Clock)

"Ratchet?" Talwyn said as she shook his shoulder. She was worried. She came here to see how the boys were doing, only to find them on the ground. Clank had woken up only moments ago, but kept muttering about 'Rider' and 'Master' and 'The Holy Grail War'. It was kinda creeping her out.

Ratchet groaned as he woke up. He tried to get up, but found it difficult with Tal hugging him to death.

"Easy Talwyn." He grunted until she let go. He turned to face Clank, glad that he was still alive.

"Ratchet. Did you win the Grail?" Clank asked. Ratchet's heart nearly broke right then and there. Poor Rin. He had promised to keep her dad safe. And he had failed.

He sighed. "No. I didn't. Sit down, both of you. There is a lot to talk about."

(8:20pm, Unknown)

Emiya found himself back on the Island. Back where he had his childhood. Back where his father had made Dead Apostles and planned to make more for his 'research'. Back where he lost nearly everything. It couldn't be real.

"I knew you would come Kiritsugu." He heard Irisviel's voice behind him. He turned to see her, in all her beauty. "I had faith, that you were the one to reach this place. This is the place where your wish will be granted. We are inside the Holy Grail that you have been seeking. Emiya looked around, noticing the black rain. High above him in the sky, a black moon with a red aura looked down at them. "That is the Holy Grail. It has yet to take form, but the vessel itself is more than filled." Emiya felt like crying. Iri really was dead. He knew it would happen, but it still broke his heart. "All you need to do now is offer it your prayer. Only then will it be able to go out into the physical world."

Emiya glared at Iri. "Who are you, really?" He demanded. This was not his wife. No matter how it looked and acted, he could tell it wasn't her.

"I will not deny that this is a mask." It said. "Without a pre-existing personality, I am unable to communicate with others. However, the personality I recorded is undeniably the real thing."

"Are you the will of the Holy Grail?"

Iri nodded. "Now then. Time to grant your wish."

Emiya found himself back in his hotel room. Everything was quiet, as though the world had vanished. The silence was disturbed by the TV turning itself on. There were two luxury liners on screen.

"300 are on one ship." A strange voice said. "200 on another. 500 total passengers and crew. Plus Kiritsugu Emiya. Let's assume that these 501 people, are the last survivors. Giant holes simultaneously open up in both ships, crippling them. Kiritsugu alone has the skills necessary to repair a ship. Now then. Which one of the ships do you choose to fix?"

"Simple." Emiya said. "The one holding 300 people."

"As soon as you make that decision, the 200 people on the other ship kidnap you and take you prisoner. They demand that you fix their ship first. What will you do?"

"I would…" As Emiya tried to think, gunfire echoed from outside. He turned to face the window, watching the muzzle flash. He pulled aside the curtain to see what was happening. He gasped. Now he was standing on a ship, surrounded by corpses.

200 corpses.

"You would kill all 200 passengers. That is correct. That is the Kiritsugu Emiya we know." His phone started ringing. As he answered, he heard the voice again. "Next, the surviving 300 passengers abandon their damaged craft. They split themselves between two new ships, and continue their journey. This time, there are 200 on one and 100 on the other. But again, holes open up in the hulls of both ship at exactly the same time. The 100 in the smaller ship take you prisoner, and like the others demand that you fix their ship first. Now what will you do?"

"You already know, but you…" He was interrupted by his phone redialling. He was now standing in a parking lot, when an explosion echoes behind him. He turned and saw that a ship was on fire. It shocked him.

"Yes. You made the right decision."

"No!" Emiya growled. "That's impossible. How can that be the right decision? 200 survived, but 300 died so that they could live. The scales are tipped the wrong way."

Memories flashed by. All the times he killed monsters and criminals to save the many. The Grail talked about how it was working to his logic. How it cannot do a miracle that Emiya couldn't think of. Around him, the survivors were split in two again and again. Always with one side bigger than the other. Always more. And the smaller side kept dying.

He found himself back home. His father was standing before him. Before he could think, his gun went off. Behind him was Natalia. His new 'mother'. His gun went off again.

He found himself on a boat. The same boat he had fired the rocket from. Where he had to kill Natalia and the plane she was on to save New York.

"Kiritsugu Emiya." The Grail said. "You are truly Angra Mainyu. The one worthy to bear all the evil in the world. Now the final question." Emiya looked to his side to see Iri with Illya, and Maiya standing next to them. "Three remain. Will you choose to save two, or just one?" Despite telling himself to stop, he walked towards them, knife in hand. Blood splattered as he slit Maiya's throat.

"Welcome home Daddy." Illya shouted. Emiya found himself back at the Einzbern Castle, Iri and Illya sitting in a bed. "Oh I'm so happy that you're finally back." She jumped into his arms, giving him a warm hug.

"You understand now don't you?" Iri asked him. "All you need to do now, is to wish for it. To bring back your wife. To get back your daughter." The windows darkened until there was only shadow.

"I won't be able to go looking for chestnuts with you anymore." Emiya said.

"Don't worry. I'll be happy as long as you and mummy are with me."

"Thank you. Daddy loves you. My precious Illya. If nothing else, I swear that's true." And with having said that, he placed his Thompson under her chin. And killed the fake girl.

The fake Irisviel screamed and crawled to Illya's corpse, crying and shrieking. Emiya reloaded his gun and pointed at her head. She slapped it from his hands and screamed at him.

"But why?!" She cried. "Why would you do this? My love, you killed Illya!" Emiya grabbed her by the throat. No matter what it looked like, no matter how well it acted, this was not his family. "Why? Why would you refuse us? Why refuse the Grail?"

"Six billion people. On the Earth." He gritted out.

"I curse you…" The façade fell away. Iri would never be like this.

"…Verses you two."

"…Angra Mainyu curses you…" It whispered as he strangled it.

"That's why…"

"…To suffer…"

"…That's why…"

"…Until the day you die."

"…I have to kill you."

"I will…"

"To save the world." He was crying. This hurt so much.

"…Never forgive you." The snap of her neck echoed through the room.

(8:30pm, Fuyuki Theatre)

Saber groaned as he got back up. His head ached like an Orc War Drum. It was to be expected though. He had a 'god of evil' rooting around in there. But by sheer stubbornness and pride he managed to purge it from his mind, along with the twisted part of himself.

To think that the Grail expected him to hand the Scourge to him just like that. He was their king. Him. Not some twisted freak who couldn't lead a parade out of a den. He had been one of Azeroth's gods of evil, and started out as a mere mortal. If he wanted its carnage he would've released all control on the undead and covered the world in corpses. And whatever was left of Arthas was ashamed by how far he fell. Champion of Light to God of Evil. Actually helping his sworn enemies destroy Lorderan. He was glad that people resisted him at every turn. He would've been leading them if he hadn't been the monster.

But the die had been cast. He was now, and forever will be, Arthas the Lich King. And not even the Grail could fix that. And at the very least, he can start repenting by destroying this heartless evil. A bang echoed through the halls. Hurrying, he found Emiya standing over Kotomine's corpse, his gun smoking slightly. He looked at his opponent for several seconds before facing Saber. "Saber. We have a problem."

He nearly scoffed. But things were too serious for that. "You mean the fact that the Grail is tainted by evil and only wants to kill everything it can?" Emiya seemed surprised by that, so he explained. "After killing Archer, I tried to get to you and help out. But on the way, a flood of black mud fell through the roof. When I woke up, I was in Lorderan with my past self, standing before me. The Grail offered to help create the Scourge on this world, with himself at the helm. He talked about how 'miraculous' it would be, uniting everyone through death. But I'm too stubborn to let anyone else command the Scourge while I'm still alive. By banishing it, I must've removed the corruption from my mind, because I saw everything I'd done with clarity. The living didn't defy me because they couldn't understand my plan. It was because I was a monster. And my kingdom would be monstrous and evil. Only problem right now, is that I used up nearly all my mana against Archer. I don't have that much to spare."

Emiya nodded, before raising his marked hand. "Saber. By the power of these Command Seals, I order you to return to full strength." One of the seals vanished, and Saber felt restored. It was as if he had been dipped into an Elvish Sunwell. He felt like he could take on the world.

He smiled. "C'mon. Let's get to that Grail before Avenger stumbles upon it."

Well, well. Looks like Saber is nearly the victor. After looking at the skills of some of my Servants, I realised that I had several Gilgameshes in my war. Caster could use all kinds of magic with ease. Archer could summon an army's worth of weapons. Berserker could heal from nearly anything. And Saber was a god, with all the power you'd expect. The regular servants had better be worried.

For those who haven't played the Ratchet and Clank series (And shame on you if you haven't) The weapon he used against Rider and Saber is called the Zodiac. The in-game effect is that any non-boss enemy on screen when you fire it is instantly killed. Unfortunately, it only holds 5 ammo, and they are super expensive. But I imagined that story-wise it created a massive explosion that vaporised anything around Ratchet instantly. That's what makes it so powerful. So for Halo, it would be like the Pillar of Autumn exploding.

Only one more chapter to go. Time to find out the end of Fate of the Strong, next week.