An Opportunity of Fate part 26

Arturia Pendragon-

Arturia stared at the form being constructed before her eyes. It already had a human like form, but it was far from completed. This was how her son had been made.

Mordred had been a homunculus after all. How else did someone in their twenties have a child also in their twenties?

She closed her eyes and remembered the whole nightmare. All on account of her desire to have Guinevere conceive. What else could Arturia do? Many in the Court were talking of having Guinevere replaced by someone else. Peace was around the corner, and the Court was worrying about the Succession.

Arturia had loved Guinevere. There hadn't been much of a physical relationship between them, but both of them had cared for each other. The thought of her being replaced had been a painful one. And so she had gone to Merlin to find a way, and he had enlisted Morgan to help.

For forty-eight hours Arturia had been a man. Arturia did not remember much of that time; Morgan had made sure of that. But Guinevere had gotten pregnant by Arturia.

So had Morgan. Although whether she carried a separate child to term or had simply used her magic to coin Mordred out of the sperm she had recovered from their sexual encounter, Arturia didn't know. Nor did she really care.

Their plan had worked though, if not the way they had hoped. Guinevere lost the child and nearly died of complications. Reactions of the Court were such that when she did pull through, they no longer talked about replacing her. Gawain was the heir, and it would be either he or his children who, barring a miracle, would take the throne when Arturia died.

Sella's disembodied voice called to her, "Thank you. I know this must seem vain, or futile, but I promised Leysritt I would live for her. And while I won't, I will know that someone will carry our legacy."

Arturia nodded stoically. She did understand, everyone wanted to leave something behind them when they died. Arturia certainly hoped to leave behind a nation at peace, one strong enough to endure the ongoing corrosion of the Roman Empire.

She had failed.

Her last hope had been the Grail, and now she knew that it was tainted, even that was taken from her. She would do what she could to aid Shirou and his allies. And she would save Ilya in the name of her friend Irisviel. "Have you found where they took Ilyasviel?"

"Yes. I am having the servitors prepare transportation for you. They should be ready momentarily. I recommend that you wash up and change. Garments will be in the room you spent in last War."

Arturia sighed. Another of those hated suits. She had only worn them because Iri had pleaded with her….

Then again maybe it was right that she save Ilya in one. She quickly cleaned herself off and looked at herself in the mirror. None of her doubts or despair showed. She looked the same as she always had. Still the regal King of Britain. Still the bold youth that had taken a torn people and united them to throw back the invaders.

Only to have it all fall apart in the end.

Merlin had warned her. Had told her the cost of drawing Caliburn from the stone.

Arturia simply hadn't realized how bitter the end would be. Without the Grail, without hope, all she had was her pride and her honor. She had sworn to aid Shirou, had promised to protect Ilyasviel.

It would have to be enough.

"Hold on Ilya, I am coming to save you."

As she dressed and strode confidently down the halls of the Einzbern castle to her waiting transportation, she had one tiny bitter thought. 'My whole life I have served others. I have striven to save and protect all those entrusted to me. I do so still.'

She got on the motorcycle, one much inferior to the magnificent ride she had last War. But it would serve.

'Always I save others.'

'When will it be my turn to be saved?'

And she rode off into the night.

Scene Break-

Sakura Matou-

Sakura stared at the dressing Shirou with concern. She sat clad in her violet hair wondering what he was thinking.

Not that she couldn't guess based on the number of clouds that were drifting into his internal landscape, even obscuring the massive gears that floated overhead. "I am sorry, Shirou. But this will be the best for both of us."

Shirou was silent, examining the various tools that were near the forge on the top of the hill. A sword lay driven into the anvil, although you could see marks were the anvil had been used despite the fearsome blade. As always there was the chiming of anvils coming from the castle.

"Both of us have issues that we need to resolve before we can ever…." She stopped as she watched grief fill his gaze.

"We won't ever be like this again, will we? This is a good bye to us, to all we have shared these last eight years."

Sakura stood and touched his cheek. She smiled sadly and said, "Yes. I want to remain part of your life, but these glorious years…." She shook her head, "They were just a dream."

The sky continued to darken, and a distant peal of thunder rolled across the endless proving grounds. One by one the sound of anvils diminished until there was only the sound of the wind and the scent of the falling rain.

Shirou was examining the glorious blade in the anvil, "I know. When I was awake, I could feel it beginning to fade." He grasped the hilt and made a small pull on the sword. He continued to study it, "I was returning to who I had been. CG Pendragon warned me that she was training my instincts, not my conscious mind." He shook his head, "That I will have to do all over again."

"I wish we could keep this forever but we can't."

Shirou smiled sadly at her and gave her a kiss, their tongues duel for a moment before he broke away. "Do you trust me?"

Sakura nodded.

Shirou picked up a small bowl. He spat into the bowl gently. "Our saliva mixed." He cut himself and bled into the bowl.

Sakura held out her wrist and let him cut her. She hissed in pain as the blade slid along her palm. But pain was a familiar friend and she let herself bleed into the bowl. "Our blood is mixed."

Shirou walked past her to the bedroll that was still damp from their encounter. He cut a section near the center, lifted the cut section and wrung some of the moisture into the bowl. "Our sweat is mixed."

Sakura ran her hands through her hair. "Is this from something you read in Rin's library? Because we don't need to form a prana bond. We already have one at the moment."

Shirou flushed but reached out and plucked a strand of hair from her head. He took one of his own and tied them together before dropping them in the bowl.

Sakura rolled her eyes and watched as the wall of rain came ever closer to the covered forge. She looked back at Shirou as his hand slid down her belly and to her sex. The hand caressed her briefly before sliding a single finger into her. She hissed again, this time not in pain. She whimpered slightly as he withdrew his hand, one finger damp from her fluids and a trace of the semen he had left in her.

'If we do this in the real world, I will need to remember protection.' She had some control over her body that had kept her from getting pregnant from Shinji. But Sakura did not know how effective it would be with Shirou, because she wanted his babies.

Obviously she wasn't ready yet, but would her body obey her or let her hormones drive? Not something she should risk. Yet.

"Our sexes intermingled." His flush did not abate.

"What exactly are you doing?"

"I am forging a memory. Literally." He turned to grasp the blade in the anvil and as his hands began to glow golden, he began to pull it out.

It was a glorious blade of gold with blue enamel; Sakura could only sigh at its beauty. It bathed Shirou in a golden halo that spoke of power and glory.

Shirou raised it up and called out, "I thank you for this wondrous gift, but for now I must return it. It speaks to a path I am not sure I will tread. Perhaps in time I will recover a fraction of its glory." It began to glitter in his hands and break apart.

"Why Shirou? We could use that blade. It was Caliburn, Lily, I mean Arturia told me about it. With it you can win any battle."

Shirou shook his head, "It would only get in my way. I will not make Arturia's mistake and lose the peace for certainty in war."

"But what if we need it to win?"

"We will find another way." He smiled at her and held out a small lump of iron. "Sakura, in the end this is what I am, a blade waiting to be forged. It is here in the heart of my magic, the center of my reality, that I forge myself and for a time bring forth the memories of other blades. It is why Rin and Ilya say I am doing something wrong."

"Shirou?"

Shirou turned his body slightly away from her, "You see there are things I did not tell you about my training, about my true nature."

"You've been training your instincts. To keep you from doing something stupid."

Shirou smiled self-consciously, a smile she would miss. It would take years before he matured enough to do so in the real world. "I doubt even a Counter Guardian could do that."

Sakura materialize a bundle of shadow cloth and tossed it at Shirou. She also clothed herself as a whim. She would love to take the time to clean herself, but Shirou needed to say this.

Shirou grabbed the shadow cloth and rubbed it in his hands. "Can I have this?"

Sakura nodded and watched Shirou closely.

He continued to examine it. His voice was grateful, "It is similar, but not the same. It shows some of the signs, but given what happened to you that isn't strange." He sighed with relief, "But somehow you kept a kernel of humanity alight, that Tohsaka strength and stubbornness at play. According to CG Pendragon there was a risk you might be like me, only she thought you had broken in different ways."

Sakura looked down.

"Luckily you have more of a connection to humanity than I do." He carried the bowl he had been using and placed the cloth on top of the lump of iron. He held his hand over the bowl and there was a flash.

Sakura looked up in shock as a hammer formed from the smoke. Just outside the forge the rain began to fall. "What is your plan? You know that this is all a dream and that it will all fade."

"I know." He brought the hammer down on the cloth covered metal.

Sakura staggered back, reeling as a wave of emotion tore through her.

"My memories of this time will fade. Which means this truly is goodbye. Because even if I choose you instead of Rin, it won't be the same." Again the hammer fell.

Once more Sakura was shaking. What was Shirou doing?

"But this world is more than a dream. It is my reality." Again a hammer blow.

Sakura fell to her knees watching Shirou as he hammered at the small object he was forging.

"This isn't really how you forge a ring, and truly, how many people want a ring of steel? But steel is what I work best, so much easier than all those exotic ancient alloys. The real truth is I don't forge anything the proper way here, not normally. I just call for it and the item comes." He smiled as the hammer fell again, "Of course I know the entire history of every single blade out there, including how it was forged, so even at this point I am likely the best sword smith on Earth. I know how to forge a blade."

Sakura watched as the tiny ring was quenched in some liquid. She watched as Shirou examine it and smoothed it with a cloth. He then handed it to her. She stared at it. It was surprisingly light, an odd mix of steel and stabilized shadow.

And it was real. It was not a dream object. It was solid. If she slid it onto her finger here it would appear on her hand in the real world.

Shirou touched her cheek, "It is a Conceptual object, a tangible manifestation of our love for each other. It will likely draw a tiny amount of prana every day to remain in existence, but given how much prana you produce I don't think you will mind."

She turned the ring over in her hand. Once she had been certain that no one could truly love her, not after what had been done to her body and mind, a taint so deep she was certain it touched her very soul.

And yet he loved her.

"Well? Aren't you going to put it on?"

Sakura looked up at him tears in her eyes, "Sempai, I…."

There was a loud crack and an image of Ilya appeared, "I am sorry brother, but if you are hearing this then my desperate spell has worked. I have been kidnapped by members of the Einzbern. They are members of a faction that wishes to study me rather than sacrifice me for the Grail. As long as I had Berserker I was safe, but his loss rendered me vulnerable."

Shirou and Sakura exchanged glances. Despite her circumstances, this Ilya seemed coldly confident.

The image continued, "They are attempting to reprogram me, to change me into a meek servant who will willingly submit to their experiments." There was a pause and Ilya's eyes all but glowed with determination. "I would rather die and I will suicide if I feel that I am failing. I believe that if I overcharge my circuits, I should be able to take some of the bastards with me." She looked down, "Look I know that I am asking for a lot here."

Ilya looked back up, "The spell I used should allow you to track me for the next twelve hours or so. I, I…." She took a deep breath, "Please, Brother, save me!"

With a loud crack Ilya was gone.

Shirou just stood there rigid, staring off into the space Ilya had been, one hand raised as if to touch the vanished image.

One by one the sound of anvils began to ring out, drowning out the sound of the pouring rain. The taste of the air became less sweet, filled with the acrid tang of molten metal.

Shirou's internal world was preparing for war.

Sakura wrapped her arms around Shirou, "Go, my Hero-Sempai. Be what you were born to be. I wish only that I could join you."

Shirou reached down and kissed her, "Good bye, my love."

And he was gone.

Sakura closed her eyes. She tightly held the ring he had given her. She slid the ring onto her finger, feeling a tiny tug at her od. A memory of what had been. It was unlikely that she would ever possess Shirou so completely again. But as long as that ring existed she had tangible proof of his love.

And so she walked into the warm rain and wept, mingling her tears with his. If someone had asked her if her tears were of sorrow or joy, she wouldn't have been able to answer.

For they were both.

-Scene Break—

Medea-

Medea set down the wine glass. She had not expected such an enjoyable evening. She had anticipated handing Archer's Master a tray of poisoned tea. Somehow he had seen through her ruse and convinced her to tell him her tale before he died. A tale she had just finished.

Hammond Alexander sat back and sighed, "You made a lot of mistakes, trusted the wrong people." He shook his head, "But I am glad to know you didn't kill your own children."

Medea looked down, "I still lead to their deaths. You would think I would have learned by then to trust no one." She closed her eyes at the memory of that final trap set for her. Her enemies at court had feared her revenge.

She had fought through, had escaped, but her young children had not survived. It had nearly broken her. Perhaps it had. How would she know? "Just be thankful you do not live in a world with active gods. I could have lived happily in Colchis, he, helping my brother."

A brother she had killed to escape from her father. Someone she had loved killed to aid her god driven lust for Jason, may he burn forever in Tartarus!

She opened her eyes, "You know what comes next."

"Yes. I knew it from the start. But it is not something you have to do. If you leave me, I will die in the night."

Medea smiled, "Ah, so the fear of death arises at the end."

"I suppose it is more a manner of the nature of my passing." He closed his eyes and continued, "The thought of having my spirit consumed is not a pleasant one. I have always been curious what death will bring, always hoping that my religious beliefs were true despite all that I have learned as a magus. That I might see my beloved again."

She reached out to touch his cheek. This close she could feel the warring emotions, his fear and courage clashing, "To the best of my knowledge, I do not think this actually damages the eternal portions of your soul. There are soul transference rituals, or rumors and legends of them anyway. No I think that having your spirit consumed will not deny you an afterlife, should any actually exist."

His eyes opened and he looked at her with hope, "Is that true?"

She smiled at him sadly, "Honestly? I don't really know." And she tore his soul out and consumed him.

She sat there and stared at the now empty and dead body. She signaled her master to arrive. At the knock, she waved her hand and opened the door.

Amelia tramped in, "What were you doing? Do you realize how long I was waiting? Did you share your whole life story or something?"

Medea said, "Yes."

Amelia rolled her eyes, "Whatever." She looked around, "Nice place. We should search for anything useful. I'll start in the bedroom."

Medea watched her Master begin to ransack Alexander's room. He had seemed a good man, better than her Master. She would have liked working with him in a different world.

Medea sighed and stood up. The faster they looted this place, the faster they could leave. And she wouldn't feel those empty eyes staring at her.

The door to the main hallway opened again, "Uncle! I know I should have called first, but I…." A blonde in a blue dress stood there staring at her.

Medea fired off a quick attack spell, knowing it was futile. For the girl was not alone. A spearman with an oversized shield intercepted the spell.

And the second battle between Lancer and Assassin began.

Scene Break-

Medusa

Medusa moved, trying to escape the being that had been Ayako. She needed a measure of distance to act rather than react. Escaping the Temple was not an option as the body was all but screaming to be possessed, every Seal denoting personality still very much open.

If the girl would give her a moment, Medusa would pour her own soul into the body and fill it, giving it a name. Many names actually. It would regain Ayako Mitsuzuri and would add Stheno and Euyrale to the mix. And Medusa, of course, all the beings she had consumed were in the end no more than facets of her. Parts that had once been sundered, but now were part of who she was, had been, and would ever be.

No one could take that from her. She felt her lips twist into a smirk, she was Ayako Mitsuzuri! Now that she had regained the rest of her soul, no one would take it from her. Medusa was part of her and had always been, she could feel herself melt into the others with a sense of joy and completion. Like she was finally home.

Ayako's body continued to follow her around the Temple. It was impossible, but it was happening. Someone or something must have intervened. Only the Temple was shielded against outside intervention.

Unless….

No, the odds of that were astronomical.

Never had the lack of a few critical memories seemed so important. She knew that she had formed a relationship with Issei, but the last few weeks were missing. Ayako had claimed to have had sex with Issei, but even then that wouldn't be enough. Not between two living humans, even if one had been less human than she had thought. Overcoming a human's natural resistance to foreign prana wasn't easy without the application of magecraft. Of course as Caster, she could recall every ceremony she had ever witnessed or discussed with countless priestesses, priests, and magi. That added with Euryale's extensive knowledge of the human form, useful even in this later age, gave her dozens of ways of ways to do it.

Most required blood or sex, some both. Knowing this still wasn't useful as an irate body chased her around the Temple.

Not even switching to a spirit form had stopped the chase. The body still slightly connected to its former soul even as that soul dissolved into the greater Medusa. And that short sword the body carried could hurt, possibly even kill her. Normal physical objects, even most mystic codes would fail to truly harm her. A blast of magic might have some effect, but outside of a major attack, her magic resistance would lessen or negate the blow.

The Heart of Courage was a completely different item. Sure, it did not have the force of a true Noble Phantasm, but as a Conceptual Weapon it did indeed have the force to affect spiritual beings. That is what it had been made for.

Medusa had been looking forward to examining its construction. Now she just wanted to avoid that flashing blue blade. It had been strong enough when she had wielded it as Ayako, now it did not flicker with blue; it looked like a blue light saber! It was a weapon that used its wielders courage as its Conceptual lever, and the entity behind her had only a few weeks of memories and an elemental nature.

Oh, and fragments of Ayako's Origin. Which if you were to sum up in a word would be 'Audacity'.

Medusa cast a quick spell that allowed her to alter her personal spatial topography and ran up the nearest wall. She reached for her blindfold and when she reached the ceiling she glared down at her former and hopefully future body;

Cybele

She would be able to easily turn the body back into flesh. This should work. She turned her gaze upon her former body.

And it laughed at her. "That won't work on me! Come down here you coward and return my Name!"

Medusa studied her. There was a haze around the body, a sense of unnatural distortion, and her eyes were a solid whirling gold. No white, no pupils, only whirling gold with a tiny amount of red filaments. "It is not possible. I swear this by the Balance and by Gaia itself!"

The body screamed in frustration as it felt the weight of Medusa's oath. The blue light began to fade as did the flashing golden eyes.

Medusa looked down at the body, "Just let go and you will know peace eternal. Is not complete detachment the goal of your faith? Did you not wish for peace and serenity? I swore to carry your burdens and I shall until eternity's end. Would you have me be forsworn?"

Medusa smiled sadly as the body fell to its knees. In this state it could feel the Balance, was one with it. It could feel the truth of Medusa's words.

Tears were slipping from those dim golden eyes. "You tricked me." She wrapped her arms around her naked body, "You took everything away and left me nothing." The blade slipped from her fingers clattering lifeless on the ground. "Not even a name."

"I took nothing you did not let me. I warned you that I would offer more than just physical sensation, that you could stop me with a word. That I would not do anything you did not allow." There were tears on her own cheeks now, "You let me take everything from you. You allowed it. I came not as a conqueror but a steward. And all that you were, are, or will be is mine. I have taken all your problems and burdens so that you might have peace. Accept it and go, and I will fill your body with purpose, I will give it a name."

The fallen body's voice was quiet, "I don't want to disappear. If I must die, then I will die. But I do not want to cease to exist!" It looked up at her, the light fading from her eyes, "At the very least give me a name. Give me something I can add to the Source."

If she gave this entity anything it would cling to it. Even something as small as a name or definition would allow it to exist. Medusa needed only to wait until the outside influence was spent and she would still be able to accomplish her initial plan. "No. Oblivion awaits you. Depart." That body was hers.

The body curled up into a fetal position and clung to itself, trying to remain. The glow in its eyes faded to almost black when it said, "NO. I do not accept this." She slowly stood her eyes beginning to glow again. This time they were a mix of gold and red, red slowly predominating. "If you will not give me a name, give me a purpose…."

The things Medusa would have given for a nice selection of offensive spells right then….

"Then I will take it." The smile on its face was serene and dark. "If the choice is between eternal Oblivion or eternal Darkness, I will choose the Dark!" Its eyes were wide and nearly solid red, a haze began to form around it, twisting the world. It met Medusa's crystalline gaze and said, "Do you know what a Demon is?"

Medusa's answer was a single word.

Scene Break-

Luvia Edelfelt-

Luvia ducked away from the door as Ajax interposed himself. It was the same damn witch she had fought last night. Her personal magic reserves had not fully recovered, but she had years' worth of stored power in her gems to draw from.

Cassandra was still tracking various Servant movements but had insisted Luvia take Ajax with her. Luvia was providing the energy for him now after all. Luvia didn't really understand what Cassandra was doing with all those computers, but the results seemed impressive. She had even printed some data for her Uncle in the hopes of enlisting him.

It would help if they approached Emiya and Tohsaka from a position of strength.

Of course, if Assassin were here….

Assassin and Lancer battled, rendering first her Uncle's hotel suite then the adjacent one into rubble. Luvia cautiously gauged the ceiling. It wasn't ready to collapse.

Yet.

Another of Assassin's energy bolts grazed across one of her gem shields, nearly depleting it. The gem shields were mystic codes that bled off incoming attacks through a mixture of hardened air and inverted fire. Thankfully she was an average one and could use it to its full efficiency.

Not that she was sure she could survive a direct hit. What would these blasts be like if Assassin were Caster?

Out of the corner of her eye she saw her Uncle. She rushed over to him, but as she feared, he was dead. The world narrowed for a moment as she mourned him.

From behind her there was a booming sound. Then a second, followed by a voice, "Welcome to the real world you arrogant noble bitch."

'Gun fire. Close range. Pistol caliber. Probably a 9mm.'

These were Luvia's thoughts as she turned around. There was a reason Luvia went around with active shields when she went into harm's way. Her family was quite wealthy, and one of their lucrative sources of income was mercenary services. Gem magic was not cheap.

It might be said their reputation as magical warriors was a little overblown, but that was only because they provided support services too. If anything the support services were a larger component than their main line fighters. The ability to fight meant little without secure communications and logistics, let alone medical and espionage.

Every last one of their operatives needed to be able to defend themselves on the ever-changing battlefield. Luvia herself wasn't really trained to be a front rank fighter. She was the current head of the Edelfelts, a magus family aware of if not fully part of the modern world. In this day and age guns were everywhere. Luvia's mother had been killed by sniper fire in the Caucasus.

Luvia was familiar with firearms, if only as a target. Her shields were quite effective against something as paltry as a pistol. Many magi would have been shocked, and probably in shock and bleeding to death, at the introduction of something as plebian as a gun; Luvia was not.

She pivoted and drew upon her crest and fired a Gandr bolt at her attacker. It missed but it caused the attacker to move. Her attacker ducked around the wall.

Luvia took a more defensive position herself, "So I take it you are Assassin's Master?"

A couple of bullets were the reply.

The bullets actually had the advantage of greater penetration. A bullet could go through a wall. Her Gandr couldn't. She had to wait for her target to shoot at her first. But Luvia was ready when she did, hitting the woman in the shoulder with a Gandr blast.

It was a special Gandr blast based on her personal research here in Fuyuki. All of her testing from the sample from the park showed promise to be quite effective. Luvia was curious to see the results.

"You damn Lords and Ladies, always looking down on the rest of us. Always treating us like crap. Well I hate to tell you princess, but it will take more than a minor entropy curse to take me down."

Luvia readied another shot. Her Gandr were fairly heavy duty, but a strong opponent could take a few hits.

"Wha, what did you hit me with?" There was the sound of a body of a body collapsing.

Luvia smiled, "Not so tough after all?" She did not dispel the active Gandr on the off chance her opponent was setting a trap. She maneuvered to get a better look at what was going on in the other room.

Assassin's Master was on the floor cradling the section of her arm that had been hit. The place where the Gandr had impacted was a dark Grey with little lines of darkness spreading up and down her arm. She looked up at Luvia, "Please? Help me?"

Luvia closed her eyes. Assassin was responsible for dozens, perhaps hundreds of deaths by Cassandra's estimate. All killed with a magic based drug that allowed Assassin to feast on their souls from a distance. Watching this girl suffer from something she herself had inflicted was hard. But Assassin had to be dealt with. "Command Assassin to Suicide. Or I cannot help you."

"Please?" Assassin's Master closed her eyes, the grey lines stretching up her neck and on her face. "Please?"

"Assassin must be eliminated, either by your death or hers."

The words were a whisper, "Please. Please kill me!"

Luvia backed up. There was a sudden scent of scorched flesh. But it was the eyes that would stick with her, watching as Amelia Abernathy was burnt to death from the inside out. For just a moment there was a dark fire in her eyes.

Then her body crumpled to dust in her smoldering clothes. Tiny fingers of flame licked at the walls and carpet where her opponent had lain. For the briefest of moments she could feel a massive dark presence that desired nothing more than the death of all mankind. She could feel it try to fan the flames, try to direct them at Luvia. But it could not yet reach the world.

Luvia trembled as she felt wave upon wave of dark desire sweep through her as it then tried to channel itself through her. Through the one who had given it this briefest of portals to the world. She wept in joy as the presence left.

When it left there was a residue, similar to the one in the park. Only there was only one riven soul crying out in despair, dead but not able to fully die…. Burning forever.

Luvia had done this. She had damned a new soul to the hell wrought by the last Grail War.

No one deserved that.

She felt sick and was still shaking amidst the growing fire when Ajax returned.

"We need to leave."

Luvia was still shaking, "Yes, but grab as much of the research as you can. I will need it."

Ajax began grabbing papers and folders, "We won't be able to use the hallways at this point."

"Then we will just have to jump." Luvia replied as she gathered what she could.

Ajax handed her a stack of folders cradled her and jumped out the window.

Luvia could only hope what she needed was in there. If not she would need to persuade Sakura Matou to help her. She would not let that woman writhe in agony forever.

And her belief that the Grail should be stopped was confirmed. For if such a tiny fragment could do so much, what would a fully powered Grail accomplish?

-End Scene-

Rin Tohsaka-

Rin woke from her embarrassing but informative dreams with her sister to a sense of warmth. She opened her eyes and saw a campfire. She herself was wrapped is a rough but warm blanket.

Tending the fire was Roland. There was another sleeping form nearby.

He looked up at her and smiled, "Good to see you are up, Mistress. I ah, presume there is a reason for your lack of clothes?"

Rin growled, "Caster."

"She captured you?"

"Yes. A whole lot of help you were."

Roland ran his hand through his hair, "Sorry. I thought my magic resistance would have shielded me better. As it is, I still don't know what she hit me with. One moment I was charging her the next hours had past."

"Caster is Medusa. She turned you into a statue." She sighed, "Look it is kind of pointless talking about this. We are now allied, only she is still a legalistic bitch."

"We are allies with a monster that was going to convert a bunch of children to prana? That Caster?"

"That was Shinji's doing, I am sure of it. Although keeping a close eye on her would be a good idea." Rin sighed, "If I had been smart I would have added stipulations to our agreement. Like returning my clothes. I have been trying to think of a way at getting back at her while remaining in our agreement." Rin smiled, "But for now we are allied."

"I don't know Princess, she seems very dangerous to me." Roland shook his head, "Just watch your back."

Rin nodded, pulling the blankets tighter around her, "That is good advice." She looked over at the other body, "Who is that?"

Roland began to stiffen and look into the forest, "I found Taiga when I was looking for you." He raised his hand, "Master, prepare yourself. There is something out there."

Rin adjusted her blanket so her right hand was free. The familiar image of a dagger plunging into her heart activated her Circuits. For the millionth time she wished her mage senses were more acute, to be able to scent changes in the local area like Shirou, or to hear the same like Sakura. "Another Servant do you think?"

Roland shook his head, "I don't think so. Not unless it is Assassin. And I highly doubt a Servant would be so amateurish with their mage craft. I can feel her, and it is indeed a her, trying to push some sort of illusion on me. Powerful but crude. The environmental effects are better, but I hunted goblins and trolls in the pagan infested forests of Germany, this is nothing." He paused for a moment before continuing, "We might want to wait for daybreak before leaving."

Rin looked out into the flickering shadows, using reinforcement on her senses. She nodded slowly, she couldn't see or hear anything, but something was out there. There was a light pressure against her Circuit that spoke of attempted enchantment. "We would be safer with four walls."

"True, but depending on what it is, getting there could be problematic." He gestured at the clearing they were in. "Can you make real light?"

Rin frowned, "I can make mage light. It is a pretty simple spell."

Roland shook his head, "You can't emulate daylight or produce fire?"

"I can produce fire," She lifted one hand and said;

Ego manum meam Igni

And fire appeared in her hand. It could be worked to a single word, but it was hard to regulate how much fire, let alone where it would appear. Of the basic elements, Fire was the easiest to summon but the hardest to control.

"Latin?"

Rin shrugged feeding traces of prana into the fire to keep it alight. And to keep it from burning her. "An old spell. Any good magus knows multiple languages." A whimsical thought came to her, "Except Shirou. His English is bad, his German worse, his Latin…. Well you get the picture." She smiled, "World's most frustrating apprentice."

Roland was still watching the forest, but his tone was light, "Spoken like a woman in love."

Rin felt her cheek flush, "That is none of your business! Why is it important that I can summon fire?"

Roland's tone was serious, "Well I have never gone monster hunting in Japan, but in Europe monsters used man's dependence on light against them. They are better at magic and can easily fool magelight, letting you think you can see. Fire is real, they can try to play with the shadows it casts but they cannot deny the light that it brings. Fire is mankind's oldest friend."

"So we can go?"

Roland ran a hand through his hair, "If it were just us, this would be easy. But Taiga…." He shook his head, "She is too beaten up to keep up with us. And to be honest this place is comparably secure. An old campsite. You can see some faded sigils from long ago. Don't understand them at all, but they remind me of protective runes. My instincts tell me this place is safe."

Rin looked around, "I don't sense anything from this place." But then if it were Japanese style magic, would she? She hadn't sensed anything Issei had done after all. There wasn't any pressure either; if there was magic here it was benign.

But such a protected campsite was very possible, probable even given that this section of town hadn't been touched by the growth of the city yet. Outside of a certain ritual, Fuyuki was now one of the safer parts of Japan from a mystical perspective. Once this area had been a battlefield. Oni and Youkai had been abundant. But for some reason the Oni disappeared from the area, and the Youkai were hunted down by her family, mostly her Grandparents. By the time her father had taken over the Fuyuki area was no longer considered haunted and post war development had flooded in.

That had brought its own problems, but from a Second Owner standpoint, increased crime and population was manageable. Youkai were less so. As far as she knew there shouldn't really be anything out there that wasn't involved in the Grail War. Unless….

Medusa had altered the local ley line grid to build her Temple. She might very well have woken something up. Rin had several books on Youkai and the means to defeat them, but there had never been a need to read them. "We could be in trouble."

Wind began to blow through the trees, whipping at the fire both in her hands and the campfire. There was movement in the trees. Rin grimaced and took a more prepared stance. The sound of soft feminine laughter filled the air, but Rin was unable to pin the direction.

Roland made an annoyed sigh," As always it is the damn games. Just once I would like one of the fae to just present itself for a duel. What is next? A thunderclap or cloudburst? A wave of bats or squirrels?"

Rin had to ask. "Squirrels?"

Roland replied, "Not nearly as amusing as it sounds."

A somewhat familiar voice called out, "Squirrels? Seriously?" And burst out laughing. Naturally it seemed like it was coming from all directions. "No sorry. I can't do anything that flashy yet. I just wanted to, Ow, ow, ow…"

The Wards suddenly flared and a figure in a traditional kyodaka uniform appeared on the other side of the campsite. She looked very familiar as she rubbed the back of her head. One hand was pressed against what seemed to be a translucent curved wall created by the Wards.

Roland moved towards her and she jumped back, landing on a large branch in a tree fifteen feet away.

She said, "Please don't kill me holy spirit! I just wanted to have some fun. The two of you were so serious and all."

Rin stared at the figure with her reinforced eyesight, "Ayako?"

Roland growled, "That thing is not your friend."

Rin raised her hand, "Ayako, what do you think you are doing?"

The figure was confused, "Ayako? I am a Youkai, not an Ayako. Caster sent me to help you get home. She even made clothes for you, Rin. She wasn't sure what sort of decoration or embroidery you prefer, so they are sort of plain. Oh and your gems. She said you would want them."

Roland looked at Rin, "Just say the word."

Rin shook her head slowly. The voice and body were Ayako's, even her posture and the nervous smirk she wore was that of her friend. "Who are you?"

The figure looked lost in thought.

Roland whispered, "Rin, that is not your friend. It may look like her, it may act like her, for all I know that could be your friend's body, but it is not your friend. Don't trust her, there is a reason the wards are keeping her at bay."

'Ayako' spoke, her words bitter and regretful, "He is right, I am not your friend." She hopped lightly to the ground and moved towards them, "Although I want to be." She placed her hand forward against the protective wards, walls that affected only her. "But your friend left me alone inside of our body." She raised a hand up to examine it, "I wasn't fully connected to our soul, only partly awake. Caster didn't even realize I was there, and I, I."

Rin kept her Circuit cycling to prevent enchantment and did something stupid. She met the creature's eyes; they were full of grief and shame. "What happened to you?"

"Caster consumed our soul, to, took Ayako away from me forever…." Her voice was filled with contempt and regret, "And I enjoyed it. She destroyed us and made me like it. Part of me wishes I had been taken as well." She opened a small backpack and removed some items, more than it could have possibly contained. "There. Just call me when you are ready and I will get you home. Ilyasviel has been captured and Shirou will not take it well."

Rin watched as the body that had been Ayako's walked away, "What do I call you?"

It stopped, but did not look back, "I can't even pronounce my own name. Not the one Caster gave me. For now I am just her Weapon. You may call me that."

And it was gone.

Rin gathered her possessions. Her school uniform and jacket were still missing, but in its place was an old fashioned wizard's robe in her favorite shade of red. "Roland, turn around."

"You aren't seriously considering putting that on?"

"Caster is an ally. She returned my gems. They don't even appear to be touched."

"An ally? Did you see…. No, as skilled as you have the potential to be you are not a spirit. Maybe there is some mage craft you could use, I don't know. But its soul is empty. It is not broken or damaged or…." He shook his head, "I couldn't feed off of it even if I wanted to, there is nothing to consume. It is just a damned Elemental. But it is clinging to the fabric of a human soul, and I think, I really think that soul had been Ayako's. And, and…." Roland turned away.

"Caster signed a self geas scroll with her life and power contingent upon it. She is my ally, for good and for ill. It is how I bought my freedom." Rin dropped the blanket and wrapped the robe around her. Rin felt a wave of warmth swell through her. For the first time since she had fought Caster she felt truly warm. She slipped on a pair of slippers and sighed as her feet were no longer on the cold ground.

"What a great ally. She left you stranded on a mountain, alone and naked, in winter I might add. Oh, and did I mention the part where she ate your best friends soul." He turned back to face her, "These are not the actions of a friend."

Rin hated to cry. She disliked anything that showed weakness. Even her kind and gentle façade she carried at school wasn't weak, as a few who had tried to take advantage of her had learned to their sorrow. She was considered an Ace for a reason.

But she couldn't stop herself here. It was all her fault. She smiled, but her heart wasn't in it. And the tears wouldn't stop. "There was a section on the scroll for stipulations. I could have asked for help or clothes or even to have her turn you back immediately. I could have stated that my friends were off limits."

"Rin."

Her smile was sickly as she continued, "Oh, Sakura is family, so she is safe. Shirou is an ally, so attacking him would be attacking me. I knew she had Ayako in her power. I probably couldn't have protected her entirely. But I could have vouchsafed her safety. I could have, I could have…." She closed her eyes and willed the pain and tears to stop, to turn her heart into a stone.

But she couldn't. Her best friend was more than dead because she had been mentally lazy. She had made stupid assumptions

And Ayako had paid for it.

Rin couldn't stop the wave of emotion and so she wept. Roland tried to comfort her, but Rin simply couldn't stop. She cried until exhausted she fell into a fitful sleep.

-End Scene-

Interlude One-

Gilgamesh took a sip of wine. This Grail War was much less grand than the previous. Partly due to his own lack of presence he had to admit. But this Grail War was strange.

Most of the participents didn't seem to have the right spirit. Where was the battle royale? Where were the intricate plot and counter plot? Only Assassin and maybe Caster had the right attitude.

Gilgamesh sighed, "Truly this spectacle is devolving into a farce. Non of these women and children have the fortitude of spirit to fight."

Kotomine shrugged, "It will make the end game more exciting. Besides, did you not want an interlude to present your true self to Rider?"

"I need to find her first. She has left Fuyuki."

Kotomine smiled, "I know where she will likely arrive in the next few hours."

"You honestly think they will risk their lives over a meat puppet?"

Kotomine only smiled.

End Interlude-

'Ayako'

She still thought of herself as Ayako, even though she knew it was no longer her name. The real Ayako had given it up along with her own independent existence, leaving her all alone. Just as she was starting to wake up and bond with the girl. She had always been there, and had even woken from her slumber a few times. But only when something drew her attention, like that wondrous horn call on the day she met Sakura.

She didn't really remember much of their friendship, those memories had been taken, but she knew they were close friends. Something she hoped she could keep. Given how bad things had gone with Rin, she wasn't sure that would be possible.

All of which underlay her deepest fear. What would Issei think of her? She knew she should be more concerned about her parents, but given what her mother was, she was fairly certain it wouldn't be that much of an issue. But Issei was training to combat Youkai, and she was one now. How would that work?

'Ayako' had come to an agreement with Roland. She had led them off the mountain and carried Taiga to Emiya's. She was a little dismayed about the condition of the house.

Roland carried the sleeping Rin back to her own home to rest.

They didn't have a lot of time, but they had some. So 'Ayako' had taken a quick shower and changed into something more comforting. Sure her archery outfit was easier to move in, but she needed, NEEDED, something of the real Ayako's to give her comfort.

So she was headed into potential combat wearing a peach colored shirt and jeans. And felt better for it. Despite the group of Yakuza goons working to clean the blood from the main house, she briefly visited the still healing Sakura and sleeping Shirou. They looked cute together, but she knew it would hurt Rin.

The she went out, got Shirou's heaviest draw bow out and fired a few shots. In the still dark morning. Although the dark didn't really bother her all that much.

Each of them landed firmly in the center. Which earned a few frightened mutters and protection from evil hand signs. Which she brushed off. She was a Youkai. She earned such things by simply existing. If they only knew the truth. Heh.

She unstrung the bow and nodded to herself. She thought she had figured out how Shirou always hit the target. It wasn't just skill and talent, although Shirou possessed both. It was more about mindset.

Which made her worry for her friend as the mindset was not a normal human one. That was why the real Ayako had never quite mastered it. She had gotten close, but her own belief in her normalcy had denied it to her.

Ironic in someone who liked to push the limits.

She moved rapidly as she returned to Rin's home. She didn't cross the defensive boundary; she just found a nice shadowy place to wait. Not that she had to wait long.

Rin stomped outside and right to her hiding place, "My name is Rin Tohsaka, I am head of the Tohsaka family and Second Owner of Fuyuki. Do you accept my hospitality?" Her hair was unbound and wet from a shower or bath. She was still wearing Caster's gift of a robe.

"Yes."

"I ask again, as Rin of the Tohsaka and Second Owner of Fuyuki, will you accept my hospitality?"

"Yes." 'Ayako' paused, "What is this about?"

"Youkai, I ask you a third time, with the knowledge that your answer will bind you. I Rin Tohsaka, head of my family and Second Owner of Fuyuki, by right of birth and Providence offer you Sacred Hospitality in my home and area of responsibility." Rin's eyes tightened as she finished. "Do you accept or will you withdraw from my domain?"

'Ayako' suddenly felt pressure surrounding her. A ritual! Rin had blindsided her with a binding ritual.

How had she been so foolish? Of course Rin wouldn't trust some random Youkai to wander freely. And all of Fuyuki was her responsibility. This ritual left only three options.

Accept and be bound by the rules of hospitality. Which wasn't a problem at the moment, but she had sworn to be Medusa's blade for the duration of the War. If the two oaths classed, she would have to choose between being an Oath-breaker or disrupting Sacred Hospitality, both ancient rules written deep into the fabric of the world.

Her second choice was impossible. To flee would make her an Oath-breaker and any hope of regaining her life would disappear. She would likely end up a monstrous Youkai out of a need to survive.

The only other choice was to kill Rin.

'Ayako' keened in frustration. Once more she had no truly good choice. Life had been so much simpler when she had been human!

Rin's voice was cool as said, "Your answer, Youkai! Accept or begone!"

'Ayako' angrily replied, "I accept. I pledge honor for honor, generosity for generosity, and betrayal with certain vengeance. I stand bound by the terms of your hospitality." She hissed as the binding sank into her spirit. She wriggled trying to escape the sudden feel of tightness constraining her. "Are you happy now Tohsaka-sama?"

Rin gave one of her evil smiles. A hand raised to disguise her laughter.

'Ayako' just glared at Rin.

Rin had a genuine smile flash across her face and said, "Well I suppose I can accept that title if you accept Ayako-kami."

"That is not my name anymore and I am not kami!"

"So what is your name?"

'Ayako' shook her head, "I can't pronounce it. She wouldn't even tell me what it meant. But it is there I can feel it." She looked up into the night sky, "You don't know how important having a name is until it is taken from you."

Rin looked thoughtful, "That actually could be beneficial. It would make summoning or coercively binding you difficult. I am going to read up on the subject and give you a secondary name. Until then, I dub you Ayako."

"Rin…."

"What? Like you aren't calling yourself that in your head already."

Ayako looked away for a moment. It wasn't her real name, but it felt comfortable being called that.

One of Casters familiars landed nearby, a scroll attached to its leg. "Rin. We have to move. Shirou is on his way to save Ilya. What do you say we give him a hand?"

She touched on hand to her damp hair and the other to the robe she was wearing.

"If you need to change, I could go by myself."

Rin shook her head.

Ayako felt along the lines of possibility, it was hard but not impossible so she helped Rin. "Good thing this air is so dry. I would hate to have you catch a cold."

"But I just got out of…." She touched her now dry hair. "What did you do?"

"Don't worry your conditioner worked as promised so you won't have split ends." Again the world shifted slightly.

"What are you doing?"

"Just helping you a little. Come, we need to go." Ayako started to run.

Rin caught up to her, "We will talk about this later."

Ayako nodded and picked up the pace. For a moment she worried that Rin might not be able to keep up the pace, but then she realized Roland would just carry her.

And so she ran on.

-End scene-

Shirou Emiya

Shirou woke. He first checked on Sakura. She looked better, maybe halfway healed.

Shirou didn't see Archer, but he whispered, "Protect her for me!" He then dressed and left to save his sister.

He reached the place where Ilya was being held. It looked like a medical building. He examined it a bit more and nodded. Based on the style of the architecture and the building's relatively new date, the main support pillars should go there. A few properly placed explosives would allow him an unexpected angle of attack.

Various plans ran through his head. But all of them included a high chance of loss of life. Which is why he headed to the front door to knock.

He knew it was impossible, that the real world did not work that way, a portion of him still clung to the ideal of being a hero. Of being able to save everyone.

Just because it wasn't possible was no reason to not at least try. And if negotiations failed, he would kill them and save Ilya. There wasn't really any other option.

A confused homunculus answered the door, her red eyes and white hair looking out of place with her modern secretarial outfit. "Yes? I am afraid we are closed."

"My name is Shirou Emiya. My sister Ilyasviel von Einzbern is your captive. I am here to rescue her. Can I speak to the person in charge?"

The homunculus just stared at Shirou incredulously.

Shirou added, "Please hurry, I am under time pressure here. I would prefer not to have to kill you all, but if negotiations are not started in ten minutes or so, I will have to begin my attack."

She looked out at the nearly empty parking lot. At the empty streets and side walk. "By yourself?"

"I am not alone." 'Trace on.' He could feel the endless sea of blades waiting for his call. Several blades were all but materialized in his hands, he smiled. "I am never alone."

Something in his smile made her flinch, she licked her lips, "Uh, I will go tell Mr. Einzbern right now."

Shirou smiled again, "Okay. I will be waiting. The time begins now."

She stared at him for a moment and fled.

Shirou summoned his armor, prepared and refined his reinforcement, and waited.

It didn't really matter what they did next, he would save Ilya. He had promised his father.

And Shirou kept his promises.

End Part-

A/N- This was a long part. With the holidays over I will try to this next part done in a reasonable time frame. Wish me luck. And Happy New Year!