A/N:
So about a year ago, I wanted to end my life.
Yeah, quite the opening for an Author's Note, right? Well, now that it's been a while since then, I figure it's best that I tell the story.
Over a year ago, my life went through a pretty rough transitory period. I lost a lot of people I cared about (they didn't die, don't worry). I was hurt by them— but also, just as importantly, I hurt them.
Looking back, I was kind of a piece of shit. I took people for granted. I didn't truly appreciate them while I had them.
I don't think I was a good person. Even now, writing this, I still don't know if I am.
School completely halted. My mental health shrunk. I regressed in a lot of ways, and didn't know how to climb out of the hole. To a point, even therapy didn't help.
There was one thing that I wanted to try, though. Everyone kept telling me to put my thoughts onto paper, to write down stuff or keep a journal, but I didn't want to do something like that, especially if it's only me reading it.
Instead, I wanted to share my story. But…not in a cliché, TED-Talk kind of way (I realize that this A/N is basically a written TED-Talk, shush XD).
I wanted to tell it through a story. A fictional story.
A fictional story, with my favorite characters, going through a hyper-realized version of something I went through.
Yeah— in many ways, Heaven's Fall is just an allegory for my life the past couple years.
The two that represent who I want to be are Shirou Emiya and Touma Kamijou. They're the shining beacons who try their best, and do their best, even when shit is hitting the fan. They're the friend, the person that I want to become— not necessarily the shit that they went through, but the mindset that they have.
The two that represent who I was…Sakura Matou and Mikoto Misaka.
Both were betrayed, beaten down, and grew intense resentment towards each other. They hurt each other, like I hurt people in the past. Like how they hurt me.
Do I hate them still, for it? I'm not sure. But that conversation that Saten and Mikoto had with Sakura— how they don't forgive, nor will they forget what she did, but will let her life as she sees fit…that's kind of how I feel.
I was falling into a pit, like how Sakura and Mikoto were, and like how Saten almost did. I almost became like Angra Mainyu— just…hating the world for being hurtful. Hating myself, for making those mistakes.
It came to the point that my hatred almost hit a maximum, and I nearly wanted to take that permanent plunge.
But I was stopped, simply because someone told me that ending my life is inherently selfish.
I don't get rid of the pain.
I just forcefully throw it onto others.
A permanent solution to a temporary problem, basically.
Illya's last words to Sakura represent that sentiment.
There's a better way out of it…and honestly, a lot of it is just moving forward, as best as you can. As best as anyone can.
I guess to say the character that I think I am now, possibly my rendition of Rin Tohsaka.
Sure, she made mistakes. And those mistakes certainly nearly cost her…but she's here now.
She couldn't be there for Sakura before, but she's here now. Rin got a second chance with Sakura, though; the people I lost, well, I don't think I'll get a second chance with them.
But that's fine. By making this story, I hope I touched other people's lives. That's my second chance. I made something…good. At least, I hope I did.
I don't know if it means I'm a good person.
But I can at least say I made something that told my story to others, even if it was in a fantastical, hyperbolic way. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed it.
XXXXX
There isn't really a good way to segue into this, but I feel like I have to address the Kuroko vs Sakura debate.
A lot of you think it should have been Shirai. You're completely valid for thinking that, however…as an author, and because of what this story means to me, I don't think that would have been the right decision for multiple reasons.
Going from least to most important reasons: Shirai's character arc for this story was complete. She got to die a heroic, self-sacrificial death, protecting the one person that she cares most about. Even though it was on a much lesser scale, it's much like Shirou Emiya's arc. She died a hero. Undoing that would go back on her sacrifice.
But most importantly, and using Illya's own reasoning: "I don't reward people that hurt others."
Misaka…hurt others. Specifically, she actually, legitimately, killed Sakura. Sakura died of the wound that Mikoto gave her. Throughout the story, ever since Shirai's death, all Misaka's ever been on was a path of revenge. She fell victim to the darkness just as much as Sakura did, just in a less literal way. She became what Angra wanted.
It was her actions that caused Sakura to die— a Sakura that was just starting to realize the errors of her ways, and realize she still had some light to hold on to. She also killed Shinji— and while in many ways, that's a "good riddance" moment, Mikoto still killed him in cold blood, when he was completely defenseless. That's still first-degree murder.
While it seems harsh (and Illya can be harsh), she wouldn't want to reward Mikoto, because she went about this War filled with nothing but hate. Illya wouldn't want to reward someone like that.
Illya might have done it if Sakura had lived, and if she was able to materialize Kuroko's soul out of Sakura; but because of Mikoto, Sakura had died, forcing Illya to make that decision.
In a way, it was Misaka that caused that outcome. She, indirectly, was a cause of Shirai not coming back.
I'd bring up the fact that I have future plans for her, but I'd rather take this story as it is in a vacuum, so that is my reasoning.
On the flip side, the ones that fought for Sakura to be brought back from the darkness: Shirou, Touma, Rin, etc; they were nothing but heroic. They fought for Sakura's freedom, rather than for self-catharsis. Shirou gave up his life. Touma also did, in a way (until Rin revived him), and Rin…instead of shooting a coin at her, she decided to choose compassion and love, rather than hate.
And that's really the message. The answer to hate, and vengeance and revenge, is compassion. It's understanding. It's kindness.
That doesn't mean you have to forgive who hurt you. But raising a sword back at them will do nothing but continue a cycle of hatred. Y'know the old saying, "If you seek revenge, you should dig two graves."
Those who chose to go beyond Retribution are the ones that Illya ultimately decided to give her life for.
And plus, she also punished Sakura. It's easier to die than it is to live. Having her just die would be too easy.
She needs to understand what she did. She needs to live with it…so what is she going to do about it? Every person deserves redemption.
Heaven's Fall is a story about moving past vengeance. Breaking the cycle of hatred, and letting your enemies and your past be.
To try and look into the future.
I'm going to try and do that. I hope that you are, too.
XXXXX
Well, moving past that sentiment, I do actually have something to read for you all.
The following are trailers for Heaven's Fall's sequels. There's three that I currently have planned; technically two, but there's one arc that's so long, and so self-contained that I feel like it's better to consider it its own story.
There isn't a listed release date, simply because I don't know when (and to an extent, if) I'll write them. However, consider these proof of concept.
There's still plenty of stories that I feel like I want to tell with this mixed Type-Moon/To Aru world. If I do get around to them, then I hope you'll read them as well.
Alright, enjoy! This is officially the last Author's Note, so…I'll see you when I see you.
Let's go take—
A Certain Next Step (Trailers)
Date: October 8th, 2004.
Location: Avignon, France.
The city of Avignon had become a warzone.
Over half of its population were dead or missing. Thousands were injured, and only so many managed to make an evacuation.
The close-knit households were burning to ash with flaming fire, pluming black smoke billowing up and blotting out the stars above.
The usually crystal blue Rhône river that flowed peacefully between the city's borders had run red and lifeless. The grass fields were dried gray, and the streets were saturated with collapsed rubble, flaming debris, and the putrid stench of cooking corpses.
There was no hope for this city anymore. Even if the fires were to end, the curses wrought upon what was once a thriving commune had permanently stained the land.
France called for a complete cut-off of Avignon from the rest of the country: blocking off all roads and highways with military and police forces, not letting a single soul within, while trying their best to evacuate who was left inside of that hell.
The destruction of the city had become international news— and it was only ever going to get worse. To the public at large, they saw it as a terrorist attack from the now highly-controversial Academy City. The events of September 30th had already caused major general distrust of the city of science; so upon finding out that Academy City had staged actual bombings of the City of Popes, the current situation was burdened upon them.
They weren't the main transgressors, however.
A tragedy; a pure, inhuman destruction of this magnitude could not have just been caused by one party alone.
And in the heart of the crumbling, flaming Avignon, a certain wielder of Imagine Breaker learned exactly who the causes were.
'U-Urgh…'
His body was screaming in pain. The heat around him was almost unbearable, like he had just woken up inside of a scorching oven.
The small grass field he lay in was already burned to a crisp. The trees planted along the streets were devoid of leaves that had already cindered off of its branches long ago.
His vision was blurry. His muscles were aching. As he breathed out, he winced as he sees a puff of black smoke leave his mouth.
He tries moving his hands, but all his fingers could do was twitch. His body was still trying to wake up and strengthen itself— but he didn't know if he'd be able to in time.
A massive shockwave rumbles in his ears, causing him to groan weakly as he hears distant clangs of metal and shattering, breaking buildings that collapse violently to the ground.
Gazing up at the hazy, blackened sky, he watches as flaming chunks of concrete, wood and adobe fling through the air like twisted fireworks, celebrating the destruction of this place that thousands used to call home.
'Is…is this…'
He takes a shaky, pained breath inward. The air was almost too hot for his body to handle, and he coughs violently as it exits his lungs.
'Is this what you felt like…that day…Emiya…?'
Flashes of that fire he witnessed ten years ago come back into his mind. For some reason, the hellish landscape felt way too similar.
With all of his strength, he lifts his arm up into the air, trying to close his hands into a fist and gather all of the will he can to steady himself.
The taste of ash in his mouth, and the burning in his nostrils didn't help, though.
His arm starts to shake. His fingers tremble as he moans painfully, trying to get his fingers to move with no avail.
'Damn…it…'
The strength falls in his arm.
Yet at the same time, his eyes dart open again as he feels a hand grab his own.
Simultaneously calloused and tender. Feminine, yet hardened by years of conflict and war.
His eyes soften as a certain blue-haired Burial Agent smiles down at him, trying to give him any form of comfort through the hell that was spilling out around them.
"Come on, on your feet, Kamijou-kun…!"
While there weren't any injuries on her habit-clad body, her face was still sticky with a dirty mix of sweat and debris, and stains of red and brown ruined the sea blue of her nun's outfit.
Her windswept hair had been shaken wild, but at this point, neither of them cared for cosmetics. At this point, the only goal Touma had was trying to breathe.
Ciel grabs his hand tightly and pulls him up standing. Immediately, his body leans up against hers as he hacks out a violent cough to clear his throat and speak.
"…What the hell…is…"
He looks down at his arms. The sleeves of his uniform had burned off, and the skin underneath was pinkish and hot to the touch; he probably had first degree burns all across them, but his adrenaline was starting to force the pain away as he scanned the city…
…and widens his eyes in horror.
He couldn't remember what had transpired just before he had collapsed onto the ground, but he didn't remember the city looking this bad.
"It's been maybe…an hour since you passed out? It took me a while to find you…and try and not get caught by them at the same time, but…
…since they're fighting each other now, I was able to find a gap of time to get you. You were…"
Ciel gives him a once-over, her face furling into a frown. "…you were hit hard. Really hard, and far. Honestly, I'm still not sure how you're alive, but…I can't let you get involved anymore.
The enemies ahead of us…they're too strong."
Right on cue, Touma winces as a multi-story, French-style building shatters into thousands of chunks and bursts into fiery flames all at once: its shards of wood and adobe coming down like a hailstorm into the hellfire. At the same time, he hears a masculine shout of pain, and a body flinging amongst the flying, burning rubble.
He couldn't exactly see them very well due to their distance as well as his blurry vision, but the man's brown hair, white, form-fitting collared shirt and blue sleeves and pants started to jog his memory.
As he catches sight of the huge, meters-long jousting-style grey lance in their hands, he suddenly remembers who they were.
"Ac…qua…" he mutters, "…Ciel…is he…?"
Just before he had been knocked unconscious, he remembered trying to fight Acqua; but losing within minutes due to his far, far superior physical stats.
If Kirei Kotomine was a truck that could easily run Touma over, Acqua of the Back was more like a freight train.
"…He's still trying to kill you, yes." Ciel sighs. "But…he's distracted right now. I don't want to say the enemy of my enemy is my friend, but…"
Ahead, Kamijou gleans at the being that had managed to knock Acqua that high into the air.
"Right…that…thing…" Touma had hesitated to call him a thing due to them clearly having the appearance of an adult human, but Ciel nodded her head in affirmation.
"You're right to call him a thing, Kamijou-kun. They're not human.
They're humanity's greatest enemy after all. In some ways, Angra Mainyu pales in comparison to the evil they can bring."
The entity before them had a mane of wild ashen-white hair, with ghostly pale skin and blood red eyes. His clothes were regal, yet unbefittingly warm and incompatible with the heat scorching around them: a large, brown fur coat covers their blue suit and grey pants that seemed two or three centuries too far into the past to be modern.
In their gloved hands, he carries a cleaver-shaped, silver sword, dripping with steaming blood.
After glancing at Acqua again, Kamijou realized that there was a shallow, yet notable cut across their chest, staining their shirt.
'The blood on their sword must be…Acqua's…'
"They're focused on each other. We still have a chance to evacuate ourselves." Ciel says. "I can call Tsuchimikado-kun, but…"
Touma notices the hesitance on her face as she starts walking them behind large, crumbled rubble to make themselves scarce.
"…Ciel, you're not going to…keep fighting, are you…?" Touma asks. "You may be unkillable, but I can tell that you're out of energy, so—"
"Kamijou-kun." Her brows furrowed into daggers. "I…I have to keep fighting. Avignon…a lot of it is destroyed, but there's still a chance to save people. I can't…"
Her determination wanes a bit as she bites her lip. "…I can't let a second French Incident happen…but I guess it's already happened, huh…?"
Kamijou grits his teeth, recalling the story that Ciel had told him before they had flown here.
Of course she'd want to still fight. This was her home country, being torn apart by outsiders and monsters.
Ciel seems to figure something out in her head, and her eyes glimmer with a shade of confidence as she slowly starts letting go of Kamijou. "…You can stand, right? Can you walk, too?"
With the adrenaline filling his body, Touma manages to steady himself and keep his legs from giving out. "…Yeah."
Ciel nods. "Okay. I'll…I'll try and get involved. Take their fighting away from you. I'll be fine— you know that, but you need to get farther from here."
She pulls out her phone and places it tightly in his hands. "Call Tsuchimikado-kun as soon as you're safe, and have him pick you up."
Touma's face scowls. There was an inherent flaw in that plan.
"…What about you?"
Ciel immediately tries shutting down his protest. "Kamijou-kun, I'm not going to die. Whatever those two do to me…I can't die. So—"
"Running, are you?"
Ciel's face contorts into a scowl as they both hear the booming voice of an inhuman. A monster, whose existence depends upon human subsistence.
"Kamijou-kun, get out of the—!"
She pushes against him, forcing him backwards at the rubble they were standing behind suddenly blows open with a burst of hellish flames.
Touma lands roughly on the ground, but is protected somewhat by the raging torrent of fire that had found, and located them.
An ocean of conflagrations scream at him, only held back by Ciel as she uses her own body and remnants of magical energy to create a rough barrier, cutting the sea of flames to make a small, unaffected area behind her.
Kamijou sat in said area, watching in horror as Ciel sacrifices her own body to protect his.
He stares at his right hand. In his condition, Imagine Breaker wouldn't work; the flames emitted from that monster's hands surpassed Stiyl Magnus' spells, and were much, much greater in quantity.
He could only watch as the flames finally relent, and Ciel stumbles backwards, her body ashen black and red.
"C-Ciel…"
She falls to her knees, then onto her face.
Unmoving.
Within a few moments, Touma knew she would eventually stand anew, but—
"I see you, Imagine Breaker. Interloper from the city of science."
His body petrifies.
His lungs stop breathing. His heart skips a beat, and his eyes shimmer in fear as he gazes upon humanity's greatest vice.
Bloodsuckers that literally drain humanity's will. By their very existence, they weaken the Human Order.
The inverse of Heroic Spirits. Enemies derived from the blood red moon.
A Dead Apostle Ancestor has declared Touma Kamijou his target.
The boy's breath hitches in his throat, as the Nineteenth Ancestor raises his sword. "Y-You are…"
"—Vlov Arkhangel!"
A defiant shout from behind the vampire causes the inhuman to turn, and parry away the thrust of a massive polearm with a grinding strike of orange sparks.
Acqua of the Back doesn't miss a beat and immediately charges forward, temporarily abandoning his lance and slamming his fist toward the ghostlike monster standing in his way.
The vampire known as Vlov Arkhangel raises his forearm, defending against the strike. A resounding, vicious vrrrm of reverberating air follows as the two men trade their blows.
After a slash of Vlov's blade, Acqua retreats backward, skidding his boots a few meters away.
"Announcing your presence before attacking." Vlov sneers. "How chivalrous for a mercenary like yourself, Acqua of the Back."
"Hmph." Acqua recalls his lance into his hands, giving the vampire a scowl. "Spare me your words. You destroyed this sacred city, murdered my allies…and you're in the way of me ending that boy's life."
Both of their eyes glance at Touma Kamijou.
He was now the center of attention for two unfathomably powerful enemies.
Acqua may have been fighting this inhuman, but he was in no way Kamijou's ally. He had made a promise to him that if they were to meet, he would end Touma's life.
"Oh?" Vlov tilts his head, suddenly interested in Acqua's conviction. "You wish for his death? Then don't worry, Saint. I'll take care of that…"
Vlov Arkhangel raises his arm. On command, the flames around him coalesce into giant, clawed hands of burning fury that float by his body ready to soar at a moment's notice. "…after I dispose of you."
Acqua of the Back furrows his brow. The red-stained Rhône river behind him bubbles, before shooting out masses of liquid water, orbiting around him to match the flames of Vlov.
Touma Kamijou gulps, his heart beating faster and faster as his mind runs through his options.
If he sits here and waits, he dies.
If he runs, one of them will chase him down and kill him anyway.
Help was far away.
Ciel was only just coming to, groaning weakly and unable to lift her head, let alone stand. Despite her wounds being healed, her energy was shot— she was in no condition to help him.
The city continued to burn around them. Rubble lay in the cracked streets. The stench of corpses and the distant groans of walking corpses of Vlov's creation still remained.
The two enemies before him brace for each other's attacks.
The strength in Kamijou's head ceases as his neck falls backward onto the stone rubble.
He stares up at the full, glimmering white moon.
…that wasn't visible before.
'…Huh?'
Confused, he tilts his head and looks at the fires. Smoke still continued to pour up into the sky, and yet…
…the ashen cloud blotting out the heavens had vanished, like it was erased from existence.
The stars were visible once more, twinkling across the celestial sphere.
The moon shone above, its blue-white light seemingly cooling his red-hot skin.
…Then, he saw something.
At the same time, he hears the vampire ahead of him sneer in anger.
"…No…not now…!"
"Hm?" Acqua of the Back notices his frustration. Silently, he prepares to attack.
Yet he stops as well, as he senses something coming from high above in the sky.
The Saint, the Vampire, and the Imagine Breaker turn their heads to the bright, full moon…
…because someone was jumping across its face, announcing their presence and pure, unfiltered authority.
A girl clad in a white dress. Short blonde hair, black stockings, blue ribbons, and white detached sleeves completed her look.
In her hair is a blue, blossoming flower, reflecting the color of the moon standing behind her.
Touma could not comprehend her. If his Right Hand sets things back to the laws of nature, then the one flying high in the sky defines what nature itself is.
She was an ethereal beauty that utterly surpasses humanity.
Surpasses the Gods. Surpasses all Divinities. The Silver Star and the Great Demon's thorn; a being born to be beyond all Aeons.
Every part of the planet was her domain. Hers, to command and control. The moonlit princess, gliding above all, heralds her crown.
And like a dazzling comet, soars toward the ground.
An incendiary missile crashes into the earth, blinding all who witnessed its glory with a flash of white.
"Ah—"
A shockwave bursts forth, but for some reason, Kamijou felt his body protected by its unbelievably immense energy.
Touma Kamijou's breath was taken away…but not because he was killed.
Because the comet from the heavens had completely shifted the paradigm.
Hell had ceased.
Naught were there fires. The buildings remained, rubble and all, but their surfaces were saturated by glowing, mystical vines.
The streets had been covered with moonflowers, emanating a beyond holy glow.
He feels the wounds on his body closing, as if nature itself was undoing the damage incurred onto him.
He watches as Ciel slowly lifts her head, utterly astonished at the show of absolute, yet benevolent power being wielded before them.
Avignon had transcended hell, and become a place akin to heaven.
And the creator of such a realm—
—was standing right in front of them, her back turned to the two humans as she watched the two men struggle to their feet, their bodies steaming with heat that she had unleashed unto them.
Vlov Arkhangel sneers angrily, as his sword was suddenly switched out with a silver lance, even larger than Acqua's.
Acqua groans, rolling his shoulders in dull pain as he eyes his new enemy.
"Wha…"
Touma reaches out to the white-clad woman, but she says not a word, nor gives him any direct acknowledgment as she steps forward.
With every step, nature flourishes at her feet. The flowers grow in size, and beautiful flora bloom betwixt her heels.
"…I…" Acqua's face hardens. "I know you…the Magic God Huntress…the White Princess…
…Why have you come here?"
Vlov's face twitches. Out of the two men, his expression was the most filled with frustration. "True Ancestor…I thought I would have to find you, but it appears that you have come to me, instead."
The vampire readies his lance. "I will take your blood, Princess. That boy…and the snake can wait."
The blonde woman closes her crystal crimson eyes, and takes in a breath. Upon her exhalation, the flowers at her feet shimmer ever brighter, in tandem with the rise and fall of her chest.
Her eyes open once more, and her irises shift into a sun-like gold. Finally, the Princess opens her lips.
"God's Right Seat. Dead Apostle Ancestor. Thou art fighting on the wrong side.
My name is Arcueid Brunestud. Princess of the Moon.
If thou desire to harm this boy behind me,
Then fall like the flower petals at thy feet."
XXXXX
Story 2: The Divine and the Dead, God's Apostles
Date: Late October, 2004
Location: Tohsaka Mansion
A life of peace was apparently too much to ask for.
Rin Tohsaka sat apprehensively by the dining room table, holding her sister's hand tightly to calm both of them down as the man before her gave a debriefing that neither of them could believe.
They thought that their lives could be peaceful from here forward, but…of course, nothing is that simple.
A man in a black suit and red tie, with framed glasses and long hair, sat with his hands folded on the table across from her. Behind Lord El-Melloi II's eyes, Rin could read how tired he was.
Next to him was a girl in equally dark clothing, her hood covering her dark silver hair and face. Even though it was only slight, Rin could catch a glimpse of emerald irises glancing at them from under the shadows.
According to Lord El-Melloi, one of the Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower…
'…Britain's become chaos.'
At least, that's how it was when he had left.
"I'm sure you heard the news as to how it is now," her teacher explains, "how it's been…encased in some sort of grey fog, right?"
Rin nods. It was all over the news.
On the night of October 17th, all of the United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland had been encased in a giant dome of impenetrable fog.
Impenetrable was right, in almost every sense of the word. Communications were cut off; no signals left the clouds, nor could they send any messages within. When the United States and other European countries tried scrambling emergency military personnel to make contact, they too were lost in the darkness.
On the more supernatural side, Mages tried using Magecraft-based spells to contact the Clock Tower, but they were naught in success just as much as anyone else.
"Yeah. Millions of people, just…gone. Either trapped in that fog, or worse." Rin says. "…How did you escape from it?"
"…I got lucky." El-Melloi explains. "Both Gray and I were in an expedition in the Irish Republic when it happened. You can imagine my surprise when I woke up the next morning to see all of the United Kingdom trapped in those clouds.
I don't have a clue of what's happening within, nor does anyone else…although…"
He reaches into his pocket, and produces a small letter for Rin to read.
"…I did get one, singular message from the Wizard Marshal. This is likely the 2nd Magician's way of assisting us, even if it's indirectly. Read it."
Rin nods, and opens the letter for both her and Sakura to look over.
"Queen Elizard is dead.
The Second Princess has taken the Throne, wielding the true Curtana.
Britain is in great peril.
Perhaps a miracle is needed to save it.
— K.Z.S."
"…A miracle?" Rin asks. "What kind of miracle would Zelretch be talking about?"
El-Melloi sighs. "…He's probably left that for us to figure out. However, I do have a few ideas stewing…"
He takes a small, cursory glance at Gray, almost too brief for Rin to notice. Before she could question it, his attention diverts quickly back to her. "…One of which involves you, at least indirectly."
Rin raises her brow.
"You fought in the Fifth Holy Grail War, which occurred in Academy City…" Lord El-Melloi II explains, "…Did you meet someone who has the ability to negate the supernatural? I have only heard stories about him…but if there's anyone that could possibly break through the fog, I think he might fit the bill."
The brunette Tohsaka's eyes widen. She glances at Sakura, who gives her the same knowing expression.
Of course.
There was someone, after all.
'Kamijou-kun…'
"…Yes." Rin nods. "I know who you're talking about. Do you wanna give him a visit, Lord El-Melloi II?"
The aforementioned Lord fixes his glasses, and breathes a sigh of relief. "As soon as possible. Without him…all of Britain may fall."
XXXXX
Location: British Isles
A great battle has overrun London.
Cries of war and screams of terror cause Touma Kamijou to wince. Every passing second, dozens were likely dying all across the crumbling city.
The stench of smoke and ash filled his nose and lungs. His clothes stuck to his skin thanks to the sweat and dirt staining his body.
And yet…
…despite all of this chaos, and fire, and brimstone, and death…
He couldn't take his eyes off of the being descending to the earth.
A feminine figure floated above the battlefield, clad in blue with wavy, silvery white hair. She donned in blue, metallic armor, with spike-shaped shoulder guards and decorative aqua lines that glimmer in the flames of war below her.
A metal visor covered the top half of her face, obscuring her eyes and forehead from view. Two small, black spikes jut from the visor's top, giving the appearance of horns. On either of her hands were twin gauntlets, seeming like repurposed sword scabbards that could mechanically deploy twin blades at a moment's notice.
Despite her small stature, once those around her started to notice her, they all ceased their fighting at once.
Half of the warring armies cheered in her presence.
Yet, half shook in their boots at the appearance of a warrior unrivaled to all but the Queen.
"It's the Dragon Knight! She's come to save us!"
"…Oh no…this battle…it's already lost…! Should we sound a retreat?"
Touma Kamijou gulps nervously.
He was on the losing army's side, after all.
And even worse— the girl that was being praised and feared…seemed to be staring right at him.
She slowly lowers to the earth. The waves of soldiers clear to give her space, as her heeled combat shoes land gently to the ground.
She steps forward, making a steady march directly toward him.
The opposing armies settled their battling, watching on as the girl beyond even the Knight Leader walks up to him.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he watches a blur of a certain Amakusa Saint flash her sword and slash it at her enemy.
A loud bang! of metal crashing against metal followed, and yet—
"Wha—?!"
Kaori Kanzaki gasps in surprise, as the silver-haired Knight had raised her arm and blocked her katana with her gauntlet effortlessly.
A huge reverberation shuddered through the air and the ground from the Saint's strike, yet the Dragon Knight hadn't budged a single iota of a millimeter.
"My quarrel isn't with you, foreign Saint. Move aside."
The girl swipes her arm, as if swatting away a fly.
Kanzaki grunts as she's shot backwards, breaking the sound barrier in a fraction of a second. She tumbles and crashes through the rubble, past dozens of onlooking soldiers before Kamijou could even register what happened.
"I…" He felt the air in his lungs tighten up.
Kanzaki was one of his most powerful allies, and yet…
'She whacked her away…like she was nothing…'
Touma remembered back to their first meeting, and their heated conflict over Index. She had done something similar to him.
Which just made him realize the utterly hopeless gap between himself, and the Dragon Knight dangerously approaching.
"You."
The girl's attention turns back to him as she moves forward unbothered.
"So you're Queen Carissa's right hand, huh?" Touma calls out. "You here to fight me? You've been looking at me all this time!"
"…I could say the same to you, Imagine Breaker." The girl rebuttals.
Her voice was surprisingly soft, despite her hardened armor and outward demeanor. It was more befitting of her more youthful complexion.
Yet, her words still caused Kamijou to gulp nervously, tightening his Right Hand in apprehension for what may come next.
The young woman before her was Queen Carissa's strongest Knight, after all.
And she was staring down right at him.
"…Hm."
The girl sighs. "…A little disappointing. When I felt that draconic power from across the world…I didn't expect it to come from a normal-looking boy like you. But, regardless…"
The Dragon Knight raises her left gauntlet. In response, Touma grits his teeth and pulls back his right fist.
Yet, her next words causes the wielder of Imagine Breaker to freeze like a deer in headlights.
"I am Dragon Knight Lancelot. Show me your mettle…
…Brother."
XXXXX
Story 2.5: The Domain of Dragons, The Once and Future King
Date: ? ? ?
Location: ? ? ?
Within a cave hidden away from the eyes of humanity, a certain Dvergr had just completed the finishing touches of a white-chalk diagram upon the ground.
At her feet was a large circle, with concentric and deliberate lines adorned within, and runic messages carved into the earth.
Said runic messages were a calling: a calling from a place beyond the planet, to bring forth a legend that had departed long, long ago.
Dusting off her hands, she smirks to herself.
Finally, their plan would be set into motion. After being nearly postponed indefinitely by the Magic God Huntress, her ideals, as well as the ideals of all she had allied with, would finally continue forthcoming.
All she had to do was extend her arm, and begin the chant. On the back of her hand was a red tattoo, split into three segments.
"…Oh, right."
Before she could start the spell, she walks over to the side of the cave and unzips a large, long bag, meant to carry musical instruments; but refitted to carry something much more divine.
She pulls out the artifact, and, careful not to damage any of the chalk drawings of her own creation upon the ground, she gingerly places the item right in the heart of the circle.
A long, three-meter golden lance glimmers from the warm light of the torches illuminating the room. Its spearhead was double-edged, sharpened to a razor-thin point, yet its blade was wide like a shovel. The shaft just below the spearhead and near its base were twisted into metal segments, intertwining together like strings of fate.
Now, with the catalyst placed, she announces.
"Set. For the elements, silver and iron.
For the foundation, stone and the Archduke of Contracts.
Raise a wall for the wind that shall fall.
Close the gates of the four cardinal directions.
Come forth from the Crown, and follow the forked road leading to the Kingdom."
The white chalked circle brims magically to life, releasing a snow-like light that starts to pick up a breeze throughout the cave.
The Dvergr smirks, as her twin-railed, braided hair flows gently in the spell's wind. Behind her red-rimmed glasses, her golden eyes twinkled at the Mystery sparking to life before her.
"Fill, fill, fill, fill, FILL!
Repeat five times. But when each is filled, destroy it."
Loose rocks begin to lift from the ground, defying gravity. The torches' reddish orange flames shift into an azure blue, as the mana in the local atmosphere saturates aggressively.
"Heed my words. My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny!
If you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason,
then answer me!"
The light reaches a zenith. Its shine sparks to life with mana-dense lightning, creating whips of air that fly past the Dvergr's face.
She wasn't afraid, though. Because before her eyes, she watches as something begins to form into existence.
Or rather, someone.
A call to beyond, reaching to a certain Throne within the Swirl.
With a smile, Marian Slingneyer finishes her chant.
"I hereby swear—
We will be all that is good in the world, and defeat all evil in the world!
From the Seventh Heaven, clad in three great words of power,
Come forth from the circle of binding: O Guardian of the Scales!"
A final shine bursts forth.
The mana in the air radiates with authority, as a Heroic Spirit answers her wishes.
Marian grins, as the outline of a feminine, humanoid figure could be seen hidden within the dust cloud that had picked up from the ground.
As the dust falls, and upon meeting their eye, Marian gives a confident grin.
The woman standing in the center of the circle gazes at her neutrally, before staring at her arms and legs as if astonished by her own existence. She wore a combo of red, black and white: with a large witch's hat and twin-tailed cape that frames her slender body. She also donned a pair of black heels, and a low-cut neck-like that reaches far below her navel, exposing much of her peachy-skinned body.
Her wavy, blonde hair barely hid her eyepatch, which had a diamond-shaped red center where her right eye should be, and also greatly contrasted with her sea green left iris.
Marian watches as the Servant picks up the lance at their feet, and whips away the last of the settling haze.
With neither of them having said a word in the past few minutes, Marian thought it best to break the ice now.
"Welcome back, Lady Othinus. Or, I guess at this point…Lancer of Black?"
Her Servant doesn't say a word in response. Marian tilts her head. "…Do you…remember what happened before you came here?"
The one named Othinus stares at her free hand. After a second of ponderance, she closes it slowly, but tightly.
"…Yes. I do."
The last moments of her life.
When a certain Brain of the Planet, also known as the Archetype, had slaughtered her entirely.
It was only thanks to the ritual at her feet that she was existing again now.
"Well…" Marian gives the Magic God before her a confident nod. "…you're weaker now, but so is she. What's more…as you probably know, there's a chance that once we win this War, we can perfect that Lance with the Holy Grail's power.
Our ideals aren't gone just yet, Lady Othinus. All we have to do is beat up the Servants of Red, and we'll be good to go. We'll get you some allies, too. What do you say?"
After another moment of continued silence, the blonde Servant of Black turns up her head and furrows her brow.
"Yeah."
XXXXX
Some Time After…
"It seems the time has come, Gil."
A certain green-haired Chain of the Heavens smiles serenely, gazing up at a shining golden lance raised into the sky. Their white tunic flutters through the brimming wind, as a typhoon-ish vortex starts whirling into existence.
At their side stands a gold-adorned man with slicked-back, spiky-blonde hair. Their red eyes narrow at the enemy floating several hundred meters above them, their spear starting to shimmer brighter than the moon in the sky.
"It has indeed, my friend." The golden tyrant, the King of Heroes announces sharply, pushing up with his feet as he begins to hover.
He extends his gauntlet-covered hand, and a golden gate shimmers into existence in front of him. Out from its portal comes an equally golden handle, which he takes from its container expeditiously.
With a dark glare toward the deity above them, the one named Gilgamesh shouts in defiance:
"It is time, Enkidu: to recreate the Split from the Gods!"
With a silent grin, the clay born from the earth outstretches their arms.
The enemy above their heads— the Lancer of Black, possessed a weapon that could rend the world to pieces.
To defend against such a destructive Noble Phantasm, they would have to play a card that was both equal, and opposite.
Luckily, the Lancer of Red possessed such a card— because they were that card, manifested.
"I am happy…" Enkidu says, past the blaring, reverberating winds. "…that we can once again stand side-by-side, and face the gods themselves."
At his feet, hundreds— no, thousands of petaled flowers begin to sprout from the earth, decorating the landscape with nature's beauty.
"To put it in more modern terms…" Enkidu leans down, and touches the dirt at their fingers. Upon contact, the winds in the air suddenly stop completely around him, suspending the rocks and water droplets surrounding him in mid-air. "…let's fight with all we got, Gil."
The ground at their feet crackles with golden lightning.
Above his head, the golden King of Heroes cracks into valiant laughter.
Even in the face of such an enemy, neither of them would back down.
"I couldn't have said it better myself, Enkidu! Now, Ea, sing your praises!"
In his hands, a cylindrical sword, gridded with black and red, begins to twist into its three segments.
Its cackling, crackling reddish light burns around the Golden King, beginning to make reality itself shudder as he raises his blade upwards— toward the God that threatens the entire World.
…
Up above, the Lancer of Black narrows her eye, as the aura around her body starts to burn and shatter the atmosphere. Light coils and fulminates at her lance's tip, building up to a great zenith that matches both of the growing energies far below her.
"These are the Servants of Red's strongest?" She asks herself aloud.
With a sigh, the One-Eyed Othinus laments.
"…Unimpressed."
She pulls back her spear.
"May the Nine Realms tremble.
May the World be pierced open, toward a new path.
Tear it all asunder."
Her deep, powerful voice causes Gilgamesh to scoff in defiance. "Gods…never knowing the ends of their authority. Thinking that they have the right to lord their existence over humanity…when it was humanity that had given them purpose.
Hear me, Magic God! I am the King of Heroes: the pinnacle of humanity's existence! If you wish to tear this world asunder, the world that I forged from my hands…
…then return to Genesis. Awaken, Ea."
"I will tell you of the beginning.
Heaven and Earth split, nothingness congratulated creation,
And my sword cleaved the world!
Mortar of the stars,
Heaven's hell is the eve of creation's celebration!"
Enkidu watches as the two weapons that could annihilate the world are pointed directly at one another.
To prevent the World's annihilation, they call upon the Counter Force, letting nature overflow his clay-like body and create proverbial chains to hold everything together.
Even if everything were to tear apart, the Chains of the Heavens would force them all back into place.
Just like before— five-thousand years ago when Gil and they had fought, and destroyed and recreated the world seven times over.
A massive, tree-like structure of white builds around Enkidu, as they lift up into the air.
Gilgamesh and Othinus will rend existence.
And he will prevent its annihilation.
"I will awaken the breath of the planet…
…for I walk with humanity.
Therefore…!"
And all at once, the Noble Phantasms of legend unleashed upon the world.
A clash, foretold by no other.
The Magic God scowls, and releases a dimension-shattering shout as she hurls her spear of destruction.
"GUNGNIR!"
And with confidence that could shatter and re-tie the Heavens, the Lynchpin and the Chains react with fury.
"ENUMA—"
"—ELISH!"
XXXXX
Date: ? ? ?
Location: Fuyuki City
"…Class, Archer."
Before their eyes, a brunette beauty stands tall. Their long, flowing hair was flanked on either side by black bows, and a golden, seven-pronged crown adorned the back of her head. Her red eyes glinted from the emanating, dimming light of the Summoning Circle at her feet.
Her body was embellished by gold, signifying her divine wealth: rings upon her arms, with crown-like designs on her single right stocking and single left arm sleeve. Fashioned upon her ears were large hoops of the same lustrous color.
Her minimal choice of clothes accentuated her beauty— by modern standards, it would have been considered something akin to a feminine swimsuit, with a white and gold top and black bottoms that left little to the imagination.
She was a goddess, after all. Flaunting her figure was one of the many things she had the right to do.
The red-eyed deity gazes down at who had summoned her forth from the Throne. Upon making eye contact with her, she gives a confident, nearly arrogant smirk.
"Archer of Red, specifically. True Name, Ishtar. Mesopotamian Goddess of Love and War. Now tell me, are you my Mas…
…ter…?"
Ishtar blinks.
The girl sitting, dumbfounded on the floor, had her mouth wide open in gawked disbelief. Her outfit consisted of a much less illustrious, and much more modest white blouse and long, purple skirt.
A single tuft of ashen white accented her lavender hair, with a red ribbon tying the left side of her head together.
The girl's amethyst eyes glimmer in confusion. "N-Nee…san…?"
"…Huh?" Ishtar points to herself. "Are you referring to me? I don't have a younger sister…although I do have an older one…
W-Wait, you didn't answer my question! Are you my Master, or not?"
Sakura Matou glances at the back of her hand. Indeed, the red tattoos of the Command Seals had grafted onto her…but she didn't know why.
Their plan was for her sister to be the Master instead.
And speaking of— where was her sister?!
And why does Ishtar look so much like her?!
'And why…wait…'
She remembers how Rin had accidentally stumbled forward a little, just as the incantation finished.
She was nowhere to be seen. And in her place, was…
'Did Nee-san…become…'
Just as Sakura was about to put it all together, she watches as the dust that had been picked up in the basement of the Tohsaka Mansion starts to waft towards Ishtar's nose.
"Ah…ahhh—choo!"
The goddess sneezes, tucking her head into her arm. If Sakura had to admit, the sound was kind of cute.
Ishtar pulls her head up…
…and instead of ruby red, her irises shifted into a cerulean blue.
"S-Sakura!" Ishtar suddenly exclaims. The haughtiness in her voice had mysteriously vanished. "A-Are you okay? Why are you on the ground?"
The blue-eyed Goddess bends down to help her up. "And why does it suddenly feel cold in here…?" Ishtar mutters.
"U-Um…"
Sakura pulls back up to her feet. She was at a loss for words.
All she could really do was point at the mirror in the room, telling the…Servant? Her…sister?
…To go and look at it.
Ishta-Rin turns her head, and glances at herself.
And immediately, her face blushes into a tomato.
"Wh-Why am I wearing a bikini—?!"
"Good morning, Host Body!"
Rin stops in her tracks. She catches wind of a voice that wasn't her own…speaking directly in her head.
"Things got a bit complicated, huh? But congratulations, mortal girl: you are now the hostess body of the Great Patron Goddess of Uruk! How do you feel to have such power within you, hmmm? Don't worry, I'll…sometimes let you keep your body's autonomy. For a price, of course."
Rin watches as her eyes glint and shift between red and blue, before gritting her teeth and forcing it to stay the latter.
She falls to her knees.
"N-Nee-san, are you okay?!"
She hears Sakura run up to her, but to be quite honest, she didn't know if she could answer her sister's question earnestly.
"Wh…what the hell…"
Since, after all, she was absolutely, assuredly positive that she had finally broken and gone crazy.
"…WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"
XXXXX
Story 3: Exiled God of Magic, The Great GREMLIN Grail War
