I do not own Fate/Stay Night nor any other Servants depicted here.

All The World's Evils

Crashing metal. The grinding of edges. The clashing of swords. Saber did her best to fully engage him, parrying and slashing to keep him near. Assassin, still able to dart in and out through his teleporting, wasn't able to find a chink in her defense. He kept at it until the latest clash. As he Blinked away, the Servant of the Sword heard a ticking sound. She looked down and noted a green round object with sparks coming out of one end. She leaped back while shielding her face with her gauntleted shield arm. A normal person would have been shredded to bits. Only the blue cloth covering her armor was burned and slashed to a tatter.

Distracted, she wasn't able to stop him from grabbing her gorget from behind and attempt to penetrate her throat with his sword. She was, however, able to hook her own blade into his hilt's guard, halting its progress at a hair's breadth away. As unsteady the position she was in, her strength was enough to hold it back. She kept at it for a moment before unleashing a powerful Prana Burst, throwing him back several meters away. She quickly spun around to watch him tumble several times before landing on his feet, his body close to the ground.

"Assassin, you have to come to your senses!" she shouted, attempting to reason with him,"Fight the mud's influence!"

He had no reply for her, for he Blinked in front of her and sent a heavy slash her way. She was ready, her invisible blade parrying it away like so many attacks before.

Has the mud truly clouded his mind?

With a roar, she replied with her own, downward slash. Assassin tumbled back and then threw another one of those ticking balls straight into the air. He then raced straight at her. She charged in as well, wondering what sort of tactic could warrant such a charge. And why did he throw his explosive into the air? Their blades clashed a few times before he waved his hand out in front of him, prompting a huge gust of wind to be blasted into her. It was quite strong, but not able to push her back. Instinctively covering her face and leaning forward to resist the attack, she suddenly heard that familiar ticking sound coming nearer and nearer. Once more, she got caught in the resulting explosion. This time, she was forced back a few steps. As the fire died out, she grit her teeth. Soot dusted her open skin, soot from the burnt cloth, and her armor seemed tinted darker at some places. Listening to her instinct once more, she swung around and attacked.

"Strike Air!"

It struck like a hammer, smashing Assassin into a tree. Calmly, she got ready to attack when something made her start. She turned to look in the direction of the temple. Something felt wrong. She could feel the Master-Servant link weakening.

Shirou... what happened?

Suddenly feeling even more pressure to become victorious, she tried snapping her opponent out of the mud's influence once more, "Assassin! Fight the taint! It has corrupted the Grail! You must..."

"Lies, All!" he suddenly shouted back as he dragged himself to his feet, "I will not listen to your lies, Saber! I need the Grail! I must have it!"

"Why!"

"I need to stop him!" he replied, sounding more desperate, "That man... Havelock... Havelock... HAVELOCK!"

Then, he Blinked forward with a cry of fury. She was able to anticipate it and locked swords with him. The swords went lower until she could see his eyes. His fury. His anger. His despair.

"HAVELOCK! GIVE HER BACK! RETURN MY DAUGHTER!"

Shinji dodged out of the way, the spread shot going wide. Noel wasted no time chasing after him, bringing back her revolvers as she ran. Unexpectedly, he had the same idea and mirrored her actions. She quickly skidded to a halt and shot at him.

"Optic Barrel!"

"Ouroboros!"

He quickly grabbed the chain and went up a tree to avoid the explosion. She turned her view skyward, taking aim as she carefully followed his trail. The revolvers fired once she was able to pick up his lead. He replied to that by pushing himself off the trunk with his legs. Going airborne, he twisted in the air and started throwing knives at the former Servant. Changing her focus, she smoothly intercepted each knife with a shot, six in all. Meanwhile, he summoned a chain and dragged himself to the ground.

"Over here!" he shouted cheerily as he stood up with cross slashing with two knives.

She blocked with her revolvers while pushing away. But, that left her open as he suddenly ducked and slashed her legs, toppling her. He then stepped forward and kicked her up, keeping her off her feet, followed by the cross slash attack. Drawing blood, he leaped up after her, twirling and slashing with his knives before sending her crashing to the ground with a hard kick. Shinji landed with a grin as Noel tried gingerly to get up. His attacks cut holes in her uniform and a few were bleeding. She grunted, holding back the pain as he stepped up to her.

"Well, so much for fighting back," he sneered at her maliciously as he squatted in front of her, "It seems being a former Servant wasn't all cut up to be, eh?"

"You..." she muttered with discomfort, "Nox Nyctores...Arcus Diabolus: Bolverk." She suddenly glowed brightly. As the light died down, she was now dressed in the outfit that she wore in her dream ten years ago. She was also fully healed.

"What did..."

His voice died in his throat when she pivoted on her knee, hitting his side first with the barrel of her revolver and then his legs with her leg. Stunned, she stood up and fired in his face at point-blank range. As he staggered back, she tumbled forward and jabbed a barrel into his thigh. She then twirled back and shot down. The ground under the Chaos-addled boy exploded, launching him. She followed by throwing her gun forward, the weapon spinning and grinding into his back, then it returned to her hand like a boomerang. Hopping forward, she sent three shots into his body. Landing first, she kicked him into the air again.

"Spring Raid!"

Once more landing first, she slashed at him, her barrel slamming into his side. Seemingly moving faster, she then kicked him while lining up a shot with her revolver. the force of the blast slammed him into a tree that she was leading him to with her attacks. Another hop, another three shots went to his body.

"Bullet Storm!"

Her speed went into overdrive, firing a long volley of bullets into his body.

"Thor!"

Bolverk glowed and transformed into a rocket launcher. She fired the grinning missile at Shinji's falling body. Landing on her feet, she grasped the revolvers tightly as the explosion rocked the ground and sent the tree the boy was falling from crashing to the ground. And then there was silence. She sighed.

"No, I don't think it was enough," she mused silently through her heavy breathing, "I don't know how that mud gave him Hazama's powers, but it stands to reason that it gave him his durability as well. I... may have to use it."

Taking a deep breath, she held her guns up, each pointing the opposite way. With one pointing up and one pointing down, she slammed the triggers together. The barrels broke off the guns and the weapons themselves shattered, disappearing into motes of light. They reformed into a symbol, her pair of revolvers in an X-formation.

"Restriction 6-6-6, Activate!"

"Oh? Are you bringing out a new toy?" asked out loud Shinji as he stepped out of the cloud of dust, causing her to freeze up. "Your attacks are quite dangerous. Do you want to kill me? Haha, of course! But I want to live as long as possible," he announced with another malicious smile, "Since you want to show me yours, why not I show you mine!" At those words, he opened his eyes.

"Restriction 6-6-6, Released!"

Her eyes went wide at the implication. She quickly rushed with her incantation. He did the same with cackling laughter.

"Boundary Prime Field Device deployed!"

"Deploying dimensional interface force field!"

"Mu-12, Activate!"

"Code S.O.L.! BlazBlue Activate!"

A metal chain shot out at her, to which she blocked with one of her swords. Shinji came flying after, kicking the blade out of the way and tried to slash her. Blocked by another one. They ended up facing each other as he landed. She could see what looked like sickly green spirits circling around him, his yellow eyes looking eagerly at her.

"Well, now that we've shown each other our trump cards," he said eerily as he took off his fedora and tossed it at the fallen tree, neatly hooked on a branch, "I think it's time to get rid of a broken doll. So will you please die for me?"

The shadow devil removed its hand. The former Assassin was missing. Suddenly, a small shadow shark shot out of the ground and struck its chin. It took a few steps back in recoil. Eddie then spread his wings in midair and flew straight at it, landing both taloned feet on its face. Unfortunately, it was only staggered and righted itself with its tail when he pushed himself off. It roared angrily and stomped the ground, sending out five waves of shadow spikes fanning out of the point of impact. Eddie neatly landed in between the trail of spikes but he did not account for the simultaneous attack. The shadow dashed forward and grabbed him, slamming his body to the returning spikes upon release. His body crashed into the spikes, which shattered like glass, ending against a nearby column. He fell, leaving a spiderweb of cracks. It lumbered over as he gingerly picked himself up.

Truly difficult.

A little Eddie lurched out of the ground and clawed at Sakura's construct. It was stomped on immediately. At the same time, several thin bone-like spikes rose and surrounded him, interlocking at the top. With a great roar, millions of shadow spikes flew out of the mouths, spraying the prison and its contents within for a few seconds. When the mouths closed, he was missing, leaving behind the spike riddled container. Another little Eddie rose from the ground. Meanwhile, he repeated the same move he did earlier, staggering the shadow monster as he emerged from the shadow shark. Spreading his wings, he flew forward and raked its eyes. Leaning forward, a huge axe head burst out of his head and slashed its head. A second one bloomed from the first and did the same. His head reformed and stretched out with its neck to bite on its face. To finish it off, he threw his hands up and transformed into a huge sword that cut its head cleanly down the middle.

But not impossible.

As he transformed back and landed on his feet, the little Eddie then transformed into a huge hand and grabbed the headless body. "Grand Finish," he declared as he turned his back on it with a flourish. A shadow dragon's head rose up and consumed the body with one bite before falling back into the ground.

Now that he was free of it, Eddie turned back to the four Masters.

"What... that monster..." Rin muttered, feeling a deep dread as the fake priest slowly glided over to them.

"...Shirou, stop struggling," Luvia hissed as the boy tried to move and get to his feet.

"No, urgh, that priest, argh, I have to do something," Saber's Master groaned out weakly.

"No... it didn't work," whimpered Sakura in disbelief.

"Your attempt was worthy of praise, young one," the shadow priest said as he gestured with his hands, "But, I am still your master and your teacher. I am more powerful than you. You could not hope to win." Turning his attention to the Tohsaka Master, he addressed her, "And you, do you see now that your decision making is at fault. I would never have thought you of all people to make such an error."

"Shut up, you damned priest!" she retorted heatedly, standing up and pointing at him on emphasis, "You betrayed my father! You killed my mother! How could I not pay you back for that!?"

He let off a chuckle before his reply, "So, Archer told you in the end. In that case, there is little use to hiding it. Did she tell you the Grail was cursed as well?" Getting no answer from them, he continued, "Indeed, but not by what you think. It wasn't done by Caster. It was cursed long before the Fourth War."

Much to their horror, he raised his arms up, "Imagine the cup, filled with All the World's Evils, drowning the world in its entirety. Humanity will eventually be exterminated, leaving only not-human creatures."

"But... you lecture me about my choices and yet you rejoice at that?" shouted Rin, aghast with his statement, "You will die too!"

"What makes you think I am human in the first place?" he asked with a smirk.

Shirou started struggling again, even with Luvia holding him down. Sakura's head bowed down, her mind filled with worry for the red head, denying that he might very well die and she was absolutely helpless. Rin shuddered as she fell to her knees, unable to think of a way to get out of this mess.

Suddenly, everyone heard loud steps heading towards them. Someone everyone recognized.

"Ah, Bazett, what are you doing here?" the fake priest asked, sounding very welcoming but his posture became tense.

To the others, her presence was quite welcome. She was in her Enforcer uniform, but she also had three floating metal spheres next to her. She did not reply to his question, instead got ready to punch.

"Bazett, what are..." he started to repeat.

"Toole..."

"...you doing here?"

The metal sphere floated in front of her fist, a blade rising out of the shiny surface. Aimed at the priest.

"...Fragarach."

She punched. The blade flew true, striking the center of his body, the momentum lifting him up. The other spheres flew off at that moment. One struck from below, entering his back and sending him higher. The third came from above, the force sending him crashing to the ground. Then, as if the area was filled with the sound of breaking glass, the oppressive nature of the Bounded Field was lifted and the four started to breathe a little easier. The shadows receded from his body as he lay still on the broken cement tiles of the courtyard. On his torn chest lay the broken dagger, shattered beyond repair.

Luvia then got to her feet, pulling the Emiya's weakened body with her and putting his arm over her shoulder. "Rin, we should hurry. We have to get him to Saber," she reminded the Tohsaka, who looked to her and nodded in agreement.

Sakura rose as well, facing the enforcer and bowed gratefully, "Thank you for your help."

The Irishwoman nodded as the girl turned around and hurried after the hobbling trio. She spared a moment to look at the dead priest before going after them.

Soon, all was silent once more. He opened his eyes.

"That was painful," he commented as he got to his feet. Looking down at his chest, he smirked and muttered, "It is always the chest, isn't it? Kotomine dying being shot in the chest. And now, the fake heart getting destroyed by those blades."

Looking towards the glowing conflagration, he muttered as he mused over their actions, "I wonder... my young student didn't seem to notice the smearing of her Seals. What did you do, Matou Shinji?"

Watching Assassin losing his mind like that only brought forth pity. He was a good ally. It was a sad thing to do, but it had to be done.

"Assassin!" Saber roared as she pushed back, having firmly decided that she had to kill him. If only to put him out of his misery. However, the Servant of Murder seemed to have fallen back to his hit-and-run tactics, disappearing from her sight. Once again, she was forced to stand her ground and wait. To react to his moves. And such a thing irked her greatly, even if she understood why he did so.

She swung Excalibur again, her blade meeting his with a crash. He pushed for a moment before disappearing again. Then, that ticking sound again. Looking up, she saw three grenades falling towards her. With a yell, she cut through each one as it fell, the halves spinning away from where she was. Three explosions went off around her, the blasts not as large as the ones that went off on her earlier. Slipping back into her guard, her eyes darted around, looking for any sign of the Servant. Suddenly, she spun round and slashed at him. Assassin ducked under the blade and slashed back, holding his sword in reverse grip. As the blade skidded across the lower part of her breastplate, she swiftly raised her sword and swung down. He quickly swapped his grip and brought it over his head, the invisible sword sliding off it like water as he continued moving forward. As the blade fell off the tip, he quickly wrapped his left arm around her sword arm, catching hold on the overlaps of her armor. All that while deftly reversing his grip on his folding sword, he aimed at her neck and stabbed. She intercepted in time, catching the blade in her free gauntleted hand.

She disliked this precarious position. She never expected Assassin to get past her guard and tie her up like this. She struggled to release her arm but he held firm.

"Today, you die, Havelock," he growled out as he pushed down on his blade. The red glow on the eyelets of his mask intensified as he spoke.

She narrowed her eyes and stood firm. "Wake up, Assassin! Don't let yourself be blinded any further!" she shouted in reply. He only roared and she matched the force he used to push against the blade. Suddenly, he ceased all effort, his gaze turning to his left. She turned to look and her eyes went wide. At the same time, she could feel him disappear.

"On your guard!" she shouted to the five Masters as she took up her sword and took on a defensive stance, "Assassin has been turned!"

"Saber? What are you talking about?" asked Rin as the group stopped in their tracks.

"Sakura, let me look," said Luvia as the Matou complied with her request. "...so it is true," she muttered as she brightened up, "They are closing up."

"You shouldn't have come this early," Saber stated as her eyes darted around, her movements taking her around the group.

"What happened?" asked Sakura timidly.

"More importantly, what is this... horror?" asked Bazett, looking towards the former lake.

It was quite abrupt. A sense of fear flooded the entire area. Assassin appeared before the group, his sword held in reverse grip in front of him while his other hand was behind it, its mark glowing eerily. All the Masters froze.

"This... feeling..." stammered Rin, showing a fear that was uncharacteristic of her.

"What is..." muttered Luvia, not as fearful sounding but shared a similar look.

Sakura ran to Shirou's side, clinging on to his back and burying her face in it. The boy struggled to move, muttering weakly, "No... must... protect them."

Bazett seemed to have some resolve left in her and she prepared to fight, aiming to get them away. She whispered something softly to herself, the runes on her gloves and her pants lighting up. However, she didn't have to do anything.

Without a word, Saber took a few steps to the side, making sure the group was not between her and the other Servant. She then aimed her sword behind her.

"Traitors! The lot of you!" Assassin shouted as the red glow reached its brightest, "If I must go through you, so be it!"

"Strike Air!"

She shot forward like a bullet. She put in enough to reach him in a powerful, short burst. She quickly turned the blade around, aiming it at his heart. The blade struck true as she landed on her feet. He looked down, his mask covering his reaction. Slowly, the paleness of his skin and the blackness of his veins seemed to fall away like cinders and ash. His breathing became heaving and labored as he tilted the mask up, revealing his face.

"I do not want to go through that... ever... again," he muttered slowly, his body slowly disintegrating to black dust.

"Assassin..." muttered Sakura as she stepped out from behind Shirou.

"My time is done. Do take care of yourself, Master," he wished her as he slowly disappeared into nothingness.

No one said a thing for a moment. A sign of respect for the passing of a warrior.

"This is not over. Not yet," spoke up Rin as she turned around to face the mountain of flesh, "We must deal with this. Saber, can you manage?"

"I believe so," the Servant of the Sword replied as she took stock of herself, "My Noble Phantasm should be enough to destroy it."

She dispelled the wind around her sword, revealing its radiance to the world. She walked towards the bank of the lake and held her sword up. Suddenly, a large shadow rose up and clawed at her. Taken aback, she quickly cut it down and retreated towards the group. Then, he appeared.

"You!" shouted out the Tohsaka heir in disbelief.

"Indeed. Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated," said Kirei as he smiled. He was quite unperturbed by the large hole in his chest, where his heart should be.

Turning to Saber, he said, "Well, you survived whatever Matou Shinji had planned for you. Still, I will not allow you to destroy the Grail. Not yet." Glancing at the grotesque sight behind him, "Do you agree?"

"I agree, Eddie."

Much to their horror, a humanoid looking thing emerged from its oily depths. It seemed to be alight with black fire, the wisps of flame breaking of and fading out into the void. The only thing that identified its face was its glowing red eyes. It lifted a three-fingered hand up and stared. Saber tensed up. It had a malicious and other-worldly feel to it. Was this the will of the Grail? She had no idea of its skills and powers. Plus, she had to fight defensively lest the others behind her come to harm.

"I need a better vessel," it mused aloud as it turned its attention to the Masters and the lone Servant, "Your vessels look suitable."

"I think I will take it."

Commentary:-

Hello everyone. Welcome to chapter 30. The fights seem to be progressing quite nicely. A few even getting resolved quite quickly. So good. Let's dive right into it.

First up, Saber! Bombs, bombs, more bombs! Assassin going all out. Also, we get to see which Assassin we have here. As Doc mentioned in his review, Assassin Alter is the High Chaos version... reliving his failure. For those who played the first Dishonored, you know the name he mentioned. You know who Assassin is referring to. The point in the game that would have driven him mad if you failed it.

Next, Noel. It's back! It's all coming back! Not only does Noel have a trump card, Shinji has one too! And he removed his hat. Way to change from suave to insane.

Moving on to Eddie and the Masters. The great shadow took a while to take down, but down it went. Things looked bleak, if not for Bazett's appearance. Another trump card appears! After defeating Eddie, nobody stood guard over the body. Then again, blood loss can be a good enough distraction.

Returning to Saber, she was in a deadlock with Assassin. Right until the group appeared. Assassin, downed. Its temporary defender defeated, the Grail seemed to be vulnerable. Or is it? Once more, Eddie seems to come through, with a rather bad revelation. It came through. Most of it.

I do have a question. Why are some of you readers starting to call this Angry Mango?

And that's a wrap. Thank you for taking time out of your day to read this chapter. Do try and leave a review, would you kindly?

PS: Unbeta-ed version. Will remove after hearing back from him. 'Tis gonna take a while.