The remaining four Master-Servant pairs in the Alpha faction met at Caster's base that night to prepare for the events that would transpire, all hoping that night would be the final night of the Holy Grail War.

"So, like I said, we will discuss strategy tonight," Marcus began before laying down a map with a red circle around the area where Frederick's estate was located. "Caster will go first to set up a Bounded Field around this area to make sure bystanders don't stumble in."

"Once that's done, Caster will return here and remain on standby. Lily's filled me in on Caster's abilities, and it'll be best if she's our trump card," Marcus said. "Then, Archer and Mordred will charge the front of the estate, with Ada and I keeping our distance from the area."

"Hopefully, Lancer and Assassin of Omega will be drawn towards them and leave Frederick open for our Assassin to sneak in, find him, and kill him."

"But what about Heracles?" Ada asked. "That monster is the most concerning enemy we have."

"Should he show up, that's when Caster will be brought in. She has a Noble Phantasm that should allow her to at least stall him long enough for Ruler to arrive. No doubt she'll be watching this," Marcus then sighed. "But there is another factor that might come into play…"

"Oh, what now?" Ada growled.

"Near the end of the last War, irregularities began occurring with the Grail and it began summoning entities known as Shadow Servants," Marcus explained. "Fortunately, their improper summoning makes them weaker and keeps them from using Noble Phantasms."

"They're also stupid and more like beasts acting on instinct. They'll hone in on the first Servant they sense. Though, if they sense multiple Servants in one area, they will head towards that as opposed to a lone Servant."

"But, anyway, if a large group of Shadow Servants attack Caster, she'll have to lead them to us. If it's just one or two, she might be able to take them. But if there's several of them, no use fighting. Once we've got majority of the Shadow Servants in one area, I'll have Archer use his Noble Phantasm and that should allow us to at least take out majority of them."

"So, in summary, the goals are to eliminate Lancer and Assassin of Omega and stall Berserker of Omega long enough that Ruler can exorcise Kylie, all while wiping out any Shadow Servants that might show up. Understand?"


Fate/new dawn
Finale: Dawn's Early Light


Frederick was anticipating an attack from the Alpha faction, so he had Jeffrey order Lancer to set up a Bounded Field that would detect anyone who enters the area around his estate will ill-intent. In the meantime, Frederick, Harry, and Lancer were passing the time with a game of poker while Assassin just stood in the corner. Lancer then placed his cards face-down on the table when he detected something enter the Bounded Field.

"We have company," he said. "Two Servants are approaching from the front."

"Only two?" Frederick inquired.

"Yeah," Lancer replied. "Just two?"

"Then, I'll have to come with you," Frederick stated. "That way I can have some readily available protection should Assassin of Alpha show up."

"Let's be off then," he then stood up before leaving the room. "They are being polite enough to knock on our front door, so we should greet them in kind."


Mordred and Archer leapt over the gate of Frederick's estate and landed on the stone path going down the middle of the yard. The path split off in a cross formation at the center of the yard, with the remaining area being a beautiful garden. Various flowers were growing with a one large statue in each section of the garden; a lion, an eagle, an angel, and a bull, respectively. There was a fountain in the middle of the cross-shaped stone path. The mansion was around two stories tall, with a balcony above the entrance.

Frederick and Harry stepped onto the balcony.

"So, only two Servants were sent after all," Frederick said. "But I suppose I should welcome you, even if you are uninvited, ill-meaning guests."

"And some congratulations are in order too, perhaps," he then stated. "After all, you and your Masters have made it this far in this contest."

"Dude, they're here to kill us and you're being all polite with them…" Harry deadpanned.

Lancer and Assassin of Omega then materialized beside their Masters.

"But regardless, the rules of the Holy Grail War are clear. Only the last remaining Master and Servant pair is allowed to obtain the Grail and have their wishes come true," Frederick continued. "While I am certain your conviction is truly enough for you to come this far, I regret to say that your paths end here."

"Kill them, Assassin," Frederick order his Servant, who complied by jumping off the balcony to confront their enemies.

"Go get 'em, boy!" Harry commanded.

"I'm not a dog!" Lancer snarled before following after Assassin.

"Well, now that your little greeting's outta the way, I have an Assassin to hide from," Harry said before going back inside.

Lancer rushed at Mordred before thrusting his spear forwards, only for Mordred to block with her sword. Mordred then countered by swinging her blade at Lancer before kicking him away. The knight then proceeded to rush Lancer and bring her sword down on him. Lancer blocked using his spear and pushed Mordred away. She stumbled back a bit but recovered quickly enough to block a swing of Lancer's spear. The two of them then began moving at speeds impossible for a human to achieve, blades clashing.

Assassin activated his Presence Concealment and moved behind Archer before striking. Archer turned around quickly enough that he was able to block the knife with one of his swords. Archer then thrust the other sword forward, but Assassin was quick enough to dodge it.

"Be careful, Archer. If he breaks out Phantasm Punisher, you'll be in serious trouble," Marcus said to Archer.

Assassin then kicked Archer in the gut to push him away before rushing towards him and stabbing his knife forward. Archer grunted in pain as the knife was pulled out before swinging his twin falchions at his opponent. Assassin was able to avoid one slash but was cut by the other and then Archer thrust both blades forward. Archer's projected swords then faded, forcing him to punch Assassin and knock him away. He then projected his bow and began firing swords at his enemy.

The first shot hit Assassin's chest, though he was able to recover quickly enough to dodge the next few shots as he charged forwards. But before he could stab Archer, the Heroic Spirit of the Bow then leaped into the air and continued firing at the hooded Servant in midair. Shortly before he landed, Archer dismissed his bow and summoned Kanshou and Bakuya.

"Chronos Rose…" Assassin then said before dashing towards Assassin at speeds not even a Servant could manage to keep up with.

Assassin dashed around Archer while slicing at him various times with his knife before stopping behind the tanned Servant and pulling a gun out. Suddenly, a loud bang was heard, followed by the sound of metal clanking as it fell to the ground before a very familiar roar resounded through the area.

"▂▂▃▃▅▅-!"

That distracted Assassin long enough that Archer was able to knock the gun out of his hands.


Ian and Assassin climbed the wall in the back of Frederick's mansion before sneaking in through the back door. Ian had a feeling that Harry was going to be nearby and wanted to be the one to kill his deadbeat father, so venturing into the mansion with Assassin would mean killing two birds with one stone, fairly literally in this case. Ian was wearing black gloves to make sure that his fingerprints wouldn't be found when the police inevitably came to investigate Frederick's death.

"This is Ian. Assassin and I have managed to infiltrate the mansion," Ian said into his radio.

"Good, but Assassin of Omega is giving Archer a hard time. Get rid of Frederick as soon as possible. He's on the front balcony."

Lancer growled as he heard Berserker's roar.

"D***it! Lancer, get rid of the Servant you're fighting and focus on that monster!"

"Tch. Sorry, but I'm gonna have to cut this short…" Lancer sighed. "Gae Bolg!"

Mordred's heart was impaled, and the spear was thrust forward, contrary to the natural order of causality. The False Servant then faded away in a shower of golden particles.

Lancer then etched some runes onto his spear, temporarily boosting Gae Bolg to an A-Rank Noble Phantasm. The blue spearman then ran towards Berserker before jumping into the air. Crimson energy enshrouded his spear as he prepared to throw it.

"Gae Bolg!"


Meanwhile, Ada was on her way back to her apartment, having just reported to the other Alpha members that Mordred died before then letting Emily know that she was coming home. This was very fortunate because that meant she would be able to spend more time with Emily after all. And it wasn't like she had much of a desire for the Grail anymore anyway. But she was still fond of Mordred, so it was a shame she wouldn't be around anymore.

"Still, who names their weapon 'Gay Bulge'?" she silently mused to herself.

Ada was unaware of the black shadows beginning to form across the city. These shadows were fragments of a time where magi were still around and when the Holy Grail was desired as a means to reach the Root, the Akashic Records. Thirty-eight remnants of Servants who fought and died for the Holy Grail were brought into the world to fight a battle that they had long since lost. All they desired was one thing.

"Holy Grail…"


The shadow of Spartacus approached Caster's base. Although the gladiator held nothing dearer in his heart than defeating oppressors, the shadow desired the Holy Grail instead.

Within the base, Caster stood up when she sensed something was trespassing on her territory.

"Stay here, Master," she said. "I will eliminate the disturbance."

"Lily, come in," Marcus' voice said through the radio as Caster left to confront the intruder.

"Yes?" Lily replied.

"Things are starting to go south. Berserker's showed up and Lancer killed Mordred, but no sign of Ruler yet," Marcus stated. "We need Caster right away!"

"Um, a Shadow Servant seems to have shown up, but I'm sure that

Shadow Spartacus laughed as the Dragon Tooth Warriors swarmed it, only to be easily smashed apart. The skeletal soldiers didn't even manage to scratch the Shadow Servant as it waded its way through the sea of Dragon Tooth Warriors.

"Oh dear…" Caster sighed as she saw what she had to deal with. "But hopefully, being a fragment of what you once were will make this a little easier."

Caster then manipulated a nearby pool of water to burst out of a nearby room and wrap itself around Shadow Spartacus and the remaining Dragoon Tooth Warriors. Caster then used a spell to turn the water into a block of ice, crushing anything inside of it. However, it was unable to hold Shadow Spartacus and it eventually broke free.

"Holy Grail…"

"Very well. I have more than enough to take you on," Caster said before using Territory Creation to eliminate most of the wall in that section of the base, revealing several rectangular pools of water.

She then manipulated the water to shoot out towards Shadow Spartacus before turning into a large water spout. Shadow Spartacus was launched out of the base before Caster had the water spout morph into a dragon shape and chase after the Shadow Servant. The water dragon opened its mouth and swallowed its enemy before diving down into the river.

Unfortunately, this didn't kill the Shadow Servant and it rose out of the water before walking onto the shore.

"Holy Grail…"

Caster flew out of the hole the dragon made while chasing after Shadow Spartacus and sighed after seeing that it was still alive. She cast a spell that launched a volley of fireballs at the Shadow Servant but was unable to slow Shadow Spartacus down. Fortunately, it was unable to attack Caster due to her being in the air beyond its reach.

"Marcus called in. He says that things are going downhill at Frederick's estate and we're needed there," Lily said telepathically to Caster.

Caster sighed in irritation. "Just a moment, Master. This Shadow Servant is being particularly irritating."

"Ryujin!" Caster yelled before launching a large blue fireball with her staff down at Shadow Spartacus.

There was a large explosion, but Shadow Spartacus was still standing. Caster used Ryujin again to finish it off.

However, she then detected more presences intruding on her territory. Five more to be exact. Knowing that she would be unable to had so many at once, even if their improper summoning made them weaker, Caster decided to flee. She used Territory Creation to open a quick path to Lily.

"Master, we have to leave," she said.

Caster manipulated the base once again to open the roof up before taking hold of Lily and flying out. The two of them quickly approached Frederick's estate and Caster dropped Lily off on a nearby rooftop.

"You should be safe here, Master," Caster said. "I will go assist our allies."


Archer and Assassin were quickly irritated by the Shadow Servants suddenly showing up to swarm Frederick's estate. Archer had cut two down but was then attacked by a Berserker-class Shadow Servant.

"Phantasm Punisher!" Assassin shouted before his knife began glowing and was thrust forward to fell a Caster.

'There's no end to these things…' Archer inwardly growled.

At that moment, Assassin felt pain shoot through his connection to Frederick before some Shadow Servants proceeded to pile on him.


Ian opened a door and found that he had finally made it to Frederick's location. The door to the balcony was open behind a desk with a chair shifted to the side allowing Ian to see his target. Frederick heard the sound of the door opening and saw Ian standing in the doorway.

"So, I'm assuming that you are the Master of Assassin of Alpha," he said.

Ian was silent.

"But the fact that someone so young was thrown into such a bloody contest... It's a shame…" Frederick shook his head. "Nicholas was younger than you were. But thanks to my foolishness, Jeffrey was able to kill him and take his Servant."

"And Louis was around your age. I'm not sure who killed him, but that doesn't make his death any less of a shame…"

"I did it," Ian admitted.

"…I see." Frederick said sadly. "But regardless, I'm certain that it wasn't anything personal."

"No. It wasn't. It was only the matters of the Holy Grail War," Ian said.

Frederick pulled out a gun. "Surrender your Command Seals. I'd hate to see another young person die in this conflict, even if my victory would mean America prospers."

"So, you're a patriot, huh," Ian said.

"Yes," Frederick said proudly. "There is hardly any nobler goal out there, so please, your Command Seals."

Frederick held out his hand and Ian walked forward.

"Unfortunately, I can't," Ian shook his head. "Assassin's become like a daughter to me and I want to use the Grail to help someone else. Someone who's been able to find it in her heart to accept someone as messed up as I am. I'm not going to give any of that up."

"I see…" Frederick replied.

"But, you're a patriot, right?" Ian inquired. "And there's no sweeter and fitting death than dying for your country, right?"

At that moment, Assassin dropped her Presence Concealment and stabbed Frederick's arm with one knife while using the other to stab him into the gut. Frederick fell to the floor as he dropped his gun, silently cursing himself for being foolish enough to ignore the fact that Assassin was hiding somewhere.

"Rejoice, Mr. James. You have died for your country," Ian said as Assassin landed the finishing blow by stabbing Frederick in the heart.


As Caster descended, she used Ryujin to launch a large blue fireball towards the Shadow Servants ganging up on Assassin of Omega. When the smoke cleared, there was a large shower of golden particles and neither of those Servants were alive.

Lancer thrust his spear into the heart of a Shadow Servant and quickly turned around to strike another one. Suddenly, that Shadow Servant was impaled from behind by another spear. When the shower of golden particles ended, Ruler was standing where the Shadow Servant once was.

"Who're you?" Lancer questioned.

"Servant Ruler. I have not come to fight you. These shadows are an irregularity and I am bound by my duty to slay them," Ruler answered.

"Eh, suit yourself," Lancer said.

"Lancer, come in," Harry said. "Come to the front of the mansion. Once I'm there, begin cutting a path for me to Jeffrey. I'm gonna kill him and his pet monster."

Ian and Assassin had stepped out of the mansion and saw the remaining Servants were still fighting the Shadow Servants.

"The goal is to cut Jeffrey's arm off. That'll sever his connection to Berserker and leave him open for Ruler to exorcize him," Ian said.

"Got it, Daddy. We'll protect you,"

Archer leapt high into the air and summoned his bow and Caladbolg II. He then aimed at Berserker and some of the Shadow Servants fighting him. The ensuing explosion took one of Berserker's lives and killed the Shadow Servants nearby. As he landed, he dismissed the bow and summoned Kanshou and Bakuya.

When he landed, he was greeted by a Shadow Servant that Marcus was able to recognize by silhouette alone.

"No…" Marcus said, horrified. "No!"

The hair tied back in a bun. The kimono. The tsurugi sword grasped in hand. It was her.

It was his Saber.

"Kill it, Archer! Kill it!" Marcus yelled. "That abomination is disgracing Saber! Kill it!"

Archer could tell that Marcus was having flashbacks to his time in the previous War, the moments with Saber that he held dear, and when she died in his arms at the end of the War. The despair in his voice made it incredibly obvious.

"Spirit and technique, flawless and firm," Archer threw Kanshou and Bakuya, with Shadow Saber deflecting them easily. But this was what he intended.

"Our strength rips the mountains."

He summoned a second pair and slashed at Shadow Saber.

"Our swords split the water."

The thrown pair struck their target from behind/

"Our names reach the imperial villa."

Archer summoned Kanshou and Bakuya in their Overedge forms.

"We cannot hold the heavens together."

The final blow was delivered, killing Shadow Saber.


Ian and Assassin slipped past Berserker while he was preoccupied with a Berserker-class Shadow Servant and were now in front of Kylie's vessel, Jeffrey's corpse.

"You look familiar," Kylie said. "You look like this one woman from last time."

"That was my mother," Ian said.

"Still going on about your mother…" Harry said as he walked up.

"But what the hell happened to you?" Harry then said to Jeffrey. "You didn't sound like a little girl the last time we met."

"That stupid boy was only just a puppet," Kylie smirked. "No matter what you do, you can't stop me. You can't kill ghosts."

"But I will! You killed my mom!" Ian yelled.

"Your mom didn't love you!" Harry shouted. "Psychos don't give a d*** about anyone but themselves!"

"Then why did she die protecting my uncle?" Ian retorted.

"To me, Berserker."

In a red flash, Berserker was between Kylie and the others. He raised his sword to strike Ian, but Harry pushed the boy out the way at the last second. As he did, he used a Command Seal to summon Lancer to him.

"Get the kid away," Harry said with his last breath.


Archer, Caster, and Ruler were gathered near the fountain in the center of the yard. The remaining Shadow Servants were closing in on them.

"I need to prepare my Noble Phantasm. Cover me," Archer stated.

Just as he said that, Lancer leapt towards them carrying Ian before dropping him off near them and Assassin followed quickly after. The blue spearman then dissipated in a shower of golden particles.

"Defend my brethren, my banner! God is here with me! Luminosite Eternelle!"

The banner created a barrier around those gathered around Ruler.

"I am the bone of my sword…" Archer began. "Steel is my body and fire is my blood."

Ian looked at Archer in awe. He was really going to do it.

"I have created over a thousand blades… Unknown to life nor known to death."

Berserker advanced on them, cutting down a few Shadow Servants along the way.

"Have withstood pain to create many weapons… Yet, those hands will never hold anything."

Caster fired a spell to knock a Shadow Servant away.

"So as I pray…"

Ian then smiled at Archer.

"Unlimited Blade Works!"


A flash of white enveloped the perspectives of everyone being pulled into Unlimited Blade Works.

They were now in a barren land that was a steel manufacturing factory producing countless swords without their owners. Monolithic black gears filled the sky, gyrating in the distance. A countless number of swords dotted the landscape, as far as the eye could see. They were grave markers in the wasteland, representing the losses of a great conflict.

But to Ian, his new surroundings were a source of awe.

"My God…" he muttered.

The Shadow Servants didn't stand a chance once the Reality Marble was deployed. Several swords were summoned and launched at them, cutting them down in great numbers until only Berserker remained.

"The time has come, then," Caster said before ascending into the air. "Owatatsumi-no-Kami…"

Caster was enveloped in a sapphire light before returning to her original form. She was now a large, beautiful Asian dragon with blue scales that shimmered like newly-polished sapphires. She dove down towards Berserker and Archer charged in after her. Caster launched a large blue fireball at Berserker before chomping down on him and throwing him into the air. Archer then summoned his bow and fired Caladbolg II at the airborne Berserker, who was then smacked down by Caster's tail.

After Berserker crashed to the ground, Archer rushed in and unleashed the Triple-Linked Crane Wings technique on him. The tanned man then leapt back as Caster unleashed a torrent of blue fire from her mouth at Berserker, taking one of his lives. She then flew into the air and opened her mouth.

"Ryujin!"

An even large ball of blue fire was launched at Berserker shortly after he regenerated from losing one of his lives. The impact and explosion claimed yet another life. Archer rushed in, but Berserker recovered too quickly and slashed him across the chest with his axe-sword. Archer was knocked away and staggered to his feet, only for Berserker to rush in and follow up the attack, killing the Servant of the Bow.

The world was enveloped in light again.


Lily was surprised when Ian, Assassin, Ruler, and Berserker returned with a blue dragon accompanying them. But she knew that it was Caster.

"So beautiful…" she said.

Caster dove to bite down on Berserker again, only for him to dodge and unleash Nine Lives on her. Caster fell down, her large body smashing majority of the flowers and statues in the garden. Her body glowed again before she returned to normal.

While Berserker was occupied, the other three went to confront Kylie.

"You!" Kylie yelled. "You will not destroy me!"

But right when she was about to use a Command Seal to summon Berserker back to her, Assassin cut that arm off.

"NO!"

The knees of Kylie's vessel gave out and Ruler's hand began glowing before being placed on its head.

"Cry out to the Lord in your trouble, and He will lead you to life," Ruler chanted.

"D*** you! D*** you! D-"

Jeffrey's body fell down as Kylie's spirit was exorcized from it.

Caster sighed. Berserker was about to strike her down when he suddenly dissipated. But that didn't really matter, for she was already on death's door as is. She staggered to her feet and dematerialized before making her way to Lily. This would hopefully allow her to make it to her Master. And she did.

"Caster, are you alri-" Lily asked concernedly as Caster materialized by her.

Caster shook her head, causing Lily to frown, tears forming in her good eye.

"But I have enough mana to get you down from here," Caster extended her hand towards Lily. "Let's go."


"Thank you, Ruler," Ian said.

"You're welcome," Ruler replied.

Lily and Caster walked towards the three of them. Caster's mana reserves then ran dry at that moment and she began disappearing in a shower of golden particles.

"Thank you, Caster. For everything," Lily said.

Caster gave one last smile to Lily.

"So, that's that, huh?" Ian said solemnly before examining the condition of the yard. "Geez, what a mess…"

"You are the victor of the Holy Grail War," Ruler stated. "Come, I will guide you to it."


Marcus leaned back in his chair and sighed. Ian had just called in and confirmed the deaths of Harry, Lancer, Archer, Berserker, and Caster and that Kylie was successfully exorcized. He then looked at the photograph of himself and Jenny holding little Ian in her arms.

"We were so happy back then…" he mused to himself. "Well, happier."

He then looked to the photograph of himself and Saber before looking towards a new photo. It was taken shortly before the Alpha faction attacked Caster of Omega's base; himself, Archer, Abraham, Saber, Serena, Rider, Ian, Assassin, Lily, Caster, Wesley, and Berserker. Leeroy and Lancer were absent, having already been eliminated from the competition by then, unfortunately. At the very least, Leeroy was still alive though.

"Heh…" he chuckled. "At least this War wasn't as much of a disaster…"

Some time passed and then Marcus heard the doorbell ring. He stood up and walked towards the front door. Looking into the peephole revealed that Ian was there, holding something, so he opened the door. Doing so allowed him to see that Ian was holding Assassin in his arms, with the girl wrapped up in his hoodie.

"So, uh, Assassin used the Grail to become human, but that somehow got rid of her clothes," Ian said awkwardly.

Marcus sighed. "So, what did you use it for?"

"Lily's mom was diagnosed with cancer. Terminal cancer," Ian explained. "So, I did her a favor and healed that cancer."

Marcus smiled. "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks."

"It's much better than what your mom wanted to do," Marcus stated.

"And what was that?"

Marcus then whispered into Ian's ear, causing him to wince when he heard the answer to his question.

"God! That's horrible, even if he did deserve it!"

"Come in, it's past your bedtime," Marcus said.

Ian then walked in.

"And by the way, we're not referring to Assassin using her class," Ian said. "Her name is now Jackie."

Marcus smiled again. 'I know you'd be proud of him, Jenny.'


So, there's only an epilogue left after this one and then Fate/new dawn is finished. The Shadow Servants are a result of the Grail being cracked, which answers KnightOfZaku's question about what effects that might have. Fortunately, Angra Mainyu is not in the Grail in this timeline.

So, Dario and Ada are the only survivors of the Omega faction. Dario will show up again in the epilogue and play a role yet again in the sequel.

I'm hoping that you guys are as satisfied with how this turned out as much as I am. This has been lots of fun to write and I'm hoping that the prequel and sequel will do as well as or better than this fic.

So, if you have ideas for an OC Servant for the prequel, just PM me. Take a look at any one of the various stat sheets throughout this fic and create something like this, but you will have to include background and personality for that Servant in the PM. I'm going to limit it to one Servant (situations like Anne Bonny & Mary Read do count as one Servant, in case you want to try that) per PM. Additionally, you can create an OC Master, but it must accompany an OC Servant. However, Archer, Lancer, and Assassin are the only open spots.

Also, KnightOfZaku, your suggestion to include Brynhildr is much better than Summer Kiyohime. While Brynhildr is actually from Prototype, Servants from that little section of the franchise doesn't seem to get that much love in comparison to stay night, Zero, EXTRA, and Apocrypha. I don't recall seeing that many fanfics involving Brynhildr anyway.

Again, if you want to recommend a canon Servant, please limit it to ones debuting in Grand Order, Prototype, or maybe even strange fake (disregarding Enkidu and Gilgamesh, who did first appear in stay night anyway).

Leave a review. Constructive criticism will be accepted. Flames will be used to make s'mores, jyaa-nee!