Ashes (III)
"...saka!"
Someone was shouting, but the voice couldn't make it to her through the pounding of her heart.
The world was spinning. The dark sky and the black moon pouring evil upon the world loomed over her.
"...hsaka!"
He was still shouting, but it was as if there was a thick wall between them, and he was getting further and further away.
What happened? Why was she lying there? One moment they were in the middle of a fight and then...
Abrupt pain, A searing wound. Her body lifted off the ground and then ceremoniously dropped to the ground.
"Rin! Rin, stay with me!"
The visage of the King of Knights came into her vision. The Servant lifted her head off the ground and thus she could finally see with her own eyes the gaping wound in her chest.
There was no pounding of her heart in her ears because there was no heart in her chest anymore. The drumming she was hearing was the grinding of her own Crest, burning through her Mana to keep her alive a little while longer.
'Ah... that's right. How could I forget? I'm already dead."
Her head turned to the side, looking at the red-haired boy running toward her. Funny how even though she was doomed, her last thought wasn't for herself.
'That dummy is going to cry for me, isn't he?'
Then the world faded and turned black, and the last thing she knew was the hoarse cry coming from his throat.
"TOHSAKA!"
[br]
They had come to the park to remove the second of Caster's seal. The sooner they did all three of them, the sooner the Grail War would resume its normal course. Which was far from good but better than dealing with the Singularities while there were rogue Servants running around.
Unfortunately, much like it would happen with a volcano, clogging a caldera meant that there was much more pressure on the remaining few, causing them to erupt sooner and more violently.
"It's about to happen again," Shirou warned.
They had barely gotten there and had yet to start excavating for the keystone.
"What, already?" Tohsaka asked. "It's too soon."
"When he closed the other Singularity, the Grail didn't get to eject all the energy it had accumulated."
"Then maybe we should let it do that this time," Rider suggested.
"We don't have a choice," Rin warned. "It's happening now!"
On cue with her words, a black hole in the middle of the sky opened. Like a malignant tumor in the firmament, it vomited its dark contents upon the world. A waterfall of black mud poured out. Or rather, it burst out.
Unlike every other time, the black mud didn't simply drip out of the hole. Instead, it shot its content in every direction at once, like a fountain of filth and corruption.
"Oh, that's not good," Rin said, watching as the various puddles of dark fluid started to give raise to the usual malformed abominations. "You guys deal with them. I'll take care of the keystone."
"Tohsaka?" Shirou asked.
"Don't worry about me, and just do it! We can't afford to let any of them out of the park. I can defend myself well enough!"
"I'll assist her. Don't worry about it," said Illya.
"Alright, but watch your backs," he agreed as he rushed to meet the coming threat, along with Rider and Saber.
He couldn't be everywhere at once, and the Grail's shadows would be more attracted to high Mana signatures like the Servants than humans like Tohsaka. As long as they stayed some distance away, they would be relatively safe, provided he did a good enough job containing the shadows.
Having made his decision, he rushed ahead, holding the Married Blades in his hands. When he came across the first creature, he cut through it with a snarl and moved on to the next one. While he swung his sword and his muscle burned, he could drown out and forget the aching that plagued his heart.
Sometimes, the only way to wash away the pain is through another kind of suffering. [br]
Caren stood at the edge of the Tohsaka Household, with Avenger hovering behind her in spirit form. The signs of the recent battle were still there, but of the people who had done the fighting, there was no trace. They had already left.
They didn't have to wonder for long where they had gone. They knew the moment another Singularity opened over the park.
"It's getting worse and worse," she said as she started running in that direction.
The time between each event was getting shorter to the point that they happened twice in the same night.
"It's going to keep getting worse until the Grail War is resolved," Avenger said as he materialized.
He swept Caren off her feet and took to the roofs, leaping from one to the other as they rushed to the new battlefield.
"Did you remember something?" she asked.
"It's not a memory but a feeling. The malice of the Grail is palpable now. You of all people should be able to tell this. It won't go down quietly, no matter what anyone does. Given a chance to manifest, it would wreck the most amount of devastation it can. I'll be surprised there will be something left of this city."
"You should have more faith in the Lord, Avenger," Caren reprimanded.
"Don't be a hypocrite now. Your Lord has never been above unleashing calamity over his flock. Both I and that thing in the Grail exist because he allows it."
Caren bit her lips. She had nothing to say in response to that, for Avenger's words were true. The Lord Almighty could easily save or condemn his people as he pleased. However, she believed that nothing was without a purpose, including her presence there. Perhaps she sinned of arrogance by thinking that she knew what role He wished her to play in this scenario, but she had no other choice than to follow her own heart.
She had to save Emiya Shirou. That was the key and the only reason why she was paired with this twisted future version of him.
"Hurry up, Avenger. We need to get there as fast as we can," she said.
Avenger was already moving as fast as he could, but the distance was not insignificant. Caren couldn't help but feel that this moment was crucial. She had to get to him in time.
[br]
The battle raged, and it wasn't going well. The sheer number of Grail abominations was staggering, and the fact that they emerged from different pools at once made containing them all the more difficult.
Saber and Rider acted as beacons and attracted most of them to their positions, but the rest Shirou had to handle himself. Without the boost of Caster's mana pool, he could no longer rely on Projecting swarms of blades and had to fight more efficiently - which was far from easy, considering the sheer amount of enemies there were to fight.
Unlike with the Servants, they didn't come in his direction. Only those in his closest proximity turned against him, while the others tried to rush toward the overwhelming human presence in the city outside of the park.
Whenever a few got past him, he had to Project a bow and arrows to strike them down, all the while fending off those that attacked him. His small native mana reserves were already at the limit.
Every fiber of his being was burning from the exertion and his strained Circuits groaned in pain. He welcomed the sensation. The sheer intensity of the battle demanded all of his focus. Every single breath had to be used to the utmost efficiency. One misstep would mean death.
It was soothing.
Pain was an old friend to Emiya Shirou. He always pushed himself to the very limits of his being because that was the only thing that made his spiritual torment bearable. This time it was no different. While he tore himself to pieces he didn't have to think about anything else, much less feel anything else.
But as much as he wished that he could drown into this feeling, even at a time like this he couldn't put himself first.
Tohsaka and Illya stood some ways behind him, performing the ritual to remove Caster's seal on the Grail. He put most of his effort into holding the abomination from going in that direction, but when the ritual finally started, the sheer output of mana coming from it drew all of their attention. Even the few which had managed to make it a good way toward the city turned tail and headed right back at them.
Only those in the vicinity of Saber and Rider didn't change their course, all others immediately honed in on the two girls.
"No! Wait!" he called out, as the creatures of evil rushed past him, completely ignoring him.
A sudden explosion occurred as Saber charged through the horde, heading toward her Master. She didn't make it in time, as each one of the creatures turned on her the moment she got close. They could not stop her, but they did bog her down.
"Rin!"
Shirou held out his fist and channeled his Command Seal.
"Rider! Protect-"
But before he could finish vocalizing his intention, a figure fell from the sky, slamming into the ground and cutting off the advance of the creatures.
A man stood with his back turned to the two women, clad in a blue leotard and wielding a red spear.
"Go ahead and finish up, girls. I'm not letting any of these things lay a finger on you," he said and promptly started stabbing the incoming creatures.
"Lancer?" Shirou asked.
"Yo, kid. Don't ask me what that guy is thinking 'cause I don't have a damn clue. He sent me here to back you up, so at least he's taking his job seriously."
As much as he would have liked to say something back, Shirou held his tongue. His grievances with Kotomine could wait another time and Lancer wasn't to blame for his Master's actions. He took the very much-needed assistance.
Not that he had a choice in the matter.
The battle continued and so did the ritual. With three Servants and the mana discharge acting as bait, the pressure on them was greatly diminished. It might even have been easy if Shirou wasn't already at the limit of his endurance.
It took only a few minutes for the ritual to be completed, but they were some of the longest in Shirou's life. It was only at this time that he realized how much he had come to rely on Medea, and how weak he really was without her support.
Eventually, the ritual concluded and the keystone released the last of its mana in a glorious burst of light, and the hole in the sky started to collapsed on itself.
That was the end of it.
Or it should have been until someone cried out in alarm. "SABER!"
Everyone turned toward Lancer.
Shirou understood in a split second, but it was already too late.
[br]
Honestly, Lancer had no idea what his new Master was thinking. He couldn't see through the asshole at all. He didn't like the priest on principle. Lancer was a straightforward fighter while Kotomine was a manipulator, a puppeteer.
Still, Lancer could have accepted him as a Master even though Kotomine had killed his previous one, whom Lancer actually liked a bit if only the priest had let him have a proper fight. But nope, Kotomine had him acting as his errand boy.
It didn't even look like the priest wanted to win the Grail for himself. Rather, it seemed that he only wanted to fuck with the other contestants, which, to be fair, fit his character perfectly.
Truly, Kotomine was the embodiment of an asshole.
At least it looked like he was doing his job as a supervisor properly, if not impartially, so Lancer wasn't at all surprised when Kotomine sent him to back up the others to clean up those insignificant creatures.
These malformed abominations didn't even count as a warm-up exercise. Sure, with their numbers, they would be a pain in the ass to manage unless they came straight up to him, which was exactly what they did, so there wasn't even the fun of giving chase. Lancer mowed them down like the insects they were. Scratch that, insects would at least fight for their lives while these creatures didn't even bother putting up that much of a fight.
It was mind-numbingly boring. He'd rather be fishing than doing this shit.
He hoped that once he was done cleaning up, Kotomine would let him fight Saber or Rider. He deserved to have at least some fun, right? He hoped so, but he wasn't exactly holding his breath about it. The man enjoyed cockblocking him just as much as he liked fucking with the rest of the players.
Knowing Kotomine, he'd force Lancer to retreat as soon as this specific mess was cleaned up.
The ritual continued, and the battle progressed. It wasn't much but at least he wasn't bored anymore, but even this little scrap of fun was about to reach an end. With his background as a Mage, he could tell that the bloody thing was about to pop, and sure enough, only a few moments later the restrictions placed by Caster were completely undone.
The singularity in the sky collapsed unto itself, and the remaining abominations crumbled like puppets that had their strings cut.
'Well, that about wraps it up,' Lancer concluded.
'Good job, Lancer. I have one more task for you now,' Kotomine said telepathically.
'Shit, what is it now? More errands?'
'Not quite. This might prove a bit more exciting for you. Lancer, by the power of this Seal I
command you. Kill Saber's Master and bring the Einzbern girl to me.' Lancer's eyes widened, but the Command Seal had already taken hold of him. 'You motherfucker!'
"SABER!" he shouted.
There was no time and he knew it. Even if she reacted immediately, she wouldn't be able to save her Master. But he would be damned if he let Kotomine use him in such a cowardly way and do nothing.
"STOP ME!"
[br]
"SABER!"
Everyone turned tto Lancer's alarmed cry. It seemed as if he was struggling against an unseen force.
'It's a Command Seal!'
Shirou understood in a split second, but it was already too late. "STOP ME!"
Gae Bolg spun into Lancer's hand, almost as if it had a mind of its own, and the Sevant turned toward the girls he had been protecting until then moment.
"Eh?"
Splat!
A single thrust, followed by the noise of torn flesh and bones. With a shocked expression, Tohsaka Rin was lifted off the ground, with the cursed spear piercing her chest front to back.
"RIN!" Saber cried as the ground shattered under her feet. "Tohsaka!" Shirou cried.
Lancer spun, and with a flick of his wrist, he sent Rin's body flying away from him, causing Saber to divert in that direction rather than keep charging at Lancer.
"No, you idiot! I told you to stop me!" the Servant of the Spear called out.
Shirou didn't hesitate; he roared back his arms and threw the Married Blades at Lancer. It was futile to use projectiles against someone who had Protection from Arrows. The black and white blades were promptly deflected by the red spear. The same spear then hit the side of Ilya's head. The white-haired girl didn't even have time to defend herself, nor did her body have time to hit the ground before Lancer threw her over his shoulder and leapt away.
"Rider! Don't let him take Illya!"
The Servant of the Mount didn't need to be told twice or at all. Even though she wasn't in a favorable position, she had started to move at the same time as Saber. She was already on Lancer before Shirou even finished calling her.
The red spear met the incoming chain-nails, and a clash between Servants began. Lancer couldn't fight at full strength with the unconscious girl on his shoulder, but similarly, Rider couldn't use her full abilities or she would risk hurting Illya.
There was no time to waste. His feet were already moving before he even knew what he was doing.
"TOHSAKA!" he shouted.
He rushed towards her as she laid in her Servant's lap, sliding to his knees right next to her.
"Shirou!"
Saber stared at him with a look of faint hope in her eyes, and Shirou felt a twist of shame in his chest.
'Why are you putting your hopes on me?'
He had failed. Over and over again. Everything was crumbling down around him, and he wasn't good enough to keep it from falling apart. Who in their right mind could trust him with anything?
But even though the weight of his own overwhelming inadequacy pulled down on him, as long as he had a single breath of life left in him, he would do something.
He placed both hands over his chest.
The presence he had become so accustomed to having alongside him, to the point that he even forgot it was there, hummed in response to his intention. Clenching his fingers, he started to pull, and it followed along.
It was an experience as uncomfortable and painful as pulling out his own heart. It resisted the attempt at extraction. Perhaps it had been inside of him too long and didn't want to leave, or maybe it was a part of him that didn't want to let go.
It didn't matter. In the end, he would do what needed to be done. He just needed to pull harder, even if it meant wrenching out his own heart.
In the lifeless park, with the sound of clashing Servants acting as a score, a light of gold and blue burst forth, washing over the three of them.
There was a sudden intake of breath coming from Saber. There were no words but it seemed to convey a great deal of meaning. Shirou didn't turn to her. His eyes were solely on the Holy Scabbard hovering in mid-air above the body of the unconscious Magus.
The sound of fighting stopped, almost as if the sudden apparition overshadowed everything else. Shirou paid them no mind.
Tohsaka had little time left, and he had even less.
"AVALON!"
Even though he wasn't its true owner, and maybe only because she was right at his side, the Noble Phantasm of the Fae responded, unfurling into gold and blue ribbons before flowing into the body of the fatally wounded Magus through the opening in her chest.
The light diminished until only that coming from the wound remained. When that, too, faded in place of the gruesome hole, there was only unblemished white skin, young and unblemished.
"So it was you...," Saber said. "It has always been you."
But Shirou didn't say anything in response. He got up and took a wobbling step back, then another. Then he fell back on his knees.
"Shirou, what's wrong?"
"Saber... you need to... you need to keep going. I... I won't... ugh!"
He put both hands over his mouth, trying to keep it in, but even with his staggering willpower, he couldn't hold back something that took a Noble Phantasm to keep in check.
"Blrrrgh!"
The content of his stomach rushed out of his mouth and through his fingers. But instead of gastric acid or other bodily fluids a bucketful of black mud spilled out
"Shirou!" Saber called out. "STAY BACK!" he shouted.
Mud kept flowing from his mouth but also from his nose, ears, and eyes. It pooled beneath him until he was both knees and hands deep into it.
"I can't keep it! I can't..."
"Master!"
Shirou turned his head, only to see Rider rushing in his direction, her mission discarded to come at his side. The figure of Lancer could be seen getting away in the distance with Illya on his back.
It was his fault. If only he had been better, stronger, none of this would have happened. Shirou held out his hand toward Rider. He couldn't let it happen again. Not for him.
He closed his fingers, and with the last of his breath, he gave her one final command. "Rider! Don't try to save me!"
The weight of the Command Seal slammed into Rider, stopping her in her tracks.
"Shi... Shirou!"
Rider's face was twisted in a pitiful grimace, and he hated that it was he who made her have such an expression. He understood the wish to protect others more than anyone else, but he wouldn't have another put their lives in danger to protect his own.
This sin would be just another one added to his already long list.
That was it. He could no longer hold the inevitable in check. The mud beneath him bubbled and then exploded upward in a mass of tendrils that wrapped around his body, pulling him down. He fell limp, face first into the mud, which spread all over his body until he was nothing more than a blackened figure.
[br]
"Saber! What are you doing?" Rider shouted. "Help him!"
Rider couldn't take another step forward. Her body just wouldn't follow her wishes. However, Saber wasn't as restrained and even though she had already gotten to her feet she had stopped midway through, glancing between the unmoving body of Shirou and that of Rin.
The Servant of the Sword clenched her fist.
"I can't, Rider! You know what will happen if I touch the mud."
Oh, she knew. She had a nice little taste of it herself. Even if the other Servant wasn't anything like her, the corruption of the mud would affect her. But Rider didn't care about any of that. Even if she wound up turning into a mindless monster again, she would absolutely do anything she could do to save him.
"You coward! You absolute coward!"
Saber gritted her teeth in frustration. Whether it was because of the slight to her pride that she couldn't quite deflect or because of her own impotence, Rider didn't know. Nor did she cared to know.
The Servant of the Mount was struggling against her invisible bonds. As long as the Command Seal was in effect, the one who gave it was still alive. She didn't want anything more than for its hold to finally give out so that she could go to his side, and yet she knew that the moment it happened, it would be too late.
But just as hope started to fade, there was a change. At first, it was barely noticeable, but then, still completely covered in boiling mud, Shirou pushed himself up to his knees, only to fall right back down.
"Shirou!" Saber called out, taking another step forward.
Again, Shirou tried to stand. This time, his movements were more certain, but eventually he managed to steady himself on both hands and knees. After a few moments, he actually managed to stand on his feet, although wobbling left and right.
After taking a few steps, he stopped. The mud that covered him appeared to dry out visibly and cracks started to form all over its surface.
"Shirou?" Rider called out, hopefully.
The cracks in the mud deepened and splintered, falling off his body in big pieces and evaporating into black motes the moment they touched the ground. With each piece that fell, the figure of the person beneath was exposed, starting with the face.
The moment she saw the lines of Shirou's face, Rider sighed in relief, but it died halfway through as more details were revealed. His hair had turned black, and his skin had darkened. Apparently, the mud had eaten away most of his clothes, leaving only tattered remains that clung to his waist and didn't hide much of his physique, nor the intricate tattoo that now adorned his skin. When he finally opened his now black eyes, he looked at his hands, turning them back and forth as if he was seeing them for the first time.
"Shirou. Are you alright?" Saber asked.
He wasn't displaying any aggressive behavior, unlike what happened with Rider. Then again, he was a human with a physical body, so maybe he wasn't affected quite the same way.
Shirou smiled.
"Oh, babe. You have no fucking idea. I haven't felt this good in forever," he said, voice dripping with amusement. He put his hands on his hips and took a deep breath. "Ahh... that
hits the spot. Nothing quite like breathing fresh air as a free man after ten years stuck in prison. Let me tell you, a gilded cage is no better than any other."
"... you are not Shirou," Saber accused, holding her invisible sword ready between them.
"Hahaha, oh man. What gave you that impression, hmm?" he asked, putting a hand on his face and leaning forward. "Is it my dashing looks or my charming personality, ahh?"
"Who are you?" Rider asked. Not-Shirou turned to grin at Rider
"How can you treat me like a stranger, honey? After everything we've been through together. That's kind of rough, even by your standards. I dig that, not gonna lie. Anyway, one would think that you'd remember me after the gift I gave you," he said, vaguely gesturing at her as he ogled her figure from head to toe. "Hmm... and it was a nice gift indeed."
"You are..." Saber realized.
"... Angra Mainyu," Rider concluded.
"Woo-oo!" he cheered, clapping loudly. "Well, aren't you the clever pair? Hmm. Beauty and brains. It doesn't get any better than this. Ahh... well. As much as I would looove to stay and play with you ladies all night long, I actually have things that I need to do, You know... places to see and people to kill. Slowly."
He turned to leave, only to find his path blocked by Saber. "You are not going anywhere!"
"Interesting. And how are you planning to stop me, exactly? Are you going to kill me? Here..." he inclined his head, exposing his neck. "It should take you only one swing from you. After all, this is a human body made of flesh and bones. You probably won't even notice. Look, if you strike right in this spot, my head is going to go flying right up. Wheee! What are you waiting for? Ohh... perhaps you are worried about this guy's life? Well, don't. Surely he would tell you to strike him down and not allow 'All the World's Evil' to walk away, right?"
"... You are right. He would say exactly that," Saber concurred, steadying her sword. "Saber, don't!" Rider shouted. "You can't!"
The more dire the situation became, the more the need to save him grew, but so did the strength of the Command Seal preventing Rider from doing so.
"Hehehe! Trust the King of Knights to make the hard decision other people can't. But actually I can't let you kill me now. So, how about you let me go, just this time?"
"I refuse. If you are not willing to surrender right now, I will do what I must."
"Strong and uncompromising. Man, I do love a beautiful woman who can kick my ass. Hmm... maybe there will be time to have fun together in the future. In the meantime..."
He raised his fist, and the Command Seal still etched upon it shone brightly. "Rider! Keep Saber busy until I get away."
"What?" the surprised cry came from both women.
Saber barely had time to turn her attention to block Rider, who slammed into her with her full weight and power, pushing her several dozen meters away. Their weapons started to clash immediately after
"Make sure not to actually hurt each other, alright?" Angra Mainyu said with a grin. "It would be a downright shame if your pretty faces got scratched fighting over me. Gotta go now. Catcha later!"
"No, stop!" both Servants said, even though they were locked in combat with each other against their wills.
But Angra Mainyu didn't heed their words. Without looking back once, he disappeared into the night while the two Servants continued to fight. Only after several minutes had passed did the Command Seal finally run its course, and the Servant of the Mount was able to leap back and disengage. The two of them started at one another with a mixture of feelings passing through them.
"H- Hmm..."
On the ground, where she was still laying, the healed Rin finally stirred.
"Rin!" Saber cried, rushing to her Master's side.
"S... Saber? Wha... What happened?" the Magus asked groggily.
"Rin, don't move. How are you feeling?
"I... I'm fine. I think. Did I... Was it a dream that Lancer killed me?"
"Unfortunately, it was not."
"How am I alive then?" she asked, looking around. "And where's everyone gone?" Saber turned her head, only to find that Rider, too, had vanished into thin air.
The shoulders of the King of Knights slumped. It was thus that the great alliance to stop the Grail War had completely and utterly crumbled to pieces. No matter what success they might
win for themselves going forward, if there would be any at all, they would be nothing more than pyrrhic victories.
Of that, there could be no doubt.
[XXX]