Kiritsugu's Trilogy: Prologue or Chapter 0
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You think that upon death, you'd figured it was the end of that, you make peace with your maker or spent an eon in eternal damnation till all debts and you're finally given a chance to earn peace.
For Kiritsugu Emiya, he's long since cast aside god and expected nothing more than an afterlife of damnation at worst or fade into nothing at worst.
What he didn't expect was to find himself waking up in the middle of a grassy field next to some wetlands just as the sun was about to set.
Sitting himself back up, he notice something peculiar about himself right away.
First off he no longer felt he was sick or left in the brittle state he was, in fact he felt he was in the state of his prime as he checked himself near a shallow pond.
Amazed to see that he was reverted back to his youth, he began to further inspect his body to discover that he was fully equipped with some of his signature weapons including his Calico M950, and his Thompson Contender.
But still that didn't answer any of his current questions, like how did he got to return back to the peak of his prime along with having most of his weapons and equipment being returned back to him, or most important where he was.
"If this is suppose to be Hell, I've yet to find myself in a predicament that irks me, and if this were truly heaven, I'd have already been greeted by Irisviel" said Kiritsugu as him mentioning his wife's name brought him to feel some sentimental pain.
However his answer came in the form of his right hand starting feel a burning sensation as Kiritsugu gripped onto his hand tightly whilst biting down his lip.
This burning sensation was a manifestation of the command seal reappearing on his hand all over again, however the iconic red tattoo was now black.
"What the hell… is this a curse that befalls all former masters to the Holy Grail War" Kiritsugu asked out loud with gritted teeth before the burning sensation was now subsiding.
Finally catching his breath, and unsure what to make of the return of his command seal, Kiritsugu considered the thought of amputating his hand if he had to, but not now.
Right now he was starting to hear the cries of a child, more specifically a little girl.
Not sure what to make of it, but when trying to cover his ears from these child's cry only seemed to amplify them even further.
"God damn it, what the hell do I gotta do to kill the sound!" exclaimed Kiritsugu as he got his answer when his right hand moved on it's own and pointed in a general direction.
Really this was not a good day for Kiritsugu as he was not into this whole get thrown out of a fire pan, thrown into the fire situation, but seeing as he was stuck into this situation, he might as well see what's waiting for him up ahead, with the hope of getting some answers along the way.
Running towards the general direction he was suppose to go along with trying to drown out the sounds of some child crying, Kiritsugu found himself in a situation where action needed to be placed.
Now like we said in the beginning, Kiritsugu was not a man who believed in the gods and was willing to greet eternal damnation.
However he'd be damned if he was going to allow a bunch of men dressed up as European medieval knights have their way in their attempts in trying to kill a little girl as she had long blonde hair kept in a ponytail, while her white dress was stained red by the blood of a young teenage boy she was desperately clinging onto.
"We finally did it men, we finally have out target" said one of the knights as he and his compatriots remained indifferent about their treatment to this little girl as she continued to cry and hold onto the corpse she was clinging onto.
"Let's take her with us to Lord Gorlois, he said he plan to throw this brat to the clutches of that wicked witch Morgana, so that he can usurp and become the new king of this land" said a different knight as they all slowly approached the little girl.
Now Kiritsugu was not a man to get involved with politics, and at times new that allowing a child to die or a suffer a fate worst than death an inevitability in his old line of work.
At least that's what the old Kiritsugu felt, but this new Kiritsugu who finally saw the errors and terrors of war and tried to live a redeeming life raising his adopted son Shirou after all the damaged he caused made him feel different about letting children get hurt under his watch as evident when he whipped out his Thompson Contender and killed one of the knights with one clean shop to the back of the head.
"I'm you're elderberry" stated Kiritsugu as he holstered away his weapon, getting everyone's attention.
"Who the hell are you" demanded one of the knights, "Names Kiritsugu" stated Kiritsugu as he kept one eye on the girl, and the other on the remaining knights present.
"Strange name. Let's get him men" said one of the knights as they all began to charge Kiritsugu, but he remained calm since he hoped they'd be provoked to charge him as he now switched to his Calico M950 and proceeded to riddle the remaining knights with bullets.
Once he was certain they were killed and no one was going to get the jump on him, Kiritsugu proceeded to greet the child at long last.
"Hey, you alright kid" asked Kiritsugu as the little girl was in shock upon seeing so much blood and hearing the sounds of gunshots for the first time.
"It's alright I'm not going to hurt you, in fact I came here to save you" said Kiritsugu as he reached a hand out to her.
Slowly turning her head, Kiritsugu's face almost fell when he finally got to see the face of this child.
That fair skin, and green eyes covered in blood and sadness couldn't hide the fact that Kiritsugu knew who this little girl was and had hoped he'd never had to see her again be it in his old life, this life, or whatever came after this.
Still sniffling, the little girl continued to sniffle away as she was hesitant to take this man's hand as she had no idea who he is or how he knows, but that wasn't a choice for her to make anytime soon.
"… Artoria, please… go…" mumbled the voice of the teen laying near deaths door.
"Kay!" said Artoria as she turned to hug him again, "N… Artoria you must… leave…" said Kay.
"No, I'm not going to leave you here" cried Artoria, "Please… I'm dying… my father's… dead… this man he… saved you… that means he'll…. Protect you" coughed Kay.
"Kay" cried Artoria as Kiritsugu finally knelt in close to talk to Kay during his final moments.
"Hey kid, I don't know if I can do this, I mean… I know who she is" said Kiritsugu as this surprised Artoria as only her cousin and uncle knew of who she was.
"And yet… you came to… save her… please… you've got to… you have to… she's got no one now… and I'm sorry for… please do this…" pleaded Kay as he began to let out his own tears of sorrow.
He wanted to escape, there was nothing Kiritsugu wanted more than to get as far away from Artoria as he possibly can, but such impulsive ideas were put to rest when he felt immense pain from his right hand, reminding him for now he was stuck with Artoria.
"Ok, I'll do it, I swear to you that I'll look after her as long as I can" said Kiritsugu, "Thank you… and Artoria… I'm… sorry…" said Kay as finally drew his last breath as his head slumped forward.
"Kay!, Kay!" cried Artoria trying to shake her cousin awake, "Come on Saber, we've got to leave" said Kiritsugu as he began to carry Saber away from where her dead cousin lied.
Days Later
After he secured a safe location for Artoria, Kiritsugu would question her, which he didn't get much of before going out to investigate the situation for himself.
It turns out that not far from where he found both Kay and Artoria, Kiritsugu discovered a now decimated fort, and after close inspection and recalling some important characters and events from the tale of the old Artorian Legend, he came down to this one conclusion.
Somehow, someone outside of Lord Ector's estate, someone had reported the location and birthright of Artoria, and whoever they reported this to, they came here with the intention of killing them all that night.
While that still leaves so much more details he still didn't know, what he did know was that he was brought here to come and protect Artoria in her time in need, due to their past pack as master and servant, difference was that their rolls was still reversed to an extent, a footnote and tidbit that was left out of the Holy Grail War participation for reasons left unknown do to it being unknown.
At least that's what he could piece up, though that stands to show that's he probably not that far off from hitting the hammer on over the head, but he doesn't know, maybe there could be more to this then he may know at the moment.
He could think more of that later, for now Kiritsugu was currently making last minute preparations for both him and Artoria's long journey together.
"Hey Saber, you ready to go kid" asked Kiritsugu as he finished packing some fresh vegetables and cheese inside a little knapsack he procured as Artoria sat quietly looking outside a window, wearing a large poncho made of green wool.
"Yes, Kiritsugu" Artoria said quietly as got up from her chair, "Then let's go" said Kiritsugu as he began to lead them outside this abandoned hovel they were living in.
"Where are we going Kiritsugu" asked Artoria, "Anywhere far from here, while trying to avoid any large towns or villages, hopefully we can find peace of mind living the next few years as potato farmers" said Kiritsugu.
"Potato farmers?" asked Artoria, "What, would you rather plant apples for a living" asked Kiritsugu.
"I was raised to someday lift a sword over my head and hope to become a gallant knight someday" said Artoria, "Hate to break it to you, but my expertise with a blade involves a combat knife, not swords" said Kiritsugu.
"Then maybe you can teach me to use those other weapons that you carry, you know the ones you used to save me" said Artoria, "Not a chance, in fact I can't be using my weapons so willy-nilly now, especially since you guys have yet to discover gunpowder, much less have a proper station to manufacture bullets" said Kiritsugu as Artoria could only pout.
As they continued to walk, Artoria felt like the direction they were heading towards was familiar before she spotted a single grave post not that far ahead of her.
Upon getting closer, Artoria realized that they were both back at the same spot on the same night she met Kiritsugu and during these last few days, he found the time to give her cousin Kay a proper burial.
"Kiritsugu…" said Artoria as she turned her head towards him, "Take all the time you need, it might be a while before we can come back here" said Kiritsugu.
Turning back to her cousins grave, Artoria looked around her area and was thankful to find a sole flower, ripe for the picking before finally facing her cousins grave.
"Hey Kay, it's me Artoria" said Artoria awkwardly as she was trying to properly piece her mind to give her final goodbye.
"I'm going to be safe now, you were right about trusting sir Kiritsugu, I know his name may sound a little funny, he's always grumpy, and doesn't like talking about himself or anyone else for that matter, but he's a goodman, he's keeping me warm and fed and found the time to properly bury you" said Artoria as she shed a single tear.
"I promise you that someday I'll come back to see you again, but for now sir Kiritsugu said we have to into hiding for a while, so please don't worry about me, I'll be fine, and promise that someday I'll grow up someday to be the greatest and proudest knight you'll ever see" said Artoria as she wiped her tears away and gently placed the flower over Kay's grave.
"Ok Kay, until next time, goodbye" said Artoria as she took a minute to compose her before she was ready to head out with Kiritsugu.
"Ready to go Saber" asked Kiritsugu as Artoria ran up and held onto this stranger to her tightly as the hardened killer could only kindly return her sentiment back with a gentle head pat.
Time Skip
The sun was resting upon the horizon as Kiritsugu and Artoria had travelled a great distance from where all the drama had happened and for the most part they did so in silence.
"Kiritsugu" said Artoria, "What is it Saber" asked Kiritsugu as he turned his head back to her.
"Why do you call me Saber?" asked Artoria, "Because you-" said Kiritsugu as he had to cut himself up because the fact that right now, he wasn't talking to the Artoria whom he called Saber because of her hero class that served him as his servant, he was talking to Artoria Pendragon, a now orphaned little girl who's future is unknown as she may follow her destiny in becoming the wielder of the legendary sword Excalibur and become the king of knights, maybe not for all he knows.
"Because we're running away to start a new life, and well that was the first thing that came to mind" lied Kiritsugu, "But why, I don't wield a sword of my own, unless you plan to change your mind and train me in the ways of the sword" said Artoria hopefully.
"I told you kid, my way of a sword is with this knife right here. I'll tell you what, we can talk about new names and our new identities right now" said Kiritsugu.
"Ok, so what will your new name be then" asked Artoria, "How about John Smith, sounds a little normal for you and the people here to understand" said Kiritsugu.
"John Smith, I like it, than what'll be my name" asked Artoria, "How about… Ruby" suggested Kiritsugu.
"What about me reminds you of a ruby" asked Artoria, "Ok then, how about Luna" said Kiritsugu.
"That sounds like a name of gypsy and fortuneteller, and from what uncle Ector told me they're nothing but conartist" said Artoria, "Ok then what about Vanessa" asked Kiritsugu as this was getting difficult for no reason.
"What kind of name is Vanessa" asked Artoria as she felt he was making words up as Kiritsugu was starting to get tired of this pointless game.
"Ok, you know what, why don't you tell me what name you want" said Kiritsugu as Artoria began to ponder on it for a minute before she finally had an epiphany.
"How about… Art" suggested Artoria, "Art? Why?" asked Kiritsugu as the name to him hardly counts a disguise.
"Well that's what my cousin and uncle use to call me, and whenever someone asked about, they'd tell them it was short for Arthur, Artemis, or even Arturo, so I guess we can have fun with it" said Artoria with a smile.
"You know what… sure, honestly that's probably a safe bet" said Kiritsugu as Artoria began to smile brightly over her new name.
"Sweet" said Artoria, "Now that we got that settled, this is our story, we're a couple of potato farmers trying to relocate and make a living, with me acting as your care taker, and you being the brat" said Kiritsugu.
"Hey, I'm not a brat and there's no way you can pass as my caretaker" said Artoria, "Ok, then how about you decide our backstory is as well" said Kiritsugu.
"You're a runaway peddler and I'm an orphan whom you stumbled across when trying to escape the customs at the border" said Artoria, "That won't do, that'll just raise a lot of brows and questions" said Kiritsugu.
"Then what else do we got left, I mean we can't call you my bodyguard either" said Artoria, "You think sherlock. Honestly I can't say I'm your master and you my apprentice cause I have nothing to teach you, or you being my master and me your retainer and servant" said Kiritsugu as he was getting frustrated over how Artoria makes it difficult for him.
"Then how about I call you my dad then" suggested Artoria meekly as she turned her head in embarrassment, as Kiritsugu look back at her appalled over what she suggested.
"Is everything all right" asked Artoria, "What? Oh um yeah, just… it's complicated" said Kiritsugu as he will always have an identity crisis when it comes being labeled as a father.
"I mean if you don't want me to call you that, I can think of something else" said Artoria, "No, it's fine, honestly it's probably the most sound alibi we can use" said Kiritsugu.
"Ok then I'll call you dad then from now on" said Saber as she walked up and grabbed onto Kiritsugu's hand, "Then I hope you enjoy being called Art Smith then" said Kiritsugu.
"I don't know about that" said Artoria, "I swear kid, you make things unnecessarily difficult" said Kiritsugu as he smacked his hands over his face.
"I try my hardest dad" Artoria said jokingly, "Damn it Art, you're a brat" said Kiritsugu with a laugh as he was going to spend the next foreseeable future together.
And there you guys have it the first chapter to a new, very brief fic, how brief? Well there's only going to be only 3 other chapters after this, so yeah, but I promise you guys that the word count will be anything from 3-4x longer than the current chapter.
Also this fic serves a deeper more meta meaning in the future, not within the fanfic community world, but I won't say anymore until that day comes.
So until next time, be safe, be good people, and please support any to all official releases.
This has been your Humble Narrator and official author Tobi Yaza. =3