She was observing Saber once again.
He stood in a truly bizarre desert wasteland full of swords and... some kind of enormous metal shapes suspended in the air above the battlefield. Given how unnatural the place was, she could only assume it was a Reality Marble this time, in which the events took place.
Saber stood before her, adorned once more in far more casual clothing than the scarlet coat he had been summoned in. It was an unusual, but oddly welcome sight. He was engaged in a duel with a warrior she didn't recognise, yet still seemed oddly familiar to her. Both warriors fought with the same dual-blade style, right down to their blades appearing identical. She wondered if this other man, dressed in a similar style to Saber's own crimson attire as a Servant, might be Saber's mentor in swordsmanship. Both men's skills with their blades were impeccable, deftly parrying and countering each strike that a lesser warrior would surely have fallen to.
It was only once their battle brought them closer to her perspective and Saber spared a glance her way that she realised she was, once again, not observing through some omnipotent bystander's perspective, but that of a participant - one that stood in wait as the two men battled in this unearthly place. She could feel on her cheeks the wind whipped up by the intense blade swings of the two men's clash.
Saber worked to keep the battle away from the observer, struggling to match the white-haired man's strikes, but performing well enough to keep himself alive. In a desperate move, Saber flung one blade at his foe, who deflected it, but was left open as Saber lunged forward and thrust his other blade forward. The wound wasn't deep enough to seriously hamper the older man's ability to fight, but it was enough to force him to put distance between himself and his opponent, allowing Saber to collect his fallen blade and prepare for what came next.
His opponent summoned a series of swords that floated in mid-air around him. As Saber rushed forward, his foe began unleashing the fury of his summoned blades, firing them at high speeds directly at Saber. Saber managed to deflect or dodge most of them as he closed the gap, losing one of his blades from a particularly rough hit.
Using his remaining blade to keep up his defence, Saber held out his free hand. Azure energy swirled in his palm as a new blade materialised. Rather than the simple, monochromatic daggers he tended to use in combat, this one was a large broadsword, blue and gold in colour, that she could swear...
Artoria's eyes shot open as her sleeping mind fully recognised the blade. Her gaze travelled across her bedchambers to the spot where the sister blade of the one in question rested within arm's reach. She pushed herself out of her bed to look over the blade to make sure she hadn't made some kind of mistake. Although that blade was lost forever, and its exact details faded more and more from her mind with each passing day, Artoria needed only to look upon its sister as she held it aloft, and she could vividly recall every intricate detail of the Sword of Selection. There was no mistaking it now: Saber had been wielding Caliburn.
So many possibilities swirled in her head that she felt dizzy. Did he have access to Caliburn in his own time? Had it been found between her time and his? Was he using a copy? Was that an ability he possessed? Or was it simply her own mind influencing a minor aspect of the vision? She decided to consult Merlin; he would know more about these visions than she did.
Hearing shuffling over by the bed, Artoria realised that her frantic actions had roused Guinevere from her slumber. Wincing, Artoria placed the sword back atop its perch and returned to the bed. Although Artoria and Guinevere's marriage had been one of duty and not love, sharing a bed only to avoid difficult questions, Artoria still valued the other woman as a friend and confidant. Robbing her of rest was not something she could avoid feeling guilty about.
"Did I wake you?" she asked softly, already knowing the answer.
Guinevere sighed. It was a small sigh, measured so as to avoid causing offence, but Artoria recognised her spouse's frustration. Of course, Guinevere was the type to keep up appearances by keeping her frustrations to herself. Some days, Artoria allowed this, so as not to become burdened and distracted by matters not crucial to the realm's governance. On others, she allowed her guilt to compel her to pry
This day was the former, as the matter of Saber's capabilities was, objectively, more important than whatever it was that was bothering Guinevere. That matter could wait for later. Right now, she needed answers that might help her win the Grail War. She embraced her wife for a time, letting her know she cared for her, as a good friend. Guinevere seemed to perk up some at that - enough, at least, to see Artoria off with a smile as she departed for her meeting with the wizard.
Merlin was able to confirm that what she saw in the vision was what really happened during Saber's life - nothing from her own mind could influence what she witnessed. All he could suggest was that she ask Saber himself about it. After all, he should be aware that she had seen it.
As before, she found Saber practicing his sword swings in the courtyard. An awkward air filled the area when he noticed her. He knew she had seen it, then.
"I saw your duel with that red-clad swordsman," she stated simply.
"Archer," he responded.
"That was a Servant?"
"It was."
"And you fought him yourself? Were you empowered by a Caster?"
"No, I wasn't paired with Caster. I was just able to advance enough in my training and convictions to challenge Archer."
"Archer?" she cocked an eyebrow at the classification of the bladed warrior.
He smiled. "Servant class criteria can be surprisingly flexible."
"How interesting... But, towards the end of your duel, you summoned Caliburn."
The smile faded from his face. "So, you did notice that, huh?"
"I did. I would like an explanation."
Saber nodded slowly. He indicated towards a stone bench close by and the two sat down to discuss the matter.
"Technically, I didn't summon Caliburn. Projection magic has always been my specialty. You saw I was using the same blades as... him, right? Trace on." Saber held up a hand and the white dagger appeared in his grip. "Projection," he said as he held the blade out for Artoria to touch to confirm its tangibility before it dissipated. "I only need to see an object on time to project it. Projecting a legendary weapon like Caliburn is a real strain, though, so I tend to just stick with Kanshou and Bakuya."
"If sight is required, then how had you seen Caliburn?"
There was a clear reluctance to answer in Saber's body language as he remained silent for a time. But he seemed to realise that she would not let him avoid answering so important a question. He likely knew, being from the future, that the sword had been lost in this era. There were several possibilities Artoria could think of to explain how he could have seen the legendary lost blade, but she doubted any of them were correct. Fortunately, Saber did ultimately relent
"...I suppose I should start from the beginning. The Twentieth Grail War took place in the first half of the twentieth century. For the rest of that century, the various magic associations collected catalysts and made plans for the next one. Near the end of the century, a man named Kiritsugu Emiya retrieved Avalon for the Ainsbern family - his wife's family, that took part in a few prior Wars."
"He took Avalon as a catalyst? Then, he was trying to summon me?"
"Yes. In my time, King Arthur's story is legendary. Not everything is known - I didn't know that you fought in a Grail War until I met you. But in my time, you're highly sought after as a Servant."
"I see." There was little else Artoria could say, pondering as she was exactly what kind of legend she was to create.
"But there was a struggle. A rival faction tried to take Avalon by force. A great fire broke out that decimated Fuyuki City. A... lot of people died. Kiritsugu found me in the wreckage and saved my life. He blamed himself for my parents dying in the fire, so he took me in and raised me as his own son."
Artoria sat in silence as Saber explained the almost unimaginable tragedy he had faced at what must surely have been quite a young age. She had seen many towns and villages burned by war in the last twenty years. Her battles with Vortigern, the Picts, the Romans... so many conflicts with so much collateral damage done to the nation and its people... She had hoped such conflicts could end within her lifetime, but it seemed that humanity was doomed to repeat the mistakes of its past, long into the future.
"I didn't know it at the time, but he'd used a ritual to store Avalon inside me. That was how he saved me - Avalon's healing properties. He lied to the Ainsberns about it, said the scabbard was lost in the fire. He was disowned by them and was never able to see his wife or daughter again."
"How cruel..."
"Yeah. By the time the Twenty-First Grail War began a decade later, Kiritsugu was already dead, and so was his wife. I learned a little magecraft from him before that; it was enough that I could supply mana to my Servant without the Grail having to supplement it, like it does for non-mages like you. But aside from that, my knowledge wasn't enough to do me much good in the War. I sorta just stumbled into it when a Servant caught me watching a battle she was involved in. It just happened that my dad had made all of the preparations for the possibility he could take part in a Grail War, and I ended up in contact with the summoning circle. And with Avalon inside me, it acted as a catalyst to summon my Servant and make me a Master."
"You... You are saying that... in you Grail War, I was your Servant?"
Saber nodded with a smile. "Ironic, isn't it? Even though, from my perspective, that was decades ago, it still took me a while to get used to being called 'Saber' by you instead of my name or 'Master'."
"I can imagine. I suppose, then, that I will go through a similar experience when it comes my time to be summoned as... I assume, a Saber, also?"
Saber's expression was... unreadable for a moment, but Artoria didn't like how it looked. "You were a Saber, yes," he replied, giving Artoria the distinct impression that he was keeping something from her. "I mean, your sword is, maybe, the most iconic sword in all of history, even in Japan. I think you'd still qualify for Lancer, though."
"Because of Rhongomyniad?" Artoria asked, opting to let Saber's discomfort be, for now.
"Yes. You score some major victories with that thing. In certain versions of the legends, I mean." Was he referring to her battle with Vortigern, or trying to avoid revealing some of her future accomplishments with that addition? Regardless...
"I see... Are you eligible for other classes, Shirou?" Artoria used Saber's real name simply because she was asking him about other classes, so calling him by one of them would feel odd. But she found, when she uttered his name for the first time, that it felt strangely natural to do so. Once again, she felt a connection with him that was difficult to explain, which she now had to wonder... was it a result of their supposed bond in Shirou's own time? Had he somehow brought their bond over with him when he was summoned? Was that why she trusted him so readily? Or was that simply a result of his polite and witty personality?
"Archer," he said quietly. "I was in the Archery Club at school. I dropped out not long before the Grail War, but I was always pretty good at it."
Artoria shook her head. "That sounds like needless modesty to me. To qualify for a Servant class, so I am told, one must be more than simply 'pretty good'. One must excel. Qualifying for one class is impressive enough. Qualifying for two is incredible."
"I... I suppose so." Saber's face was almost as red as his hair as he averted his gaze and scratched at his cheek with one finger. "But then, I've seen you in action as a Saber-class, so I can't really deny how amazing you have to be to qualify."
It was then Artoria's turn to blush. She couldn't be sure if the rising confidence she felt within her breast was due to the compliment coming from one who had seen how worthy she would one day become... or if it was because of their alleged bond in his time. She was at once concerned and fascinated by the effect such a simple compliment was having on her. There certainly seemed to be something to the idea that he was essentially sharing his side of their future bond with her.
She cleared her throat, her own eyes avoiding looking at him. "I will be relying on your skills to see us through this War, Saber. The skills that made the Throne of Heroes deem you worthy of the title of 'Saber'." When she spared a quick glance his way, he was flashing a warm smile.
"My skills are at your service, Master."