Author Note
Hello there and welcome to another chapter of Avalon Bond.
I know that last chapter was somewhat short, but that was because this chapter is going to be quite long. I opted to use this chapter for the battles as well as a last scene from Chaldea I have planned.
Only those who had read and remember Shadow Spear's last chapter will remember.
Aside from that, there is not much to comment about the reviews from the last chapter, so let's move on.
Avalon Bond
Part II – Fate Grand Order
Chapter 41 – North America Final Part
Beta: Axel Emiya
The Battle Plan meeting went well into the night with everyone conveying their thoughts on the matter at hand.
Surprisingly so, Scáthach provided most of the intel about the Celts and their way of thinking.
For someone who was not keen on helping in any way or form, she seemed to be quite chatty in the meeting thus far.
Her deep hatred for Medb and utter disappointment in Cu Chullian truly spoke volumes.
Edison then relayed that his scouts discovered Medb's plan to invade Western America on two fronts, north and south. Though, it wasn't yet clear if the lustful enemy would divide her servants equally amongst the fronts or focus her strength on one. This decision was paramount, considering that the now united Western America – Chaldea may have more servants, but Medb's servants carry a lot of punch. Cu Alter alone could probably take on them all by himself and they also have Arjuna, Diarmuid and Fionn.
In the end, it was decided that they had to split their forces, considering two notions.
Edison's mechanized infantry will prove useful to hold their ground against the invasion force, so to speak. They had already proven adequate against the Celt armies and even some Shadow Servants that Medb may use. Edison, Blavatsky and Robin would be amongst the servants that would tag along with the mechanized infantry. Together, they could hold their ground long enough, while the Western America-Chaldea heavy hitters, along with Ritsuka, marched towards Washington.
It was quite risky of course; however, they went by Scáthach's intel in the end.
"Medb is going to be extremely cautious in this matter. The second she perceives a threat; she will be calling all her servants back to protect her. I don't see a flaw in advancing, what I am concerned with, however, is that Cu Alter is quite strong...perhaps too strong even for me." It wasn't news for any of them that Cu was the ultimate enemy in this singularity. Medb may be the one carrying the Grail, but the Dark Lancer servant was the one to beat. With the battle plan finalized for now, everyone went back to sleep, while Edison began his preparations. All his mechanized infantry would have to be operational by tomorrow to withstand the mighty Celts.
===Throughout the Night===
Fuijmaru Ritsuka was restless inside his room.
This singularity so far has been so unlike the four previous ones. The number of servants, the possible bloodshed, the destruction...it was all so surreal to the teen who had the ultimate mission of saving humankind. Looking at the ceiling, the young master found that he was in desperate need of air. Quickly getting dressed and calmly walking through the hallways, he managed to reach the palace ceiling, where there was a ledge.
He could look at the plain horizon from the city of Houston, Texas at night.
Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath in contemplation, Ritsuka was startled by a familiar voice.
"You are supposed to be sleeping, Ritsuka." The young master turned in comic surprise to see Shirou approach with his arms crossed. "At dawn, we shall be marching towards the enemy, and you need to keep your strength when the time counts."
"...I just couldn't sleep." The redhead samurai servant looked at the young master in dire contemplation and then smiled, before approaching Ritsuka's side.
"Looking at you right now, I remember myself when I was in your shoes to so speak...well, my situation wasn't the same...but it could very well have been, in retrospect." Ritsuka turned to Shirou and observed. Contrary to the others, Shirou was the one that Ritsuka could at least relate to, considering that the redhead wasn't a historic figure from the past. And he wasn't like Mash either...he was a regular magus sometime in the past, who fell into a situation he wasn't prepared to, just like Ritsuka.
"You say when you're Arturia's master in your Grail War."
Shirou nodded with a fond smile as he remembered the first time that Arturia appeared in his life.
"It was indeed overwhelming back then, so I understand that you must be feeling this as well."
"This battle we are about to march towards...a lot of things could go wrong. The enemy may anticipate our movements and there's a chance we won't make it. What if they win and this era dies, Shirou? The mission to save humankind is doomed and Solomon wins!" Ritsuka realized he was rambling, but it was best to get it out in the open right now, instead of worrying about it during the mayhem. Shirou just kept hearing through it all, with a calm smile on his face, wondering about his first talk with Muramasa...Ritsuka was still young in the end.
"One cannot shoulder all of this by himself, Ritsuka. Us servants may be linked through you and then through Chaldea to fix the singularities, but it's not healthy to think that way. In the end, it all comes down to placing the allies in select locations and trust that they all shall play their part accordingly." Shirou then placed his hand on Ritsuka's shoulder." You can trust us all to be on your side to help you through it all, especially Mash and everyone in Chaldea. Now, come on, let's get you back to your room to get some sleep."
"In your Grail War, there were times when you were scared, Shirou?"
Ritsuka asked as they walked back inside the Palace.
"Of course, there was...when Medea, the Caster servant in my Grail War, kidnapped someone very dear to me, threatening to kill her, I was truly scared. I had even offered my life in exchange for hers. Arturia was quite mad at me for doing so, but I just couldn't allow that to happen. Along with my stepfather, she was the one I grew up with. She is like a sister to me in perhaps more ways than if we were related. In the end, though it was only a ploy to capture Arturia. I admit to being rather hopeless back then, but even so I pushed forward."
"Wow...wait you mean Medea...the one we faced in the third singularity?" Ritsuka looked at Shirou in surprise.
"Yes, though the one we faced was the teen version of her...the grownup Witch Medea of Colchis was quite strong and fearful, let me tell ya...her overall magus prowess could put most, if not all of modern magus to shame." With Ritsuka focusing on Shirou's story, his worries lessened about his own situation. Even if Ritsuka's assignment involved the entire world, he has an organization providing him with plenty of support and information, not to mention an entire army of servants to fall back on. Shirou had only one servant to count on and not many information to help him.
===Next Day===
The next day, the heavy hitters were gathered outside Edison's palace, as it was finally time to march ahead to face Medb and the rest of the Celts servants.
This happens to be the first time Karna was next to the Chaldea group as opposed to being on Edison's protection detail.
Ritsuka and Mash were in front of Edison, Blavasky and Robin for one final send off. As this happens to be the final stand, it's pretty much unlikely that Chaldea will get to see these three once more. If Chaldea is successful that means that they fix the singularity and go back to the headquarters. If the Celts are successful, then…well, the world as they all know it is gone for good and the era in which they are all standing dies so to speak. The stakes are high no matter what happens and Mash was highly concerned about Fujimaru yesterday. She had seen him leave his room and walk alone through the corridors.
She was about to go after him, but Arturia stopped her, saying it was best to leave him be.
She wasn't aware of what happened during his late night stroll…all she knew was that when he came back, she could see a much healthier disposition from her master.
"Mr. Edison, sir, we are counting on you to hold the fort." The lion head smirked and then roared, before looking down at their master.
"Worry not Fujimaru Ritsuka, I had equipped boosters on the mechanized infantry, so they can keep up with even against Servants."
Mash and Ritsuka nodded and then they turned to Robin and Blavasky.
"Sorry, Robin, for not picking you to the South Army…" The British archer only waved back.
"I am actually glad you have done so, Ritsuka…I don't fancy going against those monsters you are about to face…besides, I'd rather stick in the distance taking out as many of the Celts as I can. Perhaps, even take out a servant from a distance if I can." Robin then scratched his ear and released a long and painful sigh. "Although it's going to be a quite troublesome endeavor. Those bastards will never stop coming, no matter how many infantries Edison here can mass produce." Edison roared in defiance at the British.
"Is that a challenge I hear Mr. Bowman? Ms. Blavasky, how are the preparations on your end? I don't want to hear anything from your mouth other than good news!"
Blavatsky sighed, while Mash and Ritsuka laughed at their display.
"How many times must I tell you Edison that everything's in place?" The lion head smirked at the answer.
"As often as I shall ask it! What kind of question is that! Mmm. We might have gone down the wrong path, but I am glad my mechanized infantry can be of use. Like I said, worry not Fujimaru. Secure the Grail and Fix this singularity!" Edison found it strange when Ritsuka offered his hand to shake on it. Even if the Lion head's hand could squeeze a normal human's hand, the gesture was what counted in the end. As such, the King of Inventions did come forward and shook hands with Chaldea's master. Mash smiled at seeing the light of Master's face and his confident smile. It also gave her confidence moving forward.
Meanwhile, the heavy hitters were waiting to move out as well, while Arturia and Shirou looked at Ritsuka talking with Edison.
"I see you managed to talk to him, last night Shirou. He seems much healthier." Arturia realized that she had said the wrong word as Nightingale literally jumped at the word.
"What…who is ill? I don't see anything wrong with master." Arturia and Shirou took a step back at the medical berserker, before Jeanne had to step in.
"Nothing is wrong with Ritsuka, Nightingale. Arturia merely stated that he now has an improved disposition than before, that's all." Nightingale relaxed, when Jeanne explained it better. "It seems this singularity has taken its toll and he was feeling the pressure. So, Shirou had talked to him, yesterday." Everyone turned to the redhead samurai servant who was smiling while seeing Ritsuka shake hands with Edison. Even Scáthach looked attentive from the corner of her eye, while with her arms crossed. She seemed intent on doing something, but it wasn't yet clear.
"Yeah, he's a good kid, who realizes the responsibility he's having right now. I had just told him a few things about when I was in his shoes."
"Before Ritsuka and Mash arrives, there's something I must see for myself…" The heavy hitters barely had a millisecond to turn in surprise when Scáthach all but vanished from her position and grabbed her blood red spear, before moving to strike Shirou.
The noise of a spear smashing a sword echoed in the clearing and enough debris lifted from their position, surprising Ritsuka and Fujimaru who turned to look what was going on. Arturia, Karna, Jeanne and Nightingale all turned to see Scáthach's spear inches from Shirou's face, while Shirou's sword grinded in defense. Shirou looked surprised, while his eyes landed on Scáthach to see why the sudden attack on him. However, it soon dawned on him that her disposition wasn't set on attacking him for the sake of it.
Soon, the dance evolved and both fighters vanished…all the human eyes could notice was the noise of blades crossing against one another and the heavy hit of Scáthach's spear attempting to find some area to penetrate Shirou's defense. Arturia was about to step in to stop it, when she remembered Scáthach's story about this other Shirou whom she had taught before.
Soon, the battle stopped and both combatants stopped, with Scáthach's spear inches from Shirou's throat and Shirou's sword inches from her heart.
The Irish legend looked at the blade from her opponent and then looked at his eyes…no matter if the eyes that looked back at her didn't remember her…she could feel it…her heart beating fast, as if they were back at his dojo training. His weapon are now different, but his firm stance and resolve didn't…Emiya Shirou…it was hard to stop her hand from reaching his face…just like the last time when she felt his tears for her just seconds before passing away.
It was Arturia's throat clearing that had awakened the Irish legend, before Scáthach turned to see her and then Shirou.
Her eyes felt a bit of glaze at the sudden realization yet again that this wasn't her Emiya Shirou.
"Oh dear Saber…" With nothing better to do to safe face, Scáthach resolved around doing the same thing she used to do with her own version of Arturia Pendragon. "You're so adorable in your jealousy." She laughed a bit, seeing the subtle reaction to her teasing from the King of Knights, before turning to see the confounded look of Emiya Shirou wondering what was going on. "Worry not Emiya Shirou…I was merely testing something when I attacked you." Scáthach then turned to everyone in full captain mode. "I believe it's better for us to pair up in teams of two to face our opponents. We have the advantage of numbers and we need to use that." She then smirked at Arturia's direction for one final teasing moment. "And the reason I attacked Shirou was to test if he would be able to face up against Cu Chullain. As such, Shirou and I shall be the one to face Cu and Medb in combat." That got the desired effect as Arturia soon took a step forward in clear complaint to that idea.
"What…now listen here…" Shirou urged Arturia to stop, before he turned to Scáthach.
"I am sorry Scáthach, but Arturia and I have been fighting together for a long time, we are the strongest when we pair up." The Irish Legend was not surprised to see Shirou stepping up, just like her other Shirou would. However…
"Despite what you may think King of Knights, I have a reason. I happen to know about your quarrel with Diarmuid Ua Duibhne and I know that he will seek you to finish his fight. Fionn shall be next to him, so Medb is counting on that to keep you both occupied. We might have numbers on our side, but we can't afford to have one battle and then move up to the next. At one point, we will need to divide and conquer. You and Jeanne had faced Diarmuid and Fionn before, so you two can pair up. I take it that Karna and Rama shall face Arjuna…"
At the mention of that name, Karna's usual apathetic display morphed completely. Rama just nodded along, completely unaware of his fellow Indian servant's feelings towards facing his ultimate nemesis. Mash will have her hands full in protecting Ritsuka and Nightingale will be on the rear in case she needs to heal anyone." The King of Knights looked ready to skewer her for his such planning, however Jeanne approached before Shirou could ease his fiancée's concerns.
"I don't think she's wrong, Arturia. Her planning is sound."
Arturia turned to Jeanne and then at Scáthach and then at Shirou. She took a couple steps at her fiancée.
This happened to be the first time they would go into separate ways…
"Everything is going to be alright, Arturia. We shall secure the Holy Grail and get back to Chaldea, together." Arturia could see the confidence in his eyes.
"I shall hold you to that promise, Emiya Shirou." When Mash and Ritsuka arrived to the Group, everyone had begun their journey towards Washington DC, hoping beyond hope that Edison's infantry could hold for as long as he can, until they killed Medb.
===Advancement Towards Washington===
It took three days total for the South Army advance towards Montgomery where the battle has begun.
Ritsuka and Mash's eyes widened at the mere size of their opposition, with endless troops of mindless Celts fighters. That was not all they were engaging, however, as they could also see Shadow servants and multiple dragons up in the air.
"Well, it does not appear that Medb is underestimating us…though in the end they are nothing but cannon fodders against servants." Scáthach wielded her two blood red spears, before turning to the other servants. "Okay, it appears that we are somewhat free to do our own bidding for now as no servant seems to be on sight. So, let's get going, then." With those words, she vanished in a beam of red, towards the first line of celts defense, as the rest got to see the level of mayhem caused by the Irish legend lancer. Shirou turned to Mash and asked her to protect Ritsuka with Jeanne and Nightingale forming a line of defense in front of her.
After that, he, Arturia, Karna and Rama all advanced against the endless Celts army and the rest of the enemies.
Arturia's Excalibur shone a bright golden light as she dashed throughout most of the celts army from the left, while Rama would pick the ones from the right.
Karna's sun golden spear illuminated on fire as he dealt with the ones from the middle as well as the shadow servants that attempted to strike. Shirou opted to remain close to Jeanne and Nightingale as he summoned his black longbow and enough long range mana arrows to deal with dragons and wyverns that attempted to pass by the servant's defense and reach for Ritsuka. Mash would use her shield to block all incoming fire attacks that would attack Shirou as well. The battle seemed to be going well for the Chaldea servants front, until they all saw a drill-like weapon advance on them seemingly without any control, heading for Mash from her blind spot.
Focusing enough prana on her limbs, the lilac shielder manifested her so far incomplete noble phantasm to block in the incoming attack.
Lord Chaldea!
The brick wall emerged in front of her, completely blocking Cadalbolg strike. With Scáthach, Karna, Arturia and Rama dealing with the army composed of Celts troops, shadow servants and dragons, Fergus chose the precise moment to strike the shielder who was guarding the master of Chaldea, but of course he didn't account for that shield to completely hold off his attack. Shirou soon appeared in front of Mash wielding his twin katana fighting style. Fergus, then, smirked before placing his Cadalbolg sword over his shoulder with a smile on his face.
"It seems this has turned into a full-out war, huh? Huh, so much for my initial assignment of killing you one by one…" Shirou was focused on the sword over this man's shoulder, while wondering how did Archer meet up with him.
'…Cadalbolg was Archer's attack against Hercules in our first fight.'
"That sword of yours is quite interesting, Fergus." The Irish hero looked at Shirou strangely, wondering if he had met him before.
"Oh, and may I ask how do you know my name…that outfit of yours for certain does not belong to my homeland or my time?" Shirou smirked, as he got into position to strike. Fergus also fell into position to defend himself when he heard a familiar voice.
"Shirou may know you through some other means, but I certainly know of you. It's been a long time, hasn't it Fergus." Scáthach announced her presence, after appearing in a red beam, with both her spears soaked in Celts blood.
"Oh, teacher, is that you, magnificent beauty as I remember it. So, you are on the enemy's side I take it." Scáthach stood by Shirou's side, as she signaled the others to march forward. Mash and Jeanne moved forward with Nightingale and Ritsuka. Rama and Karna had also vanished, along with Jeanne and Arturia, but not before the King of Knights sent a long look at her fiancée, to which Shirou nodded back at her for reassurance. The field of Montgomery was filled with dead Celts troops, disfigured dragons being eaten by vultures.
"I for one never considered you to be on Medb's side…but as I recall, you have a weakness for that type of woman." Fergus only smiled at Scáthach's comment. "Unfortunately, Fergus, we are pressed for time, so I can't afford to go easy on you."
"Oh, I know you well enough to know that 'going easy' on anybody isn't on your list of abilities." Her spear shone to life in a red hue as she got into battle position.
"Sure I can…it's just my going easy could easily rip you to shreds, Fergus. Now, prepare yourself." Shirou stood in the clear, just waiting while Scáthach made short work of this new foe, while figuring out their next steps.
===North Army fight===
It's mechanical infantry versus a true onslaught of Celtic warriors.
Scrap metal versus pure muscle and wooden spears that met in the middle of a gruesome battle without any end. Not even after Robin managed to use one of his more shall we say subtle skills to shorten their numbers to a mere 40%. The Celts care nothing about self-preservation and were truly aiming to throw their lives away if it meant victory for their leader. It's true that the Celts were just Medb's creations using the Grail, but it's not like she created them to behave like they are doing right now. And Edison's mass-production infantry could only do so much.
"Huh, troublesome…even after reducing their force to a mere 40%, they are still coming strong." Edison mumbled as he was simply doing what he does best, striking from a distance while completely hidden from view.
"Direct Current is the best! Am I right?" Edison roared as he stood in the back from his mechanical infantry division, while Blavatsky sighed right next to him.
"Sure Edison, direct current is…it's not like I am standing here and doing nothing…" The lion head smiled as he turned down to see her conjuring magecraft to further increase the potential of Edison's mechanical infantry.
"Most appreciative indeed of your efforts, Ms. Blavatsky, but truly without my mechanical infantry, those bloody Celts would have trampled us all by now. So, at least we can all appreciate my inventions."
The petite girl-like caster wondered why she bothered.
"Huh, forget I said anything…still, there seems to be no end to those brutes. Thank the heavens that Medb didn't bother much in sending servants here."
Edison hummed at their enemy's planning, now that he stopped to wonder.
"It seems she'd rather take out our strong guns first and then march unimpeded afterward. I can't help but felt insulted to be honest, Ms. Blavatsky. Well, too bad for her…let's power through!" Edison roared in defiance, ordering his infantry.
===Arturia and Jeanne===
Mash, Ritsuka and Jeanne were busy merely focusing on the mayhem before them, while Nightingale truly considered checking the King of Knights if she was ill.
When she first appeared in Chaldea, Arturia had this aura of righteousness that exuded from her.
However, her dark golden eyes when focused, I mean truly focused, those could be quite scary for the ill prepared. As such, Mash, Jeanne and Ritsuka all took a tentative step back in comic fright as the King of Knights was attacking the enemies with reckless abandon, advancing, slicing, beheading…it was truly a gore feast of flesh cutting and blood oozing from the wounds carved by the golden Excalibur which at this point was drenched with Celtic blood. As soon as she stopped the attack, she appeared before everyone from a golden light dash, looking no different from how they started this fight.
Her eyes, though, facing downward in obvious concern for Shirou and how he's fairing with Scáthach.
Ah…just the thought of that little…
"Ah Arturia…" The King of Knights turned rapidly in question to see Jeanne extend her hand tentatively, trying to call up her attention.
"What seems to be the matter, Jeanne?" The Holy Maiden looked even more surprised as she looked at the field. Since she has been around Chaldea for a while now, she happened to catch on Arturia and Shirou's relationship.
"Ah you know…perhaps, it's wise to slow down the pace a bit…" Arturia though only snorted.
"Hmmm, I just can't afford to waste time right now." Jeanne released a sigh at that…so much for trying to be smooth about it. Nightingale, though, wasn't' known for being subtle.
"Going too fast about shall leads to fatigue later on and it's not healthy, Miss Arturia. Not to mention the obvious fact that you're like this because Shirou is not with us and that brings up to anxiety."
If possible, her eyes got even more darkened and Ritsuka began to see glimpses of Lancer Alter staring back at them. So much so that he had approached closer to Mash. The shielder servant looked at her Senpai, wondering what has gotten into him.
"Well…well, we have met again my fair maiden." Arturia and Jeanne both turned towards the newcomers, Fionn and Diarmuid. Fionn's eyes stood focused on Jeanne as she snarled at the man for ogling her head to toe.
"We have met again King of Britain…" Diarmuid surged behind his so called King with the same confident look he always had.
"Lancer…figures that we'd meet again soon…just that I would expect that you'd be near Cu Chullain and Medb." Diarmuid had released a sigh at that notion, while Fionn decided that approaching Jeanne was more worth his while.
"I'd rather face you in an honored duel than participate in whatever it is that Medb is planning, to be honest." Arturia concurred, as she observed Mash approach closer to Jeanne to act as support in their fight.
"Well said…though, considering one peculiar situation of mine, I am not that much inclined in prolonging this any more than I have to, I hope you understand."
Diarmuid grabbed both of his spears and smirked as he saw Arturia twirling her Excalibur in a show of golden laser show, just like she did in their Holy Grail War duel.
"I wouldn't have it any other way, Arturia!" Those were his last words, before both weapons collided in less than a second.
===Karna and Rama===
With the other servants and Ritsuka gone to fight their respective battles, the Indian servants Karna and Rama were the last ones taking lead over the Edisonian army as King Edison instructed his troops to call it. Rama was taking lead over the human army, dealing with the Celts contingent, while Karna remained busy taking care of Shadow Servants as well as the occasional wyverns here and there. Rama has plenty of experience leading armies and giving war-inspired speeches to augment the troops' morale.
Still, the battle was far from over as the Celts had strength and numbers in their favor.
Rama was observing the battle scene carefully, studying the Celts' fight pattern and trying to better position his troops when a few blue beams all came crashing at his position, each of them trying to skewer him.
The Avatar of the Vishnu God managed to move away from the attack and got into position to defend himself when Karna appeared by his side.
"Rama, it's time for you to march ahead and leave me here." Rama turned to the Son of the God Sun in wonder, before both eyed Arjuna's arrival.
Rama felt like he was being completely forgotten in this singularity as the opponents that were fated to fight for eternity
"We can take him together, Karna…"
"I am afraid not…" Karna had his eyes closed while Rama looked at him in surprise. "No matter when or what era, only I can ever be his opponent." Arjuna and Karna eyed each other for a while, before Arjuna spoke.
"Each time I am summoned as a Servant to a Holy Grail War, I end up always searching for you, Karna…while attempting to be a proper hero, I would seek you and be disappointed. Never again will we have an opportunity like this."
Karna said nothing for a while, before his eyes turned to Rama.
"This does not concern you…Rama, I urge you to leave and march together with the rest." Rama hummed and once more looked at Arjuna whose eyes has never left Karna's. Once again, the feeling of being ignored returned and Karna knew exactly the reason why. "He won't lift a finger to stop you, Rama. His focus is on me now, isn't it Arjuna?"
"Hmmm, the moment you stood before me, all my other priorities evaporated. I care not about this Singularity or who's going to win…either being the Celts or the Americans. All I care about…is for us to resume where we left off, Karna. My one and only wish for the Grail was for us to have our battle once more nothing matters to me but this. I do wonder, however, about your intent…a peculiar one indeed…to save this world. Forgive me, Karna, but I wonder why?" Karna was never a firm believer of meddling himself into a situation. He was always firm on the belief that all events that occur throughout the history were and are within some sort of reason.
"As long as people wishing to live proper lives, Arjuna, I will continue to protect them. I was given this power for that very reason."
"I see…then if you aim for good, then I aim for destruction. We must be opposites, after all." Karna couldn't find any words to dissuade his opponent from their soon to be path. At least, Rama had already marched ahead with the troops.
"Enough talk then, I swear upon my lance and my armor that I shall defeat you here, Arjuna!" Karna screamed as his spear caught on fire.
"Well said! Then on the name of my parents and my brothers, you are to meet you end here, Karna…after thousands of years, I have finally obtained this chance! Not even evil spirits out there can interfere with me!"
Arjuna's blue bow became alive with blue energy as the battle of the gods began. The sudden spike in magical energy almost fried Chaldea's systems.
===Arturia and Jeanne===
Jeanne, Mash and Nightingale were going at it against Fionn, while Arturia and Diarmuid danced in a show of sparks.
Diarmuid's blood red spear against Arturia's Golden Excalibur sword.
One thing that Diarmuid noticed in their duel, however, was Arturia's ferocity. Whereas before, she would be more guarded in her strikes, now she was fighting with more reckless abandon, keeping up the offensive and forcing him on the defensive. The advantage of spear fighting is that one could easily shift between offensive and defensive manuevering. He began this fight with only his red spear, keeping his golden spear hidden from view. Once he attempted to use it, however, Arturia dealt with a stronger than usual swing from her sword that made him lose his grip on the golden spear.
Now, they remained in a close dual with no strings attached, just plain old fighting skills…no magic whatsoever.
"You appear troubled, Lancer?" Diarmuid snarled at seeing the cold eyes staring back at him. He could feel her gaining up on him in a rather effortless pace that it troubled him.
So much so that he actually had to create some distance to gather his breath. Arturia just stood with her battle pose, with extreme focus. The Irish fighter was truly in awe just by looking at her. If possible, he was even more overwhelmed than before.
"I wonder…what has happened to make you so driven, Saber?"
Arturia dashed and kept up the pace. Diarmuid tried as best as he could to block it, but the sword's reach would draw blood every time.
"Like I said Lancer…I don't plan of prolonging this anymore than I should, so prepare yourself." That was all the warning he could before Arturia's golden Excalibur shined as she dashed to carve the killing strike. "Shirou may be in danger right now."
Diarmuid coughed up blood as Arturia stood with her back to him.
Despite the obvious pain and the obvious notion that she was efficient in hitting his core, Diarmuid couldn't help but chuckle.
"Ah…I see…it's love isn't it…" He said so as he looked upward. "Love for your fiancée…huh I never thought I would feel the same for another woman since Grainne…this duel of ours has been enlightening…Saber." Arturia stopped her fighting pose and turned to the dying fighter next to her.
"It has indeed Lancer…I am pleased to see that our duel has progressed unimpeded this time. I thus bid you farewell and wishing we could fight another battle as allies next time." Diarmuid smiled as his body turned into golden sands of prana.
"There is nothing I desire more at this point…Asaho (King Arthur)"
Arturia had closed her eyes and then smiled in farewell…she was awakened to the noise similar to a cannon fire. Turning abruptly, she saw Fionn flying towards a nearby thick tree and Nightingale's fist, which looked way bigger than before. Mash would follow up on the attack and smashed the downed Fionn with her shield. Jeanne would finish the attack with the point of her spear, ridding them of the smooth talker blond Irish fighter. There was water all over the place, courtesy of Fioon's spear and noble phantasm, but the man was hopeless against three angered women.
===Karna vs Arjuna===
Fire beams from Karna's lance against Arjuna's blue beam arrow would travel the sky and ground, one trying to overcome the other.
Karna had the advantage of fighting in close range, of course, but Arjuna despite its class restriction, is a seasoned fighter, thus keeping Karna at a distance. His arrows were all dangerous in many ways and he would even fire long range beams from his energy bow that were quite life threatening. Still, Karna's sun spear blazed through the blue arrows and slowly but surely advanced in enough distance to take the fight from long range to short range. Arjuna was still swift in his movements to evade Karna's spear and since he didn't need to prepare his arrows, he could fire new bullets anytime, which made him quite dangerous.
His bow would fire vertically and then Arjuna would fall close to the ground and turn his bow horizontally to aim arrows at Karna's head.
All of them were blocked by Karna's spear and his fire techniques.
"You can't win this fight by keeping your distance, Arjuna" The Indian bowman just hummed before jumped up in the air and aiming a good load of beams upward. The blue beams all feel with great speed straight at Karna, who evaded them.
Karna would dodge the arrows endlessly and wasn't realizing that Arjuna would approach with his bow glowing dangerously.
When Karna realized, Arjuna was already inches from his position and aimed a powerful blue beam that engulfed Karna completely. If it wasn't for Karna's armor, the sun of the Sun God would be no longer in this Singularity. Karna then retaliated with his sun blazing spear and vanished before appearing right up Arjuna's head, slamming his spear in Arjuna's head. The Indian bowman managed to evade the attack, but the land he was standing on became a crater and sent Arjuna's body flying. Karna flew towards Arjuna's direction hoping to follow through with the attack, but Arjuna would flip his body and send back powerful blue arrows.
Karna would then gather fire in his hand, before blowing small fireballs that would render Arjuna's attacks useless. Karna then sent his spear flying towards Arjuna who blocked it with his bow.
Karna then grabbed the spinning spear and kept up the attack from close range and he was slowly gaining up on Arjuna, who was snarling at his forever opponent.
Arjuna's bow erupted in strong blue light from both ends as Arjuna swung it on Karna, who had to block it. Arjuna then followed up with a powerful blue beam that sent Karna flying backwards.
"It appears that we are equally matched, Karna." The Son of the Sun God looked at his opponent.
"Yes, it appears so." Arjuna smiled as he placed his bow on his back and adjusted his dark hair with a smile on his face.
"I believe there's only possible outcome for us to determine whom shall emerge victorious." Karna looked at him for a while, betraying nothing, before standing up straight.
"Indeed…I venture it must come to that then…" Arjuna nodded.
"Let us see which noble phantasm is the strongest." Karna looked around and saw no one in a good twenty mile radius. That seem to be enough distance for them to go all out…to truly go all out.
Karna and Arjuna had both risen off the ground as their prana had truly increased to unbearable measure. Karna's entire body caught on fire as his armor was removed to give him the energy needed to summon the spear of Indra. Giant energy spears formed from behind him, eight of them in total, before Karna's true spear emerged to release the full mighty energy of the Sun towards his opponent. Arjuna, for his turn, began to gather a powerful ball of blue energy in his hand, before it got concentrated enough that he released it towards the sky, piercing the clouds above, before being released into gigantic blue beams like meteorites that descended from the sky.
Vasavi Shakti
Pashupata
Needless to say that both Indian servants hadn't survived the onslaught of destruction.
===Shirou and Scáthach===
As Shirou and Scáthach advances towards Washington DC, one point came across as odd for the redhead samurai servant as he observed his partner for this singularity.
"Scáthach…may I ask something ahead of our fight?" The Irish legend turned to Shirou and nodded. "Why did you pick me exactly?" She smiled at him, while fully waiting for him to perhaps catch on her intentions. "You could have picked any of the other servants to add you in your fight against Cu Chullain and Medb. And your explanation back then about Arturia gunning for Diarmuid, while somewhat accurate, just isn't enough for a reason. It's not like you alone couldn't take on him if push comes to shove." She closed her eyes and exhaled for a few seconds, wondering if she should tell him the real reason.
Evidently, she has seen plenty of the Shirou that she knows in this Shirou…however, she has also seen their differences.
"You're wrong to believe that I could face Setanta in the form that he's in right now and true...while any other servant could aid me in this fight, I was able to see your prowess when we battled just before moving."
"Oh…I was thinking that you had picked me because I remind you of the one you met in another dimension?" She smiled once more with her eyes closed. It made sense that Arturia would have told him about it.
But, she wondered if Arturia told him about her feelings as well.
"So the King of Knights in the end told you about that, didn't she?" Shirou nodded. "Well, you could say that was one of the reasons…though, like I said before, your prowess in the battlefield has indeed impressed me, Shirou."
"I see…so I had become your student in your dimension. But how was it that we had crossed paths, I mean…as I recall, you were Cu Chullain's teacher and guardian of the Land of the Shadows."
"I can tell you that and many more, if you want, Shirou…though now we are pressed for time…once this singularity is resolved, I can provide you with all the answers you request, including about your father, Kiritsugu." Shirou's eyes widened and Scáthach remembered the same expression her Shirou had when she told him about what happened. "After his death, he had appeared in the Land of Shadows and asked me to help you, because of the Holy Grail War…well, not you…but the other you. I don't believe that your Kiritsugu would be any different, hence why I can at least tell you about his regrets in not fully tutoring you in the magical arts as he should have."
Shirou smiled at the memory of his father. It's been a long time since his memory went back to those experiences.
"In the end, he had managed to overcome his demons and managed to move on from the Land of Shadows."
"I see…he was the one who saved me from certain death a long time ago, as I am sure he had told you." Scáthach nodded. "He had also placed Avalon inside of me, which would later place Arturia in my life, which I shall forever be thankful for." It hurt her chest to hear about that, but she above all else understood her feelings. Even if not reciprocated, just being on his presence was enough for her. And perhaps one day, she could meet her Shirou once more, even if for a few moments or another Grail War as his servant in the future.
"Indeed, your love for the King of Knights perhaps transcends dimensions, as it happened the same way in my own." Shirou smiled at her and it made her smile as well. "It was quite fun to tease you two about it. Even Taiga sometimes joined in the fun."
Shirou laughed at that.
"So you had met her as well…now I really became curious to know more about it."
"Like I said, once this singularity is resolved, I can tell all about it. Now let's go, time is off the essence." Shirou nodded as the two vanished towards their final battle.
===Final Battle===
Immediately upon arrival in Washington DC, Shirou and Scáthach met with a horde of shadow servants, which were dealt with by Shirou using a horde of projected swords.
The city itself was deserted, simply because Medb had probably utilized all of her created Celts army in either the northern front and the ones that the other servants faced, thus probably leaving only Medb and Cu left to face. So far, Shirou wasn't able to communicate with Arturia through their link, but he had faith that she and the rest would arrive soon enough. However, like Scáthach said, time was off the essence right now. They couldn't risk the Celts gaining the upper hand in the North and ruining their chance of taking down Medb before that happens. However, something was completely off in this scenario in Shirou's book.
"Scáthach…" the Irish legend turned to Shirou in ponder. "You should know them better, but I would have expected stronger opposition before entering the city."
"Oh, you wouldn't think facing Cu Chullain in his state to be that much of a opposition. How bold of you, Shirou." Scáthach still humored him and looked around. "Still, I can see wisdom in your ponder…for someone like Medb who's as guarded, I would believe we needed to face at least another servant before going for the main course so to speak. So, it's either she's cocky enough to believe that her loyal dog is unbeatable or she's stretched thin in assets to use." In Scáthach's mind, Medb was using the Grail's energy, so she had enough resources to use. So she would bet on the former.
"Well, it's not like I am complaining…but it still feels like we are walking into a trap." Scáthach chuckled at the notion.
"I feel the same thing…it's quite an invigorating feeling is it not…the anticipation of a glorious battle to the end." Shirou then turned to the gorgeous woman with something else in mind.
"So, what's the plan here? You are to battle against Cu and I deal with Medb and whatever is also waiting for us."
"I shall take your multitasking into effect here Shirou…Medb is not someone who get her hands dirty…she'd rather use others to do her bidding. I plan to fight my idiot apprentice, but with him powered by the Grail, I alone won't be enough to defeat him."
"Alright…let's get a move then…"
In no time, the two marched towards the White House, while Shirou noticed the different designs compared to the one he remembered from modern times. Still, just like entering the city, the trip down here was met with zero opposition.
As soon as they stepped inside the hallways, it was just a matter of following the gigantic feeling of Cu Chullain's presence inside, until the two got face to face with Cu Chullain Alter and Queen Medb.
"Oh mentor, it sure took you long enough to arrive here? I was beginning to worry, truly…" Scáthach smirked at seeing her prodigy, before turning briefly to eye Medb smiling at her. Shirou, for his part, took special time to study this version of Cu Chullain.
"Oh Setanta, you don't know how hard it is to once more have to look at how long you have become. This grotesque figure of yours truly makes my skin crawl, no wonder I don't see any life coming out of your eyes. I remember how much you craved a good battle, Setanta…but right now, I only see boredom looking back at me, as if you're not even interested in the outcome. My my…what a truthfully pathetic being you turned out to be." Setanta as per the description cared not for the taunt, but Medb just wouldn't have it.
"You shut up this instant Scáthach. You can't badmouth my king…you can't badmouth my love." Scáthach however merely turned to the woman and snorted in plain derision.
"There are so many words to describe you, but I can't simply choose which word to begin…suffice to say that you're quite irrelevant in this entire mess." Medb snarled at the offense and turned to Cu Chullain to see if he would defend her honor.
"I don't think you'd recognize me, right Lancer…" Shirou was quiet up until now, as he announced his position while addressing Cu Chullian. "Before coming here, I was wondering if the Lancer I knew in Fuyuki was truly the one behind this Singularity. For as much craving you had for a good battle, you were not the enemy. You had even helped me…helped my friend Rin Tohsaka when she was captured. And in this dimension, in Fuyuki, you helped us deal with Saber Alter. Helped Mash and Ritsuka to become master and servant partner.
"Yeah, I don't remember any of that…it's quite irrelevant in the end isn't it…all that matters is getting rid of you all and perpetuating my rule in this land as the King." Medb looked at him in adoration at those words.
"King!? Never have I heard you utter that word when you're alive, Setanta…in fact, you openly despised those who had the position." Setanta realized that, however…
"Whereas they had all failed in their endeavor, I shall emerge victorious, mentor. Together with my queen and our soldiers, we shall rule this land as we see fit." Shirou and Scáthach both looked at the man from their respective memories.
"Truly he has no recollection of who he used to be…he was always carefree in nature." Scáthach nodded at Shirou as they both prepared for battle. In less than a second, Scáthach and Cu Alter vanished to meet up in the middle with their respective spears. Shirou, for his turn, immediately summoned his regular twin katana as he observed Medb smiling at him, in quite the seductive manner. One Emiya Shirou was no stranger to enemies such as these. His work both for the Church and Bazett allowed him and Arturia to face all kinds of enemies, even those who would use seduction as a weapon.
The enemy servant Carmila from the first Singularity sprung to mind…her noble phantasm worked in similar ways after all.
"You know, stranger, back in my day, I had men doing my every bidding…it's quite empowering feeling to have that control over them, to ride them. So much so thar right now, I don't have to lift a finger to fight you." Shirou observed as she grabbed a small knife and made a small incision on her finger. A drop of blood fell on the ground, before the blood puddle expanded and expanded, until it formed a considerable pool from her own blood. From within it, a new army of Celtic warrior and Shadow Servants erupted, all of them attacking Shirou.
The redhead Samurai servant advanced and worked his way throughout the new opposition, dancing in his sword play while blocking the spears from the Celtics as well as the sword from the Shadow Servants.
He took quick care of them all, before appearing in front of Medb.
"Oh, that brave look on your face…it makes me quite…I don't know…" She was blushing with her fingers close to her mouth. "I would imagine that you'd want to do all sort of things to me, isn't it…perhaps take me as your slave to do your bidding."
Shirou could feel the gentle voice crawling up his ear and he could also feel the magecraft running its course.
Meanwhile, Scáthach and Cu Alter were fighting on equal terms using their spears. However, while Scáthach appeared to be exerting herself, Cu Alter still looked like he wasn't much applying himself.
Back to Shirou, he chose the moment to advance towards Medb to shorten the distance between them.
However, before he could advance further, Medb whipped the magical whip on her hands as she called forth her noble phantasm. Shirou was immediately captured inside the Realty Marble that is her Noble Phantasm, before two bulls appeared in front of him, pulling a chariot with Medb inside. The bulls were charging quite fast with Medb using her whip on them, but Shirou found his body quite heavy as if he was under a spell of some sort. His eyes were all blurry and his head started spinning, making his moves difficult, impeding his focus. Mash, for her part, felt the exhilaration of using her ability to control another member of the male species.
She could already consider her bulls hitting this man and be done with it.
Shirou didn't appear to be moving and she felt completely sure of her victory.
When the noise of a blade piercing flesh and organs echoed the corridors, Scáthach and Cu stopped their fight to see what happened.
Medb's eyes went from exhilarating to widened in surprise as she found her body pierced by multiple projected swords from different shapes and sizes.
Her chariot vanished and Medb's body rolled on the ground through inertia as the swords remained inside her body. Shirou's full control over his body returned as he looked at the woman who was causing all sorts of havoc in this Singularity. Scáthach smirked at seeing the woman in such a state as she looked at Setanta to see his reaction. The man, for his part, merely walked towards the downed Queen, as he grabbed her. Queen Medb, for her part, looked at her lover's eyes and smiled. She was coughing blood and she could feel her core leaving this Singularity.
"You are in pretty bad shape, Medb." Despite the situation, she had never lost her desire to present herself a damsel in distress for her beloved.
"Ah yes, Cu…I feel like I could die at any moment. But I believe I had fulfilled my role, hadn't I?" Her eyes sparkled at his, wishing nothing but for him to acknowledge her.
"…Yeah, you did pretty well. As queen, you had defended your nation. You're a pretty capable woman when you try."
Medb smiled, while Shirou and Scáthach observed the scenery.
"…I am glad, that's all I wanted to hear from you my beloved. That was enough to save me, my wish came true in the end as you've finally…became mine."
Cu Alter merely nodded as Medb released the Grail from her possession.
"So, you're leaving now?" Medb merely smiled.
"Yes, unfortunately I am…I entrust the Grail to you my love. Farewell, Cu Chullian…may we meet again sometime, somewhere."
Those were her last words, before her body dissolved into golden sands of prana.
"Give it up, Setanta…with Medb gone, the control she had over you is over as well." Cu Alter, though, only snorted as he looked at his mentor.
"Unfortunately for you, me giving up just can't happen…as per my geis to Medb. It was her wish for the Grail, therefore we are to continue our battle unimpeded, mentor. You always said that I crave for battle isn't it…well, let us continue where we stopped." Once more the two vanished, but they weren't fighting alone anymore, since Shirou joined in the hustle with a burning sword to parry Cu Alter's black spear. Still, even with the extra help, it was clear that Cu Alter had the advantage in strength as he parried both attacks from Shirou and Scáthach.
At the border of Washington, Rama's crew joined up with Mash, Ritsuka, Arturia, Jeanne and Nightingale as they all ran.
"Everyone, it appears Shirou has taken down Medb and the Celts at the North Army are slowly being defeated one by one…" The news from Romani were met with surprise and happiness from everyone involved, specially Arturia with the news that Shirou was fine. "However, it appears that he and Scáthach are now battling against Cu Chullain. And he's too strong for them to defeat. You all must hurry to aid them." With Romani's message out, Arturia pumped more prana into her legs and ran faster than the others.
Back in the White House, Shirou was the one fighting Cu Chullain, but the Irish spear user managed to overpower him and landed a strong kick on the chest, sending him flying towards the wall. Cu smirked as he followed through with his spear aiming for Shirou's heart.
However, Scáthach lifted a shield rune in front of Cu that blocked his spear long enough for Shirou to get his bearings together and focus a good portion of prana in his fist.
With a first extended, he sent the gathered energy straight at Cu's body, getting even. The punch noise echoed in the clearing like a shot gun. Scáthach appeared inside Cu's guard and managed to draw first blood with her poisonous spear. The deadly poison crawled up his darkened armor, but Cu Alter wasn't much fazed as he pumped a great load of prana to rid his body of the poison. Immediately afterward, Cu Alter's black spear shone to life and Scáthach narrowed her eyes in contemplation.
"So if that's how you're planning, Setanta…a clash of Gae Bolgs…" Shirou looked worried while Setanta only smirked at his mentor's question.
"It would be unimaginable during our lifetimes, but it would be quite fun to see who would emerge victorious, right?
Both claim to deliver fatal blows, while at the same time evading them."
Scáthach released a sigh as she didn't want for things to escalate as such. She briefly turned to Shirou and observed his behavior throughout it all. She observed his focused eyes unwavering, despite knowing about the power Setanta is wielding right now.
"Scáthach…" She looked at him in wonder, while Setanta was busy gathering his strength. "I think I have something that could hold his Gae Bolg, but I won't be able to hold him for longer than a few seconds."
The Irish legend turned contemplative and then turned to see her prodigy smirking. She closer her eyes for a while and then turned to Shirou with a smile.
"You give me one second Shirou, that's all I need to finish this."
Cu Alter, oblivious to their planning, had finished his prana gathering and began his movement to increase thrust.
"It's the end for you all, GAE BOLG!" As soon as Cu Alter threw his black spear towards them, Shirou closed his eyes in deep focus with Scáthach next to him. As soon as he opened his eyes, he extended his hand.
Rho Aias
Right before Scáthach and Setanta's eyes, a total of seven energy shields lifted in front of Shirou and Scáthach, one overlapping the other.
When the black spear slammed on the first shield, almost immediately the first three had shattered immediately and Shirou felt the huge pain of doing so. Still, he surged as much prana as he could to withhold the powerful attack. Scáthach, for her part, wasted no more than a second to power her own version of Gae Bolg, using her two red spears. She threw them straight at Cu Alter with enough speed to reach his heart the second Shirou's last mirror broke. Shirou's arm began to bleed all over as he kneeled on the ground to keep the last shield for as long as he could. He released a sigh in relief, as another second now and he would be a goner.
"You weren't kidding when you said you needed a second." Scáthach smirked as she then turned to her prodigy.
"Tch, so much for the Mad King Cu Chullain's role." His voice was so much lighter that Shirou looked at him, wondering if the real Cu Chullain has been somehow returned, when the man himself turned with an annoyed expression on his face. "That shield of yours is quite troublesome…to face it once more as a servant is not something I had enjoyed to be honest." Shirou smirked as he at this moment realized that Lancer…the real Lancer has shown his face to him in the end. "Still, as much as it pains me, the geis that Medb is still having an effect on me…so I am afraid you still have to deal with one final snag…I have got to summon the Demon God guarding the Holy Grail. O Holy Grail. The ultimate vessel to make wishes come true. Manifest before us this instant! One of the 72 Demon God Pillars, rank number 38. The Demon God of War, Halphas!"
As soon as the Demon Pillar God appeared, so did the other servants, while Nightingale approached the downed Shirou to heal him. Arturia and the others appeared before the Demonic Pillars.
"Rama, you together with me…let's unleash our noble phantasms at the same time!" The Indian Servant accepted Arturia's directive.
"Allow me to aid in your endeavor, oh King of Knights."
Arturia turned to see Scáthach align herself next to her. Arturia smirked as the three offensive warriors stood next to each other.
EX-CALIBURRRR!
BRAHMASTRA!
GAE BOLG ALTERNATIVE!
The end result of the Noble Phantasms in synchronicity was enough to destroy the Demon God Pillar and Cu Chullain was once again in front of them as his body slowly turned into golden sands of prana.
Of course, he wasn't about to leave without eyeing Scáthach, who for her part was smiling at him.
"Glad to see you had at least went back to your old self, Setanta. As your mentor, seeing you like that wasn't pleasing." Setanta smirked.
"Hmm, in the end, however, we did get to have that fight, didn't we? That was the pleasing part. Here is hoping we can continue some other time." Scáthach snorted as he saw him vanish for good as Mash recovered the grail together with Ritsuka.
She then kneeled closer to Shirou who was being attended by Nightingale while Arturia observed.
"I take it I shall be going, Shirou…with the singularity resolved, the rest of us shall be gone as well." Shirou nodded, since it's pretty much what happened to the other singularities.
"Indeed, but you had made a promise to me about telling about your life together with my other self…and Chaldea could certainly use a powerful Servant like you to help against Solomon." The Irish legend smirked with second intentions this time.
"Oh, are you asking me to stay with you, Shirou…huh how forward of you! I wonder what the King of Knights will say to such travesty." Of course, Arturia was hearing it all and narrowed her eyes.
Seeing Shirou was okay, made her forget that she was the one that separated him from her, only to have him all to herself…that little…
"You watch yourself, Scáthach, that was not Shirou's intent at all and he's right. We will need all available power to defeat Solomon when the time comes." Scáthach chuckled at the woman for getting all defensive.
"Huh, fair enough…it's not like I have anything better to do…I guess I will tag along for now…for sure I can foresee delicious battles in our future."
Mash, Ritsuka and Jeanne, meanwhile, were saying their goodbyes to Nightingale and Rama, before Mash approached with her shield to link Chaldea's bond to Scáthach.
"Good job everyone, singularity thus resolved! It was a shame to have lost so many servants, but at least we managed to finish this singularity. Rayshift is up and ready to bring you all back." With that last bit from Romani, Ritsuka and Mash released a sigh in relaxation, as the beam backwards took them back towards the organization. It was finally time to rest after such a gruesome singularity.
===At Chaldea===
Once they had all returned with their new addition to the Chaldea team, Roman and the rest of Chaldea staff had immediately taken Mash and Ritsuka away for healing. Once the adrenaline left, Mash got suddenly weak in the knees and was about to faint, before Ritsuka managed to grab her. The servants observed their original master and first servant be taken away, just as the other Chaldea servants arrived to converse about the recently finished Singularity. Mordred and Boudica had immediately dragged Arturia away to converse, while Jeanne decided to take it easy in her room for the night.
Shirou had decided to invite Scáthach for some late dinner, to which the Irish Lancer gladly accepted.
Once they arrived at the cafeteria, Scáthach was greatly surprised to see Archer behind the counter, cooking for the rest of the staff in Chaldea.
Memories from her own Grail War resurfaced as she saw Shirou going behind the counter, when Archer turned to see the newcomer.
As soon as that happened and feeling her overall strength just washing over him, the Counter guardian was immediately on edge.
"I had a feeling we would meet again…Shirou." Scáthach said so with a smile on her face. The first Shirou turned in surprise and saw that Scáthach was addressing Archer instead of him. Archer, for his part, started having a headache all of a sudden, as images and memories from a time he had never remembered having. Images of the idiot wielding a blood red spear and using runecraft…of Sakura being enveloped by a strange black and red creature…and lastly about the woman before him, saying their last words.
'So this is farewell for now, huh Shirou…'
'Yeah, for now…'
Author Note
Man, writing this chapter was tough as hell and quite time consuming. I apologize if it took too long to post this chapter, it's just that I had to cover too many different fronts.
For those who does not remember Archer's memories, please read Shadow Spear's Chapter 23. Now with North America Singularity resolved, it's time for the last two…now, it's time for the Knights of Camelot.
Please tell me your thoughts.
Lastly, I have recently created a P-atreon account for those who wish to follow my stories more personally, sending suggestions and occasional polls to help me.
Also for those who wish to make a pledge there, it will be highly appreciated.
P-atreon Account: Anime-Enthusiast
Next update: Cursed Eyes
