Chapter 18

The crimson star of destruction warred with the white supernova, each side vying for dominance. Slowly, the red energy encroached on the supernova's edges, swallowing up the white energy as it started to shrink. In less than a second, the supernova collapsed in on itself and disappeared entirely from existence. A moment later the crimson star followed it, dissipating into the vacuum of space.

All that was left was a single body drifting in space, bereft of any protection, while another heavily crippled and disfigured body in with black armor fused to its body drifted away in the opposite direction.

A patch of space near them seemed to stretch, turning the distant stars into lines, and then it snapped back to normal like a rubber band, depositing a black triangular shaped ship much larger than the one that was just destroyed. A docking bay opened, a small frigate flying out of the force field to reach the female body in space.

"Sir, we have a visual on the Emperor."

"Bring her in."

A dark man with a grave countenance gave the order as he stood on the bridge of the capital ship, eyebags sagging under his sleep-deprived eyes. Black armor covered him from to toe, making him almost blend in with the ship's dark decor.

"Sir, we've also detected another individual further away with biological similarities to the defector Lancelot. Permission to collect the individual?"

The man on the bridge tightened his hand into a fist at the name.

"Negative. Leave him there."

"Roger."

The frigate approached Berserker, a beam of light shining on her and pulling her to an open hatch that closed as soon as she entered it. The ship flew back to the docking bay and landed, then the capital ship jumped into hyperspace, seeming to stretch, and then vanishing in the blink of an eye.

The other body was left to drift in space, until a certain other organisation found him.

But Illya didn't know that, and instead she was wondering how she wasn't dying in the vacuum of space. She was somehow breathing normally, without freezing to death or her body blowing up from the pressure. There didn't seem to be anything more to the dream though.

"I think it's probably time I woke up."

As if on cue, the stars, planets and nebulas in the vast space around her started fading into darkness, her consciousness shifting back to reality

She came to on the snowy ground, just like the last time she had woken up, but this time there was a towering cliff rising up in front of her, with the top all but obscured by the howling blizzard. Where was Berserker?

Her question was quickly answered when she heard the snarls and growls behind her.

She turned around, and was rewarded with a red sea of lupine corpses stretching far into the distance, with small hills of bodies stacked atop each other around the only humanoid figure in sight. Then the smell hit her, making her gag and retch before she managed to bring under control, breathing as lightly as she could.

Several dozen more wolves that were still alive surrounded Berserker, with precious few unharmed, most sporting a grievous injury of some kind. Berserker herself was soaked from head to toe in blood, her cloak slashed to pieces until only several tatters clung from her shoulders, pathetically swaying with the wind. One leg was bleeding heavily, the white of bone easily visible, the red joining the rest of the blood already dyeing the white snow. Several deep cuts were scored on her back and sides, while one arm hung limply at her sides, twisted at an unnatural angle. Even her hair was missing a few clumps, a few bloody grooves running through her right ear as well. Yet, she still stood tall, back straight as she faced the wolves with one hand.

A trio of disproportionately large gray wolves stilled, then their bodies burst into motion, pouncing at Berserker. They split into three different directions, from the front, left and right like a team. Each one of them had the speed of a car, the wind doing nothing to slow them down.

At the same time, an even larger wolf snuck up from behind, huge footpads treading the snow lightly, masked by the noise of the blizzard. It stopped just two meters short of Berserker, slightly out of her range.

*ARROoooooo*

The three wolves reached her, and in a single stroke she dispatched all three, drawing a crimson arc in the air as her sword passed through each one of them , dealing a fatal wound. The large wolf behind seized his chance, rising up and driving his claws at Berserker's back. The twin blade simply stabbed backwards as Berserker shifted her entire weight in that direction, crouching as she did so. The blade pierced through the wolf as it bent over Berserker with the momentum of the slash, it's body covering her completely.

At that moment, Illya saw several wolves surrounding Berserker open their maws, and she sensed mana coalescing in their bodies.

*GAARROOOOO*

Massive shockwaves emanated from their mouths, making the air ripple as they traveled through it to hit Berserker. Hindered by the wolf's body still on her and her injuries, she could only bear the brunt of the attack and stubbornly hold on.

Blood trickled out of her ears and nose following the attack, but she somehow shrugged it off and hurled the corpse on her at one of the wolves. It collided with the smaller wolf, the large mass sending the smaller wolf tumbling back into other corpses as it fell limp, it's skill crushed from the impact.

"Ah, Master you're awake." Despite her injuries, her telepathic voice seemed absolutely normal.

"Ber, Berserker! Are you alright?" She couldn't help but ask after seeing the state her body was in.

"Don't worry Master. These wolves are merely mere gnats to me. Rest assured that they will be dealt with swiftly, I swear this on my pride as an Alter. Instead, see your own wounds."

When Berserker mentioned them, Illya checked herself. She was right, there were several cuts around her body, although minor in nature when compared with Berserker's wounds.

All along while she was unconscious, Berserker had protected her against the massive horde of wolves that had descended upon them after they fell down the cliff. She had demonstrated such ferocity and savagery that the wolves didn't even dare go near Illya after the first hundred wolves died like they were pushed into a meat grinder. Uncaring of her own safety, she had hurled herself into the fray until she was drenched head for toe in blood, swinging her blade over and over while reaping the lives of these wolves.

The wolves who had been the apex predators of the forest, had hunted mages and homunculi alike with impunity. Slowly, their strength, cunning and numbers had grown until they could easily massacre a squad of Enforcers, as they had done in the past. Even a Servant would have trouble with them with their sheer numbers and high levels of cooperation.

However, they had been beaten when this black demon went into their midst and sent bodies and limbs flying, making it rain blood. From far away, an observer would have been able to spot wolf bodies going up into the air, as well as errant limbs being flung around. Sprays of blood happened at a frequent rate, with crimson lighting also bouncing around non-stop, turning many into charred black corpses. Yet, they had also inflicted many wounds on Berserker, her physical vessel containing so many cuts, stab, bruises and internal injuries that it was a miracle she was still able to more or less maintain the same level of skill she had displayed while uninjured.

She had continued blindly fighting until now, with the several hundred wolves now reduced to a mere dozens. And she would still continue, until her Master was safe.

Realizing all this, Illya knew she had to fulfill her role as Berserker's Master.

"Berserker, I order you to destroy all that stands in our way!"

With a Servant like this, she wouldn't let anything stop her. She would plough through her enemies with the strongest Servant at her side, and she would make the boy who called himself Kiritsugu's son regret the day he was born.

Berserker had no wish of her own, simply desiring a peaceful life where she could laze around and eat as many sweets as she wanted in a kotatsu. Yet, she was her Master's Servant, and she would definitely fulfill her duty Illya. She would protect her until the day she became the Lesser Grail. Until then, she would always do her best, for Illya and for sweets.

*DZZSHIN!*

Her entire body exploded into motion, her entire body filled with power as it left behind scarlet lightning in its wake. Swinging her saberstaff, it decimated the rest of the wolves, ripping them to shreds.

Meanwhile, Jubstacheit watched them through his familiars inside the castle, monitoring their progress. Looking at Berserker destroy the remaining wolves, he decided it was time.

"Release the shadows."