Hey, it hasn't been 2 years this time!

Yeah, so I'm back with a new Chapter again. Don't really have much to say this time except that I feel like I'm getting back in the groove of it all.

I still won't be able to update more than one to two Chapters a month at best because of my personal life, but I'll make sure I actually deliver this time around instead of going off grid.

Chapter 5 is up on my page in the place of Patrons, for those who are interested.

Thanks a bunch to all my Patrons, old and new- Nico M., Superpengy, Killjoy2003, WhiteNinja489, C G, Jeffrey J., UberApe, BlackFox, VII XII, Jarod, Gabriel, Jake zak, Gawain, OliveGuide, Sean G., Matt, Innocuous Apathy, John G., Klondike, Jerry K. P., Cygfried, Tristan M. O., Jason H., Bob G., Anonymous Sandwich and Glitchex.

Your support means the world to me.

Without further ado, please enjoy the Chapter.

Chapter 4 - Sempai, Kouhai, CHALDEAS

I'm not ashamed to say that I tuned out of the Director's speech less than a minute in.

No offense to her, but it was clear that while she might've been a powerful Magus, whatever talent she had did not extend to either Charisma or public speaking. She sounded like my 2nd Grade English Teacher, probably the only person who actually made me fall asleep outright in class. Maybe it was the nerves from being at the head of an operation to save the whole world, but there was something just incredibly wooden about her cadence, almost like she couldn't even believe the words coming out of her own mouth. Between that and the general unfriendliness of the Chaldea staff, I was starting to seriously wonder if there was something up with this organization. If it weren't for Da Vinci and the way she talked about the First Order, I would've genuinely thought that these guys were here for something else entirely.

There were two things I did catch however; one was that her name was Olga Marie Animusphere, which combined with her appearance and expression really painted a certain picture about her, and the second was that no one seemed to like her much. I mean, she didn't get up and say it during her speech or anything, but I did keep an eye on the people in the rows in front of me and it was clear as a day that they couldn't care less about what she had to say. Sure, I was also in the same boat myself, but I think there had to be a difference between between an ignorant 15 year old who learned about magic only an hour earlier and trained Magi who knew exactly why they were here, since I highly doubted people 'in the know' were hoodwinked like I was when they were recruited to Chaldea. Plus, weren't the Animusphere basically like one of the big Clans from Naruto? You'd think that alone would cause people to sit up with their back straight, but that definitely wasn't the case. The people I could see at least only came one step short of outright falling asleep. Hinako-Sempai over to my right didn't even look up from her book to grace Olga with her gaze at any point in the speech. Only a few people somewhere in the front of the crowd seemed to be politely clapping along, and they were the extreme minority. It kind of made me feel a little bad for her, especially because I was pretty sure she knew no one was taking her speech seriously. I doubted that she would've been so red-faced if she didn't.

Of course, that sympathy wasn't enough to make me actually pay much attention to her either, but that was because I doubted she would give any information I didn't already learn from Da Vinci. After all, she wasn't giving an actual explanation, she was just giving us the equivalent of a pat on the back before we headed off to war. It may have been called an 'Orientation', but the reality was that it was just a really formal pep talk. Instead of wasting what little time I had before the op with her A.I.-generated speech, I instead cycled over all the tools I had at my disposal. Which wasn't saying much, because all I really had was the Avalon Cookie, my Instinct Skill and my 'Mystic Code', which was a fancy word for 'magical item' apparently. The former was a one-time shielding item, capable of basically blocking any attack since it teleported the user out and then back to their original position, though it of course came with the caveat that I needed a Heroine near me to activate. The Skill was also in the same boat, and the only way to get any use out of the two of them was to stick to a Heroine during the First Order. Hinako-Sempai… probably wasn't the best choice, since despite what the Game said I had the feeling she was only barely tolerating my presence. Mash was the best option, both because she was probably the only person in this whole Antarctic facility that I could call a friend, and because Da Vinci was playing tech support over at home base instead of going out into the field.

… Maybe calling it a 'choice' was a bit off. It was more like Mash was my only option unless the woman next to me turned out to be a kuudere instead of someone intensely anti-social like I thought she was. I hadn't interacted with her much, but I could see the signs primarily because I used to be the same way back before I got my head out of my ass.

On a more positive note however, the Mystic Code that also doubled as my Chaldea Uniform was pretty neat and didn't really have any downsides beyond the cooldowns. It was loaded with three Spells that could be automatically cast just by channeling some magical power into it without any actual cost on my part, though in exchange the Spells needed time to recharge before they could be cast again. It was designed apparently so even the non-Magi in Chaldea could use it so long as they could channel even a spark of Magical Energy, and hence prioritized usability over efficiency and power. The first Spell it had was First Aid, a basic form of healing Magecraft that could fix up minor cuts and bruises at most, which could be used once every nine minutes. It was significantly less efficient than the 'Healing Scrolls' that Chaldea already had, but like I mentioned earlier, these Uniforms weren't built to be all that strong. Then there was Momentary Reinforcement, which gave a buff to one's physical strength for ten seconds. According to Da Vinci, it was a severely degraded version of the proper Reinforcement Spell that was apparently one of those 'basics' every Magus learned, but the tradeoff was that it could be used as a Buff on others instead of being restricted to oneself. This one had a fifteen minute cooldown, meaning it was basically something you could only use once in a fight, and then you were fresh out of luck unless you somehow managed to stall out the wait. My personal thought on the matter was that it was probably something that should be used to up the damage a Servant could do when they land a full combo on someone so they can finish the battle faster, but that was just the gamer in me talking. Didn't know how it would translate to real life strategy. Anyways, the final Spell was a little something called Emergency Evade, which was identical to Momentary Reinforcement in both duration and cooldown but boosted speed and reflexes instead of strength. Useful for either getting the hell out of dodge or chasing someone down before they could escape.

Honestly, as limited as it was, I was still pretty stoked that I managed to get my hands on a bona-fide magical item. It didn't make me feel any better about getting shanghaied into a battle to save the world out of nowhere, but it was still something exciting. Not as much as learning real Magic of course, but unfortunately the time crunch kind of nipped that prospect in the bud for now. If only I'd come here a few weeks earlier or something…

Well, no use crying over spilled milk. But man, I was really underprepared for this.

'Hang on…' I thought to myself suddenly, my eyes widening in realization as I nearly jumped out of my seat. 'I'm a MASTER!'

Somehow, the implications of that title had completely slipped my mind. This whole time, I had been thinking of myself as part of some military unit, but the truth was that I wasn't supposed to be doing the fighting in the first place. No, my literal job was to summon a Servant and let them do the fighting for me. How could I have forgotten what had happened in the Simulator? That was literally meant to give me a taste of what the First Order's practical operations would end up being like! Maybe all these mind-blowing revelations were actually rotting my brain, because I wasn't normally this slow on the uptake. Didn't this mean that I actually wasn't in as much danger as I kept thinking I was? There were forty-eight of us Master Candidates, and if each of us had a Servant then the operation should be a freaking cakewalk. If whatever caused the end of the world was an entity of some kind, then forty-eight warriors of Arturia's caliber should be more than enough to smoke their ass. If it was some kind of other problem, then we had super geniuses like Da Vinci to help find a solution. Man, Heroic Spirits were pretty great, weren't they? A part of me felt bad, like we were disturbing these warriors in the great beyond because we couldn't take care of our own messes in the modern day, but the other part of me felt freaking hyped at the prospect of meeting famous historical and mythological figures. After all, King Arthur wasn't even confirmed by modern historians to have even existed and yet there she was, as a Servant. That kind of implied that even people like Robin Hood who were more folk tale than actual historical figure could become Heroic Spirits as well, which opened up a huge cast of people who could be summoned.

… I wondered what Servant I would summon, actually. I wouldn't mind seeing Arturia again, considering how reliable she'd been in the Simulation. If the real life version was anything like her sim self, then we should get along just fine- especially since I technically had a Bond with her through the Game. Not sure how that worked, but I was long past the point of questioning these things. Unlike Magecraft, there was little logic behind my Dating Sim powers. They seemed to run entirely off of Tropes as opposed to any kind of framework. So yeah, she would probably be the best choice, especially since I already knew her powers inside and out. But if I had to choose… Hmm… I think someone like Bhima or Rama? I'd always admired Indian mythology the most to be honest; the people depicted in them were often on another type of timing, and don't even get me started about the power scaling. Ashwatthama for example got cursed because he tried to pull out a planet-destroying magic nuke on a freaking embryo, and that was a footnote in the Mahabharata after the main war ended. I doubted it would happen though, considering that I had this Eroge crap hanging over my head. If whatever Servant I summoned wasn't a Heroine, then I'd eat my new Uniform. Hell, the [Eroge Protagonist] Skill literally mentioned that it modified the Servants I summoned!

"…And so, without further ado, I hereby declare with my Authority as the Director of Finis Chaldea that the First Order officially commences now! Master Candidates, please enter the Coffins and prepare for Rayshift in ten minutes!" Finished Olga, snapping me out of my thoughts.

As soon as she'd finished speaking, cylindrical pods began to rise out of the floor, each one looking just big enough to hold a person. By my estimate of them, there were around fifty of them in total, something that was confirmed when two of them sank back into the floor. Made sense, since there were forty-eight of us and whoever manufactured them likely made them in batches of ten or something. These were the Klein Coffins, which apparently held our real bodies while they beamed our souls to the past. I didn't have the foggiest idea how they actually worked, but that was the gist of it so I was leaving it there. Thank God I wasn't claustrophobic, or this would've been rough.

Hang on. If magic is real and King Arthur is real, doesn't that mean God is real too? And not just the Christian God, but all Gods?

'That's an existential crisis for another time.' I rationalized, ignoring the sweat starting to build up again and shoving it to the back of my mind as the people around me all started to get up from their chairs. I almost moved to stand up myself, but saw that Hinako hadn't moved from her place- and realized that it was probably because we would have had a hard time breaching the throng of people heading for the Coffins themselves. Seeing the wisdom in that decision, I also decided to wait a bit and follow her example.

A few minutes later, when she finally closed her book and stood up with a sigh, I also followed suit. This earned me a small glare from the woman, even though it didn't have nearly the same heat as when I knocked her book down.

"…Why are you following me?" For a second, I'll admit I was thrown for a loop.

I mean, wasn't there a rather obvious answer to that question? But if she was asking, it was possible she somehow genuinely didn't get it, so it was probably for the best to just get the misunderstanding out of the way.

"Sorry Sempai, I just thought that you had the right idea waiting for everyone else to go first before heading to the Coffins, and following your lead." I said, using my singular skill in life to maintain my composure in the face of her stare.

Looking at her now, some instinct deep within me told me that she wasn't what she appeared to be, that this 'Akuta Hinako' was hiding something big. It was kind of like the Uncanny Valley effect, in a way. Her forehead creased for a moment as she processed my reply, almost like she couldn't believe what she was hearing for whatever reason.

"Sempai?" She muttered under her breath, before looking down at me again. Her sharp brown eyes bored into me, almost as if she were trying to analyze me for something, before she finally relented and let out a small sigh. "…Hm. Akuta Hinako. You are?"

Looks like the Game was spot on as usual, because she wasn't even trying to make it sound like that was her actual name. However, tactical genius that I was, I decided not to comment on it and instead responded in kind with a small bow.

"My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru, Akuta-Sempai. Um, I'll be in your care."

[Your Affection with Akuta Hinako(?) has increased!]

My new Perk and my Charm Stat must've been working overtime, and I was glad- I didn't want to get into trouble with anyone at this moment and draw attention to myself. It was bad enough I'd probably be under scrutiny as the guy who literally joined at the last minute, I didn't need to get labeled as a troublemaker as well.

"… Fine." She said, her face still set in stone. "Listen carefully then. I'll only say it once."

We began walking at a rather slow pace, though I didn't say anything and instead paid close attention to what she had to say. While I doubted her advice would trump Da Vinci's, Hinako-Sempai seemed like someone with a good head on her shoulders.

"Thank you."

"When we go to the Singularity, the first thing we will do is individually summon our Servants." She said, an unknown emotion flitting into her eyes as she said the final word. "Just follow our lead and you'll be fine. Are you a Magus?"

"Not really." I admitted. "Ms. Da Vinci only taught me how to open my Circuits just before I came here."

My words actually made Hinako stop in place for a second, before she gave me the side eye, her brow furrowed.

"Da Vinci did? … So you've already interacted with a Heroic Spirit."

"Yes?" I replied, uncomprehending.

Was there something odd about what I said? Da Vinci wasn't one of those reclusive types of geniuses you tend to hear about, she was pretty open and friendly, with an almost overbearing energy. So why did Sempai's words imply that not many people really talked to her?

"… What did you think of her?" Hinako asked quietly. "The genius who transcended her Humanity to become a Servant."

I took a second to seriously contemplate her question, the end of her statement giving me an inkling as to what she was trying to get at.

"Intense, but not in a bad way. She's a good teacher, and pretty friendly to boot. It's a little odd how she's the genderbent ghost of a long-dead inventor, but… it's kind of hard to remember that when you're talking to her."

That was the genuine truth, at least from my perspective. In the short time I'd spent with Da Vinci, there were many times I just got sucked into the conversation or my own thoughts, completely forgetting that I was in the presence of not just an inhumanly beautiful bombshell, but also one of the most impactful visionaries in the history of my species. It was just hard to equate the woman who insisted I call her 'Da Vinci-Chan' with the guy who came up with the concept of a helicopter four hundred years before it was actually invented.

My response made the woman freeze completely, instead of a momentary pause like before. She turned to look at me fully now, a sort of odd turmoil appearing on her face. Was she a Da Vinci fan or something who just hadn't been able to work up the nerve to meet her? That seemed entirely likely, and something I could understand pretty well. If Da Vinci hadn't come and basically carried me off herself, I probably wouldn't have had the courage to approach her either.

"You're serious." She noted, sounding genuinely flabbergasted. "You think you can understand her? Make no mistake- Servants aren't Human no matter how much they might look the part. Doesn't that bother you at all?"

"… Understand her?" I repeated, my face scrunching up. This was… decidedly not the line of questioning I'd expected. Especially considering this might have been the most she'd spoken since we'd met. Still, I answered her honestly all the same. "No way. I'm just an average teenager from a small town in California. How could I even begin to understand a super genius like Da Vinci after knowing her for only an hour? But just because I don't get her, that doesn't mean I'll stop trying to or treat her any differently from a normal person. Well, maybe kind of like a celebrity, but that's about it. I'd be a pretty miserable person if I got bothered every time I met someone smarter or stronger than me, Sempai, and that holds true even if that someone isn't technically Human."

Seriously, in what universe could I ever hope to comprehend the mind of someone like Da Vinci that quickly? That was something far beyond my pay grade, reserved for the likes of fellow geniuses such as Albert Einstein. Of course, that didn't mean I was going to treat her like some kind of alien either. Honestly, I wasn't even sure I knew how to in the first place without coming off as a dick. Sure, she was apparently a ghost, but Da Vinci looked and talked just like anyone else. So why not treat her like anyone else as well, especially since she didn't seem to have a problem with it herself? As for whether the fact that she was a ghost bothered me… it really didn't. I wasn't lying to try and make myself look better either. She was, after all, the ghost of a human from the past. But even if she hadn't been, I wouldn't have cared as long as she was sapient and of course non-hostile. Maybe the me from a few years back would've been insecure and upset, back when I had a bone to pick with anyone who had an ounce of talent, but I'd long since moved past that shit. I may have been a complete coward, but at the very least I could proudly say I wouldn't ever sink back to that level or indulge in xenophobia. Besides, I firmly believed that two very different people could come to understand each other with enough time and effort, so long as they genuinely tried. This applied even here, and I wasn't about to give up on trying to understand who Da Vinci was at her core, as arrogant as it may have sounded- and not only because she was a Heroine, but also because I felt like there was a lot I could learn if I could manage it. After all, whatever maturity I had came from a very similar case in the past…

[Akuta Hinako's(?) Bond has reached Level 2!]

The brown-haired woman's lips curved up in perhaps the faintest trace of a smile, seeming somewhat satisfied with my answer. That was good, I guess, though she probably could've gotten similar answers from a ton of other people though. Well, if it worked for my benefit, I wasn't going to question it. Much.

"… I see." She said finally, resuming her stride as I followed behind her like a duckling. "Back to the earlier topic, you'll summon your Servant alongside the rest of us. After that happens, just focus on keeping yourself in one piece and follow Wodime's orders to the letter. Team A is expected to do most of the heavy work anyhow, so just… stay behind us and you should be all right."

"Sempai, who is Mr. Wodime?" I asked, confused.

Unless I missed something somewhere, the leader was actually that Olga woman, so I was a bit bemused by this new character who'd entered the field out of nowhere.

"… Perhaps one of the few people within this place that has any idea what they're doing." Hinako-Sempai replied cryptically. "He's also the Leader of Team A, and the one in charge of the 'First Order' on the field. Unlike that joke of a Director, you can trust him not to lead you astray at the very least. If you ever get separated from us, you should prioritize looking for him… or Pepe, I suppose- another member of Team A."

Something told me that I'd stumbled on a juicy bit of workplace politics, and I made the executive decision to steer clear of it. Instead, I paid attention to the advice I was given and mentally recorded those two names in case I needed to seek them out later. Hm, wasn't Mash a member of Team A as well? Sempai hadn't mentioned her, though I suppose she must have been a brand new addition considering she seemed to be around my age.

It was at this point that we reached the Coffins, a little late by the looks of it as everyone was already inside by the time we got there, probably because the sudden heaviness our conversation had taken on in the middle of Sempai's instructions. The only people outside the Coffins were the Director and some of the technicians, who were running around checking the Coffins to make sure everything was all right. The Willy Wonka guy from before was also there, though he had his back turned to us as he was fiddling with something on the floor between Olga and one of the Coffins. As we approached the only two Coffins remaining, Olga noticed us and her eyes flashed with anger, probably because we were lagging behind a bit. However, before she could say anything, Hinako immediately sent her a glare that could melt steel, causing the white-haired woman to flinch back and immediately shift her attention to one of the other technicians.

As we stopped in front of our Coffins, Hinako opened her mouth to say something again, probably some final words before the Rayshift began.

And that was then it happened. I suddenly felt a horrible chill run down my spine along with a sense of foreboding more intense than anything I'd ever seen before.

[Warning! The Instinct Skill has been Triggered!]

The moment the pane of light popped up in front of me and the text on it was registered in my brain, I didn't even bother thinking twice. Even without actively realizing it, my subconscious mind immediately put the pieces together- if Instinct had Triggered in this specific situation, then it could only mean… we were under attack. In the span of a second, I Summoned the Avalon Cookie into my hand and tackled Hinako to the floor, crushing the Item in my hand as I did so.

… Unfortunately, my reaction wasn't quite fast enough to get me out unscathed.

Right before the cookie's effect took hold, a massive explosion rang out, the wave of force, heat and sound that subsequently expanded outward rupturing my eardrums like a party balloon. It was only sheer luck that Hinako and I were warped out of there right as the heat burned through my Uniform and into my back.

The next second, we were lying on the grass somewhere. My half opened eyes caught sight of green grass, pink flowers and an ivory white tower in the distance. Unbidden, a single thought popped into my head as the very presence of this strange land began to heal my injuries from lethal to mildly debilitating.

"Only those free of sin may pass."

On the third second, we were back in the Command Room, exactly where we had disappeared from, and my consciousness faded for the third time today.

Clarity returned to me with a jolt what must have been only a few minutes later as a warmth began to seep into my system, just like in the land that could have only been Avalon though of course on a significantly weaker scale. Everything hurt, especially my back where I'd taken a single tick of the damage from the blast, but I managed to open my eyes to see a worried Hinako standing over me.

"You're… okay." I gasped out with a smile despite the pain I was in, filled with nothing but sheer unbridled relief that the Avalon Cookie had done its job.

In the heat of the moment, I wasn't sure how close we needed to be in order to activate it or whether it would've even worked in the first place thanks to a variety of possible reasons, so I'd taken the risk and practically fallen right on top of her. Fortunately, it seemed like whatever I did worked, because Hinako looked relatively unscathed. Even her hair didn't seem singed in the least, though her coat seemed to have been burned away in places. She was holding out something that could've only been a Healing Scroll, which emanated a faint green light that was seeping into my skin.

She said something back in response, but I realized blearily that I couldn't hear her at all- probably because my eardrums were still cooked. However, the glistening of her eyes and the Messages that popped up in front of me gave me a pretty good idea of what she was saying.

[Congratulations! You have Unlocked an Achievement! 'Crimson Moon Over the Snowy Mountain', Completed! Akuta Hinako's(?) Bond has reached Level 4! For completing the above Achievement, you have received a [Platinum Summon Ticket]! For reaching a Bond Milestone with Akuta Hinako(?), you have received a new Perk! [Deep Blood, Discovered!]

Well, there went my plan to keep everyone at Bond 3. But honestly, I couldn't bring myself to care at that moment, especially as my mental faculties started coming back along with my hearing thanks to the efforts of the Healing Scroll, which disintegrated in Hinako's hands after its work was done. It also allowed me to catch the blaring alarms and the tail end of what was probably quite the rant, though of course without the context I didn't really get it.

"... is ridiculous! Don't waste your life like that when you don't even know anything!" She roared, even above the sound of the flames, looking like she was only moments away from actually throttling me.

Her raw emotions were a complete contrast to the way she was before, and even her way of speaking had changed drastically. Was this the real Akuta Hinako? I had no idea, and couldn't really think about it right now since we were still in the middle of an actual crisis.

"Sempai." I croaked, sitting up despite the protest by his body kicking up in response and taking a look around. "Did anyone else make it? Is there a way out?"

The Command Room was in ruins, dyed a fiery red by the flames that raged throughout and the flashing lights of the alarm. Perhaps the only structure that remained virtually undamaged was the massive form of CHALDEAS in the background, though its blue glow had winked out completely. Everything else was practically totaled. Massive chunks of debris and unidentifiable pieces of ruined machinery littered the room as far as the eye could see, really making the whole place look like a warzone. And the worst part? I couldn't see a single soul in the room except Hinako. There had been at least 50 people in the room before the blast, both in and outside of the Coffins. Were they all…?

I felt sick to my stomach as the horrible thought entered my brain, but tried to shake it off. There had to be more survivors, they were freaking Magi for crying out loud! Maybe we were just cut off from the others. After all, the direction I knew the entrance had to be in was blocked off by more debris.

"I don't know." Said Sempai, biting back whatever scolding she still had in store for me. Like me, she too began to take stock of the situation. "But we need to…"

"System switching to the final phase of Rayshift." Blared a robotic voice over the speakers, which were somehow still functioning. "Coordinates: AD 2004, January, 30th, Fuyuki, Japan. LAPLACE's shifting protection established. Singularity's additional factor slot secured."

"Wait, is it seriously…?" I began, a new wave of horror surging through me as I realized what was happening, only to be cut off as the announcement continued.

"Unsummon Program set. Please start final adjustments." It demanded.

"We're out of time!" Hissed Hinako urgently, and I could've sworn her eyes flashed red for a second, though I dismissed it as a trick of the light. "Come on, we need to leave! The Containment Walls will seal us in soon!"

"I- OK!" I replied.

I wanted to ask if we could look for survivors, but…

"This way!" She said, gesturing in a direction and taking off with surprising speed.

'I'm sorry!' I cried, a sense of revulsion welling up in me as I followed Hinako to try and find a way out of the carnage. 'I'm… sorry. But I have to look after myself first…'

At my core, I was a selfish coward. I wanted to save myself. I'm not sure if I would've even saved Sempai had I not needed her for the Avalon Cookie to activate. That's just… who I was. The real me. And of course, the moment I made that rotten decision, I immediately got my comeuppance for it.

A blazing pillar fell with a shuddering crash, sending me reeling back in shock and making my barely healed injuries scream in protest again. I had been lagging behind Hinako thanks to my condition, struggling to move fast because the healing I'd received had only treated the surface injuries like the burns but not my likely scrambled internals, and the falling pillar had separated the two of us.

'It's over.' I realized, my heart sinking even further. 'That's as far as I go, I guess. As far as we all go.'

Waiting for the Rayshift at this point was basically just a death sentence, with the Coffins likely busted beyond repair and the technicians probably vaporized by the blast. But beyond that… wasn't the First Order basically dead in the water? Didn't that mean Humanity was screwed?

"Go! Get out of here!" I yelled, waving away Hinako, who I could faintly see on the other side of the pillar. "At least one of us should make it, or it'll all be for nothing!"

I don't know why I said those words. Maybe it was some kind of lingering sentimentality or even guilt. Perhaps it was the lingering effects of a concussion. It didn't matter, because I immediately turned away and went in the opposite direction without waiting for her reply. Sempai was a better person than me; unless it looked completely hopeless, then she would try to save me. But that would just damn us both, so I had to make sure that option didn't remain.

[Your Affection with Akuta Hinako(?) has increased!]

Heh. Did she think this was some kind of heroic sacrifice?

My pace slowed down drastically as I moved towards CHALDEAS, avoiding the rubble and the flames as best as I could. I wasn't looking for survivors, of course. There was no point at this stage. We were all screwed. Instead, I was just looking for a place where I could sit down and spend the last moments of my life. All my excitement, my hopes, my fears- they drained away like water in a bathtub, leaving only a sense of numbness. In the face of this catastrophe, I just couldn't muster up my will anymore.

"FOU!" Cried a voice from behind me, making me suddenly jolt and snap out of my daze, before something fluffy lightly hit my body and scrambled up my side to land on my shoulder.

"Hey, you." I said, smiling at the critter on my shoulder. "What're you doing here? You should've been outside."

"Fou…." He responded, his cute little face conveying more naked sadness than I thought possible, enough to nearly take my breath away. He patted my cheek with a paw, before letting out a small bark and pointing his paw in a certain direction. "Fo~fou!"

"Follow? I guess that's ok…" I mumbled, before I ambled along in the direction he had indicated, where the Coffins were.

It didn't take me long to find out what Fou was pointing me towards. Or rather, who.

"…Oh." Replied my very first friend in Chaldea, Mash Kyrielight, her mangled and bleeding body trapped beneath the ruins of what was once her Coffin.

The sight of her in such a state was enough to galvanize me. Before I knew it, I had already reached her position, trying to lift the rubble off of her. "Mash, just hold on! I'll get you out!"

"Fo~FOU!" The tiny beast cried in agreement, jumping down and pawing at the mangled steel and stone that trapped her.

"…It's all… right." She coughed out, blood staining her lips. "You can't… save…me."

I knew she was telling the truth. I couldn't see the full extent of her wounds, but from what little I could see, there was no hope for her. Even Magic… probably wouldn't have been able to do much for her, not unless it was on the level of a Phoenix Down. Her glasses were broken, and one of her arms was twisted so brutally it was pointing in the opposite direction. Her legs and torso on the other hand were barely visible at all, buried beneath the rubble, but the pool of blood spreading outwards spoke volumes as to their likely condition.

But I didn't care. I had to do something, anything!

"Momentary Reinforcement!" I cried, igniting my Circuits and activating the Spell woven into my Mystic Code.

Anything… that would help me forget the fact that this was all my fault.

If I hadn't been lazy, if I had taken a few minutes to look for Mash when I entered the Command Room, then I could've saved her with the Avalon Cookie. She was a Heroine too, she met the conditions required to trigger it. I might have still been unable to make it out, but at least she would've been fine. I ignored the whisper in the back of my mind that told me Hinako-Sempai would've been in her place instead, that I could've only picked one or the other. It was logical, yes, but it was also hard. Mash was a kind girl and the only person here my age, one who was clearly sheltered and hadn't seen much of the outside world. She was a reflection of my past self, someone who I wanted to help grow just like old man Nakamura had helped me. Only hours ago, I had laughed alongside her while looking at silly pictures of Fou.

And now, she was nearly in pieces. Because this stupid, lazy buffoon I saw in the mirror every day couldn't be bothered to search the room for a bit.

Power surged through my limbs as the Spell activated, my Circuits glowing brighter as I lifted the rubble off of her. The increase to my strength just barely toed the line of superhuman, my own decent physique and the weak Spell working together as best they could, but it was enough to shift the rubble onto its side and pull Mash out from that makeshift bear trap. Just as I'd imagined, her legs and lower body had been… well, it was probably best not to say. Immediately after I got her out of there, my hands darkened with her blood, the boost from the Spell disappeared and a fresh wave of pain and exhaustion spread throughout my body, making me realize that I wasn't going any further.

So instead I collapsed against a particularly flat piece of rubble, pulling Mash over into a sitting position next to me. Lacking the strength to remain upright on her own, the pink-haired girl fell over, but I caught her before she could fall and instead eased her onto my lap, not minding the fact that what remained of my Uniform was getting dyed a dark red.

"Why…? You should have ran… while you still had the energy." Said Mash, her purple eyes slightly glazed over from the pain and the shock. "You would have… survived, Sempai..."

[Mash Kyrielight's Bond has reached Level 3!]

I shook my head.

"The way to the entrance was blocked off by rubble. We're in the same boat here, Mash."

"Ah." She croaked, sadness coating her gaze. It tore at my heart, seeing that she was more upset about my fate than the fact that she'd been nearly bifurcated. Did this girl really value her life that little, or was she just a naturally selfless person? I realized I'd been accidentally insulting her when I compared her to my past self earlier. She may have been just as awkward and morose, but it was clear to me that Mash Kyrielight was kinder than I'd ever been in my life. "Did… anyone… else?"

"Akuta-Sempai must have made it out." I answered quickly, understanding what she was trying to ask. "I didn't see anyone else, but there were probably other survivors too. They're strong Mages after all, a simple bomb wouldn't be able to take 'em all down."

The confident smile I gave her was one hundred percent a fabrication. I knew it was likely that no one else had made it, I was almost sure of it. But… after everything that had happened, the least I could do for Mash was let her die with hope still remaining in her heart.

"That's… good…" She said, smiling back at me lightly. "I'm… glad…"

[Your Affection with Mash Kyrielight has increased!]

Of course, just when I finally thought I had done something right, that was when the world decided to fuck with me one more time.

"...?!" I let out a small noise of surprise and blinked rapidly, as CHALDEAS suddenly changed.

Originally a dormant gray, it had now turned into a molten red, like a miniature model of the sun. The floating screens around it turned a garbled pink as they reactivated, unintelligible data flowing across them. A sense of unease gripped my heart, stacking on top of everything else like a tower of Jenga blocks. Didn't this mean…

"Warning all observation staff." Blared the mechanical Announcer one more time. "CHALDEAS' state has changed. Now rewriting SHEBA's near-future prediction data."

"Oh… no…" Gasped Mash, her eyes widening as she turned her gaze in the same direction as my own.

"Unable to detect the existence of mankind 100 years in the near future on Earth." It continued, uncaring of how both of us froze in shock as our worst fears were confirmed. "Unable to confirm Human survivors. Unable to guarantee mankind's future."

"Shit…" I groused, clenching my teeth. So it really was the absolute worst case scenario…

"Chaldeas… has turned bright red…" Said the dying girl.

"Fou…" Cried the little animal, sitting on his haunches and watching us from a few feet away.

He seemed to understand the seriousness of the situation, and had almost gone completely inactive as if keeping vigil.

"Central Area, sealed." Said another Announcer. "180 seconds till internal containment procedure."

A large groaning noise was heard as the entrance to the Command Room was blocked off, merely the nail in our burning coffin.

"…" There was nothing she could say. We couldn't have escaped either way.

"Coffin Vitals: Masters Baseline not reached. Rayshift requirement not met. Searching for qualifying Master…" Droned the faceless voice. "Found. Candidate No. 48, Ritsuka Fujimaru, reset as Master."

"She made it out…" I sighed, my turmoil parting way for a singular piece of satisfaction.

"Unsummon Program, Start. Spiritron Conversion, Start." The speakers continued to play, heedless of the state of the chamber.

"Um… Sem…pai…?" Mash choked out, clearly at the end of the line. "Would you mind… holding my hand?"

Golden sparkles began to rise up from all around us, like snow fall in reverse. A strange feeling began to well up all over my body, completely different from the pain, almost like I was being… spirited away. Even so, I obliged, taking the one good hand the girl in my lap had left firmly into one of my own. Despite the state it was in, it was still warm, and I could feel her fingers curling around my own.

"Hey, Mash?" I called out.

"Rayshift commencing in 3…"

The sparkles around us grew brighter, the wondrous sight catching both of our gazes.

"Yes…?" She replied.

"2…"

"If we die here…" I began, letting out a small laugh as we locked eyes with each other for the last time.

I didn't know what I looked like to her, but to me- she looked peaceful. Her pink hair was streaked with blood and her purple eyes had nearly lost their luster completely, but the smile on her face surpassed any expression I'd seen her make before. She was broken, beyond any hope of repair, and yet she still persevered somehow, able to muster a true smile even under these circumstances. It was, perhaps, the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen, and it gave me the strength to truly grin back in turn.

"1…"

"Then I just wanted you to know that I'm glad I got to spend my last moments with a friend." I finished, looking up at the dark ceiling.

"Oh… Sempai…"

"All procedures clear. First Order, commencing operation."

'Mom, Dad, Lizzie… I wish I could've seen you guys one more time.' And then everything went dark, the last thing I saw being a black hole with swirling blue energy surrounding it like a halo… and the distant brilliant star within its center.

[Mash Kyrielight's Bond has reached Level 5! For reaching a Bond Milestone with Mash Kyrielight, you have received a new Passive Skill! [Shield of the Beloved, Discovered! A new Photo has been added to the Gallery! 'Where it All Began', Recorded!]

[Act 1: Observer on Timeless Temple - Commencing.]

And that's a wrap. Hope you guys enjoyed it!

Got a little emotional at the end there, but that's because Ritsuka is a rather contradictory character. For someone who claims to be a coward that would use others and dip, he cares a little too much. But hey, that's part of being Human.

Don't really have much else to say except that I'm glad Part 2 is supposed to end this year, can't wait for all the upcoming revelations.

Stay safe, everyone.

Spatialphoenix here, burning to ashes.