25 Gods and Monsters

Raven managed to return in five minutes. With her new speed, she was able to cover the affected area of Fuyuki quicker. Thanks to that, she managed to grab two more survivors. Unfortunately, when the flames that burned Fuyuki came under her control, they burned far hotter than before and killed many who might or might not have been saved before she extinguished them.

Getting them to safety had been quick and easy. Paramedics quickly arrived but Raven hadn't stayed for them. She felt a strange presence coming her way and left to avoid hurting the survivors and paramedics. Stopping on a roof, she only had to wait a few seconds to see who was coming.

In front of her arrived a blond man with ruby red eyes, clad in golden armor wearing an arrogant expression of disgust. His arms were folded and he looked as if he was about to talk down at her. Raven just cut him off with a sigh, further irritating the man.

"Now there's another one. Familiar punchable face. Though you don't feel as overwhelmingly powerful. That, and you lack breasts and long hair. Hm.. none of that light power either" Raven commented to herself.

The man grew more confused and irritated the more he heard her speak about him and decided enough was enough.

"Are you done talking to yourself, Mongrel? I have questions for you and you will answer them" He strode around her, keeping his eyes glued on hers.

"I'll humor you. Go ahead" Raven replied, not feeling all too threatened by the man.

She could feel that black water in him. Composing his body of it only made Raven curious of him. Excessive black water that contained mana. It gave him a physical body but he felt different than a human. He was connected to someone. Raven noted her perception of magic was increasing, fast. In the end, she missed a great deal of the man's words and only paid attention a minute in.

"-so why do you feel so much like that mud, Mongrel?" He asked with an arrogant smile on his face.

"Why don't we both introduce ourselves before we start questioning each other? I'm old fashioned but politeness is quite important in my opinion" Raven retorted, making the man's brow twitch in annoyance.

"Very well, Mongrel. Since I came to you, I will introduce myself first. I am Gilgamesh, first and only true King to Humanity" He proudly declared, smirking when Raven's eyes widen.

"I thought you had a beard? And were Middle Eastern? Why do you look like you star in a boy band..? And why are you calling me Mongrel? Ah, sorry. I seem to have been taken back there. My name is Raven" She finally introduced to the increasingly aggravated King.

"Do not compare me to the feeble depictions you have read. Now will you answer my question or must I force you to? And you are all Mongrels to me" Raven, hearing his annoyance, slightly smiled and hummed to herself.

"Ah, one more thing. Aren't you part God, part human?" Raven asked as Gilgamesh tensed and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Don't you dare-" Gilgamesh tried to warn her but it was too late.

"So aren't you a mutt yourself? Mongrel King?" Raven's question was met with several floating blades coming out of a portal, all aimed at her.

"I no longer care now.. Die" Gilgamesh retorted angrily as his blades launched straight at Raven.

Seeing the powerful blades come at her all at once was an eye opening experience for Raven. One thought in particular rose up in her mind.

~These seem.. slow? No, not slow. More like.. I can predict his every action? The composition of his body.. I can read him like a book. Him and his capabilities. That one sword spells trouble for me. He's underestimating me too? Ah, his ability can't get a read on me, can it? I'm foreign to him. That's why he came over to me. This is a probing attack. Although he is quite angry too. I can make an esca- 𝗡𝗼-~ Her thoughts stopped there as the crest in her chest glowed. Her body becoming a blur to the King as he decided to take her more seriously.

It was the right call. But it was made almost too late. His right arm was now missing and blood was pouring out of the stump from his shoulder. If he had continued to underestimate her, his head would have been the one missing. Looking behind him with wide eyes, he saw a rather disturbing sight.

Raven had his arm in her hand and was draining black water from the severed limb. Though Omen was now broken due to the caliber of Gilgamesh's armor, she did not seem any less dangerous.

"For some reason, the thought of fleeing from you.. It disgusts me" Raven dropped the now armorless stump to the ground as the metal it was made from had melted and snaked up her arm.

Seeing the situation was going in the opposite direction from how he wanted, Gilgamesh activated the Gate of Babylon once again, completely obliterating the very building they were on and turning it into a crater full of Noble Phantasms. Raven was lying inside, aura flickering black and crimson intertwined. Her soul's power increasing it even now. Gilgamesh walked forward but tripped suddenly, his ruby eyes widening in anger.

Seeing his leg missing beside a now Crimson black sword, he looked at Raven as she stood up and cracked her neck.

"Are you trying to make me kneel? And my treasures..? You.." He trailed off, now staring at the woman before him, as if he didn't notice her before.

"How did this happen...." He mused before the black waters within him turned into solidified spears that tore him apart from within.

Raven sighed in relief as she looked at the body of the King. Pulling her hand out, the body was dragged over to her. Sinking her hand inside his armor, all the golden lustre of his armor was lost and his body decomposed at a rapid rate.

"I think I figured it out. That water.. I feel where the rest of it is. I could only do that to him because I devoured it and he was composed by it. He was hardly affected by its control though.. I guess this Angra Mainyu was allied with him" Raven thought aloud before looking to her broken odachi handle.

"And since I 'devoured' him.. Ugh.. gross. I can-" With a flash of energy, her broken odachi further broke, melting the blade and reforging it with a rose-gold metal that was far sturdier.

"Good. From what I can tell.. this is far more than even a very durable blade now" Raven gave it a good look over and sheathed it before leaving the crater and returning to where Kiritsugu and the little boy was.

Kiritsugu was surprised once again. Raven wasn't even gone for thirty minutes and already she returned. He doubted she was actually going to try and save anyone but the legitimate smile she had upon seeing that the boy was safe threw him off.

"Here, I found some paramedics. We can get him over to them if we hurry. People are starting to sift through the debris and bodies" Raven quickly led them while Kiritsugu held on to the boy tightly.

"And you found survivors in all this..?" Kiritsugu asked, paying special attention to her, trying to see if she'd lie.

"I found a few, luckily. Most I found were.. pretty burnt and beyond recovery" Raven replied honestly as they approached yelling paramedics, who were trying to save victims with burns beyond the third degree.

"I.. Is this true..?" Kiritsugu nearly choked out.

"Mn? Yes. A lot of people died but it's not as bad as it could have been" Raven responded, seeing a grateful expression on the man's face.

Managing to get the boy into an ambulance, Raven saw him weakly reach out to her. His eyes were so hollow it reminded her of her past self. Before the door closed, Raven stopped it and climbed in with a sigh.

"I'm coming too. I think he needs someone right now" Raven grasped his small hand as the paramedics nodded and closed the door while driving off in a hurry.

"Don't worry. I'll be here when you wake up, okay?" The boy's grip on her hand eased as he slowly nodded and closed his eyes.

~I'd rather him move past this and not turn out like me or..~ Raven thought of Kiritsugu, who she felt the curses of the black waters on.

~His eyes are hollow too. But I suspect his have been for a long time. Hm.. at least he's still empathetic. I feel something in the boy. It looks as if it can heal him..~ Raven lightly sighed and thought back on the day's numerous events.

"I think this takes it. Officially the busiest day of my life" She joked to herself quietly.

-Six hours later, Fuyuki General Hospital-

The boy woke up after six hours and, true to her word, Raven was there. Kiritsugu as well, though very few words were exchanged between the two. Both seemed happy the boy woke up. Wanting to see what Raven did, he observed their interaction.

"You. You said your name was Raven?" The boy asked.

"That's my name. How about yours? Do you have any parents? A home?" Raven gently asked as she sat next to his bed and maintained eye level.

"A name.. Shirou. I don't.. remember anything else.." He held his head and replied.

"Nothing? That's a problem.." Raven frowned, though Kiritsugu stepped in.

"As things stand right now, you will be sent to an orphanage, where they will care for you. Or, I can take you in" Kiritsugu offered, seeing the boy seriously consider it before looking at Raven.

"Raven too?" He asked, though Raven turned around and grabbed at her upper chest.

~That was so damn cute.. Ahh. No.. this is fine. It's not like I'm the one adopting him.. Mn. This is okay~ Turning around, she sees Kiritsugu with a strange look in his eyes.

"She can visit any time. It should be no issue" Kiritsugu seemed somewhat relieved.

"Then I agree" Shirou nodded at them both.

"I'll come stop by soon when you move in with Kiritsugu here. I have a few things I need to get back to first. But you'll definitely see more of me, okay Shirou?" Raven ruffled his red hair as he slowly nodded, losing a little bit of that hollow look in his eyes.

Raven got up and walked by Kiritsugu, stopping next to him and muttering silently.

"I'm sure you have questions for me as I do for you. I'll find you after you move Shirou into your house. All I have to do is follow the smell of your curses" Raven then passed him, leaving the hospital and quickly using her semblance to return to Patch.

Breathing in far cleaner air, Raven sighed and folded her arms. Kimblee popped out from behind a tree with a light frown.

"Couldn't even play along, could you? You're getting used to me" Kimblee chuckled, seeing the lidded glare Raven gave him.

"I'm not playing hide and seek with a grown ass man, thank you" Raven ignored the snicker she recieved as a response.

"Well that aside.. You were busy, hm? You devoured Noble Phantasms.. Quite a few really. It'll take a while before you can use them, however. As soon as you finish off Angra Mainyu, it should all be available to you" Kimblee gave her a once over and nodded.

"I see you know exactly what strange power I possess. No surprise there.." Raven sighed and ignored his cheeky grin.

"I'll let you figure out how to utilize it. No fun if I gave all the answers and secrets away, right? Though I do have something you should know. The 'gods' of the omniverse now know of your existence. And given your sudden appearance and neutral soul signature.. Let's just say some people will try to recruit or kill you. No 'gods' will but they like to send their toys to do their dirty work. You're on the radar now, Raven. You have to be careful" Kimblee warned seriously.

-Unknown space-

A golden figure of light with no discernable features excluding antlers on his head, was in a meeting with several other beings. All looking drastically different than the other. The one thing they had in common was the morally just aura coming from them. The one with antlers on his head was listening to the others when the talk ceased. They all felt it. Something just made its presence known.

"This is... aura? And magic..? Someone from that failed world.." The figure's fists clenched.

"Hmph.. I feel some darkness from it too. We told you not to create that world with your foul brother" One of the beings scoffed after speaking to the horned figure.

"I know. Haaah.. I'll have to fix that mistake before this all blows out of proportion.." The horned figure spent the rest of their meeting thinking to himself.

[A/N: Ya'll gotta thank Lilith Zenon for motivating me to push three chaps out this fast. I am speed... Anyways! Happy New Years doods! Hope you enjoyed!]