9 Chapter 9 - To Reforge Onself

[Attribute Enchant: Holy Lv 34 – 11%]

By imbuing the essence of your magic with holy energy, you can now enchant any object or attack you are close to.

-Due to the source of this skill, Exp gain is tripled-

Attacks enhanced with this skill deals 440% damage to unholy and demonic enemies

…Holy hell.

I can't help but gawk when I see just how much progress I've made from around 5 hours of playing around with this skill. I didn't even go all out, since I can't attract any attention from the other people in the hospital. You know, 'cause I'm still supposed to be crippled and all.

Anyways, to rewind a bit, after I woke up, I quickly wrapped some bandages around my supposed 'injured' limbs and got treated to a nice warm breakfast by Akari, before she hastily left to deal with a new batch of patients from a recent event. Still, she seems oddly worried for someone who's worked in this field for over 4 years or so. Makes me wonder just how bad the new patients' conditions are.

After she left, I began my experiments with it, though remembering to make sure not to cause any sounds or explosions that can alert anyone nearby, while also keeping my magical hearing sharp in case anyone does approach. I started simple, creating swords and shields of prana enchanted with the Holy element, before creating miniature monsters and staging a play battle against one another.

It was very fun, even if I caused a light explosion and basically made me blind for a few minutes.

Overall, I spent a good couple hours actually training, and the other three doing random shenanigans that would make the Clocktower go crazy.

Now, after spending all my mental energy and MP doing my weird battle simulations, I'm now left with nothing to do. I mean, I can watch the TV and all, but all it's broadcasting is the news about the recent messy murders happening in the city.

It's probably important for me to take notes for anything important about the news, but I just don't feel like doing that right now.

Actually, now that I've seen the clock on my minimap, I'm surprised Akari hasn't shown up to wheel me towards the canteen to get some lunch. I can still sense her in the hospital, so she's still doing fine, but I wonder just how truly bad of a situation she's forced to deal with right now for her to still be working 5 hours after she first left me alone.

Distantly, I hear the sound of rainfall and rustling leaves, with the sound of the playing TV over it.

Aside from that, nothing. Only simple, calm silence is heard from the rest of the hospital.

The hospital has never been silent.

The door to my room slides open, and a nurse enters, holding in her hands a plate of food that was meant for my lunch.

I shoot her right in the head with my [Thunderer].

The nurse continues forward, uncaring of the hole drilled in her skull. She takes a step, then two, then three. Then, her limbs go unresponsive, the tray of poisonous food clatters onto the floor as the nurse falls onto the ground. She twitches for a few moments, her expression flickering between confusion and absolute euphoria, before she stops for good and fades away.

[The phantom has disappeared]

'No Exp…' That can mean several things, but I leave the ponderings for later. For now, I have more important matters to attend to.

With the [Thunderer] securely held in my left hand, I leave the comfortable confines of my bed and exit my room. I give a quick look into Shirou's room, and as I expected, his bed is empty. Exiting the empty room, I begin my slow and shaky walk down the corridor, making sure to keep a keen eye on my surroundings at all times, since that 'phantom' walked into my room without creating a single sound.

Soon, I make it into the main lobby, and as I can see many people milling around. Nurses moving about, doctors waiting on their examinations results, and general people sitting and chatting, all without a single noise being made.

The moment I step in, all their eyes turn to me, and their eyes bleed black.

I begin drilling their heads with bullets instantly, not willing to see what kind of attacks they might deal with. A nurse slips past and moves behind me, her hand stretched out to touch my back. An inch before she reaches me however, a sword of prana extends from my back and impales her right through the head. I don't look to see, instead focusing on shooting the heads of the approaching horde of phantoms, while killing any that got too close with a prana sword to the chest.

Gunshots and prana sword fly outwards towards the phantoms, sending them crashing onto the floor with holes of varying sizes drilled through their body.

Finally, one last burning bullet is fired, and an elder lady drops onto the floor, a hole through her neck and a smile etched onto her face, before she fades away like the rest.

[All phantoms have disappeared]

With all perceived threats in the lobby room eliminated, I continue onwards, using Akari's magical signature as a beacon to make my way around the hospital. My firearm is held forwards as I walk down the hallways, occasionally checking my back to make sure no one's behind me, while also keeping my ears out for any sudden changes in Akari's sounds.

Then, I walk through the door at the end of the hallway, and I see Akari standing there, facing me, her teal eyes dull and blank.

"Ah, so you're the one."

The voice is undoubtedly Akari, and the way she spoke is as I remember, but my magical senses are blaring. Her voice carries the same sounds as her, but with the rainfall and rustling leaves, a chilling echo is heard as well.

'Why would her sound echo?' I wanted to ask, but 'Akari' takes a step forward, and my left hand snaps forward, pointing my gun straight at her head. "Fiesty as well." She comments, a smirk playing on her face, one that honestly didn't fit with how Akari looks.

"…Who are you?" I finally ask, finger playing on the trigger of my rebuilt Noble Phantasm. She makes a show of humming and placing a finger on her cheek, before she looks back to me with a wide smile. "But I'm Akari! Don't you see?"

"Like hell you are." I bite back, and she laughs.

"Oh, how I like that fire."

I blink, and the next thing I know, a delicate finger is pressed against the back of my neck. "You make me want to gobble you up, you know?"

My muscles freeze, and refuse to move, snapping shut like gears in a lock. She moved fast, faster than I can hear, faster than my instincts could feel. It was thanks to my Mystic Eyes that I even realized she'd gotten behind me, though such foreknowledge is useless without my body being fast enough to respond to it.

Idly, my brain, reminded by this, decided it was a good idea to bring up my previous encounter with slutty Medusa. I can't quite help the healthy blush creeping up my cheeks at the reminder.

"W-What?" I squeak out, mostly due to me still recovering from the sudden memory, which then gave 'Akari' an opening to wrap her arms around me and pull me into a crushing hug. "Ah~! You really are cute!"

"H-Hey!" I cry out as I attempt to escape her clutches, but alas, her grip on me is too strong, and I'm forced to wait as she hugs the life out of me like I'm some sort of teddy bear. It also doesn't help that she's a beautiful woman with plenty of stock to her assets, which means those pillows of hers are pressing right up my back.

Eventually, she does let go, and I turn around and aim my gun at her, though the feeling of tension is gone by this point, and my arm falls back to my side. "So…you're really Akari?" The woman doesn't say anything, but the answer's pretty clear, especially from that act from earlier. I let out a weak sigh. "Then what's all this for?"

"Mm…No reason." She says, plainly and simply. "…Seriously?" I deadpan, and she smiles and nods. I sigh again. "…Okay then, can I ask something?"

"Sure!"

I go silent for a moment, thinking of how to phrase my question, before finally asking, "Are you…human?"

"Nope!" There were no stutters, no signs of lies or hesitation. "…Wait, really?" She nods, and I stare for a moment.

"Then…are you, a ghost or something?" I ask again, though this one's more for curiosity than anything since my wariness from earlier is mostly gone. Her eyes widen for a moment, seemingly shocked, before she pulls me back into her embrace, diving my face straight into her bountiful bosom.

"Mm~, so Hanami-chan's a prodigy too!" She says with a giggle, though I'm more focused from escaping this encompassing valley more than anything. "But, really, your senses must be really sharp, Hanami-chan! I didn't think you'd spot that out so quickly!"

"But, you're not quite right." She says softly, and I look up to her, seeing the light in her teal eyes return. With that, any wariness I had fades away, giving way for curious worry as I return her look, seeing wisps of wistful regret dancing in those eyes of hers. "I'm a phantom. It's kind of like a ghost, just that I came from the leylines instead of a dying human. You're the second person to figure it out so quickly."

If I'm the second, then who's the first?

"…huh." Well, I wasn't quite expecting her to just tell the truth so quickly, but…

"Wait, then what's up with you in the last few days?" At her raised eyebrows, I elaborate further. "I mean, I can feel that you're a phantom, but yesterday you felt…well, human." Her eyes widen once more, her eyes lighting up in shock. This time however, her shock lasts much longer, and her eyes remain wide open.

"You…even noticed that?" She asks slowly. I nod, confused, and she takes a step back, her fingers nursing her forehead. "…Wow, that's…"

"Uh, was I not supposed to know that?" She makes no movement for a moment, and a gentle creeping feeling of worry begins to seep in, but Akari soon shakes her head, and her lips curve into a wry smile. "It's fine. I just wasn't expecting you to be so sensitive to my prana."

"Your prana?" I ask, intrigued, and completely forgetting that I've yet to escape Akari's tight embrace. "Us phantasmal beings are in the reverse side of the world, forced to move there when magic began to decline, but I'm an exception, you see? I stayed in the human world, but that led to me slowly becoming corporeal, and my prana draining away."

"At least, until yesterday, when a gateway to the reverse side of the world suddenly opened."

…Wait, what? A gate to the reverse side of the world opened? How-

Ah, the [Reave Jungles] ID.

I keep my thoughts to myself, instead asking her, "Is that why you're suddenly a phantom again?"

"I should've."

I tilt my head in confusion. "'Should've'? Did something go wrong or something?" Akari makes a thoughtful frown, staring off into empty space for a moment before turning back to me. "Maybe. I've regained some of my powers, but I think I've stayed as a human for far too long to return to an actual phantom."

"Not that I mind, since being a human's infinitely more fun." She then adds with a cheery smile, before tightening her already tight hug on me, just to emphasize the point.

'Hey, stop, stop! My spine's breaking…!' I probably would've shouted at her face if my face wasn't being buried in her breasts. But, I think I made my point when she realized I haven't been speaking in a minute or so and let me go, apologizing all the way as my pale face slowly begins to regain its color.

"Ehe~, sorry there, Hanami-chan! Forgot that I've got super strength now~"

'Forgot' my ass! That smirk on your face says otherwise!

I sigh, taking several deep breaths to give my body its much-needed oxygen, before shakily standing up and glaring at the woman.

Because, hey, if I didn't cast [Reinforcement] on myself at the last second, my spine wouldn't have survived that!

Of course, the nurse proceeds to just laugh it off, unknowing to my inner thoughts. I would've glared at her further, but it's quite hard to stay angry at the woman, knowing that she just likes hugging, even if she hasn't quite reigned in her increased strength. Letting out another sigh, I cast a quick [Structural Analysis] on myself, just to make sure that nothing actually got injured in that little scenario, before making my way out of the room with Akari by my side.

And so, with the little scenario over and our lunch forgotten, we make our way back to my hospital room, conversing on various topics along the way.

...............

How long had he spent, watching the skies burn alight, torn apart by evils of the world?

Truly, he doesn't know, nor does he care. He's at ease, knowing that he'd shielded Hanami with the effects of [Avalon], despite exhausting the last of his prana and drowning in all the evils of the world in that ever-changing void.

He'd seen the cruelty of the world, of the despair that permeated through all of humanity. He'd seen the worst of their acts, witnessed the purging of innocents, seen wars tear through the masses, killing all, discriminating against none. Perhaps, had he been his naïve self, he'd drowned in it, broke himself in it.

But he persevered. He'd grown, absorbed knowledge of warriors long past, seen the world without his rose-tinted lense. Ashamed he might be, but what Saber said back then was right. He'd become ruthless, brutal.

And he wouldn't have it any other way, because with that, he'd saved a single life as the world fell apart.

Idly, he wonders if this is what Kiritsugu felt when he pulled him out of the burning hell. The happiness, the sheer resonating relief of seeing and knowing that he'd saved someone. It was…comforting, wrapping around him like a blanket, giving him warmth in the cascading visions the taint that he's drowned in.

He's held on 'til now, and he'll continue to do so until [Avalon] can work to clean the taint within him.

"Mo, when is thing going to end!? How long do we have to wait!?"

"Calm down. Your shouting hurts."

Well, the other two voices in his head certainly help to keep him sane though.

"Uuu…another burning city…at least show us wars or something! Make it interesting!"

"That…is not something you should say lightly. Please never say that again."

"But you're bored too, right?"

"Certainly not. A ninja must put aside his feelings when needed."

"Liar!"

Honestly, hearing the two voices banter against one another is extremely amusing. It's almost like watching one of those strange rom-coms Fuji-nee likes watching so much, except it's more hearing than watching something, and the two actors are himself, just with different personality traits. It was fairly disorienting to hear his own voice quip on in his head at first, but after the first day or so, he'd gotten quite used to it.

How these two came about is a mystery to him, but he doesn't really care. It's far better than letting his mind wander.

Then, something shifts.

He didn't see much, or at all, that is, with how everything suddenly turned black, but he can feel the world almost twist, turning and molding into something different. Then comes the scent of blooming roses, followed by a gentle wind, carrying a wave of petals up into the sky, one that'd changed from the previous black to a bright blue.

He takes a step back, wary, then pleasantly surprised to feel his legs step on something soft. He looks down, and sees a garden of pink flowers under his feet, one that stretched out too far beyond what his eyes can see.

But his attention soon shifts to the tall, white tower a distance before him. It…seems to be a belltower of sorts, almost like those strange towers from old fairy tales, but its pleasant appearance does no effort to hide the presence that sits atop the tower.

Not hostile or evil, mind you, but still a very, very powerful presence at that.

"Ah, well, this is strange. I wasn't expecting any visitors."

A melodic voice sounds throughout the garden. Oddly enough, Shirou can't quite figure out whether the voice is male or female, or perhaps both. Strange indeed, but he's gone through a war with the fabled King Arthur, who he found out is female, and has a stomach larger than Taiga. In short, he's seen enough weirdness to start building resistance.

I wonder if that's a good thing…

"Well…sorry?" The voice laughs, the melodic tone echoing through the endless gardens, before it stops. "No, no, there is no need to be sorry. I simply wasn't expecting to find someone else in my company, especially in a place like this."

"What is this place anyway?" He asks, completely ignoring the Okita personality excitedly rambling that he's conversing with thin air.

"Hmm…" The voice makes a gentle hum, before it stops abruptly. The world around Shirou seems to stop for a moment, frozen. The gentle sway the pink flowers once had is no more, and the comforting breeze that blows throughout this endless expanse no longer exists.

"It can't be…" The voice says, astounded, before it breaks into another laugh, this one louder, more vibrant.

"Surely, I do not need to answer that, do I? You know this place better than most, after all!"

Shirou narrows his eyes in confusion for a moment, but then the world restarts, the wind blows once again, starting with a powerful gust, blowing flower petals high into the sky. Deep inside, a golden light shines, a gentle warmth emanating from the core of his existence. His eyes widen as the answer seeps into his mind, coupled together with the comforting hum of the sheathe that his father had implanted within him to save his life.

It was right. He knew this place better than most.

For he now basks in the warmth of the Everdistant Utopia.

"Avalon…?" He says slowly, as he brings a hand over his chest, where his heart continues to beat, a reminder that his life still exists. A tinge of warmth surges from his chest, and he knows that Avalon has replied to his call.

"[The Everdistant Utopia]. A fitting name, isn't? A world where no pain exists, where death cannot run its course, and where the one and true king shall ultimately return to upon their death." The voice then sighs.

And then starts rambling.

"Honestly, this place is simply not for me! There is nothing to do here! The flowers are pretty, and the breeze is nice, but it gets stale after the few days or so! I have no entertainment, no ways to pass my time! And I'm all alone up here in my tower, with no one to talk to! If only I hadn't been tricked by that foul woman, then I wouldn't even be in here!"

The voice takes a deep breath, then lets it go, and repeats so several times to regain its breath. That was certainly strange, but Shirou already has a bumbling rambler of a voice in his head already, so hearing this omnipresent voice ramble on about its trouble feels quite normal.

But that aside, he can't help but pity the owner of the voice. A utopia Avalon certainly is, but to be in here alone?

It…unnerves him. He'd seen many people who's stood alone, and what they became.

He doesn't want that. He doesn't want anyone to feel like that.

"Well, I'm here, aren't I?" His words slipped out before he knew it. The voice remains silent, and he begins to slightly panic, wondering if he'd said anything wrong, before the voice laughs, much more gently, though just as vibrant.

"You really are interesting, aren't you, Shirou Emiya?" The voice says almost fondly. "I do appreciate that, I truly do, but I believe you've been asleep for far too long. The taint you gathered has been cleansed the moment you stepped here, and I say it's time you awoke to the real world. After all, you have your friend waiting out there, do you not?"

"…Can I at least visit you again?"

The voice chuckles. "[Only those of Innocent and Pure Hearts may enter]. That is the rule of which the gates to this world shall abide to. Simply wish to visit me again, and the gates will surely open themselves to you. Now! Off you go!"

Before Shirou can get any more questions, his body begins to fade into golden light, before disappearing completely. Though he did manage to say goodbye to the elusive voice atop the tower, and it replies with a heartful chuckle.

..............

The endless garden goes quiet, returning to its tranquil state, with only the gentle breeze blowing throughout the world of flowers. The figure atop the white tower sighs, running a hand through their long white hair, before looking down towards the spot where the young man once stood. Slowly, their lips curve into a small smile.

"…Do come again soon, Shirou Emiya."

...........

His awakening is…well, it isn't pleasant. His body feels like lead dipped into burning oil. His limbs feel weak and unresponsive, and he generally feels terrible.

But he's alive, so that's good.

Instantly, [Avalon] begins correcting the many weaknesses in his body, draining much of his prana and swiftly healing his atrophied body. The roaring heat in his system flushes out, his sense of touch slowly returns to him, and his body is strengthened, given energy to work once more. The numbness swiftly fades along with the searing heat, and before long, his body is back in its prime state.

'That was…fast.' No, fast is putting it lightly.

That was near-instant.

But [Avalon] had never had that capability. Its regenerative abilities couldn't heal at such speeds, not even when he'd stood and fought beside the original owner of the sheathe. Of course, he wondered how that could've happened, before remembering that he'd just literally visited [Avalon] and realizing that he'd answered his own question.

He isn't given any more time however as the door to his hospital room slides open, smacking loudly upon impact, and Hanami comes rushing in, her breath slightly labored and her eyes wide open, before breaking out into a large grin. "Shirou!" She leaps forward, and he'd only barely managed to reinforce himself to catch her, stifling a groan of pain as she dives onto him.

"Hanami..." With a gentle smile, he places a hand on her head and comforts the girl, whispering gentle words as he cradled the crying girl in his arms. It's…the least he can do, helping calm her down after being asleep for who knows how long.

He also noticed the peculiar being standing by the doorway, though seeing the soft gaze the nurse has as she watches them made him swiftly discard the possibility of her being an enemy.

They remain there for a few peaceful minutes, Shirou comfortingly patting the girl's back as she weeps, while they bask in the warmth of the peering sunlight. Slowly, the girl's tears dry, though she still remains on his bed, her face pinned onto his chest, and it's finally when he tried to move her that he sees her eyes closed, and her breathing slow and gentle. It seems, somewhere along their embrace, Hanami fell asleep, and he can't quite find the strength to wake or move her away.

So, he lays there, with a girl asleep by his side, her arms wrapped around his back. It's quite an embarrassing position, but not an uncomfortable one for sure. Slowly, he moves, making space for the asleep girl and pulling her onto the bed. He is about to lend his pillow for her, but the nurse comes close and places another pillow under Hanami's head, before pulling a chair close and sitting by the bedside.

"It's good to see you awake, Shirou-kun. My name is Watanabe Akari, and I've been tasked as Hanami-chan and your nurse." She says softly, mindful to not wake the girl by his side. "…It's good to see you too, Watanabe-san."

"Mm. There's no need to be so formal, Shirou-kun."

She smiles-

"Just call me Akari-nee, little brother!"

And then proceeds to say that, with a bright wide smile worthy of rivaling a certain tiger. It took nearly all his power to not let his jaw drop, though he couldn't quite stop his eyes from dropping into a deadpan. "…Why am I your little brother, Watanabe-san?" His question is met with a strong pout, and a huff from the woman. "Muu~, no need to be so formal, Shirou-kun!"

He had another reply ready to be spoken, but he recognized the face she has. Once again, just like that of a certain tiger's, she's not going to back down until he relents. So, with a weak sigh, he repeats his question. "Why am I your little brother, Akari-san?"

"Because Hanami-chan's my little sister!" But Shirou gives no response, simply staring at her.

"Mo, stop being so mature, Shirou! I'm the big sister here!" He can almost hear Fuji-nee's voice ringing in his head, wailing and laughing as they ate together in the living room. He can almost imagine the speed she moved to nip more food from the plate, almost feel a wry grin make its way onto his face. He can almost hear Fuji-nee laughing at her triumph, and Sakura sitting beside him, admonishing the teacher for being so and offering her food for him.

Almost.

After all, they're all gone, aren't they?

"I see. We'll be in your care, Akari-san." He says with a small bow, keeping his face carefully blank to mask the turmoil inside. Again, the woman commented on how 'he was being too polite', but the world around him had mostly gone silent, leaving him alone with the cold realization that most of the people he knew and cared for perished.

The silence is suffocating, deafening, like being at the bottom of the ocean.

Unconsciously, he takes Hanami's hand into his, grasping it, holding on to the last shred of familiar warmth in this silence.

No, she's still here. You still have her.

Slowly, the world begins to regain its life. The sound of Hanami's gentle breathing becomes an anchor for him, a pillar to hold onto as he muscled his way out of his inner turmoils. And slowly, like pulling himself out of molten glue, he begins to rise back out, pushing those dark thoughts into the back of his mind.

But they're still there, and all he can do is keep them silent.

"Sorry." He says automatically to her short outburst, and the woman chuckles lightly, before waving her hand dismissively. "It's fine. Hanami-chan took nearly a week to admit it, so I'll be patient and wait." She says, and before he can create another response, she stands up and places a gentle hand on his head.

"I'll need to go now. If you need anything, ring the phone on the desk, okay?" He slowly nods, and with a small grin she walks out, and turns one last time, waving at him before the door slides close.

With the nurse gone, he turns his head towards the window to his right, seeing the slowly reddening afternoon sky. He stares silently, watching as the unseen sun dips into the horizon, carrying with it the warm colors of the sky, letting the darkness of the night creep in. Slowly, red and orange sift away to a deep black. Stars begin to shine, twinkling across the night sky, lighting the darkness with the rising moon.

It's peaceful. Watching the time pass by, uncaring of the world around, it…reminds him of his younger days; when he'd watch the night slowly pass by with his father by his side, watching him with that small, broken smile of his. He'd been a pillar for him, a small light in the man's life.

And now, Hanami is his anchor, his pillar of support.

It's fascinating how fate works at times.

So, letting himself sink into the peaceful atmosphere, he stayed up, watching the starry sky as time passed by. Sleep didn't come to him, nor did he feel like sleeping anytime soon. He had too much on his mind, too many things to think and sort through.

Occasionally, when he'd began to drown again, he used [Structural Analysis] on himself and traced over the golden sheathe embedded in his body, feeling the calm presence of the ever distant utopia loosen the knots in his mind.

It's at around midnight that he saw something impossible.

Led by idle curiosity, he gently moved and picked up the phone on the desk by his bedside. Already, he'd noticed something strange. The model is…old, like the old phone models his father kept in the storage cabin at the back of his house. With growing suspicion, he pressed a button and lit up the screen, showing him the pixilated screen.

And on that screen, the date was shown.

23rd January 1994.

What?

The date definitely shocked him, but what hit harder was the implication of that date.

In several months, the fire that claimed all of Fuyuki will happen, which means that the Fourth Holy Grail War will happen soon. It took a bit of time for Saber to finally open up that she'd been summoned in the previous war before the Fifth, and there, his father was her master. The man who'd come to parent the orphan called Shirou will soon come to Fuyuki to compete in the accursed war of Heroic Spirits.

His dad is alive.

Emiya Kiritsugu is alive.

A thousand thoughts ran through his head at that moment, all blending together into one single prolonged panic attack. His heart clenched tight, and his vision blurred, blending the world around him into one whirling mesh, but he'd slowly pulled through, letting [Avalon]'s presence calm him as he pushed all the manic thoughts back into his head. After several deep breaths, he gave one last sigh and focused once more.

How he and Hanami managed to travel a decade into the past is the first obvious question, but the answer is pretty clear to him. The grail had pulled them both out of that void and placed them a decade into the past. The question then, is why? Did the grail act on its own, to preserve its existence, or…did it hang onto one of their wishes and brought them back?

Does that mean he has to destroy that tainted Heart once more?

His father is alive again, but then, what? What should he do? What can he do? Saber had said that his father was fixated on winning to War, before finding out about its tainted grail and ordering her to destroy it. Should he stop him? Tell him about the future?

But then what? To him, Shirou is a stranger, and he doesn't have any proof to tell him otherwise. There is probably some sort of magecraft to allow him to show his memories to the man, but he is a failure of a magus. Perhaps if Rin was here, he could ask for her help, but that's not exactly something he can do right now, is it?

Who is that person atop that white tower? [Avalon] is the ever distant utopia, the place that Saber will rest in upon her release from that forest. But, if Saber's still in that forest, waiting to pass on into the afterlife, who was that person?

He's traveled a decade into the past, and he has the chance to change the outcome of the Fourth Holy Grail War-

…But, what about Hanami?

He can try forcing her to stay, to keep her out of harm's way, but she'd find a way to somehow catch up to him. Either that, or trouble will come charging towards her, and if he leaves her behind, what's to say she isn't able to protect herself?

She is strong, that is without a doubt, but she is human, and she doesn't have [Avalon] to heal her injuries. Her natural regeneration is far faster than humanly possible, sure, but what if she was caught off guard? What if she was injured, and someone made use of that opening? What if her adversary is simply stronger than her?

What if she dies, and he isn't there to help her?

The thought sent him into another panic attack, but the panic immediately shattered when he felt Hanami shift slightly. He turned to her, worried that he'd woken her up, but she'd simply moved in her sleep, turning her body towards him. Her eyes are peacefully closed, and he can see the gentle rise and fall of her body.

Silently, he brushed a hand through her soft hair. He'd expected nothing of it, but when she moved closer, pushing herself further into his hand, he couldn't quite contain feeling of pleasant tingling in his chest.

He'd saved her. She's alive.

Isn't that what matters most?

He let out a silent chuckle, letting himself finally relax as he feels all those thoughts melt away. The girl he'd fought to protect is still here, and nothing else matters compared to the other intangible worries in his worry-ladled mind.

Finally, a couple hours past midnight, Shirou closes his eyes, and lets his consciousness fade.

...............

It's been roughly a couple days since Shirou first awoke, and a day since both he and Hanami were released from the hospital after being deemed healthy. Currently, he's lounging inside a hotel room, ten floors above the lobby. It's…lavish, and something he doesn't quite feel comfortable staying in, especially when he saw just how much a night in this room costs. He was initially confused on how they were going to pay for it, until she sneakily pulled out a million Yen from her pockets.

He wasn't quite ready to receive the revelation that his friend was filthy rich.

"Ngh…" Shirou sighs, shifting slightly atop the large king-sized bed he's sleeping on. It's not that he's ungrateful for this, far from it, but sleeping on a bed that's far too big is just…strange. He's mostly slept in a futon his entire life, so having so much free space to occupy feels fairly odd to the boy.

"Hey, Shirou." He turns his head to the left, looking at the girl laying by his side. She's staring at him, with her lips curved to a small pout. "Are you hungry? Wanna eat something?"

Shirou shakes his head. "No, you?" She shakes her head and sighs. "But I'm so…bored." Hanami says weakly, and he can only smile wryly at her. "Can't you go into that [Instant Dungeon] and hunt zombies though?" He then asks, idly remembering that large disfigured zombie he killed months ago.

"…Well, I can, but…" She trails off slightly, before she stops. Her eyes widen, and her lips begin to curve into a smile. "Actually, yeah, why not."

Hanami swiftly hops out of the bed and does a quick set of stretches. "Wanna join me?"

He nods at her, also wanting to scratch to itch of boredom gnawing at him. "Alright! Give me a quick moment…" Her Mystic Eyes light up, turning her green eyes to a shifting ocean blue, before turning back to its original green. "Got it!" At that, Shirou nods and stands up, summoning Okita's katana into his hands.

How he's able to do so still baffles him, but he filed the thought for later.

"[ID:Create]!" With her shout, the room around them fades, changing into a collage of fading pixels. For a moment, he spots the empty wide void between the fading world around them, but any further views are cut short when he suddenly finds himself standing on lifeless dirt, the clean hotel floor replaced.

No, it isn't just the floor, the entire area around him is different. The rooms that they were in are no longer there, gone, giving them a clear view of the plains around them. Lifeless dirt stretched far beyond what the normal eye can see, with only the barest of grass and trees occasionally littering the desolate wasteland.

Several miles north of them, a giant mountain sits, surrounded by the lifeless lands. Grass grows wonderfully atop it, trees and flora of all kinds decorated its surface, and he can see many animals, big and small, moving about the mountain. Surrounded by the lifeless dirt, the mountain is a literal oasis in the middle of it all.

But even that pales in comparison to the towering skyscraper of a sword just behind the mountain, stabbed into the earth, standing before it like a faithful guardian.

"Here we are!"

"Where…exactly is this?" Shirou can't help but ask the girl beside him. A gleeful smile is plastered across her face, but she forces it down to a small smirk and begins to talk, her green eyes lighting up to a bright blue. "[Hearth of Daedron] it's called. 'A land left barren after the evil dragon [Daedron] laid waste to its once lushful plains'." She stops for a moment, her eyes widening as she stares ahead at the lush mountain. "There's people in there."

"…There is?" She makes a slow nod at his question, before looking back to him. "Anyways, there's two things we can check out now. Which do you want to see first?"

He raises an eyebrow in confusion. After all, going into that mountain's going to-

"The giant sword it is then." She says suddenly. He turns to her, and she shrugs with a smile. "You've been staring at it ever since we came here. Might as well visit it."

A slow nod from Shirou later, they begin their casual trek across the barren earth, mostly spending the time talking about their previous experiences in the fifth war. Several topics came up, like Hanami battling (and nearly dying) to the corrupted Berserker and how his weapon is still with her somehow, or Shirou's bout against the slutty Medusa, and even Hanami complaining how 'Saber hasn't returned her sword yet', whatever that means.

But he couldn't quite get his mind off one specific one.

"A [Reality Marble]. It's the most concrete explanation on where you're storing your weapons, though even that answer has some holes in it." Hanami had explained to him when he asked about where he's storing his Noble Phantasms. It made him remember that strange grassland, where the setting sun cast a warm orange glow upon the land and skies. Could that place be a [Reality Marble]?

It could be, but thinking about it as one feels…wrong.

For there lays no swords upon the dirt.

The moment he thinks about a [Reality Marble], his mind instantly thinks of a barren hill, with swords upon swords littered across the desolate lands, sticking upright like some sort of grave, stretching far beyond what the normal human eye can see.

He knows what that place is. When he stabbed his katana straight through the corrupted Archer's heart, he gained the instinctual knowledge of what that barren land is.

[Unlimited Blade Works], counter guardian EMIYA, previously known as Shirou Emiya's Noble Phantasm, and the one magecraft allowed to the hero of justice. It's���well, it's perplexing to know that a version of him transcended into the Throne of Heroes and became a Holy Spirit, who was then summoned into the Fifth Holy Grail War.

But that world just doesn't click with him.

And honestly? He's glad for it. He doesn't know what horrors Archer has seen to develop such a twisted world, and he doesn't want to know.

"Hey~? Anyone there?"

"…huh?" He sees Hanami at his right, casually waving her arm over his eyes with a curious eyebrow raised. 'What was I…?' Before he can finish that thought, he turns to the front, and there, standing with its handle propped high into the cloudless skies, is the giant sword they saw the moment they came here.

Unconsciously, he takes a step forward, then another. He crosses one last inch forward, and extending his hand, he places his palm against the giant sword's bronze-colored blade.

And promptly got his brain blasted, hopefully only figuratively. He doesn't know actually, but the moment his hand touched it, a��well, it felt like a giant flaming truck slammed into him, before its grinning driver decided to force down some strong sake into his system. Everything just went…white, though, on some level, he understood the information that's flowing in, just that his brain was being put under too much pressure.

A distant voice sounds from somewhere, but the echoes can only barely reach his ears. The world twists around him, meshing all together into one strange mix of white and grey, before uncurling itself into a coherent image.

He stands in the same world, with the same barren dirt under his feet and the same giant sword looming before him,

But Hanami is nowhere to be seen.

He freaked out for a moment, ready to shout her name, but when no voice whatsoever came out from his throat, an inkling of suspicion crops up in his head. He pushes his hand towards the sword, and as if it isn't there, his hand fazes right through it, creating ripples across the bronze surface as his hand is placed through the sword.

Then the sword suddenly moves, pulled out from the barren dirt it was stabbed into, and revealing even more of the height the ground had hidden. The sword it hefted up, before stopping in the air, its edge pointed forwards, gleaming in the sunlight. It's also then that he notices the large hand holding the handle, and the large black mass opposite of it.

He looks up further, and with both horror and awe, he sees a legend.

Two beings look in opposition, one a titan, a human so large he can barely make out the features of his face, and the other a large black dragon, with black miasma floating around its obsidian scales, with flames escaping from its unhinged jaw. They remain unmoving, their eyes glaring at one another, both their attacks ready.

And the titan moves first, charging forward with a resounding boom, whilst swinging his giant sword down upon the flying beast. The dragon opens its jaw and lets loose the flames it'd been brewing inside, firing out against the falling blade as a powerful condensed beam of melting plasma. A sonic boom explodes out as the two attacks negated each other, blowing both the titan and the dragon back a distance.

The battle itself isn't all that interesting, with them simply repeating the same moves over and over, with one occasionally winning over the other, but it's only when he noticed the rapidly rising and setting sun that he realized what's truly going on.

Both the dragon and the titan are primordial beings, existences that live beyond the simple concept of time. Slowly but surely, things begin to change. The dragon became smarter, flying and moving around the titan's sword instead of simply deflecting it back. The titan became more skilled, his technique over the gigantic blade becoming more and more complex.

Then, one day, the dragon manages to sneak around the titan's swing, and with a concentrated blast of flames in its mouth, it lets loose a powerful beam at the titan's hands, burning right through his palms. In pain, the titan drops his sword, letting it stab into the lifeless dirt underneath. Without anything the titan can defend himself with, the dragon fires one last beam of fire at the titan's chest, blasting a hole right through his heart.

But in its glee, the dragon fails to realize that the titan hadn't yet fallen, still standing upright, with a giant fist cocked behind his shoulder. It's only when the sound of screeching winds reached it that it looks up, only to find its head bashed in by a powerful fist, blasting him straight through and into the earth. The titan, not wanting the dragon to ever escape, falls onto the barren dirt, with his chest acting as a roof to cover the hole the dragon created in its fall.

And so, both beings die. Time passes by, and things begin to change once more. The titan's remains degraded and turned into the mountain, where life of many different kinds can flourish. The dragon's blood seeps into the earth and forms countless spreading caves under the mountain, filled with rare ores and crystals.

And the blade remains there, standing over the reborn corpse of its wielder.

"SHIROU!" The next thing he knows, he's keeling over, his forehead pressed onto the giant sword's blade, and Hanami's kneeling by his side, tears forming in her eyes. He wanted to ask her what's wrong, but he noticed his eyes blurring, and his nose getting cold, and it's to his horror that he finds blood smeared across the finger he tapped onto his face.

"What…what happened…?" He rasps out, but Hanami says nothing, instead crying into his shoulder, muttering about how his 'HP nearly went to zero', but those words sounded distant compared to the gnawing fear in his heart.

He almost died then and there.

He almost left her behind.

"I…I don't know…you just, started…bleeding out of your eye and nose and stuff, and…and you started swaying, and y-you weren't responding to me a-and, and…" He hugged her then and there. He didn't care that his head hurt like hell, or that he'd just witnessed two gods battling, the girl he'd saved, his friend is crying because of him, and he'd damn himself to hell if he left her like this.

Slowly, with his comforting hand on her back, she begins to calm down, and eventually her cries stop, though her eyes still remain glued to him, worried that he'd keel over again and truly die this time.

Then,

"We're going back." She says, her voice even with no space for arguments. He wants to argue, saying that they've just only stepped in here, but no words came out from his mouth, and he simply closes his mouth and nods. The girl's hand reaches forward and tugs on his sleeve, and the world fractures, his senses swirl, and he finds himself back in the hotel room, standing just before the large bed.

"…Hey, did you see that?" Hanami raises an eyebrow at the sudden question, before she shakes her head. "See what?"

He goes silent for a moment. "…Nothing."

"So~…WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!?"

"Please keep your voice down."

"…"

"Shirou? What's wrong?" He shakes his head, before silently walking over to the bed and plonking his head onto one of the comfy pillows. Hanami seems to have caught on, and smiles, before hopping onto the bed and grabbing a pillow of her own. Slowly, the pleasant silence lulls them both to a comforting sleep.

................

Well, for Shirou, not quite.

"…Huh." Instead of an empty sleep, he finds himself sitting upon a patch of dirt, surrounded by a field of tall grass, with the setting sun casting a warm cloak over the world. He stands up on his two feet, and he finds the world as he remembers; an endless field of tall grass, accompanied by the gentle blow of an afternoon breeze and the light of the setting sun.

The inhabitants however, are…different.

"Mo~, what's with that lackluster reaction, master!?" A girl with short, pinkish-white hair stands before him, her lips curved to a pout.

"I believe he's simply desensitized." The man to his right comments, idly brushing the red locks of his hair. Okita frowns and glares at the man, though she looks like an annoyed hamster more than anything else.

"Ngh! You two are so boring…" Sasaki makes no comment on that, and nor does Shirou. But while Sasaki remains rooted in place, Shirou moves, walking up to the annoyed man-killer and patting her head. He isn't quite sure why he did that, but the girl reminded him a tad too much of Hanami to not dote on the girl.

"Ehehe~, master~" She sings, happily basking in the warmth of his hand.

"You're spoiling her." Sasaki comments bluntly, and Shirou nods. "I am." Sasaki goes silent for a moment, before he nods in satisfaction, seemingly having reached a revelation.

"But master, you truly are one of a kind, aren't you?" Sasaki says, his voice tinged with annoyed awe and admiration. Shirou can only smile wryly to that, before turning his head towards the new inhabitant to this world of his.

There, standing just across from Sasaki, is a man, his hair a shining platinum white, and his eyes a sparkling turquoise. Only a single, long dress-like cloak covered his sculpted body, and his image reminds him of those ancient greek gods he'd been forced to read about back when he still had an education.

"I must say the same. I did not expect a normal human to be capable of summoning me, even in this botched state." The man says, his lips tugged upwards to a small smile.

"Thank you, Yorrmir." He says, though most of his attention is still being held by the Saber slowly inching towards him, fully intent to take in more of that warmth the girl's become attached to.

But the thanks he gave was genuine, because the praise the man gave was truly heavy.

For he is Yorrmir, the wandering titan, wielder of Yuiel, and slayer of the evil dragon Daedron.

"Anyways, we've come here at your request, master. What are your orders?" Sasaki begins, and the other two servants snap to attention, Yorrmir waiting whilst the redhaired boy remains silent. Okita looks up to her master as well, seeing a bright fire burning in those golden eyes of his. It enraptured her, awed her, reminding her of the many bright warriors she fought with and against in her time alive.

"We're back in the past, back to when the Fourth Holy Grail War will happen." He begins, and though they know of this, having gained the knowledge from Shirou's memory, the blunt words still made them tense, though it only made Yorrmir smirk. "Sooner or later, we'll be forced to battle, and I won't let myself be taken down."

"So, please," Shirou kneels and bows, touching his forehead onto the ground. "Please train me."

"…But, can't you fight with our experiences?" Okita can't help but ask.

"…You wish to gain strength, your own strength, to add to ours, am I right?" At the boy's nod, Yorrmir goes silent, turning his head towards the silent ninja. A wordless conversation occurs between the two men, before Sasaki nods, and so does Yorrmir. The dragon slayer turns to the swordswoman next, and she swiftly nods, a wide smile etched on her face.

A large, bronze broadsword stabs into the earth before Shirou, missing a couple inches from hitting his head. He looks up, and standing between him and his three servants is [Yuiel], the dragon-slaying sword, sized down to his size.

"Your speed is impressive, even more with the [Coat of Oaths], but your strength is sorely lacking, and the power of your swings are lacking. Your strikes have only relied on your speed, but there will come a time when even your speed will be outclassed by sheer defense and tenacity. Pick up my sword, and let us begin, Emiya Shirou!"

The man's voice bellows throughout the grasslands, and it isn't long before Shirou stands, pulling the broadsword out of the dirt and hefting the large bronze sword with some difficulty, due to him being unused to the large weight the sword carried, much unlike his two other lighter swords.

Yorrmir walks forward, another [Yuiel] in his hands, held and poised to strike, while Okita and Sasaki remain in the back.

"Now, come at me!"

And so he does.