Much to my disappointment, Gilgamesh did not rush to the aid of his possible gay lover even though I waited beside Kirei's corpse until his body became cold and the first rays of dawn broke over the horizon to drive away the dark of night.
He knew, I knew that much at least.
Kirei was supplying the bastard with mana, taken from the near-dead orphans stacked up in his basement. My hands began to tremble at the thought of looking at the deformed husks after Bazett informed me of their state. I chickened out, and had my Shikigami completely trample the desecrated holy place.
"That Church was one of the evocation sites for the Holy Grail." Archer walked out of the air beside me, a few steps behind a deathly silent Rin Tohsaka. "As was Ryuudou Temple. The place Caster was using as her workshop. I do not think Rin realises how troublesome taking down that class is."
I raised a curious brow. "You're saying..."
He gave a slight nod.
"There was no body."
"Archer, I know you'd be able to tell. Give me a straight answer."
"You should have a look yourself sooner or later."
That was all but confirmation.
Had he left her alive?
To what end?
Archer was a difficult person to work with. He spoke little, and gave away less, but seemed to know almost everything about what was happening. I could always call him out for it, but facing Gilgamesh without his noble phantasm was a chance I wasn't willing to take.
"I'll try to get Shirou to let go of his dream."
A hum was his answer.
"If you use that place inside you for the fight."
He took my words in stride, "How'd you know?"
Because I'd seen the anime. I'd seen on a screen that the Archer before me was what Shirou Emiya would grow up to be in the distant future in his quest to become a hero of justice capable of saving everyone. A depressed person who had come to hate himself for believing he could save everyone in front of him.
I simply tugged at a non-existent necklace.
"Rin has the same one."
His hands reached for the red gemstone hung from his neck. His gaze sharpened considerably. He slowed until both Bazett and Rin were out of earshot.
"That won't be necessary." EMIYA said finally, taking a deep breath, "I've already realised it's stupid to even try to change his mind. Because, even if I hate it, I still think that his dream is a beautiful one."
A dream where he saved everyone, and wasn't willing to sacrifice anyone.
"There's no reason for me to stick around, and... well..." His gaze wandered to the suburban homes passing us by. A slight grin crossed his face. "If I can stick it to that golden bastard before the war ends, then that will make this almost worth it."
So, his dislike for the Gilgamesh we faced was a close second to his hate for himself.
My lips thinned into a smile, "I can live with that, sir hero of justice."
"Don't push it."
When the servant disappeared, a hand tugged at my sleeve. Altera stared up at me with her big red eyes.
"I am your servant."
"Yeah?"
"He is not."
"Yep."
"Then you should be discussing battle plans with me." She declared slowly, and glared at the air, "Not him."
Her words did not come from her lips, but instead directly into my head. So, I was pretty sure she didn't know that I heard the annoyed 'hmmmm' that came right after her complaint.
I chuckled, resisting the urge to pat her head.
When she pouted, my resistance crumbled apart.
"What are you doing, master?" Altera asked curiously.
My hand froze midair.
I'd just given headpats to the Scourge of God.
Her tiny white brows knit together in a subdued frown.
"I did not tell you to stop."
-
I left the Emiya Residence when the Sun was beginning to dip into the mountains and the sky had turned a clouded but intense orange. The air was wet against my skin, and I knew that rain was close.
Despite her protests, I convinced Bazett to stay behind and gather her strength for the upcoming confrontation against the King of Heroes. It took a while, and an intense 'battle' in the room we'd borrowed from Shirou after the state the hotel was in, but she eventually relented.
I wanted to think it was my adorableness that made her give up.
Not keen on walking the whole way, I summoned Nue to carry us to the base of the mountain path leading up to Ryuudou Temple. The trees swayed all along the stone steps leading through the forest, and then mountains. Torii gates marked the path.
"I've seen a lot of these." I remarked, passing under one.
"It is my first time."
Altera shrugged off the hood. Her white hair fluttered with the wind. The sight of the warrior maiden treading the mountain path surrounded by nature was enough to give me a momentary pause. She quietly stepped past me, hands stuffed in the hoodie in a manner distinctly similar to mine.
My eyes widened.
"Master, are you coming?" Altera looked over her shoulder.
"Yeah."
Contrary to Archer's suggestion, there was a distinct lack of any bounded fields or spells the whole way up. Even when the tall walls of the temple compound came into view, I struggled to notice anything.
My recent, forced proximity to the world of magic made me sensitive to the inherent 'wrongness' that came with the presence of anything supernatural. Magecraft and all its products were not natural, the very world resisted them. It was difficult to describe.
An amalgamation of gut feelings and the uncanny valley effect was how I'd put it if I had to.
The very air seemed 'wrong' when magic was unleashed.
There was none of that around Ryuudou Temple.
The moment I crossed the threshold however, my breath hitched.
No, I had not unknowingly stepped into some trap.
The temple grounds were marred by blades and spears. A golden haired youth stood at the foot of the few stairs leading up to the main temple, a hand in his pocket. Medea lay at his feet, pinned to the earth by nearly a dozen swords. Even in that state, she was trying to crawl over to the bloodied older man lying against the great temple doors.
"Gilgamesh-"
My vision grew hazy.
I punched myself in the face for my fright.
Gilgamesh didn't even bother to turn. He merely retrieved another sword from his treasury, and held the blade inches away from Medea's nape.
Letting her die was an advantage.
"I don't give a shit."
My wolves leapt from my shadows and lunged at him in the blink of an eye.
Altera's fingers coiled around the hilt of her gleaming sword.
"He is... an enemy."
The King of Heroes merely snapped his fingers.
A dozen noble phantasms rained down on the Divine Dogs. They dipped into their own shadows before the weapons struck. The moment Gilgamesh turned his attention to them, Altera shot through the distance. The temple grounds cracked under her kick.
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes.
"To set hounds upon a king such as I is a grave insult. One I will not tolerate!"
Altera leaned back to dodge the first sword, and leapt over the second, twisting her body through the air to avoid even a third. A spinning axe came for her neck, but she ducked, skidding across the stone on her knees.
Instead of bruising her skin, the ground became scarred.
She turned to the right abruptly, kicking at the earth to throw herself at Gilgamesh at an even greater speed than before.
-
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