How long have I been walking?
How long have I been fighting?
How long have I gone on, trudging through battlefields and conflicts, in the hopes of saving as many lives as I could?
How long have I been seeking the silent hill of swords and the golden light that awaits for me?
Apparently, long enough to find myself standing on a broken slab of rock floating in between the dark spaces of dimensions while fighting against a horde of the undead and its Dead Apostle creator in front of me. All the while being surrounded by dead bodies and blades skewered into the ground.
Yeah, just your typical day of hunting down Sealing Designations, taking down evil villains and saving the world from certain doom. Oh goody.
Further thoughts of my wayward life were interrupted by five of the undead breaking off from their pack and lunging at me at once, hoping to distract me with their tactics and attack at my weak spots. Quite honestly, they are really stupid. How many times have they used that tactic against me? Have they not seen how many times I have kicked their rotting undead asses to the curb and danced on their graves?!
Oh well, I can't complain. Stupidity on their part means easier targets for me.
"Trace On."
As soon as those words were uttered, all five fell to the ground screaming as the Black Keys embedded in their heads proceeded to burn their face off, with the fire spreading quickly on their bodies and reducing them into ashes. The others that had held back started to hiss and cursed at the sight of their kind killed.
"Damn you, Dog of the Queen!"
"White Haired Demon Magus!"
"Counter Guardian!"
"Magus Killer!"
"Blade Executor!"
"Shirou Emiya!"
"That's right people. That is my name." I allowed myself a moment to voice that out as I touched a sword from one of the dead bodies and burn the body before pulling it from the ground and rest it on my shoulder. "Don't wear it out."
All of them bristled with anger, only to be held back by the Dead Apostle who merely raised his right hand to silence them. He was a very different creature compared to them; he had pale skin that would have gone well with that blond hair extending past his shoulders if not for the throbbing veins that made him appear to have a plant taking root underneath his skin. His eyes were completely black and his lips were a dark shade of blue, evidence of his own transformation into a Dead Apostle. His clothes were a cross between the clothes normally seen in the 18th Century and those in the current time, giving him an unusual appearance but would not look too out of place in the Association.
This fellow was also the Sealing Designation that I was hunting for a few months now. Ranked 6th on the list, this guy was the highest ranking target I have come across so far, and this was backed up by his magecraft that has been beating everyone in his path.
"Boy, why do you persist?" The Sealing Designation spoke for the first time in a long while since we came to this place to fight. "Why do you keep interfering in my work? Others I can understand their motives for doing so, but you are a mystery." He said those words in an unusually polite and straight manner that conveyed his confusion to me. A rarity amongst all of those I have hunted down all this time.
"You should know that your work is the type that could get the whole world in danger." I said as I dismissed some of the swords around me to conserve my energy and to have a more open field around me. "Your work in the resurrection of the souls and Prana Symbiosis was something too drastic for the Association to ignore, not to mention the potential to summon the Counter Force if you were to continue such research was too much even for those old coots. And to top that all of, your ability to partially jump through dimensions has put a big target on your back."
"That I shall not deny. It is unfortunately dangerous work. And my ability is dangerous in their eyes and somewhat valuable considering the similarities to the Wizard Marshall. But still you are unusual." He agreed while giving his opinion. "No matter how I looked at it, you do not have much of an incentive to come after me."
"Yeah well." I shrugged while eying the undead. "I cannot exactly relax while you have your undead buddies going around to attack other people and taking their souls."
"Maybe the case, however that's the thing I don't get about you." The Dead Apostle remarked. "You keep on coming after me and the others, constantly sending us off to the Association to be their lab experiments or to kill us, and for what? The mere promise of rewards? Or the feeling of satisfaction that each successful job deters them from keeping an eye on you?"
"And if not, why do so? To be a Hero? To be thanked by those mere humans that do not know the true difference between monsters and themselves? To receive some form of recognition from those 'nobles' who don't even bat an eye for people like us? They will never understand people like you or me." It asked that with a hint of sarcasm and somewhat prudish dismissal.
All along, I listened to him, merely listening but not concentrating on his words. But at those last words, I could not help but look at my reflection on the surface of the sword I had in my hand, and after evaluating the situation, allowed myself a mental grimace.
I was currently dressed in a black shirt and dark trousers, with white stripes going along the sides, and reinforced with a special thread that acted as body armor of sorts. The dark brown coat I wore on me has holy runes and other symbols that help to repel creatures like the Dead Apostles and to boost my defences. Ending that all, I had battle gloves and steel-tip boots adorned with more holy symbols to protect myself.
Now that would be nice, if not for the tears on my clothes and the blood stains on me and my current facial appearance.
Oh, don't get me wrong. I am not the least disturbed about the wear and tear of my clothes, I can always repair them easily. The blood stains from the undead are a pain and the smell even more so, but nothing like super strong detergent, a bit of Holy Water, and a little elbow grease can't fix. The thing that bothered me was my head reflecting on the surface of the sword. The sight of seeing strands of white at my sideburns, the patches of skin turning dark that made me looked like I had been burned irregularly, and one of my eyes that was changing its colour to that of steel, was really bothersome.
In other words, I was slowly changing into that dreaded Root be damned Archer.
It was shocking to say the least, when Rin and I woke up the next day to be confronted with this sight. I could at least say with confidence that I handled the shock a lot better, if a broken mirror and a few swords nearly stabbing my least liked individuals were of any indication. As for Rin, well… Let's just say that we needed to find another apartment 2 hours later and apologize to the entire Rune department for cursing them with fully-charged Gandrs.
Still that was the least of my problems, as this guy would no doubt attest. It was true that many would not appreciate my work for the simple fact that I was both an Asian and a mere third-rate magus who was connected to my dad in terms of name and partial legacy. And I was becoming a little too popular for the Association's liking.
"Even if by some small chance you managed to defeat me, what then? You would just hand me over to the Association to be in the 'Lock-up' and pray they don't come after you? You who also possess the power that, if I may quote, 'could get the world in danger'?" He continued to speak with that unsettling politeness and objectiveness. "You of all should understand that once labeled as a Sealing Designation, there is no hope for us to escape. It is either to cower in fear while hiding, or to be cut up and stored in glass jars, never knowing if we are truly alive or dead, forever praying for someone to end our suffering."
Again, I grimaced inwardly. There was some truth regarding the words he said. It was sometime after I gained the ability to travel between dimensions from Zeltretch and started to hunt this creature, when word got out about my true abilities. Let's just put it as 'the results were expected.'
Translation: shit just got crazy.
The idea that a third-rate mage who could barely use some of the more basic spells, was able to attain a Reality Marble was something that both galvanize the higher nobles and excited the crazier types at the Clock Tower. Within ten minutes of hearing the news, my name went from 'Lowly Mage List' to the 8th highest of the Sealing Designation List. A huge reward was offered to bring me back in any state, just as long as I could still breathe.
Three guesses on their ideas of keeping my head, the first two don't count.
Anyway, it got to the point that I literally had a few minutes to pack my bag, get into a quick argument with Rin and beat the crap out of the closest group of Executors after me, before I could activate the portal that would lead me out of the area. Since then, I have been bouncing back and forth to deliver any other Sealing Designations and killing off any Dead Apostles or undead that I met along my journeys, occasionally checking on Rin discreetly to ensure she was safe. Some of the saner or better mages like Waver were both decent and sensible enough to let me go on with my jobs and to pay me for my services, not to mention I was confident of Rin's safety due to Zelretch's watchful eye on her. I will give him this: when he has found a potential talent, he keeps an eye out for them no matter where he goes. That was why both Rin and Luvia enjoyed the relative safety and freedom under him without getting attacked by the other magus. Doing so would make them wish they could die a normal death.
But in the end, it doesn't change the fact that I could no longer stay with Rin, nor visit Fuji-nee, Sakura, or any of my other friends without bringing some form of danger to them. Many of the crazier mages would have used them to draw me out, without any regard to their lives. That I cannot handle.
"Why don't you join me, Shirou Emiya?" My thoughts were interrupted as I looked at the Dead Apostle offering his right hand. "You may deny your circumstances, but when you think about it, there is not much of a difference between you and me. We are both outcasts from the Association and those of great power. We are both being hunted down for having powers that could be used to benefit others, abilities that could potentially save lives, if not for their greed for knowledge and disregard to lives."
"I believe that as your – what is the word in Japan, Ah Yes! 'Senpai' `- I can help you get even stronger, strong enough to oppose the Association and protect Rin Tohsaka." He let out a smile that had just too much sharp teeth to be nice. "Will you consider my offer to be my ally?"
And that is the other thing I don't get about this guy. Most of the Sealing Designations, Dead Apostles and demons I have faced tend to be less polite and more 'grab me, bite my throat and suck me dry'. Aside from the few female counterparts, most would have gone on to curse me or hurt me in some way. He was by far the only one who genuinely wanted me to join him in some manner.
Even when we fought each other a few times in the past, he was unusually 'courteous' in his manner of pointing out my mistakes, not to mention being somewhat understanding for my desire to move to an area with no innocent parties around. He made exceptions regarding the criminals who he took personal pleasure to kill, but otherwise he did not attack needlessly. Furthermore, I have seen his fights with other mages, and more often than not, he held back in defeating them, only expanding the correct amount of strength to do so and only resort to outright destruction when they did something that was, in his view, 'distasteful'. Doubly so when said mages have a certain preference for using children as ingredients for their work.
And as disturbing as it sounds, I actually considered about his offer a few times when we fought. He was a lot like me in many ways: a third-rate mage who was adopted into a noble family, someone who wanted to help the world, he strived to complete his research with the same type of frenzied dedication as me, and in the face of opposition, he just kept on going. He did not bother about the hierarchy of the Clock Tower or the higher nobles, and he would tend to take more risks than most would dare to do so.
It was unfortunate that his research took a turn for the worse when he decided to dabble into necromancy and started his work in the resurrection of people to attempt cheating death. His methods were considered too drastic as it was essentially, if I had to give it a proper description, a 'bastardized' version of the Holy Grail System, in which it took souls from the afterlife and forced them into containers, only problem was that said souls could not be freed from their curse even after the destruction of the body, thus leaving them in a state that would be totally stuck between the living and spirit world, unable to pass on to the afterlife. Not to mention the aftereffects of such a research ended up creating a large number of undead that could spread the virus, potentially upsetting the balance and calling upon the Counter Force.
As surprising as it sounds, it seemed that even those old coots from the Association who would not bat an eye at those who regularly used children as ingredients, conduct inhuman experiments on pregnant women, or even wipe out an entire town for their work, would actually be horrified at this research. Guess the idea of not being able to pass on peacefully was the line of morality for them.
I closed my eyes and shook my head slowly and somewhat sadly at him. "You know, if we had met any other time in the past, I might have taken up that offer. Maybe we could have been good friends." I opened my eyes and faced him resolutely. "But I'm afraid this is not possible right now."
"… I see." The Dead Apostle also let out a sad smile of acknowledgement as he dropped his hand. "It is unfortunate, I would honestly have liked to avoid fighting you and to maybe know you better."
"Hmm… Who knows? If you escape this round, let's have some drinks next time." I said as I materialized Kanshou and Bakuya in my hands and ready my stance. The Dead Apostle also readied his stance as the undead around him started to get more aggressive facing me.
"But it will be on your tab okay?" I threw in one last wit as I gripped my weapons tighter. He only gave a light-hearted smirk in return.
It was time.
"Let's end this then."