Note : 02/04/20 grammar correction

Warning: Fate Stay Night is the property of Type Moon and the saga The Elders Scrolls is that of Bethesda Softworks.

I'm just an amateur who write this Fan-fic on my own free time. This is not a professional or paid work but, the work of a fan made available to other fans.

When I wrote Fate/ The last Dragonborn my first fan-fiction, already a crossover between Fate and TES, I thought I had found a great idea... except that I wrote only in French and made many mistakes (writing, layout spelling... and history). After re-reading, I no longer consider this first work very viable. Each chapter has only about ten readers. So I decided to start over... with a slightly different idea.

Fate/ Dragoncrown (eng) is the English translation of Fate/ Dragoncrown (fr) the original in French. It's mostly a mechanical translation by a... err... dwemer steam computer and it don't know the difference between male, female and things.

Prequel

Fuyuki, February 2004

The night ended on the town of Fuyuki. However, the darkness remained deep in the deserted and silent streets. The inhabitants - by reflex, by habit - did not leave their houses at nightfall. Once the sunlight had dissipated, the modern Japanese city seemed to attract evil. An entire family killed with a knife, perhaps a spear or a sword... in the twenty-first century; repetitive accidents; gas leak or explosion; haunted houses... Fuyuki seemed to belong to another world when daylight no longer illuminated his sidewalks.

In particular, that night.

If anyone had looked up at Mount Enzou, he would have witnessed a strange conflict of winds with striking lights. First, a darkest reddish glow, awakening of the Ryuudou Temple, then a powerful golden flame that ran into a red and sinister hurricane, swirling around the ridge of its roofs, ripping out beams, breaking walls, raining tiles around.

The last clash of the Fifth Grail War reached its peak...

In the ruins of the Temple of Ryuudou stood two individuals who no one would have thought were normal peoples. Their weapons, even their attitude, separated them too easily from ordinary men.

The greatest laughed in a dismal, demented way. He was a blond man, very handsome, despite his red eyes with vertical pupils. He was clothed with an impossible armor of gold, so heavy and so precious that no mortal could have worn it... but it was not - by far - the only impossibility in this striking character. What mortal could touch the object he was holding in his right gauntlet?

This cylindrical... "sword" consisted of three separates parts that rotated in different directions. From it came a divine power, with destructive and creative faith, a truly ultimate power.
- Enuma Elish!

Calling for the power of this weapon older than Earth, the demigod released a purple wind that broke into a whirlwind centered on his opponent. Around them the walls broke, the ground convulsed, cracks opened in the slabs of the esplanade.

- Ex... calibur!

A wave of golden light met the scarlet tornado and the two energies clashed in formidable arcs of power.

Excalibur... the legendary sword of King Arthur expelled this pure clarity of gold. The blade, of simple appearance, made of steel, extended a guard in crescent melted in gold and inlaid with blue enamels. A sword as beautiful and glorious as everyone imagined.

The surprise came from the one who held it, a young woman... No, not even ... a teenage girl. Her beauty is breath taking. Her hair was thin, capped in a mat that she wrapped in the back of the head, held in place by a blue ribbon. The face was thin, oval, the mouth small, and the eyes immense, emerald in color.

Her little figure wrapped herself in a blue dress that she wore over white petticoats. Nevertheless, she was kicked of steel, her hands - squeezing Excalibur- disappeared under thick gauntlets. A plastron decorated with blue drawings protected her chest while a strange skirt of articulated metal blades was born in her belt to descend on her flanks.

How could a young girl wear Excalibur! Who would have been worthy? No, we had to reject the impossible and admit the truth as improbable as it is. That frail teenage girl was the real King Arthur... the legend was lying!

For a moment, the two mythological heroes seemed equal...

Just for a moment...

Whatever the girl's courage and will, she opposed a divine power.

The flood of Enuma Elish suddenly seemed to swell, repelling the golden light from Excalibur. Thrown back, the King of the Knights bounces for more than ten meters before collapsing, steaming, at the end of a long furrow of earth as dug by a plough.

Despite the pain and gasping breath, the little girl turned to her executioner who looked at his victim with a disturbing smile.

The monster was playing.

He was totally dominating the fight.

He could end it in an instant, but he didn't seek to kill... he wanted to dominate, break, belittle, defile... He waited for the woman in armor to bow down, to join the collection of his toys.

Nevertheless, despite the pain, despite the monster's superiority and the humiliation of her easy defeat, the King of the Knights gave him a look of pure anger.

He had never known defeat. His arrogance was based on the boredom of possessing everything, the certainty of the immutability of this rule.

The woman's life had been but a long series of trials, of sorrows, of battles that had solved nothing. However, the Knight had never given in.

Painfully, leaning on her great sword, she managed to stand up. Her gaze turned to that of her enemy, without weakness...

The red, scornful eyes hardened as all expression of joy disappeared. "Were she challenging him? Him? The KING?" He could tolerate a little resistance from his toys. But even his favorite toy had to know its place... If that woman dared to look at him any longer, he'd kill her!

The Golden King always ended up breaking his toys. He got tired so fast...

As he waved his cylindrical sword, she had a movement of surprise and then raised a hesitant hand, tending it towards something that she alone was to see.

- Enuma Elish!

The scarlet hurricane hit the King of the Knights. This time it was a deadly blow, the game was over.

- You were... my sheath, weren't you?" Murmured the clear voice of the little blonde. "Utopia that lives in my dreams. It's name? Avalon."

There was then as the birth of a star on the battlefield. Avalon, the sheath of Excalibur, had just appeared, surrounding its rightful owner with a cocoon of energy resistant to all magic.

The red wind whirlwind rushed... but she repelled it with a careless movement of her sword, sending the destructive power back to the Golden King who quivered with pain and especially surprise. He has used his most favored weapon, Ea, the Sword of Separation, surpassing all other weapons. Was not the sword who served the Sumerian gods to separate Earth from Heaven in the beginning of time?

What was happening was impossible.

Leaving behind her armor, which dissipated into silver particles, the King of the Knights rushed in haste, recovering the energy saved to strengthen her blade.

- Cursed self! Resist me in the same way?!

His enemy was again calling for his power!

- Enuma...

Before the Golden King could finish, she struck.

- Excalibur!

Radiant with golden light, the King of Brittany's blade cut off the gold armor, the flesh, causing blood to flow... The Sacred Sword sank to the hip, just missing to cut in two the seed of the gods of Sumer.

Although already dead, the Golden King remained standing. His face which had shown pain and hatred was now peaceful, sweet, smiling:

- Avalon, the utopia in which the king will enter after his death. Untouchable by the Five Magies... The ultimate protection that nothing can pierce... It's your true Noble Phantasm. It's the power of the legendary Holy Sword, isn't it?

He reached out in a gentle gesture like a caress, straightening the lowered face of the young woman so that he could look at her one last time:

- What an abominable woman you are... defying me to the end? But I would allow it. Some things are beautiful because no one can own them. So goodbye, King of Knights. Hey... I had a lot of fun...

As he uttered these words, he began to unravel into golden particles, gradually becoming translucent. Soon it dissipated in the wind...

Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, king of the heroes, the first and most powerful of them had ceased to exist.

Artoria Pendragon serving as class Saber was the real person behind the legend of King Arthur. Daughter of Uther Pendragon, King of Brittany, she had been raised as a man before taking over from her father.

With the exception of a few details about her gender, the rest of her story was well known.

However, she had died without succeeding in saving the island of Brittany which was submerged by the invasion of the Saxons. On the battlefield of Camlann, before the remains of her son Mordred, Artoria wept, imploring the Holy Grail to save Brittany island.

And the Holy Grail replied...

He offered her a place in the Fuyuki Grail War, a conflict that recurs (on average) every sixty years, opposing between them seven Magi called Masters, through Servants, heroes temporarily recalled to life by the Holy Grail. The latter were invoked in magical "containers", say "mussels", which facilitated their call. These seven forms were Saber, Lancer, Archer, Rider, Berserker, Caster and Assassin. One could not make a more explicit name; Saber was the Servant handling the sword and so on. Since the identities of the heroes were to remain secret, during the Grail War they were called only by their class names. These Servants should confront each other until one remains.

The victorious Servant and his Master would then each receive a wish, offered by the Holy Grail.

Called as Saber during the Fourth and Fifth Wars, Artoria had therefore been reduced to the sole powers of her Excalibur sword, unable to use her Rhongomyniad spear, which limited her somewhat. Invoked for the first time by Emiya Kiritsugu, a detestable mage killer devoid of any loyalty... she was then invoked by his adopted son, Emiya Shiro.

The latter had begun by... making her lose his calm.

Usually, the very image of self-control, Saber found herself with an inexperienced Master. The thing was tolerable; one cannot ask anyone who is not prepared to a trial to excel on it.

However Shiro was... eager to protect her! For this, he lied to her, and escaped her surveillance to try to win the war alone!

The knight's first reaction was anger. Saber felt belittled by such treatment.

However... gradually, she had discovered a young man as there was no other. Faithful, loving, courageous, good man, devoted...

For the first time in her life, someone had sought to fight for her, as if she were a damsel in distress and her Master was a gallant knight. It was ridiculous, because Saber was a much better fighter than Shiro would ever be. Nevertheless, she understood it as touching attention... ridiculous care for her... but touching, nonetheless.

Saber had... become attached.

A Master provided the magical energy - the prana- that allowed a Hero to incarnate as a Servant. Since Shiro was not a real Magus, an authentic Magecraft practitioner, just a teenage boy with a few skills, Saber found herself very weak with him as a partner.

However, together they had won battles against powerful opponents: Rider (the legendary Medusa), Berserker (the Greek hero Heracles) and finally... Gilgamesh, the Archer of the previous Grail War, has managed to keep himself alive since that time.

In a strange way, which had nothing to do with the normal connection between a Master and a Servant, Shiro had given her strength.

In only twelve days, Artoria had discovered feelings that neither King Arthur on his throne nor Servant Saber had ever experienced. The monarch at the head of the armies had been respected. The familiar summoned by a Magus had mingled with ordinary life. However, for the first time she felt truly loved and loved in return. With his spontaneous kindness, his catastrophic lack of thought, his suicidal desire to help, Shiro was the most real person she ever met.
Saber had fallen in love.

Somewhere, it was the man she had always waited for without even realizing to wait for him.

This was a strange turn of fate.

After all, before returning it to her, Shirou had long carried in him Avalon, the sheath of Excalibur, her most powerful weapon. The Noble Phantasm which was the materialization of her legend. It was an object created by the fairies that healed the wounds of its bearer and protected him from any magical attack when its name was invoked.

Stolen by Mordred, before the battle of Camlann, found by Kiritsugu Emiya, the latter had then hidden it inside his adopted son to save him from an injury that Shiro received during the last battle of the previous Grail War... already, at the time, a fight between Gilgamesh and her.

A Noble Phantasm was not meant to remain in the body of an ordinary human. For example, Avalon embodied Arthurian utopia, chivalrous and selfless. That had changed Shiro. His nature... twisted... his desire to put others before him, to protect them at the risk of his life, his exaggerated altruism, were the result.

In fact, Saber had (very ironically) created the man who embodied her ideals... in an outraged form, it is true. Shiro had at first exasperated her, furious before, finally, she decided to fall in love.

Around the central temple building, Saber discovered the lake. Above, a breach sparkled... a circular black hole, surrounded by a ring of red light that illuminated the night. Through this tear flowed a dark and disgusting mud... materializing all the sins of humanity.

During the War, Saber and Shiro had discovered that the Holy Grail was corrupted by a presence which the Master of Gilgamesh, the priest Kotomine Kirei, called Angra Mainyu... ancient divinity whose name meant "All the Evil of the World".

He wanted to use the Holy Grail as an incubator to return to life and bring about the apocalypse.
Approaching, Saber smiled at her Master.

The young man with red hair and amber eyes was wearing a torn and burned sweatshirt and jeans in such poor condition. Yet he was not really hurt. He too had won his battle. He was standing beside Kirei's floating corpse.

- Saber, comes on!

With his finger he showed the body suspended between earth and sky of Ilyasviel von Einzbern. Berserker's Master had lived with them at Shiro's since the death of her Servant. But the day before, Kirei broke into their home, hurting their friend Tohsaka Rin to kidnap Illya. She was offered as a sacrifice to Angra Mainyu. As there was only one Servant left, the conditions for the victory of the War had been fulfilled.

The appearance of the Grail was therefore imminent. Angra Mainyu would arrive with it. Whatever wish was announced, the infected Grail interpreted it in such a way as to bring "All the Evil of the World" back to life.

- What is going on?

Shiro panicked. His hands hit the glowing air that separated him from Illya. A tremor traversed a sphere of energy surrounding the little girl, making it briefly visible.

- She is surrounded by a Boundary Field. If the barrier is not broken, she will continue to feed the Holy Grail... and will die!

Saber blushed and rushed up Excalibur. However, the first ray of sunlight bursts out and... the sudden clarity dazzles the two young people.

- Good morning, Oniisan.

Emiya Shiro blinked, surprised to find herself in the majestic castle of the Einsberns. Then he faced the little girl with red eyes and white hair. Smiling and adorable, she wore a white skirt and a purple top.

- Illya?

The young Japanese felt pulled back and fell two steps further. He looked up to see Saber, Excalibur in hand. She looked deadly serious.

- But that...

- Shiro, what is your last memory?

He frowned at her.

- Oh... Ryuudou... the fight against Kirei and... but...

- It's not Illya!

Shiro stared at the little girl with the false airs of albinos. Leaning to the side, she continued to smile. Nevertheless, he became aware of the presence of a pool of black mud at her feet and of splashes at the bottom of her dress. The same mud that muted from the opening leading into the Grail...
Saber hesitated against her will. Her instincts yelled at her that she was standing in front of a monstrous being but... it was difficult for her to attack in cold blood an adorable little girl who did not make any aggressive gestures.

As Saber crossed the look of the pseudo-Illya, the latter changed expression and - for a moment- the knight shiver.

- In fact, I am and am not Illyasviel von Einzbern. I have the power to slip into the "shell" of another. So I'm Illya and I'm... call me Avenger or Angra, whatever you want.

- Angra Mainyu?! All the Evil of the World?!

Illya's smile was accentuated:

- So yes and no. To tell my story quickly, I was invoked during the Third Holy Grail as Avenger.

Saber and Shiro looked at each other:

- There is no Avenger class!

- No... I'm the only one (1). Because the Einzbern cheated to summon me. " Oh, we are sure to win if we invoke the Devil himself". Except they got... Angra Mainyu. I was an ordinary teenager until one day a bunch of religious bigots had the wondrous idea to make me the focus of all the sin in the world. Think about it... so that others would no longer receive sins and they could live in paradise back on Earth. You could think as a little sacrifice for the happiness off all. No, it doesn't work that way. I've been cooking for a few thousand years in all the crimes of humanity. That doesn't make me a saint, but neither does the Devil. I am the weakest of all Servants ever summoned in a Grail War. This is the unspeakable danger we warned you against!

Saber lowered his blade slightly:

- And what do you want?

- Out. I have been trapped inside the Holy Grail since I was killed in the Third Grail War seventy years ago. You have no idea... it's horrible to be here.

Once again, Master and Servant exchanged glances. This time, it was Shiro who spoke with a little mistrust in his voice:

- And what does it take for you to get out?

- Make a wish and you are entitled to one each.

Excalibur turned to the throat of Angra again:

- What proof do we have that you are not setting us up?

- You can make any wish. I am obliged by the rules of the Grail War to comply. If you're asking me for a banana split, I'd have to give you a banana split. I can't trick anyone if the application doesn't have two interpretations. Anyway, you have to do it... if you don't do it for me, do it for yourself or for the rest of humanity.

- What do you mean?

- Well, first of all, you are in the Holy Grail. And inside... I am the Big Boss. So you can do nothing against me, and especially not leave. And I'll let you go in exchange for what? A wish!

Now, did you believe that the Holy Grail still works as its creators wanted it to?

- What do you mean, asked Shiro.

- Well, the previous four wars didn't have a winner. Do you know why there were only ten years between this one and the one before? The Grail looks like a boiling pot. It was never designed to contain five times the energy required for its normal use. Now add my presence or that of Gilgamesh, we are some serious anomalies. In other words, the Grail is unstable and overloaded. He's gonna end up "boom," unless its drained of its energy and how?

Shiro sighed:

- By making a wish?

Taking one of the most adorable mimics of Illya, Avenger jumped of contentment on the spot :

- Won. But you must make a wish big enough for the Grail to empty itself of all its energy.

Saber found herself in the grip of doubts and sudden tension. Even though she had renounced to save Brittany for fear of causing a catastrophe, Angra Mainyu told her that she had nothing to fear. But could she trust him?

- Can I learn more about wishes? Are there limits?

Angra nodded with the charming look of Illya lecturing:

- Yes, of course. From a human point of view, the Grail is immensely powerful. It can bring the dead back to life, manipulate time, allow us to reach other worlds, create anything. Nevertheless, it has the limits of everything that was created by men... and the Fuyuki Grail is nothing but a human Magi construct. Thus, the Grail is not able to create something that men are not able to imagine. More powerful entities, such as Gaia (the Will of the World) or Alaya (the Will of Humanity) would also forbid it certain actions. And I think I know what you'd like to ask... You can't do a time paradox. Because this is exactly the kind of thing that triggers the arrival of Alaya's counterforce. In theory, I can put your mind back into your body shell... for example, the day you pulled the Sword into the Stone. Except that as soon as you start changing the story, the Alaya Dogs would appear to make it run smoothly.

A painful expression occurred on Saber's face:

- You're right, Shiro, I can't change the past... maybe I was destined to fail.

While the young Japanese took his friend in his arms, without a word, Angra shrugged his shoulders:

- But you can still use your wish to have a future. If you can no longer save Britain, you can save another country. As for you, Shiro, you can save the people who died recently. Your friend Matou Shinji, for example, because it would not change the course of history.

Saber's mistrust had returned. In spite of the explanations and judicious advice, Angra Mainyu lacked subtlety in pushing the two winners to make a heavy wish accordingly. It was obvious that he would not just do something trivial. As she remarked in a low voice, leaning over Shiro, Avenger replied:

- You have forgotten what I said about the Grail being overloaded by the prana of all the Servants killed during the five Grail wars. Only two huge demands will free up enough energy. Don't worry about the words you use for the wording. The Grail listens to intent.

The two youths were still hesitant. But they had understood that they would never leave the Grail without making a wish. And the left saturated with prana and unstable could be as dangerous as asking for anything.

Saber leaned on her sword.

- Okay. I want another chance. I want a new life near Shiro, an opportunity to save a country in conformity with the values of chivalry that I defended.

Angra Mainyu turned to the Japanese:

- What about the Master's wish?

- I want a new life for the victims of the Grail War, so that I can protect those I could not save.
Angra stared at the duo formed by the Master and the Servant and then burst out with a crackling laugh. The sound was so unpleasant and evil that they immediately understood that they had been played. Still under the guise of Illya, the monster stared at them as the places lost their resemblance to Eizbern castle and the walls flowed in the form of black mud:

- Shiro, you forgot what Kirei said when you first met her. Wanting to be a superhero is wishing there was someone in danger. So rejoice, Emiya Shiro, rejoice, Artoria Pendragon, for your next life will make you the only bulwark between an entire world of innocent people and the horrible fate you have brought upon them.

The monster laughed again and the scene burst into a billion fragments.

(1) He is the first Avanger and has not yet met the others.