Master of Arms

Chapter 2: The Holy Grail War.

A/N: Shit, I'm late aren't I. I got no excuse beside exams and writer's block. I hope this chapter is good enough.

Enjoy!

"I'll have your heart!"

The moment Shirou heard those words, his blood freezes.

Why?

Because the Servant before him is about to call out the true name of his Noble Phantasm. Crimson mana circling around the entire length of the Servant's spear, still tightly around Lancer's grasp. Shirou knew he is in deep shit right now. If the Heroic Spirit was throwing the spear, Shirou can block, dodge or redirect the strike. But the thrust technique that always pierce the heart of the opponent?

He might as well sit in the corner and cry.

With no choice, once again having his pistol firmly in his right hand. He pour as much prana as he can into the bullets in the gun until the bullets became broken due to the amounts of prana being stored in it.

Steeling his resolve and [Hrunting] in his left hand. Shirou charged.

At the same time the Servant in blue also charge. Fighting to see who gets to walk away.

GAE BOLG!

In a flash of red, everyone's vision was filled with white, their eyes blinded. But such handicap did not halt he strikes of the two men clashing.

*Clang*

*Squelch*

*Bang*Bang*

Grunting, Shirou looked down to see the red spear stabbing his chest on the right side, blood spilling out of the wound like a flood. Coughing blood that came up to his throat, Shirou desperately try to catch his breath.

"How?" Lancer asked.

Confused with what Lancer is asking of him, Shirou could only tilt his head to the side while grimacing. Seemingly understand what the teen before him is trying to do, Lancer further elaborate his question.

"How are you still alive? The effects of my spear should have pierced your heart, it is unblockable. So, how?"

Chuckling lightly, Shirou take his chipped and battered form of Hrunting and shakes a few times on the crimson spear. The blood red spear running through the hole on the blade.

"Hrunting always strikes true. I merely direct the sword to strikes your Noble Phantasm. Although even that requires a lot of luck to strike your spear before you called out its true name and intercept it. Didn't stop you from running me through with it thought."

The wound is still fatal by itself but nothing with some bandage and a lot of prana could not fix though. Well, a lot of prana might be of little help. Shirou need a shit ton of prana and some pain killers too.

"But." Shirou drawl out.

With how close where the two of them are. Lancer can clearly see the teen's face, which had a grin on it like he had accomplished something. Alarmed, Lancer looked around to see dozens of swords and spear had already been pointed at him even a few rifles too. Quickly trying to jump back in order to not get impaled by the various weapons but he could only tumble back realizing his leg is injured. Wondering how he could have been injured during the clash, looking closer Lancer saw in Shirou's right hand is his pistol, the barrel still smoking from firing a bullet.

"I got you where I wanted." Shirou said still standing on his legs.

Putting more force to his uninjured leg, Lancer kick off from the ground and backpedal to avoid the swords. He managed to evade but barely, having something pierce through you limbs is not a trivial matter. Hoping that he had dodged the bullet there, Lancer sighed in relief. But the feeling did not last long as he heard the familiar sound of those blasted lightning spear.

And the spear came out from the dusts ready to impale him at a moment's notice.

This time however, the spear seems to be able accomplished its goal this time. And Lancer seems so recognize it too and so does his Master. In a flash, the servant Lancer blinked out of existence from Shirou's Reality Marble, courtesy by a Command Seal. But one of the lightning spear managed to grazed Lancer thigh, where he got shot by Shirou.

'Me and my damned E-rank luck.' Lancer thought.

Seeing the blue clad Servant disappear in a blink of an eye, Shirou knew the Master of Lancer had just wasted a Command Seal. Without any grace, Shirou dispelled his Reality Marble and drop on the floor of his backyard with a thud.

Groaning, Shirou pulled out his cellphone and dial the numbers in and waited for the other side to pick up. Hearing the buzzing sound coming from the phone, Shirou brings it to his ear and asks.

"Hey, Ghost. Are you in town?"

"Yes. Why are you asking?"

Hearing the positive response, Shirou breathed a sigh of relief before turning serious.

"Shit is about to hit the fan."

Clearly confused, Ghost asked worryingly.

"The Grail War *gasp* it's happening *gasp* leave the package *gasp* and get out of Fuyuki."

Shirou answered with his voice labored.

"You sure about this, the war won't be happening for another 50 years?" Ghost asked, unsure if it's real or not.

Taking a deep breath to calm his raging nerves, Shirou once again answers the question.

"I'm sure. Just fought a Servant *gasp* before got stabbed."

"Fuck."

Silence reign over the two as each digesting the new information that the Holy Grail War is starting fifty years earlier. The silence was deafening and the stress of being in the war grated on their nerves. After a long moment for the two, Shirou broke the silence.

"The package, is it here?" Shirou asked.

"Yeah. And delivered to that priest you told me too."

"Good." Shirou nodded in satisfaction.

"You should get going. This city would be the most dangerous place on earth for the next few weeks."

Hanging up his phone, Shirou saw that he is close to his shed and began dragging himself to the shed. After a long five minutes, Shirou finally manages to drag his body to the shed and rested his back on the wall. Rummaging his pockets to check his gems reserve, he smile in relief to find he still have a few left.

Crushing the gems in his hand, Shirou let the prana flow freely around him as he manipulate it to accelerate the human's natural body regeneration to repair his muscle tissues. While also creating new bone tissues and replace the damaged portion of his lung. After five long agonizing minutes of cellular precision, Shirou is exhausted.

Lifting his body up, Shirou limps further into the shed towards where he kept his summoning circle when the Grail War starts. Reaching for a nearby drawer, Shirou pulled out a metal box that contain his relic for the summoning and a few dozen gems filled with his prana in case he ever got his reserve too low for the summoning.

The relic for his summoning is the bokuto that was once used by Miyamoto Musashi, which he may or may not have stolen from the ceremony at Kokura castle last year. Placing the bokuto gently on the ground that was engraved with his summoning circle of choice. Shirou admired the pristine condition of the bokuto even after a few centuries.

Once the bokuto was place down, Shirou takes the gems in his hands to fuel the summoning ritual as he begins to chant.

"Let silver and steel be the essence.
Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation.
Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall.
Let the four cardinal gates close.
Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.

Let it be declared now;
Your flesh shall serve under me, and my fate shall be with your sword.
Accept to the beckoning of the Holy Grail.
Answer, if you would accept to this will and this truth.

An oath shall be sworn here.
I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven;
I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell.

You shall serves me with a blade in hand

For you will be my sharpest sword

The sword that shall grant me victory.

From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power,
come forth from the ring of heroes, protector of the holy balance!"

[Moments earlier, with Rin and Archer]

The moment that they were sucked into this different world of golden sunset with the sky littered with rusty gothic cog and a barren wasteland filled with weapons of every kind. Ranging from the East to the far far West. Both of them were broken out of their stupor when they heard the sound of clashing steel. Looking to where the sound originate from and both the Master and Servant were astounded.

To see a human in the modern age to fight toe to toe with a Servant, it was awe inspiring and horrifying. If this person survives the fight with Lancer and became a Master. That pair would surely be the winner. Paying rapt attention to the fight, both of them kept realizing that Shirou, should he become a Master, he's going to be a dominant player in the whole War.

The moment Lancer's Noble Phantasm true name was called out, both knew that this fight is done. The bright flash covered their vision for a brief second, causing them to shield their eyes with their arm. When the flash died down, both saw Shirou got impaled by the Servant's spear his black blade staying between both people.

The boy actually still had enough life in him to muster up some prana to call up more swords from the ground trying to impale the blue clad Servant, it was even more surprising to see Shirou making lightning constructs to attack Lancer.

But all was for naught as the Servant suddenly disappear, possibly through the use of a Command Seal. The Reality Marble they were in also collapse due to its caster is dead, dropping to the ground in heap. While something like this should be reported back to the Clock Tower, Rin hesitated. It could be her reluctant in reporting someone she knows, it could also be disrespectful to the dead or it could just simply guilt that Rin felt for not doing a better job of keeping her late night activities a secret.

All she could do now is to leave.

"Archer let's go back to the mansion."

The forementioned Servant dutifully leave with his master but not before taking a glance at the now masterless Emiya mansion. They suddenly stopped as a surge of prana was rising in the Emiya mansion and it was huge. Both of them proceed to hurry back o the mansion, trying to investigate.

Once the incantation is finish, blinding bolts of crimson prana surge around Shirou and the circle before exploding, covering the whole shed in a dome seemingly made entirely of lightning bolts bathing the whole backyard with blinding white light.

Dropping his arm that had been raised up to cover his eyes, Shirou saw his Servant.

"Shinmen Musashi-no-Kami Fujiwara no Harunobubu...!?"

Yep, definitely what he expected. Staring at his Servant once more, he notice that she was wearing a sleeveless kimono that only reaches to her thigh. Matching black leggings and arm bands, pink shoulder pads that was made from silk. The Servant has a round face with silver eyes. Pinkish-white hair that was tied back into a spiky pony tail with only the right side of her hair let down.

Shirou was pulled from his thoughts when he heard his new Servant speaks up.

"Sorry, let's do that over! Servant Saber, Shinmen Musashi has arrived! Show me something fun and interesting, Master!"

It seems she also took notice of her own slip up with how she reintroduced herself. Smiling softly, Shirou responds to her.

"Shirou Emiya, or also known as Raiden. Now let's get into the house and get things settled, interesting things is going to happen soon."

As they are about to go into the house, the doorbell of the Emiya household rang. Looking suspiciously at the gate, Shirou pulled out his pistols and reloads them. Seeing her Master reaction, Musashi started to draw her blade but was stop when he ordered her.

"Musashi, go into your astral form."

Obeying her Master, Musashi immediately goes into her astral form seemingly disappeared to the human eye.

Seeing his Servant disappeared, Shirou discarded his cassock as it turns to motes of lights leaving Shirou in his black coat. Staring intensely at the wooden gate, Shirou decides to pulse his prana in a single burst filled with killing intent and received back something made his hands grips more tightly to his guns. A prana signal pulsing back but with anxiety directly before him.

'Get ready to fight when I give the signal, Musashi' Shirou said telepathically to Musashi.

After getting the confirmation from Musashi, Shirou steeled his resolve and increases his prana output and applied [Reinforcement]. Only five feet away from the gate, Shirou brings up his right leg and proceed to Spartan kick the wooden gate, blasting it from its hinges and kicking up a lot of dust.

He didn't worry about the person behind the gate, as evidence by the surge of prana he just felt. Lowering his body center of gravity by bending and spreading his knees apart, anticipating the second skirmish of the night.

And it came at him really fast.

Like when he fought against the Servant in blue, the power behind the strike was like truck running in to him. However, he is still in his combat attire. And that meant the momentum force behind the strike was transferred to the ground below. Acting quickly, Shirou brought his gun up to block a sword heading for his neck. Imagine his surprise when the edges of his guns crack, these pistols were meant to take punishments but apparently it has reaches its limits. Pushing off the offender, Shirou holstered one of his pistol and conjured lightning in a form of a blade.

Shirou quickly shoots a bullet at the direction of the enemy Servants before rushing in with his lightning blade.

The Servant seems to have the same idea as he throw his white blade. Shirou hastily brought his own blade up to deflect the white blade of the Servant before clashing blade with the Servants. The strength behind the Servant's swing surprises him.

It doesn't have the overwhelming strength or the viciousness and the blood lust like the Servant Lancer from before. However, the sword strike from the Servant before him has that little tinge of hate and hollowness in it. Shirou was going to push the Servants away when he heard a buzzing sound from behind him. Normally, that wouldn't bother him in the least but his instinct is screaming at him to dodge.

And it prove to be a life saver when the white sword he had deflected from earlier came back with as much force from before.

"A sword that acts like a boomerang? I call hax!" Shirou screams in indignation.

"And who let a teenager own firearms?" The Servant in red answered back.

"Fair enough."

Dismissing his lightning blade and holstering his last pistol, Shirou Projects a pair of gauntlets and shin armor plates. Strength and reach will not be the main focus of this fight, Shirou realized. This fights will be mainly focusing on speed and reflexes. That could be easily rely on martial arts, something Shirou has in spare.

After a moment of thoughts, Shirou settles for Bajiquan with his arms raises up to his torso to cover his chest and legs bends at the knee.

The moment is interrupted when a new voice came up.

"You're quite rude Emiya-kun. Greeting a guest like that."

Shirou glance at the source of the voice and recognized the person as Rin Tohsaka, the suppose idol of Homurahama high school. Looking haughtily with a smile belong to the group of people who thinks they are better than everyone. An expression he loathes and intend to wipe it clean off of the girl's face.

"Saber. Get the girl."

Complying her Master's order, Musashi materialize nest to the Tohsaka girl hold her right arm over the girl's shoulder.

Feeling something weighting on her shoulder, Rin Tohsaka slowly turns her head to the Servant, presumably of the Saber class, next to her and found a woman with silver pink hair grinning from ear to ear. Rin's haughty expression quickly transforms to one of terror. A change that left Shirou with no small amount of satisfaction.

Seeing his Master in danger, Archer hesitated on what to do next. This Grail War is already different from most, usually the person known as Shirou Emiya is always a third-rate magus with barely any talent and did not materialized his Reality Marble. This would means that this version of Shirou Emiya is well trained. Some part of Archer felt jealous, an emotion he thought he would never felt, if he was properly trained he would have never end up in this position.

The second thing Archer noticed is that Shirou Emiya has summoned a different Saber Servant, an Asian Heroic Spirit. That means the Servant's stats are boosted since they are in Asia. This will prove to be difficult as he is used to King Arthur's fighting style.

Two of this alone has already give Archer a headache.

Archer thoughts is stop when he heard Shirou Emiya's voice.

"Are you two going to leave? Or we are going to have the first casualty of this War tonight?"

Quickly deciding that Rin's safety comes first, Archer closes he distance between him and Saber bringing his white Chinese Dao for a downward slash hoping the Servant would dodge so he could grab his Master and bolt out of here.

However, Archer is once again surprised when Shirou intercepted between them and block Byakuya with his gauntlet.

Seizing the Servant's moment of surprise, Shirou quickly grab the Servant's offending arm by the wrist and bringing it up while closing his side and thrusts his elbow, aiming for the Servant's exposing ribs.

Instead of the sound of flesh hitting flesh, Shirou heard the sound of metal colliding with an object and the feeling of hitting something solid racing through his elbow. Ignoring the stinging pain in his elbow, Shirou brought his left leg up kicking the Servant away.

Seeing the Servant getting up quickly, he eyed the man carefully waiting for the next move being made. After a tense few seconds, both men charges at each other head on.

Playing: [The Only Thing I know for Real] – Metal Gear Rising: Revengance OST.

Armored fist meets bladed steel in their clash, both men unwilling to give the other any advantages.

Shirou lashes out with his left arm but was blocked by the white blade, taking his chance Shirou opens both of his palms grabbing the blades. With a surge of prana, he channels lightning through his palms and into the black and white blades, shocking the servant in red. Swatting both arms away, Shirou viciously kicks Archer in the sternum.

Archer slid back after receiving the kick from Shirou, his nervous system went AWOL and he's having a hard time breathing. Looking his younger self in the eyes, he could only see the indifference in those eyes, the same look he has when he's doing his Counter Guardian job. Even if this version is different, he would still in the end became a Counter Guardian, or him. Even if the boy wanted or not, Alaya would force him to do it. Something he wanted to stop at all cost. Gritting his teeth together, Archer once again dashes at the younger him, intend to kill him.

It prove to be a slow process as both of them traded blows for blows.

Every slash from Archer is blocked by the metal plate of the gauntlet and every punch or kick from Shirou is blocked by the flat side of Archer's blade.

A stalemate.

Both men traded blows for a long agonizing time before Archer made a mistake, he over-extended a swing leaving his side wide open.

A mistake Shirou certainly took, using the momentum Archer have. Shirou grabs the offending arm and the collar of the armor of the Servant before flipping and tossing the man to the air. Cocking his right arm back and charges it with lightning before thrusting his palm out hitting the Servant once again in the sternum.

"Six Grand Opening: Shattering Thrust Palm!"

Not letting up, Shirou 'moved' to the down servant, his left palm in a clawing motion, cracking with lightning.

"Six Grand Opening: Eagle Talon Cleave."

Quickly rolling to the side, Archer hastily getting up trying to make some distance. In an attempt to stop him, Shirou summoned his lightning spear swinging wide twice.

"Cross Slash!"

The swing misses as Archer managed to jump away from the range of the spear and jumps into the air before Tracing his black bow and fired light arrows at Shirou. Landing on the rooftops of the manor, Archer gathered his prana and Traces his most trusted Noble Phantasm. A drill like sword that shouldn't be call a sword. Nocking the sword on his arrow, he channel more of his prana into the sword altering its shape to be more aerodynamic.

I am the bone of my sword

"Caladbolg!"

Archer releases the string, letting the Noble Phantasm flies to its target. It never got to its destination as the white blade that belongs to the servant was thrown to the Broken Noble Phantasm, causing it to explode prematurely. Because of the premature destruction, the residing energy to made it burst out of the remains of the sword resulting in a ball of volatile prana.

Realizing it, Shirou hastily threw one of his emptied gem to absorb the prana. The effects is immediate, the once intimidating ball of explosive prana are absorb steadily in streams into the gem. Not long after, the gem had fully absorb the recess energy of the broken Noble Phantasm and dropping to the ground harmlessly. Whipping out his pistol, Shirou loaded in a different magazine and points it towards the Servant.

"Now. We can do this the hard way or the easy way."

Noticing the confusion on the Servant's face. He decides to elaborate.

"At first, I was going to eliminate any of you but something interesting has popped up. And for my little pride as a magi, I couldn't just ignore it. So, either you stand down and answer my question or your little Master get hurt."

Taking his other pistol out and pointed at Rin to show that he was not just throwing threats. He was promising the Servant. Prana pour out of Shirou and concentrated around the few very special bullets he loaded in.

"Or I can put a hole in your soul. Whichever you prefer, no pressure."

Seeing no other choice Archer dismissed his bow and jumped down to the courtyard below. Looking straight at Shirou, he couldn't help but let a scowl appear on his face, not because he was held at gun point but the sheer difference between the two of them. Both men may use any means to complete the objective but not willingly in Archer's behave.

Noticing the scowl on Archer's face, Shirou's lips curve upward showing a smile, which only make Archer scowl deepen.

"First question, who are you?"

Seeing this is always the first question being ask. Archer decides to follow with his half-truths and façade of amnesia, hoping Shirou would buy it.

"I can't properly recall my True Name due to my summoning was incorrectly done by my Master."

Apparently, the boy did not believe him as his expression took a drastic change. His eyes became narrow and sharp, his lips once curled up to a smile now a thin line. His index finger closer to pulling the trigger.

"Bullshit. A Servant always remember their True Name, the system won't allow it. A Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm always ties to their name and legend. If without their name, a Servant is a crippled one, unable to utilize their Noble Phantasm.

Unless Rin Tohsaka is an incompetent magi, which she is not, I'm guessing you're hiding something."

Crack

A bullet whizzed pass Rin, coming very close to her head and taking off a few strain of her hair. Looking to Shirou, Rin saw the gun he was pointing at her have smoke coming out from its barrel, a coming sign that a bullet was fired. Her expression of terror intensify and of grim acceptance when she knows Shirou Emiya will not hesitate to kill her.

"I will say this for the last time Archer. Tell me truthfully and you will survive."

Shirou said, staring at Archer with irritation.

Archer once again hesitate to consider his choice and after long hard consideration, he relented.

"My true name was Shirou Emiya, I am a Counter Guardian and summoned as a Servant of the Archer class."

Once the truth was revealed, shock and disbelief spread across all who are present in the courtyard of the house. Rin Tohsaka couldn't believe it, the Servant she had summoned was somehow her school's infamous 'brownie' Shirou Emiya himself. Theories was running in her head and it was forming into a headache.

Musashi however was astonished. Her master of this Holy Grail War are a Heroic Spirit, or will be in the future, but this does raise the question. The name doesn't trigger the Grail to send her the information of the legend this Servant in Red has. But astonishment still remains on the fore-front of her mind. Her master will be a power-house in combat ability or will done something that will earn him a place in the annals of legends, a place in the Thrones of Heroes. Looking towards her master, wondering what is running through his mind.

His mind was running a hundred miles, a million question was forming in his head. What will he be doing in the future, what caused him to be a hero. And some questions have answers, answers that he was afraid of. He either will be going all goody two-shoes or he will become like Kiritsugu. Or Root forbid, a selfless idiot going saving everyone left and right. That however is not as important as the appearance of him in the future. The white hair he could understand, his own has already started to turn white and he could try to slick it back like that. The clothes is also a good choice too, but he would prefer less red and more black. But the thing that baffled him was the skin tone, he wasn't that tanned. All that however, comes down to one question.

"How? You know what? Don't answer, it's too late for this shit. I still have a package to pick up."

As Shirou just finished his sentence, a ringing noise echo in the courtyard. Putting his hands in his pockets, Shirou brings out his phone. Looking at the screen for the contact name, Shirou saw it was his 3rd party for the delivery. Pressing the green button to accept the call, Shirou beings the phone up to listen to the caller.

"Yeah? …Uh hum …Did Ghost delivered the package?"

All three person present at the courtyard was listening on Shirou's conversation, curious to who he was talking to.

"Is he safe? Is the package whole? Okay I'll be there late to pick it up. Yeah, thanks. Have to go now. Bye Kirei."

A/N: Ending it here should be a reasonable place, no?

Tune in next time to know what package Shirou received. How does he know Kirei and on friendly terms with the man. What will happened to Rin and Archer.

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Peace!