The Holy Grail Victory

"Alright, everyone!" Alexander shouted. "Take your positions!"

The Servants positioned themselves around the Greater Grail, with the evil-aligned Servants staying closer than the good-aligned ones. Medea stayed close to Shiki, preparing to teleport her right next to the Grail.

Five shadow-like figured stood in front of the grail, apparently composed of some kind of shadow.



They had already been waiting for them when they came down into the cavern, and were now waiting for them to take a move.

Medea scanned them from a distance. "They're the same type of substance as the Grail mud," she determined. "They're weak, but their touch will corrupt you. Be careful."

Finally, Alexander nodded to Medea. The Caster gripped Shiki tight, raised a hand, and cast her teleportation spell.

Nothing happened. "Huh?" Becoming nervous, Medea tried it again, to no avail. A Territory had been erected around the Grail.

The shades suddenly leaped into action.



Two of them split off, one heading toward Asterion to the left, and the other toward Mordred at the right. Both Servants carefully backed away, dodging their claws.

"Damn it!" Medea picked up Shiki carefully. They were going to have to do this the hard way. Her feet left the ground, and she began to float quickly toward the Grail. As they did, the other Servants grouped around them; Atalanta and Iskandar from the left, Fran and Paracelsus from the right. As a group, they began firing off attacks. Two of the shades fell, only for two more emerge from the Grail.

Toward the back of the cavern, Mordred and Asterion slew their respective shades, but once again, even more of them sprouted from the Grail and rushed them again.

"Saber! I'll help you!" Astolfo charged forward.

"Don't! Stay back, you idiot!"

The Rider wouldn't listen, leaping into action and chopping toward the shades with his sword. One of the shades swiped at him, its claws cutting through the armor. As soon as the attack landed, a black blotch appeared on his arm and started to slowly spread.

"Stay back!" Mordred shouted again. Horrified, Astolfo finally complied, leaping into the air and summoning Hippogriff, flying out of danger's reach.

Medea and her entourage were closing in on the Greater Grail, but as they came closer, a hole opened in its side. A figure emerged that looked quite different from the shades.



The woman smiled.

"What is that?" Lazarus said. "Is that a Servant?"

"No!" Illya shouted urgently. "It's... it's the core of the Grail! Justeaze!" She cupped her hands over her mouth. "Don't kill her! If you kill her, the Grail will be destroyed!"

Shiki looked back at Illya, then back to Justeaze, activating her Mystic Eyes of Death Perception. Much like the Grail, she saw two sets of Lines covering her body--a set for her, and a set for the corruption.

"I can cut her," Shiki said calmly. "I can destroy the corruption by cutting her."

"Is that so?" Medea asked curiously. "Well, then..." She turned and hoisted Shiki up toward Alexander. "She'll be safer than you."

Alexander grabbed her, but a moment later, looked up to see Justeaze rushing toward them. "Look out!"

In another moment, Justeaze was upon them, reaching up toward Alexander and Shiki with a manic grin on her face. Atalanta and Medea both moved to block her. Justeaze managed to sweep past Atalanta, but as she reached forward, her hand landed on Medea instead. As her fingers brushed against Medea's forehead, the Caster suddenly froze. Black spider-like lines spread from the point of contact. The mage froze as Justeaze's influence began to infiltrate her mind.

"Haaaah!" Fran took that opportunity to leap forward, trying to tackle Justeaze away, but Justeaze turned and floated aside. Fran still grabbed the edge of her dress, holding it tight and trying to pull it away.

"Now's your chance!" Alexander whispered to Shiki. Justeaze's back was turned. She was wide open. The Servant held onto Shiki's waist, lifting her out of the chariot and toward the pseudo-Servant. Shiki brandished her knife, lashing out just as Justeaze saw her coming out of the corner of her eye.

Justeaze couldn't move fast enough, and Shiki slashed her across the back. White light shined out of the line that she had cut, and spread quickly outward, washing over Justeaze. Her dress turned white and gold, and her pale skin returned to its normal color.



At the same time, the black lines on Medea's face disappeared, as did the black splotch on Astolfo's arm.

The now-white Servant turned and smiled at Alexander and Shiki, genuine peace and gratefulness in her expression.

"Thank you."

She floated backward toward the Grail and sank into it. As she did, she transformed into a white pulsing light that quickly spread throughout the inside of the Grail. In her glow, they saw what looked like a large black fetus developing inside the core of the Grail, which quickly crumbled and disintegrated. All of the blackness inside the Grail disappeared, leaving in its wake only a light red, healthy light.

"Well, all be damned," Touko said. "You actually did it."

The Grail had been cleansed. Atalanta quickly checked to see if anything had changed with her body, but it looked like she was disconnected enough from the Grail to avoid the cleansing. Probably lucky for her.

Yui grasped onto Lazarus' arm, a tear forming in her eye.

Lazarus gripped her arm as well, eyes glittering with joy, but only for a few seconds before a realization came over him. He cleared his throat, "Um...we should take it now," he said, not horribly loudly. Yui looked at him with slight suprise. "I know it sounds sudden but...its' cleansed, it's ready and...we have enough servants here-"

"Actually it's going to take more servants than usual," Ruler's voice interrupted Lazarus from a corner. 
"I know, but we have..." Lazarus counted the servants around the room, "We have nine here, which is already more than the usual seven, plus two have been defeated already. We can't waste this opportunity. The other team isn't here."

Ruler grumbled, "That is enough. Extra, even. Two of them don't have to go." 

"But~!" Ilya chimed in, "We still need a host for the grail! They have to have magic circuits though!" many glances were exchanged between the mages. 

"We also need to confirm that the servants are even okay with this in the first place! Not to mention who should stay or go?" Yui added, understandably a bit upset. Lazarus nodded. Discussions were had. Atalanta refused to go, but nobody seemed to be upset with her for it. Mordred also objected, but after being guaranteed to be brought back by Lazarus, she relented, hoping to see her father again soon. The other servants acquiesced as well, seeing really no other option than to accept their fate for now, placing it in the hands of the only people who could somehow summon them again.

It was then time to decide who else would stay. True to their honorable form, none of the servants would volunteer, though many clinged to their compatriots and there was barely a dry eye in the room. Atalanta surveyed the group. Her gaze hovered on Astolfo, being held tightly by Phillipus. She opened her mouth, almost telling the rider to get out of line, but stopped herself. She needed to be pragmatic. With a sniffle, she spoke up, "Medea or Phillipus should stay. They could help with research to get back the rest of you." The two servants looked at each other, debating. Medea insisted Phillipus stay, as he knew Lazarus and his methods better and therefore would be more helpful. Lazarus also pleaded with him to do so, even offering the mage his hand, but Phillipus would not take it. They even attempted to coax him with how much they would require his services, especially since Ilya informed everyone the grail would need to be surgically implanted into whichever host they chose. Therefore, Phillipus' talents would be indispensable. Eventually Atalanta had to physically pry the two apart, though tears were streaking down her face as she did so. 

After more discussion, and news that it would not kill the host, Avalon volunteered to host the grail. She felt it was an action befitting her name. Phillipus anesthetised her, luckily before Ilya removed a dagger from her pocket and sliced up the homunculus currently bearing it, reaching into her and ripping it out of her chest. The poor thing screamed in pain. Atalanta swore and quickly put an arrow through her head to put her out of her misery, glaring at the little girl. Ilya was untroubled, however, and Phillipus, showing immense bravery and steadiness in the face of great loss, performed the surgery to implant the lesser grail into Avalon. 

More goodbyes followed, accompanied by many tears. The servants decided it would be best to all die together, and elected Fran as their executioner. She would be able to do it with no difficulty, also, it would look completely badass. Everyone gathered around the berserker, Asterion having had to take a few hits to become weakened enough, as he was too powerful for even Fran. They all held each other as she raised her hammer...

Yui nearly had to be pried from Fran as well, sobbing and tears streaming down her face. But the Servants went out to meet their fate, and Yui sat back to watch. She didn't want to let Fran die without someone watching over her.

"Blasted... Tree!!!"

Fran planted the end of her mace in the ground and lightning exploded out of it. For a moment everyone in the cavern was blinded, but the flash left an image etched into their eyes of what almost seemed like a massive black tree being split by lightning. The individual bolts struck the Servants and killed them before they could feel any pain.

When the smoke cleared, six forms were vanishing into golden spirit particles, leaving only Fran still standing in the middle. Her mace slowly spun down, before finally stopping and deactivating. Fran slumped over the pole of the mace, then soon enough vanished into spirit particles herself.

Yui buried her face into Lazarus' chest and sobbed uncontrollably.

A moment later, Avalon's body twitched as the Grail inside her activated, reaching out into her Magic Circuits. A golden light formed around her stomach and rose up into the air, crystallizing into the familiar golden cup. It looked the same as it did that day in the theater, but luckily with no evil mud spilling out of it.

Lazarus took a deep breath and firmly took Yui's shoulders to straighten her up. "I gotta go."

Yui nodded and stepped away, still unable to control her tears, but knowing the time had come.

As Lazarus stepped closer to the Grail, Touko's eyes were also locked on it. There was some kind of hunger in her eyes, finally staring at a path to the Root. It was right in front of her. She could reach out...

No. She'd given up on the Root long ago. This wasn't her path to take. She put her tongue in frustration and turned away.

His hand shaking, Lazarus reached out and placed a hand on the Grail. He felt its golden energy leeching into his hand, and though he heard nothing, he felt it asking the question. It asked him to make a wish. So he did.

At first, he saw only blackness. He couldn't see the cavern, or the Grail, or even his own body. He was falling, far far down, to what felt like the center of the Earth. Wind was rushing past him, along with little pinpoints of light that looked like stars. Was he rushing down into the Earth, or out into space? It was impossible to tell.

Right in front of him, a small point of light grew brighter and brighter. He grew closer and closer to it, what seemed like something that was at the same time infinitely bright and infinitesimally small. It was smaller than an atom, but at the same time it filled his entire vision.



The Swirl of the Root. The Origin. Akasha. The source of all phenomena and all knowledge, outside of time and space.

Lazarus grew close to it, but refrained from touching it directly. It was said that touching Akasha directly gave you access to infinite knowledge or power, making one into God themselves. But those who did so vanished on the spot and disappeared from the world. Perhaps they just die, their soul being absorbed back into its origin. Or perhaps they truly become God and there is no reason to return to the world.

Either way, Lazarus had to settle for limited knowledge and power. He reached his hands out toward it, staying a few inches back. Or was it a few feet? Miles? Either way, he felt something wash over him, something no language could describe. If ideas could be given physical form, it would feel like that. It permeated his skin, and flowed into his mind. Knowledge flowed into his head so fast he felt like it would burst.

He knew then what the Root had to offer him. It was what he came here for, and in a way, what the Einzberns had been seeking all along. The ability to do this impossible! Immortality! It was finally within his grasp, and with enough information from the Akashic Records, the Grail delivered it into his hands.

He heard a voice in his head. He wasn't sure if it was an outside voice speaking to him, or a memory of something he had heard in the past. "No one else could ever be admitted here, since this gate was made only for you. I am now going to shut it."

Then, feeling like a bungee cord had been attached to him, he felt himself hurtling backwards, rushing back over all the space and time he had traversed.

He was standing back in the cavern, looking at the remains of the Lesser Grail disintegrating before him. Behind that, the Greater Grail's power was fading. The mana swirling around it lowered and dissipated, as though an engine were powering down. Then, it went dark.

He had done it. Just as he started to realize his accomplishments, he felt a terrible pain wrack his body. It felt for a moment like the air itself had grown immeasurably dense and was pressing in on him. His blood was boiling and his flesh was screaming.

He knew what it was--the Counter Force. The energy of the planet responding to potential threats to its existence. True Magic was the ability to do the impossible, so the World felt threatened.

A vision flashed before him. A dark expanse of swirling fog, and some inscrutable figure in the distance. Even he wasn't sure what it was.



Then the vision passed. The pain receded. His soul fought back and counteracted the pressure against him. It wouldn't be that easy for the Counter Force to destroy him. His soul had been turned into a higher form of existence. His soul had been made "permanent," an immutable record of his existence. Any damage done to his body, whether by injury or time, would simply be rewritten by the record stored within his soul.

Yui noticed him cringe in pain and stepped closer. The assembled Masters hadn't seen Lazarus disappear. He had simply touched the Grail, there was a surge of mana, and the Grail shut down.

"Are you okay?"

Lazarus nodded, "Yes...and no. It was painful for a moment but it's alright now." His mind was buzzing, his gaze miles away. There was so much to be done. His sadness and happiness were both so immense that they almost cancelled each other out, making him feel as if he was in a stupor. After taking a few deep breaths, his mind began to kick into high gear.  What if the other team was vengeful? Not to mention with a destroyed home..."Where should we go? We need to go. Should we go together or seperate?"

Carlotta tucked a hanky into her purse, "Damn. You're right. I don't want to leave any of you. Losing the servants is enough. I'd worry too much... I don't know where we should go, but I vote we stay together."

Phillipus watched the seals disappear from the back of his hand. He was gone... Truly gone... He would never see his friends again, not as they were. Not as he knew them. He needed a- several drinks. Not until, however, he made sure Lazarus's experience was recorded. The work kept him stable.

Even though Hachi had told her to be strong, Mari was squatted on the ground, her jacket pulled around her head with her shoulders shaking. The sobs and hiccups came in great bursts, no matter how hard she tried to stop. She couldn't even breathe until Avalon moved her arms around her and the Grail was gone. She stood up and wiped her eyes and nose with the heels of her hands.

"I can connect us to a safehouse until they find out I lost. Well, hopefully after that, but then we might have to pay for it or buy it, unless you can work out a deal with them. I won't let them extort you too bad."

Daichi slid his glasses off and rubbed the lenses clean on the hem of his shirt. The processes in his brain were whirring fast. He lost... He wasn't fast enough. Even with his watch, he wasn't fast enough. He had half a mind to break it. "I think... I'm just going to leave. Go home. Find a new job. Lay low. It's all over."

"You're free to come with us if you want," Yui said to Daichi. "But, I won't stop you from leaving. Just stay safe. Mari, your idea will work for now. I'll call my father. We should still have enough family funds to get a place somewhere safe." She paused, and mumbled sheepishly. "At least we had good insurance on the house."

She coughed and turned to Lazarus. "I know we don't want the enemy team to find us if they're gonna be out for revenge. But some of them might still want to join us. I wanna let Artoria know what happened, at least."

" I'd feel better if you came with us," Carlotta urged Daichi, "I don't want to see you as a headline...but if you want to go, could I convince you to keep in contact?"

"Oh! Yes, of course!" Lazarus ran a hand through his hair, trying to sort his thoughts. "Alright. Let's see if we can get Saber here. Let me call your father and we can work with Mari to figure out what to do. You can speak to her while I get things ready. Does that sound alright?" 

Avalon hugged Mari tight, crying herself. She had barely felt anything with the grail thanks to Phillipus, but she wanted Mordred back. "I'm going with you guys. At least until it's safe to get home."

Yui nodded. "Sure. I'm sure we can get Saber with us if we do something about her Master. Dunno about the others."

Ruler, still watching the proceedings, heaved a deep sigh. A golden mist started to rise off him as he himself began to disperse. "To Lazarus Quinlan, I congratulate you. Not how I hoped it would end, but nevertheless, you are the legitimate winner of the Holy Grail War. With that, my purpose here is now done. It's time for me to disappear."

"I'll write to Saber. That way no one will be over-loaded, and I think she might like to hear it from... One of her own." Phillipus pulled a sheaf of parchment from his sleeve along with a glass pen.

"Yeah, I'll stay in touch. I don't want to be a burden on you guys anyways." Daichi started the trek up the stairs, some of his belongings left in a cache at the temple. Normal, soon everything's going to be normal, and none of this will have ever happened.

Lazarus couldn't help but chuckle at the supposed congratulations. This war had been an amazing success. Very few were killed unwillingly and the grail was cleansed and won. He didn't know what ruler could be so upset about. He gave a half hearted wave as the servant disappeared. After a moment he got out his phone, and went off with Mari to work out arrangements for a safe house as far away as possible.

Ruler smiled and faded away.

Kirei turned to Atalanta. "It's over. I suppose it's also wise for us to get out of Fuyuki before the enemy Servants go on a rampage. We can return to Italy to our family's estate."

"That sounds lovely," she replied. She spoke to Yui to get her phone number so that she could also keep in touch, and gave Phillipus the biggest hug she could muster, dabbing at the wetness on his face. She returned to Kirei after her goodbyes and the two left, headed away to a new country.

It wasn't much longer after Kirei and Atalanta left before another Servant suddenly made their appearance.

Assassin jogged lightly down the stairs into the cavern, making sure to make her presence known long before she arrived. "Excuse me, I--"

She stopped before introducing herself, looking around at the group. "...what happened to all your Servants?"

"The grail has been won. The war is over." Lazarus kept his explanation simple for now, as he was on the phone with Tokiomi.

Mari balled her hands into fists before taking a deep breath. There was no point in going over "ifs" and sacrificing Assassin was a long shot. "He's right. Sorry, it's over."

Assassin was speechless for a second. "What?! Oh man, what?!" She grasped her hair. "It's over already?! I didn't even get to have one fight! Stupid ass coward Shinji." She grunted and kicked the dirt in frustration, then sighed, trying to compose herself. "I'm Assassin. I was coming over here to ask if I could join you guys. Guess there's no point now."

Avalon spoke up, "Well hey, we'll be seeing your original master soon. You can still come with us if you want. Or you can just go live your life. You're free to do whatever you want..." she looked to the side, considering for a moment, "why do I feel like I'm setting free a genie?"

"Hey, don't be pissed. It went by pretty fast. You can stay with us, see Ayaka sometimes maybe." Mari smirked lightly and wiggled her fingers. "Still work with a reeeal Matou."

Assassin grumbled something about "not wanting that stupid grail anyway," but thought about their proposal. "Alright, I'll take that deal. I'm sure Ayaka won't mind having me around if there's no War on. I just gotta take care of Shinji." She cracked her fingers and grinned. "Should be no problem if I sneak up on him. I am an Assassin after all."

"Well get on it, we'll be heading out pretty soon I think. Hey Mari, do you know where we're headed yet?" Avalon was getting nervous being here, but smiled as she asked her friend the question.

"If you're serious about getting far away, there's a set of apartments in Moscow, a country house in Hawaii, and a McMansion in San Fransisco. How's your Russian?"

Avalon raised an eyebrow at Mari, " Okay neither of us are gonna be going to Russia I can tell you that right now." 

Carlotta raised a hand, "I vote Hawaii...I know San Francisco is further but please? It seems like a lovely place to hide..."

Mari gave Carlotta an approving thumbs up. "I was hoping you'd say that!"

Once the letter was finished, Phillipus folded it into shape and sealed it with wax before tossing it into the air, the parchment popping as it disappeared. Should his divination be correct, it would arrive in Artoria's vicinity immediately.

"Hawaii, it is," Yui sighed. "That sounds nice."

"If you guys are going to pick up Ayaka, let me know her address. Once I take care of Shinji I can meet you there."

Avalon dug in her pocket and pulled out some cash, "Here! I had this in reserve. Buy a burner phone and here's my number." she hastily scribbled it down and passed it to the servant. " I trust you but I just wanna be careful about giving this address out for like five thousand reasons."