The City in Flames

"N-No!" They couldn't resist the Berserker's grasp, and Darius tore it from their grasp.

They looked down at the ground as Mordred approached. "This is how it always ends, huh. Always the same fate."

They grunted as Mordred's Clarent went through their chest. They slumped over it, then slowly dissipated into mist.

Darius nodded satisfactorily and opened his hand for the other Masters to see what he had grabbed. It was a small crystal, a little smaller than a palm, glowing with rainbow powers. Just from looking at it, they could see that it contained a nearly immeasurable amount of power. Mana rolled off it like heat from the sun.

Olga approached it while she looked down at her computer. "Confirmed. This thing is the source of the Singularity. I suppose... that should do it."

"Do we like, destroy it then?" Aaron asked slurring slightly.

"It should be destroyed, I say." Mordred sheathed Clarent and slipped their helmet back over their head. They sat down hard on an outcropping of rock in the chasm, eyes closing.

"That... Was so cool!!!" Mari ran over and plopped next to Mordred, giving them a hug around their shoulders.

"You saved our asses!!" Mordred gave a weary laugh.

"It's the least I could do."

Dr. Roman's voice came over the connection. "Whatever you guys did, I think it worked! The Singularity's beginning to dissolve! I'll get ready to Rayshift you back!"

Olga nodded. "Roger that." She looked up at the others. "It seemed like taking out that Saber was enough to resolve the Singularity. That being the case, I think we should take that back to Chaldea and study it. Even if it isn't useful, it could shed some light on what's happened here."

Phillipus nodded. "We won't learn anything if we destroy it. As long as we take appropriate safety measures, it shouldn't cause any more harm." Mordred shot him a look through their visor, but eventually nodded.

"I was never one for research. That was always Bedivere's bailiwick."

Aaron put his control bracelet back on, and Darius' breathing began to slow. He offered Mordred a hand, "You fought impressively." he complimented with a smile.

As they prepared for the Rayshift, another voice suddenly called out to them. To their surprise, a familiar figure was now standing just a short distance from them in the cavern.

"I have to say, I'm surprised!" said Lev Lainur. "I never expected you to make it this far. I suppose even Saber was no match for five or six-odd Servants."

Olga gasped, her eyes starting to water over. "Lev! You're... you're alive! I can't believe it!"

"Thank you." They raised themselves up with Darius's help.

"It was... Difficult. Not just in skill. I feel as though I could easily have been like them, if I let the anger in me flourish."

"Yes, you are! And, may I ask, what the fuck?!" Aaron asked, whipping out his gun and pointing it at Lev.

"What are you doing?" Olga cried at Aaron. "This is Lev! Don't point your gun at him!"

"Ah, Olga," Lev laughed. "It's good to see you're okay. That's even more surprising though, that you survived the explosion. I made sure to put the bomb right under your feet, after all."

Olga blinked several times. "Huh?"

"No, that's not quite right. You didn't survive. Your body didn't anyway. Trismegistus ended up being kind to you and transferred your consciousness. You know what that means, right? You can't go back to Chaldea. As soon as you leave this Singularity, you'll disappear."

Mordred growled. "You... You're the one who lied to me!! The 'me' from this world!!"

"That's why I'm pointing my gun at him oh my god you aRE SUCH A STUPID GIRL HOW ARE YOU EVEN STILL ALIVE?!" he kept his eye on Lev, but he had absolutely had it with Olga.

Meanwhile, hearing everything through the communication device, Lazarus was trying to find a way to transfer Olga back, though, not without a bit of a chuckle. He did, however, activate his pocketwatch and began searching frantically for a solution to bring Olga back. She was not perfect, but she did not deserve death by such a betrayal.

"That's right!" he answered Mordred. "What an idiot, that Saber. I put the Holy Grail right in her hands, and she insisted on maintaining this Singularity. It's hard to find reliable people nowadays."

"What do you mean, Lev?" Olga asked, looking crazed. "I can't go back? That's a joke, right Lev?"

"It's no joke. As a favor, though, I'll show you what's going on at Chaldea right now."

Lev turned around and raised a hand, and a fissure appeared in the air behind him. With a gesture, he tore a hole in the fabric of space itself. Through it, they saw the central room of Chaldea, with Chaldeas itself still hovering there, glowing orange.

In the control room, Lazarus looked up to see the same tear having opened right in front of him, and the party standing there in awe.

"What the hell?!" Olga shouted. "What is this? A projection?"

"It's the real deal. I connected time and space for you. That's the power of the Holy Grail."

"Why... does Chaldeas look like that?"

Lev cackled. "Look closely! Not a single shard of blue of humanity left! All there is is blazing red! You know what that means?"

"You all babbled on about the 'future of humanity' disappearing. But the truth is, from the moment Chaldeas turned red, it's already come to pass. Everyone outside of Chaldea itself is gone. You people here, and you in the facility," he called out to Lazarus and Dr. Roman. "You're the last human beings left on Earth!"

Mordred drew Clarent and lunged forward towards Lev.

Lazarus did not tolerate his kind well. His method to deal with them was to simply ignore them and keep working. Lev could brag all he wanted, all he gained was a passing glance from Lazarus. He continued to work on finding a way to get Olga back, and when or if that was accomplished, they would fix what Lev had done.

Avalon, shaking with anger, growled, "You aren't gonna succed. We're gonna figure this out and you're gonna fucking pay."

Lev laughed at Avalon as Mordred lunged toward him. They drove Clarent forward, but as it passed through him, his form seemed to crumble like papier-mache and disappeared. He reappeared another short distance away. "Go ahead and attack! It's only a projection!"

"The truth is, I've already succeeded! The era of man is over! The only reason Chaldea still stands is because it's on a separate time axis! It's dragging ever so slightly behind the main timeline. But, as soon as it catches up, it'll all be over for you as well!"

"You've been a good girl, Olga, so I'll give you a reward. You love Chaldeas so much. So, I will allow you to touch it."

He reached out toward Olga, who suddenly froze and lifted up in the air. Before they could catch her, she started flying toward the tear in space, and toward the burning Chaldeas in front of them.

Aaron's arm whipped up, lashing out a vine and trying to grab her ankle.

The vine latched firmly around her ankle, but it did nothing to slow her ascent toward the flaming globe. She began to drag Aaron along with her, until Mashu ran to his side.

"You've got to let go! If your vine touches Chaldeas, you'll die!"

"That's right," said Lev. "It's super-compressed information. Something like a black hole. Anything that touches it is decomposed on the atomic level and absorbed."

"No, no, somebody help!" Olga began to scream, trying to move, but her limbs frozen in place. "I don't want to die! I don't want to die! Nooooo!"

Olga's body touched Chaldeas. Her form was engulfed in flame, then pulled into the sphere and disappeared.

Lev cackled maniacally again, turning back to the group. With a snap of his fingers, the rift closed. "Any resistance is futile! The end has already been decided! For this is a denial of humanity through history itself. You do not reach a dead end in evolution, nor do you do you die in conflict with another race. You die because of your own meaninglessness! Because of your own incompetence! Because you lost favor with our King! You'll burn into nothing like the paper scraps you are!"

Phillipus caught Aaron, wrapping his arms around Aaron's torso. "Your king??"

"Please shut the hell up and go away." Aaron said, rubbing his temples.
"Get us the FUCK out of here!" Avalon shouted, hoping she would be heard.

"Working on it!" Dr. Roman said in a panic, punching buttons rapidly. "Ten seconds!"

The cavern began to tremble around them. "Ah, I guess it's time for me to go anyway. This Singularity's collapsing. Despite appearances, I have more work to do. Good luck. If you survive long enough, we may meet again." Lev laughed as his form dissolved again.

Just as he finished, the group's vision went white, and it felt like they were rushing down a long tunnel. In a burst of energy, they reappeared standing on the floor of the central room. Though all the fires were out, rubble still littered the floor.

Da Vinci was waiting for them, her arm all back to normal by now. "Is everyone alright? Any injuries that need tending to?"

"No, we are not fucking alright. What the hell are we gonna do?" Aaron paced nervously, looking around at the destruction and the people in comas.
"What he said..." finally in a relatively safe place, tears started to stream down Avalon's cheeks.

Da Vinci's face was grave. "I heard. Everyone on the outside..." She shook her head. "You've corrected the Singularity. But... it's not over. I've been monitoring Shiva while you were gone. Come up to the control room."

Phillipus let Aaron pace for a bit and dusted off his robes, focusing to regain his balance. "We're going to need some healing, and perhaps a few years of psychotherapy. I don't suppose that Freud fellow is a Heroic Spirit?" He rested a hand on Aaron's shoulder and met his eyes, concerned and gentle. Mari pulled Avalon in for a cuddle.

"You heard what that fucker said. What do we even do from here? How... How do we even begin to fix this?" When everyone was ready, they followed da Vinci.

"Actually, I wouldn't call Freud. A lot of his work has been proven rather inaccurate." he laughed, though certainly not with any true joy. He was an optimist, and was certain they would find a way to fix this, but the problem did seem rather insurmountable at the moment...