Please ignore the previous thread, I deleted it because I used the wrong title. Damn my mind.
Chapter Index
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Omake Index
Rusted Steel Omake Theatre (first)
Rusted Steel Omake Theatre (Second)
Rusted Steel Omake Theatre (Third)
The Final Chapter
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Tempered Steel
Or
Archer kills zombies (and finds love along the way)
Chapter 1
The battle was over.
“Archer!”
He heard her before he saw her, and snorted softly; wasn’t that always her way? It was just like Rin, to be seen before eyes could even rest upon her. He waited as she ran to him, a blur of red against a golden wasteland.
Absently, it crossed his mind that she probably shouldn’t be running at all, after what she had endured. And yet there she was, breathing raggedly.
He might have made a joke about it, but he could already feel his weak existence fading. He was disappearing, starting at his feet, gradually working its way up until eventually, he wouldn’t be there anymore. Rin stared at him, her eyes wide, still trying to catch her breath but not daring to look away, as if afraid that if she did, she’d look back and he’d be gone.
She was probably right to be worried.
“Ar… cher…”
Even gazing into her eyes, he couldn’t quite manage a smile. And yet… “Too bad. Well, that’s what happened. Give up this Holy Grail, Rin.”
Yes. That was good. That sounded like him, like something he would say to her.
“Archer.”
Her voice sounded small, and broken; but she didn’t continue, lost for words at the most important moment. He couldn’t quite resist the small smile, now. He had expected it from her, really. It was comforting to know some things never changed.
She flared up at his soft snort of amusement; her eyes blazed indignantly, and he knew how to respond to that too. Yes, he wanted her to be like this; if she stayed like this, Emiya Shirou would never follow his path.
“Archer. Form a contract with me.”
…
Well, now. He didn’t quite know how to respond to that.
Rin gazed up at him, her eyes firm and determined, her chin jutting out just so. She was practically daring him to say no. Logically, he knew he should say no. She might still maintain her contract with Saber, and besides, he didn’t have a goal anymore. And of course, the contract would just be delaying the inevitable, the return to his darkness once Rin’s life ended.
He knew he should say no.
And yet there was a gleam of determination in her eyes, and that made it hard for him to speak. The boy was flopped out on his back, sound asleep, and he couldn’t quite tear his eyes away from him. The knight in blue had seen fit to limp to the side of her former Master and now sat beside him, her hair down, her grip loose and relaxed on her sword, a posture he had never seen from her in his life.
And yet…
“Well, I suppose I really have no choice.” Archer chuckled and it was a warm, low, gentle sound; he smiled, and it reached his eyes. “You’d just force me if I said no, wouldn’t you?”
Rin’s eyes blazed again at that. “You—“
But when she flew at him, he caught her easily in his arms, held her against his chest, and instead of hitting him and yelling as he had expected her to, she began to cry.
And that was how the second life of Servant Archer began; bathed in gold, standing before a battlefield with the sun at his back, and no idea of what to do next.
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“The ceiling must be utterly fascinating.”
Torn away from his inspection of the wood above his head, Archer propped himself up on his elbows, peering curiously at the entrance to the Emiya dojo. Leaning against the doorframe, looking utterly relaxed and at ease in a pair of jeans and a sweater, was Saber.
He took her in for a moment before he lifted an eyebrow. “New look?”
The blonde Servant snorted. “Rin’s idea. You think this is interesting, you should see what she bought Shirou.”
Archer’s eyebrow joined his hairline at that statement, and wisely he chose to drop the topic, falling onto his back once more. He heard the muffled sound of footsteps and chuckled, closing one eye as Saber sat down beside him. “I was in the process of solving the secret of life,” he said. “You distracted me.”
“I’m sure the world will manage without your discovery.”
Her small jab delighted him; he had never seen this side of her, back when he had lived as Emiya Shirou. A sign, he supposed, of how much she had grown and changed over the weeks that had passed after the War.
And a reminder that he himself hadn’t grown or changed to match her pace.
As if reading his thoughts, Saber sighed. “I know you’ve been told this before,” she began, “but Rin is worried about you. I believe it’s getting to a point where she’s considering sending Shirou in to give you a pep talk.”
Archer cringed, just a little. This wasn’t the first time he had talked to Saber about his apparent lack of direction in his new life, but if Rin was contemplating sending in Shirou to speak to him next, then she had to be thinking he’d sunk to a new low. “Am I really that bad?”
Saber gave him a look. Archer closed his eyes.
By all accounts, Rin had every right to be worried. In the aftermath of the War, everyone seemed to put themselves back together and resume their lives. With Shirou by her side and determined to remain his conscience and steady support throughout, Rin continued to walk the path of a magus. Saber immersed herself in learning more about the new environment she now permanently called home, even if explaining that she would now live with Shirou had nearly made Taiga blow a gasket. Shinji was, it seemed, returning to the boy he had been when Shirou had first befriended him, and was on the rocky path of reconciliation with Sakura.
In comparison, Archer hadn’t resumed anything; hell, one could say he wasn’t even living at all. While at first he had often argued that it was because he was finally at peace with his ideals, the truth was far simpler and something he hated to admit to Rin’s face.
He opened his eyes, shifting his gaze to look up at Saber. “I don’t know what I should be doing.”
He admitted it quietly, his gray eyes never once leaving the woman who sat beside him. Saber was silent for a moment, contemplating this, before she nodded. She didn’t speak, but he knew she was thinking.
In the aftermath of the War, it had been hard for Archer to ignore that despite Rin’s offer to let him live on, he was now more or less regulated to the sidelines. The affairs between Shinji and Sakura were none of his business; and as much as he hated to admit it, in his absence, Rin had forged a bond with Shirou and Saber that he had no right to try and step into.
The silence stretched on for a long moment, each Servant lost in their thoughts. Finally, Saber cleared her throat. “Archer?”
“Hm?”
“When I mentioned this to Rin, she was quite against the idea, but…” The former king paused, then plunged on. “Have you perhaps considered leaving Fuyuki?”
Archer stared.
Saber blushed; apparently, she hadn’t meant it that way. “What I mean is… well.” She tilted her head to the side, collecting her thoughts, before she spoke again. “Shirou tells me it isn’t unusual for a person to do some traveling, when they have time and are unsure of what to do next in life.” She scratched her cheek, trying to calm herself. “That’s what I meant. Have you ever thought of traveling?”
Archer blinked several times, then shook his head. Quite frankly, to be honest, the thought had never crossed his mind at all. “Traveling?”
“Just…. around.” Saber gestured vaguely, as if hoping her fingers could conjure an image. “Japan. There’s no reason you couldn’t, after all.”
For the second time during the course of the conversation, Archer lifted a brow. The idea had appeal, certainly, and it wasn’t like he couldn’t look after himself; to be honest with himself, he’d been feeling the urge to roam for quite some time.
“Since you’re the one who suggested it, how do you propose I’d travel around Japan?”
Saber smirked impishly. It wasn’t a fitting expression at all.
“Between the two of us, I heard Taiga’s grandfather recently purchased a new motorcycle.”
Archer returned Saber’s smirk.
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Rin was scowling.
Since she’d been doing this for the past few minutes, ignoring her was an easy enough task. Archer checked the gas one last time, making sure it was full, before he accepted the helmet Saber offered him. “Tell the old man I really appreciate this.”
Shirou shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck and casting an uneasy look at his girlfriend as Archer slid his jacket on. “Fuji-nee said he didn’t mind. He hasn’t used it for much recently. Just don’t get it scratched.”
“So noted,” Archer replied, and briefly their eyes met. Knowing he needed to say nothing, Archer broke the eye contact after several minutes and turned to Saber. “Saber.”
“Yes?”
He smiled, just a little. “Try not to eat the boy out of house and home while I’m gone.”
Saber sniffed, but her lips twitched dangerously. Pleased with himself, turning away from her, Archer had to resist the urge to sigh.
Rin was still scowling. Her eyes gleamed dangerously.
“Ah.” Seeing the potential threat, Shirou lightly grabbed Saber by the shoulder and began to steer her towards the house. “Saber, want to help me out? Sakura gave me this new recipe the other day, I think you’ll like it.”
Shirou’s chatter faded into silence as he and Saber went back into the house, and wordlessly Archer offered the boy a brief thanks. Rubbing his eyes, he turned to his former Master. “Rin.”
Rin shook her head. “I don’t like it,” she said, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. “You know I don’t.”
Archer stepped closer to her, gently resting a hand on her shoulder, and was relieved when she didn’t push him away, even if she didn’t lean into his touch as much as he would have liked. “I’ll come back,” he reminded her gently. “I’m not leaving.”
“I know that!” She tossed her hair over her shoulder, glaring up at him. “I know that, I just…”
When she fell silent and wavered, the taller man chuckled quietly and gently rested an arm along her shoulders, giving her a gentle squeeze. This time, she leaned into his chest and sighed, deeply, closing her eyes. “Be careful, okay?” she muttered. “I don’t want you coming back all battered and bruised.”
Archer nodded, running his fingers through her hair. “I will be.”
Rin’s eyes opened and she looked up at him, grinning wickedly. “And don’t get any girls pregnant.”
When he choked on the very oxygen he was inhaling, his face turning bright red as he stuttered, she began to laugh.
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“The night before everything ended, I was up late.”
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It was a beautiful, warm day in Tokonosu City. The sun was shining, the sky was clear and blue, the clouds were white and puffy, and cherry blossoms floated cheerily in the breeze.
Spring was on its way. With so much beauty, so much life around them, the citizens had no reason to think of things such as the end of the world, matters of morality, or dead people rising from the ground and walking. It was a normal day, and people were thinking of normal things.
Komuro Takashi was busy moping over his childhood friend, but that was neither here nor there.
With the sun shining brightly and the breeze blowing gently, a middle aged man in a business suit stumbled out of an alley. He lurched dangerously for a moment, seeming almost ready to crumble into a heap on the ground, before he arched his back and rocked on his heels, righting himself. Breathing out quietly, releasing a small moan, he lurched in the direction of Fujimi Academy.
The street was deserted at that time of day, so no one saw him pass by, dropping bits and pieces of decayed skin from the massive wound in his back, the fingers of other humans still dangling from his teeth.
He would be the first of many.
But it was still a normal day, and the people who were thinking normal things didn’t even know he existed.
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There is a theory that within a specific plane of existence, there exist multiple worlds and multiple timelines, co-existing and in general not bothering with each other. The inhabitants of one timeline are not even aware that the inhabitants of another timeline exist, and it offers new, fascinating looks at what lives could become under different circumstances.
In another world, Emiya Shirou never saw the battle between two Servants, and thus never participated in the Grail War. He eventually married Mitsuzuri Ayako, and lived a relatively normal life in spite of his ideals.
In another world, Tohsaka Rin became a Matou, and Matou Sakura remained a Tohsaka. How that world will end up still remains to be seen, as events unfold.
And in another world, one quite similar to this time and place, the Servant Archer refused Rin’s offer and instead faded away, and within ten years’ time the Holy Grail system was completely dismantled and done away with.
But, well.
That world isn’t this one, now is it?
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Originally Posted by Seika
