fate/first order derivative

Part I.14

> restart: iteration 21, day 1, early night

FUCK!

I'm... I'm back? I'm back. The loop, it's still... what the hell. What the everliving fuck was that.

I... I need to talk to someone about this.

***

> skip forward

"Wait... I know you, right?" Shirou hesitates. Once again, the front door. Once again, Not Actually Satan eyeing me from the rooftop. "Tomo... nagi, wasn't it?"

I sigh. "Fuck it. Just call me Tom."

***

> skip forward

"-- and then I get hit by this... I dunno... this shadow beam that came from the top of the mountain! That's what killed me. I'm not sure, but I think it kind of felt like that bounded field thing at the school. That whole tearing-the-you-out-of-you sensation, you know?" I take a deep breath. "So it's magic, right? I don't know any kind of tech that could do something like that. Besides, if it quacks like a duck... never mind, I don't know why I said that. Forget the duck. I just... yeah..."

Across the table, Rin stares into her teacup. Felt kind of weird going to her with this, considering before... but, like, I can trust her to know stuff about killing people, can't I? That makes sense, doesn't it? "... you said it came from the temple, right?"

"About there, yeah," I reply. "I couldn't really see it, though. It was probably already gone by then, what with all the napalm magma stuff flowing down from that point..."

"Right." Rin swallows. "Well... at first glance... that sounds a lot like..."

"... the Great Fuyuki Fire," Shirou says hollowly. He's the only other person in the room that seems to be as freaked out as I am -- or maybe even more so. The look in his eyes makes me think he might be full-out PTSDing here.

Rin nods slowly. "Which was caused by a magical accident involving the Grail at the conclusion of the Fourth War."

"Wait, what?" Saber suddenly leaps to her feet, her eyes wide.

"It -- it was?" Emiya just stares at her.

"Really?" I blink. "I thought it was an illegal chemical spill or something."

"That was just the cover story." Rin shrugs. "I don't know the full details, but... supposedly, the last war ended when one of the Masters ordered the destruction of the Lesser Grail. Which is... think of it as being like a conduit or an interface that allows humans to safely access the Grail's power.

"So when it was destroyed... I don't know why or how, but the Grail dumped this... waste material all over the old Shinto district, which set everything it touched on fire. The Church investigators called it Grail mud. I don't think they ever reached a conclusion as to why it happened. It's definitely not a part of the Grail's original design. But whatever the cause... it didn't end until over five hundred people were dead."

Saber sinks back down to the floor. Emiya slumps his head forward, but doesn't say anything.

"So... this thing that happens. Or, y'know, might happen," I finally say. "It comes from the Grail?"

"That..." Rin hesitates. "There's no way to be sure, but that would be my first guess. The temple is one of three places the Lesser Grail can manifest at the end of the war. Maybe... if it gets destroyed again like last time, without anyone making a wish..."