Ashes

The Guardian Who Failed

Chapter 7

The Guardian Who Failed

The gears of fate are turning.

I dreamed to be a Hero of Justice.

I wished to save those who needed to be saved.

To save all whoever they may be and what actions they took.

And yet the gears of fate continue to turn.

I find myself in a field of blades.

It is in contrast to the promised dream.

Where blades of grass and flowers beckoned to me.

Now, only blades of steel sing their hollow tones.

They call to me, reminding me what I failed to do.

This is what the gears of fate decreed and yet I want to scream.

I want a hammer that can shatter the machine they call fate.

I want an anvil to reforge that fate.

I want to reforge that fate into a blade.

And yet, these hands hold nothing.

-

Shirou ran through the empty streets of Fuyuki, his eyes flickering side to side as he ran. Holding Sakura's hand, he essentially dragged her as she tried to keep up.

"Senpai... Please slow down..." Sakura panted out, her breath ragged, unlike Shirou's consistent ones.

Shirou looked around with a panicked expression. Until he spotted a little cafe with still turned on lights.

"Okay..." he muttered before turning to Sakura. "We can rest once we reach that cafe over there."

Sakura looked at the said cafe with a haggard expression before nodding.

As they made their way to the cafe, Shirou rethought their options. Was refusing help from Tohsaka truly a wise move? Was attempting to exit the barrier a foolhardy attempt?

As they entered the cafe, these thoughts plagued his mind.

His thoughts stilled, however, as he was about to bump into Sakura who had halted suddenly.

"Is something wrong, Sak-"

"If you are attempting to exit the bounded field, it's a fool's errand," a deep, familiar tone said to them from within the cafe.

Shirou's eyes widened as he pulled Sakura aside and got in between her and Archer.

The "bow-wielding" servant sipped his tea nonchalantly at a table directly adjacent to the entrance. His posturing and tone giving an aura of dismissiveness.

"Are you sure that the bounded field just denies entrance to servants?" Shirou asked tensely, following up Archer's words to strike up a conversation as he tried to think of a way to escape the unexpected situation.

"Rin tried to exit too as well as did the master of Berserker but they weren't able to escape," Archer coolly rebuked, putting his tea down. "I recommend you come in so that the bug can't listen in."

At his words, Sakura flinched, something Shirou took note of. "How can we trust you?" Shirou asked with distrust.

"You can't," Archer nonchalantly replied, shrugging his shoulders to display his indifference. "Especially when you are trying to protect the now biggest target in the war. Although..."