IBHJ 1357

"What did you expect? She's Origin Gaia, after all," the Grail said, materializing beside Mordred with barely contained glee in its voice.

Mordred shot the Grail a sharp look. "Why do you sound so damn happy about this?"

"How could I not be?" The Grail practically vibrated with excitement. "Do you have any idea what we're looking at? This is Origin Gaia herself! The real deal!" It spun in a little circle, like a kid who'd just spotted their favorite celebrity. "Look at her, Mordred. Really look. That's not just some planetary sense or nature spirit. She's the planet's actual brain, its will made flesh. Back in the old days, they called her the Cosmic Guardian, Sovereign of the Star Domain!"

"Star Sovereign?" Mordred's frown deepened, the title rolling off her tongue like something that left a bad taste.

Shirou called without looking back, his voice tight with urgency. "Artie!"

"Ready." Artoria's fingers wrapped around the wooden bracelet. "Please, Brigid... help us. Just one more time."

The bracelet caught fire with light, the same warm glow the Ideal King had left behind. That was all it took. The Emperor's Arm that had been wrapped around the planet like invisible chains suddenly blazed to life. All the hidden data, all the concealed truth about what Origin Gaia really was, came flooding out at once.

Information became substance. Raw data took shape.

A giant could be seen on the planet's surface, towering above both mountains and clouds. She wasn’t made of flesh or stone, but of pure concept given form—a spiritual colossus that dwarfed everything humanity had ever built. In one massive hand, she held the broken pieces of what had once been the Counter Force.

"Holy shit..."

"Dear God..."

The words came from everywhere at once. Humans, mutants, survivors huddled in whatever shelter they could find. It didn't matter who you were or what side you'd chosen. When faced with something that enormous, that absolute, the only thing left was to stare up in stunned silence.

People could hate the strong. They could envy them, fight them, tear them down. But this? This wasn't just strength. This was something so far beyond human understanding that rebellion didn't even cross anyone's mind.

Shirou shot forward, positioning himself between Origin Gaia and the planet below. "Please, Lady Gaia! You need to calm down! Someone like you shouldn't be making this kind of choice!"

"Calm?" Gaia's voice was cold. She raised one finger, pointing at the Emperor's Arm like she was selecting which ant to crush first. "Alaya. Destroy that eyesore."

[As you will.]

The giant pulled back its fist and hammered down.

BOOM!

The supposedly indestructible Emperor's Arm crumpled like paper. A massive hole gaped where solid energy had been moments before. Of course it broke so easily. The whole thing had been held together by Brigid's power, and she was already gone.

Origin Gaia launched herself beyond Earth's atmosphere. Shirou's teeth ground together as he followed, both of them floating in the black void above the blue marble of their world. Gaia turned to face him, her expression colder than the space around them.

"Will you try to stop me, Fujimaru Shirou?"

"Even if you are Gaia, I won't let you destroy everything!"

"You think you can stop me?" A laugh that wasn't quite a laugh escaped her lips. "What are you planning to use? Your main body's Akasha Arrow? Wasn't that supposed to be saved for the Lord of Salvation? And you must have felt it by now, your main body is already under Alaya's control. So tell me, what exactly do you have left?"

What indeed? His fists clenched so tight his nails bit into his palms.

A voice answered for him. "All of us."

Then they were there. Heaven's Corpse, Neptune, every Ultimate One except Saturn and Arcueid, forming a circle around Origin Gaia.

"Types?" Origin Gaia's eyebrow arched, genuine surprise flickering across her features.

"This planet belongs to Gaia!" Heaven's Corpse's mental voice rang with conviction.

"I am the great Gaia!" she shot back.

"No." Heaven's Corpse's reply was blunt as a hammer blow. "You're not our Gaia."

Something warm stirred in Shirou's chest as he looked at the UOs surrounding them. They weren't doing this for him, he knew that. But seeing them choose to stand against Origin Gaia right now, when everything was falling apart... it meant something.

"Looks like my brothers and sisters' vessels need to be reshaped as well." Origin Gaia said coldly. "Alaya."

Another massive spiritual giant materialized behind her, identical to the first. A second manifestation of Cosmic Alaya.

Of course. The one thing they couldn't afford to happen was exactly what happened. The one entity Shirou absolutely could not make an enemy of, Cosmic Alaya, was now standing against them. And the only weapon capable of destroying it? The Akasha Arrow was still locked away with his main body in the Origins Era.

But what choice did he have? Shirou felt something hot and reckless rise in his chest. He'd have to dig deeper than he'd ever gone before, scrape together every scrap of power he could find, and somehow face down both Gaia and Cosmic Alaya at the same time.

Boom—BOOM—!

From the planet below, Heaven's Corpse and the other UOs streaked through the space, weaving between each other as they launched everything they had at Cosmic Alaya.

Attacks that could crack continents and snuff out stars splashed against the giant’s body like raindrops on steel—not even leaving a scuff mark.

Maybe out of some lingering kinship, Cosmic Alaya held back at first. Instead of unleashing those reality-warping data waves it was famous for, it just raised both massive hands and brought them down toward Neptune and Pluto like someone swatting at mosquitoes.

"Oh shit!" Pluto shouted.

Neptune didn't know it, but Pluto wasn't built for taking hits. One slap from those hands would put it out of commission for three, maybe four centuries. And they weren't nearly fast enough to get away.

A concentrated stellar blast punched through the gap between Cosmic Alaya's palms, slamming straight into its head.

BOOOOM!

Light brighter than any sun exploded across the starfield, turning everything white for a moment. Cosmic Alaya froze, just long enough for Neptune and Pluto to scramble out of the way.

"Thanks, Fujimaru Shirou." Pluto's voice still shook as it caught its breath.

"Yeah, seriously. Thanks." Neptune sounded just as rattled. "We would've been paste without that shot."

If Shirou hadn't fired his Noble Phantasm right then, they'd both be drifting debris.

"Save the thanks for later." Shirou's eyes stayed locked on Cosmic Alaya, completely unscathed despite the direct hit. "We're nowhere near done yet."