IBHJ 1192

"Agravain?" Bedivere's voice cracked as he stared at the young man's projection in disbelief.

"You dare speak my name, traitor?" Agravain's eyes flashed with rage before shifting to Shirou. "Though I must say, I didn't expect to land such a big fish."

"Shirou!" Scathach's fingers tightened around Gungnir.

Shirou gave a grim nod, scanning their surroundings with growing tension.

Silent as shadows, thousands of Divine Guards emerged from the dark forest. Morgan, Lucius, and Aife appeared with them, their forces forming an iron ring around their prey.

Bedivere's eyes darted between the surrounding army and Agravain's projection as realization struck. "Could it be... Agravain, did you use Garand for this ambush?"

"Hmph. He's just another Empire traitor," Agravain replied coldly. "Though he proved useful enough before His Majesty passes his judgment."

Bedivere's fists clenched at his sides.

The truth hit him like a physical blow. The Hope signal, it had all been Agravain's trap from the very start!

It was all clear now. They'd used Abigail as bait to draw out Bedivere, letting Agravain follow his trail straight to Hope. Then they'd broadcast the Hope signal, knowing it would lure Bedivere out of Tír na nÓg. But this wasn't just about punishing a traitor; they were killing two birds with one stone, getting Bedivere and the Heroic Spirits of Pan-Human History.

"Attack! Kill them all! And bring me the box that Garand said would be of great importance to the Empire!" Agravain ordered.

"Scathach!" Aife cackled as she launched herself forward, straight at her old rival.

With a single thrust of her spear, Scathach sent Aife flying. Her eyes narrowed at the Divine Guards and Apostles closing in from every direction. "Stay close, Shirou!"

"Right." he nodded, twin Spears of Endless Light materializing in his hands.

They were deep in enemy territory without a hope of backup. All he could do was fight at Scathach's side.

"Sis—" Artoria's face lit up as Morgan approached her. "You came to save me."

"Yes." Morgan nodded, pulling her sister into a hug. Then she drove a concealed dagger into her stomach. Strange runes bloomed from the blade, racing across her body.

Artoria's face contorted in horror. "The Poison of Corruption? What are you doing?"

"You betrayed His Majesty and the Empire," Morgan said coldly. "A traitor like you has lost the right to live."

"Have you lost your mind? Open your eyes! I haven't betrayed anyone!"

"Silence! I knew you would betray the Empire from the moment you went to Avalon." Morgan unsheathed her sword and drove it straight for her sister’s heart.

Artoria's eyes hardened as she rolled away from the blade, launching herself into the air. Her voice rang out in rapid incantation.

"Crack—"

The Primordial Runes binding her burst apart. Scathach, still fending off Divine Guards, gave her a startled glance. She was using Fairy Secret Arts to break through her Primordial Runes!

Gritting her teeth, Artoria raised her Staff of Prophecy. Magic Circles burst into existence around her, unleashing a barrage of lightning, storms, fire, and raging winds at Morgan.

"You think these simple spells can defeat me?" Morgan scoffed. With a casual gesture, she carved a rift in space itself. The void swallowed Artoria's elemental spells with a hollow whoosh. In the same breath, Morgan closed the distance, her sword gleaming as it sliced through the air toward her sister.

In that split-second as Morgan closed in, Artoria's hand found her sword hilt. Steel sang as she drew and—

BOOM!

A hurricane of blade strikes ripped through the air. Morgan's body was split into eighty-eight pieces, blood misting as she was thrown backward. The ground beneath her suffered the same fate, earth and stone carved into a perfect grid of destruction.

Everyone froze, stunned by how effortlessly she had cut down Morgan.

"That swordsmanship..." Scathach's eyes gleamed with excitement. She recognized something similar in those strikes.

Without missing a beat, Artoria whirled toward Agravain's projection. Her Staff of Prophecy flashed as she unleashed a searing bolt of lightning, the blast tearing through his image with a thunderous boom.

"To actually use the Poison of Corruption on me..." Artoria's face was ashen as she yanked the dagger from her chest. Blood trickled down, and she felt her eternity was being disrupted by something. Biting her lip, she thrust her Staff of Prophecy into the ground and began to chant.

Magic circles blossomed beneath her feet in an intricate flower pattern.

"She's trying to teleport!" Shirou recognized the spell design instantly. He slammed his spear into Lucius, knocking him aside, then grabbed Scathach's wrist and bolted toward her.

"Traitor!"

Ignoring the shouts of his former comrades, Bedivere raced toward Artoria as she worked her spell.

"Hey hey hey! Don't come over here—!" Artoria's panicked voice rang out as she saw the three charging toward her. She sped up her casting, but couldn't bring herself to leave them behind. With a flash of light and a rush of air, they vanished.

By the time Morgan had pieced herself back together, they were long gone, leaving only the scarred battlefield behind.

"Avalon..." She frowned, knowing exactly where her troublesome sister would run to.

"We should tell Lord Agravain what happened," Lucius said.

Morgan and Aife shared a look before nodding in agreement.

…

In the Fomorian Abyss...

"Why did I even pick you up?" Mordred stared at the broken Galahad, rubbing her temples.

She drew her sword and tested it against his armor with several strikes. Each blow rang out with a metallic clang, but couldn't leave a scratch.

"I really did something stupid," she sighed.

"Bzzt bzzt bzzt—"

The broken Galahad crackled with electricity, making her jump into a fighting stance. When nothing else happened, she slowly relaxed.

Irritated, she gave him a kick before turning to Morgan. "Any way to take this thing apart?"

"You could try calling me Auntie first," Morgan said hopefully.

"I could call you brother-complex pervert instead."

Morgan: "..."

She sighed, gesturing at Galahad. "Only the Emperor can destroy it."

"That so? Too bad." she sighed and kicked Galahad again. "Lucky for you I can't do anything right now."

"Bzzt bzzt bzzt—"

More static crackled from Galahad.

Guinevere hesitated for a moment, then suddenly asked. "Um... shouldn't Lord Galahad be able to repair himself?"

The words hit Mordred like lightning. Of course – Apostles were immortal!

"Hmm. Not in this case." Morgan shook her head.

"Why not?" Mordred frowned.

Morgan studied Galahad carefully. "Because this Galahad isn't human, he's a magical device. And a strange one at that. Hmm, maybe somewhat similar to a Greek Machine God. He has immortality, but it doesn't seem to affect his super-metal shell."

"So what does it affect?"

"If I had to guess... the AI's computational core?" she didn't sound entirely sure.

She rolled her eyes. "So you haven't figured it out either."

"Hmm."

Despite her words, Mordred felt relieved. She might not like Morgan, but she trusted her magical knowledge.

"It's strange though," Morgan mused. "I can hardly believe the Emperor would invade Pan-Human History."

"Why are you also bringing this up?" she gave her a puzzled look.

"My memories are hazy from dispersive death, but my original must have met the Emperor."

"You met the Emperor?" her eyes sharpened. "When? Where?"

"The memory is a bit fuzzy, but in Pan-Human History's time... it would have been 2003, during the invasion of Fuyuki."

"2003?"

"Yes. I might not remember everything clearly, but I know this much for sure—" Morgan gestured toward Guinevere. "That's when the Emperor took Vivian to the Eternal Empire."

"Um..." Guinevere fidgeted nervously. "There must be some mistake. I'm not the Great Fairy Vivian from 'The Tale of the Holy Sword.' I'm just a princess from a small kingdom, I couldn't possibly have met the Emperor."

Mordred gave her a glance before turning back to Morgan. "Why were you there?"

"Because my original self was fighting Vivian at the time... I'm sure about this. My memory isn't that bad."

Mordred's brow furrowed. Things were getting more and more complicated by the minute.