The destruction of the Grail that time had promised peace. Saber remembered fading away with a content smile on her face, no longer crippled by past mistakes and failures. She remembered her honor as a knight, untarnished, and she remembered the quiet acceptance that she'd finally found. Thanks to Shirou, really.
When her eyes opened, however, she wasn't reclining against a tree with Bedivere at her side, and Shirou was nowhere in sight. The promise of a true and comforting rest was no longer within her reach, and she felt very much the same as she had before that final battle. Whole. Alive.
A Servant.
Saber was on her feet in a flash, standing in the middle of a small, sparse room so quickly that the naked eye probably wouldn't have been able to notice any movement. Her expression remained hard and neutral even as her mind reeled.
"How...?" she allowed a troubled murmur to escape her lips. The sounds outside of the dark room were quick to distract Saber from any measure of distress she might've let herself feel in the moment. Voices could be heard all over, and the sounds of battle were unmistakable. The first obvious thought was that she'd somehow been summoned to another war. The very next was that such a thing could not be possible. There were no signs, no traces that she could feel of a Master. She hadn't been summoned, and yet here she was. A Servant able to act independently.
Saber grimaced as she clenched her fist. Standing alone pondering the how and why of it all would accomplish nothing. Only action would yield results at the moment. She threw open the door, rushing into the dark hallway outside. Excalibur and her armor remained un-summoned but ready at an instant to be called if they were needed. Once outside in the relatively uneventful hall, the Servant paused to glance up and down the length of it.
F10
When her eyes opened, however, she wasn't reclining against a tree with Bedivere at her side, and Shirou was nowhere in sight. The promise of a true and comforting rest was no longer within her reach, and she felt very much the same as she had before that final battle. Whole. Alive.
A Servant.
Saber was on her feet in a flash, standing in the middle of a small, sparse room so quickly that the naked eye probably wouldn't have been able to notice any movement. Her expression remained hard and neutral even as her mind reeled.
"How...?" she allowed a troubled murmur to escape her lips. The sounds outside of the dark room were quick to distract Saber from any measure of distress she might've let herself feel in the moment. Voices could be heard all over, and the sounds of battle were unmistakable. The first obvious thought was that she'd somehow been summoned to another war. The very next was that such a thing could not be possible. There were no signs, no traces that she could feel of a Master. She hadn't been summoned, and yet here she was. A Servant able to act independently.
Saber grimaced as she clenched her fist. Standing alone pondering the how and why of it all would accomplish nothing. Only action would yield results at the moment. She threw open the door, rushing into the dark hallway outside. Excalibur and her armor remained un-summoned but ready at an instant to be called if they were needed. Once outside in the relatively uneventful hall, the Servant paused to glance up and down the length of it.