Prologue I
The fight against the "Alien God" was viciously hard.
That was Morgan's most immediate, honest takeaway.
With Scáthach and Artoria holding the Alien Apostles in check, and with Nikitich and Taigong Wang lending their support, defeating the Alien God and removing a major threat ahead of schedule should have been well within reach.
And yet, just by reclaiming the Mana from one additional Fantasy Tree, U-Olga Marie had become markedly stronger than she'd been at Olympus.
Worse, the "Alien God's" power felt steadier than before.
On this Bleached World where day and night no longer existed, Morgan had long since lost track of how much time had passed. She could feel her Magic Circuits pushing toward overload, and she could also feel the strength sustaining her Unity God form beginning to waver.
Just maintaining the fusion had already gone beyond the time they'd planned for.
"Tough as nails… Doesn't look like some third-rate deity," U-Olga Marie rasped, eyes sharp and unblinking as she locked onto Unity God Morgan.
Neither of them looked good. The grime and damage of a prolonged battle clung to them, and it made the Unity God's once-sacred radiance look dull and weary.
U-Olga Marie was in much the same state.
"…" Morgan didn't answer.
She glanced toward Scáthach and Artoria. They had only just managed to pull some distance away from the Alien Apostles as well.
There were four Alien Apostles. Morgan's side still had five fighters, but Taigong Wang and Nikitich were masterless Servants. The clash had started too suddenly, and Shiomi hadn't had time to form a Master-Servant contract with either of them.
Both Servants were right on the verge of fading. It was only Taigong Wang's sorcery that was keeping the two of them anchored, buying them time to remain manifested.
Koyanskaya, who had only just taken the compressed, sealed Tunguska Sanctuary into herself, couldn't bring out her full strength either.
A drawn-out battle was bad for both sides.
But Morgan's side had the bigger problem.
At some point earlier, she had stopped hearing Shiomi's voice.
When two beings fused into one, maintaining that state meant their minds and souls were pressed together without any barrier, exposed completely to each other.
"This is really…" Kirei Kotomine said, clutching his ruined arm, his expression grim. "If this drags on, we'll probably take each other down with us."
"That's the idea, Father," U-Olga Marie snapped, issuing an order without hesitation. "If you're out of strength, then self-destruct. Detonate your Spirit Origin. In a situation like this, those idiots won't be able to dodge."
"…Not yet." Kirei clearly had no intention of dying cheaply. Without changing his expression, he reached for an excuse to stall. "At the very least, we need to put that Unity God over there into a state where she can't move."
"You're really exhausting," U-Olga Marie muttered, extending her hand. A compressed, miniature black hole began to take shape in her palm.
She was burning through her reserves. So was the enemy.
If she could catch the timing, U-Olga Marie meant to use the black hole's gravitational field to pin Unity God Morgan in place.
"Mental Key Pattern, activate."
Suddenly, a violent explosion erupted nearby. The Alien Apostles, Ashiya Douman included, were blasted even farther back by the shockwave, widening the gap between both sides.
Taigong Wang stood there with a fishing rod that was black from end to end, its surface leaking a dense, overwhelming aura of magical energy.
"Time's about up for forcing us to remain manifested," he said, face set as he stared toward U-Olga Marie's position. "At the very least, before we fade, I'm going to push this back in our favor. Eighty-four seals, all activated. Heavens, open wide; stars, fall—"
As the incantation left his lips, the black fishing rod shot out of Taigong Wang's hand.
Morgan blinked, then realized the obvious.
That rod was a Noble Phantasm.
"Gods-Smiting Whip!"
The Noble Phantasm soared so high it was almost impossible to make out, then abruptly swelled to dozens of times its size. Like a sky-piercing pillar, it crashed down toward U-Olga Marie's position.
A Noble Phantasm made to strike gods in the most literal sense. Even if the one called the "Alien God" might not even be a true deity, it was still power no one could afford to dismiss, even without any special advantage.
U-Olga Marie understood that perfectly. She immediately changed her angle of interception, hurling the nearly fully compressed miniature black hole toward Taigong Wang's Noble Phantasm.
The two forces collided between heaven and earth, triggering another massive explosion.
Everyone was nearly thrown off their feet. Koyanskaya did her best to shield Nikitich behind her, bracing against the shockwaves while watching closely to see how the clash would end.
When the smoke finally cleared, a trace of irritation flickered across the face of the "Alien God." It seemed she had not expected Taigong Wang's Noble Phantasm to deal her real damage.
Whether that result was due to the toll of prolonged battle or the unique nature of Taigong Wang's Noble Phantasm, no one could say for sure.
"What a shame. If I'd had more time to prepare, it wouldn't have ended like this…" Taigong Wang frowned, clearly dissatisfied.
Even while on the verge of fading at any moment, he had used the last of his Mana to unleash his Noble Phantasm.
The price was immediate. The sorcery sustaining their presence collapsed. After being pushed back again and again, the time limit on Taigong Wang and Nikitich's manifestation had finally run out.
Their Spirit Origins could no longer maintain their forms. The fading process began.
"With two nuisances gone, now's the time—"
The "Alien God" swiftly regenerated her injuries and prepared to launch a surprise attack on the motionless Unity God Morgan, intending to eliminate this inexplicable threat once and for all.
"No. You've already lost your chance." Taigong Wang brushed the dust from his clothes. "Chaldea's companions have arrived."
With those final words, Taigong Wang vanished completely.
Nikitich used his last moment to pat Koyanskaya gently on the head, then disappeared with a smile.
The Storm Border emerged from Imaginary Numbers Space and appeared in the sky. Both sides noticed it at once.
"Tch…" U-Olga Marie clicked her tongue in irritation.
"It would be wiser to withdraw for now. The power of the Fantasy Tree hasn't been fully digested yet," Ashiya Douman advised, directing his shikigami to cast an illusionary spell.
Taking the advice, the "Alien God" retreated together with the Apostles just before the Storm Border moved directly overhead.
Morgan wanted to stop them, but in her current state, she couldn't act.
"My husband? I have to release the Unity God form… My husband?"
Her hand pressed against her chest as she called out to Shiomi, but there was no response.
With no other choice, she dissolved the fusion on her own.
She staggered two steps before managing to steady herself. Then she saw Shiomi kneeling on the ground, his expression unfocused and dazed.
She hurried forward to support him.
He suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"My husband?!"