Fate/ I Am Humanity Last Hope!?

After finally unleashing almost all the loud doubts in his mind, Ritsuka clenched his hands vigorously. It was impossible to alleviate that anguish. Waiting for an explanation from his Kouhai while hearing the sound of flames burning everything around him only made matters worse.

Mashu felt a bit overwhelmed by so many questions but did her best to respond: "Yes, Senpai! I am Mashu Kyrielight. I can explain briefly. First: 'what is happening?' You are one of the Candidates for Master, a team organized by Chaldea. We are in Fuyuki, a singularity that we need to investigate and resolve to prevent certain human extinction..."

"A Master is responsible for commanding a Servant - a hero from the past summoned directly from the Throne of Heroes in various Classes, the Master's job is to create an anchor for these legendary Spirits to remain in the world. Generally, in exchange for their magical energy, a Servant becomes a high-level familiar..."

"But... what the hell!?" She didn't know whether to laugh at that answer or panic entirely, exclaiming: "Huh? What do you mean?"

"As for the reason for my current appearance, that..." Mashu seemed unsure of what to say for a moment. She appeared to have ignored her Senpai's exclamation.

Before the two could continue their conversation, a sudden sound caught her attention.

"Fou!"

Startled by the sudden noise, both turned their heads to look at its source. Mashu, who recognized the white beast instantly, was the first to react:

"Fou!? How did you get here?"

"Fou...kyu...kyu"

"Ah, I see, that makes sense."

"Wait, what did he say..." Ritsuka thought, confused about how the girl could understand the strange squirrel that seemed to like her.

"Continuing, Senpai..."

The two were interrupted once again by the appearance of several skeletons, some emerging from the flames and others coming from behind the charred buildings around them, soon, in a matter of moments, the two were surrounded. Things became even crazier for Ritsuka when she saw the lilac-haired girl materialize a kind of shield in her hand; the shield seemed to be shaped like a cross and carried a certain sense of majesty, as if it could defend an entire kingdom from certain destruction.

"Mash...?" Ritsuka murmured in shock; everything was too fantastical and confusing for a normal girl like her. This kind of thing, she only saw in the anime and manga she read in her free time, but now it was happening for real right in front of her - she didn't know how to react; fear and confusion were taking over her heart. But she tried her best to stay calm; although she was only partially successful, her expression turned pale, and her mind felt dizzy...

"Master, your orders, please. You and I will overcome this together!" Mashu said with determined eyes, confident that with her strength they could face the monstrosities surrounding them. Something about the girl made Ritsuka feel more secure.

That strange squirrel quickly ran and climbed onto her shoulder. Although still confused by the girl's words about giving orders, it felt familiar how the maids who took care of her in her childhood acted; therefore, Ritsuka did her best to respond uniformly: "Oh... Can you take care of them?"

"Affirmative..." Mashu nodded and prepared for battle.

What happened next made Ritsuka feel that everything was too unreal.

Flames licked the skies of the ruined city. The air, thick and hot, carried the acrid smell of burning wood. At the center of that carnage, a girl, with a cross-shaped shield shimmering in the firelight, faced a horde of skeletons.

The bones creaked as they approached, armed with sharp spears and shattered shields. Their empty eyes glowed with a mist of death. However, the girl showed no fear. Her face reflected unwavering determination.

With each blow, her shield deflected the spears and swords. With every advance of the skeletons, she responded with a precise counterattack, making their bones shatter against the ground. The cross, a symbol of hope amidst the chaos, seemed to emit its own light, repelling the darkness that surrounded it.

The battle was fierce. The girl fought with the strength of a lion, dodging sure strikes by mere millimeters. For every skeleton that fell, two more appeared to take its place. But the girl did not tire. With each victory, her strength seemed to renew.

Ritsuka was completely paralyzed. Her eyes, wide with astonishment and fear, witnessed each blow Mashu dealt to the skeletons; she felt the ground tremble beneath her feet. The screams of the skeletons echoed through the streets, mingling with the crackling of the flames.

The battle was epic, worthy of a fantasy movie, but for Ritsuka, it was pure reality.

The teenager felt paralyzed, unable to look away from that surreal scene. With every second, her mind tried to find a rational explanation for what she was witnessing, but all attempts were in vain. The battle between good and evil, between life and death, unfolded before her eyes, and she was just a powerless spectator.

Adrenaline surged through her veins, mixed with fear and disbelief. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine witnessing something like this. The girl with the shield, the horde of skeletons, the city ablaze—everything felt so unreal, so far removed from her everyday life.

With a final blow of her shield, Mashu turned the last of the skeletons into fallen bones on the charred street. She didn't seem winded or exhausted—only relieved as she looked towards Ritsuka, who was frozen a bit further behind her.

"Phew..." Mashu let out a sigh of relief before saying with a mix of relief and concern in her voice, "I had my worries, but somehow we made it. Are you hurt, Senpai? Is your stomach hurting or feeling heavy?"

Ritsuka snapped out of her stupor in light of the girl's rapid-fire questions as she approached and stopped right in front of her. Although she had many doubts swirling in her mind, she asked in a trembling voice, "What were those things?"

"Huh..." Mashu paused for a moment before responding, "I don't know. These skeletons don't exist in our era, much less in this era. I think they are byproducts of the cause of this Singularity, or something like that. I suppose calling this phenomenon that way isn't too far off, or maybe it is..."

"What the hell...?" Ritsuka's mind became even more confused by the girl's explanation. Singularity? What was that? She decided it would be better not to focus too much on that topic, so she asked another question, "Mash, have you always been this powerful?"

Mashu paused, surprised by the question, but she quickly declared in a simple tone, "No, in combat training I always had to stay after class. I couldn't even do a pull-up. The reason I was able to fight like that now—"

Unfortunately, she was interrupted again, but this time by strange sounds. After a while, they recognized that the noise was coming from the metal bracelet on Ritsuka's wrist, which now had a small blue rectangle glowing on it.

Ritsuka looked at her wrist in confusion, surprised when out of nowhere a holographic screen appeared along with some blue static. After a moment, a man appeared, possessing a simple yet strikingly attractive appearance, although he didn't have a remarkable physique. He had fair skin, light green eyes, and hair in a peachy pink hue, described by himself as "cute" for being long and voluminous, ultimately tied back in a ponytail. His attire was always his medical team's uniform: an all-white outfit of pants, dress shoes, and a lab coat of the same color, but with a light green front and the Chaldea symbol on the shoulders—she immediately recognized him as the Chief Medical Officer of Chaldea, Dr. Romani Archaman.

As the screen stabilized, Romani appeared anxious, "Alright, I finally got through! Hello? This is Chaldea's Command Room. Can you hear me?"

"This is Mash Kyrielight, a member of Team A..." Mashu, who was close by, stepped forward and pressed the communicator button as she spoke, "At this moment, I have successfully transitioned to Singularity F. My only companion is Ritsuka. Mind and body both intact. Compatibility with Rayshift, compatibility as a Master, both satisfactory. Please register Ritsuka as an official researcher...."

Dr. Romani seemed relieved to hear the familiar voice and see the image of the two girls through the computer in the Command Room. He frowned and said, "I see... So, Fujimaru-san survived. I'm happy and also surprised that you didn't lose your existence..."

"Was that supposed to be a compliment?" It was Ritsuka's only thought in light of the fact that she could have been erased from existence.

The doctor didn't seem aware of her thoughts; he was looking at Mashu with a furrow of indignation, "Mash, I'm also glad you survived... but what's with this outfit? I didn't create you to dress like this!"

"I transformed into this because I couldn't protect Senpai in the Chaldea uniform..." Mashu gave a simple response upon hearing the doctor's words, seemingly oblivious to her revealing attire...

"What do you mean transformed? Did you hit your head or something?"

"Please, be quiet!" Mashu frowned and spoke in a straightforward tone, "Try checking my physical condition, and you'll understand everything."

"Your physical condition?" Dr. Romani looked confused for a moment, then glanced at the real-time collected data on Ritsuka and Mashu's situation on the computer, exclaiming in surprise, "O-Whoa, whoa, whoa, WHOA! Physical strength, magic circuits, everything has improved! You're not exactly human anymore, but—"

"A Servant..." Mashu concluded before explaining, "I don't remember how it happened, but it seems like I survived by merging with a Servant. To investigate and resolve Singularity F, a Servant was provided in advance at Chaldea. This Servant lost its Master in that explosion and was doomed to disappear. But at the last moment, it offered me a contract. In exchange for the abilities and Noble Phantasm of a Heroic Spirit, it wanted me to eliminate the cause of this Singularity."

"Ooh... That..." Dr. Romani didn't know what to say for a moment, murmuring to himself, "A Heroic Spirit and a human, fused... A Demi-Servant? That's Chaldea's sixth experiment. I see. So it finally worked, huh?"

Ritsuka, who overheard the murmur, frowned. Experiment? She was confused by all this conversation between the two, but the doctor's words brought a certain understanding of the nature of the lilac-haired girl—just as she was about to question her doubts, she was interrupted.

"Does this Heroic Spirit still have its consciousness?" the doctor asked through the communicator.

Mashu shook her head negatively and explained, "...No, it gave me its combat abilities and then disappeared. It never revealed its True Name, not even at the end. So I don't even know whose Heroic Spirit I have... nor what kind of Noble Phantasm I'm holding. At this point, there's so much I don't know..."

She seemed disappointed in herself, though she didn't show much in her expression...

"Hey, look on the bright side..." Dr. Romani noticed her condition and tried to cheer her up, "Not every Servant that is summoned is cooperative. Now that you are a Servant, that's in our favor. After all, you're completely trustworthy. Ritsuka, it seems you are the only one who moved safely over there for now. I apologize for forcing you into this situation without any explanation. I'm sure you're filled with questions, but try not to worry. You already have a powerful weapon. The most powerful weapon of humanity—Mash."

"I don't know about 'the most powerful...'" Mashu seemed downcast as she spoke, "I'm the one who ends up taking the blame afterward..."

"Now, now, as long as Ritsuka understands that this is what a Servant is, it will all be fine..." Dr. Romani seemed embarrassed stating this; he scratched his head with his gloved hand and let out a sigh, "Although Servants can be reliable allies, they also have a weakness. They disappear without their source of magical energy. Their Master. I'm still analyzing the data, but it's indicating that Mash has become your Servant. Which means you are Mash's Master. She is the first Heroic Spirit with whom you made a contract..."

"Uh, I can't keep up..." Ritsuka murmured before saying confusedly, "In summary, I'm Mash's Master?"

"Right, I can't blame you for being confused," Dr. Romani said with understanding before continuing his explanation, "Anyway, I never explained what Masters and Servants are to you. Now is a good time; I'll explain in detail. The current mission has two new objectives..."

He was interrupted by Mashu, who spoke up with a warning as she looked at the communicator and saw something was wrong, "Doctor, you're cutting out. There are 10 seconds left before the connection is lost..."

"Huh, so Shiva's exit is unstable because we switched to the backup generators?..." Dr. Romani checked the problem on the computer and then said, "Ah, well, I'll inform you later. You two, I'm receiving a strong ley line reading about 2 km from where you are. Try to get there somehow. This will stabilize our connection. Listen, don't do anything reckless, okay? I'll try to bring the energy back as soon as—"

The connection was abruptly cut off.

Taking a deep breath and then exhaling, Mashu turned her gaze back to her Senpai, who looked confused, still staring in the direction where the hologram had just disappeared.

"Senpai, we should start moving. I'll try to explain everything to you along the way..."

Ritsuka, still confused, simply nodded in agreement and followed the lilac-haired girl who began to walk in a specific direction toward the burning city. Even with many doubts lingering about what had happened, she focused as much as possible on what she could do now; heading towards a more specific location to reconnect with Chaldea...

The figures of the two disappeared among the charred buildings...