Fate/ Dire Paradox (Jeanne Alter X Male Reader)

Chapter 9

*** Jalter POV   ***

It was rather strange. We were revelling in the carnage of battle and in a single moment, I feel my mana being ripped from me... only to find that Master has been killed and now I am in a black void.

Though I can see myself clearly it is as if I was in a cacoon - I could still sense mana but it was faint. But every time I try to get closer it disappears from the specific generation and reappears somewhere else.

"Master?" I call for him, seeing if that it had anything to do with the sudden change in scenery, "I guess not."

A rather late response to my calls, the black tears open like flesh to reveal a grey sky. The black tears open from the top down to the sides finally revealing everything around me. A figure appears with shut eyes in front of me.

"So you did pull us into your Reality Marble," I remark but he doesn't respond.

I step closer with narrowed eyes, reaching for his shoulder my hand didn't faze right through it as I expected. 

My eyes widen - a sudden force pressing me down on my shoulders, a crushing weight that is sapping my energy. The world around me crumbles all the same as the body in front of me also falls to the ground.

As I catch him the force disappears and this reality crumbles to reveal a new one. A starlit sky and in a small field surrounded by buildings and a school just a bit in the distance. How strange... where is the chaos of battle? I don't sense any mana of a large scale in the area either.

Something is wrong. Was time shifted? Impossible. Such magics can only be wished for but the Grail had hardly enough sacrifices to be powered.

My head pans towards the school as I sense an overpowering amount of mana, "A Noble Phantasm?"

I look down at the body dangling in my arms - I decide against chasing after it... for now. If it wasn't for my dying Master-

I then lower him to the ground as I remember the stab wound. Though his clothes are stained with blood, the moment I lifted his shirt there were no holes in his stomach... except for a black marking that covered the area I expected the wound to be.

It looks similar to that of veins - was some sort of magic used to heal this? A curse? I can still feel his pulse so I guess that explains why I am still around.

I groan, "What have you gotten us into, Master?"

I try to lift him to his feet, knowing that it wouldn't work I then lower myself holding him over my shoulder as I head in the opposite direction of those servants and mages.  

***   Normal POV   ***

I groan as I weakly open my eyes, only to hear that voice, "You done taking your little nap, Master?"

"I died and somehow you are still here - guess the afterlife ain't as bad as they make it out to be."

"I am about to kill you," I regain my senses, looking up I see her golden eyes glare down at me, "Get up already, I am sick of dragging you around."

I rest my head back against the wall behind me, "Where are we? How did you get me out?"

"You should be dead. The war from a few moments ago has all but disappeared completely."

I narrow my eyes, "You can stop fucking with me. You know it isn't such a bad thing to help your master."

Her eye twitches as she snarls at me, "I should have left you where I found you," she grumbles, "We aren't in the same place. The fighting disappeared and right now two servants were fighting where they were supposed to be hunting you."

I lower my gaze to my feet, "Strange. Berserker and Assassin, maybe?" I grunt as I still feel a stinging pain in my stomach as I tried to lift myself to my feet, "I guess we need to regroup and recharge... my mana is depleted."

She nods, "So is mine. I had plenty left during the fight but after being pulled from the fight my mana has been drained from me completely."

Her eyes widen as she shoots her gaze down the street to a girl walking towards us, "A master? I can sense the mana."

"Might be the pair that was fighting at the school," I see the muscles in her face tense.

I lift myself to my feet as I clutch at my side, she stops a few steps short of us resting her hand on her hip.

"My, I didn't expect to meet yet another one tonight but I guess that shouldn't be strange at all," she looks at me, "Well, will you tell me who you are before I kill you?"

I push myself of the wall, "I have no intention of fighting you, little girl. I imagine the fight you just came from must have been tiring."

"Yeah but you don't seem to be in a state to fight back either," she smirks at me, "It would be foolish not to kill my opposition before they could recover," a figure appears behind her, "Archer..."

I stop her, "Archer? If I may stop you, Magus, I have one request."

"Sure," she tilts her head to the side.

"What year is it? As well as the city and this Grail War's listing."

What does that help us in this situation?

I reply - Buy us some time to regenerate some mana to make our escape as well as getting information. I have a hunch.

She gives me a bewildered stare, "Huh? What an idiotic request, what do you have to gain?"

"Answer the question," Jeanne growls.

"You have no place to make demands. I know you are stalling for time-"

"Even if that may be so, do you really think mere seconds is enough for me to get enough mana to use magic capable of eliminating both you and your servant?"

"I suppose not," she then sighs crossing her arms, "The year is 2004, Fuyuki City. This is the fifth Holy Grail War."

"I figured it had to be something like that," I look at Jeanne who has been ready to fight since this conversation started, "Stand down, Avenger."

"Avenger?!" she gives me a confused look.

Jeanne grumbles something under her breath as she shoots me a glare, obviously stating that I am making a mistake but I hope I can use this to my advantage.

"I know this may strange but I am not from this reality."

"You are lying," she glares at me.

I nod, "It may sound strange, but there was no Holy Grail War in my timeline during 2004."

The Archer by her side then says something, "Rin. It is not completely impossible but for one to be able to go back in time or even reach another dimension requires second magic or even better."

"I realize that it may not be entirely impossible," she twists her mouth to the side.