002 - Fate/Half Astral

Reupload because i realize the chapter is not in order when i upload it before.

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Chaldea was unlike any other place in the world. Hidden away in the frozen mountains, far from civilization, it stood as a fortress of knowledge, magic, and technology—an amalgam of the past, present, and future. Its mission was simple, yet monumental: safeguard the future of humanity.

Inside its pristine white halls, powerful machines whirred quietly, tirelessly scanning the ever-shifting tapestry of time. The Chaldea Security Organization had been established for one singular purpose: to ensure that human history remained on course. Its vast network of sensors monitored the flow of time itself, searching for disruptions—events that threatened to unravel the delicate balance of history and cast humanity into extinction.

In the command room, a massive holographic globe rotated slowly in the center of the room, glowing with an otherworldly light.

And then, there was the sense that something else, something entirely unexpected, was about to happen.

As technicians moved from station to station, frantically monitoring the ongoing Singularities, an uneasy tension filled the room. Meanwhile Dr. Roman in empty room at another place, suddenly his usual carefree demeanor replaced with a rare look of concern. "An anomaly..." he muttered to himself, staring at the door of this room. "Something is coming."

A low hum filled the command room as the monitors began to flicker, warning lights flaring across the control panels. The familiar red lines of the Singularities shifted—distorted. A rift was forming in space-time, right in the middle of Chaldea.

Suddenly in another place, a crack appeared in the air, a shimmering distortion that looked like a tear in the fabric of reality itself the crack slowly widened into a swirling, glowing portal.

From the depths of this mysterious gateway, a figure began to emerge. Small, almost fragile, yet strangely out of place in the sterile, high-tech environment of Chaldea—a young girl, no more than nine years old, with wide, curious eyes.

The little girl who stepped out of the glowing portal looked around and smiled, feeling proud that she had successfully used her ability.

She then turned back toward the portal she had created, sticking out her small tongue playfully. "Pweeh! I did it! I don't need Mom's help to use it anymore~"

Satisfied, she waved her hand and closed the portal behind her, making sure her siblings couldn't follow her. Turning away, she started to explore her new surroundings, her eyes soon catching sight of a large window. She hurried over and pressed her hands against the glass, her eyes widening in wonder.

"Whoa~! It's snowing here!" she exclaimed, her face lighting up with excitement. Snow was such a rare sight back home that seeing it now felt like pure magic. Her breath fogged up the window as she stared out at the swirling flakes, captivated by the sight.

Her excitement only grew as she thought about all the new things she could explore in this strange, new place. But first, she remembered her father's rule. With a quick wave of her hand, she whispered a spell under her breath, making her body fade from sight.

"Papa always said, 'Never trust random people, and always use an invisibility spell to scout around'!" she recited to herself in a soft voice, a mischievous smile on her lips. Her father's voice echoed in her mind, reminding her to stay cautious, even when she was excited.

Now invisible, she felt safe enough to begin exploring the large, unfamiliar facility. There was so much to see and so many questions buzzing in her head, but for now, she would follow her father's advice and quietly observe from the shadows.

The little girl began to walk around this strange place, her eyes wide with curiosity as she explored her surroundings. Occasionally, she saw people rushing about in a panic, muttering things like, "System error!" or "There's been a malfunction!"

She didn't understand any of it, so she shrugged and continued walking, her steps light and quick.

As she wandered further, she noticed groups of people dressed in odd uniforms, moving together with serious expressions, all headed in the same direction. Their strange clothing and hurried movements made her curious, but she didn't follow them. There was too much to see.

After walking for a while, something caught her attention—a person lying in the middle of the hallway. He looked like he was sleeping right there on the floor, completely unbothered by the chaos around him.

"Hmm?" She blinked, confused, and stopped in her tracks.

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a big stick—something much too large for the small pocket, but it slipped out easily thanks to her clothes magic. Grinning to herself, she decided to investigate.

Quietly, she approached the sleeping figure and gave him a soft poke with the stick.

Poke. Poke.

"Hey, what are you doing sleeping here?" she asked, her voice soft but curious. She poked him again, harder this time, watching to see if he would respond.

But no matter how long the little girl poked him, the person didn't respond. He didn't even twitch, almost like he was unconscious—or worse.

"Hmm, is he dead?" she mumbled, tilting her head in confusion. Yet, as she listened carefully, she could still hear his breathing and the steady beat of his heart. He wasn't dead, just... not waking up.

Finally, she stood up and looked down at the large stick in her hands. After a moment of deep thought, she nodded to herself, as if deciding what to do next.

Gripping the stick with both her small hands, she lifted it high above her head with her tiny arms.

Just as she was about to bring the stick down on him with all her strength—

Suddenly, she froze. From another direction, the sound of quick, light footsteps echoed through the hallway.

"Huh?" She turned, lowering her stick. A small, squirrel-like creature came rushing toward her, its tiny paws pattering against the cold floor.

"Fouuuuu!" the creature called out, running at full speed, its eyes fixed on her. The little girl blinked in surprise as the creature bounded toward her, its fluffy tail waving wildly behind it.

"Cath Palug? You're here too?" The little girl blinked in surprise. Even though she had already hidden her presence with magic, it seemed her spell wasn't strong enough to escape the creature's notice.

Cath Palug—Fou—leaped toward her without hesitation. She instinctively reached out and caught him mid-air, cradling the small creature in her arms.

"Did Papa send you here?" she asked, tilting her head curiously as she looked down at the familiar creature.

"Fou?"

"You don't know my Papa? You know, the silver-haired handsome guy, has an identity crisis, and… *playboy*? Like Mama always says?"

"Fou?"

The little girl frowned, tilting her head further. "You really don't know? Is this what Mama told me about before?"

She thought back, recalling her mother's words—*Every world has its own versions of things*. So this must be a different Cath Palug, a version from this world. He wasn't the same as the one from home.

Just as she was pondering this, she heard a voice echoing from the direction Cath Palug had come.

"Fouuu, where are you?!"

The little girl's spotted a young woman with short lilac hair, lavender eyes, and fair skin running toward them. The woman's expression shifted from concern to surprise when she noticed the unconscious person on the ground.

Without wasting a second, the woman knelt beside him, quickly checking his condition. After a few moments, she seemed to realize he wasn't hurt—just sleeping.

With a sigh of relief, she gently shook him, her voice soft but urgent. "Excuse me... umm... Senpai? Please wake up."

The little girl, still watching from the sidelines, could only shake her head in disbelief. 'Even with my stick, he didn't wake up. No way she's going to wake him up just by shaking him gently like that.'

Frustrated by the lack of progress, the little girl grinned mischievously. "Go, Cath Palug! Kick him awake!" Without hesitation, she tossed the small creature in her arms toward the sleeping man.

"Fouuuu!" Fou, now free from the little girl's arms, became visible once more as he soared through the air. He landed squarely on the unconscious man and delivered a firm kick to his face.

A few moments later, after the man finally woke up and realized he had been sleeping in the middle of the hallway, meanwhile the girl was busy lecturing the creature she called Fou.

"Fou, don't do that! You shouldn't kick someone in the face like that." she said, her voice firm.

"Fou?" The creature tilted its head, looking up at her.

"We're supposed to wake people up properly, not attack them like that, understand?"

"Fou..." the creature responded, sounding almost apologetic.

The man, now fully awake, blinked in confusion as he sat up. He turned to the little girl. "Excuse me, but who are you?"

"Huh? My name?" The girl stopped lecturing Fou and glanced at the man.

She paused for a moment, her expression suddenly changing. Her playful demeanor faded, replaced by a hint of sadness. "…That's a hard question to answer all of a sudden. Maybe… maybe I'm not important enough for you to know my name." She looked away, her voice softening as if she were recalling something painful.

The conversation between them continued, the man trying to understand the strange girl who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. But as they spoke, a strange feeling crept up on the little girl. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a figure approaching—a man, older, with an unsettling presence. Something about him felt wrong.

The little girl narrowed her eyes, immediately growing suspicious. She could feel an ominous, dark energy radiating from the man, something foul and disgusting. The sensation was so strong it made her want to erase him right then and there.

"Fou?" Cath Palug's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. The little creature was in front of her, looking up with curious eyes.

"What's wrong? Do you want to come with me?"

"Fou fou~" the creature chirped, lifting its tiny paw toward her.

She smiled and bent down, lifting him up and placing him on her head. "Sure, the more the merrier!" she said with a giggle.

As she adjusted the creature comfortably on her head, she chuckled softly. "Hehe, this reminds me of Vyrn~"

With that, the little girl turned and walked away, leaving the man and the young woman to continue their conversation with the creepy older man. She had no interest in sticking around, especially not with that dark energy lingering nearby.

~~~~~~

As the little girl wandered through this place, she suddenly sensed something intriguing, a pulse of energy that caught her attention. Without hesitation, she followed the sensation, making her way toward it with Cath Palug still perched comfortably on top of her head.

After walking through a few corridors, she finally arrived at a door that seemed to be the source of the energy she felt. Without a second thought, she opened the door and peeked inside. The room was packed with all kinds of fascinating things—shelves filled with books, strange tools scattered across workbenches, and various pieces of art hanging on the walls.

Her eyes sparkled with curiosity, and she stepped inside, looking around at this room.

"Fou?" the little creature on her head chirped, tilting his head as he looked down at her.

"It's fine, no one's here." she reassured him, glancing around carefully. "As long as we don't touch anything, we should be okay."

"Fou fou!" he replied, seemingly agreeing with her caution.

As she continued to inspect the room, she spotted some intriguing gadgets lying around. She leaned closer to inspect them, marveling at the craftsmanship. "Do you know whose workshop this is?" she asked, turning her head slightly toward Cath Palug.

"Fou fou!" the little creature responded quickly.

"Huh, really? This is Da Vinci's workshop?" She looked around, her curiosity piqued. "Who is Da Vinci?"

"Fou!" Cath Palug answered, his tone proud and informative.

The little girl's eyes widened in understanding. "Oh, so Da Vinci is like... super smart, huh? The genius around here, right? Always making cool stuff for everyone to use?"

"Fou fou!" the creature confirmed, sounding impressed himself.

"She must be really smart." the little girl mused, looking more intrigued as she admired the various devices and tools scattered across the workshop. "Even making clothes with special abilities… Now I really want to meet her."

Just as she finished speaking, a deafening *BOOOOM* echoed through the room, shaking the floor beneath her feet. The sound of an explosion reverberated through the walls, coming from somewhere nearby. Both the girl and Cath Palug jumped in surprise, their eyes wide.

"Fou?!" the creature squealed, startled by the loud noise.

"An explosion?" she muttered, her voice barely above a whisper, then immediately took off running to check what had happened.

As she sprinted through the corridors, she realized something was off. There was no one around, unlike when she first arrived in this world. Her expression tightened, sensing that something serious had gone wrong. Without wasting any more time, she tapped into more of her power, increasing her speed. Cath Palug clung tightly to her hair as she dashed forward.

Before long, she reached a devastated area. The hallway was in ruins, with debris scattered everywhere, and she could see several wounded people lying around.

"Fou! Fou!" Cath Palug suddenly tugged on her hair, pointing toward a room ahead.

"Someone's still in there? The girl from before?" Her voice was quiet but urgent. She didn't hesitate and quickly slipped inside the room, still invisible.

Just as she entered, the door behind her sealed shut with an emergency bulkhead. She turned around, seeing the heavy steel blocking her exit. But she wasn't worried—she knew she could easily break through if needed. Ignoring the door, she focused on searching for the wounded.

Her eyes quickly landed on two familiar figures: the same man who had been sleeping in the hallway earlier, and the girl, now trapped under a pile of debris. They were holding hands, the man whispering something to comfort the girl, who was clearly in pain.

"Fou!" Cath Palug leapt from her head and ran over to them.

But before she could move any closer, the entire area was suddenly enveloped in a blinding light. The brightness was overwhelming, forcing her to close her eyes, shielding herself from whatever was coming next.