EMIYA SHIROU
It was risky, he knew, moving about Chinatown while keeping a discreet eye on the movements of Shendu’s dragons. Perhaps even pointless, since it didn’t look like they were going out of their way to antagonize anyone. Shirou pursed his lips as he watched a patrol fly overhead with his enhanced vision. Even so, after what happened with Mia, he didn’t think he’d ever quite forgive him. With a sigh, the freelance magus moved out of the shadows and began making his way through the less populated alleys back to the main street.
He had narrowly avoided being incinerated after his ill-planned stint in Shendu’s palace, thanks to Sakura’s timely intervention. It still felt a little unreal, that she had been the one to save him, after all the time he spent back home trying to keep her separate from the darker side of his life. It chafed bitterly, that he hadn’t been able to help the little girl the massive lizard had taken. The only one who had been saved was himself. He had visited Sakura on occasion after that, at her request, even though that irritating younger version of him was there. He owed her that much, at least. She was doing well for herself, but there was something decidedly off about her. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any idea how to help her with that. He hoped Rin had better luck.
A sound off to the side caught Shirou’s attention. A muffled voice and a scuffling noise, coming from somewhere behind a small noodle shop that had gone out of business just a week ago. He did a quick 360, nobody else was close by.
Moving as quietly as he could - which was pretty quiet, if he said so himself - Shirou moved around the building to discover a rather average looking man holding a woman up against the wall at gunpoint, his hand over her mouth. Several scenarios ran through his mind at once. Rape, mugging, murder, it didn’t much matter. The important, and most dangerous part was removing the pistol. The man could then be dealt with without risking the weapon discharging.
Walking up slowly, the magus focused his prana into his arms and legs, increasing the power in his muscles. Fortunately, neither the man nor woman heard or saw him approach, so focused on each other. Once he was within arms reach, Shirou reached out, grabbed the man’s wrist, and pulled it, along with the gun, away from the woman. At the same time, he brought his free hand up and then back down. Except the hand wasn’t free anymore, but filled with a black and red sword.
Shirou dropped the pistol, severed hand still attached, and smashed his forehead into the man’s face. Shirou saw stars, but the man, caught entirely off guard, fell back and hit ground hard. All this took place in the span of a second.
Shaking off the painful light behind his eyes, the freelancer took stock of the situation. The woman - he now noticed she was older, perhaps in her 50s - was unharmed, and the man was prone, stunned and bleeding profusely from his arm. Letting Bakuya fade into nonexistence, Shirou pulled out his phone and started calling emergency services. He didn’t have anything on hand to stop the bleeding.
