01x03 - Opening

[bunniefuu]

I am your Servant, a Saber. I am come
in response to your summons.

I ask you...
Are you my Master?

Master?

I am your Servant, a Saber. I am come
in response to your summons.

Master, your orders.

My sword will henceforth
be at your side.

Your fate is henceforth
my fate.

The pact is concluded.

Wha...?

Hey! Wait!

My cry doesn't reach the image
of the day I saw in a dream.

No matter how I picture my future self, it is
always steeped in hope that will never fade.

Reach out your hand and catch
the falling pieces,

...then hold my trembling heart
and leap into the night!

Isn't it enough to live for someone else
and let this moment be all there is?

Let's gently cast aside our false selves
and just be who we really are.

Episode :
Opening Act

An invisible sword?

What's the meaning of this, you coward?
How dare you keep your w*apon hidden?!

What's the matter,
Lancer?

Stopping mid-fight will disgrace
spearmen everywhere.

If you won't come to me,
then I shall come to you.

Let me ask you one thing first.
What's your Noble Phantasm? A sword?

Perhaps, perhaps not.
It might be an axe. Or a spear.

No, it might even be
a bow.

Get real, Saber...

This is our first encounter.
What say we stop now and call it a draw?

I think not.
You will meet your end here.

My objective all along
was to gather information.

I never planned to hang around
if anyone's Servant showed up.

But now I'll have
your heart!

Gáe Bolg!

A curse? No, was that
a cause-effect reversal?

So, you dodged the death blow
of my Gáe Bolg...

Gáe Bolg? Are you then Ireland's
Son of Light?

Gáe Bolg, the enchanted thorn
which breaches any and all defenses...

First comes the effect,
the piercing of the heart,

...and then the movement of the spear
is altered to cause that effect.

So, that is the cursed spear
wielded by the Hound of Culann...

Damn, I blew it. I put myself at risk if
I use that att*ck and the person survives...

I swear, there's such a thing
as being too famous...

Servants are supposed to fight to the death
when their true identity is discovered.

But unfortunately, my employer
is a coward.

The guy said to return to him
if my att*ck ever failed.

You're running away?!

Feel free to follow me. But if you do,
you better be prepared to die!

Hold it!

Hey, he's...

Who the heck ARE you?

Need you even ask?
I am your Servant, a Saber.

It was you who summoned me,
so surely there is no need to ask.

Saber Servant?

Yes. As such, you
may call me Saber.

Oh, um, all right.
That's certainly a strange name.

My name is Shirou Emiya.
Um, I guess what I'd like to ask you is...

I know. You aren't a typical
Master, are you?

Master?

But be that as it may,
you are still my Master.

Now that our pact has been concluded,
I will never do anything to betray you.

H-Hey, wait a minute!
My name isn't "Master," okay?!

I will call you "Shirou," then.
Yes, I prefer the sound of that.

Ow!

Wha...?

Shirou, treat my wound.

Are you seriously
asking me?

Sorry, but I don't know how to do
any complicated magic like that.

Besides, it looks like that wound
of yours has already healed.

In that case, I deal with them
in my current condition.

My regeneration has only covered
the outermost part.

But it shouldn't hinder me
in one more fight.

Hey, wait a minute!

Archer! Disappear!

Stop it, Saber!

She is the Master of an Archer.
We must k*ll her while we have the chance.

You keep going on about Masters and
whatever, but I don't understand a word of it!

I still don't know who
or what you are.

But if you explain it to me,
I'll hear you out, so stop this!

And what might
"this" be?

I will not obey such commands.
Enemies are to be slain.

Girls shouldn't be waving weapons around!
That goes double for wounded girls!

So, when are you going
to lower your sword?

My sword will never be lowered when there
is an enemy still standing before me.

Oh, so a Servant, a Saber at that, is saying
that she'll disobey her Master, huh?

Hey, you're...

Tohsaka?

Good evening, Emiya.

Well, I expect that you're capable
of at least that much, Emiya.

Wow, that's amazing!
I can't do anything like that...

Are you kidding? This is the basics of the
basics, no matter what style you study.

I was only taught by my dad, so I don't
know the fundamentals or the basics.

So you don't even know how to manipulate
the five elements or create a path?

No.

So you're a
complete novice?

Well, I can do
reinforcement spells.

That's some seriously
strange magic you use.

You're saying you can't
do anything else at all?

I don't think so.

How could a guy like this
manage to summon a Saber?

I'm guessing that you have no idea
the situation you're in, do you?

Situation?

You've been dragged
into a certain game.

A battle royale between seven Masters
called the Holy Grail Wars.

Holy Grail Wars?
Battle royale?

You've been selected as a Master, Emiya.
You have a stigma on one of your hands, right?

Those are your three Command Seals.
It's the mark of a Master.

Once every few decades,
seven Masters are selected.

Each Master is granted a Servant,
and a battle to win the Holy Grail is held.

I was chosen to be
a Master, too.

As long as you have the Command Seals,
your Servant will continue to obey you.

The Command Seals give you the right
of absolute authority over them.

That seal is what bends them
to your will,

...even if it's something that goes
against the Servant's wishes.

However, you lose one each time
you give a command, so stop at #.

Hey, wait a minute!
What are you talking about?!

It looks like you're still in
an incomplete state, too.

It must be because you were summoned
by an apprentice Magus...

...who has no idea what's expected
of him as a Master.

Yes. Shirou doesn't even have enough
magical power to materialize me.

This makes both returning to my spirit state
and recovering magical force problematical.

If I were your Master, it would be
a snap for you to do either one...

What, are you saying I'm
not fit to be her Master?

That's exactly what I'm saying!
You quack.

Well, what say
we get going?

Go? Go where?

To pay a visit to the person
who oversees this battle.

Come on, don't you have anything
better for her to wear?

Hey, don't look at me.

She said that she wouldn't
take off her armor.

This "overseer" is in here?

The Kotomine Church.

Shirou. I will wait
out here.

I accompanied you so that
I could protect you.

If this church is your destination, I don't expect
that you will go any further past here.

Tohsaka, what sort of person
is the priest here?

He's my legal guardian.

Also, as a Magus, he's my elder fellow pupil,
and you might even call him my second teacher.

Magus?

A church's priest is also a member
of a heretical Council of Mages?

That's why he's such a pain
to put up with.

His name is Kirei Kotomine.
He was a pupil of my father's.

We've been forced to put up with
each other for ten years.

If I had my way, I never would have
met him in the first place.

I, too, had no desire to have a pupil who fails
to show her teacher the proper respect.

I've brought the seventh
Master to see you.

He's technically a Magus,
but he's a complete novice.

I couldn't stand by
and watch.

And what might your
name be, my son?

Shirou Emiya.

Shirou Emiya?

And you are certain that you
are the Saber's Master?

You've got it all wrong.

All this stuff about masters and holy Grail
Wars, I don't understand a word of it.

This is a serious problem.

Very well. This is the first time that Rin
has ever asked for my help.

For that, Shirou Emiya, I will
never be able to repay you.

Listen. Being a Master isn't something
that can be handed over to another.

And once you have become one,
neither can you simply quit.

The Command Seals you bear
are also a stigmata.

The role of Master is a trial
that is bestowed upon one.

One cannot simply walk away from it
simply because it is inconvenient.

If you truly wish to give up
your status as Master,

...your only option is to obtain the Holy Grail
and make your wish come true.

Make my wish
come true?

If you acquire the Grail,
any wish can be yours,

...even cleaning any tarnish your soul
may have acquired in the process.

Indeed, it is even possible to go back
and start all over from the beginning.

So you should make
your wish.

And should the time come, thank your lucky
stars that you were chosen as a Master.

If you wish to erase those invisible burns that
you carry, simply accept your stigmata.

Kirei, would you please
get to the point?

I asked you to explain
the rules to him.

I'll cut to the
chase, then.

This battle is called
the Holy Grail w*r,

...and it is a contest between
seven Masters using their Servants.

We do not engage in this barbarity
because we wish to.

It is all part of a rite to determine who
is worthy to possess the Holy Grail.

You can't be serious...
The Holy Grail? The one from the legends?

The Holy Grail that appears in this city
is indeed the genuine article.

As proof, we may look to the astonishing
miracles that happen here,

...one of which
is the Servants.

Servants are entities that are something which
approaches the level of High Spirits.

They are historical figures, or those
who are now heroes of legend,

...who have been given physical form
by the Holy Grail.

In principle, they are always at their
Master's side in spirit form,

...but they can be made to materialize
and fight when the need arises.

Your Saber is different,
though, Emiya.

Her master is a screwup,
so she can't take spirit form.

This miracle that is very nearly the resurrection
of the dead could rightly be called magic.

If the Holy Grail possesses such power, surely
it bestows limitless power upon its holder.

In the face of such facts, the question
of its authenticity is rendered moot.

All right, I'll assume for now that
the Holy Grail really exists.

But I don't see why you have to k*ll over it. If it's
that powerful, why doesn't everyone share it?

A sensible position to take. However, we
do not have the luxury of that choice.

The Holy Grail selects those humans
who are most worthy to possess it,

...and determines its one owner by having
those potential owners compete for it.

The selection of the seven Masters,
the summoning of the Servants,

All of this is carried out
by the Grail itself.

These are the Holy Grail Wars,
a time-honored rite...

...in which people are chosen by the Grail
and k*ll each other to attain it.

Even if only one can be chosen, that doesn't
mean you have to k*ll the other Masters.

Hold it. There's no rule saying that the
Masters absolutely have to k*ll each other.

The Holy Grail is a
spiritual object.

Only Servants, who are also spirits,
can touch it.

The point of the Holy Grail Wars is to
eliminate all Servants but your own.

Eliminate all Servants
but your own...

Oh, I get it! If your Servant
is the only one left,

...it would be the only one
that could touch the Grail.

Right. So if you defeat their Servant,
there's no need to k*ll the Master, too.

Geez, you could have told me that
in the first place!

So even if you fight in the Holy Grail Wars,
that doesn't mean that you'll die, Tohsaka?

Let me ask you something. Do you think
you could defeat your own Servant?

Servants are
immensely powerful.

Even other Servants have trouble defeating
them, so their Masters go without saying.

But a Servant cannot exist
without a Master. In which case...

It means that the most efficient way
to defeat a Servant is to k*ll its Master.

Yes, but a Servant that's lost its Master
doesn't simply disappear immediately.

A different Master can use his
Command Seals to forge a new pact.

A Master who's lost his Servant and
a Servant who's lost its Master...

...can make a new pact
and rejoin the battle.

So, what happens if you use up
your Command Seals?

Wouldn't that set your Servant free, and it
could make a pact with a different Master?

That's exactly right.

If you use up your Command Seals, you will
be freed from your duties as Master.

Of course, if there were such a Magus, it would
mark him as incompetent. No, a mere fool.

If that should happen to you,
I guarantee you your safety.

That is my duty as overseer of
this series of Holy Grail Wars.

This is the fifth Holy Grail w*r that
has been held here in this city.

The last one was
ten years ago.

Have you people lost your minds?! You're
telling me that you've done this four times?!

The Holy Grail Wars of the past
had grown altogether too brutal.

The Masters were driven on
by their desires,

...and simply butchered one
another indiscriminately.

Because of that,
the Council of Mages...

...dispatched an overseer beginning
with the third w*r.

That man was
my father.

And I have inherited
that post from him.

I guess the Holy Grail Wars
bring out the worst in people.

I mean, those earlier Masters were type of
people who broke the rules of the Magi, right?

What would happen if people like that got the
Holy Grail and used it out of self-interest?

It would be a disaster if a guy who doesn't think
twice about k*lling others got the Grail, right?

The Council of Mages
does not interfere,

...regardless of the personality of
those who try to win the Grail.

We only watch over the wars to ensure that the
rules of the Holy Grail Wars are being kept.

If you take issue with that,
then survive the contest.

Surely that is the most effective way,
not relying on others.

Mind your own business!

I don't have any reason to fight, and I'm
not interested in this Grail of yours.

So in that case, you're also not interested
in the calamities that might be caused...

...by the person who wins
the Grail, I take it?

You're not the least bit concerned with certain
events that transpired ten years ago, then?

At the end of the last Grail w*r, the Grail
was touched by someone unworthy.

We don't know what this
Master was hoping for.

All we can be sure of are the scars
left behind by that disaster.

Correct. That conflagration whose cause
is listed as unknown to this very day...

...is the scar left by
the Holy Grail Wars.

Emiya, is something
the matter?

No, I'm all right.

So, what was the outcome
of the last w*r?

There wasn't one.

I told you, didn't I? The Grail
was touched by someone unworthy.

Another man touched it before
the w*r reached its conclusion.

But that man had avoided fighting,
and the Grail did not completely appear.

When the seven Servants
gather together,

...the Grail will appear on its own
when the time comes.

However, the Grail didn't acknowledge this
man who avoided fighting as its owner.

In other words,
trying to get the Grail...

...without dealing with the
other Masters first is pointless.

That guy who tried to get to the Grail first
the last time was a sentimental sap.

Wait, don't tell me that this Master
you're talking about was you...

Only until partway
through the battle.

I lost my Servant, and was taken under
the protection of the overseer, my father.

That is all I will say
on the subject.

Only a Master who commands a Servant
is qualified to win the Grail.

When you seven are reduced
to the final participant,

...the Grail will appear
to the victor.

I ask you again.

Shirou Emiya, do you or do you not
intend to participate...

...in this Holy Grail w*r as
one of the chosen Masters?

I'll fight.

If you're saying that it was the Holy Grail
Wars that caused that fire ten years ago,

...I can't let anything like that
happen again.

That settles it, then.
Come on, let's go.

Rejoice, my son! Your dreams
will finally come true.

Without clear-cut evil,
your wish will not come true.

Even if you do not wish to admit it,
virtue must have vice to fight against.

To you, the loftiest dreams and the most
vile desires have the same meaning.

Oh, there is no point in
trying to gloss over it.

That conflict is completely
appropriate for a human.

I've fulfilled my obligation
to you.

You're a good person,
Tohsaka.

Huh? Flattering me won't
make me go easy on you.

Shirou!

Good evening, mister.

This is the second time we've
met like this, isn't it?

In the deep, dark forest, as I search
for the faint fragrance...

...of the lingering traces of the days
I held dear, I suddenly hear you laugh.

I reach out to try to touch you, but your
image fluttered fleetingly in midair.

I've missed you for so long,
I've longed for you for so long.

Wandering through
sleepless nights,

...I am crying, enveloped within the
light and shadow you left behind,

...here in the deep,
dark forest.

Next Time

Fate Stay Night.

Next time,
"The Strongest Enemy."

Next Time:
The Strongest Enemy
Next time,
"The Strongest Enemy."

Next Time:
The Strongest Enemy