velshtein | a story of a man

FIRST. MY BIGGEST COMPLAINT. Pretty much all the Saber/Lancelot scenes were cut. And they're a bit long to copy so links to the appropriate pages! They had a very lovely shared flashback (this entire page!) and a heartwrenching battle and Lancelot himself had a pretty beautiful deathscene dying in his king's arms (here!). I'm pretty bummed out about this. BUT I GUESS BLU-RAY RELEASE S-SOB.

So all of their emotional impact was lost, which is pretty terrible because the there's no real reason to have Berserker be Lancelot other than his angst with Saber. And his death just pounded home the sacrifices that Saber has had to make for the Grail. WHICH MAKES THE ENDING OF THIS EPISODE SO MUCH MORE HEARTWRENCHING FOR HER. BUT TIME CONSTRAINTS, I KNOW I KNOW. ;;

I LIKED THE REST THOUGH. DESPAIR AND ALL. ;;

Mwuah~! Lmao this was a nice touch.

;; Brb crying forever.

NO MAGIC BULLET WITH KIREI. This actually amused me a bit in the novel because Kirei didn't even notice what he avoided.

Kiritsugu jumped backward at the last moment. Kirei’s right foot swept ferociously past the tip of Kiritsugu’s nose, and the left foot that followed up the attack didn’t crush Kiritsugu’s throat either. Kirei’s smooth roundhouse kicki completely missed its target, thanks to the confusion caused by Kiritsugu’s double-speed movement.

That had not been within the scope of Kiritsugu's predictions. The Origin round fired from his Contender gun had been nullified – Kiritsugu couldn’t figure out the reason. Even Kirei himself wouldn’t have imagined that the uniqueness of his magecraft had nullified Kiritsugu’s killing blow.

Kirei had never been an orthodox magus. He, whose Magic Circuits had yet to be developed properly, had only obtained a source of prana through utilizing the spare Command Seals he received from Risei. The disposable, single-use Command Seals were all that saved Kirei. The moment the Origin round made contact, the Command Seal that served as his source of prana simply disappeared from Kirei’s arm.

Like I don't even know if he ever knew what Kiritsugu was trying to do gehgueghuh.

Crying forever about flashbacks...that don't exist in the anime. ;;

Noooo Iri..... ;; I guess this happened right when Kariya ran out of energy and the Grail sensed that SERVANT NUMBER 5 was kicking it soon.

I really like the look of this room A LOT. *_*

Something that the anime didn't really convey about this: moving at speeds of Triple Accel and Square Accel was literally ripping Kiritsugu's body apart:

Kiritsugu’s arms, legs, and heart let out sad screams of pain with every swing of the dagger. The adverse effect of Innate Time Control mercilessly tore apart Kiritsugu’s flesh, and Avalon fixed the damage, momentarily. Regardless of how Saber herself had used it, the sheath was only ‘healing’ Kiritsugu while in his body- it could not prevent him from taking damage, it was simply healing the damage he took. The excruciating pain of torn tendons and snapped bones tormented Kiritsugu’s nerves every single moment.

Even so, Kiritsugu did not hesitate. There was no need to hesitate. As long as his body could still move, he didn’t need to pay any attention to what he was feeling. Kiritsugu bet everything on the effects of the holy sword's sheath, and continued to accelerate against the agony.

“Whoaaaaaaaaa!!”

Kiritsugu’s body died and was reborn. He shrieked in agony as he sliced at the enemy before him with the dagger. His blood vessels, endlessly repeating a cycle of rupture and repair, shed sanguineous mists with every movement.

Like the only reason he was able to move this fast was because of Avalon (and Saber fighting Berserker nearby of course). ;;

WELL THAT DOESN'T LOOK TASTY.

LMAO YES GET ON HIS BLIND SIDE. :D I really loved this fight. And it also depressed me thinking about how non-dynamic the Shirou/Kirei fight was at the end of the F/SN anime. :(

THIS. VERY DRAMATIC:

The Black Keys fell from above. Kiritsugu finally realised Kirei’s strategy when the four sharp blades surrounded him in all directions like a bird cage.

His movements were sealed. If Kiritsugu wanted to dodge Kirei’s next attack, the sharp blades of the Black Keys would be waiting for him no matter where he moved. Kirei’s intention had been to seal Kiritsugu’s movements from the start, when he threw the Black Keys.

The only way to stay alive was to fire before he was struck.

Kiritsugu aimed the Contender. There was no need to be anxious; no need to fear. All he needed to do was focus on his target.

Kirei drove his right foot viciously into the ground, and leapt forward. This leap equaled to about five normal steps. His left foot would likely be broken the moment he landed, but it didn’t matter- the following blow would decide the victor. There was no need to hold back; his entire body had been fully prepared. His next strike would be one of the Eight Grand Openings – The Standing Upward Cannon. The heavy upper hook would shatter the opponent’s skull.

"I will win." Both men believed.

"I will die." Both men understood.

The fist and the gun; both weapons aiming for the kill exchanged their last strike.

AND THE GROSSNESS FROM ABOVE!!1!! Also a beautiful shot homg.

;; I really wish the anime kept his death scene:

Looking upon the sword that pierced his body with a gaze filled with compassion, Lancelot smiled wryly as he continued to speak.

"Actually… at that time I had hoped that you would personally punish me. My King… At that time I really wished that you would denounce me out of your own anger…”

The traitor knight, Lancelot who was called the culprit of the split of the Round Table — thus he spoke with sorrow to his only friend, who had never blamed him even until the very end.

"If I could have been punished by you… If you had demanded recompense from me… Then I would definitely believe in redemption… I would definitely believe that one day I can find a way to forgive myself. … The Queen is probably the same…”

LANCELOT'S INABILITY TO FORGIVE HIMSELF. ;;

"To die in the King’s arms, before the King’s eyes… haha, like this it is really… as if I am a loyal knight…”

"You - shouldn't say that - "

Saber anxiously answered. Before he disappeared, there was something that she needed to tell him. She hoped that he would understand.

Not ‘as if’. It was ‘indeed is’.

She wanted to tell him, you are a loyal knight. No one knows better than I—the sincerity you devoted to the country, to the King.

So there was no more need for self-reproach. Even if it had been a mistake that was not allowed to be made—your character is not something that can be overturned by a single mistake.

I don’t want to shame you; I don’t want to lose you. Precisely because I have this wish, I can truly deny this so-called crime that you have committed.

These were Arturia’s true thoughts, but—could not become that knight’s salvation.

The knight closed his eyes as if sleeping soundly; his body was gradually dissipating. Saber saw that he was about to vanish, but nevertheless could not think of what would be the right thing to say.

"Lancelot, actually you…!”

You are not a sinner—but what significance would such words still hold for him?
Even if someone denied his crime, the one most caught up in this wrongdoing was not anyone else, but Lancelot himself.

Why had she been unaware of this lonely thought of his? Why had she been unable to release the noble spirit of this knight from a self-reproach that bordered on madness?

"I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU." BRB CRYING FOREVER. Saber's inability to comfort him is just lsdkjfsldfksdjfk. ;;

The knight’s dead body did not say anything more; alongside the last remaining light, he vanished.

"—wait… wait… Lance—“

Staring at the crook of her arm that had lost its weight and was now empty, Saber began sobbing.

She could not even make a sound. She did not allow herself to make even the slightest sound. In the last moment that she had been facing a loyal knight, she had actually been unable to say even a word of reassurance—then what right had she to cry now?

A King can only be lonely and proud—

This she had said to herself; as she searched for the path to her kingdom’s salvation, exactly how many people’s opinions and troubles had she neglected?

Gawain who had heroically sacrificed himself, Galahad who had lost his life in the line of duty—what did they think of, in their last moment? Did they leave this world with the same regret and unwillingness? Why was she so certain that that was not true?

Saber cried soundlessly, tormented as if countless thorns were piercing her heart.

Could it be that she as a King should never have been high above—

If things had been thus, would it not have brought about a broken end? Could everyone be saved?

"... It isn’t finished.”

From her sobbing throat—that was the determined voice of a constantly victorious King.

"It can be compensated for… It’s not too late… I still have the Grail. I still have the miracle that can overturn fate…”

AND THIS. Lancelot's end is the root of Saber's mindset as she finds Gilgamesh and the Grail at the end sldkfjsdkjfsldf. And then after all that, Kiritsugu gives her the command to destroy it. ;_______________________;

Nooooo not!Iri go away you just make me sad. ;;

;;

HE SURE DID. HE EVEN ASKED NATALIA ONE TIME. ;;

This whole sequence was nightmarish. I applaud you, anime.

KIRITSUGU YOUR STORY IS SO TRAGIC I CAN'T EVEN DEAL. ;;

BRB CRYING MY FACE OFF. GODDAMMIT GRAIL, YOU ARE GOOD AT BREAKING BRAINS.

ALSO F/Z THANK YOU FOR THIS LOVELY FATHER'S DAY EPISODE. ;;

It's taken me nearly the entire series but NOW I HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT KIRITSUGU. SO MUCH TRAGIC-NESS.

CURSED BY LANCER, CURSED BY THE GRAIL. OH KIRITSUGU. ;;

;_____________;

DEAR F/Z, I NOW UNDERSTAND WHY YOU DECIDED ON THE SECOND SEASON ENDING THEME. ;;

I LOVED this shot though. *_*

Lmao I see someone's life coach really had an impact. XD

Terrible he may be, I really do feel my heartstrings pulling at all that confusion and doubt Kirei has about who he is and the answers he thinks he can get from the Grail and lskjfskfksdjf. ;;

SHOT IN THE HEART BY THE DUDE HE'S BEEN CHASING FOR 24 EPISODES. HARD LUCK, KIREI~~~

BRB ROLLING AROUND IN ALL MY TRAGIC IRI/SABER FEELINGS. ;;

LMAO I ACTUALLY ALMOST FORGOT ABOUT THIS ASSHOLE.

WHO STILL SEEMS TO BE MOSTLY 'WHATEVER' ABOUT THE GRAIL.

DEAR GILGAMESH, YOUR COURTING METHODS WITH KIREI AND SABER SEEM TO BE A BIT DIFFERENT. ONE SEEMS TO BE FAILING EPICALLY.

;;

THIS IS THE SHITTIEST WEDDING EVER. XD

Next week!!
THERE IS SOME NUDITY AND I WILL SPIN AROUND IN MY CHAIR IN A RAGE IF THEY CUT THE SCENE BECAUSE IT IS PRETTY MUCH MY FAVORITE AND NOT BECAUSE OF THE NUDITY ALTHOUGH THAT IS NICE TOO.

OH AND ANOTHER FABULOUS OFFICIAL POSTER (IN VEIN OF THAT LOVELY MALE!SERVANTS LOUNGING ON A BED IN UNDRESS ONE): ALL OUR LOVELY MASTERS IN FAMOUS ARTWORK POSES:

WAVER MAKES A LOVELY VENUS, KIREI IS GOD AND I'M PRETTY MUCH DEAD FROM THIS AMAZINGNESS.♥♥♥

Artistic influences:

Excellent. <3