AN:
I'm the original author of this fanfiction. For personal reasons (decided to focus on art and dropping writing for a lack of time) I deleted this from here. However, I've thought about it for a while, and I am reuploading Moon Cell of Red. This time, I will put all days of a certain week into one single chapter, though.

I am not sure if I plan to work on the sequel Moon Cell of Red: REBELLION more, but if there is some sort of demand/interest in it, I'm likely to slowly work on that, since I still have my notes of the planned story.

Sorry for the mess/drama I may have previously caused!

(I gave my files to The Holy Blade but it does not seem that they are updating MCoR anymore for a while, and I don't want to keep this whole thing from you.)

A woman who wields a sword wildly.

That sentence was what filled my mind suddenly. Even though I did not understand why or what it even meant, I felt it was important somehow.

As I am walking to school I almost forget about that apparent importance. Another question comes into my mind which seems more urgent than the sentence which's meaning I do not understand: I don't remember waking up. I don't remember getting up. I don't remember leaving my home. I don't remember my home.

All I know is that I am on my way to school. Nothing else. My head hurts. It's not the kind of headache that makes you want to rest. No, it feels like my mind does not belong here. Like nothing is right at the moment.

I look up in the sky, it's clear and there is no cloud to be seen. That's relaxing. It doesn't help my headache but it lessens my worries, for now. According to my watch it's 7:30 A.M.

The sun is shining. It must be spring or summer, I guess. But I can't be sure of that. I have no way to check the date. I don't even know the year. Just thinking about makes me feel so uneasy and I get dizzy. I don't want to pass out so I push that matter aside for now.

Everything seems like usual. I don't remember "usual" but it just feels like it. The faces of classmates seem familiar and yet I wouldn't be able to recall a name of any student I see. How can such a thing feel any familiar or usual?

At the school gate, I see a boy in a black uniform. Looking down at myself, I wear a brown uniform. That must mean he is special. I recall, he is a member of the student council. I recall, he is my friend. I recall, his name is Issei Ryuudo.

He notices that I look at him and approaches me. "Good morning! Lovely weather we're having, don't you think?" He asks me why I look so surprised. Of course, he wouldn't know the headache that keeps me from even trying to remember anything I seem to have forgotten.

He explains to me they announced last week that they would enforce the school rules strictly this month. I don't remember. I guess by school rules he means if the uniform is worn the way it's supposed to. But as I have no memories of how to wear it or any other matters of the dress code, I feel lost.

I might get suspended without even understanding why and without being at fault. My headache gets worse. I'm almost unable to process my surroundings anymore. Issei asks for my student ID.

I wouldn't have known where it is or that I have one in the first place but my hand mechanically went into my bag and pulled it out. As if I had done so countless times already. Maybe I have?

Before I hand it to him, I take a look at my identity. How could I forget even such a thing?

I see a picture. It must be me. My eyes are as brown as my long, slightly curly hair, only a bit darker. My appearance seems not special at all, I'm a general girl with a neutral expression. I'm not sure how to feel about that. Had I hoped to be more beautiful? Had I hoped to stand out more?

Considering the strict enforcement of school rules for this month my generalness might even be helpful. I look at my name. Hakuno Kishinami.

I repeat it in my head again and again. It does not ring a bell. It's my name and yet reading it feels so strange. I have no connection whatsoever to it.

Before I can give my ID to Issei, he comments on it. It's like a broken video game that plays the following dialogue even though you did not make your choice or start the event yet.

I start to feel nauseous.

This can't be right.

It feels like an endless repetition.

I can't take more of this. I push Issei aside as I run past him – he does not react. He keeps talking. Sentences he repeated probably countless times already. For once I'm glad I can't remember each time that happened.

My headache. I'm shivering. Every part of me screams that this must be wrong. It can't be real. It just can't.

I want to wake up. This has to be a nightmare. I need to wake up and—

But where am I going to wake up to?

It's afternoon. I don't remember any of the classes I apparently took. My headache and my anxiety are on a new level. I can't take this much longer. I need to escape.

My vision seems blurry. No, blurry is the wrong word. It's more distorted. Just what is going on?

I need an explanation. Why do I feel so uneasy. Why does it seem so futile. Why do I feel this emptiness. There must be anyone who can answer those questions. There has to be!

As I run out of my classroom I almost trip. I feel so dizzy I can barely walk straight anymore. What's happening? I want it to stop.

I take the stairs down. As I step foot on the first floor my uneasiness intensifies. I see a student in an orange uniform. I remember. His name is Leo, he is a transfer student. Just looking at him makes me feel intimidated.

A guy is following him. Isn't that one of my classmates?

Now that I think about it, Leo, the transfer student, feels just as wrong here as my mind does. And he's not the only thing to seem out of place and wrong here.

People who shouldn't exist.

Students that vanish mysteriously.

Don't turn away now.

What is the truth?

Don't turn away now.

What defines the world you know?

DON'T TURN AWAY NOW.

There is a reason why you're here.

Come. Do not allow yourself to close your eyes to the truth.

My mind practically screams at me. Something deep inside of me tells me I should follow them. I slowly stumble forward. I feel like I'm reaching the limits of my body. I can't go on much longer.

I reached the end of the hallway. Leo and the guy seem to be talking.

"The attention to detail is quite impressive. Even the surrounding air is surprisingly substantial."

What does Leo mean by that?

"If that is the case, this world is in some ways more real than the real world it represents."

Does that mean this school is not real?

"How about you guys? What are your thoughts on this," he is asking us. That means, he must have noticed me. But then he keeps talking to my classmate. And gives me a smile. So, he noticed me after all.

He speaks words of farewell and turns his back on me. He corrects his farewell to "see you later" instead. I don't understand.

As he wishes me good luck he walks into the wall and disappears.

I have no chance to sort out my thoughts. My classmate proceeds to follow him and disappears as well. That exact moment my vision distorts even more. I feel overwhelmed. This place, this wall has to be connected to this repetition and my memory loss.

I decide to search the wall. I place my hand on it and expect to be drawn it, just like the two before me.

I want to know.

As if there was no wall I can just walk through it. Even though my body does not fully recover, my vision does. I'm standing in a small room now. There is nothing except for a doll taller than me and something that I can just describe as an entrance to another world.

I approach the door to an unknown place, the doll silently following me.

It is to be my sword and shield for what lies ahead.

I have no choice. I have to find out, having the doll behind me as my only protection.

It's dark all around me. On the floor, there is a path shining, not too bright to be blinding but bright enough to see that this place is made of darkness itself. It is not just a dark room, there is no room.

For the lack of choice and because I still need answers, I slowly follow the path, the silent doll still tailing me.

In this place, it's impossible to know if you're really walking forward or on the spot. Suddenly there is a fog wall covering the path all around, illuminating it more.

It feels calming compared to the darkness. I keep going.

Suddenly the fog is gone and replaced by walls made of light on my left and right. They look just like the path I'm walking on. I feel like I'm almost at the end of this path. I wonder if this is also what dying might be like.

I end up in a room, the walls still being the same light barriers as before. This feels like a dungeon.

Welcome, potential Master.

If you are looking for answers, you must reach the goal. Now, please step forward.

A sudden voice strengthens my resolve. I will keep going. I will reach the goal and find answers.

A sphere approaches me.

Before you is an Enemy Program. It is programmed to attack on sight.

But you won't actually fight as you are too fragile. The effigy given to you will fight in your stead.

This really is just like a dungeon after all. And now the words in my mind make suddenly sense. "It is to be my sword and shield for what lies ahead," is what my mind told me before. The doll will fight for me because I can't.

I suppose even if I regained my full strength by now I still would not be capable of these fights. So, I have to rely on this effigy, I have no choice.

If your effigy is destroyed in battle, you will no longer be protected from harm. To put it bluntly, you will die.

Those words echo through my head. I will die if that lifeless doll gets destroyed. I have no idea what I got myself into. But somehow, I trust that effigy. It sounds stupid but it feels like it's not as lifeless as it appears.

I watch my partner destroy the Enemy Program with swift hits. The battle went better than I would have expected. Maybe there is not as much reason to be scared.

As I keep walking, there is another Enemy Program. I don't feel very confident yet but also not as anxious as before. I'm sure my effigy can beat this one as well.

I was right to put my trust into my new-found friend. I just wish it could talk. It would be less lonely that way.

We take out two more of those Enemy Programs until the voice tells me to proceed to the final room.

So, I do. Just now I also noticed that these rooms aren't just nowhere. In fact, we are deep under the sea. It's stunning to see. I approach the final room slowly, my legs still shaking from this whole day. I hope I can recover after reaching the goal.

I find myself on a round platform. There are three colourful windows and I can't help but think of a big church when I see them.

The air feels oppressive. It feels like the spirits of dead still linger here. This is the goal I was supposed to reach? I turn to the side, there is someone lying on the ground.

He must have collapsed. His face seems familiar. I try to remember. And I do: It's my classmate, the guy who followed Leo, just like me. What happened?

I call out to him. I shake him. I'm on the verge of crying. I feel even weaker than before. I feel so sick. I'm going to throw up. He's completely cold. He must be dead.

Suddenly an effigy that was lying next to him gets up. It slowly comes at me. Surely it must be an enemy, just like the programs before.

I try to brace myself, holding the tears and sickness back. I put all my trust into the effigy that protected me so well until now. I'm sure we will win even now.

My partner charges at the effigy. My eyes widen – before it could even strike, the enemy effigy had destroyed my partner. Its next strike hit me. I lost even the remaining bit of strength and collapsed, tasting blood.

…Hmph, you seem to be lacking as well.

I hear the voice, for the last time I guess. I lost all my power. I can just stare straight, I can't even move my head. Tears are running down my face slowly. Am I going to die here? Was the whole way for nothing?

Suddenly I notice more figures at the edge of my slowly fading vision. Countless students, all lifeless.

I wonder if they met the same fate as me. The same fate my classmate met before me. The same cruel fate, without any chance to change it.

My eyelids feel heavier each second. Maybe I should close them and pass out for good. But, no. I can't do that. I haven't found any answer. I'm still breathing, so…

I refuse to give up.

I try to get back on my feet. Unbearable pain shoots through my whole body. This is too much.

I still refuse to give up.

I can't let it end here. I can't ignore the pain; my vision is blurry and all my senses feel like they are being ripped from my body.

I'm scared. I don't want to feel this pain. I don't want to lose my senses. I don't want to die. Especially not without a reason.

It's not right. It's not fair. I can't accept it. What did I fight the headache, the uneasiness, the anxiety and my fear for to come here if I am to fade away now?

I can't give up. I have to get up on my feet again, no matter how much it hurts. I have to endure it all.

Because I have yet to fight of my own volition and on my own terms!

"So, you're not as pathetic after all," a voice said, piercing the silence of my own battle against death. The owner of that voice was clearly looking down on me. Probably because I was weak enough to get myself into this situation in the first place.

"But since you didn't give in and kick the bucket yet, I might help you out to get into some fun fights myself," they added. I'm not sure what kind of person or being is talking to me. Their blood lust seems not any less than that of the effigy that effortlessly struck me down.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you!" With those words, two of the colourful windows break and a light is cutting through the gloom. I manage to move my head to see what's happening.

Something, no, someone is slowly rising in the middle of the platform. It's a short, blonde girl with blueish green eyes, wearing red armour-like pants and a red top that didn't cover more than her chest, barely.

She slowly approaches me, grinning, and holds out her hand to me. "So, I guess, you are my Master?" I'm not sure what she is talking about. But she said she won't harm me. I believe her and hope she will stay true to her word. I nod weakly and take her hand. "Yes."

She helps me up on my feet again. "Quiet type? Not that I mind," she says and I believe that is her way of accepting me as her Master.

I feel a sharp pain on the back of my left hand, the hand she is still holding. As I look at it, I see a strange, red symbol. I look at the girl confused but before I can ask, a noise behind me catches my attention.

I turn around and see the effigy from before, still wanting to fight. I wince. It almost killed me once already just minutes ago. Before I can react at all, the girl jumps in front of me, her eyes showing the same blood lust as her voice did short ago.

"My last fight's been a while," she says. Looking at her I'm more than happy that she is fighting on my side and not against me. I have never seen anyone scarier in my life.

Putting her full strength into her sword strikes she easily destroys the effigy within seconds. After it broke down completely, she sighs in boredom and seems disappointed in this fight.

But I can't make out her exact words. The pain on my hand grows more intense and takes my consciousness.

The mark imprinted on your hand is your Command Seal. It is proof that you hold dominion over a Servant.

You can use it to give three orders that must be obeyed. Think of them as disposable strengthening spells.

It is also proof of your participation in the Holy Grail War. If you lose it for some reason, you will die.

Despite my thoughts the previous time, the voice returns. I somehow manage to ignore the pain and my fading consciousness to listen to its words.

The voice explains the Holy Grail to me, as something that grants wishes. It explains Servants as the weapons used in this war. As a Legendary Soul that's existing to clear my way to the Grail. That's what the blonde berserker next to me is.

The voice says its last words but the increasing pain on my hand, my Command Seal, becomes completely unbearable. It's too much, I completely reach my limits and pass out.

Now, let the Holy Grail War begin.