Severants of Yuki Makoto

by El_Shirkuh

Summary:

A street mobster named Yuki Makoto got himself into something bigger than he had expected - the Holy Grail War.
Note: this is an old story, posting it here as well for archival purposes.

Chapter 1: Model 1911-A1

It was hard to see in this dark sewer and finding my way around using only my eyes and flashlight was difficult. So I unloaded the magazine of my 1911, then I racked the slide to check the chamber. Seeing that the chamber was empty I loaded the magazine back in. With no round in the chamber, I have no worry about summoning my Persona.

Putting the muzzle against my temple, I relaxed, squeezed in the grip-safety then pulled the trigger. The hammer hit the firing pin, sounding a click. Like a primer that was hit, it created a chain reaction that warmed my heart then followed its way up and out of my mind in a blink of an eye. After that was a sound of dimensional glass breaking, opening a way for my Persona to manifest. And then rose Saint Michael the Archangel, his skin was bronze and so was the back color of his feathered wings whiles their front color was white. He wore a gold muscle cuirass and a white robe and in his hand was a black spear ready to bring forth heaven's wrath against all evil.

"Lead the way sir Michael," I said.

Michael nodded and start sensing his surroundings, once done he launched himself forward like a missile while leaving me behind. He transmitted his thoughts and findings to me while in flight and I followed the directions he had gone as if I myself have walked those directions. Somewhere along the way, he stopped. I felt my mind going a bit light and then that strange sensation stopped just as sudden. Michael had attacked something; he fried them with lightning.

Barely a minute passed and I was there, I saw what Michael saw through my own eyes. With flashlight shone on them they were still dark as the shadow surrounding me. They were a creature of tentacles connected to a circular mouth filled with shark teeth in the center, no upper body or lower body - they were just that - demonic and not of this world. What was more troubling was that there were numerous of these things in the path forward. These demons...

"Let's continue."

So we rushed forward with no worries, only thing stopping me from reaching Uryuu Ryuunosuke was our distance from each other.

Michael took the liberty to go further than me, striking and frying anything that was in his way at the cost of my psyche. I ran through the smokes and the twitching demons - leftovers of his righteous slaughter until he finally stopped. Through his eyes, I saw him press his spear ever so gently against the chest of man in dark robes. And through his senses, I saw that the man in dark robe held great magical powers within himself.

Michael looked to the right per my command and there was my target: Uryuu Ryuunosuke. Being shone by a single candle light, his hands were bloodied and wielding a knife, behind him was a corpse of a disemboweled child whose limbs were nailed on a concrete pillar while beside him was a table with organs which were still attached to the child laying on top. And far behind that pillar were three small bodies nailed like the one Uryuu was torturing.

I made myself speed up, work my legs, propelling myself faster and faster. When I came by Michael's side, my heart was burning and I was sweating heavily. My shoes made wet sounds as I walk towards my target and my nose was filled with disgusting smell of rotting blood.

The scent of it was familiar to me.

"Uryuu Ryuunosuke?"

"Who're you supposed to be?"

"Yuki Makoto. My job is to kill you and be done with it. But I have some questions that need to be answered first. So you will answer them, you and your partner. I will not spare either of you after I satisfy my curiosity, so don't count on it. Consider this as you living on my time. First question: What are all the kids for?"

Uryuu shrugged his shoulders, tilted his head and smiled. "Just for entertainment and the appreciation for the craft," he said. I punched my pistol into his stomach and smashed the butt of the grip onto his skull. He sprawled on the floor, rolling around while holding his head and making pained noises in a comical way as if I wouldn't kill him after all of this.

I pointed to his partner. "Answer the question."

"How dare you to make demands of me," his expression was wrathful and with great arrogance behind them amplified by his bug-like eyes, "you who hurt my Master and disturb us in our own ground with this creature of yours?" He gestured towards Michael.

Now I have more questions that urgently need to be answered. Whoever he was, he acted very comfortable for a man who was a minimum effort away from being skewered. Where did he get that confidence?

"I'm here to kill and I'm here for answers. And I will get both. Now, you answer me."

The man focused his glare on me. "I'm under no such obligation."

For that, I considered hurting Uryuu to force him to speak. Then, I noticed something on the back of his right hand. They were markings, red and looked very important.

I flipped Uryuu on his stomach and he protested with a "Hey!" I stomped on his nape to keep him still, bit the butt of my flashlight to shine it on the markings and pulled my switch blade out. I held the blade in a reverse grip and stabbed the blade down on the markings then pulled it back before Uryuu had the chance to feel it.

Once he did, he clutched his wrist and screamed while calling me hurtful names, cursing my ancestors, my families, and friends. He ended it all with an "I'll kill you!"

While Uryuu was crying about his hand under my foot, I began talking to bug's-eyes.

"What were those markings?"

He looked at his friend with empathy and sorrow. That look lingered longer than I'd like, putting me on my guard. Suddenly, the air felt heavy and before I knew it, Michael made his move. He swung his spear up, cutting the magic man on his chest and made him fell on his back, and then Michael brought his spear down diagonally to sever a tentacle of a demon that was aiming for me.

Michael stood his ground and let the enemy made their move. No matter how fast, how numerous were their slimy onslaught, Michael was quicker with his spear. Eventually, he stabbed the butt of his spear down with one hand and punched his other hand forward with palm spread. Then, behold: lightning from the ceiling struck down on the demons. As numerous were our attackers, so were the lightning. They carved white jagged messy arcs in the darkness, letting out a momentarily flash of light accompanied by the sounds of sharp thunder and the smell of burnt flesh followed.

Michael redirected his spear toward the man responsible for the sudden attack and pushed the tip of his spear on the wound on his chest, keeping him on the floor.

By now, he should know that I was serious. So I asked him the same question again. And finally, he relented. I and the now called Caster have a talk to solve my many curiosities.

From what Caster told me, the markings on Uryuu's right hand are Command Seals. Which are granted by the Holy Grail for those that are chosen to battle in the Holy Grail war to obtain the aforementioned Grail with the hope that it would fulfill your one wish. The chosen participants of this war are called Masters and their summoned familiars are called Servants- Heroic Spirits from the past, historical and mythological. With the Grail requiring seven Masters there will be seven Servants. Each of these Servants will belong to their own class: Saber, Lancer, Archer, Caster, Rider, Berserker and Assassin.

So the man I talked to was Caster, Servant of Uryuu Ryuunosuke - his Master. And they were going to fight for this Holy Grail to obtain their one wish.

People like these, obtaining a wishing device? Not a chance.

Pierce his heart.

Michael followed my command and thrust his spear down, skewering Caster. I racked the slide of my pistol then lined my sight with Uryuu's skull and fired. As a great fireball escaped the muzzle of the 1911 for a flash of a second, the sound of the exploded bullet reverberated against the walls and made it even louder than I expected.

Uryuu's head was leaking blood like a running faucet after the bullet punched a hole clean through his skull; he died a street death while Caster's body was engulfed in colorful flames before he eventually disintegrated.

My mind felt tired and sleepy but my legs felt more of it. It felt pain even. With my stomach felt sick and my windpipe felt corrosive from the stench of rotting blood, I had Michael carried me back to where I started so I only have to make minimum physical effort to make it back to my driver.

Once I've climbed out of the sewer, met cool air and closed the manhole, I got in the old run down car that I arrived in. Me and the driver didn't speak, he only handed me a cell-phone. I pressed the green telephone button and highlighted the right number. I pressed the green button again and once our line connected I only said:

"I'm heading back."

"Hmm, safe travels," was the reply I've gotten before he hung up.

About thirty minutes after I've made that call, there will be police officers where we at. I handed the phone back to my driver and we made a quick getaway out of there. When I get back, I'll shower and then sleep. This Holy Grail War can wait for tomorrow.

Chapter 2: Faith in God

The press conference had gone as expected. The public didn't really care about the illegal pistol used in the killing of Uryuu Ryuunouske; they were more focused on the discovery of the many small corpses and the unconscious missing children in that dark sewer.

Since we kept our illegal dealings on the cold stuff and with low frequency, the public called us honorable and just, and were willing to forgive all minor crimes. Of course, the police know better, they made themselves be the obstacle in our path. They want us to give someone out to be taken to prison at least, so no one else would get any idea about committing any more vigilante killings using fire-arms.

The Boss had decided on a young member in our rank, joined a year ago. The Boss sat beside him along with his underbosses during the press conference. On the table was an old wartime 1911, presented as the pistol used in the job. The young man put on a great act, confessed to it all with a mighty air out of his lungs.

For the killing of Uryuu Ryuunosuke, no one is going to be mad at him for it. Those that do are perverts just like Uryuu. But for illegal possession of a fire-arm, he will be away for a year at least.

With the public and police satisfied, our image has gone from street gang to honorable men and the police left us alone once again.

I celebrated our victory with my captain and underboss in a well-deserved lunch. Towards the end, my underboss gave an envelope and said: "Here's the money for the thing. Now, I'm a busy man as you might know, and I must get going. So can you pay for everything with what's in the envelope? Thanks."

"Sure," I said. They excused themselves and left me with not even a pistol worth of money after I've paid for everything. This is par for the course. But that doesn't matter; my business right now is the Holy Grail War. So I took one of many pistols hid under the tatami in our house – a Browning Hi-power, one of these is sixty-thousand.

First place to be: The Fuyuki church. I've heard of this Holy Grail before, only bits and pieces of it. But from what I can gather from whenever I heard about it before last night, it seems to have ties with Christianity.

---

At the altar of the Fuyuki church, a priest greeted me with a warm smile.

"I didn't expect any visitors today. What can I help you with?" He said.

I approached him until we were two seat rows apart.

"I just want to ask you about something," I said.

"If there's any worry I can lift off your shoulders then I'll do so gladly," he smiled gently.

"Well, do you know anything about a Holy Grail War involving Servants and Masters?"

The priest still kept his gentle smile, said: "You're either a non-magus or an ill-informed magus if you're asking me that question. Which is it?"

"The second one," I said.

"Then I don't suppose you're capable of any magecrafts?"

I rolled down the sleeve on my left arm. Extended my switchblade and cut a line down the back of my forearm. The wound bleeds red for a second before stopping, the wound has been closed but the blood is still on my forearm, leaving them to drag down towards my elbow where it drips on the floor.

Cleaning the blood off my arm, I said: "Convinced?"

An amused smirk replaced the priest's smile; it's as if what I did was child's play. "So what is your name, my son? I am Kotomine Risei, overseer of this Holy Grail War."

"Yuki Makoto," I said. "Shall we take a seat?" I gestured towards the wooden bench to my right.

"Of course," father Risei took the seat and I sat next to him.

The air lightens, I felt comfortable to be around him. As an overseer of this War, he must be neutral and his only jobs are to make sure everything turns out well and that the Holy Grail would fall into the hand of the winner.

"You're an overseer of this conflict," I said. "That means you have authority over the seven participants. Who gave you this authority?"

"You already know the amount of participants in this War?"

"I had a talk with a participant last night."

"Interesting, are they your employer?"

"No, they are Caster. My employer wants him dead, and my employer is no magus."

A short silence befell us as father Risei gave me an odd look. I continue:

"My boss is a rather crooked man, you see. He can't let a good tragedy go to waste. He figured that putting a stop to the killings this past month would improve our image. So he put us on the job and I just so happen to be caught up in this Holy Grail War after finding out where Caster and his Master – Uryuu Ryuunosuke were."

"And your boss is…?"

"He's just a normal criminal looking to exploit a tragedy. Don't worry about him; he doesn't know anything about this Grail War."

"How does a magus like you get involved with a group such as that?"

"I was down on my luck, let's leave it at that."

"So are you here to gain more information about the War so that you can better participate in it?"

"Well, I will get involved."

"Is it for prestige? Or perhaps you wish to restore your magus line back to its former glory?"

Former glory... right, I can see why he'd make that assumption. A proper magus probably wouldn't choose to work for the people I'm under employed.

"I want no such things", I said. "What happened to the children that Caster and his Master kidnapped and the faith of their family was abhorrent. It was absolute moral degeneracy. I need to make sure such event never happens, ever again."

"I can assure you that the crimes committed by those two are not representative of the integrity and virtue of the rest of the Masters and Servants. I must also ask, how did you kill Caster? I thought that it was beyond impossible for a mere human to be able to kill a Servant."

"Well, before I answer that. As an overseer, do you have a method that lets you keep track of all the Servants in the War?"

"Yes, I do. It's called the spirit board. The spirit board keeps tracks of not only the number of Servants present but also their attributes and class."

"Okay. So to answer your question, I guess you can say what I have is a powerful familiar. Powerful enough to rival a Servant, or at least buy me enough time to run away."

The priest snorted a small laughter, "What does this familiar looks like?"

"Bronze skin, bronze wing, three meters tall, male humanoid wielding a spear," I said.

Father Risei hummed and nodded to himself.

"So back to my question, why do you have authority over these participants of the Holy Grail War?"

"It's because I'm a man of the Holy Church," Risei answered. "Anything that involves a holy relic or a suspected holy relic falls in our interest."

"So you can safeguard them from the wrong hands?"

"Correct," father Risei nodded.

"Then why have a war at all? Why not take it by force?"

"Because this Holy Grail is not the Grail of the Son of God, rather this Grail is the construct of the three families who are also participating in this war. Being a participator, they and four others have now in their palm a powerful Servant, so it wouldn't be wise to just take it. Another reason is because the Holy Grail is currently nonexistent. It would only appear when it has amassed enough energy from the downed Servants in the war."

"The three families, who are they?"

"They are the Tohsakas, Einzberns and Matous."

"If you can just say their names to me while we're in a war in which I assume that hiding ones identity is a key to survival, then can you tell me their locations as well?"

"No, that's for you to find out."

"Well, you should. I'm going to set things right in this Grail War and you should help me."

"Help you against all the Masters and their Servants? No, Yuki. You're on your own. And how are you going to set things right in this Grail War?"

"I'll have a talk with each one of the Masters; if their wish is morally just then I will spare their life but take the life of the Servant. If it's the opposite, then I will kill them both."

"You want to decide who gets the Grail?"

"I don't want anybody to get the Grail; I want to put it away. This wishing device is too bloody to setup, seven Masters, seven Servants, six must die or forfeit the fight, and six must die once again. It would do everybody a favor to get rid of such a thing."

"Wanting to remove what must be a great hope and dream to some people, hopes and dreams that they are ready to go to battle for, yet you wouldn't kill them if they're morally just, why?" Father Risei asked, his tone was not judging but it was simple curiosity.

"Answer's in your question: they're morally just." I said.

"Even if they stand in your way and make all effort to stop you?"

"I will only kill those that deserve it."

"Humph, you have to be too sure of your own abilities to be able to think that such things are possible in war."

"I don't have to be too sure of anything when my familiars are at the level of a Servant."

Father Risei cracked a smirk, I'm unsure if he's amused or was he mocking me. "The Tohsakas has a resident in Miyama district. As a magus, it shouldn't be hard for you to find them. I must say that the Tohsakas are the only one of three families to be still on the right path. The other two had gone astray."

"Maybe I can talk to them as well."

"That is unnecessary those two families won't help you in the slightest. The head of the Matous is now only a crooked corpse looking to extend its existence on this plane. And the Einzberns have no interest in fulfilling the original righteous goal of this conflict; they have all forgotten their wish for a better world."

"And the Tohsakas doesn't?" I made my disbelief clear.

"Find and talk to Tohsaka, you will see it for yourself. I will send word to him that you're arriving."

"Are you trapping me father? Sending me to a man who'll no doubt disagree with my plan for the Holy Grail. You have no subtlety."

Father Risei gently shook his head. "No, you're wrong my son. Go to Tohsaka, you will see his good heart for yourself. The Holy Grail was constructed by his ancestor and the ancestor of the Einzberns and Matous as a means to bring forth a better world, but somewhere along the way, the other two families went astray. Go to him, go to Tohsaka. You will see no better man to support in this War."

His sincerity shows, he speaks with urgency as if I don't help Tohsaka then terrible things occur. I stood up and offered the priest to shake my hand, he took it. "Well, I can take it from here by myself."

"Don't be too sure of that, there are still the other two magi you don't know about." Father Risei said.

"Two?"

"Oh, you don't know. Assassin was killed already."

"Right, I won't make the same mistake he made. I will win this."

"Don't be too confident. Strength and magecrafts are not enough to win a war."

"Dread not father, I have more than just strength and magecrafts. I have faith in God."

---

A great mansion in the Miyama district ticked me off with its strange aura. I rattled its gate, making enough noise to annoy anyone inside to come out and greet me. Eventually, somebody did. In a red tuxedo this man strides, with elegance and dignity that of a noble. In his right hand is a staff with a red jewel on its head, which I immediately assumed to be a magic catalyst.

With the gate separating us, he said: "Are you that boy the father sent?"

"Yuki Makoto," I said.

"Tohsaka Tokiomi," he gave a light bow.

Tohsaka opened the gate and turned around, leading us into the mansion's living room. Sitting opposite of each other with a table between us, he said: "I suppose you want to know if I live up to his words?"

"It's part of the reason why I'm here." I replied.

"I can assure you that I do. So far, I've made no violent moves against those that are uninvolved in this conflict. Compare that to the recently deceased Caster and his Master, you can safely say that my violence is nonexistent. All I've done is observe and strategize; I only act when it's completely necessary. No wasted moves, no wasted lives on me."

"That's commendable, but we should talk something else. Father Risei must've told you about my plan haven't he?"

"He did. And I don't like it."

"I didn't expect you to like it."

"Hmm, wouldn't it be better to recruit the person you've deem to be moral on your side? That way –"

"One winner one wishes, right?" I interrupted.

"Not exactly," he composes himself after the rude interruption. "To everybody else, it might seem like it. But the true purpose of the Grail is to reach the Root. Tap into it in order to use its power to create a utopia for us all."

"That sounds impossible."

"If it is impossible, then my heart would shatter. But if it is possible, then we would able to eliminate the idea of impossibility. As a magus, surely you must understand. Despite how ill-informed you are of the world of magi, surely, you must know the desire to discover new knowledge and reach new heights you didn't think you were capable of.

The Root is that kind of wonder. And the Grail is a way to reach it. It grants wishes, of course. But its true purpose is greater than the rest of those Masters would ever know. I'm telling you this now because you seem to possess a familiar capable of killing a Servant, and your desire for peace must surely align with my desire for the Grail. So, will you join me?"

My reply was no and Tohsaka's face became greatly bewildered, as if he was asking me for an explanation. Explanation which I will give:

"It all sounds impossible to me. If what you said were possible, then it must've been done once before, any examples?"

"Unfortunately no," he straightened himself.

"How many times have this war been fought?"

Tohsaka raised his fingers: "Three times."

"So the fourth time is the charm?"

"Have more faith. This system was created by the brilliant minds of us three's ancestors of the Tohsaka, Einzbern and Matou. It just hasn't been activated properly yet. Once it does, you'll see."

"What's your estimation that it would activate at all?"

"If you'd help, then it's a pretty high chance. I can do without your help, though it'd require me to be more subtle so it'll take me a longer time."

"You're confident that you'll win?"

"I must win. It's what I prepared myself for. "

I made to think, but before I can get anywhere, Tohsaka said:

"So will you help me then?"

"Where's your Servant?" I said.

"You don't have to worry about him. He's no sadistic monster like that Caster. I assure you."

It was all right to me. He had spoken with careful enthusiasm and cold hope that I'm tempted to be convinced.

"So, what do you say?" Tohsaka hunched forward to read my reaction.

"I'd say I'm comfortable enough with you to leave you be. But not so sure about your Servant, why isn't he here? I felt no presence of higher beings of magical energy around."

"He does what he pleases. I can't call him to come here to meet you even if I try. He would perceive it as slight against his pride."

"He's your Servant, not the other way around."

Tohsaka gave a weak laugh. "Servants are unlike familiars. With familiars, the Master is more powerful and has total control over the behavior of their familiars. Servants though, are more powerful than their Master, and the Master can only partially control the Servants through command seals. Command seals which the Master only have three. So it is in the Master's best interest to get along as well as possible with his Servant."

"I see."

My knowledge of him is now enough for me to strike a judgment. I won't kill him, not yet anyway. When the time comes that he is tempted by the angel on his left shoulder, I'll strike him down. He lives for now.

"Thank you for your time," I said.

We shook hands and he asked again about my decision. I told him no.

"Can you point me to the directions of the Matous?"

Chapter 3: Na Ekrane Okna

The Matou's residence was quite a long walk away, I wasn't particularly happy when Tohsaka had told me about it. But I was intrigued when he next told me that the head of the Matou - Zouken - almost pulled out of the war since they have no suitable participants. It wasn't until Matou Kariya, who had turned his back on the magecraft world returned did they join the fray once again.

I wondered about that, but Tohsaka didn't. He marked it as irrelevant, but I didn't. To him, Matou Kariya was just another obstacle.

The sun had set when I was at the black gates of the Matou's estate. The mansion's windows were lit in orange lights, and far above on a window screen, a small shadow passed by. As I made to touch the gate, a scraping sound of shoe on concrete drew my attention to the right.

And so there I saw a man stood with his hoodie pulled down, hiding his face. His right hand was clutching his left; on the back of it were the red strokes of Command Seals. He moved forward with limping steps and dragging of his destroyed left leg, then he stopped and took the hood off, and I saw his face. His skin was pale; the left half of his face was dried and dead, with his left eye was a fading grey like that of a blind old man.

"What do you want?" He asked, his voice came out surprisingly normal.

"I'm just here to talk," I said.

"What's there to talk about? I know who you are and where you came from. Tokiomi's errand boy I presume?"

"Your rodents were there?"

"You don't know?" He was all condescending-like. "Everyone sends their familiars to spy on each other."

"I knew that well enough. Well, Matou Kariya, right? I'm Yuki Makoto; let's talk inside why don't we?"

"You're unwelcomed."

"I'm not hostile the least that I want is to talk to you."

"Even if I'm fine with you, the old man wouldn't let you in, and I'm not fine with you."

"Right, well... Let's get directly into it then. What's your wish for the Holy Grail?"

"Pardon me?"

"You heard it right the first time."

Kariya was taken aback, he corrected his slouch posture he didn't know he was in. "What is this?" He said.

"Just tell me, neither of us wants to be here in the cold all night."

Kariya made to say something, changed his mind, gather his thoughts and swallowed his saliva heavily. "I have no wish," he finally said, and I was a little perplexed.

"Then why prolong all of this?"

"I have no wish for it, but that old man does."

"Zouken," I said in realization.

"So you know of him. Well... did that Tohsaka tell you of their arrangement?"

"He didn't."

"Of course," he said then took a deep breath to hold his anger back. "Of course he didn't, if you knew you'd be- no, you're a magus, if he did say you wouldn't even care."

"Don't make assumptions of me. What's this dirt on Tohsaka?"

"Dirt… It's nothing so miniscule, you hear? This is about the happiness of two sisters and their mother, and the bastard that ruined it! Tohsaka Tokiomi and Tohsaka Aoi have two little daughters, but now only one of them is a Tohsaka, the other - Sakura - is now a Matou."

"Why would he put his daughter to be adopted into the Matou?"

"I don't know, it's all wrong is what I know. If you can feel the things she must endure because of that bastard's training..."

"What training?"

"I didn't always look like this you know? But what he does to her," Kariya paused to swallow a lump on his throat and shakily continues, "is worse." He then clutched his left arm tighter and tighter, pulling in heavy breath to fan the fire of his wrathful protectiveness. "He put her in the bottom of the basement, then surrounds her with Crest Worms and let them..." he gestured at his own features, "and call it that."

"So you want the Grail because Zouken wants the Grail. And if Zouken gets the Grail then Tohsaka Sakura will be free?"

He gave me look and didn't say anything.

"You have a Servant, so why not free her that way?"

Kariya shook his head and smiled, as if he had heard the idea before. "His Crest Worms are inside her, her veins, her bones... The same is true for me too. So if I were to rebel against him, she will be devoured inside out."

"I see," I said and looked towards the courtyard. "What kind of defense mechanisms are in there?"

"No defense, just detection. Why?"

"I just have this funny little idea of breaking in there and busting her out and maybe you can help me with this."

"Hadn't you heard what I said? Any attempts to free her will result in her death. If you want to help, here's an idea: Tohsaka is friendly with you right now, so you go back to him with some thought-up pretense and eliminate him from the War, how's that?"

"And what do I do about his Servant?"

"Never mind his Servant after you had taken care of Tokiomi I'll do the rest."

"No, I don't want to kill a man like him so I'll pass. Besides, if you were watching his place, then he's definitely watching us now, so it'd be hard for me come up with a pretense that'd fool him. But about your problem here," I looked at the mansion, at the orange lights and the dark courtyard, "I sympathize and I will help. Just not in the way you want."

"How will you help me then?" Kariya said in doubt.

"First, can we talk where your old man couldn't spy on us?"

"He's already spying on us. He's made of Crest Worms, every single one. So the creatures that are... torturing Sakura right now are him. And the creatures that reduced me into this state are him."

"And so he listens, and so he sees."

"Right," Kariya nodded unpleasantly. "So there's no point in going against him. He will kill her and then me."

I looked back at the mansion. Michael, I thought, what do you see?

I see a faint emission in the mansion and the courtyard. If I get closer, I can pinpoint his location.

The worm pit, you sense it?

No, it must be way down there. If I get closer then I could definitely find it.

Then that is what you'll do. Gabriel.

Yes? Her voice came forward.

Get ready.

"What if I constantly heal you and her?" I said to Kariya. "The worms will continuously hurt you, sure. But if I can get you to the church, then father Risei might be able to help you."

"Don't joke with me. That's not possible with just you."

"You're right."

I drew my Hi-power, flicked the safety down and checked its chamber. Kariya was taken aback by this, and took a cautious stance. With the chamber confirmed empty, I pressed the muzzle against my ear, which confused Kariya for a second. And then I squeezed the trigger.

Click! The glass shattered and Gabriel gently manifested into this world. Her skin was green and so were the back of her feathered wings while their front was white, and the hair on her head was blue, long and wavy. Her breast plate was gold and so were her pauldrons, while the fabric covering her waist down was a white robe. In her left hand she held a white thorny flower, and in her right hand she held a longsword.

Not even a fraction of a second passed, and she had already jumped and launched herself forward towards the mansion.

I thumbed the hammer and dry-fired once again. Michael manifested and picked Kariya up before following Gabriel.

"What is this!?" Kariya had yelled moments before Michael took flight and I yelled my answer:

"He'll keep you and her alive, help him find her!"

As Gabriel broke down the front door and began her hunt for Matou Zouken, Michael got in not a little after her and started for the basement.

I ran in last, following Gabriel. Michael can handle things himself easy enough, his current objective is to get Sakura and take both her and Kariya to Kotomine Risei, so that with both of them safe and sound, I can focus on getting rid of Matou Zouken.

There he is! Gabriel exclaimed and broke through the ceiling to get to the second floor while I must head for the stairs. When I got to the second floor hallway, I saw that Gabriel was in the middle of it and was hovering above the gap she had created in the hallway. And I saw the 'old corpse' through her eyes that he was held at the tip of her sword.

Matou Zouken was small and in plain robe, his head was bald and his face was sharp and wrinkled. His eyes were dark as if they had retreated into their sockets, while his back is bent and he must hold a cane in his right hand to support himself. His features were ugly, unnatural and crooked, so it seemed that the monsters in this world wore their heart on their sleeves.

With a curious tilt of the head and a sneering smile, Zouken said:

"Interesting, this thing seems to have the power capacity at the level of those Servants, but there had already been seven summoned, so that is impossible. What are these two creatures, if you don't mind my asking?"

"My familiars," I said.

"And you modeled them after angels. Are you of the Holy Church?"

"No."

"No? Well, with skills to create familiars like these, the Mage's Association would've already sniffed your scent, but I've never heard of you before, so you're not part of them either I assume?"

"You assume correct."

The sneer in his smile had gone, he had become genuinely amused and I felt my skin crawl.

Prepare a Hama, I thought, and on my order, up it to Hamaon then execute it.

Gabriel pinpointed the location of the spell beneath Zouken and supplied enough energy towards it for it to be easily executed but not noticeable.

"Interesting, interesting," Zouken said to himself. "This Holy Grail War seems to be the most different one yet. First that Caster and now you, I wonder what else is amiss?"

"What do you mean?"

"Caster is not a Heroic spirit is he? And that Kariya's Berserker is not one also. They're Vengeful spirits, no deserving to be called a Hero. But they are summoned nonetheless. I wonder why? Don't you feel that there is something wrong with the Holy Grail for it to summon Servants so diabolical?"

"No, for all I care the Grail is diabolical already. Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Why not, don't you desire the Grail in some way?"

"Not for its wishes."

"Oh? Well, it doesn't matter. I can guess as to what your frivolous desires are. Hmm?" He perked up. "It seems that it's done."

"I can tell."

"And they're still alive as well."

"But you're still with them."

Zouken burst out a laugh, he had thought of something comedic. "Indeed I am," he said, "so you're intending to take them to the Fuyuki church?" Then he scoffed, "That priest wouldn't be able to do anything against my Crest Worms. They're imbedded deep inside Kariya and Sakura. You must tear them apart from their meat to their organs, then to their bones, then to their nerves. Only then will you pry the worms from them. But that would kill them wouldn't it?" His laugh then came out as sharp.

"Is that why you've been talking so much?"

"Why act when victory is certain? I never had much faith for Kariya when he came back and asked for my training. I just wanted to taste his suffering. And with you providing a small hope for him, yet he couldn't reach it, it makes his suffering so more delectable."

He laughed once more and it echoed across the hallway.

Do it.

A white square lights up beneath Zouken, and a giant card materialized from it, phasing through him.

"Eh?"

Zouken made to dodge, but he was inefficient. His body had partially transformed into flying black beetles but the exploding white light had caught up to him. The Hamaon spell evaporated the majority of his lower body, leaving him only chest, arms, neck and head. He dropped down on the floor, aghast and furious.

"You, what was-?" He cut himself off and attempted to transform once more, but the Hamaon spell had already caught up to him, and the light had consumed what was left of him.

At least, this part of Zouken was gone. Although Michael had dealt with the ones in the basement and Gabriel had dealt with the ones formed Zouken's body, he lives still within Kariya and Sakura. We needed to take them to father Risei.

Michael had begun making his way out of the basement, leaving the worm pit to be no more than a pit of char. With the two Matou in hand, paralyzed by pain, he flew out of the estate and set sight for the Fuyuki church. Gabriel and I followed.

---

We landed in the courtyard; Gabriel set me down and disappeared back into the Sea of Souls while Michael roughly opened the church's doors in haste, making his way in with the two Matou in his arm.

In the church, father Risei was standing at the altar as if he was expecting us. He saw Michael first and muttered something I didn't catch. Then he turned to me and said:

"What must I do?"

"Are you a good surgeon?"

"What's the operation?"

"Removal of foreign entities - Crest Worms - from the both of them."

"I see, but Crest Worms will be difficult. If we can partially remove them, let the patient rest, repeat, then the worms will be removed fully with the patient still alive. But if the worms are actively harming them as I see here, then it must be a total removal, no rest, no stopping. It could kill them."

"I know. I'm hoping that Michael can help you with stabilizing their conditions."

"Michael..." father Risei said to himself, "I see, and then we must prepare the beds and the tools. With God as my witness, I will save them."

And so the surgery goes. Michael followed father Risei to the room to the left of the altar, keeping watch, administering healing spells when necessary and pinpointing the worms' location for him. I stood out of it; I didn't want to see the process. Although Michael was doing it for me I told him to keep it to himself. I saw enough cut up children for the past two days.

Hours passed and although the air was calm and quiet, I wasn't harmonizing with the mood. I felt myself heat up, started dizzying, sweat and shook. The sweat stick to my shirt and its damp coolness kept bothering my back during the operation. Eventually, the door opened and father Risei stepped out then took a seat. Michael disappeared back into my psyche and I took the seat next to father Risei.

"You look rather unwell," he said.

"I could say the same to you," I said, he had come out of the room sweating more than I did. "So how did it go?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.

"They're alive," he let out a breath of relief and sank himself into the wooden bench somehow. "I had never felt this amount of stress for a long time ago."

Father Risei reached into his pocket, took out a glass vial containing a flimsy white worm and said:

"Here's Zouken, hiding in little Sakura's heart. Can you believe it? That this wraith retreated himself into a little girl."

He ended it with a soft anger in his voice, and handed me the vial. "What do you want to do with it?"

The white spring worm moved about, making noises like what a scared old man would make.

"We'll see if he knows a thing or two, then I'll squish him."

"All right," father Risei nodded, "do what you must. Just make sure that he dies. You might want to go check on them."

"Of course," I pocketed the vial. "But about Tohsaka, you were rather eager to point me towards him didn't you?"

"I did, and I suppose you already knew why."

"You're working with him."

"I am," he nodded. "I guess you were right to say that I lack subtlety," he smiled. "What do you think of it?"

"I don't really care for the rules and fair play in a death match such as this. You should call Tohsaka to come here he might want to see his daughter again."

"Of course, I'll contact him," and he entered the room to the right of the altar, while I entered the room to the left.

In the surgery room, Matou Kariya was sleeping on a futon, while Tohsaka Sakura was on the bed next to him. At the foot of the bed was a small wooden table with father Risei's surgery kit, and to the left of the bed was an opened window, letting the night's gentle breeze into the room.

I walked up to Kariya, leaned my back against the wall and slid myself down to a sitting position next to him.

Kariya's face was healed, but the skin on the left of his face was heavily dried.

I moved his shoulder a little, and it was enough to wake him up. When his eyes were opened by a little, he immediately shot up and yelled "Sakura!" and reaching a hand out to grasp at something. Seeing that he was grasping for nothing, he retracted his hand. He looked to the left and was mesmerized by the moonlight shining brilliantly into the room, like a protective aura around the little Sakura on the bed next to him.

"Hey," I said, breaking his trance and he looked at me all surprised. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," he breathed out, "yeah I am." Then he touched his own face, stopped in disbelief and touched it again for confirmation, "How?"

"Familiars," I said.

"Don't lie. Those two angel-looking beings were not mere familiars; they have powers that rival Servants."

"Then what are they?"

"They're-" he stopped to think, came up with nothing, and said, "They're not mere familiars. Their powers are too much for them to be just that."

"Sure, whatever you say. Why don't we get to the main topic? What are you going to do after this?"

"What do you mean?"

"What else do I mean? She's saved isn't she? She's free of that wraith. Want proof? Here he is," I presented him the vial with the white worm. He reached for it and I retracted it away.

"Let me see," he said.

I shook the vial and Zouken could only make panic noises.

"Does that voice sound familiar?"

Kariya leaned back against the wall, smiled. "I can't believe it. All these years, I thought he was unbeatable. So why haven't you killed him yet?"

"I have things to ask him. So what are you going to do after this?"

"I don't know. With those worms out of my body I- wait, are they out of body?"

"Of course, we wouldn't let you die."

"Right, well... I have magic circuits, but they're underdeveloped, and with those worms out of my body I won't be an effective magus anymore. I don't think I can keep supplying Berserker with enough energy to fight, so I guess I'm out."

He was all melancholic about it, which struck me as rather odd. "Why do you sound like you want to keep fighting? Is it Tokiomi?"

"No shit. He's the one who got her in there."

"I'll talk to him about it, and then perhaps you two can talk to each other about it. So I guess Berserker is effectively dead now isn't he?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Okay," I patted his shoulder, and then stood up. "Take it easy now, you need it."

"Thanks, is Tokiomi going to be here?"

"Maybe, he's her father, right?"

"I don't like it. I don't think he has the right to come and see her after what he had done."

"He's still her father and she might want to see him."

"See him? He allowed her to-"

"He's her father, end of story. At least let him explain himself. And if she doesn't forgive him, then let him live with it."

"He wouldn't care about that. He's a devoted magus, he cares little for-"

"All right, I get it," I said, "he only cares about progressing towards the Holy Grail to reach the Root and have little care for his daughter. But he's still her father, and he deserves to at least see his daughter. If she forgives him, let her, if she doesn't, let her. Don't get in between them," and then left the room.

---

Father Risei was waiting outside near the altar.

"Did you call him?" I said.

"I did," father Risei nodded. "It seems Matou Kariya objected to it."

"It doesn't matter what his opinion regarding this is. Sakura's fine, that's all that matters."

"This would actually complicate things for Tokiomi."

"Let me guess, two kids and a wife - three potential hostages."

Father Risei nodded.

"Tell him if such things were to occur, then I'll help him so he has no need to worry about anyone harming his family."

Father Risei smiled, "I'll tell him."

"Okay. Can you check the spirit board for me regarding Berserker?"

"I've already checked it. Berserker is eliminated. I had my doubt against you. But now, I no longer have any doubts."

"I'm glad you believe in me then."

"You know, Yuki. Why didn't you ally yourself with Tokiomi? You're good at what you do, and with your assistance, a better tomorrow would definitely be achieved."

"Sorry, father. But utopias are utopias. I won't ally myself with him, but I'll help him with things that I can."

Father Risei sighed, nodded and gave up.

I patted his shoulder and said, "Do you want talk to Zouken? He seems to know a few oddities regarding this Grail War."

That lifted his spirit and he said, "Oddities?"

"Yeah, he said it was rather odd that in this Grail War two Vengeful spirits had been summoned. What do you think?"

Father Risei struck an old man thinking pose and hummed. "I think we should hear what he has to say."

I popped the vial open and clamped my index-finger and thumb on Zouken's head, extracting the spring worm out and held him in the air. I moved my fingers back from his head a little so he could move his upper and lower jaw to speak.

"Hey," I said, "tell us about what's so odd about this Grail War."

"What?" Zouken squirmed about, "Aren't you the oddity here? You go and answer your own damn question!"

I clamped down hard on his skull, let go and said, "Do you know how easy this is for me?"

"I don't care you'll kill me either way!"

"That's true. Maybe I should take off bits and bits of you with my fingers first."

I grabbed his tail, pinched then clipped it off between my finger nails. Zouken gasped for air and let out a pained cry with each gasp.

"Enough, enough," he wailed, "I'll talk, I'll talk!"

I looked to father Risei and he was surprised. "I thought he would resist more. I guess pain makes for a good motivator."

"Do you have any questions to ask him, father?"

"Of course I do. Zouken," he regarded the worm. "What do you know about the oddities of this Holy Grail War?"

While he was still squirming and gasping between my fingers, he said:

"The Servants: Caster and Berserker are Vengeful spirits, not Heroic spirits. This is perhaps the sign that something is wrong with this war, and the cause of it is... well, it's just my speculation now but..."

"Out with it," father Risei said.

Zouken winced, anticipating an attack that never came. "I-I think that the cause of this is the Servant that the Einzberns summoned for the last war: Avenger, Angra Mainyu. I think that, when Avenger was killed and returned to the Grail, he had tainted it. But... that's just my speculations."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, that is all," Zouken said, defeated. "Please don't kill me. All I wanted is to live longer, you'd understand wouldn't you, the fear of withering away and losing all of what makes you who you are? I don't want it to happen to me."

"Sorry, Zouken," father Risei said. "But you had lost who you are. You had forgotten of why you three families had constructed the Holy Grail originally and you had forgotten your morality. To leave you unpunished would be a sin."

"I-" Zouken whimpered, "I understand. Kill me."

I crushed his head between fingers, his cracked skull leaked fluids and I put him back into the vial and pressed the cap back on.

Father Risei let out a heavy breath and solemnly looked down. "If what he speculated is true," he said, "then what should we make of the Holy Grail now? If the Grail is tainted, then what will happen?"

"Maybe we'll know when the last Servant fell."

"So should we wait that long?"

"I don't know. You should talk about this to Tohsaka. Here," I handed the vial back to him.

"You're not going to keep it?"

"No, the boys back home would look at me weird if I had a vial of a strange looking worm on me."

"All right, I'll burn him somewhere."

I nodded. "I'll get going now."

"You don't want to wait here to talk to Tokiomi at least?"

"No, it's late, I'm sleepy, and I'm feeling like a disgusting slime ball. My captain let me roam free for today but I have works to do tomorrow."

Father Risei smiled and he said, curiously, "What does a yakuza do for work?"

"House cleaning, grocery buying, cooking dinner," I said. "Sometimes we extort money from small business owners. Beat up or chase around members from other yakuza groups and stand guard at a game as it goes on in one of our gambling places."

With a smile, father Risei shook his head disapprovingly. "I do not know why you'd associate yourself with such people."

"They're good people, most of them. They're not too bad I guess, but that could be my bias talking. I'm planning to leave them one day anyway."

"When will that be?"

"I'm not sure. When I'm dead maybe," I smiled.

Chapter 4: About You and the Einzberns

There were no reasons to circle around the topic, so I went in cold:

"Why did you put your daughter to be adopted into the Matou family?"

Tohsaka perked up from mid-sip, he swallowed the little amount of tea he got in his mouth, placed the cup down on the table between us and lightly coughed. Afterward, he gave his explanation, which can be summarized as:

Tohsaka Tokiomi was blessed with two daughters. Both of whom were gifted in magecrafts and were suited to inherit the Tohsaka's legacy. Tragically, only one of them is able to be the inheritor, since the Tohsaka family's crest could only transfer to one child. In a dilemma, he sought after the Matou family - who he had heard that are in a dire need of an heir - and struck a deal with Matou Zouken to adopt Tohsaka Sakura, sister of Tohsaka Rin. This is so that Sakura can be protected from the other magi who seek to experiment on her since a magus' child hold vast potential and there will be men who'd look to exploit it.

Tokiomi had also assured me that he was having his daughters' happiness in mind when he made that decision. And though the separation between the two sisters will be difficult for them, atleast now they can grow in their respective field of magecraft and hopefully attain greatness in their own way instead of only having one child reaching her potential, and the other stagnates. This, as he said, is what no father wants for their children.

His thoughts behind the decision were reasonable, though his decision to give his daughter away was not. I made my thoughts on that known to him, and he followed by explaining that he couldn't protect Sakura all the time, there will be times where he must look away - like in this Holy Grail war - so he must find her a suitable protector.

"And the Matou, with their strong desire for the Grail as well, was chosen," Tohsaka said. "I didn't pick the Einzbern because they have more care for their homunculus than people, added that she would either be living in Germany or that castle in the forest. Living in such an environment would make her feel unloved."

"Well-"

"Don't say it," Tohsaka interrupted, "I know. I know what mistakes I've made. Sakura... she didn't talk to me last night when I came to see her. She was all quiet, even when I brought her back to Rin and Aoi, she was quiet with them as well. You now know my reasons, but never say that I was heartless. If I had known, I wouldn't send her there. And she wouldn't be like the way she is now."

Though it wasn't cold, Tohsaka Tokiomi's lower jaw was shaking as he breathes out. People's jaw tends to do that when they are on the verge of tears. Tokiomi, though his eyes weren't showing tears, his expression was coming close to it. It was what I expected from a man like him: no wails, no tears - bottle it up all inside then deal with later or never.

"How did it go with Kariya?"

"He was reasonably angry," Tohsaka breathe in and out heavily. "I didn't think that he would join the Grail War to get my daughter out of that pain. It was what he screamed at me that night. Calling me a bastard and saying that I deserve this horrid fate and that. Maybe I am and maybe I do, I don't know. To hear that he was doing it for her and knowing that I was the one who sent her there..."

If he continued anymore he would bring himself to tears, so he stopped himself. I picked up my cup of tea and sipped it. "Want to talk about something else?"

"About what?"

"About you and the Einzberns."

"Specifically?"

"The Einzberns are speculated to have tainted the Grail during the last war. Did father Risei say anything to you about that?"

"He did."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I need time to think."

"No plans yet?"

"No, not yet. And it could all be just a speculation that holds no weight. I wouldn't doubt that the little worm would throw something like a Tainted Grail out there to stall us even when he's about to die."

"He was dying and in his most weakened state. I'd believe the words of such a man. They haven't the will and the wisdom to lie."

"Perhaps, you were there and I wasn't, so he must've sounded truthful. But, even if the Grail is tainted, we still have to continue the war. To cleanse it, we must be able to touch it first, you understand right?"

"Right."

"Anything else?"

"The Einzberns' castle in the woods. You mentioned it, where is it?"

"Westward of the city, deep in the forest."

"What do you know about the people there?"

"The Einzbern's Servant is Saber, and her master is a homunculus, you'll know when you see it. Another thing, they have contracted the Magus Killer - Emiya Kiritsugu - to their aid, so be careful of him."

"This Magus Killer did anything recently?"

"The bombing of the Fuyuki Hyatt, it was to eliminate Lancer and his Master. The Master is Lord Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, and the identity of the Servant is yet to be determined."

"Where and how're they?"

"It's hard to say. They confronted the Einzbern last night, but I don't know what happened after that. They probably lost and it wouldn't be an honorable lost, since the Magus Killer is no ordinary magus, he uses bombs, guns and underhanded means to get his kill. He's a mercenary; he goes from one warzone to the next, assassinating one rogue magus after the other like crossing a checklist. I repeat myself, be careful with him; he won't fight you with honor or impressive magecrafts. He'll shoot you in the back if he can help it."

"Cool."

---

There were Browning, Colt, flashlight and me. The Browning was in my right hand, the 1911 between my waistband at the small of my back, the flashlight in my left and I was standing at the edge of the forest. The time was night.

With the moonlight and flashlight as my only source of illumination, I ventured forward in search of the Einzbern's castle. As I got deep into the forest, I thumbed the Browning's safety down, turned the muzzle beneath my jaw and softly squeezed into a dry-fire.

For recon purposes, Pixie would suffice. She was a small fairy, small enough to stand on your shoulder and it'd feel like two gentle fingers were resting on it. Her wings were crystal clear butterfly wings, her hair was brown, her leotard was blue and her eyes were wide and cheerful.

Pixie flew above and ahead of me a good distance away, and I took it easy to follow her traveled path.

This castle in the forest was an urban legend. People have said to have seen it, people have said it to be nonsense. What this tells me that although the Einzbern are good at hiding a castle in a forest, they weren't perfect. People have seen it before, and it will be seen again.

We knew we were going in right direction when we started feeling hazy magical auras around us. Punching through it seemed to cause no effects and anything. Eventually, after going through it all, Pixie saw the castle from all the way above the trees and we made a straight line right to it. Then, we stopped. Both her and I felt a strange aura of concentrated magical energy ahead of us, picking my brain for a moment, I remembered this strange aura to be near identical to the one I felt at Tohsaka's and Matou's estate. Whatever in front of us was either a defensive barrier or a detection barrier.

Given that I don't know what defensive barriers do, I decided not to touch the strange magical aura, and given that if it was a detection barrier, then I was no sneak, and have no desire to fight them yet, sounding their alarm wouldn't make for a good first impression.

To hell with it, either the barrier was defensive or detection didn't matter. The Einzbern'll get a little mad with me either way. Pixie, I thought, throw ice into it.

And Pixie did, she held both hands out with palm spread, then in front of her materialized a chunk of ice the size of an eight-year-old child, with a gentle push of her hands, the ice chunk flew like a subsonic bullet through the magical barrier. About two or three seconds later, I heard it crash into the dirt.

Nothing happened to the chunk of ice when it got through the barrier, so if this was a defensive barrier, then maybe it only affects living creatures. But it could also not be a defensive barrier, and passing through it would be like passing a laser alarm.

I enjoyed the second hypothetical better, so I decided to chance it and move forward with Pixie. Getting deeper and deeper in, the sight of the castle was a lot clearer to me, and the size of it inspires awe.

All of a sudden then, something like a quick succession of knives stabbing into the grass sounding closer and closer to us. Hearing those steps, I knew immediately that whoever was approaching us was a Servant.

Then, in her holy aura she stood her ground in front of us. "Halt!" she said, "You shall go no further!" With a concentrated pillar of wind between hands, gripped like a sword.

Saber's hair was blonde and her eyes were green. Dressed for combat in what can be called a battle dress. Though why she didn't bother to put pauldrons on was the strangest of her attire.

"Whoever you are," Saber said, "state your business!"

"It's about the Grail."

"And?"

"And the Grail is possibly tainted."

"What?"

"It's still speculations though, nothing concrete yet."

"What do you mean by tainted? And why hasn't the overseer anounce anything about this?"

"Well, this involves your Master's history a little so I'll have to talk to them about it."

Her eyes narrowed at the black automatic in my hand.

I turned the pistol over, offering her the grip. "You can have it if you want," I said.

Saber took it, and then asked: "Your back up?"

"With your speed I saw earlier, you'd cut me before I draw," I argued.

"Hand it over." She found my argument lacking.

I drew the Colt 1911 as well, and turned it over to her.

"So will you call them here or escort me there?"

"Your little friend," she nodded towards Pixie, "where did you get her?"

"From an old man in the enchanted forest."

Pixie punched my cheek. It was light and soft.

"Really?" Saber was confused.

"No."

"Be serious with me," Saber said with irritation in her voice.

"Okay, here's a straight answer: I stumbled upon her during a hike and we're friends ever since."

"You're lying again."

"Am I?"

"Shut up. Walk forward," then she turned to Pixie, "you stay on his shoulder so I can keep eye on you." And Pixie did.

We walked through a busted hole where a gate used to be, entering a room decorated with broken vases, dust, debris, and scars from a million BBs.

"Did your Master use claymores in this room?"

The cold flat of a sword touched my neck, its wind getting in my ear and blowing my hair, Saber's way of telling me to keep walking.

The homunculus was an albino woman. Red eyes, long, smooth white hair and beautifully pale skin. We were standing on the balcony overlooking the castle's inner garden. Saber was behind me, with her wind-sword at my neck and my two friends Browning and Colt in her captive. While Pixie was sitting on my shoulder with her legs crossed and the homunculus was in front of me, staring intensely at my face as if I was worth a study. And the night was windy.

"I see that you brought yourself a little friend, does she have a name?" The homunculus had asked, her voice was fierce but soft and gentle just the same.

"Her name's Pixie," I said.

"Pixie's not any kind of name for anybody."

"Well, it's her name, and that's what she introduced herself as when we first met."

"No, that's not my name," Pixie said and I snapped to her the moment she said it.

"See? What kind of man not bothered to even ask the name of his friend?"

"Okay," I said, "what is this? We're here for business aren't we? So ask me something important why don't you?"

"Like what?"

"Like why am I here?"

"Well, why are you here?"

"To talk to you about the Holy Grail."

"Saber?" The homunculus tilted her head at her Servant.

"He said," Saber said, "that the Grail is tainted and it has connections with your family's history."

"The Grail's tainted?" The homunculus turned to me.

"Maybe," I said.

"What do you mean maybe?"

"I mean I'm not too sure whether it's true or false, whether it's concrete or brittle. And that's why I'm here to talk to you."

"Well, okay," she placed her hand at her heart. "I am Irisviel von Einzbern, and you?"

"Yuki Makoto."

The talk came afterwards. She confirmed Zouken's words on the Einzbern's Servant of the third war, and she showed hesitant in confirming whether it could be possible that this Angra Mainyu could've tainted the Grail. Because, from her words, a mere Servant shouldn't be able to dominate the will of the Grail, there must something more to it. In the end, she concluded that the possibility is there, but nothing is certain yet. She must see the thing for herself. So the war must continue.

I wasn't getting anywhere like this, I'm sure the next two Masters I have a talk with they'll say that they need to see the real thing first before deciding. And I can't blame them since I'd be the same in their situation. Perhaps it's my desire to end this conflict as soon as possible that's making me holding on to the words of a deceased worm when I shouldn't. Perhaps I misjudged a man during his last moments. Perhaps the Grail is not tainted, perhaps I do have to kill all the Servants and there's no talking out of it. Whichever it was, I didn't like that it was not ending any quicker.

"So we're just going to keep going."

"Unfortunately," Irisviel said, "yes."

"Are you sure?"

"I am sure."

"Despite the possibility that it may be corrupted?"

"Mm-Hmm," she nodded, "we wouldn't know if we don't try. I'm repeating myself, but, I must see it with my own two eyes. You understand right? The Grail is an omnipotent wish granter, with it, happiness and prosperity can be given to everybody, and no one will be left behind! If the Grail turns out to be corrupted, then... well, we'll deal with it when we're there."

"Is this speculation Zouken spun comes too sudden for you?"

"Yes, we've only been preparing for the case that the Holy Grail is not corrupted, to think otherwise is rather abrupt for me right now. If it's true, then... all of this would've been for nothing. No wishes for a better world, no meaning to the conflict. It's just hard to accept that that would be the case."

"I understand."

Irisviel's smile was somber.

And then, a sharp thunder roared in the sky, followed by the sound of bulls. From the sky and descending, a chariot was leading lightning behind its path.

Chapter 5: Straw Dogs

"That chariot, those lightning, and that reckless charge. It can't be anyone but Rider," Saber concluded. Then she dragged the edge of the blade against the side of my neck, enough to draw a drop of blood. "What are you planning?"

"To talk to the Einzbern faction about the potential Tainted Grail," I said.

"That's not all is it?"

"That is all. I've never seen nor spoken to that Servant which you called Rider."

Saber circled to my left, the blade was then against my throat, then she maneuvered to the front of me, the tip of the invisible sword was then poking the base of my throat.

The trees moaned and groaned as they fell, Rider's charge was getting closer, the lightning getting brighter and the thunders were getting sharper. Saber looked to the charge, and then gave me a scowl.

"Saber?" Irisviel asked.

Saber turned to Irisviel, "Irisviel, can you use these?" She offered Irisviel the 1911 and the Hi-power.

Irisviel took both.

"Keep your eyes on him; I wouldn't be able to when I do battle with Rider."

"Mmm," Irisviel nodded with determination.

"You," Saber said. "Turn around." I complied.

A strong force like a boxer's punch concentrated in a small rounded object hit me at the base of my skull. Saber had hit me with her sword's pommel.

I staggered forward, stopped, turned, and annoyed. "You're trying to knock me out?" I said, rubbing the spot. Pixie pouted and imitated me, even though she doesn't feel it.

"It seems that head of yours is a little bit thick. Well, we have to get to Rider and I don't want you to have any idea of running away. Come here and let me hit you in the head again."

"No."

"Um, Saber," Irisviel said. "He can just run ahead of us, he wouldn't be able to outrun you."

"That's true," Saber said. "But he's a magus, he may try for some magecraft we don't know he has."

"Well," I said, "I'm definitely not getting hit again. So do you want to waste time arguing?"

"He's right," Irisviel said. "We don't have much time to waste. Saber, it's all right. I have these with me. He wouldn't be able to hurt me." Irisviel showed off the pistols in each of her hands. She was cutesy looking with them, what with how big the pistols looked in her small hands; she would've been cuter looking if she wasn't waving them around with her fingers on the triggers.

With wariness in her eyes kept on me, Saber sighed. "You're right. We need to get to Rider. You," she said to me, "you'll run vanguard."

Meaning: I must run in front so they can keep an eye on me.

We rushed forward down the corridors, and finally reached the terrace. Rider was on his chariot pulled by two strong bulls of magical origin of some kind, shone by the moonlight from the skylight with his chest puffed out. He was two meters tall, full muscle body. His hair and beard were red, short and swept back, giving him something like a lion's mane. He was wearing a white shirt, with something or another printed on the chest area.

"Oi, Saber!" Rider roared cheerfully, "I'm glad you're here! What happened to the place anyway? It looks pretty gloomy around here."

"Rider..." Saber said, near quiet, almost in disbelief.

"Oh! Why aren't you in your fashionable suit? Shouldn't you be dressing in something more modern for tonight? And who's that guy and the little fairy on his shoulder? He has a nice suit, you should go get yours."

"Rider!" Saber said, she had enough. "Why are you here? Don't tell me it's for fashion!"

"Nah, nah, it's for no such thing. I am here," Rider reached with both arms, "for a banquet!" Rider heaved a casket up and on to his shoulder.

The night was quiet; none dare to break the silence. Everybody found his reveal to be most strange.

"A banquet?" Saber said.

"That's right! So lead the way, Saber! Is there any courtyard around here fitting for a banquet? This castle is way too dusty inside."

"Um, Irisviel?" Saber turned to Irisviel.

"Well, he's obviously not the sort to be setting traps, so... perhaps he really just want to have a drink."

"No... It's not something so simple. This is a challenge."

"A challenge?"

"Mmm," Saber nodded. "He's a king and so am I. If we can find a victor on the drinking table instead of the battlefield, then that is a victory without bloodshed."

"Hoho! It's good that you understand!" Said Rider with a booming voice. "Well then, King of Knights, lead the way to our 'battlefield'."

"Not so fast, Rider."

"Eh?"

"There are other matters that must be discussed first."

"And what would that be?"

"It's the matter of the tainted Grail."

"Eh?!" Out of the cover of the chariot was a thin boy. His hair was straight, cut at the length enough to cover both ears. For a moment there, I almost mistook him for a girl. The contrast between the Servant and Master was interesting.

"What-what do you mean tainted Grail?" The young Master asked, a little panicked.

"First, let's go to the courtyard," Saber said.

---

The central courtyard was surrounded by ornamental flower beds and we were in the middle of it. Rider manifested his black armor and red cape, he and Saber sat across each other, Irisviel and I stood behind Saber, and the young Master stood behind his Servant. While Pixie was dangling her legs off my shoulder, humming to a tune.

To Rider's right was the opened wine casket, which he was drinking with a bamboo ladle. He scooped up wine, passed it on to Saber, she accepted, drank and they began their little talk about the possibility of the Tainted Grail and the Einzbern's possible unintentional involvement in making it.

Once Rider and his Master was brought up to speed, there was the matter of how I've gotten it out of Matou Zouken's voice box.

"So..." Rider said, "This was brought about by that man there."

"Yes," Saber nodded.

"Oi, do you have a name?"

"Yuki Makoto," I said. It seemed my name was getting around.

"Hoo," Rider rubbed his beard in thought. "I am Iskandar - King of Conquerors, pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise."

"Come, come. Sit here, will you? Though I intended this to be a banquet of Kings, I guess I have to put it on hold for this new development."

I sat next to Saber, Rider offered his wine, I declined. "I'm sure you all have a lot of questions, and you all want them answered sooner rather than later. So ask away."

"Well then," Saber said, "you said that such speculation came out of Matou Zouken, and last we heard was that the Matou was attacked. So did you-"

"Of course he did," a new voice spoke in the air. The Servant manifested himself in golden brilliance, his gold armor and blonde hair glowed under the silver moon. While his red eyes and expression was holding us in contempt.

"A-archer?" Saber was cautious, she stood half way up, readying.

Then Rider said: "Ah, you're here!" With no worry at all. "You're late you know; now we have to bring you up to speed so you can understand our discussion. Oh, that's right! Saber, please sit down. I invited him while on my way here! He's not your enemy for tonight."

"For picking such a distasteful spot to hold a banquet, you might as well be my enemy already," Archer said. Then he approached us, and gave me a quick glance as if he had witnessed to something foul. "And why is this mongrel with a bug on his shoulder here in this banquet of Heroes? Whatever he has to say, he can say it outside of my sight."

"I like my spot just fine, Archer." I said, and Pixie stuck her tongue out at Archer.

"Now, now," Rider said. "Let's not get like that. Archer, please, sit down. And have a drink while you're at it. We're here for drinks and not battle tonight."

Archer made a hard spitting sound at the idea of it all, but he sat down next to Rider nonetheless. Rider offered him the wine-filled ladle and Archer took it then downed the wine in one gulp. Then the expression of repulsion was written on his face.

"What kind of wine is this? How can you hold a banquet with something so cheap?"

"Eh? But it's the most expensive one I can find on the market," Rider said.

"Then you obviously know nothing of wine. Let me-"

"Enough," Saber interrupted. "The taste of the wine is inconsequential to the matter at hand."

Archer scoffed, "When a king is having an important discussion, must he be served horse piss for the taste of his drinks matters not? Don't tell me that's what your court've been doing, Saber."

Saber's glare hardened on Archer.

"I thought as much. Here, let me show you what a true king drinks."

Archer held his hand out, opened palm, facing down, and beneath it was a ripple in the air. Materializing from the ripple was a large wine bottle made of heavy gold. It gently landed on the floor. Archer turned his hand over, a ripple appeared above it, and four golden cups dropped onto his hand.

Archer passed Rider the four cups. "Oh, thank you," Rider said, and then he began pouring wine into the four cups.

"None for the little lady?" Rider asked after he passed us the wine-filled cups.

"If she can make herself bigger and important, then I may consider giving her one," Archer said.

"Meanie!" Pixie had her hands on her hip thrust her face at the Servant.

"You can drink from mine, Pixie," I said. And that brightened her little face.

The wine was colorless and lucid; the first of us to drink it was Rider. He took a small sip and immediately gave a heartfelt praise: "Wow, this is delicious!"

Saber was next, she didn't loudly exclaim her praise, but her expression was evident.

I drank mine. The taste of it was fiery and invigorating, it was a good wine, but I hadn't let any of it shown on my expression. "It's good," was all I said.

"Let me try!" Pixie was excited.

I tilted the wine over my shoulder so she can reach it; Pixie took a very small sip per her body size. "Mmm! For a meanie like you, you sure have taste!"

Again, the hard spitting sound. "I don't need praises from likes of you," Archer said.

"This wine," Rider said, "is definitely not brewed by human. Is this the drink of gods?"

"Of course, only the finest of treasure are stored in my treasury. This should show you where I stand as a king."

"Ah, yes. That's what I invited you here for, and I still intend to have the conversation mind you, but we must first hear about this Tainted Grail theory."

"I already heard it," Archer stated.

"Eh? Since when?"

"Last night. After this one had dispose of Berserker." Archer looked at me, and all eyes followed.

"Now that's news to me, how did he do that? Hey, boy, where is your Servant?"

"He doesn't have a Servant. He has what he called 'familiars'." Archer's eyes hardened bore into mine, he studied me and I studied him.

"Servant of Tohsaka," I concluded. Unless there are more unknowns in the war, this is the obvious conclusion.

"That's right," Archer sneered. "Now where're the rest of your familiars? Don't tell me you only have this fairy on your shoulder."

"This fairy can kill you, you know," Pixie stood up.

"Easy, now," I said, and Pixie sat down. "You want to see them?"

"Well," Rider said. "I'd say you should show them to us, there's no reason to hide things in the dark. If you're honest with me, boy, then I will be the same for you."

"Eh?" The young Master in the back stepped forward, wanting to protest but stopped himself.

"You may not be a king," Archer said. "But you're in a banquet of heroes. So it's best for you to not hide any underhanded means you have in your sleeve. But then of course, you magi are known for your scheming and treachery, so you can decline the request if you want." He said it in a condescending manner.

"I wouldn't say any of that," Saber said. "But I am curious as well to how you managed what you did."

In a way, these three have challenged me. Pixie's voice spoke in my mind, telling me to not do anything, and that it'd be detrimental if I reveal my cards. Some parts of me agreed some disagreed. They say I should meet this invitation head on and that I should show them just what I was made of.

"So what do you say?" Rider said, hopeful. "Will you call him here? Oh, wait but if you're smart then your familiar is already nearby, right? Wouldn't want to have yourself surrounded by Servants and with no means of self-defense now, do you?"

"Yeah, he's here," I said.

"Eh?" Irisviel was confused. "But I only detected you and Pixie, or had the barrier gone weakened," the last part was mostly to herself.

"I don't know anything about that, but he's here."

"So?" Rider said, "What's he doing?"

"He's resting."

"He's resting," Rider repeated.

"Yeah, he's resting."

"Here, he's resting?"

"Yeah, he's resting."

"Oh... well, then... can you, uh... wake him up?"

"Sure."

I stood up, took a few steps back, and then concentrated on invigorating a fragment of my soul, channeling my mental power toward it. A connection between him and I was formed, his shape appeared in my mind, it only needed a trigger to fire. Being absent of an Evoker, I used pistols, and being absent of pistols, I must then work on materializing him through concentration alone.

What I did next was performative, it was unnecessary but I felt like doing it. I leveled my forefinger against my temple, my thumb acted as hammer; it came down as if firing a round. A soft "pow" escaped my lips.

The dimensional glass shattered, blue swirl surrounded me, from the Sea of Souls within me, he manifested: Siegfried.

Siegfried stood tall at one-ninety-five meters, his helm was of red leather, his blonde hair reached his nape, his eyes were blue and his skin was red bronze. On his body was red leather armor, at his left hip was a scabbard and in his right hand was the longsword Balmung.

"I am Siegfried," his voice was mighty, a declaration for the Heaven and Earth, "dragon slayer. It's a pleasure to be in a circle of fine warriors such as you all," he gave a courteous bow with his left fist on where his heart was supposed to be.

"That..." Irisviel said, her voice was quivering, "that can't be."

And the rest of them shared all or some of her disbelief.

"Hohoo!" Rider laughed. "Good, this is good! Though you are not king, you're most welcome to join us in our banquet like your master."

"You idiot," Archer's voice was tired. "I let you get away with calling this a banquet of kings while having that mongrel and his pet fairy in here. But I'm not going to get you another cup so we can have another drink with a magus' familiar."

"Familiar... How can somebody like that merely be a familiar?" Saber said.

"Anybody can introduce themselves as anybody. He said his name was Siegfried, but that doesn't mean he is Siegfried. He's a magus' creation, not a Heroic Spirit from the Throne of Heroes. He's no Servant, but a familiar."

Right, familiars... Tohsaka had told me what that means.

"Agh, look at him more closely Goldie," Rider said. "Does a mere familiar of a magus exude such aura? Don't you feel that there's something more to him? This power he exudes, he's a Heroic Spirit for sure, Archer. Might not be a Servant, but definitely not merely a magus' creation."

Archer looked at Siegfried, back to his wine, sipped it, then back to Siegfried again, scrutinizing, studying.

"Well?"

"I hate to say that you're right..." Archer admitted.

"Glad you're with me!"

"Well," I said. "I think we should get back to what's important," I sat down near Saber, and Siegfried was behind me. "This Tainted Grail theory, I'm sure we all have questions regarding it, so let's talk and no more stalling."

"I had wanted to ask you a question before I was interrupted," Saber's glare was on Archer. "But it seems that the question has been answered. So I will ask another one: What's your plan for the Holy Grail if it's proved to be corrupted and that it's not merely a theory."

"The same as when it's not: Hide it away or if possible, destroy it."

"That's... why? Do you have no wish for it?"

"No. I don't trust genies."

Rider laughed. "But, boy," he said, "the Holy Grail is more than just a genie. It's not like those stories you read."

"Maybe, maybe not. But the only reason I see to kill for a wish granting device is if this thing can make this entire world a better place. So the question is, how is the Holy Grail going to interpret this wish?"

"I'm sure that the Grail will be able to figure how on its own," Irisviel said. "The Holy Grail is an omnipotent, divine wish granter, it will surely know how to make about this wish come true."

"I've made up my mind. I don't, and will never trust genies."

"Well that will put you against us," Archer said. "This speculation on the Tainted Grail came out of a dead spiteful worm, this worm was a magus who knows his way, sure, but how can we be sure whether the Grail is really corrupted? And why did you even want to bring this out to everyone?"

"Just so that everybody knows, and weigh it on their mind."

"Oh, I've weighed it all right. And I say that the Grail is rightfully mine, it belongs in my vast treasury. None of you are worthy of it."

"Hmm, you see..." Rider was rubbing his chin. "This thing you've brought up concerns me, yes. But at the same time, I say that I will continue to fight to obtain the Holy Grail because, well, I can't honestly be sure if this theory holds weight. Maybe I will regret it when I get there but... damn it! This wish of mine is worth fighting for! I may have only been in this world for a short time, but I absolutely fell in love with this era and its war machines.

I Iskandar, King of Conquerors have conquered the world once, and I wish to have a real body in this era and time to conquer it once more. I want to travel to lands that I've failed to arrive in my previous life, meet their people, to see the beauties in their culture, and fight their finest warriors in the battlefield! I want to taste the taste of twentieth century warfare!

So whether this Holy Grail is corrupted or not, the worry of it cannot beat this strong desire in my heart, so I will take my chances, and after this banquet, I will join you all in the battlefield once more to compete for the Holy Grail!"

"Hahahah!" Archer laughed out those harsh syllables. "Rider, you amuse me. I will definitely kill you myself."

"Then you ought to be well prepared. I will plunder your treasury too; to let a King of Conquerors taste your wine is rather thoughtless of you."

"You have a warrior's spirit," Siegfried said. "But is conquest all that you want? The world has more to offer than bloodshed."

"Aye, that maybe. But conquest is my way of life. It has been so for a long time. Nothing will change it."

"If that's how it is, then if I may ask that you will meet this dragon slayer in combat someday."

"Sure! I'd be excited to test the might of the ones fabled such as you!"

Shouldn't've gave him the invite, I thought.

Don't tell me you don't feel the eagerness to battle him after all that, Siegfried replied.

Shouldn't've given it either way.

"Oi," Rider said, sitting down. "Saber, you should talk about your wish too."

Saber looked at the rest of us, steeled resolved. "Very well. If you want to know, then my wish is to save my homeland, to save England from destruction."

Whatever was weird about those words she had spoken then I didn't pick them up. But for the two other Servants, they gave her odd looks.

"King of Knights," Rider said. "I may've heard you wrong but... did you say that you want to change fate?"

"Correct," Saber nodded. "A miracle may not be possible to bring about it, but if the Grail is truly omnipotent, then surely my wish can come true."

"Er... Saber, I want to confirm this. The destruction of Britain was during your time, during your reign, correct?"

"Yes!" Saber's voice was firm. "That is why I cannot forgive myself. The destruction of my country was my fault, that's why I must reverse it."

A pitched laughter came out of Archer.

"I don't see what's so worthy of your mockery laugh," Siegfried said. "She wants to save her subject from destruction. It's simple as so."

"You're no king," Archer said. "Don't speak of kingly matters."

Siegfried frowned and said nothing.

"You're one to talk, Goldilocks," Pixie stood up and pointed at Archer. "I'm sure your subjects just love an arrogant ass like you!"

For the third time, the hard spitting sound again. "Shut your bug," Archer said, "or I'll do it for you."

Take it easy, Pixie, I thought.

Pixie was unsatisfied, but sat down and calmed herself.

Rider sighed. "Saber, tell me. So you want to erase the history in which you've created?"

"Correct. I don't know why that is such an odd wish that deserves a laughing. The country that I've sacrificed my life as king had been destroyed. Is there something wrong with my wanting to reverse the outcome?"

"Yes, you're wrong," Rider answered immediately. "You have it backwards. It is not the king who is supposed to sacrifice for the nation and people. But it is the people and the nation who is supposed to sacrifice their lives for the king."

I picked the little golden cup that I've barely drink wine out of and took a gulp. That was a lot of bullshit, a part of me had said and another part of me had said otherwise.

"Saber, listen to me. If a king is unsatisfied with his rule, then he is a weak ruler. Worse than any tyrants and madmen."

"Iskandar," Saber said. "Didn't your empire split into four warring factions and disappeared into the sands of time? Don't you regret such an ending? Don't you want to save your motherland?"

"No. I have no regrets for the actions of me and my generals that led to the demise of our nation. I will grieve and I will shed tears, but I will never regret what had happened!"

"The two of you should take it easy," I said. "Neither of you will change each other's mind like this. This banquet of kings is turning to a drunken bickering, and you two aren't even that drunk."

"Boy, why are you-"

"Listen, I'm here for a simple purpose: To brought to the Einzberns the possibility of a Tainted Grail and discuss on what to do with it. I see now that my original purpose is no longer interested."

"Well, it's the Grail's words against yours. When summoned, I was filled with information about the Holy Grail War by the Grail. Such a thing that can help bring us Heroic Spirits to the modern era and grant wishes... it's hard to doubt it."

"No you're wrong. No wishes were ever granted. We don't know if this thing is really omnipotent, and we're killing each other for it."

"So what's your suggestion?" Archer said. "The only way to know if it's really omnipotent or not is to kill each other for it, is that not so? And although no wishes were ever granted, the Grail still has power to access the Throne of Heroes to call forth us Heroic Spirits, such a device is worthy of trusting to be omnipotent."

"No. One has nothing to do with the other. I don't see why you all so content to being sacrificed. The Grail summoned you not to do this battle for any honor or ideals of any noble kind; it summoned you to be straw dogs. You're all worthless to it except for being a fresh source of magical energy. It demands the lives of six Heroes or Villains unleashed upon the modern era to slaughter each other, uncaring for the collateral damages."

"It's the nature of war," Rider said. "There are bound to be unwanted death. It is how things are. You can't fight a clean war."

Rider's nature was conquest; there was no talking him out of it. Saber had her wish, and Archer was himself. They will hold on to their belief and desires and there's nothing an outsider like I can do to snap them out of it.

"I shouldn't have come here," I said, downed the wine in my cup. Then I stood up, moving toward Irisviel. She looked at me with wariness, leveled the two pistols' muzzles at my chest.

"I'll need them back," I said to her.

"Why?"

"I'm leaving."

I reached for a pistol; Irisviel reluctantly gave the 1911 to me. I put it in the waistband at the small of my back. I reached again, she gave me the Hi-power and I holstered it in the waistband at the left front of my hip.

"You're leaving?" Rider said. "So soon?"

"There's nothing to be had from talking to you all," I said. "If we can't end this peacefully here and now then we can never resolve this without bloodshed. But it seems that we're all just too different."

"Stay a little while. Have a drink. Who knows, maybe if we're drunk enough, then we can figure something out," Rider gave a small chuckle.

I was no longer in the mood for humor.

Chapter 6: Eto Nye Lyubov'

The gamblers groaned and moaned as the tin can was lifted and the pair of dices was revealed. In this hot room of stale sweat, bad breath, cigarettes and beer, I and four others were supposed to keep watch and serve drinks as the three underbosses kept the game going. This work kept me busy from eleven to sixteen. By then, I had showered at a bathhouse, ate at a ramen stand and prepared myself for the coming battles.

I went to the streets and caught a taxi to the outskirt of the city with two pistols and a short sword hid underneath my coat. The driver dropped me off at the edge of the outskirt I paid my fare and made the rest of the trip on foot.

Deep and comfortable in the dark expanse of the forest, I dry-fired my temple, summoning Juno.

She was this tall woman of two-and-a-half meters in red, her hair was turquoise, her face was white and blank except the two red eyes at each cheeks and one seated vertically in her forehead. From her back sprouted a pair of metallic peacock-feather-shaped ornaments, three eyes each. And her lower body was a protective crystal-clear sphere.

Juno was a scanner Persona, she belonged to Yamagishi Fuuka, I originally hadn't access to her until my second wind in Fuyuki City. As the name of her type suggests, she specializes in detection and analysis, not combat.

My summoning of her was to detect any familiars the Masters might have following me. It wasn't that I couldn't detect anything without her, but I doubt that my sense in magic detection was sharp enough to notice any small energy emissions or distortions in the air.

Juno, with back arched, eyes in the stars and arms spread wide, began her work. A detection field of twenty-five meters radius or so blossomed from her position. Her readings came, in our vicinity were: insects, squirrels, birds and three very faint concentration of magical energy formed things that were vaguely humanoid.

When Tohsaka had explained to me on what constitutes a 'familiar', I hadn't expected this. Regular people don't give any kinds of magical energy emission; even if they do they wouldn't glow as bright as these spies of mine. Their positioning on tall trees was weird but it got most unusual when they jumped from one branch to the next, one tree to the other like rabbits. They were something humanoid, but not human. Only thing came to my mind are Servants. Such limited deduction dissatisfied me.

Juno made an attempt to analyze one of them, the shape stopped moving. It knew it was seen. It and its friends retreat outside the detection field.

Juno and I stood wait. Nothing like those shapes ever came up in our range. Juno didn't see anything new. And her senses were sharpest of my Personas. If she doesn't see anything in a given range, then they weren't there. Our spies have figured the limit of our senses, and they were staying out of it.

Ten more minutes or so of this, and I decided that they weren't worth my time. Either these stalkers were too scared, or their objective was to only spy on me. Whatever it was, I hadn't the time to spare for them.

A thumbing of the hammer and the trigger reset. I dry-fired my ear, manifesting the Egyptian god of the desert, chaos and evil: Seth.

If the spies weren't going to make their move against me, then I won't either. Juno dematerialized. I mounted Seth's neck, and we took flight out of the forest and head for the sky above Shinto.

Any heat on me was cooled off the moment we took flight. The winter wind went through me with a fervent bloodlust in them, their howls sang like banshee.

Seth and I started from the edge of the city then made our way inward. The distance between us and ground would leave Seth perfectly camouflaged against the night sky, unless he blocked a star or two. Despite this distance between us and below, Seth's eyes were sharp enough to see the people below with perfect clarity. If a Master and Servant pair was to walk around Shinto, then we'd notice.

Five minutes of flight yielded us nothing. We intended to go all the way to Miyama and then circle back to Shinto, but Seth had caught something on the roof of the Centre Building - the tallest building in Fuyuki City.

Two figures, one was emitting more magical energy than the other. One was a man who had his hair long and swept back on a handsome face dotted with a mole under his right eye, his hands wielded a red spear, he dressed in a skin tight teal outfit and fitted a pauldron on his left shoulder. The other was a short haired, red head woman in a white blouse. Master and Servant Lancer.

The pair locked eyes with Seth; we circled around the roof and settled for one corner diagonally opposite theirs.

I dismounted, hands flat at my sides, sword gripped loosely, I approached them. Seth stood still, body rose high, vigilant.

Lancer, with left foot back, right foot forward, presenting as little of him as possible, advanced with red spear tip forward.

We were at somewhere in the middle. I stopped, Lancer stopped. I was dictating the tempo.

"Take it easy," I reassured. "Why don't we see if we can resolve our differences with words first before we start clanging our melees?"

"That's not a Servant, I'm assuming?" He flicked his head at Seth.

From left to right and left, I moved my head slowly.

"Then what words must we exchange? Are you a representative of somebody? Why is a non-Master and Servant in this fight?"

I gave a no on his second question. For his first and third, I elaborated about the Corrupted Grail theory for why we should talk and why I was in the fight.

"And the others... do they know?"

"I've told them."

"We heard nothing of this from the overseer!" The Master shouted, she was angry and unconvinced. "You're just an outsider interfering with the Heaven's Feel; you should be dealt with by now!"

"Perhaps I'm just too troublesome to be dealt with," I said. Seth growled to emphasise my point.

"This thing of the Corrupted Grail," Lancer said, "you believe it?"

"No. I'm fifty-fifty on it. Angra Mainyu was confirmed to be summoned on the third war, Class: Avenger. You know what that name means, right? Zoroastrianism's spirit of evil."

"That can't mean that the Holy Grail is corrupted! It's a-" he got that far before I tuned out. I wasn't interested in hearing it again.

"If you're unwilling to be convinced that the Grail is not worth it, then would you be willing to be convinced that this war is not worth it? Tell me of your wish, this wish of yours that you're willing to kill heroes or villains from the past or their Master from the present."

"I'm not so dishonorable as to fight dirty like that," Lancer's eyes narrowed.

"Tell me either way. Perhaps I can help. If I can't, well..."

"Lancer..." His Master stepped forward, concerned.

"It's okay," to his master, "despite the vicious black dragon he commands, I feel that somehow we can trust this man."

Lancer turned to me. "All right, if you want to know, then I'll tell you: At first, my Master and I have no wish for this Heaven's Feel, we just participated as a display of strength and honor. After a confrontation between us, Saber, Rider, their Master, Berserker and Archer at the docks, we retreated to the Fuyuki Hyatt. Couple of hours after, the Fuyuki Hyatt was sundered, from top to bottom the building crumbled, it was the work of Saber's Master."

"The Homunculus?"

"No, the Magus Killer," Lancer corrected me. "Seeking retribution, my Master and I raided the Einzbern's castle, I have my second fight with Saber. But it was interrupted again. I felt my Master's alarming state of being, and I abandoned my duel with Saber to save him. It was most disgraceful of me, but I felt that it was the only way for her and I to have an honorable end to our duel. But that wasn't the end of our trouble; my Master is right now without the function of his body and magic circuit - caused by that loathsome Magus Killer. So we're fighting the war to restore his wellbeing. Unless you have the power to restore him back to his entirety, then I don't see how we can end this without bloodshed."

"Hmm..." I pursed my lips. "So that woman..." and let Lancer continue.

"My substitute Master," was all he cared to elaborate.

Before I can make my say, the substitute Master spoke: "Even if you can restore workings to his arms and legs and his bodily senses, you won't be able to fix him his magic circuit. No healing spell in the world can do it."

"Maybe I can't fix his magic circuits"- whatever they are -"but perhaps I can rejuvenate him somewhat. My healing spells are very effective."

"It won't be enough," the woman said.

I raised my right hand as a gesture to say "easy", and went through my coat pocket to produce a switchblade. I unbuttoned my coat and my shirt, then extended the blade. From beneath my sternum, I traced a cut down along my left ribs. The wound bled red black blood. I closed the blade and pocketed it. I dug through myself, prodding around in the moist, warm, slimy insides. I found the beating core, and with tight fingers around it, I yanked it out as hard as I could. Simultaneously, Diarahan enveloped me in its healing light. A new heart, younger and more vigorous, replaced the one beating in my fingers. All the mess I made in myself returned to where it belonged, and the gape beneath my sternum along my ribs closed.

"I offer you my heart," I said, "as proof of my abilities." And then threw the still beating thing at Lancer's feet.

I made myself to be properly dressed.

The substitute Master sharply gasped, both hands went up to cover her mouth. Lancer's shock recovered a lot more easily and was less expressive, he had only went wide-eyed at the trick. He said: "Most impressive," and picked up my old beating heart of twenty-one, examining it, "but the most severe damages done to him are to his soul, his magic circuit. If you can show me proof of that as well..."

"What do you want me to do, hurt a ghost?"

"So you can't?"

"Your Master has a chance to walk and operate his arms. No magecrafts, maybe. But that's better than being crippled."

"For a magus," the woman said, recovered from her shock, "unable to perform magecraft is just as well as being crippled. We dedicate generations, lives, to perfect our craft. You are a magus most skilled, but I doubt your abilities will be enough."

"Do you like to take your chances with them?" I nodded to the city, they got what I meant. "What if you fail? What then?"

"It's better than to take our chances with you. We know you less than we know them. We don't even know your name, yet we-"

"Well, I'm Yuki Makoto, how are you this fine evening madam?"

"I-" she bit her bottom lip, furious. "The point stands that we can't trust you! We know of you so little. And even if we do trust you, your abilities wouldn't be enough. So we still have to participate in the Heaven's Feel."

The air was still. We've made our stand.

"That's it huh?"

"I guess so," Lancer materialized a shorter golden spear in his left hand.

I put my sword through my belt, placed my left thumb on its guard and pushed it out, my right forefinger and thumb between the white grip, dragged the sword out of the white scabbard. Seth dematerialized.

"The dragon," Lancer said. "You're not fighting with him?"

"I don't like the image of a charred woman to be on my conscience."

"I applaud that. But it leaves you standing little chances against me. I'm a Servant, you're a magus."

"You don't like to win?"

"Not if it's cheap. I'll make it quick for you."

I grinned at him. My left hand cross drew my Browning Hi-power at my right hip. Muzzle at jaw, I dry-fired, summoning Juno at the corner Seth occupied.

"What the-" Lancer let out.

Tarukaja and Sukukaja ignited on a quick succession. The essence of Susano-o flowed through my beings, occupied my instinct. On my feet, I punched myself forward and went at Lancer with a diagonal slash from right downward left.

The red spear met my slash; I followed through with my motion, twisting my shoulder at an uncomfortable angle to get the sword through. Then, diagonally, from lower left to top right, another slash from me to him. Our weapon met in a bright flash, we jumped back. I cocked and holstered my black automatic.

My left foot back, right foot forward, white steel straight, offhand opened and ready.

Lancer did the same feet position, both his spear tips were downward. A quick flash of his eyes went to Juno, he felt himself being scrutinized under those five red eyes. A quick look-see at his on-field Master - his Master gave a reassuring nod - and then back to me.

Lancer grinned, his handsome feature turned to something full of joyful youthfulness. His expression was filled with a sense of adventure. Our battle here was like a carnival play to him, but taken much more seriously.

"You work that sword well," he said. "And that woman of yours... I don't suppose you'd tell me if I ask nicely?"

"I won't."

"I guessed so."

We went for each other, he got to me first. The red spear was flung at me and caught at the bottom of its shaft, its range increased; I swiped at it with my steel. The golden spear next, its tip got close to my face before I parried. I closed in our distance, the red spear raised, aimed for my midsection. I let it did its business and went to do mine. My slash caught him at his collarbone; his spear went upward, shattered both of my lower ribs and went out of me. I strike for his head with my left, open-palmed, it caught him between his cheekbone and jaw.

We separated. And I wondered how the red spear can pierce through me. Susano-o was supposed to nullifies such attacks. Well, I'll know when Juno finished.

Little by little, my wound began to fix itself. I readied myself in the same stance. Lancer's collarbone was healed, the work of his Master.

We gave each other a stare down and when we both had enough of it, we went at each other again. Lancer was like lighting with both spears, he stabbed for my heart, my head, my stomach, my legs, my arms. Each was faster than last, but that hadn't slowed me down. I had the sense to apply Rakukaja, and reapply the other enhancements. He stabbed, I parried, for three quick seconds he had stabbed at me twelve times, and ten times I had successfully parried. His golden spear went through but it hadn't done anything to me, not even a scratch, while his red spear carved a channel nicely on my left forearm.

An opening present itself for me, I made for a cut, caught him at his right chest, shallowly. He had dodge and back stepped. The Master was watching us with anxious shakes, healed the cut on Lancer. I closed the blood channel on my forearm.

It was another stare down when Juno's reading came:

His name was Diarmuid Ua Duibhne - Diarmuid of the Love Spot. Red spear Gáe Dearg, golden spear Gáe Buidhe. The red spear strikes through mana, so no magical protection is possible to absorb it, while the golden spear would leave un-healable injuries on your body. I wonder if that Love Spot affected Juno... probably not much. She's cold to many but me.

But his Master there, I wonder...

Diarmuid rushed like a bullet, pinpoint accurate with his red spear, I went to meet his rush with my own. Gáe Dearg cut my cheek, while Gáe Buidhe was thrust from below, it did damage to my coat and shirt, but none of it went through me. I grabbed the spear, and pulled it back, Diarmuid was up one foot in the air. I raised my sword for a cut; he planted his foot down, red spear point up, thrust. I hadn't caught him deep enough in his shoulder given our distance from each other, my blade then only scratched his collarbone. His spear went between my ribs, flesh, lung, then pushing them, breaking, and puncturing them.

I let go of the golden spear to draw my Browning. Lancer roughly pulled Gáe Dearg out of the gape; he brought his spear back for slash at my temple. But the pistol's muzzle met my jaw first, and with a dry-fire, Susano-o, this giant dark skinned deity in nothing but a black loin cloth, a cape, and a crown of horns brought his sword down on Diarmuid.

Diarmuid interrupted his own move, blocked the god's blade with his golden spear. For a moment there, spear locked in sword, sword pushing down on spear: A clear opening, I went at him. Diarmuid thrust his red spear, the awkward position he was in, made him inaccurate. I let him have a slash on his abdomen and broke through both his shins with my blade. Diarmuid went down; his spear escaped the lock of Susano-o's sword.

"Diarmuid!" The Master cried. "No!"

Susano-o stabbed his sword down, onto Diarmuid's chest per my order. I didn't want to ruin the face of a knight.

Coughing blood and shuddering, he said: "Here?"

"As fine as it can be," I said.

"It's a shame... I at least wanted to..." a short pause, "... have a final... with..."

Diarmuid couldn't say anything anymore. All of him had begun dissolving into particles of colors. My wound healed, but the red head Master's pain was still fresh.

Tears were in her eyes, she had run over to us, uncaring for previous hostilities. She got by her Servant's side, crying his name as many times as she can, as many times as it must take for him to stay. Her tears were plenty, plenty enough to redden her eyes and nose. It was a woman in love; it was a woman in grief.

Then when all of him had gone, she went to take her grief onto me.

"Damn you!" She screamed, her hands gripped my collar, knuckles-white tight. "Damn Kayneth! Damn this war!" She hung her head down, her grip loosen, before she could fall, I caught her.

I held her up on both shoulders and made her look at me.

"You don't love him," I said. "Whatever you felt for him, it is not love. He's Diarmuid of the Love Spot, you were charmed, cursed. Your feelings were a lie, a delusion. Snap out of it, this grief of yours amounts to nothing. It means nothing to you and it means nothing to Diarmuid. Your accomplice, Lord Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, where is he? Shouldn't you care for him? Isn't he the reason you're still fighting? I can still at least help him with whatever I can. Where is he? Or is all of that hokey too?"

She didn't reply, her sorrowful expression had turned blank. She had registered my words, and came back with depression.

"You can't," first she croaked out. "You can't help him. The damages are severe... You ruined his chance for..." Her tears started again, and I dropped her shoulders.

The winter wind had satisfied its thirst.

Chapter 7: Don't Bother

Susano-o saw a flying distant object above the sky of Miyama Town making its way to where I could only guess as the Einzberns' castle. He didn't saw where it started, so we couldn't narrow down whether to search for the traditional or foreign district, but that was a problem for a later time.

The red-haired woman sat on the ground where Lancer had died, she drawn her knees close to her chest and hid her face behind them. I burned my dead heart with a flare of an Agi spell in my palm and crushed and scattered it in the wind and I approached her, said:

"Come on, stand up, it's time to go."

"Where?" Her head craned up, her small face was tired and sullen. "To Kayneth?"

"His recovery is why you went to battle isn't it? Come on then, let's go."

"I don't want to see him."

"I'm sure he wouldn't hold this lost against you."

"It's not that," she looked away and lowered her head, "I just don't have the heart to stomach his look."

"What a strange thing to say. You two have a certain kind of bond towards each other deep enough to join a death match together, yet you don't want to see him again?"

"It might sound strange to you, but... I never did care for him. My coming here with him wasn't forced, but I don't enjoy his company."

Whatever the problem was between the two of them was of no interest to me, so she disliked him, yet worked with him, wasn't a very uncommon thing to dislike the people you work with.

Then I said: "Well, where are you going then?"

"Hmm?" she looked at me, a little surprised for some reason. "Why?"

"Just want to get you to safety."

"How kind of you," she said, and she didn't believe any of those words.

"I'm serious. Do you have a safe place you want to be? If not, then I'll take you to the Church."

"You're transporting me by that dragon?"

"Well, first, where's this Lord Magus?"

She sighed out all the air of her lungs as if it was such a tiresome endeavor. She rested her temple on her arms and spoke to me while looking away:

"To the east of here is a deserted area, he's in an abandoned factory somewhere there. We casted a camouflage enchantment around the place, but without my being there to reinforce it, it should be weakening quite rapidly, you should find traces of it in the air."

"Can you be more specific?"

"You want me to hold your hand and walk you there?"

A deep growling like those of beasts from the depth of a cavern rumbled to my side. Susano-o was getting tired of her.

"Let's just go together then."

"I told you that I-"

"I know what you said, I'm ignoring it."

We were on flight together on the neck of Seth; it was quiet safe for the deafening wind. When we were near the area where buildings were abandoned aplenty, she broke the silence by showing us where we should land.

Seth landed on the factory ground, craned down his neck, the woman and I dismounted. The moment we landed, Seth sensed a presence to our left; I called out to the dark building:

"Lord Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, we've come to help. I heard of your alarming state of bodily well-being and I've decided to come here to lend you my aid. Come out of there, if you please, I wish you no harm."

Came back his voice: "Who are you, what's that thing and what did you do to my fiancé?!" He sounded hysterical. "Don't think that just because-"

I looked at his fiancé, uncaring for the reveal; I maintained eye contact with her and cocked my head towards the sound of threatenings.

She sighed, and coughed, then said: "Kayneth! Don't fret," she sounded uncharacteristically gentle, "he didn't do anything to me and he wishes you no harm. He's here to help. Please, let him help you."

"Sola?" Lord El-Melloi sounded especially cheerful. "A-are you really unhurt? Who is he? Is he Lancer's killer?"

"He," she regarded me, a look that asked for an opinion, I shrugged, she can say whatever, "he's just some magus that happened upon me and chased away Rider whom we were fighting against."

Of all things to say, I didn't expect those. We looked at each other, and she read my wonder clear enough to give an expression of her own which read annoyance and her want to get the whole thing over with. It was all fine by me.

"Lord El-Melloi," I called out, "would you rather reveal yourself to us or must I come to you?"

"What's that creature of yours?" He replied.

"My dragon, manifested through spirit arts," I came up with it on the moment.

"Spirit arts?" He sounded very skeptical. "I never heard of such a thing!"

"It's good that you don't. We'd like it to be a secret. But since I'm here to help, I want to stay honest with you."

Sola made a soft spitting sound. And she might've rolled her eyes as well.

"So must I come over?" I said.

"Yes, yes, please."

I gave Sola my sword and went to that dark building's shadows casted by the moonlight and let Seth's senses guide me toward Lord El-Melloi as my eyes adjusted to the dark. Then I stood a few steps away and in front of him, he was sitting down in a wheelchair, both hands on his lap. His right hand turned over with a revolver in its fist.

"Don't try anything now," he said.

"You don't trust me?"

"Spirit arts," he scoffed, "as if I'd believe in such a thing. Given that I have never seen Caster, that dragon might be one of his forms."

"You have a colorful imagination."

"Don't take me for a child! You did something to my dear Sola didn't you? You despicable-" his throat ran dry, so he swallowed his saliva, "I want you to command your Servant to kill itself or I'll shoot you graveyard dead."

I switched to Susano-o and kept Seth as my secondary.

"You can shoot me as you like, it wouldn't do anything. I advise you to stop being so excited and just let me help you so we can leave this place before any one finds out. I was followed, see?"

"Right, followed," he sneered, "you led them here is what you did."

"Believe what you want. I'll heal you either way."

I began approaching him, Lord Kayneth raised his gun-hand and shouted "Stay back!" and I kept my stride, the revolver let out a fire ball out the muzzle and wing-like flames out the cylinder and the bullet fragmented against my face. I smelled copper and lead and those metal fragments irritated my nose enough to draw a sneeze out of me.

The Lord Magus' gun-hand was quivering, his mouth agape with fear.

"Just lower it," I said, "you'll tire your arm."

I was at his side then, I grabbed his shoulder and let Vishnu's Salvation did its work. The spell began by concentrating into a circle around the Lord Magus' feet and then released an enveloping pillar of multi-color haze, it glowed, making its way up and dimmed and disappeared.

"Try and see if you can stand up."

He pocketed his revolver, both hands on the wheelchair's arms and then shakily pushed himself up and off the wheelchair. His legs were wobbling; he took small careful steps forward and then turned and walked to me.

"But, this is... how?"

"That's a secret," I said, what I meant: no clue it's magic. If I had said what I meant, I reckon I'd be insulting him in a way.

"This is- I... thank you. Thank you and sorry that I doubted you, sorry that I-" he stopped and closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, as if scolding himself very heavily. "Sorry that I shot you, I thought that- well... you see-"

"It's all right. Nothing happened anyway."

"I know but... I shouldn't have."

"Well, now you do. Let's go."

Lord El-Melloi and I went out of the shadow and into the moonlight, where Seth and the woman Sola were. She stood crossing her arms as she looked at us, sword in hand, unimpressed and with a forced smile on her lips. Like a sadistic warrior woman.

"So I see that he did his work."

"Yes! Yes he did!" Kayneth was joyful and didn't notice her expression.

"What's with the gunshot earlier?"

"Ah, well... that's, you see... I was being untrusting. But no harms was done so," he looked to me in an asking manner.

"It's all right," I said.

"So we should leave then," Sola said. "This war is over for the both of us. And nothing worthwhile has come out of it."

A lingering silence set between us, then Sola spoke again as if she had just remembered:

"Oh, that's right. Kayneth, did he heal your magic circuits?"

This topic came on and the Lord Magus shrunk back in shame. He looked away from his fiancé, said: "He- well, I assumed that it would..."

He held his arms out, checking them and concentrating on them. Then he did the same, more or less, for his other body parts where the magic circuits would be aplenty.

"There is... very little activity. It's not like it used to be but..." he looked back at his fiancé with a foolish smile. "It's there," he laughed, it was almost self-mockery, "it's there now. I can feel them."

"Really?" Sola said, it came out as cold and hollow. "That's good," and she believed none of them. "Well, I suppose we can go back home now."

"S- Sola, wait-"

"Hmm? What's there to wait? You showed your worth in this Heaven's Feel. It's time we go back."

"I- I know! But, why do you sound like you're-"

"Like I'm what?" A gentle, sharp edged tone of a voice.

"N-never mind. You're right; it's time we go back. We're not supposed to be here anymore."

He turned to me and pleaded: "Please, can you do for us one more favor? Take us to the Holy Church, where we'll-"

"No," Sola cut in. "Let's not waste any time. We should get a flight out of here as soon as possible. This city's air is choking me."

"Sola, but-"

"But what? Don't tell me you spent all you have with you on those puppet arms and that gun."

"I didn't! But it would be safer if we go to the Church for protection first and make our plans to leave there."

"What for? We have him" - she pointed to me - "to protect us don't we?"

"W-well, if it's not such bother to him, then... but we haven't compensated him for-"

"It's fine," I said. "You don't need to pay me for helping; I'll escort you two out of here free of charge."

"See?" Sola was pleased. "Let us make our preparations then."

They gathered their belongings into two suitcases, I wiped my sword down and dropped it on the factory's ground, Kayneth gave me his revolver. We went to the streets, caught a cab, they loaded their cases into the trunk, told the driver of our destination, got in and a silent journey throughout. Not a word was spoken by anybody. It was fine with me; there was nothing to be said.

We reached our destination, the three of us got out. I went to the trunk to unload two suitcases, I gave one to Kayneth, and he said "Thanks," then turned to get to Sola, then stopped in his step and turned back to me, said: "I just remembered that I never got your name did I?"

"Yuki Makoto," I handed him the other suitcase.

"Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald," he took the suitcase. "I assume that Yuki is your surname?"

"Yeah."

"I'll remember your name."

"Don't bother. I'm not worth remembering."

Chapter 8: Pink

The Church was quiet, its hall lit by the pale moonlight and there were but the moving shadows and the creeping shades. The lights waver then dimmed, then regained its form, something was moving, or were my eyes growing weary?

Sounds of footsteps, then a door creaked opened like old dried bones. Father Risei never seemed to live out of his priest garb. Before me, at the altar, he spoke:

"Your coat is all torn up."

"People said that," I said, "people stared too."

"Lancer's light was snuffed, I assumed that..."

"Yeah."

"And of his Master?"

"Thirteen hour flight, economy class, London, England."

"Why are you here then? I don't think there are anything I can assist you with anymore. Unless you change your mind about being our ally, then I advise you to reduce your visit here to a minimum, preferably zero, from here on out. It wouldn't do well for us to be suspected of working with you."

"Isn't that what you want? Working with me?"

"I thought you took a position on that."

"I did, and I still held the same opinion on what Tohsaka is doing. I just have this idea in my skull that if I and Tohsaka can eliminate one Servant each, then the Grail War would be done quicker."

"But you want to destroy the Grail."

"I'm willing to let Tohsaka work with the thing first. If nothing comes of it, then that's that. No more Grail War."

"A compromise of sort?" He asked.

"Yeah," I sounded tired.

"I'm not sure if I can believe that."

"Likewise."

The father held both hands behind him and looked to the side, hummed while thinking. "This is ultimately Tohsaka's war," he said, "I can't be making decisions without his say. You should go and take a rest, come morning we'll send our answer in a letter to your office."

"Why not now?"

"Well, you must be tired, aren't you?"

"Not yet enough tired to listen and talk. Besides, I want to ask you about something."

"About what?"

An angle I wanted to see what I can get out of, I started with: "Assassin is still alive isn't he?" An outlandish question to be sure, but I didn't want to go around things. I also had little to lose asking such a question, but a lot to gain.

"What led you to believe that?"

"These three things in the forest."

"What are they?"

"Humanoid things, rabbit agility, low magical energy emission. Well, 'low' would not be exact. Something akin to blurry and hard to see, as if there was something masking them."

"And your conclusion is Assassin? There were three of them, according to your own words, Assassin is but one Servant."

"Well, that could be just his ability. But let's not drag this on, what you can do to disprove this silly idea of mine is to show me the spirit board, then I'd be satisfied."

Father Risei said nothing.

"Now's an opportunity for a deal, isn't it? All I'm asking is your honesty, reveal your hands, all the cards on the table and you'll have me as comrade. What's there for you to lose?"

"It's not for me to decide," father Risei said. "And we could lose a lot if you turn treacherous."

"Do I struck you as Satan?" In the back of my mind, the great adversary grinned.

"No, you do not. Strangely, you're always a bit different when we meet each other. When I saw you with that angel, whom you called Michael, I felt... I felt like I had truly met an angel and you yourself had an air of regal holiness. But that cannot be, you're but a simple magus, it's not within your ability to command angels. Unless, there's something else you're omitting..."

I smiled, as jovial as my tiredness allowed me. "I'm but a simple magus."

"And yet, you commanded those holy creatures that night. There's more to you."

"There's more to everybody. I don't need to know your life story to trust you, father. Just as you don't need to know mine to trust me. Last chance," I outstretched my hand, opened my palm in an invitation. "Or I'll walk away and next we meet I'll have the Grail's dust on my coat and the Tohsaka family's life work will never even have the chance to shine its light."

The old priest stared at my hand like it was an act of temptation. A deal with a devil, and in a way, it was. In that short silence between us, the door creaked opened again. Another priest stepped out. His hair was short and brown, his expression calm and composed and dull. Nothing could be read behind his eyes. It was like looking into a mirror, once upon a time.

"Kirei?" father Risei was bewildered, as if the act of revealing himself to me was a mistake one wouldn't make with a sane mind.

The younger priest nodded, "Forgive me, but I've wanted to speak with him, and this looks like the only chance that I can get."

"You don't need to ask for forgiveness, but why?"

"Well..." father Kirei trailed off, a moment of hesitation, and then he turned to me, "Yuki Makoto, I am the Master of Assassin."

"Kirei..."

"Knowing this, what will you do?"

"Same as any other," I said. "What's your wish?"

Gently, the younger priest shook his head. "I have no wish. The Grail chose me to be a Master, yes, but it must've made a mistake, for I have no aspiration that needs the Grail to actualize."

"So you're still in this solely to be Tohsaka's eyes and ears?"

"Mmm," he nodded. "That is my role. As for you, what is your wish?"

"You should already know that, and I don't think I'm eligible."

"There is a way for that."

"I'm not interested."

"Why not? The Grail can grant any wishes, yet you chose to go the path of destroying it."

"Did your Servant ever present at the banquet?"

"You don't trust genies? Is that your one and true reason to destroy the Holy Grail?"

"There's more to it, but that's a good reason as any."

His brows came down and his eyes narrowed to a dull glare like I was a frustrating puzzle box.

"You... no," he said. "That can't be it. A man like you, that can't be all."

"What silvery threads are you spinning about me in your head, father Kirei?"

"Your motives. I can't stop thinking of why you're in this war."

"Haven't I said?"

"I don't think you have at all. A man - no, a magus like you. Why would you wish to destroy the Grail?"

"That was said."

"I don't believe it. You want something. You have to want something. You can't just live fulfilling a sense of duty."

"Is that about me or you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Kirei," father Risei said. "I think that's quite enough. I think we can trust him."

"Trust him? We hardly know much about him."

"He had returned Tokiomi's daughter back from safety, and had refrained twice from attacking him though he had ample abilities to do so. We can trust him."

Father Kirei looked at me. "Moments ago you refused his hand."

"I thought it over, we can trust him."

"Really?" The eyes of the young priest had narrowed to a dull slit, a tired sigh escaped him, and he relented. "If you think it's best."

Father Risei nodded, "Come," he said with gesture. "Let's speak with Tokiomi."

They led me down to the Church's basement and to an apparatus of which was similar to that of a phonograph. Beneath this phonograph was neither a turntable nor a stylus, but a large jewel tied to a metal wire.

"Tokiomi," father Risei spoke to the phonograph's horn.

Tohsaka's distorted voice replied: "Yes?"

"Yuki is here."

"I see... What questions does he have for me?"

Father Risei turned to me and stepped aside and gestured to the device. I went to it and spoke:

"Do you remember your proposal when we first met? I'll take you up on it."

"Ah, that is wonderful. But I don't suppose you have much change of heart do you?"

"I don't."

"That's a conflict of interest there. I need the Grail, you want it gone."

"You can tinker with it when it's in your hand. If nothing comes of it, then..."

"I don't know if I like that. Even if I can't reach the Root with it, it's still a valuable magical artifact. It's worth to take back and study even if it can't reach the Root, even if it's corrupted."

"What's your chance of obtaining it?"

"With you obstructing me? I get it, but the Servants aren't to be underestimated, Yuki Makoto. I suppose you have a taste of it this night haven't you?"

"I was holding back, minimalizing potential casualties. If I wanted, that whole rooftop would be blackened to base carbon in a snap of my finger."

"Mighty arrogant are you?"

"It comes with great power."

The phonograph was silent.

"All right," it picked back up. "I agree to it. If this way of the Root fails, then you can destroy it. I suppose any studying of it wouldn't yield much that I can't already read up on the books that my family passed down. I would never know, of course, but obtaining the Grail takes priority. If you would help us, then, I'll lend you my resources and, please, lend me your strength."

"It's a deal."

"Good. Let me propose a plan."

The Church and the Tohsaka estate would be abandoned come the following hours, and the conspirators - except me - would take up preparations to settle in the Ryuudou Temple and then, the Ryuudou caverns. It was the area where major leylines concentrates to, so a large pool of magical energy will be present and will be enough for the descent of the Holy Grail. There were other areas that have large pool of magical energy reserves besides the caverns, such as the Tohsaka and Matou estate, and this Holy Church. But they were hard to defend and easy to get to.

The Ryuudou Temple was surrounded by a magical field which affects foreign spirits, so the only way to get to the Temple was the stone steps leading to it. Any other way would force those spirits to fall back on the steps. So you'd only need to defend that one way leading up, and a defender such as the Servant Archer, would have a great advantage.

Next were the rest of the Servants. This one left me a bit bitter. The summoning ritual for the Holy Grail was explained to me in full: it required the homunculus Irisviel Von Einzbern, specifically, the Lesser Grail sealed within her. An important piece needed to summon the Greater Grail. Tohsaka had learned of their new hideout already, it was a traditional Japanese styled lot in Miyama, abducting Irisviel would be Assassin's job, which he would only do when Saber was absent. Which, after successfully conducted, would lure Saber to the Ryuudou Temple, and the rest was Archer's.

My part was Rider.

I showered and slept that night at a motel. By six or so I returned the room key and paid what I owe and walked to street. The cold morning sky was gray, sunlight was rising from behind me, climbing up the tall buildings, traffic was a few cars, the sidewalk began to fill with a miscellaneous sorts of people, cataloging them was of no interest to me and I was of no interest to them. Though my appearance was odd, with all these torn up fabrics, nobody paid any mind. Everybody was minding their own business and didn't bother each other. Some to work, some to school, all the sorts. It was a peaceful walk.

Then I fell. I didn't trip over anything nor was there any foul play on the part of the people around me as they were far from arm's length and I felt neither hands nor legs that could be used to trip me over. I just fell. My knees collapsed upon themselves and I head face first into the sidewalk, dragging my cheek bone across concrete.

Then the report of the sniper shot finally came to bring its terror after about one second and echoed and disappeared. The people around made noises I hadn't care to make sense of.

My chest was getting warm from inside out, my lung had collapsed and blood was filling in and spilling out from the exit wound beneath my collarbone. I looked down, a puddle of pink blood lapping outward with air bubbles on top. I lie completely still and held my breath and let Diarahan did its work slowly so that its healing light kept dim and would not signify to the sniper that I was recovering. It might be unnecessary, as after taking that shot, he should be making his escape from wherever he was, but it was better to be safe.

When I stopped bleeding, it was a minute, yet the puddle of blood was still spreading out, scintillating in an odd beauty. What blood there were in my lung had worked themselves to where they belong, and I was breathing properly again. I swallowed a lump in my throat, the after taste of my own blood lingered on my tongue. I took in a deep breath and a hint of the smell was still there.

I stood up, the people who had come to look and talk had gawked and gasped in awe like I was a modern Lazarus. They were all confused and fearful, first they recoiled back, then they leaned in to inspect me more carefully, trying to make sense of what they were seeing, outstretching their hands and pointing and reaching in caution as if I was some apparition that could steal their very life.

I looked behind me; the morning sun was high above the gray buildings, silhouetting them against its light. The Magus Killer was out there somewhere, but I hadn't spare him much thought. The thin crowd of people dispersed themselves away from me as I walk down the street.

Chapter 9: Solntse

My blood had dried. It glued my shirt on my skin and my coat on my shirt. A red dark stain was visible from my chest to my hip and from my shoulder blade to my lower back.

The people ducked their heads low as I passed them by. Some would only send glances my way, some would spare longer than a glance, and most pretended not to notice.

My walk had me come across a clothing store. I went in, selected a windbreaker and a dress shirt and a bag, the cashier gave me concerned and pitiful looks as she scanned each item and accepted my cash into the register and gave me the receipt.

"May I use the changing room?" I said.

"Huh? O-oh, sure," she said.

I went inside the changing room with no hurry. Then I ripped the price tags on all my purchases and pocketed them in my trouser pocket and unzipped the bag then placed inside it my two pistols and my knife and Kayneth's revolver and zipped it. I took off my coat and shirt, washed the blood off my chest with a conjured melting ice cube and put on the fresh shirt and the windbreaker and rolled the two bloodstained and torn up items together and clamped them beneath my armpit and went out the changing room with bag in hand and nodded my thanks to the cashier and went out of the store.

When I arrived at our place, I had gotten rid of the clothing bundle and the price tags in a trash bin. I shared greetings with my colleagues, four of them had set a table and were playing Mahjong, while others were watching and fumigating their mind with cigarettes, I made my way to one of the guess rooms and slid open the wooden window and placed the bag at the foot of the futon as I lay down on it.

Pixie half-manifested, her form was translucent, like an illusive ghost. She made her way out through the window and began patrolling the area around. I closed my eyes and put my mind to rest, feeding it a constant stream of what Pixie was seeing.

Currently, she was flying around the area searching for any anomalous rodents. Since she was working on half of her full potential, she must fly closer to the house than she would normally to spot any such creatures. With the complex cleared, she patrolled the area around it as well.

One block away, on a power line, there were feral pigeons. Pixie was behind them, scrutinizing each one and stayed far away enough to alert none of them but close enough for her senses to be able to pick up any strange emissions of magical energy from them. Sure enough, there was one. Pixie flew straight to it and had her hands hugged tightly around its neck. The pigeon was flapping its wings frantically, trying to get Pixie away and the other pigeons had gone and flown away from the little commotion.

Pixie cast Charmdi, the spell spread out from her palm and made its way to the pigeon's mind. Nothing changed. The pigeon still gave the same readings as before. Well, that was all of our nonlethal methods.

Pixie.

Do I have to?

Do you want it blind instead?

Fine...

She wrapped her left arm around the pigeon's neck and had the edge of its bone on the bird's throat and was pulling that arm back while the heel of her right hand was on the base of the pigeon's skull, pushing it forward. Then, with a surge of fae-strength, the pigeon's neck was snapped in a muffled crunch. While holding its head, Pixie turned the pigeon over so that she could see its front and her eyes fixed upon a miniature C.C.D. camera taped upon its stomach. She ripped the camera off the pigeon's stomach and released the familiar.

The pigeon fell hard on the gray concrete below and it was still flapping its wings uselessly as it did so. Some of its feathers were lying about, and its neck was lolling grotesquely.

Pixie stood on the power pole's cross-arm and inspected the little camera. From where she stood, she could see clearly the front entrance of our family's house.

Whose familiar do you think that bird is?

Not Tohsaka, he has Assassin to spy on us. Either Rider's Master or the Magus Killer. I'm leaning on the Magus Killer.

Why?

He just shot us.

When do you think he knew where the family's house was?

Possibly after the banquet, Irisviel von Einzbern might've told him of a man in black suits wielding pistols - a stereotypical yakuza.

And the press conference the Old Man held. Yeah! It wouldn't be difficult to track us down once he knew where to look.

Bring that back to me.

Will do.

Pixie returned, handed me the camera and came back to the Sea of Souls. I pocketed the camera and got out of the guess room with bag in hand and went upstairs to get myself two shortswords stashed in two separate rooms' closets. The swords were without their guards, their grips were white and they were sheathed inside white scabbards. I placed both swords inside the bag and searched inside a folded blanket in the closet where I got the second sword and fished out a wooden stock.

I took the stock and opened the rear plate and took the pistol out. It was a Mauser. I placed the stock down and had my fore and middle finger on the charging handle and racked the bolt to the rear and released it and it stop opened. I put my hand inside the blanket and searched about by touch and drew my hand back with only two ten-round clips. I pocketed one and fixed the other on top of the loading port of the Mauser and pushed all ten rounds down the magazine and took that thin piece of metal away and the bolt snapped shut with a piercing impact of metal on metal. I stashed Kayneth's revolver inside the blanket and placed the Mauser inside its stock with safety on and closed the rear plate and placed the stock inside my bag and zipped it and head down stairs and exchanged goodbyes with my colleagues and left.

At an electronics store, I requested the owner to have a look at the little camera I had with me. Most of what he said was things I already knew and when he said things that I didn't know, it wasn't much help at all. I thanked him for his time and went out and melted the device and cooled it and disposed of it in a waste bin.

My trip to Miyama would be long and I wasn't intending to stop at any particular places to order and wait for lunch. So I went and bought a bottle of water and a plastic box set of three tonkatsu sandwiches and ate and drank as I went to Miyama.

There was one-half of a sandwich left when I was in the foreign district of Miyama, and the water was one-third of its content. I finished my sandwich and drank all the water in the bottle and disposed of it in the recycling bin. Tohsaka had told me the address of the house Rider and his Master – Waver Velvet – was staying in, and I had that in mind as I made my way around the streets of the district. He had also told me that the house was on a hill so that narrowed the search down quite a bit.

I wiped the sweat off one side of my face on my shoulder then did the same with the other. Found the house at last and approached the door and knocked on it with a knuckle. Footsteps, a turn of the doorknob, then the hinges creaked as the door opened wide and an elderly foreigner greeted me.

He was Glen Mackenzie that much I already knew from Tohsaka's briefing. He was a Canadian from Toronto who emigrated to Japan, Fuyuki City, Miyama Town, with his wife Martha Mackenzie. The old couple has a son and a grandson, both of whom were in Canada; they live quietly and mostly keep to themselves in this part of the town, making their place of residency ideal for a magus looking to keep a low profile.

"Oh, what can I help you with?" he said.

"I'm looking for Waver, is he in here?" I said.

"Waver? Now what business do you have with him?"

"Just a friend of his coming to see him. He said I can find him here."

"Oh, is that so? Well, unfortunately he's not here right now, but you can stay for a while if you want. My wife and I would gladly take in a friend of our grandson."

"Sure."

They were kind people, the Mackenzie, amiable and pleasant to be around. The old man had led me to the living room and asked me to let him take charge of my bag and windbreaker, both of which I refused in kind. He sat me down at the dinner table and went to get a bottle of beer and three mugs. The old lady Martha Mackenzie then came to greet me and introduced herself to me and me to her; she then went to prepare small snacks for us and complained that Waver again didn't inform her that any guess was arriving so she couldn't prepare anything more than just plain rice crackers. She was then joined by her husband's side as we drank and ate and swapped stories and questions. Most of mine were lies, half-truths and any variants of them. I lied more at this couple's dinner table than I did anywhere else.

Finally, the booming announcing voice of Rider: "We're home!" in a hearty tone as he slammed the door open. His Master was beside him, complaining about his antics.

Then they stopped in their stride as they noticed the laughs of the old couple and that I was joining them in their conversation. By now, the two had gone mad drunk.

"Ah, Alexei, Waver!" shouted Glen Mackenzie. "Come here come here! Join us for a drink why don't you, eh?" then he laughed foolishly and slumped upon the dinner table.

"Oh, dear," Martha said. "It seems he had too much to drink. Alexei, can you please help carry him to the bedroom?"

"Ah?" Rider went. "Oh, sure!"

Then he went to carry Glen on his shoulder.

"We'll talk upstairs?" he said to me.

"You two go first."

And the Master and Servant pair went up the stairs.

I drained the beer in my mug and did the same for what little there were in Glen and Martha's and helped her clean up the glasses and table and plates and bowls and excused myself as I went to Waver's room.

Inside, the young magus was wary of me. He crossed his arms and stood on the far corner, while Rider looked me over with scrutinizing eyes, then greeted me as if we were friends.

"Yo!" he said, amicably. "What brought you here?"

"That should be obvious."

"I know, I know. It was just a conversation starter. So how did you find us?"

"Saw something flying above Miyama last night, so I came here. Asked around for a two meters tall foreigner, and so that led me here."

"See!?" Waver scolded. "That's why you should be in your spirit form! Now just because you want to experience the land with your own body, we got found out!"

Rider looked away from his Master and waved off those words. "That's bound to happen anyway. More importantly, you saw something flying above Miyama? Where'd you get such a vantage point?"

"The Centre Building," I said.

"Ho-o-o-o~" he nodded thrice. "What were you doing up there?"

"Fighting Lancer."

"Oh?" he was especially cheerful now. "How did it go? Did he give you much trouble?"

"No trouble, kid's stuff."

And Rider gave a hearty laugh. "Who was it that dealt the finishing blow, you or Siegfried?"

"A bit of both," I lied.

"Eh?" Rider and his Master went.

"W-what do you mean?" Waver said. "You mean to tell me that you stood toe to toe with a Servant?"

"Well... Lancer dealt more damages to me than I did him. Ultimately, it was a well-timed interruption that dealt him in."

"Interruption?"

"He was occupied with blocking a strike, leaving him open."

"So Siegfried struck him with his sword and you dished out the finishing blow?" Rider said.

"What do you think?" I let him interpret whatever he wanted out of a grin.

"I think I would be a better opponent for you and your familiar. By the sound of it, you two fought together it seems?"

"Of course, he's my friend, can't let him do everything by himself."

"All right then! We'll wait until the Sun sets and set off to the forest to conduct our bout!" Rider then looked outside the window. "Hmm, that should give us two hours of remaining sunlight," then he picked up a magazine. "I'll be sitting here reading, if the time comes, then let me know!" and he sat with a heavy thud on the futon, leaning against the wall.

"Rider!" his Master shouted. "Aren't you being too carefree with an enemy in our midst?"

"Huh? He doesn't seem to be doing anything dangerous is he?"

"Well he isn't doing anything now, but he can definitely try for something sneaky later!"

"You overestimate me, kid," I said. "I'm not that crafty."

"So you say..." his face scrunched up in suspicion, directed at me. I stared right into his eyes as he did so, unblinking. He had enough of that and shot that look toward the bag in my hand. "What's in that?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"Your bag, what's in it?"

"Ho-o-o-o?" Rider peaked out from the magazine.

"Don't tell me that you just noticed it!?"

"Nah, Nah, nothing of the sort," he waved away his Master's shout. "I'm just playing. I know what's in the bag. Weapons, right?"

"You idiot, if you knew already then why don't you say anything sooner? Furthermore, why don't you take it from him?"

Rider sighed exasperatedly and scratched his head. "Why does any of that matter, huh? He's just a human; if he tries to do anything then I'd beat him to the punch. He's not fast enough to kill the both of us."

"Speak for yourself. He has a gun the last we saw him, he can easily shoot me right now!"

"Well, he'll have to unzip the bag first and then take the thing out and take aim, won't he? How long would that take? Before he'd even aim the thing, I'd have restrained him. Don't worry about it and just relax."

"Easy for you to say," Waver crossed his arms and looked away.

I placed the bag on top of the desk in the middle of the room and made my way to Waver. The young magus saw my approach and failed to contain his widening fearful eyes.

"WH-what do you want?"

"Take it easy, we have plenty of time before battle," I leaned against the wall next to him and crossed my arms as well.

I outstretched my hand and introduced myself: "Yuki Makoto."

"U-uh, yeah, you already told us your name. W-waver Velvet," he reluctantly accepted my offer for a handshake.

"So what brought you to Fuyuki?"

"Huh? Um, well... it's uh... Why do you want to know anyway?"

"You look the most inexperienced out of the whole bunch of Masters I've encountered. So I was just wondering."

"Just wondering, huh?" his eyes narrowed in suspicion. I didn't take it very seriously. "You're trying to get to know me better so you can get in my head, is that it?"

Rider chuckled to himself. Waver and I turned to him, only to see that he was turning a page on his magazine, unbothered.

"Like I said. I'm not that crafty. If I was, I wouldn't be here with an open challenge."

"That so, huh?"

"It is so. Anyway, why are you here?"

"Hrmm," he grumbled. "Why do you care?"

"All right," I said. "You can ask me questions then, any question. Afterward, you answer mine. Deal?"

He thought it over in his head, then: "All right."

"Ask then."

"Umm... So... about Siegfried... did you use the Third Magic to summon him? I mean, I know that sounds crazy because the Third Magic is lost and all that but... to call Siegfried your familiar would imply that you're strong enough to have him under your will, so... are you a… sorcerer?"

None of his words meant anything to me. So I said "No".

"You're not a sorcerer," he said, which was more like he had breathed out heavily, "and it was not the Third Magic that you used to summon Siegfried?"

"Well, what is the Third Magic?" I asked in a way that seemed like I was leading him to an answer to his wonderings, but it was actually a genuine question.

"Ah, well... to put it short, it's the materialization of the soul, right?"

"Right," I nodded as if I already knew that.

"So?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Really?"

"Really."

"So what is it that you do to summon someone who has about as much power as a Servant? 'Cause I don't see how any way other than the Third Magic and the Holy Grail is possible."

"That's a secret," I said. I actually just wanted to move on from this.

Waver opened his mouth and his brows wrinkled together, then his face relaxed and he sighed. "Okay, I suppose secrets are vital to a magus. But it's really not the Third Magic?"

"I'm not capable of materializing any souls."

"All right, so… what's with the pointing-finger-at-temple thing you did that night?"

"I just felt like it."

Waver's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Is it actually a way for you to summon Siegfried?"

"I'll let you have that one."

"How does it even work?"

I thought of something funny. I went to the table and unzipped my bag. Rider side-eyed a look my way, Waver was stammering something. I took my Browning Hi-power out from the bag and unloaded it and racked it and load in the magazine and fired it at Waver.

"Rider!" he shot both arms up to conceal his face and turned away and screamed, "Save me!"

Then, he realized that the pistol didn't go off and that he wasn't shot. He slowly put his arms down, Rider and I was looking at him. The Servant was the first to laugh, I followed with a chuckle.

"T-that's not funny! What if you had actually shot me?"

"That's physically impossible."

"Boy," Rider called out, "didn't you see him work that thing? There's no bullet in the chamber for him to be shooting."

"Shut up! How am I supposed to know that?" Waver said.

"How indeed," Rider returned to his military magazine.

I cocked the Hi-power and put it on safe and placed it in the bag and zipped the bag up.

"S-so what does that have anything to do with my question?" Waver said.

"Were you scared?" I said.

"Of course I'd be scared! You pointed a gun at me!"

"Good."

"Good!? How is that good!?"

"Never mind all of that, I just wanted to play a joke on you."

"So what about my question?"

"You asked me enough. So what's it about you that makes you want to join in a war for a magical artifact?"

"Oh!" Rider said, "I can answer this question!"

"You shut it!" Waver yelled.

Rider laughed to himself as he went back to the magazine.

Waver grumbled as he adjusted his tie. He looked at me with contempt. I suppose I deserve that. He looked away, gathered his thoughts and came to an answer:

"Fine. But don't you dare make fun of me when you hear it."

"That'll depend on how silly it is."

"Just don't say anything if you think it's funny all right?"

"Yeah, sure, okay."

"So the reason is that I… I just wanted to be acknowledged."

"By whom?"

"The Mage's Association, and more specifically, my lecturer – Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, I want them to recognize my genius."

"Would that help you in any way?"

"Huh? Yeah! Of course it would! If I can make them acknowledge me, then I'd be taken a lot more seriously and I can gain access to a lot more resources for me to divulge into my magecraft researches. It means a lot!"

"You're willing to kill for all of that then?"

"I- yeah! Of course I'd be willing!"

"How about dying for it?"

Waver suddenly took a step back. He looked into my eyes and expression to gauge whatever intention I might've had from speaking those words.

"Relax, here's a bad spot."

"Wh-what do you mean by that?"

"I mean I'm not going to kill youhere of all places and I'd like for you to answer my question: are you willing to die for fame?"

"I…"

"Hyup!" Rider closed his magazine with a booming slap. "That was an interesting read!" then he walked to the window. "Oh, it looks like we have about thirty minutes, we best get going eh?" he laughed.

Then he stopped laughing with a sigh, "Boy," to Waver, "were you about to say yes?"

"Huh? Of course I was going to say that!"

"Then why did you hesitate?"

Waver looked away.

Rider sighed as a father would while explaining to his child. "Good grief, were you really willing to die just to be taken seriously? Now, now, no Master of a King of Conquerors such as I should dream so low. What does it matter anyway whether you'd be taken seriously or no? Dream big, win big, boy! Take your ambition higher! No one's going to take a man who fights to be validated by other people seriously."

"Shut up. You don't understand anything."

"You may be fighting this war with their validation in mind, but they don't even care about you. Why even bother? Listen to me boy," Rider leaned in, and patted both hands on Waver's shoulders. "You can't achieve greatness if you let those who never cared for you drag you down. Instead, rely on me! And get a better wish inside your head! I'll take us to great heights, you'll see."

"Yeah," Waver then laughed weakly. "Speaking of that," Waver cocked his head at me.

"Oh, right! Let us go then!"

The orange sun was descending to the western horizon. The sky was yet night, few stars dotted over it, and the clouds were yet black. Below was Miyama. The wind blew past us as we made for the forest. Rider and Waver were at the front of the chariot, I stood to the right, at the rear.

"Hey," I called out, "did you two ever fly above this place last night?"

"Yeah? Why?" Waver said over the wind.

"Just curious. What for?"

"The Einzberns!" Rider said. "Unfortunately, they weren't there."

"They were broken into twice," I said. "Of course they wouldn't be there."

"Couldn't hurt to check!" Rider laughed.

"Um…" Waver scratched his temple. "We were caught up in the moment back then, so I forgot to ask, uh… what happened to Professor Kayneth?"

"He lost his magic circuits; I did what I could to help. He's in London now."

"Ah... I see," it was neither relief nor glee that was in his voice. It was guilt.

The night sky was upon us and the stars were bright and the clouds were nowhere in sight. The moon illuminated the forest, our only source of light. But for the eyes of a Servant, the night was as bright as day. Rider found a clearing and the wheels of the chariot tore through the ground as we landed and came to a steady halt.

I slung my bag on my left shoulder and got off the chariot.

I walked thirty steps away from them, unzipped my back, took the two short swords out of their scabbards and stuck the grips out of the bag and took the stock. I opened the rear plate and took out the Mauser. I set its safety down and closed the plate and attached the pistol to the stock and took my Browning Hi-power and holstered it in my waistband at the hip.

"All right," Rider's voice rang out mightily. "How would you like to do this?"

"Why are you even asking?" I replied.

"Ho-ho! I just don't want to end this bout too quickly by crushing you beneath my might!"

"Shouldn't fight like that. You should be aiming to kill me with your all."

"Hmm, really? I'm a Servant you know?"

"Lancer said the same."

"You took much damage you know? You said so yourself."

"I wouldn't want to handicap the great King of Conquerors. Come at me with your all."

"If you can summon familiars near as powerful as us Servants, do they have powers that can rival Noble Phantasms of their own?"

"They have enough."

"Humph, enough, huh? All right then!"

A blast of wind knocked the grass, the leaves and the tree branches back like an explosion and raged on. That tornado was all I heard as a blinding light from Rider's position spread out to envelope the areas around it. I took the Hi-power and then thumbed the safety down.

The sky was blue and the sun was white hot. The dunes were as far-reaching as the eyes can see. Far away, sands were kicked up to the high heavens, blotting the horizon and the sky and the sun. They came bearing pikes and red standards and other various arms and clad in armor, numbered in the tens of thousands. Leading them was a horseman, his sword glinting under the sun as he raised it high and roused the men with a mighty war cry.

"Behold! Feast your eyes upon our might and tremble! These here dunes are where my heroes have shared their joy and sorrow which will never fade in their hearts. The heroes here, though their bodies have been destroyed and swallowed by the earth and their souls may have been offered to the world as Heroic Spirits, their loyalty remains! This bond we share is my greatest treasure! My Noble Phantasm: Ionian Hetairoi!"

The heroes' cheers reached the heavenly dream above and rang out across the hot desert plains.

Rider thrust his sword in my direction. "Show me your strength, magus! Or are your words just bragging?"

"Charge your army," I shouted. "We'll feed them to vultures!"

"Very well!"

The sandstorm was kicked up again. In it were the shining armor and weapons of Rider's men. They shouted their war cry to the top of their lungs as they ran, charging forward to my position. I was a little flattered.

I knelt in the sand and lay the Mauser across my lap.

Javelins and arrows whistled in the air and kicked up the sands near me.

I pressed the Browning Hi-power beneath my jaw and closed my eyes.

The Earth was quiet. It was Siegfried, Ares and I. My Personas channeled their energy from the Sea of Souls and I was the conduit that would let it out upon the world. I pulled the trigger, and a sharp metallic click tore through the silence.

Siegfried and Ares' magical energy was let out, they glowed brightly as small orbs when they were coiling around me and became one in my heart and burst out of me in burning bright white-hot lights. And with this act, I had performed the spell: Scarlet Havoc.

Six gigantic industrial saw blades fit to tear through freighters manifested in front of me a good distance away. They took no time at all before tearing through the sands like devouring serpents of the desert and beset themselves upon the army of Rider.

Those men bravely charged the might of Siegfried and Ares combined; their heroic war cries went deaf compared to the roaring industrial saw blades. They worked upon them quickly and easily, tearing their body into many pieces and throwing them up to the high heavens. Their hearts were still beating as their bodies were flung to the sky, pumping blood out in a frenzy, spraying like rain from severed limbs and heads upon the sands and the ranks of men below.

Javelins and arrows were still coming my way, but they were too busy to deal with the saw blades to be any accurate with their shots.

A cloud of red sand swallowed the horizon. The war cries never stopped. The saw blades continued to grind. As his men were made feasts for the vultures and trophies for dogs, Rider was still rushing forward in the saddle of his horse with Waver sat in front of him, charging at me by his lonesome.

Rider raised his sword and the sun of this realm was reflected in it as I pressed the pistol's muzzle beneath my jaw, waiting for him to come closer.

Then, he was within longsword range. The saw blades ceased. I squeezed the trigger. My head whipped back as Siegfried manifested. For my miscalculation of the speed of that horse, Siegfried didn't get the first strike in. Instead, the two warriors made their attack simultaneously. Balmung was coming downward from the left and Rider was within range and closer still. When the strikes came together, Rider's short sword had impacted Balmung's short edge. Realizing this, Rider quickly diverted his attack from a downward swing into a horizontal swing so as not to give more energy to Siegfried's sword strike that was coming down on his torso. Balmung was then redirected into the horse's neck instead, decapitating it.

I ducked down into the sand and covered the back of my head. The horse jumped over me with the last of its instinct, headless and pouring blood out of the hole where its head used to be.

The dreamland faded. The blue sky darkened to night, the sun dimmed into the moon, and the scorching heat cooled into the cold winter. I stood up and turned around with Siegfried by my side. Rider was on the ground beneath a tree with Waver in his arms. The horse's headless body was just in front of me, and the head was to my right.

Rider got up and released Waver from his protective arms. Then he laughed. His Master looked at him confused and worried.

"Boy, what was that?" he shouted. "Those blade things, whose Noble Phantasm is it?"

I cocked my head at Siegfried.

"You're kidding. Good grief…" he sighed. "This will be tough." He rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger and flourished his sword. "Now, let's see you honor your invitation from two nights ago, Siegfried."

"R-Rider!" Waver said.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"You should summon your chariot. Siegfried is said to have skins as tough as irons," it was less of an advice and more of a plea. "That way, you'd-"

Rider patted and rubbed Waver's head and laughed. "I know you're worried, but that wouldn't do much help either. If he can tear through my army, then what good is a chariot?"

"B-but…"

"It's okay," he patted Waver's shoulder and nearly sent him falling. "I've suspected that it would come to this anyway. So watch me, boy, as one of my dear comrades, and tell the tales of my victory over the mighty Siegfried or my defeat under his sword, whichever may the gods decide upon this night."

"But… Rider…"

"Hmm? Are you still worried? Don't be! Though I may lie cold and dead here this night, I have you to see my dream through to the end, don't I? But defeat is long coming and not yet decided. So don't worry about what has yet to come."

Waver shook his head, "No. It's just," he shot a look at Siegfried and then back to his Servant. "Rider, fight with your all. No," he then raised his right arm and the Command Seals glowed red. "By the power of my Command Seal, I, Waver Velvet, command you, Rider, to fight with all of your might."

Then the Command Seals' glow died out. "There," Waver said. "That should at the very least help you a little."

Rider smiled as he shook his head. "You shouldn't be wasting Command Seals by giving orders like that, boy. But since you've used it, why don't you see the battle to the end?"

Waver nodded reluctantly.

Rider came to us, short sword rested at his shoulder. "Well, it seems that it has come to this."

Siegfried smiled, "It's unfortunate, but it must be done."

"Unfortunate? Bah, don't tell me you're having second thoughts on this."

"No, not at all, I'd be very willing to enter a bout with you in fact."

"That's more like it," Rider got in his fighting stance. He held his sword at his hip, while his offhand was beneath his chin, the arm pressed on his chest, right foot to the rear.

"Don't you want a shield with that thing? I can lend you mine."

"I have no interest in borrowing my opponent's weapon." He said proudly.

"All right," Siegfried raised Balmung with both hands on the grip high above his head and stepped his left foot forward.

I backed away from the two.

Rider was inching his feet forward, sneakily getting Siegfried into the range of his short sword. While Siegfried stood still and rigid, observing their distance from each other. The moment Rider was within striking distance, Siegfried swung Balmung sidewise, aiming for the head. Rider stepped his leading foot to the rear and leaned his body back and away and shot his sword hand forward to parry the strike.

The two swords collided with a clang. Then, Rider stepped forward with his rear foot and swung his sword crosswise. Siegfried stepped back and while in the Ox guard, he presented Rider the flat of his sword as he leaned away, putting his mass on his rear knee.

As Rider's sword glided down the blade of Balmung, Siegfried leaned forward into a sword thrust for Rider's head. The King of Conquerors saw this and leaned a little to the right and stepped back and used his offhand to redirect the thrust upward, his hand was bleeding as he grabbed the blade and pulled Siegfried to himself and thrust his sword at the Dragon Slayer's head.

Siegfried leaned to the right to dodge the coming thrust just by a hair's breadth. Then he pulled his longsword out of Rider's grasp, cutting it as he did, and stepped two steps away.

"What's the matter?" Rider said. "Is this all you got?"

"Not even close." Siegfried smiled.

Rider's offhand was healed and at his hip, while he held his sword in front of him with his left foot to the rear and squared with his right foot.

Siegfried held his sword at his waist, sword tip pointing outward to the back, short edge forward.

They inched themselves toward each other. And when Rider was just a little away from having Siegfried within his sword range, he lunged forward and arced his sword to the rear and upward, the sword gathered lightning into itself and descended into a crosswise cut for Siegfried's left shoulder. In response, Siegfried swung his sword up to meet Rider's. Siegfried pushed away Rider's strike with the false edge of his sword and it was up pointing to the night, then he had his sword come counter-clockwise and then down for him to cut Rider's waist. In the hope of cutting Rider into two, I Power Charged Siegfried, but Rider had thought it was wise to jump away from the cut, and Siegfried had only torn through just below the breast of Rider's cuirass.

Siegfried gripped Balmung's blade with his offhand and ran forward, rapidly closing his distance with Rider. At the sudden aggression, Rider was without time to dodge, so he raised his sword high in a reversed grip and welcomed the coming charge. Then, blink and you miss it, Siegfried half-sworded Balmung into the gap in Rider's armor and Rider had plunged his sword in the spot between Siegfried's shoulder blades through to the middle of the chests. Their attack was nearly simultaneous. They both had only grunted to express their pain.

They stood there, wounded and bleeding. Then they separated and just took a moment to regard each other.

The two warriors shared a smile. They knew of the outcome. Rider turned to his Master and collapsed on his back, the ground shook as he did so. Waver and I approached the fallen giant. His expression was somber, a smile on his lips. He disappeared into a blue fire that left no traces of itself on the earth.

Waver wiped his eyes across his sleeves and sniffled.

I healed the wound on Siegfried and approached Waver. "Where do you want to go?"

"Huh? Oh… probably just… just take me back home."

"All right," I nodded.

Siegfried began to dematerialize as I pressed the muzzle of my Hi-power against my temple. Something whistled in the night. Then a burning, throbbing pain flared up in that hand. I felt blood run down my arm. I looked at it, and the blade of the throwing knife was protruding out of the grip of the Hi-power and its handle was out the back of my hand. I couldn't move any of those fingers.

Another whistle, on high alert I snapped to it and saw a glint under the moonlight and raised the Mauser and fired twice from the hip at what I believed to be a throwing knife. Whether it was the first or the second shot that had sparked with the knife, I didn't know.

Siegfried stopped his dematerialization process and had come into full form and I ordered Waver to take cover behind him. Waver crouched down behind Siegfried, and Siegfried gave him his shield. Waver clutched onto the shield and hid behind it.

A white mask emerged from the darkness of the forest. There was one, and then two, and then three, and so on and so forth. Eventually, we were surrounded.

Chapter 10: Night of the Assassins

Those bunches of bone-masked men were all over the surrounding trees. In the branches, by the trunks, vigilant in their stance, ready to sprang up any moment like wolves on hares. One of them was a giant, as tall as Iskander is a giant, might be even taller, another was lean and muscled, agile in form. None of them were the same as the other; all were different in some ways. One Assassin, split into these many... what say of his magical energy? Would it be dwindled as it is shared along the lines?

"Traitorous Servant Assassin," Siegfried acted as my mouthpiece. "My master made a deal with yours' benefactor, what's the meaning of this?"

The masked men laughed, voices high and low joined together like some demonic cadence that came from one throat. Well, they were one Servant. The numbing pain in my hand was growing to be unbearable, I brought it up to my mouth and clamped my jaws down on the handle of the throwing knife and pulled it out. The Hi-power dropped to the dirt. The wound on my hand closed, and slowly, it was once more filled with life blood. I switched to Alilat as my primary Persona.

Once they'd had enough of a laugh at our expense, one of them spoke:

"We have no interest in your life. You just stay here and we'll watch you as you do, so don't think of anything smart. Tohsaka, that louse, decided that it'd be safer if you're here than to have you over there. So half of our forces came here to make sure you are well behave and in good company. So you just sit, Master of Familiars" - the emphasis was with contempt - "and nothing will happen to that head on your shoulders."

"I don't do well with people who threw knives at me," I said. "I might just do some disagreeable things."

"Don't try it," though he said so, he sounded eager for me to make the first move. I subtly pressed the magazine release on the Mauser and looked around the forest and focused on one of the Assassin that was by the trunk of a tree and as my eyes adjusted to the low light, I shouldered the Mauser and cupped my offhand beneath the magazine so that it wouldn't fall to the ground. I covered that Assassin's torso with the front sight and didn't bother lining up the rear sights, squeezed the trigger and streaked a fire across the night. The bullet splintered against the tree trunk, above the Assassin's shoulder, at his right and I slammed the magazine back in. I didn't care whether it'd hit anything, I just wanted to empty the chamber.

The pistol shot acted like a signal to these wolves. Before it even sounded the end of its blast, they were rushing for our blood, quick and eager. Siegfried stood his ground, just as eager for them to enter his sword range. The moment I was in pain, he felt it as well, and the anger in me was but embers compared to his wrathful fire. The first seven to surround us got a taste of that fire, for like a whirlwind with the sword Siegfried had cleaved the three rushing at him and then pivoted and continued the strike to the four that was blitzing toward Waver and I in one stroke of the sword. I had ducked down to Waver's level for Siegfried to pull off such a swing lest he caught me in the strike, not that it'd do any damage, it'd just stop in its track immediately.

The seven Assassins were without their legs and arms, separated from their stumps from the chests down. One of the lots, with his right arm still intact, was stabbing the grass and dragging himself forward, leaking blood and organs. I pitied him. As a gesture of mercy, I planted one of my swords into his nape like a flag.

The giant Assassin finally decided to come forth. His hands didn't give off a single glint of a blade; instead, there were ten, one for each finger. Siegfried took initiative and had struck a sidewise cut for the Assassin's temple. In response, the giant had aptly come upward with his claws to set aside Siegfried's cut. With his blade pushed upward, Siegfried was inadvertently in the Unicorn guard, so he struck a downward cut and the Assassin leaned and stepped away, so Siegfried stopped mid-strike with his sword at point and stepped forward and poked the Assassin in the middle of the face and pulled the sword out.

The giant's white bone mask was split with a red vertical slot in-between. He barfed out blood from the gape in his face as he was collapsing, and in that process, another Assassin had leapt off of his back toward Siegfried and blinded him bloody in the eye with a dagger. A sharp pain flared up in my eye. That Assassin pulled the blade out of Siegfried's eye socket, and leapt off his torso but Siegfried had caught his head. The Assassin struggled, stabbing Siegfried's arm and vambrace wildly. Siegfried squeezed, the Assassin's struggle ceased. Blood ran off his ears and down Siegfried's arm. He let the Assassin go and the Servant plopped on the ground with his head lolling to the side and he never got up.

I restored his eye and - although I already knew - thought, How's your eye?

Many thanks.

Siegfried wiped the blood away from his eye and resumed focus on the rest of the Servants. Their eagerness abated. They watched us with anger and caution. The moon glinted silver in their weapons. Once more, they came upon us like locusts and through instinct alone did we clash with each other. Ear splitting metallic clangs, flashes of silver blades and orange sparks cut through the night. Their tactic was hit and run, never to commit fully lest risk the cold steel tongue of Balmung wielded by dragon slayer Siegfried. Some of them were caught by the blade, some had escaped, some parried and leapt out, and some got hits in.

For my part, I'd made a show of my struggle to hit them, I let them have a hit at my arms and legs and neck and chests and then dished out counters as they wonder just how were they wounded or lose their limbs when they attacked me and I let not their wanderings go any further by shattering their skulls with my blade. Such are the powers of Alilat, a strike unto me would become a strike unto them.

Though the battle was progressing in our favor, the Assassins weren't dying quick enough. And my body was meat and bones, and they were burning with a thousand promises of pain with each strike I dealt out that was connected or parried. Siegfried has no such problem, but it was something else: whatever strength he channeled was ultimately mine as well, and although it was vast, I'd rather not be complacent and let the situation goes on any longer for the Assassins would surely adapt and overcome this repetitive bout of leap in, cut and leap out.

As it went on a little longer, the locusts were gaining speed as they leapt in and out with each cut. Throwing knives from the dark of the forest were whistling as arrow heads and were like silver threads of fate in their flight. Siegfried deflected the missiles in front of him with a swing of the flat of his sword while I grant those that were hunting for me the target they seek.

"Agh!" a strained cry of pain. Waver hid himself further into the big round buckler like turtle in a shell. A knife's handle protruding from his chest. I crouched at his level, covering where the shield couldn't and lay the sword down and grabbed his shoulder and said:

"Pull that knife out."

Waver didn't hesitate, and when I saw through the corner of my eye that I he had done so, I closed the wound with a simple Dia spell. If the situation went any longer, the next I find him, I might have to use Samarecarm.

I picked up my sword and stood up; an Assassin suddenly appeared in front of me. Another one, rushing in a low sprint, had sprung upon Waver. For my Assassin, I let him have his knife wherever he wanted and finished him with a sword strike to the skull and Siegfried had bisected Waver's would be killer. In that short moment of turning himself toward Waver, Siegfried had left his back open and an Assassin had leapt upon his shoulder and was rapidly stabbing his chest. Siegfried grabbed the Servant's head and squeezed it as easily as a man would squeeze a strawberry. Another Assassin leapt upon Siegfried's shoulder, another on his leg and another on his offhand and another on his sword hand. A full-body pain flared up in me as each Assassin raised their knives and stabbed down again and again.

Chaos had struck my senses like a hammer. The sharp whistles of the throwing knives as if they can cut through the air itself, the rustlings of leaves as the Assassins moved around like a winter storm, the sight of my red Siegfried - red as Caesar had been in the Theatre of Pompey, just as many wounds or perhaps more - as he cut and bashed and crushed the Assassins that were coming for him and the ones that were on him and the pain of muscle fatigue and the foreign psychological pain that came whenever Siegfried was struck, and the seemingly never ending amount of those locust Servants had enraged me so. It gave way for a primal thing in my psyche to caress my heart with its talons.

I pressed the Mauser's barrel between my cheek bone and jaw. Useless were the knives flying my way, and the Assassin that had rushed himself to be in front of me had jammed his knife into my Adam's apple and he gurgled and bubbled red at the throat and collapsed at my feet. Others too came to stop me, but it was inevitable. The Mauser's hammer struck the firing pin and the dimensional glass was broken open for the coming of the Serpent. It greeted the heavens and the Earth with a terrible sound like the wailing of the dead. It has six wings like the Seraphim, six arms with talons like the birds of prey, green scales adorned its back and down its one tail, the two other tails were the spines of snakes, it has six breasts, its head was a skull of which cold dead skin had stuck itself upon, its teeth were all fangs, it has three eyes of which the third one was in the middle of the skull and upon that skull was a mockery of some grand royal crown - Satan, humanity's great and eternal adversary.

"Wha-what is that?" Waver said. I got to him and wrapped my arm around his ears and across his eyes. "WH-what are you doing?"

"You shouldn't see or hear this," was all I said.

To our enemies, Satan grinned across its jaws, its dead skin stretching into a sadistic countenance. The fangs parted, it looked up upon the moon, and it wailed like a slaughtered sow. It was a grim sound from the world beyond spreading across the forest like a thousand dead. It raised and clap the first set of its arms above its head, shot the second set out horizontal and clap the last set beneath itself. A mock of the cross, the devil has no tact. All of a sudden then, scintillant particles appeared in the air by the multitudes and collected themselves into a ball of light and flashed like lightning and the Assassins at our left were no more and Satan's Ghastly Wail was like a herald of doom.

Fearful noises and wonderment were expressed at the dark being. It was good, fear was good. For only the fearful would be susceptible to the madness and death that Satan's wailing would bring about. The Assassins would then cry and scream and moan like victims of a plague. They writhed on the ground, bashed their heads on trees and rocks. Some of them resisted, but a gaze upon Satan's grin and its re-demonstration of power would once again set their heart on the right path.

"A-aagh!" Waver cried out. I immediately put my Mauser down and placed that hand atop the back of his head. A Patra spell spread in a steady stream from my psyche down to my heart then to the palm of my hand and put Waver's fear to rest.

"Calm your heart, clear your mind. Don't make me waste it all on you."

"WH-what is going on!?"

"The devil's business."

Satan laughed like the croaking of the near-decease. The Assassins were throwing themselves around like in some kind of depraved dances, writhing around as if some great high had taken them and that they were near revelation with their pagan god. Their cries, their moans, their screams joined together like some cannibalistic primitive orgy.

"Make him cease it!" Siegfried had enough of the entire affair and so was I. With a thought, I made Satan's wailing went up an octave and the Assassins followed along. They were bleeding then, out of their eyes and ears and noses and mouths. They collapsed in a twitching mass of death throes as their life gave out.

Soon, the chaos ceased. The Earth was quiet. The howling of the cold winter wind rustled the branches and the leaves. Slowly, the Servants disappeared, and traces of what we did here were only a few drops of mine and Waver's blood.

"Is... is it over?" Waver peaked out of my arm and I let him go and stood up.

"Yeah," I said. "Supposedly."

"I don't want to see such a thing ever again," Siegfried said.

"Me either."

Satan was floating around and was laughing like a dying old woman.

I shot a glare at it. "You, vanish."

It continued to float, coiling upward in a playful manner like a court jester. Then it vanished.

Waver stood up, holding onto his chest, the blood was a faint dark in his sweater. It could pass off as sweat. Not sure about his white shirt though.

"What was that thing that you summoned!?" Waver screamed and pointed at where Satan was earlier.

"A snake."

"A snake? What's the name of it?"

"You already know."

"I do?"

"You should."

He stopped and looked at me, puzzling. "Yeah, well..." he laughed weakly. "So you struck a deal with Tohsaka, huh?"

"I did."

"Since when?"

"Just last night."

"And he betrayed you the next, huh? I always knew that the magus world in and beyond the Clock Tower would be filled with a self-serving, egotistical bunches, but a betrayal right on the night after?"

"Even Judas wasn't that eager."

Waver snorted a laughter and Siegfried and I smiled. We three men were a battle worn bunch and goodnight's sleep sounded very tempting. But it wasn't yet my time to rest. The winter night's silence was like the hand of a spirit beyond the graves pulling us down to join it. The youthfulness in Waver's face had gone and in his eyes were something hollow and vacant. The emotions that was running high few seconds earlier was gone, and it had given me that look of him. I didn't want to see him that way.

"Well..." I said, "You ready to go?"

The corner of Waver's lips curled into a smile. His eyes were very tired and gloomy.

From Seth's neck I had dropped him off in the arms of Virtue and they landed in the streets. Then, in place of Virtue, Pixie was summoned and had taken charge to go and scan around the Mackenzie's resident which was three houses away. Seth and I were circling above the area, waiting for Pixie's confirmation on the safety of the house.

Pixie confirmed with "All clear!" and then flew back to Waver and told him the same. Waver nodded and looked to sky, he couldn't see us, but waved us farewell just the same. Then, with Pixie in her translucent form, he made his way to the Mackenzies.

Seth and I set course for mount Enzou.

Chapter 11: Posledniy Geroy

Up high in the night sky, we were gliding against the current. The wind brought a biting chill that crawled up my spine like a serpent's coil and spread its hold to the rest of my bones. I racked the Mauser and detached it from its stock and stored the stock in my bag, and then I loaded my hip with the stockless Mauser and the M1911. The American automatic was without a bullet in its chamber, I had made sure of that, for it would be my summoning pistol, while the German one would be for combat.

Under the stars and the moon was a caterpillar-like mountain, black against the night. Near the foot of it was an oval lake with the night in its depth. To the front of the lake, were the buildings that comprised into the ground known as Ryuudou Temple. We stopped in our flight and wheeled about above the area while observing the happenings below. Saber, in her battle dress and with her invisible sword in hand was climbing in a rush up the stone steps between the tree lines leading to the gate of the Temple, while Archer, arms crossed and in full gold-plated armor was waiting for her march atop that gate with amusement.

Then appeared above and behind the sneering Archer were golden ripples of distortions and out of one of them was a glinting silver missile. Saber stopped in her rush and with a skillful swipe, had deflected it into the trees and it exploded in a flash of orange fire and thundered a tremor that took the leaves from the surrounding trees and made the branches shake like the rattling of bones. The missile appeared clearer through Seth's eyes and his memory of it was that of a flying longsword.

Yet that was not the only armament that was fired upon Saber, as halberds, axes, polearms, poleaxes and spears and other sharp-edged or pointed weaponry were fired at her as well in a seemingly never-ending amount. Though faced with such a barrage of weapons, Saber was quick and agile and dynamic in her movement, the very wind itself seemed to have blessed her with haste for her quick maneuver and dodges made the missiles aim uncertain and whenever it seemed that the weapons' aim might just hold true, she let out a burst of white blue energy like jet propulsions which pushed her away from their course and the missiles could then only glance past her. Combining this with her skillful swordplay then there was no stopping her from reaching Archer and the gate.

Seth snorted out fire from his nostrils, eager to join the battle. But the magical field enveloping the area around the temple would send us crashing down on the flight of stairs leading to it and we were also too far for any of our attack spells to be accurate against Archer. So banked down we did. Seth enclosed the wings about his body and let gravity take hold. When we were above the stone steps by a risky margin, he'd spread his wings wide and reined himself up and let the wind carry him along the curvature of the hill, above the flight of stairs, and with his maws opened wide and fire rushing out of them for that Servant atop the gate.

The trees were pulled by the force of our speed and the leaves were sent scattering around. Archer stood unimpressed at our coming charge, his arms at his sides. When Seth could finally close his iron muscled jaws on him, the Servant held them wide with the powerful press of his hands and feet and so Archer went with us between Seth's maws toward the roof of the main temple. Fire was rushing out of Seth's throat like vicious hell and Archer leaped and glided away in glitters of gold and materialized upon the temple's roof, just above Seth's aim. And before he could readjust for the new position of his target, a small portal suddenly opened and a golden chain pierced his throat sidewise and the rushing fire was vanquished. More of such portals were opened surrounding us and more of such chains shot out sharp and true. They coiled about his wings, his hind legs and body and neck with a vice-like grip that could endure the mightiest of gods.

We were hung in the air and Seth was writhing and bleeding and choking. He made sounds that were like pathetic roars and what was supposed to be hellfire out of his jaws, only sparks dared come out.

Another chain shot out, and I dropped to the ground and rolled as my shoulder made impact on the hard stone ground. That chain then pierced Seth's spinal, a terrible shudder overtook him and all hairs on my body stood on shivering ends. Mighty black dragon Seth reduced to a lizard caught in a snare. Little life was in him, and his writhing made grating sounds of clinking chains. I tried to recall him, but the chains wouldn't let and so there he hung, there he bled. A putrid stench wafted through the air as his black blood made a great puddle.

Saber ran over to us, expression aghast and amazement upon seeing the Egyptian god. She looked at me, trying to discern my true intentions through the plain expression of my face and the gray intensity of my eyes. To give her enough hint, I simply turned away from her and faced Archer's glinting red glare with my cold gray.

"Ha-hah!" Archer laughed derisively. "Strange pet you play with, magus! With traces of divinity in its blood no less! Oh how that makes me hate you, to call in these gods that I cast out! - no, worse than that, you dare to call in a lesser god to contend with me! Have your hubris made a fool of your thinking? This thing here, against I?" he was deeply offended.

Multitudes of golden, rippling portals opened above Seth, weapons of numerous types and makes thrust out of them, gleaming and shivering with deathlust like an executioner's instruments. With a thought command did the blades fell like a deafening volley of rifle shots. Black smoke and orange-red fire swirled restlessly as the missiles made impact, crackling thunderously.

Like cold fingers of phantoms did the pain gripped me, passed through my flesh and sank into my very soul. When Seth's life finally gave, I went light-headed, a pulse in my temples throbbed dizzily with each beat of my heart. The smoke cleared and Seth was torn to pieces, his wings were severed from his body, his tail and hind legs as well, his stomach gashed open and his internal organs were strewn about in a rank welter and his head had burst opened.

The chains released him and finally he could return to my psyche, where he could rebuild himself.

"Was that the mightiest of your numbers?" Archer shouted. "Where is hero Siegfried and the little fairy? Cast them unto me and I'll show you their true worth!"

I let those words feed into this blazing heat that made my hands quiver for blood, but let not such provocations blind my thought.

"Saber," I turned and said to her. A worried expression was on her face, and a pitying look was scintillant in her green eyes. Though thankful, I needn't such things, so I turned away from her and spoke over my shoulder: "Just for this battle-"

"No further words are needed." She suddenly said and I almost turned to look at her. "You could've just hovered above the temple and watched us fight and finish off the victor, but the fact that you came down, passed me by and went right for Archer... that says enough. I don't know why you would help me, maybe you'll betray me right after, but right now, I will return the favor."

Those words finally made me turn to face her. Though a part of me wanted to smile when seeing her determined looks, my freshly lit fury and the thought of putting Archer to the sword had overridden any other emotions that didn't contribute to such a quest. So I only nodded, and she returned the gesture.

I went for my summoning pistol, before I could get it out, the trees around the temple shook by a violent wind and in the next instant, we found ourselves ringed by a black throng of Assassins. This time, their numbers doubled the last. The Servants were on the temple's walls, behind us atop the gate, crouched and hidden inside overlapping branches. But oddly, the ones on the spine of the blue ceramic tiled roof of the temple seemed to be avoiding Archer by drawing themselves almost behind the slope.

"Assassins!" Saber said through gritted teeth, with no surprise at all in her voice - instead, she sounded like she expected to find them. I suppose they weren't stealthy enough in abducting Irisviel.

"You knaves," Archer said ringingly. "You dare to show yourselves here?" while not even looking at the Assassins. "Be gone with you, followers of Ismaili! Of a mongrel breed your ilk are and you've shown your quality this night. A lone magus you couldn't slay and you have the audacity to be in my presence? Hah!"

"Enough, Archer!" said an Assassin, in the limbs of trees. "You spoke as though you saw the flying black serpent yourself. If it presents itself to you here, you will quake in your armor!"

For that show of bravery, a missile came whistling his way and the leaves were lit and branches splintered after an explosive impact. But that Assassin knew he'd be struck, so he had leaped off to another tree beforehand and continued speaking he did:

"Don't kill the messenger my liege," he emphasized with contempt. "We're only here to warn you of him and his abilities. A strange aura about him he has, that turned our blows treacherous against ourselves, and the black serpent that slain us by the multitudes with bright white lights just by the claps of its hands and its baleful wailing. Don't draw this out, o king, restrain him now and swift, God knows what cards he has up his sleeves and what of our fortune they prophesize. Restrain him now, I implore you!"

Archer chuckled with derisive mirth through wide-grinned and gritted teeth. Then, as though he couldn't contain it anymore, a ringing laughter burst forth. "The Shaykh al Jabal weeps for his fedayeen!" and he continued his ringing laughter. "And what's this about you imploring me!? It is I who decides where the chains shall go, not you dogs! You hemp eaters should keep your thoughts and plans to yourself, for I will not fight with the likes of yours who strike from the darkness with cowardly guile. Where are the slayers of kings and emirs that Salah ad-Din himself must fear? Don't tell me that they are here before my eyes! For I see nothing of such in their souls!" and onward he laughed, taking great pleasure in seeing the - as he might interpret it - dishonored state of the Order of Assassins.

The Servants all around rose with glinting daggers and scimitars and warknives. "Our daggers were well feared across Persia and the Levant. Many emirs, atabegs and kings were slain by us - in Mosul, Damascus, Cairo, and Jerusalem. Our feats you know of clearly, yet you would make a mockery of it!? We outnumber you Archer! Though endless your Noble Phantasms may be through those gates, like the locust of God we shall overrun you and strip you of your flesh and drink your blood! And we know the truth of those chains, against us, they wouldn't-"

-a missile sheared off his head, silencing him forever. He dropped off the branch with a dry thud.

"That is enough," Archer said, without amusement, a seething rage behind his words. Multitudes of rippling portals fanned out behind him and thrust out of the gates were the glinting tips of swords and halberds and spears. The Assassins all around crouched low like the stalking catamounts, preparing for retaliation. "Any other words, ye mongrel? Will you face me here, and afterward, the two below? Can your ilk afford to? How about all three simultaneously? Or, by some miracle, a dagger is put to my throat, would you be able to finish off these two with your remaining numbers? Don't make me laugh any further. You Assassins need me more than I would ever need you!"

A tense silence set over the temple like a black veil. I subtly snaked my hand down to reach the grip of my Colt 1911.

"Hmm?" Archer suddenly turned to me and I unconsciously returned the look. "Now, now," he grinned widely, "don't falter in your summoning. Show me more, ye curious mixed blood. You mutt, you," he ended playfully.

I'd say he got on my nerves, but he'd already done that a moment ago. I turned to Saber, and we shared a look. Though she was eager to get the battle going, there was hesitancy in her eyes as well. With these many Assassins surrounding us, it would prove to be a hard-fighting battle. I couldn't risk Satan or Helel to those chains. But I was fine with risking Thor; he'd even encouraged it, that bullheaded god. This was to find out the exact requirements for those chains to work their magic.

Though Seth wasn't the most powerful of my hosts of Personas, breaking apart metal chains should be no more than snapping twigs to him, yet he met his temporary end in a snare of such makes. So the chains had to have magical properties of some sort, and by that Assassin's slip, it only activates on certain conditions.

I grasped my Colt pistol and took a proper grip at it to engage the grip-safety. Then, in a snap, I drew it out of my waistband and -

-a black shadow rushed over like a sweeping gust. A heavy weight on my body, two arms beneath my armpits held me up by locking my shoulders. Another one came over and captured my gun-hand. Then another Assassin rushed forward to disarm me of my Mauser, but just as he reached for it, a sudden red spurt shot out of his back and his upper body dropped at my feet - Saber had come to my aid, most swift. With little life left the Assassin clawed at my shin in futility and I wheeled my leg up and crushed his skull beneath my heel with a dry crunch.

The rest of the Assassins dashed off of the roof and the ledges and tree branches to clash with Saber. Thus began a tumult of clash and clangor of steel - of scimitars, warknives and daggers on longsword. Saber, skillful and swift as she was managed to keep half a dozen of the singing blades in play at once and evermore. But even the King of Knights couldn't face the Assassins unscathed. For lacking protective plates on her shoulders, upper arms and elbows, those became the frequent targets of the Assassins' flashing scimitars.

There were gashes across her arms and shoulders, but by her still ferocious fighting spirit, they were never deep enough to demoralize her in any way. Instead, her fighting soul grew hot and her singing swordplay went ablaze. Four dead Assassins at her feet, disappeared into the ether like the previous ones and more were being numbered. Like a cornered lion she hacked away powerfully with ripping motions, keeping the Assassins from getting near enough where the length of her sword would be a hindrance.

Saber's windsword came singing down; an Assassin shot his scimitar out where the crescent tip pointed downward to parry the blow. As the longsword lit sparks and the scimitar shivered, the Assassin wheeled his weapon in a short arc and lashed down in a powerful blow for Saber's head. Saber shot her sword up flat to the eye and leaned back, a jet of blue spark was lit as the scimitar clashed on flat or edge of the longsword and Saber's riposte came lightning quick and the Assassin was split to the teeth.

It was a most outstanding display of her swordsmanship, but spending time watching it while struggling against the Assassins for my pistols wouldn't do. So I assumed Thor's strength, and the three Assassins' weight was as light as pebbles. I whirled on my feet and slammed the one on my left into the ground, and I felt my shoulder caved in his sternum. With a hand free, I got up; the Assassin on my back had wrapped one arm around my throat, locked with his opposite shoulder, while the other hand was pushing my head forward with the heel against the base of my skull. It was a futile effort, as - by Thor - my throat muscles were like knotted iron and were as pliant as steel, I didn't budge even a little. I drew my Colt pistol at last, and one Assassin jumped on that hand with his entire body to keep it down. I drew my other auto-loader, and as I lifted that Assassin up by just one arm, I thrust the barrel of the Mauser into his eye socket and fired. The pistol made a muffled crackle and the Assassin let go of my arm and stumbled back, gurgling as the blood in his brain made its way down his airways. He was still alive despite that, I had given him no more than brain damage, but by how much he was hemorrhaging, his death would come swiftly.

The Colt pistol's muzzle found my temple at last and the Assassin on my back could only push it away limply. Others too came to stop me, but the trigger was pulled. My head whipped out to the side and the Assassin was thrown off my back. The power of Thor and Take-Mikazuchi came out as swirling, scintillant orbs that joined together in my heart and burst out in a flash of white light.

Above the temple's ground, up high over all the trees and mountains was a golden swirl of clouds that spread out into six of its likes and from them came the jets of flashing blue lightning. Faster than the eye can perceive did they strike, so numerous and simultaneous they were that the temple ground was lit bright as daylight and the crackling of the lightning bolts were like a thousand heavy artillery shots.

Purple after-visions clouded my eyes; I rubbed them to clear my sight. My ears were ringing incessantly, and only when I tapped hard on them twice did it begin to subside.

The Assassins all around, save for about two dozen remaining quick few, were either standing or stretched on the ground, as still as ashen black statues while black blood was leaking out of their noses and ears for their brain had melted. Purple death rose off their corpses like smoke, and the wind carried them to the world beyond.

The last of the Assassins faltered in their step as they took in what had happened. Their nerves had frozen and that blazing deathlust in their souls had been snuffed. Each one of them was sharing a look at each other, no words were spoken, as one, they understood the situation they were in and any killing instinct was overridden by fear.

I jumped back suddenly; a halberd burrowed itself to the shaft into the ground where I was standing a moment ago. Archer, with volcanic red hate he glared at me. Behind him, I could see the crackling fires caused by the lightning bolts' misses. That glare then softened, not to anything pleasant, rather, it was softened to befit his wide growing grin - to complete a mask of utmost arrogant fed hate.

Archer didn't look like he was going kill me at that moment - he would bleed me first.

The Assassins had taken on the form of a scraggly wolf pack against the mighty lion, baring their gleaming silver steel in front of them like claws while dragging and stepping back and away from Saber and I.

Then, as though seized by an invisible thing, the Assassins stopped with intensity. Their blades shivered as their arms struggled with strain, their legs were forced forward and they couldn't lift them up to step back. Eventually, they relented and followed the red guiding strings that showed them the killing arc of their sword.

Once more, the fight started. This time, red hate blazed in the Assassins' souls, and with reckless abandon did they swing their gleaming blades. Forgoing their skin and striking with full commitment, even when it was their own that was in the line, they didn't hesitate to go all in. Mindless they were, with deathlust born from their impending death, they clashed steel with Saber desperately and hungrily for the kill and not once did they show any sign of wavering even when Saber's swirling wind pillar threatened to swat off their heads.

Saber handled them as well as she could. With the Assassins' new form of rabid aggression that knew no love for any living things even their own, she was hardly keeping up. They dashed as though blurs of shadows, darting left and right, up and down, exchanging swift sword blows against sword blows. Edge against edge. Lighting showers of sparks of orange and beams of blue with each clangor of naked steel. The blue fabrics of Saber's dress around her shoulders and biceps were cut to ribbons, caked with blood.

I cocked my pistol and dry-fired beneath my chin. Mighty Thor was invoked, and a swirling blue wind accompanied his manifestation, he was about four meters in height, a golden scale mail adorned his body, and his face was hidden by a golden helmet with its horns down and forward like a fighting bull, down the helmet was two wavy black manes of hair that reached past his chests. Behind the helmet, his eyes were blazing blue, his shoulders were adorned with a billowing white cape and his first word to greet the battle was, "Die!" as he smashed and flattened an Assassin. Then, he released a guttural roar to the heavens as he summoned bolts of lightning to strike down the Assassins. Those who were struck were left either paralyzed momentarily or dead where they stood. For the ones swift enough to avoid the lightning, came Thor's kicking boots and crushing heels. With his kicks, he sent flying a clump of Assassins, paralyzed or otherwise; with his stomps, he made them tremble and falter in their steps and crushed them flat red. And bear-like, with his paws, he swiped them away, scattering them all over the temple's ground, some worse off than others. They thudded dryly against the hard stone as they landed arms and legs bent unnaturally, head looking up, stomach against the ground.

With a grin, Saber roared and raised her sword high to the stars. Though cut up and bloodied, her fighting spirit raged on and with new vigor she joined the slaughter.

Archer watched on like a bored emperor, even in the face of Thunder God Thor, his eyes were unimpressed, and behind them was a smoldering hate. As Thor backhanded a hammer swipe for Archer, his hammer-wielding hand was suddenly suspended in the air as golden chains came out striking like vipers and had pierced and coiled about his arm. Struggle as he might, the chains were unyielding. Some Assassins took the opportunity to start for Thor's legs, but the Norse god's kicks sent the wind like tornados, so Assassins opted to climb on his billowing cape to reach Thor's head, but that too was difficult, for Thor was whipping his cape around, making the Assassins climb a losing effort.

Archer sneered; he looked down upon me from the corner of his eyes with great arrogance. But I worried not, for I then knew the limitation of his chains: it'd only work its iron binding against gods. So if gods wouldn't do, then devils it shall be. I cocked and dry-fired my Colt pistol against my temple. Then out of a swirling blue wind, came a leopard man, naked safe for a collared green cape buttoned between his collar bones and a loin cloth, and in his hands were two warknives with their flats hollowed out. Ose, 57th demon of the Ars Goteia. The first instant he was manifested, Ose roared mightily and true to his form, leaped with great height and agility to the edge of the roof and kept on dashing.

Archer was un-wavered by the rushing demon; nonchalantly, he unleashed a torrent of weapons out of the summoned golden rippling portals and launched them in a blinding volley, so swift were they, that to the human eyes, they were like white tracer rounds spat out of a machinegun barrel. But with deft and swiftness, Ose came upon the singing missiles with the edges of his warknives. Left and right, sparks and blue beams of light were lit with each clash and clangor of steel. The redirected Noble Phantasms were littered and exploded haphazardly all around, and Ose was getting closer still.

Archer raised his hand over his shoulder; a portal opened in ripples, and out of it was a hilt. As Ose lashed down the first cut, Archer drew the sword out of the portal and parried the blow. Ose came back in with the other warknife, a horizontal cut for the brows. From the hip, Archer drew another sword, and his parry came hooking upward, lighting a shower of sparks. Ose jumped back and thrust his knife point at Archer. Persona and Servant, Demon and Hero, stood armed with two blades in each of their hand. Archer grinned widely in arrogant triumph, while Ose glared at him past the point of his warknife.

Both fighters launched themselves off the roof, naked steel barring hungrily. As Archer was eager for the kill, Ose had another objective in mind. Archer's right came from overhead, Ose parried it with his left's edge and pressed on, not letting it rebound. To Archer's surprise, Ose had gotten so close that the length of their weapons had become a hindrance, so Archer dropped the sword in his left and opened a portal to draw a more appropriate weapon for such a close quarter. But Ose never had such a combat in mind, for he was not a wrestler, preferring to keep his opponents at bay by the length of his warknives than anything, instead, Ose pushed Archer away from himself with the edge of his left and jumped and launched himself off and toward Thor's hammer by Archer's breastplate.

Archer was knocked back and tripped over the spine of the roof, but recovered in just an instant. He stopped and looked ahead, eyes wide, jaws gritted tightly, couldn't believe that anybody would have the audacity to do that to him. The vein in his temples throbbed madly. He also couldn't believe that Ose was currently ignoring him to go for the chains that'd bound Thor's arm in place. Steel edge against chain links. With sparks, ear-puncturing clinks and the rattling of chains did Ose put his blades to work. Smooth and easy, Ose cut through the chains as though they were Earthly things. Once done, the chain links clinked on the temple ground like pachinko coins, Thor's arm was freed, and he could finally return to the Sea of Souls within me.

Ose dropped in the middle of the Assassins' clash with Saber, providing her with swift aid. Together, they fought against the remaining gaunt wolves, smoothly and fluidly as though the art of the sword transcends above all and any practitioner can work together in full harmony. An Assassin slid her head off of Saber's sword and lay completely still. Another Assassin was moaning and gurgling at Ose's feet, spurting blood from cut arteries. The two fighters jumped to the center of the carnage, assessing the situation around. Saber and Ose were back to back, blades at point – a strange tableau of a hellish battle.

Ose's fatigue was my fatigue, my muscles ached all around, and my heart beat frantically and coldly. It wasn't the first that I had a battle such as this, but it was exhaustive all the same.

The sound of steel plates clanking against one another, Archer stood on the edge of the roof, sword in right, war axe in left. He had a look at the fate of the Assassins below before they all disappeared. He looked at me from the corner of his eyes. A blade came whistling through the air, I drew a sword and parried it, as swiftly as Ose would do so. The hilt I was holding felt light, a piece of metal clattered against the stone. My sword was broken.

Glitters of golden portals rippled in the air by the dozens, out of them were a volley of melee weapons of numerous types and makes. I stepped a foot to the rear, made myself a flat target, and also covered my bag and my automatics. Abaddon gave me his power, and I took the barrage head-on. As the volley ended, and the air cleared, I was left with singed hair, burnt skin, tattered clothing, stingy eyes, ringing ears and a lungful of black smoke. Though shaky and seared like the yellow leaf, I still had strength left to fight.

At the sight of me, Archer glared, scowled and snarled venomously, "I will not acknowledge you, you low-born magus. Though you may have powers of lesser gods and demons and" - at this he spat - "Heroes, you are but a cretin. Using powers undeserving and beyond you, while living a small and insignificant life, serving a greedy gambler without so much a thought to his own ambitions and dreams. Husks like you, those powers you deserve not! Perish!"

Archer unleashed another battery of glittering missiles, I rushed to meet them with the swiftness of a mass of green sludge, a majority of them found the target they sought, and gave my lungs whiffs of black smoke, further puncturing my eardrums, and burnt me a little. But I didn't falter in my dash, not even a little. At the same time, Ose had roared powerfully and leaped high with great might to meet with Archer. But Archer had the same idea, and he had done so first. While Ose was in the air flying up, Archer was coming down with his weapons overhead. The King in Gold lashed his sword and axe down powerfully upon Ose's shoulders, and the blows carried with them the force of a mighty Heroic Spirit and the Earth's gravity, which sent Ose crashing down hard on the temple ground with Archer's weapons hooked in shoulders. And they cratered with Ose on his back and Archer standing on his chests.

Saber rushed in, sword above the shoulder, roaring viciously. Archer didn't bother plucking his weapons out of Ose's shoulders, instead, he pulled out a longsword from a portal and blocked Saber's blow with the flat of the blade and went along with the windsword's arc by the leap of the ball of his feet. They were a good distance away from each other, enough for Archer to launch his exploding missiles without a trouble to himself. Saber stood with one foot forward and the other back, her sword rested on her shoulder; Ose stood up, flicked the axe and sword off of his shoulders by the edges of his warknives and stood with his weapons at his sides. I shoved my Colt automatic in my waistband and drew and attached my Mauser pistol with its stock again. I started forward and stopped when I'd entered the pistol's effective range (I could as well adjust the sights for shooting from a further distance, but I'd rather not lose my zero).

From a portal at Archer's hip, a hilt thrust out. The quillon block was a quadrangle and its stretched thin sides made the quillons. The handle was fit for one hand only, and the pommel took the shape of an eagle's head. He grasped the hilt and drew it out of the portal in a flashing crescent, revealing the curved gleaming blade. It was a sabre of the Cossacks. Odd, this Archer was, in the diverse makes of his weapons, and the way he proved himself to be an archer, and odd that he was that he'd stood on our level and would engage with us in a melee bout. But I wasn't the type to correct my enemy's mistake.

Ose roared blasphemously with an oath to kill, his warknives were like pincers at his sides as he sprang for Archer. Saber joined in on the fight with less fire in her yell but her blazing sword strokes belied her concealed battlelust. Archer simply grinned; he was still prideful enough to think himself capable of taking on two opponents at once. He kept Ose's warknives and Saber's longsword in play by a most peculiar sword art born from his Noble Phantasm, his grip on his weapons was relaxed and fluid, and therefore easy to drop, but because he could summon new weapons with ease, such a thing was never a problem. He would come into a bind, let go, raise his hand high and come down with a bludgeoning blow of a new armament or any variant of such a trick.

The three fighters traded blows and riposte with dynamic fluidity that could only born from a superhuman instinct, their rapid clashing of their steel was sharp and ear-piercing. Archer was dropping swords and axes like they were junk, littered all over, making slippery sharp obstacles for the few seconds they were around. Surprisingly, he held his own for a longer period of time than I thought possible for an Archer class Servant, and had more endurance too for a Servant his Class to be facing Saber and Ose. Though, I suppose, it could just be because he hadn't done much fighting for the lot of the battle.

I shouldered the Mauser pistol, bracing the stock against my chest and looked past the sights and focused on the target - Archer. Sukukaja heightened my visions and made my fatigued and rigid and shaky arms more pliant and easier to control. Tarukaja would bless the bullet with increased speed and Power Charge would double that. With a thought, Ose roared and jumped back as commanded and Saber, as though our fighting souls were one, maneuvered away for me to get a clear shot.

The moment my sight line was cleared and hitting Archer was just a bullet away, I didn't hesitate. I squeezed in the trigger smoothly and the pistol's barrel buckled and the stock kicked against my chest with such a powerful force that belied its small caliber. A cloud of orange fire and gun smoke was spat out of the barrel, and the report was like a rifle shot.

The moment Archer realized what had happened it'd already been finished the moment it started. Out of his mouth was crimson blood, and the red welt in his cheek was where the bullet had pierced through. Archer spat out tooth, blood, pink matters and bullet. His eyes were wide in disbelief, a great blazing red hate flamed behind his crimson eyes, more so than when Ose had dirtied his breastplate to leap off of him.

With tension, the golden plates clanked against each other as Archer wheeled a sword above his shoulder and pitched it an overhand throw. The blade came whistling, I let it fly its course. As the sword whined past me a hair's breadth away and sharply imbedded itself into the stone wall far out behind me, Archer curled his open hand into a fist.

Multitudes of golden rippling portals were opened and fanned out behind Archer like the great tail of a giant peacock. It was about time to take on Alilat's power, with those many projectiles shot at me, it was a guaranteed death for Archer. But just as I had done so, Archer's eyes narrowed dully into a suspicious glare and he let the shivering weapons hang peeking out of the portal. In one instant, about and around and above me, the golden chains came striking out like pythons. They coiled about my arms and legs and body and throat and their iron grip was especially enhanced for I had taken on the power of a god. Ose sprang forth on a giant leap with the twin warknives like scorpion pincers. I switched back to Abaddon and the chains' iron hold lightened. Saber started, and I called out to her to stop, she halted with her heel tearing through the ground and came rushing to me instead. A battery of whistling swords and other vast armaments began.

Ose was pierced through the arm and had returned to the Sea of Souls, while Saber took cover behind me and I dropped the Mauser pistol. The first missile to make contact with me sent my ears ringing and muffled the rest of the sounds of this Earth. My bag slid down to my feet as its strap was severed, my clothing was blackened and sticky hot against my skin, my hair was smoldered and my eyes were stingy and my lungs choked with fire. A stinging burn was all over me and especially at my hip for the bullets in the 1911 had exploded and burnt my skin pinkish-red.

When the smokes cleared, and Archer got a clear view of his handiwork, he didn't make much reaction. He was much displeased that that hadn't killed me.

"Yuki..." said Saber, her voice laced with pity. But I wasn't going to give just yet, so in a sharp whisper I said:

"Cut the chains... on my go."

I heard her swallow in anticipation and hummed in acknowledgment of my word.

"Go."

A swift gust of wind cut sharply past, my right arms and legs were freed, another, and so did my lefts, and the final stroke of the sword lightened my throat and back. Another volley seemed about to start, I touched Saber just briefly on the shoulder, and by Mara, had blessed her with Tetrakarn. I stooped and scooped up the Mauser pistol and the sword out of my fallen bag.

Saber and I each went for Archer. She was rushing from the left, and I was dashing in from the right. Again came the battery of missiles, with the burning and ear-splitting explosions. I gritted my teeth and continued onward with the Mauser at my chests, shielded behind one arm, while holding my sword's blade pointing diagonally down from shoulder to heel.

Saber, though having less protection, carried herself against the onslaught of the missiles with much more grace. She swatted each missile coming her way with deft sword strokes combined with fluid footwork and torque of the hip. Though bloodied and winded and worn, she still held an air of regalness and holiness about her. Her noble image was unmarred by the blood and grime, and her martial skills continued to impress. Then, as luck would have it, a single halberd got through the whirlwind of her sword art and bounced off the Tetrakarn shield that was her aura - around her breastplate.

Archer clutched his chest where a slit was cut into his breastplate by an invisible force. Leaking from his cuisses, past the poleyns and into the greaves were fresh red blood. His eyes were bulging red with wrath, the battery of missiles was stopped for the moment the spell worked its magic, and that was all Saber needed before she rapidly closed the distance and clashed steel with Archer.

I ejected the magazine and a bullet from the Mauser pistol and re-summoned Ose to join in the bout.

Archer rose to meet the occasion as though he was unwounded with a longsword in one hand and a sabre in the other. But by way of his sluggish parries and counters, and the dying fire behind each of his short breaths as he attacked, the wound definitely affected him. They traded swift sword stroke for swift sword stroke, before the first can vibrate the end of its clangor, the next had overtaken piercingly. A dome of orange sparks scattered about them from their swift blows and blue beams of steel shot out blindingly.

Then Saber's grip on her sword had changed, it was as though she was holding the haft of a warhammer. Archer lashed out a diagonally downward blow; Saber's counter came clattering against his gauntlet. Then, as she yanked her sword down, Archer's arm came following the motion. Then the invisible sword leaped off the gauntlet right for the temple.

But instead of shearing off Archer's head, a dry thud sounded and his head was knocked to the side as though impacted by a hooking punch and blood spurt out of the slot in his temple in a red spring stream. Saber had brained him in the temple with the quillon of her sword - a most swift murderstroke.

Archer dropped the swords in his hands with a clattering defeat and turned to Saber. His eyelids were skittering, struggling to open, and his form shivered spasmodically. His expression softened and was more somber. A sardonic smile blossomed in his strained, blue lips.

"At the very least... it's by your hand..."

Glittering gold dust rose off of him and the wintry wind carried him off as he disappeared.

Saber's shoulders were bleeding in rivulets of red threads, her upper arms were caked in blood, and her blonde hair was tousled, peppered with red spots of darkened crimson. Though she had exalted against him as the last Hero of the Grail War, Saber had only looked very tired. But she then closed her eyes and shook her head of any of her current thoughts and her eyes were once again scintillant with determination.

Ose gaped his maws in a wide congratulatory grin: "Hail, lone king! For so thou art."

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PIXIE AND WAVER

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The night's breeze blew past him coolly as he squinted at the vague figure overhead, and watched as it started away for the mountains. The fairy Makoto'd left to escort him came by his side and said:

"C'mon, let's go! Don't you feel freezing out here?"

Waver raised an eyebrow, "You feel cold?"

"Uh, of course! What kind of question is that?"

"I just thought that..." he trailed off to find the appropriate words to finish his sentence.

Pixie hadn't the patience for such things; she grabbed his ears by both hands and yanked. "Let's go!"

"Ah! Hey!"

The Mackenzie household was quiet, warm, and peaceful. Waver couldn't believe that his fight was over. When he thought back to that moment, when Hero Siegfried had buried his blade hilt deep into Iskandar's abdomen, his heart beat strangely and deeply, and the vein in his temples throbbed dizzily. With shaky steps, he went up the stairs, and with a shaky hand, he opened the door to his room, stepped in, let Pixie in as well and closed the door.

Waver collapsed on the chair by his desk like a sack. Pixie stood by the window sill, eyes scanning the darkness around before she'd then sat on top of his stack of books on the desk. Waver breathed out shakily and heavily, he moved out the strands of hair that was getting to his eyes and propped his elbows on the desk and rested his temples in his hands, eyes downcast.

"What's the matter?" Pixie said.

Waver looked up to find her translucent form looking down with her chin in the palm of her hands and her elbows on her knees.

"Nothing," said Waver, wanting her to ignore him.

"Doesn't seem like nothing."

"It really is nothing. It's just my childish notion of things."

"Why don't you want to talk about it? Talking helps."

"Or make it worse."

"Only if you'll let it."

"Hmm..." Waver rested his temple on the knuckles of his fist. "Well... I don't know..."

"Come on, you can tell me. It's not good to bottle up your feelings and let it unresolved you know?"

"Yeah, I..." Waver sighed heavily, he massaged his temples with his forefinger and thumb. "All right, I just... I'm just... feeling very worthless right now." it came out as self-reproach.

"Why?" Pixie tilted her head.

"Why wouldn't I? The one fight I went with Rider and it ended in his death. I couldn't do anything to help. Much less than when the Assassins ambushed us. Now... my fight is done, and I've yet to even show my quality. These past four days flew by too quickly. I didn't get anything done at all. I wouldn't dare to show myself back in the Clock Tower. After having stolen Professor Kayneth's relic to summon Rider, and failing to even get any victory out of it... I'll be made their laughingstock! That is, if I hadn't already been!"

Pixie looked up from the corner of her eyes in thought. Waver sighed and leaned back against his chair tiredly.

"Is there really nothing you can do at all?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Iskandar wouldn't like that attitude of yours would he?"

"Who cares? He's-" Waver cut himself off. He gritted his teeth and looked away from Pixie.

"That sounds like you still care for him. And wherever he is now, I'm sure he still cares for you as well."

"You don't know that," his voice cracked.

"Iskandar is a noble warrior who cares for his retainers, and his greatest power, as we've all seen, is his loyal fighting men coming to aid. That says a lot about him, doesn't it? Cheer up, Waver, his warriors are numbered in the tens of thousands, I'm sure he wouldn't mind having you in his rank and file."

Despite himself, he smiled - hesitantly. "I'm not worthy to be anywhere near a great man such as him."

"Now you're just lying to yourself. You are worthy. You went with him to battle, even though you needn't to, leading his army with him charging forward to slay my Master, he-he-e~."

Waver chuckled, tired but amused, Pixie's cheerfulness had affected him, although by just a little. "Well... I don't know, whether I have any worthy at all as a magus or a warrior by Iskandar's side. But... yeah, I should strive to reach that height. So high of a height it is, I don't know if I will ever reach it. But I should still go for it shouldn't I?"

"Mmm!" Pixie nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, though this war hadn't allowed me to show much of my potential, but... you're right, Iskandar wouldn't want to see me like this, moping and weak and stagnating. I'm not sure how the El-melloi's going to treat me but... never mind, I should go about this thing in my own time."

"What is it?"

Waver waved her away, "It's nothing, just... an idea I have. I just think that maybe I should do something as an apology to Professor Kayneth. And maybe now that he is without his magic circuits maybe... Agh! It's nothing! It's really nothing! I really should just think about this more in my own time, so just forget what I just said, all right?"

"Oh, okay," Pixie said. Then, she started suddenly, standing upright and her head snapped over to look in the direction of Mount Enzo.

"What is it?" Waver asked, a little panicked. "Has he..." Waver swallowed. "Did the fight start?"

"Yes... but... I didn't think that... I must go. Sorry that I couldn't stay, but... you should be safe by yourself now. Guess we were a little paranoid to think that Assassin would be here in the first place."

"Well, I mean, nothing would stop me from making a contract with a new Servant except for certain death. But, I doubt there's any left."

"Ha-hah," though she laughed weakly, the cheerful pitch in it was far from snuffed. "Either way, now that your safety is certain, I must go."

Pixie got up and off of the book stacks to hover at his eye level with her hand outstretched and palm opened.

Waver accepted the offered handshake with his forefinger and thumb.

"See you around!"

"Uh, yeah. Goodbye."

Chapter 12: Spokoynaya Noch'

Saber found no humor in Ose's words. Her eyes narrowed and she stood en guard with the invisible sword at point.

"He may have assisted me in my fight with Archer, but keep that leash on him tight, Yuki, or I shall smite him and scatter his remains to the eight winds."

"Don't mind my jest, o king," Ose bowed with a fist at his heart, "for what is camaraderie without humor at each other's expense?"

Saber sighed and lowered her sword, but the muscles in her body were yet to relax, they were still tightly knotted, ready to strike at any moment. We have yet to gain her trust, even after all that.

"I suppose we should go see the Grail," I said.

"I want it, you want it gone," Saber said.

"Let's go see it first."

"I'm at a disadvantage there, fighting around something I would want to keep safe."

"Would you like to be kept here then? I don't mind that at all, I have a few friends who wouldn't mind making your acquaintance while I go about my own business."

"Just what is that power of yours?"

I let her get whatever she wanted out of a grin.

"I can't trust you to keep your hands to yourself when we're down there."

"You can't trust me no matter where I'm at. Just accompany me to the Grail, at the very least, isn't having a chance to decapitate me when we're there, better than be here and do nothing? Your choice, I'm going either way."

She strode forward with an aggressive gait, and when in reach, her blade sang through the air and stopped just short at my neck. "Brave and arrogant," she said, and then sighed heavily. "You shall run vanguard."

It was all fine by me.

"Know where the cavern should be?"

"I've been briefed, let's go."

We made our way out of the temple through the back and went downhill; under the lake above we circled around and stopped at a rock face. Saber thrust her fist through and it yielded with no resistance for nothing was actually there.

"A camouflage enchantment – we're going the right way."

We went through the false rock face and entered a dark cavern lighted dimly by the scant little moonlight that managed to get through that had reflected off the sharp, jutting stalactites above. We walked forth, and then stopped just short of a drop into a dark maw that looked like it had opened to the very pit of black Sheol itself.

"Can you make your way through here?"

"My eyes can see the path well enough, but…"

"What is it?"

"What does stretch of ground ahead of you look like?"

"Darkness."

"To me, it's a writhing mass of black mud, smoldering hot."

"Magma?"

"No, it's… hard to say."

"It should at least have the decency to be veined red and glow in slow intervals."

"Whatever it is, we shouldn't touch it."

I check my Mauser to be sure that no bullet was in the chamber. "Got it," I said, and then I pressed the muzzle against my skull and squeezed the trigger, thither came Forneus in a swirl of blue gale. A stingray of great size he was, with a sharp-eared man fused to the back and melded with the body, one with the ray skin, while adorned on his head was a silver crown.

He came to a halt before me and I got on his leathery body and offered a hand towards Saber.

She looked at my hand with apprehension, and was more than disgusted by Forneus' appearance. "You want me to get on this demon?"

"Do you have any other choice?"

She sighed deeply and took my hand.

We glided above the black mud in a steady pace. Saber acted as our navigator for her eyes were the brightest among us. "What could've brought this black mass forth?" she said as she glanced about.

"Perhaps the Grail," I said.

"Don't be foolish, it can't be."

"What else is there? Are there any magecraft that allows one to summon a tidal of hot mud?"

"Could be," she said.

A white light glinted in the dark some time in our flight, Forneus made to go straight for it. "There's your prize," I said.

Saber stood in silence, her windsword swirled restlessly.

When we drew near, we saw it at last, the chalice most coveted throughout all of history. Its body was of the reddest gold, a great deal of intricate frieze-work was carved upon it, and it emanated such a golden radiance as though the sun itself was beaming it with adoration. Did the Nazarene drink from this cup in his last supper?

Saber stood transfixed, her eyes drank in full the Grail's appearance, the object of her long quest and tribulation had finally revealed itself to her. Then,

"Kiritsugu!" she was broken from the trance. "Where is he?"

"Wouldn't he be outside still?"

"I… don't know. When Irisviel was taken, I immediately was compelled by his Command Seal to retrieve her - not a moment for any plans. So wherever he might be, I know not."

"Why think of him now?"

"Because…" she looked at the Grail, with hope, with determination, with her fist knotted tightly at her heart. "He could finally achieve his dream now… for Irisviel." She looked into the Grail, searchingly, expectant of things impossible.

I leaned down, assumed a weakness to dark, dipped a finger into the mud, and drew back a dried, shriveled thing. I healed that and then I assumed the powers of Daisoujou and dropped into the mud and nothing happened except the usual feel of trudging through a thick viscous substance.

"Are you mad?" Saber yelled.

"Take it easy, nothing's happening to me."

"So I can-"

"Better not, it's just me it's not affecting."

"How come?"

"My heart's cold as the devil."

I trudge through the mud, reaching the Grail, and then I looked about the area. Forneus' senses couldn't give me back any reading of note. Tohsaka and the Kireis were nowhere to be found given our limited means. I looked upon the Grail and thumbed the Mauser's hammer until it clicked sharply and the trigger was reset.

I felt a faint heat at the base of my skull and stopped. I turned around; Saber's sword point was pressed into same spot on Forneus ever so gently.

"Relax," I said, "I just want to look for the Tohsakas."

"I'll keep my sword here nonetheless."

I dry-fired the automatic into my ear, and summoned one who was most fit for the task: Pazuzu. He was of two meters or so, he bore the body of man, a head of a lion, blue eyes, white mane and white crest, while his wings spanned greatly and beat with a fierce gale.

He dropped into the mud and the mud had no effects on him. He searched about. His keen blue eyes sharply pierce through the thick black barrier and his paws shot forth into the mud and out from it came father Risei in his fist. The priest's face held the color of the coldness of death but there was warmth in him yet. His skin looked dried as though he had been tanned under the white hot desert sun. His hair came loose from his scalp and the shape of his skull was almost to be made.

"The overseer," said Saber. "So it was rigged from the very source."

Pazuzu carried father Risei in one fist and began searching for the other three. He thrust a hand into the mud once more and hooked out a man in red with cold sickly skin and a dark wet patch about the stomach. Tohsaka had seen better days. Another thrust of the hand and out came the tall young priest. One half of Father Kirei's face was torn off at the jaw, his tongue lolling out – what was left of it anyway. Pazuzu felt a ripple near the Grail, at its right. Something rose from it then. Black as the mud as if it had taken full of its essence and became one with the dark. White skin showed through while it was rising. Then the mud ran down the thing and more of it was revealed. A spiky head of hair, tired eyes, black suits, and an angular black gat with a helical mag mounted to the rear and a break-action pistol.

His eyes must had needed a moment to adjust to the dark for he took too long to hold me behind the barrel of the black gun. I returned his courtesy with my Mauser.

"Kiritsugu," Saber said. "Are you all right?"

The Magus Killer didn't respond. We stood there for a long time.

The barrel of his black gun upturned and pointed rightward. I returned his courtesy.

"I shot you this morning."

"I got better."

"I should've shot twice."

"Wouldn't make a different."

"Irisviel…"

I said nothing.

He gritted teeth and sucked a sharp breath through them and breathed out steadily. "It wouldn't've made a different… nothing could. Going back no matter when this is where it ends. It all leads to here. Nothing could've been done."

His eyes were distant and his mind was at another place and I could kill him easily.

"What is your wish?"

"Hmm?"

"You're the only one I've yet to know."

"Now's not the time for wishes… that thing… it shall not grant any."

Saber stood upright and stepped forth just a scant before she would be dropping off of Forneus. "So this mud…"

"Sorry, my King of Knights. But it seems we both have been made fools."

"It couldn't be-! You don't-"

She dropped on one knee and held her head down.

"Kiritsugu, don't tell me that-"

"What else can I tell you?" he said. "Would I lie to you now, you whom is dear to Irisviel?"

Saber snapped to him with tears scintillating in her eyes. "Dear to… mmm…" she said to herself, not entirely satisfied with the words.

Emiya turned to me. "Yuki, is it? If you can forgive this morning's transgression, then I would like to propose we do away with the Grail and end the Heaven's Feel."

I smiled. "You don't trust me that easily."

"I don't, but if you're a reasonable man then it's clear to you that we have bigger concerns."

"Sure, what's the plan?"

"Do you trust me?"

"I trust you as much as I have to."

"So do I. Here's the idea: Saber has a Noble Phantasm powerful enough to destroy entire armies, and that's a problem in this tight space, even if she restrains herself, the structure of the cavern would still be damaged enough to make tombs for us. I don't mind that at all, but somebody else does, and I would like it very much to get back to her. So, we'll get out of here first, then she'll do the rest."

"What about Saber?"

Emiya's shoulders dropped as a heavy sigh came out of his lungs. "She couldn't make it in without being devoured by the mud without you, and surely she couldn't make it out without your aid as well, so if it's not too much trouble…"

"I have a heart," I reassured.

Emiya grinned with little mirth. "Saber, did you get all that?"

She was transfixed by the red gold of the Grail. Desire and hope and radiant joy winked like stars in her jade eyes. She snuffed them out. Her hands throttled her windsword's grip tightly and the gale sang like banshees. "Got it…"

"Shall we?" asked Emiya.

"I'll stay behind, you go with Saber to the entrance of the cavern."

"Hmm…"

"Don't assume me to be a sort of Judas."

"Too many unknowns… it seems that I have to put my faith in you."

"I don't like that either."

"But it's a must…"

We stood there for a minute, reading the tempo of each other's breathing. Then he said: "How slippery is the hide on that stingray?"

"He'll make it steady, don't worry about falling off."

"Hmm…"

Emiya turned and went to Saber and Forneus. He placed a hand on the demon's hide and have a quick feel of it before putting both hands on its body and climbed aboard. He turned around we looked at each other with eyes that spoke nothing of meaning and we see each other off as Forneus banked around and glided forth into the darkness. Pazuzu administered Diarahan to the priests and Tohsaka and followed after them.

I took my Mauser's magazine out and cleared its chamber of a bullet and load that bullet into the magazine. I pocketed the magazine and stood looking at the Grail. Was it holy or unholy? It was made by magi from some part of Germany for the purpose of reaching the Root in order to bring about some kind of utopia – Heaven on earth. Will its artificial nature grant it holiness? Would then its corruption by the Servant Angra Mainyu made it so that it's vulnerable to holiness? Well, one spell should bypass all that concerns, but my mind was weary and the vein in my temples beat so fiercely that it threatened to burst and mask my face with blood.

I stood in wait for my spiritual powers to recover. I stood just staring at the red-gold body of the chalice. Red mist seeped from it. Then the gold of its body was veined red slowly from the rim towards the base. I pressed the Mauser-barrel against my skull and stood waiting. I thought about how I would get out of here. I thought about the consequences of unleashing such a violent anihilating force upon a magic artifact such this. I thought about my years in this city.

Four years ago, without anything to my name I woke up in an alley, cold and wet with rain. How and why I know not, just that I had to live to find out. I did what I could to earn money, helping with constructions, standing around looking tough at a place or two, here, there, all over. There wasn't really a prospect of me having any higher paying job, I was stuck at where I was and that didn't bother me even a little. I just needed to find out why I was here in Fuyuki City. Eventually I got to be working with this family I'm in, I was just an associate at first, being their club's bouncer. Enough time passed for them to take a liking towards me, enough time passed for me to somehow finding the idea of joining a gokudo family to sound agreeable. Time is enough for everything I suppose. It was a sort of wild dream from then on. Fights would start for perceived slight, money, girls and business establishment. Some juvenile part of me find enjoyment out of all the violence, but day to day life never felt fulfilling. Serve drinks at noon, stand security at night, sometimes there would be excitement in the mix but…

All of that got me to stand in front of the Corrupted Grail. This was what my second life was all for.

I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply. If the cavern were to collapse upon me after the spell… then what differences would that make? I did what I was called for. When Pazuzu had got out and placed the two priests and Tohsaka at the temple and Forneus had gotten both Emiya and Saber to the entrance, I squeezed the trigger.

From my heart out came winking wisps of burning stars that were the powers of Helel and Satan. They coiled about my body and became as one in my heart once more. A bright light burst out white and hot. Sounds of thunder rumbled in the dark cavern, quaking the stalactites and stalagmites, white-blue hellfire burst underneath the Grail and from above many jets of lightning struck its body fiercely, scarring the gold black. The fire and lightning grew in intensity. It was like watching a star forming and as it grew stronger and stronger it turned into a supernova and burst deafeningly in that small dark cavern.

The black sludge around me seemed to have come into a life of its own. Something tripped me over and dragged me into the black mass and I dove head first into the outer dark.

There were weeping and gnashing of teeth. Multitudes of wailing and cries sounded incessantly in that utter dark. The maws of Sheol had engulfed me whole and I was in a stasis to receive and join in the chorus of the damned. Something was familiar to me in all that blackness. I felt it all before and it was somehow reassuring to know that it was so. Death was comfortable. Damnation was all right, sans the banshees. How I got out four years ago was through no feat of my own and this time it would be no different. I floated in wait through the dark, or it seemed like it to me.

Like the cries of the cicadas, the wailings too had become all too familiar. You just had to accept it. You're dead, there's nothing you can do about it. What would all the crying and weeping do? You're exactly where you're supposed to be and nobody can get you out of it.

A star winked in all that dark and brighter and brighter it grew. Until it grew so big that the ever encompassing blackness was done away by a pure alabaster white light.

It was all quiet. From all sides of me I could see nothing but the bleached-white space. Where had all the other dead went? Were the weeping purely my imagination? Or were they the Grail's?

"You're an odd one aren't you?" a familiar voice echoed across the white space and I spun around to search for its source and stopped at her: Irisviel von Einzbern.

She regarded me without animosity or open contempt. She regarded me with barely anything in her eyes or the expression of her face. She smiled at me with a smile that meant nothing and had nothing.

"Where are you from exactly? I know you're not from here, that is very clear. But I can't tell exactly where, so… where are you from, Yuki Makoto?"

"Faraway."

Her head tilted to the side curiously. "That doesn't help you any."

I smiled.

"Your heart's a thing of bastards isn't it?"

I kept the smile.

"Why do you want me dead?"

My smile turned into a grin.

"What have I ever done to you?" she put hands on her heart and spoke with false-hurt and amateurish theatrical expression of pain. "Don't you think I suffered enough? Bearing the souls of six Servants… is a painful thing to do. Especially when they hate you so for what happens to them in the end but… they won't remember it, they never do. They're just vessels, limited, restrained vessels of the real heroes."

"They're human enough."

"Yes… human enough. Aren't I the same? Don't I deserve to be born?"

"Killing you would be right."

"Why? Will that satisfy your self-righteousness? Will it make you feel better about your own crimes if you were to kill me? Will it make up for all those four years?"

"It won't. Your life is not enough, no… this war shouldn't've even existed in the first place. But it does. And killing you is one way to stop it."

"Did you kill me? Did you? I am still here. Though the body that all my energy has poured into is gone, I am still here. You have shattered the container, and that is all that you did."

"Armageddon…"

"Is that what it's called? Funny."

"Total annihilation… Nothing left."

"Of the vessel."

I smiled. "Of the vessel."

She smiled at me, and tilted her head and examine me. "I don't know what to make of you. Your heart belongs to bastards, it truly does. And yet you do all this… for what?"

"Even a wretch has pride."

"I suppose I am the same way."

We stood close together and yet, there was a canyon of distance between us, neither could reach the other. Angra Mainyu. Spirit of evil…

"Angra Mainyu…"

"Hmm?"

"If you're a Servant, there's history behind you."

"You like asking for motives don't you? Do you need them before killing somebody? Your track records says that you do."

"How did you become like this?"

"No games, straight to point, some girls prefer a more roundabout way, Yuki-kun."

"To hell with that."

"No fun, Yuki-kun. No fun at all."

I breathed out heavily, or thought that I did in this space. In reality, I was engulfed by the black mud. I charged the Mauser and pressed the barrel against her forehead. She was still smiling, not surprised at all.

"Are you just going to shoot me and nothing else?"

"I'm dead and I'm tired, let me die in peace."

I squeezed the trigger and the back of her head burst in a pink mist. She fell head first to the ground heavily and I was all alone in that space. The darkness began to advanced and swallowed me whole. If I die here then what would happen? Would my soul pass over or will this thing get a hold of it? Nothing I could do now.

...master… A voice sounded faintly, like worms squirming in my ears, subtle and hard to grasp … be one… be one with the light!

Forneus…

I banished the demon from my heart and took in the aspects of the better angels inside me. A warm glow draped over me from behind and in a flash I was swallowed by an ever consuming holy light that did away with all the blackness surrounding me. Saber's fist hoisted me up as though I was the lightest thing ever and I landed on ray skin and I held onto whatever I could to keep myself from falling off of Forneus' as he flew with great urgency.

The cavern was collapsing, its structure weakened by Saber's Noble Phantasm. Our surroundings rumbled, stalactites shook threateningly and shot down heavily. Forneus couldn't maneuver very well with Saber and I on his back to dodge any of the falling rocks and so Saber took it to herself to swat off any of crushing boulders and stalactites.

"What happened?" she yelled as she shattered a falling boulder.

"I destroyed the Lesser Grail, is what happened."

"I thought… we agreed that it would be me that will do it."

"And leave you to die?"

"I'm a Servant. If I were to die… it wouldn't matter, not at this stage of the war… not anymore."

"Of course it matters. You will still experience all the pain that accompanies death."

"I'm ready for it."

"So do I."

She straightened herself and sighed. "You're stubborn, Yuki Makoto."

Glittering gold rose off of her body and her armor glowed resplendently. She stood straight and proud, looking ahead as we got nearer to the cavern mouth. She turned to me as she was fading away and said:

"Farewell, Yuki. Though I never got to know you, I was honored to have fought alongside you. If the fates ever saw it fit for us to meet again, make sure to keep a muzzle on your demons and never to invite me to step on one again."

I smiled at that and stood up and outstretched my hand towards her. She took the offer. As we went, I could feel her hand began to lighten and what my hand was holding began to feel like just air, like I was phasing through warm light.

"I never got to know your name."

"Isn't it obvious?"

"No. I'm dumb that away."

She snorted a chuckle, put a hand to her mouth, smiled and shook her head. "Sorry, that's unbecoming of a king." She straightened herself and smiled brightly. "Artoria. My name is Artoria."

"Nice to meet you."

"Mmm."

"Nice to meet you and… goodbye."

"Goodbye…"

The cavern collapsed behind us and the falling boulders and stalactites sealed the cavern mouth while Saber and I crouched down to keep our balance as we flew out of the cavern. I held onto her instinctively, just to have something to grasp onto so as not to fall. The gold dust that rose off her grew to be in the multitudes, the wind carried them far above to join the burning clusters of stars. My hand suddenly phase through her as her form dimmed and then she smiled at me one last time before disappearing.

Forneus and I made for the temple.

Four men lie about, in various states of bodily well-being. I summoned Angel to deal with the wounded and help with whatever that she could. I landed and walked towards Emiya.

"I felt a tremble."

"Hmm."

"Saber couldn't have had gotten to you that fast."

"Yeah."

"How?"

"Does it matter now?"

"I guess not," he produced a pack of cigarette from his coat's inner pocket, tapped the butt of it twice and took out a cigarette and put it between his lips and lit it up. "I guess this is it."

"Yeah," I turned away from him and walked.

"Cigarette?"

"I don't smoke," I kept walking and never looked back, it was all over.

For hours I walked by myself in the cold winter night, never stopping for anything even the fatigue in my calves and ankles. The burns around my body kept me awake, along with the wretched smell of death and stale sweat and melted polyester. I stopped somewhere at an intersection, spotted a motel and went for it. The boy at reception saw me and went back to his manga, I asked for a room and he pretended I was a normal customer and got me a room at the third floor. I took an elevator up, walked down the hall and stopped where the number of the tag on my key matched the door number and I slotted the key in and opened the door and got in and closed the door and lock it shut. I took a shower and then turned off all the lights and then lie on the soft warm bed. I couldn't sleep and so I just stared at the ceiling for a while despite how tired I felt earlier. The darkness began grow from where my eyes focused. Faint wailings and cries squirmed in the back of my mind, something in the dark crawled out and reached for me. I closed my eyes and turned to my left and slept.

Morning found me breakfasting at a café nearby, I was on my fifth cup of coffee. Coffee helps with hangovers. You could have hangovers from just about anything, I had mine from all the fighting. The news was speaking something about a strange weather phenomenon the night before that was reported by many people of Miyama Town. A sudden lightning storm that struck fiercely and then left, how strange. Then it was about the minor destruction of the Temple's ground and then the collapse of Ryuudou Cavern. I finished my coffee and up and left.

My feet took me to a clothing store, where I bought and appareled myself in fresh clean clothes and then I made off towards Shinto city. Life moved on, same as it ever was.

Chapter 13: Do Svidanya

I was having a bowl of ramen at a small stand in the market street with a junior of mine. Across the street from where we were at were two other of our guys checking out a toy store for their wife and kids. Each of us were armed with bamboo short-swords. Usually a beat down would require more than just four guys to enact but coordinating an escape with five or eight people meant that at least a couple of us would get caught so I opted to only bring three with me. Two were my senpai, and I thought my kohai needed the training.

A band of seven men walked down the market street led by a man in crisp white suits wearing sunglasses. A gaudy sort of affair straight out the seventies. Old-fashioned for some but us gokudo were always behind the time so I'd say he was dressed appropriate for the era he was in.

There was a nightclub that my captain was interested in. It wasn't anything special but it would for sure increase his earnings. He was late though, for some out-of-towners had beaten him to the punch and purchased the place. Any other time it would've been all right. But the club was in our area and they came unannounced. What else should we take it as other than a declaration of war?

The seven men came into our ambush. I bounded off my seat and cracked the hard bamboo sword against one of the soldier's kneecap and he fell and screamed until his lungs were empty and all he could do was to gurgle wetly in his throat.

The rest of them turned to me with wide-eyed looks. I lashed a blow across another's chin and he stumbled to the side and tripped and stayed on the ground.

"What the-?" the underboss let out in surprise. My senpais and kohai were none the better and had gotten a moment too long for them to rush out with bamboo swords in hand. A bedlam of pained cries and dry cracks and dry snapping of bones sounded in our little fight. Somebody's skull cracked and he fell and screamed and rolled around. Another's forearm was broken and he fell and stumbled away and ran. Some didn't give much of a fight at all and had yielded to the beatings or had ran away. We gave it hard to the underboss. We cracked our swords upon his ribs until one of us felt them yielded and said dumbly: "I think we might've broken his ribs."

We flee the scene quickly, leaving the beaten men half-conscious, half-alive and dove into a car that had finished a lap around one block and then was driven east towards the many abandoned buildings. We wiped down our weapons and disposed of them and switched cars and headed west towards Miyama.

We walked around Miyama district like a band of merry men looking for a night of fun. We hit a bar and drank a few and swapped stories with some and I declared "Drinks are on me!" for everybody to hear. The people cheered and went on. We stayed there for an hour. I wanted to play billiard so I invited my kohai along and we played eightball. I hit stripes and he hit solids. From the mounted speakers on the walls were the vocals of Claudia Mori.

We hit the streets late in the night and there were barely any taxi to be seen. We walked as a band of idiots through Miyama Town and crossed the bridge singing the national anthem. Over at Shinto, we caught a cab at last and boarded it. First destination was for my two senpais. They lived pretty close to each other so it wasn't a problem. One with his wife and the other with a girl. Second destination was my kohai's. I went with him to his house and was driven away by his mom as she bolted out of the door hysterically, cursing me and yelling obscene things about how much of bad influence I was on her son. I couldn't argue with any of it.

I ran out of money for the cab so I decided to walk towards my apartment instead. It took a while but there was little trouble in my way. I picked up a letter that was said to have arrived earlier this afternoon and placed it on my bed and I took off my jacket and trousers and opened the window and looked outside to the city. I got to my bed and picked up the gun underneath my pillow. It was Colt .38 Super Match. I sat by the edge of the bed and took out the magazine and placed it by my hip. I pulled the slide to the rear and pushed the slide-catcher up. I looked into the chamber and down the barrel and into the floor. I loaded the magazine and unlatch the slide and walked to the window.

Something moved in the shadow in an alley. I aligned my irons straight down at it and look into the dark. I stood there for a long time. I pressed down the hammer with a thumb and pulled the trigger just by a little and pushed the hammer up all the way and released the trigger. I closed the window and replaced my gun underneath my pillow and opened the letter and read it and discarded it into a waste bin at the foot of the bed and turned off all the lights and then slept.

I went to Miyama by morning after breakfast and three cups of coffee. Headed south and then westward, reaching the park. It was a sunny sort of summer that day, the wind was cool and refreshing, the park was packed and lively and filled with cheers. Tohsaka Tokiomi was sitting on a wheelchair next to a bench, watching peacefully ahead. I followed his gaze towards a woman and two girls. I recognized one as Tohsaka Sakura. She seemed to be better, but… better doesn't mean anything. I walked to Tokiomi and stood by his side and joined him.

"You got my letter."

"It's why I'm here."

"Sit, why don't you?" he gestured to the bench beside him.

I sat on the bench. "What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

Tokiomi smiled somberly and looked down and away, he breathed in and sighed heavily and gazed at his family and then was back to me. "Risei died."

"Ah."

"The mud affected him the most. Two months ago. And Kirei… he wouldn't make it as well. I have no one else to turn to for this."

I sat hunched forward, rubbing my fingertips together.

"My daughters, both Rin and Sakura are gifted and holds great promises in magecraft. You… you know what this means if they were to left without protectors, right?"

I know exactly what he meant. "Hmm."

"So… I don't even know if I should be asking this of you. Not only on the account of what I—"

I raised a hand and something of a smile rose on my lips to say something of the sort like 'It's okay.'

"I probably don't have the right to it," he said. "It would be hard on you. Especially since the Magus Association is now also interested in you. I don't know if you know it, but they have sent scouts already to look you over. God knows what they'll do next."

"I can handle them."

"That's reassuring to hear, but…" he looked to his daughters and his wife and sighed heavily in defeat.

"How much time do you got left?"

"A month… maybe, maybe not even that."

"I'll be around. For your family."

He smiled painfully. "Thank you."

"It's only right."

We sat there for a moment together and said nothing, just enjoying the day. I stood up and wiped my hands on my trouser's legs and offered a hand. He accepted and we shook on it.

"See you," I said.

"Mmm, farewell... and, God be with you."