Melancholy of One (A Grail Works. LTD. Story)

[pureauthor]

Yay!

. . . Seriously, however - finally had a chance to catch up on the last couple of chapters, and I'm still enjoying it immensely. There is one change in the Works you should be aware of, however: the base has a proper name, now. Officially, they're housed in Avalon Castle, on Phantasmagoria Island.

Good to know! I'll keep that in mind.

Ilya: (Wait a minute. I made this place; why is it named after one of Saber's Noble Phantasms?)

Glad you're back, dude, and for real about it.

Yep. Now to continue working to live up to everyone's expectations.

Oho! It looks like I returned to the board at the right moment! Time to read!

Post-reading: And I see you are still doing that whole "Evil cliffhanger of doom" thing! This has been the first TM related fic I've enjoyed in years (mainly because I burned myself so I have to read other things, coupled with RL fucking things up), so I forgive you, but damn you and your cliffhangers!! Now I want more!!!

After rereading my work I've come to the conclusion that it's less that I like ending on cliffhangers and more that 80% of my story involves bad things happening to the protagonists, and so the law of averages demands chapters still end where bad things happen.

Good new chapter... and in what trap has Kotomine sent Arcueid?

Well he has no real reason to oppose Arcueid right now... or at least, none that we know of.

[MWkillkenny84]

Well he has no real reason to oppose Arcueid right now... or at least, none that we know of.

It's a virtual representation of Kirei "I kill others because their suffering make me feel happy" Kotomine, made by a literally alien, planetoid-spanning supercomputer with limited reality warping powers. Do I need to have reasons to suspect problems?

[Kieran]

Ilya: (Wait a minute. I made this place; why is it named after one of Saber's Noble Phantasms?)

Because the island is semi-literally "within the shadow of Avalon" - Avalon having been invoked as part of its creation and defences.

[Aodyssey]

Hallelujah, it's alive! It's alivvvvvvvvvvve!

[pureauthor]

Chapter 60: Ca/Re/ckless

*~*

SMT4 Apocalypse release took up a lot of free time. Oh well!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

*~*

Kara darted forward, using the superior reach of her weapon to strike out at Rider first. Rider's parried the blow with his own shorter blade, blocking the strike and preventing her from drawing blood.

Then it was his turn to strike and as he brought his blade down in a swift one-handed slice, Kara steadied herself to withstand the blow. There was a shriek of metal against metal, and she jumped back, putting more distance between herself and Rider.

He's strong, but... nowhere near as brutal as Lady Arcueid as a Berserker, or Lancer. Steadying her stance, she charged forward, making a series of sweeping slashes and stabs against Rider, trying to test his defences. I suppose that's to be expected. This isn't his preferred fighting style, after all.

Rider bore the brunt of the assault calmly, blocking the rapid attacks and giving no ground. And then, with a wide swing, he knocked Kara back. She was able to turn the momentum of it into a leap and she landed in a battle-ready stance, but it was still clear that he had the advantage in terms of direct combat.

Well, what else is new. She'd already accepted that all of the remaining Servants should have vastly outstripped her in combat abilities. After all, she wasn't a true Heroic Spirit of any sort.

“Come now, Saber!” Rider's voice boomed across the Arena. “Surely this can't be all you have to offer! Show me some of the strength you had that led you through so many weeks of the War!”

Refusing to rise to the bait, Kara levelled her blade and gazed evenly at him. “Speak for yourself, o king. Do you not feel confined, being unable to draw upon your greatest weapons for this battle?”

A slow grin spread across Rider's face, and Kara felt a twinge in her stomach.

“Indeed,” he nodded once, and took a single step back. “Well, I don't supposed we've got that much time left, so – let's make this one count!”

What is he - Kara felt a surge of power gathering at Rider's location, and she realized what he was about to do just as he slashed down through the air, cutting a chasm in reality itself. From the shining maw, Rider's chariot shimmered into existence, lightning crackling in it's wake.

It was but a split second before he had leapt into the driver's position, and yet another before he was charging at her at a speed that left her barely any time to realize what was happening, yet alone react to it.

Her first instinct was to jump out of the way, but her second instinct was to realize that standing several paces behind her was –

Master!

She hadn't pegged Rider as the sort to deliberately target the Master over the Servant, but if he wasn't able to come to a halt in time, then -

Time seemed to slow down as she moved forward. It would have been pointless simply to stand her ground. The momentum of the chariot would have simply bowled her over and sent her flying.

That left going on the offense. But of course, the chariot was most likely Rider's Noble Phantasm. A direct assault without a Noble Phantasm of equivalent power – which she did not possess – would likely end with the attack bouncing off it and her bouncing off it the next second as well.

Well, no one ever said it had to be a direct assault...

As the chariot neared, Kara lunged to the side and towards the ground. Twisting her body as she moved, she rammed the blade as strongly as she could into the right wheel of Rider's chariot.

There was a brief snapping sound amidst a louder crash and Kara was briefly aware of the world spinning around her – and then the thud of impact, from seemingly far away. Abruptly she became aware that she was now lying on the ground, staring up at the digital sky of the Arena.

“Saber!” she heard her Master's shocked cry and tried to will herself to sit up. When that didn't work, she shifted and tried to use her arms to prop herself up, dragging herself into a sitting position.

It took her a second to realize her right arm wasn't moving very much, and another second for the pain of the broken arm to hit her.

She risked a quick glance down at her arm – the forearm was twisted and bent at an unnatural angle, with a knob of bone poking out through torn flesh, and there was also a dull, grinding pain through her shoulder.

Broken arm AND dislocated shoulder... All of a sudden a wave of dizziness passed over her and Kara decided against trying to pull herself back up. She'd expected the force of Rider's chariot to be strong, but she'd still clearly underestimated him.

I must look... a sorry sight.

Still, she'd succeeded in her initial task. Summoning the effort to turn her head to the side, she was rewarded with the view of Rider's chariot rammed into the wall of the Arena and the Servant hopping down lightly from his seat.

He lifted his gaze to look at her, and for the first time since she'd met him, Kara saw a pensive expression on the king's face.

COMBAT TERMINATED

She managed a tiny smile which quickly dissolved into a pained grimace as the pain flared in intensity yet again.

“... Saber...” she could see Hakuno standing several paces behind Rider, looking unsure as to how to react to the scene before her.

“Master, we should be off,” taking several steps over to her, Rider laid a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her stunned state.

“Yes, right,” gathering herself, Hakuno turned and began to walk away, pausing only to give one last look over her shoulder at the two of them before departing.

“Saber!” the next moment her Master was at her side, already crushing and ether crystal to help soothe her wounds. “What were you thinking?”

“Had to disrupt his chariot,” speaking too much made the right side of her chest hurt, and after a brief glance to ensure that Hakuno and Rider had disappeared, she shed the guise of Saber, feeling some blessed relief as the pain faded away from her immaterial body. She'd still need to get that healed properly later, but for now... “And I knew the 30 seconds for the fight were almost up, so he wouldn't have time for a follow up attack even if he wanted to.”

“... And that's why you thought it was okay for you to get yourself hurt like that?”

“I had to, Master. Otherwise you might have been hurt. I had to take the risk,” pulling herself to her feet, Kara looked her Master in the eye. “I can afford to take the risk.”

He didn't reply for a moment, and Kara almost smiled.

She still didn't know all that much about her Master, but she could tell that he was simply upset that she had gotten hurt on his behalf. But of course he had no good arguments to the fact that she was supposed to get hurt on his behalf.”

“Come on, Master,” she said, her voice low. “We'd had a long day. We should head back.”

After a moment, Shiki nodded and the two of them turned to leave the Arena.

*~*

Moon Cell, Digital Tsukumihara Academy, Commissary

King Arthur had settled herself on a chair, keeping a silent watch on her Master as she watched him eat.

Eating was not necessary for her, of course. She could do it for leisure or when the occasion struck, but given the quality of the food offered here at the Commissary... really, why bother?

Leonard himself seemed far more appreciative of the food – or at least he'd never complained about it over the weeks she had spent with him.

She'd have assumed that as a king, he would be used to far better dishes than what could be found in here, but then again. She was hardly one to talk.

Continuing this line of thought seemed rather unproductive to her, and so she instead she focused on the nature of her enemy Servant for the week.

An Assassin-class Servant. A being clothed in red cloth and wielding a knife.

How did he know her? She'd dug through the entirety of her memory trying to recall someone she'd known in her life who bore any resemblance to that man, and thus far she'd come up a blank.

If she was going to be entirely honest about it, it was irritating her.

Not only that she didn't know him despite his dislike of her apparently being a personal one – mostly it served to remind her of her mistakes made by ruling, and the number of enemies she had managed to make, almost by accident.

Against that... well, what was one more person's enmity added to the very large pile of it?

She supposed that if she were to ask Leonard about it, he would reply that making enemies was a natural consequence of being a king and leave it at that. She could understand the intellectual argument of it – people were different, and people would disagree, often times violently, over what was 'good' or not.

In those cases, she'd let things be and simply work all the harder at her goals. Let the results speak for themselves. After all, that was the best way to silence dissent, wasn't it? Not to get bogged down in trying to placate everyone, but simply to show that her way – if not the only right one – was one that achieved what they desired.

Well, we see where that got me.

Some things had no easy answer, no way to leave everyone happy.

She knew that.

But she didn't want to accept it.

Perhaps that was the real reason why she was serving Leonard now.

She snuck a glance at him as he finished the last of his food.

He was still so very young.

Then again, so was I, when I drew the sword from the stone.

A lifetime and an eternity ago.

“Shall we, King Arthur?” Leonard said as he stood from the table.

“Very well,” with a nob, Saber stood to follow after him.

*~*

Moon Cell, Digital Tsukumihara Academy, Chapel

Shiki pushed the doors open, stepping into the darkened interior of the Chapel.

“Welcome to the Chapel,” Aoko smiled as she looked up and caught sight of Shiki. “Hold on a minute, all right? I'm still helping someone else with an Alteration.”

“It's fine, Sensei,” Shiki said as he glanced around the chamber. It was only then that he caught sight of the other person sitting on the pew, head slumped forward in deep though.

“Hello,” he said as he walked over to Marie.

She looked up and gazed evenly at him for several seconds. “You're Tohno, yeah?”

“Yes. And you'd be Marie?”

A pause, and then a slight nod. “So. What do you want?”

“Oh... nothing much, really. I just wanted to say hello.”

“Is that so?” Marie was silent for a long moment. “Well, in that case.”

She folded her arms and looked away, clearly not interested in talking any further.

“Ah, Ms. Marie,” Aoko called out at that moment. “The Alteration is done.”

Marie nodded once and signalled with her hands, clearly telling her Servant to follow after her.

Shiki watched as Marie stood and left the Chapel without glancing behind.

“... Not the friendliest individual,” he said after a moment.

“No, she isn't,” Kara agreed from his side. She was still immaterial, in a bid to prevent the wounds she had sustained earlier from slowing her down too much. “She seemed rather irritated for some reason, though. I do have to wonder why.”

Casting one more lingering gaze at the doorway, Shiki headed towards where Aoko was sitting.

*~*

“You're worried about something.” Hakuno said as she settled back into the chair of her room,

Rider did not reply immediately, choosing to focus instead on the video game he had been playing all evening. Hakuno wasn't even exactly sure where he'd managed to scrounge up a working console and television set from, but she wasn't going to complain about having the ability to enjoy themselves.

Today though, she could tell that Rider was distracted, if only because he was losing a lot more than usual.

“... It's about Saber, isn't it?”

At that, Rider did stop and put the controller down.

“Something is off about that Servant,” was all he said.

“Yes, that's true...” Hakuno took a deep breath. “We've already met a few Servants and... well, I just find the way they behaved very odd.”

“Her business should be her own.”

“We should be trying to find out more about her though,” Hakuno said as she stood. “I mean, she's definitely not who we pegged her to be at first glance.”

At that, Rider did lay down the controller and folded his arms.

“It's true,” he said after a long moment. “She's definitely not an Emperor of Rome, whoever she may be.”

“All right then. We've only one day left, but we should still be able to find out something useful.”

“Yes, but that can wait,” Rider shot her a pointed look and a smile. “Come on, Master. You've spent the whole night sitting there pondering. Surely you've time for a round or two before we retire for the night!”

“I don't know why you keep asking me to play with you,” Hakuno said. Nonetheless, she stepped forward and grabbed the second controller for herself. “I've told you I'm terrible at this sort of thing.”

“Come now. Nobody says you need to win to have fun!”

“I suppose not,” Hakuno conceded.

As the night wore on, Master and Servant sat together in the room, illuminated by the flickering light of the television screen.

*~*

Chapter End

*~*

Thanks for reading. Comments and advice are most welcome!

[Xamusel]

Ooh, an update on my birthday, huh? Well, I know it wasn't intended, but still... thanks for the gift!

[pureauthor]

Chapter 61: Forgott/En/emies

Disclaimer: I own nothing

*~*

Moon Cell, Digital Tsukumihara Academy, Commissary

“Praetor?”

“Hm? What is it, Saber?”

“I noticed you haven't eaten much of your food. Is something the matter?”

Shiki glanced down at the plate of food on his table, consisting of rice, beans, and some meat he could not for the life of him identify. Most of it was untouched. And that wasn't really because of how bland it tasted either.

“I'm a little worried,” he said as he jabbed his fork at another unidentifiable black lump and popped it into his mouth. Pausing for a moment to chew thoughtfully, he swallowed. “Arcueid hasn't been back at all recently.”

“Oh yes... I'd noticed,” Kara nodded before taking a sip of her drink. “But didn't you say Miss Arcueid was always a flighty one?”

“Yeah, I guess... but as far as I can tell she hasn't been back to the room at all since she left a couple of days ago,” he sighed and rubbed his forehead. “I guess I'm just worrying over nothing in the end, but still, it's not like I can just stop.”

“I see,” Kara cupped her chin thoughtfully for a moment. “Well, whatever else has happened to Miss Arcueid, she is still alive at least. That much I know.”

“You do?”

“Indeed. Have I not told you before, Praetor?” Kara placed a hand over her heart. “I... my relationship with dying... if someone within this world dies, I will always know. Even if I do not know that person... even if I had never met them before. Upon their death, they become a part of me, no matter how small.”

“Then, you mean, all throughout the War...”

“Yes,” Kara nodded once. “Not just this War, but all the Holy Grail Wars held within the Moon Cell. It is... well, I would be lying if I said it was pleasant. But it is what it is.”

There was a silence for several long seconds as Kara picked up her cup and took a slow drink.

“It is what it is,” she repeated softly.

*~*

Moon Cell, ???

“You are still wounded.”

Arcueid didn't bother to reply as she pulled herself to her feet. Instead, she made use of the time to glance around the area, checking for any other potential threats and trying to ignore the pain in her abdomen.

None appeared forthcoming, and so she turned her attention back to the person who had addressed her.

To the naked eye the person might have come across as an ordinary human – perhaps one with surprisingly pale skin. The one element that truly marked her as out of the ordinary was her eyes – shining a brilliant red in the gloom of the digital arena.

But of course, ordinary humans wouldn't come here.

And Arcueid could tell that this person – whoever she was – was dangerous. Immensely so.

A smile played across the person's thin lips, as if she knew what Arcueid was thinking.

“You appear surprised to see me here,” her voice was calm, and as she spoke, she shifted her gaze to stare at the datascape around her – as well as the tear in reality that had earlier caught Arcueid by surprise. “Yet you knew to wait at this spot. Someone else has been keeping track of my movements, then?”

“What are you talking about?”

There was no immediate reply, and Arcueid shifted her weight, trying to gauge how she'd fare if worst came to worst.

Probably not very well, she decided. She was wounded, the person in front of her was not. She didn't know anything about her adversary, but the way she carried herself made it clear that she was familiar with Arcueid.

...In fact, she felt all too familiar...

Arcueid's crimson eyes narrowed as she stared into her opponent's own.

“You,” her voice was low now, trembling with barely contained rage. “You were the one who brought me here.”

“I will not deny it,” the woman said, the barest hint of a smile coming across her face. “You have been seeking me out, have you not, True Ancestor?”

A brief moment of silence – and then Arcueid lashed out, sharpened claws tearing through the air where the woman had been a moment ago.

“Peace,” a quiet sigh. “A bout now will not avail either of us. I will admit that I have wronged you, True Ancestor. But I will not apologize.”

“...” Arcueid crouched low, preparing to lunge forward and strike again. But the woman had already started to turn away, and she knew on an instinctual level that she would not be able to catch the woman before she left.

“I have already tarried too long,” she said. “I merely came to stop those who would try to disrupt the workings of the War.”

“Wait,” Arcueid's eyes narrowed. “You're a part of the Grail War?”

“Oh, did you not realize?” the woman paused for a long while. “Well, now you know. If you seek redress, True Ancestor, then you may find me at the end of the long road.”

And with a brief flash of light, the woman was gone.

*~*

Moon Cell, 6th Chimeric Lunar Sea, 2nd Level

“...” Midstep through the Arena, Marie drew to a halt and paused. She craned her neck, as if trying to peer into the gloom beyond the confines of the digital walls. Her eyes narrowed and she chewed absentmindedly at her lip for a second.

Assassin shifted his gaze to her briefly, the only indication that he had noticed her distress.

He didn't say anything, of course. Her Servant never spoke up beyond discussing combat tactics and plans, and always in terse phrases at that. Even if he cared about her momentary distress, he wouldn't speak up about it.

It was fine. She wasn't in this to make friends. At most she could wonder why this particular Servant was chosen to fight alongside her, but he did his work well enough, so she wasn't complaining.

Still, she didn't mind needling him sometimes. And sometimes, they needed to discuss plans and actions. And so, shoving the thought about her discomfort away for the minute, she increased her pace to keep up with her Servant.

“You come up with a plan to target Leonard yet, Assassin?”

“...” Assassin didn't respond immediately. She was used to this by now, and so she waited patiently as the two of them continued their exploration of the Arena.

“It'll be difficult,” Assassin finally said. “Leonard's Servant... she will likely be able to notice something is off before I can target Leonard.”

“Huh. I thought you said being able to get around those honourable knight types was supposed to be one of your specialties.”

“King Arthur is different,” Assassin's pace slowed ever so slightly. “It is precisely because she is so straightforward that it is difficult to get around her.”

“You sound like you know her personally. Met her before when you were both alive?”

Assassin was silent and Marie resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Once more, her Servant clammed up whenever he realized he was getting close to discussing his personal life.

“Well, if eliminating the Master isn't an option this round, then how well do you think you'll fare if you have to fight her for real in the Coliseum?”

“A straightforward fight...” Assassin shook his head. “Even harder. Almost impossible, I would say.”

“So you say you can't target the Master, and you don't think you can fight the Servant. You do realize you're not making a very good case for us winning this round, do you?”

Assassin's nod was barely perceptible, and just then a Homunculu charged them from the gloom.

Marie folded her arms and watched as Assassin moved to engage the guardian, and shook her head.

“... I need to find her soon,” she murmured to herself.

*~*

Chapter End

*~*

Yeah, this chapter is even shorter than normal but I kinda feel like I need it to get into the swing of things.

I should have the next update up in about a week.

[Xamusel]

Nice chance for an update, pureauthor. I wonder, though... who is the one who drew Arc into the Moon Cell?

[Kieran]

I wonder that, too - but I also wonder how the recent release of "Extella" might affect your story . . .

[pureauthor]

Nice chance for an update, pureauthor. I wonder, though... who is the one who drew Arc into the Moon Cell?

I wonder that, too - but I also wonder how the recent release of "Extella" might affect your story . . .

Well, that would be telling, wouldn't it?

And Extella most likely won't play a big role here. I'm already on the home stretch of the story as it were, and I don't think it's conducive to any big shakeups at this point.

[Kieran]

Besides, why spoil potential sequel options?

(. . . Seriously, I expect that if Shirou knew what that universe was going to be up against following its Holy Grail War, he'd be lobbying to intervene intentionally, this time.)

[ItsaRandomUsername]

Yeah, this chapter is even shorter than normal but I kinda feel like I need it to get into the swing of things.

Baby steps! Totally understandable. One must stretch out before one can actually exercise.

Anyways, Assassin's got me interdasted. Guess we'll wait and see how that character arc pans out.

[pureauthor]

Chapter Sixty Two: Ambu/Sh/adows

Decided to restart with the music links. Lemme know if there are any problems.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

*~*

Moon Cell, Digital Tsukimihara Academy, Room 3-A

As the door to his room slid open, Shiki noted with some relief that Arcueid was present in the room, staring out at the night sky. That relief was short-lived, however, as he noted that Arcueid's normally pristine white sweater was heavily scuffed and stained with what appeared her blood.

“Oh, Shiki! You're back later than I thought you'd be!” if nothing else, Arcueid appeared as cheery and unconcerned as ever.

Resisting the urge to sigh, Shiki instead pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Where have you been, Arcueid? I though something might have happened after you disappeared for two days.”

“Hm? Oh, that,” the True Ancestor sighed as she stretched. “I ran into more trouble than I thought I would. So I came back to rest up a little before I headed back out again.”

“... What happened, Arcueid?”

A pensive expression crossed Arcueid's expression for a moment before she shook her head. “I'm not too sure myself, Shiki. I need some answers myself, so... I don't want to talk about it yet.”

Shiki recognized the expression on Arcueid's face when she wasn't going to be swayed by anything and so he dropped the matter, choosing instead to walk over and place a hand on her shoulder.

“All right... but stay safe, okay?”

Arcueid's smile at him was warm. “Yeah... you too, Shiki. Your match is coming up tomorrow, right? Make sure you don't die, you hear?”

The shared smile lasted a moment and then Arcueid turned away, stretching her arms and rolling her shoulders.

“All right, I'm off! Ilya, can you give me the coordinates on the spot where you last lost contact with me?”

Shiki stood and watched as Arcueid headed out of the room, only then realizing that Kara had not followed him in.

“Kara?”

The door slid open again and Kara stumbled into the room, her face drawn and her skin pale.

“Kara, what happened?”

She shook her head and took a pained, shallow breath.

“That smell,” she said as she stumbled over to a chair and lay herself on it. “It was on Lady Arcueid again.”

Shiki turned to look back at the doorway, but before he could say anything else there was a buzzing sound and Shiki found himself looking into a familiar face.

“Greetings, Shiki,” Saber nodded and gave a brief smile of greeting. “It has been a while since we last had the chance to talk.”

“Saber!” Shiki's smiled back. “I haven't heard much from you lately.”

“I've been indisposed for a good while,” the knight shook her head once, her expression becoming serious again. “In fact it is only recently that I've had the free time to contact you about this.”

“About what?” out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kara, still obviously affected by whatever she had smelt on Arcueid, slumping her head onto a nearby desk. After a moment's hesitation, he walked over slightly, trying to be ready to offer any help she might need.

“Your opponent for the week,” Saber continued. “He's someone I fought once before. Given the circumstances, I felt that I could at least help by giving you more information about him.”

“Oh, you've fought Rider before?”

“Well, one incarnation of him, anyway. And given what I have been able to observe, there does not appear to be any substantial differences between the one I faced and the one you will face tomorrow.”

Shiki nodded thoughtfully, “Well we've encountered him in combat by now, so we know that he fights mostly from his chariot.”

“Yes, the Gordius Wheel,” Saber paused. “When he uses it as a Noble Phantasm, it's speed and power is vastly increased – even from what you saw within the Arena. Yet, that is not the only ability Rider possesses on his own.”

A frown had crossed Saber's face, as if she were considering something.

“Is there something else, Saber?”

“... Indeed there is,” Saber paused, trying to sum up her thoughts. “I cannot say for certain if Rider would use this against a single opponent, but... his greatest Noble Phantasm has nothing to do with the chariot. Rather... it is his army.”

Shiki remained silent.

“You know that Iskandar is the true name of Rider. A man famed for conquering vast swathes of land, as well as the hearts of the people he ruled. That bond ended up being the basis for his Noble Phantasm – he can summon up his army, no matter the time and place, and they will heed his call.”

“So you're saying we might have to fight an entire army?” Shiki could feel an unpleasant cold feeling running down the back of his spine at the thought. “Kara will have to fight an entire army on her own?”

“I cannot say for sure,” Saber shook her head once. “Although, I cannot even be certain if that Noble Phantasm will work the same way within the confines of the Moon Cell.”

“Well, you fought him, right? Did you figure out a way to beat his army?” Of course, whatever method she used probably wouldn't be too useful to Kara...

“Sorry, but no. In the end, I was not the one who defeated him.”

“An... army?” Kara had raised her head. Although her breath was still short, her expression was curious. “Sorry, aren't you the Servant of Leonard? King Arthur?”

“One version of me is, true,” Saber nodded noncommitally. “But the one standing before you is Shiki's friend and ally. I trust that will be all right, Saber? Or is it Kara?”

“... I see. There is no problem then.” Kara managed a brief smile as she got to her feet. “In any case, I wanted to ask. This army of Rider's... are they all from his time in the past? Actual men, actual soldiers he fought alongside?”

“I believe so, yes. Obviously I do not know any of them personally, but the way Rider spoke, they were his companions from the past.”

“I see,” Kara said. She took a deep breath, and although her face was still pale and haggard, her smile grew slightly wider. “Then perhaps... victory might be easier to achieve than we had thought.”

*~*

Home Base, Avalon

Quiet Night – In the Room

Ilya stepped into the darkened room, noting the only other occupant was sitting on a chair, staring up at the full moon.

“Finished your talk with Shiki and Kara?”

“Yes, I have,” Saber nodded once.

“Anything the matter, then? You seem broody.”

“Do I?” Saber stood and stretched her body. “I suppose having to think back upon the King of Conquerors and his worldviews brought up some unpleasant memories.”

Ilya stood silent as Saber raised her gaze to the heavens above.

“... Iskandar was wrong,” Saber said, her voice soft. “Of that, I have no doubt. And yet... am I to say my ways were any better?”

Heaving a sigh, Ilya went and took a seat at her desk.

“Camelot didn't fall just because of you,” Ilya said. “Everyone – Guinivere, Lancelot, Gawain, Mordred... each of them made their own choices. It just so happened that those choices collided in the worst possible ways and resulted in what happened. Even a king cannot rule alone.”

“... I know,” Saber finally said with a deep sigh and shake of her head. “I cannot go back and change things.”

“There's a 'but' in there.”

“There is,” Saber glanced down at the ground, her gaze distant. “Even a world and a lifetime away, I cannot shake off those from my past easily. Those I have wronged... Meeting Lancelot in the Fourth War only confirmed it in my mind. I wish... I wish I could meet them all once more. If only to beg their forgiveness.”

Silver moonlight continued to pour in through the window.

*~*

Moon Cell, Digital Tsukimihara Academy, First Floor Foyer

Day of Reckoning – Elimination Match Begins

As Shiki stepped into the foyer, he caught sight of Kotomine standing there, his usual placid expression on his face.

And standing slightly to the right of him was Leo, placing his Triggers. A moment later, the soft chime sounded.

MASTER ACKNOWLEDGED

“Ah, Shiki,” Leo smiled at him. “It is good to see you are still well.”

“... And you as well,” Shiki said. No skin off his back to be polite, he supposed. Behind Leo, King Arthur inclined her head slightly in greeting.

“I can remember your first weeks here were filled with one disastrous setback after the other. And now look at you. Six weeks in, you're one of the last four contestants to survive.”

“I suppose you had a somewhat easier time of it.”

“Hm? Oh yes, I won't deny King Arthur's prowess has been instrumental in helping me secure success thus far,” Leo glanced over his shoulder at his Servant. “Well, good fortune to you, Shiki Tohno. May we both succeed.”

And then we can prepare to kill each other next round? Shiki knew better than to vocalize the thought, of course.

Behind them, the doorway to the Coliseum slid open.

“I wish you the best of luck and pray for your safe return, young Master,” Kotomine said as he moved to the side. “Remember, it's kill or be killed.”

With a nod goodbye and a confident smile on his face, Leo turned and walked into the elevator, King Arthur following closely behind him.

Just as she was about to cross the threshold, she paused for the briefest second, and suddenly,

“Leonard! Get ba-”

Deep Seated Grudge – Saber vs. Assassin

Her shout was cut off as a dark shape materialiazed seemingly out of thing air in front of her, lashing out with a kick to force her back and separate her from Leo.

King Arthur staggered back a single step, and then rallied, the golden light of Excalibur shining into existence as she raised her blade and prepared to do battle.

[;32 Bomb]

A wave of heat and light surged through the area, and though King Arthur could shrug off most of the blast without injury, the intense light forced her to shield her eyes from the glare for a brief moment.

In that moment, Shiki saw Marie dart out of hiding, throwing herself into the doorway and trying to cut off Leonard and her Assassin from King Arthur.

Almost instinctively, Shiki found himself taking a single step forward, one hand already reaching for his knife -

“Hold,” Kotomine's voice was soft but firm as he glance at Shiki. The priest had not even budged from his standing place. “This is their fight, young master. Not yours.”

King Arthur's charge had faltered at the sight of the woman blocking the doroway, and Shiki suspected that, enemy Master or not, King Arthur hadn't been able to find it in her to immediately slay an unarmed person trying to block her path.

Instead the Servant turning her momentum into a charging tackle, using her shoulder to catch Marie and try to throw her aside. But as she did so Marie raised her hand and suddenly a blinding light filled the room.

“Kh!” Distracted for a second time, King Arthur still collided with Marie, but was unable to find secure footing on her own, sending her staggering as Marie was thrown to the floor.

“Assassin!” Marie's yelled. “Do it!”

Over King Arthur's shoulder, Shiki could see Assassin with a strange weapon in his hand – a gun? - pointed at Leonard, who was cornered at the far end of the elevator room.

There was the loud report of a fired gun –

And Leonard had dodged the shot, moving faster than what Shiki had thought possible. From his outstretched hand he tossed a tiny crystal at the floor towards Assassin, and the Servant hastily stepped back.

Another brilliant flash of light, and Shiki could see that Assassin's cloak bore scorch marks on it, although the Servant himself was unharmed.

“Assassin!” King Arthur's enraged shout sounded through the halls of the school as she charged straight at him. Assassin shifted slightly, aware now of this new threat, and suddenly he was deflecting King Arthur's strike with a dagger of his own.

“... All or nothing, then,” Assassin spoke for the first time, and Shiki could feel a shift in the air around him.

Chronos Rose

*~*

Moon Cell, ???

“You would hunt me down again?” the woman was once more standing there, looking unconcerned. “You are a determined one.”

Arcueid remained silent as she walked up towards the being.

“Do you wish to strike me down?” the woman inquired, her gaze steady. After a moment, she shook her head. “No, that's not it. I can sense your anger, but you're keeping it corralled for now. Well then, what is it you want?”

“I want answers,” she said. “Who are you? How are you involved in the Moon Cell's Grail War? And why did you drag me into it in the first place?”

“And if I gave you those answers, would it change anything?”

“Who knows?” Arcueid shrugged her shoulders once. “The greatest thing that ever happened to me was getting killed. If I hadn't stuck around to talk about it instead of just taking revenge, I wouldn't be here now. So, talk.”

Her response did seem to genuinely surprise the woman, if her widened eyes were any indication, but after a moment she closed them and nodded.

“I see. Very well. I cannot answer all of your queries right now, but perhaps this will suffice.

“For now, I am a participant in the Moon Cell's War.”

“A participant?” Arcueid's eyes narrowed. “A Servant, then? No modern human has the kind of abilities you do.”

“A Servant...” the woman seemed to consider this for a long moment before nodding. “Yes, that would be the closest thing to my current existence.

“And as for my identity... well, for now, you may refer to me as Avenger.”

*~*

Chapter End

*~*

Thanks for reading. Comments and critiques are most welcome.

[Kieran]

Oh, the level of fun that all this promises . . .

. . . I really can't decide which part is more impressive.

[Xamusel]

Okay, now that I'm absolutely curious, what's with the chapter titles? I'm guessing there's a theme to it?

Although... I guess Avenger being a participant in the Moon Cell Holy Grail War is not quite stretching it.

[MWkillkenny84]

... frack, Arturia as to fight Assassin!Kiritsugu. Aka one that know how she fight and think, and that has no qualms into fighting dirtier than anything. It will be messy.

[Kieran]

... frack, Arturia as to fight Assassin!Kiritsugu. Aka one that know how she fight and think, and that has no qualms into fighting dirtier than anything. It will be messy.

Not quite . . . If I understood the entry in the Grand Order wiki correctly, the version of Kiritsugu that became Assassin didn't wind up getting involved with the Einzberns, and so shouldn't have any particular knowledge of Arturia - the reverse, on the other hand, is not true; if she realises who he is, he could be in trouble.

. . . Not that it means that the fight will be easy, regardless.

[pureauthor]

Baby steps! Totally understandable. One must stretch out before one can actually exercise.

Anyways, Assassin's got me interdasted. Guess we'll wait and see how that character arc pans out.

Well we've just hit the high gear on Assassin and his erstwhile Master's arc. Here's to hoping where it leads will satisfy you.

Oh, the level of fun that all this promises . . .

. . . I really can't decide which part is more impressive.

Well, have to keep the story interesting and flowing along, after all.

Okay, now that I'm absolutely curious, what's with the chapter titles? I'm guessing there's a theme to it?

Although... I guess Avenger being a participant in the Moon Cell Holy Grail War is not quite stretching it.

The chapter titles are words that are both related to stuff that happens in the chapter, and sharing several letters. For instance, Ambush and Shadow in this case, regarding Assassin's assault on Team Harway.

As regards our Avenger... well, she's not exactly a Servant, if you read what she says.

... frack, Arturia as to fight Assassin!Kiritsugu. Aka one that know how she fight and think, and that has no qualms into fighting dirtier than anything. It will be messy.

Not quite . . . If I understood the entry in the Grand Order wiki correctly, the version of Kiritsugu that became Assassin didn't wind up getting involved with the Einzberns, and so shouldn't have any particular knowledge of Arturia - the reverse, on the other hand, is not true; if she realises who he is, he could be in trouble.

. . . Not that it means that the fight will be easy, regardless.

That's true. But, where did I ever say that this version of Assassin is the same one as that from Grand Order?

Also, remember this King Arthur is a fresh construct from the Moon Cell that never participated in the Fourth Grail War. (And couldn't have done so in this world anyway, as all the mana had vanished by then.)

[Kieran]

True in all respects.

[Xamusel]

Okay... *rereads the scene regarding "Avenger"* Alright, that makes more sense, then.