Table of Contents
Archive Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8396983/1/Solstice_Reverse
01: Imaginary Numbers
02: Daath
03: Rin
04: Bird of Hermes
05: Kaleidoscope's End
06: Stagecrafter
07: Clockwork
08: La Pucelle
09: Victor
10: Omelas
11: Second
12: Pretender
Character Reference, Snippets #1-#4
Masters & Servants, Snippet #7
Timeline, Snippet #8
Known Factions, Snippet #10
//
What if Sakura had a different evil grandfather?
Concept created with help from Velsper.
IMAGINARY NUMBERS // Winter, 2007
Sitting nude at the side of her bed, Sakura parted the black, sweat-stained hair that had fallen across her eyes, and tilted her head to look upon the sleeping face of her stepbrother.
Like this, she thought, he seemed almost the innocent that he was, rather than the man he pretended to be. There was none of the foolish arrogance of his waking self -- nothing of the brute that used her as a release for his pent-up frustrations. Just Shinji: the simple, insecure boy that had tried to befriend her when they were children.
Tenderly, she kissed his cheek. Even if she didn't love him, she couldn't quite bring herself to hate him.
He was, after all, instrumental to attaining her goals.
//
Her grandfather was in the rear drawing room of the manor when she arrived, standing in the dim red illumination of the December moon.
"I have been made to wait," he said.
"I apologize, grandfather," she replied, bowing. "I have no excuse."
The gaunt, blindfolded man cast a stony expression at her, and then nodded at the knife on the table beside him.
"The moment that I have prepared you for quickly approaches," he said. "If you are serious in your intent to see this through, I would advise that you hurry."
Nodding, she approached his side. Unsheathing the knife, she ran the edge of the blade across her left index finger, and let her blood fall to the formalcraft array carved at the center of the mahogany floor.
"Link activate," she said. "Initiate registration."
As her blood filled the thin grooves of the array, the outer circle began to glow a bright crimson. In moments, three petal-like marks appeared across the back of her hand; the Arbiter had recognized her as a Master, and had granted permission to proceed with the summoning of her Servant.
"I beseech you in the name of our master, Schweinorg the many-faced, who holds dominion over gemstone," she chanted. "I beseech you by the dreams of the princess in white, who slumbers in the buried castle."
The crimson light spread along the carved grooves to the inner circles of the array, surrounding the stone placed at the center. Even with the boost she'd received from her coupling with Shinji, Sakara could feel the prana within her draining from her at an alarming rate -- but she steadied herself. The ritual had to be completed.
"You who would by bloodshed seek the truths of this world, heed my word. I pledge to your sword my fate and destruction, and thereby call you forth from the memories of the Crimson King. Arrive within the ring of binding, that we may finalize our vows."
From the stone at the center of the array, tendrils of light extended upwards. Sakura had imagined that the Servant would manifest whole -- but instead, the light weaved itself into the exterior of a human figure: A tall, redheaded man with Asian features, clad in a red-orange rider's cassock.
When the process completed, the Servant opened his eyes.
"I am Li Shuwen, a Servant of the Assassin class," he said, sternly meeting her gaze. "I ask of you, are you my Master?"
Maintaining eye-contact, Sakura said, "My name is Tohno Sakura, and I shall be your Master in this War."
Behind her, the blindfolded old man smiled.
//
In the city of Misaki, the prelude to the 5th Phantasmal Summer had begun.
The Masque of the Crimson King would be reenacted once again ...
//
ASSASSIN // Li Shuwen (1864–1934)
master: Tohno Sakura
gender: male
alignment: lawful neutral
strength: B
endurance: C
agility: A
mana: D
luck: A
A martial artist of the modern period, renowned for originating a prominent branch of the fighting style known as Bajiquan.
skills
Presence Concealment (Odic Manipulation), Rank -: Dynamic alignment with the energy gradient of the environment is used to eliminate exerted presence. Optical invisibility is not attained, but the Servant is removed from the perception of most humans, and other related beings. Non-identical to the Presence Concealment ability of Hassan-i-Sabbah.
Chinese Martial Arts, Rank A++: A Chinese rationality. A measure of one's mastery over the combat art whose goal is to attain oneness with the World. Unlike standard skills, an A rank denotes proficiency.
Sphere Boundary, Rank A: Awareness of the the energy gradient within one's locale. Paired with high levels of odic control, a high rank in this skill may permit alteration of exerted energy presence to remove oneself from the perceptions of others.
noble phantasm
No Second Strike, Rank -: The quintessence of Li-clan Bajiquan. If the Servant is permitted to attain focus in odic control, all attacks dealt via hand-to-hand are rendered nearly lethal; on contact, odic energy is directed into an opponent to produce circulatory shock. Strictly speaking, not a true Noble Phantasm.
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Originally Posted by Mike1984
