Yeah. Probably should've.Originally Posted by The Geek
Yeah. Probably should've.
Oh, so this isn't even a good end for Kariya? No more badass Lancelot?
Dude. Dood.
You fooled us, and it really isn't funny.
F/GO SUPPORT
I DIDN'T MEAN TO!
We get that, but still.
You done fucked up here Geek.
Would've been nice to have known...because now the only change, besides the obvious one for Sakura, is Tokiomi likely not getting killed the same way.
F/GO SUPPORT
I didn't mean to kill everyone in Skyrim. But I did. I own up to that. Your turn.
I'd call it a "good end" for Kariya, really. He was doomed anyway, his sole goal was to free Sakura, which he achieved.
- - - Updated - - -
Well, the change for Sakura is the big one, really. Plus, of course, Aoi's likely survival.
I don't get why you thought Kariya was going to survive past the war, his body is simply too wrecked. Even if he hadn't died here, he wasn't going to live long enough to significantly affect the next war.
We have yet to see if she is truly free, though. And this war isn't over yet, either.
Things could go FUBAR easily.
F/GO SUPPORT
Well, yes, true, but I suspect she is, or else the whole thing would be somewhat pointless....
Holy shit, it's been this long? WELL I TOOK DAMN LONG ENOUGH SO IT'LL BE BETTER RIGHT? I HOPE!
Chapter 4:
Fourth War’s End
“Why?” was all Tokiomi could think to ask the King of Heroes as he walked away from the fleeing figure of Rider’s Master, “Why did you let him go?”
“The King of Conquerors wished for the boy to live; it is my repayment to him for being a worthy opponent.” Tokiomi’s displeased glower appeared to amuse Gilgamesh.
“Regardless,” Tokiomi said, switching away from the unsatisfactory finish, “we should check up on Kariya and Berserker.”
“How do you feel that it resulted?” Tokiomi glanced at his Servant.
“Kariya was only a momentary distraction for the Magus Killer. I only agreed to his help for that purpose.” This elicited a roaring laugh from Gilgamesh.
“I am truly beginning to like you, Tokiomi!” the King of Heroes laughed, “How could I have ever found you boring? The depths to which you can sink to preserve your family and your honor shall always fascinate me.”
Tokiomi was uncertain whether the King of Heroes’ remarks were insulting or not. Regardless, he was happy that his Servant had finally come to accept him; perhaps he now had a chance against the Magus Killer.
“You are thinking about the Master of Saber.” It was not a question. “Does he frighten you, Tokiomi?”
“Any Magus would fear the name of Emiya,” Tokiomi replied, “it was one of Lord El-Melloi’s great faults that he was not afraid.”
Ever since he had first heard of Kiritsugu Emiya, it must have been ten or fifteen years ago, the stories of his effective killing of all magi frightened him. He knew of their weaknesses, their pride in the superiority of magic, and used it against them by exposing their helplessness to modern weaponry. “I fear for Rin and Sakura,” Tokiomi added, semi-truthfully.
“You fear he would go after your family?”
“Yes.” Gilgamesh doubted him. “Without my family, the Tohsaka line will end.” This seemed to strike his Servant as more believable.
“Family is everything to a Magus, it seems.”
“It is.”
“Then we must eliminate him for the sake of your daughters’ safety.” There was a mocking croon to his voice. Gilgamesh wanted him angry.
“I shall kill the Magus Killer. My arrogance is not that of El-Melloi, my intelligence is greater than that of Caster’s Master, and my nerves are stronger than those of Rider’s Master’s or Kariya’s.” The approval of the King was clear in his smile. Tokiomi took out the device he used to communicate with Kirei and said simply: “It is time.”
-Later-
A theater in the middle of Fuyuki, this was where the Great Grail had chosen to manifest, and it was where Kirei brought the Einzbern woman, having been snatched from under Kiritsugu Emiya’s watchful nose. With his wife taken, the Magus Killer would surely appear.
The King of Heroes scouted the landscapes with the superior eyesight granted to members of the Archer class. Any sign of Saber or her Master would not go unnoticed by him, and a swift strike of a Noble Phantasm from the Gate of Babylon could end the Grail War in a heartbeat. That was not his intent, however, he wished to make the lone female Servant his bride; she and her sword would be fine additions to his great wealth.
It was not Gilgamesh’s eyes, but his ears that first hailed the appearance of the Servant of the sword. Her motorbike screeched to a halt before the theater doors and she slid off of the seat before replacing her suit with her dress and armor. Excalibur was drawn and plain to see as she surveyed the front of the building carefully, her eyes eventually alighting upon him.
“Good evening, Saber,” the King of Heroes chuckled from his lofty position. He opened a single port of his Gate of Babylon and drew out a bottle of wine and two golden cups. “Come, let us drink to the honor of being the last two Servants in this Grail War.”
Saber stood with Excalibur at the ready, ready to pounce at a moment’s notice. “Archer, where have you and your Master taken Irisviel?” she demanded, ignoring his invitation.
“The meat-puppet you mean?” Saber tensed. “She is inside, awaiting her destiny as the final Servant is destroyed.” The King of Knights’ disbelieving expression amused Gilgamesh.
“You did not know that she was doomed from the start? I guess that is not the sort of thing a Master would like to discuss with his Servant.”
“Silence,” Saber growled. “I know not why Irisviel must die, but if it means your demise and the end of this Grail War then perhaps it is all worth something.”
“Who says it must end?”
“What?” Saber stared at the other Servant disbelievingly.
“Think, Saber. We can stay in this world indefinitely so long as the Grail remains untouched. That means that you and I can continue to exist as well as your beloved meat-puppet.”
“You would discontinue our conflict?” Saber accused disbelievingly.
“Of course,” Gilgamesh replied easily. “I would only have one condition, though.” His grin widened. “Be my bride, King of Knights, and we shall rule this world together as its King and Queen!” Saber’s expression showed nothing but shock at first, but then subsided into determination.
“I would never agree to such a thing. I could never rule by the matter of Might meaning Right, and I know that you would rule by nothing else.” She settled into a battle position one again. “And moreover, we have every reason to end this conflict now after seeing what it results in.”
Gilgamesh sighed and casually opened the Gate of Babylon. “Oh well, diplomacy was worth a try; however, it seems that I need to be far more persuasive with you.” The King of Heroes stood up straight with his arms folded and smirked at Saber. “ I will see you bow before me, whether by your will or mine. Chains of Heaven!”
Chains shot out of the Gate and wrapped around Saber’s arms and torso, then twisted and pulled to force her body into a bow. Gilgamesh’s laughter infuriated Saber, and she used what little control of her body she had to slice the chains off of her. Free of her bonds, Saber shot at Gilgamesh with Excalibur drawn back for a powerful strike.
There was no time to retaliate with a barrage from the Gate of Babylon, so the King of Heroes settled for drawing a sword of his own and using it to block Saber’s strike. She struck again and Gilgamesh just barely managed to get his sword in the way in time. He drew a second sword and swung it at Saber only for her to knock the attack away easily.
Despite the advantage of being able to guard and attack simultaneously with his two swords, Gilgamesh was no match for Saber when it came to sheer skill and power; the only reasonable strategy that the King of Heroes had was to stay away from her and attack from a distance with Gate of Babylon.
Saber was taken by surprise as Gilgamesh suddenly leapt away from her, but not for long as she ran after him. This short moment of shock on her part was enough for Gilgamesh to open the Gate of Babylon and begin to fire a barrage of powerful Noble Phantasms. Saber was forced to take cover on the other side of the slanted roof as the swords continued to fly.
“You may be strong, Saber, but you are no match for my Gate of Babylon!” Gilgamesh crowed. “Surrender now and I shall still consider making you my bride.”
“Like I would do that!” Saber roared as she ran forward in the break Gilgamesh had taken to gloat.
“Perfect.” A single sword sailed from the Gate and into Saber’s right hand. She screamed and dropped Excalibur as she fell onto the roof beside Gilgamesh. “It appears that I have outsmarted you, King of Knights,” Gilgamesh said coolly as he kneeled beside her. “I shall offer you one last time the opportunity to be my bride.” Saber spat in his direction. His smile dropped. “If you shall not sit beside me as my wife, then you shall kneel before me as my slave!”
He was about to reuse his Chains of Heaven when a sudden explosion of fire took the roof out from beneath the both of them and they fell: Saber onto one of the balconies overlooking the stage area, and Gilgamesh into a great, black… something that was filling the main chamber of the theater. Bullets were flying in every which-way as Kiritsugu Emiya and Tokiomi Tohsaka did battle. Despite her own supernatural abilities, Saber could not help but be awed by the fight between the two Magi with nothing more than their limited magecraft enhancing their ordinary human abilities.
Tokiomi hid behind a pillar, which was then riddled with holes from the bullets of Kiritsugu’s gun. As the Magus Killer reloaded, Tokiomi took the opportunity to emerge from his hiding spot and throw an attack at Kiritsugu, who casually dodged the fire ball before beginning once again to fire. One would think that Kiritsugu would have a great advantage over the other man, but what Tokiomi lacked in firepower he made up for in magical knowledge and strategy, making the two men an even match. Tokiomi made sure that he had no strategy for Kiritsugu to figure out, instead switching between many varied strategies.
“Guns do not have endless ammunition,” Tokiomi thought, “Kiritsugu Emiya will eventually run out, and then he shall have to fight me like a true Magus!”
Kiritsugu did indeed run out of bullets, which Tokiomi took as his signal to move in. Running in close, the Tohsaka head unleashed a blaze of fire at Kiritsugu, which the Magus Killer just barely dodged.
“I still have the Contender,” Kiritsugu mused as he backed away from the rising flames. “However, I shall save that for later. For now, I will play along.”
Kiritsugu folded his arms in front of his face and, reinforcing his suit jacket to give it some defense against the flames, rushed towards Tokiomi.
“Wh-” Tokiomi could not even finish his statement of shock as Kiritsugu barreled into him, knocking his Mystic Code away from him. “You!” Tokiomi briefly reinforced his right arm as he took a swing at Kiritsugu as the Magus Killer turned. The punch connected with Kiritsugu’s face, forcing it to the side. Kiritsugu responded in turn with his own punch to the face. Shaking off his daze, Tokiomi took a defensive stance, one he had learned from his father during his education in the Tohsaka family’s martial arts.
Each man through a punch, and the two fists collided in midair. Kiritsugu leapt backwards, away from a sweeping kick of Tokiomi’s, before moving in quickly to attempt a punch to the chest. Tokiomi slammed the heel of his hand into Kiritsugu’s chest as the other man drew his fist back and followed up with a solid kick to the stomach that sent the Magus Killer flying backwards. The Tohsaka Magus took advantage of his opponent’s disadvantaged state to rush back and grab his Mystic Code. He turned and began to incite the incantation for another exploding fire ball when Kiritsugu began rushing him at an extreme speed, one that he should not have been capable of.
“Time Alter: Double Accel,” Kiritsugu muttered as he rushed forward and tackled Tokiomi. Tokiomi was able to keep his grip on his Mystic Code this time and, wreathing the rod in the flames of his magecraft, gave Kiritsugu a fierce hit to the face with it. In his state of advanced acceleration, Kiritsugu recovered quickly and rushed up to Tokiomi again, this time giving a flurry of punches to the Magus’ chest and mid-section before finishing with a kick that sent him flying backwards.
An intense pain in his mid-section indicated Kiritsugu to turn off his personal time alteration. Unfortunately, this allowed his pain and exhaustion to catch up with him and he cringed. He was bleeding in several places, and many parts of him were scorched from the flames. Tokiomi was in a similar state with blood matting his beard and an equal amount of scorches from his own unpredictable fire thaumaturgy.
“I can’t go on like this,” Tokiomi groaned in his mind. “Gilgamesh and Saber have disappeared, it’s just me and the Magus Killer.”
“I have to finish him in one shot,” both men thought at the exact same time.
Tokiomi raised his Mystic Code just as Kiritsugu reached into his jacket to pull out his. He incited the words memorized through his crest which would bring about a powerful attack to finish Kiritsugu, just as the other man leveled the barrel of the Thompson Contender and aimed.
A fireball shot from one end of the balcony, a bullet from the other, they passed right by one another and struck their intended targets at the same time. Kiritsugu was thrown off of his feet and into the wall of the theater while Tokiomi clung to his thigh with a roar of pain. As he slumped there, Kiritsugu took the time to survey the theater properly.
That black stuff continued to flow from the Grail and flood the main part of the theater; it appeared that it was even beginning to spread outside. Kiritsugu had no idea what it was, but he was certain that it was nothing good. He attempted to rise to his feet and did so, though a fierce pain racked his body when he did.
“Master!” A pair of arms came up under his shoulders and helped him rise to his feet. Looking down, he saw that it was Saber who was aiding him.
“Saber… the Grail…” He pointed at the cascade of sludge pouring from the golden brim.
“What is it?” Saber inquired, her voice sounding frightened.
“I don’t know, I just know that we can’t let it get to the outside world.” Saber nodded in agreement.
“Archer fell into that stuff and disappeared, I don’t know what happened to him.”
“That means that we won…”
“Yes… I suppose it does…” Master and Servant looked from each other to the Grail.
“I don’t think I want that thing,” Kiritsugu said simply. There was something inherently… evil in the feeling it gave off.
“Master, for once I agree with you completely.”
“It has to be destroyed. Your Noble Phantasm should be able to do it.”
“I cannot destroy the Grail without your use of a Command Seal, Master.” Kiritsugu nodded and raised his fist to show the tattoo-like print on his hand.
“Saber… Destroy the Grail!” The second of his three Command Seals disappeared and Saber’s sword began to shine with power.
“Stand back, Master!” The small woman raised her sword above her head as it came to a full glow. “Sword of Promised Victory: EXCALIBUR!!”
A shining light shot into the cascade of sludge, and then Kiritsugu saw nothing.
-Fuyuki City, Shinto District-
Kiritsugu awoke coughing. Last he had remembered, he was inside of that theater with Saber and a groaning Tokiomi Tohsaka, but now he was in Hell. There truly was no other way to describe the place he resided in, with the flames and smoke rising around him. He got to his feet, still cringing from the pain, and looked around.
He was in the remains of the theater, and the area around him was what had once been a bustling metropolitan area but was now a wasteland.
“No…” Kiritsugu’s voice quivered as he spoke. He ran forward, searching along the streets and he saw nothing but the bodies of the dead, burned or asphyxiated in the smoke.
“No…” It was impossible. He and Saber had destroyed that great evil that poured forth from the Grail, why was he being punished, why were these innocent people dead?
“No…” He began to run through the streets with earnest, searching everywhere for any sign of movement. He found nothing, his eyes were filled with tears from the irritation of the smoke.
“No…” At some point, he had ended up on the city’s main street, and he searched all around himself for something… for someone… but there was nothing… until a cough rang out.
Kiritsugu turned and saw the form of a young boy shuffling down the street, his red hair full of ash and his golden eyes dull with pain and shock. The boy slumped to the ground and Kiritsugu rushed over to him, leaning over the boy’s face.
“He’s alive…” Kiritsugu whimpered, tears of joy replacing those of sadness and discomfort. “Thank God, he’s alive…”
-Outside Fuyuki City, the Following Morning-
Tokiomi Tohsaka opened his eyes to be greeted with the sight of his wife’s worried face softening into one of relief. She placed a hand on his cheek and sighed gratefully.
“I thought you were dead. When I had heard of the fire… I thought that surely it must have been caused by the War and that you were caught up in it. No one survived… except for you and Kirei-kun it seems.”
“Kirei?” Tokiomi asked.
“He’s fine,” Aoi assured him, a happy smile coming over her face. “He was the one that carried you out of the city and brought you here to my parents’ house. Then he healed you… though…” Aoi’s face fell, and the numbness in his leg told Tokiomi why.
“My leg?”
“It’s still there, it’s just that… you won’t be able to walk on it properly ever again. Kirei-kun mentioned something about a special kind of bullet used by the Magus Killer.” Tokiomi laid his head back upon the pillow. His life for the ability to walk properly, it wasn’t too bad of a deal in his mind. However, something else weighed in on his thoughts.
“Where are Rin and Sakura?” Aoi’s face became happy again at the mention of her daughters.
“Still sleeping. They were so worried about you last night that it took them a long time to get to sleep. Oh, Tokiomi, you won’t believe it. Sakura-chan is starting to look like her old self again! After he was sure that you would be fine, Kirei-kun performed the surgery and got those disgusting creatures out of Sakura-chan. He says that her magical origin and element resisted the changes and that now that the worms are no longer keeping the changes permanent, they will subside.” Tokiomi allowed Aoi to keep happily discussing Sakura’s recovery as he rested his head again.
Despite all the happiness in the air, he could not help but feel depressed. He had failed, he had lost the Grail War to Kiritsugu Emiya, who had then gone in turn to destroy the Grail which then presumably started the fire that Aoi had mentioned.
“Did Kirei mention what happened to Kiritsugu Emiya?”
“Huh?” Aoi stopped in the middle of her happy ranting. “Kiritsugu Emiya? The Magus Killer? I think Kirei-kun said that he ran off as soon as he saw what had happened to the city. But I don’t think you should worry Tokiomi. The War is over, there’s no need for him to come after you.”
So, Kiritsugu Emiya had left him for dead, or he had more urgent issues to attend to. That still didn’t change the important facts: the Grail War was lost, and Kiritsugu Emiya still lived.
“Tokiomi…” Aoi’s hand pressed its way into his and squeezed it. “Please don’t worry. Kirei told me how bravely you fought against the Magus Killer. Surely he’ll know that you two are too evenly matched to even dare attempt to kill you.” Aoi’s words melted Tokiomi’s fears instantly. Yes, there was no point worrying about Kiritsugu Emiya. He was surely off skulking in some random part of the world now that the Einzbern were after his head for betraying them.
The sound of small feet pattering up the corridor drew his mind even further from the thought of Kiritsugu Emiya as he looked up to see his daughters’ beaming faces in the crack of the door.
Surely, there was nothing to fear anymore from Kiritsugu Emiya.
-Somewhere in Germany-
Kiritsugu finished his disabling of the bounded field surrounding Castle Einzbern and quickly began moving forward. Surely it would not be long before they realized that he was there and they would send their homunculus maids after him. He had no fear, though, as only one thought permeated his brain.
“I’m coming, Ilya!”
END CHAPTER
Well, that's it for the Fate/Zero section of Fate/Alter. Coming next time (which is hopefully sometime in the forseeable future) we move onto the Fate/Stay Night section which is more Sakura-centric.
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Living kiritsugu and tokoimi? So what happened To shirou o_o
Same thing as what happened in the canon timeline: Kiritsugu rescued him. I thought I wrote that part out.
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Good chapter. I'm wondering though, how did Kariya use the Grail if Saber destroyed it?
Also, Kirei was apparently in this too. How did he not end up succumbing to Gilgamesh's wiles? What kept them from betraying everyone.
And there were a few other changes but I can't put my finger on them. How did Maiya survive. It sounds like Berserker still worked with Kotomine. And where did Kotomine go during the final battle. Where did Kotomine go in FSN. I don't think he's shown up yet.
He never sleeps. He never dies.
Battle doesn't need a purpose; the battle is its own purpose. You don't ask why a plague spreads or a field burns. Don't ask why I fight.
When did I ever say that Kariya got the Grail?
Gilgamesh started becoming more interested in Tokiomi when he learned about the skeletons in his closet.
Maiya did not survive, she got an offscreen death.
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Wait.
I think I'm mixing stories up that are similar, since it's been a while.
He never sleeps. He never dies.
Battle doesn't need a purpose; the battle is its own purpose. You don't ask why a plague spreads or a field burns. Don't ask why I fight.
It is interesting but I am not really feeling this. Lancelot seemed way off and out of character while he was "sane". Don't think he would ever think of as Saber as a foolish girl with too noble intentions, that was Rider. Lancelot believed in Saber, her ideals and her character and it was because of that belief that he went insane due to his betrayal.
Saber and Kiritsugi, well, it seemed a bit off too. They both dislike each other too much to speak so cordially and it just feels wrong that they seem to be so agreeable to each other. And I am not sure but I don't think that Saber addressed Kiritsugi as Master after the first episode.
But, Tokiomi living and having Sakura and Rin under his wing should definitely be interesting. It's just, he is such a horrible father, I fear that he will really mess up Rin and Sakura. (well even more, in Sakura's case).
Still, interesting enough and thank you for sharing this.
^well thats what I was going to say.
so... im guessing the grail war would now be double team battle of rin and sakura vs. shirou and illya?
since sakura's fate is vastly different now, id imagine she wouldnt summon medusa(and I think there was another source that said they used an artifact to summon her). also probably illya would get someone other than heracles since that required a stone slab. rin and shirou arent drastically different so probably the same one, unless tokiomi urges rin to use some artifact.
some of my fanfics:
Refractions (madoka magica) - No matter how one would attempt to keep things the same as they used to be, the bending of a "law" would inevitable cause changes in the direction of their world, and that in turn would refract back to the their very lives, in ways that she never expected.
Reversed Connections (BRS) - reworked the structure and a mix of anime/OVA, has the Otherworld selves replace their human counterpart in the real world instead of the normals taking control of the Otherworld characters.
New chapter guys!
Chapter 5:
The Fifth War’s Beginning
10 Years Later
Sakura Tohsaka was quiet as she made her way downstairs early one morning; her parents and her sister, Rin, were still asleep and she didn’t want to wake them by being loud. She went down into the kitchen to prepare a small breakfast for her sister and herself. While she was cooking, Rin came down the stairs with heavy, tired footsteps that reverberated around the hall.
Sakura turned towards her sister with a smile and gave her a warm “Good morning, Nee-san!”
“Morning,” Rin grunted in response as she slumped up next to Sakura. Sakura offered her a piece of buttered toast and some tea, which she accepted wordlessly and took to the kitchen table.
Sakura grabbed the toast she had prepared and wrapped it in a napkin as she went for her bag. “I’m off to archery club, Nee-san!” she told Rin cheerfully. She was halfway out the door when Rin spoke.
“Archery doesn’t start until 7:00; it’s 6:00.” Sakura stopped in her tracks. When she turned her head around she saw Rin giving her a cat-like smile; the tea must have done the trick in waking her up. “Why would you want to get to club early, Sakura?”
“Nee-san…” Rin knew why Sakura went to archery club early; Sakura knew that Rin knew why she left early.
“Really, Sakura,” Rin sighed, getting up from the table, “to think that you would be the boy crazy one.” Sakura’s face flushed.
“I’m not boy crazy, I just-”
“Have a really stupid, cliché ‘Sempai-Kohai’ crush.” Rin’s smile conveyed far more knowing than Sakura would have liked, but it couldn’t be helped because nothing got past Rin Tohsaka. The smile dropped from Rin’s face momentarily. “Why do you put yourself through this anyway, Sakura? You know that Otou-sama wouldn’t let us date anyone.”
“I know that,” Sakura said defensively, “it’s just that when I’m alone with him, I can pretend…” The look Rin gave her was half exasperated, half pitying.
“Jeez, you’re so immature.”
“W-what do you mean by that?” Sakura’s face flushed red.
“You’re trying to live out a fantasy, and you’ll only be more hurt when you realize that it isn’t possible.” Rin’s face and voice showed that she had just shifted into “protective big sister mode”. Sakura tried to defend herself, but couldn’t think of a proper argument against Rin’s points.
-Later-
Sakura ended up walking alongside Rin on the way to school, down the winding hill that led to all of the big mansions in that region of town. She could see the burned-out husk of the Matou residence, having been destroyed by her father’s magic in the war ten years ago.
The two sisters were near inseparable after Sakura’s return despite their different destinies. Rin, as the elder sister, was trained as the next heir of the Tohsaka line while Sakura was instructed in the ways of a wife and mother, the only path for a second daughter of a powerful Magus clan. At whichever school the two attended Rin was always the class idol, admired be all her peers, while Sakura was firmly placed into the label of the little sister of the school idol. Several boys in her class had asked her out due to this, after which each and every one of them came down with a mysterious stomach flu.
“It’s been awhile since we’ve walked together like this,” Rin commented nonchalantly, unknowingly breaking Sakura’s train of thought.
“Huh? Oh, yeah.” The elder sister rolled her eyes.
“You’re not still thinking about him are you? It seriously can’t be healthy.” Sakura blushed again.
“I wasn’t thinking about Sempai, I was thinking about… us.”
“Oh.”
The sisters continued to walk in silence until they reached the gate of the high school. Sakura walked in the direction of the archery dojo with Rin following behind, presumably to keep an eye on her. They had almost reached the dojo when the door slid open and a young girl slid out.
“Oh, hello Rin, Sakura.” The girl wore the navy blue sailor uniform of the local junior high, but was clearly of western descent, with long, white hair and large, red eyes.
“Hello, Ilya,” Rin returned with some ill-hidden contempt. Ilya clasped her hands behind her back and began twirling innocently. She gave Sakura a mischievous cat smile.
“So, have you come to moon over Oniichan again, Sakura?”
“I don’t moon over Sempai!” Sakura exclaimed, flustered.
“What are you doing here anyway?” Rin growled. “Junior high doesn’t start until 8:00.” Ilya twirled a lock of her hair around her finger.
“You don’t really expect a cute girl like me to walk by myself without Oniichan protecting me, do you?” Rin sniffed.
“As if we’re supposed to believe the daughter of the Magus Killer can’t protect herself,” the elder Tohsaka sister shot back.
“Well, you can’t expect dirty old men to know that. I’d rather not get my hands dirty.”
“You’re a little brat.”
“And you’re a manipulative bitch,” Ilya returned easily.
“Why you-”
“Hey, Ilya, you shouldn’t pick fights with Tohsaka.” The owner of the newest voice stepped out of the archery dojo, already wearing his archery uniform and carrying a half-strung bow over his shoulder. Shirou Emiya was tall and had short red hair and strange gold colored eyes; he was known as the archery club captain, the student council president’s best friend, the overall nicest guy in school, and the honorary janitor.
“Good morning, Emiya-kun,” Rin said, turning to the boy with a smile. Shirou and Rin were in the same year, and had even been in the same class a couple of times; they weren’t friends really, more along the lines of simple acquaintances.
“Good morning, Sempai,” Sakura said alongside Rin. She had known about Shirou for years, but hadn’t gotten to know him really until she joined the archery club. His immediate kindness to everyone and extremely helpful attitude earned him the admiration of several first year girls, Sakura included.
“Morning Tohsaka, Sakura.” Shirou’s smile was genuine. He turned to Sakura, “You’re early, Sakura. I just finished getting everything ready, so you can get changed and start early if you want; I’m going to take Ilya to school now.
“Alright,” Sakura said, “goodbye, Ilya-san.” The younger girl gave Sakura a mischievous smile.
“I hope you’ll have summoned one by the time we meet again, Sakura; we can see which of us is the more talented little sister.” Sakura’s face whitened at the mention of the upcoming Grail War.
“You’ll have to deal with me before you lay a hand on Sakura, brat!” Rin shouted to Ilya. “That goes for you too, Emiya-kun!” This took Shirou by such surprise that he tripped and fell over.
“N-Nee-san!” Sakura shrieked, embarrassed. Rin gave her an apologetic look.
“Sorry, couldn’t help myself.”
As the Emiya siblings disappeared around the corner, Rin looked at Sakura and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Well, I’ll see you at lunch time, Sakura. Meet me on the roof, there’s more stuff we need to talk about.”
-Meanwhile-
Shirou walked slightly behind Ilya as she made her way to school, keeping a look out for the “dirty old men” that Ilya mentioned. Fuyuki, Grail Wars aside, was a pretty safe place to live with a pretty low crime rate, so Shirou wasn’t so much worried about kidnappers and scoundrels as he was about Masters attempting to take out some of the competition early. Speaking of the Grail War… “Ilya, why did you have to scare Sakura like that?” Shirou sighed as he drew up beside his sister. Ilya gave him a deceptively innocent look.
“I was complimenting her,” Ilya insisted.
“Really.” Shirou didn’t believe her.
“Yeah, I gave her the hope that she could actually compare to me.” Shirou had to resist bringing his hand to his face.
“You’re really egocentric, you know that?” Ilya gave him her classic cat smile.
“You know you love me for it, though.” Shirou attempted to keep his face disapproving, but failed.
“Damn it, you’re right.” Ilya continued on, happy in her victory, until her smile randomly dropped and she looked back at Shirou.
“Shirou, are you going to summon a Servant?” she asked, worry in her face.
“I’ll try, though I obviously don’t have your talent for mage craft.” Ilya smiled at him as they went around the corner and the junior high came into sight.
“I’ll help you Oniichan! I’ve already summoned my Servant, so we can work on getting yours tonight.” Shirou returned the smile and patted her head.
“Thanks, Ilya!”
The two went in their separate ways, Shirou towards his school and Ilya towards hers. Shirou stopped in his tracks as he saw someone stumbling along the sidewalk towards him. It was a woman wearing a heavy cloak over her dress, soaked in blood and gasping for breath. He noticed that she was close to collapsing and ran to grab her before she did. “Are you alright?” Shirou asked her.
“H-help,” the woman gasped quietly. Her hood fell back as she slumped, revealing long, periwinkle hair and unusual, pointed ears. She grasped at Shirou’s sleeve and pulled it back to reveal the faded red marks of his undeveloped Command Seals. “Make a contract with me… please…”
Shirou’s eyes widened; this woman… was a Servant!
-Later-
Sakura pushed open the door to the roof, briefly shielding her eyes from the rare winter sun as she turned to see Rin sitting on the ledge, facing inwards. “Good, you made it,” Rin said, smiling. “Mitsuzuri wasn’t able to convince Emiya-kun to do another lunch time practice? Weird.” Sakura didn’t return Rin’s smile.
“Actually, Nee-san, Sempai isn’t here today.” Rin frowned.
“But he was here this morning,” Rin argued, disbelieving.
“He never returned from taking Ilya-san to school.” Sakura’s worried expression caused Rin to sigh.
“Don’t worry, I don’t think Emiya got himself into danger. He probably got sidetracked helping old ladies cross the street.” Sakura couldn’t help but giggle. “Anyway, enough about Emiya-kun.” The atmosphere darkened a little as Rin fixed Sakura with a look. “We need to talk about the Grail War.” Sakura grasped at her wrist, where the faint marks of Command Seals were hidden by her uniform.
“Wasn’t Otou-sama trying to get catalysts for us to use?” Sakura asked.
“Yeah, but he had to be discreet about it so that word wouldn’t get out that the Fifth Grail War was happening fifty years too early, so he couldn’t get any.” Rin looked at her. “Sakura, do you know how Masters and Servants are paired up without the use of a catalyst?”
“Doesn’t the Grail choose?”
“Partially right; that’s actually the last minute resort. According to data from the first two Grail Wars, it has been hypothesized that if no catalyst is available, then it is up to the Heroic Spirits to choose whether or not to serve this Master, and then if none of them want the Master is when the Grail chooses for them, or if a group of Servants want the same Master, then the Grail will choose from among those Servants.”
Sakura nodded in understanding. It was an interesting theory, but Sakura didn’t understand why Rin was telling her this. “The reason I’m telling you this,” Rin said as if she were reading Sakura’s mind, “is because I’m afraid.” Sakura was taken aback. There was still that one part of her from her younger days that thought that Rin was fearless and all-knowing, a perfect Magus and human being.
“Afraid of what, Nee-san?”
“I’m afraid that you’d be chosen by a Heroic Spirit that would… want to take advantage of you.” Rin’s blush made Sakura uneasy.
“Take advantage of me how?” Sakura was almost afraid to know.
“Well, as you know, not all Heroic Spirits are… well… heroic, or at least not by modern standards. They do engage in some… rather… despicable acts. Or maybe a Heroic Spirit who simply wants to manipulate you into granting them their wish from the Grail.” Rin looked at Sakura apprehensively.
“Nee-san…”
“I didn’t mean to scare you, Sakura. I just want you to be safe, okay?” Sakura smiled at her sister.
“Nee-san, it’s okay. Even if I do get a Heroic Spirit like you mentioned, I can just forbid them from doing that with a Command Seal.” Rin stopped short, then stamped her foot.
“I’m such an idiot. Of course. I just worry too much about you.”
“You’re my big sister, you’re supposed to worry about me.” Rin sighed.
“Yeah, I know. Doesn’t stop it from being a pain in my behind though.” Sakura giggled, and then Rin joined in too.
-That Night-
Sakura felt the hand on her left shoulder, and looked back to see her father smiling at her and Rin, who was being gripped by the right shoulder by his other hand. “My daughters, now you shall summon your Servants. You are both girls of strong character, and will no doubt summon strong Servants to fight alongside you.”
Two separate rooms were prepared, where each of the two girls would summon their Servant with the privacy that they needed. Their mother pecked both girls on the top of the head before they set off. “Good luck Rin-san, Sakura-chan.” Rin nodded to Sakura as she entered her room and Sakura entered her own, after which the door shut itself, leaving her in complete isolation.
A summoning circle was already drawn upon the floor, and candles were lit all around, giving the room a dark, eerie feeling. Sakura stood in the middle of the circle and gulped before enacting the words that her sister and father had told her to say several times before: “Bare and silver and iron. Stone for foundation and the Grand Duke of contracts. My great master Shveinorg for the ancestor.
A wall for the descending winds. The four gates shall close and come out the crown. Let the three-forked road to the kingdom cycle.” The circle beneath Sakura’s feet began to glow red with energy, and her feet tingled from the surge. Sakura closed her eyes, took in a breath, and activated her Circuit. “Anfang.” She felt a burning in her arm and almost fell over as her mind was immediately assaulted with all manner of thoughts.
Sakura knew what this was, this was the judging that Rin had mentioned that afternoon. Heroic Spirits from across time were judging her soul, laid bare before them for the judging. Their thoughts came as barely audible mutterings, but some she could hear clearly: “No drive”, “No motivation”, “No chance.” These heroes had no confidence in her, Sakura realized with a sinking feeling. It seemed that it would be up to the Grail to pair her with a Servant, which almost always ended in disaster and the death of the Master. But…
“You plebeians!” The haughty voice rang clear over everything else. “You see nothing but a girl with no motivation, but I see beyond that! I see a book not yet written in, a canvas not yet painted on, clay yet to be molded, a blossom not yet bloomed! Grail, hear me! I volunteer to serve this Master!”
Sakura stepped back as the circle glowed even brighter, and something began emerging from the floor. A head of golden hair drawn into a bun, bright emerald eyes that shone with confidence and pride, a bright, fringed scarlet dress that exaggerated the wearer’s taste for extravagance. The woman stood a head shorter than Sakura, but she couldn’t help but feel subservient to the smaller woman. Those green eyes locked onto Sakura’s as the powerful, haughty voice drove out from the small woman’s mouth. “I ask of you, are you my Master? I have come forth in response to your summons.”
Sakura’s throat was dry, but she managed a shaky “Yes.” The woman nodded.
“Then know that from this day forth I, Servant Saber, devote myself to helping you realize your full potential and win the Grail War. Praetor, let us fight with honor.”
So... was it good? I'd appreciate some feedback on how well it was written as opposed to simply pointing out that I take a few liberties with Nasuverse definition. In a premeditated response to all questions related to that, I refer you to the footnotes of the latest chapter of Chaos Theory: Nasu basically made those rules so that characters could break them and look more badass.
JP Support
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US Support
Spoiler:
Oh hey, Nero!
Interesting choices made. Four Masters already confirmed, and three to go - possibly.
...and I am glad to see Shirou finding Medea. XP
F/GO SUPPORT
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