Grail Works, Ltd: A Scattering of Roses (TYPE-MOON Multi X-over)

[Xamusel]

I understand now. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

[RanmaBushiko]

A Scattering of Roses Omake: Where the Harem Route for Godafrid ENDS…


In the not so distant future, Astraea stands, her arms folded before Rin Tohsaka in an arena offered to them by Zelretch. Who had, disturbingly enough, ran off while ranting about “needing popcorn if things go the way he thought they’d go.”

The oddly circular platform was quite big and comfortable for them, though the weirdly sphere-like giant room around it, confusing to the two of them. But after a while, they shook it off, to study each other properly.

“So, you dare to deny me my prey? His judgement has not yet been fully written, but I will see him reformed…” Astraea then turns to the side, and blushes. More softly, she murmurs “And I suppose he’s cute enough to possibly become a consort…”


Rin slowly puts her face in her palm for one moment. “My sister’s pushing for me to help him as much as I can, so I’m not going to let him get taken away from my team.” Then Rin frowns. “But… that doesn’t mean I like him or anything! I just… his skills are useful to everyone. I want him alive and safe so he has a home to go back to.”

“So your claim is for loyalty, mine is for justice yet unfinished. If there are no other claims and claimants able to reach this place? Then let them be sealed off forever and their claims unmade-” Astraea’s voice stops as a ripple in space slams into existence near the two of them.

Slowly, Rin and Astraea pause to look at each other, then at the hole.

“You just had to pull something like this, didn’t you?” Rin finally states. “You just had to tempt fate, or the Norns, or whatever deity in charge of FATE that’s been watching the mess that is our lives to this point, didn’t you?!”

“In hindsight, that may not have been the brightest of ideas…” Astraea admits, slowly backing up and reaching for her sword and scales.

The bronze hoverpod slamming through the portal complete with a cockpit shell hiding the occupant, leaves Rin pausing for a long moment. She fully remembered the brand of “crazy” that the Norse God of Mecha had introduced to Trifas, after all. And with the similarities to his own ride that she could immediately see?

“Replica Unison Core, engaged. Klein Field, online. Rayshift, complete.” Is faintly heard from within the cockpit, leaving Rin frowning and looking at Astraea.

“I have absolutely no idea what most of those words mean, except for the last one. Rayshifting was supposed to be Chaldaean technology only, however…?” Astraea frowns further, then shakes her head. “Nevertheless, it seems we have a third opponent in our duel to see who can ensure Godafrid Úa Súilleabháin is ours! Let all other claims be unmade, and ours be the only ones that matter!”


“You know?” A girl’s voice echoes from the floating hoverpod’s speakers, a voice rather familiar to Rin as she slowly backs away from the hoverpod. “I had hoped I’d imagined it, a few years back.”

“Ohohoho! Oh? What did you imagine, little girl?” Astraea almost flaunts forwards, a grin on the pseudo servant’s face.

“The sudden need to beg, borrow or steal anything I could to keep my fiancé safe from man stealing skanks, of course! To quote Mordred on it, anyways!” Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia’s voice echoes in the chamber, as the hatch retracts, showing the formerly disabled girl glaring at them both. Then, she goes from a glare to a smile rather quickly, leaves the sensation of a sudden rock in Rin’s stomach.

“I’m not with her! She disappeared your fiancée with a spell, and sent him randomly to another universe without our group’s permission! We haven’t been able to find him since!” Rin calls out, voice desperate in the hope that the girl she’d met years past would see reason.

Fiore’s eyes meet Rin’s own, before Fiore nods at Rin as the hoverpod moves further away from Astraea’s range. Then Fiore grins at the memory of what Erik said about “talking not being a free action” before she continues monologuing in safety.


“Thankfully, with being stuck on a Norse God of Mecha’s personal ship the last few years, instead of begging, borrowing, or stealing? I just had to sign a contract! Work for him for a few years, and get to test technology fit for fiancé stealing skanks!” Fiore finishes, and opens fire with streams of mana bullets heading at Astraea, courtesy of her Bronze-Link Manipulators somehow integrated into the cockpit she’s using to fly out of range.


“Amusing, to think that a child such as you, could affect one such as I, little girl. I may not have the fullness of my might as I am, but I am still your better! You cannot match a goddess as a Ruler Servant, as you are now!” Astraea calls out, smugness on her face.


For a long moment, Fiore frowns as the new information works her way through her head.

Then a disturbingly pleased grin is on the normally composed and kind girl’s face. “So you’re a divine servant, then?” Fiore checks.

Astraea nods, a smug grin on her face.

Rin, on the other hand, gets while the going is good and steadily moves to the other side of the platform, palming several defensive gemstones as she does so. She’s seen Illyasviel have quite a similar grin, once upon a time, and has no interest in anything that Fiore might be up to as a result.

Fiore raises one fist, her grin growing as her Command Spells glow red. “BY THE POWER OF THIS COMMAND SPELL!”

Astraea’s grin falters, as Rin grows wide eyed. Astraea’s back glows, as the Ruler Servant prepares a use of her own Command Spells, ready to counter any attempts by her new foe to an unseen Servant.

Meanwhile, Astraea’s mind races furiously, trying to figure out how the figure before her could still support a Servant in the first place. Unsure, she frowns as she grips her sword tighter, wary of any sudden shifts to the battlefield.

“Chiron, SEND ME THE HYPER PROTOTYPE MARK 1 WEAPON!” Fiore finishes shouting, her grin absolutely smug.

Astraea winces, first at the weird name, then second, worse than the first, at the realization that the one before her hadn’tsummoned her Servant to simply be dealt with easily by Astraea’s own command spells.

The appearance of a massive portal, dozens of times the size of the first, leaves Astraea realizing, for one brief moment, that she may have just messed up a little bit. Then she shakes her head, as the confidence of the one whose body she borrowed comes to the fore. ‘I am Astraea, a Goddess! A divine judge, no less! I will not be stymied by some fiancée of the fool I wish to claim! And judge! Yes, judge. Nothing else…’ her mind rails.

Then reality opens, as something slams through the portal.


The metaphorical rock in Rin’s stomach now feels like a boulder, as she stares at something drastically upgraded from the mecha she’d seen before from Erik.

Astraea, meanwhile, stares as Fiore’s cockpit snaps into place at the top. “And why should I be afraid of such a thing?” Astraea finally asks. “Its workmanship is impressive, yes, it quite reminds me of the legendary Talos, but if that’s it…?”

“Considering someone who fought Surtr to a draw years before, helped me build it? And specifically helped me design weaponry for it in case I had to fight down divinity?” Fiore grins from her cockpit at Astraea.

“Design… weaponry for it?” Astraea’s voice is a touch more faint.

“Oh, very much so. Considering the divinity in his universe were all weak to radiation? What do you think I have as shields?” Fiore asks rhetorically, as Astraea slowly realizes this wouldn’t be as easy as she first thought.

Then the right arm minigun raises, and opens fire at Astraea.

“OW! THAT STINGS!” Astraea calls out, as she struggles to dodge minigun fire.

Then the realization that the minigun was hurting her through her A+ ranked endurance hits, and Astraea’s confidence wanes further at the fight going as easily as planned.

“May I at least have your name?!” Astraea calls out, in an effort to get her new foe to stop, even for a moment to let her body catch her breath. In truth, she already knows who her opponent is. Her true name discernment lets her know, because they were both part of the same Holy Grail War, and they were plugged into the same system as a result.

“I am Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia, the rightful fiancée of Godafrid.” Fiore’s voice echoes from the massive war machine she’s in. “And you’re hoping to steal my man from me!”

Astraea’s eyes catch Rin’s, who’s hiding behind a gemstone barrier. For a moment, rage surges through the Servant’s mind as she realizes that while she’d been fighting, her rival had cut and run… and then she glances back to check at the massive thing that Fiore was piloting, to find it was now drill-less.

Desperately, Astraea looks around for where on earth the drill may have been…

Left.

Right.

Spinning around.

Then she looks up, and dives out of the way of the drill coming down right on top of her…

The next thing she knows, she’s falling, shattered chunks of the platform falling along with her.


Upwards she looks, to realize her scales had been dropped somewhere on the platform above, and huge chunks remained.

Then she looks down, and widens her eyes at the sight of a smaller platform below the one they all were on, before skydiving to it, leaving both rivals behind.

Meanwhile, Rin studies Fiore.

Fiore studies Rin.

“You know, I have had a long time to think about the different words I could have had with you, involving the mess we wound up going through.” Fiore admits.

“Aheh…” Rin shivers, quietly. “Please don’t kill me?”

“At the same time, your ‘group’ helped save us all from the mess that was Ymir, so I suppose hurting you is out of the question…” Fiore continues on.

Rin breathes a sigh of utter relief. “Thank you for that.”

“Just one question. Why are you here with her, and fighting over my Godafrid?” Fiore asks, an undertone of cold rage in her voice.

Rin slowly looks up at Fiore, before sighing the sigh of the damned. “As far as I can tell, my little sister thought we’d make a good couple. More than that, we had no clue where you were at, or if you were even still alive. So with you having gone missing with Erik, and him being ‘lost’ due to Astraea down there, she probably thought ‘attempting to play matchmaker’ would be fun.”

“Little sister, hmm?” Fiore leans back in her chair, listening.

“She’s had a crush on her upperclassman just about forever. And I suspect she’s aiming to keep me too distracted to do anything while she puts the moves on him, if that makes sense?” Rin checks, before blinking at the drill reappearing on the giant mecha’s arm.

Fiore’s mecha nods in sudden understanding. “Considering Caules’ interference with my relationship, I suppose I can understand an attempt at matchmaking to keep a sibling from interfering with another’s love life… and my disappearance with an apprenticeship under Erik not being known? Also makes sense. Make sure she understands that my fiancé is off limits.”

Fiore pauses, frowning. “At least until I’m dead, or unless it’s a Servant, anyways. I’m doing my best to wind up on the Throne of Heroes or to achieve immortality, so I can stand beside him, but it’s slow going.”

Rin just blinks at Fiore’s statement, then watches the massive mecha slowly float down to deal with her rival.

Then, not being an idiot in any way shape or form, though tsundere was another matter, she steadily worked to set up gemstones around the wreckage of the platform she was on, to ensure any stray attacks that hit it wouldn’t send her flying down, either.

Just in case. No reason to be stupid, after all. Not when giant robots that big were involved. She’d seen a few Godzilla films due to Kurai. And worked out plans from Kurai’s occasional warnings about what to do if she ever found herself in a franchise like it.


Nope. She was going to stay up high, stay safe, and out of it. Because she wasNOT A MORON. That was what Shirou was for, any version of him that she knew, as much as she hated to admit it.





Meanwhile, up above where Rin can’t see, far above the arena she’s in…




“So. Who are you rooting for?” Nero asks, offering Mysterious Heroine XX a bowl of popcorn. “This Emperor says that the Maestro’s fiancée, even if beguiled by lack of knowledge, will win! Umu, she is obviously of Rome with such majestic weaponry!”

“I vote for Fiore as well, to be honest. She was competent with how she handled things in Trifas, and with such a machine, it would be fair to say that she’s gotten all her bases covered.” Mysterious Heroine XX admits, folding her arms. “I’m surprised that Astraea didn’t notice us up here, though…”

For a long moment, she looks at the bowl of popcorn, then she frowns, dismisses her helmet, then starts munching.

“And what would you suggest as possibilities for the situation, then?” Two voices ask, as two Servants in shadows speak up. Then they frown, realizing they spoke at the exact same time.

Mysterious Heroine XX almost freezes up, at hearing one voice she dreads, before she simply sighs, and offers the popcorn bowl to them as well.

“I’m not sure how things are going to go until Fiore realizes the obvious, but after that, it’s pretty firm that her war machine will outlast her at range, where Astraea’s weakest. Sensei obviously helped her out with that thing, too.” Mysterious Heroine XX admits, watching.

For a long moment, the two in the shadows pause, before slowly nodding. “So, what did Fiore miss?”

“Another name for Radiation is Starfire. And what is Astraea a deity of, again?” Mysterious Heroine XX admits, settling back to watch.


“Umu! It shall be a glorious battle, indeed! Now if we can only get it recorded for Maestro!” Nero muses aloud.

“My armor’s recording all of it, don’t worry. And if you’re nice enough to ask, I’ll get you a copy of the tapes!” Mysterious Heroine XX admits, smiling.

Three servants immediately look at each other, then at their companion in the armor. “Please?” Three voices ask in almost perfect unison.

Mysterious Heroine XX just smiles.





Down Below…




Astraea looks up, biting back a snarl as she swings her sword to try and smash at the irritating rounds from the massive chain gun that keeps shooting from Fiore’s war machine.

Not shown by Astraea is her mental frown, as instead of her assumption that Fiore would get close and use radiation to attempt to burn her, which she could absorb and use to empower herself? Or perhaps to store for a massive retaliatory strike? Instead Fiore was staying back and shooting from range.

Momentarily, her eyes survey the floating platform she’s on, somehow hovering in the endless chasm, before she glances over the edge she’s near.

There’s smaller platforms below, but her eyes narrow as she catches sight of a sign in the distance.

“Pit of Eternal Stench below, filled with enough thioacetone, durian fruit, and Surströmming, that even a Servant might commit suicide over smelling it, much less being dunked in it.

You’re welcome for me not putting ‘The Earth’s Molten Core’ down there instead.

~Zelretch


PS. Thanks to Jareth for his idea of the Bog of Eternal Stench, and thanks to Erik for making things worse!”

Silently, Astraea twitches at the realization that the other one that had gotten away had helped with the situation down below. Then more at a Swedish dish being involved with the smell that she luckily can’t smell, yet.


Then, Astraea turns back, right as a drill slams into the small of her back, nearly sending her flying off the edge.

Her sword’s tip stabs into the ground, sliding her to a halt, as she grabs the drill with one hand, and moves to try and send it flying back at the foe…

Then she flinches, as radiation coats the drill.

Astraea shivers, doing a full body flinch as the radiation floods her body, acting as she’s injured worse than just from the drill. Then she grunts, and throws the drill back at Fiore’s war machine with a snarl, moving as if her body is more hurt than she really is.

‘All the better. If I can get her to think it’s hurting me enough to get in close…’ Astraea’s thoughts go over it for a moment.


Fiore, sensing weakness, launches the drill forwards once more, this time the drill being coated with radiation from the start.

Astraea slams her sword in the way, and forces herself to swing, pitting her Noble Phantasm against a metal drill divinely designed and aided in its construction by a former God of Mecha.


Slowly, the radiation fades and the drill slides to a halt, and with a grin, Astraea grabs the drill tip with both hands while feigning weakness for a moment.

Then she slowly starts to spin, and flings it back, sending it flying back at Fiore’s war machine.

Or, that was the intent, anyways. In reality, spinning really fast around and trying to throw things means you’re likely to make yourself dizzy and miss (as any Super Mario 64 player, or person working on hammer throw practice could tell you). And with a giant “something” in the way, like the massive drill in her face, Astraea had a much harder time gauging things than planned. It wasn’t like a hammer throw sporting event, no matter how much she’d prefer it to have been.

Then Astraea frowns as Fiore backs off, the drill floating back to her left arm… somehow.

“What’s she planning…?” Astraea can’t help but murmur.




Meanwhile, Fiore settles back into her chair, her hands sweaty, as she studies controls and focuses on her link to Chiron. ‘The theory checks out that she seems to be affected by the radiation, but it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. There’s no major signs of burns, or heavy damage, yet. Maybe it’s because of her being a deity related to the stars, Chiron?’

For a moment, Fiore’s eyes focus on the words on her hoverpod stating “Klein Field at 1% saturation for the Klein Bottle”, before an idea comes to her mind.

‘Nevermind that. Chiron… would replicas of the drill with the Klein field be possible, do you think?’ Fiore asks.

The response leaves Fiore and Chiron smiling, however distant they were, as Master and Servant have a rather brilliant idea.

“Okay, Unison Core Prototype… this is what I’m going to need your help with doing.” Fiore murmurs aloud, her evil grin being very reminiscent of the sort Godafrid would have when revenge was his. “I think it’s time we stepped it up a notch, and keep her from stealing this unit’s drill again!”

With those words, Fiore aims, and hexagons form over the drill, replicating it in a force field that then slams forwards, repeatedly.




The constant barrage of drills that shattered as Astraea attacked them with her sword, was the moment Astraea realized that Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia had decided to turn up the heat for the fight.

The fact that her attempts at grabbing the drills left only her hands trying to grasp some sort of force field replica of what she had tried to throw back?

Irritating.

The fact that the force fields dissipated, leaving her grasping only empty air and nearly being slammed off by the next drill?

Exasperating.

That she was steadily losing ground on the island every time Fiore missed her and hit the small island of rock Astraea was currently perched on?

INFURIATING.


“Get over here, and face me woman to woman! Fight fair!” Astraea finally calls out, with a scream of utter rage.

“You do realize that I’m trying to work to become a Servant after I die, so I can continue to be with my fiancé, no matter what happens with him, right?” Fiore calls out over the loudspeakers. “That or attain Immortality.”

Far above, Rin blinks, then her head jerks down to look down below at Fiore in both surprise and consternation. The fact that Fiore was willing to become a Servant or aiming for outright immortality…? What did she know that Rin didn’t?


Meanwhile, Astraea pauses. And slowly looks up to study Fiore in a new light, recognizing her words for what they are.

For a long moment, Astraea slowly nods, then salutes Fiore with respect using her sword. “A fair point. Would fighting me forever at range only make you an Archer, though? Unable to use magecraft except for ranged attacks? If you aren’t careful, you might only be able to summon aspects of your current… steed.”

Fiore pauses her barrage, to study Astraea. “Right… a Ruler Servant would be able to guess that. Though if you’re telling me the truth to help me, or only telling me that to lure me in…” Fiore trails off, eyes narrowing at Astraea.

Then Astraea nods. “A fair point. I swear this, upon one of my Command Spells. If I fail to win this fight, and am lying, then I will sacrifice it and give it to you.”

Fiore studies Astraea, then slowly nods. “You are supposed to be of Justice, or so I’ve heard. So is it justice to keep me from my fiancé?”

“Says the girl shooting drills at me and trying to dunk me in something that may make me want to commit suicide?” Astraea points out, no amusement in her voice.

Silently, Fiore looks at Astraea, then clicks several buttons.


For a moment, the blue hexagons surrounding her mech fade, the energy in the Klein Bottle releasing and resetting.


Then they snap back into place, followed by a red field, as Fiore’s war machine dashes forwards… just as Astraea had planned.




Carnage erupts as the two test each other’s skill. The advantages a D&D Character sheet gives Fiore is countered by the insane skill of a Servant, but the sheer mechanical advantage of Fiore’s mech leaves them just about even in terms of capability.

Fiore’s drill and its shield sparks against Astraea’s sword, the two struggling between each other as hard as they can, machine versus Goddess in a test of might, but it leaves Fiore frowning.

Fiore frowns harder, swinging the massive tail in a swipe that freezes all in its path with a spray of Liquid Nitrogen that leaves a wide eyed Astraea’s barely timed jump being fortuitous.

Then Astraea grins, and goes for her attempt at a win.

Starfire erupts around Astraea, as she dashes forwards, and grasps at the massive gun on Fiore’s mech. Then with a scream, she jumps into the air, and backflips to go for an honest to goodness suplex.

The result plows Fiore’s machine straight through the island, as Astraea introduces it to blow after blow, struggling to end the war machine, and win.

Then Astraea’s grin falters as the red shielding fades, but the blue shielding remains, even as they crash into another, smaller island below.

“Wing units, deploy!” Fiore orders, and flips her war machine, the force of the flip sending Astraea back up. Massive wings snap open, thrusters fire, as her war machine stabilizes itself.

Meanwhile, Astraea grins more and more as she shoots up towards the first island that her scales are on, letting the Starfire fade as she goes up.

For a moment, she can just see it in her mind. Her reaching up, grabbing the scales. Perhaps sending Rin into the horrid mix of liquid down below along with the war machine that had vexed her so very much…

Then with a THUMP, Astraea realizes that she just hit a shield set up by Rin, and slowly starts to fall again.


Astraea reaches out, almost looking desperate as she tries to grasp or cling to anything that would keep her from falling. But her hands only brush against the shield spells Rin set up to keep from getting caught up in the confrontation, rather than any outcroppings of rock, or any damaged rocks that are hanging from the island she’d confronted Rin on earlier.

Then with a scream of “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!”, the Goddess falls back down towards Fiore and her fight with the war machine.

Meanwhile, Rin just smiles from the sweet, sweet schadenfreude of watching Astraea be stymied, as she falls.

Moments later, Rin pulls her head back as a drill shoots by, barely missing Astraea.

“Not getting involved with this, but I’ll admit the sounds she made were funny…” Rin murmurs.

Then the sounds of missiles firing en-masse leaves Rin grateful she stayed out of it.




Down below, Fiore frowns as alarms blare in the cockpit. “Reset the Klein Field, the missiles will only hold her off for so long.” She finally states, as she frowns, watching the sight of Astraea falling closer.

Then Fiore pauses, as an idea comes to mind from one of the Sonic games she’d played specifically for ideas on how to pilot the thing she’d gotten Erik’s help with building.

“Oh, that would work just fine.” Fiore murmurs. Then, hovering her mech lower, she adjusts herself, and carves the island that Astraea had suplexed her mech into, in half with the drill.

Then, before either can fall, she backflips once more, using the mech in an attempt to shatter both platforms and send chunks towards Astraea.

To Fiore’s wide eyed satisfaction, both chunks are sent flying, even as they shatter into a rock shotgun like blast.


Astraea screams with absolute fury as she descends like a meteor, Starfire once more erupting around her frame as she plows through the shotgun-like attack. Then, she launches herself off several pieces of rubble, arm pulled back for a punch… that misses…?!


Astraea’s already wide eyes widen further, as she realizes that somehow, improbably, she had outright missed the giant war machine that her foe was in.

And the grin on her foe’s face is disheartening as Astraea finally realizes why. There’s only one platform left.

“Well, well, well.” Fiore’s voice is gloating, as she stays further off from reach once more. “One last island, and your attempt at victory seems to have failed.”

Astraea frowns, looking at the island over the liquid far below, then glares. “It was justice done, that happened to your fiancé. Justice that needed to be done for the mess that happened as a result of Trifas. I need to hunt him down, and make sure he never pulls a stunt like that again. But, as a result of your show of strength, I will acknowledge your claim if you don’t throw me into that… muck.”


Fiore pauses, as the Klein field snaps into place once more. Then her eyes glance over readouts. Screens showing the damage and estimates for how long it would take to repair things. Readings, showing major damage that had been done through the shields, seeing as Astraea had somehow siphoned the radioactive shielding into attacks that had blown through almost all defenses completely.

For a moment, she’s tempted. Honest to goodness tempted.

“I will allow you to marry him, and perhaps only allow him to become my consort after you inevitably perish…” Astraea continues speaking, turning her back to Fiore as she thinks over how things, to her mind, will end up in the future.

Fiore’s eyes harden.


“And if you do become a Servant, I’ll be more than happy to allow you to learn to share…” Astraea continues, unknowingly digging her grave deeper.

Fiore’s eyes search screens, checking readouts.

Then a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes, but shows all teeth, emerges on Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia’s face at spotting the one system she hadn’t wanted or planned on using, still fully functional and active.

Hands move along levers, adjusting levers, knobs and dials as she works the systems of her ‘Hyper Prototype Mark 1’, bringing the reactor to full power and output.

Quietly, Fiore murmurs aloud, “Thanatonium Prototype Reactor to full power, check.”

Astraea puts one finger to her chin, while thinking. “Oh! I know! If you ask me nicely for an apprenticeship, we can become Ruler Servants together! You can serve as my apprentice in Justice, and I’ll teach you everything I know, so we can ensure he never falls off the path of the straight and narrow ever again!”

With a punch to the air, Astraea nods, before turning back to see the more brightly than normal glowing mech Fiore’s in.

And the grin on Fiore’s face, that promises of doom for herself.


Her mind furiously races for an idea, before a brilliant one comes to her: “BY THE POWER OF MY COMMAND SPELL! COME TO ME, MY SCALES!”


With a scream, and a flash of a Command Spell fading off her, her scales reunite with her hand, and Astraea focuses as she narrows her eyes.

“A judgement shall be made!” Astraea calls out, as reality shifts around the two combatants.

Meanwhile, to Astraea’s confusion, Fiore’s war machine momentarily splits in half at the middle, revealing a metal disk separating from the two halves, even as the scales form in the starry night sky around them.

“This is the weight of your goodness…” Astraea continues with her speech, then frowns at a sudden, terrible realization.

Her scales weren’t weighing Fiore or her mech, because it was flying…?!


“That’s not fair, you can’t do that! That’s not even supposed to be possible! How are you avoiding my judgement?! Get your machine on the scales so it can be weighed!” Astraea calls out, almost desperation in her voice, not even realizing that she’s floating up from whatever superweapon Fiore has deployed, or the disk is aimed at her now.


“Super Gravity Cannon Prototype: Fire.” Fiore states.


The Noble Phantasm shatters, revealing normal reality, right as Astraea is introduced to the floating island she’s on with absolute pain and agony involved.

For a long moment, Astraea lays on the floating platform.

Then she slowly raises one hand up, and weakly croaks the word “Medic…?” before passing out.





Slowly, Astraea’s eyes open.

Then she desperately looks around, ready to try and hold her breath, only to realize… she’s still on the island Fiore hit her on.

Confused eyes turn to look at Fiore, sitting in front of her in the hover pod, the giant mech floating behind her.

“Why didn’t you throw me in?” Astraea finally asks, weakly.

Fiore shakes her head, softly. “Why would I do that? You have your role, and I’m still seeking the one that would let my fiancé use my abilities best.” Fiore states.

Astraea’s eyes widen in surprise, then narrow in contemplation as she weakly attempts to get up.

Her body aching gives truth to the fact that for all her bluster, she had lost, however.

“Fine. I won’t stand in the way of you and your relationship with him.” Astraea finally admits.

“And as for what you promised?” Fiore questions, eyes narrowed.

Weakly, Astraea raises one hand while nodding. Tapping Fiore’s hoverpod, a flash of red disappears from Astraea’s Command Spells, appearing next on Fiore.


“Thank you.” Fiore admits. “Eventually, I’m going to track down Godafrid and see what’s going on with him… and why, exactly, he didn’t hint that he was either isekai’ed or reincarnated as my betrothed.” Fiore admits, frowning. “Something like that, anyways. Erik and I both haven’t figured that out yet, but considering Zelretch is purposefully ensuring I don’t meet up with that… Grail Works group until after I have a confrontation with Godafrid, I’m sure there’s something I’m missing.”

“I’m not sure of the exact specifics myself,” Astraea admits, weakly, continuing on moments later with “but I do hope that your eventual meeting is a pleasant one.”

Fiore nods, smiling at her former opponent. “Good match. It’s a pity that you didn’t have any ranged attack options. Things could have been more interesting that way and gave me a better matchup for testing. After all, I know Erik’s going to be in the Servantverse eventually, and that Godafrid will likely be in there at the same time.”

Astraea slowly nods, and watches Fiore fly back to her Hyper Prototype Mark 1.


Then, with the signs of rayshift, both Fiore and her machine disappear, leaving Astraea alone on the island.

“Hmm. I would have expected things to have ended by now, since it all got solved…” Astraea murmurs, half asleep.

Then she pauses at the sound of thrusters.

Slowly, Astraea turns, struggling to move, as she hears footsteps coming up.

A set of armor is close, one vaguely familiar to her.

True Name Discernment gives a name to her immediately, Mysterious Heroine XX.

Slowly, Astraea turns to try and get a better look, only to pause at the sight of Nero beside her, and two Servants further back in the shadows.

“So, why are you four here, then?” Astraea weakly asks.

“Who wants dibs on beating the crap out of her for trying to make sure my first Master couldn’t ever summon or meet us, say ‘Aye’!” Mysterious Heroine XX calls out.


Three other Servants shout the word ‘Aye!’ almost in unison, with a cheer in their voices that bely the promises of pain in the looks on their faces.


“And if she tries to use Command Spells, let’s throw her into the muck, before we start fighting amongst ourselves, sound good?” Mysterious Heroine XX continues, a menacing grin on her face. “I need to see about those new systems Erik gave me, anyways…”

“Mercy?” Astraea asks, slowly trying to grab something, anything to help her up.

“Umu! What’s this mercy thing, can you eat it? This Emperor has never heard of such before, and has no plans on researching it for someone like you.” Nero asks, the cheerfulness in her voice belying the look promising pain and an imminent stabbing.

“ARE YOU SERIOUSLY PRETENDING YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT MERCY IS?!” Astraea half screams, before the four Servants are on her.


And the last thing she hears before the beating, is the words “Umu! History does renown me for throwing Christians to the lions!”


Author’s Notes: The Unison core involved outright no-sold Astraea’s Noble Phantasm there, and for good reason.


Yes. I know it’s supposed to work on even flying enemies. But that’s not what’s happening there.

Because the Unison Cores result in eventual mental models, all of which are effectively innocent children.

As a result, unknown to Astraea, the entire mech was one innocent child, piloted by an enemy. Something that, no matter how much she ranted or railed, or fought against, she could not judge to be evil.

It was the literal Chekov’s gun of the fight as a result.


Fiore rolled a 17 on a 20 sided dice to not get hit, as well, which is why Astraea’s last attempt with Starfire failed, by the way.

[Arbitrarity]

Ah, I am very late, whoops.

Chapter 18 – A Hogwarts Sabbatical

Here we hit the important notes and then a few. Ilya-on-Ilya jealousy is a delight. Takara-Akiha is essential to call back to, then we get some very funny misunderstandings out of the Aozaki name, and her explicitly calling out Shiki as her father with absolutely no clarification. Plan Boy H references ahoy. It has to be kinda weird to encounter a past-alternate version of your father, really.
Luna is married by now, as are Ginny/Neville; kind of unfortunate they don't have room in this chapter, but to be fair, there are a lot more primary reactions that we have to see.

“—like something I used to read, years ago,” the man was saying, before adding with a rueful smile, “though it sounds like he ended up being more like my favourite author’s character, rather than the one he was aiming to imitate. . .”

Presumably this is Galen dissembling somewhat about his alternate, which seems a bit weird when he seems to know his alternate is like himself, though Galen may want to conceal that, since he doesn't know how open Kurai/Godafrid has been. (this sentence was previously a mess of pronouns)

“Erik didn’t do it,” Salvatore said hollowly. “They did—they found a way around, and used you to get to him . . .”

This is... probably Titans, if I'm parsing this correctly. Not Erik, but they recognized Godafrid as Krampus, and they are using the Works to get at (Probably Erik, possible Godafrid?). Canonizing Ahriman also strongly points that way. I'm forgetting when Erik's arm started getting consumed (fighting Ymir?), but he's been influenced by Titans prior to that point as well.

Where the Harem Route for Godafrid ENDS

At least he's still not as contested as Shirou and Shiki. Woooo Fiore!

As a result, unknown to Astraea, the entire mech was one innocent child, piloted by an enemy. Something that, no matter how much she ranted or railed, or fought against, she could not judge to be evil.

One would think you'd get bonus damage against people using child soldiers, but if Fiore can dodge culpability for that part then that probably does substantially weaken the entire judgment.

The sequence of Nero/XX/??/?? (hmmmmm, that'll need some thought) showing up to stomp Astraea afterwards just causes me to picture that one Golden Wind scene. Presumably the possibility of paradox meant the deck was a bit stacked against her there.

[RanmaBushiko]

Ah, I am very late, whoops.

No worries, we get it. I've been late on posting chapters, too, so... yeah. I've been there, too, man. I'm legitimately having to re-read what I've posted before I post anything new, so I can refresh myself on what to post, to keep the timeline in sync (which is... not exactly a problem, but... you get it).

First off? For the Erik bit? That was directly a result from the Ymir fight, yeah.

At least he's still not as contested as Shirou and Shiki. Woooo Fiore!

Glad you enjoyed her showing up again.

One would think you'd get bonus damage against people using child soldiers, but if Fiore can dodge culpability for that part then that probably does substantially weaken the entire judgment.

I'll be quoting Arpeggio of Blue Steel directly on this one: "We are weapons! Our directive is to receive and carry out missions!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKgTB_usxhQ shows Maya from that series saying exactly that.

It's like a hyperactive Train-kun if Train-kun was happy to be a part of a mech, and helping with fights. They haven't grown up yet enough to realize "maybe I should be helping choose this stuff?" instead of "child soldier".

The sequence of Nero/XX/??/?? (hmmmmm, that'll need some thought) showing up to stomp Astraea afterwards just causes me to picture that one Golden Wind scene. Presumably the possibility of paradox meant the deck was a bit stacked against her there.

Yeah, more than a tiny bit against her. She hit the idiot ball with this one. And asking Zelretch, of all the pranksters in the multiverse to help...? I also wrote this so this can easily be inserted into canon anywhere, if current plans work out the way they are right now.

[Kieran]

Ah, I am very late, whoops.

Well, really, I was early . . .

Here we hit the important notes and then a few. Ilya-on-Ilya jealousy is a delight.

Glad you enjoyed it!

Takara-Akiha is essential to call back to,

Yeah, I couldn't not mention it - particularly since none of them had ever really seen her, despite her importance in the circumstances. Even Galen, who has the most direct experience with her (which basically amounts to "watched the anime") couldn't just go, "Huh - OK." It wouldn't have made any sense. And the fact that Akiha is younger than any of them (though they all look like teenagers) makes the disconnect even stranger; though it is what Galen would've expected her to look like when he thinks about her.

then we get some very funny misunderstandings out of the Aozaki name, and her explicitly calling out Shiki as her father with absolutely no clarification.

Yeah - and she's going to get some "What the hell are you doing?" looks from the others . . .

Plan Boy H references ahoy.

That is a reference I don't get, I'm afraid.

It has to be kinda weird to encounter a past-alternate version of your father, really.

Absolutely - even by their standards of "weird."

Luna is married by now, as are Ginny/Neville; kind of unfortunate they don't have room in this chapter, but to be fair, there are a lot more primary reactions that we have to see.

Yes - sorry.

Presumably this is Galen dissembling somewhat about his alternate, which seems a bit weird when he seems to know his alternate is like himself, though Galen may want to conceal that, since he doesn't know how open Kurai/Godafrid has been. (this sentence was previously a mess of pronouns)

The Works has explained their history; that prompted the comment. Galen is obliquely referencing the fanfic series that inspired me to write the Works.

This is... probably Titans, if I'm parsing this correctly. Not Erik, but they recognized Godafrid as Krampus, and they are using the Works to get at (Probably Erik, possible Godafrid?). Canonizing Ahriman also strongly points that way. I'm forgetting when Erik's arm started getting consumed (fighting Ymir?), but he's been influenced by Titans prior to that point as well.

You shall see . . .

At least he's still not as contested as Shirou and Shiki.

True - and it would be idiotic if he was.

Woooo Fiore!

A fan of hers, are you . . .?

One would think you'd get bonus damage against people using child soldiers, but if Fiore can dodge culpability for that part then that probably does substantially weaken the entire judgment.

The sequence of Nero/XX/??/?? (hmmmmm, that'll need some thought) showing up to stomp Astraea afterwards just causes me to picture that one Golden Wind scene. Presumably the possibility of paradox meant the deck was a bit stacked against her there.

A bit, yes.

. . . And while I think of it, the Dossier thread has an addendum to our earlier discussion - please check it out.

[Arbitrarity]

That is a reference I don't get, I'm afraid.

You haven't seen Carnival Phantasm? I was assuming you were referencing that entire thing explicitly.

The Works has explained their history; that prompted the comment. Galen is obliquely referencing the fanfic series that inspired me to write the Works.

Ah, gotcha.

A fan of hers, are you . . .?

In contrast to Rin/Astraea, a bit. She's contextually fun to cheer for when she's bringing Erik-level overkill to the situation; I assume she's getting terrible relationship advice from Tamamo.
Rin is kind of half-hearted/transactional about the entire thing (I may need to read between the tsundere lines more), and Astraea's essential Luvia-ness lacks... authenticity. I'm thinking about post-UBW where Rin/Astraea are implied to be fighting about Shirou, and there I tend to cheer for Rin because she's at least got some implied vulnerability/investment in the relationship, Luvia comes off as entitled.
With Rin being distant compared to that situation, Fiore's level of "get away from my man, I have dibs" makes her clearly the most-invested in the arena. Healthy? Questionable. Worrying? Possibly. But I presently would want her to have the first opportunity among those three, with the current level of development each of those characters has. Rin or Astraea would need more screen-time to make their cases.

[Kieran]

You haven't seen Carnival Phantasm? I was assuming you were referencing that entire thing explicitly.

I've seen bits of clips on YouTube, but so far as I know, I can't legally view or acquire it, so . . .

Ah, gotcha.

Ilya figures she can trust herself, and her cohort - and with Galen reading near-identically to Frid, the best possibility to get leads is too good to pass up.

(And, of course, she REALLY wants to know how her counterpart got an adult body, and the husband she wants.)

In contrast to Rin/Astraea, a bit. She's contextually fun to cheer for when she's bringing Erik-level overkill to the situation; I assume she's getting terrible relationship advice from Tamamo.

That is entirely possible . . .

Rin is kind of half-hearted/transactional about the entire thing (I may need to read between the tsundere lines more),

Right now, you're correct (and in fact, she has no idea what Sakura and Ilya are trying to pull).

and Astraea's essential Luvia-ness lacks... authenticity. I'm thinking about post-UBW where Rin/Astraea are implied to be fighting about Shirou, and there I tend to cheer for Rin because she's at least got some implied vulnerability/investment in the relationship, Luvia comes off as entitled.

Yeah, Luvia hasn't had much say in this, so far; mostly because, again, they're trying to stay OUT of the Clock Tower's sights (which makes my occasional thoughts about Reines funny, because some of her F/GO scenes and dialogue imply that she'd be much happier AWAY from there, and she knows it . . .). And given that Astraea would have to possess her if she left the island (faerie realm rules are more flexible - and prana-rich) . . .

Avoiding the Clock Tower would be hard, then - and on a personal level, as with Rin, Luvia's a magus, whereas Frid would be perfectly happy to see them all die out as useless parasites. Kind of hard to build a relationship, that way.

(In that sense, I think Sakura would be a better match for her, because I don't see her having any love for the lifestyle, either - but barring a major change, shenanigans, or an analogue of her showing up, it's impossible.)

With Rin being distant compared to that situation, Fiore's level of "get away from my man, I have dibs" makes her clearly the most-invested in the arena. Healthy? Questionable. Worrying? Possibly. But I presently would want her to have the first opportunity among those three, with the current level of development each of those characters has. Rin or Astraea would need more screen-time to make their cases.

Fair - and I agree with you on the answers to those questions.

Fortunately, at the moment, RB was just having fun, and dealing with a brain-worm that would not leave him alone - I can relate . . .

[Kieran]

Also, for context, a recent (and English-subtitled!) trailer for Venus Vacation Prism:







Honoka appears at about 30 seconds in, and while Misaki is the first girl/narrator we see, her more common personality shows at 1:55 - sadly, none of the other core DOA girls appear in this game.

And while this trailer doesn't mention it, apparently a plot point will include a "Prismatic Meteor Shower" over the island - shades of Zelretch . . .?

[Kieran]

Origin: Tragic (Benefit: Capable of Anything – can re-roll a 1 once per scene)

Influences: Mugen Tenshin Graduate – Ayane belongs to the Mugen Tenshin Clan (Faction)

Hang-ups: Once per scene, when she fails a Skill Test, she suffers ↓1 on her next Skill Test as her equilibrium temporarily wavers.

Bonds: I was top of my class, except for my one and only rival (Kasumi). We have unfinished business to settle.

Role: Commando (Focus: Silent Weapons)

Level: 12

Ground-Based Movement: 40 ft.

Health: 3

Languages: Japanese (native language), English

Essences (Defences): Strength 4 (Toughness: 15), Speed 10 (Evasion: 20), Smarts 5 (Willpower: 18), Social 7 (Cleverness 19)

Faction: Mugen Tenshin Clan

Perks:

All Warfare Is Deception – Once per scene, after making a Deception or Stealth Skill Test, Ayane may reroll all her skill dice and take the new result.

Balance and Harmony – Once per scene, can use a Standard Action to remove a Condition other than Defeated and Conditions).

Blink of an Eye – Ayane can Attack twice, instead of once, when you take the Attack action with a Silent Martial Arts weapon.

Everything’s a Weapon – Ayane may Sneak Attack with any weapon.

Every Trick in the Book – Ayane’s eyes automatically seek out ambush spots, likely places to hide, and quick exits. She can no longer be surprised. Enemies who are hidden or invisible gain no benefits when attacking her. She does not suffer sneak attack damage.

Expertise – Ayane gains ↑2 when using Acrobatics, Finesse, Spellcasting.

Fast – Ayane has ↑2 to Initiative, and increases her movement speed by 10 ft.

First Strike – Ayane has Edge on Attacks and Skill Tests against opponents who haven’t acted yet in combat.

Fluid Motion – Silent Martial Arts weapons gain Maneuver as an alternate effect when Ayane uses them. Silent Martial Arts weapons that already have a Maneuver alternate effect lose any penalty for using this alternate effect.

Friend of Darkness – Ayane may attempt a DIF 10 Alertness test to see in darkness as though it was dim light.

Ghost – When Ayane is hiding, she is considered invisible to natural senses.

Indomitable Spirit – Rigorous training and experience have crystallised Ayane’s discipline. She gains a +2 to Willpower.

Into the Void – Gains the “Dig Deep” General Perk (once per scene, Ayane can ignore 1 damage by taking a Snag on all Skill Tests until the end of her next turn; once per scene, she can heal 1d2 damage by forfeiting her entire turn).

Just a Graze – Ayane has a knack for dodging at the last moment, turning a mortal wound into some thing bearable. Once per turn, she can reduce the damage of an attack against her to 1.

One With Your Weapons – Ayane no longer suffers any penalty when she uses your Silent Martial Arts weapons’ alternate effects. Additionally, switching between Silent Martial Arts weapons is a Free action for her.

Projectile Dancer – Ayane moves like the wind, dancing around muzzle flashes and dodging bullets with the greatest of ease. Threats using projectile weapons suffer a Snag the first time they target her.

Razor Tongue – Ayane deals 1 additional damage when making attacks against an enemy’s Cleverness Defense and gains +2 Cleverness.

Seconds Between Click and Boom – Attacks against Ayane’s Evasion Defense suffer a Snag. If her attacker misses, she suffers no effects (even if there would be an effect on a miss).

Shinobi of the 63rd Hexagram – +1 to Toughness and Willpower; in addition to her Role’s Equipment Training and Qualifications, you are Qualified with 1 Limited melee weapon and 1 Limited projectile weapon, both of which must have the Martial Arts trait, and Trained in all weapons with the Martial Arts trait. Ayane is Qualified with the Lightning Cycle, and rolls Driving Skill Tests to drive motorcycles without a Snag, even if she has no Ranks in the Driving Skill).

Sneak Attack – Once per turn, when using a silent weapon to attack a target within 20 feet, and Ayane has an Edge on the attack or an ally also within 20 feet of the target, she deal 3 additional damage once per turn.

Takedown – Ayane can make a special attack to incapacitate enemies as a Standard action, using both hands to make an unarmed Might or Finesse attack against the Toughness of a living target who is surprised or not in combat, and unaware of her presence. If she is successful and the target’s threat level is no higher than her level, she deals no damage but inflict the Restrained condition on them and knocks them Unconscious for 1d4 minutes (the enemy is awakened if they take damage or if an ally uses an action to wake them). If she misses, or if she succeeds but the target’s threat level is higher than hers, she instead Grapples her target. If she misses and the target’s threat level is higher than her level, the attack has no effect.

Two-Handed Assault – Ayane gains ↑1 on Attacks with two light Silent Martial Arts weapons (meaning instead of the usual ↓1 on one Attack and ↓2 on the other when attacking with two light weapons, she suffers no penalty on one Attack and ↓1 on the other.

Whisper Warrior – Ayane is Qualified with all weapons with the Martial Arts and Silent traits. Additionally, while wielding a weapon with the Martial Arts and Silent traits, she can Defend as a Free action.


Skills (Specialisations, "/" indicates Expertise): Acrobatics d6 / d10 (Specialisation: Gymnastics), Alertness d4, Athletics d2, Deception d6 (Specialisations: Bluffing, Distraction), Conditioning (+1) Finesse d6 / d10 (Specialisation: Martial Arts), Infiltration d4 / d8, Intimidation d2, Spellcasting d4 / d8, Survival d4

Training and Qualifications: Grenades, Finesse and Silent Weapons, and Qualified with Submachine Guns and all weapons with the Martial Arts trait.









Writer's Notes: I'm leaving the original sheet up because it would disrupt the flow of conversation in-thread, and I think it'll be nice for you to be able to compare the two, and see how far she's come . . .

It's noted in one of the Power Rangers sourcebooks that any TV show Ranger essentially starts at Level 5, allowing them to have access to all the abilities the rule system otherwise locks away; I've taken a similar approach here. Ayane is acknowledged in-series as a jonin by the timeframe I'm using, head of an entire sect within the Mugen Tenshin clan, and (until it was retconned by Dead or Alive Dimensions, which I'm ignoring because it gave her a lot of character growth, and she EARNED IT) ]the winner of the third tournament. Not to mention several side appearances, like the two previous Zack Island tournaments, Ninja Gaiden Black 2 and 3, and the previously-mentioned Fatal Frame DLC. This is Ayane as a veteran, with the skills to match.

Hopefully, I'll have the next chapter ready to go by next week (it's been a bit nuts, for various reasons) - and if not, there's always the updated Honoka . . .

[Xamusel]

Uh, Kieran, you have a formatting error in your Writer's Notes. It's an improperly closed Italics tag.

[Kieran]

Since it's somewhat relevant (and it's the first thing I've ever found to name her DOA 2 actress), I thought I'd put it here for reference and comparison:



https://www.youtube.com/shorts/aP03Xdluusw



. . . Again, until DOA 5, Kasumi is supposed to be 17, as opposed to her "present-day" 19 (actually, she'd turn 46 today) - it's part of how the change in voice actresses is explained, at least in terms of the Alpha-series clones; because they're Kasumi at a younger stage, they used Sakura Tange when Kasumi faced them in later games, to emphasise the difference her maturity made.

Uh, Kieran, you have a formatting error in your Writer's Notes. It's an improperly closed Italics tag.

So I did - fixed, thank you. I've also tweaked her Skill display, so the effects of her Expertise Perk are a bit clearer.

[Kieran]

Origin: Athletic (Benefit: Always Training – Rolls a d2 skill die for Strength or Speed-based Skill checks she does not possess, doesn’t suffer a Snag for being untrained.)

Influences: Escapist (Honoka is unimpressed by grounded, well-reasoned arguments; she is Resistant to Persuasion Skill Tests and gains +1 Cleverness. She can’t resist a well-spun yarn; Deception Skill Tests targeting her gain an Edge against her), Martial Artist (Given the opportunity to observe another martial artist for one minute, Honoka can learn if the creature is her equal, superior, or inferior in Threat Level as well as its Toughness and Evasion defense)

Hang-ups: Honoka can’t help but be a show-off; attempts to goad her into action with Social abilities gain an Edge against her.

Bonds: (Escapist) I pursue all sorts of options because I don’t want to miss out on something that sounds good! (Martial Artist) I love martial arts movies and competitions and talk about them incessantly.

Role: Renegade (Focus: Blitzer)

Level: 6

Ground-Based Movement: 55 ft.

Health (with bonus when Reckless Abandon): 3 (4)

Languages: Japanese (native language), English

Essences (Defences): Strength 7/Toughness 17, Speed 5/Evasion 15, Smarts 3/Willpower 13, Social 4/Cleverness 15


Perks:

Additional Health – Honoka gains +1 Health.

Aggressive – Honoka may spend a Story Point once per turn to move up to her full Movement Rating in addition to her Move action. While using this ability, she ignores Rough Terrain and does not trigger Contingency action attacks.

Beast of Burden – At 2nd level, Honoka gains ↑2 on all Might rolls to push, drag, or lift.

Coin Toss – At 6th level, when attacking with a Might weapon, Honoka can critically hit on a d2.

Iron Hands – Honoka inflicts +1 Damage on Might (Martial Arts) attacks.

Reckless Abandon – Reckless Abandon is an aggressive and brash approach used to catch enemies off guard and allows Honoka to fight through the pain until the battle’s over. She can start fighting with Reckless Abandon as a Free action. While acting with Reckless Abandon, she gains the following benefits as long as she is wearing light armor or no armor: ↑2 on all Strength Skill Tests and Bonus Health (+1). This Bonus Health goes away when you end your Reckless Abandon. She cannot use kits while fighting with Reckless Abandon. Reckless Abandon lasts for a minute, until there are no enemies she can see, or until she is defeated. She can also end her Reckless Abandon as a Free action. She has a number of uses of Reckless Abandon per day (4).

The Hits Keep Coming – At 3rd level, once per turn when she Defeats an enemy, Honoka may use a Free action to move up to her Movement Rating and make a melee Might attack.

Wind Sprints – Honoka’s Strength Essence increases by 1 at 1st level, and again at 10th level, and the skill point from this increase must be placed in Athletics or Might. Her Movement Rating increases by 15 ft.


Skills/Reckless Abandon Upshifts (Specialisations): Acrobatics d4, Alertness d2, Athletics d2/d6, Brawn d4/d8, Culture d4, Finesse d4, Might (Martial Arts) d6/d10 (2d8 to push, drag or lift), Initiative 2, Persuasion d4, Performance d4

Training and Qualifications: Light Armour, Might melee and thrown weapons







Writer's Notes: Sorry - the last week has been troubling, for a number of reasons - not much time to write.

Anyways, Honoka doesn't get as big a boost, because she was DLC-exclusive in DOA 5 (and I didn't screw up by accidentally excluding half the Perks she should have had, unlike Ayane), but she does have a few increases that make her a bit more combat-ready . . . And it really shouldn't surprise you that she's stronger than Frid.

[Xamusel]

Thanks for the character sheet for Honoka.

[Kieran]

DISCLAIMER: Tsukihime, Fate/Stay Night, and all related characters and concepts are the creation and property of Kinoko Nasu and the staff of TYPE-MOON. Exalted, Scion and all related characters and concepts are the creation and property of White Wolf/Onyx Path Publishing. Forgotten Realms and all related characters and concepts are the creation of Ed Greenwood and presently owned by Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro. G. I. JOE and all related characters and concepts are the property of Hasbro. Dead or Alive, DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball and all related characters and concepts are the creation and property of Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo.

This is a not-for-profit, just-for-fun project.


Writer's Note: Certain dialogue sequences in this story are lifted from DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball: Venus Vacation, but I trust in the intelligence of my readers and the (general) availability of the game to recognise them when they see them.












Clock Tower, London, England
July 8, 2004
















Smoke curled upwards from the cigar held in Lord El-Melloi II’s hand, and it was the only sense of movement the elder magus betrayed. Eyes closed in thought, the empty hand pinching the bridge of his nose, the long-haired man showed no sign of even breathing as he contemplated the circumstances that had been laid out before him.

Caules Forvedge looked nervously at his teacher, waiting for a response—and the bespectacled youth’s anxiety increased the longer the silence stretched on, marred only by the quiet ticking of the clock set upon one of the office’s many, many bookshelves.

“. . . An interesting fantasy,” the professor said at last, and the flat tone of his voice was like thunder in the way it shattered the quiet.

“However,” he added dryly, “I can assure that it is a fantasy. The Holy Grail War ritual does NOT work that way—it’s a battle royale, yes, but a free-for-all between seven summoned Servants, not two teams of seven.”

“I didn’t think so,” Caules admitted. “But it was so detailed that I didn’t think it could be just a dream, if that makes sense.”

A wish fulfillment, perhaps. Being able to be a magus alongside his elder sister was . . . A not-unpleasant thought, Caules admitted to himself, even knowing that he’d be outshone by Fiore’s overwhelming talent. However, it wasn’t the way magus tradition or society worked, and insofar as he knew, his sister seemed far happier without the burden of their family Crest or her circuits. Certainly, she was more mobile . . .

“So far as I can tell,” Lord El-Melloi II said, “you’re under no outside influences—if you were, entering this office would’ve been difficult.”

Caules hadn’t felt anything, but he supposed the office of a Lord of the Clock Tower would be protected from hostile magecraft, out of common sense, if nothing else. And Lord El-Melloi II was known as being eminently practical, as his classes often demonstrated.

(Though why Flat Escardos was allowed to continue attending, given his antics, was beyond the younger magus. If they’d been affiliated with the Church rather than the Clock Tower, Caules might’ve suspected Lord El-Melloi II was aiming for a sainthood—as it was, the situation was simply baffling . . .)

“Still,” the teacher continued, “while a magus should never ignore dreams, particularly ones as strange as that, I think it’s safe to say that this ‘Great Holy Grail War’ is simply the product of an overactive imagination, and whatever odd food you ate the night before, Caules. There’s only one Holy Grail War ritual, after a—”

“M – Miss Reines!” came a faint protest from beyond the office door, before it opened forcefully, admitting entry to a gleaming silver figure in a maid uniform.

“There you are dear brother!” Reines El-Melloi Archisorte chirped sweetly as she followed the maid in.

As the honestly doll-like blonde strode into the room liked she owned it (which she technically did), Caules instinctively followed his teacher’s example in shrinking back from her presence. He wasn’t overly familiar with the younger magus—being nowhere near refined or renowned enough to associate with a future Lord—but he had picked up that Lord El-Melloi II dreaded his sister, especially when she was in a good mood. . .

And right now, she was downright euphoric.

“. . . What do you want, Reines?” Lord El-Melloi II said in a resigned tone, as he sank in his chair.

The tiny girl (she was nearly a foot shorter than Caules, never mind her brother!) pouted.

“Such distrust,” she replied in a hurt tone. “And here I’ve come with such wonderful news for you!”

“And what’s that?” Lord El-Melloi II demanded suspiciously.

“You’re being commissioned to go to America and investigate some strange occurrences in a place called ‘Snowfield, Nevada,’” Lady Archisorte said gleefully. A smirk grew larger on her face with every following word as she continued, “The precise details, of the case are, of course, unknown, but the preliminary findings indicate there’s only one phenomenon on record which matches what we’re seeing.”

In an even more wary tone, well aware that he was handing her the setup she wanted, the professor prompted, “And that is . . .?”
















Lady Luviagelita Edelfelt walked purposefully but gracefully along the courtyard path, the very picture of elegance and poise—


“A WHAT?!”



Finding herself the victim of an unexpected, sonic-based attack, Luvia immediately sought cover, while attempting to minimise her profile as a target.

(And anyone who later claimed that she tripped was clearly either a victim of illusion-based magecraft or outright lying.)

Once it was clear, however, that no further outbursts—er, assaults—were coming, the Edelfelt heiress climbed to her feet and tsked at her state of dress, before turning on her heel and returning to her dorm.

Bothering Lord El-Melloi II about the matter of her unusually vivid dream—and making inquiries as to why one of his students had a role in it, along with a sister that she hadn’t known the boy had—would have to wait until she was presentable again. . .
















Reines giggled at the reaction, the sound like tinkling bells. For his part, Caules stared between the two older magi as Lord El-Melloi II eventually dropped back into his chair and jammed the cigar between his lips, smoking furiously.

“It’s obviously not genuinely a Holy Grail War, of course,” she assured him. “If it was, I’d never let my dear elder brother on set foot the same continent.”

Her tone was cruel and mocking, and there was an icy certainty in her words, as well; a stony, terrifying cast to her face that put Caules in mind of a feral cat, growling in warning.

(And oddly, reminded him of Fiore—something about her position just registered to him as sororal affection, somehow . . .)

“And yet,” Lord El-Melloi II countered, “you say that everything the Clock Tower can divine indicates that it is—and you ordering me to go there.”

“You apparently misheard me,” Lady Archisorte riposted, her eyes sparkling with malicious delight as she accepted a cup of tea her metallic maid proffered to her. “I said that you’ve been commissioned to go, by the Policies Department.”

Lord El-Melloi II’s perpetual scowl, already deeper than usual since his sister’s arrival, blossomed into full-on disgust. “Adashino’s idea, no doubt.”

Lady Archisorte hummed in acknowledgement as she sipped from the teacup, nodding briefly before lowering it and confirming, “Miss Adashino signed the papers herself.”

She then surprised both magi by baring her teeth in an unnervingly sharklike manner for a young woman (particularly of her proportions), which could theoretically be called a smile.

“Of course,” she added lightly, “you are the only survivor of a Holy Grail War that’s available for consultation immediately, as well as being asked to consult on a matter far outside the bounds of your normal responsibilities or interests. As such, I argued, that entitles you to a certain level of compensation . . .”

She withdrew a cream-coloured, wax-sealed envelope and set it delicately on the professor’s desk.

As though it was a venomous serpent, the elder noble reached out, broke the seal, and unfolded it to scan the contents—

Before his jaw dropped so widely that the cigar fell onto the floor.

“. . . I trust that the terms meet with your approval, dear brother?” Lady Archisorte purred smugly.

If she had been seated, Caules imagined that she would’ve been swinging her legs in delight. Despite knowing her nature, at that moment the blonde seemed like nothing so much as a young girl wanting to be patted on the head and praised for doing a good job—and the incongruity of it was making his flesh crawl . . .

The young magus was pulled from his thoughts by Lord El-Melloi II suddenly launching to his feet as though spring-loaded, the paper falling from his grip.

(Caules caught a brief glimpse of its contents before it fell below his line of sight—and wow, that was a LOT of zeros . . .)

“GRAY!” commanded Lord El-Melloi II. “WE’RE GOING!”















Somewhere on the edges of reality
Beyond space-time
















At one point in time, long ago—or yet to come, depending upon one’s perspective—a singular grudge had caused the impossible.

Unable to satisfy itself, it had reached beyond the universe, beyond what had been considered or allowed to be possible, to seek a power outside the laws of the universe, outside comprehension, transforming mere nightmare into reality, and cracking the very foundation of existence . . .

And through that crack, the Outer Gods peered through.

While the effort had not yielded the desired results, in the end, it had nonetheless heralded the doom of all that was; the Outer Gods’ attention, once drawn, was never truly lost—and unbound by time, physics, or constraints as humans understood them, their patience was truly endless. The stars could burn out, and all Creation start anew, multiple times, and those of the Outer Dark would simply wait, for the opportune time that their alien designs could begin anew.

The grudge’s efforts had failed to satisfy it, yet the inevitability of its triumph was assured, though it would never survive to see such.

Unknowable as the Elders were, however, they still obeyed certain rules, certain concepts. Humanity might understand them as little as an ant understood the actions of humanity—and vice versa—but the Outer Gods held allegiances, values, conflicted with one another . . . And among those elements, lay this truth: that their stories involve nihilism (best personified by the Outer Gods themselves), and luminosity—the wonders of the cosmos, the undiscovered, and the better qualities of humanity. These struggles would always, in some fashion, be played out when that which lay Beyond was encountered or invoked.

For all that Fate itself could be twisted around and unwoven by the Outer Gods, this basic principle remained.

As such, when summoned in one universe, only the first of its kind to cross over was summoned in the fullness of its power, and bound to an innocent child, whose ultimate potential was yet unwritten. Those which followed, though equally terrible and far more intrinsically malicious, were mere shadows of the true entities, bound to equally nebulous forms; beings either unknown to or misunderstood by history and legend.

Still, so great was the threat that their continued summoning would eventually tip the balance in favour of the Outer Gods, if only by the sheer weight of their massed presence—and even beyond that, they had means of influence in seeking to do so faster . . .
















Secret Workshop
Not far outside Snowfield, Nevada
Grail Works Universe
















Prelati opened her (?—yes, her) eyes, and as her memories filtered in, found herself surprised in doing so.

To begin with, she hadn’t expected the attack that her killed her—and furthermore, she definitely hadn’t expected to need a replacement body so soon after acquiring her current (well, “last,” now) one. Luckily, she had moved a stockpile in close proximity; the potential lethality of a Holy Grail War and the need to be able to respond quickly to rapidly changing events practically required having such on hand—

But not, Prelati quickly discovered to her dismay, as many as she’d started with. . .

Staring in horror at the remains, the magus quickly realised that whatever had killed her had apparently managed to rival the Aozaki woman in sheer destructiveness. Somehow, it had not only destroyed her last body, but continued on along her pre-programmed sequence; of the full score she’d moved, only her present body remained intact!

That had never happened before, and the only beings she could think of who could accomplish such a feat were long since removed from the World; and yet, at the same time, the memory of her most recent death seemed VERY fami—




(̵̧̢͔̼̬̗̱̗͓̹̣͈͇̘̂̋̄͒͝W̵̢̜͓̺͎̬͚̼͖̮̙͛̾̆͊̀̃͜H̶͋͆͋́̆̉̽ ̧É̸͔̰͓͍̩̙̳̈́̐̀̍͊̽̈́̓͊̈́̽͠͠͠͠Ȑ̷̤̩̹̮̤̲̰͕̒̍̅̌͑̓́̆̕͜͠E̷ ̧̟͇̫̘͔̩͇̙̼̝̖̦̹͉͌̍̈́͛͌̐̌̊̔͌̓͘͘̕͜͝ ̴͓̼͕̜̪̠̅̎́͌̋͝I̵̡̛̥͈̙͉͚̝̗̲̯̘̞̪̗͉͊́̍͐̎̑̾̾̈́̇̀͜T̷̏͋̉̈́͋ ̲̪͋͋͂̂́͆̏̈́̕͘ ̶̨͕͉̖̳͙͙̌̈́͂B̵̧̢̜̘̜̟̣͔͕̠̻̭͐̊̀͒͊̈̀̀̄̅̋̇͆̒́̕Ẹ̵̙̠̳̞͋̚ ̡͚͖̠̙G̸̛̛͇͈͚͚͎̩͕̪̣̈͑̆̀͋̉́͋̔̔̕͝A̴̛̬͓̝̠͋̓͂̕͜͝Ñ̴̈́͒̾͘ ̡̝̦̟̞͓̩̙̘̥̮͉̣͉̫̅̇̇,̴̳̱͇̞͍͓̮̬͍̺̪́̍̈̋ͅ ̸̢̧̺̪̜͙̞̟̫͖̣̲̚͝S̶̨̭̳̖͓̤̘̖̻̮͚͇͗̐̐ͅO̸̔́̂̈̐̍̎͒̈́͝͝ ̡͇̟ ̶̛̖͎͔͔̤͚̥̺̹͈̈́͆̐͐̒̆̒̀̕͝͝I̷̡̧̪͇̩̟͎̬͚͈͉̻͐̓͐́T̶̍̋̿̒͌̏͝ ̗̯̟̓͐̌͝ ̶̧̥̮͉͚͖̲̜̘͉̘̆̾̉̄͒͋̿̃̆̿̿̒̉̐͜͜͝͠S̴̛͎̲̥̼͉͓̜͈̩͚͉̘͑̀̋͛͛ ̫̰͎H̴̜͓̺͒̃̽̿̈̾̽̓̿͐̓̕Ȃ̶͕͎̭̟̏̌L̸̛͙̘͒̀̀̓̋̿̓̍͗̕̕̕͝L̶̕ ̡̤͎͎̪͙̩͓̬͉̥̗̼̻̼̀͐̿ͅ ̸̥̺̬̿͆̑́̉̂͒́́̓͑̿͑͋̃͊̏ͅĘ̵͎̼͕̯̫̖͂̽̕N̶̋̋̆̅͐͛̔̃̋̊̈́̂̚͘ ͖̫̦̲̪͚̖̒̅ͅD̷̹̬̗̥͍͚̎͒̂̏̔͐͗̊̈̍͘͜͝͝)̶̛̋͛͛̋͆̂͗̔̓̇̊̆͒̓̕ ̢̧͙͍̳̹̳͇̜̑






Prelati staggered under the sudden burst of knowledge, blooming full-force into her brain; a “gift” from those she’d contacted long ago—and an obligation.

(It was said that when one stared into the abyss, the abyss stared back—but no one, to Prelati’s knowledge, had ever considered that the abyss had always been watching in the first place . . .)

“Fuyuki, is it . . .?” she murmured.

Prelati had done her research, of course. Fuyuki, Japan was the birthplace of the Holy Grail War ritual—and one she’d sadly missed out on recently, because no one had expected it to happen so soon. Thankfully, she’d thought, there was more than enough time for her to stack the deck of Snowfield’s ritual . . .

Though going by the thick plumes of smoke she could see even from this far away, her preparations for that Holy Grail War were utterly wasted; regardless, she had a location, and a target to find within that location—and then, perhaps, she’d finally be free to pursue her own desires, for a change.

Not for the first time, Francesca (born François) Prelati cursed the day that she had ever so much as imagined that spellbook . . .

But she could hardly deny that she enjoyed the chaos.
















Writer's Notes: I have family plans tomorrow, so I'm splitting what I've been working on, and giving you something for this week. I also have a tentatively-official timeline, but I will put that up tomorrow.

In the meantime, I hope this has you all speculating . . .

And as for the Zalgo text - (WHERE IT BEGAN, SO IT SHALL END)

Thanks for the character sheet for Honoka.

You're welcome - sorry I couldn't do more . . .

[Xamusel]

This is a bit late of me to say anything, but I enjoyed this update, Kieran. I hope you manage to get the timeline done right for us.

As for the character sheet info? It's perfectly fine, man. Take your time in doing this, please.

[Kieran]

Someone on the Dead or Alive subreddit put this together - it's not perfect, but it effectively gives a partially coherent timeline for the DOA series (and other Team Ninja games). I will have some changes, myself because for the purposes of the timeline the creator apparently regards DOA 1 as being a genuine tournament, DOA 2 as a tengu illusion, DOA 3 as a fake tournament set up by Donovan to test Omega, and the next genuine tournament being DOA 4.

In my case, I fully intend for DOA 3 to have happened, and without the Dimensions retcon that stole Ayane's victory - it's too important to her character arc and development. I also presume that DOA 2 happened, because that introduced the Alpha series clones, so it's ridiculous to ignore it; but this does give a general idea of what happened when (including Ayane's Fatal Frame appearance, which most sources consider non-canon). I'll be changing the in-story dates to reflect this, later.

And it's only two years out (in either direction, depending on which calendar you want to use) from the events of Fate/stay Night . . .

This is a bit late of me to say anything, but I enjoyed this update, Kieran.

Thank you.

I hope you manage to get the timeline done right for us.

You tell me.

As for the character sheet info? It's perfectly fine, man. Take your time in doing this, please.

Well, I don't want to take too long between chapters, because inertia sets in WAY too easily these days - I must be getting old . . .

[Arbitrarity]

In the meantime I'm "oops I didn't check in last week and then dreaded reporting in late too much to respond"

Powered-up Ayane is presumably more of a match for Zedd, though the difference between what I presume are player vs enemy sheets are notable; Ayane has dramatically more Perks while Zedd is somewhat more straightforward. The health difference is also pretty substantial, but that makes sense as a player-NPC asymmetry thing. Honoka seems like a more straightforward bruiser. "unimpressed by grounded, well-reasoned arguments" is pretty funny.

So we have a bit of multiversal leakage. I'm not entirely clear if this is Grail Works home universe for Caules/Lord El-Melloi, but Prelati being explicitly that is notable, especially if they're... potentially going after the Works. This probably ties back into Galen's warnings. Waver seems likely at least; it's clearly NOT the Anarchy timeline. More probably Abigail references, and reference to a grudge, possibly atemporal. We again maybe go look at Ahriman or Zurvan (the latter is probably more appropriate for time).
Snowfield is canon previously, so Prelati may well have gotten blown up by the Sword of Atli situation? I might need to find more context from Strange Fake to guess if that made sense... oh, the dates are important, if this is the Works universe, Waver's section is ~3 months in the past relative to Prelati there, which also makes the dream leakage strangely atemporal. One also wonders how this interacts with Flat usually attending the Snowfield event, but regardless, that's a bit more danger "at home" than the Works normally has to field. Innnteresting.

[Kieran]

In the meantime I'm "oops I didn't check in last week and then dreaded reporting in late too much to respond"

That's actually part of why I try to have something up every week, because it's too easy to let inertia take its course - so I get it.

Powered-up Ayane is presumably more of a match for Zedd, though the difference between what I presume are player vs enemy sheets are notable; Ayane has dramatically more Perks while Zedd is somewhat more straightforward. The health difference is also pretty substantial, but that makes sense as a player-NPC asymmetry thing.

Yeah - Zedd's also a tad weaker since Frid "stole" some of the things he's supposed to have (and he was a shadow of himself to begin with), but it still wouldn't be an easy fight. Still, since Ayane can, theoretically, tackle bosses like Tengu (he never had a name beyond that, originally, and I never remember it anyway), Project: Omega, and Alpha-152, I have to assume that she has a chance against Zedd.

By the same token, Zedd has his usual magic, thanks to his staff, and did fight Tommy to a stalemate in hand-to-hand in the original series, so . . . *Shrugs* Depends on his creativity, and who gets the first move.

Honoka seems like a more straightforward bruiser. "unimpressed by grounded, well-reasoned arguments" is pretty funny.

By virtue of being an energetic airhead, somewhat, but yes. She and Arcueid would get along like a house on fire, I think.

So we have a bit of multiversal leakage. I'm not entirely clear if this is Grail Works home universe for Caules/Lord El-Melloi, but Prelati being explicitly that is notable, especially if they're... potentially going after the Works. This probably ties back into Galen's warnings. Waver seems likely at least; it's clearly NOT the Anarchy timeline.

Well, Astraea sent every foreign influence on the Anarchy world "away," and Frid's conceptual gravity had an influence as to where - so, it's something like an echo, if that makes sense, presuming the person involved is aware enough. Caules was fairly deeply involved, as part of the Black Faction, and Luvia deals in similar magecraft to Rin, or seems to; between that and Astraea herself being involved, since she's no small power herself . . .

It might be interesting to consider if Laeticia got anything - she's "normal," so she shouldn't have, but being a host for Jeanne and Astraea, maybe it's too "loud" for her not to hear.

More probably Abigail references, and reference to a grudge, possibly atemporal. We again maybe go look at Ahriman or Zurvan (the latter is probably more appropriate for time).

Yes.

Snowfield is canon previously, so Prelati may well have gotten blown up by the Sword of Atli situation? I might need to find more context from Strange Fake to guess if that made sense... oh, the dates are important, if this is the Works universe, Waver's section is ~3 months in the past relative to Prelati there, which also makes the dream leakage strangely atemporal.

You may presume that any dating errors are attributable to the phrase "time is out of joint."

Now that said, I will be updating the Venus Islands section to reflect the timeline as posted previously - it means a few dialogue changes, but it's a coherent baseline (and an interesting detail considering future plans of mine . . .).

One also wonders how this interacts with Flat usually attending the Snowfield event,

He probably won't, since it's been eliminated several years (I think . . .?) early.

but regardless, that's a bit more danger "at home" than the Works normally has to field. Innnteresting.

Yeah - they just had to tie Strange/fake to the Case Files . . .

[Arbitrarity]

Well, Astraea sent every foreign influence on the Anarchy world "away," and Frid's conceptual gravity had an influence as to where - so, it's something like an echo, if that makes sense, presuming the person involved is aware enough. Caules was fairly deeply involved, as part of the Black Faction, and Luvia deals in similar magecraft to Rin, or seems to; between that and Astraea herself being involved, since she's no small power herself . . .

Ahhhh, this makes a lot of sense.

You may presume that any dating errors are attributable to the phrase "time is out of joint."

I didn't think this was an error, I was assuming this was deliberate information, though... ohhhhhhhh, Akiha's entire thing has been taking place in the same time-frame as Waver's date there, I just didn't cross-reference until we had a second Snowfield reference, so Waver is in the present(?). Righto. I just wanted to know if this was "in the present time, Waver will have been interacting with Snowfield" or "Waver is going to interact with Snowfield", since the former is a narrative device and the latter is a plotline, especially when you're dealing with months.

Well, those October sections I linked in the Epilogue are Zelretch specifically, and he's presumably allowed to screw around atemporally anyways. That does make for an interesting second date for things to happen by, though we don't yet know why the October date is important.

[Kieran]

Ahhhh, this makes a lot of sense.

Easier to get certain characters involved if they have a reason to go looking, eh . . .?

I didn't think this was an error, I was assuming this was deliberate information, though... ohhhhhhhh, Akiha's entire thing has been taking place in the same time-frame as Waver's date there, I just didn't cross-reference until we had a second Snowfield reference, so Waver is in the present(?). Righto. I just wanted to know if this was "in the present time, Waver will have been interacting with Snowfield" or "Waver is going to interact with Snowfield", since the former is a narrative device and the latter is a plotline, especially when you're dealing with months.

Yeah - for better or worse, I'm going to try to open up the Clock Tower for people to use characters in the Works, and this is where it starts . . .

Now, which characters, or for what reasons, I don't know yet - but I've got to start somewhere.

Well, those October sections I linked in the Epilogue are Zelretch specifically, and he's presumably allowed to screw around atemporally anyways. That does make for an interesting second date for things to happen by, though we don't yet know why the October date is important.

I will be honest - right now, it's long enough ago that I don't remember; I'll have to consult with RanmaBushiko and see if he does.