12 days earlier, Clock Tower, London, England

Kayneth el-Melloi Archibald liked to think that he was a patient, dignified, and composed man. It came with being one of the most respected professors and lecturers of the Clock Tower, as well as being a scion of the Archibald family. But, he did still have his moments and momentary failings, as evidenced by the rage he felt at discovering that his catalyst for the Holy Grail War, a piece of the mantle of Alexander the Great himself, had been stolen.

So, at this particular moment, no, Kayneth el Melloi Archibald was not feeling particularly patient, dignified, or composed, at all.

"WHO? WHO WOULD HAVE THE AUDACITY TO STEAL MY CATALYST?" he screamed from inside his lavishly furnished study.

The only two people who were witness to this spectacular meltdown, watched with a mixture of disdainful humor and apathy. Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri, and her brother, Bram, watched Kayneth rage for a moment. It was all she could do not to laugh out loud at the man's predicament, despite the fact that he was her fiancé. So, instead, she maintained a mask of chilly indifference.

Her brother, on the other hand, simply shook his head, shifting the messenger bag hanging off his shoulder. "Honestly, dear brother-in-law, I do think that you are over reacting just a tad. This situation can still be salvaged."

Kayneth paused in his furious pacing to look at his fellow lecturer. "And how, exactly, do you hope to do that, Sophia-Ri? The time it would take to procure another catalyst of such grandeur and quality would be beyond what I can afford at this moment in terms of time. The War will soon begin within the month, and I need the best if I hope to win. Alexander the Great would have been the best. So, what am I to do now, without the best?"

Bram merely smirked. "Do you forget who you're talking to? As it happens, I made sure that this was not the only relic that could be used as a catalyst. I do believe that I have a suitable backup for you to use."

At this "generous" offer, Kayneth narrowed his eyes.

Despite how much he respected the Sophia-Ri scion in terms of prestige and ability, Kayneth held no illusions about the man himself. Bram was a snake in every sense of the word, and never did anything for anyone if it did not benefit him in some way.

"What do you want?" Kayneth asked.

At that, Bram's grin turned positively venomous. "Access to the Archibald and Barthomeloi Archives, for forty-eight hours, each, at a time of my choosing."

"Out of the question!"

Bram's sigh and shrug oozed disingenuous mocking. "Then it seems that you will have to secure a relic by yourself. Good luck with that, Lord Kayneth. Either that, or forfeit from the War, before it has even begun. I would be interested to see how such an action would affect yours, and your family's, standing in the Association, seeing as how you had publically decalred yourself to be a contestant."

With that, Bram turned, and began to slowly walk away. He had not gone two steps past the door when Kayneth shouted, "Fine! I will see what I can do."

Bram turned back, venomous smile back in place. "Thank you, dear brother-in-law. Was that so hard?"

If looks could kill, Bram would be a bloody pile of meat on the study's floor. "Dare I ask why you require such access?" Kayneth asked.

"None of your concern, my dear brother-in-law. Now, as it turns out, I actually happen to have the relic right here." As he said this, he began to reach into the bag at his side.

Kayneth had to restrain himself from either attempting to physically strangle the man or flay him alive with the Volumen Hydrargyrum. That, and the fact that doing either of those things in front of the man's sister, his fiancé, would have been in extremely poor taste.

As he was restraining himself, Kayneth had the paranoid idea that this entire thing, including the theft, had been orchestrated by Bram to send Kayneth further into his debt. But that was ridiculous.

"With this relic, you will indeed summon a very powerful servant, Lord Archibald," said Bram, as he handed Kayneth his new catalyst…

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12 days ago, Fuyuki City

Kirei was not entirely sure how to feel.

That in itself was nothing new to the young priest, due to the contradictory natures of the emptiness and twisted urges which had secretly plagued him for most of his life.

A man of God and the cloth who did not believe, and a person with a strong moral compass who could only receive pleasure from the suffering of others. That was who Kirei Kotomine was, much as he might have wished otherwise.

But, at this moment, what was leaving him perplexed was his teacher in magecraft, Tokiomi Tohsaka.

To Kirei, the head of the Tosahka family was a walking lesson in opposites balancing themselves out. On the surface, the man in red gave off an aura of being a quintessential magus; elegant, and yet detached, cold, and a bit paranoid in his single-minded pursuit of finding a path to the so-called "Swirl of the Root." But, at the same time, these traits were offset by the man's willingness to put his trust in others, as well as his kindness, and the whole-hearted love and devotion that he lavished upon his wife and two daughters.

At times, it amazed Kirei how Tokiomi was able to balance these two facets of his personality so well without crumbling.

Over three years ago, Kirei had approached his father to inquire as to the meaning of the strange marks that had appeared upon his hand one day, only to discover that similar marks had appeared upon the Magus' hand as well, who had been in conference with Kirei's father at the time.

Tokiomi, and, to Kirei's surprise, his father Risei as well, had reassured the young man that there was nothing to fear. Indeed, this actually created great cause to celebrate. These markings, Command Seals, as they were so called, were the signals to the beginning of a very auspicious event; the Holy Grail War.

Every sixty years, within the confines of Fuyuki City, seven magi were given the ability to call forth the spirits of mighty heroes from the past, which would then fight one another in what could only be described as a battle to the death. The winning pair, or at least the last pair still standing, in this contest were then granted a rare prize; a single wish.

As a Tohsaka, Tokiomi had explained, his family had been instrumental in the creation of this battle royale, and thus was guaranteed to be allowed a spot in the roster of combatants. And now, it seemed, so was Kirei.

Adding to that, it seemed that the Holy Church was complacent in this as well, with Risei having had served as the Overseer for the previous war, and so would serve in the role again for this one.

While the entire thing had seemed rather farcical to him, Kirei had accepted all of this without a word of complaint.

However, what was perplexing to the young priest was the fact that the church, his father and his teacher were actually conspiring push the odds in the Tohsaka's favor. This included using the church's resources and agents to help the magus find a top-quality relic to summon a powerful servant.

At first, they had high hopes for Iraq, but, as it appeared, the agents' efforts had turned up naught but false leads. But then two days ago, Tokimomi had told him that better fruit was to be found in Southern Asia. India, to be more exact.

Then, father and teacher had told Kirei what his part of the plan and role in the upcoming battle was to be, including what servant he was to summon. They had even procured a relic for him, a small stone dagger.

To further aid in the plan, and so as to not draw suspicions, Kirei had been summarily transferred from the Church to the Mage's Association as Tokiomi's student. Thus, Kirei's journey into the Moonlit world of magecraft, and the Holy Grail War, had begun.

Even to one such as Kirei, the plan had seemed to come off as rather immoral. But, once again, he decided not to voice his complaints.

For that was ever his lot in life, it would seem, to let nothing of his true self be seen or heard.

Footsteps sounded, shaking Kirei from his musings. Looking up, he saw Tokiomi approaching, a smile on his bearded face.

"The relic has been secured, my student. We shall be departing soon for India…."

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Four Days Ago, MacKenzie Residence, Fuyuki City, Japan

Not for the first time since his arrival in Fuyuki City two days ago, as well as hypnotizing the Mackenzie couple to let him stay with them, Waver stared at the piece of old cloth, and then at the symbol engraved on his hand. The red markings, like splashes of blood, seemed to stare right back at him, almost accusingly.

It would be just so easy to use this to summon his Servant. Waver remembered how Professor Kayneth had humiliated him that day, calling his theory and ideas utter garbage. Then, to make matters worse, he had torn up the report, in front of the entire class no less.

Waver remembered leaving amidst the sound of mocking laughter from his classmates that day.

It had been pure luck to have overheard Professor Kayneth discussing his intent to enter the Holy Grail War. To Waver, the chance was too good to pass up.

But was stealing another mage's Catalyst, and using it as his own really the best way to do this? Wasn't this just proving his asshole of a professor right, in the end?

Waver believed that a mage could advance through their own perseverance and belief in their own strengths, not just due to the strength of their bloodlines and magic codes and crests and prestige.

With a heavy sigh, he closed the box holding the catalyst. This would not help him prove his point. No, he would win this Holy Grail War on his own merits.

Besides, he did have something that could work.

He fingered the piece of old goat horn in his pocket. According to his father, it had been in Waver's family for a long time, even before his grandmother had "learned" the basics of being a magus. There was nothing about the thing that was even remotely magical. Waver just kept it as a good-luck charm. Whenever he felt nervous, he would finger it for comfort.

He looked at the box again. Well, it couldn't hurt. Plus, if the piece of horn didn't work, well, he would still have the piece of the mantle to fall back on, after tonight.

In a bit of impish glee, as well as a tinge of fright, Waver wondered, and not for the first time, how his professor had reacted to the catalyst's theft….

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4 Days ago, Einzbern Mansion, Germany

Jubstacheit von Einzbern was a man who perferred to leave nothing to chance. He, and by extension, his family, could not afford to, given their goals and history.

Three past Main Category Holy Grail wars, and three consecutive losses, with each attaining a higher and higher cost from the Einzberns. The third one alone was not worth the pain of remembering, especially with all that had happened, especially with those abnormal servants, and the abomination that had resulted in the end.

It was due to this sort of mindset that he had been extremely reluctant to allow an outsider into the family, especially when that outsider was Kiritsugu Emiya, the infamous Magus Killer, eight years prior.

It had been extremely well planned though, having him become attached to the Justeaze model they had prepared especially for his arrival, thus giving him an extra incentive to stay.

However, if the Einzbern head was to be honest, perhaps outside help was what the once proud magus clan needed to win this time. A fresh perspective, unburdened by the weight of nearly a millennium of glorious history and tradition... yes, this was exactly what the Einzberns needed... yes... he would just keep telling himself that until they won.

The stratagems that the insult to magi had devised for the upcoming war were unorthodox, but sound in their planned execution. All save for one.

While on one hand, summoning King Arthur as the servant Saber would have been tactically sound. A mythological figure with as much world-wide renown as the King of Knights would be a powerful force to be reckoned with in any Grail War. But, on the other hand, Jubstacheit had a few concerns. The chief concern was that securing a relic tied to such a figure was nigh-on impossible. There had been one they could have found, but the damned sheathe had suddenly vanished.

No, that would not be the way, something that the Eiznbern elder had finally managed to convince the mercenary of, after many days of heated discussion, with some help from Irisviel, the Justeaze model that the mercenary had "fallen in love with." At least enough that they had conceived a daughter, which had been some well-though out foresight on Jubstachiet's part.

In case everything went sideways... again... their spawn would make an excellent Grail receptacle for another grail war, thus giving the mercenary an extra desire to succeed.

As for the relic, Jubstacheit had a few excellent ones in mind, all of which when, if used in conjuncture, would summon a powerful servant, one that, if he were being honest, spoke to the small amount of pride he held in his Germanic heritage, as well as being able to take advantage of one of the unforeseen loopholes that the damage from all the previous wars had created…

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Four Days ago, Unknown location, India, Night

With his servant in Astral form, and his father at his side, Kirei watched as Tokiomi prepared the summoning array with partial interest.

Two days ago, the three had arrived in India to procure the relic, a small piece of a bow that seemed to shimmer like the sun. Even Kirei had to admit that, perhaps, the confidence that his teacher and father felt was well-founded, especially if this summoned the hero that they hoped for.

Before they had secured the relic, during their scheduled stop in Ireland, Kirei had summoned his servant with the stone dagger.

Kirei looked for a moment at his invisible servant who stood beside him. Whatever happened next, it was still clear that this Holy Grail War would perhaps finally hold the answer to the question that had plagued him all of his life.

With that, Tokiomi began to recite the incantation…

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Three Days ago, Einzbern Compound, Germany, Night.

Within the white castle, surrounded by a soft blanket of falling snow that reflected the pale moonlight for miles on end, a broken man and his white princess stood before a summoning array. Their four relics, two of them being a bloodstained leaf, and small piece of gold that seemed to glow with an unearthly light, lay on the other side of the circle, with the others.

Kiritsugu Emyia looked upon the face of the woman that he loved, Irisviel Von Einzbern. Upon her face was nothing but adoration and love. He then turned back to the array, and held out his hand.

With this servant, he could make his dream, that distant dream that he had killed so many for, a reality. It would all be worth it in the end... all the sacrifices and the pain...

Irisviel watched her husband with concern and love in her scarlet eyes. Were either of them truly prepared for what was to come next?

With that, he began to recite the incantation…

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Two Days ago, Forest outside the Mackenize Residence, Fuyuki City, Japan, Night

With a view of the gleaming city in the distance before him, Waver stood before the prepared circle of goat and wolve's blood, the piece of old horn gripped tight in his fist. Overhead, dark stormclouds were gathering in an ominous manner, while the wind began to pick up, but neither really bothered him. Besides, it was too late to turn back now. He could only move forward.

This would be his moment. He would summon a powerful servant, win this War, and then prove to all those bullies and assholes who laughed and jeered at him that he was better, that he deserved respect!

With that, he began to recite the incantation that he had memorized…

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Two Days ago, Clock Tower, London, England, Night

With his fiancé by his side, Kayneth finished the last-minute details on the summoning array. Despite the earlier setbacks, now, everything would be perfect. With his mighty servant and loyal fiancé by his side, he would enter this War, and win, destroying all who lay before him, brining greater glory to him, and his family.

Yes, this would be how and where Kayneth el-Melloi Archibald would be forever remembered in the annals of history. This would be where his legend truly began.

With these imaginings of grandeur at the forefront of his mind, the Clock Tower Lord began to recite the incantation…

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Let silver and steel be the essence.
Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation
Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall
Let the four cardinal gates close.
Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.

I hereby declare.
Your body shall serve under me.
My fate shall be your sword.
Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail
If you will submit to this will and this reason…Then answer!

An oath shall be sworn here!
I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven.
I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell!

From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three greet words of power,
Come forth from the ring of restraints,
Protector of the Holy Balance!

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"We've done it, Kirei," Tokiomi said, as he gazed upon the splendor of the golden servant who stood before him. "We've won the Holy Grail War."

At that moment, Kirei believed him, as he looked upon the man standing before him with fascination.

Tall and proud, with skin and hair the color of freshly fallen snow, the Servant was clad in a flowing achkan of gold, red, and black. Golden armor, which seemed to hold the burning radiance of the sun within, covered his form from head to toe on top of, and even beneath, the achkan.

At his side were two quivers full of arrows, and a small dagger, whilst in his hand, he held a great bow of unparalleled beauty and strength that simply radiated power. Floating by his shoulders were two large, golden shapes, like two eyes. Finishing the effect was his cape, like a living flame the color of blood.

Every iota of this being radiated pure power, as if it were a simple, undeniable truth.

Two eyes, one red and one blue, stared at Tokiomi and his companions with what appeared to be frank disinterest.

Then he spoke, "Servant Archer asks of you…

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Kiritsugu and Irisviel looked upon the standing knight, his two swords planted points down on the ground.

The Servant met their gaze with unwavering strength. This was a being who could stand against entire armies, and not back down, a knight whose legend was forever etched into the annals of history and myth.

A warrior, a king, a dragon slayer, a knight.

The Magus Slayer held the Knight's gaze without emotion. 'Yes, I can work with this', the Magus Killer thought.

The Servant of the Sword then spoke, with a voice as clear, as crisp, and as deep as a winter morning, and yet, had the faintest hint of an echo, as if two were speaking as one. "Servant Saber asks of you…"

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As Waver spoke the last word of the last line of the aria, all of a sudden, a bolt of lightning let loose from the clouds above and struck the relic, clutched in his fist.

Waver would later recall that he felt no pain from the act. Nor had he ever really register exactly what happened, save that his hand had begun to grip the horn so tightly that it cut into his palm.

As the bolt struck, and the blood dropped down his clenched hand, the circle's glow shifted from blue to white, like the color of the lightning bolt that had just struck him.

The command seals on his struck hand began to glow with intensity of a raging fire.

Then, a great energy burst from the circle, knocking the young magus onto his back, with the sound of a clap of thunder that deafened him.

For a moment, everything was nothing but white noise and blurred vision.

Finally, as his sight and hearing cleared, Waver looked at the circle, and then up… and up… and up.

The man seemed almost four meters tall, and was clad in rustic, tooled armor of leather and iron, while his arms were covered from hand to shoulder in two gauntlets of leather and iron. A great, wild mane of brown hair surrounded his bearded face, while in his forehead rested a shining jewel. Across his waist was a great belt, decorated with runes, and figures of goats.

A pair of blood-red eyes gazed down upon the little…thing that had dared to summon him for a long moment, and when his mouth opened, Waver noted, with a bit of fear, that his teeth were fangs.

With a voice like the sound of a mountain's avalanche, the being spoke, as thunder rumbled in the sky. "Servant Rider asks of you…"

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In seven different locations and times across the globe, the same question was asked by seven beings of unparalleled power and might never before seen in this Age of Man.

"Are you my Master?"

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Unknown, Unknown

Bram Nuada Sophia-Ri stepped into the room with a smirk, one shared by his compatriots.

"It has begun, my friends," he stated.

"Excellent," said one, with the voice that brought to mind the raucous shrieking of a thousand upon a thousand birds winging their feathered wings through the night sky.

"Indeed, this will be a most fascinating Holy Grail War…"

A/N Please read and review