Apologies for the roughness of my writing style in this brief omake. This might be cut content but a minimum level of quality must still be met in my opinion. I wouldn't have any pride as an amateur writer if I just posted a half-asses piece of unedited paragraphs and called it content. So while this snippet isn't up to my usual standards I hope it's still tolerable for you folks out there.
Kiritsugu Emiya summoned the King of Knights in the Fourth Holy Grail War. The Once and Future King of Camelot who was in reality a woman by the name of Artoria Pendragon. Her idealistic and chivalrous nature put her at odds with her Master's ruthless tactics that favored victory over things like honor. Powerful Artoria might be, but in terms of compatibility her's and Kiritsugu's was truly at the bottom.
The duo of a foolish king and a failed hero were that War's final 'winners'. Kiritsugu losing everything he loved and watching as his dream turned against him. Artoria destroying her chance at peace and atonement with her own hands at her Master's command. Yes. They truly 'won' that War.
If something was different, would things change? How would they change, and for the better or for the worse? What if the strings of destiny were plucked and the past changed? The Saber of the Fourth Holy Grail War and Servant of Kiritsugu Emiya not being a naive King of Knights but instead an equally cold and calculating monster of a man as his Master? How would such a change... play out?
—
The Einzbern's plan for the Grail War had changed drastically in the days following Saber's summoning. The was a great deal of disappointment and anger over the catalyst failure to bring forth the legendary king of ancient Britain, especially when it appeared that for a Saber class the Servant that had appeared in place of the King of Knights was quite lacking in terms of raw power. The new Servant also exhibited an interest in modern technology and weaponry that was uncommon for Heroic Spirits, and even requested resources to be expended in that direction, further aggravating the more traditionally-minded mages.
Saber's plans for how to fight in the Grail War went against the mainstream community of mages and Heroic Spirit's idea of it but coincidentally mashed perfectly with his Master's practical approach. The two of them would likely be called heretics and disdained for their methods but neither would think much of it. It was a war. Wars were fought to be won.
Parts of the manor had been remodeled by Saber. Rooms were filled up with varying types of ammunition, books, maps and documents that the Servant had collected and requested for. A large portion were books on history and lore. Some where new other were old and others were photographs of texts too ancient and valuable to quickly obtain. They came from all corners and cultures of the globe, a dizzying array of languages and writing styles that would have even overwhelmed a mage.
The second largest portion that took up Saber redecorating were battle plans. Detailed maps and documents on Fuyuki City, where the War would be held, were plastered over walls and had hundreds of markings and notes written on them. The most optimal routes, which areas were the least inhabited, which buildings were likely locations for a mage to hide, what angle of approach would be the least obvious, how many of what kind of explosive would it take to level specific building and even more data composed Saber's battle plan.
The information would have taken years to process, less for a Servant but still too long for it to be of use in the current War, fortunately, one of Saber's Noble Phantasm brought forth a supremely qualified helper to aid him in this endeavor, just like she had done many times in that past back in his world. Saber had even gotten his hands on documents pertaining to the plans and even the potential catalysts that the enemy Masters would use, allowing him to significantly narrow the focus of his research. The true goldmine came in the form of records snatched straight from the Church and the Association by another associate of his on the events of the last few Grail Wars that had taken place. Saber decided against sharing certain pieces of information with his Master, easy enough given the sheer quantity of his research made it impossible to tell what we was working on beyond a broad understanding of it.
—
Kiritsugu entered the room Saber had commandeered as his office. There materials inside were enough to fill the room many times over but they were neatly arranged to give the illusion that wasn't the case. The Master had to admit, the Servant's seriousness and focus was beyond what he had expected, as was his interest in firearms and modern technology. From what he could see, the Servant's methodology closely mirrored his own. Kiritsugu didn't doubt that if he had indeed succeeded in summoning the King of Knight that person's ideals would have surely clashed with his. Just like the Association, spirits from the bygone era would see his actions in violation of their foolish notion of honor.
He found the Servant bent over the largest table in the library. Saber was a short, pale-skinned man. Just like the plain, plate armor he usually wore there was little that stood out about his general appearance. A person could almost mistake him for a common knight if they didn't pay enough attention. Such a wrong understanding would instantly go away once they caught sight of Saber's eyes.
Pale green things that were sharper than the sharpest knife and so cold that they could freeze you in place. Staring into them was like staring into the barrel of a gun. What you were looking at wasn't a man but a weapon or a machine. Kiritsugu had seen similar eyes on battlefields in the past, but none so frighteningly clear, as if the madness inside was so strong it looped around into a terrifying form of sanity. Whatever their similarities, his guard towards Saber was always up, ready to use a Command Seal to order the Servant to suicide if he tried anything.
Those jade chips turned to face Kiritsugu as he approached. The chilly intensity of the Servant's gaze made his flesh prickle. It was clear to Kiritsugu that this Saber was far more dangerous to interact with than whatever the King of Knights would have been.
"Good evening, Master." Saber nodded towards Kiritsugu.
"Good evening to you too, Saber." he glanced at the papers scattered on the desk. More historical texts. Timeframes spanning from as late as the Mesopotamians to as recent was Second World War. He looked back at Saber's eyes. "Planning has been going well, I assume?"
The Servant nodded. "Yes. The distribution and ease information is accessed in this world is truly a wonder. A press of a key can get you even more than a week's worth of scrying and espionage. It's efficient. Of course, without Scribe's help I wouldn't even know where to begin sorting through all of this paper."
"Yes. Scribe." Kiritsugu's mind went back to the nondescript woman he saw more than once helping Saber parse through the seemingly endless horde of knowledge and date that the Servant had accumulated. "Is she still around?"
"She is most useful when it comes to these things." Saber chuckled. "I know you prefer her to Warlock. Do not worry, his help won't be needed until the start of the War."
Kiritsugu felt relived. Of the companions Saber could call forth with his Noble Phantasm, that particular one troubled him the most. The detached look he had reminded him of the worst the Clock Tower had to offer, though Saber was quick to point out that Warlock was leagues more skilled than any mage he had encountered and infinitely worse.
The two conversed easily. Talking about the strategies and tactics they would put to use in the War. It was clear that Saber had a deft hand when it came to war and all the ruthlessness that came with it. There were no limits to the plans Saber put forward, though he often gave strange reasons why certain ones wouldn't work, like kidnapping a loved one or attempting to threaten compliance being 'just asking to have the story turned on them'. For all his strangeness, Saber was one of the sharpest individuals Kiritsugu had met. He was a dangerous man, certainly, but a highly competent and skilled Servant. The Assassin-class almost seemed like a better fit given his penchant for planning and so-called underhanded schemes.
—
The docks were quiet, the only sound aside from the crashing of the waves were the rolling of tires against asphalt. A black limousine pulled up followed by two larger vehicles. Irisviel von Einzbern exited the limousine and moved to stand at the head of the convoy. She was to appear as the Master of Saber while Kiritsugu hid in the shadows and waited for his chance.
The vehicles behind her released their occupants. Two dozen identical Einzbern homunculi in full tactical gear fanned out behind Irisviel. Each one was armed with a sleek grey rifle that they used to scan the area with an efficiency that wouldn't be out of place in a country's elite troops. Even an experienced mage wouldn't be able to guess these homunculi were born less than a month ago. The Einzberns were masters of this craft, but even they lacked the ability to produce homunculi with such accelerated growth and at such quantity. This recent development in their magecraft was thanks to Saber, more accurately thanks to a certain helper the Servant had called in.
"Pathetic! What mage would use such crass methods to fight. A mage fights with their abilities and nothing else!"
The mocking voice echoed across the dock, shattering the silence with its disdainful tone. A second later the opposing Servant appeared. An attractive, heroic-looking man wielding a spear. A Lancer-class Servant going by his choice of weaponry. The most eye-catching thing about him was the mole under one of his eyes. Faint magical fluctuations that targeted the female homunculi could be detected from it.
"That mole. Lancer is most likely the Irish hero Diarmuid Ua Duibhne." Saber simultaneously related to his Master via their connection and to his troops through his earpiece. "Pay attention to any reactions from female homunculi, kill them if they show signs of mental influence. Numbers 303 to 307, move forward and engage."
The five homunculi obeyed their commands, charged forward and opened fire on Lancer. The Servant easily batted away most of the bullets and dodged the rest. A few shots managed to slip through out of sheer probability but failed to so much as scratch the Servant. Barely a couple of seconds passed before the attacking homunculi were wiped put by Lancer. Each one eliminated with a single casual blow from the Servant.
"Where's your Servant! Your use of these toys is a mockery of everything magecraft stands for! Lancer, remove these eyesores from our duel."
"As you wish, Master."
Just as Lancer was about to comply and finish off the rest of their forces an armored fiure strode out of the shadows of one of the containers and pointed a sword at the spear-wielder. Lancer stared oddly at the figure as Keyneth's voice echoed.
"Finally you've decided to call out your Servant and fight as a proper mage should! Lancer, eliminate that Servant from the war and give us our first victory!"
Lancer hesitated, sensing something strange with the figure's presence, but moved as he sensed his Master's intent through their connection. The figure strode forth with a sword in one hand and a round shield in the other. Lancer's spear accelerated towards the figure's chest once he was within range. He could immediately tell there was something wrong when the figure didn't even bother to parry.
Mistake, thought Saber, watching as Lancer's spear pierced the armor and detonated the explosives contained inside.
The shockwave tore open a few containers and filled the air with smoke and dust. The force of the explosion sent the Servant tumbling away. Lancer growled and stabbed his spear into the concrete, anchoring himself. As he regained his bearings within the dust cloud several clicking noises rang out all around him and an instant later his position was torn apart by concentrated gun fire.
Tens of automatic firearms were trained on Lancer from different angles to ensure that no matter where he moved he would always have to deal with the suppressive fire. The guns were being aimed and operated by thin tendrils made of shadow. A second spear appeared in Lancer's free hand. Lancer spun and parried the bullets away with extreme precision. The bullets were faster and dealt more damage on impact that a regular round would. The faint magical traces on them making it so that while not threatening Lancer couldn't just ignore them. Lancer had a choice to make, break out of the storm of bullets or remain where he was and try to trace the shadow tendrils to their owner.
Seeing Lancer stay in position, Saber spoke another command and signaled. Mistake.
Several homunculi dressed exactly in the same armor that had been filled with explosives charged towards Lancer with their swords extended. Small gaps appeared in the hail of bullets to allow them to get close to the Servant which quickly shut before Lancer was able to make use of them. A number of the homunculi were too slow in the armor and fell to the bullets but a few managed to make it within melee range of Lancer.
Being a spear-user, Lancer's range was much larger than the homunculi with their short swords. He was forced to hesitate, however, as the thought of the armors exploding ran through his mind. They wouldn't hurt him but they would leave him vulnerable to a follow up attack. Lancer maintained his cool and kept the homunculi at a distance, mindful of any blows that would cause them to detonate.
"What are you doing, Lancer! These modern tools are nothing before true magecraft! I command you to finish with these distractions and resolve this shameful display immediately!"
The firing stopped . Thunder rang out and a chariot pulled by two bulls crashed into the ground like a bolt of lightning. Astride the chariot was red-haired giant of a man beside a much younger much weaker looking man. The giant let out a mighty war cry and spread his arms.
"You stand before a king! I am Iskandar! The King of Conquerors! And the Rider-class Servant of this Holy Grail War!"
"You idiot! What are you thinking dropping us in the middle of this mess."
Idiot was a correct description for the melee's recent entry. The Servant looked to be at the beginning of a speech of some sort. Saber had one of his shadows puncture one of the homunculi that had fallen nearest to the chariot. The explosive inside was detonated, showering the Servant and his Master in debris. Bringing his Master into the fray was utter foolishness. While Saber would like to believe that the bomb had eliminated the pair such a quick end to such a larger than life character seemed unlikely.
Lancer's Master has been located. Top of the warehouse to the right. Also Assassin isn't dead. Your hypothesis was correct.
In the next following minutes, things escalated with the arrival of Archer and Berserker. Before anything else happened, the skies turned red and a chunk of Hell fell onto the heads of the enemy Servants, destroying the docks and the puppets that served as fake stand-ins for his Master. By that time Saber had long since retreated.
—
Omake Saber
Identity: Amadeus of the Green Stretch
Aliases/Titles: Black Knight/Carrion Lord
Series: A Practical Guide to Evil
Sex: Male
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Strength: C
Endurance: C
Agility: C
Mana: D
Luck: E-
Personal Skills
Master of Many Specializations(C): allows the Servant to wield any weapon with mastery and precision.
Saber never shied away from using any and all means to overcome his opponents. From direct combat to dirty tricks, Saber mastered each to a degree and used them in tandem to eke out victory against those supposedly fated to best him. For this feat, he is granted the ability to make use of all means at his disposal to be victorious.
Name of the Black Knight (D): enhances the Servant and bestows upon them increased abilities should they move according to their role.
As a relatively unconventional Black Knight, Saber receives less of a boost in power than his predecessors.
Warlord (B+): combination of high level Charisma, Military Tactics. This is a skill that is given to Servants that have the qualifications and ability to become a king but find the battlefield to be a more suitable kingdom. Servants who hold this Skill are usually the leaders of armies who have more loyalty towards them than the king of the country they serve.
In his world, many see Saber as the man that truly deserves to be the ruler. He is a terrifyingly effective leader and has a strange form of charisma that pulls people into his banner. Many see him as a king in all but name. As a Saber this skill is reduced, if summoned under the Rider-class with access to his armies then the true might of this skill will be unleashed.
Bane of Heroes (EX): unlike the Counter Hero skill which reduces the parameters of 'heroes' that the Servant fights, this instead improves a Servant's ability to combat 'heroes'.
Saber spent years hunting down and killing Heroes, making himself feared and hated as one of the most efficient and deadly Villains of his world. Given enough time and information, Saber will be able to devise a plan to eliminate almost any 'hero' he encounters.
Noble Phantasm:
(R) The Legions of Terror: Conquest of the Carrion Lord - B+ (Anti-Country)
This Noble Phantasm is available only when Saber is summoned under the Rider-class. It allows Amadeus access to his Legions of Terror, the elite fighting force that he rebuilt from the ground up as another tool in his arsenal. He can summon everything from siege engines to soldiers to mage battalions to a genuine dragon. It is not a Reality Marble which makes it rather conspicuous and incredibly draining to use. This Noble Phantasm boasts incredible synergy with Name of the Black Knight, the Skill capable of reducing the prana drain by greater than a half while he leads his army and close to tripling his army's effectiveness when being in the middle of a conquering a territory.
The Calamities: Band of the Black Knight - B~A (Anti-Self)
Similar to a Noble Phantasm used by a certain Saber-class Servant in a Grail War of Truth and Falsehood, this Noble Phantasm allows Saber to temporarily bring forth the companions which he had in life: The Calamities. As a Saber he can chose to summon only one Calamity at a time, save for Ranger who can only be summoned once he perishes. Should Saber fall in battle, all of the Calamities—Ranger, Scribe, Warlock, Captain, and Assassin will be summoned and rampage in the area until they are either brought down or the residual energies left by Saber dissipate. Each Calamity is weaker than they would be if summoned as a true Servant and possesses only a fraction of their real power. If Saber is ever summoned under the Rider-class he can summon and maintain as many Calamities as his Master's prana reserves are capable of sustaining.
Balancing of the Scales: Outside of Creation the Black Knight Stands Free from Fate's Intervention - C~B (Anti-Unit)
In the world Saber came from, those that are Evil have the deck stacked against them. Saber's every success was won through cleverness and skill despite having what was fate itself standing in his way. This Noble Phantasm functions similarly to a Reality Marble, imposing the laws of his internal world onto himself and target. This Noble Phantasm removes things such as luck or fate from the equation when in a fight against him. When pushed to its limit it can go even further by allowing injuries and attacks that would otherwise not usually work against his opponent to be effective and potentially lethal. This Noble Phantasm plus Saver's disdain for fate is the reason for his abysmal Luck stat.
A Monster's Wish: Go Against Fate, Ceaseless Grinding of Gears - EX (Anti-Fate)
This Noble Phantasm is a sublimation of Saber's goal in life, to eke out a grand decisive win against the forces of Good, to go against the fate that Evil is always doomed to lose. It passively enhances his planning abilities, giving his already impressive talent with regards to tactics an incredible boost. The true might of this Noble Phantasm can only be used against a Servant of the Good Alignment. Upon activation of its True Name the Noble Phantasm disregards everything and rewrites reality itself to deliver a complete and utter victory for Saber. The sheer power and intention behind the Noble Phantasm is so great that the victory can not be altered, stopped or changed under any circumstances or regardless of the power of the interventions. As a power to go against fate itself and because of his strange nature as a Servant not of this reality, even if the World itself were to act, nothing would happen. This is the true Noble Phantasm of an obsessed madman. Because he never believed that he would survive to see his dream come to fruition, Saber dies upon the Noble Phantasm's activation, his victory obtained but not experienced by him
He was originally supposed to be Kiritsugu's Servant. I felt that the similarities between the two would be interesting to show, since both are men of method and cold logic to such an extent that they are more their ideals than real humans. The fact that they have similar mentalities but are on complete opposite sides would have served as an ironic mirror to our "Hero of Justice".
Black would be very welcoming to the Kiritsugu's style and to firearms and explosives. He'd be most excited about radios and communication devices since they allow orders to be given even without the presence of mages. Black's Outside of Creation NP would also make modern weapons effective against Servants, so it's like a reverse Knight of Owner.
Black in our world would be fun since he wouldn't be bound by the Narrative anymore, then again his ability to manipulate the Narrative is also a skill of his, so I'm not quite sure whether he'd function better or worse.
The last was a real fun thing to make since I love NP's that are crystallizations of a Heroic Spirit's life, legend and beliefs.
Oh, and the Personal Skills were fun too, especially Bane of Heroes.