He had failed. The War hadn't even officially begun, and he had already failed. Even he'd call it pathetic. His Master had trusted this person, known him for years, she claimed. He should have known something was wrong when they had decided to meet somewhere so secluded. He should have known something was wrong when they arrived late. He should have known something was wrong when the priest showed up with that blond man in tow. But no, he didn't know something was wrong until his Master had already paid the price. Brutally, remorselessly killed.
He wouldn't forget that man's smile as he had gazed into the betrayed expression of his now expired Master's face. He wouldn't forget that blonde bastard either, watching the whole thing calmly with a bored look like it was some kind of bad daytime drama.
By the time he was reacting it was too late. She couldn't be saved from that. He tried to take revenge, swift and immediate, but quickly learned that the priest and his companion were far more than they seemed. Their exchange of blows lasted less than a minute, but without access to a mana supply or an Archer's Independant Action trait he knew he'd falter soon.
The priest revealed his bare arm, covered in Command Sigils, and offered peace and a choice. If he joined them he could still have a chance at the War's prize, or he could die, slowly disappearing as his connection to this world faded.
His decision was not easy. If he won he could undo his mistake, save his Master, and possibly take revenge on the two before him. That would entail working with… no, for them, beneath them like some mistreated dog. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction.
So he decided to run in an all-or-nothing gambit. It hurt to do so, and fleeing was not something he would normally consider, but the underhanded actions he had just seen had his rage at a thundering boil. He would seek a new Master with what little time he had, and he would try to avenge his lost companion. There was one last problem before he left, however.
He briefly glanced down at his Master's corpse, bleeding on the rug. Beneath her gloves he knew there still rested a red crest tied to him. Running now would only allow the enemies before him to take those seals and force his servitude. He silently apologized to his Master before swiftly flicking his spear. The golden bastard shouted something and faux priest rushed him, but too late. He sliced her arm from fingers to elbow, destroying the brand and rendering it useless against him.
Then he fled, vengeance seared into his mind for this atrocity. He started monitoring his mana reserves closely. How long did he have? A day? Certainly not. A couple hours? If he was lucky.
A few options came to mind. First, he could find another Master-Servant pair and try to join them. This would work but it would require them trusting him, and the splitting of the Master's mana reserves would leave him at reduced power. Not optimal, but workable. Second, there were supposedly two Servants left unsummoned. If he could find one of these chosen Masters before they summoned their own Servant, he could try and convince them to abandon their other plans in favor of working with him. It would be near impossible to find one of these Masters but there was a shot. Lastly, he could go solo and begin feeding on the local human populace. This was an unacceptable option; he would have to kill dozens. His pride as a hero prevented him from committing such a sin. None of the options were good, but all of them were better than working for that treacherous priest.
A or B it is, then. I'll have to hurry, he concluded. Luckily he was one of the faster Servants. It was a big city, and he had a lot of ground to cover in very little time.
Lancer grit his teeth in frustration. Kirei Kotomine… I'll make you pay a dozen times over for that.
He turned to his mysteries for insight on his situation. His experience laid in runes which were incredibly versatile. He drew a rune in the air, a glyph of searching and finding. It burned for a moment in the air like floating fire, then slowly dissipated. It couldn't find what he needed. Too far away, no target, too vague… a whole list of things could have been wrong. With a sigh he shifted to spirit form to save mana, and began his search in earnest.
A lone girl stood in a classically designed dojo. She was taller than most girls her age, tall enough to look most of the boys in her class levelly in the eye, and even look down upon a few. Her purple eyes were hard, confident, and focused. Her long red hair whipped around her as she swung a sword in a swift horizontal arc, then a downward slash. Not a practice sword but real, sharpened steel. She struck again and again with far more strength and dexterity than her slender build would suggest.
This carried on in near silence for minutes uncounted. She swapped out one sword for another, this one smaller and more agile, and proceeded with a new series of techniques. After a while, she produced a third sword and dual wielded it with the second, skillfully handling both in her martial acrobatics. The blades sang through the air as she completed her forms for the evening. She hadn't needed these skills for years, but she kept them as sharp as the blades in her hands.
It was habit now, ritual even. After school was homework and maybe a bit of free time, then dinner, evening practice, meditations, a bit more free time, and finally bed. This pattern gave consistency in a chaotic world and helped her lead a healthy lifestyle.
She dismissed the magical blade, returning it to its place amongst its peers. A five minute rest for water and to wipe the sweat from her brow, and then she would sit for her nightly meditations.
She sat in seiza before the small shrine along the back wall of the dojo. It was nothing fancy, a small altar for her meditations. She lit the incense and watched the smoke rise to the ceiling, slowly dissipating and filling the area with a relaxing scent. She closed her eyes and controlled her breathing. This was the most important part of her day. Not the schooling, nor the swordplay, nor any of the hustle and bustle of life was worth it if she couldn't find peace at the end of it all.
But this wasn't just for her own sake. Her home sat along a line of energy that would occasionally draw in spirits. These power lines ran throughout the world and sometimes converged into large conduits of energy, such as the one in her home village or the one she had discovered lied in Ryuudou Temple. This particular line was a bit larger than average, and so her home was more receptive to the mythical and mysterious happenings of the world.
She would listen for the spirits, as only those trained as she was could, and would try to decipher the hushed messages that danced in the trees, the hidden whispers that scurried through the floorboards, and the gentle musings that pit-patted in the rain. Or so she would have, if these things remained.
Since leaving her village she had scarcely felt any of these things. Being so near a city as large as Fuyuki, the spirits here were generally weak and barely noticeable to all but the most experienced Onmyoji, a status she would only reach with many more years of practice. She was not disheartened though, for on occasion they would 'speak' louder, and her vigilance would be rewarded. Just a few weeks past she heard tell of rain coming, despite what the weather man had to say. When she had left school, she was one of only a handful of students with an umbrella. "Just a feeling I had", she had explained to her classmates when they asked how she had known.
Since that time she had heard nothing, not even a distant whisper. Something was happening, she knew. She would wait until they returned or told her what was wrong. It was part of the job to help maintain order and balance in the area, but she was powerless to act without information.
So Misuzu Kusakabe sat and listened.
The Grail watched as the now Master-less Servant hurried through the town, checking everything from children's playgrounds to apartment complexes, desperately searching for a new magus to form a contract with. If only it had a body, it'd drag the blue moron back where he belonged.
The Lancer was supposed to work for the priest! It had made so many wonderful plans, too. After having such a fun time with the last Lancer, the corrupted entity had high expectations for this new combatant. Oh, how it relished the last minute fury, the hatred that Diarmuid had expressed in his dying moments. The blood, the suffering, the betrayal. Exquisite.
But alas, the man in blue tights hurried through the town like a man possessed, desperate to find a way out of his situation or die trying. Die he certainly would; he was nowhere near any of the candidates the Grail had identified. What a damn foolish thing to do. The Lancer must have known this couldn't end well.
It turned its attention back to the priest. He was conversing with the leftover Archer and searching the dead Master's body.
Kirei frowned at the destroyed sigils. His goals had not been achieved, and any chance of salvaging the situation was lost. The frown shifted to a mirthless smirk. He straightened himself to his full height and he began leaving. The Archer followed and the Grail turned its attentions toward nothing in particular. What a disappointing day. It let out a metaphorical sigh of frustration. It wouldn't change anything, but it would certainly make it feel a little better at this loss. This War was shaping up to be quite boring.
The incense flames flickered, the air chilled, and the trees outside all rustled in a wind that wasn't there. It was over in a moment. Through it all she felt disappointment, annoyance, and a sliver of anger rush through her. Her eyes went wide and her heart skipped. Never were the things she heard so pronounced as this. What did it mean? She waited patiently, eager to learn more.
Clearly a spirit of some kind was upset, but at what she couldn't tell. She calmed her beating heart, as she could understand nothing if she was so on edge. She strained to hear anything more to understand the problem, but when a minute passed in silence she grew worried. A stressed or angry spirit could cause all kinds of problems.
Most spirits cared little for the ongoings of mortals, so she doubted the entity would accept her words, but…
"I am here. I hear you, and I listen."
The Grail whipped its attention around. Who? Why? How? How could something have touched this place, its silent sanctum? It calmed itself and searched.
There, a girl sitting patiently as though waiting for something, listening carefully. A girl who understood magic, if only superficially. A girl who was listening for the unhearable and searching for the unseeable. A thousand possibilities ran through its mind in an instant and it made its decision. She wasn't one of the Masters the Grail had expected, but it could work with this. It would have to be rather direct tonight to make ends meet.
This War might turn out more interesting than it had thought.
Misuzu spoke her words and felt the attention of something focus fully upon her. The air practically hummed with energy as she waited in excitement, curiosity, and more than a little fear. What was this thing? Too powerful, too vast for an average spirit, and certainly not a demon; it didn't even trip the protective field around the edge of the forest. Never before had she experienced such a thing.
The pressure backed off slightly and the incense candles flickered. The incense smoke suddenly changed, ceasing its steady rise. She held her breath as the vapor drifted toward her slowly, gently, like a finger reaching out to touch her. She reached back just as slowly, not shifting from her kneeling position. The tendril gently wrapped around her hand as she watched in awe. Not even another Onmyoji would believe it.
The tendril wrapped around her wrist, as though to clasp her hand… and it burned. She withdrew her hand quickly in fear. Was the thing malevolent? Though no sword rested at her hip, she instinctively went to draw a blade in defense, then paused when she saw her hand. A red sigil slowly developed on her hand, near her wrist. Thinking back to all the stories she had read or been told, this was either very good or very bad, and she doubted she would know until it was over.
The smoke drifted away from her, billowing slowly to point at the open dojo door - hadn't she closed that? - before diluting to nothingness. The incense smoke returned to its mundane meander toward the ceiling.
Unsure of what to do next, she walked to the door as instructed. As far as she could tell, she had been marked for something, and the first step to take was through that door.
Lancer had calmed down a bit. Unluckily, he was rational enough now to truly appreciate his situation. He was growing desperate, as he had already used up about half his time. The business district was nearly empty for the evening, and residential was turning up nothing so far.
He had yet to search the docks or the outskirts, and he was only part way through the many houses that dotted the western half of the town. He had to commit somewhere, as he was running out of time.
A quick shift back to the physical and he made another half-hearted attempt at using his runes to find his goal. He drew the symbol with his off hand and gazed at it, bored and certain it would again do nothing but fizzle away. He was just turning away when the rune flared up and shifted around behind him, beginning to guide him. His eyebrows shot up and he stared at the mark, scarcely believing his eyes. He shook off his stupor and ran in the direction he was given. The outskirts it would be, then.
He leapt over fences and homes until he reached the edge of town, and then began weaving through trees and swinging from branches to maximize his speed. It wasn't long before he saw the large estate sitting among the trees.
As he approached he could feel a bounded field, but it was odd. A magus would normally set up one of these to protect against physical and magical threats, but so far as he could tell this one was specifically meant to protect against, of all damn things, hostile spiritual entities. It was tied to a series of statues resting along the forest edge. It would stop him from continuing unless he forced his way through, which he reasoned would be rather rude and not how he would want to introduce himself to his potential new Master.
Intead, he turned to his spear on this one, materializing it in his hands. Even in the near dark of night it gleamed. Entirely red and emitting a feeling of dread to any who looked at it, it was an accursed thing. He twirled it once before gently rapping the butt end against the field three times. If whoever used this field knew what they were doing, they would definitely feel that.
Misuzu stood in the doorway and looked around the lawn, not sure what she was looking for but wagering that it couldn't have been far if her guidance had ended here. Nothing seemed out of place, but she understood better than most that looks could be deceiving. The dark certainly wasn't helping. It was getting late, and there was little moonlight from behind the clouds drifting through the town.
She felt like she was playing with fire. This was outside her expertise and she was nervous to plunge into uncharted territory with only a pseudo-spiritual entity of unknown power and origin as her guide. However, it was moments like these that forged new legends. How many of her ancestors had done similar things in the early days of her clan, before they learned the many things they did now?
She decided on a walk around the perimeter. If she found nothing and was given no more guidance then this would simply have to wait until the morning. She was halfway around when she felt something powerful smack against the barrier that protected the house.
Once, twice, thrice…
Misuzu knit her brow in thought. Is something testing my defenses? Testing my reaction, perhaps? Weak spirits could bypass the barrier entirely; they didn't concern her and were usually the ones she was listening for. Stronger spirits that did concern her were either completely repulsed or would realize there was a blockade and leave. Those spirits would have to find a way to bypass or break the barrier if they really wanted in. Considering it had been standing unopposed since the construction of the estate, she had faith in its ability to hold against any brute force attempts like this.
It doesn't make sense that one would announce its presence like this. Unless… Did something just knock on the barrier like a door?, she asked herself. She shook her head in disbelief; this day was becoming downright surreal.
She couldn't forget the power of the thing that she had felt though, politeness be damned. This was not a being to trifle with, and she hurried herself along, ready to draw steel if she deemed it necessary.
It wasn't long until she spotted a man standing next to one of the sculptures that served to anchor the field to this world. This wasn't good. She wasn't sure what he was doing there but if the thing she was looking for came around there could be consequences. She jogged up to the man, intent on shooing him away before any problems could arise.
The man stood about six feet tall and was leaning against some kind of long red pole. He had blue hair tied back in a ponytail, and wore matching blue tights inlaid with silver. He was looking around her yard, searching for something much the same way she had been just minutes before, when he noticed her walking towards him. He straightened and raised a hand in greeting.
"Sir!", she called out as she drew near. She spoke loudly, but calmly. "I'm not sure what you think you're doing out here, but these woods aren't safe right now. Please, return home."
The man gave her a bored stare, then gave a single, short laugh and a wide smile. "And what exactly is coming to get me, little lady?"
"Please, there's no time to explain", she began. "If you won't go I'll have to… call…" She trailed off as she looked at what the man was carrying. She had originally assumed it was some kind of stylized walking stick, but when he flipped it up to rest it on his shoulder she realized it was something far more sinister.
It was a spear. Blood red and nearly the size of the man that carried it, it held a bloodlust that gave rise to an instinctual fear in her. The business end was a serrated blade that could inflict grievous wounds, and the opposite end was spiked to provide balance and versatility in combat. It was both a marvelous and terrible weapon, designed to cause pain along with death.
She broke free of her fear long enough to jump back a few feet and draw one of her more favored swords, Kashigiri Hiromitsu.
Lancer, surprised, followed her gaze and realized the reason for her sudden shift in demeanor. It was easy to forget how the weapon affected others. He dismissed the weapon to help put her at ease, and raised his open hands for a moment to show he had no intention of attacking. Her expression became less fearful, but still very cautious. "Small victories", he muttered to himself.
"Who are you", Misuzu asked him, her tone cold and serious. "What was that spear?"
"Who are you", he countered. "What is that sword?" Besides having a brief laugh at the situation, he was genuinely curious about the blade. Its edge was glowing with a hot red light in the night, as though it was fresh from the forge, and he could tell it was of a quality that far surpassed anything that could be made in the modern day.
Misuzu frowned at the casual deflection, but decided the man likely meant no harm if he so willingly disarmed himself. She lowered her sword but still kept a proper grip on it incase the threat returned.
"What exactly are you doing here", she asked with just a drop of aggression. She wasn't here to play games.
"I'm looking for someone", the blue man replied coolly, still with a relaxed smile. "And if I had to hazard a guess, I'd say you're doing the same. I did try to get some attention, after all."
"You were the one who triggered the barrier?", she asked, disbelieving. "Only high level spiritual entities should be able to directly interact with it."
"High level spiritual entities, huh? Yeah, I guess you'd call me one of those", Lancer replied. "But honestly I'm in a bit of a hurry, little lady. I don't have the luxury to tip-toe around it, so you wouldn't happen to know anyone around here with a fancy, bright-red mark on their hand would you?"
Misuzu raised her sword slightly again. "And what if I said I did?"
Lancer smirked. "Cautious, aren't you? That's good, you'll stay alive longer." His smile completely faded for the first time since they started talking. "You should tell that person that they are in danger, and that I really need to talk to them."
She gave the man an appraising look, struggling to decide if she could trust him or not. On one hand he seemed to be honest enough, but on the other he had made a few ridiculous claims so far and wielded a weapon that was obviously, terribly cursed. She remembered then that she owned a weapon that was much the same. That sword didn't decide how or when it was wielded, she did. After a few more moments of consideration, she finally lowered her weapon completely and let herself relax.
She raised her hand to show the newly made mark upon her slender wrist. "Fine. Follow me, and we can speak in the sitting room." She turned and began walking away. She didn't hear the man follow her, and turned to find him staring at her blankly.
Lancer again summoned his spear, and again rapped the barrier, producing the same strong 'knock' that he had previously. "I'd love to, little lady, but unless you'd rather I break this thing down, you'll have to let me in."
Misuzu sighed softly to herself. She had forgotten both about the barrier, and to introduce herself. She gave a short courteous bow. "I am Misuzu Kusakabe, and if you call me 'little lady' again, I'll toss you out on the street."
Lancer's smile returned larger than ever. "And a bit of fire, too! I do know how to pick 'em." He calmed down and looked her right in the eye. "I am the Servant of the spear, Lancer, and you may address me as such", he declared, his tone all business. "In the coming days, I hope you will accept me to be both your sword and shield."
Misuzu raised her sword to show it plainly. "I already have a sword, so why should I need another?"
"Because there's at least six more pointed back at you."
A/N: To all my new readers, I welcome you to this story. If you're here after being pinged on the old story, I welcome you back with great enthusiasm, and thank you for having the faith to keep that story on your follow list for this long. I did say long ago that I didn't want this to be a dead story; I've always wanted to start again.
New readers (and possibly old ones) are probably wondering why I'm mixing Fate with 11eyes of all things. I'm doing Fate because it is an amazing story. I've loved it since I first saw the Deen anime in 2012 and after reading the original visual novel I was solidly in the fanboy category. As for 11eyes, it's just an anime/manga that I enjoyed that I feel doesn't get enough love. I really wish the VN was translated: one can hope. There are a lot of great characters to work with, and while I'll be sticking primarily to Misuzu, I promise all the others are around. If I keep the momentum going through the Grail War I truly hope to work with all of those characters much more in the future.
Returning readers may be wondering why I'm rewriting this, and why now after so long. I had originally stopped the old story in the long lost year of 2015 with the intention of starting over after leaving college, and doing so fairly soon. I quickly found myself enrolled in a new college going for a new degree and working full time, sometimes more, to save up money along the way. This amounted to about 60-75 hours a week of just school and work, and I lost the willpower to write during that time in favor of spending my limited free time with friends.
So what's changed? I've graduated, I bought into a small business, and I bought my own home about a year and a half ago. I'm actually doing the vast majority of my writing while burning downtime at work on quiet days.
Don't expect frequent uploads. If I'm going to be delivering a story of quality my uploads will probably have fairly large gaps between them, probably a few months at a time. With that in mind, please note that I will endeavor to only upload the best story I can write, and I will be working on it continuously if slowly. Previous readers may remember that the first story was uploaded and edited by a friend of mine, and he is continuing to do so this time around as well.
The old story had me uploading chapters that were at least 10,000 words and as large as 25,000, which is a lot to chew in one chapter with not a lot of actual progression in the story. This prologue was about 4,000 and I expect this time around that chapters will be more along the lines of 5,000 to 10,000 words depending on how much I feel needs saying in that chapter, but who knows? As for content, I have new ideas for what direction I want to take this story in, and old readers will already be noticing significant changes in how I'm starting things off.
With all that said, I hope you all enjoyed the prologue. We start off once again from primarily Misuzu's standpoint, but will again be switching to Shirou next chapter and will be staying there most of the time.
One last quick note on reviews anyone wants to leave me. I am glad for every review I get, and I do hope you'll leave your thoughts on each chapter both good and bad. Criticism is just as important to me as words of encouragement, as without it I can't improve nearly as much. I only ask that criticism be constructive and not scare away potential new readers, as they may like it even if you don't. I'd really rather not be the guy who deletes reviews, but most of this community is pretty swell so I doubt this will be a problem.
I hope you all enjoy the rest of the story as it comes out and that I'll see you all next time.
E/N: Hey all, it's ShadowAce117 here. I'm editing the story together with BxRenegade. It's been awhile for both of us, might even start writing more myself.
As always, we'll make every effort to answer any question by review or PM, though it'll be faster for us to respond to reviews, our method of answering may differ on the answer itself.
All things considered in our lives, we'll make sure to try our best to finish this story and not leave it half-baked like the old one.
Hope to see you guys around!
