"Holy Grail War… And I'm summoned here as a Servant…
"You, the one calling yourself my master… do you perhaps know who I am?"
I remember, those were the first words I uttered when I was summoned. I was talking to this somewhat middle aged guy who was shriveling and trembling in front of me. At first I thought just witnessing the summoning of a servant was too much of a thriller for him. But then I realized it. He was dying.
He looked as if his life essence was slowly getting sucked out of him. A few moments later, his desiccated body was lying there on the floor in front of me. Why didn't I do anything!? All I can remember is that, even though I knew he was my master, nothing in me wanted to do anything about it. I didn't hate him, it's just that I simply didn't care. There were far more important things on my mind at that time. I couldn't remember who I was. I was supposed to be an ancient being from a long time ago - an ancient identity that was loved by some, and hated by a lot. I could understand how the Holy Grail war works, how it summoned me and for what purpose it did so, what would winning this war mean and what the prize of winning it will be. But, nothing about myself! There was one more thing that the Grail "told" me. It wanted to be born, it wanted to be alive. It wanted to become a physical entity.
I envied it, for it knew what it was.
I pitied it, for it yearned for an existence.
But I also resonated with it, for both of our existence then were but a mere fraction of what we deserved.
However, it wasn't exactly the Grail that spoke to me, it was more like something else that found its way through the Grail into this war. Perhaps that was the reason why my memories were all messed up. At least that's what I could figure out back then.
I thought of participating in that war. The winner would get one of his wishes granted, something that could answer the questions about my identity. But then there was the problem with the Holy Grail. The Grail itself was corrupted with the presence of that "something", something sinister. The other servants couldn't tell what it was, but I could understand it. The omnipotent device itself was corrupted by that entity, and only twisted results were to be expected from the outcome. Also there was another big problem. It was not only the inside of the war that faced problems, something bigger was happening outside as well. People of this age called it a world war. It affected everyone and every major locations around the world in one way or another. The location of the Holy Grail war was not spared from it either. So I decided to get out of the war for the time being.
Being summoned as a spirit has its own set of merits and demerits. Staying alive without the help of the Grail was the biggest demerit I faced back then. Thankfully, it worked out in the end, and I was still there even after both of those war ended. But so was that entity inside the Holy Grail.
A few decades later, the next Holy Grail war started in the same city. Instead of participating in that war, I wanted to observe how things would turn out this time. I enjoyed how a seemingly simplistic kill-or-be-killed event turned out to be a major mind game between some fantastic heroes and mages. That war ended with a part of the Grail getting destroyed, and another ancient servant like me winning it. As a fellow servant from the Age of Gods, I thought of approaching him, but realized the outcome would be terrible. The approach of a servant would only mean a direct challenge to him. I might be a senior based on the time period we lived in, but his power was undeniable. Facing him would only result in my death. I couldn't afford to do that, now that I figured out my identity after all these years. Yes, I found out who I was, and a part of it had to do with him, the first "hero" from mankind's history - Gilgamesh. I realized I needed to have more patience and wait for some more years. More time was what I needed. Also, the entity which corrupted the Holy Grail was more prominent that time. It tried to take control of Gilgamesh, but failed because of the sheer mind condition of him. So I waited.
After just about 10 years, the next Holy Grail war took place. This was the 5th Holy Grail war, and Gilgamesh was defeated this time. The Holy Grail was mostly destroyed, and the idea of a Holy Grail War was almost over. Almost.
It was then that I started my preparation — preparation for the type of Holy Grail war that I wanted. The entity from the Grail was barely present, in a metaphysical state, but it was weak enough for me to enter the scene. The mages or the remaining heroes never noticed me due to the skills bestowed upon me when I was summoned 70 years ago. I took the entity, now separated from the Grail, and kept it at a safe location.
It took me 70 years just to approach the entity, but I didn't waste that time just to stay on the sideline. I have been gathering detailed information about the last thousand years of human history, and it told me who I really am. It told me the things that I want is possible. It lead me towards... you. The entity that was once in the corrupted Grail wants a physical body, and you want freedom. May be we are not anywhere near the time for the much prophesied Armageddon, but you don't want to wait that long now, do you?
O bringer of the end of time, are you satisfied with my answer? Do you want to accept my proposal now, and join me in this journey?
"Ah you poor soul, what an exciting journey you have had, my dear. It would break my heart if I decline, now that you have come up with such an amazing offer. So, yes precisely. Count me in.
"However, perhaps you do not want me to start my own expedition at this moment, do you? You want me to do something first, do you not?"
"I'm planning to start the next Holy Grail war. But I need to arrange some things first. As it happens, mages who participate in wars like these tend to be very shrewd, not to mention the powerful heroes they can summon and the threat they can pose. We wouldn't want this to go out of our hand."
"Why yes of course. I would gladly enjoy watching you scheming and participating in your cute little killing game. So, now that I have agreed to join you, care to take off these shackles?! Being imprisoned for ages in this manner is not exactly a pleasant experience…"
[Author's Note: Hello everyone! Thank you for reading up to this point! This is my first Fanfiction on this site, and I plan to publish each of the following chapters at least once a month. Any type of criticize or praise (hehe), feel free to comment in the Review section.]