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Fate/Stay Night: Chapter Red
Chapter 02- Welcome to the Holy Grail War!
...
Shirou's brain was still trying to process all that had happened to him over the course of this night. First he witnessed a battle between two people that could be considered superhuman. His curiosity was rewarded with a lance straight through his heart. He found himself revived mysteriously and then was again attacked by the same man that ran him through. Then all of a sudden he managed to summon some girl that went by the name Saber. And Lastly he found out that his school's idol Rin Tohsaka was a magus just like he was. This was shaping up to be a long night.
Now he found himself back at home with his crimson servant and the now identified Rin Tohsaka. All three walked the halls of Shirou's home until they came across the smashed window that Shirou had so graciously hurled his body through.
"Geeze, it's freezing in here." Rin said in slight annoyance. "What happened? This window pane has been completely smashed in."
"It's not my fault." Shirou defended. "I was trying to defend myself against that Lancer guy."
"Wait! You tried to take him on by yourself until you summoned Saber?" Rin asked in surprise.
"Hardly. I didn't even stand a chance." Shirou admitted.
"Huh? Your not even trying to brag about it. I see, you're exactly the way you look... Super honest."
Rin closed her eyes and picked up a piece of the shattered glass. She said a small chant as her manna flared. Shirou looked on in awe for the umpteenth time this night as the window completely reassembled itself. In his mind Rin was clearly the superior magus between the two of them.
"Wow!" Shirou said, nearly speechless. "Tohsaka, you really are a mage aren't you?"
"Yes, and you are too I see."
"No not me, I can't do anything like that." said Shirou.
Rin was almost floored. "What do you mean you can't? You're messing with me now aren't you? Treating glass is about as basic as you can get."
"Well I'm sorry but I only the few things that my dad taught me and I'm afraid even that's nothing formal."
"Huh? So your telling me you can't create a path or control the five elements or... Anything?" Rin asked.
"Nope." Shirou said hesitantly.
"So... You're a complete novice then." Rin surmised.
"Not completely, I can do re-enforcement spells."
"Of all the magic you could learn you chose that." Rin admonished. "Are you sure there's nothing else you can do?"
"No, that's it."
Rin sighed. "How could someone like you manage to summon a saber then. So I'm guessing you have no clue as to the situation you're in?"
"Situation?" Shirou parroted.
"You've been dragged into a tournament of sorts, the Holy Grail War. A battle royal between masters."
"What are you talking about? There's a war!" Shirou asked in surprise.
"You recently had a stigma appear on your hand, right? Those three command seals mark you as a master." Rin said as she motioned towards Emiya's hand. Shirou held up his hand as the three crimson command seals were on full display. "Every few decades seven masters are chosen. Each master is granted a servant. Once that happens a battle for the Holy Grail begins to unfold. I was chosen to be a master as well. As long as you have your command seals your servant will continue to obey you. The command seals give you absolute authority over them... Those seals are what makes them obey your will. They can even force them to do something they don't want to. However, each time you force them against their will you will loose a command. So make sure you always keep you last command."
Suddenly Saber's words to Shirou earlier made some sense. "Those are called command seals. Try not to waste all three at once." Once Shirou was done remembering Saber's words he came back to the realization that he still didn't quite get all this. "Hold on! I still don't understand any of this!"
Rin opted to ignore Shirou for the time being and focus on his servant. "It seems that you still haven't fully materialized. I assume that's due to your master? Him being a novice must have interfered with your summoning."
"Yeah. Shirou doesn't have enough mana to complete the process so I can't become a spirit here, not that I mind." Saber sighed. "Not only that, replenishing my force will take some time too."
"Damn it! What a stupid waste! If I where saber's master I'd win this war easily! Why'd she have to go to a newbie like him?!" Rin ranted hysterically. If Shirou weren't so confused right now he would've found this situation hilarious. The school Idol Rin Tohsaka rolling on the ground like a whinny child was truly a sight to behold. He knew his friend Issei would kill to see the resident ice queen this vulnerable. Saber on the other hand stood stationary with her eye twitching. Probably due to the "She" comment Rin made. He would have to talk to Saber about that.
"Hey? Are you trying to say I'm not worthy to be Saber's master?" asked a confused Shirou.
"You're not even close genus." Rin said dryly. She eventually stood back up with same grace she'd had before she went off on her mini rant. "Okay, Shall we go?"
"Go where?"
"Yeah, where are we going?" Saber added.
"We're going to pay a visit to the man who oversees this whole war." Rin answered. "We're going to the church in new city."
"A church? Seriously?" Saber said, clearly not wanting to go.
Rin just smiled, Shirou got the feeling she was enjoying getting under their skin. Maybe Issei was right about her? Regardless, if they were going to go then he needed to change out of his tattered attire. He went to his room and disposed of his ruined school uniform and changed into something more casual. The next problem was Saber herself, she couldn't travel through town in armor, that would draw way too much attention.
Shirou left his room and found Saber leaned against his wall waiting for him. "Hey saber. Don't you have anything else you can wear? Walking around town in body armor will raise too much attention."
"Sure, I got something." With the snap of her fingers her armor disappeared and was now replaced by... A red battle dress that was quite... Revealing.
Shirou spluttered much to Saber's confusion. "W-What are you wearing?! That's not much better!"
It took Saber a minute before she finally understood why. The smirk on her face spoke volumes. "You don't like what you see?"
Shirou completely turned away, he was so confused. She hated being referred to as a woman and yet was willing to tease him in this manner, he couldn't understand girls at all. Saber was just laughing up a storm behind him, perhaps she could let the whole gender thing slide if teasing her master was going to be this much fun.
"Calm down Shirou I'm just messing with you." Saber said, never loosing her smirk.
"I-I know, just... Please don't do that again." Shirou said finally turning around. "Still, that will draw even more attention." Shirou put a hand to his chin thought. Then an Idea stuck him. He ran to the closet and came back with a mustard yellow rain coat. "Here. This will help you look less conspicuous."
Saber looked at the ugly coat before putting in on. It would make her look less conspicuous sure, but... did it have to be yellow? Crimson was more her color.
"Alright." Shirou smiled. "Let's go."
...
"Oh come on, don't you have anything better for her to wear?" Rin asked as the group walked through the night.
"Don't look at me! This was better than the alternative." Shirou countered, still not trying to think about the revealing red outfit.
"I guess it can't be helped." Rin finally relented. "She can't dematerialize and she can't be seen walking around in body armor or whatever it is that has you so flustered."
Shirou ignored that last part and gave Saber a sideways glance before continuing on. "Hey are you planning for us to walk all the way to the next city?"
"Indeed I am." Rin answered.
"You know it's been dangerous out lately right? I can't protect you two if something happens, I can't." said Shirou.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" asked an annoyed Saber. To think her master thinks she needs protection. Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around?
Shirou spluttered trying to think up an explanation and was thankfully saved by Rin. "Just relax Saber. As far as masters and servants are concerned Shirou really doesn't get it."
That seemed to calm Saber down as she understood her master was basically a rookie in this war, and Shirou just grunted to himself as they came across the bridge that led to New City. A gust of wind began to sweep in as Rin giggled slightly at Emiya's actions. She leaned against a nearby railing that lead to the sea to feel the wind brush against her face. Shirou stood there for a moment, mesmerized by the sight in front of him. Rin looked so beautiful with the wind blowing through her hair as she looked out at the sea.
...
After almost an hour of walking, the group had finally made it to the front gates of the New City church. "So this supervisor guy lives here?" Shirou asked. It might have been a church but it had a very eerie look to it. It was dark and quiet and shrouded in fog.
"Yes. This is Kotomine church." Rin replied.
"Hey Shirou." Saber spoke up. "I think I'll wait out here. This place is giving me all sorts of bad vibes. You go do what you need to, but if anything goes screwy in there I'll come running."
Shirou didn't argue, he merely nodded as he and Rin both entered the gate. "Why do suppose Saber didn't want to come in with us?"
"I honestly couldn't say. She said this place gave off bad vibes which is something I can understand. This place does look rather creepy at a first glance."
Shirou gave one last glance back to the gate to see Saber standing guard. Once he and Rin entered the front doors he would have his answers. The front doors opened with a loud creak, something akin doors in horror movies. Inside the church was massive, but only served to add to it's creepy factor. So dark... And so many empty seats.
"Tohsaka, just how much do you know about this priest anyway?"
"Well I can tell you that he is a magus and he also just so happens to be my legal guardian. You see he's kind of served as my second teacher." Rin answered truthfully.
"He's a magus?" Shirou said. The surprises just kept on coming. "You mean this priest also belongs to a Pagan Council of mages?"
"Yes... And that's why he can be such a pain in the ass. His name is Kirei Kotomine, he was one of my fathers pupils. We've basically been forced to put up with each other for ten years now. We would've had nothing to do with each other if I had my way." Shirou was sure he wasn't imagining things. There seemed to be an odd amount of tension coming from Rin when she began to go in depth about the priest who oversaw the war.
"And I would have preferred a student who could show her teacher a little bit of respect." Came a calm and neutral voice. Shirou looked ahead to see a tall man dressed in black standing before he and Rin. He Hair was a bit shaggy and his eyes seemed rather dull. He wore a standard priests uniform with a long coat and a golden cross necklace. All in all the man looked rather odd and had an air of darkness surrounding him.
"I've brought the seventh master to meet and talk with you." Rin addressed the priest. "He's technically a magus, but he's so inept that it pained me to ignore it."
"Tell me my son, what would your name be." Kirei asked, he dull eyes locking with Shirou's.
Shiou took an instinctive step back before answering. "My name is Shirou Emiya."
"Emiya?" the priest chuckled. "Are you certain that you're Saber's master.
"Far from it! All this talk about masters and grail wars, I don't understand any of it?!"
"Hmm? That is a problem" the priest said casually. "Very well, seeing as this is the first time Rin has ever asked for my help I believe the least I can do for you Shirou is to oblige. Listen to me. Being a master is not something you just hand from one person to the next... And once you become a master you can't just walk away from it either. Those command seals on your hand are a stigmata. The role of master is a trial that has been awarded to you. You can't just simply turn away because it's inconvenient. If you truly want to give up being a master then your only option is to obtain the grail and make your wish."
"And what wish is that?" Shirou asked curiously.
The priest held out his arms dramatically. "Why it can be anything you desire. If you win the grail then you'll have the rare chance to have the contents of your soul wiped clean. In fact if you wanted you could even go back in time and start your life all over. So if you get the opportunity to make your wish and it does come true, you'll be thanking your lucky stars that you were chosen to become a master. If you want to rid yourself of those invisible burns your only choice is to accept your stigmata."
Shirou was thinking long and hard about the priest's words. He could still see it in his mind. The raging inferno that had swallowed a portion of the city whole ten years ago. The day he had met his father... The man who saved him that day while all others were consumed. It was at this point Rin decided to speak once again.
"Kirei would you please get to the point. I only brought him here so you could explain the rules to him, okay?"
The priest sighed. "I guess I'll cut to the chase then. Here are the underlying principles of the Holy Grail wars. It's a series of battles to be fought by seven masters in conjunction with their servants. Participants in this war are not chosen simply because they wish to be. They are chosen as part of a ritual to determine who is the most worthy to possess the holy grail."
"Wait! You're talking about "the" holy grail?" Shirou interrupted.
The priest smirked. "Trust me. When the holy grail materializes here in this city, it will be the genuine article. The miracles preformed by the servants should be proof enough that this is real. Servants are beings who approach the level of high spirits. They are either legends or historical figures who have been summoned forth by the holy grail and materialized here in human form. In theory they are to remain in spirit form and stay close to their master's side. They are to materialize and fight only when the need arises."
"Yes but Emiya's servant is a bit different. Because her master is a novice she can't take spirit form and I get the impression she wouldn't use it even if she could." said Rin.
"The grail's ability to resurrect the dead could easily be considered magic. If the holy grail is capable of this power, it is safe to assume it can bestow equal or greater power to it's beholder. In light of this, questions challenging it's authenticity should be moot."
"Alright. I'll assume for now that the holy grail exists." said Shirou. "But why do you have to kill people over it? If it really that powerful than why doesn't everyone just share it?"
"A logical question to ask. Unfortunately we don't have that choice." said the priest. "The seven masters are the ones the grail feels are the most worthy to possess it, and it uses these wars to determine who is the most capable of them all. Everything is carried out by the grail itself. The selection of the masters the summoning of the servants, all of it. This war is a tradition. It's a time honored ritual where people chosen by the grail die in an effort to obtain it."
"But just because someone can win doesn't mean you have to kill all the other masters in the process!" Shirou said strongly.
"Hold on a second Emiya. There's no rule that says we have to kill each other!" Rin added.
"It is a fight to the death." Kirei said plainly.
"Oh Kirei, shut up!" Rin scolded. "Listen Emiya. The holy grail is a spiritual object, a human can't even touch it. Only servants who are also spirits can have actual contact with it. So you see servants are the key. Therefore the objective is to eliminate all other servants but your own."
"So I just gotta focus on the servants then, right?" Shirou asked. "Okay, this is starting to make sense. If my servant is the only one left at the end of the war than no one can stop her from attaining the grail."
"Exactly. So if you take out a servant then there's no need to kill there master as well." Rin finished.
"Well how come you guys didn't just tell me that in the first place?" Shirou questioned.
"Let me ask you something." the priest interjected. "Do you think you have the ability to defeat your own servant?"
That got Rin and Shirou's attention.
"Servants are quite powerful. It's hard for other servants to defeat them, much less ordinary humans. But servant's can't exist without a master. Which means..."
"The quickest way is by killing the master." Shirou said grimly.
"Yes." said Rin. "But a servant doesn't just disappear after loosing it's master. Another master can step in and use their command seals to form a new pact. A master who's lost their servant and a servant who's lost their master can create a new accord and rejoin the battle."
"Okay, but what if a master used up all their command seals? Wouldn't that set your servant free and they could go and make a new pact with a different master?"
"That's entirely plausible." Kirei answered. "If you use up your command seals then you are relieved from your duties as a master. Of course if a magus were actually to do this he'd be forever branded an incompetent, or worse and incredible fool unworthy of the craft."
Shirou grit his teeth at that.
The priest continued on, unaffected by Shirou's quickly souring mood. "Should that happen to you I will personally guarantee your safety until this holy grail war comes to an end."
"Guarantee my safety!" Shirou said hotly. "Why would I need to be protected by you?!"
"That is my duty as supervisor to these wars, and I will do my best to uphold my position. This is the fifth time that our fair city has been played host to the grails wars. The last one was ten years ago."
"Are you people insane!" Shirou screeched. "Are you telling me you people have done this before?!"
Kirei ignored Shiro's question and continued on. "In the past the grail wars grew to become incredibly brutal. Masters were driven only by their desires and began to butcher each other indiscriminately. Because of that the council of mages selected a supervisor at the very beginning of the third war and that man happened to be my father... And so consequently I have inherited the same post."
"Wow. It sounds like the grail wars have a way of bringing out the ugly side in people."
"Really?" Kotomine asked with an unknown glint in his eyes.
"Well yeah. The earlier mages were willing to break the rules of the magi to get what they wanted, right? So imagine if someone like that won the grail. Just think what would happen if they got their wish. It would be nothing short of a huge disaster, some maniac running around with that sort of power."
Kirei simply folded his arms behind his back. "It matters not what kind of person attains the grail. The council of mages will not interfere. Our only role is to make sure that the rules of war continue to be followed. If you take issue with that then become the victor. After all, relying on others can be incredibly inefficient."
"Don't tell me what to do!" Shirou challenged childishly. "I'm not interested in fighting this stupid war of yours! It has nothing to do with me!"
Kirei grinned. "So you're telling me you don't care. Even if someone unfit should win, knowing they could cause great harm to others. You're saying that none of these facts have peaked your interest? Not even what happened ten years ago?"
"You don't mean...?!" Shirou asked with wide eyes. He could still see it in his mind... The fire.
"As the fourth holy grail war was coming to an end, the grail was touched by someone who was unworthy. We have no idea what this master hoping to achieve, but we are all familiar with the atrocity that emerged as a result of his actions." Kirei said, his attention now focused outside. "Yes, they say that the cause of that fire is still unknown. In actuality it's the scar left behind by the fourth holy grail war."
"What's wrong?" Rin asked as she noticed Shirou tense up. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah... I'm alright." Shirou said as he took a deep breath. That was a lot to take in. "So... What was the outcome of the last war?"
"There wasn't one." Kirei said blankly. "Like I said, the grail was touched by someone unworthy and the war ended. But before him there was another man who touched it. But you see that man had done his best to avoid fighting, and so the grail would not fully materialize. When all seven servants are gathered the grail will appear, then begin to materialize. But remember what I just told you, this man chose not to fight so the grail refused to acknowledge him as it's rightful owner."
"I'm afraid he's right." Rin sighed. "Any strategy that tries to avoid confrontations with masters is essentially pointless. This guy who he's referring to who tried to avoid fighting last time was basically a coward."
The room fell silent for a moment before Shirou broke it. "Wait! This master you're talking about was you right?!"
"About halfway through the battle I quit. Unfortunately I had lost my servant, so I came to my father and asked for protection... That's all I wish to say on the subject." The fake priest said is monotone. "Without a servant, a master is no longer qualified to win the grail. When the tournament reduces all seven of you down to just one the grail will then reveal itself to the victor. So Emiya I'll ask you again. This is your last chance! Time to decide! Will you or will you not become a master is this holy grail war?!"
Again the room was met with silence as Shirou thought over his options. He couldn't avoid it, he had no choice but to participate. If he didn't and some complete and total bastard got the grail... Just thinking about it filled him with dread.
"I'll do it. If all this is true and the grail war did cause that fire ten years ago then there's no way I can stand by and let that happen again!"
"Well that's settled." Rin smiled as she turned on her heel. "Let's go then."
Just as Shirou was about to leave the priest left him some parting words. "Rejoice my son! You have a chance to make your dreams come true. You need a distinguishable enemy to see your dreams come to fruition. You may not want to admit it my son, but in order for virtue to prevail I'm afraid their first must be an evil that needs to be defeated."
Shirou narrowed his eyes.
"For you, your most noble aspirations and your most despicable desires all flow from the same source. So please stop pretending you don't know this. It's a conflict that's been going on within human beings for centuries." the priest finally finished.
...
Outside the church Saber waited patiently as her master and his escort came walking out. "Hey Shirou." She greeted. "You finish what you needed to?"
"Yeah I did." He said calmly.
"And?" she asked.
"I've decided to fight as a master. I need to know if you'll consent to serving a novice like me."
"Ha." Saber laughed. "You don't listen very well do you. I told you earlier, regardless if you're a novice you're still my master."
"Right. Thanks." Shirou nodded "Saber, fight with me till the very end."
Shirou extended his hand which Saber looked at in mild confusion.
"You don't want to shake hands?" Shirou asked.
"It's not that, you just caught me off guard is all." Saber smiled as she shook his hand. Her grip firm.
"If the holy grail wars is what really caused that fire ten years ago, I can't let anything like that happen again." Shirou thought.
Both where determined to win the grail war, one to stop the bloodshed, the other's motives a complete mystery. There handshake ceased and all present walked off into the misty night. After a while the group came to a stop as Rin addressed the novice.
"Alright, I've helped you out as much as I can. It's time for us to go our separate ways."
"You're a good person Tohsaka." Shiro smiled.
"Please don't flatter me, it'll get you nowhere." Rin dismissed.
Suddenly Saber went stiff, a familiar feeling running down her spine. A servant! "Shirou!"
Everyone turned their heads towards the end of the path ahead of them, child-like laughter all around them. Ahead of them was a silver haired girl with red eyes and a purple coat with matching hat. Behind her though stood a hulking mass of a man who seemed more like a monster carrying around a blade almost as big as he was.
"Hello again mister. This makes it the second time that we've met."
A/N: Chapter two is done and the long explanation about the war and servants is now complete. I thought about just glossing over the rules of the war but decided to just write it all down anyway. The story will follow the Fate/Stay Night rout very closely with deviations coming later down the line. I hope you all will be patient with me.
Enjoy the story and have an awesome day.
