I don't own Fate. Fate is the property of Type-Moon, and no financial gain is made from this or is sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.
Guardian of Zero
Chapter 1
A routine had developed over the past year, between Caster and Sakura. They would wake up at first light, and spend the next hour and a half in physical exercises. Caster had no real intention of teaching Sakura martial arts – she did have a C-rank personal skill in Chinese martial arts so she could teach if she needed to – but it would be helpful in the long run for Sakura to develop a habit of keeping herself fit through physical exertion instead of dieting or starving herself.
I'll get fat…let's try and avoid Sakura getting a habit of saying that. Life is short and harsh, even more so for magi. It should be enjoyed whenever one has a reasonable opportunity.
After physical exercises – usually involving calisthenics and a few laps around the temple grounds – they would freshen up before joining the monks for breakfast. Breakfast would be followed by theoretical lecture and exercises; an hour and a half for mundane theory – arithmetic and grammar – followed by a thirty minute break. The remainder of the morning would be spent studying magical theory, and after lunch Sakura would be given magical exercises while Caster spent some time wandering the city and preparing for the war.
Gradation Air had been the first set of training, if only as an exercise to develop finely-tuned prana control. It had been followed by structural analysis, with Sakura being required to provide a general conceptual description on paper and a projected copy to demonstrate her grasp of the analyzed object.
Simple objects at first: utensils like chopsticks and spoons, and from there they steadily worked their way up over several months to more complex objects. Caster had also asked Sakura to keep detailed notes of her lectures and exercises, though with respect to Sakura's age Caster had helped her write down the relevant materials during morning lectures and summarizing the afternoon exercises in the evening.
As Caster walked down the streets of Fuyuki City, Sakura was busy in the heavily-shielded private quarters they shared with several projections Caster had created. Her exercise for the afternoon was to reinforce all projections and keep them in existence for as long as possible. A mystic code had been provided by Caster to accurately record the time each projection remained in the world, while Sakura noted down the results of her analysis prior to performing reinforcement.
Reinforcing projections was a useful exercise, considerably more difficult than reinforcing 'real' objects but not as difficult – or as dangerous – as reinforcing living things.
As Caster walked down the street, she paused and glanced over at a bulletin board located at the corner where the police had posted an official statement regarding a series of robberies against jewelry stores in the city. Well it was for a cause, and it wasn't like she had hurt anyone in the process…
No doubt father and his priests are involved in behind-the-scenes investigations…
They wouldn't find anything though, seeing as by this point Caster had gathered ample supplies and prepared an outline for mystic codes that might be have to be prepared later on. She'd also familiarized herself with the land and had prepared secondary hideouts – among other things – just in case.
She pulled out a pocket watch – a gift from Zelretch which apparently remained with her in damnation – and glanced at the sunset after checking the time. She continued down the street afterwards only to turn and enter the first convenient alley, and once she was certain all pursuit was shaken returned to astral form before ghosting back to Ryuudo Temple.
The Tohsaka property was a well-defended location, at least by magical standards. Assassin had to concede that much at least. A high-jump over the wall while simultaneously taking down the outer bounded fields by shattering their jewel cores with precise hits of expertly-fired stones signaled the beginning of his attack.
In the hands of an Assassin, even the simplest objects are deadly weapons.
The next set of bounded fields was more formidable, an interlocking array of constantly moving energy fields that would incinerate him the moment any one of them touched him. As it was, his skills would prove more than enough to dance his way through the fields and then within arms' reach of the core.
Another series of precisely-aimed stones triggered the fields, and Assassin smirked behind his mask. "Too easy…" he said a bit smugly, and wondered if he overestimated the risks of his given task: to assassinate Tokiomi Tohsaka.
Then perhaps their Master will finally have a goal worthy of their skills.
Assassin reached with a hand and crushed the jewel anchoring the bounded field…and then he was writhing in agony, one of Archer's Noble Phantasms punching through stone and flesh and pinning him by the arm to the stone pedestal. "Little worm crawling on the ground…" an arrogant voice ghosted across the grounds, as Archer appeared in gleaming golden armor on top of the nearby mansion, glowing portals filling the space around and behind him. "…who gave you permission to come here?"
Behind his mask, the Assassin's eyes widened at the sight. "This wasn't…!" he began to think, only to be torn apart by a barrage of gleaming metal.
"Humph…" Archer snorted in disdain before turning to leave. "…you are not worthy to gaze upon me."
This…parody of a jester's act is below me. Tokiomi's plan had better work, or there'll be hell to pay.
Caster opened her eyes, and wearily ran a hand down her face. One of her familiars had been keeping an eye on the Tohsaka property, and she'd seen everything that had just happened. This was simply…stupefying. Her father was a brilliant magus she had to admit despite her almost complete loss of respect of the man over the years. But now this…
And I thought Shinji was an idiot…
Caster sighed and looked up at the starry sky from where she was slouched beneath a plum tree in Ryuudo Temple's courtyard. "Now then…" she wondered aloud. "…how to make use of this?"
Archer…no Gilgamesh was her father's Servant. That could be troublesome, and she briefly wondered if she should go for an alliance with Kiritsugu Emiya and Saber. It was a tempting idea, except that Kiritsugu in his prime was a rather nasty bastard as well, and without cynicism or masked idealism like her Archer had masking his ruthless nature.
I'm already taking orders from Alaya, and I've no real desire to take orders from another heartless bastard like Kiritsugu unless I absolutely need to.
She closed her eyes and reached out to her familiars again, and traced out the locations of the other Masters. Kiritsugu was surprisingly enough not with Saber, and was holed up with an unknown woman in the Emiya property.
Huh…so Shirou's old man is a womanizer too…no surprise there...although technically speaking Shirou wasn't exactly womanizing…
Shaking her head to clear it of distractions, she continued to track the other Masters. The Einzbern Forest was as expected impenetrable to mere familiars, which meant that she couldn't perceive what the Einzbern homunculus and Saber were doing. The same went for Lancer and his Master, given that their stronghold at Fuyuki Hyatt was a literal fortress. Breaking in would be suicide for her.
Rider and his Master were breaking into the city library. Well…seeing as she'd been stealing gems and cash among other things over the past year she wasn't one to judge.
Kirei was heading back to the Church. Treacherous bastard…it was so tempting to have her familiars rip him apart then and there, but she knew that Assassin must have some sort of trick up his sleeve to appear to die.
Assassin dying like that…in an incredibly stupid frontal assault…the day that becomes all there is to it will be the day I eat rock.
There was Gilgamesh too…her father and Kirei were allies and if she attacked now...at any rate all the Masters and Servants were accounted for, including her. All except for Berserker and his or her Master…all her familiars could find about the Matou Master was that he was a sickly man who'd vanished into the shadows of the city, and all their attempts to follow or find out more were met either with overwhelming numbers of insects, or by an armored, black knight that even had her recoiling in fear despite the distance.
And she had faced down her possessed sister right next to the corrupted Grail. Whoever that knight was, it wasn't someone to cross lightly…and a Berserker to boot.
Caster opened her eyes and sighed again before standing and heading back to the temple. It was still too soon to make her move and for now she had to lie low, or if she couldn't find an ally then wait until only one Servant was left and then strike with all the force she had available.
Gambling everything on a single, devastating blow is bad strategy, but as it stands I'm probably the weakest Servant here. I certainly hope one of the others will make a useful ally.
"Rider…" Waver Velvet asked as they made their way back to the Mackenzie's house from the library. "…what do you think?"
"About what…?"
"Weren't you listening?"
Rider scratched his cheek before settling down on the couch. "Tohsaka is probably allied with Kotomine…" he said. "…although we can't prove that…yet. There's also the possibility that there was a falling out between the two of them – from what I know priests and magi don't exactly see eye-to-eye – though we certainly can't discount the idea that this was all contrived."
"So…?"
Rider smiled before taking out one of the books they'd taken from the library. "We shouldn't make conclusions yet boy." He said cheerfully. "Assassin appeared to die, though that may not necessarily be the case."
Waver gaped at the giant, completely stunned at his intelligent appraisal of the situation, completely at odds with his simple-minded character. "What's wrong boy?"
"No, it's nothing. I'm just surprised that things would get this complicated."
"War isn't just about fighting and killing." Rider admonished him. "You also have to think about getting your enemy in the right place and time for you to defeat him. Of course, the best victories are those achieved without bloodshed at all, but reality isn't nearly so kind. As such I have to settle for victory without humiliation or excessive bloodshed."
"Huh…?"
"So you don't understand." Rider said with a note of disappointment. "Well there's no need to rush. I'm sure you'll understand eventually. Now then…tell me what do you know of the Iliad and the Odyssey?"
"No magic today."
"Huh?"
Sakura blinked as she looked up to Caster who was busy pulling out some clothes her size that she'd never seen before. New clothes…?
"You've spend the past year cooped up in this temple." Caster said. "So…we're heading out today."
Sakura blinked again and then began to put on the new clothes. It wasn't that she was ungrateful, but Caster was…strange. She saved her from Matou, and she was willing to teach magic in a way different from her father's impersonal style but…there was something about her that was off, especially the way her eyes always seemed so sad whenever they met her own.
Caster…who are you?
The trip to the city was uneventful, though given her year-long seclusion in Ryuudo Temple it felt rather unreal upon arrival. It wasn't that she had never gone to the city proper before, but usually she'd gone into the city with her mother and sister once every few months. But those times felt so long ago now, and compared to the quiet and contemplative atmosphere of Ryuudo Temple everything felt so strange.
Caster bought her an ice cream cone immediately upon arrival, and the two sat on a nearby bench enjoying the sweet treats in the afternoon light, ignored by the passersby walking along on their lives. "So…" Caster asked. "…is there anywhere you want to go in particular?"
Sakura shook her head, and Caster chuckled apologetically. It was something of a stupid question, given that a mere five year-old child wouldn't really have anywhere to want to visit in the city. "Alright then…" she said. "…how about we simply walk around and see if there's anything interesting to see?"
"Okay!"
Caster and Sakura finished their ice cream, and taking her sister's hand the two of them spent the afternoon going through Fuyuki's shopping district. First to be visited was a bookstore where Caster purchased additional writing material among other useful stationery, followed by a toy store just across the street.
Caster blinked at the stuffed bear Sakura held out to her. "I can't…?" she asked, and Caster shook her head and managed a smile.
"No, it's not that." Caster said. "It's just that I never pegged you for a teddy bear type."
Sakura pouted, making her look ridiculously cute. "What's wrong with teddy bears?" she asked crossly while hugging the bear tightly. "They're cute!"
Caster laughed…and then gave a scowl at the gently smiling people around them. It didn't work much, they looked away but the indulgent smiles remained behind turned backs. Caster sighed and looked back at the pouting Sakura. "No, there's nothing wrong." She said while patting Sakura on the head, the little girl managing a triumphant smile.
Well she's happy. I suppose that's worth the aggravation of passersby thinking of scandalous thoughts.
Proceeding to the counter, the smiling lady at the counter delivered a parting broadside. "You have a fine daughter." She said while scanning the bear's barcode, and causing Caster to choke and blush at the same time.
"We're not…I mean…" she stammered but gave up in favor of an exasperated smile while paying for the stuffed toy. Wrapping was disdained and Sakura was allowed to carry the doll with her on the way out, Caster following with an exasperated ar.
We do look alike, but I don't look that old…do I?
"Hey Caster-san…" Sakura said. "…I'm thirsty."
"Is that right?" Caster said while reaching to her familiars in the area. A moment later and she spotted a café within walking distance. "Come on…" she said and beckoning Sakura to follow. "…there's a café around here."
The café was rather typical in appearance, and as Sakura and Caster took their seats at an outside table a smartly-dressed waiter arrived with a menu. Caster took a cursory glance at it before handing it back. "I'll have a French Vanilla Tea, and my sister will have orange juice please."
The man jotted down their orders, and with a bow left the two alone. Master and Servant sat silent, Caster musing about nothings while sitting back in her chair, and Sakura softly talking to her teddy bear like little children tend to do. "Hey Caster…" Sakura broke the silence after a while.
"Yes…?"
"…who are you?" she asked, and Caster looked at Sakura seriously. "You...why are you always so sad when you look at me?"
Caster was silent for a long while, staring into the matching blue of Sakura's eyes. Finally she sighed and leaned forwards on her elbows before removing her glasses. "And who do you think I am?" she asked back, and after a moment Sakura reached out with her hands and caressed her face.
"Nee-san...?" she whispered with her eyes wide. "Why?"
"People make mistakes…" Caster said while pulling back and putting her glasses back on her face. "…that's why Sakura, don't hate Rin. She…she cares for you. I care for you. She just…can't show it."
Sakura nodded slowly, and sat back while holding her bear tightly. They stayed silent as the waiter arrived, and Caster silently stirred her tea while Sakura sipped at her juice. "Papa and Mama…" Sakura began, only for her voice to trail off.
Caster smiled back. "Sakura…" she began gently. "…take my advice: wait. Right now you…you can't judge them. Wait until you're older. That way…that way you don't get burdened down with childish regrets."
Don't be burdened down with childish admiration like I was, to my lasting regret.
Sakura briefly looked miffed at being called a child, but the wistful expression on Caster's face got the point across. She nodded. "Okay…I promise."
Caster smiled again, and nodded before sitting back to enjoy her tea. Sakura did likewise with her orange juice, and the Servant of the Spell was perfectly content to take her time with their drinks before heading back to Ryuudo Temple, when her familiars warned her: Lancer and Saber were on the move with their Masters.
It won't be long before the others take notice.
Caster glanced at her sister as she finished her juice and did likewise to her tea, although she felt a pang at not being able to give the fine-tasting drink the dignified time for savoring that it deserved. "Shall we go?" she asked, and Sakura nodded.
Caster paid for their drinks, and then led Sakura away and down a nearby alley. "Nee-san…?" Sakura asked, and Caster raised a finger to her lips before putting on a bracer and fiddling with a set of dials set into it.
"Things might get dangerous around here…" Caster told her. "…but don't worry. I'll get us someplace safe."
Sakura nodded and stepping closer took hold of Caster's red cloak. "I'm not worried." She said. "You…promised to keep me safe didn't you?"
If only I could have fulfilled that promise sooner.
"Yes…yes I promised. I won't let anyone or anything to hurt you."
The last dial slid home, and the focusing gem began to glow as the spatial coordinates for Ryuudo Temple were inputted. "Hold on…" she said softly, and Sakura nodded before space twisted around them with a flare of light.
And then they were gone.
Ravens flew through the air, black pinions beating through the air as they gently landed on metal and stone ledges. Beady eyes watched a female knight in blue and silver armed with an invisible sword fighting a male knight in dark blue and armed with a golden lance. They spied an arrogant nobleman looking down disdainfully on the knights as they put their lives and honor on the line, a blob of mercury sitting right next to him.
They glossed over the platinum-blonde homunculus anxiously standing a good distance behind the knights, and focused their attentions on a hollow-eyed man and his partner as they observed the battle through the scopes of lifeless rifles. Even more ravens flew high over the battlefield, and felt their mistress' irritation at the sloppy execution of a ruse as they beheld a skull-masked figure watching the battle from a distance, balanced on a spire.
Another raven looked down curiously at the cowering boy precariously-balanced on the steel beams of the mighty bridge spanning the river, while the redheaded giant beside him stood tall and confident, as though height and danger were as nothing – a king and a conqueror waiting for the right time to descend on the battlefield with glory worthy of his station.
They searched vainly for a black-armored knight and a sickly man, or for a heartless noble with lifeless eyes, and cast their gaze blindly for a king in gold. As Sakura read a children's book Caster had bought for her in their room, the Servant of the Spell sat cross-legged on the roof and waited. She watched and waited, and rejoiced at the opportunity to see all the Servants in this war all at once.
"Cry havoc…" she whispered the famous quote. "…and let loose the dogs of war."
A/N
Caster's acting OOC...of course she is. She's not the same Rin we know and love, any more than Archer is the same loveable idiot that Shirou is. Cynical and full of regret…can anything else be expected from a Counter-Guardian?
I hope I did Rider and Waver's characters justice, I have plans for those two. And personally I think that Tokiomi's little ruse with Assassin is a bit idiotic, even compared to that sniveling fool Shinji from Fate.