Fate/Escape Dawn
Chapter 3
I don't always have that dream when I sleep. It's just that it's so rare to remember any other dream, that it seems like the fire and blood cloud my sleep every night. When I have a peaceful dream, the occurrences of which have increased over the years, it is like a godsend. I wake up refreshed and happy, instead of in a sweat and groggy.
This was one of those dreams. I don't know how many times I've had it, but it's oddly familiar. I think that this dream is from my memories. I don't really know, since my childhood is a bit foggy, even more-so than most people.
Judging by my size in the dream, I was about six or seven. My father was sitting by me, on the swinging bench on our balcony. I couldn't see his face, but I could tell that he was kind man just by looking at him.
"Listen, Tohshiro. This world takes things away from us. It is not because it is cruel or angry at us. It's just... reality," my father said. This may not seem like a peaceful dream, but compared to the dreams of sin, it was Arcadia. I just looked down, feeling sad. I did not feel tears welling up, but my eyes stung, telling me that I must have cried until I dried up. Looking back, the dream felt quite realistic.
"However, you can take them back, with work. Not like a job, or something like that. I mean that you must use effort to retrieve them. Whether it be your lunch money, or a dog, or..." He didn't finish that sentence. He merely sighed, and placed his hand on his head, as if thinking.
"Tohshiro. You can do special things. Not just your normal magecraft, but something more unobtainable. If you can train that, and put it to good use, you can bring back anything you want. Do you understand what I'm saying?" he said. I merely shook my head "no."
"You will know in due time." He patted my head. It was nostalgic, and it replaced my frown with a smile.
I opened my eyes. I looked up, and found myself not on the floor in the school hallway, but in a bed, a canopy bed, to be exact. Wait. A canopy bed? There aren't any canopy beds in my house. Thinking that, I looked around.
I was in a western-style room with brown, wooden walls and yellow, flower-design drapes. There was no such room in my house. Therefore, I was not in my house, but in someone else's. Gee, nice deduction there, Mr. Holmes, I thought to myself.
I struggled to sit up, as there were more blankets on me than I'm used to. When I finally sat up, I heard a door open and looked to my right.
A woman stood at the doorway, wearing a red blouse, with what looked like a cross design in the middle of her chest, and a black formal skirt that reached just at the knees, with long, black hair flowing down to her lower back. She was quite young and pretty, but with an odd air of maturity.
"Ah, you're up. You must have had a rough fight, huh?" she said. Her voice was both playful and concerned, an odd combination.
"Who are you? And, where am I?" I asked her. She pouted.
"Isn't customary to tell your own name before you ask someone else's? That's a bit rude, don't you think?" Okay, this was full of playfulness and had no hint of concern whatsoever. I had an odd feeling that I wasn't going to enjoy this conversation very much.
I sighed, as I gathered up my concentration to completely wake up. "Tohshirou Samori. The 'toh' of 'winter,' the 'shi' of 'samurai,' the 'rou' of 'son,' the 'sa' of 'cold,' and the 'mori' of 'forest.' Need any more info, ma'am?" I tend to be quite grumpy in the mornings, and this was no exception.
She smiled, as if satisfied with my response. "That's more like it. But don't call me 'ma'am;' I'm only 33." Wow. I must admit, the years have been good to her, whoever she is. She doesn't look a day over 22. "Anyway, I'm Rin Tohsaka. The 'rin' of 'freezing,' the 'toh' of 'far,' and the 'saka' of 'hill'. Nice to meet you," she said.
"Likewise I guess," I responded. "Anyway, can you answer my other question? Where am I and why am I here?"
"Well, I guess I can save what I have to say after I answer. You're at my house, the Tohsaka mansion in Miyama. I just returned here this afternoon from England to do a few things, so I noticed you when you left. You had a Suggestion Spell on you, so I had a familiar of mine follow you. It alerted me when you were about to get killed, so I came after you," she said.
Ah, know that I think about it, I do feel very strong Magic Energy from here. Wait, Rin Tohsaka... That sounds oddly familiar.
"Ma' - I mean, Miss Tohsaka, do I know you from somewhere?" I asked. She smiled triumphantly.
"Well, I am the famous Tohsaka of the Clock Tower, and I used to be the Second Owner of Fuyuki City." I remember now. I've read a bit about her. They say she's extremely close to recreating the Second True Magic.
"Ah, you are quite famous, huh. Glad to see I was in the hands of someone capable. Sorry for the snark earlier," I said.
"Don't worry about that. However, it's time to get into the matter at hand. First off, do you know why that girl attacked you?" she asked me. I thought for a second. She said something about a 'servant,' but I have no idea what she meant.
"Sorry, but I have no idea. I have no idea what this 'servant' is either," I responded. She sighed with a look of annoyance on her.
"How nice, another one. I thought I could get away from an experience like this fifteen years ago." She seemed quite frustrated, but then took on a look of serious. "You have been chosen as a Master to fight in Heaven's Feel Six, or the Sixth Holy Grail War."
Wow, how blunt. Ah, but there is one thing I still don't get. Oh, wait... it's everything. These thoughts were plastered on my face. Miss Tohsaka made another sigh.
"Oh great. I have to do this all over again. Although, the circumstances are a bit different," she said. Okay, I've had enough. I decided to voice my query.
"Miss, I have no idea what you're talking about," I said, with an obvious hint of annoyance.
"Fine then. I'll only say this once, so listen carefully," she responded as she sat down in a chair near a tea table. I took the blankets off of me and sat with my legs dangling off the bed. Miss Tohsaka assumed the face of seriousness she had a moment ago. "First thing's first. Heaven's Feel, also known as the Holy Grail War."
"Wait, you said 'Holy Grail' earlier as well. Do you mean that chalice that Christ supposedly poured his blood during the Last Supper?" I asked her.
"No. It is a different grail. However, the idea of the Holy Grail of Christ most likely stems from it. It is a more ancient artifact, a container of omnipotent power. Heaven's Feel is a war between Mages to gain that power." I felt more interested in what she was talking about. What would one do with omnipotence, the power of God himself? I have no idea. Just having it would be great. As a Mage, I felt compelled to have that power. However, as a person, I don't think I'd have any use for it. I listened further to her exposition.
"There are seven Masters. Each one summons a Servant with the help of the Holy Grail. Well, the truth is a little different, but just believe that for now." Oddly cryptic. "Each Servant fight each other. However, it is much easier to kill the Master, who supplies the Servant with Magic Energy. No Master, no Servant." That last bit of information kind of got my hopes down. I don't mind fighting, but I'll say "no" to dying any day. I decided to interject a bit.
"So, how powerful are these 'Servants?' If they're provided with Mana by the Master, wouldn't they be Familiars?" I said.
"Ah, they could be classified as Familiars, but they're on a whole other level. I forgot to mention this, but the summoned Servants are always mythological heroes. Well, there are some exceptions to both 'mythological' and 'hero,' but that's quite rare. They're called Heroic Spirits." Again, I butted in to her exposition, but for a different reason.
"Wait... Mythological heroes? You mean like King Arthur, Robin Hood, or, uh, Odysseus?" I said. She thought for a second.
"Well, there are many exceptions. Sometimes, a Servant can be summoned because they were famous for killing. But, that's the gist of it." Okay, this is getting weird. I made a face of complete disbelief.
"Hold up. How can a human, even a very powerful Mage, supply enough Mana for a mythic hero, much less summon one? How do you know any of this stuff anyway?" I said, making it clear that it was starting to sound corny.
"The Holy Grail makes it possible. A phenomenon such as Heaven's Feel can be said to be on the level of True Magic. I know all of this because I was once a Master as well," she responded. Sure, someone else apparently believed it and attacked me, and this woman is the Mage that is closest to True Magic in the modern era, but this is really hard to take in, I thought.
"Believe it or not, it's true. There's more to it, but I think you're smart enough to understand soon enough. Any questions?" she said, apparently finished with her explanation.
"Why, yes. Can you prove any of this?" I asked. To this, she smiled mischievously.
"Of course. Archer, show yourself to him," she said with her playfulness from earlier. I felt a change in the air to my right, near the bedpost, and looked towards there. I jolted and fell onto the ground. There was a man there, a tall man, of a strong build. He wore a golden headdress and golden armor on his legs. He wore no shirt, but wore a quiver on his back. This was a startling sight. It spoke with a calm voice.
"I am Archer, Servant of Rin Tohsaka. A pleasure." "L-likewise, I'm sure." After I made my greeting, he disappeared in thin air.
"Servants are Spirits, so they normally take on that form when they're not fighting. Now do you understand?" Miss Tohsaka asked. Okay, this 'Archer' certainly doesn't seem human, but that doesn't mean that he's a mythological hero.
"Kind of. So, this is your Servant? I've never heard of a mythic hero named 'Archer'," I said.
"Ah, that's his Class Name. In order to keep the identity of a Servant secret to other Masters, the Servants are placed into seven classes, depending on their specialty: Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, and Berserker," she said. I'll just play along to further the conversation.
"Okay, let's say, hypothetically, that this Heaven's Feel is real, and so is this Holy Grail. Why was I chosen to be a Master?" I asked.
"Honestly, I have no idea what the criteria are. Even true amateurs can become Masters. Last time, a Master summoned his Servant completely by accident. What I'm certain of, is that one must be a Mage to be a master. Apparently, the Holy Grail chooses them," she explained. I sighed.
"So, what do I do now? How do I summon a Servant, if I've been chosen as a Master?" I asked. Miss Tohsaka looked surprised.
"I didn't expect you ask that. However, there is a ritual, but it's a bit difficult to learn. Like I said, a Servant can be summoned by complete accident," she said.
"In that case, show me how, exactly. Even if I don't completely get it, I might as well play along until I do," I said.
"Are you sure you wish to do that? You will be killing other people, human lives. You could be killed as well," she responded, looking serious.
"I'm a Mage, even if a bit amateurish. Don't they say that death is always right by us Mages? I don't really think I can kill a human head on, but if I am attacked, I'll show no mercy," I explained. Miss Tohsaka smiled as if satisfied by my response.
"In that case, we'll have you summon a Servant," she said. She then beckoned me to follow her as she left the room. Might as well go, I thought. We went through what looked like the living room, then we walked to what I think ws the back of the house, then going down a staircase leading downwards.
The stone-walled room must've been both her basement and workshop, as I could feel large amounts of residual Magic Energy. On tables near the walls, there were beakers and other scientific utensils. These weren't really used for science, but for Magecraft. In the very back of the dim workshop, I could see what looked like a summoning circle. Perhaps she used that to summon her Archer. Miss Tohsaka moved to one of the tables, picking up a huge bag from underneath it. She then took things out of it. There were numerous swords, shields, arrows, and even something what looked like bark from a tree. One of the swords, a blue one decorated with gold, was broken in half. When she finished placing them on the ground in front of me, she got up and showed a face of triumph.
"Okay. These are catalysts that I got from the Clock Tower. They let me use them to summon the Heroic Spirit of my choice. Now, pick one. Each one has a relation to a Heroic Spirit," she said.
"Well, which ones are they? How do I know what I'll get? I really don't recognize any of these," I replied. Miss Tohsaka looked confused and then sighed.
"Sorry. I'll tell you the most famous ones. This red, flower-shaped shield is Rho Aius, the shield of Ajax. He will most likely be a Lancer or a Berserker. This arrow is the one that killed Chiron, shot by Hercules. This is a piece of the tree were the sword of Sigurd was placed. Oh, and this one..." She pointed to the broken blue and gold sword. It was a magnificent sword, probably very famous when it was in one piece. "... is Caliburn, the sword in the stone that King Arthur took to become king." I widened my eyes at this. Everyone knows the legend of King Arthur, the King of Knights. With him on my side, I may not need to worry about dying as much.
"I will take Caliburn. However, with King Arthur being such a famous knight, why didn't you use it?" I asked.
"Oh, that? My last Servant was Archer, so I think I may prefer them. I did try to summon Saber last time, but I failed. Instead that idiot got her," she said. I merely tilted my head at this. She may be a first-classed Mage, but she is odd. She kneeled down and picked up the broken sword, then placing it in the middle of the summoning circle.
"There's some residual Magic Energy in this circle, so we can use it again, and with little effort. I don't have time to teach you the ritual, so just concentrate and put as much Magic Energy as you can into the circle. It might hurt and it will definitely be bright and windy, but bear it," she explained. That's it? That's how to summon the greatest hero of European myth? A little anti-dramatic, I thought.
Regardless, I walked over to the circle and kneeled down, placing my hand on its edge. I'm not the best at transferring Magic Energy, as ice Magecraft merely takes it away. However, I breathed deeply, concentrating on the circle and my fingertips. I forced a large amount of my Magic Energy into the circle, thinking of nothing else but that.
I started to hear sparks, but I ignored it. My spine started to feel hot, as if a white-hot blade was stuck in my back, but I ignored it. Wind hit my face with force of a hurricane, but I ignored it. After around thirty seconds, all of this stopped, but I ignored it.
"I ask of you. Are you my Master?"
I couldn't ignore that.
