Chapter 10 - Kai
Kai had found himself in the wildly looking garden of Sabrina Falk, a door slammed shut in front of him after he was shoved outside.
"Now, that wasn't very hospitable, was it?", he told his ghost companion.
Archer seemed unfazed.
"The non-existence of rules of hospitality in your world never cease to surprise the king", Ramesses replied dryly.
Kai groaned. His Hem still seemed a bit sore about their initial encounter and him trying to lock the ghost out of his house. He had already apologized several times over, but wondering a bit more with each apology what he had done wrong in the first place. Ramesses should have admitted that he came around like a creep the day before.
"So, what now?", he asked the Heroic Spirit instead of pondering on past.
"Whatever you should choose to do, Nab Kai."
Not helpful...
Their alliance with Sabrina and Saber was a good first step and after she had told him how she spent her time scouting Einzbern he was eager to pick up the same habit. Initially at least. As soon as he had set a foot outside the world suddenly looked much larger, Einzbern suddenly looked much larger. He wanted to strike out, but without any direction he was a bit overwhelmed by the possibilities. Kai walked out of Sabrina's property and thought a bit about directions while walking the street back towards his school. It would get easer if he started from ground more familiar to him, he thought. Therefore he reached the school building surrounded by howling fire department cars.
"Taking on the mountains wouldn't be such a good idea right now", he told Archer. "If we take into account that the Einzberns are likely the only ones who have properly prepared for this Grail War thing, we should get more allies first..."
"The king agrees", the ghost said. "The king marched into unknown territory only if he was sure of his advantages."
Sure of his advantages...
"Then let's at first go into the central part of town. Even if we run into another team they won't dare attack us in public."
"This way the king and Nab Kai could gather information before engaging in a battle", Archer continued. "A valid strategy."
Kai felt the pride rise in his chest. He had entered this battle without his consent, but now that he had seen what was at stake he at least wanted to make the best of it. Maybe they were able to somewhat limit the damage to Einzbern after all...
The marked district of Einzbern was a crowded place full of people. Mostly older pensioners and parents with little children, but also more than a few students who were gathering whatever they needed from store today. Kai didn't belong to them, he just walked up the streets, waiting for Archer to warn him like a huge, pharaoh-shaped proximity sensor. Servants being able to sense each other's presence sounded extremely strange, but it had worked with Sabrina's Saber after all.
"I have been thinking", Kai whispered after a while, not daring to talk louder in fear of people overhearing him and thinking him as being completely nuts.
Archer nodded and motioned him to continue. This way Kai wasn't quite sure whether it meant he had read his thoughts already, but for the sake of discussion he assumed not.
"Your Hotep en Netscher... It's just... I thought about the possibilities. You can truly write down any kind of agreement? Any single possible one?"
"So it is, Nab Kai. Under the assumption that both parties agree upon the terms."
"Okay... is... is it possible to phrase two contracts in a way that they create some kind of deadlock?"
He saw the spirit frowning in confusion.
"Why should anyone agree to such?"
"Maybe... because the deadlock is preferable to resolving the matter it is about", he said carefully.
"What is it you want to prevent, Nab Kai?"
Kai stopped mid-movement, knowing how sheepish he must have looked. For some reason he knew Ramesses wouldn't agree with his train of thought, but it pretty much jumped into his face the moment Archer explained the way his divine contract worked.
"Imagine we find another possible ally. And imagine now we create a contract with exactly the same phrasing like the one with Sabrina", he explained, wary about his reaction. "You see, we agreed to only attack each other after all five other Servants are killed. With a new contract of the same wording hostilities could only begin after anyone killed Saber. If we then also prevent hostilities between our two allies through the same means... We get three Servants unable to ever attack each other..."
"You would break the Grail War if these three are the last survivors", Archer stated coldly.
"That's exactly my thought", Kai admitted. "Nobody would feel the need to kill each other anymore."
Silence. Ramesses seemed deep in thought, every new second making Kai more uncomfortable as he remained quiet himself, only interrupted when he had to step out of the way of passing people.
"The king won't allow it", Archer finally said softly.
"Why not? Isn't peace always more preferable to violence?"
"In a kingdom? Yes. The king agrees. But this conflict is just between the seven Heroic Spirits. It is for the power of the Grail. It is a matter that needs to be resolved."
Kai shook his head, pondering how he should phrase it so that he was able to understand.
"It is the wish, sure... You want a miracle. But is your presence here not a miracle in itself? You are dead, a ghost, you died three thousand years ago. And yet you are here. Living. Even breathing. It is a second chance for you!"
Archer glared at him in a way he had rarely seen before.
"It is not a second life the king is fighting for, Nab Kai, be assured of that. Even then, this current state the king had found himself in... it is a fickle existence."
"What do you want to say? If nobody claims the Grail and everyone ceases fighting, what is going to happen with you? Aren't you remaining on Earth?"
"No. The king's death is a fact this planet is going to correct. A Heroic Spirit is powered by the energy accumulated over several decades in the Grail itself. It only holds enough to grant life for a few weeks. As soon as the Grail is depleted and stops supporting the king and all other active Hems at the time, they all cease to exist. Only the strongest sorcerers could manage to support one on its own and neither you nor Nab Sabrina are strong enough."
Only a few weeks, Kai realized aghast. He isn't joking when he calls that a fickle existence.
"Then make the best of it", he protested. "Come on! Three thousand years! Isn't it thrilling to see how much mankind has accomplished in the meantime?"
Archer took a step backwards and watched over the busy townscape. Cars were driving along, traffic lights changed colours and the people all around were hurrying to wherever they were heading towards. The pharaoh sighed deeply.
"People are people, no matter the age. The king would be forced to lie if he has to say he isn't impressed by the technological progress, but wasting his time in this alien world of yours would bring shame upon the responsibility he still has."
"Why? I don't understand, I can't understand. Dead sounds pretty final to me, so how can you still have some unfinished business? Everyone you must have known is dead! Your empire has contributed its share to history and doesn't exist anymore! Nobody is forcing you to do anything anymore!"
A woman with two shopping bags shot him a confused glance while passing, causing Kai to grimace sheepishly. Meanwhile Archer looked down on him with a serious expression. His usual face always bordered to being bored, but right now he was showing Kai a coldness he had never seen in him before. He shuddered.
"The king himself does", Archer growled. "You wouldn't understand. You are still too young."
"And too alive, I guess", Kai shot back, angry at being belittled like this.
The pharaoh stared at him grimly.
"No. Young", he insisted.
"What wish could be so important to you that it is worth murdering six other people for it?", Kai replied. "You are right, I can't understand. So please, enlighten me. Make me understand!"
"The wish of the king is of no concern to you", Ramesses answered defensively.
That took him aback. It might have been because he was used to the pharaoh carefully explaining him all he knew about the Grail War, but now evading the question was something unusual for him.
Is it so personal to him? Is it so embarrassing for him? Of course my own wish is also... but no, it can't be.
He looked down to his right hand. The blood red carving with its small eerie glow was there. He held it up between him and the invisible ghost.
"I know I have no right to peek into your life and yet I was forced to do so this night. I believe it has a purpose. Everything here has a purpose. And I am your Master."
"Indeed, Nab Kai", the trace of a frown carved itself into his brows.
"We have to work together... We need to trust each other, I think this is the reason for my dream. But this... I see a way to end this fight peacefully and yet you refuse that option. Is it really so bad to resolve the conflict peacefully? Is it so bad to make friends out of those enemies?"
He himself also had to lie if he had to say the prospect of learning to know five other historical people wouldn't be thrilling. The more the merrier. Some might refuse because they as well feel their wishes need fulfilment. But it seemed a complete waste that the Servant who held the key to breaking this mindless slaughter belonged to such a faction.
"It is not bad to stop fighting. You must believe that the king finds your proposal truly admirable and would gladly avoid the conflict, if there would be an alternative to obtain the Grail. But you must accept that the king's cause won't allow a draw. The king has to go into battle and the king needs to prevail."
"But why?", Kai complained. "It makes no sense! No sense at all!"
Archer crossed his arms, continuing to watch him grimly. Kai still stood there at the edge of the sidewalk, not knowing what to do. Having taken back his hand, Kai clutched at the Command Spells with the other one.
"I could make you tell me your reasoning, you know", he said warily.
The pharaoh raised both his eyebrows.
"You wouldn't waste a Command Spell for such a triviality."
Probably not, no...
"Then explain me what I shall do instead?", Kai said sighing. "I may never know why I should be trusting you then. In anything. You drag me into this conflict of yours, you keep telling me my life is going to be in danger and your wreck my school in an attempt to kill Richard fucking Lionheart! And now you refuse to look for a peaceful solution. I start to think Saber misunderstood you. You probably are more bloodthirsty than he gave you credit for. You cannot possibly have a valid reason to allow such carnage and the possibility of more to happen!"
Archer's eyes narrowed.
"Do you truly think the king is participating in this conflict for fun? Do you truly think the king has answered the call of the Grail if without sore need for it?", his Servant suddenly thundered.
He glared at him threateningly, but now that he had gotten at least that much emotion out of that rigid bastard, he wouldn't let him off the hook.
"Well, it seems it is. Otherwise you wouldn't be so shy to enlighten me!", he hissed, resulting in more than a few confused stares from the crowd.
Anger flashed up at Archer's face. And for one moment Kai feared he went too far. He gulped and stepped back, unable to guess how the Servant was going to react.
Damn you, Kai, you speak to a fucking pharaoh! I doubt he had ever faced someone daring to talk back to him...
"I will tell you, Nab Kai, but the king guarantees you that you cannot understand the pain he has to endure. Not now. Not yet. If you tell the king you understand, it will be a presumption the king cannot allow."
"What?", this was all he was able to say to that, his mind was empty.
It was then Archer told him and every single word was pure acid:
"The king has caused the death of his son."
Kai blinked. He had expected something harsh, but also something having to do with his kingdom and not something that personal.
"I- I... I am sorry", he blurted out, it was all he could do.
Archer wouldn't hear it. He turned around and his invisible shadow disappeared in a golden mist. No matter where Kai looked at, he couldn't find him anymore. It was like a punch into his gut... and he had the ill feeling Archer must have felt the same. And it was odd as well. From one moment to the next Kai felt strangely alone. The bowmen never left his side since the day before, even guarding the house while he slept. And now it took only the turning of a back and a few seconds to rip his whole presence from him. This must have been the power of their connection. Kai grimaced uncomfortably and looked around. The busy street took no further notice of what had happened.
What am I even doing here anymore?
He pushed on, taking the right turning, then the left. He never got very far from the main street, but he did leave the places which were the most busy. It was frustrating. He kept pushing on, but without Archer it was a completely fruitless attempt and he knew it. Any Servant he would come across would be in Spirit Form and without Archer he had no way to see them. And if one wouldn't be invisible... A sense of dread crept up through his guts. He looked around. He was now among several apartment blocks. Some people were on the sidewalk, he saw several on the balconies and a few cars and a single biker on a motorcycle passed him. He was by all means not alone, but he wasn't protected by a crowd either.
They wrecked the school... it's madness to look for a Servant on my own.
Kai shook his head in resignation and decided to go back home. There was nothing he could do anymore. He went to the next bus stop and then to the familiar suburb he lived in. During the whole trip Archer was nowhere to see.
He never intended for me to know... I shouldn't have been so forceful about it... it was too personal a matter.
He still pondered about the wording though when he left the bus and walked the last bit to his parents' house.
He caused his death... unwittingly? So he just wants to redo a tragic mistake?
Ramesses had lots and lots of children, that was something he had found out during his research. Finding out which one he was talking about should be nigh impossible, especially with the scarce information people have about most of them. It was still weird how much Archer was angered by his demand for clarity.
So what is he going to do now? Abandoning me, looking for another Master?
He couldn't blame him. He openly stated how much better a true sorcerer would be in contrast to his pitiful self. Maybe he was already trying to contact the Einzberns in their fancy old castle. He was imagining the pharaoh negotiating with a pale vampire in black when he closed the garden door behind him and walked up to the front door. But on the other hand Ramesses seemed strangely glad about not having a sorcerer. He didn't really know what that was supposed to meant.
But then it all happened in a split second. It was a black shadow that had prowled through the garden behind the wall of the building, but the moment Kai realized it was there it had already taken one huge leap onto him. He staggered backwards, but it was already to late. Kai crashed hard into the hedges to his left and his world turned into a swirl of green leaves, brown sticks and black fur.
"Urgh..."
The beast had pushed himself to the ground. A wolf. Far bigger than he had ever imagined them. His mind raced. The words of Sabrina echoed in his mind. The creatures that attacked her. The creatures they both expected to belong to another Servant. How could he be so stupid? How could he expect to be not a target when parting ways with Archer? How... was he not dead yet?
What the...
The beast had pinned him down, but with his whole body. Its legs lay stiff on the ground and the head with the mouth that had at first tried to bite into his throat just leaned against his neck. He struggled under the monster and managed to throw it off him. It gave no resistance at all and its weight soon went down when it began to dissolve into a black mist. Still on the ground Kai saw the glimmering golden arrow deeply struck in its neck. And when he raised and struggled to get out of the bushes he fell into... he saw several more of these beast in his garden. All dead. All looking as if struck in the middle of their charge. And all were killed by the same golden arrows. He whirled around. And he saw him standing on the roof of a nearby house, lowering the sapphire-blue bow of his.
"Archer!", Kai called out.
The pharaoh disappeared in a golden mist, only to reappear directly next to him, scowling.
"You have returned, you...", Kai blurted out before remembering what the Servant just did. "I mean... thank you."
Archer made a very small bow, saying:
"It seems the enemy thought the king wouldn't be nearby anymore."
"I thought you wouldn't be nearby anymore", Kai sheepishly admitted. "I just... I'm sorry for pressuring you, I shouldn't have done that. I guess these critters were my karma."
"Might be", the bowman grunted, only for it to turn into a soft sigh. "But the reaction of the king was short-sighted and it could have cost your life. Your curiosity was just too much of a reminder..."
Kai gulped. He wanted to ask further, but thinking about Archer's previous reaction, he tried to drop the matter. He waved towards the door and offered the ghost to come in while the carcasses of the beasts had already completely vanished. He wasn't eager to get seen talking to the weird pharaoh by the neighbours which were strangely absent at this point.
"Have you seen who had sent them?", he asked on the way to the living room.
"No. The king only saw these familiars forming themselves where they appeared. Their summoner was outside of the king's reach again", he said matter-of-factly.
The way he so casually spoke about the attack made Kai feel uneasy. He was barely able to process what had just happened, he just understood that he couldn't leave the side of Archer for a second without having to fear for his life. He was simply too shocked to react properly aghast.
"Wait... again? You have already seen those things?", he asked confused.
"Indeed. They and similar creatures were present at the king's summoning and he dispatched them while you retreated to safety."
Kai could not help but gape at him for several seconds.
"I never... why didn't you tell me?"
"At the time it seemed obvious to the king that you noticed, but after it turned out you were oblivious to it, an opportunity to bring it up never arose."
"But...", he seated himself at the dinner table, facing the still standing Archer. "You understand what this means?"
"Indeed. Together with Sabrina and Saber experiencing the same attack, it is likely to be the same enemy."
Kai glanced through the window into the garden, suddenly feeling dizzy.
"We are being watched. We must be. Right now?"
"Most likely", Archer said, being tranquillity incarnate, even though Kai could have sworn to see a hint of amusement in the corners of his mouth.
It must have been that sudden outburst of frustration from before, seeing him with so many emotions skewered Kai's perception of the pharaoh. He silently reminded himself to pretend he never saw that one.
"Okay, fine. How do we get rid of that one?"
"The king lacks the ability to track such an enemy. Nab Kai and the king need to find a way to lure him out."
He had absolutely no idea how he should act as well. He doubted even Saber could be able to make a difference. The Lionheart was... more of the direct approach. But they needed to drag this enemy out of his hiding place... and Kai had no idea how.
"Okay... Let's postpone that then", he said.
"Agreed."
"So... what now? Doing it like Sabrina does? Going out and continue to prowl the town?"
The pharaoh twitched a bit uncomfortably.
"It seems unlikely an enemy will show itself in the light of day without the option to strike back at once."
"Yeah, it looks like you're right. So shall we do it exactly like Sabrina? Waiting for the night and then got out hunting?"
"Her tactic seemed sound", Archer decided and Kai just had to agree.
Kai saw her point as well. He decided on short notice to wait for the sun to go down. Maybe they even run into them, so they could try to take on their unknown enemies together. They should make use of that alliance after all and not simply use it as a truce. Now it just came to the question how to spend the meantime. Kai had no further homework to do and considering the sorry state of the school it seemed unlikely it would do a difference if he had some. Spending a few hours sleeping also seemed like a bad idea. After that sudden attack from before he was bright awake and knew he couldn't close a single eye.
So what now? Asking Archer for a few more bits about his time? After that went so well the last time...
"Why not talk about you, Nab Kai?"
He gulped.
Bloody Vulcan Mind Melt!
Ramesses frowned.
"You now know the reason for why the king craves the Grail. To undo a mistake he can't forgive himself. It is just fair that you now tell the king of your wish."
"Well, I kind of have to, I guess", Kai said grimacing. "Compared to your wish mine won't do me much good though. It is so selfish and nonsensical that you'll likely think me mad. This is also likely the reason why I was so eager to break this Grail War peacefully, because I simply don't care about success."
Archer now seated himself in front of him, patiently waiting for his words. There was no way out.
"I have told you yesterday that I don't know my true parents", he began after some hesitation.
"So you want them back?"
"Not necessarily... I think. It's just weird, I cannot really grasp how powerful this Grail of yours is and how it would realize my wish... and what the results of that would be. I want to play safe, you know. I have parents. I would never miss them. It's just... I would just like to know who my other parents were... how they were. I know it's weird."
"And you have no means to find out without the Grail?"
Kai shook his head.
"I already went to all who could have information about them. It is actually pretty scary how little evidence there is they even existed in the first place. They liked their privacy, that is sure. That's why... I just want to talk with them a bit... maybe in the same way I'm currently talking to Ramesses the Great. Just to find out what kind of people my parents were."
Archer looked quite serious about that, much to Kai's surprise. He expected to see disappointment in his lack of ambition, but his reaction was strangely positive.
"You must think me a total idiot... getting the chance of an omnipotent wish and that's all I could come up with", he admitted. "I should try to reach the stars and instead I'm just stuck in a past I don't even know would be worthwhile."
"No... no it isn't, Nab Kai. It is a good wish", he said stoically.
"What? Are you making fun of me?"
"The king would never do so", Archer assured him. "You have your whole live in front of you to reach the stars with your own strength. Claiming them on your own is a far more noble ambition. Instead you want to use the Grail to regain knowledge that is lost forever. The king sees no problem with that."
"Yes, but... you say so yourself... I could strive for lost knowledge, far more than something so oddly selfish."
The pharaoh folded his hands in front of him, studying Kai with a curious stare.
"The people of Kemet believed that every human soul is preserved through memory", he explained. "As long as there is a single person alive who is remembering your name, you are practically immortal in afterlife. The king's presence in this modern time is the ultimate proof... that they were right. So the way the king sees it, you simply try to retrieve the immortal souls of your true parents. The king cannot describe how important such a mission is for yourself... to think that those who have brought you into live are doomed to oblivion... No, Nab Kai, be assured, your path is as necessary as mine."
Kai nodded, but he still wasn't quite assured. He was glad he had the support of Archer, but he was less glad that he the support only because his wish coincided with more than three thousand years old believes.
Well, telling myself that I'm going to preserve their souls through remembering might not be too bad after all.
"Thank you", he said sheepishly. "It's good to know where you stand...Well then... I guess I need to apologize again. I had no right to demand from you to abandon your son. If there is a chance to save him, you should take it. Don't worry. I will help you as much as I can."
Archer made a small bow while seated.
"Then the path to victory is clear ahead", he said stoic as ever.
"Yes. And I think I already have an idea where we should start..."
Several hours later Kai left a suspiciously empty bus and stepped into the darkest night. Back at the beginning. Löwenplatz. In the night the place at least didn't look as wrecked as it looked with daylight. But that was likely connected with the fact that he didn't have to look at the sorry ruins crumbling around him.
"I'm not a hundred percent sure where it was, to be honest", Kai admitted with a wary smirk.
"The king knows the way", Ramesses told him and the invisible ghost strode forward.
Kai had some trouble to keep up with his fast movements, but he was able to follow him and soon enough they stood in front of the abandoned yard he and the pharaoh had first met.
"It was the building to the left, wasn't it?", he said unsurely.
"It was", Archer replied.
"I'm not exactly sure I should go in there."
"You are afraid of an ambush, Nab Kai?"
"I'm more afraid of the ceiling collapsing above my head while the floor breaks under my feet. But yes, an ambush would also be pretty nasty."
They had left the house after it was already well after the first star shone in the sky. They talked quite a lot about mankind's history Ramesses had missed, but also about what the big events of his own time were. The hours passed like nothing and soon they had to hurry not to run into Kai's parents. Kai himself had left them a note that he was invited and it'll going to take a while, but was still unsure how he would explain his nightly tours if they happen more often.
But right now he had to explore this broken shell of a building. He grabbed his flashlight and trusted in Archer's ability to get him out of trouble. He had to lie if he had to say it was not scary. The inside of the factory was completely void with the stink of rust and pee in the stale air. It was disgusting. Several of the walls had collapsed and sharp remnants of steel and bricks were strewn across the rooms. He had to tread very carefully not to cut himself to pieces. Especially when he and Archer climbed the steps to the first floor where the magic summoning circle was supposed to be located.
"Where is it?", Kai asked.
The pharaoh silently pointed to a room to his right. The shattered door lay at the ground in front of the empty frame. He took care not to step on it. Archer then guided him towards some part of the floor. Kai looked at it in confusion.
"Was it like this when you left it?"
"No", Archer replied with a deep frown.
There was red paint, that was for sure. And he was also sure it could be pieced together to form some magical mandala. But the ground where it had been was completely shattered and the circle scattered in countless small pieces. The ground was pure concrete, it must have been a terrible force to crush it the way it was.
"Someone went out of his way to destroy it", Kai realized loudly.
Archer tensed then. Seeing him like that made Kai's heart plummet down into his bowels.
"The king and Nab Kai are not alone anymore. It is a challenge."
Kai kept his silence and listened. He heard some distant roar he remembered all too well.
No...
He moved with the pharaoh to a collapsed wall nearby. It was likely the same Archer had used the day before to tower over his pitiful self and those biking jerks. And he suddenly felt a weird déjà-vu. Numerous single lights were prowling through the street outside the abandoned factory. Two of those entered the yard and parked in front of them. Those were not cars. It were motorcycles.
"Shall the king accept?", Archer asked in his most polite tone.
"I don't see much of a choice there", he smiled warily. "Let's go down and thrash them!"
He stepped back in order to return to the stairs, but Archer blocked his way with his arm. Startled, Kai tried to evade, but it was already too late. The pharaoh grabbed him under his armpit and lifted him into the air. Seconds later he was already in the plummeting down and they both crashed into the yard with a force that Kai gritted his teeth. After he was put down and was able to feel solid ground under his feet again, he hopped away silently cursing. That was a pretty nightmarish shortcut. And much to his chagrin Archer seemed completely disinterested in his panic, he was too focused on the two figures in front of them. To the left was a tall woman with long black hair in a leather outfit who dismounted from her bike which was badly covered in scratch marks on one side. Even in the shadow of the motorcycle's light Kai was able to make out her sharp features and unnatural aura. Dangerous was the first word going through his mind. Beautiful the second. Then he looked to his right and her Master. A woman in her mid-twenties with a purple Mohican and the same leather outfit. She was...
"You!", Kai called out aghast, much to the confusion of all who were present.
It was the biker who had spoken to him the day before. The same woman who was responsible for setting that crazy Nick-guy upon him.
"I'm sorry?", she asked back from the saddle of her motorcycle. "Do we know each other?"
"You let that moron loose who scared the hell out of me yesterday!"
Her eyes widened.
"You were that boy!"
"You know him?", her Servant asked amused.
´"Not really, he was just... wait, you are another one of these Magus people?", the biker Master asked.
Kai realized immediately that he was not confronted by a sorcerer, but just a fellow civilian dragged into the Grail War.
How many of the seven are like us?
"I am not", he said immediately. "And you are most certainly not as well!"
She eyed him carefully.
"You are right about that..."
"A boy... what kind of conflict is this? Children wherever you look!", the unknown Servant commented with audible annoyance.
"A conflict we just kind of stumbled into, isn't it so?", Kai asked the Master eagerly.
"Why do you ask?", she replied.
"Because I'm pretty sure there must be someone who isn't. A Magus like you said. Did you met one already?"
"What has that do to with anything?", the Master asked evasively.
Now Kai knew he had to tread carefully. The Master seemed open to negotiations, but the aggressive stance of the Servant crept him up. She came to fight, that was for sure.
"I'm basically here to propose an alliance", he glanced at Archer, seeking for his approval, he gave no reaction. "Of course not forever. Just until we find out who is that Magus and defeat him!"
The Master was thinking. The Servant not.
"Yes, I agree with an alliance", she said with a vicious smile.
She didn't sound even a little bit sincere, irritating Kai.
"You do?", even her Master was confused.
"Oh yes. But first I'll have to show you my conditions."
And with this said the unknown Servant was engulfed in a storm of blue light. When it subsided, the biker uniform was replaced by a massive bronze cuirass covering her body. A crescent shaped shield and a spear with a golden glowing tip appeared in her hands as well. The carvings and artwork on shield and armor reminded him of pictures of ancient Greek art, a fact he tried to keep in mind. She then brought her spear forward, pointing with it at Archer.
"This weapon here is the only alliance I need", she explained smugly.
"The king understands, Lancer", and with a flash his blue bow appeared in his hand.
Kai groaned in dismay.
Haven't you learned your lesson after wrecking my school?
"The opponent of the king and Nab Kai has made her intention clear. The king only complies to her wish. Do not worry. The king will try to end it swiftly."
As long as you don't underestimate her...
And then it happened. Lancer charged forward in a whirl and Archer disappeared. Kai had already seen that manoeuvre and knew what it meant. The bowman had jumped high into the air and attacked her with a volley of superhumanly drawn arrows all the while. Much to his surprise, this time Lancer wasn't engulfed by explosions. When she had stopped abruptly in her charge with her shield raised Kai realized that numerous ordinary wooden arrows with a golden glow were stuck in it and the ground around her. Before he was able to figure out what that meant, he saw that her spear was not in her hand anymore.
What the...
He looked up to find out, but in this moment he already heard an awful crashing sound in the distance behind the bikers. Something had plunged a hole through the graffiti-filled brick wall surrounding the yard and had caused a part of it to collapse.
No!
Kai wanted to get closer, but he needed to surround the bikes and the enemy to do that. Lancer however never spent much attention to him. She turned around and stepped towards the pile of rubble Archer was emerging from. He had a bleeding gash in his side, caused by the thrown spear that had pierced his gilded armor as if it wasn't even there. Lancer stretched her hand out and her weapon shot back into it while she was striding towards her wounded foe. Archer raised his bow, but glanced backwards. Right behind him was the sidewalk and the remaining motorcycles of the other bikers stood on the street there. He retreated slowly, taking a step with every step she did. All the while Kai himself tried to get closer to the scene.
"I am disappointed, bowman", Lancer mused. "I was hoping for someone who gave more of a fight. But oh well, It seems I can't expect more from someone shying away from close combat."
Archer just glared back, taking another step backwards. Now he was standing directly under a bright street light on the sidewalk.
Oh... good call.
A bolt of bright light shot from Archer's bow and struck the shield of a surprised Lancer when it exploded with quite a force. She didn't hesitate then and charged sideways away not to be an all too good target for the bowman. Several more dazzling lights were fired into her direction and exploded in the ground under her feet, but she evaded most of them instead of trying to block them. Instead she plunged through another segment of the wall to get behind him, but Archer had already left his position and soon both Servants disappeared outside of Kai's sight. He ran towards the entrance of the yard and Lancer's Master did the same, abandoning their bikes.
When he reached the street behind her, Kai needed some seconds to realize what happened there. Between the parking bikes and street lights a wild chase had ensued. Two golden figures with the first one having a streak of blue hunted each other jumping from street light to street light, all the while exploding beams of light darted around hitting the asphalt, the brick walls, the abandoned buildings around them and occasionally the charging Lancer. She had trouble to keep up the pace or at least she was pushed back each time she was hit by a bolt of light. But much to his dismay, Kay saw how the street lights flickered and died when each one was cut down by a blow of her destructive spear.
She is trying to cut him off of the light... Damn it, Archer, do something!
If he did anything other than continuing the fight with more of the same, Kai didn't saw. When he ran out of street lights, he instead darted into the gaps between the bikers and their motorcycles. All these uniformed people just stared at them in silent amazement, only a few were reasonable enough to take their bikes and drive into the distance to not get caught up in the fight. Both of the Servants however seemed very careful not to harm anyone and the worst were some stumbling and falling in shock when a projectile ruptured the street below their wheels. Kai then realized Archer was still using his empowered arrows of light despite the lack of street lights.
"Kill the lights, fast!", the enemy Master suddenly shouted.
Kai silently grumbled next to her, but couldn't stop the bulk of bikers to heed her demand to turn off their headlights and roll their motorcycles to safety without them. Mere seconds later utter darkness had swallowed the street were the two titans faced each other. Lancer's shield was a smouldering wreck she discarded and that quickly dissolved in blue mist. Lancer herself looked a bit beaten up, but not in the least like Archer who had already sealed his wound, but was still breathing heavily. Even when the Lionheart had him cornered inside the school building, Kai had not seen him as close to loosing his composure as now. The Greek Woman must be a terrifying foe.
"What is it, mighty king? Already exhausted?", she teased viciously. "What a shame. How could you honor that alliance you are proposing if you don't survive that bit of me roughing you up? Ah well, it seems I will need to see how you fair against this..."
She stretched out the left hand that was now free of the shield while presenting her spear with the other one. Archer watched her attentively, keeping his bow close but Kai assumed he was going to switch weapons again without being able to charge his arrows with light. But right now he concentrated on Lancer. He had some basic idea what people she belonged to, but knew not how to identify her identity. Now that her spear began to glow with a bright golden light he assumed she was going to use her Noble Phantasm. He had no idea whether that was helpful to his job or not, but he told himself he would do his best.
Then Lancer put her left hand on the shining weapon... and ripped at it. He heard a crack and it looked in the darkness for a moment as if she had broke the spear clean in half from tip to rear. But after Kai took a closer look he saw that the weapon was still completely intact. And the thing she held now in her left hand was also complete. It was an identical copy of her spear. No, it was impossible to tell what the copy was and what not. It seemed as if both spears belonged together from the moment of their creation. Even after just one day Kai had to admit that he was starting to get used to these magical tricks. Compared with Archer plucking arrows from sunlight and charging them with it Lancer's trick was rather tame. Especially when she threw her original weapon to the ground and readied the new one. All this seemed only to have served the summoning... of pretty much the same weapon she already had.
Then she darted forward again. Archer waited for her. When she reached him to ram her new spear into him she was greeted by a blue flash. The bowman had indeed summoned his leather shield again to deflect her strike and then quickly went closer into melee. Lancer bolted backwards, surprised at his sudden change of tactics, but not until Archer was able to cause a bleeding gash at her left shoulder. He must have struck deep with his...
An axe?
"Don't be surprised, Nab Kai. It is the best weapon the king was trained at to crack armored opponents."
He saw his point. The blade was able to pierce the thick bronze armor Lancer used to cover her shoulders. But he had to automatically scowl at the idea that in this twisted world of the Grail War Archer judged bronze armor as stronger than steel chain mail... likely because it was simply older. It was just insane.
"I promise you, this is the only small victory I shall allow you", Lancer mused while her wound healed itself.
She then attacked again, her spears cutting through the air towards the defending pharaoh. Archer parried and tried to get close again, but she was too fast and shut him off of every opportunity. Archer might have been proficient with his bow and his Imperial Privilege allowed him wield his weapons in close combat with some skill, but he was still no match for the Amazon on her home turf. Kai dreaded the worst. Especially after Lancer managed to pierce the shield of Archer head-on and put her whole weight to drive it towards the man behind it.
"Discordia!", she yelled when she scratched his skin under the wings that decorated his armor. "Twin spears of Eris!"
A golden shockwave illuminated the street. When Kai opened his eyes again, Archer had managed to take the initiative again, guiding the spear that was still stuck in his shield away from his body while advancing for another strike at the now unprotected Lancer. He instead received a kick that send him tumbling to the ground and gave the foe enough time to retrieve her weapon.
"A curse?", Archer grunted while getting some distance between himself and the enemy.
"How perceptive of you", Lancer grinned. "Of course it is."
What does it do?
"The king doesn't know. There are no direct consequences he can feel."
Eris... she's invoking a Greek god!
"The king is familiar with their pantheon. The king will see what is going to happen..."
He raised again and readied war-axe and shield. Lancer did the same. Then everything went to hell. Cars entered the forgotten street on both sides. Blue sirens started to howl and several of the bikers cursed and fled on their roaring bikes. Lancer disappeared immediately. Archer took on his Spirit Form shortly thereafter. When Kai started to look around in his confusion, he saw that Lancer's Master next to him was nowhere to see. He saw figures in black running towards the bikers and towards him. And he heard the people in the cars calling them out through megaphones. Only then he realized their markings of green and silver in the darkness of night.
Oh fuck... It's the police!
Under any normal circumstances he would have laughed out loud. They have caused quite a lot of noisy destruction inside the city, of course someone was going to alarm them.
"Shall the king help you escape?", Archer asked unfaced.
"Maybe-"
"Hey! What are you doing with them, boy?", a voice behind him called out.
Kai whirled around. An officer was approaching him, his green uniform was showing itself through the opened black jacket. His eyes inadvertently went down towards the heavy holster at his hip where he kept his gun.
Too... fucking... late...
He knew it would only mean trouble for all around if he let Archer just whisk him away while he was talking to the officer. So he instead opted for the most insane thing to do: He told him the truth. Well... most of it anyway. That he was just taking a walk through the late evening when he basically just stumbled into them. The officer then asked him whether the bikers had demolished the street and when Kai was unable to think up an answer on the fly... the officer kindly offered him to take a seat in one of the large vans they had brought with them so that he was able to tell them what had happened in the station. And so he was squeezed into the back seats of a police van with two of the bikers they had pulled from their bikes in front of him, all the while looking out for Archer so that he could at least give him an assuring look. But the pharaoh was nowhere to see.
It was crazy. And it was a completely new experience to him. There was an officer talking to the witnesses and taking notes at the school after it was wrecked, but this here was completely different. It was not a single officer on her patrol, it was a building full of officers who were pursuing criminal offences. And for all he knew he was now under suspicion to have committed one.
Damn bloody Grail War..., he cursed while he was brought into a room to get interrogated.
It was much more sparse than the ones he had seen in TV and it lacked the infamous mirror that was actually a window. And the officer sitting down in front of him was a lean fellow in his late forties with greying black hair wearing a checked shirt that made him look more like a bureaucrat than a policeman. His notebook and pencil he had placed on the table also didn't help. Though when he had entered the tiny room he brought a smell of coffee, tobacco and garlic with him that made Kai feel like to gag.
"Kai Reymeyer, is it? Well met, boy", he announced with a grin. "How is the Pokémon-hunt?"
"What?", was all Kai was able to stutter.
"Or is it Yu-Gi-Oh!-cards you young people nowadays battle with?"
"I sincerely hope this is not a serious attempt to be all buddy with me", he replied, pouring all his irritation into his words.
The officer grimaced slightly, but never put down his smile.
"Okay, you've got me there. I admit I don't have much to do with kids. So you want to do the adult version of this? I'm fine with that. I'm Kriminaloberkommissar Günther Reinbrecht. Commissar Reinbrecht is fine with me. Now let's talk about what you were doing out there at Löwenplatz. And please give me something better than you gave the Schupo officer who brought you in."
"Am I being interrogated?", Kai asked with a frown.
"Not really, I haven't read your rights. This is just us two trying to figure out what to do with you."
"There is not much to do. It's like I said. I was just on a walk and ran into these bikers who just came from god-knows-where."
He "Mmh"ed him while he was busy writing in his notebook.
"And what were you going to in such a godforsaken part of town?"
Kai dreaded that question, but he had an idea how to wrestle himself free by making him look dangerously irresponsible.
"I... was going into that abandoned factory building there."
"Why?", the policeman said exasperated.
"I lost a bet..."
"To whom?", he asked immediately.
Damn him, he's good. Of course he's good, he gets paid for this.
"Just some classmate of mine. It's not really that important. I thought you are interested in those bikers, aren't you?"
The man sighed, putting his pencil to the side and folding his fingers above the notebook.
"To be completely honest, I've been wondering about that."
He never lost his smile when he reached into the breast pocket of his shirt and took a couple of printed photos out there he put between them. It were photos of horribly devastated rooms.
"Looking familiar?", he asked while Kai was looking at them.
Then it dawned to him.
"Is that my school?"
"Of course it is. And you were there. Don't try to deny it, the officer noted your name among the witnesses. And not one of my cycling friends was among them. You are the connection, not them."
"What has this to do with what had happened this evening?", Kai frowned, dreading how close this officer had gotten.
"Don't take me for a fool. Seven demolished street lights, a torn down brick wall and a street looking like it was ravaged by a sounder of wild boars. Exactly the same happened to your school."
"How should I be able to do something like this?", he was aghast.
"This is what you need to tell me."
"But I didn't", Kai said truthfully.
Ramesses II, Richard Lionheart and some crazy Amazon did!
"So you blame the bikers?"
Kai paused for a moment. Implicating them was the easy solution, but he knew all too well that it was likely to cause some inconsistencies with the stories the caught bikers would come up with.
"No", he replied instead.
"Interesting. So please tell me, what happened instead?"
"Well, the street was already ravaged like this when I arrived. Judge me like you want, but I thought it always looks like this in this part of town. So I continued and climbed into the desolated building there. When I left it, the bikers already pretty much blocked the entrance and then the police came. This is really all I know."
"So you met the gang at Löwenplatz?"
"Yes, of course!"
Commissar Reinbrecht didn't answer, he just reached into his pocket and drew several more photos. This time they were of ravaged buildings and furrowed streets eerily similar to how Archer's and Lancer's battlefield at Löwenplatz looked like after they were done with it.
"Isn't that Löwenplatz?"
"No, it's Vogtstraße. Where we received our first calls because of nightly disturbances. The condition of the street convinced my colleagues to call for reinforcements before following our biking friends."
"I'm sorry, I never was there."
"So you say...", the Commissar crossed his arms, thinking.
"And you doubt it were the bikers?", Kai asked then back.
"Well, this particular group never seemed like the kind to pointlessly vandalize the city", the officer admitted.
"Just look at the streets, Mr. Commissar, how could anyone do this without tools?", Kai urged him, trying to make him focus on some unknown third group that'll lead him nowhere except the world of magic.
The man grunted.
"I don't know what I have to expect. We kept an eye on them because their mother organization has some history with drug dealing like you can read everywhere in the news. But property damage of this scale... You better stay away from Löwenplatz if you know what is good for you. Strange things are happening in this town."
It seemed too good an opportunity to Kai to let it pass.
"What else?", he asked eagerly.
Maybe to eagerly. The police officer reacted with a frown.
"I recommend reading a newspaper once or twice instead of playing videogames, kid. You're going to learn something from it."
Kai nodded sheepishly.
"Well then, I'm going to have a long night, so why don't you just join your parents in the waiting room and go home?"
Kai's heart plummeted right into his bowels.
"You've called my parents?"
"Well of course. It's not like I let you go to bring disaster upon another part of town?", Reinbrecht chuckled. "Out with you."
He heeded the order, but a shiver went through his body.
You hear me, Archer? Does that help-you-escape option still stand?