The moment you've all been waiting for that I stayed up way to late to write. What can I say? I've been looking forward to this as much as you have.
"Come, you clod of mud! My greatest treasure shall send you back to the heavens!"
"An impressive display, Son of the Sun God. You have my thanks for ensuring this farce is not a complete waste of my time."
"Why didn't you figure out how to use it before we made him mad?"
"Summer, what did you just do?"
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Ruby's eyes slowly blinked open. The strange words still ringing in her mind.
She sat up realized she was in a bed. Her bed. In her room back on Patch and even in her own pajamas.
It was a bit unnerving after the chaos of Beacon, but she spotted her dad asleep in a chair next to her and her heart was warmed. Even if her head was still fuzzy. She groaned.
Fortunately, Taiyang's eyes fluttered awake and her father smiled when he saw her. He rushed over to the bed and assured her everything was fine. With that massive dragon Grimm gone, the huntsmen were able to rally and retake control of Vale. Clearing out the school was taking a bit more time, but Professor Goodwitch was confident that could finish by the start of the next semester.
"What about Yang?" Ruby asked frantically.
"She's… she's alive. Her arm got broken in the battle and she hasn't woken up, but we managed to make a set up for her in her room." Tai informed her. He smirked. "I don't think your teammate has left her side since she got here."
"Teammate? Weiss and Blake are here?" Ruby inquired excitedly.
"Just Blake. Mr. Schnee came and took Weiss back to Atlas after what happened. But if it helps, your other friends are here. Jaune, Nora, Ren, and Sun."
What? Why just them—
"Pyrrha!" Ruby realized. She stared at her father, begging for what she remembered to be a dream. He shook his head sadly and dashed her hopes. "Why? I got there in time, I got her out of those chains, and then the golden guy and Kirei did something to Cinder and…"
'And Pyrrha was tied up.'
"I killed her" Ruby muttered blankly. "I cut her out of those chains and then Mrs. Arc had to save me instead of her and—"
"Ruby." Her dad stopped her, taking her hands in his. "Whatever happened, your friend's death was not your fault. Gilgamesh doesn't care about other people and he probably would have let that Kotomine guy kill your friend for fun if you hadn't shown up."
That didn't make Ruby feel any better. She was supposed to save everyone and instead…wait. "How did you know his name?"
Tai paused for a moment. His eyes became clouded. "We, Team STRQ that is, have encountered him before."
"When he killed mom?"
Her father's eyes went wide. "What?"
"On the tower" Ruby spoke hesitantly. "Kirei said he executed mom."
Taiyang fell back into his chair, his eyes vacant.
"Well" a gravelly voice interjected. "That is an interesting development."
Uncle Qrow stood in the doorway, strangely standing straight.
Tai whirled around on him, fire blazing in his eyes. "Did you know? Did you know about this, Qrow?"
"If I did, don't you think I would have told you?" Qrow spat back.
"I don't know."
Those three words scared Ruby more than a thousand Grimm. Sure, dad and Uncle Qrow didn't always get along but they the bestest of friends, right? They were partners, since their days at Beacon?
When did they stop trusting each other?
"Tai" Qrow began softly. "Can I talk to her? Alone?"
It took some convincing, but her dad agreed to leave them be. Qrow pulled up a seat. "How are you doing?"
Ruby couldn't believe he'd actually asked that question. But even with everything, he was just trying to help.
"I hurt…everywhere" she told him. "What were Kirei and Cinder doing on the tower? Who was that Gilgamesh guy?"
"That's…something that involves your friend Arc" Qrow informed her. "I'd rather not tell the story twice. But the basic idea is that he's a different kind of being. More than a human. Like Arturia was."
Mrs. Arc wasn't human? That…made a disturbing amount of sense. It explained her overwhelming power and her looking so young. Wait…
"What do you mean 'was'?"
Qrow closed his eyes, thinking about what he should say. In the end, he settled on, "The night you met Ozpin, what was the first thing he said to you?"
And so, he told of the silver-eyed warriors. Beings older than the kingdoms who could kill Grimm with a look. How she and her mother were both among their ranks.
It made sense. It explained how she took down the Griffon at Amity Coliseum, and how she'd unintentionally unleashed that power to drive off Gilgamesh.
Which didn't explain everything.
"If silver eyes only affect Grimm, why did Gilgamesh run away?" she inquired.
"For reasons Oz never told me, the silver eyes are almost as effective against Servants, the kind of beings that Gilgamesh and Arturia are, as they are against Grimm" Qrow explained. He chuckled. "Your mom did quite a bit with them the last time we encountered the suckers."
"Okay" Ruby followed. "So, Gilgamesh got hit by my silver eye blast and he ran away. That's good, right? It means he didn't kill Jaune or Weiss or…"
She realized what Uncle Qrow had meant when he'd Arturia 'was' a Servant.
"No."
Tears fell down her eyes.
It didn't help.
Arturia, Mrs. Arc had saved her life. She had protected her when Gilgamesh tried to impale her for looking like her mother. She'd laughed at parties with her.
And Ruby had killed her.
There was no other way to look at it. She had killed her first friend's mother.
Jaune…he was going to hate her. And she deserved it.
She hadn't saved anyone.
She was a monster.
Qrow took her hand and squeezed it comfortingly. "Gilgamesh would have killed all of us. Besides, you didn't even know you could do that."
"But I still did it!" she yelled.
Her vision tinted silver for a moment.
Uncle Qrow backed up warily.
Ruby realized what she was doing and calmed down. She slumped back into her bed.
To think a few days ago she would have thought scaring Uncle Qrow to be her greatest accomplishment. Now it just filled her with remorse.
He came back however, and held onto her. He brought her right hand up for her to see. On the back of it were three red marks in the shape of a cross. When did those get there?
"It wasn't your fault" Qrow assured her. "And if Arturia were here she'd say the same thing. She'd tell you to get back down to business and do what you need to do."
"Did you really know her that well?"
"Um…no actually" he admitted. "But Oz did. I think. He said he trusted her more than anyone else on Remnant. But now they're both gone. And Remnant is in bigger danger than ever."
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked.
Qrow glanced at the marks on her hand and then ruffled her hair. He stood up from his chair and started to walk away. "Later. Have some down time first. Go see your sister and the emo girl. What you're about to head into isn't exactly light stuff."
Ruby looked down at her marks. What good could she be? What could a monster who kills her friends possibly do?
She could try, maybe.
"Uncle Qrow" she called. The drunk turned to face her. "I want to help. I want to save everyone."
He smiled at her. "You will pipsqueak. Now get some rest."
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Emerald trembled with fear as she entered the dark palace.
She had wanted to run as soon as the landscape had changed to charred volcanic hills and the sky turned blood red. Pools of some black liquid bubbled constantly in the valleys, broken only as Grimm rose from their murky depths. Spires of crystal shot out of the ground at jagged angles, illuminating everything in a ghastly purple glow.
It was like stepping into another world. And if Hazel hadn't been by her side the entire time, Emerald would have booked it back to her own.
As it was, the hulking man brought her to a massive black castle. The doors were grand and Beowolves and Creepers freely roamed the halls. Strangely, the beasts didn't try to attack them. In fact, they all seemed to cower before Hazel.
As if he needed to be scarier.
Candles melted into the walls lit the way to a large room with a single chair of black stone. From what Emerald knew of architecture (Admittedly little, but it payed to know how the places you stole from were designed) it seemed like an atrium where one would receive guests. Or prisoners.
"Hazel." A man just inside the room called. He was tall, well dressed, and had an elaborate mustache. "Good to see you back. Where is Cinder?"
"Dead" Hazel responded bluntly. "The King of Heroes and his lapdog got her."
The other man didn't seem very torn up about that. He actually smirked.
Emerald was learning to hate smirking men.
"Oh well, so sad. I'll try not let Tyrian laugh too much when he gets back" the man said. He turned to Emerald. "And who is this child? Cinder's replacement? I suppose she could hardly be worse."
Emerald hands curled into fists. How dare he…
"Enough Watts" a powerful voice echoed throughout the room. The mustache man, Watts apparently, instantly stood up straight, his eyes wide with a healthy fear.
From behind Emerald and Hazel, a woman entered the atrium. Or at least she looked like a woman. Her skin was pale white, as was her hair done in a large bun. The whites of her eyes on the other hand… weren't, instead stained a pure black, with her pupils a piercing red. She didn't seem to walk, more like she glided across the floor.
The room became colder with the woman's presence. Under her dark dress, something churned relentlessly. Emerald didn't think her sanity would survive if she knew what it was.
Watts bowed his head. "My deepest apologies, my lady. I simply do not like having unknown variables in our base of operations."
"Oh, but Emerald here is not an unknown, are you my dear?" the white woman asked her in a grandmotherly tone. It was utterly terrifying but somehow still soothing. "Cinder spoke of you often in her reports. She had nothing but praise for you."
Emerald perked up considerably. She knew she should have been on guard around this woman who couldn't be anyone but the queen Hazel had mentioned, but she couldn't help herself. "Cinder spoke highly of me?"
Watts broke out laughing. "Oh, hoh hoh hoh, the poor thing seems enamored with our late compatriot."
The Queen sighed. "She did indeed, in her own way. Cinder was not one to reveal her love in what she said, only what she didn't say."
Oh.
That sounded more like Cinder.
Emerald went back to shivering in terror.
The Queen merely chuckled at her fear. "Oh, you must relax, dear Emerald. I'm not going to kill you. You are now one of the most important people on Remnant. Those Command Seals on your hand are proof of that."
Emerald looked at her the back of her hand, where the three red marks had formed in a simplified version of her gem emblem. "Your grace, with all due respect, I don't know what a Command Seal is."
"I didn't expect you to, my dear. It's a legend older than the kingdoms" the Queen assured her. "But, nonetheless, you have a choice before you. You can claim Cinder's seat in my inner circle and avenge her death, or you can—"
"I'm in" Emerald said instantly. She could already imagine stabbing out Kirei's eyes and then ripping out his brain through his sockets. Then, she'd smirk at the bastard and he wouldn't he even be able to see it!
Of course, as soon as she came out of her murder fantasy, she realized that she'd interrupted the scary Grimm lady. Watts' eyes were wide with terror and even Hazel had taken a step back.
She dove down on her knees and groveled at the Queen's feet. "I'm sorry for interrupting you, my lady. I only wished to—"
"It is fine, my dear" she informed. "Just make sure you don't do it again. I speak from experience when I tell you that you should make sure you know all your options. But since you are so eager…"
Emerald could feel the air split as she smiled.
"Let me tell you of the Holy Grail War."
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Ruby smiled as she held Yang's hand. The medics on the evac shuttle had done a fantastic job keeping her stable, and then setting up her room here at the house. Even with the bustle from Mercury's attack, the worst she had was a broken arm, which was now completely covered in wrappings and a cast. Ruby could have kissed them. At least one of Kirei's victims would recover.
Though, Ruby wished Yang would recover a lot faster. So much had happened, and her mind didn't know what to think. She needed her big sister.
"Hey" Ruby turned to see Sun standing in the doorway, his hand awkwardly raised as if he was afraid to knock and disturb her. Which given that Blake had been the one in her position for the past few days, was fairly likely. "Your Uncle is calling everyone into the living room. Says it's time to let us in on what's going on."
"Right." Ruby kissed her sister on the forehead. "I love you, Yang."
She rose and walked out into the hall with Sun. "Thanks for taking care of her, Sun."
The monkey faunus looked shocked. "Me? I didn't really do much. Blake was the one who took care of her. She wouldn't leave the room."
"And who took care of Blake, when she wouldn't leave the room to eat or sleep?"
"I just brought the stuff in. Anybody would have done that. Your dad and Ren were the ones who actually made the food."
Ruby chuckled, her first genuine laugh since she woke up. "You're a good friend, Sun. Don't worry, Blake knows you care."
"What do I know?" Blake asked from her seat on a couch.
They had arrived in the living room. Two couches and a recliner chair surrounded a tv, which was useless until the local network could be brought back online. Her dad was in the recliner with Uncle Qrow standing next to him. Jaune, Ren, and Nora had claimed one of the couches while Blake sat alone on the other.
Ruby averted her eyes when she spotted Jaune, unable to face him after what she'd done. "Nothing" she muttered to Blake's question.
She and Sun sat down next to Blake, with her squeezing the two of them together in order to be farther away from Jaune.
"Alright, now that we're all here, let's begin" Taiyang said.
"Tai, you sure about this? Only Ruby and Arc need to know." Qrow reminded him.
"We're telling them all, Qrow" Tai insisted. "I know what it's like to be on the outside of this thing. They need to know."
The two men stared at each other for a moment until Qrow finally sighed. "Alright."
Nora raised her hand. "Sooooo, are you guys going to start making out now?"
Everyone did a spit take at that. Tai fell out of his chair and knocked Qrow to the ground. Ruby's eyebrow started twitching in horror. Blake tried to hide her blush.
Ren facepalmed. "Nora, that's not what this is about."
"What? It sounded like they were going to come out about their secret relationship and they wanted to start with just Ruby. You know, because she's family."
"And Jaune?"
"I thought they were going to invite to have a threesome to help with…eh…you know. What happ—"
"It's fine, Nora" Jaune assured her. "I'm okay."
Nora cast her eyes downward. She didn't believe him, but didn't know how to help.
Qrow and Tai stood back up, both taking a very large step away from the other.
"Right. So, anyway." Qrow began. "What's you kids' favorite fairy tale?"
And so, he told them everything Ozpin had told him. About the maidens and the relics. And Salem.
"We know it's a lot to take in" Tai said using his best comforting father voice. "We'll answer any questions you have."
"The maidens, was that what Ozpin was trying to do to Pyrrha in that vault? Make her one of them?" Jaune accused.
"We went to her for help" Qrow replied. "In the end, it didn't matter. Cinder got to Amber first and took the rest of the power."
"You said these maidens are nearly unstoppable" Blake pointed out. "But Ruby told us that Kirei and this Gilgamesh guy defeated her easily. What are they?"
"Kirei is…he's a mage. A human capable of using magic" Qrow explained. "Oz told us about them during the last grail war, but he made it sound like they were all extinct. As for Gilgamesh, he's something else entirely."
"A Servant, right?" Ruby asked. "Like Mrs. Arc."
"Wait, what?" Jaune said. "What do you mean my mom was…a what?"
"A Servant" Qrow told them. "The spirit of a legendary hero brought forth in the modern day to serve a master in the fight for the Holy Grail."
"You keep saying that. What the hell is this Holy Grail thing we're all supposed to be fighting over?" Blake shouted.
"An omnipotent wish granting device."
…
…
…
…
…
"Bullshit!" Sun declared. "No way something like that exists. If it did, people would go crazy over it."
"They would" Qrow conceded. "But the grail doesn't let just anyone fight for it. For millennia it was dormant, reclusive after the first four wars surrounding it had ended with no true winner. But then, nineteen years ago, someone, probably Gilgamesh and Kirei, killed the Summer Maiden and burnt out her power to jumpstart the thing."
"And they helped Cinder get the Fall Maiden's so that they could do the same to her" Ren concluded.
"Now you're catching on." Qrow complimented. "For each war, the grail chooses seven masters to compete for it, and grants each of them three Command Seals to control the Servant they summon." He snorted. "Sometimes that still isn't enough."
Ruby and Jaune stared at the red marks on their hands. Could they really bind a hero?
"You sound like you're speaking from experience" Blake noted.
Qrow nodded. "In the Fifth War, the one nineteen years ago, me, Summer, and Raven, Ruby and Yang's moms, were chosen as masters. Ozpin saw the Command Seals and called us up to his office to explain everything."
"And you guys didn't tell me about any of it until that Saber nearly killed us" Tai reminded him.
"I said I was sorry, and we're telling the kids. What more do you want?"
"Saber" Ruby muttered. "That was what Gilgamesh called Arturia. Did she—"
"No" Taiyang said immediately, seeing Jaune about to jump up in fury. "She wasn't there."
"Saber is one of the classes of Servant" Qrow explained. "There's one for each master, and since a hero's name reveals their identity, and weaknesses, most masters just refer to them that way. Mrs. Arc was the Saber of the Fourth War, just like good old goldie was the Archer."
"I thought you said the first four wars happened a really long time ago" Nora pointed out.
Qrow looked away from them, lost in thought. "They did. Oz never mentioned how those two were here now."
"Sounds like Ozpin didn't mention a lot of things" Jaune sneered. He stood up. "How do you expect us to even believe all of this?"
"Did you have those tattoos before the Fall?"
"No, but this" he gestured wildly around him. "All of this is insane. You're saying that Ruby and I have to summon the spirits of legendary heroes, one of whom you're claiming was my mom, so we can fight five other people to the death for some cup that supposedly grants wishes."
"You're not wrong" Qrow conceded. "It is insane. It just also happens to be true."
"How would they even summon these Servants anyway" Blake asked, the literary fanatic in her trying to figure out the rules. "Aside from the maidens and Kirei, no one on Remnant can use magic anymore."
"The grail does most of the work" Tai explained. "A catalyst connected to a Servant can draw them out specifically, but for the most part we just set up the summoning circles, Ruby and Jaune do a chant and then, poof. Heroic Spirit."
"Not to judge or anything" Nora said carefully. "You have been feeding us for the last few days and everything, but doesn't sending your daughter off into a battle royale to the death sound just a bit like bad parenting?"
Tai sighed and buried his head in his hands. Ruby hadn't seen him like that since one his worse episodes after mom died.
"Yes" he agreed. "But regular people, even huntsmen, can't really do anything against Servants. If I keep her here, I'll just get in the way when her enemies show up looking for her."
"Glad to see you've come around to my argument" Qrow nudged him.
Tai didn't smile.
"I still don't believe this" Jaune declared.
"Our enemies don't care if you believe it, kid" Qrow told him bluntly. "You're a master, which means you're a prime target until you summon a Servant to protect you. So how about you do the damn ritual, and then if you're still not satisfied, you can tell us how we're a bunch of poopy heads."
"Qrow" Taiyang stated. "That's enough." He turned to Jaune, his face softer, more reconciling. "I know firsthand how hard all of this can be to believe, even with what you've seen. But you can't say that your mother never seemed mysterious, more powerful than she should have been. Servants are souls stuffed into mystical vessels, so they can't have aura since the power's already out. Could she have done the things you've seen without it?"
Jaune didn't have an answer and looked down at his feet. Ruby got up to comfort him but stopped when she remembered why he couldn't ask Arturia himself.
Tai sighed. He stood up and put a fatherly hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Just say the words. What's coming isn't going to be easy, but neither you or Ruby is going to be in it alone."
Jaune looked the older blonde in the eye. He held his stare for a few moments and then nodded.
Ruby could only think about what was said. She and Jaune were going to summon heroes. Real heroes from the stories and legends she grew up with. Part of her wanted to squee like she had just gotten Crescent Rose a new paint job.
The other part remembered the exhibition match against Arturia. It remembered Gilgamesh on the tower. They were giants, capable of swatting her like a fly. And even if she and Jaune had a pair of their own to help, two against five were not great odds.
But the prize. This Holy Grail. If it really could do anything, then maybe it could bring back the dead.
She could save Pyrrha and Arturia and Penny and…
Everyone.
She looked over to Jaune, her friend who had lost so much because of her failures.
'I'm going to make it up to you, Jaune. I'm going to save everyone.'
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Raven eyed the circle of blood warily as Vernal finished making the modifications she'd requested.
"Okay" the young maiden exclaimed. "Now that that's done with mind explaining why you just had me do that?"
"To maintain a Servant in this world requires a substantial amount of prana, or in our case aura. The Berserker I have already is taxing enough. If I were to get another excessively draining one, it could leave me incapacitated for the duration of the war."
"Making you easy pickings for the others."
Raven nodded. "Aura is a finite resource for anyone. But a maiden's power on the other hand is near limitless, and would hardly notice the strain of a Heroic Spirit. Unfortunately, I obtained my powers after I summoned mine"
"So, these changes to the summoning will make it so your magic will foot the bill for the new guy, instead of your aura" Vernal smiled.
"And our black armored friend if we're lucky" Raven told her. She'd been studying the grail system for years, despite her desire to forget. Her efforts to remain hidden from Gilgamesh required that she know something however and once she got into it the whole thing was simply too fascinating to stop.
There was so much power in it. She couldn't not try to learn how to wield it.
She couldn't be caught off guard like last time.
The bandit leader shook her head. Such memories were better left in the past. She looked to her hand and then to Vernal. "Well. Shall we?"
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Adam stood proud as the Bullhead flew into his camp. A lone, lithe figure jumped out while the craft was still in the air.
"I trust you had a pleasant trip" he called out to the girl.
Ilia smiled and removed her mask. Her skin was dark brown with white spots today. "Eh. I was hoping for an inflight movie, but I guess they couldn't get one on short notice."
Adam grinned happily, a rare sight in this day. He walked over and embraced his old friend. "It's been too long, Ilia."
"You're the one who shipped me off to help the Fox twins" she reminded him jokingly.
He cringed at that. Sending Ilia to Menagerie had been a favor to Blake, who'd been worried that Ilia was getting too reckless. Adam hadn't seen the problem, but in hindsight it seemed clear that Blake had wanted their friend closer to her parents. Perhaps she'd hoped they would infect her with their foolish philosophy.
He curled his fist at the thought of another betrayal. How could she have been doing this to him even back then? It made his blood boil.
He took a deep breath. There would be time for anger later. For now, he needed to acquire his proof so that he could Blake back.
Ilia noticed his discomfort. She pouted softly. "I'm sorry to hear about Blake. I never thought she would betray us."
Adam sighed. "She had her reasons. She doesn't realize her dream is impossible."
"Exactly" Ilia concurred. "The humans will never see us as equals."
"Oh, they will." Ilia raised an eyebrow in confusion. Adam smirked. "Come with me."
He led her through the crimson forest of Forever Fall to a large clearing. In the center was an elaborate sigil of blood.
"Okay, I know what the humans call us, but you do remember we're not a cult, right?"
Adam shook his head and walked towards the circle. "Blake's dream is impossible. She abandoned us because we could understand that while she could not. But now, things have changed. And the impossible is possible."
'And I can get everything that I want.'
"You're not making any sense" Ilia told him.
Adam raised his right hand and removed his glove. "Just watch."
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Jaune followed Qrow down the rotting wooden stairs to the cabin's basement, Nora and Ren right behind him.
Qrow flicked a switch, and the few light in the room came on, dimly illuminating several shelves filled with forgotten cardboard boxes. Each one had a name like 'Photo Albums', 'Summer's Stuff', or 'Raven's Weapons, Touch and I will Castrate you, Qrow!'
Jaune blanched when saw what was on the floor. For a moment, he saw Pyrrha.
Bloody and broken on the courtyard pavement.
Than reality came back to him and it was just some sigil.
"Is that blood?" Ren inquired warily.
"Chicken" Qrow replied. "I picked it up from the butchers after Ruby woke up."
"Awesome!" Nora screeched. She ran over to the boxes, rapidly opening each one. "Is the extra in one of these?"
"NO!" Qrow shouted, frantically dragging Nora away from 'Summer's Stuff'. "There is no extra. Especially not in there. All of it went into making this thing, and the one Ruby's using out in the forest."
"Why couldn't they just use the same one?" Ren asked.
"Wear out the juju, kid" Qrow told him. He tilted his head to the side. "Maybe. Probably. This stuff is weird, and things can go from very good to very bad very quickly. It's best not to take chances."
Nora huffed. "Magic. So overrated."
Jaune took another look at his Command Seals. They seemed too simple to be as powerful as Qrow described.
Yet, so had his mom. And apparently, she had secretly been some ancient hero, which made all her speeches when she'd told him not to be a hero make way more sense. It's just that her definition of a hero was someone who got summoned back from the dead to fight over a beer mug. Which just made it make even more sense.
He didn't want to admit it, but he believed everything Qrow and Taiyang had said. He didn't even know why, but when they had explained it, something within him had just said, 'yup, that's how it works. Time to kill for the cup.'
It was really disconcerting.
But, it also gave him hope.
He turned to Qrow. "You mentioned using a catalyst can call a specific Servant. What does that mean?"
Qrow scratched his head. "Nothing much really. Oz said that you could improve your odds of getting a certain hero if you include a relic that's connected to them or their legend. Obviously, most of these stories are so ancient that finding one is nearly impossible."
"Could a person be a catalyst?"
Qrow stared at Jaune. For once, his eyes were soft on the boy. "I know what you're thinking kid, and I wish I could tell you one way or the other. But I've never seen anyone use a catalyst. I have no idea if you'll be able to use yourself as an anchor to haul out your mom."
Jaune frowned. That was not the answer he was hoping for.
He had to summon his mother. He'd gotten her killed. He couldn't face his family again. They would hate him, and he would deserve it.
But if he could bring her back, everything would be fine. They could fight the war together, they could win, and then…
And then he could bring back Pyrrha.
If this grail could do anything, then surely it could save his partner.
But if he didn't get his mother, then he didn't know what he'd do.
He felt something on his shoulder. He turned to see Ren grasping him with a smile on his face. Nora swooped in with a calm smile and gave him a soft hug.
Jaune smiled. He did know what he'd do. He'd win. He was Jaune Arc. He was the leader of Team JNPR.
Like Ruby said that night in the hallway, he wasn't allowed to fail.
He'd find a way.
"So, how's that chant go?"
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Kirei didn't know why, but the summoning ritual always made him feel so elated.
It was an important moment, one of the most crucial in any grail war, but there were others that exceeded it in value. Yet, it was this one that compelled him to put on his best combat robe and store all his best weapons, including Kiritsugu's Contender, on his person.
Perhaps the fear of calling forth a being who could easily kill him, proved so paradoxically appetizing that he relished it even from himself.
How quaint.
Gilgamesh was resting in his room, still recovering from his injuries, so Kirei was alone for the rite.
That was fine. He didn't want whatever Servant he summoned feeling inadequate next to the King of Heroes. Inferiority complexes were fun to play with, but not the best qualities to have in a pawn you planned to send into battle.
The priest grinned and raised his hand over the sigil. "Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Repeat five times, but when each is filled, destroy it."
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"For the elements silver and iron, the foundation of stone and the archduke of pacts, and for my great master Schweinorg."
'I really hope I pronounced that right' Emerald thought. She briefly looked to Salem, but the Queen merely smiled and nodded her head for Emerald to continue.
She took a deep breath and did just that, her hand over the sigil of human blood closing into a fist.
"Raise a wall against the wind and close the gate of four directions. Come forth from the crown and follow the forked road leading to the kingdom."
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"Heed my words. My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny."
The sigil before Adam began to glow with a white light. He heard Ilia take a step back in shock. He smiled.
'Now it begins."
"If you heed the grail's call, and obey my will and reason, then answer my summoning!"
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"I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in the world."
Storm winds bombarded the forests of Patch as Ruby spoke the words with unrivaled conviction. She would be a hero that would save everyone.
Blake and Sun hid in the trees from the gales, but their eyes were glued to the wonder before them.
Taiyang could only look on in grim anticipation.
"And I shall defeat, all evil in the world!"
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"And let thine eyes be clouded with the fog of turmoil and chaos. Thou, you art trapped in a cage of madness."
Raven howled against the storm as Vernal desperately tried to maintain the special link to the ritual.
Next to them both, an armored figure obscured in black fog roared in agony.
"And I, the summoner, who holds thy chains!"
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"Seventh Heaven clad in the great words of power, come forth from the circle of binding, Guardian of the Scales!"
Jaune shouted the final words and the ritual reached its climax.
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Across Remnant, six masters were engulfed in light. When it faded, they beheld their destiny.
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Raven fell to her knees. Something had changed.
She looked around. Vernal had backed up behind her, the lieutenant's eyes wide at the sigil. But that was not surprising.
What was, was that her black armored Berserker was also cowering before the new summon.
'So that's what it is, I can hear myself think.'
Living with her Servant's Mad Enchantment constantly affecting her mind had forced her to make some difficult decisions over the years. She'd have to thank her new familiar for shutting her great pain up, at least for a little while.
'Still, what could make the great Sir Lancelot cower in fear through his madness.'
She looked up upon her new Berserker and quickly realized that she'd failed miserably. She could never look upon this Servant. He was too huge.
He stood eight feet tall and probably four feet wide. His body roiled with rippling, powerful muscle. His brown hair fell back in a long greasy matt. His hands were large enough to pick Raven up in one go and throw her like discus.
The bandit leader smirked. She'd probably regret this once the behemoth's own Mad Enchantment kicked in, but for now?
Raven Branwen was pleased.
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Adam Taurus was not.
He hadn't been expecting much from the Servant he summoned and for the most part, he was not disappointed.
The man kneeling before him was strong. Just by looking at him, Adam knew he would be fast. He wore dark green leather armor without sleeves. His arms were covered in long black fingerless gloves. In his right hand was a long red spear, while in his left he held a shorter golden one.
He had a mole beneath his right eye.
Ilia came up to Adam. "What is this?"
'A mistake.'
The man in the circle rose to his feet. He was shorter than Adam, but not by much. The man bowed deeply. "Greetings, my noble master. Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, First of the Knights of Fianna has answered your summons."
Adam gnashed his teeth in rage. His Servant seemed fine. In fact, if the comprehension of his abilities given to Adam as his master was true, then he was a good deal greater than fine. There was just one problem.
He was human.
'The next time I see that priest, I'm going to kill him.'
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Kirei staggered backwards. His face was wide with shock.
His Servant knelt before him. He hadn't even revealed the face that was hidden underneath his red cloak and hood.
But Kirei knew. His semblance gave him understanding, and he understood who he had summoned the moment he laid eyes upon him.
"How?" he whispered breathily. "How can it be you?"
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Emerald was expecting more.
With the big speech and the light show, she'd expected to have summoned some ancient horrible monster or otherworldly demon like her new mistress.
Instead she got a small lady in a purple cloak.
Nonetheless, Salem smiled.
"A Caster. Well done, Emerald. She will do nicely."
Emerald's chest puffed with pride at the Queen's praise, but it also made her look at her new Servant more carefully.
After all, what kind of witch had the approval of the Mother of Grimm?
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Ruby gazed up at the man before her.
He was tall, with white hair and tan skin. He wore black body armor covered by a combination of a red jacket and skirt.
He opened his eyes and she saw they were silver like her's.
'Is he a silver eyed warrior of the past? Does that mean…he can teach me?'
The man looked at her and for a moment, she was sure he was confused. But immediately after, it was gone and in its place was charming smile.
Ruby had learned the hard way that every smile was not the same, but she could forgive this guy's reaction. Really, it wasn't like coming back from the dead was a walk in the park for anyone.
'I wonder how Jaune's went.'
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Jaune stared at the knight in awe.
That was all he could think to describe the figure before him as, a knight. Their armor was gleaming, pristine red and grey steel. They stood tall and proud, their face hidden by a helmet with two outgoing spikes. In their hands, a mighty longsword was planted point down in the ground.
'Did I do it?'
He dared to hope. Gilgamesh had called his mother the King of Knights. And this person certainly fit the bill.
Nora was drooling over the knight's sword. "I want that" she whimpered.
"You cannot have it, knave" the figure declared in a familiar voice.
Jaune's hopes skyrocketed. He'd done it! He'd saved her!
The figure's helmet collapsed into the rest of their armor and Jaune saw the face he longed to see.
"Well I'll be damned" Qrow whispered.
The knight smirked cockily in a way that part of Jaune's mind told him wasn't right but he wasn't listening.
"So, tell me boy, are you worthy to be my master!"
A single tear fell down Jaune's eye.
"Mommy?"
The face of Arturia suddenly scowled. As her eyes boiled with rage, Jaune knew that he had failed.
His heart broke.
His spirit crumpled.
And then he got punched in the face.
"You dare call me a woman!"
Well...
That's one way to meet a sibling.
Jaune mistaking Mordred for Arturia has been the plan since I decided Arturia would die before the war began. I hope I did it justice.
Also, to dispell any confusion. Emerald's got Medea. Raven's got Hercules and Lancelot. Ruby's got EMIYA.
Kirei's is being saved for later along with the seventh master.
Hope you've enjoyed this and have a good day. I must go to bed.