A/N: I was re-reading Fate/stay night's Heaven's Feel route, and I was reminded that Shirou only started doing archery because Raiga convinced him to take it up in place of sumo wrestling with adult yakuza. It makes me wonder what would have happened in a world where Shirou never gave up sumo.
Sorry for delay. I try to get the first chapter out by the 15th and the second the end of the month, but you know how it is. Life happens. Just... a lot happened this month, and I nearly died. That sucked. I'm okay now, but it sucked.
In any case, I'll try to post the next chapter before the end of the month. If I can't, expect three next month.
Didn't really have time to edit, so if something is off, let me know.
northernlion196 [Ch011, 7/24/2017]: Glad you're enjoying yourself. =3
shelwyn [Ch011, 7/25/2017]: Whoa. That's a lot of reviews. Thanks for all the feedback! As for the first chapter thing, I'll take it into consideration. It's supposed to be a Memory chapter, so... Hrm. Maybe I'll move it to later. Maybe I'll go back and add chapter titles between the author notes and the body of text.
Heaven's/Feel Alchemist - Ch012a
Heaven's Feel 08
Illyasviel von Einzbern watches as Chloe immerses herself in the storm outside the hotel window. The tanned girl is humming a lullaby that Illya sometimes sings for her. Frankly, she's better at it than her sister.
The elder of the two is envious, but justifies it as a matter of design. Illya was made to be the Lesser Holy Grail. She wasn't even made for exercise, let alone singing.
Chloe was made with a Specialized respiratory system. From hypnotic sound waves to fear-inducing banshee screams, the maid girl can do all sorts of things. It's only natural that she has a higher aptitude for singing.
"I'm back," Illya finally rematerializes into their hotel room.
"Onee-san!" Chloe's face lights up with joy, "So? Did you find him?"
"No," Illya pouts cutely. "I searched the whole complex. Either he's being kept off-site, or they haven't shipped in the goods yet."
"Eh? You don't think Caleb-san lied?"
"No, I planted a familiar on him. He thinks the information he sold us is legitimate, so he's been worried about retaliation from Lord Corpse."
"Lord... Oh! That guy who stole the research you wanted!" the younger girl smiles, waiting to be praised for remembering.
"What- did you forget!?" Illya is forced to do a doubletake at her smiling sibling, "That research is super important for your health! There might be risks or flaws that we don't know about because they're in the notes he stole!"
"Eh? You mean you can't just fix me?" Chloe's eyes widen.
"Well, I could with Wishcraft," the snowy-haired elder sister admits with a small pout, "But one of the few things I remember is that the Einzberns are the best at homunculus creation, no exceptions. Because he stole the research, that means someone knows something about making homunculi we don't. I can't accept that."
"Are we going to beat him up?" Chloe asks innocently, as if that were the natural conclusion to come to.
"Only if he isn't willing to cut a deal," Illya nods, clearly not feeling guilt for the beating she's planning to dole out.
She was actually planning on killing Lord Corpse after making him cough up everything he knows, but life happens and plans change. Chloe isn't comfortable with killing people that don't try to kill them first, so Illya will have to refrain from murder. It's a real shame too. Enemies you let live are far more likely to be a pain in the ass later.
"Speaking of deals, Caleb has one with someone called Greed. He's apparently getting paid to tell this Greed person about promising alchemists and leads on immortality," Illya reaches into her bag to get her hairbrush. "Greed will be at the auction, so even if we don't meet him we'll still have to deal with him soon."
"Are we going to beat him up?" Chloe asks again as she prepares Illya's bed clothes.
"If he makes us," Illya nods. "That makes it three or four people we need to talk to and possibly beat up."
"Three or four?" the tanned little sister questions, taking the hairbrush from Illya to attend her master's grooming.
"Yeah," Illya hums in contentment as the maid brushes her hair, "There's a haunt holder in this city that I'm hoping to avoid, so three or four."
"Lord Corpse is one, Greed is two, the g-ghost person is a potential four..." Chloe counts aloud thoughtfully, "Who's number three then?"
Illya's window reflection smirks triumphantly against the rainy cityscape of Dublith.
"An old friend of the family."
Illyasviel von Einzbern is displeased. Her adopted brother isn't here. The most likely scenario is that someone gave Caleb fake information in order to lure the girls here.
This, however, still means they have her brother. Whether he's dead or alive at this point is unknown. They might have decided he's outlived his usefulness...
Futhermore, Illya has no idea what purpose this serves. If she has indeed been lured here, why? The information was prepared before anyone knew her Arbitrator disguise was superhuman, and the only ones who might know that are either other magi or those haunt holders. Without any real knowledge of either group, figuring out why they want her at this auction is proving to be a challenge.
Well, all that takes a back seat to her secondary objectives now. The first of which sits before her, dressed in an ornate white suit in his private box. From the decorations of the room to the delicacies laid out before him, it's clear that this tall, pale man with waist length black hair is getting the VIP treatment.
Maybe the most peculiar thing about him is the kanji for "death" decorating his tall tophat. The man has sharp features, but he doesn't appear to be Japanese. Illya isn't quite sure how she knows that, but since a door doesn't seem to be opening she decides to put it off for later.
Standing beside the man is an attractive woman in a strange uniform. The top looks similar to the Amestrian military save for its sandy color and black armband that also bears the kanji for "death." Her bottomwear, however, is a black skirt that reaches to mid-thigh, leather boots that reach up to the knee, and black hosery covering the rest.
Her waist-length black hair is quite lovely, though. It's clear she takes care of it.
The woman says something. The man nods in response. Illya and Chloe hear neither due to the barrier of wind that is keeping Lord Corpse and his cohort from hearing them.
Then the woman turns directly toward the girls and points at them. Despite the girls being invisible, the woman points at them and motions them forward. Illya frowns.
The woman has three eyes. Two are normal, but the third rests in a vertical slit in her forehead. Her hair is parted in the center to allow a clear view.
The Einzbern alchemist drops the wind barrier first. Illya immediately notices the sound of electricity in the walls and the smell of ozone in the air. Given that the three-eyed woman could see them while invisible, she's likely a Frankenstein. More importantly, she matches the description in Dr. Tachibana's notes.
This is Tigerlily Coffin, the 5th Special Type Frakenstein. It's from the research of her creation that Chloe has gained the Flashpoint Eyes and enhanced senses. Supposedly, Tigerlily is capable of seeing through walls.
That, however, isn't enough to see through the illusion put upon the maid-zerker. Illya took the time to craft it well, covering all readings on the electromagnetic spectrum. Even if Tigerlily's vision drops to infrared or radio, raises to ultraviolet or x-ray, Chloe's disguise will hold.
That being said, Illya isn't worried about dropping the spell of invisibility as long as she maintains their disguises.
"Drop the disguise," Tigerlily glares at them once their invisibility falls. "I can see the real Arbitrator and Berserker in the audience hall."
"Ehh?" Illya plays at being surprised, "But I'm pretty sure we're the real ones?"
The ones sitting in with the crowd are illusions wrapped around familiars, after all.
"Don't play dumb," a murderous shadow falls across all three of the Frankenstein's eyes. "Even if you're the real Abritrator, the airflow around your 'Berserker' isn't right."
"Oh fine," Illya pouts, the sisters returning to normal. It's a real shame that the new illusion function in Chloe's maid uniform didn't get to see much use. Illya slaved over that for three days and two nights.
"Illyasviel von Einzbern," the Frankenstein of Lord Corpse says with little surprise, "the one who found and inherited the will of Doctor Tachibana. I wasn't expecting you to come out yourself."
"Well, it would be unbecoming of us if the family head didn't show her face when trying to cut a deal, wouldn't it?" Illya smiles cutely.
"You have my interest," Lord Corpse cuts off his subordinate's death threats before they can begin. "Come, pull up a seat. Let's talk."
Illya does so gracefully. She ends up sitting beside him, looking out into the auction hall. Truthfully, it's an opera hall that's 'closed for renovations,' so the atmosphere is surprisingly high class.
Each has their number two standing behind them to guard from sneak attacks.
"I trust you're here about the missing research notes?" Lord Corpse starts the conversation, not seeing any need for further introductions. Though his words are well-spoken and ordinary, something about them leaks a feeling of danger.
"That's right," the child-like woman nods, unconcerned by the danger in the air. She generously doesn't point out that the notes aren't missing, but stolen. "I was thinking of trading copies. Your two for two of mine, and the rest I'm willing to sell for negotiable price provided that this transaction goes well."
"And how do we know we won't be cheated?" the man in the top hat asks with the quirk of an eyebrow.
"I could ask the same thing," Illya continues to smile cheerily, "How about a little faith?"
Lord Corpse finally turns to look at the small homunculus.
"What?" Illya asks once the man's gaze lingers longer than polite, "It's not like we're giving anything up. We're trading copies."
Lord Corpse blinks, then chuckles. Few are so daring now that he's the head of a criminal empire. Fewer still have no fear of him whatsoever.
If he didn't want the rest of the Frankenstein research so badly, he would make sure to change that.
"Very well," the man marked with death nods, "I'll need time to copy the notes. How about we meet in the abandoned cannery on the south side of town in a week? Nine pm?"
"Where we will trade copies of the Special Type Frankenstein research, one for one," Illya adds to ensure he agrees beforehand to the exact details. Wouldn't want him to later say she didn't specify the details of the agreement.
"Yes, where we will trade copies of the Special Type Frankenstein research, one for one," Lord Corpse follows up. "Since your side has more than we, it's only fair that we get to choose which ones we recieve."
Illya almost doesn't respond. One of those haunt holders she's trying to avoid has entered the building. It seems he's headed for the auction hall.
"Hm?" she hums in thought as she waits for the haunt holder to appear. "And which ones would you like?"
"Sensory and Digestive system, if you wouldn't mind."
Illya sees him. A tall man with slicked-back raven hair and an Ouroboros tattoo on his left hand is walking toward her illusory duplicates. He'll reach them soon. If Illya wants to keep up the facade of Arbitrator and Berserker being different people, then it's time to end negotiations.
"Deal. See you in a week."
With that, she sets up a better invisibility spell and makes a new wind barrier so she may slip out undetected. The moment the door closes behind them, Illya rushes down the corridor with Chloe. She needs a spot to hide. If she wants to get full usage from her familiars then she'll need to focus.
Well, the fake Berserker can be left on auto-pilot unless a fight breaks out.
They pass up the bathroom and the unused VIP boxes since someone could walk in on them. They settle in a broom closet, where Illya flips over a bucket so she has a place to sit. Chloe blocks the door, shuts off the lights, and stands guard.
Illya takes a few seconds to even out her breathing, still not used to exercise. She closes her eyes, even though the lights are off and she can't see anyway. She further opens the connection to the disguised familiars in the audience, and opens her eyes.
Then she sees the man saunter over, taking a seat next to Arbitrator. Looking through the eyes of her illusory body double, she can see that his clothing is well-made. His sunglasses prevent her from seeing the color of his eyes, but he's apparently just fine with changing that since he looks over the top of them to introduce himself.
They're muave. His hair is black. He's holding at least ten thousand souls on his person right now.
"Hi, the name's Greed."
Damn it.
"I see you already know my name," the man with the Ouroboros tattoo chuckles. "That's fine. I know yours too, Arbitrator."
Illya makes sure that her cursing remains in her head this time.
"I already told Lunaria that I don't have any interest in whatever you're doing. Shoo," Arbitrator waves him away as if he were a small dog.
"Luna- Oh, you mean Lust," Greed grins widely after a moment of thought, revealing his mouth full of sharp teeth, "Well, sorry to say but I don't get along with the rest of the family anymore. I'm here on my own to try and cut a deal."
Arbitrator sighs. Even if this guy has all sorts of information she wants, she's tired and disappointed. Her brother isn't here. Lord Corpse was reasonable so she couldn't beat him up. Greed and the haunt holder are one and the same.
She's really not feeling up for anything right now.
"Are you sure you want to talk about it here? There are plenty of people who could be listening in."
"Ha ha, don't you worry your pretty little head," the haunt holder laughs. "Everyone within four seats of us is one of my people, and until the show starts it'll be too loud for anyone else to overhear."
Illya thinks that if Tigerlily or Chloe were five seats away they'd hear more than enough. The crowd isn't /that/ loud. This is an illegal operation, after all. It would be awfully suspicious if there were the sounds of so many people when the opera house is supposed to be closed for renovations.
"Fine," Arbitrator frowns in irritation. "What's your pitch?"
"Do you want to know how to make a Philosopher's Stone?"
She frowns harder. She had been intending on photonic crystal research in order to make her own Philosopher's Stone. Extending Chloe's battery life is among her higher priorities.
"I would," Arbitrator admits, "but I don't think you know either."
"I know every little detail, actually," Greed chuckles. "I even know how to make a homunculus with a Stone as its core."
"And you haven't made any yourself?" Arbitrator's eyes narrow with suspicion. Greed doesn't miss the heavy interest in them either. No matter how well Arbitrator conceals it, if there's one thing he's familiar with...
"Who's to say I haven't?" Greed replies with a lopsided grin, knowing he's got her hooked now.
"I think you're lying," Arbitrator accuses.
"I may be a crook, but I don't lie sweetheart," Greed smiles, turning on his rogueish charm. It doesn't affect Arbitrator.
"I don't believe you. Give me proof."
"That can be arranged... but not here," Greed shrugs. "How about we go somewhere after this? Warehouse 17 near the Samson?"
"I have plans. The soonest I'm available is in three days," Arbitrator lies smoothly.
"That works," he nods. "Until then, watch out for Lord Corpse. He's pretty big in the underworld, and he's in town."
"Why? Is he a homunculus or something?" Arbitrator jokes, eyes still narrowed with suspicion and potential violence.
"That's right. I may have split off from the others," he confirms, then flashes the Ouroboros tattoo on his hand, "but the group he's a part of is still my enemy. They all have a Flamel tattoo, and they're all incredibly lethal."
A menacing shadow falls across Arbitrator's face. There's a shadow war happening in this country. One one side is the haunt holders, who are apparently named after the seven deadly sins and have Ouroboros tattoos. On the other are a group of unknowns with Flamel tattoos that can at least make Frankenstein Homunculi, one of which is also a homunculus. Finally there's Greed, who split from Team Ouroboros to make his own group.
And she was just forcibly thrown into the war.
"So you're saying that, since they're up in the VIP box watching this conversation, I've painted a target on my back by getting involved with you."
"That's right! The guys I split from will probably hear about it sometime too," Greed laughs.
Arbitrator takes a calming breath.
"It's Greed, Lust, and the rest of the seven deadly sins on the Ouroboros side, right?" Arbitrator inquires. "What are those on the other side called?"
"I don't know anything about the 'seven deadly sins,'" Greed shrugs and shakes his head, "but I know that Lord Corpse's real name is Patience. He's good at waiting for just the right opportunity to strike. When the time comes, he hits and he hits hard."
"Anything else?" she responds, annoyed.
"Temperance might be there too. She's a master spearwoman. She won't act without orders, though."
Arbitrator reaches up a hand and massages her temple. This is a great big mess. She's starting to think she should have left after confirming her big brother isn't here.
"... What do you want in return?" after a long moment, she asks his price through gritted teeth.
Arbitrator is understandably upset.
Just talking to Greed within Lord Corpse's view will give the latter a chance to up his price. If he finds out she's planning to deal with Greed, who knows what will happen? He might call off the exchange and try to take the research off her corpse.
That isn't even accounting for the hidden war she was just thrown into. Both sides are pretty pretentious too. Naming their leaders after the seven deadly sins and seven heavenly virtues?
Not only that, but everyone is being reasonable and willing to make a deal. At this rate, she won't get to beat up /anyone/! After a day like today, she needs some damn catharsis!
Still, she best find out what the man wants and see if it's actually something she can agree to.
"Immortality," the tall man whispers, taking care to enunciate and savor every syllable.
Like that, her hopes of dealing with an agreeable person have been dashed.
"I see you fit your namesake," Arbitrator spits out.
"That's right, I'm very greedy," he declares with a grin full of energy. "I want money! Women! Land and fame, too! I want everything in the world!"
"Naturally," he leans in close to Arbitrator's face, "I also want immortality."
Arbitrator is quiet for a moment as she thinks. There's no reason for him to ask for immortality if he can make the Philosopher's Stone on his own. Similarly, if one of his men were skilled enough then he'd already be immortal.
However, Caleb reported to Greed specifically about the fact that Arbitrator seems immortal. Greed wouldn't be bargaining the Philosopher's Stone to someone who is already immortal. If they're immortal, then wouldn't they already know how to make it? It's the Crimson Elixir and the Draught of Eternal Life, after all. Among the alchemists of this country, it's the only method of true immortality.
Unless the Stone doesn't make one immortal and he knows it.
"... Let's leave that for later," the Arbitrator turns her gaze to the stage, effectively dismissing Greed. "There's no point in anything else until you provide proof."
"Hey, I already told you my pitch. At least confirm whether you know anything or not," the tall man groans.
Arbitrator almost releases a scathing retort in her irritation, but is cut off by the announcer taking the stage. As it will be a silent auction, the lights do not dim so that the auctioneer can see the customers if they raise their assigned card to bid. The audience quiets.
Illya doesn't really listen to his speech. She's busy sending new pre-determined responses to her familiars to account for Greed and Lord Corpse. She has something she wants to do in the meantime.
"Come Chloe," Illya stands and brushes off her dress. "The third person I wanted to talk to and beat up isn't here. I found an interesting thing though, so we're going to take it on our way out."
Illya casts a spell or two, and then the pair are gone.
Moments later, a wave of black Military Police uniforms rush into the building from all sides.
Next: Heaven's Feel 08 - Part B