CHAPTER 14:
MORE ALLIES
"We should summon Servants of our own."
Harry looked at Arturia the next morning, as he cooked, with Dobby's help, breakfast early the next morning. "…Okay. Now, why is that? I want to hear your reasons, Ria."
"Y'mind if I have a stab at the reasons?" Mordred asked, looking at her father, who nodded. "Right. Whoever sicced Berserker and Saber on us is trying to use Servants against us. Now, if what Waver said is right, then there's seven classes normally. They may have summoned more Servants already, but if they haven't summoned a full contingent, well…look, I'm confident Father and I can go up against a couple of Servants, but I ain't stupid. We've got everyone else to consider. So, I say we even the odds and summon any Servants they haven't. Was that what you were thinking, Father?"
Arturia nodded approvingly. "Indeed, Mordred. Not only do we bolster our forces, but we need to deny our foes any further forces."
"It's a fair point, assuming whoever has stolen that Grail hasn't summoned a full contingent," Waver said, sipping from a cup of tea. "Harry, I called Rocco Belfeban about how someone, possibly Morgan le Fay, is in possession of the stolen Grail and is using it to summon Servants. I then had to endure a conference call with him, Reines, and Zelretch. The upshot is, Enforcers are on standby to move to anywhere where Servants attack to deal with any witnesses, by removing their memories. Zelretch is calling in a favour with the Head of the DMLE, Lady Amelia Bones, who is one of the few wizards who will work with Clock Tower. However, there's a problem."
"What kind of problem?" Hermione asked.
"Character assassination," Waver said.
Dan Granger frowned. The man had coped surprisingly well with learning that his daughter was actually the reincarnation of one of Salazar Slytherin's prize pupils, along with the fact that King Arthur and Mordred were female. So too had his wife. "Like they did to my daughter not so long ago? Didn't you tell me you put that Skeeter harridan in her place, Hermione?"
Hermione nodded. "The Daily Prophet probably has more muckrakers than her on their payroll, though. But you don't mean character assassination of me, do you, Waver?"
"No. I do read the Prophet. Like any opinionated rag, there is useful information for those willing to sift through it. However, it seems that the Ministry of Magic has gone on an all-out attack. They're claiming that Dumbledore is senile, and that Harry is an attention-seeking nutjob, and the claims of Voldemort being still alive are nothing more than delusions. Of course, with anyone who has any knowledge of the politics of the Ministry, and with enough brains, well, it's clear that Fudge is running a smear campaign, encouraged no doubt by Voldemort's richer supporters."
"Oh, lovely," Harry muttered. "I already had people questioning my sanity thanks to Skeeter being a fucking bitch."
"Language," Hermione and her mother chorused simultaneously.
"Oi, Uncle Sal can speak however he fucking well wants," Mordred retorted.
"It's not just the Death Eaters, or at least the supposedly former ones, that worry me," Waver said. "Leaving aside your thoughts that Dumbledore may have had malign intentions towards you, Harry, there are other elements in the Ministry who may be a problem. Specifically Dolores Umbridge."
"Oh, fuck all kinds of duck," Kairi groaned. "That batrachian bitch? I had to deal with her when I had to visit the Department of Mysteries. I had to deal with some Dead Apostle that used to be one of their number. One of the few times the Unspeakables and Clock Tower actually collaborated. Umbridge stuck her nose into things."
"How bad is she?" Arturia asked.
"Bad," Waver said. "For all that many Magi are prideful and opinionated, they are also usually pragmatists. Umbridge…I have had the displeasure of meeting more than once. She is the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic. She hides Blood Purist views beneath a saccharine sweet demeanour that fools almost nobody except Fudge. She despises anyone with impure blood, Magi, Muggles, any sentient creature that isn't a Pureblood wizard who follows the doctrine. She's no Death Eater to my knowledge, but she'd be considered a groupie. She fancies herself a kingmaker of sorts, being the power behind the throne. The irony is, she's actually a Halfblood rather than a Pureblood."
"So's Voldemort, the hypocritical prick," Harry said, even as he and Dobby finished cooking, and began serving up the food.
"Voldemort's a Halfblood wizard?" Grey asked.
"Yeah. His real name is Tom Marvolo Riddle, and he made Voldemort from an anagram of his name," Harry said. He gestured, and Tom Marvolo Riddle was writ in the air in glowing letters, before rearranging into I Am Lord Voldemort. "Anyway…the question is, who will do the summoning? Dan and Emma, as you do not actually possess any kind of magical ability, beyond the latent genes, you're out for obvious reasons. Everyone else present do have some sort of magical potential. Even Arturia and Mordred, as their draconic heritage gives them cores much like wizards do, though they can't use magic per se, save for as a form of bolstering their physical abilities, as well as boosting them temporarily using Mana Burst."
Waver nodded. "Also, keep in mind that summoning a Servant without a catalyst will actually bring a Servant to you that is compatible with your demeanour. Of course, with the likes of Excalibur, Clarent and Rhongomyniad present, they could act as inadvertent catalysts."
"Then, if it is all the same to you, I will decline summoning a Servant," Arturia said. "I fear I may summon one of the Round Table, and someone who may still have issues with me. In addition, I would prefer to be fighting in the thick of battle, not commanding someone else from the rear."
"What about you, Waver?" Hermione asked.
"I'll decline," Waver said with a shake of his head. "While I would love nothing more than to have my king by my side once more, I would need to get the catalyst from my rooms at Clock Tower. In addition, Servants generally do not remember their previous summonings, so the Iskandar I would summon would probably have little memory of our time together. In any case, I am more of an academic than a fighter. However, I can show you how to create the summoning circle as well as the ritual chant. The ritual is actually a relatively simple one by most standards, as the Grail is the one that does the heavy lifting of summoning a Heroic Spirit as a Servant."
"Yeah, I was wondering how something that complicated could be done. Even if it's not the full power of Heaven's Feel, it is snagging a copy of a Heroic Spirit from the Throne of Heroes," Harry mused. "What about you, Kairi?"
"I'll consider it. But we don't know how many Servants the other side have summoned. So, we draw up as many summoning circles as we can, and do the ritual with those willing to do so. We know Saber and Berserker have been summoned. Hopefully, no others have been…"
"For the origin, silver and steel. For the cornerstone, gem and the Archduke of Contracts. For the ancestor, my great master Schweinorg. The alighted wind becomes a wall. Close the gates in the four directions. From the crown, come forth. Trace the three-forked road leading to the kingdom. Fill, fill, fill, fill, fill. Repeat fivefold, and when each is filled, destroy it."
Harry frowned as he watched Hermione, Waver and Kairi draw out the ritual circles. "Yeah, pretty simple for such a ritual," he muttered.
"You speak from experience?" Emma Granger asked. "If you really are Salazar Slytherin reborn, what sort of rituals did you do?"
"Necromancy was a big one, and I don't mean reviving the dead," Harry said. "Usually, anything with the suffix 'mancy' means…"
"Divination, I am well aware of the nomenclature," Emma said. "In its original form, necromancy meant divining the past, present or future through the summoning of the spirits of the dead. However, these days, the suffix denotes any form of magic, really."
"Thank you, Dr Granger," Harry said with a nod. "Many Muggles I knew in my time were uncultured and unthinking fools who relished their own ignorance, though to be fair, the same could be said for most wizards too. Even these days, wilful ignorance is an all-too-common plague. It is why I am grateful to you both for the fact that you not only treated Hermione with the love she was due as a human being in this life despite her magic, but that you encouraged her learning."
"…You didn't have a good experience with people in either life, did you?" Dan Granger asked.
"I didn't have a good experience with humans," Harry said. "A person is not defined by their species, but rather their sentience, intelligence and empathy. There are many non-human entities who nonetheless I would count as a person." He nodded to Fou, who was currently perched on Grey's shoulder. "Take Fou there. He may look like a cutesy toy poodle, but he's actually very smart. He just doesn't talk much beyond cute animal noises."
"Fou!" Fou chirped in irritation.
"Anyway, my point is, I am an unabashed misanthrope," Harry said. "And proud of it. But those I care about, I will protect to the ends of the Earth, and beyond. And Hecate help anyone who stands in my way, because nothing else will."
In the heavy silence that followed, Waver cleared his throat pointedly. "Perhaps we should get on with the summoning?"
"Quite right, Waver," Harry said, before he went over to one of the ritual circles. Grey had decided to opt out as well, while Hermione, Harry, Mordred, and Kairi decided to try.
"…Jeez, I dunno how to do this," Mordred grumbled.
"Just focus on your mana, Mordred, like you're using Mana Burst, only, you project it into the circle," Harry said. "And remember the chant."
As the quartet began, Harry noted that only three of the circles were glowing. Kairi's remained quiescent. Still, the chant continued. "Heed my words. My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny. If you heed the Grail's call, and obey my will and reason, then answer my summoning! Seventh Heaven clad, and the great words of power, come forth from the circle of bindings, Guardian of the Scales!"
The three glowing circles suddenly erupted into pillars of actinic light, scorching the ceiling of the ritual chamber they were using. A sting of pain stabbed his right hand. Harry blinked away the afterimage, and stared at the triptych of forms kneeling in the circles. "Servant Assassin…" said the form in front of him.
"Servant Caster…" said the form in front of Hermione.
"And Servant Lancer…" said the form in front of Mordred.
"…Have answered your summons," they spoke in eerie unison. "We ask of you, are you our Masters?"
Harry stared at the form in his circle. It was a child, a girl who wasn't even in her teens, clad in a ragged cloak. A short ragged bob of silvery white hair framed cute features, albeit marred by a couple of scars. Golden eyes peered at him both curiously and warily.
In Hermione's circle was a woman, a woman clad in an artistic-looking dress with a short skirt that looked vaguely Italian Renaissance in style. Her appearance was, well, like an anime version of the Mona Lisa, with blue eyes twinkling with mirth, like Dumbledore's, but with a warmth that seemed genuine in comparison to his. In Mordred's circle was a man clad in a skintight blue jumpsuit, a crimson, phallic-looking lance in his hand, his blue hair tied back in a ponytail, his lips touched by a cocky smirk.
Harry took the initiative, and knelt down in front of his Servant, coming to her eye level, golden eyes meeting his own emerald ones. He knew the emotions behind them. This was a child who had been deprived of love and warmth, and sought it. But there was also something dangerous in those eyes. "I guess I'm your Master, kid. What's your name?"
The girl cocked her head in a quizzical manner. "Jack. Are you our Mummy?"
"…Sorry, Jackie, I've only got one X-chromosome," Harry joked, though he had to wonder why she spoke of herself in the plural. "I could be your Daddy or big brother, maybe?"
She peered at him, as if mulling it over. Eventually, she said, "Your mana is warm…so warm…" She eventually trotted over, and gently hugged him. "Warm…" she murmured.
"Ahem," said the Mona Lisa-like Caster. "Sorry to interrupt the heartwarming moment, and I do mean that, but I don't think our little Assassin is telling us her full name." With that, she went over, and knelt down next to Jack. "…An Assassin called Jack…you are Jack the Ripper, aren't you?"
Dan blinked. "…What. This girl…is Jack the Ripper?"
"Oh? You know us?" Jack asked, curiously.
"No, no…this can't be Jack the Ripper," Emma said, shaking her head.
"Hey, anyone want to tell us who that is?" Mordred asked.
"Jack the Ripper was an infamous serial killer during the late 1880s," Waver said. "A mysterious killer murdered and dismembered a number of prostitutes. Five are considered to be definitive victims: Polly Nichols, Anne Chapman, Liz Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Kelly. There's a possibility that the killer killed more."
"…We just wanted to go back where it was warm," Jack said morosely. "We wanted to find our Mummy. We thought they were our Mummy."
"She's also a gestalt," the Mona Lisa lookalike said. "A conglomerate of souls, some the vestigial fragments of souls of foetuses aborted by back-alley doctors in Victorian London, others children who lived long enough to die of famine, pestilence or foul play on the streets. All she wanted was to go back to the primal warmth of the womb. All her killings were for that purpose, not out of malice, just a lack of understanding."
Harry had an epiphany. He now knew why he had summoned her. "She's like that kid Madoc, Ria, Hermione."
Arturia frowned thoughtfully, while Hermione winced. "…Like that, Harry?"
"Yeah." He stood, and then turned to the Mona Lisa lookalike. "And who are you? And how do you know so much about my Assassin?"
"Ah, I'm glad you asked!" the woman said with a stunning smile. "I am Leonardo da Vinci!"
"…Bollocks," Dan said succinctly, breaking the silence that followed. "I mean, King Arthur and Mordred being women that hid their gender, I can believe, and they never found out who Jack the Ripper was, but…Leonardo da Vinci was a woman?"
"Oh, right, sorry about that," the so-called Da Vinci said, looking not sorry at all. "I actually chose this form from a prior summoning. I'm not a woman because history got things wrong, I just chose this form based on La Gioconda, to have a beautiful body, and to experiment around with another gender. It's a complicated story that I don't really remember in detail that much, due to, well, that being a previous summoning. But I did know many of those present as Servants. Hence my recognition of adorable little Jackie there, along with the Pendragons and Waver Velvet, though you don't seem to be Servants. In any case, my form is irrelevant, for genius is universal. Now, Lancer, should I introduce you, or do you want to do it yourself?"
The blue-haired man shrugged. "Hey, if you know who I am, go nuts."
"Right! Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to present to you Sétanta, Ireland's Child of Light, or, as he's better known, Cú Chulainn!"
"…So that spear," Emma mused, looking at the crimson spear in the blue-clad man's hand, "that's the Gáe Bolg."
"Oh? Does this lass know who I am? And yep, that's the Gáe Bolg," Cú Chulainn said. He then turned to Mordred. "Anyway, you're my Master, eh? Tell me, girl…you any good with that sword?"
"…You looking down on me because I'm a girl?" Mordred growled.
The Irish Lancer scoffed. "As if! My teacher was a woman, Scáthach of Dún Scáith. Who do you think gave me the Gáe Bolg? If she ever caught me disrespecting her because she was a woman, she'd bugger me with the damned thing."
Arturia cleared her throat. Once she had everyone's attention, she said, "I am sincerely grateful to the three of you answering our summons. I am Arturia Pendragon, better known to history as King Arthur." She then introduced the others.
Kairi, who had been silent until now, spoke in the silence afterwards. "Well…that's a problem."
"What is?" Mordred asked.
"Of the four summoning circles we used, only three became active," Waver pointed out. "And as we have summoned Lancer, Caster, and Assassin…"
"Someone else has summoned Archer and Rider," Harry cut in. "…Well, I think we have a lot to talk about with our new allies. You three…this isn't a Grail War, not in the normal sense. Someone's using a Greater Grail copy to summon Servants for their own army. We summoned you guys because we needed the help, and to deny our enemy the chance to summon any further Servants. I can't even guarantee that the Grail will grant you a wish. Is that fine?"
Da Vinci shrugged. "I don't have a wish per se, but the Grail is a fascinating product of magecraft that I'd love to study."
"I don't care, as long as I get some good fights in," Cú Chulainn said.
Harry looked down at Jack, before kneeling down to meet her eyes. "And you, Jackie?"
"…We want to go back inside Mummy, where it's warm," Jack said quietly. "Are you saying we can't?"
"…Probably not. But…hey, Waver, can leftover Servants persist after a Grail War?"
"As familiars, yes," Waver said. "The process is mana intensive, but…"
"Well…you know what, Jackie? I can give you something better than going back to the womb," Harry said. "A childhood."
"…Is that a good idea?" Emma asked. "Having a serial killer here?"
Arturia just gave a rueful smile. "Sal may be a misanthrope, but he has a soft spot for those abandoned and discarded like he was. If anything, I understand why he summoned her completely…"
CHAPTER 14 ANNOTATIONS:
So, there you have it. Harry, Mordred and Hermione have summoned Servants. Now, I have to confess, while originally writing this story, I had no intention of them summoning any Servants. But I realised something that more than a few reviewers pointed out, that there's a power gap, and while Arturia and Mordred are on the level of Servants, it'd make things tricky. Hence this.
Now, the choices of Servants. I discussed this with Arawn D Draven, at least for two of them. Giving Harry-Salazar an Assassin is a no-brainer, as Salazar, in this story, is basically an Assassin himself. In fact, if he was summoned as an Assassin, he'd be like Semiramis, having a lot of Caster traits as well. Which Assassin? Well, there are a lot of compatible ones, but I always have a soft spot for Jack the Ripper from Fate/Apocrypha. Her appalling costume aside, you get the feeling that, if she had a relatively normal Master, she'd change for the better, becoming more like a child who, while with disturbing tendencies and skills, is actually more, well, normal or at least moral compared to her Fate/Apocrypha incarnation. Harry-Salazar, being himself a bastard child by rape and ostracised by many, would sympathise. Plus, he's had experience with dealing with tykebombs who need a moral compass installed, as hinted above. Not to mention a lot of you adore the homicidal little urchin.
Mordred…well, Cú Chulainn actually would suit her. They're both hotblooded battle nuts with a desire to protect others. As for Hermione and Da Vinci, well, I actually considered a number of other Casters. Medea was always my backup, but I actually seriously considered a couple of other Servants, partly for the comic effect. Nero Caster (albeit in a different costume to her swimsuit) and Solomon. The former, unfortunately, wouldn't do much for the story other than traumatise Waver, which would be amusing, while the latter…well, it'd be a lot of crumbling pedestals if I had him acting like Dr Roman.
Now, this version of Da Vinci is technically both the same and not the same as the one who worked for Chaldea. She doesn't remember everything about the events of Fate/Grand Order, but she remembers some broad parts of it, as well as the identities of many of the Servants she worked alongside, due to the unusual circumstances of her summoning and her demise in that game. She knows Arturia and Mordred, and is surprised to find them as humans rather than Servants. She's met Waver, at the very least, as the Pseudo-Servant version of Zhuge Liang.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Dunno when the next one will come out, but it will have the aftermath of the summoning…
No numbered annotations this time.