Songs

Armies Standoff: Breakthrough (Fate/Apocrypha OST)

Armies Clash: Grand War (Fate/Apocrypha OST)

King Louis Fights: Sunshine [Escanor Theme] (The Seven Deadly Sins OST)

Robert and Charlemagne vs. Hadrian and Trajan: Before Dawn (Fate/Apocrypha OST)

Louis vs. Constantine: Main Theme (Fate/Apocrypha OST)

Victory over Rome: With Pride in your Heart (Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia OST)

Ritsuka talks to Saber of the Beginning: Ashura and Indra (Naruto Shippuden OST)

Saber of the Beginning Stabs Ritsuka: Beginning of Peace (Naruto Shippuden OST)

Standing on one side of the massive open countryside of France, the French Army looked out as far as they could, seeing the Roman Army begin to slowly approach from over the horizon.

"They'll be here shortly, Your Majesty. They are making good time, but we arrived first after all." The scout told the king, who was on the back of his personal horse, a white stallion. Standing beside him was Charlemagne and Ritsuka's group.

"Master, I can't help but feel...conflicted about fighting my own homeland…" Nero fidgeted, catching his attention.

"They wouldn't take you. And besides, we've fought against them before, and won."

"You've battled Rome before?" Louis looked down at him curiously.

"Yes, but it was a long time ago. And they certainly didn't have commanders as strong as this. So it's not as if that experience will really help."

"Don't dismiss it quite yet. The commanders may be different, but the soldiers likely acted the same way as they will here." Charlemagne reassured.

"Pretty straightforward." Ritsuka answered.

"Precisely. It is why we will be able to wipe them out. We just have to worry about the commanders." Louis turned his attention back to the army, as they finally reached the other side of the field, Constantine walking to the front and looking out at them.

"So you have sided against us? Not only that, you sided with Britain?" He called out.

"They made me a better offer. Nothing more, nothing less." Louis responded.

"It will be difficult to defeat you head on. It may even be impossible...but I will do my damnedest to assure that you fall to my blade!" The Roman soldiers shouted behind him in a rallying cry.

"Forward!" Charlemagne called out, the French army yelling out and charging at their enemies.

"Should we…?" Ritsuka asked.

"No, stay here. I will only join if one of their commanders joins as well." Charlemagne ordered.

"Commander!" Napoleon walked up to them.

"Napoleon. Everything is proceeding smoothly?"

"Yes, sir. We are more powerful than them in every regard, we will win this."

X

"Your Majesty!"

"Hm?"

"The French and Roman armies have engaged each other in the southern French countryside near the border of Italy!"

"I see...so the stalemate is over after all...are there commanders taking part?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. In fact, all of Rome's commanders, Generals Romulus and Caesar, Advisor Hadrian, Commander Trajan, and Emperor Constantine are all there. And from France, General Napoleon, Commander Charlemagne, and King Louis himself are there. In addition to that, it seems as if the British Empire is allied with them, as Commander Robert is also on the front lines."

"I see. You said Louis was there?"

"Yes."

"Then Rome is doomed." She laughed. "I suppose we should prepare ourselves for interactions with Britain and France now."

"Did you wish to negotiate with them, Your Majesty?"

"Of course. We are strong enough to give France a run for their money, but against Louis himself, even I would have a hard time. I'll be in my study, writing a letter to them if you need me."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

X

"Here they come." Napoleon began to walk to the front lines, while the soldiers continued to fight each other, and the two generals, Romulus and Caesar, heading towards him.

"It's about time we settled this. Come on, you bastard! Rome will always prevail!" Romulus yelled at him, grinning as he summoned his lance.

"Heh...then come on." Napoleon summoned his cannon, ready to fight him.

"Master, would you like me to fight Caesar? I know you haven't really gotten to see my abilities yet." Hayashi looked to Ritsuka.

"If you're up to it."

"Of course. This won't take long." He made his way to Caesar, facing off against him.

"What was your name again?" Caesar asked, smirking while pointing his sword at him.

"Hayashi."

"You're a Servant, but you're not really a famous hero, are you? Why is your Master siding with Britain?"

"London is my home. And if you'll recall, you were going to execute my friend, and Britain saved us."

"Yes, I can't exactly say that I fully approved of His Majesty's decision, since she is my successor by a few generations. But it's not as if I can defy him. As I understand, Nero had quite a disastrous reign, so I can realize why he wouldn't want her around."

Hayashi's frown turned a slight smirk, closing his eyes for a brief moment.

"Something you find funny?" Caesar asked, playing along.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact. You were once Dictator for Life, and now you're taking orders from a different Emperor who you're afraid to oppose. That's not the man Cleopatra fell in love with."

Caesar gritted his teeth, gripping his sword hard as he ran at him.

"Thunderforge." Hayashi held his hand out and concentrated energy in his palm, red lightning sparking out, creating a red broadsword made purely of electricity.

Caesar swung his sword, but Hayashi countered it easily, pushing back without much effort.

"What…?!"

"You underestimated me. Yes, I'm a Servant that's not a legendary hero, but I sure as hell am no pushover. Using my full power, I'd say I'm probably a good match for your Emperor."

"You lie!"

"I don't." He knocked him away and prepared a spell with his other hand.

Caesar gathered red light into the palm of his giant gauntlet, and ran at Hayashi again, who cast a shield spell, blocking the attack, then taking the opportunity to stab him with his own sword, making Caesar stumble back.

"This is too easy. You're pretty weak for such a famous person. Maybe it's because you're fat…" Hayashi swung his sword around a couple of times.

"I came! I saw! Therefore, the next thing to do is to declare my victory! Crocea Mors!" Caesar's sword began to glow with golden energy, dashing at Hayashi again, clearly angry from the last remark.

He began to slash at him as fast as he could, but Hayashi still dodged each of his attacks easily, before blocking a strike with his own sword, preventing Caesar from using it again. He gathered energy into his gauntlet again and prepared to slam it into Hayashi.

"Verg Avesta." Hayashi used his Noble Phantasm as Caesar hit him, sending both of them flying backwards, since Caesar took the same damage.

"Hayashi, are you alright?!" Ritsuka called out.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He had a hole in his torso, but it healed itself quickly thanks to his powers. Standing up, he walked over to Caesar, seeing that he had the same damage, but was on the verge of disappearing.

"What...was that…?" Caesar coughed.

"That was my first Noble Phantasm, just a taste of my powers. Never judge a book by their cover. Just because I'm not a well known hero doesn't mean that I'm weak. I gave my life up of my own accord. I'll always take that over the way your life ended any day."

"..." Caesar disappeared, the surrounding soldiers backing up and training their swords and spears on Hayashi, but hesitant to get any closer.

Hayashi began to fight the soldiers before Romulus showed up, heading towards him.

"Do any of you want a turn?" He backed away and looked over at the rest of them.

"I'll deal with him!" Nero jumped in, while Jeanne, Raikou, Robert, and Charlemagne began to run into the ranks of the soldiers, fighting them off in an attempt to clear a path to the three commanders.

"My abilities are not suited for massive battles like this, Master. It'd be better if I stayed here to guard Marie." Salieri stated.

"Me as well, Master. This weather is going to make my powers very weak. I'll stay here with you." Anastasia stood close to him.

Nero's sword clashed with Romulus' lance, both seeming relatively even. Nero's sword ignited with fire and slashed Romulus away, running at him and attacking him further, Romulus blocking each hit but taking the force from each one.

"Come now, to Rome! Everything, everything leads to my spear. Magna Voluisse Magnum!" He planted his lance into the ground, huge trees starting to sprout up around Nero and try to attack her, though she successfully avoided them.

"Laus Saint Claudius!" Flames burned the trees up and Nero dashed out of there, before slicing through Romulus, his body burning up behind her.

'That was a lot quicker than when she fought him with me...she's much stronger now.' Hayashi smiled at her, and she smiled and nodded back.

Despite how many servants were plowing through the regular soldiers, there seemed to be a limitless amount of them.

"We can't keep doing this forever!" Jeanne knocked another one away.

"There! Trajan keeps summoning them!" Hayashi looked over and saw that they appeared to be spawning in front of him.

"It's his Noble Phantasm! Victa Dacia! It summons his personal armies from when he invaded Dacia during his reign! It generates Roman Soldiers at the peak of their strength endlessly!" Robert called out.

"So it's similar to Iskandar's, but with a never ending supply…" Ritsuka thought out loud.

"Your Majesty, if I might make a suggestion? I could use my Noble Phantasm to blow away the soldiers all at once." Charlemagne looked at him.

"...No. It takes more energy out of you than it does from me doing the same. So allow me." He stepped off of his horse and placed his cape on the saddle, stepping forward.

"All of you, retreat! His Majesty will deal with the soldiers!" Charlemagne called out, all of them looking back anxiously, retreating to where the commanders were, while the French soldiers continued to fight off the Roman ones.

"You're going to sacrifice your own soldiers too?" Ritsuka looked at him.

"No. My sword does not injure my own forces, it slays only those who I perceive as enemies."

"Oh! That's good." Ritsuka smiled.

"Indeed. Now allow me to demonstrate just a bit of my power." He began to walk towards the army, unsheathing his sword, a gold longsword that was radiating energy.

Pulling back, the sword began to charge power, before Louis spun around and sliced through the air, releasing a massive ray of light that began to fly through all of the soldiers, killing them indiscriminately.

"Joyeuse!"

"Use it! Quickly!" Trajan looked over at Hadrian.

"Adriani Vallum!" Hadrian called out and slammed his hands onto the ground, a massive protective wall separating the emperors from the soldiers.

As the attack finished killing the soldiers, it slammed into the barrier, taking the rest of its power to break through it, fizzling out as the wall broke apart.

"Now that that's taken care of...Charlemagne! Robert! Decide amongst yourselves who to fight. Constantine is mine." He pointed his sword at him.

"You lied! You killed your own soldiers!" Ritsuka yelled out angrily.

"Of course I lied. What would you have done if I told the truth, attempt to prevent me from doing it? This is war, boy. It is also a singularity, and as such, none of these soldiers are truly real, they are all servants with the most basic spirit origin possible."

"..."

"I'll take Trajan." Charlemagne drew his own sword and dashed after them, Robert doing the same, heading after Hadrian, all three of them drawing their own blades to combat the opposing kings.

Robert and Hadrian clashed swords, but it was clear who was stronger. The Consul was knocked back, gritting his teeth. Robert twirled his sword a bit before running at him again, continuing his onslaught.

"I've been having trouble against Trajan for as long as this war has been going on...but I'd rather have that as a fair fight than whatever this is."

"How dare you…!" Hadrian blocked his strikes and slashed Robert across the chest.

"Oh ho...so you can fight back. I see why Constantine made you his Political Advisor. Your contributions to Rome's political stability are perhaps the greatest in your nation's history. However, as a Servant, you're rather unremarkable compared to the other two. Your military campaigns were overshadowed by your older cousin's over there, so your Barrier Noble Phantasm is all you have. You're not much of a fighter, you're much better suited for diplomacy." Robert sheathed his broadsword and took out his greatsword from the sheath on his back.

Swinging it, it crashed into Hadrian's sword and broke it in half, before impaling him when he spun back around.

"Curse...you...Britannia was once under Roman rule…"

"That time is long gone." Hadrian disappeared, ridding Rome of one of its commanders.

Charlemagne and Trajan went head to head, with the French king's power overtaking the Emperor's, similar to the other fight.

"We separated the two of you. You and Hadrian balance each other out; you're the offense and he's the defense. But both of you are overshadowed by Constantine by a large margin. Rome is only seen as an impenetrable city because he's there, not because of you two. Robert and I are handling you easily."

Trajan began to strike back with his sword as much as possible, but Charlemagne kept blocking them, then gathering light into his blade and firing a beam out of it, piercing through Trajan's heart, making him disappear as well.

"Finished over here, Your Majesty." He called over, making Louis nod and Constantine glance over.

"Then get back, and leave him to me." The two nodded and regrouped with the others, just leaving the rulers facing each other.

"Your empire is in shambles now. You've lost."

"I'm well aware of that. I came out here half expecting you to have switched sides anyway. Comparing the military might of Rome's to Britain, we are superior, only because of me. But without me, Robert could have defeated every single one of my commanders single-handedly. That's why you switched, wasn't it?"

"Yes, that's part of it. But the terms of their alliance were also more beneficial than yours were. Now let's do this."

"Very well. But I don't intend to make things easy for you at all." He drew his own sword.

"Retreat! We need to give them space, they intend to fight to the death!" Charlemagne called out, the French army turning around and beginning to march away, Ritsuka's group following.

Constantine unsheathed his sword, made of pure silver, and slashed Joyeuse, Louis beginning to fight back as the two traded blows.

Both swords gathered energy into the blades and clashed, discharging a massive burst that blew both of them back.

Getting back onto his feet, Constantine hurriedly took out a jeweled crucifix, beginning to blast rays of white light out of it.

Louis, also now recovered, slashed through them, glaring at his opponent.

'I'm at a disadvantage here. Joyeuse is my first Noble Phantasm and he's keeping up with it. I can't use my second or fourth because the Chateau is already set up back in Versailles...I'll have to finish this with my third…'

"Le Roi du Soleil!" Louis' body began to glow with golden energy, bursting out from him and blowing Constantine back.

The Roman Emperor gritted his teeth, looking at the now enhanced king.

"My true power as a king, where I absorb the power of the sunlight to enhance all of my abilities to a level close to that of a Grand Servant. Now let's see what happens." He pointed Joyeuse at Constantine, firing a massive beam of light towards him.

The Roman Emperor hurriedly held his cross back out in front of him, and started to channel mana, preparing to block the attack.

"In the name of The Father, The son, and The Holy Spirit, Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob, Rachel and Leah, Joseph, Moses, Saul, David, Solomon, Elijah, Joseph and Mary, Jesus, and the 12 Apostles, wipe this slate clean and allow the Lord's light to break through all evil spread before me! Sanctae Crucis Verum Fidei!" Constantine's cross absorbed the light easily, leaving him the same as before.

"So you're not going to be that easy to defeat after all…" Louis dashed at him and began to trade sword blows with him again, but once again, he clearly had an advantage.

"So it's just that I can't use ranged attacks because of that cross of yours. Fine then, I'll just beat you with close combat." His strikes got faster, and Constantine continued to be overwhelmed before yelling out, with a white burst of light blowing Louis away.

'It's all or nothing! I've got to at least try to take him out with me!' Constantine ran over to Louis and placed his feet on his chest and his sword hand, preventing him from moving.

"The time is now! Strike down the non-believers in the names of all those who are holy and see you as the one true god! I willingly give myself up in order to smite this heretic! Maiestatem Verum Fidei: Quoniam Iudicium Dei!" Constantine raised his sword into the sky, and an enormous burst of white light shot up and expanded, incinerating the whole field and beyond, the two of them being engulfed by the attack.

"What was that?!" Ritsuka's group felt the shockwave and saw the attack from a distance, all of them now at the very edge of the field by a forest.

"That must have been a Noble Phantasm of Constantine...King Louis does not have an attack like that." Charlemagne ran out, holding his hand out to have the others remain where they were. Reaching the top of the hill, he looked out and saw Louis heavily damaged, pulling himself up with his blade, and Constantine's body dispersed into spirit particles, having sacrificed himself.

"Your Majesty, are you alright?!" Charlemagne ran down and helped him to his feet.

"What happened?"

"He...used a suicide Noble Phantasm on me point blank. He must have realized that he couldn't win, so he tried to take me out with him."

"That attack was nothing to laugh at. We could see it clearly even from where we were."

"Yes, it was most likely an Anti-City type. However, it certainly did its damage. I will have to recover, and we should make our way back to Versailles right away to hasten it." He regained his balance and walked back alongside his right hand.

"We've won! It's France's victory! Well done men, Rome is now our territory!" Louis announced, the army cheering.

"Wow...what an amazing guy." Ritsuka breathed, the others nodding in agreement.

"Now, the first thing to do is to get back to Versailles and prepare for our occupation of the empire. I'll need soldiers sent to Rome, Milan, Florence, and Venice to keep charge of the remaining Roman forces. Once that's established, we can focus on the next steps of the war. But for now, we shall celebrate! A feast for everyone tonight!" he declared, the army cheering once again.

X

Of course the feast was lavish. Held throughout a few adjacent dining rooms but mainly in the grand ballroom, many tables were set up, some for sitting, some with food on them: everything from pots of soup to plates of bread, meat pies and roasts of chicken, turkey, duck, boar, venison, beef, and pheasant, shellfish and stews, fruits, and plenty of wine and champagne while Salieri played violin along with a few other string players to entertain the guests.

Louis lent them all dress clothes so that they looked the part, Hayashi and Ritsuka wearing black suits with overcoats, and the girls wearing gowns of their color of choice: Jeanne in dark blue, Nero in red, Anastasia in light blue, and Raikou in purple.

"Enjoying your meal, Ritsuka?" Charlemagne walked up to him with his own glass of champagne.

"Yes, it's wonderful. You guys really spared no expense."

"I'm afraid that's a habit of the king's, even during his lifetime. As he was a well-liked ruler, he often threw lavish parties for those he invited. Ironic that that same motion would be frowned upon only a century later." He glanced over at Marie, who was chatting with Saint Louis.

"Yes…"

"Are you uncomfortable with this atmosphere? I know being around a lot of people like this is not everyone's preference. I tire of it myself sometimes."

"I'm more used to it than you'd think. There are many more like those five I brought with me back where we're from, so meals can get a bit rowdy sometimes. But you're not fond of it yourself?"

"Not particularly. I rather enjoyed having a private meal with my family. Of course, I had more than a dozen children, so it wasn't that different from this." he laughed.

"Yes, I imagine so." Ritsuka chuckled along with him. "Is His Majesty alright? I only saw him for a brief time at the beginning of the feast."

"You don't have to be so formal, you can simply call him King Louis when he's not around. And actually, he usually takes meals in his study, as he often has work to do. Even if this is an irregularity of history and time, he still takes great care in making sure that the country is progressing properly, not just about this war. Ironic, really."

"Ironic? Because he throws a party he himself doesn't get to enjoy?"

"Well, that, yes. But also because much of his power and authority in life was exercised through the battles that he fought and won, the military prowess he was gifted with. Yet now, he cares largely for the people he's in charge of."

"Some Servants change after they die. They no longer have to worry about the perils of life or their former responsibilities, whatever they may have been. But on the other hand, some are cursed." Ritsuka gave a sad sideways glance at Salieri as he finished a piece and everyone clapped.

"I'm glad Mozart wasn't summoned. I've never seen him so content, just with Marie."

"Yes, I know what you mean." They stood in silence for a few minutes, sipping their drinks.

"I meant to ask you."

"Hm?"

"Even this age is almost a thousand years after when you lived. Are you surprised at all at what the country's become?"

"A good question. In a way, yes. But mostly, no. Oddly enough, I feel just as comfortable here that I did in my own time."

"I see." Ritsuka smiled, finishing his drink. "I'm going to get a bit of fresh air and explore the gardens...do you mind?"

"Of course not." Charlemagne smiled warmly, and Ritsuka bowed slightly before placing his glass by the dirty dishes and sneaking out of the palace.

The sound of the fountain's water running calmed him, as he went off to one of the sections of the gardens, examining the different flowers, the moon shining brightly in the clear night sky.

Exhaling deeply, he turned around to find a man dressed in dark red samurai armor with white and gold adornments and long black hair staring him down, a good foot taller than him.

"Enjoying your night, Master of Chaldea?" His deep yet calm voice froze Ritsuka's blood and body. After all this time, he had thought that he had become fearless, after fighting beasts such as Tiamat, Goetia, Ivan the Terrible, Surtur, and even a divine version of Artemis, but there was something about this man's presence that was so intimidating, that TERRIFIED him.

He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"...Ah. My apologies. My aura has that effect on all of my nation's natives." Ritsuka felt his breath return to him as the air became warmer again he stepped back, looking the man in the eyes.

"W-Who are you?"

"You may call me Saber of the Beginning. I am the Military Commander of the Empire of Japan."

"Why are you here? And how did you get here without anyone detecting you…?"

"Like they could pinpoint my mana. It's far too powerful to be recognizable on the same level as Charlemagne's or Louis'. As for why I'm here, I find you quite interesting. You are contracted to multiple servants, after all, even though you yourself have no real magical talent. I wondered what you were like, especially since you are a citizen of Japan."

"I'm from Chaldea first."

"Don't say that so quickly. I understand that your world's circumstances are quite different from this one's, but given the chance to return to your roots, I'm positive you'd develop a connection to your home again."

"So you're just here to talk? To see what I'm like? Seems like a long way from home to be here just for that."

"How perceptive of you. You have outlived your usefulness, as a matter of fact. You and your friends set things in motion here again, and now things will go on as they were. Sayonara." He unsheathed his sword, a gleaming katana, before stabbing Ritsuka through the heart, his eyes going wide as he realized that his clothes were very quickly beginning to stain dark red, and the same liquid began to rise up through his throat.

"You see, this is our world. And you're the factor that could turn the tide of this war. I can't have that. I hope you understand that I take no pleasure in doing this, but it is something that must be done nonetheless."

Ritsuka coughed up blood, some of it splattering onto his face and continuing to flow from his mouth as he used the last of his strength to look up at Saber, who lifted him up with the sword still in him before he said a few last words.

Ritsuka's senses had already left him, so he could only make out a few syllables before what happened next.

"Ku...gi...tsu...gi…" Was all he could make out before the blade channeled lightning and fully electrocuted him, Saber quickly pulling his sword out and swiping it down to rid it of blood, a few sparks of electricity coming off of it, then going back into his sheath, leaving Ritsuka for dead as his body fell to the ground with a thud.

Saber turned around and began to walk away when he heard footsteps coming towards him, halting his own movement.

"Master! Are you out here? Your mana fluctuated and I wanted to make...sure…" Raikou came face to face with Saber.

"Who are you?! Why are you here?!" She instantly changed her clothes to her normal fighting outfit and took out her sword, going on guard.

"The same two questions he asked me." He stepped to the side to show her what had happened to her precious Master.

"MASTER!" Raikou ran past him and bent down, picking him up, her own hands trembling at the sight of him. His eyes had no life in them and he wasn't even responsive to her touch, his body limp.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" She placed him down and took her katana out, lunging at Saber, who sighed. His necklace, a jade magatama, lit up and gust of wind surrounded him, blowing through the area. Just as Raikou was about to connect her attack, Saber drew his sword faster than the eye could see and sliced through her abdomen, a whirlwind swirling around his blade this time.

Raikou also fell to the ground, her own wound spilling blood out onto the dirt, forcing herself to look up at him.

"I'm surprised you're still alive. That means that he must be as well, as weak as he is. I suppose I should fix that."

"Wait…!" She grabbed his ankle as he walked past her, stopping him.

"On my honor as a Minamoto...I will not let you hurt him anymore…!" She coughed.

"You're a Minamoto? I thought you would be stronger than this. I'm disappointed. It seems the strength of our warriors truly did decline after my death…"

"What…?" Raikou let go of him and he walked over to Ritsuka again, unsheathing his blade and preparing to stab him again, this time through the throat.

"Lady Raikou! Lord Ritsuka!" Saber stopped when he saw Saint Louis running towards them.

"...Damn. If I stick around, I'll be forced to fight the entire French forces, and I still need to use you all. I guess you get off easy this time." He sheathed his sword and took one last look at Raikou, whose vision was fading.

"Next time, fight me seriously." His body disappeared with the wind, and everything went black.

End.

I imagine Saber of the Beginning looks like Ryoma from Fire Emblem Fates if you want to visualize him better.