Fate Grand Order: Ars Nova: Final Remnant
The Ravishing Idol's Paradise: Akihabara 2012
Section 8
Akihabara Freedom Fighters
Location: Himeji Castle
Time: 8:34 PM
Date: December 21st, 2012
Eiji frowned as he knelt in front of the summoning circle. Some time had passed since his arrival in Akihabara, and so far, things weren't looking good. He had been trying to make contact with Chaldea, but hadn't gotten any results. He was growing concerned, he hadn't spoken with Commander Olga or Director Da Vinci since he had summoned Rider. He couldn't help but wonder how things were going on back in Chaldea, especially with the Church and the Association being there. He hoped they weren't giving them trouble.
"Fou?"
He glanced down beside him, at the small creature that had tagged along. Fou had a similar look on his face, one of varying concern. He was beginning to wonder if coming on this adventure with Eiji had been a good idea. The mage gave him a smile, patting his head.
"It's alright Fou, I'm sure things are going well over there. The Mage's Association can be a scary group to deal with, but they're all a bunch of blowhards."
"Is that your honest opinion on them, Master?" a familiar voice said, causing the man to look over his shoulder. Emiya stood behind him, arms crossed, a neutral expression on his face. "The way you are dressed, that's a Mage Association Uniform, isn't it?"
"It is, I received the rank of Count when I first joined the Association. Seems as if they had been keeping an eye on me and Rin from a distance. Had that Holy Grail War happened, there's no doubt we would have been recruited by them. After all, they were looking for a reason to dismantle that Greater Grail, for years now." he admitted, glancing up at the sky. "They got their wish when Illyasviel went in and dismantled it for them. Of course, she got rid of all the pieces herself, so they were extremely pissed. The look on the Headmaster's face was priceless."
"You dislike the Association very much, I could tell the moment we met that you weren't like the other mages I have encountered. If that's the case, why remain there?" the archer class servant asked, earning a shrug from Eiji. He rose to his feet, allowing Fou to climb onto his shoulder.
"The Mage's Association provides a lot of information and resources to its mages. Resources I have taken advantage of over the past four years. When I went there for the first time, I was weak, and without direction. Now? I'm still without direction, but at least I'm stronger." he said, shrugging. "I could be stronger though."
"Is that why you chose to become a mage of Chaldea?" Emiya asked curiously. "You wished to get stronger, so you became a Stargazer?"
"Pfft, of course not. I joined Chaldea for a lot less than that." the brunette admitted, patting Fou's head. He stuffed his hand in his pocket, fumbling around for something. He pulled it out, holding it up so that Emiya could see it. "This is the reason I joined Chaldea."
Emiya shuddered a bit when he saw the necklace. It was familiar to him, one he had seen before. In another life, in another battle, this necklace had been a catalyst. It had belonged to a woman, one who was stubborn, had a bad attitude, but had a good heart. The one who would lead him down the right path. Of course, in this other world, he was but a Nameless Servant of the World. One that made a different deal with the Planet, one that hadn't been summoned to her side. It would forever be one of his many lingering regrets.
"You joined Chaldea because of a necklace?"
"It wasn't because of the necklace, it was because of who it belonged to. The one who taught me magic, and set me on this path. She was taken from me. At that moment, I became lost, I didn't know who or what I would be. I think I relied a little too much on her." he admitted, glancing at the jewel in his hand. He saw his reflection on it, the soft glow made him smile a bit. He chuckled, glancing back at his servant. "Chaldea sought someone like me, so they could use my abilities to help the world. I agreed, but only because I wanted to use their resources. Commander Olga said she had one of her best searching for clues. All I have to do is keep up my end of the bargain."
"The Holy Grail, right?"
"Pruning this singularity, the Grail is a close second," Eiji said, stuffing the necklace back in his pocket. "Commander Olga promised me that Grail, and once I have it, I'll use it to fulfill her wish, to bring prestige to the Tohsaka Estate. Only then will I take her name, and do what she set out to do."
"Is that all you wish to do? Certainly you have other things you'd want from an omnipotent wish granting artefact." Emiya said, making the man quirk a brow. "You could bring her back you know."
"So she can kick my ass for taking someone else's life? No thanks. I know how these things work, Archer. In order to bring someone back from the dead, someone's life needs to be taken, so that person can be brought back." he said, closing his eyes. "There's only one life that has less value than any other, the one of her killer, but I know Rin wouldn't like that. Every life is precious, even the one belonging to that bastard. If I wished for her to come back, she would probably kill me until I died,"
The Archer class servant couldn't help but laugh. "That sounds like Rin to me,"
"Anyway, it's no use dwelling on the past. I know Chaldea will help me find her killer, and will keep up their end of the bargain. I got no reason to leave, and I most definitely don't want to return to the Association. They're already being a pain in my ass," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean seriously, of all people, they had to send Reines to supervise me and Luvia? Couldn't they have sent someone else? Christ, makes me wonder if El-Melloi did that just to annoy me."
"Regardless of that, I came here to check up on you, Master. Rider decided to do a quick survey of Akihabara's Southern End. The location Asahi Tachibana resided at was clean, it seems like he moved to a new location. Whatever lead Caster of Akihabara had, has been rendered useless." Emiya said. The mage sighed, exhaling loudly.
"Shit, I was hoping that wasn't the case. But it is predictable, I mean, almost defeating a servant has its effects. However, that also exposed our intentions. He's likely going to see us as a threat now. Facing off against Foreigner is one thing, but almost killing Assassin is another thing. He's gonna be on his guard, and likewise, we should do the same."
"Is that why you've had Caster reinforce the Bounded Field?" the white haired man asked, earning a nod from Eiji.
"Yeah, Anastasia learned a few tricks from Circe and Medea, especially about strengthening bounded fields. I told her to strengthen key locations around this keep. I've been trying to convince Osakabehime to start preparing the guns, but she doesn't want to use her Noble Phantasm offensively. I'm not going to force her, either." Eiji said, glancing up at the beautiful castle that spanned before them. "I'd like to keep the fighting away from here, if possible."
"I've been scouting a potential battlefield, it's located near the center of Akihabara, with a good leyline running through it. I believe it's one that our opponent is familiar with. If we lure them there, we should be able to use a bounded field to trap him there."
"Near the center, the only place of interest is UDX, you think that place is good?"
"It was built over that leyline, and in fact, runs through Akihabara Plaza, and underneath Radio Kaikan near Electric Town. That one was the one you were tapping into, the day you arrived here. The bulk of it lies beneath UDX. Why else do you think Caster of the Endless Rave built her stage there? In Akiba Plaza?" the man asked, earning a nod from the brown haired mage.
"It's as good a place as any. We'd likely have to lure the other servants out, and defeat them systematically. There's no way he'd send Caster out to fight us. He'd likely send out a frontal assault. Lancer of the Idol's Paradise, Saber and Assassin. He'd keep Foreigner with him as backup."
"Why do you think he'd keep Foreigner close to him?"
"Because she's an anomaly. Foreigner Class servants are usually hosts to other things. Abigail Williams, Katsushika Hokusai, and a more recent arrival, Yang Guifei, have been classed as Foreigners due to the Outer Gods attached to them. Da Vinci and Olga Marie confirmed there's an Outer God attached to her, but we don't know which one." Eiji said, glancing up at the sky, he focused on the clouds above them, noticing a slight shift in their movements. He must have stared at them for far too long, because Emiya and Fou joined in, both confused as to why he was watching them so intently.
"Something catch your eye, Master?"
"The flow of the clouds, it's slowing down a bit… shifting," he said, noticing something else. The hole in the cloud cover had been sealed up. Previously, one could see the night sky, the stars and even the moon. Now, it was completely gone. "There's something else going on here, but I haven't figured it out yet, something about those clouds is making me wonder though. I feel like I've read something with a similar cloud cover to this."
"Perhaps looking at Chaldea's files will yield results." the archer class servant said, clearing his throat. "But there's something else I came here to speak with you about, about Caster of Akihabara."
"Oh?"
"She's lying to us, about something. Have you noticed her constitution is a little bit weaker than normal Caster class servants?"
"I have, but I compared her strength to that of weaker Casters. Shakespeare and Andersen come to mind. They've been given a Bronze ranking in Chaldea's systems, I figured Caster of Akihabara fell onto that spectrum."
"Yes, I considered that as well, but Caster of Akihabara is different. She doesn't have the strength of a low leveled Caster, in fact, I think she isn't a Caster at all. She fits another class," he said.
"So, what you're saying is that Caster of Akihabara is… not a caster?" Eiji asked. Fou had a questioning look on his face.
"Think about it, Master. What other servants have been summoned to Akihabara? Caster of the Endless Rave and Lancer of the Idol's Paradise are from the original summoning. Osakabehime is the Assassin that was summoned here as well. Rider and Berserker were likely defeated, and Saber is with Tachibana. That only leaves one class. Why is it that this war allowed people to summon two Casters? Unless someone is lying."
"You're… right. The Holy Grail System is very specific. Under normal circumstances, only 1 of 7 available classes can be summoned. Extra Classes can be summoned with different chants, so the likelihood of an Avenger, an Alter Ego, a Foreigner or a Moon Cancer being summoned are low. That means the missing class, the Archer, is either dead, or you."
"But I wasn't summoned here due to the war, I was summoned as a Masterless servant by the World itself. Foreigner was summoned here by Tachibana, and so was that new Assassin. This is the only conclusion. Either Caster of Akihabara is lying, or what we know about Caster of the Endless Rave isn't accurate." Emiya said, making Eiji frown.
"Christ… what a mess."
"If solving the problems of a singularity was easy, then Ritsuka Fujimaru would have finished in 2017." the archer said, making the young man chuckle.
"You got a point there. What do you think, Fou? Think Caster of Akihabara is lying?" he said, directing his question at the fluffy creature, who held a single paw up.
"Fou! Foufoufou!"
"Hmm… I don't completely understand you, but that didn't sound like a no to me. We should head back inside, I need to talk with Anastasia about something. I'll try contacting Chaldea a little later." Eiji said, heading back toward the castle.
"Say, Master… there's something else I'd like to discuss. I was speaking with Anastasia earlier, and she briefly mentioned a Mystic Code you had on your person. One that Chaldea developed in order to help mages. We're likely going to face some very powerful enemies, and I'd fight a little easier without having to worry about you."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because I know you want to fight Assassin by yourself. I can sense that about you, you want to overcome challenges by yourself. Rather than asking Caster to fight on your behalf, or Rider or myself, you are going after him. I don't plan to stop you, but I do want to help you by any means possible." the red cloaked man said, making the young master smirk.
"Well… if you'd like to help me with that endeavor, I'd really appreciate it."
"Tell me how it works and I'll help you. After all, I am a hero of justice, and it wouldn't be right if I let someone as young as you die to an anarchist." the man said with a wink. Eiji let out a chuckle, shaking his head.
"Well, do I have an interesting Mystic Code for you."
The Next Day...
"Anything?" Eiji asked, a look of concern on his face. Anastasia fiddled around with the laptop she had brought along with her, typing a few sequences on it.
She wasn't the most tech savvy servant, in fact, she was sure there was a servant who was better at this than she was. However, Da Vinci had explained everything about this particular device to her, before their Rayshift. It was a special device, which when active, would automatically connect to Chaldea's Near-Future Observation Lens. SHEBA was perhaps one of Chaldea's most important systems, though when comparing it to LAPLACE, CHALDEAS and TRISMEGISTUS, it was near the top of the list. It was a closed circuit security system for Chaldea, allowing simultaneous communication between the past and the future, as well as scanning the Future, all while LAPLACE monitored and collected data of the past. Eiji was still quite impressed with how Chaldea's prized projects worked so perfectly. Though, with Marisbury Animusphere's victory in the 4th Fuyuki Holy Grail War, he figured it wasn't too hard to see how it all worked.
Which is also why Eiji was so worried. Two days had passed since his run in with Assassin. He had yet to make contact with Chaldea. Anastasia had tried for hours the day before, but nothing had happened. He figured something must have happened to the device, and resorted to using his CSC, but even that had failed. He was beginning to grow worried.
"Apologies, Master. Despite the crash course Da Vinci gave me, I am having a lot of trouble synching up to SHEBA. It's possible it might be something on our end. Things tend to go haywire when the time stream is being distorted." the white haired woman said, looking up from the laptop, a curious look on her face. "Did you read the reports from Chaldea's most recent rayshift?"
"I did… they named it, "The Forbidden Advent Garden: Heretical Salem", a distorted singularity taking place in modern day Salem, Massachusetts. It was a time distorted version created by the Demon God Pillar, Raum. One where he recreated Salem and kept hosting those disgusting witch trials."
"Correct, do you also remember what was surrounding modern-day Salem?"
Eiji closed his eyes for a moment, thinking back to the report. It was one that was delivered by several people. Ritsuka Fujimaru, Mash Kyrielight, and the associated servants, Robin Hood, Prince Nezha, and Mata Hari. Charles-Henri Sanson had been there as well, but due to certain circumstances, he didn't have memories of the events. He recalled the events surrounding Abigail Williams, her confirmed status as a Foreigner Servant, due to her hosting an Outer God in her body and… something else that slipped his mind.
"The Mist." he said softly. His eyes widened a bit in realization, as he rose to his feet, heading toward a nearby window. Osakabehime jolted awake, an incredulous look on her face.
"I'M NOT A BAT, I'M A FOX!"
"Um… are you alright?" Anastasia asked, earning a confused look from the ravenette. She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, fumbling around for her glasses.
"S-sorry… I stayed up late finishing some panels." she mumbled, her gaze shifting toward Eiji, who had his face sticking out of the nearby window. "Is… something wrong with him?"
"I think he's onto something."
Ignoring the loud explosions of fireworks, and bright neon lights, Eiji noticed the swirling clouds in the distance, which had kept the people stuck in Akihabara. Following them up to the sky, he noticed the swirl of the clouds had shifted, moving in the opposite direction to when he and Anastasia had arrived. Remembering what the reports had said, the Mist resembled the same clouds he was seeing. Of course, he couldn't prove they were the same thing without seeing it himself, and he didn't think approaching the edge of town was a good idea. He stepped back from the window, closing it after himself.
"I'm not sure if it's the same case but, those clouds, they look and feel the same as the reports. Salem was surrounded by a thick mist that kept modern technology from passing through it. Robin said he lost track of Mash at the edge of the forest due to how fast time was moving. Time was moving in Salem, but I think I figured out what's keeping this Singularity stuck in time."
"Well, looks like you'll have to hold that thought, because I think I finally connected!" his servant said. He hastily moved across the room, earning a groan from Osakabehime who was in the process of surfing through the television channels. Since time was repeating, so was the local programming, meaning the soap operas she was used to seeing hadn't progressed forward. Eiji knelt down before the laptop, just as an image appeared on the screen.
"Yoohoo! Can you hear me?"
"Da Vinci!" the two cried, looking overjoyed. The image cleared, finally showing an image of the Universal Woman, who had a small grin on her face. Olga Marie and Mash Kyrielight flanked her sides, both of them focused on their own modules. He also noticed Ritsuka Fujimaru in the background, sipping from a coffee mug.
"We're so glad to see you, all of you! We've been trying to contact Chaldea for the past two days. Is everything alright on your end?" Eiji asked, sounding very concerned.
"We're doing alright, just a minor hiccup. It seems Sheba went a little haywire after our last communications. Turns out, time is starting to get a little whacky in your neck of the woods." Olga Marie said, a frown on her face. "Tell me, have you made any progress while our comms were down?"
"You could say that." the man said. He jumped a bit when he felt Fou jumping onto his lap. He smiled a bit, patting the small creature on the head. "Looks like this little guy wants to say hey,"
"Fou!"
"Hey Fou, are you behaving yourself? You better not be causing Eiji-san and Anastasia-san trouble over there!" Mash said, making the small creature tap the screen.
"Fou! Foufoufou!"
"Don't you worry, Mash. This little guy hasn't been a bother, in fact, he's been staying with Osakabehime since we arrived in Himeji Castle. I didn't think it would be a good idea to bring him with us when surveying the city." the brown haired master said, glancing over his shoulder at their hostess, who was lazily glancing at the flatscreen before her. "I think she's starting to grow tired of this. Nothing's on TV, and her hand cramped up from working on Manga all night."
"Muu… don't remind me! I'm almost done with that panel, and you promised you'd ink them for me!"
"I did, but work comes first, I promise to help you after we're done with our meeting. If Caster of Akihabara comes back that is."
"Can we get back on topic? We don't have much time before we lose comms again, and I would at least like to have some information on this Singularity."
"Mrow, the kitty is angry today," Da Vinci said, earning a glare from the former director. She rolled her eyes, leaning back into her seat. "But she is right, Eiji, what's been going on in your end?"
"Well, let's just say, a lot of things have happened. I'm sure you've been monitoring my vitals these past few days. If you noticed some elevated numbers, that's because we had a run in with another Heroic Spirit, an Assassin. Rider, Archer and I held him off but I ended up getting injured." Eiji said, rubbing his neck.
"What? Are you alright? You know if you get severely hurt back there, you'll die, right?" Ritsuka cried, a look of surprised worry on his face. "Maybe I should rayshift over there, and give you a hand."
"Relax man, it wasn't a serious injury."
"It was a gunshot wound," Anastasia said.
"It was a graze."
"I pulled a bullet from your thigh and stitched you up! That is not a graze!" the duchess said, glaring at her temporary master, who returned her glare with equal force.
"An Assassin who uses a gun huh? Were you able to ascertain his identity? Or any other traits we can possibly use?" Mash asked, making the man shake his head.
"Sorry Mash, I didn't. The only thing I was able to gather was his Noble Phantasm. His weapon is a FN Model 1910, which fires twenty bullets. He has to use all of them in order to use his Noble Phantasm, and each bullet corresponds to a different element. He's also quite physically adept, capable of going toe to toe with Archer and Rider, he even managed to injure the two of them."
"I see… and this Noble Phantasm, what is it exactly?"
"A single gunshot, it's an Anti-Unit, Noble Phantasm. He chanted something in another language, Serbian, if I were to guess. He named it "Shot of Chaos". As for his appearance, he was young, probably in his 20s, smooth black hair, fair colored skin, stubble, black clothing, a winter jacket of sorts, slacks and boots. He doesn't have any noticeable discerning features though."
"Fantastic, that narrows it down to about 1500 potential candidates." Olga Marie said, sighing audibly. She rubbed her temples, glancing away from the screen. "I'm sorry, Eiji. It's been a rough couple of days for me. I have the Association breathing down my neck, the Japanese Government wants to know what we're doing to eliminate this threat ASAP and the Holy Church is doing fuck all to help us. Not to mention, we've been formally requested to shutdown one of our reactors, and all non-essential personnel are being confined to their living quarters."
"Are you fucking kidding me?" the man asked, eyes widening in surprise. "Who the hell ordered this? I thought we were cleared by the U.N. to take on this mission? Didn't Alfonso throw money at them so they'd stop interfering?"
"I'm afraid it isn't them, Eiji-san. The United Nations is concerned about our activities, but when presented with files and data about Akihabara to the World Leaders, they all unanimously agreed to keep the operation going. Furthermore, it seems the President of the United States has gone above and beyond to ensure Chaldea remains in operation, earning approval from the President of Russia, China, the Emperor of Japan, as well as the President of Brazil. Canada and Mexico have also unanimously agreed to support us. Spain, Italy, Germany, Greece, Argentina and Peru have joined as well." Mash said, surprising the man.
"Huh… never thought I would see the day where the US, Russia, China and Japan all worked together for a common cause. Makes me think something else is going on behind the scenes."
"Whatever that may be, as long as it doesn't involve singularities, it doesn't matter. What does matter is how we're going to solve this particular problem. We ran some numbers and discovered the state of Akihabara's outerboarder matches with the singularity values of Salem, Massachusetts. That swirling cloud around the city happens to be the same Mist that enveloped Salem." Da Vinci said, earning a nod from Eiji.
"I see, so I was right all along." he mumbled, rubbing his chin. "It could be that Mist is what's erasing memories and transporting people to their locations the day prior, making them believe no time has passed, a reset, if you will. We've actually seen them in action, the moment the sun starts to rise, time seems to stop, before reverting to a previous state."
"That matches our data, what it's suggesting at least." Olga Marie added, leaning back in her seat. "Could it be the same plot Raum had set in Akihabara? No… but the data doesn't show the city is being recreated. Just that time is being reverted."
"I have a question. Miss Mash, Master Ritsuka, when you were both in Salem, did you notice something odd about the clouds?" Anastasia asked, making the two share a look.
"Something odd? Well yeah, there was a lot of stuff that was odd about it. For one, citizens of Salem couldn't leave. By horse, by carriage, by ship. I'm sure if planes existed, they wouldn't have been able to fly out of there either. It was all due to how fast time was flowing inside the singularity. 8 days passed while we were in Salem, but in the real world, it was more like a month."
"Try three months, Ritsuka." Da Vinci corrected, making the young man roll his eyes. "That mist was quite troublesome, it made it hard for us to communicate, and when we could, sound didn't transmit well. Of course that was because SHEBA was acting up, even still, this singularity is far different."
"I see… Master Eiji, tell them what you discovered about the mist," Anastasia said, earning a nod from the young man. She stood up, taking a hold of Fou, allowing him to stretch his legs out. He figured she was going to get a snack or something. He took a hold of Viy, hugging him tightly. Over the past few days, Anastasia's spirit friend had gotten accustomed to Eiji. Though he didn't trust him entirely, he did trust him enough to allow himself to be held, something Eiji considered progress. He cleared his throat, gathering his thoughts.
"Well, preliminary observations of the mist would have people thinking Akihabara is in the eye of a storm. In fact, it looks that way, the eye wall is thick, and swirling. When we got here, Anastasia and I could see the moon, there was a hole in the cover allowing us to see the sky. Theoretically, it could have been possible to fly out of Akihabara through that one hole, but now…"
He paused, licking his lips. Mash, Da Vinci and Olga were on the edge of their seats, their eyes firmly glued to the monitors before them. They couldn't seem to get a good read on Eiji's expression, but the three could see the slight fear and worry written on his face. His eyes shifted back onto the screen, firmly locked with all three of them.
"That hole sealed up. We can no longer view the night sky, simply confirming its existence is difficult. Not only that, but the movement of the mist seems to have shifted as well."
"Shifted… how so?"
"Well, Da Vinci, it was flowing clockwise. You could say, it was keeping to the flow of time. Me and Ana noticed, as the morning approached, it would slow down, and when it came to a stop, the day would be replaced with night. Bada-bing, bada-boom, the day would reset. But I've kept a close eye on it today and well… it's no longer flowing in a linear way, rather, it's flowing counterclockwise now."
Everyone remained silent for a moment, processing what the man had just shared with them. Even Okasabehime seemed to be interested in his words, having shut the television off. The distant exploding fireworks were the only sound, albeit, quieter than normal. Finally, after a few moments, Mash spoke, having adopted a pensive look on her face.
"So, time is flowing backward?"
"That's the thing, if time were flowing in a linear pattern, then obviously, it wouldn't be December 21st, 2012 would it? However, the mist flowing backwards is also a cause for concern. It could be Akihabara itself is regressing, while progressing at the same time."
"So time is frozen, but also flowing?"
"Ugh… see? This is why people shouldn't mess with time. Wacky stuff like this could happen, throwing a wrench into everything. How the hell can time be frozen and unfrozen at the same damn time?" Olga Marie cried, grasping her head tightly. "What kind of singularity is this? This is unlike anything the other singularities threw at us!"
"The previous singularities were all caused by Geotia and the ilk that managed to escape from the Temple of Time. Though unpredictable, the singularities they caused were at least logical, in a sense. But this one is very different, unlike anything I've seen before. Even Salem wasn't like this." Ritsuka said, closing his eyes in thought.
"Senpai, what do you think is going on there?"
"I dunno, Mash. Without being there myself, I can't exactly say. Then again, figuring out the composition of a singularity isn't exactly my forte. I just found the Demon God who had a holy grail, told my friends to hit it until it died and then brought the Grail back here." he admitted, rubbing his neck.
"That is a gross understatement for what you did man. You saved the damned world, all of humanity, my pathetic ass included! Just because you don't know something doesn't mean your experience isn't helpful. In fact, some of the stuff from the Salem reports has become useful, your description of the mist, as well as the time-stream distortions." Eiji said, leaning back a bit, glancing at the ceiling. "I think what's going on right now, is an adverse reaction to what happened two days ago."
"You mean, your encounter with the other Assassin?" Osakabehime asked, earning a nod from the man. She fiddled with her stylus, tapping it on her tablet screen. "Why would that be an adverse effect?"
"Because I fought against Assassin. I revealed myself, another Master, to our opponent. He also knows I command an Archer and a Rider, as well as a Caster. I'm a powerful adversary, who almost managed to take down a servant. The clouds, the mist, the time displacement? It's all been exacerbated by the holder of the Grail, this… Asahi Tachibana."
"I see… that makes sense." Da Vinci said, tapping a finger on her chin. "If I was told one of my servants had almost been defeated, by this new master. Someone who could potentially take something I value away from myself, I would be wary too. So I would use every resource available to make sure my stranglehold on my kingdom remains steady. In other words…"
"The holder of the Holy Grail used some of its power to strengthen the border. He likely used its power to mess with time-distortions. With the Grail, he could even wish for information, about Eiji, about Chaldea, about what we do. Even if Chaldea in 2012 was still an observatory, perfecting its projects, he'd likely be able to gather future data. Wouldn't he?" Ritsuka asked, earning a nod from Da Vinci.
"Fantastic… that means Eiji is fighting someone who for all intents and purposes, possesses infinite knowledge. How would you manage to defeat someone like that?"
"A full frontal assault. If we overwhelm them, they're likely not going to be able to counter. Caster of Akihabara went to speak with her Master, and should be returning soon. If they agree to join us, we'd likely have more numbers with them. If not, we'll have to fall back and use Himeji Castle as our last bastion."
"Ooh… I was hoping to avoid conflict."
"I know, Osakabehime, but it's our only option. I'm sure we'll get the desired result from the Caster of Akihabara's Master. She did provide us with information on this Asahi fellow. Not only that, we could cause unrest in their numbers. The look on that Saber's face leads me to believe she's there unwittingly." Eiji said, making the yokai nod.
"It's probably true, from the physical description you gave me, she matches the Saber that belonged to my Master's acquaintance. A young woman from the Mage's Association named Akira. If Saber is still around, it's likely her master was killed and had her seals taken from her."
"So there's a chance to turn one of their own against them… ah, but that would be difficult. Heroic Spirits that are summoned as part of Holy Grail Rituals are tied to the seals provided by that Grail, Meaning we wouldn't be able to override them and force that Saber into a contract. The only way we can do that is by…"
Da Vinci paused, a grimace on her face.
"Recovering the hand, right?" Ritsuka said, shuddering. "That reminds me… that time me and Mash went to Fuyuki in 1994, to that alternate Holy Grail War. Berserker's Master had cut off his own hand, and Zouken Matou had taken command of Berserker. Could we possibly do the same?"
"If we recover the hand, sure. But that's likely in their Headquarters, which is likely to be guarded. After our run in with Assassin, I can only assume Asahi tightened up his guard. I doubt he'd let Caster of the Endless Rave leave his HQ, meaning we'd have to head there personally. If we were to find it that is, let's not even consider it. Saber is a lost cause, we should focus on meeting with Caster of Akihabara's Master." Eiji said, shaking his head.
"I suppose, if all else fails, we could send more backup. The Association may have placed Team B under domiciliary arrest, but we still have access to catalysts. Just say the word and we'll send you anything you need." Mash said firmly.
"Provided, of course, there are other Masters there. Taking on more servants would be detrimental to your health, Eiji. You've already made a contract with Anastasia, as well as one with Medusa and Emiya. Taking on two or even three more servants could tire you out." Da Vinci said, making the young man sigh.
"Had I known I would one day be sent to the past in order to get a holy grail and save the future, I would have put forth more time into strengthening my magic." he said, almost sarcastically. "Enfin, we might as well try to solve this predicament ourselves, at least for now. If you could, would you mind sending us two catalysts? A Saber and a Lancer would do us well, it would round out our-"
"Um, Master… we have a bit of a problem." Anastasia said, suddenly entering the room. Eiji rose to his feet, having drawn his handgun. Viy was secured in his other arm, eyes glowing brightly.
"Who do I have to shoot?"
"No one," Emiya said, flashing into the room, accompanied by Medusa, who had a look of annoyance on her face. "However, it seems our dear Caster of Akihabara has returned, and with company."
"Company? What do you mean by that?"
"She brought her Master here, along with two girls. They call themselves, "The Akihabara Freedom Fighters", not only that, but they didn't come in peace. Simply put, they came here to kill you."
"WHAT?"
"I'm gonna have to call you guys back, the last thing I want is enemies cracking our skulls." Eiji said, giving Da Vinci a smirk. "Da Vinci, would you be a dear and look for relevant information on that Assassin? I'd like to have some results the next time we chat. I've decided it will fall onto me to take him down."
"Hai hai! I'll do just that, Eiji-kun. But you owe me one, think you could snag me something while you're in Akihabara?"
"Master, we need to go greet our guests,"
"In a minute, Ana. What would you like, Da Vinci? If it's within my power, I'll bring it back for ya."
"I was doing research on some limited edition snacks that came out in 2012. If you could, could you bring me some Macha Panda Gooey Balls?"
"Macha Panda what?" he queried, a look of confusion on his face. Da Vinci was about to elaborate, when Anastasia closed the laptop, successfully ending the call. Eiji looked up at her, a look of annoyance on his face. "What the hell Ana? I was in the middle of a conversation!"
She blew a raspberry at him, swiveling on her foot. "Let's go, Master."
"Alright, sheesh,"
"A bounded field huh? This close to our backyard? And it took this long for us to realize it?"
"Ne, sis… haven't we seen this castle before?"
The pink haired girl shifted her gaze toward her blue haired twin, her lips curved into a frown. In truth, she did recognize the castle, she had seen pictures of this place in history books. It was one of the most well known castles in Japanese history.
"I have, sis. But I can't explain why it's here."
"It's because of Assassin," Caster of Akihabara said, giving the two girls a smile. She glanced back at the large keep behind her, taking in the beautiful sight of Himeji Castle, along with the large Animate Skyscraper that rose from the center of it. "She was… the servant of a close friend of yours, wasn't she?"
"She was. Someone who we thought had been killed by Asahi." her master said, his tone filled with melancholy. He took a deep breath, taking in the scent of fresh sakura blossoms. The petals were slowly falling to earth, giving the entire area a serene look. Despite it being winter, the castle keep was quite warm, as it was early spring.
"So, I see you decided to return, Caster. But I wasn't expecting you to bring friends with you," the voice of Eiji said, causing the quartet to jump in surprise. The three humans locked eyes with Eiji, not having expected for him to just appear from thin air.
"Sorry, Master Eiji. When I told my master here that you wanted to speak, he sort of lost all faith in a potential alliance. I decided to keep the location of your base a secret but he sort of got it out of me, my bad," she said, rubbing her neck in embarrassment. Eiji said nothing, shifting his gaze toward her Master.
He didn't look older than sixteen, but he could tell this young man was much older than he seemed. He had tannish, brown hair, that fell down to the nape of his neck. He had fair colored skin, and bright green colored eyes. The young man was wearing a bright red varsity jacket, with an odd emblem on the breast. He was wearing a pair of blue jeans and sneakers. Eiji noticed the mark on the back of his right hand, a 9 point star, only one of the triangles that made it up was missing, leaving 6 visible points. Command Seals, the mark of a master, undeniable proof that he had taken part in a Holy Grail War.
They continued to lock eyes, bright green met cool blue, their gazes being firm and unwavering. Eiji could sense the young man's innate magical power, he didn't come close to his own power, but he could tell he was a good mage. He likely came from a distinguished family, one he had never crossed paths with.
"I can tell you're an experienced mage," the young man said, clenching and unclenching his fist. His gaze remained locked with Eiji's, eyes unmoving. "You've been training for a long time, but I can tell you aren't used to this."
"You could say that, in a sense, this is all new to me. I will say, I have been training, since I was very young. My best friend and I devoted our lives to magic, preparing for a Holy Grail War. Though this might be my first one, I do know what to do."
"Does that mean you're going to fight me? That you're going to take away what little I have left?"
"Why would I do that? My purpose here isn't to take anything, I'm not your opponent." the brunette said, his gaze shifting toward the twin girls. The blue haired girl stood behind her pink haired sister, a look of shyness on her face, contrasting the firm battle ready stance the other girl was taking. "Let me guess, if you are Caster of Akihabara's Master, then you two are Masters as well, Rider and Berserker, if I were to guess."
"How did you know that?" the blue haired girl asked. She was quite pretty, her hair cascading down to her waist. She was far younger than the other man, around fourteen or so. She looked like a middle schooler, and was dressed in a white uniform. She had a Command Seal on her left hand, which resembled a Rose bloom, the Leaf and the Stem were smudged, leaving her with the bloom itself, the final segment of her seal.
"He probably reads minds! He's an older, stronger mage, even Murasame onii-san can't measure up to him!" the pink haired girl replied, much like her sister, she was dressed in the same uniform. Her hair was cut short, two small ponytails tied at the back of her hair, with bright blue ribbons. Her Command Seal was, interestingly enough, on the front of her thigh. The red mark was missing a segment, and had originally, looked like the symbol of French nobility, the Fleur-de-lis. Eiji couldn't help but laugh, taking them by surprise.
"Ah… that's funny. That's a brand new one!" he said, almost cheerfully. He placed his hand on his hip, giving the girl a smile. "Just so you know, I can't read minds. That kind of magic existed back in the Age of Gods, and would likely take a lot of training to even learn it. I doubt mages of our breed can learn stuff like that."
"Oh? And if you don't read minds then how did you guess what servant classes we had previously summoned, huh?"
"It was a process of elimination." Anastasia said, standing next to Eiji, holding Viy tightly in her hands. Fou sat on her shoulder, fur bristled a bit as he glared at the unknown mages. "We were able to figure out what other classes Asahi Tachibana was able to summon with the Grail's power. Originally, he summoned his Caster. Assassin, who has graciously allowed us to stay here, confirmed her Master was killed in action. My Master, Rider and Archer faced off against the new Assassin, and saw Saber, who is likely tied to the previous Master, and is currently being forced to work under him."
"Saber, Caster and of course, our friend is Assassin. Foreigner confirmed a Lancer class servant being on his side, someone whose Master was likely slain here as well. Without a source of magic, she probably sided with Asahi. That only leaves three more Masters and three more servants. That means Rider and Berserker belonged to you two, leaving behind one anomaly, that being Caster of Akihabara here." Eiji said, his eyes shifting toward the blonde, a small smile on his face. "Tell me, you aren't really a Caster, are you?"
"Eh?" Anastasia cried, being taken by surprise. Archer and Rider both shared a look, shaking their heads.
"It was quite easy to figure it out, while "Caster" here does display the aptitude to cast magical spells, she doesn't have the constitution nor the strength to be a Caster class servant. Casters are capable of great magical feats. The Witch Medea is capable of casting element bending spells, and our white haired friend here can create ice from thin air, yet all you can do is swing a microphone around, not very magical, is it?" Archer asked, arms crossed over his chest.
"Aw man… I guess you got me." the idol said, shaking her head. "Yeah, I'm not a Caster. My master ordered me to pretend, so I would seem threatening to potential attackers. He thought, if they knew I was capable of strong magical spells and charms, that they would avoid me like the plague. That kind of didn't happen, did it?"
"No, it didn't." Rider said, shaking her head. "Did you actually think you could fool a genuine Archer? He figured out you were an Archer a long time ago. But we didn't reveal anything until now. We have our cards after all, it just wasn't the right time to play them."
"Whoa, wait a minute… this entire time, you knew about this and you didn't tell me?" Anastasia asked, shifting her gaze toward Eiji. "Why?"
"Because you're a blabbermouth." he said with a shrug, making the duchess go wide-eyed. "Oh don't act like that. I told you not to tell Assassin, Rider and Archer about that weird moment I had when I was twelve. But you went on and told them anyway, I knew letting Commander Olga share those files with you was a mistake."
"Um, excuse me? Yeah hi, we're still here." Murasame said. He stood before them, arms crossed firmly over his chest. "Figuring out my servant's true class doesn't change the fact that you are our enemies. I decided a long time ago, that it would fall onto me to save Akihabara, and I don't need anyone's help!"
"Except you do. You don't know anything about what's happening here, but we do. We have lots of information." Eiji said, standing firmly before his fellow Master. "Look, I didn't tell your servant to speak with you because I wanted to kill you, or your friends here. In fact, we were brought here for the sole purpose of fixing this singularity. This Holy Grail War you all partook in, it wasn't supposed to happen."
"What… what do you mean, sir?" the blue haired girl asked, a look of curiosity on her face.
"We're not at liberty to speak about that, we'll only share information with our allies. Archer told us you came here to kill my Master, and frankly, I cannot allow that. Losing him would hinder our overall mission here," Anastasia said.
"And what is that mission?"
"Classified information, I'm afraid," Rider replied, making the man sigh.
"Alright, I get it. A certain level of trust must be earned before information can be shared. I will admit, I did come here to kill you. But I didn't expect you to have so many servants under your command. I can tell you are far stronger than I am. In fact, I think you might be the one who will help us get to Asahi, make him see reason."
"Hmm…" the brown haired master said, tapping his chin with his finger. "What are you to Asahi?"
"What am I to Asahi? You mean, what I was. I was his friend." the man said, frowning. "We were part of the Holy Grail War together. He managed to get his hands on it before the other Masters, and made this wish. To have Akihabara be a sanctuary, an endless rave that he could enjoy for as long as he lived. The moment he made that wish, Akihabara became… this."
"Akihabara became closed off," the pink haired girl continued, taking hold of her sister's hand, squeezing it tightly. "The Holy Grail War began anew when Asahi grew bored, the former Masters were given their Command Seals back, and allowed to resummon their servants. That's then the true battle royale began. We tried to stop him, we did, but all that happened was a brutal fight to the death. We lost our closest friends because of him."
"Akira, Kotomi, Reiji…" her sister whispered, holding back the urge to cry.
"All of us were friends. We met here in Akihabara, in the anime convention held in UDX, we became close friends. Always hung out together. We made up our own club, the Akihabara Freedom Fighters. Some of us lived here, others were here every single day. We decided to help the people of Akihabara, both the ones who lived here, and the tourists, get around. We held free tours for travelers, played games with the kids at the arcade, and gave people advice on where to shop for computer parts."
"But then, that stupid Grail appeared here, and we were pulled into that war. Asahi didn't fight, in fact he chose not to even participate in it. Akira was the only person who survived the previous bout, along with Asahi and I. The others were killed, which allowed the Grail to manifest." the young man said, bowing his head a bit. "That day was when everything changed. Aoi and Akari here were brought in during the Second Grail War, Akira and I were brought back, and our friends Reiji and Kotomi were dragged in as well. Asahi thought it would be fun for us to battle each other. It used to be for fun, for a free wish, but the crowd egged him on. He started changing, and started enjoying the fight. Everything changed when Reiji was killed."
"He… ended up taking Lancer with him." the blue haired girl said softly.
"It got worse from there, Asahi wanted more action, that's why he summoned that Foreigner chick here. Not just that, but I'm sure your Archer class servant was brought here too, along with several others who are no longer here."
"The redhead is right, I was summoned here not long after the Holy Grail War started. I was meant to fight on the side of the Counter Force, I am the sole remaining survivor from those summoned here… no, I'm sure that Assassin we faced off against is one of them too, though I never crossed blades with him." Emiya said, sighing.
"You've been through a lot, I can tell." Eiji said, standing firmly before the three. He tugged on his jacket a bit, standing firmly before them. "Like I said before, I don't want any issues. I just want to recover that Grail. It's causing a temporal anomaly here which is threatening the stability of the future world. If we don't recover it, things could turn sour."
"Threaten the stability of… what?"
"Ow, big sis my head hurts."
"I… honestly don't have a clue what you are saying," the man said, resting his weight on his left leg, lips pursed a bit in thought. "But, I think… you're the person we've been waiting for. We've been fighting Asahi for awhile now, the last six months have been hell for us. We've lost friends, loved ones. We want to see the sunshine, we want to see tomorrow, and as long as Asahi continues to have that Holy Grail, we won't be able to do that."
"Murasame onii-san is right. I'm so tired of this party, of the fireworks, the confetti, the neon lights! I wanna see the sun, I wanna go to school, and see my other friends!" the blue haired girl added, a look of desperation on her face.
"I just want to see the next episode of Kamen Rider Climax Star Force Wonder Brigade." her sister said, making everyone look at her. "What? It was getting good!"
"That's the one with the giant bee in it, right?" Emiya asked, earning a nod from the girl, who had a cheerful look on her face.
"Mhmm… it was so good! Ah… those costumes are campy as hell but I love it."
"Ahem… moving on," Eiji said, regaining control of the situation. "I think it would be nice for you all to join forces with us. Of course, we will explain everything to you. Why we're here, what our purpose is and what our plans for recovering that Grail is. Not only that, thanks to our hostess, we were able to set up a summoning circle here. I've got friends who are set to send me some catalysts. The twins here can summon their own servants and fight alongside us."
"Do you mean it? We get to fight again?"
"Aoi, I don't think that's a good idea," her sister said, making the girl pout.
"Oh, come on, Akari! We can't keep hiding behind Murasame onii-san! We need to fight too, besides, we have command seals left over! It's our duty to fight!" Aoi cried, earning a sigh from her sister, who gave her a pat on the head.
"Fine, fine… we'll join the battle. But, I think we have to give them the initiation, you know?" Akari said, making Eiji and his servants confused.
"Initiation?" Anastasia asked.
"Of course, if you want us to help you, then you have to formally become one of us. After all, it falls onto the Akihabara Freedom Fighters to free Akiba from its current predicament. You want us to be cool, then you'll have to join us!"
"Hmm… alright, that sounds good to me, but first, an introduction." Eiji said, clearing his throat. He held his hand out, giving the three a smile. "My name is Eiji Itsuka, Master of Chaldea. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintances."
Murasame nodded, clasping hands with the brunette. "My name is Tokio Murasame, these are my foster sisters, Akari and Aoi Hazuki. I look forward to working with you."
"Likewise."
"Ahem."
Everyone looked toward Tokio's servant, who had a small grin on her face. "You are forgetting someone. Aren't you going to ask me what my name is?"
"Uh… sure?"
"Yawn… don't just answer like that! With feeling! You are looking at the world's first synthesizer turned human turned heroic spirit after all!" she said, giving them a wink.
"Wait… what?" Eiji asked, his eyes shifting back toward Tokio. He sighed, shaking his head.
"My original Archer servant was killed during the first war, but when Asahi won the Grail, he allowed me to make a wish, because I was his best friend. I wished for my favorite computer program to become a human. But the Holy Grail can't just make something that isn't real, real. If someone is brought to life, a life has to be taken in order to replace it. So, I wished for her to become the next best thing, a Heroic Spirit."
"That's right! No longer shall I be known as Caster of Akihabara! From now on, you'll call me by name! The name that I've shared with millions, the name of the idol that was birthed into the world to soothe the hearts of millions, who's voice has become widespread, well known and well loved by a select few fanatics the world over! My Servant Class is Archer, but my name is Nonoin Nillon! Charmed, I'm sure!"
Eiji, Anastasia, Emiya and Medusa were all left stunned, unable to comprehend what they had heard. Fou on the other hand took the more forward approach. He jumped from Ana's shoulder onto Nonoin's head, much to her surprise. He started tapping her forehead with his paw, making the girl cry out in pain.
"Ow, ow ow! What are you doing you little fur ball?!"
"Fou fou! Fake Heroic Spirit! Fou! Die Faker!"
"Jeez, Fou! Don't just attack her randomly, she isn't Merlin you know!" Anastasia cried, grabbing a hold of the small creature, who kept growling at Nonoin. "I'm sorry, he's normally well behaved."
"He's lucky he's adorable." she said, brushing her hair in place. She stood beside her master, placing her elbow on his shoulder, balancing herself on a single leg. "Now then, about that initiation?"
"Right. It's quite simple… It'll be a battle against Masters. Normally, I would handle it myself, but it's been a little while since I've seen the twins fight. So, your initiation will be to defeat the two of them in battle." Tokio said, a smirk on his face. "Fair warning, they're pretty tough."
"You...want me to fight two little girls?"
"Hey! We're not little, you know!" Akari said, cracking her knuckles. "We'll show you, right Aoi?"
"R-right!" her twin said, reaching behind her back for something. She ended up pulling out a handgun, much to his surprise. "My father gave us this when he started teaching us about magic, I won't go easy on you!"
"We'll let you get ready, half an hour should suffice."
"Alright, we'll meet in the central keep, that should be a good spot." Eiji said, earning a nod from Tokio, who gestured for his sisters to follow. Anastasia tapped his shoulder, making him turn around. "Something the matter?"
"Are you sure about this? Those girls may be mages, but they aren't as strong as you."
"I know that, but if I don't fight them, then Tokio will view us as enemies. It's much easier for us to go along with this than to be stubborn and reject his offer. Besides, he and his sisters have suffered for far too long in this place. We don't know what other shit this Tachibana guy put them through, but what I do know is that we have to put an end to it."
"Well said, Master. Which is why we should be ready for anything, I've taken your request into consideration. We have 27 minutes before your battle, I think that's enough time for me to teach you how to use it." Emiya said, giving the man a smirk. Eiji's lips curved into a grin, holding back the urge to laugh with glee.
"Thanks Emiya, I appreciate it."
Location: Northern Akihabara
Time: 11:45 PM
Date: December 21st, 2012
"Caster, are you sure this is the place?"
"Do you doubt me?" Magica asked, glancing over her shoulder at Foreigner. The two women were standing at the edge of a building, peering at a nearby location of interest. The famous Don Quijote, a store chain in Japan that had hundreds of anime goods. Not only that, but the famous idol group, AKB48 had their studio there and performed daily. This end of Akihabara was always well explored by tourists, and was a hotspot that everyone needed to visit. Along with the famous Sega Arcade, Super Potato, the Gachapon Store and various other places, Don Quijote was among the most popular and most documented places.
Which was why it had piqued her interest. Magica knew Assassin hadn't been killed when her Master did. She knew her Heroic Spirit had run off, after all, the Assassin that her master had summoned had been tasked with eliminating her. It made sense that this place was the one she would come to. After all, this was a heroic spirit who enjoyed this kind of stuff. Her Master had been the same, having a fondness for makeup, dolls and anime culture in general. When Kotomi had been slain, something told her this was the place her faithful servant would come.
"I'm not doubting you, Magica. It's just… Why here of all places?" the blonde asked, glancing back at the area before them. "All I see is a collection of buildings, some high end shops and a maid cafe."
"Of course, that's all you see. All you see is the material stuff that lies before you, I see something else. You see, servants of my class are more susceptible to magical enchantments than others. And as such, we have the ability to identify certain charms." the idol said, reaching into her sleeve. She pulled out a black and white cane, which she often used during her concert, having developed magic into her routine. She aimed her staff ahead of her, a grin on her face as it glowed brightly. "Watch and Learn."
Foreigner watched, entranced as several glowing balls of magic shot out of the staff, flying at the sky ahead of them. She had expected them to fizzle out, but was surprised when they hit something, bursting into wisps of magical energy. Magica turned to face her fellow servant, a grin on her face.
"Do tell me, what do you think stopped my magic from sailing through the air?"
"Um… a barrier?"
"What kind of barrier?"
"A bounded field," the blonde woman said, adjusting her mask. She stood closer to the edge of the building, eyes narrowed as she looked around the area. She noticed a surprising lack of people moving around that area, in fact, this entire place was devoid of anything, even the usual gangsters that prowled Akihabara, threatening tourists and party-goers. "Hmm… that would explain why there's a surprising lack of people here."
"Exactly, though most of them are at the concert back at the plaza, there are still people who are exploring Akihabara. Why is it that this place is devoid of people? Because the bounded field set here urges them to leave. They get to Don Quijote and see that large closed sign and are deterred, but that's part of the illusion." Magica said, waving her baton around. The mist that came from it showed a brief window, of what lied just beyond the barrier. "Heh… I was right."
"Wow… that castle… is hiding from the naked eye?"
"Indeed it is. Himeji Castle, one of Japan's greatest wonders, which is also inhabited by a yokai. A fox spirit forced into dressing like a bat due to a well known Fox Deity. The Assassin belonging to Kotomi Shimada, Osakabehime. Who has the ability to manifest this castle with her Noble Phantasm. This is the place our enemies have gathered."
Foreigner couldn't help but notice something else, the large canons affixed to the side of the castle, along with various other armaments. They all seemed ready to fire at a moment's notice. Just as the magic was slowly disappearing, revealing the normal appearance of Akihabara, the masked woman faced her friend, clearing her throat. "Magica, I'm sure you noticed those cannons but… do you truly intend on attacking this place? It's a well fortified fortress."
"A well fortified fortress that will go to waste. Osakabehime is nothing more than a scared little girl, she is not going to attack. In fact, it's in her nature to run from battle. I've seen this Noble Phantasm before, during the war before you were summoned. She used it as a defensive enchantment, the likelihood of her using it offensively is 1 in a billion."
"I see… in that case, it shouldn't be too hard for you to attack. But… What about that bounded field? How many layers thick do you think it is? It's blocking out your magic, as well as morphing the nearby environment."
"It's quite a few layers thick, nothing I can't handle, of course. But the brunt of the attack will be delivered by you, after all, you have more power inside you than you think." Magica said, giving the woman a wink.
"I see…" she replied, lips pressed into a thin line. "Okay, something is telling me I should run away from here. I don't even agree with what Asahi Tachibana is doing. I wasn't here for that Second Holy Grail War, he's killed people, his former friends! The only reason I answered his call was because the Grail gave me a chance, it gave me a body… I just… want to be with my beloved again…"
"You aren't… thinking of ditching us, are you?" Magica asked, looking back at the blonde, who had a look of surprise on her face. It quickly morphed into faux-anger, she wanted to keep appearances after all.
"Of course not! I was summoned here to help you and Master. Why would I turn tail and run now? He's the one supplying me with magic!"
"Hmm… a decent answer I suppose. But I don't exactly trust you, my master does, but that doesn't mean I do. Tell me, who was it that summoned you into Akihabara?"
"Master Asahi, of course." Foreigner replied, making the woman quirk a brow.
"Is that so?" she replied, holding her hand up. She had taken her glove off, showing off the Command Seals she had been granted, taking Foreigner by surprise. All three had been intact, and consisted of three stars, a large five pointed star in the center, with two smaller stars at the top and bottom. "These seals beg to differ."
"Wait… but that… you mean to tell me, this entire time, it was you supplying me with magic? But… I've listened to Master Asahi, he was the one giving me orders!"
"To keep appearances. Asahi thought it would be good to have a backup plan, thus, with the Grail's power, I managed to summon you, but we fooled you into thinking it had been him. This was before summoning Assassin, of course. Let's just say, the battle wasn't going in our favor, and we wanted to have a backup plan. It just so happens that plan is in effect now."
The woman growled, forming a ball of magic in her palm of her hand. "Whatever plan this is, leave me out of it!"
"Oh, sweetheart, you think you have a choice?" the white haired woman said, holding her hand out. "By Order of my Command Seal, I command you to listen to every word I say."
Foreigner grit her teeth, feeling the magical order taking effect. The spell she had created in her hand dissipated, as she was no longer compelled to attack her Master. The first star disappeared, leaving two behind, but Caster didn't stop there. "Now, with my Second Command Seal, I order you to not interfere in what you are about to experience."
"Not… interfere? What are you planning?" the woman cried, as she watched the second star disappearing, leaving the large one in the middle of her hand. The seals stopped glowing, as Magica held her hand out, summoning what looked like a black tome into her grasp.
"Tell me, do you know why you are classified as a Foreigner?"
"Because I used to be a wraith, someone who wasn't famous enough to become a proper heroic spirit. But I was based on a real person! I am a real person. The only reason I fight is so that I may reunite with my beloved, and you, nor Asahi will take that away from me."
"Oh, that's what you think. Fool, the reason you were summoned the way that you are, is because we needed someone important. Someone who had the qualifications of a Heroic Spirit but wasn't good enough. Someone who could provide us with a body, just in case we needed it, and it seems to me like we need it." she said, opening the tome in her hand.
"What… what is that book?"
"The Dark Writings of the Lord of Darkness." she said with a wink, clearing her throat. "Y' l' uln ymg', shub-niggurath, uh'eog ot wood, ph'nglui fahf bthnk."
"What… what the hell is she chanting?!" the blonde woman cried in her mind, feeling her throat tightening, she didn't know why, but she started to feel hot. Her head grew a bit cloudy, an intense pain forming in the center of her head. "What… are you doing to me?"
"Opening the gate." Magica replied, her grin widening. "Nog forth, c' mgah'n'ghft ymg' orr'eog! shub-niggurath!"
"AAAAHHHHH! STOP! MAKE IT STOP!"
"Sing for me, Christine! Sing, welcome our guest into this mortal coil! Y' vulgtmor fahf shuggoth l' ymg'! nafl'fhtagn! Shub-niggurath, Shub-niggurath! Shub-niggurath!"
The blonde woman felt the pain stop, a loud buzzing in her ears seemingly drowned out all sound. Her eyes were wide, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks. She felt her nerves on fire, her skin nearing its breaking point. She wanted to scream, but couldn't find the energy to do it. Everything was growing fainter, as if she was slipping away.
"I...What did… she do to me?"
"Don't fret… I'll take care of your body while you rest." a soft voice said, making her gasp. She didn't know why, but she was compelled to believe this voice. She closed her eyes, drifting off into a deep slumber.
"Are you going to assist me? I was the bridge into this new world, after all. I provided you with a body, and sufficient power, is that enough?" Magica said, glancing at the woman before her. She looked slightly different than before, her skin had turned a purlish, pale color, her beautiful blonde hair had gained a white tinge to it, her fingernails were black, and were more claw-like than before. The woman reached up to her face, removing the mask she was wearing, her glimmering crimson eyes focusing on the Heroic Spirit before her.
"I shall assist you for now, Master. This body is very nice, certainly not what I was expecting, but it'll do. This… Christine… she has quite a lot of willpower in her. But in the end, none are capable of defeating a creature like me." she said.
"Excellent, then… What shall I address you as?"
"Hmm… I've taken a liking to her name, Christine. Yes… you may call me by that, though Foreigner will also suffice. Now then, you require my power… what shall you have me do?" Christine asked, earning a grin from the Caster class servant.
"There is a barrier behind me, a Bounded Field. I'm going to destroy it. I want you to unleash your power on it, leave nothing behind. Destroy it all, and if you see anyone there, you may do with them what you wish."
"Your wish is my command, master." Christine said, bowing to the woman before her. Magica couldn't help but smile.
"Master, do you hear me? Our Plan is about to begin, we aren't going to let these people win. Chaldea is going to disappear here and now. Our Rave will never come to an end!"
True Name Revelation: Caster of Akihabara (Nonoin Nillon)
A/N: Another chapter done! This one was really fun to write, especially because it sets up for the approaching finale. As of writing this, there are two sections left, though it might end with 11 instead, depending on how things turn out. After that, we'll move on to the actual story. I can't believe this entire arc is just a prelude of the bigger picture lol. It's been a blast to write. I guess this one also confirms a question one of the reviewers had.
This is, of course, a set up for what is to come. Sometimes, I feel like Eiji talks about Rin a lot, and that's mostly because she influenced him a lot. She was his best friend, and he admired her, her strength, her ambitions, her tenacity. Him losing his best friend opened his eyes to how cruel the world could truly be, he's been stuck in that limbo for awhile now. I'm quite certain things are going to be tested in the future, and he is going to have a very, very tough time. As will the rest of Team B, who has been strangely absent, but that's neither here nor there. Things will be revealed soon. As Gandalf once said, Things have been set in motion which cannot be undone, case in point, our Foreigner being given her proper title. You don't even want to know how many hours I put into researching Outer Gods for this. I love the Foreigner Class but goddamn it, is it challenging to understand this H.P. Lovecraft stuff. Half of me wondered if Alien Artoria from another Universe would have been a better pick. But meh... no use dwelling on that now. Anyway, I have no idea when Section 9 will be out, but with the current pace, I would say around Thursday or so. I wanna buckle down and finish LB1 since I recently finished Salem. I am also making plans to visit the actual Salem in October, since I live about an hour and a half away from it, so uh... that's gonna be fun...
Anyway, that's it for now. Leave a review if you liked the chapter, and if not, that's okay too. See ya!