Chapter 1: A Coat of Change

Revenge. That is all she wanted.

Revenge at the man who has abandoned her.

Revenge against the man who was the reason for her never being able to see her mother again.

Revenge at the man who she had once called father.

She wanted to crush him, to hurt him, to show him the hatred she felt for everything he had done to her.

And soon she would get her chance.

The name of the man she wanted revenge at, more than she wanted to even keep breathing, was Emiya Kiritsugu.

The Magus Killer.

One of the only survivors of the 4th Holy Grail War and once known to her as a loving father.

But it was all a lie.

He abandoned her without looking back, he used her and her mother for his own egoistic goals.

She knew because…he never came back.

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

Five long years had passed since the man and her mother had left the girl behind to participate in what was known as the Holy Grail War.

A tournament to the death, only known by one special group of the world's population – Magi – even among them only certain individuals knew about the specifics that surrounded the mystery that was the Holy Grail War. Even fewer still will ever get the chance to participate in it. However, not being part of these few chosen ones may be the luckiest outcome these individuals could ever hope for.

Why, you ask?

Well, because there are two facts about the Holy Grail War which are universally known by every Magi.

The winner will get his most desired wish granted, whatever it may be.

World domination, learning all the truth of the world, or even becoming a hero of justice. Everything was possible.

This sounds great doesn't it?

It certainly does, at least if you are oblivious to the second fact every Magi knows…or should know.

In the tournament known as the Holy Grail War there can only be one winner.

In a tournament where the price is an omnipotent wish granting object, there will be only one winner.

You still don't get it?

Then let me ask you.

To which lengths would you go to attain your deepest and most important desire?

Would you give up your life for it?

Would you give up the lives of others for it?

Would you spill the blood of innocents? Or would you try to stand by your feeble excuse for honor and only end the lives of those who have, in your eyes, fortified it anyway by participating in this Holy War?

Whatever reason there is, it is not important.

Whatever wish there is, it doesn't matter.

At least not for the little girl who for the fifth time this day draws a magic circle on the cold, stone floor of a castle. Which stands hidden deep in a snowy white forest, where no unwanted eyes will ever reach if not allowed.

Her hair was as white as the snow that seemingly covered everything beyond the many tall and wide windows of the castle.

Her eyes were as red as the purest ruby and they glowed as bright as the hatred that shines through them everytime she thought about the man who had betrayed her.

She didn't have a wish for the Holy Grail, she only had her own ambitions and the Holy Grail War was the tool for her to achieve them.

But that's only what she wanted, what she desired.

Her family, one of the oldest magi families that exist to this day, had other plans.

They wanted to win the Holy Grail War at all cost to reduce the shame which they thought had befallen the family. A family which was one of the initial founders of the Holy Grail War many, many years ago.

The shame which had befallen them was the simple fact that they had been unable to achieve even the slightest triumph over the other founding families in the previous wars, let alone to win the Grail.

They too didn't have a wish for the Grail. They too only had their own ambitions.

The only difference was…that she was their tool this time.

In the last war it had been her father, who hadn't only betrayed her and her mother, but had in a ludicrous manner heightened the shame of the family by abandoning the grail for unknown reasons after it was already in his grasps.

For unknown reasons.

But the little girl didn't care.

For her there was no way to justify the actions of the man who had abandoned her.

He was evil, an enemy, a traitor and someone who had broken her trust.

And soon he wouldn't even be that anymore.

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

Einzbern Castle, Germany, year 2000

It was a little more than one year later, on a cold afternoon, that she was called to her grandfather's study.

Old Man Acht, or so he was called by some, was a rather strict looking man, with white hair and a beard which reminded her of a frozen waterfall of all things.

His strictness wasn't surprising as he was the current head of the Einzbern family and the responsibility for the success of the family rested on his shoulders alone. A monumental weight. That though did not make him more likeable in her eyes.

'And there are some obvious reasons for that too…' she thought as Old Man Acht started to address her.

"Illyasviel…", he spoke her name without emotion."…It has been reported that your performance in your training yesterday was inadequate and your lack of concentration was quite noticeable," his calm, almost impassive voice carried a hint of furiosity that anyone who didn't known him as long as Illyasviel did would have missed.

She stared at him impassively as she waited for him to continue. She knew that she didn't have the right to speak yet, but it was admittedly hard for her to hold her tongue.

'I have been reported?' It was a farce, she thought. Sella, her magecraft teacher would never double-cross her. She and her other maid Leysritt were the closest thing Illya had left of what resembled a family, and it was not much.

'Even this bond may only be there because we all are the same…' her thoughts were interrupted as Old Man Acht started to speak again.

"To neglect your responsibilities is not acceptable, the next Holy Grail War is only a few years away and I will not tolerate another failure this time around, you will not disappoint me like that man did. You will not be a failure…" her skin prickled for a moment at the mention of him.

"…Your only purpose is to reach the Holy Grail - there is nothing else you will worry about. Have I made myself clear?"

This was the cue for her to start speaking or to be more accurate, to start agreeing.

"Yes, I understand, grandfather. I will not fail you," she said in a respectful manner.

"Good, I expect nothing less from you. You will catch up on what you have missed yesterday and you will work even harder in the coming weeks," he stared her in the eyes for a moment, straight and rather forceful, and she again felt the warning.

"You can go now and devote yourself to your evening studies," he said while moving his body for the first time in the conversation as he gestured to the door with a short wave of his hand.

Of course he hadn't asked why she didn't work as hard yesterday or why she was distracted enough to be noticed, but she had never expected him to.

As commanded she rose from the chair she sat on, a rather noble looking red patterned armchair which was quite comfortable she had to admit. It was certainly sad that the most enjoyable part of meeting the man who was, if only technically, her grandfather, was the seating.

'Only a thing more for why I loathe him. Abandoning me in this place of all things,' she thought darkly.

She closed the dark, wooden door to her grandfather's study carefully and proceeded to strode onwards along the grey and cold corridor of the Einzbern castle right to her personal chambers.

To her annoyance the only thing she could think about this night was the day before…her birthday.

She didn't really deem this day special and didn't care all that much for it, but to her surprise her maids Sella and Leysritt had happily gratulated her, and both had tried to make the day more pleasant for her without someone noticing, which hadn't worked all that well in the end it seemed.

She was first reluctant to their ideas, she never had much motivation for anything besides her studies while being in this dark and gloomy castle, but her childish side could not be suppressed for long.

And so she happily played some offered games with the two maids who, even if they looked a little out of place acting like this, seemed genuinely pleased to see her happy.

As sleep finally claimed her there was one final thought that crept into her unprotected and tired mind before she fell into a deep slumber.

'Would every day be like yesterday, if he was still with me?'

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

What she couldn't have known in the night almost three years ago was that this would be her last happy birthday for a long time.

She didn't know if Old Man Acht had instructed her maids to no longer distract her with such an unimportant event, or if there was another reason, but the outcome was that she never experienced a happy day like that again.

It didn't matter to her anymore.

A few weeks back Old Man Acht had informed her that the exact date, as exact as it was possible anyway, of the next Holy Grail War was known and that it was not even a year until it would officially begin. She couldn't stop her body from shaking for at least a week after hearing those words.

Soon.

Soon the time would come when she would get her revenge.

In only a little while the day when her life would finally have a purpose would arrive.

And after that, after she got her revenge, she would deliver the long awaited triumph to her family. And then. Then her life would…end.

Maybe, just maybe she could see her mother again after that.

'Everything will be over soon,' she told herself.

Even if she would fail to become the grails complete vessel her end would come sooner or later anyway. That was the fate of a homunculus. Sella and Leysritt, her original maids both died shortly one after another not even a year ago. They had only reached the age of four before their bodies gave in. Illyasviel on the other hand was not like a normal homunculus. She was special. Her lifespan was more than five times as great as theirs, yet even her end was coming ever closer. This didn't matter if she would achieve her goal.

'And I'm now one step closer,' she thought as her glance fell down onto the red symbol on her right hand, which almost appeared to be a part of the skin.

A Command Spell, only granted by the Holy Grail itself to mark the person it deemed worthy as a so-called Master. Only a Master could participate in the war to come. Only a Master could summon a Servant to fight with, and only a Master could claim the Holy Grail and utter their deepest wish to it.

And she would be without a doubt the strongest Master in the war.

She was created this way, to be perfect, to be the strongest tool which would bring the Holy Grail back to the Einzbern family.

This was the sole reason for her existence.

This was why her lifespan would see her barely reach the age of adulthood before burning to cinders.

A long and happy life for her was not one of the things that was wished for when she was created.

Sure, her mother loved her and she thought her father had loved her, but they were both long gone each for different reasons. With both her maids gone, there was no one left who cared for her.

Yet it did not matter, she told herself - because she was strong. The strongest mage that ever existed in her family. Her magical capacity alone dwarfed everything her family members could muster in comparison.

She was so powerful that, if she wanted, she could separately crush anyone of them.

But what for? She had nowhere to go. She never had been in the outside world before.

There was no one she could turn to.

She was alone.

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

'Faster…faster…please move faster!' she thought, as she tried to urge her body forward through the maze like forest without any sense of direction or clear destination in mind.

Her whole body was in pain as she stumbled through the deadly environment in which she has been trapped in for hours now.

The sun had begun to set. Slowly but steadily vanished not only the dim light of the forest, but the freezing cold of the night came forth and made the forest an even deadlier place to be in.

She had run for hours through the frozen and snow-covered landscape being dressed only in a white nightgown, without anything that remotely resembled shoes or even socks on her feet. This was not something that even a her body could shrug of easily. Being a homunculi had many advantages. She didn't need to eat and drink if she didn't want to, she needed very little sleep, her body was highly resistant compared to a human one and she didn't even age normally.

Well, the advantage of the latter was quite arguable when your body looked like a ten year old girl for the rest of your life, but that was beside the point.

However, even a homunculus had its limits.

In particular when the freezing cold was the least bit of her worries she could have at this moment.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

As the sound of the growl reached her ears, her body had already started to respond to the by now well-known sign of immediate danger. She threw her body to the left without thinking and ended up smacking hard against a tree. Her whole world seemed to shake for a moment. Still, her quick reaction was all that saved her, as a pair of razor-sharp fangs barely missed her left leg and rushed forward into a nearby snow heap instead. She stumbled for a moment on the uneven ground, before she regained her footing again and managed to turn to the threat that had almost claimed one of her limbs in its assault.

Ruby red starred in dark brown as the creature which had seemingly recovered from its failed attempt to attack her fixated on her with its gaze and let out another threatening growl.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

Now that she could see the creature clearly she recognized it instantly. A black furred wolf which, according to her knowledge, was a good deal larger than any of its brethren you would encounter around the world.

Its fur was covered in a red substance which gleamed in the remnants of the evening sun.

Blood.

The problem was, the blood was not the beasts. Her body had reacted not only on instinct, but on experience. Experience that she had now gathered for hours. This was not the first beast that tried to claim her life on this day. The many bruises and bloody cuts on her body did clearly display this to any none-existent onlooker. And it would not be the last one to try. This, she was sure about. It didn't manage to hurt her in its earlier attack which meant that the blood had already been there. It must be a survivor of a pack she already encountered.

Survivor, since she wiped them all out; or at least she thought she did, but it appeared that this was not the case. There was only one thing she could do now.

Kill.

She would kill it like the rest. No matter how unreal big the wolf was and how dangerous it would be to a normal human. Against her it was nothing. There was no hope for it on its own.

Her magical energy – her Od, was still immensely high even after a whole day using magic for battle and survival, she didn't need to bother about it.

However to her regret magical energy was not the only thing that mattered.

The deadly cold of the forest, the hours of running and fighting tugged at her endurance.

She was tired, dead tired.

And while her body was more resistant than a human one, it was still only the body of a fragile little girl. Her legs were shaking from the forceful effort to keep standing and her breath came only in hard fast gasps. As strong as she was with her magecraft, if the enemy was numerous enough or cought her by surprise, she could still be overwhelmed.

Most of the wounds on her body were repercussions of this.

Others however, she had trouble to admit, were sustained from her toppling over some branches and snow piles while running away from the battlefields. She had tried to put some distance between her and the numerous beasts which would be drawn to the fresh corpses and spilled blood.

Many could pose a problem, but this one was alone so her best option was to kill it silently and fast before it could lure other beasts to her location.

With a quick yank some strands of her snow white hair were plucked from her head and she kept it in her fist while pointing at the black wolf.

She exhaled and inhaled deeply once searching for a moment of inner calm over the wolf's loud growls. Just as the wolf had apparently enough of their drawn out staring contest, she started to speak in a clear and authoritative voice.

"Ich bin eins, ich bin alles. Mein Körper ist mein Schild und mein Wille ist meine Waffe."

The strands of hair clenched in her fist started glowing in a bright white light as they were pumped full with her Od. She opened her hand and while the glowing strands floated slowly to the ground she spoke the last command.

"Degen!"

At once the form of the strands changed, they became larger and started assembling themself together to form a wire construct striking similar to a sword. With only a wave of her hand the sword-like construct flew towards the side of the incoming wolf's body and dug deep into its flesh.

The onrush of the beast stopped at once as its body was pinned to the ground by the silver-glowing weapon. Only a yelp escaped its fangs-filled maw before the strength left the beast's body and it collapsed unmoving to its side.

She didn't lower her arm so much as it just fell on its own. Her breathing was heavy as she looked at the large blood stained spot below her right arm, approximately in height of her armpit. There one of the larger gashes, she had received beforehand, apparently ripped open due to her movements.

'I must have forgotten about it because of the adrenalin rush I was in,' she thought darkly as she tried to move her arm without so much as a weak twitch but a lot of pain as a result.

She hissed and cursed under her breath.

'And now I can't move it at all anymore,' a bitter smile crept onto her face at the thought, but she could not linger in this place where the corpse of the slain beast would attract others.

While holding onto her now useless right arm she again forced her sore limbs to move and started to run. She leaped over snow piles and roots, dodged any branch that would hinder her progress and just kept on running onwards until she found herself stopping on the border of a clearing. The exact clearing she was supposed to find. The place which was partially the reason for her being in this nightmare. She had finally found it.

When she couldn't spot any other beasts in the vicinity and only quietness permeated the clearing she let herself drop on a nearby root and tried to rest for a moment.

While she sat there for a few minutes unmoving and in silence like this; calmness finally settled in and the events of the day came rushing back to her.

How did it even come to this?

Of course she knew, because well, she had been there.

But it felt all so surreal to her.

It has been only three weeks since her Command Spell had appeared. She knew that the preparations for the summoning ritual were almost complete and that it was necessary for her to finish the last preparations herself before she could try performing it.

She also knew that it was highly unusual to attempt a Summon this long before the Holy Grail War even started. Particularly because to summon a Servant just weeks prior to the war was highly uncommon. And she would attempt it more than half a year earlier.

She didn't know if this was possible at all, but on the other hand her Command Spell had already appeared so why shouldn't it be? And even if it was difficult or more costly, her magical capacity wasn't so big for nothing.

Surely, if there was any chance to accomplish it she would have the best chances to do it.

Her family, or more precisely her grandfather and the other elders, seemed to think exactly the same way. They prepared not only magical knowledge, but they also had to undergo the endeavor to actually try and cheat by manipulating the workings of the Grail System itself.

Where every other magi family would certainly fail horribly. They conveyed the possibility to accomplish the task, which only a family could manage that was tied to the creation of the Holy Grail itself. What a lucky coincidence it was that they were one of these founding families.

But these things didn't really matter to her. She would never hear about or see these important endeavours that her family had undergone to manipulate the grail. And they would never show it to her either, since there was always the possibility that she could be captured and interrogated by another Master or even by the mage association if they noticed something act worthy.

And such knowledge was far more precious than her.

Unfortunately for her there was some information that she was prompted to know. If she wanted to or not. Just this morning she was called to one of the more obscure rooms of the castle, a dim lit research facility where most of the confidential magical experiments and researches were carried out. She was to her shock instantly magically constrained after walking through the entrance of the room. She couldn't move, she couldn't even protest or curse as she was picked up by some unknown magi from the family and was strapped to something that vaguely resembled a stretching bank. She remembered how she wanted to yell at them for treating her like this. How they could dare to lay a finger on her in this manner.

Sure, she was always treated harshly. Be it during training or in general. She was already accustomed to it, shrugging it off most of the time, but to not even know what was happening and why it was happening was just too much, even for her.

So when she had laid there on the table-like-object unable to move or speak, the only things she had seen and heard were the to and fro walking magi. Whose conversations she, for the most part, couldn't hear because they had talked in hushed voices and were out of earshot most of the time.

The minutes had dragged on and on. The nothingness of anything had become unbearable after a while.

That's when dark and erratic thoughts had started to creep into her mind.

'Have they deemed me worthless?

'Do they want to get rid of me?'

'What is their intention to do with me?'

Luckily, before she could start to think more deeply about it, explicitly the last one, the big wooden door of the room had opened with a loud creak and her grandfather had walked into the room.

He had only spared her a quick glance while walking by and had started to ask the unknown magi if everything was ready since the next part of the procedure needed to begin on time after this one was complete.

She hadn't known what they were talking about.

'A procedure? For what? Has this something to do with the Holy Grail War?' she really had not even the faintest idea at the time. No one had told her about this.

But now, not even quite twelve hours later, a part of her wished that she never found out.

Because she had soon learnt what the first procedure was about.

They told her then that a major part of finishing the summoning ritual was to enable the connection between Master and Servant to be at its best and most stable; so that the power of the Servant would reach his highest potential and the chance of an early summon would be improved.

For this and the general control over a Servant a Command Spell was needed, but the normal one didn't deliver the result they wanted. It was not enough.

This was the moment when she had understood why she was intercepted and had been strapped on the bank. They had thought she would refuse.

That she would run away from the chance to accomplish her ambitions, just because of some pain and hardship. They were wrong of course, but they hadn't known that. So they had taken safety measures to assure that their tool had no ways to complain or escape.

And so the first part of the procedure had started and they had carved countless fabricated Command Spells on almost her whole frontal body. She would never give in to something like this, but secretly she had to admit that she was happy that it hadn't been possible for her to cry during the procedure because of the magical restraints.

So she had at least kept her honor in this regard. Any other kind of honor had been violated by just working on her body. Because this hadn't been possible with her having clothes on.

However, she didn't care, if this was what was needed for her to get her revenge then she wouldn't object.

After that her restraints were loosened and her grandfather had begun talking to her about the second part of the procedure.

She remembered how dizzy she still had been and how strained she had felt after the long operation on her body and magic circuits. She had just sat there and listened while trying to regain a clear head and full control over her body again.

He had told her about the importance of the right time and place for the Summon. How everything they did would aid her in Summoning the strongest Servant with the highest potential this early before the beginning of the war and that she couldn't afford any mistake.

The best place for the summoning; so they had calculated, would be a forest clearing just outside the Einzbern castle which's history was spiritually connected to the Einzbern family and where many ley-lines were crossing.

The best time for her to try the Summon would be at dusk where her magical power would be at its highest.

If it was just that then there would be no problem and she had tried to indicate to her grandfather that she had understood and that she would not fail him.

She didn't knew if her grandfather even noticed her attempts before he fixed her with his cold, steel hard gaze and said:

"This is all that is important for Summoning a Servant who will allow us to win the war, but if you are not even capable of achieving the rest of the way on your own…then you are useless,"

He had started to elaborate on the task that would lie before her. She would first have to find the forest clearing on her own. There, a stone piece of an old Greek temple would await her, with which she would attempt to summon her Servant exactly at dusk.

Only if she came back with a Servant was she allowed to show her face before her grandfather again. If she couldn't then she wasn't welcome in the Einzbern family anymore.

She was thrown into the forest shortly after that, only covered in her nightgown that she thankfully was allowed to put on again after the Command Spell operation.

She was tired, badly hurt and even full of panic at one point, but she had made it. She had arrived at her destination. The sun had already started to set and dusk was only minutes away. The only thing she needed to do now was to draw the magic circle and attempt the summoning.

As she rose from her sitting place she could hardly believe it.

She had done it. She really had done it.

This was the final step of her preparation for getting her revenge. After she had summoned her Servant she could finally go and kill the man who had abandoned her.

The long years of harsh training, unloving family and hours of solitude would finally have paid off.

A malicious grin crept on her face as she thought about all the gruesome acts she could inflict onto the man. Only one thing was for certain...she would take her time and enjoy every second of it. The thoughts of it made her feel warmer inside then she had for hours now.

As she dragged herself to the center of the clearing, she could see the described greek stone piece, which was to her surprise in the form of a giant clunky stone sword.

'Or was it an axe instead?' she really had no idea.

The only thing she knew was that this monstrosity of a weapon would be impossible for a human to carry, let alone fight with.

'Servants are truly beings of a higher existence unmatched by anything currently alive; and mine, if his legends speak only a fracture of the truth, will undoubtedly be the greatest of them all,' she thought with a smug smile on her face, while kneeling in the snow besides the giant axe-sword. She started to draw the necessary magic circle for the Summon with her blood, which ironically she didn't need to hurt herself for, since she already had enough wounds to submit the needed amount easily.

The magical circle was nothing special or even hard to create, especially since she had practiced drawing it countless times over the last years. So, as her concentration was only half heartedly on drawing the circle her mind began again to wander to the Servant she planned to summon with this ritual.

Heracles, the greatest hero in Greek mythology. A Servant whose fame and glory was unrivaled by all but a handful of others in all of the legends and myths mankind gave birth to over the centuries.

A Heroic Spirit so capable that almost any of the seven Classes could be filled by him without decreasing his power or skills too much in the process.

However, she would not attempt to Summon a Heroic Spirit like him in just any Class, oh no.

She was instructed to summon him as Berserker, the Mad Warrior.

As a Berserker his already incredible natural strength would, through the class bonus, be empowered to even greater highs. The Berserker class had of course his drawbacks; namely the loss of all self and sanity of the Servant.

Or rather it would have been a drawback; for every other Master that is.

For her, the Einzbern family Master, the Berserker Class was perfect.

The family didn't want a tool that could speak its mind or object to their decisions.

No, they just wanted a Servant who would follow their orders unconditionally.

Furthermore, the more difficult control and the bigger Mana drain that came with the Berserker Class was also not a problem for her. No matter how you looked at it Berserker really had no drawbacks for the Einzbern family or her as its Master.

She would summon one of the strongest Heroes. Who on top of that would be under her perfect control, in a Class which empowered him even further. While her large Mana reserves and perfect summoning ritual would strengthen him even more.

To be honest; it was kind of ridiculous even in her mind.

There would be no match for him, no other Servant would stand in his way and live. He was the perfect tool not only for the family, but for her to accomplish her ambitions.

He was the perfect draw that could give her anything she ever wanted.

-But.

But, there were doubts in her mind that she tried to bury as soon as they emerged, because what was there to think about?

Just summon the strongest tool and kill the man you hate more than anything in this world.

It was easy wasn't it?

'But is that really what I want? A tool to abide by my command? A tool that I can use like my family uses me?' she didn't know where these thoughts were coming from, but the train of thoughts didn't stop just there.

'If, just If, I could summon Hercules in another Class would he listen to me? Would he maybe even aid me in my quest on his own accord, because he would understand me and the reasons behind it?' she could only shake her head at these thoughts.

Really, where had these come from? She, a mere tool who had no other reason to live then to kill the man who had abandoned her and to give her life for the sake of the Einzbern family, wanted to be treated as a human? Even worse; as an equal all of a sudden?

And that by a being which would traditionally stand beneath her as she was the Master and it the Servant?

It was absolutely absurd to give up something that allowed her to stand above someone else, to control them freely, just so that she could stand on the same level as them. To be equals. She shook her head,her family didn't see her as a human after all so she did not suddenly need to act like one.

'But…' She thought, as some memories of her early childhood forcefully struggled to the forefront of her mind. 'Didn't my mother love me as a human and not a tool?' The thought was followed by one she would never admit having while her mind was in a clear state.

'Didn't my father love me as a human and not as a tool, at least before he betrayed me?'

Ridiculous, Ridiculous, just Ridiculous!

What she planned to do was just plain stupid. She would be punished by her family, she would maybe even endanger her chances of winning the Grail, and she didn't even know if Heracles would believe in her goals or not. Her hand motion stopped for just a moment when she realized that she did not care about any of her worries. Just this once she wanted to be selfish for the right reasons. She wanted someone that understood her, someone who believed in her ambitions and most important, even though she was not completely aware of it, she wanted someone who would treat her as a human being and as an equal.

Yes she decided, she would omit the extra part of the summoning incantations which would have forced Heracles into the Berserker Class. She would let luck decide what Class he would appear in infront of her.

In her mind the only thing she did at this moment was that she changed a "assuredly win granting part" of the procedure, because of her selfish desire to be a little more human and less a tool, to something just a tiny bit more unclear. And yet what she couldn't have known at that time was, that she made her first big step to change her previously determined Fate.

At last she had finished the magical circle and got up on her feet, looking down on her creation in the snow. It was a flawless magical circle exactly as it was required for summoning a Servant.

She shivered a little as the strong winds blowing through the clearing made the ice cold environment too much to handle even for her. She wanted to rub her hands together to at least generate some warmth. However, as she tried to move her right arm and received a painful shock from it instead she was reminded this wasn't a possibility right now. She let out a small sigh, there really was no need to postpone the summoning ritual any more. Dusk had finally set in and her deadline was rather short after all.

After this she would be back in the perhaps dark and gloomy castle, but at least it would be warm there and her wounds would be cared for.

She positioned herself six feet away from the magical circle and lifted her left hand, pointing at her creation, she then began to speak in a clear and assured voice.

"Silver and iron to the origin. Gem and the archduke of contracts to the cornerstone. The master is my great ancestor ~ Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern…", thus she began the summoning Incantation. Her magical circuits started to swirl and hum slowly when they were all activated, and she soon managed to establish a connection between her and the summoning circle.

The part of the incarnation after that was predeterminate and was for every master the same, as such she recited it rather monotonously to the teeth. Only when she reached the middle part of the Incarnation after which everything was up to the individual summoner, or in a more flexible boundary at least, emotions started to come back to her words.

"…If thou wouldst obey this mind and this reason, then answer my call.

Thou who is all the good in the world.

Thou who holds all the ties in the world.

Follow the call of the Holy Grail.

Thou whose Fate is bound by many.

Thou who changes thy Fate.

Be it thy death that is deceived anew..." her voice seemed to reverberate deep in her being and it felt as if her whole world was shaking.

"…In accordance with the approach of the Holy Grail, if you abide by this feeling, this reason, then answer. Here is my oath." she inhaled and exhaled deeply once before she continued.

"I am the one who becomes all the good in the world. And I am the one who will hold all the bonds in the world," that was it. Only one line was left before the summoning was completed. She paused for a moment and closed her eyes as she began to speak the last line in a slow and careful manner.

"So O keeper of balance let thy Invisible Ties be bound by eternity, and

emerge of this sea of power and cross those veils of the unknown ―――！",

The whole world seemed to stand still for but a moment. Nothing could be heard, nothing could move.

And then…

…nothing happened.

No rush of energy, no activation of the magical circle, simply nothing.

Illya just stood there for a moment in silence before she dared to open her eyes, but even her only remaining hope was shattered as her gaze fell on the empty magical circle.

Nothing was there.

No Servant had appeared before her.

She tried to suppress a hurtful gasp that wanted to escape her throat at the realization, but she couldn't do it.

'I…I…have failed,' She couldn't keep standing as the harsh reality of her situation came crashing down onto her and the last strength in her legs finally left her.

She fell to her knees and stared at the empty summoning circle.

Did she fail because she had omitted the change of the last two lines of the summoning?

Was this the reason why she had failed? Was this her punishment for being selfish?

She didn't know, her mind didn't want to work properly and she could only think the same thought over and over again.

'I have failed,'

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

She didn't know how long she had sat there unmoving and without blinking, but the familiar growling sound which appealed to her instincts finally pulled her out of the worst of her shell-shocked state.

She still didn't move; only inclined her head to the source of the sound and saw the familiar figure of a black wolf which trotted slowly out of the forest and into the clearing. Its gaze fixed on her. And he was not alone either. Behind him more and more wolves appeared out of the forest. It was at least a pack of a dozen wild beasts which slowly began circling around her kneeling form. They growled threateningly.

Her Instincts screamed at her 'Stand up! Run!' But she didn't move. Why should she?

Everything was over. She failed to summon a Servant. Her grandfather would make true on his words and wouldn't let her return to the family. Even if he would let her return they would only dispose of her or dissect her in experiments to learn from their failures for their next a Servant or the help of the family she had no hope of achieving her own goals. Her fate led to this.

'Her goals,' the thought resonated with something within her.

Her ambitions to kill the man who had abandoned her. The man she wanted to hurt so badly for hurting her. The man she wanted to see again, be it before she died by his hands or before she killed him. She realized that it didn't matter which of those outcomes would occur. The only thing that was important was that she wanted to see her Father again.

She stumbled to her feet just in time as the first of the pack tried to attack her. She reacted instantaneous by using her left hand to rip some of her hair out. Her shaking body did not even flinch.

Again she tried to ground herself and spoke in a clear and authoritative voice.

"Ich bin eins, ich bin alles. Mein Körper ist mein Schild und mein Wille ist meine Waffe…" she again pumped Od into her hair and threw it towards the incoming wolf.

"…Buckler!"

The glowing hair expanded instantaneously forming a big shield like object between her and the wolf. With a loud crash and yelp the beast collided with the wire-shield and was thrown back through the air by several feet. The sound of bones cracking could be heard when it landed hard on some big protruding roots at the clearings edge. It did not get up again.

Yes, she could do it. She would live and find a way to see her father again, with or without the help of the family or a Servant.

A malicious grin crept to her face as she straightened her posture and starred at some of the now more cautiously moving beasts.

"You mindless beasts want to attack me? To kill me?" she started laughing in an almost crazy manner. Some of the wolves seemed a little bit frightened by the loud and disturbing noise, but they composed themself again after just a moment. Still, the delay was enough for her to create two more wire-swords and with a wave of her left hand the shield too transformed into a sword like form.

"No, the one who will be killed is you. I will tear you to pieces." Her voice was that of a sweet child again as two of her swords impaled one of the wolves and the third one served both front legs of another wolf. She licked her lips at the sight. As she concentrated on a fourth target something heavy crashed into her back and threw her some feet forward into the snow.

She hadn't paid enough attention to her surroundings and now paid the price for it.

She landed hard on her injured right arm and let out a cry of pain.

The burning pain was unbearable and she tossed around on the ground for a moment while holding her aching arm.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

Only the growl of a closing in wolf made her suppress the pain with sheer willpower for the time being. She looked up at the closest beast only six feet away and tried to call her wire constructs to her side. Only to realize that her concentration had been broken and the constructs had ceased to exist. There was no time to create new ones. Illya was sprawled helplessly on the snowy ground, her only functioning arm propping her up. She was surrounded on all sides by too many beasts to even try and attempt an escape and yet no feeling of panic claimed her in that moment. Only hopelessness and finality.

'So this is as far as I can go, this is the end,' she chuckled lightly to herself. Only seconds before she was all smug and screaming and now she lay defeated on the ground, how pitiful.

But at least she had taken some of them with her wasn't that something?

'…No,' said the little voice in her head, which had forced her to stand up and fight in the first place.

'No. Never give up. You have only this one life, never just throw it away without trying,' said the now louder voice.

But she had already tried and failed. Again and again.

'And what? Even if there is no hope, don't just go and die with despair in your heart!' the voice said louder and it felt more pronounced this time somehow.

'Even if this is your Fate, don't just be content with it and accept the outcome silently. If the only thing you can do to oppose you fate is your voice then use it! Show at least your dissatisfaction, darn it!'

The force of the voice of her inner thoughts made it impossible to ignore the stupid commands it was giving her.

So she should die with her convictions spoken out loud? Well, why the hell not. Her inner desires had a point. It was at least better than lying down and dying silently.

She again fixated her gaze on the closest wolf which was now only three feet away and prepared to leap at her. Therefore she just shouted the first thing that came to her mind, for more was no time anyway.

"I...I challenge my fate!", just as she found her last words, time seemed to slow down to almost a standstill. The power of her conviction resonated not only with her this time, but with the world itself. She could feel how her magic circuits started to swirl, how the leaping wolf sailed slowly through the air, how the other wolves appeared frozen in place and out of the corner of her eyes she could see how the magical circle in the snow was now shining with a bright red light.

In the next instant the world seemed to explode as the normal pace of space and time came rushing back to her - all at once. For the first time this day the events turned out to be too much for her fatigued and wounded mind and body.

Her whole world went black.

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

"Mhh, that's certainly ironic so what should I do now?"

The first thing she heard as she regained consciousness was a question not even addressed at herself.

Her head throbbed painfully as she slowly sat up and opened her eyes. All she could see was a blurry white landscape. 'The snow,' she thought, but to her confusion most of her sight became obscured by a mass of dark colours in the following moment.

"Ah, I see you are awake now," the voice said, this time from right in front of her. It sounded kind, a slightly worried undertone reverberated through it.

'Worried? For who? Her?' she thought confused as she tried to clear her blurry sight by blinking rapidly. Finally her vision was clear again, and certainly there was still snow on the ground, but more importantly she now recognized the former black and purple spot for what it really was. A heavy looking, dark purple coat with long sleeves and some light purple markings on it. The front was only closed with a single button at chest level and was otherwise open, revealing a cream-colored shirt underneath it. The look was completed with a matching hood which the wearer had not decided to put on.

"There are better places to take a nap than on the ground, you know?" the wearer of the coat told her with a small grin on his face. He was a man of average build with unruly hair just as white as hers. To her annoyance, she recognized sparks of mirth dancing in his eyes for some reason.

"Here," the man added, offering his hand with a smile.

She hesitated for a moment, but as the genuine smile never left the man's face she took his hand and was pulled to her feet. She stumbled for a moment before finally regaining her footing. Now that she was stable on her feet again, she took her time to examine the surroundings which certainly looked different compared to the last time she had seen it.

The first thing she noticed was that dusk was over and the night had settled in. A big full moon hung in the sky, illuminating the surroundings well enough that she would be able to see everything clearly. Even if her sight hadn't been already enchanted from being a homunculus.

The next thing she noticed was the blood and the corpses that were spread all over the forest clearing. Just next to where she had sat moments before lay one of the dead wolves -'the one who leaped at me?'- cleaved through neatly in the middle.

She saw up to three wolves who had shared the same fate. However the majority of the body's were intact and only their strange looking flesh indicated that their insides had been burned or something similar to it.

'He did that? Does this mean that he is my Servant? He certainly doesn't look like anything Heracles was ever described as,'

There was no point in guessing she would just have to ask him.

"You, speak. Are…", before she even got to start her question she was interrupted by a sudden new weight on her shoulders and a comfy feeling of warm fabric touching her skin.

This led her to quickly look up from the corpse she had been fixated on. The heavy looking coat the man had worn now rested on her shoulders instead and had, although too large for her, at once started to naturally snuggle against her body.

She turned around and came face to face with the white haired, now coatless man who kneeled on one leg to seemingly establish eye level between the both of them. She was so puzzled by the actions of the man that she couldn't manage anything else than to stare in the dark brown eyes in front of her and simply wait. Luckily, she didn't have to wait for long.

The man began to speak just then, with a solemn look on his face, but his kind voice was still present.

"Upon your summoning, I, Servant Caster have come forth. I ask of you, are you my Master?"

She was still confused and had many questions. In particular about the summoning ritual and the identity of the Servant before her.

But right now it didn't matter. Right now there was no hesitation in her voice as she answered the only question that needed to be answered.

"Yes,"

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

Spirit: ?

Class: Caster

Master: Illyasviel von Einzbern

Alignements: Neutral Good

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: ?

Class skills:

?

Personal skills:

?

Noble Phantasm:

?

~Invisible Ties of Fate~

Author's Notes:

The sentence "Ich bin eins, ich bin alles. Mein Körper ist mein Schild und mein Wille ist meine Waffe"

is German and means "I am one, I am everything. My body is my shield and my will is my weapon"