A Christmas Miracle:
A.D. 2019, Costa Rica
Section 1: Welcome to the Jungle
The sounds of screaming could be heard all around, as people fought back against the invasion. It happened so suddenly, no one had been prepared. People were using whatever tools they could find to fight back, but it was just too much. They were either fearful of the creatures, or too reckless. Cars were slamming into each other, and people were running away, often trampling and abandoning each other.
"Don't push! Keep moving back!" an officer cried, as he leveled his gun, rapidly pulling the trigger. The creature took the bullets, its skin far too thick for them to pierce it. He growled as he lowered his pistol, forced to run like the others.
"Help! Help me!"
A woman hugged her children tightly as she was surrounded by beasts. They were large, crocodile-like beings, far larger than a normal crocodile. They had thick, dark greenish-blue skin, their maws lines with bloodied teeth. They hissed loudly as they approached her. She let out a scream as one lunged forward, aiming for her neck. She closed her eyes, waiting for the end, only it didn't come. A shotgun blast filled her ears, and when she opened her eyes, she saw half of the creature's jaw had been blown off.
Standing in front of her was a young boy, no older than fifteen years old, with windswept brown hair. He had dark tan skin and was wearing a white tee-shirt with blue sleeves. He was wearing a pair of Cargo pants and sneakers, which were old and worn from frequent use. He had a look of sheer anger on his face as he pulled the pump of his gun, blasting away a second one.
"Enrique, Marcos, we need to get this lady and her kids out of here!" he called out.
"You got it, Alex. Come with us, señorita. We will get you out of here," an older boy, wearing a handkerchief over his mouth said, holding his hand out. The woman took it, urging her children to follow along. Alex kept watch, while Marcos kept his shotgun leveled, pushing back the creatures.
"What the hell is this man? I thought these things weren't supposed to get over the mountains so quickly!"
"Yeah that's what we all thought, but look, there ain't no more mountains. We gotta push back to Puerto Limon, get on a ship and go somewhere." Alex said as he took the chance to reload. There weren't any more beasts in the area, so they were clear to move away.
"Where the fuck are we gonna go? There's nowhere else. You know what the President said. Panama is gone, Columbia is gone! Nicaragua is gone! Fuck, the United States, the country with arguably one of the best militaries in the world, is gone! You actually think we can survive this?"
"Well it's better to fight back than to fuckin' quit, isn't it?" the younger boy shouted. An explosion filled their ears, a giant fireball towering into the sky. "We need to go before this whole area gets overrun."
The pair started running, ducking between cars, clutching onto their guns tightly. They ignored the screams of a few people that were being torn apart by some beasts, they were already dead, so there was no point in trying to rescue them. They turned around a corner, skidding to a stop when they saw one of the "Destroyers" as they had been calling them.
It was a medium-sized, jellyfish-like creature that was floating off the ground. It had hundreds of tentacles that glowed a white color as it moved. Whatever they touched was instantly destroyed. No one would explain why it was, but they seemed to be touching everything. It would take several groups of them to take down buildings, but the ones that moved around alone were the most dangerous, as they often went after people.
"Mierda!" Marcos shouted, as he raised his shotgun. He blasted it once, twice, three times, but the unknown being took it. Its solitary eye turned red, as it started floating toward them. "It's not dying!"
"We can't kill it with birdshot, fool! We need slugs or something else. Fuck this, we gotta go man!" Alex cried, tugging on his friend's collar as he emptied the last of his ammo into the thing. They jumped over some cars to get away. Alex looked over his shoulder, seeing the creature placing its tentacles on the hood of the car, a thin white light spread through the vehicle, before it fell apart, turning into white sand. He picked up the pace, not wanting to be killed like the others.
"Where are we going no man, we don't have any other places to go!" Marcos said as he struggled to reload his shotgun. He and Alex turned onto another street, pressing themselves against the building. Several other civilians ran past them, carrying whatever luggage they could with them.
"I dunno man, like I said, we need to go to Puerto Limon. We don't know if these things can destroy the ocean. We gotta take the road that leads down to Cartago. One of these cars has to work!"
"Even if they did, the freeway is blocked with traffic, we gotta walk there. We need to go through the woods and across Turrialba. It will take a while for those Destroyers to destroy the woods and the mountains."
"Ah yes, because heading out of the city toward a volcano is a fantastic idea! Get real, Marcos. We have no food, no water, and hardly any ammo left. Do you actually think we can make it there? We need to stick to roads so we can at least scavenge for supplies!"
Marcos squeezed his shotgun tightly, weighing out his options. He hissed angrily, giving his friend a nod. "Okay fine, but we're not leaving without Enrique, and we sure as hell aren't leaving without Vanessa."
"Fine, then let's go," Alex said, looking around for a moment before starting to sprint. They kept their guns close, avoiding all of the creatures they could and blasting away the ones they couldn't. They made it toward the militarized zone, where some soldiers stood, shooting at the incoming crowds.
"Hurry, we're going to close the gates!" one shouted, urging the nearby people to run faster. A few of them tripped over discarded belongings while others pushed people out of their way. Alex wanted to stop and help, but with the crocodilian beasts behind them, he wasn't going to take chances.
"Enrique!" Alex shouted once he dashed past the gates. "Enrique!"
"Over here!" a familiar voice called out. Alex jumped onto the hood of a car, looking around, spotting his friend Enrique, along with Marcos' girlfriend, Vanessa. He sighed with relief as he moved toward them.
Enrique was a tall young man, being over six feet in height. He had buzz-cut hair and light sunkissed skin. He was wearing a tank top soaked with sweat, along with torn jeans and boots. He had an Assault rifle in his grasp, one he had salvaged from one of the dead soldiers. Vanessa meanwhile was holding a military-grade sniper rifle. She was of average height, with long brown hair tied up into a high ponytail. She was wearing a sundress, with jean shorts underneath, along with sandals. She had bright hazel-colored eyes and caramel-colored skin. She also had a few cuts on her chest from nearly being sliced in half by a beast.
They were all wearing blue handkerchiefs on their bodies, with Marcos having his over his nose and mouth, Enrique having tied his on his head, and Vanessa having hers on her wrist. It was the mark of their gang, one that they had been a part of most of their lives. Alex shook his head for a bit, wiping the sweat from his brow as he looked over his shoulder.
"Okay, Marcos and I talked, and we decided to head to Turrialba."
"The volcano?" Vanessa asked, a look of disbelief on her face. "Why the hell are we going to head there?"
"Because Nessa, those Destroyer things took a few days to get to San Jose from the west coast. There's forest and mountains on the way there, we need to use those to our advantage. Once we get through there, we will make it to Puerto Limon, get a boat and sail to an island somewhere."
"And what's stopping those things from going out to sea and taking those islands? They've been attacking the whole world! Eventually, they'll find us, we have nowhere to run!" Enrique said, only for Alex to growl, getting in his face.
"It's better than staying here and dying isn't it? We already lost all of our other friends! Felipe, Duval, Lorena, Annaise, Pedro, Yolanda, Franco, all of them died because of those fuckers. We are the only ones left, Enrique, and I will not stand here and watch the three of you die." he cried, his shoulders shaking a bit. "You are all I have left."
The three shared a look, with Marcos stepping forward. "Right, then let's grab some shit and get out of here. Find some backpacks, and pack the necessary things. No candy and no fuckin' dumb shit. Prioritize ammo too."
"Find me some tampons while you are at it,"
"Ew, Nessa, I didn't need to know you were on the rag!"
"I'm not but you never know when you'll need them. You can use tampons for regular injuries too, we may as well use everything we can." the girl said, slinging her rifle over her shoulder. Alex smiled, breathing a sigh of relief. Everything would be okay, at least for now.
xxx
It had been a few hours since leaving San Jose, and things hadn't gone as easily as they had hoped. They weren't the only ones who were trying to head to Puerto Limon. In fact, that seemed to be the general plan for the military as well. The people were moving down the roads, holding all kinds of weapons. But Alex knew he couldn't keep going with them, he needed to find protection. They had a map and had been planning on ditching the group the moment they could.
"We need to pick a path and go, Alex," Marcos said, resting his shotgun on his shoulder. He looked around at a few others, who were muttering things under their breaths.
"I know, but the military will likely say shit, we need to time it right."
A loud hiss suddenly tore the silence, followed by some screams. The group stopped, looking behind them only to see a horde of Crocodilian Beasts dashing toward them. One larger beast jumped into a death spin, taking three people out in a single bit. Marcos grabbed Alex's arm, pulling him toward the edge of the forest. "RUN! Enrique, Nessa!"
The two burst through the crowd, dashing into the woods as fast as they could. A few others followed after them, crying and begging for help, while others were just running for their lives. They continued running, not knowing what was going to happen. Marcos slid to a stop as one of the beasts appeared before him. He leveled his gun and blasted the beast apart, its jaws and teeth flying in all directions.
"Carajo! We need to figure out where to go!"
"Just keep running, Enrique!" Nessa cried as they continued deeper into the forest. They managed to find a river, pausing for a moment to catch their breath, but Alex kept going, splashing water in all directions as he kept going.
"Come on!"
"Hey you kids, give us those guns!" one man cried, moving toward Vanessa, only for Marcos to stand in front of her. "Come on, I need it!"
"We need it too, asshole, and you are not going to take it from us!"
"You don't even deserve them, you are all gangsters! I know you all, from San Jose, all you ever do is run drugs for Leon and Gregorio! You are petty thieves!"
"Hey fuck you asshole, we don't have time for this shit, if you want a gun then go pick it off a corpse because we aren't giving it!" Alex cried, pulling Vanessa and Marcos along. "Come on, we need to head to the mountains."
"No! Give me your gun! Don't leave me here without it!" the man cried, jumping at Alex, grabbing a hold of him. He wrapped his hand around the barrel of his shotgun, but Alex wasn't going to relent. "Let go of it kid!"
"No! FUCK YOU!"
"Alex, more your head!" Enrique cried, making Alex move. A second later a gunshot rang through the forest, the man's head snapping back. Alex's eyes widened as he felt the splash of blood on his neck, he looked back, shaking as the body plunged into the river. He looked at his friend, breathing hard as blood continued dripping down the side of his head. "He was gonna kill you, bro, don't look at me like that!"
"You are animals!" another woman cried.
"Fuckin' gangsters."
"Screw these people, they're on their own. We can't keep wasting time!" Marcos cried. They darted further into the woods, ignoring the cries of the people behind them. It was beginning to grow dark, making it harder to see where they were going. They could hear animals moving through the woods, birds, bugs, and other things likely trying to survive as well.
The group didn't know for how long they had been running, but they had managed to get away, reaching a small clearing in the woods. Nessa fell to her knees, panting for breath as she clutched her rifle. Marcos and Enrique looked around for a moment, scanning the area for any dangers.
"We should be fine to rest here for a little while. But we need to keep going, find a safe place to camp out."
"Do you actually think we'll make it? I mean that guy was desperate… what's stopping other people from doing the same?"
"They can try, but I'll do the same for them," Enrique said firmly.
Marcos was going to say something then a sudden snap caused the group to jump. Vanessa was on her feet in seconds, her eyes scanning the forest. They clutched their guns tightly, waiting for whatever was going to attack. Vanessa let out a scream as a herd of wild pigs dashed through the clearing, squealing loudly.
"Pfft… bwahahahaha!"
"Don't laugh, asshole! It isn't fucking funny!" Vanessa cried, glaring at Marcos.
"Let's be serious guys, we need to-"
A long tentacle shot out from the woods, wrapping around Enrique's neck. He squeaked loudly as he dropped his gun, his body twitching a bit as his eyes rolled to the back of his head. His body slowly started dissolving, turning into white sand. Alex let out a scream, holding his hand out to his friend.
"NO!"
"Shoot the fucker!" Marcos barked, firing into the woods. The Destroyer slowly inched forward, the area around it starting to dissolve as the tentacles continued grabbing anything that was near it. Vanessa growled in anger, tears streaming down her cheeks as she held up her rifle, pulling the trigger.
"You goddamn asshole! I'm going to kill you!" she shouted, firing an entire magazine into the creature. But it did nothing, the bullets just bounced right off its body. She stepped back, tripping over a stick. She groaned in pain, reaching for her rifle, only for one of the tentacles to grab her arm, pulling her back. "Ahh!"
"Nessa no!"
Just like with Enrique, the young woman was dissolved, leaving nothing more than white sand on the ground, adding to the growing pile. The trees, grass, dirt, everything was just being bleached white. Just like what they had seen in the news before the loss of order. Alex let out a shout as he unloaded his shotgun into the beast.
"Damn you! Damn all of you!"
"We need to go, Alex. Enrique and Nessa are dead, we can't just stay here anymore!"
Alex continued shooting, and when his gun was empty, he threw it at the Destroyer, but it did nothing to it. He swiveled on his foot, pulling Marcos along. The two raced through the woods, trying in vain to get away from the beast. They came to a stop when they saw another one, heading straight for them. Marcos pulled Alex to the right, making him move in that direction. It wasn't long before they spotted another one, making them run in a different direction. The matter where they moved, more and more Destroyers kept popping up. They made it out of the woods, spotting the mountains in the distance. Marcos forced a smile onto his face as he turned to his friend.
"We're gonna make it man. Maybe these things don't know what magma is, we'll throw them in there!"
"Y-yeah… magma," Alex said softly. Marcos pushed Alex along, making him move forward, only for him to be pulled off his legs, slamming to the ground.
"Oh shit!"
"Marcos!" Alex called out. The man threw his backpack forward along with his gun, giving his friend a firm look.
"GO! RUN! Get out of here while you still can! Go!" he shouted, just before he burst into sand. Alex grabbed the man's bag and gun and started running. He turned back, sending a shotgun blast at one of the destroyers, successfully pushing it back. He reached into Marcos' pouch, seeing he had brought slugs with him. Nodding to himself, he topped the gun off and continued moving.
His legs felt like jelly, but he knew he couldn't quit. He had to make it to the mountains, he needed to survive, for his friends. He raced through another river bed, keeping his gaze firmly locked on the mountains. "I'm getting closer. It will still take me a few hours, but I need to make it there. I gotta make it there!"
His eyes widened as he was forced to stop, sliding on the rocky ground. A destroyer flashed in front of him, taking him by complete surprise. He forced himself to stand up, dashing to the side, hoping to get around him, only for another one to appear before him. He looked over his shoulder, seeing several more, all of them bleaching the land as they slowly circled him.
"No… I didn't make it this far to fucking die here, no!" he growled, leveling his shotgun, taking aim. He shot the creature point-blank, cocking his gun and following it with a second shot. The Destroyer squeaked loudly and burst into chunks of flesh and tentacles with the third shot. He smiled, grinning. "So, three slugs is all it takes? Should tell the others about that when I make it to Puerto Limon!"
He continued fighting but knew it was pointless. He ran out of ammo and reached into his pocket for more ammo, a few shells falling to the ground. The Destroyers started closing in, filling the gaps from the ones he had taken down. He grit his teeth, glancing up at the sky.
"This is it, isn't it? Fuck, I didn't want to die here. I wanted to actually make it. I wanted to survive, dammit." he thought, as he slowly sat down on the ground, squeezing the gun tightly. "Please, God or anyone, if you exist, don't let me die. I don't want to be like the others, I don't want to just disappear. Please, someone! Anyone!"
He felt a sudden pulse coming from beside him, causing him to open his eyes. The Destroyers seemed to stop, their tentacles wiggling in all directions. The air pulsed again, a golden light spreading outward, causing the creatures to start screeching loudly. He clasped his hands over his ears as they kept screeching. Another pulse caused them to explode. Alex's eyes focused on the piles of unrecognizable gunk, that once had been Destroyers.
He reached for his gun, the weapon having fallen from his grasp. He felt something else with him, and when he looked down, he noticed a glimmering golden cup sitting by his fingertips. He grabbed ahold of it, feeling odd energy flowing through his body. His arms started to glow a bright blue, spreading outward and glowing brightly.
"What?" he thought, as he kept looking at his arms. He looked at the cup in his grasp, holding it close to himself. "I dunno what this is, but please… if you can help me then help me. I need to make it to the other side of the country, send someone, anyone!"
The cup started glowing brightly, a bright ball of energy forming in front of the young man. He focused on it as he saw it start taking shape. It was the figure of a man, with dark caramel-colored skin, and bright golden eyes. He had a firm look on his face, his chiseled features soft and handsome. He was wearing a headdress, with white and yellow feathers decorating it. He had long black flowing hair, and red lines painted on his face. He was wearing beautiful regalia, made out of gold and jewels. He wore a matching loincloth, with a stone figure adorning the front. He was wearing a pair of sandals on his feet, decorated with beads and gold. Finally, he held a large hammer in his hand, resting it on his shoulder. He looked down at the young man, a firm look on his face.
"Are you the one I call master?"
"Huh… master? What?" Alex mumbled, slowly standing up. The man looked him over, noticing the seals on the back of his right hand. It was a simple seal, consisting of three triangles, resembling those of a certain video game. The man closed his eyes after a moment, before looking back at Alex.
"You have the seals, that makes you my master. Servant Class: Lancer, my name is Sibú, give me your orders and I shall assist you."
Alex glanced at the cup in his hand, tightening his hold on it as he looked up at the man. "I don't know what is going on or what this cup is. But tell me, what is it? Who are you and tell me how I can bring back my friends."
The man only looked at the cup. "That there is a Holy Grail, it is a magical artifact that appears in the world when high amounts of concentrated magic appear on the planet. That device will grant whatever you want. Keep it safe, I fear that someone will come for it soon."
The young boy looked at the grail in his hand, nodding to himself as he held it up. "Then I want my friends to come back! We're going to fight off these Destroyers and save my country!"
The grail started to glow, as the magic spread out from it, transforming the landscape.
xxx
"I'm afraid things in Costa Rica aren't moving along so well, Da Vinci," Holmes said, a frown on his face as he took a drag from his pipe. He glanced outside of his window at the city of Puerto Limon, the only bastion in Costa Rica with a semblance of order. He turned away from it, glancing back at the magical hologram. "It seems a Holy Grail has manifested here. It won't be long until SHEBA is able to hone in on it."
"Hm… I've been keeping it under wraps since I awoke. It seems creating this backup body was a good idea, Holmes, I commend you for assisting me with it. But now is when the real challenge begins. With Eiji's return from Fuyuki, we have attained two grails. But we cannot yet venture to Greece. It isn't stabilized enough for us to attempt it. I theorize the cause of that lies in Costa Rica."
"Indeed, I surmised the same. From the research I have been conducting, it seems that high concentrated amounts of mystics are sustaining these 'green zones'. The earth is fighting back against the encroaching catastrophe that has swallowed the planet." he said, taking a seat. He took another drag from his pipe, placing a hand on his cheek. "I have come to believe that in order to stabilize those singularities, they need to be resolved."
"Yes, despite that, William's pod activated and sent him into Greece. Whatever this Benefactor is planning, they know how our systems work and they know our protocols. They know we wouldn't risk sending someone into a place that isn't stable. On top of all that, it gives the singularities time to strengthen and build. These aren't like the Grand Orders… at least not in the normal sense."
Holmes nodded as he poured himself a cup of tea. He added a sugar cube to it, allowing it to dissolve before taking a sip from it. "Da Vinci, these 'singularities' aren't really singularities, are they?"
"You know the answer to that, Holmes. You are the world's greatest detective, you and I both know the answer."
"I suppose we do," he said, setting down his cup. "Now all we have to do is figure out how to deal with them."
"Don't worry, we're already working on it. If your theory about resolving these 'green spots' before venturing to the larger distortions is true, then we'll have to prepare for more rayshifts than before. I think it's time to give the system a tune-up. Ugh… if only Kyle were here, he was the only other person I truly trusted with something like this." she said, an exasperated look on her face. Holmes chuckled, shaking his head.
"You took a long enough break, Da Vinci, it's time to get back to work." the detective replied, making her sigh.
"Yeah yeah, keep me posted on any changes alright? I think it's time to start getting ready to send Eiji there. It'll be the first time we're rayshifting into a singularity in the current era. Eh… we rayshifted to the future, so I'm sure we can handle this." she said, a grin on her face. "Oh yeah, I'm all fired up! You can't stop us!"
The man leaned back in his chair, taking a hold of his teacup, sipping at his tea. "God-Speed, Universal Woman… or should I say, Universal-Young Lady?"
Location: Chaldea Security Organization
Date: December 16th, 2019
Time: 10:00 AM (Chaldea Time)
Eiji noticed something was off in Chaldea the second he stepped into the kitchen. It had been a few days since he had returned from Fuyuki, having brought back the Holy Grail that had been sent there by the mysterious "Benefactor". WIth him, he had brought his personal servant, Ereshkigal, now being hosted by Rin Tohsaka, as well as Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune, the Saber servant summoned by Rin during the Genesis Order. He had also brought along Tamamo Vitch, an Assassin he had contracted on-site. Thor, Loki, Cerise, and Sei Shonagon had been summoned by him as well, though the latter two were the only ones currently contracted to him while the former two were on standby in case Team B needed them.
Chaldea had slowly been reforging contracts with Heroic Spirits but had noticed a few catalysts were missing, as well as some Servants choosing not to reply to the summons. Da Vinci theorized that it was due to some glitch in the system that she'd have to look into. The younger Da Vinci, who was going around asking to be called "Da Vinci-chan" or "Leona" had returned to her normal work, having taken Ritsuka, Olga, and Mash by surprise. She had been hugged, head patted, and slapped around, and after a brief explanation, she rejoined Chaldea in her old role. Though her capacity was several weakened due to the fact she was a clone of the original Leonardo da Vinci and was no longer a Caster-class servant.
The kitchen was empty, EMIYA had been among the first to accept the summons, and had almost immediately retaken his role in the kitchen, alongside Tamamo-Cat, who was planning on murdering her counterpart, Tamamo Vitch, but Divine Spirit did nothing more than laugh and ignore her. A few others had been called as well, namely Prince Nezha, or Princess? He was still wondering about that, Robin Hood, Billy the Kid, and Jeanne d'Arc Alter, who was both happy and angry to see Eiji again. He had gotten used to seeing them interacting with each other, asking when their friends would be resummoned or what was going on in the world. But on this morning, the cafeteria was empty.
"This is weird," he muttered, as he moved behind the lunch line, normally filled with various dishes from around the world. He opened the large fridge, looking around for a moment before selecting some ingredients. "A simple breakfast will suffice. It's been a while since I've had scrambled eggs, sausages, and toast. So that'll do."
And so, he began making his breakfast, briefly looking up at the entrance wondering when someone was going to show up, but when no one did, he continued his work. He brewed some green tea for himself and poured it into a cup, making sure all of the dishes were taken care of before he went to find a seat for himself. Just as he started eating, someone walked in, but it wasn't anything like he had been expecting.
It was a woman, a very attractive woman, dressed in a red outfit. She was wearing a velvet red top, lined with white fur, reaching just below her bust. The front was left open, held together by leather cords adorned with fluffy white balls. She was wearing a matching, velvet red skirt, held up by a black belt dotted with snowflakes. The edge of the skirt was lined in white fur. She wore a single fishnet stocking on her left leg, lined with fur, along with a pair of bejeweled platform shoes. Long, detached sleeves were secured on her arms, and reached down almost to the floor, and were adorned with bright gold stars. Finally, she wore a bright red and white Santa hat on her head.
She had a gorgeous face, with long wavy tan hair that fell down to the middle of her back. A pair of ears were barely visible beneath her hat. He also noticed she had a heart on her left waist, made entirely out of sparkling jewels. The final thing he noticed was the fluffy tail whipping around behind her.
In that instance, he wondered if this woman was another of Tamamo's forms. He had been told by Ritsuka that, since Tamamo-no-Mae had once had nine tails in her original form, which was close to the Goddess Amaterasu, those nine tails had become sentient beings of their own. Tamamo-Cat was one, and Tamamo Vitch was another, with the other 7 tails currently being unidentified, though Tamamo-no-Mae herself had named four of the seven that remained. But when he thought back to Vitch and her characteristics, he noticed this woman didn't have a single likeness to her. It definitely wasn't a Tamamo.
"Besides, why the hell would Tamamo dress up in a Santa costume? She's a Shinto Goddess, they don't celebrate Christmas." he thought, as he chewed on his eggs. "Wait… this is Tamamo… she'd dress up like that just to look cute."
"Hey you, are you a Master here?"
"Uh…"
"What am I saying, of course, you are, fam! Listen, dude, I need some help, mind assisting a girl in her mission to spread some Christmas cheer?"
Eiji blinked a few times, trying to process what the woman had just asked of him. He reached for his lukewarm tea, taking a long sip from it. "You want me to what?"
"Ugh… like, there's a lot of crap going down in the world right now, ya dig? I was thinking I could claim the power of Santa this year and spread some cheer around. Not like the other Santas are here to stop me. Chaldea is usually poppin' during this season, but's just quiet, sad, and boring." she said, sitting across from him, crossing her legs as she leaned back. She grabbed one of his sausages, taking a bite from it. "I know you like, returned from saving Fuyuki and junk, but there's no one else who can help me."
"I'm sorry… who are you again? I don't think I remember meeting you." the man said. She tilted her head a bit, tossing the last of the sausage into her mouth.
"Oh right, I didn't do the thing. Ahem." she rose from her seat, leaning forward as she held her hand up in a peace sign, a grin on her face. "Servant, Lancer! My name is Santa Suzuka! And I am here to bring you some Christmas Cheer!".
"Santa Suzuka?" the man thought, brows knight together. "She must be Suzuka Gozen. Director Ritsuka did say Servants tended to change spirit origins whenever they donned an outfit or it was summertime… especially when it was summertime."
"So, now that you know who I am, can you like, introduce yourself? And try to smile a bit, your face is so stiff." Suzuka said, making him sigh.
"Sorry, I'm just a bit tired, you know? Going back home, fighting against a titan, and having to see your best friend die again can really take it out of you," he admitted, finishing his tea. "My name is Eiji Itsuka Tohsaka, Leader of Team B, it's nice to make your acquaintance, Miss Gozen."
"Nuh-uh, Suzuka, that's what you'll call me from now on," she demanded, grabbing his plate. She took a hold of his fork, digging into his half-eaten breakfast, without bothering to ask him if it was okay. "So check it, the world is like, totally bleached, but there are still distortions and singularities going on. Normally, it's the duty of someone here to deliver Christmas to people across the world. We had Samba Nights last year, and this year we have… whatever the hell I can come up with,"
She shoveled some eggs into her mouth, grabbing Eiji's bottle of orange juice, downing half of it in a single go. "I'm in need of a little helper and you fit the bill. I already asked Ritsuka and Mash but they're busy managing this place, and Olga Marie is such a stick in the mud… ugh. The other servants are already decorating Chaldea, but that leaves the main part itself. Delivering Presents!"
"And I fit the bill?"
"Yep, because you are all alone and brooding. Plus it's better to be a little helper than a Scrooge," she said with a shrug, pushing back the empty plate, finishing the last of the juice. She licked her lips, a grin on her face. "So, what do you say, my guy? You innie or outie?"
"I suppose I am, it's my job to help around Chaldea, especially if a servant is asking for help. Not only that but you ate my breakfast, so why not?" he asked, causing the girl to grin.
"Excellent!" she said, shooting to her feet. She reached behind her back, where a red bag materialized. She pulled something out of it, handing it to him. "Get in that and meet me back here in ten minutes."
"Huh?" he asked, looking at the box she had handed him. She simply turned him around, pushing him toward the nearby bathrooms. "Suzuka, what the hell is this?"
"Just trust me, will you?"
He relented, deciding not to question it. It was better to go with the flow than to start questioning things.
xxx
Eiji stepped out of the bathroom ten minutes later, a look of sheer disappointment on his face. Suzuka was standing by one of the booths, holding a pink cellphone in her hands. By now, a few of the other servants and staff members had arrived, the kitchen coming to life unlike it had been minutes ago. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at the young man, only to burst into laughter. He felt his cheeks heating up as he looked at the ground, tugging on his shirt.
"Suzuka, I hate this."
"You look good, I promise," she said, holding back the urge to laugh. She snapped a picture of him, taking a deep breath to calm down her giggling. "Seriously, it looks tight."
That made the others burst into laughter, making him close his eyes. Eiji had been given an outfit to wear and it had been nothing like he had been expecting. It consisted of a bright green tunic, which reached down to his hips and split into various tails each adorned with golden jingle bells. He was wearing a pair of tight-fitting leather pants, which were red in color, though the legs beneath the knee had split into white and red rings. He was wearing a pair of boots, one red, one green, the tip coiling back being dotted with a tiny bell. Finally, he wore a green and red hat atop his head.
Overall, he looked just like one of Santa's elves, a 'little helper' as Suzuka had specified. Despite the fact that the outfit was a little tight on him and made him look absolutely ridiculous, he did feel the magical properties in it. It was like a stronger version of his Mystic Code, and he briefly wondered if it had been modeled after it or not.
"Hey, laugh at him all you want, at least he has the balls to jump into leather pants!" Cerise cried, causing the others to stop laughing. "Don't worry, Eiji, I think you look great!"
"Thank you, Cerise," he said softly, glancing back at Suzuka. "So, you want me to check the list twice or something?"
"Actually, I-"
Suddenly, an alarm started blaring through Chaldea, causing the Staff to drop what they were doing, heading out of the cafeteria. Eiji did the same, ignoring cries from Suzuka as he headed toward the Command Room. He didn't care that a few other servants were looking at him and laughing, or wondering why he was jingling as he ran. He just needed to see what was going on.
"Maybe the Greek Singularity stabilized! That means I can try and get William out of there." he thought to himself, as he entered the command room. He slowed to a stop as he watched the others darting around in a mad scramble, the computer glowing bright red as it had honed in on something.
"Do you have a reading on it?" Olga Marie asked, as Da Vinci rapidly typed at the console. Ritsuka and Mash were at her side, looking things over while Sion watched, taking note of everything so she could learn how to use the system in the future.
"We've isolated it to Latin America," Da Vinci said, her eyes pouring over the data in front of her. "Aha, I found it. The epicenter seems to be in Costa Rica, San Jose to be precise."
"Can we get SHEBA to look further into it?" Ritsuka asked, earning a nod from the brunette. She typed away on the console, the machines whirring loudly with every single keystroke. Finally, she hit the Enter key, stepping away from it.
The images being shown looked like pure chaos, the city of San Jose was being ransacked by Phantasmal Beasts. Large, crocodile-like creatures, along with flying birds and other terrifying things. They also noticed some rather odd-looking machines floating around, with glowing tentacles. Whatever they touched immediately disintegrated, turning into a white sandy substance. The people seemed to be fighting back, with anything they could get their hands on, bats, sticks, guns, and even vehicles. But no matter what they did, the jellyfish-like creatures would end them the second they would be touched by their tentacles.
"This is horrible!" Eiji said, unable to tear his eyes away from the screen. Olga Marie looked at Ritsuka, both of them having the same expression on their faces.
"We were hoping something like this didn't happen." the director said with a sigh. "We've been monitoring this area since we sent you to Fuyuki, Eiji. In fact, Mr. Holmes is there right now. We were hoping to use Costa Rica as a means to restock certain materials for the future. He had spoken to us about Phantasmal Beasts attacking the people, but nothing like this."
"We've been keeping track of things, seeing how systematically every major city in every state was taken over. Guanacaste, Alajuela, Heredia, Half of Puntarenas, and now San Jose. There are only two territories left, Puerto Limon and Cartago, but with how things are, I doubt Cartago will last until the end of the day," Olga Marie said with a frown.
"Is this happening right now?" Eiji asked, earning a nod from both the director and the commander. Da Vinci continued typing away, her eyes pouring all of the incoming information that SHEBA was providing for her.
"Hm… judging by the rate of the decay, I agree with what Commander Olga has said. I'm not sure what those jellyfish things are doing, but they seem to be disintegrating whatever they touch. And it isn't just people, anything organic, be it human, animal, or plant, it gets destroyed. It's as if the textures of the world themselves are being taken away."
"Could it be that these things are the true cause for the Earth being bleached the way it is?" Sion asked, having remained quiet as she looked at all of the screens SHEBA had opened.
Eiji closed his eyes for a moment, remembering what Kotomine had told him. "The souls that have been collected are awaiting transport. That's what he said… or something along those lines. Could it be that those things aren't killing people, just collecting their souls? But for what purpose?"
"We have a theory about this as well, we believe that the reason the singularities are unstable is because of these 'points' in the world. Places that were far too strong for whatever is happening to destroy them right away. Of course, the places each singularity is taking place in also counts as one of those. But these current-day distortions are like keys if you will." Da Vinci said, turning back to face Eiji. "If we resolve whatever is keeping them around, it might stabilize one of the singularities, enough for us to venture inside."
"Wouldn't that be like destroying them though? I get that they are keys and all, but if we go in there and resolve whatever is going on, then that place will disappear and be bleached out." Eiji said firmly. "That would be like helping the Benefactor."
"We believe that isn't the case, Holmes drafted a few theories on that case from the research he is conducting. However, we weren't able to prove nor disprove whatever was going on. All we know is that these 'singularities' are on the verge of becoming something else. Singularities as we know them, are disruptions in time, attacks on Temporal Timelocks meant to destabilize humanity and make it collapse, but these… These aren't just temporal anomalies, they're spatial anomalies too. Alternate dimensions even." Olga Marie said, rubbing her eyes. "It is far too early to be speaking about this stuff."
"Basically, it's like this," Sion said, making Eiji shift his gaze toward her. Sion had taken out two playing cards as well as a stick of glue out of her pocket. Why she had them, he didn't know. "Say this Queen of Spades is Earth as we know it. It is completely fine, and time is flowing smoothly and normally. Now, say that this Queen of Hearts is that Earth but something happened to it that changed it significantly, follow me so far?"
"Yes, I follow you."
"Okay, now then, the Queen of Hearts is representing the Bleached Earth, what is left after the Benefactor initiated their plan. It's entirely possible that those jellyfish things are responsible for disintegrating everything. To everyone on Earth, it must have been a snap of the fingers, but it had to have taken at least a week or so for the world to be changed in this manner, quite speedy too."
"Can you get on with it?" Eiji asked, causing her to frown.
"The explaining process takes time, Eiji." she snapped, pulling the cap from the glue stick. She started spreading it around on the back. "Now then, the Queen of Spades is Normal Earth, and the Queen of Hearts is Bleached Earth. So this is what we're currently seeing."
She took the two cards and glued them together, reaching into her pocket for a third card, an Ace of Hearts. "Now, this Ace of Hearts is a singularity, normally on regular Earth, it would be a place in time that is having its quantum time lock tampered with, in order to make a point in humanity crumble in fall. But what happens when you do that on a Bleached Earth? Well, it creates something else."
She took the Ace of Hearts and glued it onto the Queen of Hearts, making sure it was perfectly lined up. "This Singularity is trying to bind itself to this Bleached Earth, an Earth that has a clean slate, and Earth with nothing on it. So whatever moment in time that was, this singularity kickstarts a timeline from that point forward. Fuyuki, for example, took place in the year 2014, but the changing point was in November of 2013 before the Holy Grail War was set to start. In our normal timeline, Illyasviel dismantled the Greater Grail of Fuyuki, and for you, Rin Tohsaka was murdered before she was able to even attain seals…"
Sion pulled out a marker, clicking the top of it, writing some numbers on it. It was in fact a date, the date Rin had mentioned everything starting. "This date is our starting point, and from then on, everything continues as if it was a normal timeline. Everything until that point that happened in the world remains the same, but that is the significant changing point because that's the point the Holy Grail was introduced. Remember, the Holy Grail is what's powering this thing. Now, look at it from another angle."
Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out various cards of different suits, smearing some glue onto the back of each, placing them all on top of each other, creating a thick stack of playing cards. She pressed them tightly together, groaning a bit. "Hah, there we are. All of those cards are the other "Singularities" on top of the "Bleached Earth" trying to create some sort of new world. Each one has its starting point, the point the Grail was introduced, and likely has continued on beyond that point. Each one is trying to become the true history of the world, as our world has limitless potential now. The reason they are unstable is because of places like Costa Rica there… it's a place that managed to survive the original uprooting, be it due to its Mystics, or because of a Grail, or because it had the potential to become a Singularity itself. Whatever the case, that place right now is a thorn in the side of that new history that needs to be removed in order for it to stabilize."
"To put it in simpler terms…" Da Vinci said, deciding to take over the conversation. "These singularities are pockets of time and space which have become alternate realities. All of them are fighting for dominance to reclaim their part of the world, aided by the power of a Holy Grail. The green spots around the Earth are places that could have turned into Singularities but failed to manifest because they lacked power. This aids us significantly because, with their removal, we can venture into the larger more dangerous singularities and take care of them as well."
"Hmm…. I see… so time flows normally until the point where a Grail is injected, and from then on, it takes a life of its own. Since that point in time has been changed due to that grail, it becomes its own pocket world, that is fighting to become the one true history." Eiji said eyes narrowed in thought. "You could have just said it that way, instead of using the cards to explain it to me."
"I wasn't sure if you would understand what I am getting at," Sion said, sheepishly.
"I sure as hell didn't! That was all confusin' as shit!" Suzuka said, pocketing her phone. Eiji had forgotten she had tagged along with him. "So what are we gonna do about it? We need to stop those things from killing people right? I have to figure out what my purpose is for this holiday season, and since there aren't many people in the world to deliver presents to, I think I should go to Costa Rica and see what I can do to help."
"That… isn't a bad idea, actually. Costa Rica used to be a distortion and now it's gained singularity status. That means a Holy Grail has appeared there, and if that's the case we need to recover it." Olga said, giving Ritsuka a nod. He turned to face Eiji, who immediately stood at attention.
"Eiji Itsuka, your mission is simple. You are to enter this new singularity and meet up with Sherlock Holmes and attain information on what is going on there. You will establish a circle wherever possible and begin searching for the Holy Grail. You are to retrieve it and return it here immediately. Furthermore, you are to assist Suzuka Gozen in her quest to deliver presents and Christmas cheer, something that I'm sure the people of Costa Rica really need right now. Once you are done with your mission, you will return here with the Grail. Is that understood?"
"Yes sir!" Eiji said, giving Ritsuka a salute.
"Well look at you, all fired up like you are gonna fight a God! I like seeing you like this Eiji, make me proud out there." Da Vinci said with a wink.
"Of course, it's my job to go out there into the nitty-gritty and figure out how to solve things. This is just par for the course. And honestly, after three days of doing nothing, I needed something to do. I'm worried about William and the Greek Singularity, so I want to make sure he's safe." he said firmly, much to the surprise of Ritsuka and Olga Marie. "What?"
"How did you know about William being in Greece?"
"I'm not that dumb. I noticed his pod was in an upright position, not only that but the Greek Singularity is the one that is closest to stabilizing, so I put two and two together. If you were trying not to upset me by letting me know, then don't. I know it's a bad situation to be in, but we have to make sure he's doing alright. It might not be too stable for me to venture inside, but he was able to, and he's all alone. We need to resolve this as soon as possible."
"Quite right, I think you should start getting ready. I'll call Ereshkigal here so that you are able to be on your way. Sadly, due to how much energy we used to transport you back from Fuyuki, we are a bit short on energy and won't be ready for major rayshifts for a few days. So you'll only be allowed an extra servant."
"And that's where I come in, right? I'll go with Eiji-kun and figure this out! I gotta deliver those presents and junk too!" Suzuka said, an arm wrapped around the young man. She reached for her phone, holding it above them as she pressed his face into her bust. "Say cheese, Master! We're gonna go kick ass!"
He cringed a bit at the bright flash, briefly wondering what he looked like in the picture. Though Suzuka had started typing away on the device, not letting him see it. He sighed, shaking his head. "We have to prepare first and foremost, so let's begin this right by establishing a permanent contract. We'll be able to use more of your power out on the field when we do."
"That works for me, I was randomly summoned back anyway so it doesn't matter to me. Just as long as you got my back out there, my dude, I'll have yours," she said with a wink, holding her hand out. He grabbed it with his, his command seals glowing brightly.
"I call forth into the throws of time…"
xxx
"Alright, is everything ready?" Ritsuka asked as he earned simultaneous cries from his team.
"We're ready and waiting. Let's get this started, Director." Da Vinci said, giving the teenager a wink. He nodded as he took his spot at the director's chair, looking over the panels that SHEBA had opened up. Commander Olga and Mash took his left and right respectively, while Da Vinci sat on his armrest, facing the central console.
"Beginning Unsummon Program.
Commencing Spiritron Conversion.
Rayshift Begins in 3...2...1
All Systems Are Go.
Analyzing Genesis Sub-Order.
Commencing Belt Recast…"
Eiji closed his eyes as he felt the familiar tingle of his body being broken apart. Everything left him after a moment, as he was sent back to the past. He only hoped this singularity would go along much smoother than the first one because he did not want to fight a titan ever again.
Location: Cartago, Costa Rica
Date: December 16th, 2019
Time: 12:34 PM
The sun was shining brightly, blinding Eiji for a second as his vision cleared. He looked around for a moment, finding himself in a city, or rather, what was left of a city. All around, he could see large piles of white sand, intermingled with half-broken vehicles and buildings. Sirens could be heard in the distance, along with distant gunshots. Most of the noticeable buildings were gone, with one standing out above the others was The Basilica of Our Lady of the Angels, one of the most important places in the country.
It was a rather bleak-looking area, with no one being around. Eiji was completely alone, save for Ereshkigal and Suzuka, who were just like him, looking around the area with frowns on their faces. "This is… a lot different than what I was expecting."
"You're right, Eresh, I was expecting to see some people, some decorations… not this," Suzuka added, looking around for a moment. She noticed a discarded doll on the ground and grabbed a hold of it, seeing it was broken. She used her magic to restore it, bringing it back to what it looked like before it had been left behind, along with a red and green mint bow wrapped around its neck. "Kids shouldn't be forced to endure this sort of stuff. Whoever this 'Benefactor' is, they deserve to die."
"Yoo-hoo, Eiji-kun, this is Da Vinci-chan checking in, do you copy?"
Eiji raised his arm, activating his CSC. The device sparked to life, showing the trio the live image of Da Vinci from Chaldea. "Oh good, I'm glad the CSC is working perfectly. Remind me to give it a tune-up after this mission. Now then, do you have your Command Seals?"
He glanced at his hand, noticing his seals had returned to him. He had noticed the faded outlines on the back of his hand back in Chaldea, and Ritsuka had told him they would fully return in time. But during singularities, they were given to the Masters on the trip, speeding up the process. "Yes, I have them."
"Great, that's great! Now then, according to our systems, you've landed in the former capital of Costa Rica, Cartago. Sadly, according to these readings, the city was destroyed by what the locals are calling "Destroyers". They are jellyfish-like creatures that are turning everything into bleached sand the moment they're touched. Anything that is organic in nature, be it human, animal, earth, or plant is being destroyed. The textures themselves are being pulled apart, so try not to get touched by one of them."
"Duly noted, we'll try to avoid the jellyfish of death. If those things are the ones bleaching the earth, that means they work directly for the "Benefactor". Does that mean that anyone they touch is having their souls collected? Kotomine briefly mentioned that but never alluded to how that worked,"
"We're not exactly sure either, Eiji-kun. All we can do is make educated guesses. For now, you need to focus on meeting up with Holmes in Puerto Limon. We would have sent you a little closer to him, but we can't risk exposing ourselves, especially when someone might be holding the Grail." Da Vinci said, typing away at the console. Eiji felt his CSC vibrate, a new window opening up showing a map of Costa Rica. "I sent you a direct route to the place where Holmes is staying. We've already run simulations and well…"
"Well, what? Give it to me straight, Leona." the man said, making her sigh.
"The system predicted a 99% saturation rate by December 25th. Meaning on Christmas Day, everyone and everything in Costa Rica will be bleached. The final country in Latin America will be lost. If we reach the point of no return, we're going to pull you out of there." she said firmly.
"No! We can't leave even if the place gets saturated, we still need to make some Christmas Miracle happen here! All of these people are innocent and the ones that are still alive need hope!" Suzuka barked, glaring at the hologram. "We are not giving up until we can figure out what is going on here!"
"Uh… Suzuka, Master, we got something else to take care of first," Ereshkigal said, causing Eiji to turn around. His eyes widened a bit when he saw three large Phantasmal Crocodiles slowly stalking up to them. They were hissing loudly, their tails whipping back and forth as they walked forward. "What do you want us to do?"
"Fight them, I'll support you as best as I can," Eiji said, reaching into his pocket for his gems.
"We'll keep things monitored here, alright Chaldea, Eiji is going into battle mode, I want information on these things, along with their class, weaknesses, and damage potential!" Da Vinci cried out, earning cries from the staff members. Eiji turned the hologram off, his hand glowing as he partially activated his circuits.
"Wirbelnder Straum!" he chanted, flinging the spell forward. Brilliant green blades of wind magic sailed forward, striking the Phantasmal Beasts, making them hiss in pain. Ereshkigal darted forward, summoning a beast with her cage, sending the Beast flying up.
"Hiyah!" she cried, thrusting her spear into its underbelly. The creature thrashed around a bit but managed to swipe at her, striking her on the shoulder. "These things are tough, be careful!"
"Haah! These things are nothing! I'll take them without breaking a sweat!" Suzuka boasted as she swung her weapons around. The soft sound of jingle bells echoed with every one of her attacks. "Merry Christmas you filthy animals!"
Eiji felt the need to pinch his eyes but was far too busy chanting spells to actually do it. He stepped back as one of the beasts swung its tail at him. He jumped forward, his legs glowing brilliantly as he jumped forward, giving the beast a kick in the jaw. He threw two solid punches to its underbelly, following it with a jab to the throat. He rapidly reached into his pocket for an Earth Gem, breaking it apart. He slammed his palm into its belly, the magic crackling.
"Erdgandr!"
A solid stone pillar burst from the other side of the beast's body, sending it sprawling to the ground dead. He breathed a sigh of relief, retaking a bit of a stance. Ereshkigal twirled her spear around, swiping it across the beast's body, slicing it in two. Suzuka finished hers with a forward thrust, spearing the creature straight through before kicking into the pile of bleached sand behind it.
"That was a lot easier than I thought it would be," she said, grinning. She pulled her phone out, standing in front of the defeated beasts. "Time for a selfie for the album!"
"Suzuka, seriously, we can't stop to take pictures. We have to deal with-"
"Eiji-kun, you need to get out of there! There are more of those things on the radar and if you don't move it, you are going to be surrounded!"
"What?" he called out, holding his hand to his earpiece. Just as he was about to reply, he saw a beast burst through the pile of sand Suzuka was standing behind, just as she snapped her picture. She rapidly spun around, spear in hand as she sliced its jaws clean off.
"Thought you could get me, huh?" she cried. Ereshkigal summoned more cages, firing them all forward, running several of the beasts through.
"Uh… Master?"
"We need to go, now! Come on, we need to regroup!" he said, looking around for a moment, locking eyes with the Basilica. "Over there, let's go to the Basilica, we can hold them off there."
"You actually think we can do that?"
"Those doors are solid oak, I'm pretty sure it'll hold them back, at least for a while. Come on you two!" Eiji said, dashing ahead of the two servants. Ereshkigal matched his pace, holding Meslamtaea tightly in her grasp, turning around briefly to shoot off more cage spears.
They raced up the stone steps, throwing the doors open. Once Ereshkigal and Suzuka had stepped in, Eiji pushed them closed, groaning a bit from their weight. He looked around for a second, taking notice of the candle holder nearby. He grabbed ahold of it, knocking the candles to the floor as he slid it through the door handles, just in time for the beasts to strike the doors.
"Fan-fucking-tastic. Here I thought bringing Christmas cheer to this place was going to be easy, now we're dealing with giant ass lizards. Why the hell couldn't we summon Crocodile Dundee before we came here?"
"It could be worse, Suzuka. Now, while we have the time, we need to figure out where to go. The back door should be clear so let's make it go." he said, darting forward. He paused briefly at the altar, staring up at the cross, a small frown on his face. He bowed his head in a brief prayer, before moving toward the back of the basilica.
Finding the doors locked, Eiji looked around for another exit, spotting one of the stained glass windows. He held his hand up, blasting it apart with Gandr, before moving toward it, jumping out onto the side of the building. He held his hand up, holding it for Ereshkigal. "Alright, we should be able to figure out where to go from here."
"Let's hope we don't have to fight that entire horde."
"This is totes not what I was expecting when I came here. I was expecting snow, presents, and throwing lumps of coal at people, not this!" Suzuka added as Eiji moved toward the back of the Basilica.
"I'm sure we'll be able to do that later on once we find a place that isn't being… you know… destroyed!" Eiji said, glancing over his shoulder at the fox girl. "I promise, things will be better once we meet up with Holmes."
"Master."
Eiji looked forward, seeing what Ereshkigal was pointing at. His eyes widened when he saw an even larger horde of Phantasmal Crocodilians feasting on what looked like human bodies. He held the urge to gag when he saw it, tearing his gaze away. One of the creatures caught wind of them and turned around, hissing loudly as it started to approach them.
"Da Vinci, we're surrounded, I need you to point me to the nearest path to make our getaway," he said, finger on his earpiece.
"Uh… I'm searching, I'm searching. This group isn't as numerous as the others, if you can take down a few, you'll be able to make your way through… but the back group is approaching as well. It won't be long until you are cut off from both sides." she said firmly.
"Shit… alright, Suzuka, Ereshkigal, I need you to fight off as many of these as you can. We gotta make sure we clear a path!"
"Understood! I won't let a single one approach you!" the underworld queen said, moving forward. She held her hands up, crossing them above her head as she summoned several cage spears from beneath the ground, stabbing straight through a few of them.
"You guys are ruining Christmas!" Suzuka snapped angrily, thrusting her spear forward. Eiji kept his eyes peeled for an opening, glancing briefly over his shoulder, seeing the other Beasts starting to approach them. He reached into his pocket for some gems, slamming his palm to the ground.
"Erdemaur!" he chanted, creating a thick stone barrier between them and the beasts. "This will do, for now, we need to find that opening!"
"Heads up, Eiji, there's a presence moving toward you. It's giving off some strong magical readings. They'll be converging on your point in 10 seconds!"
Da Vinci's voice hadn't yet cut out when a volley of golden arrows sailed down from the sky, destroying the nearby beasts. The loud snapping of a bowstring echoed through the air, as more and more arrows kept raining down.
"Ereshkigal stand back, assist with your spears! Suzuka, you stand by me and watch our backs." Eiji commanded, holding his hand out. The girls heeded their command, allowing him to step forward a few feet. He grasped his wrist, forming a Gandr at his fingertips. He fired the shots forward, a soft hissing filling the air as the surviving Monsters were blasted apart.
"Master, the wall is starting to come down!" Suzuka called out, as she tightened her hold on her weapons. He grit his teeth, looking around for a moment.
"Dammit, we still don't have that opening!"
"I'll assist you as best as I can from up here, just keep fighting them as best as you can!" a voice called out, followed by a volley of arrows.
For a few minutes, that was all they could manage. With every beast that was taken down, another would appear, almost from out of nowhere. Finally, after ten minutes of fighting, one of the larger beasts was brought down, clearing enough of a path for them to move.
"The path is clear, go!"
"Ereshkigal, Suzuka!" Eiji called out, darting forward. Ereshkigal swung her spear, sending the creature she was fighting stumbling back, while Suzuka ran another one through. They raced after Eiji, weapons at the ready in case they were needed.
The archer watched them go for a second, taking a few more beasts down before following along. She didn't know why, but she felt compelled to assist them, perhaps one of them would tell her why she had been brought there. And if they knew where her beloved was.
A/N: Hello and welcome to a brand new chapter! Why am I posting one so soon after the Finale of Fuyuki? Well, Tales of Arise is out, and I'm gonna be busy with that for a while. So yeah, I might not be able to post anything for a week or so haha. Thankfully, this minor singularity is done so I have some backup chapters to post while I play this game, which is honestly breathtaking. I love the Tales series and seeing this game, the culmination of so much work and refining over the years be out, is great. I've been wholeheartedly sucked in.
So as I said during the finale of Fuyuki, this singularity is in the modern day and has a sort of Christmas theme to it, but not everything is holiday cheer. Sadly, when the world is ending no one has the time to be merry. Originally, I was going to choose Santa Helena for this, but I've been so fucking salty about Santa Suzuka since she was announced that I overrode that and went with her instead. I couldn't not choose the JK Fox lol. Will she succeed at bringing cheer or will it all crash and burn? Place your bets now. Also if you can guess who the mysterious archer is, you will earn 1 virtual cookie. Or hell, message me with your answer and you might get lucky enough to have a servant of your choice in the story, that seems like fun. Anyway, I'll leave you all with this, back to Tales. Au Revoir!