Day 4
The moment Midori opened her eyes, she had to spend a minute to look about her surroundings and realize she was laying on the bed of her hotel room, which confused her. She recalled waiting for Lancer's return with meat to help convince the wolves to join her, when she felt a strange sensation. According to Green, it was her connection to Lancer and the sudden fluxation of mana was likely caused by the servant engaging an enemy. Worried about Lancer's safety, Midori had prepared for a fight and as usual her battle rage over take her, causing her to attack both Lancer and the stranger she was fighting. She tried wretch back control over her body, but it was futile. All she could do was watch in despair as her body moved on its own. Then, darkness over took as she was knocked unconscious. "...Lansa?"
The servant wasn't immediately in sight, however she could hear sounds of cooking coming from the room's kitchen. Stumbling out of the bed, Midori hurried over to the kitchen to find Lancer wearing an apron while operating a skillet. Spying the servant safe and sound, the master sighed in relief.
"Good morning, milady. How are you feeling?" Lancer asked over her shoulder.
"...I'm sorry."
"...Breakfast will be done in a few minutes. Please take a seat." There was a coldness in the woman's voice that made Midori uncomfortable.
Obeying her servant's instructions, Midori watched in amazement as a small feast was quickly assembled on the table before her. Without warning or consent her stomach growled, causing her to blush in embarrassment.
Soon enough Lancer finished setting the table and sat down herself. She hadn't even yet to offer her master chopsticks before the green haired girl began tearing into her breakfast. Sighing, Lancer gave a brief "Itadakimasu" before eating herself.
There was many dishes that Midori didn't know, but it was good. No delicious! The most delicious food she ever had! She didn't think, merely ate. Before she knew it, there was several empty plates laid out before her. "Did I eat all that?"
"Well it wasn't me." Retorted Green.
Slowly and gracefully Lancer ate, savoring every morsel of her breakfast. It was beautiful watching her eat. Yet, her master couldn't share in her rejoice. Now that her stomach was filled, the guilt resurfaced. She waited in suspense as the servant finished her meal and set her chopsticks down. "I need to wash the dishes."
"I'll help...!" Midori responded a little too eagerly.
"Thank you, milady, but I can handle this myself. Please take your time to rest." Lancer rose from the table and began collecting the dishes.
"She hates me!" Midori watched her servant, overwhelmed with shame.
"I think she's more confused than angry at you. You kind of kept me secret from her and she probably doesn't know if she can trust you. As your servant, she will obey you, but I doubt she will open up to you anymore."
"What do I do?"
"From what I learned, to get a woman's good side, you must give her a gift; the more valuable the better."
"A gift? I will try that! Thanks Green!" Rising to her feet, Midori ran to the suit case that contained their spending money. Stuffing as many bills she can into pockets, she moved quickly to the door.
"Are you going somewhere milady?" Lancer called from the kitchen.
"I'm going...shopping!...I'll...be back...soon!"
"Please be careful. We don't know when you will encounter another servant or master."
"I will!"
"If anything happens, don't hesitate to use a command seal to summon me!"
Midori didn't respond as she threw the door open and ran into the adjoining hallway.
Before the door could shut, Lancer placed the plate she was washing on the counter, took spirit form and began tailing her master. "Forgive me milady, but this is for your best interest."
The Clock Tower
Lord El-Melloi II threw the news paper he was reading on his coffee table in disgust. There on the front page was a story about a certain servant's poorly thought-out attempt to gain allies. It would have been one thing if it was just the act of a rogue magus, but he had a first had account from one of servants who present to confirm this was the work of a master. "We managed to cover it up as the work of poachers, but we're lucky there weren't any witnesses to the battle."
"It wasn't that fortunate for me," whined Archer, leaning against one of the walls of Lord El-Melloi's office. "If that green berserker hadn't intervened, I wouldn't have escaped in one piece."
"The green knight from Emiya's report? But wasn't she just a child?" Professor Conn rubbed his chin stubble in thought as he looked over the file from ten years ago.
"If she was a servant, she wouldn't age. But then again, why would a child be a fully armored knight anyways? It doesn't make sense!" Commented Ajay as he paced about the office.
"Servants come in all sexes, shapes and sizes! If you underestimate your opponent based on their appearance, you're bound to be in trouble!" Rider was at her most sober the first time in several days, thanks in part to having drunk about every bottle of wine in the Ajagar family wine cellar. The fact she hadn't died from alcohol poisoning was a testament to a servant's inhuman metabolism.
"Under normal circumstances they don't. However, if she was a pseudo-servant, there's no telling how many rules of servants do apply to her. The question is she an ally or enemy." Lord El-Melloi lit a cigarette with a lighter he produced from his pant pocket.
"Unless I was mistaken, she didn't appear to be Lancer's ally." Archer replied.
"Unfortunately, she also attacked you so we can't count her as an ally at this point." Conn added.
"So far we've witnessed a battle between Saber and a servant we assume to be Assassin and we've now encountered Lancer and a Berserker. That leaves only Caster unaccounted for; that is if this was a normal holy grail war." The lord pondered.
"Now if only certain Rider would be so kind as to actually participate in this holy grail war, I'd be so happy!" Ajay glared at his servant.
"Maybe if you buy me some booze, I'd consider it." Rider flashed a shit eating grin at her master.
"I guess I have no choice then." If Ajay was a more impulsive master, he would have spent a command seal to force his servant to commit suicide. Thankfully for him, he knew better than to waste such a precious resources on a futile attempt. Even if he were to try, Rider's magic resistance would likely negate the command seal unless expended a command seal to reinforce the order and there was a chance she would resist that second command seal.
"Right now we're at the stage where servants are partaking in only brief skirmirshes, trying to feel out their opponent without giving our own secrets. However, soon enough servants will be forced to fight each other to the death. We must prepared for when that time comes." Lord El-Melloi II looked to Rider. "You have sustained from combat these past few days which allows you to remain a mystery to the other masters and servants. We can use this fact to our advantage. We should continue to observe the other servants for the time being and once we can deduce abilities and true names, we can deploy Rider to fight them, exploiting their weaknesses while they can't do the same to Rider."
"That sounds fine by me. A pirate like a me is no stranger to dirty tactics." Rider grinned perversely.
"Then I suppose you will be scouting some more," Archer nodded thoughtfully.
"Yes, though I suggest avoiding Lancer for now. She was able to detect your presence, meaning she'll be more on guard should she know you're around. When the time comes we'll have to deal with her, but until then we can leave her be." The lord blew smoke from his lips as he looked out his office's window.
"That will be easier said than done. While I suspected her master was using the zoo as their base previously, they've likely had to relocate in a hurry. There's no telling when I'll be stumbling on her again." Archer sighed.
"That's true however we still have a rough idea where Saber and his master be. As the strongest servant class, we'd benefit greatly from learning as much about him as possible." Professor Conn replied.
"That is likely the best course of action we can take for now. We have a few more days before the Havengul's party. By then I will likely to have a plan in action to counteract at least one servant. That way if things went bad, we'll have an ace up our sleeve." Lord El-Melloi II turned away from the window as a knocking could be heard coming from his office door. "Come in."
The door opened, revealing Grey. "I've returned Sir."
"Welcome back, Lady. Have you completed the preparations?"
"Yes, Sir. It took some time, but I've gathered as much information I could about all currently rented hotel rooms with London and composed a list of guests as well as their backgrounds." Grey walked into the office and sat an envelope on the coffee table.
"Good work. Did any guests particularly stand out?"
"Yes, recently a French couple rented a room at a certain hotel. One of them is a representative of the Holy Church going by the name Latecia. The other is refers to herself as Astolfo but has on more than one occasion called herself Rider of Black."
"Astolfo? One of the twelve paladins of Charlemagne?" Conn stroked his chin in thought.
"Rider of Black?" Ajay looked confused.
"According to 'Ruler', there are more servants currently summoned than what would be allowed in an ordinary Holy Grail War. It is likely that she is calling herself 'Rider of Black' to differentiate herself from our Rider." El-Melloi offered with a shrug.
"According to legend, Astolfo was a man." Conn inquired.
"It wouldn't be the first that legend and truth differ." The lord unconsciously looked to the cabinet where stowed a mantle of the King of Conquerors.
"If I recall accurately, there was one legend where he wore women's clothing in the process of subduing a maddened Roland. I wonder if that has anything due to his appearance?" Conn suggested on top of his head.
"Are you suggesting she's actually a crossdresser?" Ajay pondered.
"There are many theories behind Astolfo's actions," Professor began to lecture.
"Hay eggheads, if your done with your little strategy meeting, I'm going to find somewhere to get drunk." Without warning Rider entered spirit form and left the office.
"While I can't condone her rudeness, I believe the right idea. I'll be scouting some more. Please don't be afraid to summon me if anything important arises." Archer, ever so more respectfully, departed from the room.
Scotland Yard, Morgue
"So is this the work of our new Jack the Ripper?" asked officer Aaran Kingsly, overlooking the corpse of a young woman lying on an operating table. Beyond his red hair, the man didn't look any different from any other London police officer.
"Yes and no," replied the medical examiner, Zowie Crowly. Beyond her porcelain skin, she was black from head to toe. From her long black hair, dark make-up, spiked collar and band t-shirt, she looked nothing like a professional member of any police force. Yet despite her less than ideal appearance, she was the best medical examiner they had. She had uncanny knack for determining the cause of death of about any body they brought in within minutes. When asked how she could work so fast, she simply replied "I ask them how they died." None were wary of her use of magecraft and thus didn't take her response literally.
"Explain please."
"Well, you see this rapture in her womb here. This is totally new Jack's M.O., but that isn't what killed her. If anything, this looks to have happened post mortem."
"Post mortem? You mean somebody wanted to make it look like she was killed by new Jack?"
"Possibly. It looks like somebody strangled her."
"Strangulation? That's a first. Maybe she tried to fight back."
"I don't know about that. There's no defensive wounds on her. What's more interesting is these shackles on her wrist. All the other victims had chaffing in that area, but the killer clearly removed their restraints before dumping their body. Not only are her wrists still bound, the chains are attached in full. I mean, I've heard how people perform feats of immense strength while under the influence of adrenaline, but I doubt this woman could have ripped her chains out of whatever surface they were attached to."
"That's true. What could something like this?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. I'll let you know if I find anything else."
"Alright." Aaran turned to leave but only turned after a few steps. "Oh by the way, that creature was found by her. Did you learn anything about it?"
"Unfortunately I'm not a biologist so all I can tell you is that it isn't an octopus."
"I expected as much. Thanks for humoring me."
"It's no problem!" Zowie watched the police officer leave the morgue, releasing a deep sigh the moment the morgue's sliding doors closed. "Sorry for lying, Aaran, but there's somethings I can't reveal to you. You have a family who would miss you."
Turning to a different table where the remains of the sea fiend laid, Zowie pulled out a cellphone and began dialing a number. "This is the job for Professor Charisma."
Havengul Manor
"Ah yes, the serial killer." Selena placed her tea cup on the saucer. She was enjoying her morning tea when she noticed her butler seemed distracted. Inquiring about his concerns, he mentioned Edward's encounter the previous night. "That French woman has been busy hasn't she? How many victims have their been to this date?"
"Twenty-three in the last month, ma'am." Henry's voice was heavy with guilt. Even though he knew what Edward did wound up being an act of mercy in comparison, he still murdered a young woman and not for the first time. Henry was powerless to stop Edward and could only watch his tyranny go unchecked.
"Nearly one woman a night and yet Scotland Yard is still scratching their heads trying to figure who dunit. She's reckless enough to get the attention of the local authorities, but careful enough to leave them without a means of finding her or force the Mage's Association to get involved. That requires a level guile rare amongst common killers. She could be one of the masters for all we know."
"Should we deal with her?" Henry didn't care for killing, but if it meant to removing a mass murderer from this world, he could live with it.
"No. Unless she interferes in our plans, she may play around as much as she wants." Raising the tea cup from the saucer, Selena sipped her tea. She needed not to look at her butler to know how he felt about this decision. A moon with such a good heart was poorly suited to working under a woman as pragmatic and rutheless as her. Yet, he had no choice but serve her for his desires were tied to hers.
"Let's discuss something else. As I recall you were late returning to the manor yesterday."
"Please forgive me milady. I simply stopped to get some tea and made a rather unexpected new friend."
"Is that so? That's great to here, though I doubt have to warn you the risks of getting friendly with anyone in London right now?"
"No, my milady." The butler looked the ground in shame.
"Now, now. I didn't mean to scold you. I just wanted to remind you the dangers we face. Do you understand."
"Yes, milady."
"Good. You may show the new maid to her job."
"Yes, milady." With a bow, Henry left Selena's office and entered the adjoining hallway where the spectral form of Amanda stood awaiting orders.
Adorned in the attire of a maid, she possessed a blank expression on her face devoid of any emotion. A wraith created from binding the soul of the dead to the realm of the living through magecraft, she was little more than one of the Havengul family's countless familiars. Any memories of her past life were long forgotten, erased so that she could serve her new mistress without complaint or regret. Merely looking at her filled the butler with great regret and shame.
"Forgive me..." Was all he said to her before walking down the hallway, the specter soundlessly following in tow.
Acheflour's Apartment
Cassandra stared at the blank word document on her computer screen for the last few hours. Occasionally she would type something only to delete it in frustration. Oh how cruel was writer's block! It was one thing to be too aroused to write, but this wasn't the kind of situation where her fingers or a toy could simply resolve. Even trying to type whatever came to her mind didn't produce anything more than "I don't know what to write." CTRL + A and DELETE. The word document was blank once again.
She had no choice but to leave the apartment and get some inspiration. Leaving her ever so comfy computer chair, she stretched and began looking through a pile of clean but long unfolded laundry for a sweat shirt and a pair of sweat pants. Sliding on some untied sneakers, she quickly located a sticky pad and pen. Jotting down a quick note for Achelour, she slapped it on the refrigerator and headed to the front door. Locking the door on her way out, Cassandra made her way down the stairs to the ground level of the apart complex and began walking down the street.
Her destination was none other than a little hobby and gaming store she often frequented. It sold a majority of items of nerdy interest from comics to manga, table top games to video games, model kits to figurines, so on and so forth. It also dealt in various mystic codes for shoppers of the magus nature. To Cassandra, it was a wellspring of inspiration and her local drinking hole. While many of the other customers left much to be desired when it came to physique, they were her closest (offline) friends and if someone could give her some advice and ideas would them.
What she didn't expect to find the moment she stepped through the door was a green-haired muscle beauty that looked ever so out of place. Cassandra's heart nearly stopped at the sight of the Amazonian goddess looking at a shelf of figurines with curiosity. She didn't need to look far to see that she wasn't the only person admiring the sculpted maiden. For many a lonely nerd, this woman might have stepped out of a comic book and their wet dreams. Those who weren't ogling her were looking at her suspiciously, uncertain if she was real.
Jack pot! Not even a minute has passed since she entered and she was already finding inspiration. However, merely watching afar would only get so far. The real inspiration comes from interacting with the rare specimen that has appeared out of the blue. Swiftly and silently as a predator pouncing on her prey, Cassandra drew up aside the woman. Following the woman's eyeline, she spied a boxed figurine featuring a beautiful black-haired maiden wearing a fairly short, cleavage bearing kimono and wielding a naginata. If she was mistaken, it was a character from a historical fantasy anime set in the warring states period. She wanted to recall the anime's title, but after watching over a hundred titles, she had trouble remembering the titles of yester year's anime. Unfortunately, as was with most anime figurines, all the writing in the box was in Japanese and while she had been interested in learning the language, it wasn't all that high a priority. Most doujinshi could be understood without being read what the characters are saying (especially when all you care about the steamy imagery drawn within). Just because she didn't recognize the character or the anime she was from didn't mean she couldn't use it to break the ice. "She's cute isn't she?"
The woman started, having been too focused on the figurine. Turning to face Cassandra, the woman looked at her with sudden surprise. Even though she was dressed so plainly, the woman could tell she was quite beautiful. "W-what?"
"That figurine. She's cute, no?"
"...Yes." The woman's cheeks reddened.
"Is she your type?"
"My type...?"
"You know, the type of girl that makes your heart race?"
The woman's entire face turned bright red.
"I'll take that as a yes!"
"She reminds...me of...some I...care about..."
"Awe! That's so cute!"
The woman looked to the ground embarrassedly.
"I bet she's very happy to have someone like you in her life."
Sadness crept into the woman's face.
"Oh, trouble in paradise?"
"I think...she hates...me. I want...to give...her a...present."
"How adorable! You're so considerate. So what kind of things does she like?"
The woman's face became blank as Cassandra's most recent word document.
"Oh my! Don't you know what she likes?! No wonder she's upset with you! You have to pay attention to what your partner does and says."
The woman eagerly nodded her head.
"That being said, you can never go wrong with flowers, jewelry and chocolates! There's not a woman alive who wouldn't love receiving one of those three items from her partner!"
"Flowers...Jewelry...Chocolates..."
"Be sure to make yourself look as miserable and sad as you can to get across that you're truly sorry for upsetting her."
"Miserable and...sad..."
"If you're lucky she'll give you a 'thank you' kiss."
"K-kiss...!" Steam started to rise from the woman's head.
"You've kissed before right?"
"N-no..."
"Poor thing. You two must have a rough relationship."
The woman didn't respond, just merely stared longingly at the figurine.
"Here!" Cassandra grabbed the figure and ran to the counter, presenting a black plastic card from her seemingly nowhere. A quick sale later, she returned to the woman, handing her the figure which now sat within a plastic shopping bag. "A gift for you! Now go get a gift for your partner!"
The green-haired woman looked at Cassandra with surprise. Sniffling, she grabbed the bag, choked out a "thank you" and rushed out of the shop.
"Arigatōgozaimashita!" an Asian woman who had seemingly materialized from thin air stood before Cassandra, bowing respectfully. The nearby customers and shop staff began rubbing their eyes, believing they were hallucinating.
"T-think nothing about it!" Cassandra's heart was beating twice as fast as it was before, not because there was an Asian beauty before her, but because a servant just materialized in front of her. If she wasn't suppressing her mana, she be afraid of being discovered herself.
The Asian woman began walking away, glittering away as she entered spirit form.
Cassandra fell to her knees, panting. "I'm so scared...and aroused." There was no doubt that she was going to have a lot to write about now...once she made sure all the locks on the door to Acheflour's apartment was locked and a several layers of bounded fields were placed around the complex and the surrounding block. In hindsight, the bounded fields were probably a little over kill and probably drew more attention to her presence than it did hiding it, but she couldn't be too careful.
There was much gossiping amongst the other customers as they tried to make sense what just happened. By the end of the day, an urban legend had begun to circulate on various internet forums that if you bought an anime figurine at a specific hobby store, a beautiful ghostly maiden appeared to thank you. Naturally over time the details of rumor grew more and more strange before being forgotten entirely after a few weeks, but during that time several hobby stores had a sudden upsurge of anime figurine sales.
A Certain Church
Night had fallen once more as the holy woman and rogue servant entered the church. A long line of pews stretched before them, leading them to the alter several feet down. Slowly they moved, silently...or as silently the chattering pink haired femboy could muster. As they reach the last few pews, sounds could be heard. A mixture moaning and wet slapping. Latecia held out a hand to signal Astolfo to hang back as she reached for the cross-like pendant that hung around her neck.
"Holy arm that pierced the flesh of Christ, grant me your divine power!" With a flash of light, the pendant transformed, taking the form of a golden spear that Latecia wielded in her hands. Lunging forward, she turned to the origin of the sounds and nearly screamed in shock and embarrassment.
Three naked individuals were locked in the throes of passion, their flesh rubbing against each other lustfully. It took the nun a moment to recognize the beautiful man that was sandwiched between a woman and young boy. "F-father?!"
"Has another child of God come to join in our holy ritual?" The beautiful priest said with a twisted grin on his face.
"H-holy ritual?! There's nothing holy about this!" Latecia's face burned a bright crimson.
"Normally, I'd agree, but there are exceptions to all situations. You see, we are engaging the sacred skinship of the Holy Spirit. By making love within the house of God, we bring ourselves into the judgment of the Lord and receive his blessing!"
"T-this blasphemy! There's nothing in the Bible about this!"
"Maybe not canonically, but I can offer some apocrypha to which the ritual we're performing is detailed amongst many others!"
"I'd sooner denounce my sacred vows than partake in your debauchery! Once the Church knows about this, you'll be-"
"Slapped on the wrist at most. You'd be surprised to what the Church is willing to overlook. If you're not willing to join us, then please finish your business here and leave."
"That looks fun. Can we join?" The pink-haired paladin chirped in.
"Astolfo! You can't be serious!"
"What are you so embarrassed about, Latecia? You're already have been providing ma-" The girlish boy was cut off by a sharp cough from his companion.
"Father, you should know what has been transpiring in London as of late."
"You should be more specific as there seems to be more than one event happening at this time."
"The murders of young women."
The priest. "That hardly rules anything out. The question is: Is that beautiful creature accompanying you a servant?"
"Yes, but he isn't a participant in this current Holy Grail War if that is what you are thinking. Neither am I for the matter."
"A shame. For some reason, not a single master has introduced themselves to me. I wonder why."
Latecia had a few ideas, but she didn't speak them.
"If you're not here to participate in some trivial battle over an object claiming to be a Holy Grail, then you must be here for the serial killer."
"That is right. What can you tell me about them?"
"They appear to be operating out of the sewers of White Chapel. If I'm not mistaken, they dabble in dark heresy."
"Dark heresy?"
"Yes, she summons creatures not of God. That's all you need to know, o'Holy Mai- oh, I guess you're not a maiden anymore."
The priest seemed to know how to get under Latecia's skin. Thankfully for him, she possessed a great deal of tolerance and a mild temper. Otherwise her spear would have skewered him where he laid. "Astolfo we're leaving!"
"Alright. Well have fun with your holy ritual father!" The servant followed closely behind the nun who stormed out of the church.
Club Midnight
When the sun sets, coffins creak open and the staff of a certain night club come to life. Normally dead apostles wouldn't dare to operate so close to the Mage's Association, but the Crow House was an exception. Through a deal made with the magi, they were allowed to exist within the boundaries in London, provided they didn't procreate without the association's approval and that they obtained blood in a means that didn't expose their existence to humans. The first rule was of little issue as creating neophytes recklessly would make it harder to maintain the second rule. The second rule on the other hand is a little more difficult, but not entirely impossible, giving the right marketing.
Catering a clientele who loved both the occult and Victorian fashions, Club Midnight was the fanciest and most sophisticated of the clubs in London. Every guest is given a stylish mask to protect their identities and add an air to mystery. Naturally holy symbols and weapons of any kind were prohibited; a vampire had to be careful.
Other dead apostles sometimes stopped by Club Midnight from time to time and the coven provided them safe harbor from the Holy Church, they rarely stayed long and probably for the best. The Association would be wary if random dead apostles took up residence in London. These travelers were well-behaved for most part and those who weren't quietly disposed the moment they risk exposing their existence.
Normally, uninvited guests would have been dealt with quietly and discreetly, but she was different. She had materialized from seemingly thin air, seated in a vacant booth and watching the other guests with amusement and hunger. While some dead apostles possessed the ability to turn invisible, their presence was still detectable on some level. She on the other hand, entered without being detected by anyone of the staff. Her appearance was a mystery to all.
The first of the staff to notice their unexpected guest was Edward. A man more at home working in a laboratory than at a night club, he was a tall, slender man with a fairly androngynous face. Few noticed the ever so slight limp in his right leg or the stiffness in his left arm. Even fewer notice electricity that occasionally sparked from those areas of his body. He moved swiftly to the table, greeting his newly discovered guest. "Excuse me ma'am, but can I see your mask?"
"Oh, this?" The woman pulled from her exposed cleavage, a small, black mask with the ears and whiskers of a cat. "I didn't know there was a dress code."
"This is just precaution to protect our guests. Many prefer to keep their identities secret."
"Yes, my beloved mentioned that magi are quite secretive."
"It seems that you by-passed our bouncer. Did this beloved of yours magic into here?"
The woman giggled. "Nothing the like. For someone of my abilities, entering unnoticed was all too easy."
"Is that so. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I must ask you to leave."
"I'm not leaving. I have business here. Now if you don't mind, please get me your boss."
Edward went to grab the woman by the arm in order to drag her out, but he soon realized the left sleeve of his coat was strangely empty. His arm was removed so quickly that he had not felt any pain until after he had tried to use it. Quickly he grabbed his stump. "What did you do?"
The woman studied the prosthetic arm, poking and probing at the wire and cords on the inside. "I thought recognized this smell. This work is different from my beloved's. I recall she mentioned acquiring the blue prints for her body from an old friend of the family. Would that be you?"
Edward's already pale face might as well become translucent. "You're Anastazia's lover?" The idea that a beautiful young woman like the one before him being in a relationship with a wrinkly hold hag wasn't too farfetched for a dead apostle. Rarely did a romance between a dead apostle and a human last that long, ending after a short century or less.
"Anastazia? My beloved is named Laura?" The woman looked to the man quizzically.
Edward didn't have any answers for her. Anastazia had no children or grandchildren of her own, choosing to adopt orphans to be her heir. However the magic crest she passed down transferred more than just her magical experience to its new host, it transferred her soul. Thus Anastazia kept herself alive for over two hundred years by stealing the bodies of unwitting children. For her to have passed on and another taken her place; this was unheard of. Could someone have overpowered the parasitic magus?
Edward was under no pressure to avenge the old woman. They had merely made a trade centuries past. He gave her his ancestor's blue prints, in return she would use her magecraft to transfer his son into a new body. A simple transaction; nothing more, nothing less. If the hag had died, then there was one less person that knew of his sin. None-the-less, it didn't change the woman before him was an intruder who had to be removed. "Alucard." Using the little magecraft the man knew, he sent a telepathic message to an ally.
"Holy shit! I thought I told you to stop talking in my head!" As usual, Alucard's response was crude.
"Sorry, but I have an unwanted guest and I need a little help removing her from the premises. Can you can you lend me a hand?"
"Is that all? Can't you remove one little human on your own?"
"She isn't a human. She's one of us I'm more than certain."
"She? Is she hot?"
"What?"
"Is she hot? You know, does she got big ol' titties?"
"I want you to help me remove her from the premises! Not sleep with her!"
"Fuck off, femboy! I'll do whatever I want no matter what you or that child says!"
Edward sighed internally. Alucard was amongst the youngest of the dead apostles and was quite unruly. A hitman in life, he joined the coven after he was hired to assassinate the wrong club owner. By the time he had transformed into a vampire, his former client had been transformed into one of the Dead; a corpse puppet. Having lost little a century of life, he took his rebirth violently, rebelling against his "father" and doing as he pleases. The only reason he hasn't been disposed of is because he understands that there are certain lines he can't cross without being abandoned to the will of the Holy Church.
"You are done with your little conversation?" The woman asks smugly.
"You can read my mind?"
"No, but I can only assume you're calling for assistance seeing as I clearly outclass you."
Edward grimaced. She wasn't wrong, but it didn't it make her any less arrogant and rude. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid Mr. Alucard won't be as gentle as me."
It was the woman's turn to grimace. "That sounds...great."
Edward smiled to himself. "You don't even know the beginning of it."
Almost on que, the fiery red-head in tight leather emerged from the shadows, a cocky grin on his face as he sized up the intruder. "DAMN! She's small, but stacked! Bite sized even!"
"Is that your best attempt at flattery? I've heard better from far attractive men." The woman smiled to herself.
"What cute little mouth on this bitch. I hope it fit all of my fat co-" A timely cough from Edward cutoff the rouge's bragging.
"I'll bite off and shove it down your throat, boy." The woman sneered.
"I'd like you try!" Alucard cracked the knuckles of one his hands with just a flex with fingers.
"Not here, you dolt! Not only are you going to endanger the guests, you'd expose our existence to the humans!" Edward snapped at the ginger dead apostle.
"Fuck off!" With a swipe of a clawed hand, he swiped at the woman- at least that was what intended before he was thrown into the wall, shatter the glass of an overhead portrait and sending translucent shards raining down on three of them.
The sudden burst of violence startled the nearby guests, many of which were either trying to desperately escape or were now watching from a safe distance. Great! Edward knew that calling upon Alucard was going to cause a scene, but he didn't expect to happen like this.
"You fucking bi-" A stilleto-heeled shoe smashed Alucard's teeth, sending many of them flying.
To Edward's shock and dismay, some of onlookers began cheering on the intruder they were trying so hard to remove. He could easily identify them as various women that Alucard had "dated" over the past few years. He had a long history of being a lousy lover, often discarding those he had grown bored of in favor of the next. He left a long list women who wanted to see the pig put in his place. This was getting out of hand.
"Bram, quickly get Vlad. We have situation."
"Is it Alucard?"
"Yes...and no."
"I'd like explanation later."
"I'm sure I'll have explain to everyone later. Make haste. At this rate Alucard's going to die."
"The Church?"
"Worse. One of own." Edward knew that was enough to quench his friend's curiosity for now. That didn't change the situation here though.
Alucard's short temper was frayed and he wasn't going to allow a woman show him up- provided he could get a blow in. Drawing a pistol from his waste band, he didn't even get a chance to aim it before the heel of her shoes pierced his wrist into the ground. The woman took glee in causing him pain.
Normally, losing an arm would be a disadvantage, but for Edward it was an advantage. His left hand came to life, wriggling fiercely in the woman's hand before emitting an electrical pulse. Gasping in pain, she dropped the prosthetic arm. The moment it hit the ground, it crawled back to its master where he picked it up and reattached it.
"Very clever," the woman smiled at Edward, kicking Alucard in the mouth again as he tried to shout another insult.
"Adaptation is necessary for survival." Edward replied, generating electricity about his hand.
The rushed foot falls of two men announced the arrival of Bram and Vlad.
"You weren't kidding when you said Alucard might die." Bram chimed, twisting one end of his handlebar mustache in his fingers. A black haired man in a black suit, he was one of hell of a story teller, given his extended life span, and even greater bartender.
"Ma'am, please excuse offense my employee may have caused you. If you wouldn't mind coming with me, we can talk in the back." Vlad was an old, silver-haired gentleman aged with many years of experience. Very few have guessed he was a dead apostle given the modern views of vampires as youthful pretty boys. The fact he was by the youngest of the coven was much of a joke amongst them.
"I suppose this will do." The woman ceased her abuse of the playboy and turned to follow the old man who already began walking to his office.
Edward sighed in relief before turning to the gathered crowd. He was certain that Elizabeth and Lolita had already sealed the entrance before anyone could have escaped, so it was a matter of dealing with those who saw too much. Thankfully, one of the many gifts most dead apostles possessed was mistake eyes of charming. Very few humans possessed the willpower to resist them and it was easy to convince them they were all were high off weed or whatever hulligen of their choice. If by any chance some of them proved to resist this suggestion, it meant Club Midnight would lose one or two valued customers, but that was the cost of protecting the coven.
The office was small, but cozy the type place where one could enjoy a private conversation. Sitting atop oak desk was a young boy in a suit with shorts. His tiny feet kicked back and forth over the desk's edge. "What's happening grandpa?"
"We have an unexpected guest to whom Alucard was quite rude." The old man replied, closing the door behind the woman as she entered.
"He got what deserved." Woman replied smugly to herself. "If I'm not mistaken, you would be the head of House Crow."
The childish innocence in the boy's eyes disappeared, replaced by a cold intelligence uncommon in a boy so young. "You made quite a show of force. Was it necessary to risk exposing our kind to the humans or was that just something you did for shits and giggles."
"Forgive my crudeness, little one, but I felt it was necessary to demonstrate how outclassed your kin were before an audience, lest they believe I was just another girl. I hope I didn't cause you too much trouble."
"In the best case scenario, the Mages' Association won't hear about this. The worse case scenario, we all will incur their wrath!"
"I doubt you will allow it to come to that." Woman smiled smugly, showing no remorse for her actions.
"What's your purpose? What can you get in stirring the pot like this?"
"I was just curious to see how my kind was living in the modern day."
"You talk as though you lived as a hermit."
"A hermit, no. It's more that I have been returned to the world of the living recently."
"Returned to the world of the living? You were resurrected?"
"Not resurrected; summoned."
"You're speaking in riddles!"
"So you're not a magus."
"I fail to see correlation your actions and your assumptions! What does being a magus have to do with this?"
"You live in fear of the magi."
"It's not the magi I fear! It's the Church!"
The woman, for once, frowned. "Yes, the followers of that man."
"The magi will tolerate our existence as long as we play by their rules. The Church and their Burial Agency is the ones who wants us dead! They will hunt us until the last of our kind is dead!"
"Yet you consort with one of them!"
The boy laughed. "That priest? He is no true follower of God. He may wear the clothes of the faithful, but he is a sinner at heart! It is he who extended the olive branch to us! As long as he keeps his mouth shut about us, he won't come under scrutiny by his own allies for harboring us!"
"As far as our kind is concerned, you might as well be a traitor for consorting with a man of the cloth."
"That may be, but killing this man will draw the attention of the Church and bring real priests here!"
"So you're saying by humoring this false priest you're protecting coven?"
"Exactly, we should exploit our enemy's weakness! If they won't keep a close on their clergy, then it's their own fault when we flourish beneath their nose!"
"So brazen. The world has changed so much since my time."
"Who are you exactly, milady?"
"You may call me Cirmalla."
The boy's eyes widen as what color there was in his near porcelain face drained away. Could it be? No, that's impossible! She was destroyed! Wait! Didn't she say recently returned to the land of the living? And that name. It's anagram she would use. Even then, she shouldn't be that strong! Really, who is this woman and what purpose would she have to be pretending to be here?
"Oh my, it seems I have caused you some unnecessary grief. My apology," Cirmalla grinned to herself.
"Ms. Cirmalla, you say one thing and do the other. It's clear you are merely toying with me at this point."
"Is that how see it? I'm sorry, but I haven't interacted with our kind in such a long time and it seems I've picked up some bad habits from the mortals."
"You should be careful. The bad habits of humans often lead to their downfall."
"I'll take your words to heart. Now if you don't mind, my beloved is awaiting my return." The woman faded away, erasing her presence completely.
"Vlad!"
"Yes, Lord Samuel?"
"Contact Selena at once! I need to consult a magus on this matter."
"As you wish, milord." With a bow, the old man left the office.
"Something's happening in London. Something that will shake foundation of all I worked so hard to create..." The boy slammed a fist into the desk, causing the wood struck to explode into a rain of splinters.
The Hotel Room
Midori opened the door slowly and quietly, fearing her servant's wrath. Not seeing the woman, she crepted foward and squeaked out a faint "I'm back..."
"Welcome home, milady." Lancer materialized in the kitchen just out of her master's sight as to appear she had been in the room the entire time and wasn't stalking the woman in spirit form. "I'm about to start making dinner."
"I have...something for...you..." Midori reached into a plastic shopping bag she was carrying and pulled out a small box.
"A gift for me?" The servant feigned ignorance even though she had watched her master buy it and knew exactly what was in side. Gently she picked up the box and opened, gasping in fake surprise. "A necklace!"
It was a diamond heart pendant hung from a silver chair. It was worth more than average working class adult could afford in a single year, but the wild woman- with no knowledge of monetary value, didn't balk at its observed price and the saleswoman who helped her was certainly convinced she was some billionare. It had took Lancer her strength to not giggle at the misunderstanding.
"D-do you like it?" Midori looked to her servant worriedly.
"It's beautiful!" The servant fastened the necklace around her neck before tucking beneath the hem of her kimono. "Thank you." Faster than the wild woman could respond, she enclosed the distance between them, stood on her toes and gave her master a kiss on the cheek.
Eyes wide, face crimson and mouth agape, the sudden and unexpected response of her servant filled Midori with glee and surprise. Unfortunately, the sudden of rush to her head was more than she could handle and her body went limp. The last thing she recalled before loosing consciousness was Green's laughter.
"Milady?!" Lancer swiftly wrapped her arms around the muscular woman's body and embraced it to hers. Realizing her master had merely fainted, she sighed and relief. Carrying the woman in her arms, she made her way to the bed. Laying the woman on the bed, she on the bed's edge and ran her fingers through Midori's green hair. "You cease to surprise, milady. You act in a way that is so strange. There is so much I don't know about you."
She knew that she would only get the answers she wants by intruding on her master's privacy and ask questions that are hard to answer, but at this point, she need to know more about the mysterious and eccentric magus that had summoned her.