Chapter 3- Master and Servant
The warrior upon the wall looked out at the city in anger. The foul taste in her mouth served as a constant reminder of her defeat. Assassin had escaped, so she had lost. Her knuckles whitened beneath her gauntlet as her grip tightened on the holy sword. Feelings of inadequacy surfaced and she grimaced.
"Saber?"
A voice disturbed the silence, reaching out to her. Shirou had called out nervously, unsure of what exactly was happening. The moon that had illuminated her beauty now served to encapsulate her anguish.
She took a moment to recompose herself before facing her master. She had been summoned without time for introduction, this would be the first time that master and servant would determine their relationship.
Springing off of the wall, Saber landed two metres away from Shirou and faced him. Her sword had disappeared, fading away as it was no longer needed. Her armour clanked before settling as she crossed her arms and observed her master.
Shirou swallowed nervously. Stood before him was a being of legend, a strong one at that. He could feel it, the overwhelming power of the servant he had summoned. How could such a thing ever be referred to as merely a familiar?
The two figures stood in a deadlock, neither one making the first move. The servant waited for her master, whilst the master struggled to move his mind.
"Saber, who are you?"
His lips moved faster than his mind. The question had been asked before he had even processed it himself. The look of surprise on his face was directly mirrored by her own, the two staring at each other.
"You summoned me, yet you do not know who I am?"
Her surprise was evident in her tone, as if she could not believe it. It was ridiculous, for a servant as strong as her to be summoned by pure luck. That would mean that their compatibility was ridiculously high, which bode well for the war.
"I didn't plan to summon a specific servant, I can't afford anything special like a catalyst."
His tone was plain, a practiced voice. Something that he had rehearsed over and over, like putting on a tie. It was the voice of someone who kept human beings at arms length.
"Then to have summoned me is a miracle. Yet I do not feel a large quantity of mana, are you holding back?"
She asked again, the information was necessary. Learning more about her master was tantamount to progressing in this war, but that wasn't the only reason she was curious. A boy in his teens had summoned her, without a catalyst and had used himself as bait for Assassin. There was a multitude of factors that made up the foundation of Saber's curiosity.
"I don't have a lot of mana, I'm not even a proper mage."
The blank voice replied again, although more emotion was present this time. A hint of frustration amongst the white noise, enough for Saber to understand the situation.
"You are a magus in training then?"
She asked another question, pushing the conversation forward. He had demonstrated enough skill to enhance his body, but the masters in the previous war had been capable of feats far superior.
"Sort of, but I can't really call myself a mage. It's getting cold now, we can carry on talking inside."
The first order he had given as a master, although it was more of a suggestion. Wind had started to pick up, causing a chill to settle over the courtyard. Saber couldn't find any reason to disagree with him, so she followed him inside without objection.
The moonlight shone down on the living room, on account of the huge hole in the ceiling. The debris lay scattered about the room, coating the table and the floor. There were footprints that crossed the debris, they had also left permanent marks on the floor.
"It can't be helped. You would have died otherwise, right?"
His approach to the situation shocked her once again. He maintained a calmness that seemed beyond his years, his tone still withheld all emotion.
"Assassin's Noble Phantasm would have killed me, it possesses the ability to slice through my armour."
Saber affirmed his judgement, providing what information she could. Assassin had escaped, so information was still a valuable commodity. The other masters had probably seen the skirmish and would have learnt of Assassin's abilities.
"Someone will fix this up soon, it's only the living room that suffered damage."
The same blank tone. It lacked trust. It lacked emotion. It lacked the basic foundation that made up all human voices. Saber had started to pick up on it now, her many years of putting up a facade had provided insight.
Before she could say something, he had already left her side and made his way into the kitchen. The sound of drawers being opened, cutlery being shifted and kitchenware being moved echoed throughout the room.
She stared at him from the living room. She noticed how long his hair was and how unkempt it looked, but that was due to the ordeal they had just gone through. After a short while, he returned with tea and teacakes.
Surprise overcame her once again, he had made a habit of surprising her over and over with his actions. The way he conducted himself was fine, yet something ate away at her core. She thought it best not to pry right now, there was more important things to be discussed.
"You made these for a servant?"
She asked him, watching as he sat down at the table. He had placed a cushion under himself, so she followed suit and sat in the same way that he did.
"Servant or not, you're still a guest."
It was sound logic. But judging by how he had made the tea and how he had to search for the right plate, she could tell that he did not have guests often. Whether that was due to circumstance or preference, she did not know.
"You want to know my True Name, my identity as a Heroic Spirit."
Shirou had opened his mouth only to be cut off, Saber had stolen the words from him. He had asked before and she had changed the subject, so it was natural for him to ask again. Such information was needed to design a strategy capable of winning them the war.
He did not respond, instead gesturing for her to continue speaking.
"Artoria Pendragon, summoned as the Saber class servant."
She spoke proudly and clearly, observing her master to witness his reaction at her declaration. What she saw was not what she expected, he pulled no faces nor did he spit out his tea.
"Artoria Pendragon?"
He had no idea who she was. Her confidence faltered momentarily before she recalled that people had believed her to be male. She cleared her throat before speaking again, as if to hock away the embarrassment.
"I am recorded in history as male. King Arthur would be the name that most people are familiar with."
Now he reacted, almost choking on his tea. The first human reaction that she had seen from him. A sense of relief washed over her, her master was indeed human. He possessed the capacity to feel emotion, he just chose to suppress it.
"King Arthur? Then that sword must be…!"
Excitement shone through his facade, he had witnessed the sword himself for a brief moment. Now that he knew of it's identity, he could understand why it was kept hidden. He had always found himself drawn to the sword, something that he had practiced for hours on end after Kiritsugu had died.
He had never been able to spar with Kiritsugu, he had lost his right hand at the wrist before adopting Shirou. He had told him that it was the result of the end of the Holy Grail War, but refused to elaborate further. Taiga had sparred with him a few times, beating him black and blue before correcting his stance and mistakes in his technique.
He had paused, as if he was remembering something lost long ago. A fleeting smile showed, before disappearing instantly. He had crushed it completely, that singular moment of happiness was like a thorn that pierced his heart and shredded his nerves.
He steeled himself again, clearing his throat before addressing Saber. His hand had tightened on his cup, his knuckles beginning to whiten.
"Shirou Emiya."
His name and nothing else. No emotion, simply the giving of his name. Those two words spoken emotionlessly struck her with force. Like a high calibre bullet from a hand cannon, the name Emiya blew her away.
The air froze. She shot to her feet with no regards for politeness. It was all she could do to not materialise her sword. Every cell raged at the mention of that name, the same name that belonged to her previous master.
"Saber?"
He stood up, backing away slightly. His own instincts had kicked in, telling him that he was not in a good position. The look in her eyes could burn the world to ash, her hand was halfway to her hip. He responded in kind, magical energy began to gather in the palm of his right hand.
He could see only one possibility. Death. If the being known as a servant decided to kill him, his head would leave his shoulders. That did not mean that he would go out with a whimper. He would meet her with his strongest and burn the image of Shirou Emiya into her forever.
"Trace-"
He would get the jump on her first, she would be several times faster than him. He would need to move first by at least two seconds if he were to fight back, even then that would never be enough. The speed at which she had moved earlier was something that Shirou Emiya could never keep up with.
Animosity flooded the room, melding with the moonlight to create a hostile atmosphere. Saber had not moved an inch, nor had she materialised her sword. Instead, she was visibly clenching both of her fists in a childish attempt to dispel her rage. Her face had contorted, beauty twisted by anguish and an even deeper emotion.
He stayed his own hand, maintaining a constant surge of magical energy in case he had to evade a blow. She still showed no sign of movement, instead fighting desperately to regain her composure. She drew in deep breath after deep breath, before turning to face him and looking him dead in the eye.
"Kiritsugu Emiya."
She spat out the name of her former master, the man that had committed the greatest sin against her. Shirou twitched at the venom in her tone.
She knew Kiritsugu, that would mean that she had been his servant. He had never spoken about his servant, every time the topic came up he had gritted his teeth and changed it. There was always a flicker of remorse in his eyes when Shirou had asked, but he had never pushed for an answer.
"Who is Kiritsugu Emiya to you?"
She followed up with a question, her tone mirroring his own emotionless voice. His instincts flared up again, alarm bells ringing in his head. Handling this situation wrong could very well lead to his death.
"Kiritsugu is… no, was, my adoptive father."
He remained a safe distance from Saber, his back resting against the wall. His right hand hung at his side, but remained open. He had completely forgotten about the command seals on his left hand, those would have been able to save his life. His own instincts had overridden everything, including rational thought, in that one moment.
"Your father…"
She bit down on her tongue, even conversing about the man in question threatened to boil her blood. She hated him. Pure hatred was the only emotion that came to mind when she thought of Kiritsugu Emiya and his actions.
The boy in front of her was not Kiritsugu Emiya, he was Shirou Emiya. This was something she had to remind herself of, the sins of the father are not shouldered by the son.
The atmosphere eased slightly, her fists relaxed and she lifted her head. Staring out through the hole in the roof, she could make out the stars that were barely visible. Clouds obscured much of the sky, threatening to swallow the moonlight. They had allowed Assassin to escape and now they threatened to hide the stars.
Shirou followed her gaze to the sky, drawing closer so that he could get a clearer look. His magical energy had dissipated, he no longer felt threatened. The stars held great meaning for him too, greater than anyone could imagine. Servant and master reminisced under the stars, each reflecting on a moment crucial to their past.
Another chapter will release tomorrow, I did intend on releasing earlier in the week but I under estimated how much work goes into writing and scripting a manga. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, the next one will arrive in ~18 hours. -TheGrailsVoice