Third Night (4)
Rider was not an individual given to fear, anxiety or even unease. A lifetime of wars, unending political and military battles alongside a fair dosage of personal tragedy intermixed with the end of the world had left him a hardened man...assuming he even was a man anymore, the necessary transformations that ensured his people's survival, turning them into the Yaga, had altered them on a fundamental level.
Yet to watch the Apostle Cato Flavius perform his craft was a noticeably unusual and mildly disconcerting sight. Rider knew a thing or two about Magi and their rituals, knew that nothing came free or even easily to those that employed the art. Yet there the Apostle was, barely a trace of energy to be found as his eyes shifted and darted around the caverns they had been residing in since the start of the war, the three mind-controlled Magus calmly sitting on a nearby rock outcropping with blank expressions, a position they had held since their wills had been subsumed.
...Rider briefly wondered what the Apostle's plans were for the girl who's Servant had been killed before turning to the Vampire in full.
"Saber and Lancer have been given their 'orders'. Not that there was much to tell."
Apparently concluding his investigation the Apostle turned to face Rider, the Servant once more giving the Vampire a closer look. Pale skin, curly brown hair and an unremarkable height or build...but the eyes were what was truly strange, fathomless black rather than the crimson he had expected of most of his kind.
"I don't begrudge them the freedom to explore at their leisure, as their boundaries have been set quite explicitly. But enough of that, Rider. Come, see what I have discovered."
Interest piqued the Servant strode next to the Vampire, curiosity getting the better of him as he watched the Apostle touch some seemingly random piece of the wall-
-and an impossibly convoluted and complex array of magecraft illuminated the cavern with tangled webs of indecipherable meaning, Rider letting loose an impressed grunt.
"Not a simple formalcraft array, then. What have you stumbled onto, Apostle?"
"This, Rider, is the nesting grounds of the Greater Grail."
"The Greater Grail? That would imply there is a lesser version that exists."
"Indeed. It's quite fascinating, what the founding families of the Grail War accomplished."
Turning to face the towering figure next to him Flavius revealed glowing eyes with spider web-like veins interlaced across them, tangled webs of vision denoting the usage of a Mystic Eye.
"The True Sight Mystic Eyeallows me to see the fabric of mana itself, of where effects or rituals have been laid down or inscribed. And in observing Fuyuki I discovered something...odd. Mainly that the Grail seems to be in two different places at once."
"For what purpose? It would seem logical to have the Grail sequestered away in a single, secure location rather than scattered about, where others may stumble onto it."
Nodding in acceptance of the Servant's words the Apostle nonetheless raised a finger, explaining, "You would be correct...but the creators of this ritual were rather clever in designing it. This 'Lesser Grail'-the one not located here-seems to operate as a key for actually interacting with the Grail proper. Before us is the nuts and bolts operation of the system but we have no means of altering or accessing with it without the Lesser."
Shrugging slightly the Apostle offered a wry smile, stating, "At least, that is what I inferred from my observations. I was never a particularly talented Magus."
Slowly inclining his jagged head Rider remarked, "Those eyes of yours are quite versatile, Ancestor."
A modest tilt of his preceded an explanation of, "My Mystic Eyes are all I have, Rider. It's fortunate that they are. And it's rather convenient, the location of the Lesser Grail."
"How so?"
"The Homunculus who's Mystic Eyes I coveted, the ones of Binding? If what I've inferred from the formula inscribed here is correct, the Einzbern family would implant the Lesser Grail in one of their artificial Humans that would keep it safe until enough Servants had perished to fuel the ritual. If we were to retrieve the doll, as I intended to regardless, we have a means of direct access to the Grail. We might not even have to fight off most of the other Masters and Servants."
Humming pensively Rider was silent for a time, eventually turning to face the Apostle directly.
"I also recall you mentioning something about the Grail being corrupted during that conversation. I have a wish of my own, Apostle. And if it will be perverted by this 'corruption'...I will be less than pleased."
Not displaying the slightest trace of apprehension Cato Flavius merely explained, "Unfortunately, from what I have determined...there is an anomaly among the Grail system. While the exact identity or nature is beyond my understanding I can tell you that any wish enacted by the Grail will be...twisted. Your desire will come true, but its means of doing so will be horrific and destructive. A monkey's paw perfectly encapsulated, to use a more mundane phrase."
Rider and the Apostle stared the other down...and eventually the towering Servant released a tired sigh.
"Then the Grail is useless to me. I hold no trust in a cup that will distort the desires of the heart. The flesh is already twisted...best not risk the soul as well."
Cato seemed curious, asking, "Was your wish related to the form you manifested in? It's obvious you hail from a timeline different from our own, did you desire to fix your body-"
"My wish will not be granted, Apostle...I see no reason to share with you what will never be achieved."
"Fair enough."
Silence fell, the Apostle moving to the three Magi-
-and a clawed arm barred his way, Rider glaring at the Vampire with clear malice, voice bestial as he stated, "And what of you, Ancestor? You know of this corruption but seem not dissuaded in the slightest. Tell me your wish, and I will judge whether it is worthy of my continued aid."
Instead of anger or fear the Vampire only offered a sad smile, replying, "Would you object if I told you of my time as a Human, before I became an Apostle? That will provide the necessary context for my wish."
"We have naught but time."
Staring off into the distance Flavius seemed to lose himself for a moment, eyes losing their shine and returning to the strange voids they previously were.
"I was born during what is now knowns as the 'Pax Romana' period of the Roman Empire, slightly more than two millennia ago. My family and I were a simple one, farmers that laid claim to a respectable amount of land. Indeed, we were normal in all aspects aside from my younger sister."
A fond smile appeared on the Ancestor's lips.
"She had a unique condition, you see. She possessed Mystic Eyes of Regenerative State, eyes that could restore a person to the 'peak' of their health, both mental and physical with just a simple stare. By current Magi standards eyes such as these would be valuable beyond measure, ensuring that any experiments or alterations could be corrected after the fact. But back then? My sister was just a blessed little girl, helping the small community of a few hundred with her strange gifts and bright disposition."
Cato's expression turned distant, joviality replaced by utter neutrality.
"She had just turned thirteen years of age when he arrived. A wandering Magus who captured her heart and, with his arcane knowledge, allowed her to make even greater use of her gifts than before. He was always somewhat distant with the rest of us but never impolite and despite our wariness my sister was nothing if not ecstatic and joyous."
A chill that reminded Rider of the years after the star fell and the sky darkened fell upon their surroundings, the Apostle's voice becoming a furious hiss.
"And then one day we woke up to her screams, eye ripped from her skull and the Magus nowhere to be found, her gift and eyesight stolen from her in the span of a single night."
Fingers clasped and tightened hard enough that a creak of stressed bones could be heard throughout the cavern.
"We never heard from him again. And misfortune struck not a few months afterwards, drought causing us to fall on lean times and decide which mouths needed to be fed the most. My sister would not have been very high on that list even if she hadn't began wasting away, unwilling to eat, move or do much else than sit and stare at nothing. She died within six months of losing her eyes."
A finger gently trailed across his closed eyelids, tone cold.
"I could never forget that course of events, could never forgive it. I set out on my fifteenth birthday, scouring the lands for both any trace of the Magus and a means to kill him."
A humorless chuckle left the Vampire.
"I succeeded in neither. I never found so much as a rumor of the man and I learned, quite early, that I had absolutely zero talent as a Magus. Four circuits of pathetic quality and nothing else...I'll spare you the details, but I ran afoul of an Ancestor during my quest and spent quite the number of years in servitude before breaking free, now 'gifted' with a nigh-eternal existence to stew in my helplessness and anger."
Cato huffed a sigh, dryly explaining, "Still not having any means of power aside from my natural abilities as an Ancestor I turned to the very thing that had started my quest...Mystic Eyes. Again, skipping over the details but centuries of obsessive study into the means of harnessing these eyes is hardly riveting material. This sad state of affairs continued for a long time, my position of the 26th Apostle only being confirmed less than seventy years ago, ambitions still left unfulfilled."
A manic smile suddenly crossed the features of the Vampire, his hand raising to display the Command Seals emblazoned upon it.
"And then, out of nowhere, I am gifted a my most desired dream. An omnipotent device that can perform any miracle so desired..."
Finally speaking for the first time Rider gravely asked, "And what is this wish, Apostle? An old grudge not settled, now gifted an outlet?"
"You could say that...my wish is simple, King Ivan. I wish for every Human and near-Human in the entire world to be cut off from their magic circuits."
…
Silence reigned, only broken by Rider eventually grunting.
"An imaginative revenge, to be sure..."
"I would say so. Magi put so much stock in their vaunted craft...I wonder, how will they cope with the loss of the means to pursue said craft? To know that their circuits are still there but forever beyond their reach?"
Lips peeled back from the Ancestor's mouth, revealing pointed teeth locked in a rictus of grim satisfaction.
"It will be as if their eyes are ripped from their sockets. Painters gone blind and composers gone deaf."
"...There will be many who desire your death, should your wish come true. And Humans are adaptable. They will find a way to work around this sudden loss."
"Oh, I have little doubt of that. But for a time many, many Magi will suffer the same fate as my sister did. And I am not particularly worried about their wish for my demise, Rider. For I will not live out the end of the war."
The bestial head turned to stare at the Apostle with the barest hints of surprise.
"What makes you so certain of that, Ancestor?"
"Us Ancestors have an individual who receives what we call the Rose Prophecy, a type of future sight that foretells of our deaths so that we may ensure another Ancestor takes our place. Mine was that, be I victorious or defeated in this war, I would not survive it."
A bemused smile crossed the features of Cato.
"It's strange, truth be told...almost two millennia of existence, brought to an end at the culmination of my fondest desire. There's a line or ten about poetic justice in there. Or perhaps 'fate' is a better word."
"...You speak of this wish and intend to carry it out, despite the professed knowledge of the Grail's corruption. Are you not concerned that it will fail, or twist your wish into something you never imagined?"
"There is indeed the risk of that...but, again, it seems the wish is carried out, only in a manner that begets death and destruction. If the Grail decides to kill all the Magi so that they can no longer touch their magic circuits, well...so be it."
"And you are not concerned that such a wish may propagate outwards? Many Humans carry within them circuits even if they are never used or activated. Would you inflict genocide upon them as well?"
The Apostle shrugged.
"Times have changed, Rider. Humanity has become a dominant force and spread rapidly, over the decades and centuries magic circuits have manifested in a smaller and smaller percentage of the population. And you have said it yourself. Humans are adaptive. After all-if what I have gleaned from your past is correct-did not Humanity survive despite nine out of ten of them perishing in your timeline?"
"Only because we gave up said Humanity. With the aid of Magi."
Catching on to the Servant's insinuation the Apostle calmly replied, "Technology and science are capable of a great many feats these days. I fear not for the death of the Human species."
Servant and Apostle stared the other down...and Rider released a bass hum of consideration.
"Acting on a grudge held over millennia due to the suffering of a loved one...you are more Human than you are monster."
"I'm not entirely certain if that is meant to be a compliment or an insult."
"Neither, it was a statement of fact."
Staring at the three blank-faced Magi still seated off to the side Rider eventually replied, "I do not entirely approve of your wish...it is hasty and ill-befitting of a ruler meant to lead the people. But I understand it."
The Servant rose to his full height, gazing down on the Apostle with imperial majesty pouring out of the Tsar of Lostbelt in visible waves.
"I will aid you, Apostle...but I will hear of the other Master's wishes and decide their validity. If I measure their desires as more palatable than yours...our agreement is at an end."
Rather than be angry or upset at the Tsar's proclamation the Apostle merely nodded, small smile upon his lips.
"Then until such a time comes to pass...I will have need of your power, King Ivan. I have a plan for the morning, would you prefer to hear it?"
"The short version. I wish to speak with Lancer and Saber."
Nodding in agreement the Vampire strode towards the seated Magi, announcing, "Then, to summarize...we will all march on the Einzbern castle located outside of Fuyuki and take what we need from there."
A wry grin appeared on his features, tone wry as he finished with, "We're going to set a record for the fastest Grail War ever."
Oath Under Snow Shirou approves of your actions, Cato. Fear the power of the little Sister revenge/rescue plot.
