Fate/Stay Night: Umbra Bello

Belomor- I would have to say you'll have to brace yourself for a bit. While I wouldn't say Orso is gonna be a "sidekick", I would say he's going to be working directly with Emiya for a while, mainly for reasons explained here, and in later chapters. Though, and Spoiler Warning, they won't always get along.

Also, fair warning, bit of angst in this chapter. Actually, for a lot of the fic. Almost to Spiderman levels. You've been warned.


"My name is Sherlock Holmes. It is my business to know what other people do not know."

Arthur Conan Doyle, The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

Theme Song- Chosen Ones/ Mountains vs machines


Chapter III- Crashing

Date, ?/?/2004

Time, ?:? PM

Location, Fuyuki City, Miyama District

POV Shift- Okita

The other men paused for a moment, stunned one of their guys got taken out so quickly.

"Stay back Master. This shouldn't take long." And like that, I was moving.

Two of the remaining nine collapsed in about five seconds. One more before the others seemed to get their shit together.

"((F-fuck the foreigner! Get that bitch!))" The leader shouted, not at all expecting this.

I smirked. This was gonna be a quick chance to stretch the new legs.

Three of them charged at once.

Three simple steps, and one was on the ground, while another was thrown against the last, knocking them both down.

Two more fall mere seconds later. Leaving the remaining two panicked, and about to make a run for it. I intended to enforce that sentiment.

I knocked the legs out from under the left one, and gave a kick to the head that threw him to the ground.

The last one, the leader, dropped his lead pipe as a weapon and ran like a coward.

I felt the urge to go after them, and allow my blade to taste their blood, but Master didn't want to risk harming them more than necessary.

The remaining conscious members of the group picked themselves off the ground and followed their ringleader. Carrying the less than conscious members with them.

Hmph. Barely even a warm up with this Servant body.

Sighing in disappointment, I relaxed my stance and turned to my Master who seemed to be trying to hide an awed expression.

Master. A rather unusual type of person so far as I can tell. Being from an alternate world aside, he seemed to be adapting to this situation almost too well.

I'll admit. I wasn't 100 percent sure he was telling the truth about that. More around 60, or 70 percent. The Grail had given me information about something that magi call the kaleidoscope, or the multiverse. With that in mind, it wasn't entirely impossible. Though, I'm not exactly an expert on metaphysical crap. I kill things for a living. Still, it doesn't really matter. If anything it would be good if it turned out he was lying, or just wrong. That would mean there might still be a shot at my wish.

The idea that the Grail might be corrupted was… concerning. If he was telling the truth, and the Grail was basically a time bomb set to destroy the world, there was no way I'm letting that thing get finished.

Back to my Master, I'm not entirely sure what to make of him. Then again, I was just summoned, so it's not like I'd know everything about him right away. He seemed honest, which was good. Maybe not so much for mages, but it went a long way for just about everyone else. He also wasn't a trained warrior, which was, y'know, less good. But so far he seemed to take the idea of going to war well. Accepting he couldn't change the situation, and moving on to planning what to do next quickly. So he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. He did seem cautious. Which in a way was also good, if he could handle it right. It meant he knew he was getting into something rough. He didn't have any illusions about how bloody this war can be. Still, even if he turned out to be a completely incompetent fool, I'm still his Servant. And I'll follow him to the bitter end.

I told him he could count on me, didn't I?

"So, Master, do my skills impress you?" I ask, sounding smug. I realize that it was just a bunch of normal humans, but what can I say? I'm a bit of a showoff.

"Y-yeah, that was... impressive! I mean, Servants are supposed to be way stronger than humans, but it was still cool to see!" He finished, clearly awed. And embarrassed to admit as much.

Then again, bashful embarrassment seemed to be his default emotion so far.

...

Dear gods, he wasn't a tsundere was he?

...

Oh the fun I could have with that...

Regardless, I'll bask in the praise.

"But ah-'ahem', we can't stay here. Odds are they'll be back with friends, and we really don't want to attract attention." He tried to redirect attention to our objective.

Right. Starting from scratch. Focus on one thing at a time. At the moment, the idea was to sell off a few of those gemstones so we can get a place to set up in temporarily, so we can plan from a base of operations.

It was simple enough. Though odds were that it was going to get much more complicated along the way.

"Sure thing. C'mon, there's gotta be a pawn shop or something around here."


POV Shift- Robert

Gotta admit, it's pretty embarrassing that the heroic spirit knows more about operating in this time and space than I am.

I really need to find a way to learn Japanese quickly. It's gonna be a pain always needing a translation. I'm really not good with languages. I've only just barely gotten slightly proficient in Spanish after years of trying to pick up the basics. I can only hope there's a thaumaturgical means of learning Japanese quickly, or this is gonna get annoying real quick.

But, on a good note, not only did we find people who aren't trying to beat me up, we finally got to sell off a lot of the gemstones. Took 'bout 15 minutes till we got to a part of town where people were still out. Another 15 to find a proper place to sell them. Had to spread em out among three different pawn shops with how big they were. Okita thankfully knew a thing or two about modern Japanese currency (thank you Grail!), so we probably got a good deal, especially since there wasn't any paperwork involved. Another plus, we actually got a map of the town. Gonna have to review that later.

All in all, we came out to what equates to about 30,000 American dollars.

Suffice to say my jaw hit the floor. I'd never seen that much money in one place before.

Still, We gotta be careful with it. Spent wisely, it could last more than a year. Spent lavishly…

Next step, getting a hotel. To keep pointless wandering short, it was another half hour before we were in a small motel in western Miyama.

… definitely gonna have to comb this place over with a UV light before I feel comfortable. Just a hunch. But, it's a cheap place to sleep for a night or two.

Back to the present, here we were in room 7, with a big map of the city sprawled out across a table, planning what to do next.

"Ok… we're about… here. If I'm remembering correctly, at least four masters live on this side of the river, with at least one in the foreigners district where we just came from, and one in Ryudo Temple. I know there might be one more, but I can't seem to find the castle on the map. All this means that if we're gonna try and reduce the risk of early engagement we gotta set up in Shinto. Though that comes with its own risk of being on Kotomine's side because his Church is about… here." I finish pointing out pointing to various places on the map.

"And this Kotomine is the troublemaker?" Okita asked to confirm.

"Oh yeah, big time. I mean, he's not so much the cause of the problem, as much as he's the one making it so much worse. To be honest, I have no idea if he's the one that made the Grail corrupt, or if he just didn't do anything about it. But, the thing is, he knows about it, he's supposed to be responsible for stopping it, and he's actively trying to let the disaster happen. So um… yeah. If we get him outta the picture stopping this thing will be a whole lot easier. Him being outta the picture doesn't stop this thing, but there won't be anyone actively trying to end the world." I finished explaining his deal.

"And you say he has two Servants?" She continues.

"Well… I know he's had Gilgamesh since the 4th war, so he's around. But I also know he stole Lancer from another master. Whether he's done that yet is up in the air." I began to think I might be able to stop that from happening, but I had no idea when, or where it happens. Actually, for that matter, I have no idea when I am in relation to the war. Based on the calendar in the lobby, it's currently the 16th of January. So even if this was before that event, I'd have no idea how to stop it. "But you'd best not underestimate him either. Apparently he's an "Executor". A real Alexander Anderson type. Er… that means he's insanely strong for a human." I awkwardly explained the reference.

Gilgamesh… if anything he was the main problem, although it's doubtful he'll show himself until later. If Kotomine can be dealt with now, he'll lose the major source of Mana keeping him fueled. Reducing his threat level. He'd still be, in technical terms, a huge fucking problem, but he'd be more manageable.

"So, in short, we can't exactly beat them like any other Master/Servant battle. I'm confident in my abilities, but facing against all three of them…" she let that hang for a moment.

I get what she means. Honestly, I wouldn't expect her to face off against Gilgamesh and win. The dude practically manhandled Heracles when the Berzerker had an ideal Master. The only way Shirou won was because his reality marble served as a direct counter to the Gate of Babylon.

Then there's Lancer, Cu Chulainn. His Gae Bolg is basically a guaranteed one shot kill under most circumstances. The only reasons Saber, and Archer got away was because they had absolutely bullshit defenses.

Even if Okita is supposed to be some sort of Japanese Wonder Woman, I don't think she'll be able to face all three of them at once while trying to keep me alive.

Actually, come to think of it, I don't know what she is.

"Speaking of, what exactly are your abilities? It would be good to know what exactly we're working with here."

"Oh, want to know a bit about me do you?" oh uh. I think I might've just stroked an ego.

"W-Well I didn't exact- you know what, yeah. I meant your stats, but I've never heard of an Okita Souji before. Japanese history isn't exactly my bread and butter. And the mythology is a complete unknown." Figured since we had the time, I might as well get a picture of who I'm gonna be working with for the foreseeable future.

"That's fine Master. Just means I get to impress you with the legend of the Genius Swordswoman, First unit Captain of the Shinsengum- 'cough'!" Did she just cough up blood? She's starting to go into a coughing fit!

"W-what happened!? Are you ok?!" I tensed up. Were we under attack by some kind of anti-Servant biological warfare?!

"Y-yeah 'cough' I'm fine. Don't worry about it. It happens." She tries to cover it up with an obviously strained look of 'it's all fine here!'.

"Randomly coughing up blood just… happens for you?" not buying it. Nope. No fuckin way.

"Y-yeah… look it's… not a big deal… it won't affect my ability to fight. I promise."

I was about to call her out on it, but… she just had this… sad/determined look, and it made me hold my tongue for now. I'll bring it up if it happens again.

"'sigh…' Oookay. Let's... put a pin in that. If you're up for it, I'm still interested in your story." I wasn't gonna push it if she was having issues.

"That's just fine! I said I was ok didn't I?" She put on a confident front that I couldn't deny.

… ok, I could. She just coughed up blood.

"Alright, let's start with when, and where you're from." I started her off with the beginning. Might as well get a full picture.

"Well, to start, I was born in a place that was called Edo at the time, though I think it's called Tokyo these days. It was the capital of the Shogunate at the time. I was born in 1844 into a Samurai family." Well, can't get em' all right can I? "When I was nine, I started training with a sword under my sister's father in-law. Got so good with it I became the coach of the dojo. Eventually, me, and some friends of mine were called to serve as bodyguards for the Shogun. That… didn't work out at first, but we later formed a special task force called the Shinsengumi."

"So you're like, a famous secret service person or something?" I asked seeking some clarity.

"I don't know what secret service is." She deadpans "I think in modern terms it's like… we were a special forces police group?" She offers as an explanation. "We were responsible for public order, and stopping plots against the Shogun."

So yeah, kinda sounds like Homeland Security, SWAT, and the Secret Service, all wrapped into one is what I'm getting? Actually… with what I understand about the shogunate (being basically the guy in control of the armies), I can assume they were a militarized police force.

… I don't know how I feel about it. I'm fine with a powerful police force so long as it is regulated, and has checks on its power. Otherwise…

Just look at many other pseudo-police forces throughout history under direct command of military dictators. The Gestapo for example. Though, that may be an extreme example.

After all, many things can sound a bit off without context.

"I feel like I'm not getting the full picture here. Why would the Shogun need such a task force? I thought Japan was mostly stable at around that time?" Based on the fact that they managed to catch up to the Western world in terms of technology without collapsing (as opposed to China, and most other east Asian countries) would suggest as much.

"Well… it's a long story, but the short of it is, not a lot of people were happy about the Shogun at the time for a lot of reasons. Things really started going bad after a handful of American ships forced the borders open in 1853, and a lot of people thought the Shogun had become weak, and many more did not like the idea of letting barbarians into the country." she began the story.

Hold on… I remember hearing about this on Youtube. John Green's show, CrashCourse, mentioned Mathew Perry forcing Japan's borders open for whaling, and trade. Kind of a cringy mess, imperialism…

Yeah, forget what I said, with how isolated Japan was before, it's no surprise this might lead to instability

"It was a politically charged time. Everyone, including the Emperor, had an opinion. And if you weren't with someone on the issue, you were against them. Things were starting to get… violent. And it only got worse when the Emperor started politically opposing the Shogun. Then the anti-Shogunate factions had a figure to rally behind. In 1863, the Shogun went to Kyoto to talk to the Emperor about it, but since Kyoto was the Emperors city, he needed a group of bodyguards. He gathered together around 250 Ronin to form the Rōshigumi. After it turned out the guy he got the lead the group supported the Emperor, there was… let's call it some drama. People that supported that guy left. And the people that stayed formed the Shinsengumi. I was one of them…" she had a distant look of nostalgia. Remembering what must've been some interesting times.

"After that, we began serving our role as policemen. We really became famous after what people started calling the Ikedaya incident, where we conducted a raid that stopped a major anti-Shogun plot to burn down Kyoto, and kidnap the Emperor. I was the captain of a unit in that incident."

Yeah, something like that would definitely cement one as a legend. Imagine if some people hated letting immigrants into the southern border so much they planned to burn down D.C, and use the chaos to kidnap the president.

Actually, that vaguely sounds like the plot of Olympus Has Fallen.

"(… does that make Okita Gerard Butler?)" I wonder…

"Who?"

"Ah... (Di-did I say that out loud?) Um… n-n-nevermind!" I stammer. "So, all in all, you're famous for being an officer of a police force that stopped a big plot to burn down a city?"

"There's more to it than that. But if you really wanted to cut it down, I suppose that would be alright for a summary lasting about one sentence. That also almost completely glosses over my part in all of it, so I guess you could say that was just setting up the story of my life?" So, more of a synopsis of the setting, than of her?

"Well… maybe in the interest of time, do you think you can give me the abridged version for now? I think we should direct this back to the war soon." I think I can get a general idea from there of what I'm working with.

"Sure. What made me stand out among the others was my sword skills. Most people tend to remember me as one of the best swordsman in the force. If anything I should really be a full Saber right now… but I can still see me as a double classed Assassin with all the assassinations I took part in." A double class?

"What do you mean double class?" never heard the skill myself. Although the name seems kinda self explanatory, I thought Servants could only be summoned into one of the seven classes though...

"You can just check my stats you know? Any Master should be able to do it. Just focus on the connection between us." So says the tutorial NPC.

Focus on the connection?

I try clearing my head so I can feel around for something like that.

With everything going on I can't say I felt all that differe- wait. There it is. It's like… some kind of pull. Directing something to her. The closest sensation I can describe it as would be the feeling of blood being slowly drawn, just without the needle.

Augh. Hate even thinking about those things…

Focusing on the connection I saw-


Servant- Assassin

True Name- Okita Souji

Master- Robert Orso

Sex- Female

Height/Weight- 158cm/45kg

Alignment- True Neutral

Strength- C

Endurance- D-

Agility- A+

Magical Energy- E

Luck-C

Class Abilities

Magical Resistance- D+

-Resists mid level modern Magecraft, and Servant Magecraft ranked under D+.

Riding- E

Can ride most common modern vehicles with ease.

Presence Concealment- C

Undetectable to modern humans. However Magi with particularly powerful detection magic can find her if they already know she's there. Can get the drop on some Servants as well.

Personal Skills

Double Summoning: Assassin/Saber- C

In life she fit both roles. As a Heroic Spirit she draws skills from both classes as an Assassin.

Eye of the Mind (False)- A

A natural talent in perceiving danger, based on an innate 6th Sense.

Weak Constitution- A

Okita is accompanied by the risk of a sudden status drop at anytime of every action. Characterized by the symptoms of the pneumonia she was saddled with in life. The probability of risk is not high, but when it is invoked in combat, it is immense.

Reduced Earth- B

A technique to cut down the distance between opponents instantly.

Lightless Three-Stage Thrust- A+

A technique utilized by the extraordinary genius swordsman Okita Souji. Consisting of a First Thrust, Second Thrust, and Third Thrust, Rather than "almost simultaneously", the thrusts occur "all at the same time." For an instant, the unleashed First Thrust, Second Thrust and Third Thrust "exist at the same time" and at the "same position." Even if the First Thrust was blocked, the Second and Third Thrusts would be at the same position and break through.

Noble Phantasms

?

?


Ah… um… what?

Information overload… gimme a second here…

Right. In the series, Rin looked at Berzerker and projected a bunch of stats. Is this what it's supposed to be like?

Reading it all… it looks like her greatest strengths are in her speed, and skills.

She also seemed to be a true neutral… so more morally grey than most militarized police forces? I think I can work with that. I tend to consider myself more of a neutral good than anything else...

"The presence concealment… that's definitely gonna be useful. I don't know how well that would match up against other Servants perception though… it says it works against some Servants, but that's not really helpful…" I begin listing what I see aloud, "Eye of the Mind seems intere- wait. What's this about a weak constitution!?" nervousness creeping in...

"Um… would now be a bad time to mention I'm randomly overcome with illness?" she asks in trepidation.

I have a Servant that could at any time collapse due to illness.

I'm fucked.

Slam

Slam

"M-Master!?"

SLAM

"...It's okay, just… slamming my head against a wall. ….~Sooo~, anything else I gotta know?" That last part was a little too high pitched.

"Um… in the interest of your health, I'm choosing to hold my tongue." she delivers her answer cautiously, then shakes off the trepidation. "Like I said. You can. count. on. me. My condition won't be a concern."

Motherfucker, it's A ranked Weak Constitution. Not a fucking common cold!

Perfect! Just fucking perfect!

Now, on top of having to be concerned for my own wellbeing, I'm going to have to look out for her too! This is basically a case of the blind leading the blind!

"... 'sigh'... It's fine. It's fine. It's fiiiine." it's not fine, "We'll just… work around it or something."

"If it's all the same to you, I think we should get back to talking about the war?" she seemed to phrase that as a question of a question.

"...sure… 'sigh'. Okay. Where were we?" That derailed us harder than Jumbo.

"I think we were talking about dealing with this Kirei?" Aaaand we're back on track.

"Right. Kirei… he's got two Servants… and is trying to destroy the world for generic villain reasons. I don't know if there's a way to prove that to other Masters… the only way they found out last time was when he actively set out to get the Grail a'going. And by that time there were already several casualties. He had Gilgamesh kill Berserkers Master to use her heart as the core of the Grail, and tried killing Tohsaka, and later Matou to use their bodies as vessels for the Grail. So the only way to prove they're up to something is to wait around until they already got the ball rolling. And even if there was hard-proof they've done something, it's under better guard than the Krabby Patty secret formula."

"The what now?"

"Point is-"

"(Oh, being ignored.)"

"I don't see if there's a way to get word out to anyone else that this Grail War is a sham. The only one that might listen without hard evidence is Saber's Master, Shirou Emiya. And even if he didn't think I was a lunatic, starting out in the war, he's almost as useless as I am..." At least he actually knows how to do magic…

"(Just what the hell am I supposed to dooo?)" I moan with my head in my hands.

… I've got nothin.

...

"So, are you done then?" she asks after a minute of silence.

"Hm? Done? I guess so. I'm out of ideas. I mean… what am I supposed to do-?"

"Out of ideas? I haven't heard one. Mainly just complaining about what you can't do." She states, disappointed.

"... Y-yeah. You're right. I just… I don't know what to do!" The anxiety is still there. "I can't do magic, I-I can't fight… I can't run a damn mile! I should be fucking dead! I'm basically useless! And I don't know what to do-!"

Whack!

processing... processing...

restarting...

"T-Thanks... I think I needed that." Just needed a light smack to the head, and I reset.

"'sigh'... sit down with me for a second Master." Okita sits down on the bed.

I sit right down next to her and take a breather.

"Have… you ever been in a fight before today?" she asks.

"...no." I've been fought before though… but nothing like... earlier.

"... you're not useless." Lies. I'm breaking down on the first fucking day. It's pathetic- "I know how it feels. Listen Orso… I got this terrible skill because I'm remembered as the genius swordsman that didn't die fighting. I died because of pneumonia. After I collapsed, I got stuck in bed the rest of my short life. I watched my friends go on, fight, and die, while I withered away, unable to do anything. I know that feeling. I felt it everyday in that hospital. You're not useless. You, are smart, you are determined, and you're not backing down from this fight, I can see it….. Combat fatigue affects everyone. Just step back. Take a breath. And get some rest. Because tomorrow, you're coming back to the drawing board... And I know you'll get it right."

She gets up to leave.

"I'll be standing guard outside"

She exits the room.

"...…" I sat there for about ten minutes collecting myself. And another three reprimanding myself for essentially throwing a tantrum.

"... Smart and determined huh? Let's hope she was right about that. Besides, it's not everyday I nearly die…"

I slept for about 8 hours that night. The most I've slept in months.

Well… might as well. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.


POV Shift-Okita

When she was a coach at the dojo, she had to give a fair number of pep talks. But back then, she was working with mostly trained warriors. This Orso… for now, he's a scared, confused civilian. But there is something else to him. He's choosing to fight his way out of this, knowing he's overpowered. Whether this was a rash decision by a scared confused civilian, or… something else, only time would tell.

Still, he'd done enough for a first day, so it's for the best he gets some rest now. Besides, tomorrow was going to be a very busy day.


Interlude

…Ahhh….. the Grail stirs…

A Servant has been summoned. He was certain. Soon the city will be consumed by the war.

The man could only smirk. Confusing a late-night parishioner he was speaking to. He apologized, and had to ask them to leave in order to prepare, and excused himself to the backroom.

"What hedonistic pleasure amuses you so Kirei? It must have been particularly fascinating if they came this late at night to confide in you." A golden haired, crimson eyed man in casual, but fashionable clothing inquired of the priest.

"This was not due to a mere confession Gilgamesh. Surely you can feel it as well?" Kotomine rhetorically asked his Servant.

"Hm, indeed. Another Servant has been summoned. And you are one step closer to your goal. And yet… there is something else to this. As if… something has shifted in the world." He paused for a moment to consider it, his clairvoyance only hinting at the new carnage to come, then grinned in joy. "This may prove to be far more entertaining than I previously believed."

Kirei could only agree. And was about to try and pinpoint exactly what the King of Heroes meant by a change when-

Ring-Ring

Ring-Ring

He took a moment to answer the phone. This was the line reserved for official business.

When he picked up, his grin nearly grew into that of a lunatic.

Tomorrow, she would be here.

Bazett. An old acquaintance from his executor days. She believes they are friends. She believes she is to be the Master of Lancer. She is in the city tonight. Tomorrow they shall meet, as 'friends' do.

Tomorrow, she will be dead. And her Servant shall be his.

When the call was over, he laughed harder than he had in months at a joke only he, and perhaps Gilgamesh, could understand.

And he knew what pleasure it was that had entrapped him that night.

It was anticipation.

Tomorrow, was going to be a very busy day…


End Theme: Fate/Grand Order: Nisha Senitsu (二者穿一) by Rokka (六花)