ManticoreBlues: I already said, in my first draft, Pyrrha invoked Artoria. The interaction between the two characters did not work very well, I finally opted for Arthur.
Klipper: Thank you for caring about Pyrrha's training, but she already has Arthur and Merlin who will care. AND Cù is a bit in the opposite camp...
I will answer the various 'Guests':
- As people keep asking me (I thought you wanted to learn this in the course of history and keep the surprise): Pyrrha has two Elements "iron" and "fire" (which together create wrought iron), her Origine is of course Polarity. If Pyrrha reacts to the Tracing process of EMIYA it is because it is a kind of forging process.
- Yes Paracelsus may... possibly give further training courses to Rin for the use of Jewelcraft except that... well, she's not his Master.
Then within two years King Uther fell sick of a great malady. And in the meanwhile his enemies usurped upon him, and did a great battle upon his men, and slew many of his people (...). And at St. Albans there met with the king a great host of the north. And that day Sir Ulfius and Sir Brastias did great deeds of arms, and King Uther's men overcame the Northern battle and slew many people, and put the remnant to flight. And then the king returned unto London, and made great joy of the victory. And then he fell passing sore sick, so that three days and three nights he was speechless: wherefore all the barons made great sorrow (...). There is other remedy, said Merlin, but God will have his will. But look ye all barons be before King Uther to-morn, and God and I shall make him speak. So on the morn all the barons with Merlin came to-fore the king; then Merlin said aloud unto King Uther, Sir, shall your son Arthur be king after your days, of this realm with all the appurtenance? Then Uther Pendragon turned him, and said in hearing of them all, I give him God's blessing and mine, and bid him pray for my soul, and righteously and worshipfully that he claim the crown, upon forfeiture of my blessing; and therewith he yielded up to the ghost, and then was he interred as longed to a king.
La Morte d'Arthur, Thomas Malory
Household
Pyrrha Nikos stood in the middle of a rocky landscape, a peninsula advancing deep into a green sea that broke into foaming waves at the foot of a high cliff lined with toothed peaks.
Nothing grew on this jagged coast, except a green grass that covered the slightest space between the rocks.
The sun was high in the sky, it was a beautiful day, and the wind was blowing softly from the sea carrying the seagulls that seemed to play over the cliffs. The clouds were rare and white. Part of the peninsula was occupied by a castle. Moreover, a staircase formed of large stone plates was circulating between the rocks descending to a gallows guarded by a soldier in chain mail, a chapel-de-fer helmet, leaning on a halberd.
From the corner of her eye, Pyrrha recognized the figure dressed in a white hooded dress, and leaning on a heavy black wand that was advancing towards her:
"Merlin, where are we?"
"Tintagel Castle, in Cornwall."
The name meant nothing to Pyrrha.
"It's a dream, isn't it?"
"If you will. You must now be familiar with this phenomenon, the soul-link that unites you with Arthur makes you travel in his memory. This is Saber's childhood memory. Arthur lived in Tintagel when Ector looked after him."
Pyrrha looked around without seeing anything alive except the seagulls and the guard:
"And where is Saber?"
"On a beautiful day like this, he must be training with his adoptive father. Come, follow me..."
Guided by Merlin, the Invincible Girl climbed the stairs to a ridge and went down the other side to discover a road taken by a few riders. The path led to an imposing door with a drawbridge down.
Merlin passed between the guards at the entrance, crossed the first courtyard, and then crossed an oak door lined with iron nails. The passage beyond was defended by harrows ready to fall from the vault. They then arrived in a second courtyard. It was roughly triangular in shape and smaller and was delimited by the walls, a few low buildings, and especially by the keep erected at the end of the peninsula.
Mechanically, Pyrrha retreated to avoid the two duelists fighting each other, even if she knew she was intangible... not really there.
A rather old man, in chain mail, a kite shield in his arm and a wooden sword in the other, confronted a twelve-year-old child... his blond hair in disorder and his penetrating eyes, similar to two emeralds, left no doubt about his identity:
"Arthur!"
Despite his youth, the future Knight of the Round fought with incredible talent. Barely slowed down by the twenty pounds of his armor and his heavy shield, he attacked, retreated, and quickly changed position. Many people believe that medieval fencing consists in giving heavy sword blows while shouting... it would not take two minutes for the so-called swordsman to be out of breath. Arthur and especially his teacher struck in brief, controlled movements. The impulse came from the shoulder and not from the wrist... a mistake that all novices made. More than that, every movement of the arm began... in the legs. The position of the feet determined the direction of the blow, or if the intention was to strike. Any competent swordsman, which was the case of Pyrrha, knew that one had to be very careful with the footwork of the opponent to anticipate his feints.
"Higher up your guard... Arthur... don't find out about you like this."
While speaking, Ector had swirled his sword while aiming at the child's shoulder. However, the blow struck the void, Arthur had just jumped forward, running almost curved in half. There was a shock as Ector jumped aside and then, wielding his training sword like a club, hit his adopted son on the top of the head.
Leaning on the training weapon, Ector sighed while watching the future king of Britain rise while rubbing the bulge swelling in his hair:
"Interesting tactic... So sophisticated and thoughtful... rush into the adversary without thinking... but it rarely works!"
Arthur glared back at him:
"Ouch... it hurts!"
"Good, pain is a good teacher. Its lessons are rarely forgotten."
"But how can I beat you if I'm just using the moves you taught me? I have to try something that surprises you!"
"Oh, I was surprised... by your stupidity. If surprise were enough to defeat him, I would have died a long time ago. The surprise is said to be half the win, but nothing replaces the technique. And the technique is the result of the training."
The words of his adoptive father seemed to make the blond child think:
"Say, Ector, if I meet an enemy stronger than myself, must I fight?"
The adoptive father smiled at Arthur's naivety:
"Definitively not, you have to run."
Somewhat surprised, the son continued his questions:
"Father, if I meet an enemy as strong as myself, must I fight?"
The father smiled again:
"No, you have to run."
This time... Arthur understood nothing:
"But can I at least fight an enemy weaker than myself?"
"It is not the knight's way to face an enemy weaker than he."
Seeing the astonished expression of his adopted son, Ector burst out laughing, this provoked the anger of Arthur who felt well that he was mocked:
"But what good is it if I train so hard if I never fight?"
"My son, if you are so wise that you can judge the strength of your enemy at first glance, it is because you are meant to be a monk. The monks don't fight. A knight does not make the mistake of overestimating or underestimating an opponent, he fights when the situation demands it and always to the best of his ability."
Pyrrha stretched out, gazing at the sunlight filtering through a poorly closed shutter... she felt groggy, tired. What had she done yesterday, to be in such a state? She stood up, sitting in bed... or rather in a futon deployed on the ground... Oh... It was not in her bedroom but a large room that was not used. Finally, that was not usually used. Along the wall, two other futons were carefully folded. Suddenly, the Invincible Girl remembered the scene the day before and smiled while shaking her head. Taiga and Sakura had forced her to sleep between them to "protect" her from Saber.
Coming out of the shower, the hair still wet, Pyrrha shivered. It was unusually cold today and the sight of the snow accumulated in the courtyard reminded her of the clash against the Cold Genius.
There was a strong animation in the kitchen and when she entered it three heads turned to her:
"Ohayo!" ('Morning!)
She replied in the same way and glanced at Saber. The knight was standing next to Sakura who was making breakfast, both of whom had aprons.
As for Taiga, she had her head on the kotatsu, her legs well sheltered under the thick quilted blanket, warmed by the infrared lamp under the table. The TV was on and broadcasting the morning news flash. The local TV channel only talked about the snow falling at night. It was true that the southernmost islands of the Japanese archipelago had a humid subtropical or even tropical climate. The polar winds of that night were as rare as in... Miami, for example. At least along the coast. Because Japan was very mountainous, temperatures dropped rapidly in altitude.
Pyrrha sat down in front of Taiga, in her usual place, and leaned over her:
"Tell me, Taiga, what's going on with Sakura and Saber?"
Taiga opened a lazy tiger's eye and contemplated the duo that was busy preparing the meal:
"Saber asked Sakura to teach him how to cook a Japanese meal."
"And she said yes?"
Taiga, who had closed her eye to go further under the kotatsu, groped under the blanket. She replied in a sleepy voice:
"She blushed, lowered her eyes, wringing her hands with embarrassment before answering in a tiny voice: 'I am not a very good cook, Saber'. I mean, you know her..."
Indeed, Pyrrha had no trouble imagining the scene.
"Finally, Saber insisted and Sakura finally agreed." ended the Fuyuki Tiger.
"I can see that."
And the Amazon Girl was smiling, happy that Saber and Sakura are getting along so well. After all, the three people present were a bit of his family... and it was normal to want family members to get along.
_ When did she figure out what the dream was?
The sky was stormy.
She was in a desert, as far as she can see. There, was no forest, town, or sea, only a mineral universe made of sand and swords. Around her, she sees numerous swords stuck in the ground as they had no wielders.
A hill of blades stretching to infinity.
A graveyard of steel without wielder or bearer.
She knew from the start...
That this was the scenery inside that Hero's mind.
After many sequences of events, she sees the one who becomes a Heroic Spirit ends up in that place.
There are those who left the world loved by people, and there are those who left the world praised as noble kings. There are those who died wanting to fight, and there are those who died in satisfaction.
... But it seems there are many that have been praised as Heroes against their will.
If True Heroes are those who have legitimately earned the title, these are a different kind. They were forced to the Throne of Heroes because of their fate, and they could be called Avenger, the Anti-Hero.
They are the opposite of Heroes, but they were praised as Heroes regardless. Even those that hated humans and those the humans hated are summoned as Guardians.
The sand sprayed under the black boots reinforced by metal plates.
A pan of red clothing snapped in the wind.
He had never known defeat.
He stood on top of a dune covered in swords.
Yet his hands had never held a blade.
He passed by the young woman without seeing her, she was foreign to his inner universe, hardly more than a ghost...
He was neither a True Hero nor a rare Anti-Hero. He was never compensated for his efforts and his own life ended with betrayal, but he never hated humans.
The scene changed... Showing another event, before or after the previous vision, there was no timeline in this inner universe
The man looked differently, his hair thrown back made him look different, younger. He was not wearing his usual red coat, but a poncho of white cloth, worn and dirty. He had just fallen to his knees in the sand at the foot of the immense dune formed of sand and swords. With his hand furiously clasping on the handle of a sword he had just stabbed with a raging gesture, the Hero seemed to be about to howl or burst into tears. His face was tingled with nervous twitching and his mouth tightened.
He didn't lose.
Yes, he probably grew wary
The young woman shook her head
She was mistaken.
Heroic Spirit, familiars called Servants...
... Alaya's power to control the so-called 'Guardians'. They are summoned into every age to prevent humanity's extinction.
But the only condition for their summoning is 'destruction brought on by humans'. Naturally, destruction brought on by an outside factor was solved not by the Will of Humanity's power, but by the World's restraining power.
... So the only thing Guardian Heroic Spirits can see is self-destruction. They are an existence that eliminates destruction brought on by human greed.
Again, the vision had changed.
She was walking in a building that had been gutted by the artillery. She heard the sound of cannons, the intermittent bursts of machine guns.
It was a battlefield.
Around her, men lay on the ground, slumped on tables or overturned into their chairs. On the ground, sub-machine guns, but also opened military rations, fell from the hands of the soldiers when they died.
The camouflaged jackets and helmets adorned with runic S were very recognizable.
The SS had died instantly as they had sat down to eat, each having been pierced with an arrow formed of prana, similar to a translucent blue-white crystal.
They probably hadn't even seen the one who shot them like game locked in a cage.
He made a contract with Alaya to save humans and became a Hero. After he died, he became a Heroic Spirit and was shown humanity's self-destruction, over and over again.
He was summoned as a 'Heroic Spirit' to save people, but he only gets to clean after people's wrongdoings.
... It takes long for him to realize that it is meaningless and start loathing the human world.
And in the end...
He was betrayed by the very ideal that he protected unto death.
"Rin, wake up, you just have time for breakfast before school!"
Hearing the call Rin Tohsaka wakes up.
Archer stood by her bed and was busy do the housework while looking at the clock. He was simply dressed in black trousers and shirt but wore an apron over it decorated with cat paws prints.
Despite his rather ridiculous outfit, and the duster in his hand, he was as serious as he used to be:
"Rin, do you feel dizzy?"
"Huh_ ?"
"You don't seem to be feeling well, you seemed to be having a bad dream when I got here."
"Rin straightened up, suspicious:
"Don't you know that well-educated people don't look at the face of a sleeping girl?"
"Do not worry. I have done nothing so rude. But I did hear something else. I can close my eyes, but I cannot close my ears."
Rin leaned her head aside, taking a pensive and tense expression:
"_ I see. What was I saying, Archer?"
"I heard a few scary phrases, like how you are angry."
She waved a hand while smiling nervously:
"_ Oh, that's good."
Rin sighs with relief.
The dream she saw should not be discussed. She can't have Archer know about it. She likes their relationship.
... To maintain it, she has to hide the fact she knows about Archer's past.
As the Servant of the Bow was about to leave her room, she called him back:
"Hey, Archer, have you ever regretted your own actions?"
The knight in red turned to his Master to look at her. His face was impenetrable and he remained silent. Rin passed a hand through her hair and looked away as if she were examining the ceiling:
"I don't want to if I can help it. I want to grit my teeth and be stubborn, even when I'm completely beaten. But I'm sure that's hard. Harder than I imagine, I suppose."
Finally, Archer replied in a calm voice, as if the problem did not concern him:
"That would depend on the person. There are those who can and those who cannot do so. You are the former. Such people will not make mistakes, let alone consider them."
Crossing her arms, Rin folded her eyes with an unfriendly expression:
"... Hey, that sounds like I'm an arrogant tyrant."
Archer makes a smirk:
"That is a good observation, Rin".
Seeing the eyebrow of his Master jolting with indignation and a vein began to inflate furiously on her temple, Archer said without giving her time to explode in anger:
"A brilliant person shines brighter than others. Such people never have to grit their teeth... So, this is a personal opinion, but you would fall under that category. Rin Tohsaka will follow her path until the very end."
The knight in red cloak praised her.
Rin blushed at his answer, but continued asking turning around so that he would not see her trouble:
"... Then, what about you? Do you think you would be able to believe in yourself until the very end?"
"Hum? I'm sorry but that question is meaningless."
Rin quivered and opened wide eyes, surprised by his answer:
"Why? It's something you're able to answer, right?"
Even in her own ears, she sounds a bit nervous.
Archer had a sad smile:
"The 'until the very end' part is meaningless. Did you forget, Master? I met my end a long time ago."
Rin Tohsaka finished putting on her shoes. Straightening up, she inspected her school uniform. Boys and most girls wore brown jackets. But the female uniform had fortunately a long winter coat of her favorite color... red. When she wasn't wearing red, Rin felt like she wasn't quite herself.
With her satchel in hand, she drove an imaginary dust out of her sleeve and smiled.
Perfect!
Effortlessly, Rin slipped into her role of honor student, smiling and polite... a role of composition that could not be further from her true personality.
The Red Devil turned on Archer.
He was still dressed as a 'civilian', even though he no longer wore his apron. His expression was serious and worried:
"I think I should go with you, Master."
Rin rejected his anxiety with a nonchalant gesture of the hand: "Come on, I go to school in broad daylight! The rules of the Grail War forbid the Masters to fight in a public place. I'm safe. I promise I'll be back before dark. And at worst..."
She raised her right hand where she could see the last two Command Marks she had left.
"_I will bring you near me."
She had said these last words to reassure him. Given the foolish way, she used the first claim of absolute obedience... Rin's famous greed pushed her to hoard the remaining Marks and use them only in a situation where Command Marks would be her only chance of survival.
As the Servant of the Bow still seemed unconvinced, Rin sighed:
"As you said yourself, you are still suffering from the wounds inflicted on you by Rider yesterday. Stay in the circle of invocation to regain strength."
"Precisely. Rider and Saber's Masters are also students at Homurahara Academy, that's why I'm worried."
"And I made a truce with Pyrrha. As for Matou, even he can't be stupid enough to attack the school in broad daylight with two Masters on site. (1)
Archer raised an eyebrow when he heard his Master call another Master by her first name and without any honorific. A way of talking about people normally reserved for close friends.
"All right, Rin, I guess if my Master orders me to stay and rest, I'm supposed to obey."
Rin answered him with a bright smile, opened the door, and turned around before waving her hand in a cheerful manner while walking down the hill towards the crossroads.
Archer scratched the back of his skull and raised his hands to the sky with exasperation:
"Yes, Rin" he murmured for himself "normally you are safe. But in war all's fair. The only thing that is really forbidden is to get caught."
Of course, her Master was far from as experienced as he was. She couldn't understand. On the contrary, the hero EMIYA had participated in so many wars and seen so many horrors, that he no longer believed in the 'honor of the combatants' in 'fair play' and even less in the 'laws of war'. His only certainty was that novices always act stupidly. That is why, during his invocation, he had told Rin to hide in a cellar and not to come out before the end of the Grail War. It was the only way to spare her the loss of her illusions.
Rin was a novice and had just left her home without the protection of her Servant.
And Shinji Matou was also a novice...
Archer frowned. Finally of all the teenage Masters, only Pyrrha Emiya seemed not to be totally novice... The way she looked around, her self-confidence, and especially the incredible martial art demonstration during her fight against the Caster's homunculi pleaded for some experience of the art of war.
The redhead in question was walking next to Sakura, chatting amicably with her friend.
At the same time, however, part of his mind was reviewing the strategic picture of the situation. Saber was walking behind her ready to intervene, carrying a small backpack on his shoulder containing her armor, her javelin Miló and Akoúo̱ her Hoplon shield.
If need be, Pyrrha Nikos could count on her knight in shining armor and her own armor was at hand, so she did not have to fear an ambush. While she was at school, probably safely, he would wait in the forest, always on his guard.
Merlin, whose existence no one suspected, would monitor the area and warn them at the slightest alarm.
Yet there was an 'ambush' (finally something likes this).
Standing at the crossroads, Rin greeted their small group in a friendly manner:
"Ohayo-gozaimasu, Emiya-chan, Saber-san..." there was a slight pause as Rin frowned slightly as if she had not foreseen the presence of Sakura. "And Ohayo Matou-san."
As they responded to her greetings, more or less timidly, Tohsaka made a big smile at Sakura:
"I didn't expect to find you together. Shouldn't you be at the dojo for your archery club, Matou-san?"
As usual, Sakura lowered her eyes, both hands clenched on the handle of her satchel. She remained unanswered and it was Pyrrha who spoke:
"The clubs have been canceled as a result of the murders and disappearances of the last few days."
"Oh yes... it's true, I forgot. Well, Matou-san, why don't you go ahead? I happen to have something to say to Pyrrha."
Sakura bowed to Pyrrha and Saber:
"Mata atode." (See you later.) Then she bowed to Rin: "Shitsurei-shimashita." (Sorry to bother you.)
Sakura began to run, almost like she was running away.
[Decidedly, there is a secret between these two] murmured the mental voice of Merlin.
(1) Um... I think betting on Shinji acting smartly is not a very good idea.