Fate/Identity Reborn Chapter 8: Negotiations
Saber was on the ground of the alley. She had put up a good fight and left all three of the Gorgon Sisters with plenty of gashes, but she ended up losing quite definitively. She was unable to move. Sixty to seventy percent of her body had turned to stone. Her heart and head were still fine, but she was just one attack to the Spirit Core away from death.
The three sisters floated over Saber with sadistic grins, but they didn't deal a killing blow. The red Bounded Field faded away. Saber's Magic Circuits sighed with relief from no longer getting leeched off of by the Gorgon Sisters' Noble Phantasm. One sister flew off and left the other two to watch Saber. They put their masks back on with disappointed huffs. They didn't need their Mystic Eyes anymore considering Saber was helpless. That said, they really wanted to hurt Saber. They were eyeing all the flesh on Saber's body that was free real estate to play with. Sadists to the core the sisters were.
Since the Bounded Field was taken down, the fight was over. Rin and Sakura were likely both incapacitated. Saber still felt connected to Rin, so she wasn't dead at least. Was the Gorgon Sisters' Master willing to show mercy? Saber only got a side eye glimpse of the enemy Master when she first showed up. Saber was in the middle of fighting, so she couldn't take the time to try and get a read on the Master. She did overhear the conversation she had with Rin, so Saber knew she was an Edelfelt and was rather haughty. She also felt familiar. Either way, Saber could only hope the Edelfelt had enough benevolence in her heart to let Rin and Sakura live.
Saber regretted her failure as a Servant, but she at least had the excuse that she wasn't at full power. She didn't even know who she was. A little anticlimactic to die before regaining her memories, but c'est la vie.
A Servant. A new Servant just appeared and they were right where Saber sensed Rin. The Servant appeared from nowhere. They must have been Assassin. Saber tried to move, to go save her Master, but she couldn't. Her body was still petrified.
Saber's connection to Rin still remained. She was alive. Why didn't Assassin kill her? One of the Gorgon Sisters was there, too. Why weren't they doing anything? Maybe it was some kind of stalemate?
The two sisters watching over Saber had clenched jaws. Their minds were connected to their sister. They knew what was happening, and it wasn't anything good.
One sister spoke. "Saber, both your Master and mine have been captured by Assassin. He is going to keep them as hostages. In exchange for their safety, we have to fight alongside Assassin to help him and his Master win the Holy Grail War."
Wow. This was the worst. Well, no it wasn't. Rin and Sakura dying would be the worst. This wasn't too much better, though.
Assassin was leaving, and they had Rin. The Gorgon Sister with them was doing nothing, she just let Assassin leave. She had no choice. Saber stopped being able to sense Rin or Assassin. It must have been due to some Noble Phantasm Assassin possessed that focused on stealth. There was still magical energy flowing into Saber from Rin, but Saber couldn't feel the specific direction it was coming from.
Rin was gone.
"Assassin has escaped with our Masters. He's commanded us to meet him atop the Center Building tomorrow at 10pm."
The petrification of Saber's body began to fade. Flesh became flesh once more. Saber got to her feet, bits of stone flaking off of her.
"What about the other girl that was with my Master and I? I saw her get teleported."
"I don't know. She was sent to fight Clown, my Master's butler." The third Gorgon Sister had returned. "I haven't received any messages from him."
"I understand. We're in the same boat then. We've both got missing team members and kidnapped Masters." Saber extended a hand. "Let's work together until we are reunited with our Masters. We have the same goal and we'll be more effective as a team. Plus, Assassin probably doesn't want us killing each other anyway. That's reasonable, right?"
"It is." One of the Gorgon Sisters shook Saber's hand. That was easy, but the Gorgon Sisters were clearly the agreeable type. They're cool headed and affable. "Let us look for Clown and the girl you seek. What is her name?"
"Sakura."
"Let us find Clown and Sakura."
Saber and the sisters began searching all over the block. Snaking through halls, Saber focused all her senses to the maximum. She was like a bullet train as she hunted for Sakura, as well as Clown. She was the eye of a high speed hurricane born from the wake of her rapid movements. Saber shouldn't have been strong enough to move with such speed and force. Even beyond her lack of memories, she was almost out of the magical energy that was her fuel due to her battle with the Gorgon Sisters. Yet, reserves of power continued to emerge. No, they weren't hidden reserves. It was like her power was being multiplied. It must have been due to some skill Saber had. But, she had no idea what it was.
Saber skid to a stop in an abandoned office building, tearing apart the ground below her. In a decimated room, one that had a large portion of it blackened by heat, was a man on the ground. It was the large man with the Edelfelt woman. His clothes were all but gone and he was bloody and beaten. His jaw was a couple steps away from falling apart. Saber stepped over to him and checked his vitals. He was alive, but too deep in unconsciousness to be awoken. This must have been Clown.
Carefully lifting the man into her arms, Saber exited the building and jumped on its roof.
"I found Clown!"
The Gorgon Sisters flew over at Saber's call and one of them took Clown from Saber. The trio had fully healed from the battle despite so short a time having passed. "Thank you." One of the sisters who wasn't holding Clown dug her thumbnail into her index finger. The pointer began to bleed and was held above Clown, multiple threads of blood traveling down and entering Clown's mouth. As blood continued to flow, Clown's wounds began healing. Legends said Medusa's blood had healing properties and it turned out that was true.
"Did you find Sakura?"
"No. I'm sorry. She was meant to fight Clown, so he's probably in this mangled state due to her. The question is what condition she was in by the battle's end. She might have run away when I took down my Bounded Field."
"I doubt she would have. She would have come running to her sister's side if she could. If she isn't here, then she was taken away by someone. Assassin never said anything implying he had any extra hostages, did he?"
"He made no implication that he had anyone in his clutches besides our Masters."
"It might have been another faction then. I can't contact Sakura telepathically, but unlike my connection to my Master, it isn't inherent. It could have been broken by something as simple as passing through a Bounded Field that blocks telepathy. Since we don't know where each other are, we can't reestablish a link to speak telepathically again. Sakura really could be anywhere."
"I'm sorry. Since we will be working together, we can assist you in looking for Sakura throughout the city if we have time."
"I appreciate it."
The large man in the arms of the Gorgon Sister began to fidget. His jaw and most of his other serious wounds were at least partially healed. We awakened with blinking eyes. His gaze fell on the trio of women around him. He was surprised. His head shifted and he spotted Saber. He was even more surprised.
"The fact that you aren't attacking Saber means the situation is complicated. What happened?" He caught on quickly.
The Gorgon Sisters exposited to Clown about what he missed as he got back to his feet.
"Lady Luviagelita has been kidnapped? This is awful! I've failed as her butler! No, don't panic. Remember what you learned from Auguste. I'm sorry, Caster."
So, the Gorgon Sisters were Caster. Considering their usage of their blood, they must have utilized blood based magecraft from the Age of Gods. The fact that they had multiple bodies also meant they could use complex rituals usually requiring multiple people by themselves. They're far more combat focused than most Casters, though they mainly fought by taking advantage of their numbers. If they were a Caster of the same skill level but with only one body, they wouldn't have been able to fight so directly.
"Do you know what happened to the girl with purple hair and blue eyes? Her name is Sakura."
Clown looked away. "She and I fought. It ended up getting rather brutal. She won in the end, but she wasn't in great shape. The last thing I remember is her uppercutting me, and then everything went black. I don't know what happened to her afterward."
Saber put a hand on her head. "It can never be easy, can it?" For some reason, Saber was especially worried for Sakura. Maybe it was because Saber knew Rin's status while Sakura's was unknown. It was to the point that Saber risked losing her composure. It was so unlike her. Well, Saber didn't actually know if it was unlike her or not due to her lack of memories, but she instinctively understood that her distinct concern for Sakura belied some greater than normal connection. "It can't be helped. For now, we need to do what we can to save Rin and Luviagelita. Any ideas on how we can do that?"
"I know how." Clown said. "Lady Luviagelita didn't come here alone. She came with her sister. Lady Luviagelita set up a distress signal she could activate at any time that's essentially undetectable. If she hasn't used it yet, she will soon. It will allow Lady Luviagelita's sister to track her location, even through Bounded Fields and the like. If we go to her sister, we can work with her to find and save Lady Luviagelita and your Master, Saber."
"That's actually pretty good to hear. We won't have to use more complicated methods to find our Masters."
"Indeed. Caster and I will return to our base of operations to discuss with Lady Luviagelita's sister and come up with a plan. We'll play along with Assassin's demands for now until we're ready to strike. Since you and Caster will be meeting up tomorrow along with Assassin, Caster will tell you our plans tomorrow after you're done following Assassin's demands for that night."
"I don't get to be part of the strategy making process?"
"I'm sorry, but there is no way Lady Luviagelita's sister would allow you anywhere near our base of operations, even during these special circumstances."
"Can't we speak through familiars? I don't mean to be conceited, but I'm an intelligent individual. I want to be a part of forming the plan to save our Masters."
"I suppose speaking through familiars should work. You stay here. Caster and I will return to our base and we'll send a familiar your way. Also, don't try to track us. If you attempt to determine the location of our base, we will consider that a betrayal. You will be considered an enemy and we won't bother trying to save your Master."
"Don't worry, I won't follow you as long as I'm allowed to stay in the loop about the plan and say what I want to say."
"It's a deal." Clown crouched down. He whispered an incantation and began drawing magic circles on the ground. There were four circles that formed the corners of a square that Clown and Caster's bodies stood within. They were going to teleport back to base using one of those green Bounded Fields from earlier.
"Wait, don't leave yet. There's something I want to tell you about since we're working together." Saber figured she might as well inform Caster's faction about her nature as a Counter Guardian and about her target. It was unlikely that the overseer told anyone to not risk alerting the Einzbern homunculi participating in the Grail War. Saber explained everything relating to her mission, including that there are three homunculi in Fuyuki and any of them could be Saber's target.
"I see." Clown said. "That's a lot to take in. A homunculus could really be a threat to humanity?"
"Apparently."
"Well, it may be in our best interest then to extend our time working together to beyond when we save our Masters and until your target has been dealt with. But, I am not in any position to have the final word on that. It's up to Lady Luviagelita and her sister how long we keep our truce going."
"I understand. At least let me know if you ever encounter any homunculi with white hair and red eyes, or even any homunculi in general."
"We will."
"One last thing." Rin touched her bottom lip. "I just gave you a very valuable piece of information. It's only fair that you provide information of your own."
Clown's upper lip curled. "You gave us that information completely unsolicited. We have no obligation to provide anything in exchange."
"I understand that, but what I want to know isn't anything very useful to me. I desire to have a curiosity answered. You see, I know that Caster's true identity is the Gorgon Sisters. It wasn't hard to figure out. But, I was just curious as to Casters nature. All three sisters have displayed abilities associated with only Medusa. Also, I don't remember legends saying all three sisters were identical. I'd like to know the story behind the Gorgon Sisters. That's all."
"Even that much information could be weaponized. I'm sorry, but that isn't possible."
"It's fine." one of the bodies of Caster said.
"What? But, you'll be giving them information."
"There's not much they could glean from my history that would be useful to them that Saber wouldn't have determined on her own when she fought me. If it will appease her, I'll tell Saber what she wants to know." Clown didn't agree with Caster, but he stayed quiet. He wasn't her Master so he had no authority. "I was born as three sisters, Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale. I was a trio of Divine Spirits that were born from mankind's desire for perfect idols to be pursued. I was meant to never age and I was supposed to be weak, so much so as to be helpless. I was a triad of goddesses united by one mind. But, Medusa, the youngest sister, was born improperly. She aged, but gained numerous supernatural abilities in return. This would have caused a breakdown in the united identity I possessed as the Gorgon Sisters. Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale would have become unique individuals with separate personalities. Medusa in particular would have become especially unique. She would become a resented monster with nobody she could relate to. In order to maintain a unified existence and not let Medusa be alone in her monstrous nature, Stheno and Euryale decided to give up their divinity and immortality to become monsters who could age, too. They stayed unified with Medusa and they gained the same abilities she did due to their connection to their youngest sister being maintained. Thus I, the hive mind, remained." The three bodies got close, holding each other in a loving embrace. "I am the Gorgon Sisters, and I am the embodiment of the love of my three parts." the trio said in unison.
Saber's mind instantly went to Rin and Sakura. The Gorgon Sisters were like a potential future image of what the Tohsaka sisters could end up becoming if their sisterly bond kept tightening. The triad was a gestalt of minds with one identity; born from overwhelming love the sisters had for each other. It was unlikely that could literally happen to Rin and Sakura, but it was emblematic of the kind of relationship they could end up achieving.
"Thank you for explaining. I'm satiated now. You're free to go, not that I really could have stopped you."
"You're welcome." Caster said.
"We'll send a familiar back through my Bounded Field. It shouldn't take more than an hour before you'll be contacted. Wait here." Clown activated the green barrier. He and the sisters blinked away to wherever their base was.
With that, Saber was all alone. She felt the urge to hunt for Sakura, but she had to wait to speak with Luviagelita's sister.
Since she had free time, Saber focused her magical energy on recovery. Wounds closed and the Servant could feel her aches and pains subside. She entered Spirit Form to conserve power.
"A moment of peace, finally. Some tea would be nice right about now."
Saber was still concerned about Sakura and Rin, but she wasn't going to waste time dwelling on things she couldn't currently influence.
One thing she could influence was her memories. During the fight she remembered she wielded an Azoth Sword. She could tell it was a Noble Phantasm, but she didn't remember its True Name. So, all it was was a tough blade until she remembered. Saber also remembered her swordsmanship. She remembered all her techniques and the like. The issue was that Saber also remembered that she wasn't truly a swordsman. She was only a Saber because she owned swords that were exceptional enough to be noteworthy and she just barely had enough skill in wielding blades.
If Saber kept fighting then she'd remember more. She might be able to use more of her skills. Saber knew she had Mana Burst, but she couldn't remember what kind so it was useless. There was also whatever skill she had that was boosting her parameters in certain circumstances. Saber couldn't pin down the common denominator in all the situations her stats jumped up.
At least she was making progress.
Speaking of progress, both Sakura and Rin would need to learn to adapt to survive being apart. Saber didn't know what was going on with Sakura, but Rin was trapped and was definitely beating herself up over it. Rin was obsessed with her little sister and now she had no idea where said sister was. She might go crazy from wanting to go find Sakura if she doesn't acquire some inner peace. But, it's doubtful she'd be able to in such a stressful situation. It was hard to blame her. But, no matter how understandable, it was still an issue.
What was strange was how Saber simultaneously felt like Rin was in the wrong for defining herself through her sister, but was also envious of Rin's bond with Sakura. Saber projected herself into Rin's position. The idea of being so close to Sakura and protecting her made Saber really happy. Like, strangely happy. It was as if all her dreams were coming true. She was on cloud nine just from imagining living Rin's life. This must have been a symptom of Saber's forgotten past, some trauma that made Saber want to have a sisterly bond like Rin and Sakura's. Yet, Saber also understood that such a relationship wasn't healthy. She still wanted to make Rin and Sakura become well-rounded, fully formed individuals.
The green light of the Bounded Field. Saber hadn't realized how much time flew when she sat around thinking. The Servant rematerialized as a crystal vaguely shaped like a bird appeared.
"Hello. You must be Saber." The voice that came from the familiar was the same as Luviagelita's, but the cadence was as different as could be. It was phlegmatic, barely a warble of emotion to be found.
"Yes. You are Luviagelita's sister, yes?"
"That's right. I'm sorry, but I won't be giving you my name. The fewer things you can use to track our base, the better."
Saber smiled. "By saying that, it implies that your name would produce a paper trail. You likely flew here on a commercial airline then, and you might be staying at a public hotel. I already know your sister's name, so I could just use that if I wanted."
"Clever. Though, you telling me that was all the signal I needed to change our base of operations. I was already planning on relocating in case Luvia's captors interrogated information out of her, but you just redoubled my confidence in that decision."
"How methodical. But, if you're so smart, I must ask why you didn't use aliases when you came here."
"My sister is annoyingly proud of our family name. She obstinately refused to go by an alias and strong-armed me into using my real name as well. I will be using an alias from now on, though."
"Then, since I already know your sister's name and you'll be using an alias now, can I know your real name? Call it a sign of solidarity. You already know the name of my Master and her sister."
"And you know the name of my sister's Servant."
"True."
"If you tell me your True Name, I'll tell you my name."
Saber could tell them that she didn't know who she was, but that would reveal she couldn't use her Noble Phantasms. Revealing such a weak point wasn't worth the risk, especially because Luviagelita's sister could claim that since she didn't technically find out Saber's identity, that she was under no obligation to state her own name. Honestly, Saber was curious, but she wasn't going to take any big risks over learning what the name of Luviagelita's sister was. That said, she couldn't back down now. That would be ceding power while they were still building a dynamic. Saber needed to keep control.
"Sorry, can't say. But, I should mention that, even if you don't know my True Name, I gave you some serious information about the Einzberns and my nature as a Counter Guardian. You wouldn't know to be wary about homunculi from now on if it weren't for me. I'd say that's worth a name that probably won't be useful to me and my Master at all."
"…"
"Listen, I just want an easy way to refer to you. It's either that or I'll have to call you Luviagelita's sister. Like I said, consider this a way of building goodwill."
"…Alright. I'll tell you my name, but get closer so I can whisper it to you. Others might be listening in." Saber had done it. She had grabbed the reins and was the one in control. She sauntered closer to the crystalline familiar with a hand on her hip. She put her head up close to the bird. "My name is Henriikka Edelfelt. Don't go saying my name frivolously. Only use it when absolutely necessary."
"Thank you and don't worry. I know to be careful with such a pretty name." Saber took a few steps back, nose pointing high. "We've wasted enough time, so let's get to the serious discussion. What are we going to do about our captured comrades?"
"Clown told you about the distress signal. It's currently coming from the northern part of Miyama, in a residential area. Most of the buildings in the area are traditional Japanese mansions so it's likely one of them where the enemy is hiding. We could go there right now, but that'd be risky. We don't know anything about our enemy. We'll need to prepare first. I want to case the area from a distance and see if we can get hold of the building's blueprints. I want to sneak in and get Luvia and our Master out of there without even needing to fight, and if we have to fight, I want to be able to do so efficiently and with an ineffable advantage. I also want time to prepare any resources that may make the rescue and potential combat easier. Things like Mystic Codes."
"What's most important is getting through any Bounded Fields they may have set up and getting to Rin and Luviagelita before getting detected. Otherwise, they'll kill Rin and Luviagelita as soon as we're spotted."
"Correct. Again, we'll need to prepare. For now, we'll have to play along with Assassin's demands. All he wants is for you and Caster to help him take down the other Servants, which can actually be to our benefit. You may be able to easily take out some heavy-hitting Servants like the other knight classes that way."
"We might as well make lemonade from lemons with this. How long until you think you'll be ready to infiltrate the enemy base?"
"Surveying the area, finding out who lives there, getting blueprints, finding out what defenses are set up, preparing resources, planning out our method of assault, making back up plans for multiple scenarios, doing simulations, doing what we can to power up our Servants, all along with relocating our current base since it may be compromised will take some time. At least a week."
"A week?" Saber leaned back a bit. "That seems a little long to be waiting. The Holy Grail War could be over by then."
"I don't do anything unless success is nearly 100% guaranteed. I'm not budging on this. And remember, it's your Master and my sister who will die if we fail. We can't rush into this."
"You make a good point. But, can I simply request that we don't stick so hard to your estimation of a week and just take action whenever you feel ready, even if it's earlier than seven days."
"That's perfectly fine."
Saber clapped her hands. "Okay. Next order of business is the homunculi. If you find any homunculi or any individual who is female, has red eyes, and white hair, you tell me. Even if you find someone with only some of the traits, let me know. We can work together to take them out."
"I must ask, do you have any proof of your claims? You could be lying about being a Counter Guardian."
"If you want, you can ask the overseer. He won't be allowed to tell you anything like where the homunculi are based, but if you mention you're working with Rin, he will at least confirm he has his own suspicions about the homunculi. I mean, you were informed about their bizarre claims of the Grail being corrupted, right? Are you going to tell me that doesn't set off any red flags?"
"I believe you, but only because you just outed that your faction has some special connection to the overseer."
"It was the best way of convincing you, even if I had to give some more info away. Don't worry, the overseer isn't giving us special treatment. He's a stickler for rules from what I hear."
"I'll take your word." Saber knew that Henriikka didn't believe her. She was probably going to waste time spying on the overseer now. Well, more than she definitely already was. "We'll work as a team to deal with the homunculi. Whether they're a threat to mankind or not, their behavior and mere existence in this war is too suspicious to be ignored." Saber put her hands behind her back and smiled. She gave up some more valuable information, but now she had allies for her own personal mission. Considering it was one with humanity's survival on the line, it was worth the loss.
"Last point I want to bring up. Sakura. I helped you find Clown, so I request Caster's help in finding Sakura."
"Clown was within the area where we fought. Caster would have found him eventually even without your help. Sakura could be anywhere or even dead. Locating her would be a far greater undertaking than is worth the effort for us. We're already really busy with everything else. Finding Sakura is your own problem."
Saber crossed her arms and pouted. She expected that reaction and was actually fine with it. On the one hand, Saber wasn't going to have any help finding Sakura. On the other hand, Henriikka seemed pragmatic enough that she'd make Sakura her own hostage if she found her first just like Assassin had with Rin and Sakura. Saber figured she should bring it up since it would be weird if she didn't. Also, it made it look like Henriikka had unabashedly 'won' one part of the negotiations, which would make her feel like she had more control than she really did. It would be easier to manipulate her from now on that way.
"Alright." Saber pretended she was more upset than she really was. "For now, there's not much more to say, is there?"
"I've said all I need to."
"Then let's decide on how we'll keep in contact. We'll need to give each other status updates."
"I'll let you keep this familiar. You can call me through it by pouring a little magical energy into it."
"But, how do I know you're not going to use it to spy on me?"
The bird shaped crystal began to morph and compress. It was regressing from its status as a familiar to just a jewel. It hit the ground with a 'tink' sound.
"It's a simple jewel that can only be used for communication. If you keep it on you at all times, your Magic Resistance as a Saber should nullify any possible attempt to listen in on you. Any spell powerful enough to ignore your resistance would be easy for you to detect so it wouldn't work as a method of covert surveillance."
Saber rubbed her chin. Henriikka thought many steps ahead. Saber scooped the jewel off the ground. "That works for me. We'll talk tomorrow. Good luck."
"Good luck." The gem lost its glow.
The conversation was over and Saber was rather satisfied with the results. She put the jewel away in her dress and smiled devilishly. Henriikka hadn't noticed how she slipped up. When talking about what they'd need to do to prepare for rescuing Rin and Luviagelita, Henriikka said, 'doing what we can to power up our Servants' which couldn't have included Saber since she was speaking to her. It would be an awkward way to refer to the person you're directly speaking to. Thus, it makes the plurality of 'Servants' noteworthy. It could be that Henriikka considered Caster multiple Servants since they had multiple bodies, but that was unlikely given the way the Gorgon Sisters referred to themself as a single individual. Saber suspected it meant that Luviagelita wasn't the only Edelfelt in this war with a Servant. Henriikka also had one. She avoided mentioning them to keep them as a hidden ace that Saber wouldn't know about.
"That was a productive conversation." Saber snickered. She had managed to make some allies and gather valuable information. If it weren't for Sakura and Rin disappearing, this would have been a good day. "Now, I should go back to searching for Sakura. I'll check around here first. After that, I'll see if Sakura managed to get back to her and Rin's mansion. Since she was hurt, I'll also check some hospitals and clinics. From what the maps showed, there's a lot of medical facilities in Fuyuki. I can't check them all quickly without rushing and potentially missing Sakura so I might actually need the week's time proposed by Hen-" Saber put a hand over her mouth, pretending to stop herself from slipping up. "Oop, almost said it. And after I promised I'd be careful with her name and everything." Saber was being cheeky despite being alone.
The Servant returned to Spirit Form and leapt into the night to hunt for Sakura.