Chapter Thirty-Seven.
Change in Plans.
My eyes jolted awake only to wince close in response to the light filtering through the slit in my tent and it took a few moments to adjust to the light. As I came too and looked up, I found a golden-haired knight fast asleep slouched over me. It looked like Jeanne hadn't gone back to her tent last night, and instead chose to stay put with me in her lap before falling asleep hunched over me. I was gonna need to give her a talk about going to bed and getting a proper night's rest.
I reached up to pinch Jeanne's cheek to jolt her awake but stopped myself short from doing so and retracted my hand. I shook my head and placed my hand on her shoulder proceeding to push her off. There was no reaction as I pushed her back until causing her to fall back on the cot completely unfazed. I sat up and rubbed my eyes before looking over at Jeanne, who was now laid out across the cot with her feet dangling from the side. She was still fast asleep, her chest rising up and down with a smile plastered across her face. I was surprised that moving her hadn't even stirred her awake, she must have been more exhausted than I am, which didn't make a whole lot of sense given her servant status. Maybe it was because I had been so exhausted that she was so tired as well, but that was just a theory. Either way she looked like she was sleeping peacefully, so I wasn't going to wake her. I just hoped no one came into our tent right now, because the way she was sprawled back on my bed in a very suggestive manner would give the wrong idea to anyone who might barge in. Luckily no one did walk in, in the time it took for me to slip into my boots and pull my body armor over my head followed by my suit jacket. Once dressed I stood up from my cot and cast one last glance at Jeanne before setting off in search of Scathach.
I ducked my head and pushed the flap out of my way as I exited out of the tent and out under the open sky. The sun was already high up in the sky meaning it must be around noon time and looking around I found the camp to be bustling with activity. Scathach's tent was right next to mine so it wasn't a far walk. I ducked my head inside and found her hunched over a table studying something. Scathach paid me no attention as she continued studying the object, and as I drew closer I saw that there was a map of the area sprawled across the table.
"Look at you being a diligent student, doing your homework." I said and Scathach didn't even bother looking at me in response.
"Well unlike you I don't like going blind into these things, with no plan or strategy. Instead opting to fly by the seat of your pants in most of our operations." Scathach retorted.
"I actually came here to discuss our upcoming strategy with you." I said.
"One of your rarer moments." Scathach remarked.
"Are you going to allow me to ask you questions so I can get your thoughts on certain things, or just berate me?" I asked.
"You want my thoughts on a matter?" Scathach sneered with raised brow. "Why? You always ignore whatever advice I may give or disregard any caution or suggestions I might have."
"Would you stop that!" I exclaimed. "I've asked you for your help before in the past and listened to what you've had to say. Sometimes I heed your advice, and other times I choose to go against your better judgment. However it's not like I don't listen to you at all, nor do I not recognize your vast knowledge and experience." I said to an unconvinced looking Scathach. Scathach stared into my face for several moments seemingly mulling whether to listen to me or not before eventually letting out a heavy sigh.
"Fine." Scathach said.
"Thank you." I nodded my head. "As I said I wish to discuss our strategy to help Nero's army breakout of this deadlock and out into France." I said.
"What about it? The plan is simple enough. We need to scale the mountain pass and get behind enemy lines on the other side where we'll proceed to infiltrate the enemy camp and take out their commander." Scathach said. "Once we've taken out their commanders we'll start causing distractions throughout the camp. While that's happening Nero's army will push out from their defensive position and launch an attack on the enemy camp in midst of the chaos." Scathach laid out the plan as if she had memorized it.
"You say that as if it will actually go that smoothly." I point out.
"These things rarely ever do." Scathach replied. "However I was just reciting the plan back to you, which is a simple enough plan. It's not ingenious or anything, but we don't have many options at our disposal. We have to break the deadlock and push out France, we can't win a defensive war by just defense alone. It's not like they'll all just die off." Scathach pointed out.
"I know that, and I'm not going to suggest we just sit here." I said.
"Then what are you trying to suggest?" Scathach asked.
"I wanted to suggest a change to the plan." I replied.
"What kind of change?" Was Scathach's next question.
"I was thinking last night about how instead of attacking the camp directly we trick the enemy into thinking we've deserted the defense and fallen back, thus luring the bulk of their forces into the mountain pass." I went on "Once the bulk of their forces has been lured into the mountain pass where Nero's forces will hide and ambush them, then we can take out their commanders from behind. With their commanders taken out we'll proceed to attack their forces from behind and box them in the pass between us and Nero's forces." I explained. Scathach stood there in silence for several moments. I watched as her eyes darted back and forth seemingly thinking over what I had said before finally speaking her mind.
"I see a few problems arising." Scathach stated raising her finger. "One of them being that this new plan hinges entirely on the enemy being stupid enough to send the bulk of their forces into this mountain pass, which the enemy has been trying to breech the defense here for months." Scathach pointed out. "The enemy very well knows that this mountain pass is filled with Nero's forces, and it's doubtful they would just march their entire army through the pass. At most they'd send some small groups to investigate the abandoned defenses and once Nero's force ambushed them, the gig would be up and they'd stay put." Scathach explained.
"I know as much, but for the army to get into Italy they'd need to go through the mountain pass." I pointed out.
"Yes, but that doesn't mean they'd send them all at once." Scathach pointed out in return. "It's also possible they could send a small enough force to get a foothold in Italy; they'd just bring the rest in by boats." Scathach added.
"That seems unlikely, that would take longer and put their troops at risk of being sunk out at sea." I pointed out.
"True." Scathach murmured.
"So they have to go through the mountain pass to get into Italy." I said.
"Yes, they do." Scathach said and here comes the But. "But as I said, that doesn't mean they have to go through all at once." Scathach reminded me.
"I know, I know." I said. "What if Nero set up more defenses further down in the pass, or at the end of the pass to hold them up. That way their army would have to go into the pass if they wanted to attack Nero's newly set up defenses." I suggested.
"That's possible, but there's problems with that idea." Scathach raised up two fingers. "The first problem is that it could take up to several weeks to erect these new defenses and seeing we don't exactly have that kind of time to be screwing around it wouldn't work." Scathach explained.
"Why not? We've spent weeks in singularities before." I asked.
"Incase you forgot, we have a price on our head." Scathach reminded me and a drawn out oh escaped my mouth. "The second problem with this plan is that, say the enemy does move into the pass, the entire army or most of it, Nero's army would then need to either push out from her defenses to attack them or have troops lying in the mountainsides and woods to ambush them. Which also raises problems, the amount of time it would take for the enemy forces to move in the mountain pass would still take a week or several days. So Nero's forces lying in wait would have to wait some period of time before they were able to ambush most of the enemy's forces, and armies don't march on empty stomachs as you should know." Scathach explained the second problem to me.
"So you don't think it would be possible to lure the bulk of their forces into the valley where they could be ambushed?" I asked.
"I don't think it would work out like you hope it would." Scathach replied.
"Well my thought process with this new plan was that this would reduce the threat to Nero's forces by drawing the enemy in and not having to fight them out in the open on their turf." I said.
"I understand that, but what are the chances they'll actually fall for the trick? They would have to be very desperate." Scathach asked in response. "We also risk Nero's strategic advantage if this plan was to fail and they gained a foothold in the mountain pass. Then we become the ones forced to attack them through the mountain pass." Scathach pointed out.
"We risk a lot, but we also gain a lot if the plan is successful." I said. "If they did send the bulk of their forces into the pass and we boxed them in, we could wipe out the entire force." I explained.
"And once again I ask, what are the chances they will?" Scathach asked once more.
"It's true, we don't know if they would actually fall for it, but there's a chance they might fall for it if we were able to convince them that Nero withdrew her forces further back." I said.
"I don't know how you expect to do that, they've been throwing troops at Nero's defenses for the past several months with no success, they have no reason to believe Nero would pull back from this advantageous position." Scathach reminded me.
"Well I had originally thought that if we just made it appear like the defense had been abandoned that the enemy force would be lured into the pass and Nero's forces would hide in the surrounding woods and cliffs in wait to ambush them." I explained. "And I had come here to consult you on it and see if you had any thoughts on how best to conceal their forces or maybe some runes like for invisibility or something." I added.
"You say that as if Runes can just do anything." Scathach scoffed.
"Well it's a type of magic isn't it?" I said.
"Magic doesn't mean you can just do anything you like." Scathach scolded me and I could only shrug in response. Could have fooled me, since we're traveling back in time to fight long dead historical figures and legends over some magical cup that can bring about the destruction of humanity.
"Fine, I guess we'll just not go with this plan. Since I see now that there are several more flaws in it than what I had originally thought." I said rubbing the back of my neck.
"It wasn't a bad plan, but it's just not practical in this situation." Scathach said. A rare compliment coming from her. "We should stick with the original plan, but I have a few suggestions on how we should modify it." Scathach stated.
"Alright then, what are they?" I inquired.
"They're nothing major, but the attack should be conducted at night. That way we can slip into the camp with relative ease and take out their Commanders in their sleep. Once that is done, you can set off several explosives inside the camp to cause maximum chaos. Nero's forces can exit out from their defenses under the cover of darkness and launch their attack shortly after you detonate the explosives" Scathach explained. "We also should bring blondie with us, since as soon as those explosives go off we'll be launching our own attacks on their forces to cause further chaos and thin their ranks." Scathach finished explaining, and her plan so far sounded better than mine to be honest.
"But wait, if we bring Saber with us, how will Nero know when to launch the attack?" I asked.
"If those explosives going off aren't already enough of a sign to launch their attack, then you can bring a flare gun along." Scathach retorted. Which yeah, I suppose depending on the yield those explosions would be seen from a mile away or more. "We need the extra blade since we're going to be taking the brunt of the enemy till Nero shows up."
"Fair enough." I said. "I do have some other concerns that I did want to bring up with you concerning our attack." I stated.
"What are they?" Scathach asked.
"You don't think it'll be as easy as just strolling into the enemy camp and killing their commander do you? There is a possibility we'll encounter an enemy servant, or the enemy commander winds up being a servant." I expressed my concerns.
"Of course I've considered that possibility. We've already met one enemy servant who was a commander." Scathach retorted. "I had not planned on rushing in there blindly without scouting out the camp, assuming I'm given a choice in the matter." Scathach remarked.
"I had not planned on charging in there blindly, no." I sneered.
"Oh good." Scathach mocked in a sarcastic tone.
"But It's been troubling me since we got here on how Nero hasn't gone on the offensive or hasn't made any attempts to push back into France till now." I said brushing off her snide remarks. "If the enemy force that has been attacking the defenses had a servant with them why haven't they just blown the defenses away with a noble phantasm, or if they don't have a servant with them, then why has Boudica or Spartacus just completely steam rolled the enemy if all they're facing are regular humans?" I asked.
"Yes I've been wondering the same." Scathach nodded her head. "There are many reasons as to why this might be, Nero could be acting overly cautious, or perhaps it's the enemy that is acting overly cautious as they don't know what Nero might have up her sleeve, or maybe it's both. It could be that the attacking force has servants and Nero has servants, so both armies are at an impasse." Scathach explained and I mostly agreed with her explanation.
"So, what if we encounter an enemy servant at the enemy camp?" I asked.
"We kill them." Scathach replied.
"That's no easy task." I pointed out.
"Of course not." Scathach scoffed. "But fighting other servants is unavoidable in these wars, but they can be killed just like anyone else. We just need to have the right plan if we do encounter an enemy servant. Which is why we're bringing Blondie with us as support, if it's three servants against one it should be significantly easier." Scathach said.
"Depending on the servant, we've had trouble before even with greater numbers." I pointed out which was met with a reserved look. "If we find ourselves facing Alter Saber again we'd be in quite the bind." I added.
"If Alter Saber was here, she'd have blown away not only Nero's defenses but half the mountain by now." Scathach stated, which sounded like Alter Saber. "It's more likely we'll encounter another Roman Emperor or Roman heroes in this singularity, and given how everyone just seems to blurt out their true name we should be able to deduce their weakness and use that to our advantage." Scathach said.
"If their weakness is obvious enough, that hasn't always been very useful to us in the past." I said.
"True enough." Scathach mused. "But we'll have to sort that out after we've performed reconnaissance on the enemy camp, and come up with a strategy then based on what we learn."
"You could always use your Noble Phantasm to kill a servant you know." I suggested and Scathach narrowed her eyes at me disapprovingly.
"I'll use my Noble phantasm when I deem it necessary, but I'm not going to reveal my true name to someone unbefitting of it. This spear is an embodiment of who I am and I won't use its special technique on just anyone." Scathach scoffed at me.
"I was just saying Lancer you might have to use it one day." I said.
"And I was just saying I'll use it when I need to." Scathach said. How odd for Scathach to be so touchy about something, but I suppose it's only natural she wishes to keep her identity a secret and that has always been a constant. "Regardless I am sure I'll be able to beat any enemies we face without needing it."
"Alright alright." I said putting my hands up in surrender. "We'll go with your revised plan instead, since it seems like my plan had too many flaws." I said, shoving my hands back into my pockets.
"I just don't find it to be a wise course of action to throw out the entire plan and go with a new one." Scathach stated. "Sometimes drastic change isn't always a good thing, and all you need are small minor changes to make something work."
"Yeah you're probably right." I murmured and stood there in relative silence for a few moments, and after standing there long enough Scathach tossed me a glance as if asking me if there was anything else. "I guess I better go gather the supplies we'll need from Chaldea." I said turning to leave.
"Don't forget we'll also need to inform Nero of our changes." Scathach reminded me.
"It's on my to do list." I said and paused for a moment. "Do you know where Mashu is, it doesn't seem like she's in her tent?" I asked.
"If she's not there, she's probably with Boudica and Spartacus. Since it seems like Boudica has taken a liking to her since our battle." Scathach said, turning back to look at the maps sprawled across the table.
"What did you think of the battle anyways?" I asked.
"It was entertaining at most." Scathach murmured. "At least if we find ourselves having to fight Boudica or Spartacus again we have knowledge on how they fight if things take a turn for the worst." Scathach said. I guess Scathach was already thinking ahead and plotting on how to get the upper hand against them.
"Well let's hope it doesn't come to that." I murmured as I turned once more to leave and lifted the flap to the entrance. "I'll get the supplies we need and go look for Mashu if you need me." I said over my shoulder before taking my leave, and received no response in return from Scathach who was already absorbed in thought as she examined her map causing me to let out a weary sigh as I exited.
Hello there lovely readers. I know it's been two months and I've had a lot of stuff going on in real life, and a few stumbling blocks while writing. If you want to know when the newest chapters come out or what's taking so long then make sure you follow Fated Destiny on Fanfiction to know when its updated and hop on over to my Discord. Anyway, Thank you for reading and for your continued support! If you enjoyed the chapter, please consider leaving a favorite/like. Feel free to leave feedback and reviews in the comments below or tell me what you think I need to improve on. Just a reminder that new chapters of Book Three should release every two weeks on Friday, Saturdays, or Sundays, but that's subject to change.
The Fated Destiny Discord Invite Code is: 5F2T7H7
Just put that code into a Discord Invite Link and you should be good to go.