Family.
It is something that everyone cherishes.
For even the hardest of hearts, even the most vile of creatures…
Somewhere, in an elaborately, gilded hall, a woman sits in front of a large, roaring bonfire. Orange-yellow tendrils of flame lick the air, sending sparks of heated energy up and towards the ceiling above.
And even the most divine of gods…
She is in a seated position, one leg laid out straight against the marble floor while one was upright. In one of her hands is a golden cup, once shiny and gilded with the brightest jewels, but now tarnished with age and lost of its prior luster.
Have a place to return to that they can call home.
And it is their natural instinct to protect their home…
The woman closes her eyes.
Then tosses the cup into the bonfire in front of her. The golden cup rapidly disintegrates into ash which floats up into the air, as if it were not solid at all.
No matter the cost.
Sakura just watches as her senpai's eyes widen in a mixture of surprise and fear.
"What do you mean…that magic and magecraft were never two different things?" he asks.
His voice seemed as still and confident as always, but she could hear the slight shake in his usually unshakable tone.
"Were you taught differently, boy?" Artemis asks with a placid look on her face. "Well, I am afraid that you were taught wrong."
"But, I thought…according to Tohsaka's history books, the Age of Separation should've…"
"Hmm, this Tohsaka person, are they your teacher?" the goddess asks. "If they are, then they taught you wrongly. However, that is to no surprise. There are very few mortals who truly know the ways of this world. It can be taught."
"The ways of the world?" Shirou repeats, sounding a bit confused.
"You don't think that the world just runs amok, do you?" Artemis says. "There has to be somebody to make sure that things are running the way they should be. That would be us, the gods of Olympus. For example, my father, Zeus…"
At that exact moment, a thunderbolt booms somewhere in the horizon, as if on cue. Shirou and Sakura jump at the sound. Both were absolutely positive that not even a reminiscent of a storm had come to fruition before they had entered the camp.
"He is the lord of the skies," the goddess continues, unfazed. "Everything that flies in the air is under his dominion and those who he disfavors are not allowed the privilege of flight."
She stops to let the couple sink it in.
Sakura was left frozen in place. But that wasn't because she needed time to comprehend what the goddess had said. She completely understood what was told, which was exactly why she was left frozen.
A world…where the gods held dominion over parts of the world? But also one where magecraft didn't exist?
"But that monster I killed not too long ago on that cliff…what was that then?" Shirou asks. "What Professor Thorn did could only possibly be beast magecraft."
"Boy, that monster's human visage is not its original form."
"Huh?"
"That monster you just killed is called a manticore," Zoe says. "It is a mythical beast that has roamed the Earth for centuries. This 'Professor Thorn' that you mention is merely a disguise through the use of the Mist."
"The Mist…?"
"In this world of gods, demigods, and monsters, why is it that signs of their existence aren't more obvious?" the lieutenant asks. "If mortals knew of the existence of the gods, then why is it that other religions are so popular among mortals and that almost none of them at all still worship the Greek gods? And most importantly, if humans could see monsters such as the manticore, then why is it that so many don't know of their existence or do anything about it? There is something that is obscuring their consciousness from finding out about these things. And that would be the Mist."
"Then why doesn't it obscure my vision?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Artemis cuts in. "It's because you're not a mortal. You're a demigod."
"As I've said before, none of my parents are gods," Shirou says. "And I know for a fact that Sakura's aren't either."
"Oh? I thought you said that you never knew your parents," Artemis says. "And as for you, girl, if you were a demigod, it matters little if you knew your parents or not. It is not unusual for a demigod to have a stepmother or stepfather that they think is their original parent. And although, in some rare cases, there are mortals born that can see through the Mist, they are no more than that: mortals. So the only explanation is that you two must be of divine blood."
Shirou goes quiet as he lets his brain try to comprehend the new information.
Meanwhile, Sakura's thoughts were on something entirely different.
The fact that they possibly weren't just on a different continent. That they were much farther away from home than they had initially thought.
The girl shakes her head, ridding herself of that thought.
She'd think about it later, in private when she was in the safe shelter of her senpai's arms. She couldn't let negative emotions surface here.
"But-"
"Look, boy, it is not my place to lecture you about the workings of the world," Artemis says. "As a demigod, you will simply learn through experience. I called you two here for a reason and it is time to fulfill it."
She turns her silvery white eyes to the redhead.
"Both of you have powers that have attracted my curiosity," she continues. "Especially you, boy."
Shirou raises an eyebrow in confusion.
"Have you ever been told that the eyes are a mirror that looked directly into the soul, boy?" Artemis asks.
"...I believe I've heard it once or twice," Shirou says.
"Well, when I look into your eyes, I don't see what I'd expect from a mortal or a demigod. I don't simply see the soul of a single individual, I see something much bigger.
"I see a barren wasteland. And a sea weapons of many different kinds plunged into the barren ground, as far as the eye can see. A seemingly infinitely vast domain that shouldn't be something that can be contained within a mortal's, or even a demigod's, body."
Shirou and Sakura's eyes widened at that. Zoe just looked at her Lady with a confused expression.
Wait, she can see Archer's…? Sakura thinks to herself.
"I've never seen something like that before," Artemis continues. "Not even in my family members, the other Olympians. Though I don't doubt that at least one of the primal gods has something like that. Regardless, it is not something that I would never have expected to see in someone anyone lesser than a god. So I won't bother asking how you acquired something like that, as you must've been born as an exceptional demigod."
Shirou opened his mouth to correct the goddess again but then closed it, thinking that it was no longer worth doing so.
"I will not ask you about how it works either. But that is because I want to find it out for myself."
Shirou raises an eyebrow at that.
"Soon, I will embark on a quest to find a certain monster I must hunt," Artemis says. "And I want you to come with me."
With that, the goddess might as well have just stopped time.
The whole environment just seemed to freeze. Zoe, Shirou, and Sakura were left staring wide-eyed at the goddess. Zoe seemed especially affected though.
"M-My Lady, what-..." she manages to get out.
"What could I possibly do that would at all aid a goddess of the Hunt during a hunting excursion?" Shirou asks.
"Feh, I don't want you to come with me because I need your help," Artemis says. "If I wanted that, my Hunters are an infinitely better choice than you. No, I want you to come with me because I want to find out everything about that intriguing power of yours. And because of how dangerous I presume it to be, maybe it will show itself naturally."
"And if I decline?" Shirou asks.
"If you decline, I will just send you off to Camp Half-Blood with the rest of the demigods," the goddess says. "However, I hope you don't believe that I'm the only deity who will find great interest in what is inside of you. Once my family members find out about you and the girl, then don't think for a second that they will allow you to live the rest of your life peacefully. They will hound you until that peculiar ability within you is theirs, just like how I want to make it mine. And not all of them will be as caring of your mortality as I am."
That visibly puts Shirou on edge. His fingers twitch ever so slightly, a movement that makes Artemis smile.
"However, if you submit to me, please don't take that the wrong way, I will give you my divine protection," she continues. "Nobody will dare to touch you, or even near you if you do not wish them to. Think of it as my way of guaranteeing you a life of peace in the future. Well, as peaceful as it would be with you basically being my second-hand combat option at any given time."
Sakura squints her eyes at the goddess at that.
Does she intend to mold senpai into a tool for her use?
Shirou also squints at her.
"Of course, I don't expect you to answer immediately," Artemis says. "Soon, my brother will be here to pick you all up and bring you to Camp Half-Blood. Since I have the time, I will wait until the end of the day tomorrow for your decision, so I suggest you settle down and say your goodbyes."
"You say that as if you're so sure that I will accept," Shirou says.
"That's because I know you will," the goddess says with a cryptic smile. "Even without any compelling of my own, logic will steer you to the right choice."
"Well, I'm no stranger to going against logic," Shirou says. "In fact, I've done it once and nearly got the world destroyed."
"Oho, I don't doubt that's quite the story. However, you can tell me more about it when you meet me tomorrow night."
This time, Shirou doesn't respond. He just stares forward at the goddess.
"Well, that wraps up our little talk," she says, turning to peer outside through the slightly open tent flap. "It appears that morning is approaching. My brother will be here soon, so you'd better get going or you'll miss your ride."
The redhead just nods. Zoe walks over to the tent flap and holds it open as the couple prepares to walk out of the tent.
When they stepped back onto the flat, leafy ground of the forest they were in, they both walked back to their tent in silence. Shirou was deep in thought, obviously over what Artemis had just told him.
Sakura was also in thought, though it was from something a bit different.
This deal may seem good on the outside, but essentially, all she wants is to possess senpai like a weapon.
Her expression darkens, though the change is so miniscule that it was nigh impossible to see it.
I won't let that happen.
A/N: I rushed to get this out lol so the chapter's shorter and not as polished. My school year started and senior year came and hit me with the force of a wrecking ball. Rushing this is kind of bringing up my bad habits, but that's probably because there isn't much interesting to write about here.
Anyways, two important things to bring up:
1) Despite what the beginning part may look like, I am not at all trying to fuse the Riordanverse and the Nasuverse. Please keep in mind that the Holy Grail is not Nasu's original idea and is part of Arthurian legend that is at least a couple of centuries older. I already know that some of y'all are probably getting ideas before even getting to the end of the chapter.
2) I'm thinking of starting another crossover fic. It's not gonna be nearly as complicated as this one because I'm simply inserting a character into one of the routes (either Fate Zero or UBW), so if you see another fic under my name, I'm not abandoning this one, I'm just going to work on that other one as well as this one.
