4: Survive the Night
"So you choose death? Very well."
Saber woke up late in the evening, in a small bed in a small hotel room. He did not intend to fall asleep in the first place, but the pillow smelled so good that he couldn't resist. Illya's steady heartbeat also reached him from the distance, filling his own heart with peace.
The connection between them worked well now, he could easily find Illyasviel, hidden somewhere in the northern part of the Miyama district. He had already checked how far from his Master he could go without any consequences. It seemed that the red Fuyuki bridge was the critical point – Saber felt heavy just a few kilometers further on the other side of the river. The ley lines of this town formed a strange pattern and he was not compatible with them.
Now his Master was safe and content after long sleep. Siegfried felt sorry for Illya. She might soon see some parts of his shattered memories in her dreams and it was certainly not good for a child. Blood, slaughter, more blood and ever more slaughter - his legend resembled a long, hopeless nightmare. Little girls deserve the sweetest dreams, not something this creepy.
"I'm sorry, Master. I wish I could show you good things instead."
The world was still beautiful, not in a way he remembered it, but some things seemed even better. Yesterday he discovered motorcycles and delicious Japanese sweets. In his life he had never tasted so many sweet things and found it hard to believe that food can be this good. It would be great to share this new experience with Illya - Saber could already imagine her reaction, a wide smile and sparkles in her eyes...
He sighed to his own thoughts. He'd been summoned here to fight, not to have fun or grant wishes. But he wholeheartedly intended to grant a wish of a little girl and actually had some fun in the town. Should he feel ashamed because of that? Was it really so wrong and unforgivable?
Maybe not, if he won't forget about his task. The best way to fullfil his Master's wish was to defeat Arturia and make sure that Illya's parents abandon the war. But would Kiritsugu truly give up? And, what bothered Saber even more, could he win against Lancer?
Siegfried did not know fear, but the strange sensation he felt, when thinking of Arturia's lance, was as close to it as possible. If there was a weapon in this war able to annihilate him, through his weak point or not, it certainly could be that thing with a strange, divine aura. In different circumstances he would be happy to meet such a wonderful opponent, but now he had a clear goal. He needed to focus on surviving... no, even more - on wining this war.
It was not a good time for thoughts about defeating Arturia. They were allies for now. Illya wanted Saber to help her father and he will do it. Siegfried's cute Master won't be betrayed, not by him. But no one said that Saber must obey the orders of Kiritsugu Emiya. Honestly, he had no intention to do so.
This time he was not treated like a tool, some things were left for him to decide. Soon it will turn out, if it's a good thing or not.
He sighed again and turned on the TV. It was the time for evening news. Something bad happened in Fuyuki, a serial killer, who targeted mostly children and young women, had murdered another family few nights ago. It looked like the culprit was enjoying the suffering of his victims, not to mention how much he desecrated their corpses, cutting off their heads, limbs or drawing pentagrams with their blood.
"Is he trying to summon something? Maybe he's a mage?"
Saber frowned, angry at the psychopath, who spread evil across this beautiful town. Were such things not forbidden during the Holy Grail War? Involving innocent bystanders draws too much attention to already dirty conflicts of magi. This war should have a supervisor from the Church too, shouldn't it? It wasn't the first time, so why no one intervened? They don't watch TV or what?
Most likely, they just didn't care. Normally Siegfried also wouldn't try to be involved, but… Following the new path he had chosen for himself, he wanted to help, even if no one asked for it. And this case seemed to be a part of the war, more or less, so...
Nobody will cry, if he finds and kills the bastard, right?
Saber soon left his room and sank into darkness, not yet sure, if it would be the night of sightseeing, fighting or hunting.
"Look at her, Ryuunosuke! Her very existence is the answer!" In his dark lair Caster was looking into the glass sphere, which he used to observe the city. "She is the maiden of my destiny!"
"Huh?" His Master came closer to take a look. He saw two women walking on the beach, carefree under the moon: a white-haired and red-eyed beauty in the company of a mysterious blonde with dangerous golden eyes. "Which one?"
"Jeanne, of course! My dearest Jeanne, who's been abandoned by God and perished in shame." Caster's excitement had just reached a ridiculously scary level. "But now she returned, mature, wiser and stronger, to take revenge on her persecutors! My wish has been fulfilled at last! It's a miracle!"
Ryuunosuke couldn't understand, what was happening to his new companion and partner in crime. Tears were running down Caster's cheeks, when he stared at the image within the sphere.
"So… what are you going to do, Mister?"
"I will come for her, of course! Together we will challenge God and show him the greatest blasphemy this world has ever seen!"
A Master and his Servant were sitting on the sidewalk in the park, analyzing maps and discussing their wishes for the Grail. The big, bearded man was speaking about conquest, but the young mage wanted only to be treated fairly by other people.
"How foolish! You're in this battle just for your reputation?" The boy literally flew away, when Rider flicked him on the nose. "Perhaps you should use the Grail's power to grow another thirty centimeters? Hmmm, this one looks like a warrior, but he sneaks in the shadows."
"What are you talking about?" Waver Velvet looked around and froze. A Servant in modern clothes was standing a few meters from them. The young magus read his status and blinked, utterly surprised. "S-Saber?"
"Greetings to the famous King of Conquerors and his Master." The intruder bowed slightly. "I didn't mean to disturb you, I was just passing by. Too bad that you stopped talking, it was very interesting."
Waver's face turned pale, when he realized, how close the enemy Servant managed to approach them unnoticed. Rider looked unmoved by this discovery, but he, too, was thinking how could it happen.
Saber with Presence Concealment skill? The boy swallowed. No, impossible. Maybe we've just been careless?
"So you already know my name, but will you give us yours in return?" Rider did not change his position and had no slightest intention to do so. "Who are you? A wandering knight, like the ones of the Round Table?"
Saber chuckled at this unexpected compliment. He must tell Arturia about it, when they'll meet again. It was also a nice try to provoke him, to be honest.
"Well, kind of. I have nothing against giving my name to such respectable opponent, but…" He ostentatiously looked around. "Too many uninvited ears may hear it, so forgive me and let me keep it safe for now."
"I see." It was more than enough information for Rider. Now he was sure, that the true name of this hero will tell them about his weaknesses. "You're already involved in this conversation, so come, sit with us and tell me what you think."
"Whaaaaat?!" Waver did not hide his discontent. He kept staring at both Servants with his eyes wide open. The boy did not look like a self-proclaimed genius at the moment, not at all. "Seriously?"
"About what?" Saber sat down on the sidewalk, face to face with Rider, as if it was a normal thing to do for Servants, summoned here to fight each other.
"About our wishes. What do you think?"
"Every wish is important, but… Honestly?" Rider nodded, encouraging the swordsman to continue. "I think that you don't really need the Grail to grant them. It's something you should do yourself. In your case, the process itself matters more than the effect."
"Huh?" Waver looked even more confused than before.
Iskandar burst out laughing. It was a deep, vibrating sound, coming from his belly rather than from the throat.
"Interesting! I think I like you. I would like to see you in battle first but, if your blade is as sharp as your tongue..." Still laughing, he poked Saber in the arm, like he would do to one of his trusted companions. "I ask you here and now – will you join my army? You will be treated like my friend, sharing both the glory and the joy of conquest. What say you?"
"Haaa?" Waver blinked, not believing his own ears.
Siegfried smiled, captivated by this charismatic man.
"I respect your dream of conquest, but I'm not interested in fighting for it or for you, at least not now."
"Why? Your pride won't let you join me?"
"No, I suppose I'm not half as proud as other Heroic Spirits." Saber smiled again."I just have a promise to keep. Sorry."
Iskandar sighed.
"You've already sworn your sword to someone else? What a waste, what a shame. So, when the time comes…"
"Yes, I will gladly answer to your challenge. It would be an honor, great King of Conquerors."
With those words, Saber stood up, waved to them and slowly walked his way, heading to the port.
"Hey, Rider." Waver stared at Saber's back. "I thought I've picked a weird Servant, but… Are more of you not really interested in fighting for the Grail?"
Iskandar laughed openly at his question.
"Probably. If you love life and enjoy everything this world can give you, you will never miss the opportunity to come back, at least for a while, right?" He slapped his Master in the back, making him cough painfully. "No, you probably don't get it yet. You must grow up first. Or rather get old, ha, ha, ha!"
His young Master glared, without even a tiny bit of understanding.
"Don't look at me like that, boy. Anyway, it's not the time to think of death. First you must let yourself live!"
"If you love life so much, then why do you risk losing it in battle?" Waver was stubbornly trying to figure it out.
"Isn't it obvious?" Iskandar spread his arms as wide as he could, like if he was trying to embrace the whole world he intended to conquer. "To experience it to the fullest, of course! You never feel as alive as on the verge of death, when your heart is dancing!"
The King of Conquerors waited patiently for the boy to confirm, that he understood the lesson. After a long moment of silence he sighed and stood up.
"Enough talking then, I'll show you soon what conquest truly means. Now we should go."
"What?! Where?!" - Waver shouted, already back on his feet. He had a bad feeling about it.
"We're going to follow Saber, of course," Rider explained with a smirk. After a short command his chariot descended from the sky, accompanied by thunders and ready for the ride. "People like him have a peculiar talent for getting into troubles and I won't miss the fun!"
Kiritsugu had arrived to the hotel as planned and met there with Maiya. His equipment was ready, as well as all the reports. But first he watched the transmission from the cameras placed in Illya's hideout.
All systems were working perfectly. Kiritsugu checked the rooms of the old house and smiled, seeing Illya on the corridor. She was yelling at one of her maids, probably Leysritt, with a ridiculously serious expression. She should have been sleeping already, but the change of time zone after a long journey could be problematic, especially for a child. Or maybe she was so nervous at night because of the Holy Grail War?
"There was an incident last night in the Tohsaka mansion." Maiya showed Kiritsugu the tape. It seemed that Assassin had been annihilated by an unknown Servant of the red magus.
They'd discussed this matter and came to conclusion, that it was a poorly arranged bluff. Tohsaka was probably waiting for their arrival to start this show and hide Kotomine Kirei in the church, so he could act freely under his father's protection.
"Oh?" Maiya froze suddenly, when one of her spying bat familiars detected something interesting.
Kiritsugu abandoned the cigarette he was going to light up and instinctively picked up the rifle.
"What's happening?"
"It's seems that we have the first serious battle at the harbor. At least three Servants appeared there."
"Iri should be somewhere nearby with Lancer, right?" Emiya contacted his wife immediately, glad that he had taught her how to use a cell phone.
"Kiritsugu? Yes, we're at the docks. Saber is fighting two opponents at once," Irisviel said, surprisingly worried. "And Lancer can sense more Servants nearby. Should we help Saber?"
"Only as a last resort. Stay calm, I'll be there soon. It's a perfect opportunity to know our enemies."
"Ok, I'll let Lancer decide when to join the fight."
She disconnected in a great hurry. It was not surprising, considering all the loud noises in the background, strange explosions, sounds of clashing swords and crushed containers.
"Let's see what Servants in this War are capable of," Kiritsugu whispered to himself, more excited than he really should be.
Gilgamesh was laughing, visibly pleased. His little plan had been beautifully executed.
"You dare to call yourself a Saber, the strongest class? You should enjoy my gift more."
He was standing at the top of a mountain of stacked containers and watched the battle below. The duel down there was chaotic and brutal, like any other fight with a Berserker involved. This particular mad warrior was like an animated, raging black armor, covered by shadows.
"I see." Saber remained calm and focused; the contrast between both fighters was fascinating. "You've provoked Berserker to go into frenzy and then lured him here to attack me."
Gilgamesh gave him a wide, vicious smile in response.
"And you walked into my trap like a complete fool. A small burst of mana was enough to invite you."
"A champion takes on all challengers," Saber quoted Illya's favorite line with a strange, thin smile.
"Then reap what you sow." The King of Heroes opened golden portals in the air around him and threw several weapons at both warriors. "It's time to increase the difficulty, you're starting to bore me."
Shit, Saber thought, seeing blades coming at him from all directions. Although he managed to block or dodge all of them, he found the necessity of doing so extremely annoying. Every time Saber was about to land a decisive blow, more weapons came to disturb him. Gilgamesh was clearly mocking them with his unusual attacks, there was no other, logical explanation of his behavior.
Berserker grabbed one of the flying blades, a fine bastard sword, probably his favorite type of weapon. The duel became even more fierce and spectacular from now on. Some parts of the shattered containers and fragments of asphalt were flying around, also no street lamp remained untouched. Only the moon kept shining upon the battlefield, filling the entire place with a mystical glow and deepening the shadows around.
"I really don't mind fighting you all night, but what about your Master?" Saber stepped back, blocking another powerful strike. Their clash carved a large hole in the ground. "You will exhaust him to death, you know?"
Berserker only growled and attacked Saber even more vigorously.
The real problem with this Black Knight was not his strength, which allowed him to actually pierce through Saber's dragon skin, but the remarkable skills of the mad warrior. He must have been a top-class swordsman to keep up with Siegfried with such ease.
Still, even without releasing the energy from his blade, Saber could end this fight relatively quickly... But he got stuck in a disadvantageous position, because of the continued attacks of the golden Servant.
What's his goal? He wants to force me to use my Noble Phantasm?
Soon another enemy decided to join the fight. A rain of arrows had fallen at the fighting Servants. One of the missiles hit Siegfried's back, dangerously close to his weak point.
Great. Who else wants to kill me tonight?
This sneak attack of the invisible sniper seemed futile at first glance, but soon they all realized the true meaning behind it. No arrow actually pierced through Saber's dragon skin or armors of his enemies, but the air around became strangely heavy, like in a forest full of poisonous plants.
When the toxic fume reached Saber's nostrils, his vision became blurred. He was slowing down with every breath and the fact, that Berserker remained unaffected, was not a good sign.
At this rate I…
"Enough!" A mounted knight entered the scene. "Three on one? And you dare to call yourself Heroic Spirits?"
"Oh? So you've decided to show up at last." Gilgamesh's smile widened at the view and it could mean only troubles.
"Maiya, have you spotted any enemy Master?"
"None."
Kiritsugu gritted his teeth. They had checked every corner of the harbor and found nothing, except supposedly dead Assassin, who was observing the fight from the crane. Archer class Servants possess Independent Action skill, so Master of the invisible sniper probably hadn't even bothered to leave his warm apartment. The same might apply to Tokiomi Tohsaka and his abnormal Servant, but at least Master of Berserker should be somewhere nearby… Or maybe this black thing was raging out of control and a Command Seal was needed to make him return to his magus?
Emiya sighed. It seemed that his Lancer was the only Servant actually controlled by a Master here.
What's wrong with this Grail War? Is it a rebellion of Servants or something?
With almost all the familiars running freely and no Master to challenge, Kiritsugu could only watch and wait for the results of the first battle.
Lancer charged at Berserker at full speed; she did not even raise her weapon against the Black Knight, only hit him with her armored horse. The power of impact was enough to send Berserker flying. He hit the pile of containers, then fell on the ground, stunned and battered. After a short while, he vanished into spirit form, unable to continue the fight.
Then more arrows came from the shadows, targeting only Arturia's horse and less protected parts of her body, especially legs. One or two managed to pierce the skin. The mare squealed painfully, but Lancer seemed only enraged by the poison. She looked around, determined to find the troublesome sniper.
Gilgamesh, angry at the intruder, who dared to mess with his show, also focused on searching for the hidden enemy.
"I can feel you, pest," he said, looking at the mountain of stacked containers on the left. Not able to localize the exact position of the sniper, he destroyed everything more or less in that direction. For a moment the entire harbor was glowing with a golden light from his portals. "Filthy mongrel."
"Are you insane?" Saber jumped back to take cover. Arturia could barely control her horse, when the rain of weapons filled the sky above her head.
Containers exploded and collapsed all at once, burying the hidden Servant under a mass of metal.
"Ouch." He scrambled out of the rubble and stood up slowly, trying to save the remnants of his dignity. One of his legs seemed broken, but he somehow managed to stand. It was a tall but slim man, who looked more like a walking smudge of green, completely hidden under his cloak. "Hey, hey, calm down! You're clearly overreacting."
"You!" Lancer raised her weapon and turned to the bowman. "Archer, right? You have a chance to neutralize the poison and I will spare you this time. But if you refuse, it will be your end."
So this is serious? Siegfried, grateful for a moment of rest after an exhausting duel, was observing them all - especially smirking Gilgamesh - from the safe corner of the harbor.
"Scary, scary!" Even if Archer was really frightened, the tone of his voice remained the same. "I would like to, but my Master changed my usual toxin with his magical tricks. I have no power to help you."
"So you choose death? Very well."
"Hmmm." Rider stroke his beard, watching the fight from the red bridge. "For a moment I was worried about Saber, but it seems that Archer will be taken down tonight."
"This is preposterous…" The battle was so fascinating, that Waver forgot about his fear of heights, and enjoyed it with his eyes wide open.
"What exactly?"
"Everything!" The young magus shook his head with disbelief. "This classless Servant and his ridiculous Noble Phantasm! Saber, who survived the fight against three Servants at once! And Lancer is just scary, I don't even know why!"
"Ha, ha, ha! And now, boy, imagine that none of them is serious tonight," Iskandar added with a wide smile.
"Eeee?" Waver groaned, like he was about to vomit. "Then why are you so happy about it?"
"Because now I'm sure that my heart will be dancing pretty well during this campaign!"
Llamrei's hooves pounded the ground, when Lancer charged at the defenseless bowman. Archer was desperately trying to escape and they all knew he had no chance to withstand Arturia's attack. She was too fast - and angry - to be stopped by a weaker and wounded opponent. Maybe a Command Seal could save the bowman, but…
"Hey, you! Big guy over there!" - Archer shouted to Saber, trying to slow the horse down with arrows. "Maybe you will move your ass and help me? She's going to smash me!"
The urge to answer his desperate calling for help was as strong as a power of a Command Seal, if not stronger. There was no way for Saber to resist it.
"Damned curse!" – Siegfried whispered angrily, standing between the charging Lancer and cornered Archer. He couldn't see Arturia's expression under the helmet, when he blocked the strike of her lance with Balmung, but her entire silhouette expressed hesitation and surprise. She ordered Llamrei to step back, not sure how to react.
She had just been betrayed and wanted to know the reason.
Thank You for reading, commenting and other kinds of support. And sorry for the cliffhanger. I hope You enjoyed the chapter!