8: Promising Cooperation

"Ha, ha, ha! Wonderful! So there's still a chance that I will get a decent duel in this war."

"Kirei, have you just lost another one of your petty spies?"

Kotomine did not expect Gilgamesh to reside in his private room. The Executor froze at the door at the sight of the King of Heroes, lying shamelessly on his sofa and drinking his wine without asking permission.

"Why do you think so?"

"Your face." The golden-haired Servant shrugged. "You made exactly the same expression, when Saber slaughtered almost half of your little army."

Kirei winced at the memory of the fight in the forest. It was a humiliating defeat. The difference in strength between Saber and Kotomine's Servant was preposterous. To think that such power belonged to a Master, who didn't really need it… What a waste!

"Why are you here and not with Tokiomi?"

"He's avoiding me. Probably afraid that I'm going to kill him," his guest answered simply, as if it was just an unimportant detail.

Kotomine raised one eyebrow, not sure what to think about it.

"And you may kill your Master?"

Gilgamesh rolled his eyes and completely ignored the last question.

"Mongrels are not fighting each other, I'll soon be bored to death." He sighed, changing the topic.

"Oh? Aren't they all pursuing Caster? Rider and Berserker are fighting him right now."

"I'm not a pig Kirei, I don't like bathe in mud." Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed, but he was too bored to get angry. "It's a mongrel's job to hunt bugs, not mine. So, which Servant killed your spy?"

"I'm not really sure. It was a surprise attack, so maybe Archer. Anyway, I think I saw the Master of Saber, but…"

"But?" That made Gilgamesh instantly interested. His eyes were shining again and the boredom, visible in his movements until now, disappeared completely.

"It seems that his Master is a little girl. One of the Einzbern's homunculi, but still a child. Strange."

"Ha, ha, ha! Wonderful! So there's still a chance that I will get a decent duel in this war."

Kotomine thought that it was a rather quick and unexpected change of mood, but did not comment it.

"You seemed to be disappointed with Saber last time, after the battle in the harbor?"

"He showed me nothing back then. There's no way I could be satisfied with something this half-hearted, Kirei." Gilgamesh sipped some wine, threw his head back and laughed again. "This type of mongrel must be cornered, like a wild beast, to show its full potential. Although it's incredibly childish, that little girl may be a trigger to unleash his power. I want to see him raging, helplessly and desperately, defending his Master. In such circumstances he may be able to entertain me. For a while."

Kotomine did not know what to think about it. He understood such reasoning, but his own feelings surprised him. How could he find it exciting? It was an evil plot, for nothing else but a twisted pleasure... Why did he want to assist and even join the King of Heroes in this kind of 'entertainment'?

Not yet ready to accept this new sensation, Kirei asked:

"And what about Lancer? You said that she's worth your time."

"Ah, this one is interesting, but a lot easier to handle." Gilgamesh swirled the wine, watching his own reflection in the glass. "She's the one who crushes every obstacle on her way. Just like that. The only thing I need to do is to stand between her and her goal, when she almost reaches it."

"I see." A strange shade crossed the Executor's face, when he took a seat next to his guest. "So you really are here only to have fun."

"You don't like it? What should I want? The Grail, which is already mine, like everything in this world?" Gilgamesh laughed. "And what is it that you want, Kirei?"

Another troublesome question. Wasn't he participating in this War because the Grail might be able to give him an answer?

"I…"

"What an amusing face you've made just now!" Gilgamesh smiled and gave the priest a look of a lazy, wild cat. "You don't need to have a general answer. After all, people are capricious creatures, they chase one little desire after another. If it's so difficult for you, tell me what do you want right now, Kirei."

Right now? Was there really something he wanted so badly? He'd been nervous recently, waiting for something, but… What was it, exactly?

And then he knew it. Suddenly, he felt relief, realizing this simple truth. There must be another person just like him somewhere, who had walked the same path and already received the answer.

"I want to face Kiritsugu Emiya."

After a moment of silence, Gilgamesh laughed. It was a soft, pleasant sound, this time devoid of malice.

"So, we're going after the Einzbern team? Fine with me." He poured the wine into another glass and handed it to Kirei. "You will get your answers, I will get some fun. Let's make a toast to this promising cooperation."

They clinked their glasses. Kotomine stared at the drink, crimson and sweet like blood. He accepted it hesitantly and tried the wine. It tasted… different than before, like a promise of something extraordinary.

Kirei still did not know pleasure, but suspected, that his current state of strange excitement was as close to it as possible. He smiled at this discovery, surprisingly content.

"Ah, promising, indeed. I'm looking forward to it, King of Heroes."

"Did you hear that, Rider?" Waver tensed, alarmed by strange screams nearby.

They were riding through the canal to attack Caster in his hideout. The anemone-like creatures kept dying en masse under the wheels of Iskandar's chariot, with annoying, squishing sounds. A small alchemical trick was enough to find this place, but it seemed that someone had been already fighting here.

Rider did not answer, just ordered the bulls to speed up. Soon they entered a large grotto, probably an empty water tank. In the green glow of a flare, fired by one of the fighting mages, they saw tens of massacred corpses. Some children were crucified on the walls, their intestines scattered around to imitate a grotesque painting of a mad abstractionist. Others were lying on the floor, gutted and chopped... It was definitely not a view, that could be easily forgotten.

Waver was trying hard not to vomit, but he failed eventually. Ashamed and still shaken, he tried to concentrate on the battle with all his might.

In the centre of this awful place Berserker was fighting the summoned demons, using a long metal pipe. He was surprisingly calm, but too many tentacles kept blocking his movements, keeping him away from Caster.

This time Berserker's Master did not hide in the shadows. He was standing near the wall, commanding a swarm of strange insects. They were biting the enemy magus without mercy, literally eating him alive. Considering the circumstances, Waver could say that this psychopath had deserved it.

Caster was not able to help his Master. His body was partially burnt and it seemed that the fiend was barely able to materialize. Actually, it was a miracle, that he managed to survive the Rhongomyniad blast.

"So, boy… What should we do?"

It was not really a question, but another lesson. Waver should carefully chose his words, but had not enough time to do so.

"We should just let them be…" Rider raised his hand to punch Waver, so the boy finished in a hurry: "But we can't just stand and watch, when the supervisor ordered everyone to defeat Caster, right? Right?"

Iskandar sighed. It was something he wanted to hear, but the way Waver said it greatly disappointed his Servant.

"I think I can forgive you this time, considering the mess around." Rider drew his sword and grabbed the reins. "Let's go then! Gordius Wheel! AAAALaLaLaLaLaie!"

Their charge literally wiped the monsters away, cleaning the path for Berserker. The Black Knight, now free from irritating tentacles, understood their intention and attacked Caster without a second thought. One powerful strike was enough to finish the fiend off, this time once and for all.

"Honestly… that was surprisingly quick." Rider stroke his beard. "Oh, and it seems that our black friend has enough fighting for today."

Berserker dematerialized immediately to relieve his Master from pain, but Kariya collapsed anyway, totally exhausted. He fell on the ground next to the corpse of Ryuunosuke, almost completely eaten by the insects.

"S-sakura…" The Matou magus reached out his hand to Iskandar. "Please… help Sakura."

"What?" Rider got off his chariot and came closer, not really understanding the mage's request. "Who's Sakura?"

"In the Matou residence… Sakura."

Kariya could say nothing more and fainted. Even unconscious, he was bleeding from random places - it looked awful enough to make even Rider worry about his condition.

"Hey, boy, we must do something or he's going to die!"

"I know, but I can't help him!" Waver's hands were shaking. "I don't know any healing magic!"

"I can help!" A woman's voice came from behind. They turned around and saw two familiar figures, the blond and the silver-haired one. "He still can be saved, I suppose."

"The Einzbern team, huh?" Iskandar gave Arturia a suspicious gaze. "You're late. The battle is already over."

Lancer ignored him completely. She had no intention to let Iri come any closer to the enemies.

"Irisviel, saving a few, or even few dozens of people is not our goal. We're here to kill other Masters, not to help them."

That was something that Kiritsugu would say, no doubt. Why then it made Iri extremely sad? Of course, they were both right, but deep in her heart, Irisviel could not accept it. Besides, she was sure, that there was at least one person, who would not hesitate to help this man.

"But…"

For some unknown reason, Rider decided to interfere. He slapped Waver in the back of his head to draw everybody's attention.

"You see, boy, true conquest is not about attacking your opponent, when he's weak and not able to defend himself." He pretended to educate his Master, but his speech was clearly prepared for Lancer. "It's about facing an enemy at his full power, so he would have no choice but to accept your superiority. To win, but not destroy. To conquer, but not humiliate!"

"I know it already, stop doing this!" Waver was desperately trying to free himself from Iskandar's grasp.

Arturia gave Rider a cold, terrifying glare, ready to accept his challenge. She did not like to be lectured, especially when someone dared to question her morality.

"What's with that look, Lancer? The Master of Berserker collapsed because he had to finish your job. At least show some gratitude."

"Don't start the fight, you idiot!" Waver tried to escape from under Rider's arm, but it was as effective as wrestling with a rock. "U-waaaah!" Then he hid behind his Servant's back, seeing enraged Arturia, with her lance in hand, ready to strike.

"Stop it, Lancer." Iri kneeled next to unconscious Kariya and prepared a healing spell. "We've come here to fight Caster, not to quarrel."

"Irisviel, Caster is defeated. We are enemies again."

Iri only shook her head; this time she was surprisingly stubborn.

"Not tonight, Lancer. Please, trust me."

"Well, that cuts off our discussion." Iskandar smiled widely, observing Irisviel and her healing magic in action. After a while, Kariya's shallow breathing became steady again. "So, where should we take him?"

"If he's really a member of the Matou family…" Waver scratched his head, thinking. "Their residence is somewhere in the Miyama district, more or less in the centre, if I remember correctly. Rider, do you really want to take him there?"

"Of course. We decided to help, so we can't give up halfway, can we?" Iskandar looked around. "We can't leave him in this tomb. This place must be destroyed."

They all agreed on this matter. How sad, that the parents of Caster's victims would never know, what had happened to their children... But destroying this creepy lair was the best thing Rider and the rest could do at the moment.

"It's over," Irisviel said, swallowing the tears. "No more deaths. No more suffering. Caster is finally defeated."

"Have you completed your task, Archer? That's why you returned?"

Kayneth sounded irritated. He was sitting in his apartment, like a king on his throne, monitoring the situation outside through the eyes of many familiars.

"Yes, Saber was under the command of the Einzbern Master."

"Ha, ha, ha! Of course - Emiya Kiritsugu! He cheated somehow to summon two Servants. Or rather killed Saber's original Master."

Lord El-Melloi stroked his chin, proud of his own deduction, and Robin had no intention of explaining his mistake. He was glad that this little trick had worked. After all, he did not lie, it was Kayneth's fault to rush to conclusions.

"I knew that defeating this rat is the key to our victory. I will finish him off immediately, so he won't be able to cheat again."

Kayneth fell silent, with a strange smile dancing on his lips. Archer was almost sure that his Master was already imagining, how to humiliate his defeated enemy.

It would be nice to win first, don't you think, you dumb, arrogant piece of...?

"Why are you still here, Archer?" Kayneth impatiently rolled his eyes. "You really don't know what to do without my instructions? Find Caster and kill him. Go, bring me a new Command Seal, in replacement for the one wasted because of your insolence."

Kayneth's point of view couldn't be farther from the truth, but arguing was pointless, as always. Robin only nodded and left the room with a painful sigh.

It seems that we will be the greatest losers in this Holy Grail War…

"What's wrong?" Sola-Ui had a nasty habit of eavesdropping. "Your Master made a decision, why can't you just accept it?"

"Miss Sola, if Master goes after Kiritsugu Emiya unprepared, like the last time, he will die."

"Do you have a problem with that?"

Archer stared at his Master's fiancée, not sure, how he should react. What had just happened? Was it some kind of a provocation? A proposition? Or maybe a threat?

"Miss Sola, it's not funny."

"Do I look like laughing, Archer?"

Robin helplessly shook his head. Sola-Ui was definitely not laughing, but she also did not show any kind of fear or worry. Actually, she probably wouldn't care, if Kayneth died.

"A friendly advice, Archer. When the time comes, remember who gives you stupid orders and who supplies you with magical energy to stay in this world." She smiled and it was not a smile of a young, beautiful woman, but a smirk of a twisted, manipulative witch. "Choose wisely."

She gave Robin the last meaningful glance and slowly walked to her room, leaving the Servant confused in the corridor.

Tokiomi had to reconsider his plans.

He was sitting in his magical atelier, visibly nervous. His fingers were tapping a strange rhythm on the table. It was totally not like Tokiomi, but he had a good reason to be worried.

Gilgamesh was not only ignoring his Master, but also openly opposed him. He couldn't be trusted and was impossible to control. Tohsaka had no chance to win the War with such troublesome, useless Servant. It clearly was something more than bad luck – like if the Grail itself was plotting against the fire magus…

"Ridiculous!"

The Grail shouldn't have its own will or plans, it was created as a powerful but simple magical system. So why did Tokiomi have a feeling that everything, what had happened untill now, was a part of a bigger scheme? Why did the Grail allow this abnormal Servant to be summoned in the first place?

"I need to calm down. I'm imagining things. But…"

He looked at the three Commands Seals on his hand and clenched his teeth. It was not a matter of pride anymore, or of being the head of the Tohsaka family and protector of this land. It was about survival. He couldn't get rid of the spells - using them, probably all at once, might be the only way to prevent a certain Heroic Spirit from killing his Master.

It was a tempting idea - to order Gilgamesh to commit suicide and then try to make another contract with a new Servant. It was a privilege of the three founding families, to be a Master even after losing all Command Seals, so it would not be like admitting defeat, but…

But…

No, as a head of the Tohsaka family, he was oblidged to act calmly, according to plan. Elegance was always necessary, even at war. There was no need to haste, avoiding Gilgamesh and reconsidering remaining possibilities should be enough for now.

Their plans had already changed, to be honest. Unfortunately, Kirei's Assassin became their main fighting force, so he needed to survive as long as possible. But combat abilities of this particular Servant were extremely low and winning depending only on them seemed impossible. Tokiomi Tohsaka desperately needed a powerful ally.

He breathed out loudly, settling himself comfortably in his favorite chair.

According to Kirei's research, Rider was a top class Servant, but his Master was a third-rate magus from nowhere. The mysterious Matou Master was probably as mad as his Servant. Lord El-Melloi behaved like a noble, honorable magus, but he picked a weak card in this game and was forced to hide in the shadows… Saber's Master was still unknown, so only one choice remained.

"The Einzberns, huh?"

Tokiomi sighed. Their Master might be a hired freelancer, but there must have been a reason for old Jubstacheit to trust him. What's more, this enigmatic man summoned a Lancer, probably the most loyal and honorable of all classes. It could be worth to give it a try.

"Let's meet and talk first, we will decide later."

"What's this?" Kiritsugu looked at the jade bird, lying on Maiya's open palm. "A spy?"

"A messenger."

Emiya raised his eyebrows after reading the letter delivered by the familiar.

"Oh? Tohsaka wants to meet with us on neutral ground? Interesting. Iri will go to the meeting."

"Should we call Madam immediately or wait for her return?"

"Hmmm." Kiritsugu was thinking for a while. Irisviel had changed recently, for the first time she decided to act on her own initiative. She visited Illya in her hideout, then joined the hunt for Caster. She became strangely rebellious… Emiya would like to know the reason behind it.

"Are you angry at Madam?" Maiya knew him just too well; she could easily guess, what he was thinking.

Surprisingly, Kiritsugu smiled.

"How could I? Making decisions and taking responsibility for them is the most important part of being human. I'm glad that Iri can experience it at last." He looked off to the side, embarrassed. He should focus on the upcoming fights, not encouraging Irisviel to act on her own. "It's fine, as long as Lancer assists her. Actually, it was a good choice. Now, when other Masters think that we do exactly what the supervisor says, I can focus on more important tasks."

Maiya nodded. She did not have to ask, who was their next target. They had a score to settle with Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald and were determined to finish this as soon as possible.

"Saber!" Illyasviel poked her Servant, demanding attention. "You'll be back in the morning?"

They were cleaning the table after dinner. Siegfried was totally helpless when it came to preparing meals, so he took it upon himself to wash the dishes. No one liked to do it, so they accepted his self-sacrifice without a word of protest.

"Of course. I won't let anyone separate us again. It was a stupid idea."

"Um, I'll be waiting for you. Uuummm? What's wrong, Sella?" Illya noticed a small frown on her maid's face.

"Someone is trying to dispel the barrier around the resid…"

"Look out!"

A strange flash of light outside alarmed Saber. The girl and her maid fell to the floor, having no time to scream. Siegfried used his own body as a shield to protect them.

Windows exploded simultaneously, destroyed by the rain of various weapons, coming from all directions. Blades easily broke through the glass and even through the roof. Only few seconds were enough for the enemy Servant to demolish this part of the residence.

As expected, it was not truly an attack, but a show to disorientate the inhabitants. Most of the weapons did not manage to scratch Saber, but the barrier around the house had been destroyed and…

"Assassin? Again?" Siegfried sighed, helping Illya and Sella hide behind him in the corner of the room. It was not the best position for defensive fighting, they had to move from here as soon as possible.

Luckily, Leysritt was already nearby, with her ridiculously big halberd in hands. She was surrounded, but did not let any of the enemies break through her defense.

Saber wanted to avoid the fight inside the house. He needed a moment to prepare the evacuation route for Illya, so he took his Master and Sella to the next room and destroyed the wall with one powerful punch. With Leysritt, fighting on the other side of the collapsed wall and guarding the passage, they could safely proceed with their plan.

Siegfried had to admit that Illyasviel acted surprisingly brave and quiet. She must have realized the danger of this situation and was unusually obedient. Saber felt proud of her.

"We must hurry." He wrapped both Sella and Illya in his magical cloak, then activated the invisibility spell. "If you remain quiet and keep walking in the shadows, no one will be able to notice you. Go to the castle, we will join you there later."

"Let's go!" – it was Sella's voice. Saber could feel a little hand, touching his fingers in silence, before the two walked through the partially destroyed corridor to the back door. Good, no one should be able to target them in this chaos.

Well, almost. An Archer class Servant, or any other with a high level of Clairvoyance skill, wouldn't have any problems to see through this little trick. It was enough to deceive Assassin, but someone far more dangerous waited outside. During the fight in the harbor the abnormal Servant proved himself to be extremely perceptive. Illya still should be able to evacuate safely, but only if someone 'entertains' this golden bastard for a while.

"Leysritt…" Siegfried materialized near her and forced the nearest opponent to step back. He wanted to tell her, that she should be careful and only keep Assassin busy, but the warrior maid already knew, what to do.

"Yes. I will. You too. Don't die, Sa-ber. Ill-ya will be sad."

"I won't die." He smiled. "My orders are clear. So… be careful!"

He grasped the hilt of Balmung and left the house to answer the challenge, ready to sacrifice everything to protect his dear Master.

Sorry for another long break and thank You for reading! If You have any questions or comments, don't hesitate to contact me.