Welcome back! Wow, the last update was quite some time ago... apologies for that. Thing is, with college being quite busy right now I had to set my priorities and there my other Fate story got the focus. But now that I have finished a climactic battle scene there, I think granting Fates of Ice and Fire an update is about time. Now let's get back into Fuyuki of 1994...
Chapter 5 - Battle of the Docks
Waver
Why is this happening to me?
All he could think of the entire day was that it wouldn't have turned out this way with Alexander the Great. It couldn't have. That one was a true hero. A conqueror who made the whole world tremble under his ambitions. A hero with blonde curls, young and lean. He surely would have obeyed him, glad to be led to victory. He would have never dragged him around, or... or... abandoned him.
In 240 years of Holy Grail Wars I'm certainly the first idiot who lost his Servant. Not by force or by treachery, just lost like you loose the keys to your car.
After what had happened at the Tohsaka residence, Rider brought Waver back to the place of the Mackenzies before he vanished into the night, saying he needed some time to think. Waver had expected him to be back in the morning, but unfortunately he took his breakfast alone. And after he still hadn't shown up at midday, Waver started to get worried. Of course he was sure that Rider hadn't gotten himself killed in the meantime, the Command Spells on his right hand still marked him as a Master, but it still seemed strange. Therefore he used his spiritual connection to the ferocious knight in order to track him... and it turned out to be quite an exhausting paperchase regardless of his supernatural advantage. Wherever he went, it was like he missed the knight by a hair's width. And the places he went to...
What the hell is he doing?
The chase went from the most rustic places in Miyama to the darkest back-alleys of Shinto. He looked into noodle shops, small liquor stores, bars and even one very, very, very, very weird bathhouse where just about everything looked dubious. Since Waver was not speaking Japanese he had of course his fair share of trouble conversing with the people he ran into. But for some reason the name 'Robert-sama' popped up quite a few times amidst pantomimed grand gestures...
And what the hell is he thinking? Going under his real name like this...
Waver rode through Shinto on his bicycle, even though darkness had set in and the night was upon Fuyuki. He had to, otherwise he would go crazy through frustration. At least this time when he stopped in front of another dubious-looking pub he still felt the presence of his runaway Servant. 'Kopenhagen' was written in English letters on the outside. At last he had him nailed down, or at least that's what he thought upon entering it, smouldering with rage.
"Huh?"
The tiny pub was seemingly empty. The patron was a young man with a moustache who stood idly at the bar. Upon Waver's entering, he greeted him in Japanese.
„Excuse me", Waver said with a frown. "Have you seen a large bearded man. Black hair, blue eyes, wears a medieval armor."
The man stared at him with wide eyes, bowing and sprouting excuses Waver couldn't understand.
Can nobody in this backwater country speak English?
"Robert Baratheon!", he called out angrily.
Now that caused a reaction from the man, even though he seemed a little nervous.
"You have seen this man, haven't you? Where is he?"
The patron raised his hands in a defensive gesture. For Waver it didn't look like he was inclined to tell him even if he had been able to understand.
Damn it, he is close. I can feel him, he is-
His train of thought was stopped abruptly when boastful laughter echoed through the bar. Even though he had spend only a couple of hours with that annoying guy, he recognized his voice immediately. Further riled up by the fact that the guy had the guts to laugh while he spent the entire day chasing him, he followed the sound towards a door next to the bar.
Oh, very clever! Hiding in a back room.
Waver immediately went towards the door while the patron seemed aghast. He jumped up the moment he realized what his guest was up to, leaving his position and running up to him. But it was already too lade. Waver had opened the door and stepped into the shady back room.
What the...
Half a dozen grim eyes were fixated on him. All of them visibly unhappy to be disturbed. And all of them belonging to neatly dressed men who were sitting around a table, playing cards. All of them wore suits, only one old man stuck out because he was wearing a traditional Kimono which was further pimped out by the tiger-striped fabric. Under usual circumstances Waver would have seen that he had stepped into something dangerous and yet his anger took the better of him. Because there he sat, right next to the old man with the tiger-stripes. Robert Baratheon, watching his cards and looking like nothing in the world bothered him.
"You!", Waver called out, freeing himself from the grip of the patron who had tried catch him by the shoulder, all the while sprouting more excuses to his customers. "What are you doing here, Rider!"
The knight looked up, blinking.
"Oh, boy! Nice of you to join in!", he turned to his companion, telling him something in his native language.
The old man then grinned, telling his companions something that made them at once stop glaring at Waver.
"May I introduce you: Fujmura Raiga-dono. We have met up in Miyama and he was nice enough to show me around the town. He even bought me this outfit! I tell you the hospitality of this people is truly inspiring!"
"I am glad you had fun...", Waver hissed with a glare.
"This young man is Waver-kun! I kind of stay at his place", Robert said to his host.
The old man gave him a welcoming smile.
"If you are a friend of Robert-san, then you are surely one of me as well", his English was heavily accented, but better than nothing. "He is truly a remarkable man of many interests."
"He is?", Waver tried not to turn his anger towards the old man.
"Oh yes of course! At first I had thought he is just an odd foreigner, but after talking with him about this and that, I found a refreshing new perspective on sports and... other entertainment."
Sure...
"Sit down, please! Don't be shy!", he offered him one of the empty seats and Waver warily obeyed. "Now where were we? Ah yes, you wanted to tell us how to spear-hunt."
He had switched into English, obviously to allow Waver to join the discussion if he wished to do so.
"Right, right", Robert chuckled. "You know, that's not the kind of hunting for everyone. You need the muscles for it, otherwise the bow is your weapon of choice. But, you know, the problem with the bow is that you can never be sure that you killed your prey alright and when you don't, then you have to chase some bleeding creature through the entire King's Wood until you're half-way at Maidenpool."
He laughed heartily about his own joke, even though his old host himself was the only one drunk enough to join him.
"The spear is my favourite weapon when it comes to creatures that aren't too scared to fight back", Robert continued his rant. "Boars most of all. They get really pissed when you step into their view and won't back down until they die. I really like that! You can finish them then and there and are back home before the sun has set."
"You mean, you face them up close and personal?", Fujimura asked with raised eyebrows.
"Of course! Can you imagine me fooling around with a bowstring?"
The old man seemed astonished, but shook his head regardless.
"Well, you certainly have the stature to pull something like this off. I think I have never seen such a hulk of a person before!"
"Har! No reason for false flattery. It's not that I kept myself in good shape or something", another wave of laughter went right over Waver's head while he himself was busy resting his head on the table. "Fine, where was I? Oh right, the boar-hunt. Well, the only thing I can advise you is that you shouldn't be too drunk when you are trying to find one. Got one hell of a scratching after I did that the last time."
Why do I get the feeling that we are missing out on something huge? What are we even doing here?
"You, drunk? How is that even possible?", Fujimura called out aghast. "I have seen you emptying a ridiculous amount of wine and sake and you don't look fazed in the slightest!"
"I have to thank that boy over there", Robert chuckled, patting Waver's shoulder. "Looks like the body he gave me isn't able to get drunk."
"You're welcome...", the boy groaned miserably.
The man looked at first confused about Robert's choice of words, but soon enough laughed it off. He was obviously way past caring about what nonsense the knight was sprouting.
"Hey, boy? What are you making such a face? Straighten up and enjoy this great company!"
"You seriously have to ask why I'm pissed?", Waver did straighten up, but not to join the conversation. "The other- the others are out there, likely already going for the- well, the 'business'. And you are sitting here trying your best to get wasted! That's what I don't understand."
Robert Baratheon made a grumpy face, which was the most serious expression Waver had seen this evening.
"I have told you that this 'business' of yours doesn't interest me anymore. Get over it. And it's not worth the trouble, you only get your sorry ass killed if you go on without me. Just... leave it be..."
Waver sighed in resignation.
"Killed? Are you doing something dangerous here in Fuyuki?", the old man interjected.
"No, not anymore", Robert tried to gloss it over. "I am way past this business of the boy. Now I'm just here to enjoy what little time I have left in this country", he glanced down at Waver who rested his head on the table again. "And I guess I have the task to teach this boy how to enjoy yourself. I'm afraid having fun is the one thing he never learned in that college of his."
Shut up and just allow me to go home...
Jaime
Oathkeeper was singing in the air. In life the sword was wasted on him, but now in death Jaime was able to make full use of this most precious treasure.
Don't worry, Brienne. I'll give it back as soon as my business here is finished.
His mind raced as steel and steel clashed in the air. His entire body reacted on impulse, all his movements were fluid as instincts took over. Whenever he saw the spear of Prince Oberyn darting forward, either his shield or Oathkeeper were there, blocking it easily while he stepped into the room between them, trying to close the gap. But the Prince of Dorne was no easy enemy. He knew what he was doing, he made full use of his reach and his superhuman agility. When Jaime announced it would become a dance, he didn't meant it quite as literal. Both warriors were darting across the docks, exchanging powerful blows which shattered their surroundings.
By the Gods, what power!
Every time spear and shield and sword clashed, sparks scattered everywhere and the air itself blasted away to escape the inhuman violence of the Heroic Spirits. The Valyrian steel moved through the air so devastatingly that Jaime could cut stone and steel just by swinging at it, he didn't even need to touch it. It was just Oberyn's equally superhuman armor that kept him from being cut to pieces just by the after-effects of the Kingsguard's attacks. He didn't wore the light leather armor he used to fight the mountain, a sensible choice which forced Jaime to aim at the joints instead of just cutting him in half. But as far as he could see, the scaled mail didn't hamper Oberyn in the least regardless of the added weight. Jaime himself was the one who was slightly disadvantaged when it came to movement, but his heavy plate mail felt as light as a second skin, so it didn't bother him all that much. He just didn't advance as aggressively as he would usually do due the opponent he was facing. If it were any other man, Jaime could just march into his next strike, letting his armor take it, and slash his throat when he is close. But he was fighting the Red Viper. He didn't even dare receiving a single scratch, afraid what nasty poison the man had applied to his spear. Not that he wasn't deadly enough without it...
Such speed, such strength!
Jaime charged forward, countering countless attacks and hitting the shield with the sun and spear countless times himself. He was sure to have looked like a murderous lunatic, because he couldn't help but grin in excitement.
This is how battles should be fought! Can you feel this, Oberyn?
He must have. The Red Viper himself had that smug smile on his face, the one Jaime aimed at the whole time trying to carve it out of it. Jaime didn't know how long they fought, but it couldn't have been much. Seconds felt like minutes, every careful movement was triggered in slow motion to him. So when they disentangled after an especially vicious exchange of blows, Jaime looked around in surprise, realizing how much ground they had covered during their dance. And how little of their surroundings was not utterly devastated. The concrete on the ground was shattered through countless furrows, the steel containers around them cut to pieces with their contents spilled looking like they were ripped cushions.
"Not bad, not bad at all. For a sun-dried snake", Jaime admitted.
"A compliment I can return. Not bad... for a cripple", again, he flashed this poisonous smile of his.
Jaime again weighed Oathkeeper in his hand. Such a light weapon, deadly and beautiful. No doubt Brienne must have felt the same excitement he felt at the moment. His heart was racing, this was what he was born to do.
Let's finish this here and now... and then the fat oaf is the next one!
With a grin of his face, Jaime raised his mirror shield and pushed forward.
Kiritsugu
Two dots of blue and yellow danced around on the ground while the Magus Killer observed them from one of the two loading cranes. Maiya had set up position on the one opposing him. Of course there was an even taller crane that could have made a perfect position, but Kiritsugu hoped to draw unwanted onlookers towards it. Up until now, nobody had shown up.
It seems Lancer is the only enemy who cared to show up personally.
He glanced below where Irisviel stood, watching the fight of the two superhuman titans with awe. She was the only human down there, the Master of Lancer seemingly wasn't daring enough to show his face. But at least the fight itself looked pretty favourable from an objective point of view. Jaime Lannister was driving his enemy relentlessly across the yard, this Oberyn was completely focused on avoiding the knight's swings, unable to do more than half-hearted attacks himself.
As fickle as the Kingslayer has proven himself to be, he at least knows his business. It looks like he is going straight for the kill, as it should be. All I can do is helping him win as fast as possible.
The Magus Killer further observed his surroundings. The large crane was still unoccupied. But on the other hand... Kiritsugu activated his radio, never even looking away from the heat signature he had detected.
"Maiya. On the roof of the warehouse. Can you see him?"
"Negative", was her short reply.
She is outside the bounded field. That could prove troublesome.
"Shall I change my position?"
"No need for it. Since we are alone, I can take him out without you endangering your cover."
"Understood."
He took aim with his sniper rifle, his view was ideal.
So much for Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi...
Kiritsugu pulled the trigger. A single bang echoed through the docks. And his victim... remained unfazed. An arm made of silvery goo had risen up the very same instant, knocking the bullet easily away.
A defensive Mystic Code...
And through his scope Kiritsugu watched how the enemy Master looked straight at him, putting on a smug smile.
Shit...
Jaime
The knight paused upon hearing the gunshot above. Being completely aware that Kiritsugu had joined the battle only a couple of moments ago, he knew what this meant.
What a killjoy. If he has taken out Oberyn's Master, our dance will be short-li-
His train of thought was interrupted by a shattering crunch from the warehouse behind his opponent. Something had cut a perfect circle into the right wall of it, exactly as large as the huge silver ball which was slowly rolling out of it, coming closer.
What in the seven hells...
He was so focused, he nearly didn't see the strike of Oberyn's spear coming for his head. Realizing his mistake, he parried it with the edge of his shield and went into the opening of the Dornishman. Oathkeeper was blocked by the sun-shaped shield and so the fighting continued.
Okay, fine. I'll do my job, Kiritsugu is making his one.
Kiritsugu
Abandoning his rifle, Kiritsugu jumped to change positions. Up here he was a sitting duck, he couldn't allow Kayneth to trap him where he had no way to move. Therefore he left the Walther where it was and slid down the first ladder in order to get closer to the ground. He moved in all haste, jumping towards the next one.
Too late...
The entire construction shook. Looking down Kiritsugu realized that Kayneth wasn't even trying to climb up himself. The bastard was cutting the supportive elements of the crane.
I'm too far away to use the Contender...
Kiritsugu drew his Callico instead, giving a short burst to the ground where Kayneth stood. He was hardly able to hit anything and his Mystic Code easily shielded him from those bullets which came closest to him. Meanwhile the entire construction begun to shriek as the metal frames did their dying breath. The crane shivered and tilted forwards.
Oh, not good...
The Magus Killer clung to the nearest railing, trying his best not to fall. Dislodged from its foundation, the crane slowly bowed forward. Kiritsugu saw the Servants fighting below him and he saw a white figure fleeing from the incoming wreckage. He knew that he couldn't survive a fall from this height, especially not with the entire construction collapsing on top of him. He looked forward instead. There was something else rapidly coming closer to him. It was the other crane, the one where Maiya had set up her position.
I have to hurry. Time Alter: Double Accel!
His heart felt like it was ripping him apart from the inside, every muscle of his began to burn and to ache. This was the danger of the inert time control he was using. But he had to get to a better position in order to succeed. He turned around. With not even his surroundings, but the laws of physics working on half their strength, he was able to quickly run back to the ladder he had slid down shortly before. Climbing it with hasty movements, he returned to the top of the platform.
I need to make it!
He knew that while he appeared faster from the outside, the time alteration spell made him not any stronger. He needed the best possible timing. So when the front of the crane crashed into the containers below, the backside of it slowly slid to the left. And while it did, it narrowly passed the other crane.
Now!
Kiritsugu jumped and crashed hard into the metal frame, clinging to it while deactivating his magic crest. Now with the grip released on his aching heart, he watched how his previous vantage point collapsed on its full length. After hurling his body over the railing onto the safer platform, he rubbed the sweat off his brow and pushed onwards.
I have to leave before he gets any ideas...
At least Kayneth wouldn't be so bold as to directly cross the battlefield of the Servants, which was now further obstructed by the wreckage. The chance of Saber cleaving casually through his defence was far too high. So when he ran towards the ladder to the ground level, he did that under the impression that he could reach it before things would get even more messy.
"What sorry excuse of a Magus uses guns?", a sneering voice appeared from behind him.
He started circling the battlefield even before the construction went down!
With that realization dawning upon him, Kiritsugu escaped the mercury tentacles swinging after him with a quick jump, drawing his Callico in the same instant. As soon as he found solid ground under his feet, he turned around, firing a volley into the Magus who had used his mercury mystic code as a makeshift elevator to be on eye-level with him. Of course not even one bullet hit, since the tentacles retreated and reformed his shield, but at least it took the immediate pressure from him. Slowly retreating backwards, Kiritsugu carefully waited for the next attack of the enemy Magus.
But instead, more gunshots were audible from behind Kayneth's mercury wall. Shots Kiritsugu was not responsible for.
"Oh, you've brought another pawn", he heard the voice of Kayneth, obviously unharmed by the attack into his back.
Maiya! She shouldn't have come down. Well, I can make the best out of it.
Putting away the Callico, he drew his contender. With Kayneth being forced to defend himself from two sides, he shouldn't be able to deflect a high-calibre shot like he did before with the sniper rifle. Kiritsugu fired... and the bullet punched into the mercury, leaving a small hole.
"Urgh... How dare you!"
Damn, just grazed him.
Kayneth kept his backward shield, but the front wall collapsed into a plethora of razor sharp tentacles, lunging out for him. The Magus himself was bleeding from a wound in his shoulder, looking thoroughly pissed, but pushed onwards regardless.
Time Alter: Double Accel!
With his heart feeling close to imploding, Kiritsugu scrambled to escape, desperately evading the deadly strikes aimed at him while they were slicing the railings and frameworks around him to pieces.
He is trying to push me into a corner.
Kayneth meanwhile elevated himself higher up, mostly to reduce the amount of angles he had to defend himself from, but from Kiritsugu's view it just looked like he wanted to look down upon his cornered prey. At least he could see from there where Maiya stood behind Kayneth, at the edge of the metal platform, firing shots at the back of the Magus. Kiritsugu joined in with his Callico in order to decrease his pressure a little bit.
"You seem quite adept at saving yourself", Kayneth spat out angrily. "How about saving her, then."
What?
And with this, his rear shield slammed down, slicing straight through the steel of the crane construction. And slicing straight through the platform Maiya was standing on. Kiritsugu's racing brain immediately analysed the situation. He saw his companion stumbling when gravity started to pull down the ground under her feet.
When I go to Triple Accel, I can get past Kayneth, reach her and... no...
He instead stopped his time acceleration and opened the contender, ejecting the cartridge in the same motion. With aching heart he watched how the platform and a wide-eyed Maiya dropped out of his view. Even Kayneth, who turned half around expecting Kiritsugu to rush to her safety, just paused for a moment dumbfounded.
No, Kiritsugu thought again. If I had saved her, I would have missed my chance for this.
Having reloaded the contender, he aimed at his opponent. The Magus looked at him with confusion in his eyes.
"How could you..."
But then he realized what was about to happen. Kayneth put up his defence again, this time making the mercury contract so much that he could easily defend himself against a rocket launcher. This was exactly what Kiritsugu had hoped him to do. Assured of his victory, he pulled the trigger.
Jaime
Sparks flew as Oathkeeper hacked down on the ruined shield of the Red Viper. Amidst the remnants of the devastated harbour the Westerman and the Dornishman had continued their struggle. Oberyn was pretty damn good, this was something Jaime just had to admit. The knight from Sunspear had proven it in his extremely one-sided duel with the Mountain, and even on this day he was able to keep his distance from the knight of the Kingsguard. No matter how Jaime attacked, the spear was almost always between them, forcing him to fight his way around its pointy tip. But even for the best trickster there came the moment when he runs out of all his last stunts. In this shattered battlefield, Oberyn quickly ran out of room to manoeuvre. Jaime had no such problem. Driven by his honed instincts, he knew only one direction: Forwards. Oathkeeper edged through the air, striking Oberyn's accursed spear away, his shield followed, slamming with full force into the Dornishman. The Red Viper went to his knees, his boots having dug themselves deeply in the ground due to the force of impact. Even on the ground the man was dangerous, but in this split-second, Jaime had a good chance to follow up and finish him.
What the-
In the edge of his view Jaime saw how a large chunk of the platform his Master had saved himself upon was sliced off and came crashing to the ground. Looking up with these unnaturally sharp eyes of his ghost body, he didn't believe what he saw.
Is that...
It was the woman with the glazed eyes alright. The ally of Kiritsugu he had met this day. She was falling together with the platform, out of a height she would never survive from. Jaime readied himself.
I can catch her!
Jaime started to sprint. He just had to jump and intercept her on her way down. Being a ghost had its advantages after all, not just when it came to redecorating the countryside.
Urgh...
Instead a nauseating pain between his right rips made him stumble. Something had struck him in his back.
Bastard!
Whirling around, he found Prince Oberyn there, having darted forward with his spear the instant Jaime had turned his back towards him. Blind with pain and anger, Jaime put the strength of his rotation into his shield, hitting the spearman with all his power. Accompanied by a terrifying metallic crash, he sent the Dornishman flying into a nearby container.
I can still-
He threw his body around, taking up speed again.
Wham.
With a shattering sound, the platform cut-out smashed on the ground and disappeared in a thick cloud of dust. Awestruck, Jaime reduced his speed down to a jog. It didn't matter anymore. He was already too late.
Oberyn
Ouch...
Peeling his body out of the steel frame he had impacted in, Oberyn recollected his memory of this fight. Lannisters had some kind of supernatural knack to rile him up and the Kingslayer was no exception in this regard. But he had to admit, the rumours of the knight's prowess were not understatements. Oberyn knew him from tourneys, but of course a battlefield was something entirely different. And here he had proven to be the superior warrior.
At least I got him once... that should be enough to finish him, even though I can't say how long-
Another gunshot echoed through the ruined docks. This time something like a sixth sense tingled in his guts. Danger, it said. Danger to his Master... no, not quite. Danger to the Command Spells he was chained to. Aghast, Oberyn looked up to the damaged crane which was the battlefield of Kayneth. The Kingslayer was still busy looking at the ruined scenery himself, but Oberyn knew his timeframe was short-lived. Switching into Spirit form, he took a giant leap and flung himself into the air, falling towards the crane in question with great speed. From above he saw his so-called Master lying in a puddle of blood and mercury which had splattered across the metal frames and was dripping to the ground everywhere. It was a truly horrifying sight and yet Oberyn felt that the man was still alive, even though barely. But the stranger in the black jacket was about to end his pain, lowering his gun to point at him.
Grimacing, Oberyn took on physical form again, crashing down in the space between Kayneth and his murderer with insane speed. The man was quick enough though, darting backwards and firing a volley at both the Red Viper and his master. The Dornishman was barely able to bring his shield between them and struck out with his spear. By any logic, it should have killed the attacker, but from his point of view it looked like his human opponent skipped a few seconds in order to jump back a few steps, continuing his onslaught. Oberyn thought about following through. Now since he had a grasp on how fast this bugger was, he was sure he could easily finish him. But the few seconds of battle had drawn unwanted attention from a certain annoying Lannister. In the edge of his view he saw the Kingslayer in the air, approaching quickly. He could have finished this guy, but he doubted he would be able to defend his Master against the superpowered knight. Cursing, Oberyn jumped backwards, picked the motionless body up and flung himself down. The Kingslayer reached the platform a split-second thereafter, but at this time Oberyn had already reached the edge of the docks, manoeuvring his way out with a series of quick jumps.
Irisviel
The silver-haired woman walked amidst the wreckage of what once had been the docks of Fuyuki. Sliced and crushed metal debris was everywhere, forcing her to step carefully in order to not cut herself into pieces at the sharp edges. One crane and a large part of another had come down, the shockwaves of the clashing Servants had burst open the ground and sliced many of the containers into pieces. It was a cruel sight of senseless destruction.
Approaching the damaged crane, she watched how Saber jumped to the ground. The knight bore a troubled expression, but with hanging shoulders and having put away his sword, he looked like he had decided the fight was over. In addition to this, when he turned his back towards her, Iri saw that his brightly shining armor was drenched in red above his right hip.
"You are hurt!", she called out.
Jaime blinked, looking down as if he had just now realized how it looked like.
"Just a minor scratch, nothing to worry about", he said with coarse voice.
"Just allow me to-", without further ado, Iri put her hand towards his back and sealed the wound with a simple spell. "This will do."
"I... you have my thanks", he said, looking a bit startled, but grateful all the same.
Kiritsugu came climbing down the ladder as well. And yet Saber never waited for his Master, but just walked off, starting to lift some of the largest chunks and heaving them to the side. When Kiritsugu arrived as well, he joined him with a seemingly empty expression. But Irisviel knew better. He did his best to swallow his feelings, especially around them, but his pain was clear to see.
Having cleared the debris, Ser Jaime turned around and tried to block her way, but she knew what she had to do.
"You don't need to see this", he said gravely.
Wordlessly she passed him, avoiding his half-hearted attempt at catching her. Kiritsugu stood there, looking down at the corpse of the woman he knew far better than she did. Maiya's body was mangled, one of her legs twisted in an unhealthy way and the back of her head shattered on the stone where she lay with the face looking up to the stars. Iri silently took the arm of her husband and squeezed it softly, knowing that each word would just increase the pain.
"I... I am sorry", Saber said sullenly.
"She knew the risks. It is nothing you have to be sorry for", Kiritsugu said icily.
Having seen enough, he turned away, carefully freeing himself from Iri's embrace. He lightened a cigarette, struggling to keep composure.
"Saber. Bring Iri to the Einzbern castle. We meet up there after I have finished business with Kayneth."
"You are going to face him alone?", the knight asked aghast. "You need me to deal with the Red Viper! I promise, I will finish it."
"Maiya and I had made preparations to deal with him. With Kayneth being critically injured, finishing it should pose no problem."
Ser Jaime sighed, shaking his head. Iri could see that he was just trying do be considerate, but she also had enough grasp of the situation that she knew it would just hurt more.
"What about her?", he asked the question she dreaded the most.
"I will need to dispose the body."
Grimacing, Iri decided to defuse the situation. Kiritsugu needed time for himself, lingering any longer was unnecessary. Carefully, she took the knight at his arm.
"Come, Saber. Let's go."
Jaime looked like he was about to object, but luckily he swallowed down his words. Making a short bow, the knight turned away and left. Irisviel followed him, but not without a last glance back at her husband. Kiritsugu remained there, a lone figure smoking his cigarette and looking up at the sky. It pained her to see him like this. To see how he was shaken up by the price he had to pay for fulfilling his dream. And to imagine how he would look like when the time came to say his final goodbyes. With thoughts like these she really hoped that the future with Ilya would be enough to heal his wounds.
Waver
Ugh... heavy.
A muscled arm rested on Waver's shoulder when the terrible giant used him as a crutch to get out of the black car.
"I sincerely hope to see you tomorrow, too", the old man said through the opened window, his head red like a tomato.
"Of course!", Rider shouted. "Nothing in the seven hells can stop me! There are still hundreds of stories I haven't told yet. Better get yourself a singer to write them down. I am sure they sell good in this world of yours where there isn't anybody who knows of the Demon of the Trident."
"I will keep that in mind", Fujimura chuckled. "Good night, you two. Have a good rest!"
And with that the black car disappeared into the night. Only Waver and this Servant of his remained. At least these dubious people brought them back to the house of the Mackenzies. Waver wouldn't have liked another ride with this horse of Robert, especially after the king finally managed to be in his cups.
"I don't understand it. I thought you can't get drunk?", Waver asked with unabashed frustration.
"I'm not drunk", Robert interjected with hurt pride. "Just a little tipsy, you hear me! I've spent a large enough chunk of my lifetime drunk, I know the difference."
Waver helped him step towards the door of the little house, feeling angry and helpless at the same time.
"You're body is supposed to be that of a Heroic Spirit! You are a ghost unsusceptible to any harm from the mortal plane of existence. And yet you have somehow managed to intoxicate yourself!", he couldn't help but yell at him, uncaring of whether he woke up anybody or not.
"In my defence, this squinty-eyed people has quite some strong stuff around. What the heck even is sake? I guess I should ask Raiga-dono tomorrow."
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
The so-called king grimaced while they were entering the house.
"No reason to get so riled up about it", he grumbled softly.
Realizing that waking up his hosts was not that good an idea after all, Waver swallowed his anger and silently withdrew to his room. Having arrived there he locked the door and threw himself onto his bed. His aching body reminded him of how tired he was after a day of running across the city. The muscular giant meanwhile made a crash-landing on the carpet. Waver thought for a second to go fetch him the sleeping bag he had bought just in case he was unable to find a roof in Fuyuki to sleep under, but he glumly decided that Rider had brought that upon himself.
"So that's it? That's your plan for tomorrow? Drinking until you can no more?", Waver asked icily.
"Probably", Rider replied, suddenly a bit more seriously. "But I need to pull your head out of your ass first. Relax a bit! Enjoy life while you still can. It is bloody short enough, I can tell you."
„But the Grail War-", Waver began, only to get promptly interrupted.
„- is not the most important event in your life. I grant you, thinking about going through with the fighting is admirable, but the way I see it, this Grail affair is fraught with trouble. Certainly it was too good to be true..."
Too good to be true? Possibly. And yet, what shall I do? Return to England, saying that my Servant lost interest in obtaining the Grail? What a pitiful story... I will be the laughing stock of the Clocktower.
"So that's why you just bury your head in the sand and try to ignore it."
"Any problem with it? I already told you, I have no interest in tainting my hands with the blood of these children."
"And yet you see no problem in letting them die", Waver objected.
He heard a grunting sound from below.
"I'm not sure I get your meaning...", Robert said carefully, a hint of suspicion in his voice.
"These children are not the only people summoned. I just thought... somebody else could prove less scrupulous."
Waver heard the scraping sound of the giant turning on the carpet.
"I don't like the direction of this conversation...", he said darkly.
"Me neither", Waver admitted, even though he thought it was a direction his Servant was just too aware of. "Well, chances are you won't remember any of it tomorrow anyway."
"No", Robert grunted. "I always remember. It was always like this. It's... it's my curse."
Author's Notes: I know I have played with some expectations here. After the last chapter you all wanted a glorious fight between Jaime and Oberyn and yet this was all about Kiritsugu, Kayneth and Maiya. But rest assured, I will not leave this duo at that...
I also have to admit that I was and still am a little wary about contrasting the events at the docks with Team Waver. Especially since I risk taking away the punch of what I did to Maiya here. I am sad that she isn't about to play an active role in this story and I am very aware that sacrificing here comes with its implications. I just sincerely hope that with the next chapter I will be able to assure you that I haven't done that for the drama, but for the very real repercussions it will have upon the story. I promise, she will not be forgotten!