FATE/CATBOX FICTION
Chapter 13: Assassin of Akakor
Antwerp, PW #00162B
In the mayor's residence, the grandfather clock in the main office chimed five times. A man in his 40s sat at his desk and listened intently to what his unusual visitor had to say. For the last hour, his guest informed him of the battle at the cathedral, and of how both Columbus and Enforcer 15-N had been defeated.
"I don't mean to ask you so many times, but are you sure of this?" the mayor asked hesitantly.
"You may ask as many times as you wish, and my answer will remain the same," Iskandar replied sternly. "Columbus and 15-N are dead. Not only is your city free from their control, but all of this country as well. My associate has assured me that reinforcements from the Mage's Association will never arrive. You and your people are as good as free, Mr. Leclerq."
"Hmm… It's hard to believe such a radical development could have occurred overnight. Besides, I am not the type of man to just take good fortune at face value. Why should I believe that you have no intention of taking the nocturnal fruit farms for yourself, considering that you boast of your status as the King of Conquerors?"
"That's an understandable position to take. I'm afraid I can only give you my word, and even I know that that's hardly evidence of my intentions. In that case, what if I were to arrange for my men to spread themselves throughout the country and inform the other mayors of their people's liberation?"
"Are you able to do that?"
"I may only look to be one man to you, but my Noble Phantasm calls upon the army that I once commanded in my time. Their work will be most expedient, I can assure you of that. As an added bonus, if there are any more of those Heroic Spirit Soldiers lurking around, my men will dispatch them with ease. That should be sufficient proof, wouldn't you say?"
Leclerq sat back in his chair and sighed. "I'm not entirely sure. If you possess such an ability, then it'd be no trouble for you to seize the farms for yourself."
Iskandar closed his eyes. "I figured that earning your trust would be quite the challenge, given that your king and nobility sold all of you to the Mages. My understanding is that they received a most tidy sum in exchange for allowing them to occupy the nocturnal fruit vineyards that flourish throughout Belgium."
"Indeed they did. As far as we are all concerned, the king is a traitor to his own country. I've spoken with the other mayors about initiating a revolt against the king, but with the Mages backing him up with Servants and those abominable Soldier things, such an idea could not possibly come to fruition. I have even heard of how an entire farm's worth of workers were recently executed for attempting to dig a tunnel to the Netherlands."
"You have my condolences," the Macedonian king lowered his head reverently. "In that case, why don't you allow me to handle the revolt in your stead?"
Leclerq couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You would do that?"
"Your people must be weary of having to work themselves to death. If they were to venture to Brussels without sufficient preparation, they would no doubt be killed and persecuted for insurrection. However, I have a grand army waiting in the wings to respond to my summons. I demonstrated my overwhelming might against Columbus, and I will have no problem forcing your king to yield to me. I promise you that he and the other nobility will answer for their treason."
"Well now… If you really were to pull it off, that would be fantastic for us. Even so…"
"You're worried that I'll try to usurp this sudden power vacuum for myself?"
"…"
"How about this then? While I conquer Brussels, you assemble the other mayors to form a provisional government. Once the revolt is over, I will immediately hand over authority to your group so that you can begin the transitional process. I will then withdraw my forces and return to my world with my Master and fellow partner. Once we are gone, you will be free to elect a new ruler."
Leclerq pondered Iskandar's suggestion for a few minutes. He rapped his fingers against each other and breathed deeply several times. Soon, he responded, "This might be too weighty of a decision to make on my own. Given that you and your Master are in a hurry to leave this world however, I will have to take full responsibility for initiating the revolt on everyone's behalf. With the blessing of Antwerp's liberated citizens, I ask you to incite an insurrection and overthrow the king on our behalf. I will leave it to your discretion as to how you will execute this revolt."
Iskandar's usual grin stretched across his face. "Thank you for your understanding. I promise that you will not be disappointed with my work."
While Iskandar was absent, Lexy remained in the Cathedral of Our Lady attending to the Gate in the crypt. She worked overnight to both adjust its parameters and to glean any more information she could get about the current status of the Mage's Association and Family Tree back in her world. It was exhausting work, but she was eventually satisfied with her adjustments and decided to check back with Waver. She headed back upstairs to the rectory, where she left the young Master to sleep in one of the spare beds.
Since it had been midnight when their group defeated Columbus and 15-N, a full twelve hours passed before Waver finally woke up. Lexy found him at the table eating a hearty lunch of Belgian waffles and fruit. Lexy joined him at the table and said, "Good afternoon, Mr. Velvet. How are you doing?"
"Still kind of tired, but I'm doing a lot better than last night," he replied, then munched on an apple and asked, "Where's Rider?"
"He's informing Antwerp's mayor about the city's liberation. Since this is the only Gate connected to this particular parallel world, it essentially means that the Mages have lost full contact with this world, and thus they cannot recapture it. I made certain that the connection will be permanently severed once we depart."
"That's good. I don't want these people to go through such horrors anymore."
"I'm happy to hear that. 15-N might be right that I'm a defective Enforcer, but if these feelings are a result of such irregularities in my programming, then I don't mind. I strongly believe that the Second Magic should not be used for such selfish purposes."
Waver frowned. "I don't think you're defective. Among all the Enforcers I've met, you're the most human I've ever seen."
"Please don't say that. Regardless of what you think of me, I'm still just a clone of the original Child of Cuchulainn. My thought patterns are merely a derivative of what hers would have been. All of the Enforcers represent at least one aspect of her, and they're just as valid as my aspect of her wanting to protect others. You could say that all of them are 'human' in their own way."
"I see…"
They sat there in silent for a short while. He continued eating, while thinking back to when 15-N attacked him. The way the child soldier looked so hollow and empty had to represent some other aspect of the original Connla that he wasn't familiar with. Thanks to the poem that Lexy showed him before, he had a good understanding of how difficult Connla's life had to have been. He likewise thought of all the other Enforcers back at the academy and wondered which aspects they represented. The more he wondered, the more he actually wanted to meet the original Heroic Spirit and see what she was like.
Before the silence could get too unnerving for them, the door to the kitchen slammed open with a massive thud.
"Yo! I'm back!" Iskandar bellowed, startling both teenagers. Waver nearly choked on his food and had to cough for a minute.
"Damn it, Rider! Don't you have any concept of using your inside voice!?" the Mage snapped.
"Heh heh heh, sorry 'bout that. Whenever I have good news, I tend to forget myself."
"Good news?" Lexy murmured.
"Yes, indeed," he said, then described everything that happened during the meeting.
"An insurrection, hm? That would certainly give me some peace of mind, knowing that we will be leaving this parallel world in good hands," the Enforcer said.
Waver asked his Servant, "Are you sure we have the time for that? I know I still have to rest some more, but do you have any idea how long this revolt is going to take?"
"No worries," Iskandar assured. "I've spoken with my advisors, and they said we have ample time to finish our business here. I don't even need to bring either of you with me to this conflict. It'll be over before you know it."
"If you say so."
"Then please take care of things, Lord Iskandar," Lexy said. "I would like to stay here and remain as Mr. Velvet's guard in case we get attacked again."
"Sure thing. Likewise, I'll be leaving the lad in your capable hands," the king grinned. He sat down at the table and said, "My men are still getting ready for the raid, so now's a good opportunity to ask you some questions, young lady."
"About what?"
"The nature of how the Mages go about capturing these alternate worlds for themselves. Surely it can't be as easy as rushing in all Hunnic-style and overthrowing the existing governments through brute force. Leclerq told me of how the king and nobles were bought out in this world, but I doubt the Mages have enough wealth to employ such a tactic throughout so many different worlds."
"Actually, their coffers are a lot larger than you can imagine. It's not just all about conquering other worlds and forcing citizens to work as slaves. There have also been trade routes established among worlds that possess much greater wealth and resources than our own. This particular world isn't one of them, but I hear that nocturnal fruit is in high demand for winemaking purposes. Once we cut off this world from the Gate's network, I can imagine that the fruit's value will skyrocket immensely unless a new method of growing them is developed elsewhere."
"So it's like someone having Swiss accounts in multiple worlds that they can tap into. Never mind being able to buy a country – you could buy an entire planet with that kind of money."
"More or less."
"Amazing. This technology just makes me more and more excited."
"Well I don't like it," Waver glowered. "The benefits are reaped only for a select few Mages. Meanwhile, countless hundreds of thousands of people are suffering, and Mages not in the know like myself are left ignorant of what they're missing out on."
"I know all too well," Iskandar wrapped his burly arm around the petite teenager's shoulder. "As things currently stand, it is not a system designed with fairness in mind. If there is anything I value more than the conquest, it is a country's prerogative to maintain equality among its citizens. While the Gate technology fascinates me, I too despise the manner that the Mages go about utilizing such a miracle. That's why I wanted to ask Lexy for more details about how things run in the current regime."
"I guess so. All of this knowledge would be new to me as well."
"So then," the king muttered and faced Lexy again, "let's say that a new world were to be discovered. How would the Mages go about capturing it for themselves?"
She nodded, then explained, "Once a world is discovered, both the Association and the Family Tree cooperate to first send Masters and Servants there as preliminary explorers. When enough data is gathered, they then decide whether to proceed with one of three options; procurement, detainment, or conversion."
"And what exactly is the difference between those?"
"Procurement is when a world is deemed desirable for the Mages to connect a Gate to, like PW #00162B where we are right now. From there, they send their best Masters and Servants to overthrow the locals and force them to work in farms. Well I say 'farms', but they could be research labs or manufacturing plants, not just actual farms. It's just easier for everyone to call them farms since the locals are basically treated like overworked cattle."
Waver frowned hard. "I never knew about that…"
"That's not surprising. That sort of information is considered classified to Fes-ranked Mages or lower. You would have to reach a rank of Pride just to hear about the basics, which is what the majority of Masters sent on exploration missions are. Only the Twelve Lords, the Seven Family Heads, and those ranked Grand are actually allowed to decide how to use the Grail Terminal's Gates, although those in the Brand rank can contribute to the discussion as far as what's in demand for Magecraft studies."
"I see. I'm just a Frame-ranked Mage, so of course I'd never be allowed to know that. So what about detaining a world?"
Lexy's lips pursed into a thin line. "Detainment is when a parallel world is deemed unfit for harvesting resources, but there is plenty of manpower to relegate towards other Gates. When Masters are ordered to detain a world, they go in and overthrow the local governing bodies while capturing slaves. Those slaves are then rerouted through the Gates to a different world's farm and put to work there."
"Are you serious!?" Waver barked. "Just how much manpower do these farms require to stay in operation!?"
"Well it's not unusual for slaves to organize rebellions, so the Grand-ranked Mages implement extreme measures to silence such movements. Once those factions have been successfully culled, the lost workers need to be replaced quickly to continue production of resources. It's typical for entire enclaves to be wiped out by a Servant's Noble Phantasm when it was only a select few actually plotting the uprising. Of course, those people are first routed out of the farm and brought to an established concentration camp before the extermination proceeds. The Mages would not want the Servant to destroy the farm when it's going to be repopulated with fresh slaves, after all. That's precisely the kind of work Columbus was being employed for."
"…"
"That's quite the fascist system the Mages have going for them," Iskandar murmured in obvious disapproval. "I take it that 'conversion' refers to when a world is not useful for resources or manpower?"
"Something like that," Lexy replied. "If a discovered world is in its final phases before its imminent destruction, the Mages then keep a Gate connected so it can siphon all the free mana produced after the World imposes the Quantum Time-Lock."
"Huh? Free mana? Quantum Time-Lock? You're not making any sense, missy."
"Are you aware of the Theoretical Pruning Phenomenon?"
"Not at all."
"It's when an alternate timeline strays so far off the course of human history that allowing it to exist any further would be equivalent to ignoring a cancerous tumor growing inside your body. In that case, the World utilizes a process called the Quantum Time-Lock, or Pruning for short, since you're cutting that world's 'branch' off the infinitely-growing 'tree' of alternate realities. The result of a world being Pruned is that it is converted into pure mana that the World can relegate to either existing worlds or establishing a new timeline."
"Ohh! And since Mages are always demanding for mana-!"
Lexy nodded. "That's right. When a parallel world is being converted, the Gate is adjusted to function like a vacuum that sucks in all of the mana it can acquire. Some specialists in both organizations work only to look for worlds that are being imposed a Quantum Time-Lock so a Gate can be quickly established there."
"Well I'll be damned! They really thought this through, haven't they!? No wonder there's enough mana in the air to rival the Age of Gods back in our world!"
"Of course. The Gates were first established 50 years ago after the Akakor Holy Grail War's conclusion. It took some time for the Mages to establish the framework, but what they developed seems to be working for them. Even so, the lion's share of the bounty goes to the Family Tree since they own the Grail Terminal in Akakor. Their Mages are considered to be the wealthiest in the entire multiverse."
"Hmm, hmm!" Iskandar nodded in understanding. "Sounds like the secret was discovered during that Holy Grail War. Say, missy, you wouldn't happen to know what that secret is, would you?"
"I'm afraid not. Some of the higher-ranked Enforcers like 2-F would know, but a newcomer like me would not be granted such privileges."
"Oh well. Didn't hurt to ask. I'll just go to Akakor and take it for myself. That'll make finding its precious secrets all the more easier for me!"
Waver sighed deeply and grunted, "Is that all you can think about, Rider?"
"Hey, I'm the King of Conquerors! Expanding my territory is what gets me out of bed every morning!"
"Don't forget that I want to find out the truth about Lancer of Akakor. I don't mind if you treat Akakor as a target to conquer, but at least help me find any data that I could use for my search."
"No worries there, lad," Iskandar assured. He then asked Lexy, "Just to be clear, but will Columbus' death serve to impede the Mages in any significant way?"
"Well," she murmured, then put a finger to her lip in contemplation, "he was in charge of managing farms in at least 20 captured worlds. Considering that there are currently 128 farms in the Mages' possession, Columbus wasn't the only Servant relegated to such duties. Similar Heroic Spirits of such caliber and disposition have been dispatched, and they are all under Assassin of Akakor's command."
"Assassin of Akakor, you say. So if we got rid of one of Assassin's slave managers, it might put a real crimp in their own work. If we can take down the head honcho running these parallel world farms, that'll likewise cause great confusion among the Mages, and that will be our chance to strike!"
Lexy shook her head in consternation. "I'm afraid it's not going to be that easy. Assassin of Akakor is not the type of woman to let one of her underlings' deaths bother her in the slightest. Not to mention that the Mages can just summon a new Servant to replace the Conquistador as easily as you and I breathe."
Iskandar immediately became dejected when he heard this. "Ugh… You've got a point there. But now I'm more curious than before to learn about Assassin. What kind of Servant would be capable of managing slave farms while also possessing the killing intent needed to be summoned in that class?"
Waver replied, "Assassin's True Name is very well known among Mage circles. She's highly feared even among lower-ranked Mages like myself. I didn't know about the Gates and parallel world farms until now, but even without having that knowledge, she still has a reputation for being a savage noblewoman. If she's in charge of managing these farms that Lexy told us about, then I dread to imagine how many small uprisings that Assassin quelled without batting an eyelash. It's said that in the Akakor Grail War, Assassin was most at odds with Saber of Akakor, and that their rivalry caused the greatest number of headaches for the Family Tree Mages living in Akakor."
"You don't say."
"Assassin's True Name is fairly long. Something like Carolina de la… No, wait… Casalina… Crap, what was it again?"
Lexy took over and said, "Catalina de los Rios y Lisperguer."
"Yeah, that's it! But everyone calls her by her infamous nickname – La Quintrala."
"Quintrala, hm?" Iskandar wondered. "Isn't the quintral supposed to be a species of flower?"
"Yes," Lexy said. "It's a bright red genus of mistletoe native to the Andes, found in regions such as Columbia, Ecuador, Chile, and Argentina. Since Quintrala was from Chile, it's only natural that she would be attributed to such a flower due to her supposedly flaming red hair and intense green eyes. In fact, she is purported to be exceptionally beautiful due to her mixed ancestry of Inca, German and Spanish nobilities. It also helps that 'quintrala' is a potential deviation of her given name Catalina.
"However, there's another reason that she is called La Quintrala, though I'm not sure if it's truth or part of local legends spun about her. It's said that she wielded a whip made out of branches from the quintral plant, and she would use such an armament to ruthlessly punish her slaves for trivial reasons, or perhaps even no reason whatsoever. Whatever the case might have been in her life, she indeed fights with such a weapon as a Servant."
Iskandar murmured, "Oh ho. So she was a wealthy landowner who thought she could get away with anything due to her illustrious heritage. No wonder she is suitable to handle the parallel world farms."
"Quite so. Her summoning as an Assassin is due to the many murders she carried out, starting with the accusation that she poisoned her ailing father to death. Then came the murder of a wealthy vassal that she brought home, followed by her blaming the crime on a slave and having him publicly executed. She also beat and stabbed a former lover whom she claimed 'played with her feelings' and bragged about 'taking advantage of a loose woman'. Quintrala's crimes are quite extensive, and she evaded justice each time due to her family's influence.
"During the final years of her life, Quintrala's health deteriorated rapidly until she died in January of 1665, alone and despised by all. In her will, she paid for masses in the hope that it would save the souls of herself, her relatives, and those under her charge. She also established several chaplaincies, had her assets auctioned for the benefit of the Augustinians, and gave the rest to family and friends."
Waver nodded. "Assassin of Akakor epitomizes the image of an abusive woman in Chilean culture, and she purportedly caused people to see wealthy women in a negative light. She's also considered part of an unholy trio alongside Elizabeth Bathory and Delphine LaLaurie, as they were all infamous female serial killers wielding significant power and wealth."
Iskandar stroked his beard and said, "Yes, I suppose the loss of Columbus wouldn't even register in such a woman's mind. Still, doing whatever she wants in life, then throwing all of her money to the Church in the hopes that it would save her soul after she dies? How pathetic. Getting beneath the skin of such a weak and vain lady will be mere child's play to me."
Lexy sighed. "As much as you may want to dispose of her, I'm afraid I don't know what her current whereabouts are. She could be in any one of the 128 parallel worlds, and her movements are incredibly sporadic. For all I know, the information I received from 15-N could already be obsolete. I think we should keep our primary objective in mind – to go to Akakor and find Lancer. If we infiltrate the heart of this entire operation, no doubt Quintrala may be called upon to defend it."
"If that is what you believe, then I have no objections. It would be a waste of our energy to embark on a wild goose chase when we can instead lure the goose to us."
"Even so, we're not going anywhere until I decide that Mr. Velvet has sufficiently rested enough for another trip through the Gate."
The teenager rubbed his face and groaned, "All of this talking is making me exhausted. I can't imagine how things will turn out if we really do bump into one of the other Akakor Servants."
Iskandar patted his Master's back and said, "One thing at a time, lad. Why don't you take a nap for now? I'll set out for Brussels within the hour and commence the revolt. Lexy, I trust that you will sever this world from the Gate network after we pass through to Akakor?"
The Enforcer replied, "I have fine-tuned the parameters multiple times to ensure that this parallel world will be isolated from the Mages' control, and that the Gate here will self-destruct after we depart. Please take care of your business as quickly as possible."
"Got it!"
Puerto Lopez, Ecuador, PW #CB2B44
Far in the southwest corner of Ecuador was the coastal village of Puerto Lopez, known as a popular location for ecotourism and fishing various marine life like tuna, marlin and amberjack. In this particular parallel world however, Puerto Lopez was also home to a huge collective of giant hermit crabs that were highly prized for their Shells of Reminiscence. These types of seashells housed magical properties due to the crabs living for practically eons, and were said to echo ocean waves of the distant past if one were to put their ear to a shell's aperture.
On the beach, a group of battered men lay collapsed all along the shore, bloodied and bruised after they had been forced to fight an enclave of crabs. Likewise, dozens of crab bodies were splayed about everywhere. Anyone who hadn't been injured or killed used whatever strength they had to drag the crabs back to the fishing hut where they were deshelled and prepared for shipment back to the Akakor world. Not only were the shells valuable for Magecraft research, their meat was also considered a delicacy. Unfortunately, these people were not allowed to enjoy such a lavish feast – they were slaves, meaning their only meals consisted of plantains, rice and potatoes.
The person in charge of this expedition was the only female among the entire hunting group, and the only one who wasn't injured. Yet, her presence and fearsome aura rivaled that of multiple tyrants, so she certainly wouldn't be any pushover compared to the feeble workers she commanded. Her long, curly red hair was tied back into a ponytail decorated with beads and silver strings. She narrowed her severe-looking green eyes and glared at the oncoming horde of crabs with sheer contempt. A whip was fastened to the waist of her full-length teal dress. In one motion, she unleashed the weapon so that it made a loud snapping sound against the nearest crab's eye, decimating the organ in a burst of blood.
"How puerile," the woman snarled with a surprisingly deep voice. She faced the fallen slaves and bitterly muttered, "Is there no one worthy enough to protect their owner from danger?"
No one dared to reply. She figured that some of the men were actually trying to play dead. She would have to deal with it later once she dispatched these monsters. She noticed a shadow increasing in size over her, and she glared up to discover that a crab had launched itself from the sand and was about to plummet its full weight upon her. She leapt back to avoid being crushed, then went wild with her whip. Less than ten seconds later, the hideously wounded beast collapsed. The remaining crabs realized that while they had the numbers, they were obviously outmatched when compared to the woman. They tried to flee en masse, but she pursued them relentlessly and slaughtered any that were unfortunate enough to be within range of her whip.
Several minutes later, the carnage was over. The lady stomped her high heel over a beast's head, then commanded to the slaves, "I am retiring to my chambers. Clean up this mess and prepare them for shipping within the hour."
"W-Within the hour!?" a young man balked. "There's no way we can-!"
The whip slashed along his eyes, blinding him instantly. He howled in such pain that the woman couldn't bear to listen to such awful sounds anymore. She continued battering him until he too lay dead on the sand. The other surviving slaves witnessed her brutality and dared not to raise objections of their own. They quietly carried crab and human corpses alike back to the hut, where women and children laborers took care of preparing the crabs.
The whip-wielding lady left the beach and returned to her coastal cottage, which provided her with all the comforts of life she could ever ask for. In the main living quarters was a huge window where she could observe the slaves toiling about, providing her with a sordid form of entertainment. Her private chefs prepared a succulent meal of crab meat ceviche, beef cazuela and several slices of sopaipillas. Whenever her wine glass ran low, a sommelier was on hand to refill it.
As she ate her lunch, the door opened. In stepped an Enforcer who looked almost identical to 15-N except that this one's hair was much longer. The expressionless girl approached the woman and murmured, "Enforcer 15-M reporting in. Madame Quintrala, I bring a message from the Family Tree."
"Of all the times for them to bother me," Quintrala groaned in annoyance.
"Alejandro Uruburu has been found murdered in the Amazon."
"… And?"
"This was extracted from his skull."
15-M extended her palm to Quintrala, upon which a used bullet rested. The Assassin pinched the projectile between her lithe fingers and inspected it carefully. Her countenance seemed to change as she murmured, "This is from a 45-caliber revolver."
"Agreed. We believe that Archer of Akakor was responsible."
"He finally murdered the grandson of his former Master, hm? Sure took him long enough. My understanding is that the Uruburu whelp fell out of the Family Tree's graces and had gone into hiding. At least that's one less nuisance for me to worry about. So where is Archer right now?"
"Unknown."
Suddenly, Quintrala's whip smacked against 15-M's lower lip. Blood trickled down the child warrior's chin, but she barely budged or reacted. In truth, this particular Enforcer had been dispatched because she was incapable of feeling physical pain. Any form of torture that Quintrala meted upon her would not affect her whatsoever.
The furious woman glowered, "Don't waste my time with such trivial shit, pawn. I will only care about the Akakor Servants if they have been captured and are awaiting interrogation."
"I will keep that in mind. In the meantime, you have been ordered to keep an eye out for Archer while continuing your primary duties."
"Very well. Now leave at once. You are spoiling my meal."
With that, the stoic 15-M turned on her heel and left the manor in silence. Every time Quintrala spoke with an Enforcer, that irritable feeling always kept swelling within her. She couldn't explain why, but it always felt like she was speaking with someone very familiar. She just couldn't quite explain it though, and it always annoyed her that she didn't understand what was going on with the mysterious Enforcers.
However, Quintrala was more intrigued with Earp's return. It had been many decades since she last saw him, and she languidly stared at the bullet while thinking about the Akakor Grail War.
First Rider, then Saber, and now Archer… For some reason, we are all returning to that place. Could our reunion portend to the grim prediction that the Atlas Institute made 50 years ago?
She tightly clenched the bullet in her fist.
I should get in contact with Caster and see what he thinks about this.
Akakor
After the meeting concluded, Ritsuka and Mash helped the depressed Connla fall asleep in the corner bed. The young Lancer had spent so much energy containing her anxiety, listening to Babbage's lecture, and revealing Cliste's condition to everyone that she could barely stand anymore. The other two remained by her side holding her hand until she was unconscious. Cuchulainn likewise watched over them from a few feet away, yet still struggled to keep his emotions in check. He certainly experienced his fair share of blood and gore in his life, but listening to what happened to Akakor Connla was enough to make him want to vomit. He couldn't imagine the horror and despair that Chaldea Connla was repressing until the time was right, certainly so that she wouldn't make him upset prematurely.
God damn it…
Cuchulainn kept cursing to himself over and over again. He knew there was nothing he could have done to prevent what happened to Akakor Connla. Everything transpired 50 years ago, in a world completely separate from his. And yet… he still felt like he had to take responsibility. Regardless of what world each Servant was summoned in, even if they lived completely separate lives from each other, that eternal connection between them would always remain strong. Of course his primary job was to keep Chaldea Connla safe during this mission – nothing in the world would ever sway him from such an important duty. But what about Akakor Connla? He had to do something for her as well.
His mind kept wandering back to what Kiritsugu said:
"Now that I understand what the stakes are, I have no choice but to complete my promised task. Regardless of how you feel about this, I must put her to death."
Cuchulainn grunted to himself in dismay. Normally he would argue with the Assassin about seeking his daughter's death. Unfortunately, learning that Akakor Connla now existed as literally a head in a jar changed everything for him. He absolutely didn't want that for her. To say that he wanted to save her life would be considered the most supreme of follies for him. There was no debate that could convince anyone in Chaldea otherwise – Lancer of Akakor was dead. Not even the most idealistic of Servants could deny that. The only reason she was alive was because of the Holy Grail. Its power defied all logic and granted miracles to its owner. This particular miracle was just too sick and twisted for the Chaldeans to accept.
Furthermore, if there actually was some way to resurrect Akakor Connla to her former self, would she be the same person that she used to be? Being killed was the most traumatic experience anyone could go through. Barely anyone lived past such an event, meaning that the answer to this conundrum could only be speculated on. Even so, how would someone live after having died once, especially in such a gruesome manner? On top of that, being decapitated via guillotine was NOT something that anyone could, or even should, come back from. How could Akakor Connla possibly revive as a normal child after being subjected to something so cruel? Cuchulainn was sure she would not behave the same way as Chaldea Connla. What sort of demons would crawl around inside the head of someone who was resurrected after experiencing such a horrible event?
Kiritsugu's words continued pervading the Berserker's mind. The more he pondered, the more the Assassin's determination made sense. Cuchulainn held his thorny version of Gae Bolg before him and glared at it intently. Gradually, he was beginning to share in Kiritsugu's grim assertion; that it would be best for Akakor Connla to be put to rest.
Not only that, Cuchulainn didn't want Kiritsugu to land the killing blow. If anyone was more obligated to fulfill this task, it would be Cuchulainn himself.
The real trouble was whether or not Ritsuka and Chaldea Connla would accept this. Ritsuka always was the type to value life over death, so being faced with such a huge decision would probably be too much for the teenager to handle. As for Connla… She may have possessed the information, but she never gave her opinion on the matter. At least, not yet anyway. Even so, Cuchulainn's intuition told him that she understood the grim reality – the biggest hint he got was that she never argued with Kiritsugu when he declared that he would kill Akakor Connla. Sure, she never verbally agreed with him, but the fact that she didn't rebuke him either was telling enough.
All Cuchulainn could do was wait for Connla to recover and ask her what she thought when they were alone.
