FATE/CATBOX FICTION

Chapter 16: Rider of Akakor

Akakor City

Several hundred meters beneath the Akakor labyrinths resided the great underground city where the Family Tree and its Mages called home. It greatly resembled the subterranean constructs found in Derinkuyu, located in Cappadocia, Turkey. A confusing maze of carved stairways allowed its inhabitants to traverse between the many living spaces, workshops, and important facilities throughout the upside-down pyramid. Unlike Derinkuyu, which was only 60 meters deep, Akakor stretched for approximately a cubic kilometer. It had to be this huge in order to house the ancient Ugha Mongulala as they retreated from the many catastrophes that eventually doomed them to extinction. Several centuries later, the Family Tree Mages would find this abandoned city and repurpose it into their new headquarters to escape from the Mage's Association and its hierarchical despotism.

In the center of Akakor was the main square. Water from the Rio de Madeira was pumped into the fountain, from which seven spouts representing figures of the primary Servant classes gushed water out of their outstretched hands. The walls and ground showed signs of damage from fierce battles – no doubt, they were scars left from the Akakor Grail War. They always served to remind the Mages of the battle that was once waged here, and of how the Second Magic was discovered thanks to it. Nevertheless, this fountain was a prominent source of water for the local Mages, although most revolved their water collection schedules so that they wouldn't wind up encountering each other by chance. Just because they lived together didn't necessarily mean they were amicable with each other.

It was during such a quiet time that Enforcer 2-F sat at the edge of the fountain and stared longingly at the Lancer figure. The statue was reminiscent of the German mercenaries known as Landsknecht, who were proficient with using pikes. It was a generic character meant to represent the class itself, but 2-F always liked to imagine how Lancer of Akakor would have looked if she wore the large feathered hat and armored German clothing.

Mother…

She couldn't spend much time daydreaming here, unfortunate as it was. She needed to return to her office and manage important duties for the other Enforcers. She was hearing some strange reports of unusual visitors prowling around, and that Alejandro Uruburu was found dead in the Amazon rainforest. She wasn't sure what to make of these developments, but at least she was glad she didn't have to report any of this to the Twelve Lords from the Association. Just like with Kayneth, 2-F found them to be overly incorrigible and stuffy for her liking, so she relegated that sort of tedious work to 19-Y and 22-Q back in London. The Family Tree heads weren't so concerned with minor disturbances so long as the Parallel World Gates were not disrupted in any way, so she was given plenty of freedom to act according to her discretion.

As 2-F trudged up the dusty stairway to her room, she discovered another Enforcer waiting patiently for her. It was 15-M, the girl who spoke with Quintrala before. 2-F approached the younger girl and said, "What brings you here? I don't believe I have any important orders for you."

"I just wanted to inform you that Quintrala has been notified of Uruburu's murder, and that the evidence points toward Wyatt Earp," 15-M replied.

"I see. I wasn't aware of the evidence being tied to our wayward Archer."

"Do you think this will be enough to entice Quintrala into action?"

"Perhaps. She and Saber are our only leads toward finding Caster of Akakor. Since Assassin values her life above everyone else's, she will definitely want to seek Caster's advice on how to handle Archer."

"I believe so too. To that end, I planted a tracking device on the bullet I gave her."

"Excellent. Now we'll finally get to see where Caster has been holing himself up this entire time."

15-M then said, "I have one more report for you. I have been trying to get into contact with my twin, 15-N, but her psychic connection has been strangely quiet for the last while."

"15-N was in charge of overseeing Columbus' management of his designated worlds, correct?" 2-F asked.

"Yes. I'm rather perplexed to why she would remain silent for so long. Do you think she may be deceased?"

"Nonsense. Columbus may represent the epitome of flagrant hedonism, but he is nowhere near skilled enough to dispose of an Enforcer primed for combat."

15-M glanced aside, clearly looking worried about her missing sister. Before 2-F could say anything, a surprise gust of wind billowed around them. It came from a third Enforcer who used a combination of wind and platform Runes to move around as quickly as a ricocheting bullet. This one was around the same young age as 15-M, and she wore a tight-fitting white bodysuit with shoulder armor so her high-speed movements would not be hindered.

"Sorry for the interruption, Sister," the newcomer apologized between heavy panting breaths.

"Goodness, must you always be so impatient, 18-U?" 2-F murmured.

"After I made my big discovery, I couldn't help but rush straight back here."

"Big discovery?"

"During my patrol of the labyrinth, I spotted a strange Japanese Servant. I followed him for a while until he happened upon a workshop that I had never seen before. I must've passed by that place dozens of times and never noticed there was a secret entrance, or something like that. Anyway, I heard him saying something like how it belonged to Rider, and that he was going to destroy it so that Rider wouldn't be a nuisance to him anymore. At least, I think that's what I heard."

2-F's eyes widened slightly. "A workshop belonging to a Rider… As in Rider of Akakor?"

"I don't know," 18-U admitted. "I was so excited to get back to you that I didn't pay attention to what he was saying."

"You really need to learn to calm down. Besides, couldn't you have told me about it through our psychic connection?"

"Uh… Um… Well… I guess I forgot. My bad."

The older Enforcer shook her head and moaned, "Oh, good grief. Well at least you made it back without that unknown Servant spotting you."

"No kidding. He looked super dangerous, and he reeked of blood. I may be the fastest Enforcer, but I don't feel confident in fighting someone like that."

"All right. You take 15-M and show her the way to this workshop. If anyone attempts to impede your progress, she should be able to handle them," 2-F ordered the skittish girl. She then said to 15-M, "I'll look into what happened with 15-N. Perhaps the Enforcers in London might know something."

"I'm sorry for the trouble," 15-M apologized. "They must be busy with looking into 22-S' betrayal. I'm almost afraid that that turncoat might have something to do with my twin's disappearance."

"It's all right. 22-Q will be happy to investigate for you. Of any of the Enforcers, she's the most incensed over what happened with 22-S. If it turns out that 22-S really killed 15-N, I'm certain that 22-Q will want to avenge her."

"Mm."

18-U ran up to 15-M and implored, "What are we waiting for!? Let's get going already!"

"R-Right…"

The two girls ran down the steps and vanished around the corner, leaving 2-F by herself once more. With a disconcerted huff, she entered her room and sat on a plush chair in front of a grand aquarium that was embedded into the stone wall. The water was dimly lit, and there was enough space for exotic fish like rosy barbs, clownfish, acara, red discus fish, and even an incredibly rare arowana to swim around freely.

In her spare time, 2-F loved gazing at the aquarium as much as she did with the main square fountain. Despite living in such claustrophobic quarters, seeing the fish swim about let her mind drift off into daydreams of her running about in any sort of natural scenery, whether it'd be the mountains, a lake, the ocean, a forest, or even the inhospitable snow fields deep in Siberia. Due to her heavy workload though, she wasn't able to enjoy such natural splendors whenever she wanted.

2-F took a deep breath, then concentrated on opening a psychic channel to 22-Q and asked aloud, "Are you there?"

"I am here," the stern teenaged Enforcer replied.

"Has there been any progress in your investigation into 22-S' defection?"

"Yes, 19-Y and I believe that she took Waver Velvet and his Servant to the Gate in Luxembourg. I received a report from a worker there stating that I had arrived there to inspect the Gate, and that I had two gentlemen accompanying me. That must have been 22-S disguising herself as me to infiltrate the Gate."

"I see. You two look similar enough that she could get away with such a parlor trick. So you're saying they jumped into one of the 128 parallel worlds to take refuge from your search parties. Knowing Waver Velvet's intentions, they probably plan on returning through another Gate that's connected to Akakor."

"Agreed. We're presently looking into which dimension they escaped to, but I'm worried that they will leave the world before we can potentially pinpoint where they are."

"Hm… Try PW #00162B."

22-Q sounded puzzled as she asked, "The nocturnal fruit world? Why do you suggest that one?"

"15-M said she's lost contact with 15-N, and she is supposed to be stationed there with Columbus. At the very least, conduct a search to confirm 15-N's status, then give an update directly to 15-M. She is quite worried about her twin sister's condition."

"Will do."

The Enforcers cut their psychic connection, then 2-F sighed and sat back. Organizing the Enforcers' movements was normal work for her, but she was strangely tired for some reason. After staring at the aquarium for a while, she thought to herself, It's been a while since I last checked on 1-A.

She got up and left her chamber, then headed to a particular stone wall deep inside the underground city. She pushed in a small brick that was jutting out, which allowed for cleverly disguised elevator doors to open up. She rode it down for several hundred meters to the base floor, where the Preservatorium was located. The doors opened, and a strange red barrier comprised of complex Magecraft and Runecraft sigils shimmered before her. This was the Tradition Protection keeping undesirables away from the Holy Grail Terminal, barring passage for anyone except those who were responsible for maintaining both the device and the Servant trapped inside.

Among all of the Enforcers, 2-F was the only one who was allowed inside due to her status as both the group's superior and the second oldest Servant born in their line. She paid no heed to the barrier as she walked past it. For a moment, it felt as though all of the air in her lungs had escaped, but she knew it was just an illusion. If any unauthorized personnel attempted to go through, they actually would die from a simulated environment no different to being exposed to the vacuum of outer space. For this reason, 2-F was confident that the person she was going to visit would not have been harmed in any way, but she still liked to occasionally check up on her mental wellbeing.

Behind the Holy Grail Terminal was a space filled with trees and grass swaying in the artificial winds that the fans produced. Some of the trees housed quaint yet elaborate treehouses among their branches that were connected with sturdy wooden bridges. In the center of the small field was a little girl around three or four years old sitting atop a blanket she used to host an imaginary picnic party with various toys. She was in the middle of pouring fictional tea for a stuffed sheep. She wore an animal-eared white hood lined with Celtic patterns, and her snow-white hair was cut short around her neckline. The hood obscured most of her face, save for her flat and vapid closed mouth. Otherwise, she wore a thickly knitted white dress with large colorful buttons and black pantyhose.

2-F sat next to the silent girl on the blanket and asked, "What are you doing today, 1-A?"

"…"

"Having a picnic, are we? Is it okay if I join in?"

"…"

2-F really wasn't expecting an answer. Enforcer 1-A lived in a state of perpetual catatonia, unable to acknowledge anything and anyone around her. However, 1-A was the most important one due to her Spirit Origin providing the foundations for new Enforcers to be cloned. She had no idea she was generating Servants though – it was a process that the Grail Terminal activated automatically, and it always drained her energy to the point that she couldn't speak. Otherwise, 1-A was wholly detached from reality and didn't care what was happening in the outside world.

No one would ever know what was going on inside her mind; not even the other Enforcers who could communicate with each other through telepathy. If any of them attempted to speak with her, they would only hear a terrifying hollow noise. Many years ago, there had been an Enforcer who gazed into 1-A's mind for so long that she had gone completely mad and committed suicide. From that Enforcer's remaining memories, 2-F was born. She remembered all too well the dangers of trying to peek inside the tightly sealed box that was 1-A's subconsciousness. After all, 1-A represented the overwhelming, soul-crushing trauma that Lancer of Akakor endured during the Grail War and afterwards.

2-F silently watched as 1-A continued her tea party in total silence. She was just glad the child Enforcer was healthy and unperturbed by the events surrounding her. She rubbed the girl's shoulder and murmured, "It won't be long now. Soon, the world will understand the same horror that you and Mother live with every day. Oh my… I can hardly wait to see how the Mages will react when everything they hold dear will be destroyed before their very eyes."

An ominous smile crept along the young woman's face.

"Those materialistic bastards, treating Mother like a disposable tool. I'll make sure our retribution is as agonizing and drawn-out as possible, so that they fall into the depths of madness before the Third Great Catastrophe renders them extinct. They can then commiserate with the Ugha Mongulala about how foolish it is to hold on to old traditions instead of adapting to an ever-changing world."

Someone's shoe flattened the grass around it, and a sultry man's voice declared, "How fascinating. I did not think the most dutiful of the Enforcers would possess such a dark hatred of her own leaders."

"Hm?" 2-F narrowed her eyes and glared back. Standing several feet from the pair was Antonio Salieri. His own smile reeked of insincerity just as much as hers did, but she couldn't tell what his intentions were. She kneeled in front of 1-A, anticipating that he would endanger the catatonic girl.

The musician's sneer vanished as he said, "Pardon the intrusion. I had some business with Lancer when I spotted you two."

"Is that right?" 2-F muttered.

"I was just about to tell her some interesting news, but she still appears to be asleep. My performance must have been most effective in serenading her."

"What sort of news are we talking about here?"

"Calm yourself. There's no need to be so hostile with me. You might not realize it, but we're on the same side here."

She raised an eyebrow. "Come again?"

"Before I began my performance, Lancer divulged a fascinating secret to me. I'm not entirely sure what was happening, but it seems she showed me a memory of when she triggered the Extinction."

2-F's eyes widened in abject shock, and she gasped all of the air out of her lungs before yelping, "You can't be serious!"

"I assure you, I am not joking. She showed me the truth that the Mages have desperately kept under wraps."

"So then… did you see the actual culprit?"

"That I did."

"…"

"I can understand your confusion, my good lady. Why would she show something of such grave importance to a musician like myself? I have only been summoned here recently, and she trusted me with knowledge so vital that not even the Twelve Lords are allowed to witness it. Well, there is one thing I can be certain of – I cannot agree with how this Mage-centered society is fueled by the spilled blood of others. They accentuate their shallow accomplishments while locking away anything that could be an inconvenience to them. If you loathe the Mages as much as I do, then please, allow me to walk the same path as you."

2-F glared at Salieri suspiciously, unsure of what to say next. Was this some ruse to make her lower her guard? Even if his intentions were genuine, she certainly didn't want him to get any closer to 1-A, who was still blissfully playing away without a care.

However, her concerns would be short-lived when the Grail Terminal activated again, and Connla Cliste's voice coldly echoed, "Steady yourself, 2-F. He is on our side."

"Mother?" the bewildered Enforcer murmured.

"Mr. Salieri, it would seem that my other half attempted to beguile you into destroying her Spirit Origin. I have to apologize for exposing you to such a harsh experience."

"No, think nothing of it. I am used to witnessing such bitterness between fellow men," he replied.

"Well, it worked out for me in the end. Her request to you actually wound up being surprisingly useful for once."

Salieri glared at the Terminal with fierce eyes. Something didn't feel right with the atmosphere between them. The Cliste he spoke to before was repentant and self-reproaching to the point of utter despair. Now though, she sounded a lot more sure of herself, and had acknowledged that she and 2-F were 'on the same side' when it came to hating the Mages. Even her voice sounded harsher, compared to the weeping and woeful tone he heard earlier.

2-F noticed his skepticism and said, "The Terminal's been experiencing something like a… paradigm shift, of sorts. The Caretakers aren't even aware of it, never mind the Mages. You're the only Servant that Mother has ever divulged this secret to."

"You don't say…" Salieri murmured curiously.

"It's a little complicated to explain right now, but if Mother trusts you, then I'll tell you everything later. For now, I'd like to hear what Mother's other half requested of you."

Cliste answered for Salieri. "She must have found out where Rider of Akakor's current workshop is. She asked Mr. Salieri to lead some strange Servants to it so that they can destroy it. I, for one, am hoping they can permanently dispose of Rider himself. If I still had my spine, it'd be shivering, knowing that that degenerate is crawling around inside my home like a godforsaken termite."

"Strange Servants, you say? I've been hearing rumors of some unknown characters prowling around Akakor lately, but none of the Enforcers have seen them so far. How would your other half know about them so readily?"

"Why else? Through Imbas Forosnai."

2-F's jaw practically dropped to the floor. "No way… B-But that would mean-!"

Just then, her psychic connection triggered, and 15-M's voice declared, "My apologies for the interruption, but I have an urgent report. 18-U and I have encountered three unknown Servants. We've confirmed one of them to be Mother, so we are uncertain as to how to approach them."


Akakor, near the Shrine of Manoa

After leaving Connla outside, Izo guided Cuchulainn into the laboratory. The Celt widened his eyes in sheer disbelief at what he was seeing. He was accustomed to being a brutal murderer, but at least he allowed his opponents to die with dignity on the battlefield. This, though… Now that he had seen it, he wanted to block it from his memory for the rest of his life.

It wasn't the type of workshop normally attributed to Mages and researchers, but was more like an abattoir from a horror film. Rows of mutilated corpses all hung upside-down from meat hooks like slaughtered pigs, and blood pooled everywhere around them. Some bodies were splayed against the walls, with various erotic toys scattered around them. One formerly attractive teenaged girl was hung off to the corner in a sexually suggestive and religiously offensive position, and had her portrait displayed on a well-decorated shrine with derogatory words scribbled in red lipstick. Compared to the other corpses, her body especially appeared to have suffered numerous post-mortem wounds and unmentionable acts of necrophilia.

Off on the opposite side of the macabre dungeon were several caskets containing the unconscious bodies of various men and women, all apparently attached to life support. Izo muttered, "Those are the people that Rider uses as his replacement bodies."

"You don't say," Cuchulainn winced. "That's actually quite a lot of them. It'll take forever for us to kill them one by one."

"That's why we're gonna do this."

The ronin approached the computer that maintained the life support, then withdrew his katana and slashed into it multiple times. Both men had to wreck several more devices like this one to eliminate all of Rider's potential new hosts. Although Cuchulainn wasn't entirely sure why they needed to do this to people they had never met before, he figured it would wind up being a good thing in the long run.

Izo cut through the last machine he could find, and the pods connected to it dimmed, indicating that life support was cut to those particular victims. He smirked and said, "Perfect. No more vessels fer Rider to jump between. Once his current body is dead, he'll have nowhere to run."

Cuchulainn didn't say anything. He had to remember to collect any information that Chaldea could use for the mission. He usually left this sort of tedious work to Connla, but Izo's assertion about keeping her away from here turned out to be frighteningly correct. He would just have to do the best he could with what little time they had. As he investigated the dungeon, he thought he heard something peculiar happening outside. He disregarded it as hollow sounds at first, but the clattering became too much for him to ignore.

"Hey, what's that noise?" Izo wondered.

"I don't know…" Cuchulainn murmured, but then stared at the door with increasing alarm. If nothing was happening inside the workshop, then… maybe outside? Neither men dared to say anything as they immediately hurried to see what was going on with Connla.


While the two men were preoccupied with their work, Connla stared intently at the woman who called herself Rider of Akakor. She remembered Izo saying that Rider was a male Servant, but since he was a Pseudo-Servant, it probably didn't matter what gender his vessel was so long as their personality was in sync with his. More worryingly though, she couldn't forget both Cliste and Earp's warnings to be extra cautious of Rider.

"What's the matter? Aren't you going to accept my invitation?" Rider asked.

"No, I think we can converse just fine out here," Connla said. "I just want to ask you something – do you know Lancer of Akakor?"

"Of course I do. You're the same Servant as her. Oh, but I already know it's impossible for you to be the original Lancer. You must be a duplicate of her from a parallel world, since I witnessed her much-deserved execution."

The child Servant became agitated. "Much-deserved?"

"You know about the Southern Hemisphere Extinction, don't you?"

"Yes, I do."

"Then you should understand that Lancer committed such genocide that the Holocaust couldn't even hope to compare in scale and horror."

Connla scowled, "If she did, then it wasn't through her own volition! She had to have been forced to do it!"

Rider narrowed her eyes and smiled sweetly. "Where's your proof?"

"I have the same Spirit Origin as hers, so I know what her personality is like!"

"That's just circumstantial evidence, my dear. Nothing you say will trump the footage of her heinous deed shown at the trials. Besides, why do you agonize over someone that has been dead for 50 years?"

"Don't you lie to me! I know she's still alive as the Grail Terminal! I also know that there were multiple camera feeds installed in that altar! The trial just showed one perspective though – the one that was most convenient for you Extremists!"

"Hm…" Rider glared at Connla. Suddenly, one of her eyes shone bright red, and a peculiar Command Spell could be seen lurking within the iris. "You seem to know a lot more than I could have anticipated. But that's fine. Drawing out despair and frustration in others is what I excel at. Why, I practically reached the height of ecstasy while watching Lancer's final march to the guillotine. I even arranged for Sanson to be the one to drop the blade on his dear friend! The Caretakers shed so many tears that they could have filled a river! I was also shedding tears of my own… OF LAUGHTER! AH HA HA HA HA!"

The child Lancer grit her teeth in fury. She couldn't tolerate listening to Rider's depraved ranting any further, and she wielded her spear before rushing in to fight her enemy. The woman callously chucked the football-sized object in her arm at Connla to disorient her for a second. She glanced at the object as the bandages unraveled around it, and she quickly realized it wasn't a sports ball of any kind. It was the decapitated head of a white-haired man with a V-shaped cut to his bangs, and his tongue had some kind of devilish Command Spell etched on it.

"Please do be careful, honey," Rider cooed sardonically as a dark haze engulfed her body. "I worked so hard to round up my latest vessels, and I don't want them getting soiled so quickly."

Connla stepped back in surprise as the black mist swallowed everything in front of her. It soon dissipated, revealing Rider to be wearing a revealing dark green outfit that revealed a good portion of the underside of her cleavage, her stomach, and thighs. She wielded the same cleavers and throwing daggers that belonged to a certain child Assassin that Connla was good friends with.

"What in the world!?" the Lancer yelped.

"Surprised? This woman made for an excellent candidate as a Demi-Servant of Jack the Ripper. One of my finest catches, I must say. The Mages must have never imagined that a Pseudo-Servant like me would be able to possess one of their Demi-Servant slaves."

"Damn it…"

Rider kicked her foot against the figure in the body bag and said, "This voluptuous body allowed me to get close to such a promising serial killer from Japan. Damned if I can keep the names of Asians straight though, including this whore I'm inhabiting right now. I was hoping to turn this boy into a Demi-Servant for Gilles de Rais, but punishing an upstart like you will be just as entertaining. Might even help me break into this woman's fighting style!"

"If you're done rambling about your twisted interests, then get out of my sight, Rider!" Connla screamed and rushed in to duel the woman. The Pseudo-Demi-Servant giggled maniacally as she met the girl in combat. They slashed and danced around each other in a flurry of movement, neither gaining an advantage over the other for a solid minute. Luckily, Connla already had plenty of experience with fighting Jack the Ripper due to her training with the Assassin during the Fomorian Singularity.

On the other hand, Rider was confounded by how well Connla was fighting against her Demi-Servant body. All of her chosen victims until now were either humans she deemed 'useless' to society, or weak Servants that she could easily dispatch. Despite the child's bright and youthful appearance, Rider realized she was being pushed to the absolute brink of her capabilities. Only now was she figuring out that she had challenged an opponent she couldn't hope to win against, so she needed to change her tactics from winning to running away.

Connla conjured a wind Rune, then dashed at Rider so fast that the Pseudo-Servant couldn't perceive where she was or far she was from her. She resembled an nondescript blur as she bashed her spear against the woman's head. She tumbled along the ground, then spotted Connla for a split second as she ran behind while shouting, "GOT YOU!"

The little girl dashed and whipped around the befuddled Rider in a circle formation, causing her to lose sight of her opponent before she kicked her in the chest. Connla instantly appeared behind Rider and slashed her spear, then from the side with another strike, then the opposite side with another. Over and over, Connla's high-speed rampage battered Rider's entire body, giving her absolutely no time to defend in any manner as she was knocked about like a rag doll in a playful dog's mouth. The Lancer kicked the woman's back, then finished her assault with a rising kick followed by an instantaneous downward punch that made Rider smash deep into the ground.

"Impudent little wretch!" the killer snarled and attempted to counterattack. Connla summoned a series of Hagalaz Runes to fire baseball-sized hailstones at her foe. For each shot she made, Rider dodged with dark hazes, as if teleporting around the girl. Connla had enough of her antics and conjured the largest Rune she could muster, then fired hundreds of thousands of smaller hail pellets in a vicious storm that engulfed Rider. The onslaught was so violent that thick chunks of skin were flayed off of her bones, leaving her as little more than a walking hunk of humanoid meat.

"Ungh…" Rider gasped. "N-Not bad… I always was most afraid of you during the War…"

Connla didn't reply. She was so lost in the throes of a mild warp spasm that she couldn't think straight. She wanted this vile woman to pay for laughing at Cliste! She got in close and wildly flailed her spear at Rider. It was all Rider could do to either avoid or parry the deadlier strikes, but she knew there was no possibility of escape now. She was simply too weakened from the dramatic loss of blood, and Connla still had plenty of energy left to finish her off. Rider failed to pay attention as Connla struck her chin with a backwards flipping kick. As Rider fell back, Connla got in from behind again and summoned a small Tiwaz Rune over her clenched fist.

KA-BOOM!

With a powerful explosion, the punch hit its mark. Rider's neck instantly snapped from the herculean strength, and she was sent twirling headfirst toward the nearby wall.

SMASH!

The impact was almost too gruesome to mention. All that remained were her limp legs dangling from the hole her upper body made in the stone wall. Connla panted and sweated hard while glaring at Rider's corpse. The rush of fury gradually dwindled until she teetered back and forth on her feet, feeling dizzy from using so much magical energy in such a short time. Before she could fall on her side, she heard running footsteps approaching from behind, and then felt a pair of strong hands holding her up by the shoulders.

"Are you okay?" Cuchulainn asked feverishly. "What the hell happened here?"

"I… ungh… fought… Rider…"

Izo spotted the massive bloodstain on the wall where Rider was, then cringed in both delight and disbelief, "Holy shit! Ya didn't 'fight' her, so much as ya freakin' slaughtered her!"

"Uuuh…" Connla pressed her fingers against her forehead to fight off a pulsing migraine.

"That's enough heroics for now," Cuchulainn grumbled as he inspected her injuries. "The punk and I have taken care of business here, so let's make ourselves scarce before-"

"Halt!"

The trio looked over to discover two new figures that they didn't recognize. During Connla and Rider's fight, 18-U had guided 15-M through the labyrinth to the workshop. The sounds of their battle helped the Enforcers find the place in record time. When their eyes met with Connla's though, they yelped in surprise simultaneously.

"Wha-Wha-Wha-What!?" 18-U stammered and pointed at her. "What are you doing here, Mother!?"

"Huh?" Connla gasped in confusion.

"Don't be insane. That can't possibly be Mother," 15-M scolded her partner. She then opened a psychic connection to 2-F and said, "My apologies for the interruption, but I have an urgent report. 18-U and I have encountered three unknown Servants. We've confirmed one of them to be Mother, so we are uncertain as to how to approach them."

Cuchulainn snarled at the mystery girls, then demanded to Izo, "You know these brats?"

"Never seen 'em before."

"Fuck! As if things aren't complicated enough already!"

15-M pointed her spear at the men and demanded, "Don't move, intruders! I have to place you under arrest for trespassing into Akakor!"

"Buzz off, kid. You don't want to fight me when I'm angry," Cuchulainn glowered, yet he didn't sound as emphatic as usual. Something was nagging at him, like he was speaking with someone very familiar.

"That's not an option. I'll have to detain you for further questioning, and then-"

Just then, the hallway shone red for a second. Everyone's attention was attracted to Rider of Akakor as a strange strand of magic departed from the body like a crimson firefly and made its way into the abattoir/workshop. Izo's eyes practically bugged out of their sockets as he shouted, "Ya can't be serious! Is there still a body in there he can use!?"

"Quick, 15-M! Stop him before he can get away!" 18-U panicked.

Before anyone could make a move though, Rider apparently set off a trap that released thick plumes of nauseous smoke. From the corner of her eye, Connla spotted a silhouette emerge from the workshop. The figure ran past her, and she grew enraged as she screamed, "GET BACK HERE, RIDER!"

"Hey!" Cuchulainn yelped as he suddenly had to restrain the furious child by wrapping his bulky arm around her petite waist. "Don't be ridiculous! You can't fight him in your condition!"

"Put me down! He laughed at Cliste! He said her execution was entertaining to him! I can't let him get away with this! He HAD to have done something to her, I just know it!"

He was so shocked by his daughter's crazed tirade that he couldn't say anything to calm her down. Even so, he had to get her under control so she wouldn't make the situation any worse. He quickly raised his free hand over the nape of her neck and cast a Gyfu Rune on her spine. Connla almost broke free of Cuchulainn's grasp, but then her eyelids became heavy as she slumped unconscious.

"Shit! So much for killing Rider!" Izo swore, then bellowed to Cuchulainn, "Let's just get outta here fer now!"

He nodded in agreement. Neither of them knew who the mystery girls were, or if they were potential allies, but they could tell they were Servants. If they turned out to be enemies, waging a battle against them would waste what energy they needed for confronting the Caretaker at Manoa. Izo and Cuchulainn ran for the opposite hallway, with the latter hauling the comatose Connla under his arm. The Berserker wielded Gae Bolg in his other hand and blurted to Izo, "Get back!"

"What are ya-!?"

"HRAAA~AAAH!"

With a mighty battle cry, Cuchulainn whipped his weapon around in numerous swaths that almost looked invisible to the naked eye. He cut through the ceiling and walls around him, weakening their structure so much that pieces of stone collapsed. Both men frantically ran through the caverns to avoid being buried alive, but at least this prevented the Enforcers from pursuing them.

After fleeing for several hundred meters, they came to a stop and gasped for air. Izo fell onto his buttocks and moaned, "Sonuva bitch…"

Cuchulainn glared back from the way they came to make sure the strange girls hadn't caught up to them. He soon muttered, "I think we're in the clear."

"Bloody hell. So much happened at once that I couldn't make heads outta tails. Rider's escape aside, who the hell were those kids supposed to be?"

"I don't know. None of us have encountered any Servants like that before."

"Well that's just mighty inconvenient. No matter how many answers I find, a hundred more questions keep poppin' up. I dun think I can make sense of this anymore."

"Then let's take a break here so the kid can rest up," Cuchulainn suggested as he gently set Connla on the ground and covered her with his mantle. He dialed some numbers on his transmitter while growling, "Whether Earp likes it or not, I'm going to make him fess up about Rider. I want to know who that sicko is and what his connection with Lancer of Akakor is."

"Ya think he'll know?"

"He will. Wyatt Earp was Archer of Akakor."

"So ya got one of the Akakor Servants on yer side."

Cuchulainn got through to Ritsuka's comm device, and the young Mage asked, "Is that you, Cu?"

"Yeah. Is Earp there? I've got some hard questions that he needs to answer."

Ritsuka became perplexed by her Servant's harsh attitude. The transmitter switched hands, and Earp's voice declared, "Howdy there, pardner. What can I do fer ya?"

"I need you to tell me what Rider's True Name is," the Berserker demanded.

"Rider's? What fer? He ain't our priority right now."

"Quit beating around the bush, dumbass. You've obviously been avoiding that discussion for as long as possible."

"Rider of Akakor… Hoo boy," Earp murmured and contorted his face in disgust, as if forced to swallow medicine that tasted absolutely terrible. "T'be frank with y'all, I dun like talkin' 'bout that guy. Especially not with lil' Connla 'round."

"She's fast asleep. Not even a horde of stampeding elephants will wake her up."

"Good. That'll make things easier fer me. This ain't exactly stuff a little kid should be hearin'. 'Course, I'm kinda worried 'bout how Master an' Mash 'ere are gonna react, seein' as they're still minors an' all."

"I know what you mean. I found Rider's workshop and decimated it. What he had going on in there was so screwed up that I didn't allow the kid to see it."

"Phew… That's good t'know."

"I wouldn't breathe a sigh of relief if I were you. Rider showed up while I was busy, and he wound up fighting the kid."

Earp exhaled a strained yelp, as if hearing that was the worst news he could have ever imagined. He cried out, "Is she okay!?"

"Hmph. Lets just say you shouldn't underestimate us Celts when we're angry. She reduced his previous body to a bloody pulp, but he escaped in a new one."

"I see. Well, least that'll put a stick in 'is craw fer now."

"Yeah, it will. Now tell me who the hell that maniac is. If he was involved in the Akakor Grail War, I don't want to imagine how he would have behaved around Lancer of Akakor."

"I share yer sent'ment, mate," Earp agreed. "I actually went outta my way t'make sure Lancer 'ad as little exposure t'Rider as possible. Since Saber an' Assassin were already bitter rivals, that often left Lancer t'fight 'gainst Caster. He might not 'ave been a nice guy either, but at least he was many times more decent than Rider was. In fact, Caster an' I secretly collab'rated so that he'd isolate Lancer from the rest of us b'fore he'd fight 'er. I guess even Caster was scared o'Lancer bein' exposed t'Rider's demented imagination."

"Interesting. So you're saying that Lancer and Rider didn't meet each other often."

"Not on my watch. Once I found out what 'is True Name was, I looked into 'is 'istory and learned some disturbin' shit. I confided with Saber, and we agreed never t'talk about Rider while Lancer was 'round."

"Is that so?"

"While he ain't a powerful Servant, his real forte is forcin' others t'do things 'gainst their consent. Not only that, he gets 'is kicks outta watchin' others suffer. The crap he wrote while spendin' most of 'is life in prison was proof of 'ow rotten 'is way o'thinkin' was. Durin' the War, he 'ad the perfect mindset fer supportin' the Extremists with their radical goals. Over time though, even the Mages found 'is methods utterly despicable, an' he's been in hidin' fer 'bout the last 25 years. I think they put a target on 'is back 'cause he was offin' their precious slaves an' resources on 'is twisted 'obbies, an' was gradually turnin' 'is attention t'ward the lower-ranked Mages. Y'know what they say - if ya give 'im an inch, he'll take a thousand miles."

"What kind of person would do such things?" Mash wondered with a stern expression.

"That just 'is character, I'm 'fraid. Textbook example of a coward. I had my sights set on that blighter durin' the War, an' it ain't changed one iota. Aside from findin' out what 'appened t'Lancer, I've been searchin' high an' low fer Rider fer years – my yearnin' t'fill 'im with bullets is as strong t'day as it was 50 years ago."

Cuchulainn snarled in frustration and yelled, "Just who exactly is he!?"

"Calm yerself, mate. I'm 'bout t'get t'that."

"Gh…"

"His full name's Donatien Alphonse François de Sade. Y'may know him better by his moniker…"

Then, Earp's expression and tone of voice became as grim as could be.

"Marquis de Sade."


AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well that was a doozy of a chapter, wasn't it? Aside from Cliste's condition, now you see the real reason why I had to give this story the M rating. I'm not going to go into vivid detail about Rider's history during the characters' discussion about him, but if you ever decide to look him up yourself, I'll just say this right now; viewer discretion is advised.