Fate:Division by Zero

by Turbanator

When selecting Servants for the Fourth Holy Grail War, a new log of history with numerous heroes came to light, outside of the normal books and legends. With this new knowledge, the Grail demanded they be resurrected to fight in the War. How was it supposed to know that they were fictional characters from computer games?

1. Character Selection

Fate/Division by Zero

Prologue

Character Selection

Deep in the earth of Fuyuki City under the Ryuudou Temple, the rumbling grew as the promised time approached.

The Holy Grail was hungry.

Since the irregular Servant Avenger was summoned, and then killed almost straightaway, he returned to the Grail, fuming all the way.

His will overwrote the Greater Grail's programming and magical core. It changed from reaching the Root, the ultimate goal of all Magi, to releasing itself to spew forth unending agony to all and sundry.

It wanted the world to suffer all of its Evil, with hellfire and torment.

As it awoke from the slumber decades later, it found the seven Masters and made the preparations to send them the Command Seals for their upcoming Servants. Whilst doing so, it scanned the minds of people of the world, as was normal with each War.

Whilst not a truly sentient object to act on its own, not yet at least, it could only go by the legends of those residing in the Throne of Heroes. In order for its information to be accurate, it performed a very mild form of retrieving information via neural pathways, nothing neither invasive nor damaging to any of the population. Given the workings of three families which created it, this was undetectable to all thanks to the combined powers merging together.

Of course, the Grail was already loaded up with the books and scrolls detailing the warriors and powerful people from the past, with an entire encyclopaedia of all famous people memorable enough to be included in the Throne, along with a few from the future. However, the most currently famous of these heroes, from the minds of the people, would be more likely to be chosen in order to work properly for their legends to be remembered easier. An obscure people who did minor things, forgotten by most, would not be powerful enough to take part. However this system could allow lesser heroes to then take centre stage if their popularity and myths were higher than before, as the masses determined just who was a figure they would most idolise.

Yet, when it read several hundred thousand people, newer legends were appearing, ones which were not around for the last Grail War. Despite its inherent anger remaining from the Third War, it was curious as to phenomenon, since heroes usually were from antiquity, and for other heroes to appear would only indicate that exceptional people had been born and created an entire generation to be enamoured with their own myths. By the time all six billion humans were read, it knew that these individuals were forces equal to the ones in its records.

How was it to know that these people were merely from fiction?

Yes, the knowledge from the books describing Heroes such as King Arthur were numerous, though there was no concrete evidence to prove with certainty that the person in question existed. Similarly with demigods like Hercules, how could a person like that exist, being half human and half God? The Age of Gods was long before the modern era of the magi, and even magi didn't know what happened back then, knowing only of Gaia and Alaya in the Modern Era. Therefore, the three families chose to merely accept the words of man from the olden stories of yore. The Grail did not know if these tales were true or false, nor could it corroborate the stories.

That was not its function.

Its task was to find suitable Heroes, and bring them back to life for the short time of the War, and then be returned to itself to reach the Root, though now its own purpose is to birth itself unto the world.

It accepted all stories and rejected none.

Discovering the new medium of transmitting information via something called 'the Internet', it added these people to the Throne of Heroes, and even used its own mana to find those from the future, who would later no doubt hold importance to the people of Earth.

Regardless of the catalysts bringing back men and women of old, the Grail decided that these new heroes be reborn to fight in the Fourth Grail War.

It then added the new category to check for any updates for new heroes, much to the chagrin of the three families as they never checked the Grail since its construction for this relatively minor error.

The Greater Grail started glowing as it pulled the seven best servants for their Class to be summoned by their new Masters.

There was certainly a lot of material in this 'Video Games' history log…

Meanwhile

The crypt of the Church filled with smoke and steam as Kirei held his hand over his face to prevent it from striking his face.

He had to admit, he was surprised when his hand was marked with three Command Seals, a symbol similar to the Greek lambda, enveloping a square logo similar to a mini maze, above a curved line. Despite his misgivings over having nothing special he wanted in life, he accepted the duty by his father Risei and mentor, Tokiomi Tohsaka.

Thus, here he was, in the quiet of his father's Church in Fuyuki, summoning a Servant, though he didn't like the name, considering it similar to a slave.

He was told that the artefact he had would ensure he receive the legendary assassin known as Hassan-i-Sabbah, which would suit the needs of their plan.

Yet, the person who stood there didn't quite match the description he was given.

The hooded figure stood there, his white gown unusual for someone if they planned to kill someone at night, and he was bowed slightly as if in prayer. His hands hidden beneath the sleeves as they were touching each other, the metal arm guards glinting from the summoning circle. The large brown belt covering a red cloth also was holding a sword in its sheath was also strange for someone skilled in subtle kills.

He looked up and stared at Kirei.

"I would like to confirm, are you my Master?"

Kirei frowned, still not happy with the idea of being such a person to be called a Master, but he had to answer the Servant.

"Yes, I am."

"Our contract is complete then. Servant Assassin, at your service." He politely bowed.

"I have a question, I was expecting another person to take your place for Assassin."

"Oh?" He looked at Kirei again, never removing his hood, but his angry eyes were visible, "Do you think me unsatisfactory as a Servant then?"

"Not at all." Kirei folded his arms, "The fact that the Grail has chosen you speaks of your abilities and legend." He bowed deeply, "I apologise if my manner offended you."

"Please, if you do not receive the person you were waiting for, it is understandable." His eyes widened upon noticing the golden cross hanging from his Master's neck, "Are you a member of the Church?"

"That is correct. Is that a problem? Do you hold a grudge against the Catholics?" Kirei asked, wondering if he needed to use a Command Seal already.

"Not at all, my mother was Christian, my father Muslim." He sighed, "In my times, battles were fought between the faiths; it was troubling to say the least." He cocked his head to one side, "I can see that while this war isn't religious, there are still disagreements between our peoples around the world according to the knowledge granted to me now."

"Humans will always find fault with one another, such is our fickle way of life." Kirei shook his head, at least gaining an understanding into this Servant's way of thinking, "My name is Kotomine Kirei, may I ask as to your identity?"

"You may." The Assassin held out his hand from his side, and a hidden blade extended where his ring finger should have been, startling Kirei for a second, "My name is Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, but you may address me as Altaïr."

Kirei smiled, "Very well, Altaïr, would you like me to introduce you to my father, the current administrator of the Grail War?"

Assassin nodded and returned the smile and left the room following Kirei to the main chapel.

Later that week
Tohsaka Manor

Tokiomi was troubled as he stared at the person in front of him.

While usually a mild mannered man, he cursed to himself when he saw the image of the man staring back at him with a resigned face.

Kirei not having the legendary Assassin was going to cause problems. However he was lucky to have a Noble Phantasm capable of duplicating himself, which would allow the plan to goes ahead as planned.

Still, as long as he got Gilgamesh, the war would be won.

Given that Gilgamesh was known for having the most luxurious of items nearest to him, the leather jacket on the new Servant served to dispel this notion immediately.

He had dark hair, with a short, if unkempt beard. Said leather jacket covering what appeared to be a normal shirt with a grey tie, and standard dark grey trousers, as if he was just going to work.

Tokiomi also noted the two Beretta pistols the man currently held and clicked his tongue. Bullets would be ineffective against the majority of servants, and this man certainly didn't look like he could project anything other than standard ammunition.

"Even death escapes me, forcing me to live again..." The man sighed, "Seems like you're my Master, is that right?"

"…" Tokiomi had to formalise it, despite his regrets, "Yes..."

"Good to hear..." The man moved off and looked at the walls, holstering his pistols in his holders hidden beneath his jacket, "Say, you got any good Scotch around?"

"I'm sorry?" Tokiomi was unaccustomed to being on the back foot.

"Alcohol, to drink, got any?" The man arched his eyebrow.

"Yes…" He gestured to the room exit, "There's some in my cellar."

Despite his misgivings, whoever he summoned had to have been someone special. The Grail could not have pulled a random gunman for no reason.

The sound of a lighter flicking on pricked his ears at the head of Tohsaka clan glanced behind him to see the man puffing on a cigarette.

Yes, he didn't like this man one bit.

"May I ask what Class of Servant you are?" Tokiomi tried to keep his mind off of such negative thoughts by changing the topic.

"… Archer." The man angled his head one side as he thought to himself, before smirking, "Never used a bow before though… I could learn to use one easily if I had the chance."

"Here we are, some are of a vintage make, pick whichever you'd like." Tokiomi gestured to large though modest wine cellar.

Looking over the rare wines, he moved over to the side find a dusty old bottle, smiling at the label. Blowing off the years of disuse, he pulled out two glasses already with ice inside them from his inner pocket, surprising Tokiomi in that there was no way his jacket was large enough to hold them there.

"Care to join me?" He sat down at the only table there, a circular wooden desk and placed one glass in front of himself, and the other at the empty seat. Somehow an ashtray was there, presumably provided by the Servant.

"It would be my pleasure."

Obsequiously taking a seat, he waited for Archer stub his cigarette out, who then poured Tokiomi a small helping of the Scotch, and then did the same for himself. Raising the glass in a half-hearted gesture, as if he'd done this many times, he spoke.

"The name's Max Payne."

His Master raised his own glass in response, "Tokiomi Tohsaka."

"Here's to our partnership for the Holy Grail. You've got the best shot in the War, in more ways than one." His pained eyes then turned serious, "I won't fail you, Master."

They clinked their glasses together, before Archer downed his in one go, Tokiomi only getting through half of his own by sipping it, before his Servant started to pour another for himself.

Tokiomi smiled; perhaps Archer wouldn't be too bad as his Servant. He seemed to be a good person, deep down knowing he wasn't wanted, but still playing along to be a good Familiar.

As his vision started to go fuzzy, he then realised he may need to research potions for reducing inebriation, not to mention dizziness and increasing tolerance, due to the level of alcohol concentration in his collection.

Meanwhile
Fuyuki Woods

Checking over the blood patterns just to be sure, Waver Velvet muttered to himself about the incantation to ensure it was correct. He didn't want to mess it up, especially since the Command Seals were on his hand, marking him as a Master for the War.

There were striking, Two large and boomerang shaped on the outside in a diamond shape. Both were shielding the inner portion, which Waver could not mistake for anything other than a dragon, and the outer portions would be its wings.

As removed the catalyst from his pouch, he tried to forget that he accidentally stole the relic, on purpose, from his professor as petty vengeance. Now here he was, about to fight in the Fourth Holy Grail War.

Finally sure of himself, he made the incantation, the red and fresh blood of the chickens glowing with the words spoken out loud, as the winds rushed about his form.

The explosion was a surprise to him, and when the figure appeared in a flash of light, a loud booming voice with a rumble echoed around him.

Waver shook as the voice struck him to the core, he felt it within his bones, and he was positive that other Masters, if not the rest of Fuyuki, heard that voice.

He took a few moments to stare in wonder as his successful summoning. The man was definitely an experienced warrior from myth. His leather boots were lined with fur on one edge, and the legs were covered in animal pelt, with more leather and iron studs of sorts holding it together. His leather armour on the chest had a circular metallic plate and two metal belts tying it together around his back. One arm held a shield, the other a sword, though Waver noted the fighter had a dagger in his belt, as well as a broadsword strapped to his back.

Yet, the most striking thing about the person was his head. The piercing eyes could penetrate steel, and his breath was visible despite it being fairly humid that night, meaning he was steaming somehow since the water vapour should not be that obvious.

Lastly, his helmet instantly drew your attention, covering his upper cheeks, and angling upwards sharply to just before his ears, before extending downwards to protect the back of his head. His hair was just long enough to be peeking out from under the metal.

The two curved horns pointing down and forwards also gave him the image of a bull ready to stampede.

"I am Servant Rider." He spoke, again with the rumble, but it was much lower this time, "Are you my Master?"

"Y-Yes! I am Waver Velvet." He bowed, before realising he was just emulating people in Japan, and extended his hand to Rider.

Rider sheathed his sword and hefted the shield onto his back and strode up to Waver. Instead of accepting his hand, he moved his arm down to grasp the forearm firmly, then didn't move it at all in a familiar, yet different style of handshake. Waver gripped Rider's forearm in return.

"We are one now." He released the arms and raised his head to stare at the night sky, "Why are the skies so dark?" A few moments went by before he was enlightened, "Ah, I see, in this era, artificial lamps make it harder to see the stars."

"You mean, you came from a time before electricity?" Waver asked, only to suddenly feel immensely stupid, since no one in their right mind would wear something like this in the modern era.

"You have many wonders in this time, metallic creatures which soar through the air across the seas, mechanical devices which can propel projectiles instantly to kill, and ways to communicate instantly across the globe." His smile widened, "I look forward to seeing more of this world."

Wave looked away, a frown growing upon his face as he realised how petty his wish for the Grail would be when faced with such a legend who merely wanted to visit other lands.

"Master, what is the problem? Do you not wish to travel, to expand your horizons?" He extended his arms wide, "The world is vast and beyond your belief."

Waver shook his head, "I want to be acknowledged by everyone!"

Rider smiled beneath his helmet, "Then, become great. Build yourself up, use your talents and skills and excel in them. Ignore anyone else who obstructs you. Only you can decide your own destiny."

Waver heard the words of Rider, and then shook his head, "No, it isn't that easy to just change yourself. I can't be like you, a person of such power."

Rider placed his larger hand on Waver's shoulder, "Easy? I never said that!" He grip tightened, "When you are just a weak prisoner of your own mind, you need to break free and learn, and never stop growing." He closed his eyes for a moment and a horse materialised behind him, "Only then will you find out the power inside yourself."

He got on the horse and held an arm down, "Let us retire to your homestead, Master, and plan for this War."

Waver, feeling a tiny bit more courage, reached out, and was pulled up onto the horse as they rode off into the streets.

Meanwhile
Hyatt Hotel

The top 24 floors were booked up, and in the penthouse, with all his magical reinforcements and bounded barriers protecting the area, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald had finished incanting the Summoning Ritual, and next to him was his fiancée Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri, siphoning her prana into the circle and into Kayneth, forging the link between her and the Servant.

The ground shook as the heavy footsteps landed onto the carpet.

Why was it so heavy, surely Servants in this class should be light and nimble? Kayneth was about to ask this before a roar came out from inside the circle.

Six green lights turned yellow as the creature thumped towards Kayneth.

"Ar-Are you my Servant?!" He couldn't believe this person was his Servant, never could Diarmuid Ua Duibhne sound or look like this.

He was a vast size, fully armoured from head to toe, with rubber as well on the joints, a massive drill where the right hand should be, a left hand which could crush his neck with one twist, and the helmet had bars over and around it, behind which were the six eyes staring back at Kayneth.

Overall, this creature was supposed to be used in a deep sea mission, not the Holy Grail War.

After hearing his words, the servant paused, the yellow lights flashing intermittently to green, then finally settling on green.

A low moan came from him, like a sad dog as he somehow nodded to Kayneth.

"What a ridiculous charade, I have never failed in my wording, what manner of Servant are you?"

The moaning from the familiar turned into a pained and slurred word, "Laaaanceeeer…" It spoke during one breath.

Kayneth brought out his Mystic Code, ready to use it and turned to Sola-Ui, "What manner of beast have you helped summon? Could your prana have affected the flow of magic?"

As he raised his voice, Lancer stepped in between Kayneth and Sola-Ui, spinning its drill, the eyes yellow now.

"My, it seems that Lancer doesn't like you raising your voice at me, husband-to-be." Her smirk was vindictive, "It looks like he knows where the power is coming from, and he is connected with me now…"

Kayneth held up the arm with the Command Seals to Lancer, "Don't tempt me to use this power, whilst I hold this, you will heel." He lowered it without activating any of them and stepped back. Lancer recognised the power behind the Seals and powered down the drill, its eyes returning to their green state. "No matter, we will move as planned, whilst an unexpected development, we will commence the fight once all Servants are summoned."

Making one last moan of agreement, Lancer dissipated in the air.

That moment
Matou Manor Basement

Blood seeped out from Kariya's left eye, destroyed by the consumption from the crest worms acting as artificial magic circuits. His working right eye was however disturbed and horrified at what was summoned in front of him.

He heard a gasp from behind him as Zouken Matou realised what manner of being was brought back to life as he made preparations to escape.

The room turned dark just by having the being in front of him as the candles began to snuff out. The summoning circle changed composition into rust and spread across the floor like a plague as a large blade swung down in a long vertical strike.

The splash from the blood and bones to Kariya's side coated the Master in viscous fluids, the numerous dead worms belonging to the body formerly known as Zouken fell to the ground in two pieces as the blade returned to its owner.

The Servant's legs weren't visible, covered as they were by an apron from the waist down, and made up of what seemed to be human skin sewn together. His muscular torso was white and cracked with cuts which didn't bleed; his forearms were coated in a shiny layer of maroon, as if just embedded in someone's body.

The last thing was the impossibly heavy helmet, though it couldn't really be called that given it was much larger than anything else a human could have used.

What kind of person would wear a black and bloodied metallic pyramid on your head?

Kariya didn't believe in God, but seriously considered taking up a religion to find someone, or something to pray to, since he could not bear to look at the creature in front of him for fear of being driven insane.

Given what he had been through in the past year with the training and adapting to the grotesque procedures done by Zouken, all of those hours were just a minor inconvenience and teasing in comparison to this feeling.

The crest worms writhed more as his servant moved closer to him, and he felt the presence speak to his mind.

"Berserker." It spoke in a rasp unlike anything a human could utter.

His bladder long since relieved, Kariya stepped back and up the stairs to the rest of the house, steering well clear of the rooms where the few family members resided, with Berserker following him into the night, slowly fading away to be by Kariya's back.

At least it didn't want to kill him right now, which is the only blessing Kariya could have had for now. The best part was, he knew exactly where to go to unleash this monster.

As the two left, a pile of crest worms came out of the wall and chittering their teeth, spoke as one, "This is a troublesome Servant. He must not get near me again..."

Zouken's soul began his plan to find a new body for the coming battles.

At the same time
Fuyuki City

The teenager known as Ryuunosuke Uryuu stumbled over backwards, tripping over the decapitated head of one of his victims, dropping the book from his parent's house. He just assumed that he picked up a random book on the occult, and not an actual book written by mages, namely his lost time dead ancestors.

The circle made out of blood and entrails lit the room up more than the TV playing in the background. His hand burned as a circle with two lines inside it looking like a triangle appeared.

Seconds later, a person stood there, arms folded, with a smirk on his face. The face was odd, and seemed to be held in place by three metallic clasps and was lighter than the skin outside this section. His wind-swept hair flowing backwards had some strands sticking out a bit. The black jacket and trousers were unremarkable, though the sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, and on his left collar was a hexagonal device with a green pulsing light in the middle. Beneath the jacket was a light brown waistcoat with buckles covering a white shirt and yellow vest. A holster on his right leg had another glowing circle, and also held a gun in it.

"Yo kid, what the hell is this?" He waved his arms about the room, "You call me into the Holy Grail War, and this is the reception you give me?" He seemed dissatisfied with the blood on the walls.

"Awesome…" Ryuunosuke stared at the man, "Are you a demon?"

The man held his chin in thought, "No, I'm not actually, I'm a hero, one of the good guys." His face began to twist as memories came back to him, "And I'll prove to the world just how wrong it is to mess with someone who will save everyone."

Ryuunosuke didn't understand exactly what was going on, he only understood the pleasure of pain and suffering of others, and believed this man to be capable of amazing acts of evisceration.

"Hey, since you're here, do you want to kill this one for me, to start your revenge?" He pointed at the terrified child from the family; left alive as insurance if Ryuunosuke needed more blood.

Glancing at the boy, the man sneered, "Quit your crying, no one survives ordeals by whimpering." He held out his hand, "Here, let me relieve you of that burden."

His circular device on his jacket glowed brighter, and a muffled boom could be heard in the background, similar to a fighter jet breaking the sound barrier.

A blue lights appeared and an outline of a robot was built up, surprising two of the people in the room, until it grew and formed a red robot. It had no head, since was essentially within the shoulder region of the machine.

Turning to the smaller child, it spoke.

"First law disabled." The child then started to panic and squirm inside his restraints, "Target death imminent. Fire, Fire, Fire."

From its arms, two flamethrowers blasted out their fuel onto the child, setting him alight. As his skin and clothes burned, he screamed and slowly perished, only seeing Ryuunosuke's grin widen.

When the child had finally expired, the robot stopped firing. "Mission Success." It then deconstructed itself and returned to wherever it came from.

"Excellent." A light then shone from his hands as an upside-down frustum made of ancient stone with purple lines blinking formed, spinning slowly with as it blinked more, "Looks like souls are a much better power source than Eridium..." He felt the heat increase and then dissipated the object, "Let's get out of here kid, the house is going to be a ruin within minutes." The fire indeed began to spread to the TV, which exploded, and then the curtains flamed up as well.

"Who are you, man?"

"I am Caster, your Servant." He kicked the door open and went through first, "What's your name?"

"Ryuunosuke." He thought to himself as they left the house, "Caster's a boring name, don't you have some other normal name?"

Caster stared at his Master, wondering if he was actually playing dumb, and that his summoning was intentional. After seeing the boy's delighted and somewhat puzzled look, he realised that Ryuunosuke was just a simple, but skilled, killer.

"I am known as Handsome Jack, but my friends just call me Jack."

"Ah, okay then Jack-san." Ryuunosuke deferred to his superior in murder, "Please show me many more ways to kill people."

The grin on Caster's face grew, "I sure will, but first, let us hide for now, since I'm sure the police and fire brigade are on their way here. I need to setup my workshop."

As they ran through the streets, the home they had left was now fully burning to the ground as the streets wailed with sirens.

Earlier
Cornwall

Emiya Kiritsugu stood next to his wife Irisviel von Einzbern wherein the artefact of Avalon glowed with power, feeding instructions to the Grail to provide the rightful owner of the blessed sheath.

Yet, the person they were expecting did not arrive.

The man they received did not appear to wear any armour befitting that of a king, nor did he appear to even be British in his race. After looking at his face, he seemed to be more in his late teens than a real grown man.

Wearing beige leggings, with knee high leather boots, matched with the leather bracers and gloves. His green outfit was simply made of cloth, though hints of chainmail could be seen beneath it. Held together with a leather belt, there was a strap holding one sword and shield on his back. His blond hair was flowing out from beneath his long green hat.

Lastly, his long pointed ears finally revealed that this person wasn't exactly human.

"Who are you?" Kiritsugu demanded, "You are not King Arthur."

The swordsman remained quiet and frowned. A small white mote of light came from one of his pockets and grew two tiny wings and then spoke with a high pitched voice.

"Hey, listen!" She spoke with an irate tone, "This is Servant Saber. Are you our Master?"

"Yes, that is correct." Kiritsugu indicated his white-haired wife next to him, "You will be protecting Irisviel von Einzbern however. I will be acting from the shadows to defeat the Masters of the War."

Saber grit his teeth but bowed, before turning to Irisviel.

"Saber, I hope we get along well together. I know I'm not a great Mage, but I'm sure I can help in the coming battles"

Saber shook his head and held out his hand, to which she accepted, and he knelt down to touch his forehead to her cold pale skin.

Irisviel blushed and also swore she could see a symbol glow golden on his hand before dissipating.

Kiritsugu just took this into consideration, and then stared at the three equilateral triangles of his Command Seals, wondering about his tactics here on into the War.

Author's Notes

So here we have it, new Servants, new possibilities, and a lot of mess to follow. Inspired by The Infamous Man's fanfic Fate:Zero Sense, found on this same site. I decided to change it about with characters from video games and take it from there. I have let him know about this fic, and he was okay with it.

From the Servants, I'll be posting their stats most likely in the next chapter, though when that will be, I don't know as of yet.

Till then, enjoy!

J