First Singularity, Part 3: Lyon
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"Oh, Charles, I can't wait to be summoned by Chaldea myself. And I'll drag Amadeus along if I have to." The newly revealed last Queen of France spoke with infectious excitement as she conversed with the Assassin in Chaldea.
Said Assassin was chuckling back, his worried and relieved expression conveying much despite the proverbial glass that separated them. "You might actually be able to bring the light that this base needs, Marie."
"Hey, what about me?!" Elizabeth protested, slamming her clawed hands on the wooden surface.
"Ya got a long way until you can match the Queen, kid." The Celtic Druid commented from his corner, reminding the world that he was still awake through all of this. All the while the surrounding Servants chuckled at the exchange.
"No one's asking you, Old Man!" she countered, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Wow, having a Rider sure is mighty convenient." Ayako said, deftly ignoring the brewing storm behind her with a neutral smile on her face, her hands on the reins as the cart was pulled by the crystal horse of Marie Antoinette.
"If one answered our summons, it would definitely make things easier for us." Ritsuka added, sitting beside her.
"Do you guys have any idea what we're going to find in Lyon?" Koleen asked, her back to Ayako's, with Mash's to Ritsuka's.
"A Servant that has been around longer than us, most assuredly." The lanky form of Mozart replied in between the humming he supplied the group along with the gestures of his baton. It sounded like the Requiem, if she knew her classical pieces correctly.
"A dragon slayer, is what Saint Martha said." Mash supplied.
"And who do we know, that was an actual dragon slayer?" Jeanne asked with naïve curiosity.
The figure of Doctor Romani appeared in the holographic display, standing beside Sanson. "Our records have the hero Siegfried, who slew the dragon Fafnir and bathed in its blood, making his skin impenetrable. We also have Saint George, famous as the Dragon-slaying Saint."
"I thought Siegfried got crystalized wisdom?" Mash asked the Doctor.
"That's the Scandinavian version of the tale. The Saga of the Volsungs. The one Doctor Roman is talking about is the Germanic version." The blonde Witch answered.
"That's right. We'll try to see if we can find anyone else who is a dragon slayer. In the meantime, expect the likelihood of either of those two in Lyon." The Doctor finished as static began to disrupt the hologram.
Mash furrowed her brows in concern. "Doctor?"
"We're losing connection. Hold up, we'll try to fix it on our end. Be back in a few." The connection to Chaldea was cut, leaving them alone in the French plains.
Ayako slowed the horses down, reaching a normal walking speed. "Caster, please scout the place out."
"You got it, Master." The Celtic Druid stood up, covering his face with his hood, before he leapt off the cart.
"Things have been going quite well for us." Ayako turned around, facing everyone else. "But I doubt it's going to get easier from here on out. So we should expect trouble."
"What's the exact plan then?" the Ruler Class Servant asked wearily.
"We'll wait for Caster to report back." She replied, turning back to the front, letting the horse to pick up a little more speed.
"I'm sure whatever it is that we face, we'll get through it without as much trouble as before." Marie said with a bright smile. "Three Masters, along with three more Servants. We actually have enough Servants to face the Dragon Witch along with her Berserkers."
"True. No longer being insanely outnumbered is a good step in the right direction." Mozart said with a nod.
"Having not just Lancer as our frontline is good too. Along with another support." Koleen sighed, both of dejection and relief. "When Chaldea gets more of its generators up and running, this is what we're looking at in the future."
"Really?" Ritsuka turned to the American with slightly wide eyes.
"Of course. Chaldea was prepped to handle, at the most, 16 Masters deployed in a Singularity, along with their Servants." She elaborated, catching Mash's glancing gaze. "Three Masters, with at least two Servants each? That should be more than enough before our bodies take on the weight of the contracts."
"That sounds… cool." He said, chuckling with a bit of nervousness in his voice. "Having future Singularities be easier."
"We're gonna need it, 'cause I doubt the Singularities themselves would be easy." Ayako said from her spot. "I can't imagine doing all of this alone. If the stress to your body doesn't kill you, the stress to your mind will." She shook her head, before focusing back on the dirt road ahead.
"You Masters seem to have your work cut out for you." Saint Jeanne commented with a light, understanding smile.
"Yes, we do." Mash said back with a returning smile. "It is our duty, after all."
Elizabeth sat herself between the two, fists balled impatiently. "What's taking the Old Man so long, I'm getting antsy here!"
"Can't even wait for a minute, could ya?" the familiar form of the Druid appeared as he materialized beside the cart.
"What's up ahead?" Ayako asked, stopping the cart.
Cú Chulainn shook his head with a frown marring his face. "It's a ruin, like La Charité. The Witch's army got here before us."
"Could you tell by how long it's been like that?" she asked with a growing grimace, one shared by her fellow Masters.
"Not from a brief glance." He replied. "But, there's spiritual energy permeating there. Lingering."
"Something's waiting?" Koleen asked.
"Most likely. It could be our dragon slayer, it could be something else waiting for us. The ruins are also filled with corpses, so that should be fun." He said with flat sarcasm.
Ayako sighed, shoulders slumping tiredly, before she turned around to fully face the rest of the cart. She met each Servants' eyes one by one. "Alright, here's the plan…"
"Would you shut the hell up already, you freakin' weirdo!" Elizabeth all but yelled out as she pulled her lance out of the rubble that she had plunged it into. "Christine this, Christine that! Aaahhhh!"
"Do you need my help?" Marie called from atop her crystal steed, laying waste to the zombies that had risen, torn apart by the crystals that rose from the horse's path.
"Ugh! Fine! Switch!" Her wings sprouted from her back, launching herself towards Marie's position. The crystal horse leaped over the draconic Servant, giving Elizabeth room as she swung her lance wide, slicing through the zombies.
With gleaming light, the crystal horse surged towards where the Assassin Class Servant had ran off to. Large crystals erupted from where it landed, decimating the already ruined landscape, as Marie and her steed scoured the surroundings for the Servant that had taken control of the desolate city. The Rider Class Servant looked around her, bringing her hand to her lips, before gesturing it towards where she last saw the Servant. What could be said as a pink gust of wind surged from her hand, rushing forward with destructive power.
"Who knew being fancy and pretty counted as a weapon." Ayako commented with an amused smile on her face, one hand covering a single eye as a makeshift flying familiar scouted deeper into the city.
"Is that what it is?" Ritsuka asked, watching the spectacle with wide eyes.
"How else would the last Queen of France be immortalized?" Mozart said, also watching the fight with awe and pride.
"I'd assume with a scar around her neck." Koleen commented darkly, a faint red receding from her eyes. "I'm detecting something, a bit further west."
"The keep. What's left of it, anyway." Cú Chulainn said, his red eyes focusing on ruined keep.
"Then he's gotta be inside." Ayako said, cutting her connection off from her familiar. "Caster, Mozart, go help Lancer and Marie. Mash and Ruler will keep us company inside."
"Thought I'd never get a chance to unleash." The Celtic Druid said with a feral smile, already aiming his wooden staff on an approaching group of wyverns.
"I'd say good luck, but we'd need more than good luck right now. So, break a leg!" the composer said as the group marched onward, rushing past the uncobbled path.
"This is not something I would ever wish upon even my worst of enemies." The Saint said with a trouble look on her face, striking down the stragglers that were in their way with her sword.
"We're granting them the closest thing to a peaceful death after being undead." Ritsuka said, his words attempting to comfort Ruler. He then pointed towards the large wooden door ahead of them. "Mash!"
"Yes, Master!" the Demi-Servant rushed before them, her massive shield held high to better serve as her battering ram.
The wooden doors folded like paper to the strength of a Demi-Servant, revealing to them the empty, darkened halls of the ruined keep.
"Spread apart! We need to find him!" Ayako ordered, with each of them taking a direction inside.
With her red coat tightening around her, Ayako took one of the upper floors, gliding through the rubble and giving each smaller room a quick but meticulous scan. One room after another, finding nothing more than rubble and dirt. The frown that had latched on her face grew at the wanton destruction this Dragon Witch had wrought upon these people, regardless of whether it was warranted or not. It was just deplorable.
A cry shook Ayako out of her thoughts, her mind going on overdrive the moment she heard the sound of steel meeting steel. She rushed back down the path she came from, helped by her overcoat by allowing her limited flight. Back to the ground floor, she went.
The scene she came upon was a relieving one, as Koleen and Saint Jeanne d'Arc had successfully placated this dragon slayer's worries. A tall, well-built with tanned skin and a long mane of grey. On his revealing chest was a glowing blue scar that spread further apart, illuminating the otherwise dark keep. He looked beaten and haggard, his mighty sword caked in dried blood with slight tears and scars running down him. But most of all, the thing that Ayako zeroed in on, was the grey horns and wings that sprouted off his form.
A smile formed on her face as she pieced it together, approaching the assembling group as the famed dragon slayer sat back down tiredly. "I'm sorry, I can't be of anymore use." He said to them.
"Kalls, we need Medea's potions." Ayako said with her hand held out, reaching to the Servant before them.
"On it." Replied the American Witch, as she began rummaging through her pack.
"Will he be alright?" Ritsuka asked them.
"We'll make it so." The Puppeteer answer, before cringing slight. "That came out harsher than I intended."
"Guys!" the holographic form of the Doctor emerged in the darkness, startling a few of them. "We've been trying to connect for the past half hour. We have a problem!"
Ayako sighed as she kneeled beside the Servant, with Medea's potions in hand. "What problem?"
"We're detecting multiple Servants approaching Lyon. And, a massive signature that's accompanying them." He said with growing trepidation.
The all looked around worriedly, every single one of them already having an idea as to what it might be. "We need to go." Koleen said to the group.
"You guys head on out and meet whoever this is." Ayako said as she uncorked a potion. "I'll stay and help our dragon slayer heal."
"But, Ayako-san…" Ritsuka alone looked conflicted, his eyes shifting from her to the conflict outside.
"Its fine, Ritsu-chan." She said to him, meeting his worried gaze with a comforting smile. "We need Siegfried here to stand with us. I'll make sure he's in tip-top shape for whatever it is that's coming for us."
"Senpai, let's go." Mash's hand wrapped around Ritsuka's elbow, beckoning him.
He met the Demi-Servant's eyes, before finally relenting. "See you outside, Ayako-san."
Ayako didn't see them leave the keep, her attention still kept on the down Servant. "Sorry, that I'm holding you back."
"There's nothing to be sorry for, Siegfried. You are Siegfried, aren't you?" he nodded. "You've done well by yourself, but don't worry. We're here, to help and to be helped. We'll take this Dragon Witch down."
"Oh… Kami-sama…" Ritsuka's breathless words reached Koleen's ears as their eyes landed on the massive creature that floated before them. A creature that she never thought she would see with her own two eyes.
Her own hands were scurrying through her pack, searching for whatever she could find that might help, as futile as their chances might be. A sigh of not quite defeat left her, as her hand covered the other, hovering over her Command Spells. If things are going to progress in a way she was suspecting, they were going to need it.
"Hooo? Are these the Chaldeans I've heard about?" a voice spoke from above the dragon, its massive wings holding them onto the ground with each beat. "And here I thought it was someone threatening."
"Big words coming from a lie." She could hear Ritsuka turning to her in shock, no doubt his eyes just as wide. The fact that the Servants were giving her similar looks was also telling.
There was a moment of silence, before a blackened formed appeared in their view, eyeing down on them from atop the dragon. A direct, mirror opposite of Saint Jeanne d'Arc. "A lie?" she asked in disbelief.
"If you really were Jeanne d'Arc, you would have never stoop so low to become such a shell of yourself." The scowl became more pronounce on her face, as she met eye to eye with the one that defiled the image of the Saint.
"Those are big words coming from a pathetic whelp like you." Those words meant nothing to Koleen. Nothing compared to the venom she could feel emanating from the fake. From the lie.
"Saint Martha, even summoned in such a diminished state, thanks to you, was still true to herself until she died." she brought her hands out of her pack, pointing her right hand to the fake Saint. "You strut around France, parading yourself with such hollow might. Unleashing death and destruction as if you're trying to prove yourself. Because even you know how much of a fake you are."
Koleen spat onto the ground, declaring her disgust as if her scornful gaze was not enough. "You, whoever you are, are not Jeanne d'Arc."
With her pink eyes still locking with the faded yellow of the enraged Servant, she didn't see the reactions of those around her. Elizabeth was clapping proudly for her Master, while both Cú Chulainn and Mozart were laughing at with uncontrolled glee. Marie Antoinette kept her eyes moving between the two, her lower face covered by her hands, while the Saint herself looked flabbergasted, scandalized by such words that were also meant to bolster her. Mash, however, looked worried, gripping her hands onto her shield.
"Fake?! I'll show you fake!" the altered Jeanne declared with anger, raising her perverted banner high. "Fafnir! Burn them to a crisp!"
The mighty dragon reared back, a pool of magical energy emerging from its throat. Ritsuka already had his hand out to the Shielder. "Mash, protect us!"
Koleen shifted her hand to Ruler, her own Command Spells glowing. "Saint Jeanne d'Arc. Ruler, help us."
"Yes, Senpai/Koleen!" both Servants moved to stand before the Masters, holding their unfurled banner and shield to brace for the coming attack.
"Everyone, move behind them!" Koleen ordered to the rest of the Servants.
"Luminosite Eternelle!"
"Lord Chaldeas!"
A combined effort of two defensive Noble Phantasms protected them from the fiery death that had left the maw of the dragon, melting the stone and dirt that amounted to the ruins of Lyon. And yet even with them being shielded by it, the heat was still overpowering. It felt like an eternity, in what actually amounted to a couple of seconds, of the raging fire that blanketed the barrier that served to differentiate what it meant to be alive, and to be charred. They held on, for as long as it was needed, in order to protect the Masters.
The Dragon Witch was cackling through the midday sky with maddened ferocity, with her anger focused on the pink eyed blonde. Euphoria surging through her entire self. Yet so focused was she on the apparent suffering of the one who had sought to demean her, that she did not notice the form of the Servant that was hidden within the ruins. Did not notice the trembling that permeated through the dragon's being.
At least, not until it was too late.
Her yellow eyes narrowed to dots, finally catching a glimpse of the figure that stood off to the side, with a shorter redheaded Master standing beside him. His sword, gleaming with power as his Noble Phantasm was released. He brought it up high, and swung it down.
"Balmung!"
A wave of energy blasted off of the blade, in theory not enough to rival that of the dragon's roar. Yet the theory was proven false, as the dragon's fire faltered, struck by the Noble Phantasm by its entire being. A roar of pain and anguish filled the ruined city, freeing everyone else from its onslaught.
"Damn it!" the Dragon Witch all but screamed. "Fafnir, take to the skies! Hurry!" the dragon roared once more, though not with its former might, as it did indeed take to the skies, struggling as it did.
They all watched the form of the dragon go higher and higher, escaping the battlefield. Ayako rushed towards them, unheeding of the molten rock that was Lyon. "Marie, get your horse prepped, we're leaving!" she turned back to the Servant that had dealt the crippling blow. "Don't worry, we have a cart that you can still rest in."
His breath was still ragged, exhausted by the sudden exertion. "My thanks, Masters of Chaldea."
"Don't thank us yet. We're still not out of it." Ayako answered back, as she brought her wrist close to her face. "Doctor, anymore signs of them?"
"The dragon is still retreating, but we're still getting smaller signs of wyverns converging on your location. And even more Servants approaching you guys."
"You heard the man. Move!" her orders were followed posthaste. Elizabeth and Cú Chulainn helped the Saber Class Servant along, with Jeanne and Mozart joining the Masters in the cart, as Marie took the reins this time around.
"Hold on tight, ladies and gents!" Marie said, as her crystal horse took in with a sprint with a mental command.
They burst through the ruins, reaching speeds that would have left the cart in scraps if it weren't reinforced. Holding on tight, just as the Queen had told them to, they sped through the open plains of France leaving Lyon in the dust. Unfortunately for them, they didn't get far from Lyon before their escape was cut off by something else that could keep up with them. All the Servants saw the blur that was speeding towards the group. Mash grabbed both Ritsuka and Koleen, tucking them into her shield. The Celtic Druid grabbed Ayako by her collar and threw her out of the cart, knowing that her red overcoat will protect her, as he reached for Mozart and pulled him along. Ruler simply jumped off the side of the cart with haste. Without looking, Elizabeth's hands reached for Siegfried, lifting the weakened Servant with her as she took off.
In that split second, the cart blew apart in splinters as they all flew to separate ways. Mash landed on her shield with Ritsuka and Koleen in her protection, still sliding forward from the momentum. A miniature wickerman emerged from the ground, catching the Casters with its wooden hands. With a quick shout of its name, Ayako's coat hung in the air, while Saint Jeanne tuck and rolled into a crouch. Elizabeth, with her wings out, was scowling at the Servant that had attacked them. And finally Marie, stopping her mount in that instant, turning to face their enemy.
A Servant of blackened blue, covered by an obscuring smoke, stood where their cart was. Trailing behind him, riding a couple of the many wyverns that were trailing them, were two more Servants. One with hair of white and eyes of gold, not unlike the Director. Carrying an ornate staff, and dressed in what could be described as a pervert's fantasies of what a dominatrix would wear. And the other, was a far more familiar face. Though this time, his eyes bore madness in them.
"Ah, this must be destiny." He said, with his eyes locked onto Marie. "To be reunited again, my beautiful Queen! Ah, I can't wait to set my blade upon you once more! Oh, how exciting!"
If she could back away further, Ayako would've. Instead, she brought her wrist to her face. "Uh, Sanson? You have anything you want to say?" her voice was low enough to not be heard by the maddened Assassin.
Silence trickled by, before the Servant back at Chaldea responded. "There's nothing I could say, Master." With obvious shame and incredulity.
"Thought so."
"Oh, Charles, to see you in such a state." The Queen deigned him with a response of pity. "I'm sorry."
The Berserk Sanson cackle maniacly, drawing his blade and planting the tip onto the ground. "Sorry? What fo-"
"AAAAAHHHHHH!" his response was cut off as an enraged Elizabeth, screaming at the top of her lungs as she lunged towards the last Servant, dropping Siegfried unceremoniously.
The white haired Servant, who had merely kept her eyes on their Sanson, moved to block Elizabeth's attack with her staff. Her golden eyes, visible through her mask, tightened to pinpricks when she realized who it was that had attacked her. "You."
"No, you!" the Servant was pushed back by Elizabeth's force, swinging her lance down, cratering the ground beneath them.
"Well, this is it then." Ayako sighed as she floated down. "Everyone, engage! Don't even give them time to talk!"
"Mash, help Ruler out!" Koleen ordered as she got up off the ground, seeing the Saint being assailed by the black knight, yelling in a way suited for a Berserker Class Servant.
"Yes, Master!" the Demi-Servant moved to Ruler's side, leaving them behind in a dented crater as she tanked a blow from the Berserker. A loud bang of clashing metal echoed in the battlefield.
"Mozart, assist Marie. I'm sure you won't mind. Caster, deal with the wyverns; give 'em everything you got." Ayako said the moment her feet touched the dirt road.
"You got it, lass." The Celtic Druid said with a feral smile, a ball of fire conjuring at the tip of his staff, before it was fired at the farther beasts.
"Let's make sure Charles doesn't cross the line." The composer commented as he moved towards the conflict between the Queen and her executioner.
"What do we do?" Ritsuka asked as he approached her, looking a bit ragged himself.
Ayako herself pulled out a ration bar from the pockets of her coat. "Eat up. We're healing Siegfried." She said before taking a bite.
Koleen approached from them from behind, in her own hands two bars with one held out to Ritsuka. "We have to be quick, the French army is approaching." She said, her pink eyes scrutinizing the landscape, before she turned to Ritsuka. "How taxing is that healing spell you learnt?"
"Not as taxing as the Gandr spell." He replied, looking between the two female Masters.
"Good enough." Ayako said, with the both of them nodding together. "Let's get to it."
Elizabeth was relentless, her attacks leaving nothing but craters and destruction behind her wake. A single swing wrecked the once serene view of the French plains. Actions more befitting of a Berserker than her actual Class, but she might as well be at that moment. Unable to think clearly as long as the Berserk Assassin was within her sights. Though if any of her attacks would hit, unfortunately the Assassin was far more agile than her, dodging her lance with the quickness of the Assassin Class. A torrent of blood erupted form the hostile Servant's palms, rushing towards Elizabeth. The blood seared through the ground like it was sprayed through a tight hose, yet it fell apart with a downward swing of Elizabeth's ornate lance.
"Look at you, you useless child!" the Servant sneered, conjuring an iron maiden before her, before launching it to Elizabeth. "Losing yourself like this! Is this the best you can offer!?"
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" her wings flew open, launching her faster towards the Assassin, barely missing the weapon as it aimed towards her center core.
"Do you still have that pitiful dream?!" the Assassin swung her clawed hand down on Elizabeth, but the Lancer shrugged off the Assassin's attempts.
"Whatever my dreams are, are real! Compared to you!" she bellowed out the last word, sending the Servant back as she was assailed by a roar of those of draconic blood.
"Liz, calm down." Elizabeth's entire form paused, as she felt a Command Spell wash over her. A different sensation than the one earlier that day. She gave a quick glance back to where the cart had been, locking eyes with Ayako, whose eyes were glowing an array of colors. "I got you."
She smiled inwardly, before turning to face the horrid Servant that stood beside her. She gripped her weapon tighter, seemingly calming the tension around her body. The Servant's sneer deepened at her visage. "Needing to be minded by a maiden. You truly are a bratty child."
"That's rich, Carmilla." she closed the distance, swinging her lance with far more precision than before, earning a strike at the newly revealed Servant's arm. "That's very rich."
"Why do you try to run so much from this?!" Carmilla said, gesturing to the both of them. "Seeking such outlandish dreams! Embrace it!"
"If you embrace it, then why do you regret it?!" she bellowed out once more, though not enough to send Carmilla back flying.
"I do not regret it! How da-"
"Stop lying!" she swung again, though her moves were more telegraphed.
"I will not be talked down to by you, brat!" the Assassin raised her staff, aiming it at Elizabeth. "All lies on a plate of illusion. Yet the maiden-" her words were halted when she felt an unfamiliar hold on her form.
"Finish it, Liz." Ayako said, slowly walking towards the two Servants, with her three-tone Mystic Eyes locked on Carmilla. "I can't hold this for long." A trickle of blood was slowly dripping down her left eye.
Elizabeth sighed, the most relaxed she's looked. "Thank you, Birdie." Elizabeth said with a grateful smile, hurriedly walking towards Carmilla.
"You… a-are a… fool." The Assassin croaked out, struggling out of the effects of the Mystic Eyes.
"Yes, I am." Elizabeth said, plunging her ornate lance through Carmilla's heart, shattering her spiritual core. "An even bigger fool, filled with regrets."
The Berserk Assassin didn't get any more chance of a rebuttal, silenced by Elizabeth's upward swing of her weapon, leaving her to dissipate in a cloud of black dust. For a few seconds, the Lancer stood there in silence, uncaring of the world around her. She closed her eyes and breathed again, and when they opened, they were reignited with renewed determination. She turned towards Ayako, seeing the Puppeteer hold her eyes in her hands. The Master looked up, wiping the blood off of her, her golden tired eyes meeting Elizabeth's.
"Let's go." She said with a rising smile. "The others still aren't done yet."
Elizabeth's free hand reached for Ayako's elbow, securing them in her grip. "Well then let's get to it." She declared with her wings drawn wide, ready to take Ayako back to the rest of the battlefield.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
whoa, i finally got this done! and if you guys couldn't tell, i was stuck in an incredibly long writer's block. evident even more, by the midweek release. oh boy.
BUT!
it all started coming together since monday. ya'll might remember, that one of the big things i've been struggling with, is how much i want to diverge from the main singularity stories. i have decided, to fully commit to my own path, my own vision. sure, there's still a lot of similarities, since i was still unsure when i started the singularity. but, i hope this change will be more evident down the line. tune in for more, next chapter!
speaking of next chapter, i do apologize for this mid-battle pause. but, i also don't want the chapters to be too long and have too many words in them. the past couple of chapters reached 6k words, and i'm pulling my nonexistent hair out frustratingly. so, a pause here.
also, sorry to Cammy fans.
onto the reviews!
emiya: thanks dude!
King0fP0wers: thanks again dude. and maybe, we haven't reached that far yet. and yeah, it's insane how that problem became non existent by as early as Rome. i would have assumed it was some kind of mystic code, but they made no show of it. Da Vinci at least made us a scarf to handle the open air of Babylon. where's our universal translator?
well, once again, thanks to all you guys for dropping by, and for keeping this fic company while i was gone!
see you guys all next time!