Son of Peace

2017

"The King of Magic? That's what she said?" the Director asked for further clarification, leaning her chin on the back of her hand.

"It was what she declared, in hysterics." Medea repeated, her face neutral, aside from a hint of annoyance, no doubt from thinking of her younger counterpart. "Claiming that this King of Magic had bested her, hence her supposed allegiance to him."

"That doesn't sound like someone we know." Da Vinci said knowingly, nudging her brows at her fellow Caster. Medea rolled her eyes in response of the light jab.

"So she's referring to Solomon then, who is the King of Magic." Lord El-Melloi II reiterated, a gloved hand covering his mouth. "Our foes seem to call him as their ringleader. But something doesn't feel right."

"It feels like it's a damn red herring, is what it is." Ayako said, her frown very clearly put on display, her red coat hanging on the back of the chair she sat on. "Does anyone else feel that?"

"I was just about to say." Kagiso turned to his side, seeing Ritsuka nod his head in agreement. "It feels, too… obvious?"

"As if they're trying to convince us that this is their leader." He himself added, as he turned back to the Director.

"Or perhaps, they're trying to convince themselves?" El-Melloi put to the table, visibly holding back a sigh.

"Why would they do that?" the Doctor asked, keeping himself quiet for the most part of the topic, knowing his bias towards Solomon would be more of a hindrance.

At this, the Lord finally sighed, shaking his head at the question. "I'd rather not ask that question myself. Our plate's already spilling as it is."

"Then we should table it for a later discussion." Koleen suggested, her blonde hair still damp from the stabilizing agent they were all in. "It doesn't sound so inconsequential that we can so easily discard it."

"Then make a note of it." The Director said, nodding to the Doctor beside her. "Romani."

"Noted, Olga." He said with his eyes glazing over his notepad.

"And, to close, how are your respective progresses? She turned back to the Ground Team, eyes expecting something from them.

"I'm becoming more comfortable with my entire self." Mash replied, taking the bait first. "Everything, is clearer to me too."

"It is amazing to see how far you've come, Mash." Da Vinci said, her gloved hand on the now normally dressed Mash's head.

"Are you any closer in understanding the Servant you are bonded to?" The Director asked with slight curiosity.

The smile on her face faded slightly, as did her shoulders slump. "No, it's still hazy, it's like I'm staring at a blank mirror."

At this, he, Ritsuka, and Ayako shared a glance with one another, remembering that moment before the Singularity, during the so called spar between the Knight, and his King. Both he and Ritsuka turned to Ayako, who shook her head. They nodded at her decision, before turning back to the room.

"How of the rest of you then?" she continued down the line. "Fujimaru."

"Uhm, Da Vinci's crossbow was tremendously helpful." He replied, sounding slightly uncertain of his answer. "Although, I haven't been able to practice my magecraft, since I got it."

"Then I will take care that you don't rely on the Mystic Code too often." Medea said, slowly crossing her arms across her chest. "We will continue our lessons in a few days. You will still need to rest."

"Thank you, Medea-san."

"Maybe when Circe arrives, you can show him off, 'Dea." Ayako said with a wry smirk.

The Grecian Witch laughed with a hearty shake. "Yes, perhaps I would do that."

"Next please." The Director cut in, before the conversation would spiral out of control.

"There wasn't much change for me, as this was my first Singularity with the Team." He answered, flexing his right hand, his metallic arm that Ayako had crafted. "Aside from making full use of this."

"Was there any complications?" the Doctor asked, no doubt pulling up his records within Chaldea.

"None that I could notice." Kagiso replied as honestly as he could.

"Pfft! Its Ayako's prosthetic! She knows what she's doing!" Da Vinci proclaimed with a wide smile, moving around them to stand behind the Puppeteer, planting her hands on Ayako's shoulders and proceeded to shake their leader. "Hell, I dare say she's better than me when it comes to them! And I don't say that lightly!"

The Director's eyes looked to the Servant in an unamused way. "Noted." She said flatly, before shifting her golden eyes to Koleen.

"I didn't get to use my newest concoction, hadn't gotten the chance to see its effect." The Blonde Witch said, gesturing to the brown sack. "I… have an inkling as to what it does, but I'm not certain."

"Is it dangerous?" the Doctor asked with a hint of worry.

"Most likely, almost definitely." She replied with a careful nod, shooting glances to her pouch.

"You of all people know how dangerous it would be." Koleen gave a single nod to the Director's comment. "Then we trust you to handle it with care."

"Yes, Director."

She sighed for a single moment, before finally landing her eyes on the Puppeteer. "And you, Aozaki."

Ayako, after freeing herself from the Renaissance Genius' hold on her, raised her arm up for them to see. There wasn't any noticeable difference, to him, at least. Except, maybe, was how it subtly looked a lot smoother than her previous skin. She flexed her fingers, not unlike him when he flexed his prosthetic.

"I feel a lot younger than I actually am. Like everything is a lot fresher to me." Their leader said, her eyes twinkling in delight, eyeing her own hand. "I think we need to test a few limits to this body." Her eyes glanced towards him, nudging her eyebrows suggestively.

"We can schedule a physical, and probably some room in the gymnasium." He said with a nod, turning back to the Director and the Doctor.

"A specific time would be appreciated." The Lord said from the side, pulling out a cigarette from his suit. "I'll admit that I am curious to see the differences between a modern puppet, and a puppet made with older materials."

"Not just older materials. Materials that came from an older time." The Puppeteer corrected.

"Right, that."

"Is there ever a chance that the bomb in your body could detonate without your say so?" the Director suddenly asked, hands interlocked atop the table.

Ayako shook her head, still with the smile on her face. "It detonates on my say so, when I activate the spell. And I can dictate the intensity of it based on how many runestones I channel as well."

"Wait, does that mean you have runestones in your body, Ayako?" Mash asked with furrowed brows, leaning a bit closer into the table.

"Yup." She replied with a smirk on her face.

"How feasible is it, to have one backup, for at least the Ground Team?" the Director asked her, with a sort of expectant look on her face.

"Far more feasible than making one for Servants." She replied almost instantly, reminding him of that meeting from long ago, at this point. "But, now that we're no longer hiding in the dark, so to say, I'd prefer to only make one, if they want one."

The Director grimaced, no doubt she herself understanding the delicate nature of them. "Very well. Then, what is the Ground Team's stances on a puppet body?"

"I'm, a bit uncomfortable at the idea." Ritsuka said with visible discomfort.

"I am unsure, I would like more time to think on this." The Witch replied, hinting of the conflict in her mind.

"I would also like to ruminate on this, Director." He himself finally said with a nod, to both the Director, and Ayako. "As enticing as the idea of having a backup body, none of us here are in tune to readily discard our own."

The grimace became more pronounced, but the Director nodded. "I understand." She said, her eyes returning to Ayako. "I assume you're going to make another backup again?"

"Yeah, having two at hand gives me room to work freely." She replied, the smirk on her face replaced by a more normal smile. "After that, I'll be helping Medea with her project, before I start on make the… blank slate, for a supposed Servant we might summon."

"Very well then." She nodded her head to them all, her hands placed on the tabletop. "If there is nothing else to be said, then this debriefing is adjourned."

He sat on the light carpeted floor of his room, legs crossed tightly with his closed fists on his knees. He wore no shirt, leaving his chest bare, showing his faded Command Spells, the three crescent shapes on his left pec. The smallest one was starting to show more color, more power, as Chaldea's reserves replenished its use for him. On the carpet, between his knees, was the small, curved ornamental dagger that served as his one and only Mystic Code. His ritual dagger, that served as his focus. He grabbed it by the blade with his left hand, raising it until it was at chest level.

All around him were the various fetishes that he brought with him to Chaldea, including the ones he didn't take to the Singularity. Varied in make, varied in age, all would fit in the palm of his hand. A collection so chaotic, with the only thing holding them together, was the fact that the Spirits of his ancestors had latched onto them. His hand, bleeding from the dagger, was still as the blood dripped from the blade, landing on the carpet, but not staining it. It evaporated into smoke, and as it did so, smoke began seeping out of the fetishes. His eyes, closed through the ceremony, was milky white.

"Wazazi… ngiyanibiza."

The smoke that emanated from the fetishes flowed, as if it was picked up by wind. Wind, that was spinning around Kagiso, as if he sat in the eye of the storm. Then, like an echo in the wind, they spoke. They all spoke.

"Siya. Phendula." Like a legion, they spoke as one. Voices of many. Men, and women. Young, and old. Human, and not.

Not simply his ancestors, for if we speak of land then he is but a foreigner to it. But the ancestors of the whole of Africa, of those who left their mark within the spiritual world of African. Unknown and forgotten by the rest of mankind, but not to him, and his fellow Shamans who chose to carry this duty in the modern world.

He placed the dagger back on the carpet, bereft of any of his blood, despite the cut on his left palm. "Ngifuna ukuvuma ngezenzo zami."

The wind around him picked up, becoming a sort of gust within his room. He waited, as his ancestors deliberated, patient, for he had nothing but time to give to them. One fetish that sat at his left, the cracked glass eye that once belonged to a Dutch colonial settler. It was wrapped in thick smoke, blanketing the fetishes beside it. "Sisi. Ingabe. Kujabulile." Its voice was old, weathered, and soothing.

Another rose, from his right. A dried husk of a tooth, one that belonged to a child no older than he from when he first picked up a gun, from an age of a bygone era. "Sisi. Engo. Zini." This one contrasted heavily with the first. Young, smoothed, yet like nails to a chalkboard.

One that sat on his front rose, a caved in bullet, burnt and caked with dried blood. He remembered this, vividly, from when he was but a child. One that almost spelled his death. The fetish that was closest to his existence, one that very much encapsulates his being. Fittingly enough… "Sisin. Dise. Zisin. Dise." The voice almost sounded like him.

He never questioned it, for in the grand scheme of things, it didn't really matter. "Ngizokwenza, okhokho." He replied, as the cut on his hand dried, with the blood slowly disintegrating into smoke.

The other fetishes rose above, matching the three before them. The wind had lessened around him, but focused more on the fetishes. The thick smoke had all but wrapped around them, almost fully obscuring them from his eyes. "Hlala. Uqinile. Kagiso."

The smoke dispersed instantly, the fetishes dropping back onto the carpet. Their presence had left him. He sighed, his spirit exhausted, though he did not hate it. He came out of the ritualistic ceremony with a smile on his face. He checked the cut on his hand, seeing it fully healed. He nodded once, before grabbing the dagger with his metallic hand, and with his other hand regathered his fetishes. He placed them all back in the box that was now on his desk. With a tired sigh, he entered the bathroom.

It was time to call it a day.

2003

He stood there, figuratively alone, with all their eyes on him. He looked back, seeing his Mentor stand at the edge of the circle. As much good as he's done here, he was still seen as an outsider, and when their cultures dictated that he must not interfere, he will respect it. This somewhat young, but weathered looking European man, hair a faded brown and eyes a striking green. The name that he was given, Doctor Blue, was a fake. That much he knew, as that was a moniker the locals gave him, based on the blue scrubs he wore under his coat. His Mentor nodded to him supportively, smiling at him.

He turned back to the people that surrounded him. The Council that sat in the Shade, exemplified by the large tree that somewhat obscured them.

"Come, Nameless Child." The current appointed leader called out in English, gesturing to the middle of the circle with her spear. "We will judge you."

He remembered her. He saw her frequently near the clinic he lived, and worked. She dressed somewhat modernly, looking like she'd fit more in an office environment than the shanty town they were all situated in. It was unsurprising though, she was a pillar of the community. She worked hard to reach where she was, and in turn, she gave back all that she earned to them. She especially frequented the house beside the clinic that also function as a sort of public house for the community.

And now here she was, dressed in a far more traditional garb of the Zulu people, head shaven cleanly and the various paint that adorned her face. She looked like an actual Shaman. In fact, she was a Shaman. The fact that she sat there, acknowledged as the current leader of them, spoke much.

"He is not nameless." Another Shaman spoke up with a critical voice, one that was her elder, sitting next to her. "He is the son of War. yeMpi."

Now He was very familiar. The homeless elder that stayed at the abandoned shack that sat across the clinic with the other homeless, and often made use of the clinic's services. Despite that though, this man was always jovial, never seen without a smile on his face.

It turned out, there was a moment where a smile was not seen on his face.

"It is quite unfair to judge a child for his actions." A Shaman that sat somewhere behind him said, as he turned around to glance behind him. This Shaman was unrecognizable, completely foreign to him. "Especially when a child wouldn't know any better. In some sense, it is a better alternative."

"A better alternative? You would consider what this outsider has done to be a better alternative?" another unfamiliar face, though he was certain that he has heard of her voice before, from somewhere. The radio? "This child was a warlord's toy!"

"Be sensible with your words. I am more of an outsider than him." The earlier Shaman said with a bit of heat in his voice. "He at least still hailed from this nation."

"That he did. It is for that reason that we are giving him this chance." The leader said, reminding him of her presence as he turned back to her. She stood up, the end of the spear on the dirt. "Do you mind if I ask you a question, Nameless Child?"

"No, I do not." He replied, the first set of words he uttered here. He clenched his hands, just once, before they relaxed again.

"Do you remember anything, of Botswana?" she asked of him. He shook his head.

"I… was born in the war camp. I know of nothing, of Botswana, except for one word." He answered, as truthfully as he could. There really was nothing he could remember. His life was always filled with war. Until…

"And then, good ol' Doctor Blue there saved you from a life of bloodshed, and instead exchanged it with a different kind of bloodshed." A very light smirk was briefly on her face, as her eyes moved upwards, trailing to where his Mentor stood. "What are your comments on that, Doctor Blue? A white man, coming to Africa, saving a troubled boy, and making a name for himself. Hm?"

"You are allowed to speak, Doctor Blue." The elder Shaman said, not shouting yet somehow it was loud in his ears.

He glanced behind him again, back to his Mentor, seeing him grimace uncomfortably. "I'll admit that… it does seem disingenuous, and insulting, considering the stereotype that I am presenting here. But, I do what I do, for atonement. For all that I've done in my past."

Every single Shaman had their eyes on his Mentor, as a layer of light smoke covered them, each and every one of them. Almost as one, the smoke disappeared, before they all nodded in unison.

"I understand." The leading Shaman said, her features becoming softer, as her eyes returned to him. "And now you stand here. Why?"

"I… wanted to do more." He shifted his gaze to the ground, anger rising in his being. "To, fix the ruin that I've wrought."

"Doctor Blue is already teaching you the ways of medicine. And you yourself have done quite a lot for this community." The Shaman noted, her voice neutral to his ears.

"It doesn't feel like it's enough." He said, his voice was only above a whisper, yet he was sure that everyone around him could hear. "There's, something yearning, inside me. Telling me it's not enough. Telling me that I can do more. That I can be more. And, it won't stop."

"Is that so?" he looked back up, seeing her eye him curiously, before she stepped forward, allowing her body to be bathed under the moonlight. He didn't have to look up much, he was already tall for his age. She placed a hand on his breast pocket, causing him to jump in surprise. "What is this?" she asked, feeling the thing inside.

"It is… a memento." He replied, his voice somewhat tilted.

"A memento of what?" she asked again, her hand reaching inside for it, pulling it out carefully.

"Of my execution." He said, as she pulled out the bullet from his pocket. The bullet was dark, as it had once lodged itself into his heart. He could feel it beat faster, just from looking at it.

The bullet was far more important than he realized, as he noticed a few other Shamans around him standing up, a few more even took a few steps closer to inspect it. A few gasps, here and there. Eyes widening at the memento. He stood there, the anxiety slowly replaced by confusion. "Huh." He heard the Shaman mutter, though he also noticed her lips curling upward. "It appears that this is our answer."

"What?" the word left his lips before he even realized it.

She pulled his hand up, placing the bullet in his palm, and closing his fist for him. "Repeat after me, Nameless Child." He nodded, feeling that tug in his heart. "Wazazi, ngiyanibiza."

"Wazazi, ngiyanibiza." He felt the pull grab on to him, holding on to him, securing him. He hand, his palm was getting hotter, as smoke began trailing out of the seams of his hand. He felt his eyes grow heavier, his vision growing whiter, yet somehow everything seems clearer. As if he was looking beyond what was normal.

As the smoke thickened around his hand, he heard. "Ngiya. Phendula." A single voice, one that almost mirrored his own.

Murmurs abound among them, most of them positive and hopeful. The dread that was inside him seemed to dissipate. The leader nodded proudly, shaking his closed hand and letting the smoke dissipate. "It seems the decision is beyond ours. The Ancestors have decided that you are fit to be one of us."

"I knew he'd be one of us!" the elder Shaman said, almost jumping for joy.

"You were the most critical of him!" the radio Shaman shouted, scandalized.

"It is because that I wanted him to be one of us, that I was so critical of him." The elder replied, as he sat himself back down.

"What now?" he asked the leader, seeing things get a little bit out of hand around him.

"We can handle the ceremonies tomorrow at dawn." She said, her smile becoming more relaxed, like the one he was used to when he caught glimpses of her. "For now? You need a name. You will be the Nameless Child no longer."

"Is there a name that sticks out to you, young one?" the apparent outsider of the Shamans asked caringly. "You have lived a short life out of the warlord's grasp. Perhaps something clings to you, like a spider?"

He stood in short silence. He knew of a word. Of a name. One that he had kept all these years. One that would embody his new existence. His new meaning. He smiled. "Kagiso." He said, wearing it like a badge of pride.

"Kagiso? Really? Ha! How ironic!" the elder Shaman laughed, though not out of malice, or insult. "The one word the son of War knew, was Peace." He nodded his head in approval, smiling at him. "It is also quite poetic, for you to be, the son of Peace."

Voices of agreement and understanding spread through the Shamans, as they all accepted his name. Their leader placed her hand on his shoulder, turning to the rest of them. "Then it is settled. From here on out, from this day forward, you shall forever be known, as Kagiso. The son of Peace. Your name is Kagiso..."

2017

"So when's Ayako's test, Kagiso-san?"

He looked up from his light breakfast, his eyes meeting Ritsuka's, seeing the Japanese Master with his own breakfast on hold. Beside him was Mash, dressed in her normal Chaldean attire, with Fou nipping at her breakfast.

"Later, at 8 o'clock." He replied after swallowing the food in his mouth. "Would you like to observe as well? We'll be in the gym."

"Oh, no." he shook his head, visibly shuddering. "I'll… pass…"

"Senpai, you need to continue your physical training with Martha." Mash said with a slight glare, reinforced by the small barks of Fou. "The longer you put this off, the worse it will be for you."

"I know, Mash. I know. But… her regimen is, far out of my league." Ritsuka said, groaning in exaggerated pain.

"You're lucky that she's prioritized on working the prayer rooms." Kagiso chuckled in-between bites of his breakfast. "But when she's done, Lord have mercy."

"No please don't." he whimpered, the utensils he was using clattering on his tray.

Mash sighed, shaking her head. The little Fou mirrored her actions. "Senpai…" she muttered, disappointment clear in her voice.

"Well, if there isn't anything else you wish to talk about, I'll be off." Kagiso said, standing up and taking his tray with him, to be dropped off. "Wouldn't want to be late, especially since we'll be having guests."

"Ah, good luck, Kagiso-san!"

"Goodbye, Kagiso."

"Fou!"

"Does she even realize that we're still here?" Koleen asked beside him, the both of them sitting on the benches inside the gym. Her three-tailed kitten, looking a little bit bigger than he remembered, was laying on her lap. The three tails were wrapped around the Witch's wrist, where her Command Spells rest.

"She seems completely in the zone." Kagiso replied with a deep, hearty chuckle, his fingers tapping on the notepad in his other hand. "I'm surprised you're still here. Even most of the Casters had left already."

"Eh, what's another two hours in my life?" she asked rhetorically, shrugging her shoulders.

How true that was. They had been conducting the tests since 8am. They had passed 10am a few minutes ago. After a litany of physical tests, they were finishing off with her stamina, and her running capabilities. And that was over an hour ago, and she has yet to slow down. It was a remarkable sight to see, even though they knew that her current body was enhanced beyond normal human capabilities.

"How about you, Professor?" Koleen leaned forward, seeing the older Pseudo-Servant sat at Kagiso's other side. "Aren't you bored?" she asked him.

He silently shook his head, elbows on his knees and his chin on the back of his hands. "This is far more fascinating to watch. I'm surprised Da Vinci up and left earlier."

"I'm still here damn it!" a voice spoke up from his notepad. "Just not physically! I had other things to take care of!"

The Professor rolled his eyes. "I'm sure you do."

"And how is her progress?" she asked him, specifically.

"Ayako is able to close in on the current record, the peak of what a mundane human could achieve. Not passing it, but close." He replied, looking through the date that was being displayed. "The same could be said of the other tests. To a mundane human, she is for all intents and purposes, a super human."

"What's the current record?" Koleen questioned. "Of this, at least."

"A sort of marathon pace?" he asked back. "The average male runner pace is 6.43 minutes per kilo. Female runners, 7.26 per kilo. Ayako's previous pace, with her old body, she could only reach 9.46 per kilometer. She never claimed to be a runner of sorts. Ayako currently is sitting comfortably at 3.21 minutes per kilometer. The current record is 2.51 per kilo."

"Wow."

"And that's without any sort of magical enhancements. With it? There's no telling what she could do." The Professor noted, carefully standing back up, just as they saw the Puppeteer began losing her composure.

He joined the older man, followed suit by Koleen, as they made their way closer to her. Her feet stepped off to the side, as she let the treadmill die down. She was reaching for breath, but she wasn't dying for it. She was still able to hold herself up, smiling at them as they approached her.

"Well? How'd I do?" she asked, as the blonde Witch gave the Puppeteer a bottle of water. She took it without complaint, almost drowning herself in it.

"You haven't surpassed any records, but you are pretty much super human." Kagiso said with a smile.

"You know those normal people in comic books, despite showing that they would never be normal by our standards?" Koleen's words caught both his and the Professor's, so sudden as they appeared. "Yeah, that's what you are."

"Now that's an interesting analogy." Da Vinci spoke, her voice coming through the speaker on the notepad.

"Damn, this body's already showing its worth!" she laughed with great amusement. "Can't wait to see what I can make with the materials we got from the Atlantic!"

"Especially with what that Medea conjured up." The Professor commented with a light chuckle. "You know, if this is all over, and everything goes back to normal, I might commission a body from you. Would that be too much?"

"I'm more than happy, especially for a friend." Ayako said with a charming smile.

"I'm gonna go and get a late breakfast." Koleen announced, letting out a sigh as she made sure the cat was comfortable in her arms. "See you there?"

"Yeah, just after a quick shower. Bye!" she waved back as the American Witch made her way out of the gym.

"And I will make my way towards the Control Room." the Professor said, stretching his arms above his head. "Will you join us, Da Vinci? I'm sure there's something we can share with Olga."

"Maybe later. I wasn't kidding when I said I had a few things to do." The Genius replied with a tilt to her voice. "Hey, Ayako! We should schedule a time with Medea! Didn't we plan on working something together?"

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Ayako said with a nod, wiping her face with a towel. "I'll probably also check up on her, after the Atlantic, and see if there's any progress with Atalanta."

"They didn't get to chat much, despite the fact that the Argonauts were quite the central figure in it." Kagiso commented, as the Professor also made to leave the room.

"Right, exactly." She agreed, finally stepping off the treadmill. "Well, I'm gonna head back and clean myself up. See you tonight?"

He smiles, as he tucks his notepad in his arm. "I'll be there."

And be there, he was, once again with the five of them sat around the table, plus the two creatures. This time, eating some well-cooked pho. They needed it, after the copious amount of seafood they ate, further reinforced by monsters they had to face. Seafood became a shared nauseating thought, so they have been eating every other kind of meat. And what better choice than a big bowl of noodles and beef.

"You know Kags, there's something I noticed when I read through your file." Ayako said, as she finished the last of the contents inside her bowl.

"My file?" he asked back, eyes furrowed in confusion. The others also turned to her, by the sudden revelation.

"Yeah." She replied, simply. "When I was officially instated as the Leader of the Ground Team, I was given short files on all of you, to better understand you guys, is what the Doctor said."

"Did you read much of them?" Koleen asked with curiosity, her hand stroking the kitten's fur.

Ayako shook her head and shrugged her shoulders. "Not much. Just the necessities. Got a few of your birthdays, your hobbies. That was all fun." She said, chuckling all the way.

"Did you get one for me, Ayako?" Mash asked, her voice carrying with it a hint of trepidation.

The Puppeteer's smile lowered, not so much fading, as if she was trying to keep the smile on her face. "Heavily redacted, Mash. But, not like it mattered. I already knew about it." There was a visible flinch from the Demi-Servant, one that caught his eye, and the others. Ayako smile grew, much more calming. "It's alright, Mash."

"I know." The Demi-Servant's voice was but a whisper, but she too had a smile. "If… if Olga gave you that, then I trust you."

"What is this about?" Ritsuka asked, looking to Mash with concern.

"Don't worry, Senpai. Maybe you'll know, if you ask Olga." She said to him, as Fou ran up her arm, trying to calm her by patting his paw on her cheek.

"Is it that delicate?" Kagiso asked, surprised by this level of secrecy.

Ayako cringed, as Mash nodded to his question. "It's why I, would prefer to not be the one to say anything."

Ritsuka's eyes were filled with worry, his hand reaching for hers. "Mash…"

"So what else did you find?" Koleen asked the Puppeteer, trying to change the subject. "Something about Kagiso?"

"Yeah, his name." she locked eyes with him, his body startled involuntarily. "Isn't that two different languages?"

He chuckled at the reality of it. "Yes, it is."

"What do they mean?" she asked him.

"Kagiso, means peace, in Tswana. My surname, also means peace, but in Zulu." He explained, earning a few nods from her.

"Both your names mean peace?" Mash asked, a light sparkle coming from her eyes.

"Yes."

"You have quite the convenient name, Mr. Peace." Ayako said, patting his on his shoulder.

He too laughed in amusement. "I've never heard that one before."

"So, what's his name, Ayako-san?" Ritsuka asked.

Ayako looked to him, her eyes searching for permission. He smiled, and nodded. She in turn smiled back, before turning to Ritsuka. "His name..."

"is Kagiso yoKuthula."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

i really enjoyed, writing Kagiso's flashback sequence. and to also expand how his Shamanism works, and how the culture is for this specific group. It also makes me excited with what i'm going to do, with the last two people that will join us.

there's nothing much else to say, other than i'm proud of this chapter. so, let's just get to the translations!

"Ancestors, I call to you."

"We. Answer."

"I seek acknowledgement of my actions."

"We. Are. Pleased."

"We. Are. In. Peril."

"Save. Us. Save. Them."

"I will, Ancestors."

"Stay. Strong. Kagiso."

"Ancestor, I call to you."

"I. Answer."

and now, on to the reviews!

King0fP0wers: Medea absolutely deserves some acknowledgement from the game, she's the one Servant that's constantly getting shafted.

Lumene: no they didn't. Drake's Grail is natural, part of the world and history. Medea's is the Singularity Grail.

Oh, Cu will definitely get America, along with a certain someone.

emiya: thank you!

C2M1: yeah, that's too much for me. i'd prefer a happy ending myself. a story can go as low as it can, as long as it ends on a high note for me.

Addicted2fanfics: he definitely would, he recognized Roman in the game, but stayed out of his life out of respect.

MirageSPL: thank you!

Thekiller7: i'm hoping i can do it justice.

Guest: i'll be doing some of the events, ones that can work canonically.

Evowizard25: i'm always sad when i see how the Medea Lily we got ingame wasn't one from the Singularity. i always felt like it was lost opportunity. and yeah, i did it because of their summer/cannon versions.

chronicler2112: thank you!

TalonScythe: absolutely. it's why i can't wait for her to confront Wodime in the Lost Belts (hell, she's gonna be hating it every step of the way.) definitely an alter/lily. i want that twistedness to show even more than usual, her literal worst aspects, x 1000. and yeah, the current JP summer is insane. i need to get Sigurd and Bryn dammit!

thank you again!

and, once again everyone, thanks for dropping by!

leave a review if you don't mind, and i'll see you all next time!