"Fou! Fou! Mew, kyaou!"
Something was licking Naughty's face. It was probably that little squirrel pet that always followed Mash around. But wait, if Fou was here, then that means…
"Good Morning Senpai. It's finally time for the brief- eek!"
Did she just call him "Senpai"? Oho, that sounded really pleasant to his ears. He could get used to this! When Naughty opened his eyes, he was greeted by the familiar sight of Mash's pink hair and little Fou scrambling to balance on her head. Poor Mash had her glasses askew, yet a cheerful expression was on her face.
"Whew. I couldn't get out of the way, but it's good to see you so full of energy this morning," she said to the squirrel-like creature. Mash turned to look at Naughty, who by now was sitting on the bed and putting his shoes on. "You too. Did you get some sleep last night?"
To be honest, he really couldn't sleep much for some reasons he would rather not explain, but the Italian Master didn't feel tired at all. In fact, he felt veeeery satisfied. "Come un tronco," was his calm response along with a thumbs up.
"That's good," said Mash with a small smile. "They say it takes talent for a good night's sleep." Her face grew serious. "I know you just woke up, but it's briefing time. So we should hurry and get everyone to the command room."
And with that, both Master and Shielder left for the others.
Nobunaga was waiting for them at the door, looking haughty as ever. "Too slow! I was wondering when you'd wake up, retainer!" She eyed Mash, and looked back at her slave. "Are you two up to something?"
"We're heading to the Command Room and rounding up everyone," answered Naughty.
"Well then! Allow me to rouse the rest of our regiment! Let us all go together!" The Demon Archer pulled out a rifle. "If they refuse to awaken, then they're no better than dead!"
"Let's hope it never gets to that," murmured Mash with a concerned smile.
Their first target was Ryuuto. His door was suspiciously left ajar...but the trio soon found out why.
To their surprise, they found Ryuuto and Okita in the room together, with Ryuuto showing the Saber around the various things in his room. It was kind of cute actually, since he seemed to be a fan of Japanese culture and both were clearly in their element.
"Look like both of you took the "get a room, you two" saying to heart, huh?"
Both of them spun around to find Naughty and his group watching them. Ryuuto looked dead inside upon realizing the intrusion while Okita whipped out her sword.
"You could have knocked beforehand, you know that right? Not cool, Naughty." Saber's Master was slightly flustered and annoyed. "Already bothering us before the day starts?"
"Actually the day has started," replied the Italian Master with a smirk. "Meet us at the Command Room, ok?"
Nobu gave a teasing wink to the swordswoman as she, Naughty, and Mash ran off to the next victim. Okita sighed, lowering her sword. "I'll get her next time."
...
Alpha's room was dark, which meant he was either asleep or was brooding in the darkness like some kind of night owl. That was going to have to be corrected right now. Mash politely knocked on Alpha's door, but nobody answered. There was no noise coming from within, either.
Nobunaga pulled out her rifle. "And now we give them a rude awakening!"
Mash's eyes widened. "Wait, don't shoot-"
A gunshot echoed in the halls of Chaldea, startling the pink-haired Shielder. But the door to Alpha's room remained unscarred.
"Darn. It was a blank?" Nobu looked at her rifle in confusion while her Master and Mash waited to see the aftermath of the rude awakening.
There was about a minute of silence but finally, a sleepy but dressed Alpha opened the door. Jack was by his side, green eyes curious. "What the heck do you guys want at this hour? I was having my tea with Jack here and now it's like a bloody war is upon us! I almost got shot!" He looked positively grumpy. "Actually I think I would have preferred that," mumbled the blonde.
"Well, it's briefing time. Please meet us at the Command Room." Thankfully Mash was a calming presence in the thick tension of the hallway.
The final stop of the tour was Chiaki and Berserker. They didn't find Chiaki in her room, but rather found her napping in the common area with Heracles, already dressed in her uniform.
"Oh hey," she yawned. "Is it time for something to happen?"
"That's right. We're having one hell of a briefing at the Command Room. On your feet, soldier!" Nobunaga gave her an excited grin.
That got Chiaki wide awake. "Huh?! This is a military boot camp?" She stood up sharply, saluted, and gestured for Heracles to rise as well. "Chiaki reporting for duty! But I'll warn you, Berserker is all the muscle in this team!"
"Relax. But yeah, you two should hurry," said Naughty.
"Say no more!" For a giant hunk of a hero, Heracles was surprisingly not slow. But Chiaki was just a bit ahead of him, jogging.
"Those two really got along, huh?" Mash smiled, watching them leave. "Well, it's just us now. Let's go."
"Well, you did your job with impressive results," complimented the Demon Archer. Naughty smirked as he reached the briefing area. Mission accomplished.
…
Dr. Roman was waiting for them all with a gentle smile along with the lovely Da Vinci. "Good morning, I hope everyone slept well. Let's get right to the briefing." He cleared his throat. "For starters, let me go over what I want you to do. You have two objectives."
"The first is the investigation and correction of the Singularities. Humanity's critical turning points exist in those eras. If it were not for those points, we could never have come as far as we have. They are the pivotal "events" in human history."
"You must travel to that era, investigate what it is, figure it out, and then correct it. Otherwise, 2019 will never come and humanity will be extinct in 2018."
"The operation's second objective is Investigate the Holy Grail."
Chiaki shyly raised her hand to speak. "Excuse me, but..." Chiaki tilted her head quizzically. "What's a Holy Grail?"
Da Vinci replied, "The "Holy Grail" is a relic that can grant wishes, a vessel that contains tremendous amounts of magical energy. Remember Singularity F? It had manifested as that crystal you retrieved from that place."
"I see," said Chiaki, eyebrows raised. But Ryuuto looked like he had something on his mind. "What does the Grail have to do with the singularity, though?"
Dr. Roman sighed. "With the Singularities, Lev probably got his hands on the Grail in some form and misused its power. It's impossible to travel through time and change the past without the Grail. Seriously."
"Anyways, you will probably run into intel regarding the Grail during your investigation of the singularity. Even if you correct history, leaving the Grail behind will put us back to square one. So then, you must either secure the Holy Grail, or destroy it. Those are the two objectives of this operation. ls everything clear so far?" Roman looked at his audience, searching for signs of confusion.
There were nods and thumbs up gestures from all four Masters. "Crystal clear!"
"Glad to hear it."
"...And now, there's one other thing I want you all to do right now." The doctor looked at the four once more with a serious gaze. "As we are right now, Chaldea lacks the resources to fully support all four of you Rayshifting. Including a Coffin for Mash, there are only two available spots for this mission."
Naughty looked at Ryuuto, who looked at Chiaki, who turned to face Alpha. Somebody was going to have to speak at one point, but right now it was an awkward mess of reading expressions and silence.
"Uhh, you're Mash's Master. So Naughty, you should go," stated Chiaki meekly. "To be honest, I'm nervous about this whole "time travel" thing. Kinda makes me feel queasy."
"That's alright, nobody blames you." Da Vinci turned to face the others. "And who will be joining our daring novice here?" Naughty opened his mouth to protest, but Da Vinci's comment made him feel somewhat proud.
"I'll go." Alpha stepped forward, a determined look on his face. "I think I can handle it."
"Oho, you sure you don't have a death wish?" Naughty looked at Alpha with a smirk. The blonde replied with a grin, "Actually, I do."
"Hey Ryuuto? You wanna say something?" asked Chiaki. The Master in question had a thoughtful look on his face. "Actually, I want to see how this whole Rayshifting thing works before I give it a try. So I'm alright with staying."
"Heheh, playing it safe huh?" Naughty smirked.
"Actually, I'm playing it smart." Ouch, two for two for Naughty getting hit with replies.
Roman called for everyone's attention. "Alright. Now that that's settled, here are your specific tasks. Rayshifting team, I want you to find a leyline after landing in the era and make a summoning circle with Mash. It's just like what you did in Fuyuki. Once you do that, you'll be able to summon your Servants at will."
"Gotcha." Alpha felt relieved that Jack would join him, he wanted to enjoy the adventure at least a little bit before his urge to kick the bucket resurfaced.
From there, Dr. Roman formally introduced Da Vinci as the head engineer of Chaldea and as a Servant. There was shock and awe, even if they had met Da Vinci earlier from yesterday.
"...genius has nothing to do with time period. All of you would do well to remember that too. You will most likely encounter many Heroic Spirits who were artists in these missions. Every one of them is as splendid and eccentric!"
"Not as splendid as you," Naughty said with a wink. Da Vinci winked back, a subtle gesture that Naughty caught.
"Thank you for the advice, Da Vinci," Mash said. "Every bit counts when going into unknown ventures."
The Renaissance woman warmly smiled. "That's my girl, you're always so understanding. Well, that's enough for my introduction." She straightened up, and gained a didactic tone. "From now on, I will be focusing on supporting you with supplies, R&D within Chaldea, and updating Heroic Spirits' contracts. I am a Servant summoned by Chaldea, you see. Unlike Mash and your own Servants, I cannot jump to any era. However, if any of you make a contract with me, then it would be another matter."
Naughty was already thinking of the possibilities, but no one seemed to notice his face.
"I would then be able to aid you as an ordinary Servant. I'm looking forward to such a fate in the future." Ohh yeah. Naughty was definitely waiting for that moment. Chiaki gave him a look of mild concern, but the Italian brushed her off.
After some goodbyes, Da Vinci headed off to calibrate some machines. Dr. Roman watched her go. "...Wow, she really did introduce herself and run off." He then motioned for Naughty and Alpha to come over. "I'm sorry, but we don't have time to rest. We're going to prep for immediate Rayshift, ok?
"So we just get into these tube things?" Alpha looked at the Rayshifting equipment with mild interest.
"That's right. They're called Coffins, but don't worry! Despite the morbid name, they secure you a safe trip through reality as spiritrons."
"I see." And yet Alpha couldn't help but look at the abandoned Coffins, some slightly charred but mostly intact. He wondered if everyone who didn't survive the bombing was in there...and if something went wrong, would he join them in their sleep?
Mash got in the Coffin calmly without saying anything. Naughty was too busy fantasizing about having Da Vinci as a partner. Ryuuto glanced in his direction and noticed the Italian was...oddly quiet but with a grin to rival the Cheshire Cat. With a "hmph", he rolled his eyes.
Meanwhile, Roman was giving final comments to the Rayshifters. "To recap: seven singularities have been detected, but we've selected the time period with the smallest fluctuations to correct first. Fix the crisis occurring and locate the Holy Grail. Once you get there, we'll only be able to communicate with you. Got it?"
"Yep." "Uhuh."
"I know I'm repeating myself, but the first thing is to set up a base camp and to find a leyline. You'll be able to get supplies then. After you've settled into the era, do what needs to be done. All right—Good luck, Naughty and Alpha!"
"We'll be cheering you on...from here!" Chiaki and Ryuuto waved the two of them goodbye, smiling.
Unsummon Program, start.
Spiritron Conversion, start.
Rayshift starting in 3, 2, 1...
All procedures cleared.
Grand Order commencing operation.
Hundred-Years War of the Evil Dragons: A.D.
Holy Maiden of Salvation
…
When Alpha finally regained consciousness he found himself among a grassy field, with a refreshing wind blowing. Green hills and the occasional tree were up ahead, the blue sky vast with a weird ring of light in the distance. It was a complete 180 from the urban hellscape that was Fuyuki city. Was he in...heaven? Nah, he wasn't good enough for that. Probably.
He stood up and brushed himself off, noticing that Naughty and Mash were up and talking. He walked over to them, catching a bit of their conversation. For some reason his head felt a little heavy. Was it a headache or weird form of jet lag? He didn't know.
"...Master, I have confirmed the time axis coordinates. Looks like it's the year 1431." She noticed Alpha coming over, and motioned for him to come closer before chuckling. The Italian noticed whatever was amusing on Alpha as well, and laughed.
"What's so funny?"
"Fouuu!" Suddenly the weight on his head vanished, and the little rabbit creature fell down into view. Fou scampered over to Mash and stayed put there. "Oh, so that's what was bothering me." Mash's little pet had hitched a ride on him, huh? "Very funny, Fou."
"As I was saying, this is the time period of the Hundred Years War, specifically the respite period...guys?" Mash looked at the two quizzically. "What are you looking at?"
"Look up," said Alpha. All three stared up at the blue sky, unaware of a hologram materializing.
"Hey you three! We're connected now!" Chiaki's voice came from the screen.
"Why are they all staring up at the sky?" That was Ryuuto.
Dr. Roman looked at their status from his screen. "Mash, can we get visuals? Is there something up there that's unusual?"
"Right, sending you visuals now." An image popped up in the Chaldea screens. A humongous band of light stretched out into the sky, a halo splitting the bright outside sky and a slightly darker sky within. It was breathtaking, but also surreal.
"There's no records of such a phenomenon in 1431. Looks like we'll have to investigate this anomaly from our end," stated Roman. "Now then, you guys concentrate on surveying the area. Make contact with people and look for a leyline like we said, alright?"
"Understood," said Mash. She turned to face the two guys. "Let's start by looking for a city-" Suddenly she turned around to a path up ahead. "Wait, I'm sensing incoming signals. They appear to be...a French Scout brigade."
"We're in France?" Alpha felt a little disappointed. "French people are…"
"Not my favorite people to deal with," finished Naughty. Alpha looked at him in surprise. "You too?"
"Yeah, they're the worst. I don't care if it's medieval times or not, they'll probably rub me the wrong way."
"In any case, what should we do? Make contact with them?" Mash looked at her Master expectantly.
"Let's beat them up."
"Senpai, that sounds rather violent for a first impression…"
"They're soldiers, right? They're probably dangerous." Naughty crossed his arms.
"Right, but maybe we can persuade them to buzz off." Alpha looked up ahead, hoping he could see the incoming threat.
"I'm sure we can come to a peaceful resolution." Even so, Mash stood protectively in front of the two Masters and rabbit. It was just in time too, the soldiers were approaching them, spears in hand but expressions neutral.
"Hello, excuse me, we are travelers-" Mash started to speak but Naughty suddenly shushed her. "They're French! English is not the language they would want to hear."
He cleared his throat and looked at the band of Frenchies annoyingly. "Bonjour garçons. Je m'appelle Naughty." He gestured to Alpha and Mash. "Ce sont mes amis. S'il vous plaît laissez-nous avant que nous vous battions."
A french soldier frowned and opened his mouth to speak, but Naughty spoke up again. "Au fait, où puis-je trouver des femmes sexy?"
Silence. With suspicious looks, they picked up their weapons and came closer to the three.
"Naughty what the heck did you tell them?!" Alpha glared at the Italian, who simply shrugged. "I told them nothing violent, I swear!" Mash sighed as the Master's wristbands began to light up.
"Yoohoo! What's going on over there? Why is there an armed group surrounding you?" Chiaki's voice resounded from the call.
"Let's just say Master said something unusual to the Frenchmen. My mistake. I should have greeted them in French in the first place," responded Mash.
"Hmm, starting with a fight already? And with elite soldiers, too!" Dr. Roman peered at the screen. "Did negotiations fall out so quickly?"
"I'm hearing strange voices from somewhere near those three," said one of the soldiers in French. "Men, ready your weapons. They are too suspicious to live!" With grunts of confirmation, the squadron brandished their spears.
"Quickly, Doctor! Do you know any good French jokes? We need to calm them down!" Mash was getting desperate. How did this situation escalate so quickly?
"Hell if I know, I'm a loner! But I'll think of something!" The doctor muttered, "Think, think, think. Something witty…"
Chiaki was at a loss and stared at the screen. She knew some French from school, but not enough to make a joke. Ryuuto on the other hand was taking a break and probably hanging out with Okita, most likely keeping an eye on the chaotic Archer. "It's not like he would have been helpful here anyway," Chiaki sighed out loud.
Meanwhile in France, Mash was preparing for combat. "Master, it would be bad to hurt the locals. We'll have to push them back!"
"Uh..what are you on about? They clearly want to kill us Mash!" Naughty readied his fists, not sure if he could do much.
"Yeah! No mercy," Alpha chimed in. "But we could at least knock them out."
"Yeah!" Dr. Roman popped up, finally having an idea. "In that case, hit them with the back of your blade! Limit the bloodshed as much as possible! Back of the blade!"
"With a shield?" Amusingly, everyone not Roman in the situation had the same thought.
"How would you.." Alpha stopped to think.
"I-I'll think of something! Here goes! FIREEE!" Mash gave out a yell and charged at the soldiers, spears ready to fight.
"Fire? But that thing isn't even a projectile…" Chiaki was getting confused by the second.
"Fire?! No, burning is out of the question too!" Roman couldn't believe Mash would think of that.
The two spectators sat back and watched as Mash tacked the soldiers, bashed their heads with the shield, just enough to make them collapse but not die. Naughty and Alpha couldn't really do anything but dodge stray spears and keep Fou out of the fray. At one point the two guys had the idea of throwing the spears where the soldiers couldn't get them, effectively disarming the frenchmen. Eventually, all of the French soldiers were knocked down unconscious, but breathing.
Mash leaned on her shield sighed. "Physical fatigue aside, I'm mentally exhausted too."
"You did a great job, Mash. Now we need to tie these soldiers up and interrogate them for information," said Naughty.
"You say that, but…" Alpha looked at the defeated foes who somehow got on their feet in a flash. With scared looks, they ran like rabbits. "Darn. Looks like you didn't hit hard enough."
"I could have sworn she hit them good," said Naughty. "Looks like they retreated."
"Hmm. You're going to have to chase them quietly back to their fort. Make sure you greet them properly in French, ok? No asking for women, Naughty. I heard what you said."
"Yeah, yeah," muttered Naughty. "I can't help it, doc. It's France."
No comments were made on that.
And so, our heroes (and one rabbit-like pet) followed the rag-tag band of defenseless Frenchmen to their fort, hoping to find a base full of supplies, shelter, and potential allies.
Author's Note: Hahaha, I am once again here with a new chapter. Finally we have reached the Orleans Arc, with the local pervert and depressed guy as your heroes! This Arc will probably be longer than Fuyuki, but I hope I don't drag it on for too long.