I would have had this chapter finished and posted a while ago but because I've been working a lot later than usual I don't really have much free time to write when I get home. Though I do try my best to write bits here and there when I can. That said, I'm aware some people are surprised by my choice for the Caster class servant, though I do have various reasons why I chose the character filling the role, which, some of you might know, as for Rider, well, that will be explained, next chapter maybe.

Chapter 3:

'The Church'

"I've come to relinquish my rights as master."

Kirei Kotomine stood before the entrance of the church as he explained his 'situation' to his father.

"My servant has been lost, thus I can no longer continue in the Holy Grail War. In accordance with the treaty, I, Kirei Kotomine, ask that the church grant me sanctuary."

"Request granted." His father replied without hesitation, "In my role as overseer of this war, I Risei Kotomine, guarantee your safety. Enter in peace."

Both entered the church, waiting until the doors had closed before continuing conversation, "Father, isn't this church being watched?" Kirei asked.

"No, this holy place has been declared a neutral sanctuary. The Holy Church will censure any master who defies the decree."

"Then it's safe..." Kirei concluded.

Risei nodded, "Yes."

A brief silence went by before Kirei turned and looked over at someone, "Still, keep watch, just in case. Make sure one of you remains here to guard the area, just to be sure."

An armoured figure slowly materialized before them, head bowed, the pointed steel helmet obscuring their face. "As you command, master."

"Who was watching the battle Assassin?" Kirei asked.

Assassin raised his head slightly, replying, "We detected the presence of familiars from four separate masters.

Risei looked over at Assassin, "Two days ago, I confirmed the summoning of the final servant, Caster." He looked back at Kirei, adding, "All of the Holy Grail War servants have now arrived."

"One unaccounted for huh?" Kirei said, seeming a little disappointed, "I had hoped that all of the masters were watching."

Another armoured figure materialized within the room, slowly approaching the three and standing next to Assassin. This figure shared Assassin's appearance, same armour, same pointed steel helmet, same weapon, same stance. "Master Kirei, about that..."

Kirei looked back at the two Assassin's, just then, a third emerged from the shadows, followed by a fourth, then a fifth.

More Assassin's continued to materialize in the room until there was a small crowd of them.

Eventually, one stepped forth in front of them all, speaking up, "It is a firm belief of ours that if honesty is not shared between allies, then a partnership will easily fracture and neither partner will be able to fully cooperate with the other."

Kirei just stared in silence, waiting for the Assassin to continue, "It is for this reason master Kirei that we of the Undead Legion must be honest, and confess that we are not happy that you sacrificed one of our brothers to be slain by Archer."

Another Assassin stepped forward, "We understand your intentions to fool the other masters and servants into believing we are defeated, but even so, we of the Undead Legion are brothers in arms, having fought alongside each other for many years. And to see one of our own be slain at your order, it is...questionable, and makes us wonder how you intend to command the rest of us."

Images flashed through the Assassin's mind of the night one of their own was slain.

One of the Undead Legion, following Kirei's order to infiltrate Tokiomi Tohsaka's mansion, and almost completing his goal, struck down by a hail of glowing arrows.

Those images flashed through the minds of all Assassin's present, and once again they looked at Kirei for an answer.

Kirei could see where they were coming from, he understood why they would bring this up, and decided to alleviate their loss. "I understand what you are saying, Assassin. But rest assured, your comrade in arms sacrifice will not be in vain. His death was necessary for various reasons, to fool the other masters and servants into believing we are defeated, by doing this, it will allow us to keep close watch over each of them and relay their movements to each other. Make no mistake, his was the first and last sacrifice that will need to be made. From here on out, you are all free to do as you wish, only so long as you remain undetected."

"However..." Kirei added, "If any of you see an opportunity to eliminate any of the other masters, or their servants for that matter, take it." He then bowed his head slightly, "On that note, I also apologise for your loss, and shall do my best to make up for it in my own duties as a master."

A moment passed, but soon all of the Assassin class servants nodded, the one in front replying, "Very well, the Undead Legion offers you our forgiveness."

"The battle for the Grail is now at hand. At last, it is now time for the Fourth Holy Grail War to begin." Risei announced. "These tired old eyes of mine will finally see a wondrous miracle be performed."

Tokiomi Tohsaka couldn't be more pleased.

Their plan had succeeded. The other masters witnessed Assassin's defeat, and were fooled into believing the servant and their master had been eliminated from the Holy Grail War completely.

What they didn't know however, was that Assassin was more than one person, and Tokiomi couldn't help but be curious as to who these Undead Legion were.

Nonetheless, with many other Assassin's under Kirei's command, and with the other masters now fooled into believing Assassin and their master are no longer active in the Holy Grail War, it would be far more easier to keep track of the other masters and their servants through the eyes of Kirei's many Assassin class servants.

However, as he sat in his room taking sips of his glass of wine, his mind went back to something Archer said to him.

"I am familiar with your students servant."

Tokiomi recalled the words several times, trying to figure out what Archer meant exactly. Did he mean that he and Assassin both lived in the same day and age? Did they fight alongside each other?

He couldn't really figure it out.

While the head of the Tohsaka family continued to be deep in thought, the servant in question, just happened to materialize in his room.

The large, half human, half monstrosity servant snaked around the room, saying nothing to his master, instead picking out a book from Tokiomi's large collection and started reading it.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Tokiomi finally decided to ask, "Archer, what exactly did you mean when you said you were familiar with Kirei's servant?"

Archer never took his eyes off the book, though replied, "Why do you ask?"

"Curious, and I want to know just how familiar you are with Assassin. And when I say that, I want to know, were you allies? Enemies? Just how familiar are you with Assassin?" Tokiomi asked.

Finally Archer took his eyes off of the book and looked over at his master. He was silent for a moment, and despite how dark the room was, it was lit up a little by the moonlight shining through the window, just enough for him to see Tokiomi's stoic face.

Closing the book, he answered, "...I can't exactly call myself an ally of the Undead Legion, but I can claim I am no enemy of theirs either."

"So does that mean you would be able to tolerate working with them to bring down the other masters and their servants?" Tokiomi asked.

Archer raised a finger, "One question at a time Tokiomi."

The master recoiled slightly, then sank into his chair and listened as Archer continued, "The Undead Legion and I have one thing in common. We are Lords of Cinder."

"Lords of Cinder?" Tokiomi raised a brow.

"A title one takes upon linking the fire." Archer replied.

Tokiomi could only look on, confused, "Linking...the fire?"

Archer slowly turned to fully face his master, adding, "The world I come from is a very, complicated place, Tokiomi."

It took a moment but the master eventually nodded, replying, "I understand, I apologise if I offended you. Let's just move on to my other question then. Can you work together with Assassin?"

Archer chuckled, "If us Lords of Cinder were to ally with each other, nothing would stop us."

"So will you allow Assassin to assist you during your battles? Should it ever be required?" Tokiomi asked.

Archer tilted his head a little, "I have no objections to an ally stepping in to aid me, but make no mistake Tokiomi, I require no assistance to defeat any opponent. For I am the Devourer of Gods."

Tokiomi shook his head, "I just want to ensure our victory is all." He said calmly. "We of the Tohsaka have attempted to retrieve the Grail for so long, every time we have always gotten so close to our goal, it gets yanked away, every, single time. So you must forgive me if I feel concerned over the thought of defeat at this present time."

"Then..." Archer chuckled again, rising up nearly to his full height, just enough for Tokiomi to make out his entire form, and spoke in a sinister tone,

"Perhaps a display of my strength will soothe your fears."

After what he saw that night, Waver's confidence in winning the Holy Grail had been rekindled.

He'd be lying if he said he doubted Rider's abilities as a servant. But after what she showed him, any doubt he had was gone in an instant.

As if things couldn't get any better, thanks to his familiar, he witnessed Assassin's defeat at the hands of Tokiomi Tohsaka's servant.

One servant was already gone from the Holy Grail War and they haven't even fought yet.

Right now Waver was in a very good mood, luck was apparently on his side.

While sitting on his bed trying to think of his first course of action, he looked over at Rider who was seated on the floor watching his television.

It seemed like she was watching another romance movie.

Waver couldn't help but be amused. Romance must have been her favourite genre, since this romance movie was the ninth one she's watched so far.

He could see that she was really into the movie, but knowing the importance of the Holy Grail War, he reluctantly decided to finally speak up.

"Hey Rider?"

Rider turned to him, her eyes locking with his.

Waver recoiled, and looked away, only a little this time, he was still getting used to talking to her while looking her in the eye. "Um, Assassin has been defeated. That means there's one less servant for us to deal with."

Rider nodded, "Indeed. Assassin's primary abilities rely on eliminating a servants master, therefor, it is very fortunate for us that he has been eliminated. It means that you are in less danger than before."

Waver blinked, "I'm...in less danger than before? What do you mean by that?"

Rider turned a little to face him better, "Had Assassin been around while I was in battle with another servant, he potentially could have taken advantage of that by targeting you master."

Waver gulped, the thought crossing his mind. He could already picture Rider fighting another servant, and while the battle was going on, Assassin would appear behind him.

He quickly destroyed the thought in his head and looked back at her, "I-I can protect myself! I may not be the best magus there is but I'm still a magus!"

It was only after he processed how loud his tone was that he noticed the sad look on Rider's face.

"I...yes...please forgive me, master. I...I didn't mean to doubt your abilities." She looked away from him, her face hidden by her long black hair.

Waver instantly regretted what he said and shook his head, "W-Wait I...I didn't mean it like that it's, I just meant..."

He stuttered on all of his words, then let out a long sigh, before finally settling on a simple, "I'm sorry."

Rider slowly looked back at him, "It's okay, please don't apologise." She offered him the tiniest smile possible, adding, "I believe in you. You say you are not great, but I have faith you will be one day."

Waver blushed, feeling extremely embarrassed, then looked away from her, "Hey, come on, knock it off Rider."

Rider tilted her head, looking confused now, "Hm? Knock what off master?"

A groan and Waver decided to change the subject, "Anyway...I just want to ask you about what you showed me earlier."

Rider straightened up, her face going a little more serious, "Ask as you will master."

Waver nodded, "I just want to know, can we rely on, it? Her? Whatever it or she is?"

"She was tasked by the one I loved to protect me, and she is more than capable of holding her own against any other servant, trust me..." Rider said.

She then looked back at him with a confident look, "She will help us win this war, master."

Waver just looked at her for a moment, then nodded, "I understand. I trust you."

Finally, Rider smiled a little, it wasn't a big smile or anything, but it was just a little bigger than the tiny smile she gave earlier.

Waver looked away again, blushing at her kind smile, and suddenly found himself smiling as well.

Before he could ask her anything further, he noticed that she had just returned to watching her romance movie.

He rolled his eyes, and decided to just to let her watch it with no more distractions.

Meanwhile, he could distract himself with some sleep.

"Oh my, so this is where Kiritsugu was born?"

Irisviel had finally arrived in Fuyuki.

The trip had been long but thanks to the first class service Kiritsugu made sure was provided for her, she had enough to occupy herself with. Small televisions on the back of seats, various magazines with puzzles and crosswords and books, Irisviel went through them all. First class also allowed her and Saber to have some privacy from the rest of the passengers.

No doubt Saber's presence would have attracted a lot of unwanted attention from the other passengers. Which was why they had to make some, adjustments.

Without his armour, Saber could pass for a normal citizen, but there was still a slight complication due to how tall he was. Which would make finding a suitable outfit for him to wear, rather difficult.

Fortunately, Kiritsugu called in a friend to make an outfit that would fit his servant perfectly.

"Well, Saber, how did you enjoy your journey through the sky?" Irisviel asked, looking up at the open door of the aircraft where Saber stood.

Saber looked down at Irisviel with a smile, a smile she could see now that he no longer wore his armour. Instead, he now wore a rather rich looking suit, all in black, with a long black jacket similar to what Kiritsugu wore. And they fit him perfectly. His black hair was a little long, hanging down just below his neck, and his eyes were a rather dark shade of brown.

"The trip was, a lot longer than I wanted it to be Irisviel, but the aircraft provided me with plenty to occupy my time with." Saber said, then raised a brow at his 'master'. "And didn't I say you could call me Raime."

Irisviel blushed a little in embarrassment, "I know, I know. I guess I'm still trying to get used to that."

Saber chuckled and made his way down the stairs, "It's fine, call me either, it makes no difference to me really."

A nod, and Irisviel continued on her way, Saber and her maids following right behind her. "I imagine you must be the very first servant to fly in an aeroplane in physical form."

"Yes, about that, I must apologise. If I could take spirit form, it would probably make travelling a lot easier." Saber sighed, but before he could continue, Irisviel spoke up again.

"It's okay Saber. To be honest, I'd rather have you walking by my side in physical form." Irisviel said. "I never get tired of watching you."

As they walked through the airport, Saber couldn't help but cast a glance at her, "Watching me? How so Irisviel?"

Irisviel giggled, "Well, you being stuck in physical form isn't without its merits. It has given me many enjoyable hours of choosing outfits for you. Of course, I have to send those outfits away so I can get them made in just right the size to fit you. I'm sure you've noticed the stares you've been getting from a lot of people."

Saber nodded, "I have, yes. Many women in particular now that you mention it."

Another giggle from Irisviel and Saber asked, "Did I say something funny?"

"No, no, to be honest I'm really not surprised, in fact I kind of expected you to attract a lot of stares. Does it make you feel uncomfortable?" Irisviel asked.

Saber shook his head, "Not at all. It'll take more than a few stares to put me on edge. Then again..." He looked down at Irisviel, adding, "Perhaps I should be on edge at all times. If something were to happen to you just because I wasn't cautious enough, I'd probably skewer myself with my own blade."

Irisviel recoiled, "No don't say that! It's fine, I don't want you to feel as if you need to force yourself to be serious in your duties all the time. Have some fun now and then won't you?"

Saber just stared at her with a blank expression, "I'll...try."

"So, Saber, how do you like your outfit?" Irisviel asked.

Saber looked down at his suit, replying, "It's comfortable to an extent. I can't remember the last time I wore something that wasn't my armour. Tell me though Irisviel, is this manner of clothing common for most men in this day and age? Other men I've seen have been wearing things quite different than what I'm wearing."

"Well, I think that could probably be said for everyone, men and women alike." Irisviel said, "That said, I chose that for you to balance out my own outfit. I hope you don't mind."

Saber shook his head, "No, of course not. You chose wisely, I like it. You have a talent for picking the right fashion Irisviel."

Irisviel blushed, "Thank you, Saber."

The two wasted little time retrieving their luggage and, after successfully passing through the security checks with the passports Kiritsugu had made for them, the two finally made it back outside.

A cool breeze washed over them, much to Saber's liking, who took in every moment of it, "This is the kind of weather I prefer. Sunny and warm, but with a cold breeze to keep you cool."

Irisviel giggled and approached the car waiting for them.

Before she could enter it however, Saber spoke up, "Irisviel, rather than take another transport, how would you like to walk instead?"

Irisviel looked back at the servant, surprised a little at his suggestion, "Walk?"

Saber nodded, "Yes. I've noticed that you've been looking around quite a lot, I can only assume this is one of few times you've ever been out in a public location?"

Irisviel's expression died down, she tried to force a smile, but Saber could tell right away it was forced, "Actually, this is my very first time."

Saber recoiled, a look of shock on his face, "Your first time?"

"Yes. This is the first time I've ever ventured out into the world outside the confines of my home." Irisviel explained.

"Are you saying, you've spent your entire life in that castle?" Saber asked.

A nod, and Irisviel added, "You see, I was a puppet created specifically for the Holy Grail War." She let out a soft giggle, "Of course it isn't as though I'm wholly ignorant. Kiritsugu brought me movies and videos and pictures, and he's tried in every way to teach me everything he could about the outside world. But this is the first time I've actually been able to see it with my own eyes."

Irisviel looked back up at Saber, smiling once again, "So, please, forgive me, I got overly excited."

Saber just stared at her for a long moment, then turned to his masters maids, "Please take lady Irisviels belongings to our location, we will be there shortly." He turned back to his masters wife, holding out his hand, adding, "Let us go then, Irisviel. Walking through the city will be a brand new experience for the both of us."

Irisviel looked at him, still surprised.

The surprise soon turned to a smile, and she took his hand, following him as they set out to explore the city.

"Thank you, Raime."

Next Chapter:

"This world is so, different than my own."

"Don't worry master. I promise I will protect you."

"So, you are the servant called Saber."