Author's Notes:
Leave it to writing a fanfiction story for a game that you haven't finished to make your story inaccurate. How was I supposed to know about the Fire of Prometheus? They didn't mention it until the 7th Singularity!
(Grumble. Now I just have to figure out to weave it into the story. Along with everything else in Solomon's Singularity.)
And I can't promise timely arrival for next month. I wrote over half of this chapter in November only to be unprepared for the release of two Singularities in North America's Fate Grand Order game.
Checklist Item 11: If You Don't Know How to Do it, then Learn!
Singularity F, Fuyuki, 2004
"Hey, Ritsuka."
After ransacking an abandoned convenience store for some drinking water and snacks, the group had taken a quick water break after Caster had found some water for everyone to drink, the group had left the bridge and was now walking down the main road to the mountain ahead.
The break had done some good. Namely, it had let them (mostly Olga) calm down from the panic of discovering that Heracles was an enemy Servant.
Caster was leading, since he was the one who best knew the way. Mash followed behind, with Olga walking beside her and Ritsuka took up the rear as he was the only one who had no combat ability.
But now, Olga, relaxed and composed, spoke up softly from beside Ritsuka who she had just dropped back to talk to.
"It's pretty obvious that Kyrielight's looking depressed," she said.
Really?
Ritsuka craned his head to get a better perspective on Mash's perspective. He couldn't see much but Mash's head was down, without any of the eagerness in looking around like she had been since she had woken him up in this flame covered world.
"You are her Master, aren't you?" Olga continued. "Do something to cheer her up!"
Ritsuka stumbled as she pushed him forward. As he regained his balance, he glanced back at the director, looking slightly irritated and mostly worried, before he ran to catch up to the younger woman.
Mash, heard him approach and turned to face him, face slightly puzzled.
"Um," he started before deciding to just take the jump. "Mash, is something wrong?"
Mash's face blushed in embarrassment as she waved her free hand in the air. "No! There's nothing different. I'm operating perfectly, Master!"
She hesitated, her face falling again. "But that is the problem, nothing's different…"
She fell silent for a moment, the two walking in silence, before she continued. "Um, under your command Senpai, I have gained enough experience… And yet… I'm still unable to unleash my Noble Phantasm. I don't even know how to unleash it, I'm like a defective Servant."
While Mash was worrying about not having a Noble Phantasm, Ritsuka didn't even know what a Noble Phantasm was.
Wait, hadn't Mash explained it earlier as a hero's secret weapon? Like Excalibur for King Arthur?
But that wouldn't be a secret weapon, right? He means, everyone knows that King Arthur wielded Excalibur. So it wouldn't be that secret of a secret weapon.
But that line of thought wouldn't encourage Mash, would it? Not with her not knowing what her secret weapon was.
Fou, who had been running up next to Mash on the ground, briefly rubbed against Mash's leg like an affectionate cat, softly calling out, "Fou."
Only the beep of the comm starting up warned them of the sudden appearance of Roman's hologram.
"Oh, so that's what's been bothering you," Roman said, shaking his head. "You have such a strong sense of responsibility, Mash. But I don't think that can be settled overnight. After all, it's a Noble Phantasm. If a Heroic Spirit's secret weapon could be mastered within a day or two, then Servants wouldn't be that special anymore."
Shirou sneezed as he finished drying his hands and brushing his teeth after eating his lunch.
Great. Now people were talking about him. With him needing to find the demon in Chaldea, fix everything damaged while alone as all of his coworkers were dead, and finding a way to prove Arturia's innocence, Shirou had his hands full without worrying about what people were saying about him behind his back.
But to Shirou, their opinions didn't really matter. Not compared to saving their lives.
It was days like these that made him wish that he could project Avalon or Caliburn to hold while he remembered Saber. It helped her stay important to him. He needed to remember the love he had for her if he wanted to search endlessly. And her weapons were a good symbol for her, reminding him of the time they had together.
But he couldn't project them. Avalon had gone back to the past with Arturia and despite his affinity and long experience with it, he couldn't find a copy of it inside his Reality Marble. Echoes and traces, yes, but not Avalon itself.
And while he did still have a copy of her Caliburn, he really couldn't justify pulling out a Noble Phantasm, even if it was Arturia's favored sword. Not when he might need every bit of prana in a fight against an unknown demon who could strike again at any given moment.
Even if projecting it wouldn't be as expensive as it used to cost his Od, causing a Noble Phantasm to appear in Chaldea would alarm everyone.
No one sensitive to mana could possibly miss a Noble Phantasm coming into existence.
And everyone here was tense and on pricks and needles. Feeling a massive clump of energy or a Noble Phantasm's powerful smell sudden pop into existence would frighten anyone.
Shirou knew from experience what a scared magus would do if they felt a Noble Phantasm appear.
They attacked first. Sometimes they ran, but most magi got either greedy and tried to take it for themselves or scared and tried to kill him before he could kill them.
He figured that the next steps that the magus would have taken would be to overwhelm, capture, and analyze but whenever he used a Noble Phantasm, no one had ever gotten past the attack phase of their reaction before.
Noble Phantasms were unfairly powerful like that.
"Of course we can master something like that immediately," Caster butted into the conversation.
Ritsuka winced. Not to offend or anything, but Caster really didn't understand how to comfort Mash, did he?
But Caster wasn't done speaking.
"After all, Heroic Spirits and Noble Phantasms are the same thing. If the young lady here can fight as a Servant, that means that she can use her Noble Phantasm," Caster gestured to Mash, before pausing, a look of contemplation on his features. "And yet you can't, which simply means your magical energy is not circulating right."
He continued walking forward, staff tapping the ground as he deliberated with himself. "Let's see, maybe enthusiasm? No, perhaps too reserved?"
He shook his head. "Nah. Anyway, I'm sure it's because you just don't yell out when you practice."
Ritsuka blinked. That had to be a joke.
Yelling affecting a Noble Phantasm? Was this an anime or something?
Maybe it was magic? Ritsuka knew nothing but this was stretching the bounds of credulity.
"Really?" Mash yelled before clearing her throat and really shouting it out. "R-E-A-L-L-Y!?"
"Faaaaaaa?" Fou yelped as he jumped two feet into the air. Ritsuka winced as he rubbed his ears.
So Mash wouldn't recognize a joke if it bit her on the nose. She was a bit odd.
"Hey, don't yell all of a sudden!" Olga yelled from behind them. "You're going to burst my eardrums, seriously!"
"Sorry Director," Mash apologized as she turned around. "But Caster said we should shout…"
"No, that was a metaphor," Caster protested as Olga glared at him. He coughed in a transparent attempt to change the topic from his bad joke. "Well, at any rate, I see you have the enthusiasm."
Olga glare didn't weaken.
"Welp, you heard the young lady," Caster ignored Olga as he turned to Ritsuka. "Do you mind if we take a quick detour?"
"Detour?" Olga asked, eyes narrowing in suspicion. "What kind of detour?"
"For the first part of your special training, we will start off small."
Caster walked back and forth, staff clicking against the ash covered grounds of Homurahara Academy.
Mr. Shirou Emiya had recommended that they use the archery range here but it had burned down in the fires blazing in other parts of the city. Only ashes remained. Only the fact that Mr. Emiya knew where the wooden archery range should be let them know where the ashes covering the school grounds had came from.
So they were just using the dusty field outside for Mash's training.
Well, Mash and Caster were with Olga looking on. Ritsuka had volunteered to look for food inside the academy with the help of Mr. Emiya.
Mr. Emiya had graduated from the school and would know where the cafeteria was. He also knew where one of his teachers kept her stash of snacks, so he had been leading Mash's Master towards the likely locations for food.
Or he had been. Just a few moments ago, Olga's comm had beeped and spit out a hologram of Mr. Emiya. From what Mash could hear, Ritsuka had just found a few packets of bread still in their plastic wrap. So while her Senpai packed it up into an unburned bag that he had found, Mr. Emiya was going to watch the training and see if he could help Mash in any way.
He had seen every Servant's Noble Phantasm in the Fifth Grail War with the exception of Archer. He also had received some training from Saber and had helped her use a Noble Phantasm against both Berserker and the Fourth War's Archer.
Which meant that he had more experience with Noble Phantasms than everyone else in Chaldea combined if you excluded Da Vinci, who was right now in the middle of something so delicate that an interruption was likely to be catastrophic.
Mash needed to be able to use her Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm. Saber was standing against them and she had defeated Heracles!
Only the fact that Saber had been badly weakened from fighting Berserker and had barely killed Assassin after that made Mash, Olga, Caster and Roman think that they could defeat Saber if they moved fast.
Mash knew she needed to call out the True Name to unleash the full power of the Noble Phantasm, but it had been proven that calling the name was not necessary to use a Noble Phantasm. It would be weaker without the True Name but the True Name was not needed to activate it.
It probably wouldn't be nearly good enough to take down Saber, but without it and with only Caster, who was at a disadvantage thanks to the Saber Class's Magic Resistance class skill, they were doomed to lose.
With her unknown Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm, the possibility of victory might not be zero, depending on the Noble Phantasm. But knowing if it would be good enough would allow her Master and the Director to decide whether or not to press on and fight Saber or to retreat and wait for additional help.
And Mash was determined to not fail. Olga needed her to succeed.
For the sake of Chaldea and the sake of humanity's future.
"I've inscribed some misfortune-bringing runes on this field. I remember them from my own training so they should work," Caster continued, gesturing towards the field, which had a big glowing rune in the middle of it.
Mash gulped.
Cu Chulainn's training. Cu Chulainn who was trained by none other than the Queen of the Land of Shadows, Lady Scathach herself.
A person so strong that she had ascended into immortality, killed gods and multitudes of phantasmals, and trained the strongest warriors of Ireland.
And this was going to be how she learned to use a Noble Phantasm.
She was so excited!
"So what will I will learn?" she asked in eagerness.
"Well, your problem with you and your Noble Phantasm is that you think too much. A Noble Phantasm is part of a Heroic Spirit's instinct. So we have to get you to use up all of your energy," Cu Chulainn nodded with a pleased grin.
Mash goggled at him.
This was going to help her use the Noble Phantasm!
But-
But- But-
But weren't Noble Phantasms expensive to operate!? How was she supposed to use one if she was out of energy!
"But!" she protested, gesturing with her shield. "How will that help me use a Noble Phantasm? If I don't know how to use one already, how will my instinct know either?"
Caster scowled.
"You already know how," he scolded. "You just need to let your instinct take over."
"But-!"
The clanking of bony feet from the gate to the school interrupted her protest, causing Mash to swing her shield towards the sole entrance to the school.
"The runes should keep a nice steady flow of enemies coming while making it difficult for anyone trying to leave the school," Caster helpfully added. "You will be tired after defeating them all by yourself. Have fun!"
Mash gritted her teeth. If she let even a single one of them slip by her and into the school, the skeleton would kill her Master.
She couldn't allow that.
Left with no choice, she let loose a battle-cry, making sure to yell as loud as she could in accordance to Caster's earlier advice before charging the screaming horde of skeletons as they rushed towards her.
This was not what she had been expecting her training to be like!
Antarctica, Chaldea, 2017
Shirou watched the training session from the screen connecting to Olga's comm. The main glass window had three images projected onto it.
One of Ritsuka discovering that he couldn't refill the plastic water bottles at the water fountains as the pipes weren't working. One of the general map of Fuyuki, flames, scars, leylines, and all. And the last screen was from Olga's perspective of Mash's training
Mash was visibly better than when he had first seen her fight. Her technique was good, not high quality but every blow she made was slightly better than her last.
But it was wrong for her. Her mentality fit but her fighting style was suited to a man. He could see her making small changes to adjust to her frame but she was merely good, not Servant level good.
The most obvious flaw was her footwork. It was still too large, like it was meant for someone taller and wearing heavier armor or just plain weighed more.
But Mash wasn't fixing that. She might not even know to fix it unless a teacher pointed it out to her. Probably was second nature to her Heroic Spirit so Mash wouldn't deviate it from it without a reason to.
So in Shirou's imagination of an one-on-one fight of Saber against Mash, Saber would easily win without even dismissing Burst Air to reveal Excalibur.
If he could see Mash's mistakes in her knight style of combat, then Saber would rip through them.
If Saber was Arturia.
Shirou still couldn't believe that Saber was the reason for the Singularity. It had to be someone else. Saber had wanted the grail, yes, but not to the extent that she would take advantage of a disaster like this!
When Kirei had offered the Grail if she would betray him, she had turned him down. Saber would never break her oaths as a knight to harm the innocent.
"So do you think this will work?" Olga asked out of the blue.
Shirou blinked. Who was she talking to?
"Emiya, do you think this will work?" Olga repeated with frustration in her voice.
"It might," Shirou shrugged. "Noble Phantasms are instinctual to the Servant. But it might depend on training or what kind of Noble Phantasm Mash has. If she has an offensive or defensive combat Noble Phantasm, then fighting like this might cause her to pull them out. But if she has a Noble Phantasm that is suited to something different then this training would probably be useless."
For instance, if Mash's Noble Phantasm was anti-Thaumatology like Caster Medea's Rule Breaker, Mash would not pull it out against these foes. Her sub-conscious would reject it. Or if it was like Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon, then Mash would need to be disarmed and really wanting a weapon to pull on Gate of Babylon.
With experience, she might overcome it or use it for different purposes. But without a clue on how to use it, it all depended on how it worked.
Shirou guessed that it was a defensive Noble Phantasm judging by the class name 'Shielder' but what was it going to defend against? There were lots of legends of heroes defending against different foes, ranging all the way from mortal weapons to animals to dragons to even gods.
"Tch," Olga clucked her tongue. "Then I'm going to discuss this so-called lesson plan with Caster. He needs to improve the quality of his teaching if he expects to get anywhere."
Shirou was glad that she was on that side of the screen and that Caster was the subject of her rage.
Singularity F, Fuyuki, 2004
"Ah, good timing!" Caster greeted Olga as she angrily walked towards him. He had seen enough angry females in his life to know when one was gearing up to rip him a new one. He didn't know what set her off this time but he had to keep an eye on how to guide Shielder in wielding her Noble Phantasm. "There will be a lull in the fighting until the next few bands a few streets arrive. I'm gonna go check in on Mash's progress."
The white-haired woman glared at him but stiffly nodded.
Caster stopped slouching against the wall and grabbed his staff. It would be more convenient to be over near Mash for this next part.
And more peaceful than having to listen to a woman ream him out.
Hey, he liked a fight as much as the next man, but most woman didn't want a fight when they ranted at ya.
It was unfair, that's what it was.
But he did wonder if he would need to change tactics to teach the girl.
Shielder just wasn't getting it.
Mash panted as the last skeleton, one with a spear, fell in pieces as the power of the magecraft animating it collapsed under the power of her shield.
It wasn't working. Mash didn't feel anything change or shift inside of her.
There was no change to her body, no irregularities with her internal od flow nor the flow of energy she could feel coming from her bond to her Master.
Not even a sudden unfolding of knowledge like when she had first seen a skeleton here in Singularity F and had charged it in order to protect her unconscious Senpai.
Even dumping a significant chunk of her prana into the shield hadn't worked.
Nothing changed.
Except for the shortness of breath and the burning in muscles from fighting against what must have been every skeleton on this side of the river, Mash didn't feel any changes.
She started as she heard the clack of a wooden staff against the ground behind her. Mash slowly turned around to see a frowning Caster with an angry Olga behind him. Beside her was the blue hologram showing both Mr. Emiya and Dr. Roman as they worked in Chaldea.
Mash straightened herself, preparing to receive the next bit of advice. Only to double over as her stomach protested her movement.
It hurt! Not even the exercise regimen for Masters was this exhausting.
Surely, she must have been worn out by now, right? Caster would must be ready to teach the next step.
She was ready to follow the Queen of the Land of Shadow's training regimen!
"I'm—ready," Mash panted out between gulping air like a fish on land. "But—please—no—more—back—to—back—battles."
"You just don't get it, do ya?" Caster frowned as he shook his head in disapproval. Mash felt a piece of herself shrivel up and die at his disappointment. Was she wrong? Were back-to-back battles really the only way? It couldn't be! It just couldn't be!
"Please," she gasped out. She couldn't fail now. But this wasn't working! Surely Caster had to have a better way! Maybe it had been too long for him to recall what else Lady Scathach had taught him during his training? "teach—me—some—solid—theories—"
Suddenly, Shirou chimed in from the blue hologram. "It's not as hard as you try to make it out to be. You just let the legend act."
Olga whirled around to stare at the projection in astonishment. "What?"
Mash was curious too. What did Mr. Emiya know about Noble Phantasms?
"Yeah, that's right!" Caster snapped his fingers and pointed at the hologram of Shirou. "You just live and throw your confidence behind it. It's not something deliberate. It's instinct."
Mash stared at Shirou in shock before her need for oxygen forced her to breathe. He was right!?
"It's hard to use it if you think too much," Caster stated as he turned to face Mash, "Therefore, you must use up all of your energy so you stop thinking about it."
"Yeah, it is instinctual," Shirou agreed, a look of comprehension and pity on his face as he looked at Mash. "Don't know about the 'using all of your energy' part but you just- release the legend and throw yourself behind it."
"The using up all her energy is to get her to stop thinking," Caster explained to the man in the future. "If she doesn't use up all of her energy, she'll just try to plan it out and ignore her instincts. So, we'll get her desperate and then she'll listen. That's what my mentor did to some of my fellow pupils. Are you ready to start?"
A protest of "I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND A WORD YOU SAID!" came from Shirou's side of the screen.
"But it is natural! You just reach inside of the weapon, sympathize with it and release its full nature!" Shirou protested as he swiveled around to explain to his coworkers.
"How in the world is she supposed to sympathize with a weapon!" Dr. Roman exclaimed, his eyes facing away from the monitor. "It doesn't even have feelings!"
As foolish as Dr. Roman acted sometimes, in this case, Mash agreed with him on that.
Sympathize with her shield? There was nothing to sympathize with!
It was a shield, not a fellow human being, for crying out loud!
"Well, I was going to try something else next, but maybe that will do the trick," Caster said, nodding his head. "Go ahead and give it try on the next group."
And Caster was agreeing with him!
Mash eyed her shield with doubt.
Don't think too much, act with instinct, and sympathize with her shield?
No way that could be right!
Surely the trick was some odd twist to her Od where she released a pulse of prana into a receptacle in order to activate the Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm!
But she supposed that it was a Noble Phantasm, the power of a Heroic Spirit. To summon a Servant was potentially only a few short steps away from a miracle.
And Noble Phantasms, the weapon of such a hero, were the ultimate solidified Mysteries, the embodiment of a Hero, the representation of their legend.
Some thought it was because of the weakening of Mysteries and the scarcity of modern Noble Phantasms that Heroic Spirits couldn't be created anymore in the modern age and a new one hadn't ascended to the Throne of Heroes in over a century.
After all, what was a Heroic Spirit without a Noble Phantasm?
"And here they are," Caster happily said as he pointed to the gate of the school.
Mash turned around, her breath mostly recovered by this point, to see another pack of skeletons charging at her.
She gritted her teeth and started her march towards them.
"Remember to not think, listen to your guts, and let the Noble Phantasm act!" Caster shouted after her.
Mash crammed all her frustration into a wordless yell as she ran towards the nearest skeleton, ready to smash it into bits.
Antarctica, Chaldea, 2017
As Mash charged towards another group of skeletons, someone else was dealing with questions.
"So Shirou, how do you know about using a Noble Phantasm?"
"Oh," Shirou's mind raced. He couldn't reveal his true capabilities. Most of the magi here had ties to the Clock Tower. Which meant he had to lie. "-Umm, my magecraft is based around analyzation and replication. I also used a Noble Phantasm or two during the Grail War with the help of my Servant."
Shirou held his breath, hoping the deception wouldn't be detected. Rin would be looked at with suspicion and would definitely be in trouble if it came out that she had known that Shirou was capable of replicating Noble Phantasms and hadn't captured him to let the Clock Tower study him.
Such a thing would probably end up with him under a Sealing Designation which would incarcerate him in the Clock Tower. Forever.
No way to get to Saber nor any way to save anyone.
Such things would be forbidden to a Sealing Designate.
Roman whistled. "Impressive."
Shirou exhaled quietly. Good thing I managed to hide the true nature of my abilities.
"Also, my Servant had a Master's Noble Phantasm which I was able to use during the Holy Grail War," Shirou expounded upon his lie. He had to make sure that they didn't think to look too closely. "Without it, I would died early on in the War."
"Oh?" Edward said from behind Shirou, voice hiding the true extent of his interest. "Do you still have it somewhere?"
Shirou shrugged.
A Master's Noble Phantasm was a Noble Phantasm that only needed a connection to the Servant to be used. They didn't need to be used by a Servant to work.
Avalon was one of those rare types of Noble Phantasms.
"It went back with my Servant after the war ended," Shirou truthfully said.
Rin had told him that the best lies were the reasonable lies that couldn't be confirmed or denied but were mixed with truth that could easily be confirmed.
The closer you were to that, the better your lie was.
She then told him to not bother lying and just leave it to her. He sucked at it.
"It also used too much energy for anyone who was not a Servant to use," he finished his lie.
Tom Nawakowski narrowed his eyes at Shirou.
He was getting up there in years and spent more than a few decades here in Chaldea, but he was no fool.
And Shirou had just lied. Tom didn't know exactly which statement the man was lying about, but he had just done it. Shirou's body language was too relaxed and consistent with zero changes for him to be truthful. He had been focused on not giving away any sign of lying that he forced his body language and voice into uniformity, despite the question from Edward.
An amateur's mistake. But just because Tom knew why Shirou lied didn't mean that he knew what Shirou lied about.
It was probably about the Noble Phantasm. Maybe Shirou still had the Master's Noble Phantasm? Or was it more useful than he was letting on?
Or was it more useless and it didn't save his life?
It could also possibly be that Shirou was being a braggart again and had never used a Noble Phantasm during the 5th Grail War. Which was likely the most probable.
Mash was the star of A-team, the strongest in terms of Od capacity of that proud and independent bunch before the bombing had nearly killed them all. And she was having trouble with learning how to use a Noble Phantasm even with a Caster Servant teaching her.
It was far less likely that a young family magus would be able to do what she couldn't.
Tom turned his eyes back to monitoring the spiritron rejection measurements.
He didn't know what the boy who had probably played a role in Roch's death was hiding, but he would get to the bottom of it.
Tom knew that he was short-tempered and was still prone to being too rash despite his years, but he had had time to calm down and think about it. Which had been something he struggled with doing in his younger years.
Shirou might not have won the war, or he might have slain the murderer of Roch instead of killing Roch himself. Shirou might not even be the recent bomber of Chaldea.
Tom had lost control of his temper when Shirou had mocked Roch's loss and death in the Grail War by boasting about winning the 5th Grail War.
However, Tom had independently arrived at the same conclusion as Roman.
Chaldea was in no position to start a witch hunt among the survivors right now, even if they managed to identify the correct culprit.
But with the newest lie…
Tom was definitely going to keep an eye on Shirou.
He was far too suspicious to be trusted.
Singularity F, Fuyuki, 2004
Mash was past mere panting for air and was now sweating heavily as she brought down her shield on the last skeleton.
She let herself just fall to the ground, on her knees, panting for air, as her shield clattered to the ground beside her. She didn't care about the ash her legs were now stained in.
She was just so tired.
If she needed to use up all of her energy in order to use the Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm, she now qualified.
Mash could hear footsteps, from an actual foot and not a part of a skeleton's bony frame, come up from behind her.
She probably ought to turn around and stand up to greet them but-
She didn't have any inclination or strength to do so.
As the footsteps got close to her, she mustered up the will to twist her exhausted body around to face the human or Servant, whoever it was.
Much to her surprise, Ritsuka was holding out a bottle of water to her.
When did he get here?
Had fighting the skeletons taken up so much of her attention that she neglected her Master's safety?
Shame burned within her heart.
Mash cast her eyes down. She was a new Servant, but there was no way that her Master would let a failing such as that not go unremarked or unpunished.
She was a poor substitute for an actual Heroic Spirit who earned his way to the Throne of Heroes.
"Here," Ritsuka's voice said in front of her, causing her eyes to come up to see the bottle of water in the hand of a man with a gentle smile set in a concerned face. "You look like you could use this."
Mash blinked at him.
Then she realized that her Master was offering her some water and that she really should say something.
She was way too tired if it took her this long to realize that the water was for her.
"O-Oh," she managed to say. "Yes, thank you. I appreciate it. My thanks. Gladly."
"You only need to say it once," he chuckled as he pressed the water bottle to her hand.
Mash grabbed ahold of it, her thoughts moving slowly like they were moving through thick syrup.
It was water. She was thirsty and at risk of dehydration from the intense exercise and the high heat from all the fire she had walked between in this city.
Mash shakily unscrewed the cap and slowly raised the bottle to pour the wonderfully wet but warm water down her throat, taking care to look at Ritsuka without being obvious about it.
Was this- normal?
Was this compassion? Pity? Kindness?
Mash didn't know. But she figured that it was more likely closer to normal than any magus she ever met.
"Tch," Caster clicked his tongue as Mash finished her water. "I had hoped that you would get it, but doesn't look like it. Did I miscalculate?"
Mash flinched as she screwed the lid back on before dropping it into Ritsuka's hands.
"Please," Mash begged, getting to her feet. She needed to know how to use the Noble Phantasm. She needed to. She didn't know why she couldn't understand why she couldn't. "Please just-"
"I'm your opponent now," Caster interrupted her, the shadows from the burning fires casting a sinister and dark expression onto his face.
"Wha-" Mash got out in her whirlwind of confusion.
What was going on?
What did Caster mean? Her mind tried to push through the molasses of her exhaustion, but it dragged her thoughts down.
She just couldn't understand what Caster was getting at.
"Don't hold back now because we're allies," Caster continued, his face deadly serious. "After all, I'm not going to hold back when I kill Ritsuka."
"Stop him!" Mr. Emiya yelled from Chaldea, a look of frustration and anger on his face. "Lancer killed the most innocents in my Grail War! He has no compunctions in killing Masters, Servants, or civilians!"
Mash's eyes widened as she finally took in what both men had said.
Then she grabbed her dropped shield and hoisted it in front of Ritsuka.
Just in time to stop the fireball Caster just threw at him.
She needed to protect him!
She couldn't let her Master die!
Even if Caster was her teacher, she wouldn't let him kill Ritsuka!
Antarctica, Chaldea, 2017
Shirou clenched his teeth as he stared at the projected screen, thoughts racing through his head.
He should have known. Lancer had been the one to enforce the rules the most in the Holy Grail War. He had been the one to kill innocents who saw something that they weren't supposed to. Even Rider or Berserker hadn't killed as many as Lancer had. Rider had eaten other's souls but left enough for them to recover from eventually while Caster had sought to drain the whole town small piece by piece.
But Lancer had killed and killed without complaining. He only complained that his Master held him back from the fights he wanted so much.
And he continued his reprehensible work until he died fighting Gilgamesh.
Lancer had his own honor. He would kill, without compunction, in order to get the job done.
And it didn't bother him.
Shirou should have known. He had talked with Lancer, he had fought against Lancer, he even had Lancer's spear and staff in his Reality Marble.
He knew Cu Chulainn's history but had done nothing to let the group from Chaldea know. He knew the depths that Lancer would go for a mission.
Hadn't that been Cu Chulainn's legend? Hadn't he fought off armies for the sake of his kingdom? Hadn't he fought until blood stained the rivers or Ireland?
Shirou mentally kicked himself for trusting Lancer just because he was a Caster now.
He was still the same person.
But what could he do, Shirou wondered. He was in Chaldea and they were in Fuyuki.
They were Rayshifted and he-
-he wasn't allowed to Rayshift.
"Dr. Roman!" Shirou yelled as he spun to face Roman in his chair up a level and behind Shirou. "Please let me go to the Singularity!"
"You can't," Roman said automatically even as he jumped in his seat from the sudden shock of Shirou's yell. "Your Rayshift ability is-"
"I don't care!" Shirou responded. "Let me go and save them. They aren't able to fight him off. They need help and I can help them!"
Roman didn't look convinced so Shirou pressed on.
"I have faced Cu Chulainn before. I can fight him again. I am faster, stronger, and more experienced than last time. He is slower and weaker too," Shirou said as he got up and walked towards Roman. "If he had to face me and Mash, we could beat him."
"I can't," Roman shook his head. "You are not a Master so TRIMEGISTUS won't allow you to be selected as a candidate for Rayshifting."
"But what about Olga?" Shirou leaped upon the weak point in the argument. "She isn't a Master either!"
Roman looked taken aback at that.
"Please, if I can go there, we can win. Saber taught me swordsmanship, she taught me how to fight," Shirou pressed on, trying to impress upon Romani that this was the best option. "I can-"
"You don't have a sword," Tom broke into the argument. "Without a sword, swordsmanship is useless. And even if it did matter, this is a Servant, and Cu Chulainn at that. He has faced stronger, faster, and tougher foes than you and beat them all. You don't stand a chance."
"I can project a sword," Shirou argued back, turning to face Tom who had stood up from his seat. "I can project as many swords as I need. Even as he breaks one, I can project new ones."
"And projected swords will let you fight head-on against a Servant, the strongest type of familiar?" Tom asked, anger flaring in his eyes. "Don't be an idiot, boy! What you are trying to do is pointless suicide!"
"Even if I die, if we defeat Caster, then it would mean we are in better position to capture the Holy Grail!" Shirou argued back. "That means we can save the world and get the three of them back safely!"
"Hey now, stop arguing," Roman jumped in, breaking up the argument. "First of all, the Director was a Master before she became the Director. She has the necessary permission for TRIMEGISTUS to Rayshift her. I guess no one ever took those permissions off so she still is a Master in the eyes of TRIMEGISTUS. Second, you, Shirou, are not a Master. Even if I tried to start a Rayshift, TRIMEGISTUS's safety features would refuse to Rayshift you and look for a Master instead. We would need the Director to make you a Master before the computer would even go through with it."
"Then make me one," Shirou eagerly suggested seeing a way to finally go and save them. "You're the Acting Director, surely you can make me a Master."
Shirou hated being on the sidelines when people needed help. He hated it. And being forced to watch as others fought and died instead of him was torture.
He could accept fighting alongside others, like he had fought alongside Saber and Rin but just watching as others fought and he didn't was wrong!
"Third," Roman resolutely continued. "Your medical records say that your Rayshift compatibility is insufficient. If we send you, you are more likely to die or have the integrity of your soul get corrupted too fast for us to withdraw you."
"Fourth," Roman swept his hand towards the view of the CHALDEAS below them where the chamber for Rayshifting took place. It still had some rubble, mostly damaged fragments from the Spiritron Chassis Coffins that the Masters used for Rayshifting, and the two empty bodies of Kyrielight and Fujimaru. They couldn't take the bodies out of the room while they were Rayshifted unless they wanted to terminate the pair. And the Coffins were now in cryostasis to preserve the lives of the Masters. But the bomb's explosion had badly damaged some of the Chassis Coffins to the point that structural integrity had almost failed in a few of them, requiring the occupants be moved to unoccupied Coffins in order to save their lives. "We don't have any Coffins left. All of them are heavily damaged from the explosion and what ones aren't being used for cryopreservation of the Masters are so heavily damaged that I don't believe they can work properly. Neither do I like the fact that the Director Olga Marie, Mash, and Ritsuka are there without having their bodies in one but there is nothing I can do about that now. I can though, refuse to send you or anyone else there without one."
"Finally," Roman stared Shirou in the eyes. "As Tom said, what you are saying is suicide. It would take a stupendous magus or a True Magician to defeat a Servant. And Cu Chulainn is one of the best Servants. Even with your history of combat, you don't stand a chance against him. The best you could do is slow him down until he kills you. And then where will we be?"
"No, I refuse to send you," Roman shook his head. "You will do more good here as technician and local guide than down there."
Shirou stared at Roman in disbelief.
He knew that he likely wouldn't be able to defeat a Servant on his own. Even in the Grail War, unless Saber had been with him, he hadn't been able to beat a single Servant. Rider had smacked him around with ease, Berserker had literally crushed him without even meaning to, Lancer had toyed with him, and the less said about his attempted fight against Gilgamesh, the better.
But Mash Kyrielight was a Demi-Servant. A human that was used as a vessel for a Servant, that received the power of a Servant. If Shirou could fight alongside her, the two of them could beat Caster.
Briefly, Shirou contemplated attacking and knocking out the workers here so that he could set up Chaldea to Rayshift himself on something like a timer, but he didn't know how to Rayshift. He knew that it was controlled from this room.
But he didn't know how to initiate a Rayshift or to get past TRIMGEISTUS. And attacking the people here would likely end up with further damage to the system. Damage which could kill the three in the past.
No, taking over the command center by force would be more likely to kill more people than it saved. And it would be unethical to turn on his fellows without good cause. He wouldn't be able to look Saber in the eye if he attacked people for no good reason.
And while saving Mash Kyrielight, Ritsuka Fujimaru, and Olga Marie Animusphere was a good cause, Shirou wouldn't be able to take over the command center, figure out how to start a Rayshift, and then run down to the chamber in time to send himself before Caster killed Olga Marie Animusphere and the others.
Not to mention that TRIMEGISTUS would probably refuse to acknowledge him promoting himself to Master. Shirou wasn't the director or acting director.
No, he was a technician. His permissions that SHEBA and TRIMEGISTUS enforced in Chaldea were limited to the rooms that a technician could go into, access machinery, and the rooms that any employee could enter as well as his own private room.
Nowhere in his list of privileges was he able to make TRIMEGISTUS acknowledge him as a Master. And even if he could, he didn't know how to interact with TRIMEGISTUS here in the command center.
And without Roman or Olga's permission, Shirou couldn't Rayshift.
In other words, there was nothing he could do.
Shirou clenched his jaw and jerkily nodded once.
He didn't trust himself to speak now.
He hated every single time he was powerless enough that he couldn't even try to save people.
Roman relaxed with a sigh and a subtle release of body tension.
"Now that you see reason, why don't you-" Roman started to suggest both Shirou and Tom return to their seats before Shirou's comm bleated once before spitting out a blue holographic image of Nadja Haase, the woman still down in the central power plant, with tears flowing from her eyes.
"Shirou!" she cried. "Please help us fix this-"
'Bang!' came as she apparently hit something metal with what sounded like a wrench.
"-stupid generator!"
Shirou glanced aside to Roman who nodded.
"It won't work," Nadja blubbered, tears of frustration coming from her eyes. "We've checked everything, we've taken it apart and put it back together again, followed every step in the-"
'Bang!'
"manual and it STILL!"
'Bang!'
"WON'T!-"
'Bang!'
"-WORK!"
'BANG!'
"Go on," Roman said softly. "You are the only technician we have left."
Shirou stared at him before sighing.
He needed to save the people in the Singularity. But he couldn't. There was no way.
All he could do right now was help fix Chaldea and hoped that they could take care of themselves.
He wondered if this was how Saber had felt when she had been forced to take apart a village in order to support her army so that her entire kingdom didn't fall.
"Alright, I'll be down there in a few minutes," Shirou assured Nadja. "What did you say the problem was again?"
"IT!"
'Bang!'
"WON'T!"
'Bang!'
"WORK!"
'BANG!'
Shirou winced at the sound of metal impacting metal.
Apparently, the stress and lack of sleep had been getting to her. And to be fair, it was a stupid question. If she had known what the problem is but not how to fix it, she would have asked for advice instead.
But Shirou had never seen the young German magus have a breakdown before. She was usually more upbeat in her attitude.
Then again, he had never seen her try to get a generator working before while only on a few hours of sleep over the last few days. And she had said that she was pretty bad with machinery.
"Okay, why don't you sit down and relax for a bit. Maybe ask, hmm," Shirou hummed, trying to recall who was on cooking duty right now. Ah, yeah, Tia, the Spanish lady. "Tia for some tea while you wait, okay? I'll take care of it."
This was a bit like helping Rin with electronics. Only Rin was more likely to resort to wanton destruction over asking for help.
Maybe it was more like Taiga needing help?
Comparing the women, Shirou agreed that right now, Nadja was acting more like Taiga than Rin. Especially when compared to the last time Taiga thought that she should use percussive force to get the television to work properly.
Instead, it had created some new problems, much to Shirou's unhappiness at needing to replace the television.
"No," she said. "We need the generator working as soon as possible. I can't take a break right now!"
"Well, it'll take me time to get down there," Shirou reasoned out. He didn't need to hide his use of Structural Analysis like he used to in high school. Everyone here already knew he was a magus. "No point in having you sit there doing nothing."
"Well-" Nadja blinked her tinted eyes. She must not have been taking good care of herself if the veins in her eyes were visible in the hologram.
"Hey Nadja," Roman interrupted, turning to face Shirou's hologram. "When was the last time you had something to eat?"
Nadja frowned, obviously trying to recall. "Um. Hmm, I think it was dinner a few hours ago?" She questioned.
"Nadja," Roman said with the practiced air of dealing with problem child geniuses who pushed themselves beyond their limits. "Dinner was yesterday. Go get some lunch and some tea while Shirou heads down to the powerplant."
"Yes sir," Nadja sniffed before turning to Shirou.
"But you better come down quickly!" She ordered even as her image started hurrying upstairs to the cafeteria.
Singularity F, Fuyuki, 2004
Olga stared at Caster who looked far more intimidating than he had several minutes ago.
But then, several minutes ago, he only had lain down a powerful rune that dragged something like a hundred skeletons for Mash to fight.
Several minutes ago, he hadn't tried to kill Ritsuka, her last Master left in her employ.
"What are you doing?" she yelled at Caster. "Are you crazy? What does Ritsuka have to do with this?"
Caster glanced at her, his eyes almost cold. "A Servant's problems are the Master's problems. They share the same fate. Haven't you realized that?"
Caster turned to Ritsuka who looked shell-shocked. "You've had the same thought, right Ritsuka? When the young lady can't stand anymore, that'll be when you die."
Ritsuka looked like someone had poleaxed him but he slowly nodded even as he stood behind Mash.
Mash's eyes widened, even as she moved to be in the line of attack from Caster to Ritsuka.
Olga gaped at the three.
Ritsuka was Caster's Master! What was that idiot doing? Use a Command Seal or something! Control his Servant!
But maybe Ritsuka was conserving the command seals for later?
That idiot! Keeping your familiar from attacking you should be rather basic! That was the whole purpose of the command seals!
To keep the Servant under the control of the Master!
"Master," Mash breathed out. "Please, stand back!"
Ritsuka, still looking like he was stunned, took several steps back.
But Mash didn't notice, her breathing, already heavy from her exertion, accelerated even further.
Was Mash having a panic attack?
Right before combat!?
Olga couldn't believe this!
"I—I won't let Senpai suffer," Mash muttered, breathing way too fast. "I won't!"
Then, even as Ritsuka's eyes widened and his gaze switched from Caster to Mash, Mash yelled and burst forward as fast as a speeding car.
Caster grinned, his expression no longer dark, but instead a crazed grin. "That's what I like to hear!"
And, crazily, Caster charged forward as well, faster than Mash, staff held in both hands, ready to strike anywhere.
Their crashed blows reverberated the air as their superhuman strength and speed met in a flurry of shield and staff, too fast for Olga to really grasp.
The exchange lasted for short period of time, only eight seconds according to Olga's fine sense of time, before the two separated.
Mash's back was to Ritsuka, her shield held out in front of her like a bulwark against a charging dog.
Meanwhile, Caster had a prowl to his walk, like a wolf choosing the right moment to strike.
But Caster was fresh and hadn't done much for the last while, having conserved his energy.
Mash was tired. Her breaths were desperate gasps for oxygen, her chest heaving like she had sprinted a race.
"So if you are not gonna let me pass you physically," Caster started before blurring towards Mash in another attack rush.
Mash responded, speedily moving to block his strikes.
But Caster's final blow with his staff landed a solid against her shield which threw her back several feet. Mash managed to keep her legs and stay upright but now she was less than 5 meters away from her Master.
And 5 meters would be swiftly crossed at Servant level speeds.
Olga's eyes darted around. Surely there was something she could do!
She was Marie Olga, Lord of the Animusphere, and director of Chaldea!
She would not be helpless!
But she saw nothing. Roman's hologram was having him yelling to someone off-screen, not that she could hear anything as he was apparently muted right now, Ritsuka was frozen like a rabbit in front of a hungry dog, Mash was worn out and tired, fighting against a powerful Servant.
And Olga didn't have anything which could be strong against a Servant.
She knew how to summon one, but the Grail War here already had all seven slots filled. And Chaldea's FATE had yet to be anything more useful than just being the world's best research tool on Servants. And FATE was still more likely to fail to successfully summon a Servant.
She should know. Mash was the third success out of something like 137 tries according to her Father's research notes.
She knew several rituals, some magecraft and knew how to make Mystic Codes which would be powerful enough to harm a Servant.
But Caster was Caster. Anything she could do, he could probably not only do better, but reverse engineer it and come up with a counter before she finished chanting the aria.
Olga wished she had something! Her Mystic Code uniform, a bunch of runes, anything!
Even a flashlight would be nice if only he was just facing her!
But she was off to the side of the battle. If she tried to shine a light in his eye, at best she would only get one eye and then he would attack her.
And Caster had already demonstrated his superior speed. He would reach her faster than Mash could.
And then either she or Ritsuka would die to Caster.
Unacceptable. She was too important to die. She had yet to succeed! She hadn't been congratulated yet!
And Ritsuka was one of the only two tools she had available! And if she lost him, she would lose Mash, the more useful one too!
No, if she directly got involved it would have to be to win.
And she didn't see any path with a chance of victory worthy of the Animusphere name.
While Olga's mind raced searching for some better options, Caster jumped back, hand at the ready to draw some runes as he increased his distance.
Mash didn't leave her proximity to her Master's side.
This was bad. Casters were ranged fighters. Mash was melee.
Caster would be able to bombard Mash until she died and nobody knew what Mash's magic resistance was!
Why hadn't she demanded already that Ritsuka tell her!
If Mash's magic resistance was low, Caster would easily win! But if it was high, Mash didn't need to worry.
"If you won't let me pass physically, then it's time to finish this!" Caster roared as he brought his staff in close to him and across his chest. "Burn to the ground with your Master!"
Olga gasped as the feeling of pressure from Caster grew. He was exerting greater magical power.
As a Servant, there was only thing this could be.
"He's using his Noble Phantasm!" she yelled, fear clutching her heart.
Mash's visible eye widened as her breathing picked up.
Come on Mash! This isn't the time to panic! Do something!
"My spell is the coffin of flames, a giant of verdant thorn. Retribution, the forest that will purify human misery," Caster incanted as he turned to point the head of his staff at both Mash and Ritsuka. "Befall the Wicker Man! And behold, as both good and evil bite the dust!"
Caster's energy burst forth, manifesting as a runic circle popping up at Mash's and Ritsuka's feet. Flames burst out, indicating that the primary element of this magecraft Noble Phantasm was fire.
Olga didn't have anything that could counter a four-count aria for a fire Noble Phantasm!
All she could do was hope and pray that Mash could discover her Noble Phantasm before Caster killed them all!
Ritsuka listened to Caster chant his magic spell. Which had less Latin and paper talismans than he would have expected.
A Noble Phantasm. A Servant's secret weapon and presumably their most powerful judging by Olga's terrified yell.
Ritsuka wondered what could be so bad about one. Wouldn't the skill of the wielder be the most dangerous thing about a hero?
Maybe it was something like a right handed man fighting with his left hand?
It wasn't like it could be a magical weapon or something ridiculous–
Oh right, magic existed. Ritsuka had almost forgot about that.
To be fair, a week ago, he would have confidently answered that magic could not be real.
It had a been a strange last few days.
But if magic existed, would a Noble Phantasm be like an enchanted sword?
Ritsuka's eyes darted between Caster's staff and Mash's shield.
They looked big, authentic, and impressive, but there wasn't anything magical about them. No glowing runes, no magical aura.
But what if calling upon a Noble Phantasm dropped a magical weapon into the Servant's hands? Something that would give Caster a weapon more dangerous than a large wooden stick?
Ritsuka swallowed, eyes open, ready for something magical and dangerous.
As a result, he wasn't ready when a large glowing circle with a bunch of odd figures and shapes appeared around both his and Mash's feet, just above the height of his ankles.
Ritsuka froze. Which way should he run? The circle surrounded him on every side.
He didn't know anything about magic, but he knew enough from fantasy novels that staying inside a circle, when it was a magician trying to kill you, was a bad idea.
Finally, Ritsuka decided where the nearest edge of the circle was but it was too late.
The several meter-wide glowing circle spat out flames to the outside of the circle, causing Ritsuka to freeze in the middle of his first step.
And a giant wooden mesh rose out of the circle, right under him.
Ritsuka's feet slid as the ground underneath gave way to a rising wooden building. Ritsuka instinctively flailed about, trying to grab hold of something to steady him.
The width of the wood was too large for his hand to wrap around. Ritsuka tumbled down, his feet unable to stay steady as the wood moved and undulated under him.
Fortunately, the ground wasn't too far away.
Ritsuka quickly fell off of the wooden Noble Phantasm, the sudden shock and surprise lasting less than a second before he was safely off of the sudden construct. Ritsuka sprawled out on the ground, before turning around to watch what Caster had just done.
And found himself wishing that he had been right that Caster had just made a brand-new construct. Because what he was looking at was no building.
It was a wooden giant. And what he had stumbled off of was the head.
And that the head was in proportion to the body. The body made of wood with a cage with metal doors for a torso.
Ritsuka looked up at the wooden giant and had the most random thought.
Now I know what the scale for a Gundam robot is.
Oh, and he was going to die. If nothing else, from when the giant accidentally stepped on him while trying to find him.
And then suddenly Mash was in front of him, standing between him and the wooden robot, her large shield held between them both and the giant.
"Master, please stand back! I – won't be a hindrance for Senpai," she yelled voice made of an iron determination to Ritsuka's ears.
It wasn't an encouraging picture. Mash, the small, slender girl who didn't even clear 160 cm armed only with a shield taller than her against a giant who was already towering over the school. And the giant was still growing.
But to Ritsuka right now, Mash was more than an angel. She was a hero, his savior and the only one he could trust completely.
If she meant that she could handle this, then she could.
No question. No doubt.
Ritsuka believed in her.
So instead of retreating like Mash had said, Ritsuka subconsciously relaxed, trusting everything to Mash. And with his relaxation and complete trust in her, Ritsuka's magic circuits, first activated a few days ago, poured his entire output of prana into her, granting her the energy she needed.
Mash wasn't in same state of serenity as her master.
In fact, it could be said that while Ritsuka went through fear and terror until he was so far beyond them that he was serene, Mash could be said in a state of panic where her thoughts and feelings were like scattering flock of geese.
I must protect. I must unleash it or everyone will—
Please, even if it's fake, even if it's just for now- I have to unleash it properly. Or everyone will disappear!
And Mash, acting with instinct not hers, utilizing skills she never learned, with power that didn't come from her, flooded the energy she had left into her shield.
And at long last, her spirit and shield responded to her heartfelt pleas as she faced off against the giant Noble Phantasm.
Even as her hands trembled while she held up the shield, Mash could feel it respond to her, like an eager muscle tensing up before a long jump.
Even as she kept her stance behind her shield, Mash started to intuitively pour magical energy into her shield, at a rate, quantity, and with the right properties that seemed just right. Not too much, nor too little, like she picked up an instrument that she knew how to play before even seeing it before.
And then the amount she infused into her shield hit the right amount. How she knew it, she had no clue. Maybe it was like how a very skilled baker like Karen Cook could pour out sugar and flour without relying upon measurement devices, but Mash just knew that this was the right amount of energy for her Noble Phantasm.
Following nothing but the first thought to pop into her panicked and overclocking head, Mash set her stance wide, taking her shield away from in front of her to her right, letting go with her left hand.
Posture set, she, holding the shield entirely by the small handlebar at the back of the center, Mash raised the shield up above her head until it was horizontal parallel to the ground, her left hand rising to the upper edge of her shield.
Now the burst, the defiance against the giant. Mash used both hands to slam the bottom of her large cross-like shield to the ground. There to be held until the danger was gone, until all would be well.
And the shield responded by releasing a burst of energy in a wave emanating from the shield with her as the focal point until the wave recoalesced in the air in front of her, creating a large image of light mirroring the circle at the heart of her shield, with transparent greenish-blue diamonds corresponding to the black parallelograms carved into the circle at the center of her shield.
But the Noble Phantasm was more than just a larger reproduction of the center of her shield.
It was an arcane circle barrier with lines, squares, circles, rhombuses, and polygons centered around a cross shaped symbol at the center. And the magical energy, Mash's power, spread as ripples and bursts of light refreshing the protection wherever the energy went, making the lines and symbols clear as well as the strange script that Mash couldn't read at the edges of the glowing barrier.
Of course, part of that inability to read might have to do with the old script being backwards from her point of view, but Mash didn't care about that now.
I have to protect my Master!
Her life, her spirit, her heart and her body, in unanimous unity, declared that it had to be so!
That Ritsuka Fujimaru and Olga Marie Animusphere and everyone else would not die!
That they would not come to harm!
That the faceless wooden giant, the Wicker Man, would have no power to frighten or threaten harm to anyone!
And as Caster's giant finally finished forming, Mash's Noble Phantasm stood ready to receive it.
Proud, defiant, yet made of naught but light and magical energy, the shield confronted the conjured giant of solid wood and metal.
The giant didn't even pause.
It struck, one slow, large arm fell towards Mash, as she stood behind her two shields, one of metal, one of light.
And the arm, which would have smashed through the concrete walls of the school nearby without even noticing, bounced off of the barrier of light.
The Wicker Man didn't care. It wasn't controlled or even autonomous. It had only one goal, one objective, only one thing it could and would do.
To grab the offerings to the gods of the Celts. To capture them and offer them up in a blaze of glory and honor.
Literally.
The giant thrust its other arm forward towards the two humans that were soon to be the sacrifices even as the wooden feet at the bottom of the giant started to blaze in sweltering heat.
Behind the shield, neither Mash or Ritsuka could feel it. Not one flicker of flame or spark, not one degree of temperature could breach Mash's barrier.
But the giant just rushed forward, to grapple past the barrier as more and more wood caught on fire, giving it the appearance of a fiery giant made of flames around a skeleton of wood with a ribcage of metal.
But the shield stood firm, rebuffing the giant of fire even as Ritsuka's energy flowed through Mash, mixing with her Servant's reserves until it reached the shield, flowing into the barrier.
The giant took another step forward to the edge of the magical projection, the fires blazing far above Mash's head and all around the massive protective shield, creating a second coming of concentrated fire like the ones that even now raged across the homes and building of Fuyuki City.
But not even the concentrated flames could break the integrity of the light rebuffing the far more material Noble Phantasm even as the fires consumed the giant.
And finally in a final blaze of fire, the light of which could penetrate through Mash's shield, causing her eyes to automatically flinch close, the giant made a final effort.
And when she opened them, the ashes of the wooden giant, iron cage and all, were scattering to the wind, away from the shield.
Leaving four shocked and surprised individuals and Mash's Noble Phantasm.
"Oh, I," Mash stared, wide-eyed at the large glowing outline of her shield magically projected against the giant wooden man who had collapsed upon hitting the shield. "Did I, manage to unleash my Noble-"
The Noble Phantasm lost cohesion as her flow of magical energy cut off, the light dispersing until it vanished like the Southern Lights into a snowstorm covered sky. Mash swallowed, the disbelief slowly fading but still there even as she forced the final word out. "-Phantasm?"
Somehow saying the word made her believe it. Like the words broke a barrier of disbelief in her own mind.
"Whew," Caster sighed, setting his staff on the ground, the picture of relaxed despite trying to kill them just moments earlier.
"I knew you'd survive that," he boasted, even as he shook his head "But I never thought both you and your Master would walk out without a scratch."
"Be happy, young lady," He congratulated her, grinning in pleasure at his pupil's success.
Mash couldn't believe it.
She had deployed her Noble Phantasm!
She, Mash Kyrielight, had a Noble Phantasm!
She had saved Ritsuka Fujimaru!
"Wait, no" Caster looked oddly at her before turning to Ritsuka who was still goggling from the ground, while Caster beamed with pride. "Praise her, Ritsuka. That young lady there is, without question, a first-rate Heroic Spirit."
Mash, more happy emotions than rational thoughts, followed her teacher's lead and turned to face her sprawled out Master.
"Senpai," she managed to say, her endorphins rushing through her, happiness flooding her mind. "I – just now!"
He blinked before getting to his feet, smiling all the way as he brushed off some ash from his uniform.
"Congratulations, Mash," he said, pleased at her success and amazing accomplishment. "That was amazing!"
Mash beamed at him, words lost in the heady feeling of success.
"Fou, foooooouuuu!" Fou yipped as he jumped and ran up her arm to her shoulder before rubbing his cheek across her cheek in pleased congratulations.
"That was surprising," Roman's hologram said, conveying his shock from Chaldeas. "I didn't expect her to unleash her Noble Phantasm that soon! Mash was never someone with a strong will."
Mash winced, her past failures coming to mind, her recent achievement turning to ash in her mouth.
She had been horrible. She had not been able to do even one chin-up in physical exercises, she had failed to do even five push-ups, she was always dreaming about the sky, always finishing last in the physical exercises required for the Masters in Chaldea, …
She had always given up. Failed. Taken herself for having zero talent in physical fields and never tried to rise above it. Even now, her physical state was completely due to the Heroic Spirit's power.
Which was partly why she had studied her heart out, learned as much about history, myths, and legends as she could, learned to manipulate mana and prana, learned to recognize and, if necessary, perform ritual Thaumatology.
She was horrible at physical things but she managed to make up in the magical side, her abundance of quality Magic Circuits carrying her through.
Mash glanced down to the ground, unwilling to look Ritsuka in the eye as undoubtedly, his admiration turned to disgust. Even as she remembered how badly she had failed, how often she had given up at being any good at anything physical.
And now, it was the aspect that as a Servant, she was best at.
A rank Endurance, meaning that she could go farther and longer than anyone else, taking damage that would kill anyone weaker.
Yet she never went beyond what was expected of her, often failing to meet even the basic expectations.
The physically weakest of the Masters.
"That's because you got her all wrong," Caster said, laying one hand upon her shoulder. Mash looked up at him, startled.
She hadn't been expecting anyone to think that she was good. What did Caster know about her that she, or Doctor Roman didn't?
"You may call the young lady here a protector. She's a natural shield for her comrades," Caster continued. "There's no point in teaching a bird to swim, is there? You have to teach a bird how to fly high."
Mash blinked, surprised.
Was that true? Was she a protector?
Was that her personality type?
She didn't know. She never had had to defend anyone.
Everyone had always been more capable than herself.
Mash turned her eyes to her Master, wondering if Caster was right.
Was she a protector?
Was she worthy of being relied upon?
Ritsuka's eyes were still open, no shadow behind them, without deceit. He wasn't secretly judging the world or her and finding it wanting.
Just open admiration, happiness, and honesty.
He admired her.
Mash swallowed in shock and surprise.
How could he admire her? Didn't he see her for who she was?
A weakling? A disappointment? A failure?
A person who was unable to reach her potential for even one moment?
But he admired her.
And Mash wanted to believe him.
So, so much. She wanted to believe that she was worthy of being admired. Of being relied upon.
"Although," Caster trailed off, embarrassment in his voice, bringing her back down to earth again in time to hear her failure. "She didn't get to obtain its True Name."
"Right," Mash winced, slumping slightly.
True, she had deployed her Noble Phantasm.
But she failed to use or get the single strongest factor of her Noble Phantasm, its True Name.
A True Name was the heart of a Noble Phantasm. The identification of the centerpiece of the Heroic Spirit's legend, which was what got them onto the Throne.
Using a True Name brought the full force of the Heroic Spirit's legend down, bringing out the strongest aspects of humanity in a display of strength that very few alive could match.
It was documented that a Noble Phantasm without its True Name was much weaker than if the True Name was used.
Mash had to agree. Without a True Name, her Noble Phantasm was-
-pathetically weak.
It must be a disappointment to the Heroic Spirit that gave her his powers.
"Even though I can unleash my Noble Phantasm now," Mash admitted "I still don't know its True Name, nor the True Name of the Heroic Spirit."
"That's fine," Olga said, smiling smugly as she walked over from the sidelines where she had been forced to watch the two Servants fight. "Even if you are inexperienced, even if you are only temporary."
Olga laid her hand on Mash's armored shoulder, still smiling with pride and satisfaction. "Your very wish unleashed your Noble Phantasm. You didn't have the slightest desire to obtain a True Name, to become one of the chosen—To become a true Heroic Spirit."
Mash agreed with her. But it was embarrassing to have it said aloud! Especially in front of her Master…
She should have a desire to obtain a True Name. to become a true Heroic Spirit.
That was what every magus strove for, to become influential, to accomplish something meaningful.
To reach the Root. Or at least make it possible for their descendent, the bearer of their dream and genetics to make it there because of their work.
Mash, in comparison did not. She wanted to learn, to experience.
To see the sky and all that was in and under it.
"That's why your Noble Phantasm responded," Olga concluded with self-satisfied sigh. "Ahh, what an inspiring story. Just like a fairy tale."
Olga took her hand off, stepping back.
"Um, director…" Mash said. That last part wasn't necessary was it? She wasn't like some famous hero from legend or a story made up to entertain children.
She was Mash Kyrielight.
"Oh, don't mind me, I'm just teasing," the director waved off Mash's tentative complaint. "I'm pleased that you're able to use your Noble Phantasm now."
She scowled thoughtfully. "But it's inconvenient to use it without a True Name, right?"
Mash nodded. To use a Noble Phantasm without a True Name was—
Well, she didn't know. She hadn't been a Servant for long. Less than a day in fact. But she estimated that it wouldn't be very well received by the other Heroic Spirits who had earned their legend.
"I'll think of a good spell for you," Olga Animusphere said, thoughtfully as she paced along the dusty courtyard of the school. "Hmm, since it's a pseudo-deployment of Noble Phantasm—Let me see…"
She suddenly nodded, stopping abruptly as she turned to Mash. "Yes, let's call it 'Lord Chaldeas.' Chaldea is a name that has meaning for you too. So to activate your Spirit Origin, that's a good spell for you, right?"
Mash cocked her head considering the name, feeling it over in her mind.
Lord Chaldeas.
Yes, she liked that name.
It described where she came from, what her purpose was.
She was now a defender of humanity, protecting it from extinction by means of the Chaldea Organization.
Just more physically and violently than she liked as a Servant instead of a human.
"Y-Yes," she stammered in her happiness at having a good name given to her by her superior. "Thank you, Director!"
Mash bowed low to Olga Marie, who smugly waved it off as her due.
"Lord Chaldeas," Roman said, also feeling over the name before agreeing in good cheer. "Yes, I like it. That fits you perfectly, Mash! Would you like to try it out again?"
Mash nodded. 'Lord Chaldeas'. She could use it but maybe her Spirit Origin and Noble Phantasm would reject it?
Best to test it out now before using it in the field.
"Yeah," Caster agreed, preparing his staff and stretching his muscles in anticipation. "I was holding back before, but even so, her defense was impeccable. Yeah, I'll make sure that she can pull it out again."
Flashing an eager grin Caster finished his warm-up exercises and turned to both Mash and Ritsuka, a predatory and eager grin taking over his face. "Ritsuka, young lady, are you ready?"
"Yes, please!" Mash said
If she was going to be relied upon by her Master, she had to make sure that he never had cause to feel failed by her.
That he could continue to rely on her.
That she wouldn't ever fail him.
That he could completely depend on her.
Like no one had ever depended on her before.
"All right," Ritsuka said, taking a few steps away from the upcoming fight.
Mash let him. She could block the Wicker Man with her Noble Phantasm, Lord Chaldeas.
Now she would test it, prove it, and demonstrate that she could be relied upon.
Mash settled into position, legs set into a firm posture, her slight body completely behind her shield that towered over her.
Caster set himself across from her, a distance of about 15 meters, staff clutched in both hands.
The two stared at each other in a moment of tense silence before the storm.
Then Caster moved, slamming his staff into the ground, chanting the full lines of his Noble Phantasm, his mana output feeling stronger than the amount he poured into his first usage.
"My spell is the coffin of flames, a giant of verdant thorn. Retribution, the forest that will purify human misery. Befall the Wicker Man! And behold, as both good and evil bite the dust!" he roared, his enthusiasm clear to Mash.
But Mash decided to wait. To wait until the circle appeared as the sense of tension played across her nerves.
And once she caught sight of the runes underneath her, she acted.
"Deploying Noble Phantasm, LORD CHALDEAS!" Mash yelled as she jumped back, her shield raised above her head until she hit the ground and slammed the steel down, angling her shield to cause the defensive barrier to appear slanted downwards towards where the giant would soon appear.
And the giant's head, rising up from the ground, bounced into the shield, and was knocked to the side, away from the shield.
The giant emerged, body climbing out of the circle, squeezing out between the defensive Noble Phantasm, and the ground, the latter of which gave way to let the giant go free. In contrast, the former did not budge.
Mash noted how the enlarged shield mirrored her own before she realized that the giant was free.
And her shield out of position.
Mash's eyes widened as she hastily backpedaled, bringing her shield back up to face against the sky.
And, like how she suddenly knew how to use a shield against the hordes of skeletons, she knew that the larger shield would follow her smaller shield.
Which it did, the projection of light mirroring her shield until it stood between her and the large giant seeking to kill her.
Was it just her or did the Wicker Man seem larger than before?
Fortunately, it wasn't any stronger as the first fist bounced off the brightly glowing shield.
Or maybe the offensive Noble Phantasm was stronger, just not enough to break her Noble Phantasm?
Mash didn't know but the difference was academic as she kept a close eye on the giant to—
A flicker of movement from the sidelines and Mash snapped her head to see Caster in a full out sprint heading around her.
Mash berated herself inside her mind.
Caster's Noble Phantasm was more like a golem than something Caster had to control. He could just launch it and then let it act on its own.
It probably allowed him some more time to make up some more rune spells or do preparation for a Mystery that took longer to invoke.
Or, like in this case, use it as an overblown distraction.
Mash spun to the side, her D-rank agility causing her to move at speeds she had been getting used to ever since she had woken up inside the Singularity.
Her shield blocked the giant's last punch before it took off after Mash, a portable tortoise shell while Mash sped to reach her Master before Caster could get a clear shot.
A burst of heat from behind her reminded Mash that while Caster was a threat, so was the Wicker Man.
Mash adjusted her shield so that it faced backwards even as she ran straight back towards Ritsuka. It slowed her down a tiny bit as she fought against the drag of the wind on her shield, but better she block the Noble Phantasm than let it rampage about.
So when she saw Caster's finger sketch a quick rune while he ran, Mash sped up before leaping to get between it and Ritsuka, shield still angled towards the wooden giant.
Leaving her alone against the fire Mystery created by ancient runes.
Mash stood her ground, scared of the threat the fireball represented.
But more scared of and determined to prevent the loss of Ritsuka Fujimaru.
And she was a Servant. She could probably handle an attack like this.
Ritsuka would burn up and die if he got hit.
So she would take it in his place.
But this would really hurt!
Mash braced herself for the pain.
But no one was more surprised than Mash was when the fireball hit her-
-and just vanished as it confronted her Magic Resistance and lost.
Mash unintentionally let her Noble Phantasm collapse at the shock of not feeling the pain of fire burning her flesh, unmindful of the shield fall apart as she stopped feeding it energy.
A sudden flare of heat let her know of her mistake as she stepped back and to the side slightly to let herself better see both Caster and his Noble Phantasm which was nearly completely burnt up.
The giant reached out, more flame and ash than solid substance now, before the last flames burned through the remaining wood, causing the giant to fall apart into a cloud of ash that would provide another layer to the ash-covered school.
Mash kept an eye on Caster now but the man had skidded to a stop, hand on the ground, the other holding his staff up and behind his back.
"Good work," the more experienced Servant said, standing up and brushing off his hand. "You always have to keep in mind the nature of the Noble Phantasm or opponent you are facing. Each Noble Phantasm is different, unique to the wielder's legend. If you lose track of that, then you will lose."
Mash nodded, relaxing from the stance she had been holding in case her teacher decided that she would need another lesson in being prepared and paranoid in combat.
But she did wonder why Caster had glanced towards the blue hologram that indicated Dr. Roman's state in Chaldea.
"Hey Mash."
"Yes?" Mash asked, turning to her Master, head tilting in curiosity.
Ritsuka smiled, "Thank you."
Mash's face smiled back, conveying her happiness.
She had learned to use her Noble Phantasm.
She wasn't an inferior substitute for a Servant.
Yeah, Shirou has all the teaching talent of his father, namely pretty much none. Mash wishes that it was different but almost no one knows how to use Noble Phantasms except Heroic Spirits and fakers (Shirou) and the only faker I know of just analyzes the Noble Phantasm's history to see how it works and then copies the hero's skill. Which is not that useful for Mash as she doesn't have the same branch of magecraft that Shirou does. Nor has Shirou copied Mash's shield yet.
Now, for the big debate. I know some of you are going that Shirou should be able to project Avalon. However, according to a translated FAQ I have read in some extra materials for Fate Stay Night, when Saber vanished, Shirou's image of Avalon also vanished.
I do have plans for Avalon though so if you have objections -which I expect there will be some no matter what I say so I ask that you include something else in any complaints about Shirou's Avalon otherwise I will not respond to your review- I request that you please wait. It will be dealt with by the epilogue. I have a scene regarding Avalon already written out.
So please hold your opinions until this story is finished. Then after you read what I have done with it, then you can tell me your issues, complaints, opinions, reviews and I will respond.
And especially this time, thanks to Eiskralle1 and shadyxlr for beta reading this chapter. They probably weren't expecting me to finish up this chapter on Christmas Eve and send it to them. Yet they still found time to help during the busiest times of the year.