The following is a fan-based
FICTION
F/SN, F/Z, F/KPI and other products related to the Fate Series are all owned by TYPE-MOON, Kinoko Nasu and Takashi Takeuchi.
Please support the official release.
Chapter 22: New Body, New Friend and Worm
The preparations were set and with the arrival of the long-expected guest to the castle, we were all waiting patiently in one of the large living rooms within the building.
Kuro and I were the only ones standing near to the esteemed Magus currently looking through her suitcase, carefully fishing around some of the ingredients required for her current task here.
Touko Aozaki, the older sister of the Fifth Magician, professional smoker of the worst brand of cigarettes, and the one that was supposed to prepare new bodies for me and Chloe to house from now on.
I could go on with her titles, going as far as bring even other achievements she had accomplished in other timelines, and all of those would be without any correlation with Aoko herself.
Albeit the youngest of the Aozaki siblings sounded like a cheerful and funny individual, I dreaded the time I would end up having to encounter her.
Knowing of her interest in Shiki Tohno back from his childhood years, I was rightfully fearful that the version of her offered by Carnival Phantasm was truer than it looked to be.
And I didn't need to deal with any perverted woman anytime soon. Maybe never would also work too.
While silence reigned over the room, the rest of the group had taken seat by the closest sofa available.
Salter looked to be particularly calm at the presence of this new individual, possibly because she had some minor recollection of this individual from one of the previous timelines, or perhaps because I had vouched for the woman's morality and capacity more than enough to avoid any unneeded clashing.
Gilgamesh was happily humming as the scene unfolding, the young blond actually looked particularly distracted by the content of the bag as his red eyes widened once or twice in a while as the Magus continued to round up all the object she needed for the two operations. Maybe it was curiosity, or maybe just utter fascination at the rarity of some of the stuff now in front of him.
Luvia was… giddy. I could give plenty of adjectives to address her euphoric state as she stared at the redhead with a starry-eyed look. There was no reason to doubt that it was connected to the fact that, despite Touko having long-left the Magus Association, she was still someone considered a role model to all young women striving to leave a powerful mark in history.
And there was no reason to doubt them about believing Touko to be the best example, especially since I knew how far the woman had gone in any timeline.
Yes, she was present and powerful in various timelines. From the Tsukihimeverse to a large majority of the Fateverse, holding a prominent position that made her still stand up as an important figure in many stories at once.
Yet, despite the impeccable curriculum that she had, I was still wary for various, undeniable reasons, starting from the fact that her aggressive perspective over my current existence.
Disgust was the first sensation that strongly made its way on her face when she fully understood my current situation, but much to my relief that was sent to the individual that made this issue happen rather on me.
Chloe was spared of any strange comments, but we both noticed that the woman had given her longer stares than she had spared to anyone else and… I was quick to understand that I had to keep close to the tanned Einzbern girl until the redhead was around.
While it was an unconfirmed rumor, I did found some suspicious claims about Touko having gone to do some 'adventurous encounters' with a good majority of her female clients.
And considering that it had been alluded by some bits of Kara no Kyoukai that she might be swinging towards women, I was for sure not going to let her wander around with only Kuro despite how respectful I was of her.
But instead of keeping an incredibly polite attitude as I had wanted early on, my composure was shaken by the discovery born from some of the muttering coming from the distracted Aozaki.
"So the process does hurt," I muttered grimly as I continued to stare at the crouched red-haired woman while she went through her baggage.
With my current corpse reaching a critical state which limited my usage of magecraft even more that it should at this stage of my life and with the Crest Worms continuing to be a dangerous hindrance to keep inside of me, I was due to have a proper chance at life instead of complicating my already-complicated existence.
The bespectacled woman scoffed at my comment, shaking her head in disappointment at my childish words.
"To think that I had expected to talk with some serious client, and yet I'm dealing with quite the bratty kid," Touko commented under her breath. "Still, you are incredibly lucky that I can actually give you something to fix this indecent issue you have. Same for the little girl fawning over you."
Chloe blushed a little at the jab directed at her, but I was quick to return the teasing back to the sender with some extra kindness.
"At least I don't need to take off some glasses to be a nice person when I want," I mirthfully retorted with a smile. "By the way, is it true that you get this cute nonsensical verbal tic when you wear sunglasses."
Touko actually stopped for a moment to give me a strong glance, a mix of surprise and annoyance at the fact I had to bring up the 'sunglasses debacle'.
"I have to ask now, was it the old man or that moron of my sister that told you?"
"I actually got a glimpse of the Kaleidoscope, nobody told me anything," I admitted with a smug snort. "Now that I think about it, I hope things are going well for your Garan no Dou."
The redhead blinked, but returned to quietly conclude her task of picking out the last ingredients for her job as she started to reply.
"I wouldn't say that work is as busy as ten years ago, but I suppose that with what members I have now I don't have to worry about staying around Mifune City," The woman admitted with a hum. "I suppose that you wish for me to tell them anything since you brought them up."
I tensed a little, feeling a little nervous at that mistaken thought. "Actually… I would prefer you didn't do that."
Her eyes glanced back with a hint of surprise. "Oh? Any particular reason?"
"Considering that pretty eyes is a mom with a daughter now close to my age?" I sarcastically asked back. "I prefer life, thank you very much."
A snort left Touko's lips. "Truly? What a terrible tragedy then. I suppose I will still have to tell them about-"
"I have blackmail on your sister," I mentioned calmly, while I tried my best to keep myself from begging her to not do that. "I'm willing to share it to you."
"I hardly think it will be as dirty as the things I know about her-"
"Ask her about Shiki Tohno."
…
My words brought her to a quiet staring, now her bag closed as all that was necessary was now in full display for her to use with the soon-to-happen operation.
"What are you talking about?" She inquired with a hint of fascination. "I might get an idea from the 'Shiki' but-"
"Shiki Tohno is someone she took as her apprentice in one of the timelines alternative to this one," I mentioned with a smug grin. "Considering her prowess with the Fifth Magic, I think she will easily understand the reference."
"A man from a different timeline? What kind of blackmail would that be?"
"The one where she has to explain about why she entertained the idea of romancing a child," I answered with a sigh, causing her to frown in confusion at the implicit accusation. "Just ask her."
"Oh, I will do that once I'm done with this little work here," She patted the floor, gesturing me to lie down there.
I gulped nervously at what was going to happen now, but still complied to her silent order as I carefully splayed myself on the red carpet as I braced for what was going to follow next.
"So, how does this technically goes no-"
Before I could finish that sentence, I felt her hands suddenly grasp at my neck as they pulled my head to the side with a fluid by quick move.
SNAP!
Surprise was the last emotion I felt before feeling detached from reality with my… inner self.
I could blink, but it wasn't my eyes that were committing to the action. I could breathe, but technically I didn't need that.
Instead, I felt myself light, lighter than usual, and I found myself staring right at the shocked expression transfixed on my now dead body.
There was some white-blue light coating my floating form, but soon this state of metaphysical was brought to an end when I felt something restricting my new form, squirming and pressing me onto something newer.
I felt instantly tired as a sudden mental drain forced my eyes closed out of fatigue. I could hear Touko speaking, whispering furiously some arcane words as I felt plunged deep into something solid.
I was being slammed in some harsh ground, my entire self flaring in minor pain as I felt the sense of touch finally returning to me in the strangest of ways.
It was fuzzy, I felt incredibly sleepy, but I managed to blink up at the ceiling the moment I could feel my tired eyelids opening to offer sight upon the room.
I felt cold, I didn't have any clothes onto my new body and… I blinked calmly.
I was still tiny, I was still Shinji Matou, but the wriggly Crest Worms that had once plagued my life had been now safely contained in some jars prepared by Touko.
The woman threw a towel over me, sighing as I lost some time to grow accustomed to the now-purified body I had.
"We can move onto the next patient," The redhead calmly pointed out, "Please, stand down and keep calm."
I slowly turned to glance to the side, fixing my stare onto Kuro as the Einzbern carefully lied down where I had once been.
She didn't seem to return the stare, perhaps worried that it would have been horrifying for me to see her going through the first step while looking back at me.
Her neck was snapped and the same process I had to go through started for the tanned Einzbern.
I could see some bright light-blue light emerging out of her body, flying upward before stabilizing mere moments away from her face.
Soon, Touko was moving some of the materials she had prepared a little closer to the orb, the ingredients starting to rush to reach out for what I could only see being Chloe's soul and…
The world exploded in a bright white light, hindering my means to see what was going on during the process.
I could hear the bespectacled woman speak during the distracting light, the same spell used to properly manifest the magecraft to create proper bodies with what was available in the proximity.
The light started to falter and soon it ceased to make way to the newest form of the girl, now lying half-conscious on the floor close to where I was.
Red eyes stared unfocused at the ceiling, her skin was just a tone darker than the classic Einzbern paleness, but Chloe was now fair-skinned as Illya and Irisviel.
Her hair, surprisingly enough, were no longer the light-pink shade as before, but those weren't even white or light-blond as the other individuals she was 'related to'.
No, Kuro's locks were now a dark black that resembled much the very shade Kiritsugu had.
A blend of Einzbern and Emiya, Chloe von Einzbern was now reborn a normal human girl.
The Archer Card, the one she had used to mold a proper soul out of the fragmented state she had after leaving Illya's body, was now idly resting on her stomach as the professional Magus proceeded to rest another towel over the girl's naked body, protecting her privacy as quickly as possible.
"And with this, my job here is done," The Aozaki pointed out as she calmly put back the various jars and empty containers that once held the objects used to conceive the absurd degree of magecraft.
I was still baffled by the surprising art, but the mysterious means to achieve these results were actually the ones making me shocked and fascinated about the world of Magi.
The woman stood up with her baggage, glancing at the two of us before sighing. "While the new bodies should have none of the issues your former ones had, you are still limited in terms of magical capacity."
There was a pause, but then she nodded. "Well, that is the problem for you, Shinji Matou, but not to the excellent quality of the Circuits in the girl's body. Truly an Einzbern."
Chloe blinked at that and sighed, but didn't comment on that compliment as the redhead started to make her way out of the room.
"Since the payment has been already given, I suppose I will take my leave already," The red-haired stated with a nod. "I've stuff to do. You better hope I don't have to come back anytime soon because of some idiotic mess you will create with the Kaleidoscope."
There wasn't room to speak about this as Touko managed to pace out of the room and out of the castle before I had the chance to even think about how to answer to her words.
I was too tired, the same for Kuro as the girl slowly tried to reach out for my closest hand, failing short to actually arrive to it and… I calmly stretched my arm to help her up.
She squeezed a little, comfort filling the two of us at the contact and, while I felt ready to stand up, my brain didn't feel still accustomed to this all.
With tiredness enveloping us back to unconsciousness, the rest of the day went up and about without our direct presence on what was then going to happen.
~Luvia's POV~
There were many thoughts that were storming within her mind, but the things that truly jumped up to her attention were two.
The burning of the old bodies, the ones that had remained after the dual operation, had happened well-away from the rooms of the castle.
With the task left to a group of Einzbern maids, Gilgamesh and Artoria had decided to take upon themselves to have both Shinji and Kuro moved to rest by the bedroom that was usually taken for the nights by them all.
There was a big bed, plenty of space to keep so many people at once and… Luvia wandered alone through the halls of the castle, unsure about what she had to do with what Shinji had given to her.
It had happened so suddenly and without much of a warning, yet the young Matou had presented her with a modified Servant Card that he had wanted to resurrect.
The crux of the situation? The Matou had decided to offer her this Card for a proper reason.
Despite the lack of her own chances to shine, Luvia was still an equal ally to the young boy and she needed someone to trust the utmost next to him.
Both were apprentices of Zelretch, and while the boy was a source of essential knowledge for their adventures, it was the young blonde that actually held the raw power to make complicated things happen.
She was a little bit of the 'brawn' with her magical power expanded by Sapphire while Shinji worked well as a guide or 'the brain' of their duo with the way he knew what kind of steps to take in this uncharted territory.
Everything was new for her. New places, new faces, and new issues to be concerned about.
It was odd how in the matter of a few weeks spent away from home, after having whined for so long to be finally trained more in magecraft, Luvia was now becoming the protagonist (or the prime spectator) of what looked to be an adventure without bounds and limits.
The kaleidoscope was infinite, and so were the problems riddling what Shinji had described as the 'multiverse'.
A mix of various happenings at once, 'dimensions' were there were people like her, or like Shinji, that existed and had different roles that their current ones.
It was awe-inspiring, but also incredibly worrying by the fact that now it's been so long since she had seen her parents back at heir mansion.
Albeit strict and stern, albeit… tiring and somewhat unfair with their traditions, those were still her mother and her father.
She still missed them, because she knew how much they cared for her.
Perhaps that would happen once this first adventure was concluded, especially with how optimistically Shinji had sounded when mentioning that the final steps were soon going to happen for them to fix the real issues of this dimension.
Despite the overall wonder born from the discovery of so many beautiful and horrifying things at once, the blonde was far from sure about what she was supposed to do in that very moment with that Card.
Walking around the castle served well to clear her mind, to offer her space to think and ponder how she was supposed to make this happen.
The girl knew the word meant to be used to activate the final command of the card, the one that would ultimately resurrect the Heroic Spirit contained in that simple object.
A legendary warrior, a paladin of good, and possibly a new friend for her.
The last bit was what got her even more interested in seeing the process happening as soon as possible, but her logical mind and common sense were quick to halt her giddiness at the prospect of making some mistakes. Maybe face some dangerous individual so suddenly and without preparation.
Yet he had been so sure that whoever was coming from the card is going to be a good Hero.
The worry was still there much to her immense dismay. Hesitation was pressing on her to keep her hands from touching too much the card, and her lips to not even come close to utter the simple incantation.
Luvia sighed, her eyes regaining some sight over her path and she glanced to the windows to the side.
The sun was up in the sky, still shining through the cloudy sky. The girl stopped, her eyes mesmerized by the view while her mind delved more on the possibilities there laid for her to pick up from.
Shinji's reassuring words were doing a good job in pushing her-no, pressing her to finally take some decision on her own.
While she was still a child, and a majority of her mind wanted to continue getting lulled around by the Matou's wise and mature plans, the blonde was still feeling the need to actually make that step alone and with her own responsible acceptance of it.
Another sigh left her lips and a little pout adorned her face at the continuous state of indecision that had captured her mind.
What was she supposed to do? Give up to her own whims, or perhaps it would be best to be patient and wait for a better occasion?
Yet the waiting was 'killing' her, the fascination of having been given such a curious gift had left her awed but confused at the same time.
I should do this.
Her mind was getting echoes out of that simply-curt sentence, and her resilience to desist from this idea faltered to the point where her grasp over the card tightened.
Her mind wandered back at Kuro. The kind but roughish girl had been supportive of her, praising her efforts against the bullies back at Homurahara Academy, and her reckless behavior, albeit worth of endless worry, had left her in a state of perpetual envy.
Luvia was envious, but it wasn't the attention for Shinji that had driven her to feel this emotion.
It was the Einzbern's capacity to act so bluntly and without guidance, the proper usage of her own freedom, that had gotten the blonde particularly annoyed.
But the annoyance was directed all back to herself, as there was nobody to blame but her own inability to dive down on an opportunity.
She was lingered on the past's limitation, to her own surprise at the novelty of things, that the girl was always losing sight over the present.
Finally, Luvia decided to make her decision and, after transforming in Magical Sapphire, the girl prepared to commit to this uniquely reckless action from her part.
She was excited, but also worried and uneasy about it all.
Regrets were already building up behind her face, but nothing left her lips and throat as she focused on giving out just a single word.
The card fell on the floor, just a couple of meters away from where she was standing by and Luvia nodded to herself.
"Summon!"
Energy flocked at the harmless card, making it glow brightly as a blinding white light made her pause and panic momentarily.
Thoughts of 'I messed up' and 'I should have-' were quick to riddle her full capacity to react, but nothing horrible happened out of it.
In fact, there was a strange amount of new silence to the room despite the presence of a new individual.
The figure had a black-white hood that shadowed his face, a strange contrast compared to the bright silver armor with blue details and dark-blue clothes.
He was holding what looked to be a bright blue light by his right hand and… he was looking at her.
There was no doubt that Luvia was staring at a young man, but for some reason she felt that there was much more than just that distinct detail.
He took a step forward, making her tense up instantly as Sapphire prepared to conjure some beams of energy to repel the possible enemy.
"Who are you, fair child?" The figure finally inquired, his tone kind but also tense himself at her guard.
She blinked, gulping nervously at the predicament she was now forced to deal with.
"My name is Luviagelita Edelfelt, heiress to the Edelfelt Family," The blonde replied strongly. "Who are you, stranger?"
There was a surprising easing in the figure's guard and he sighed.
"I'm King Arthur Pendragon, King of Camelot and of all Britain," He introduced himself with a small smile reaching out of his hood. "And I've been seemingly summoned by you, fair Luviagelita."
What? Wasn't Artoria the- but what if-
Her mind had to reboot momentarily at that discovery, her turmoil hopefully hidden away from her interlocutor as she carefully resumed the conversation.
"Luvia," The girl interjected instinctively. "I prefer to be referred as 'Luvia', and yes, I'm the one that summoned you here. But not as a Servant-"
"But as a full-fledged living being," Arthur interrupted with an awed look as he stared at his arms. "I can't feel the usual reliance of energy a Servant's body should feel and… I don't see Command Seals on your hands or chest."
At the last detail, the blonde frowned at the mentioning of the seals appearing on a Master's chest. It was just… wrong, but also not something in the rules she was aware about Holy Grail Wars.
"May I ask why was I summoned, little Luvia?" He asked again, this time his free hand reaching up and pulling down the hood to reveal his face.
Blue eyes met with her amber ones and the older blond smiled happily at this.
"I- You have been summoned to- to help us with our adventures," The girl pressed forward, knowing that there was no mean to go back now that she was at this point. "Me and my friend, we both are apprentices of Kischur Zelretch von Schweinorg, Wizard Marshal and-"
"User of the Second Magic," The Hero concluded for her, an infuriating but amused smile on his face. "I suppose your mission is a tough one to require my assistance."
"Y-Yours and others!" She huffed in annoyance, starting to get irked by his humble but playful mannerism. "As if we would entrust ourselves just to those like you!"
He let out a pretty smile and nodded. "I suppose I might have sounded a little too pretentious by pushing you like this. Thousands of apologies, little Luvia."
She huffed, what an infuriating individual for sure.
But while her reaction was hiding it well, her mind wasn't denying it that she was glad to have gotten this kind of person out of that card.
He just looked like a knight in shining armor and… that made him good for a paladin to have as her subordinate.
Yes, this pretty young man was now her minion!
Some habits are just too difficult to eradicate…
AN
So we got Pretty Boy Arthur, with his dashing figure, his archaic understanding of society, and a distinct interest in playing around with people.
I wonder what will happen when Salter notices the disturbance in her Hamburger, another Saber-Face jumps in for more troubles!
Also, little clarification for some that were surprised by the fact that Kuro is no longer tanned: The 'tan' came from the Card. For her to continue to exist properly and as a human being, the process she had to go through had to remove the influence of the Archer Card (thus removing the tan) and giving her the chance of being 'reborn' in another form. The dark hair has a dual significance, which I can give only the first one out for you all to know and that is Kuro is now more Emiya than Illya.
P a treon . com (slash) socialistbukharin
k o-fi . com (slash) justbukharin
REVIEW Q&A!
Ascandas: Oh, the Servant for Shinji during the Fourth HGW will be met with groans by both Salter and Saber. Proto!Saber might actually find them funny.
Runelt99: What you are pointing out is the fact that many of my fanfics make use of a plot device that is not a wrong thing to have. The 'Protagonist knows Canon Plot' isn't a trope that was never used before me, nor I will deny the fact that there are good stories that have this premise. What you are failing to understand is that Fate was never centered about battles, but behind the detailing of characters, their feeling and emotions. Fighting became an important element only with the introduction of FGO and the Anime series, but before that the development within characters mattered the most. I'm sorry I'm not making things exploding left and right each chapter, but there is also a little thing in the Art of War that says: 'The supreme art of war is to subdue your enemy without fighting.' Sorry for the little rant.
Guest (Chapter 14): I will give it some thought about it.