Day 6: Bazett — The Traitor's Hand
Bazett felt a sense of unease as she entered Kotomine Church. She was normally able to keep her emotions well under control while on a mission, but this place had a particular aura about it which always raised the hairs on the back of her neck and made her stomach a lead weight. The door closing behind her cut off all sound from the outside world, leaving her in perfect silence save for the sound of her shoes against the floor. The church felt ominous, its atmosphere stifling; she felt more like she was walking within a desecrated mausoleum than a holy sanctuary. It was as though this place was tainted on some fundamental level she could perceive only subconsciously, making her shiver with nameless and unreasoning dread. Still, she attempted to hide her discomfort as she walked up to meet her ally.
"Bazett Fraga McRemitz." Kotomine said.
Bazett barely managed not to flinch as his booming voice broke the oppressive silence. Whereas she was visibly unnerved, Kotomine seemed perfectly at ease. There was a casual smile on his face as he gave her a friendly wave from the pulpit where he was sitting and casually flipping through a Bible. He practically radiated joviality, making Bazett feel even more stiff and awkward.
"Overseer Kotomine." she said, giving a stiff half-bow in greeting.
"Please, there is no need to be so formal." Kotomine said mirthfully. "We are not meeting in an official capacity as Overseer to eliminated Master, but rather as two old friends arranging to, by deceit and treachery, steal the prize of this Holy Grail War."
"Are you certain it is safe to speak so openly?" Bazett asked, glancing over her soldier. "I noticed several of Zouken Matou's Crest Worm familiars stationed around the perimeter of the Church. You've surely protected this place with a bounded field to prevent such unwanted intrusions, but the ancient magus is both powerful and cunning; he may have found a way past your defenses."
"That he can connive a manner of penetrating my defenses, I have no doubt; but fortunately my comrade has granted me a protection his magecraft cannot overcome." Kotomine said.
He stood and walked to his pulpit, from which he lifted a heavy tablet that seethed with immeasurable magic energy.
"One of the seven Sacraments bestowed by God upon the Church is the Sacrament of Confession." he said. "This includes the Seal of the Confessional, an absolute and inviolable guarantee of secrecy between priest and penitent. That Seal can then be sublimated into a Conceptual Weapon against eavesdropping and betrayal of confidence thanks to this Noble Phantasm my comrade has generously lent me – the Ninnion Tablet, conceptual embodiment of the oath to secrecy sworn by those initiated into the ancient Eleusinian Mystery Cults. The Sacramental Seal now binds our words so that the uninitiated may not hear them; Zouken Matou could come into this church himself and stand directly before us as we talked, and he would not be able to hear the words passing between us. Such is the power of even one of the most trivial treasures of the King of Heroes."
"I see." Bazett said. "But even if he cannot eavesdrop, his familiars certainly saw me entering the Church. He must know that we are plotting something."
"I don't care in the slightest if Zouken Matou knows that we're conspiring together." Kotomine said. "Let the withered old creature congratulate himself on having seen through my secret scheme to recruit you to my side; the longer he spends believing he's got me figured out, the more enjoyable his moment of despair will be when he realizes that I was three steps ahead of him this entire time. The other Masters, on the other hands... they could still pose a problem at this stage. Have you managed to avoid raising the suspicions of Rin Tohsaka, Shirou Emiya, and their Servants?"
"They still suspect nothing." Bazett said. "The geas I submitted to at Tohsaka's request, promising not to make a contract with another Servant, has convinced them that I am no longer a factor in the Holy Grail War."
"When in fact you not only haven't withdrawn, but in fact intend to win." Kotomine said. "Congratulations on such a magnificent deception."
"I wished to fight openly and honorably, as a mage of the Association should; I am going along with this deception only because it is my only option for victory." Bazett said, a bit of vitriol slipping into her voice. "And even so, my situation remains highly disadvantageous; having wasted two Fragarach to no effect against True Berserker Heracles, I now have only one remaining."
"Never underestimate the strength of a knife from behind; the blade that they never see coming cuts all the deeper." Kotomine said.
The priest picked up the Bible from the church's dias and flipped through it seemingly at random before settling on one particular page.
"When the traitor's hand strikes, it strikes with the strength of a legion." Kotomine recited.
"I'm sorry; I'm not familiar with that verse." Bazett said. "As a magus, I don't follow the Church's teachings."
"It's quite alright; that quotation's not actually from the Bible." Kotomine said. "I may be priest, but I do read other books. Since we're in a church, however, I thought I should try to act the role."
He snapped the Bible shut with one hand and placed at back on the dias while Bazett shifted uncomfortably.
"The quote may not be from the Word of our Lord, but it is true nonetheless – as my mentor Tokiomi Tohsaka learned during the last Grail War, ten years ago." Kotomine said, smiling fondly at the reminiscence. "He thought himself invincible because he had summoned the most powerful Servant in all the history of the World; yet ultimately his undoing was nothing more than a simple dagger, thrust into his back when he least expected it. Superior strength means nothing in the face of a well-timed betrayal."
Bazett could not hide her distaste at the pleasure in the priest's voice as he recounted the betrayal and murder of his mentor.
"I see you are discomfitted." Kotomine said. "But your own hands are far from clean. As a combat magus, you have been called upon many times to stain yourself with blood. Do you doubt that your actions were proper?"
"Of course not." Bazett said. "The life of a magus of the Association is one of devotion to duty. I did what was necessary to fulfill my orders and succeed in my missions. It is not my place to question the tasks I am assigned; only to complete them."
"And your task now is to win the Holy Grail for the Mage Association." Kotomine said. "They obviously do not wish it to fall into the hands of someone undesirable such as Zouken Matou, who would use it towards wicked ends. However, following your unfortunate encounter with False Assassin, you are outnumbered and outpowered. It is no longer possible for you to win the Grail through straightforward means. Surprise and deception are your only chance to yet achieve victory. With my discreet aid, victory may yet be within your grasp."
"I understand that." Bazett said. "It is why I was willing to reconsider your offer of collusion. I simply find your enthusiasm for it... unsettling."
"I was once like you, seeing my work as nothing more than a chore." Kotomine said. "But Gilgamesh opened my eyes and taught me that my duty need not be unpleasant; in fact, it could be a source of joy. If you find the necessities of your work troubling, perhaps you should talk to him as well."
"I would prefer not to." Bazett paused. "You are certain it will not be necessary to destroy him in order to complete the Holy Grail?"
"Fret not." Kotomine said. "As a Servant summoned in the Fourth War, Gilgamesh has no connection to either of the two Grails which have manifested for this War. It is only necessary to offer the souls of the Servants they summoned in order for them to achieve completion. You needn't worry about having to fight the King of Heroes."
"I wasn't worried." Bazett said. "With his reliance on Noble Phantasms, he would be an easy opponent to defeat with the use of my final Fragarach. I only wished to make certain of the tactical situation – whether it would require further treachery."
Kotomine laughed.
"That presupposes that the King of Heroes is your ally." he said. "I recommend against thinking of him in such terms. If he was truly on your side, he would be perfectly capable of winning the War himself with only the slightest exertion of effort, and the Grail would be in your hands before tomorrow morning. Rather, consider yourself fortunate that your goals do not conflict with his. Gilgamesh desires that the Holy Grail of this world be given to him because he considers all treasures of the World to belong to him; but has no interest in the alternate Grail, regarding it a forgery and therefore worthless trash. It is still an omnipotent wish-granting device, however, and therefore should be perfectly satisfactory to your superiors at the Association. Likewise, they should have no objection to the Church holding on to the true Grail, provided it is not misused; and as I have told you, we have no intention of making a wish. Gilgamesh regards it only as another possession, for as true king of all the world there is nothing he can wish for which he does not already have; and as for myself, I shall need only gaze upon the power that swirls within the Grail to have the question of my life answered."
Bazett's natural inclination was to believe Kotomine as, in her experience, he had never lied. Still, she could not overlook the fact that he had changed drastically since they'd last met, before the Fourth Grail War. Back then, he had been an Executor for the Church, and had sometimes been assigned the same targets as her to eliminate. Despite the opposition between their organizations, they had managed to work together as allies, and even become friends of a sort. The Kotomine she remembered, however, had always been extremely stoic and professional when carrying out his missions. She didn't like the way he was always smiling now, as though constantly laughing at some private joke. Kotomine had changed, and not necessarily for the better; she couldn't rely on him continuing to act as he once had. Still, his advice had thus far been effective, and he had shown no malice towards her; so long as he continued to aid her, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
"Very well." she said. "I will return to the Emiya household and await your instruction."
"Oh, one thing before you go." Kotomine said. "I've heard that a Church-aligned magus, an Exorcist named Caren Ortensia, has come to Fuyuki seeking to enter the War. Would you happen to know anything about that?"
"I am unfamiliar with the name." Bazett said. "However, when Rin and Shirou described how the irregular Servant Avenger aided them in the battle at their school, they stated that his Master used a Holy Sacrament to disrupt the bounded field created by the enemy's Noble Phantasm. As that is Church-based thaumaturgy, it is likely related to this Exorcist you've heard of."
"Caren Ortensia would not contract with Servant Avenger." Kotomine said. "She has a spiritually-sensitive medical condition, Masochistic Pneumatic Automatism Diathesis..." he broke off, and laughed softly to himself. "Oh, how foolish of me. Desiring atonement for the sin which she tries to hide deep in her heart, she places herself in the position where she is tormented by her Servant through no fault of its own, thus allowing her to both continually punish herself and continually forgive the one causing her pain. Of course she would choose Avenger. I fully understand the heart and mind of Caren Ortensia. Now the question is, can she understand me?"
"You speak of her as though you know her well." Bazett said. "Who is this Caren Ortensia?"
"No one you need concern yourself with." Kotomine said. "She has probably come to Fuyuki not for the Grail but rather the opportunity to kill me — though whether by Church instruction or on her own behalf I do not know. It hardly matters, since I will not allow her to succeed."
"You're going to kill her, then." Bazett said.
"Of course not." Kotomine said. "Such an act would be meaningless to one such as Caren Ortensia, who forgives all evil and regards her own suffering as a divine blessing. Even if I raped or tortured her before killing her, she would go to her death with a serene smile and at complete peace with herself. No, what I intend to do is to hurt Caren Ortensia. It will be difficult to arrange, yes; but since she has come so far to see me, I must leave her a fitting gift."
"What exactly do you mean by that?" Bazett demanded. "The necessary elimination of an opponent is one thing, but if you think I'm going to let you turn this War into some sadistic game–"
"Don't get yourself worked up unnecessarily, Bazett." Kotomine said. "I told you, I have no intention of killing Caren Ortensia; her Servant is so weak that it will not be necessary. And I will hurt her, yes, but I believe she will be most grateful afterwards."
Bazett turned and left. She couldn't bear to be in the priest's presence any more; his way of thinking was too alien to her now. But even as she pushed through the church's doors out into the night, she could hear Kotomine's shout following her:
"Rejoice, Bazett Fraga McRemitz! Your wish shall finally be granted!"
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