LEVEL 2 – AWAKENING

I am a blade, war given form.

The battlefield was hellish. The ground was littered with weapons, bodies and scrap metal. Screams would blend in with gunfire, sword clashes and artillery to form a symphony of misery. The sky was full of smoke, blotting out the sunlight. I couldn't breath.

And yet, I walked on. I could not stop. I held her life in my hands, as she did mine.

So, I walked on.

We walked on, together.

For the last time.

I am a blade.

A cold blade named…

…

His eyes cracked open slowly, revealing his blurry hand beside his face. The soft hum of his fan surrounded him, attempting to lull him back to slumber with its calming rhythm. Alas, it wasn't mean to be. The boy sat up slowly from his bent over position, hearing his spine and elbows creak as he stretched them out. A colossal yawn escaped his maw like a bat out of hell, followed by a violent coughing fit. Still a bit sick, it seems. When he was done hacking up a lung, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and blinked his vison back to normal.

He had fallen asleep at his desk again, stylus in hand. Before him was the bright screen of his monitor, still displaying the model he was messing around with. He couldn't remember what he though of it when he started last night when the moon was full in the sky, but looking at in now with the sun up, he decided he hated it. Sighing, he saved the file and closed the program with a few flicks of his mouse. After that, he promptly shut his PC off with dissatisfied grunt. Scooping up his tablet and stylus, he lazily stood up, and walked to his shelf. He didn't need to look at the clock or his phone to know the time. He could hear his roommate flying around outside, talking to himself with panic in his voice. It seemed they were both late again. As he returned the equipment back to its place, he stumbled towards the door to his room, yanking it open with an unclear anger flowing through him.

"What a stupid dream."

…

She came across the blood-soaked patch of grass early in the morning; the sun had just peaked above the horizon not 20 minutes ago. The blood was dry, giving the foliage it covered a brown, rust like look. There was no body.

"I can't believe it…" She softly mused to herself, spinning the USB between her fingers. "Not once in the history of the Grail War has Saber fallen first…"

As if on cue, a smashed drone fell from the sky beside her. Two azure, phantom like spears were lodged in the machine, drawing sparks and oil from it like lifeblood. And so, the last creation joins the creator.

"That was all of them." Suddenly, the spears were ripped free from the machine with violent force, completely obliterating what was left of it. The two ghostly spears flew past the girl with blinding speed and landed in the hands of the culprit of the previous, haunting voice.

A blue skinned female knight, lanky and muscular, crushed the two spears within her hands. The spirit like energy then returned to her body, passing through her black armour and sinking into her ghostly flesh. The Servant eyed her master with intrigue, waiting for a response. April smiled.

"Excellent work, Lancer. This area should be safe again." She once again eyed the bloodied patch of earth and frowned. "Someone who set up a bounded field like this was obviously not worried about civilian casualties."

"Should they have been?" her Servants voice had a slight echo effect to it, making each sentence she spoke sound ominous. Of course, April Vanswalth had already gotten used to it. She hoped her enemies would not.

"What does that mean?" April asked, turning to fully face the wraith-like spearswoman.

"Is it not true that mages and servants alike must eliminate witnesses to the war? Setting up drones around the perimeter of the bounded field to not only scout for enemies but eliminate other intruders seems as though the perpetrator was planning ahead."

"Planning ahead, huh?" April scoffed, squeezing the USB tightly in her hand. "Well, look what that got him. A blade through the body on the first fight in the war." The ground was razed with a slight stab mark that could only be caused by a sword, a long and thin one at that. However…

"You can sense the magical energy, correct?" April asked her servant. Lancer nodded, but did not reply. She picked up the question herself. "There's too much magical residue in the air for any other servant but Caster. And yet… a blade? I have heard stories of another Caster using an axe in a previous war, but it was more of a catalyst to their spells… perhaps it's the same this time around…?"

"Whatever the case may be, Master, it seems as though Caster will be a major threat in future fights." Lancer stated, walking up to her. Her Servant towered over her by a head and a half, but April kept eye contact regardless. "It may not be the best strategy to go after them right away. We might want to wait until they engage in-"

"Relax, Lancer, that's not why we're here." April reaffirmed her, spinning on her heels and walking towards the blood stain yet again. "Now… let's get this show on the road."

Gripping the USB in her hand, she brought it to her forehead and began the incantation.

"Eiz whalen carabir…Saln shizen farmog… DAISELSH!"

With a mighty toss, she sent the USB soaring into the air. Higher it went, higher and higher… until it exploded in green, magical energy that sent a shockwave throughout the sky. The force of it made her stagger backwards; Lancer didn't flinch.

"Ha ha HA!" April exclaimed loudly, throwing her hands up in the air. "That'll get their attention, all right!"

"Attention?" Lancer asked, slightly concerned. April turned to her companion with a smirk.

"Granted, Assassin and Archer haven't been summoned yet, but that blast will shake every master and servant in the city!" she began, as her smile morphed from one of glee into malice. "Especially him."

"A declaration of war, then." Lancer pondered.

"The war has already started," April stated. "This is just me lighting a fire under their asses." Lancer was silent for a long while after that, simply staring into her master's eyes with her glowing, pupiless ones. April broke the silence. "What, got a problem with my methods?"

"Not in the slightest." The ghostly knight spoke, outstretching her arms. Another blue spear formed in her grasp, and she thrust it into the dirt under them. "I am bound to this war, and you. As long as you supply me with mana and what has been promised, I will win you the Grail… and your revenge."

…

His eyes went wide as a sense of sudden pain and nausea rattled him from head to toe. He stopped his sprint and bent over, gasping for air. His phone burned in his pocket, like it was on fire.

Magic.

"Adrian, come ON!" his roommate was now well ahead of him, almost at the college's front entrance. "We're already late! We're gonna miss the presentation!"

"Yeah, hold on, I'm coming!" He shouted back, regaining his composure. Something he couldn't exactly pinpoint told him that the day was going to suck.

WAR STATS

Master: Laurence Bellings (DEAD) / Servant: ? - Saber (DEAD)

Master: April Vanswalth / Servant: ? - Lancer

Master: ? / Servant: ? - Caster

Master: ? / Servant: ? - Rider

Master: ? / Servant: ? - Berserker

Master: ? / Servant: ? - Assassin (Not Summoned)

Master: ? / Servant: ? - Archer (Not Summoned)