Waver's first clue that something was wrong was the electricity turning off.
Waver, Rider, Berserker, and Kariya were sitting in a diner. It was early morning, so there was barely anyone there. A small light shined onto their table, illuminating their faces.
Then it turned off.
It was so sudden Waver didn't have any time to prepare. One second, the light was on, and the next, there were no lights at all. Fortunately, the sun had risen, shining over Fuyuki city, but the sudden absence of light had surprised Waver.
Then there was a scream.
"OhGodOhGodOhGodStopThisStopStopPlease!" The waitress serving them began to tear at her dark hair, screaming as her body twisted and turned into sperm. "HelpHelpHelpYouCanHelpRight HelpNowStopThis!" The woman's shouts echoed in Waver's ears, and he was left staring at the empty spot, horrified.
Meanwhile, Berserker had been sensible. She had run outside, and she came back in with a pale face and downcast eyes.
"There's nobody left," she murmured. "This is Caster's handiwork, no doubt." Everybody seemed to agree, and it took no time at all for Rider to summon his chariot. Evan with four people on it, there was plenty of space. "I think she's nearby. Or rather, she feels like she's everywhere. I-" Berserker groaned in frustration, and she slouched.
"There." Waver pointed to the pyramid rising nearby, with Caster at the top, a white dot against the blue sky. "She's there." Rider steered his chariot in the given direction, coming to a stop before a white and black creature.
Too much was happening, and Waver was helpless before this unknown. Caster had harvested every one, and they had no time to prepare. Now, Rider crossed blades with this unknown assailant. With one hand, the creature reached through Rider's armor and tore out a hunk of flesh.
Rider's surprised look informed his master things were going very, very badly.
"Creature." In an odd twist of fate, Assassin was now before them. So they would die at the hands of a dead servant now, rather than this creature? What could be better? Waver gave out a dark chuckle, readying his prana. If Assassin though he would kneel over and die, she was wrong. "Prepare yourself." Assassin became a dark blur of light against the sky, and her blade was pointed right at the creature's heart. "To die."
(With Assassin, earlier…)
Today, Assassin and Archer would face Caster.
The brunette walked through an alley towards the home where she left Hotaru. She supposed she had a duty to check up on the girl, especially before this climactic fight. Assassin did hope the girl was alright, though she somehow doubted it. Caster had far greater powers than she revealed, and Hotaru was linked to the servant.
Assassin's suspicions were confirmed when the couple who were temporarily taking care of Hotaru came running up.
"Miss. Visconti!" gasped the woman. "Hotaru… she's not here anymore. I mean, we tried to make the poor girl welcome, but when we woke up, she was just missing. Her clothes were still there, but she wasn't there." Assassin paused for a second.
"Thank you. Take care. Watch your backs." Assassin walked off, clutching her fist. Caster had a plan, one which would affect many people. This was bad. Very bad.
Then all the lights turned off.
(With Caster, a bit earlier than that…)
Caster giggled. Her body was half hidden in shadow, and one of her eyes was hidden by a lock of lilac hair. She could feel everyone in her barrier, within Fuyuki city.
The magical girls.
Emika.
Seiko.
Hotaru.
Emi.
And so, so many more.
Now they were hers.
Nana.
San.
Shi.
And more.
There were the masters.
Tokomi.
Kirei.
Emiya.
Kayneth.
Kariya.
Waver.
They would survive, feebly clinging on from being purified. Their pitiful weakness was so tiny in the face of her Tempest.
Then, she knew the servants.
Assassin, the companion to Jeanne D' Arc and magical girl of shadows.
Berserker, Hero by two names and sacrifice to the Shinju.
Archer, cattle child who sought to reform her world alongside her genius friends.
Lancer, the genius meister with his cold, loyal weapon.
Saber, homunculus and human, a prince who sought to be emperor.
And Rider, the only one of this world, the powerful Alexander.
She knew the Devil had lied. She knew the girl's true name, her true motive. She could hear the brunette pitifully weeping and crying out her friend's name as the light in the pinkette's eyes faded. The two were ever locked in a dance, where the Goddess struggled to reach the surface for eternity.
No matter. She would deal with her later. For now…
She had a mission.
(Current time, with Assassin…)
The servant of shadows moved through the streets as quickly as her magic allowed her to. Kirei needed as much prana he could get to stay alive during Caster's attack. Assassin was going to have to rely on her own prana stocks for a while.
The yellow gem on her sleeve brightly glowed, illuminating the servant's face. Her hair flew in the wind, the same color as her cloak. As she searched the world for a sign of life, her yellow eyes met Nana's emotionless ones. Two masters and their servants faced the creature. The wisest decision would be to let them handle it; this way, she could meet up with Archer and destroy Caster on her own. However, the risk was less high if two servants joined them. Therefore, she turned a dagger into a sword.
She ran forward, stopping to shield Waver.
"Creature," she hissed, "Prepare yourself to die." She threw herself into the attack, pummel of her sword reaching out.
One hand reached through Assassin's clothes, throttling her and nearly throwing her to the ground. However, the servant ran Nana through, falling forward when she found no support. Two pieces lay on the ground, discarded and destroyed.
Before the eyes of the servants and masters, Nana began to take on a humanoid appearance. Her hair spread out and turned a light blonde. Her skin, too, changed color and became a light pale. Her eyes were also now a deep green, though they were un-seeing. From the coldness of her skin to the loss of light in her eyes, Emi was obviously dead. Of course, this could be expected as she had been sliced in half.
"Huh?" Berserker stood up and grabbed the body. "She's dead?"
"I would assume so," dryly replied Assassin. "Being cut in half tends to do that to you." She was ignored by everyone until they had finished examining the body.
"So, Assassin," said Rider, "are you on your way to kill Caster?" Assassin nodded and began to walk forward, yelling out:
"You can join me!"
"Jerk," muttered Berserker.
"Idiots," murmured Assassin.
(In an unknown place…)
Caster knew about her, would kill her. She needed Rider to be killed, but this was too steep a price.
"Stop!" she yelled. "Stop!" No one heard, and she sank to her knees in despair. Caster was outside, where she had been sent, and she was stuck in here.
Assassin, Berserker, Archer, and Rider would not get there in time.
Assassin, Berserker, and Archer would die.
She needed a pawn.
She had a pawn.
Emika Kei woke up.
(Back with our protagonists…)
Archer lifted an eyebrow as Assassin briefed her on the situation. To be fair, even for Grail War standards- even for crazy, mixed up Grail War standards- her story sounded crazy.
Yet it was true. Caster was absorbing people by turning them into sperm, and they had no idea what to do.
"Destroy the base," suggested Kariya. For the last five minutes, he had been engaged in a glaring match with Tosaka, but finally spoke up. "Archer, you'll back up Berserker as she attempts to kill Caster."
"That," said Assassin, "was a reasonable plan." Kirei, the final human there, spoke up as well.
"As I assume Saber and his master will not be joining us, I have a different suggestion. Us magus will help by destroying the base, and the servants will attack Caster. To have a two on one is unfair since Caster is using the energy of all of Fuyuki city." While it appeared Kirei's suggestion had won, Archer suddenly spoke up.
"Wait! Lancer!" Everyone slowly realized there was another servant who they forgot.
"We will join with him if necessary. For now, let us fight." The tedious journey began, with Berserker jumping to and fro with Kariya in her arms, Rider using his chariot (which also was used by Tokomi, Waver, and Archer,) and Assassin using shadows for herself and Kirei.
Slowly, they progressed.
However, they didn't move quickly enough.
Two more administrators attacked, surrounding the chariot. Archer readied her gun, and Rider began to knock them down, but the creatures proved to be surprisingly adept at fighting.
"Go ahead!" yelled Tokomi. "Destroy Caster!" The remaining servants and masters complied, moving quicker than before.
They were still too late.
The sky turned grey as clouds drifted over the blue surface. A single beacon of light shined down on a happy Caster. The ritual known as Tempest was nearly complete.
"Let's go!" yelled Berserker, leaving behind her master and jumping into the air, her fist about to crash into Caster's face. Just as she was inches away, sperm wrapped around her wrists and ankles, suspending her. "What?" Berserker shuddered as her prana began to drain, causing Kariya to fall to the ground and cough up blood, his body shaking as the effects of the prana drain caused his crest worms to become active.
"Hm." Assassin surveyed the creation. "If I can't get near it…" The brunette servant suddenly became a blur of light, headed right towards Caster. Her hair and cloak wildly flapped as she touched the top.
One sperm-tentacle grabbed her ankle, pulling the servant down. A dagger-turned-sword quickly took care of that.
Berserker broke free with much effort and joined the servant of shadows. Readying her gun, she prepared to black the servant of magic away. A shield of sperm shielded the servant, and Berserker, along with Assassin, was knocked off the pyramid. They were greeted by a distressed Kirei, who had left behind Kariya, pronouncing him dead weight.
"The base is nigh invulnerable," he revealed. "We have to destroy Caster to destroy the base, but-"
"To destroy Caster, we must destroy the base," finished a glum Berserker. "What should we do?" The three remained in silence for a moment, before noticing a black haired girl walk up, her eyes an unexpected shade of violet. This was Emika Kei.
"Who are you?" asked Kirei roughly. Emika ignored him and transformed into a frilly black and purple outfit. The skirt was dark and covered by the tails of her shirt, which had a tie around the neck. Black leggings adorned her legs, stretching into black high-heels. On her arm was a clockwork shield, from which she drew a gun. In a flash, she was gone, leaving the three to wonder if the girl was a mere illusion.
Then, Caster kneeled over, a bullet in her head. Blood splattered on the ground as the servant fell hundreds of feet. Her hair rippled in the wind as bullets riddled her body. She was splayed on the ground like a feral animal when Kirei, Berserker, and Assassin peered at her.
"Damn you... Akemi. Who would have thought… that Emika girl was you?" With those last words, Caster's body dissolved into smoke, leaving the three amazed.
"That girl," murmured Assassin. "We need to find her." Not questioning her demands, the other two began to search among the Tempest's ruins. A pale body, belonging to the girl named Emika, was discovered by Berserker.
"Here!" the servant of madness yelled. The other two rushed over, and closely examined her. Her outfit was no longer the strange skirted one, but jeans and a tank top. Also, her eyes were unquestionably green. "I don't get it," she continued, lifting up the girl. "Just what was that?"
"It does not concern you," said Assassin in a standard mysterious voice. Berserker opened her mouth to disagree and say that yes, it did concern her since this girl killed Caster, but in the same instant the other servants arrived and Berserker turned to greet them. When she looked back, Assassin, Kirei, and Emika were gone.
"Where did they go?" muttered the girl. "Stupid prat…" She waited to see if Assassin would respond and swore when she didn't. "IDIOT!" she yelled and stormed off to find Kariya.
Fortunately, her master was in good shape. The masters and servants whom she had fought with looked out of place on this crowded street, filled with people unaware of the day's events. In Berserker's mind, Caster's defeat was rather anti-climatic. The servants didn't even destroy the evil sorceress! Some mysterious girl did.
"We should celebrate our victory!" exclaimed Rider. "Let all of us servants have a drinking party. I will invite others. Come, fellow servants!" He walked forward towards a private area where he could summon his chariot, but Archer stopped him.
"Maybe not a drinking party," she suggested. "At least four servants are under the legal drinking age, so…" She nervously chuckled, and Rider slowly nodded in agreement.
"True. Then Waver and I will pick you up. Be prepared!" He went ahead with summoning his chariot and vanishing into the bright blue sky, the clouds having vanished long ago.
"What redhead there didn't tell you was that the administrators turned normal," said Archer, dropping her voice to a raspy whisper. "There are some girls we need to take care of."
Berserker was happy to help.
She recognized girl #1 as Hotura Ai, the helper of Caster. Berserker was glad that Assassin appeared again, though this time Emika-less.
"Where is-" she began, only to be interrupted by the puella magi.
"It does not concern you," she said for the second time.
Berserker was seriously considering going for her throat.
"Anyway, I will take care of Hotaru. I have an idea which Hotura can help me with." The girl unsteadily got to her feet, hair blowing to one side so her eye was obscured.
"Thank you," she whispered, grabbing onto the arm of the brunette servant. The two disappeared, and Berserker and Archer groaned. There was still one more girl, this one with tousled red hair. Archer carefully laid her jacket over the naked form of the girl, who woke up, opening her blue eyes for the first time.
"Oh, hello." She glared at the two maliciously, smiling in a way reminiscent of Caster. "Heh. My name is Saiko, and I'm going to kill you!" She jumped up and punched Archer- or, at least, attempted to. The servant dodged and swept out Saiko's legs from underneath her.
"There has to be more of these girls," said a preoccupied Archer. "Berserker, could you…?"
"On it," the girl promptly replied. She didn't have long to run before coming upon Emi. "What do you know, Assassin was wrong."
"Where am I?" murmured the blonde. Berserker quickly took off her clothes and transformed into a different school uniform consisting of a black dress and puffy sleeves. She dressed Emi to the best of her ability and led her away.
Their conversation was brief but left a lasting impression on Emi's young mind.
"My name is Sumi," declared Berserker. "What is yours?"
"Emi Yatsuma," replied Emi shyly. "Miss. Sumi, what happened?" Sumi paused for a second before grabbing Emi by the shoulders, firmly holding her in place.
"Yatsuma. Listen to me. This day, something large happened. You will be one of the only ones who remember it. So remember this for me, okay? One day, this might happen again, and you will still be around to see a miracle. Possibly, there will be a miracle soon. Two words- Heaven's Feel- remember them. You have seen a miracle, Yatsuma." Then Berserker turned away, leaving Emi rooted in her place.
Emi saw something.
(In another world, another time, Caster was different. Caster destroyed her, made her a sacrifice to his holy maiden.) Emi shook off the vision irritability. She had no time for such nonsense.
Sumi dropped Emi off with Kariya, hoping he could do something for her. Fortunately, Archer had already taken care of Saiko, leaving Berserker with an unknown pink haired girl.
"What's your name?" she asked. The pink haired girl hesitated.
"Which one? I have two, but one of them is lost." Mystified, Berserker reached out to the girl, who shied away. "But I have to tell you something. Save Madoka Kaname, Sumi. Homura Akemi is not your friend." In the same moment, the girl turned into pink dust.
"Akemi?" murmured Berserker. "Like what Caster said?"
(With Waver and Rider)
A girl lay in the dirt as Rider and Waver passed by. Another of Caster's victims, perhaps. Her hair was braided and tied with purple ribbons, while her red glasses lay some ways from her, the lenses shattered.
"Are you…" she stuttered. "Caster, what happened to her?" Waver and Rider exchanged a glance, and in one swoop the servant picked her up.
"What is your name?" he asked jovially. The girl trembled and slowly replied:
"Blaze."
"Well, Blaze," said Rider, "We're going to a nice place, where Caster won't bother you." Waver marveled at their interactions, and smiled when Blaze smiled. After abandoning the other servants, this was the least they could do.
(In an unknown place…)
The barriers were breaking.
She could feel the witch rise and fought hard to make it stop moving once more. Exhausted, she collapsed on the ground.
Emi had seen the reality, and Assassin was doing her best to stop her puppeteering of Emika. This just wasn't fair! This was-
Game. Set. Match.
-of course. She still could win, after all. If Blaze did not shirk her duties, this would be-
Game. Set. Match.
-the noise was loud in her ears, and she felt that even if she screamed, no one would hear her over the deafening sound. But she would win, right? The prince always won, and the princess was saved. And-
They lived happily ever after.
-in a castle, with food and knight and everything. She could make that. This was her-
Wake up.
-and she would prevail like they always do. She could not-
Wake up!
-since she was supreme in this place. This was just a temporary-
Gott is tot.
Cracks began to spread.
Saber rifled through papers, alarmed. This couldn't be true! The girl had promised to have his wish granted, and the reality was this?
"Kiritsugu wanted to summon King Arthur," he said slowly as a way to calm himself. "Kirei wanted to summon someone else, too. In fact, everyone except Velvet and Uryuu summoned who they wanted." This was an irregularity, but the stranger things were these articles he found. Saber scanned the page, his eyes looking for a detail which proved his theory wrong, but found nothing.
"Is Fuyuki City in Danger?" he read. "Today, a bug-eyed man was seen leading children away from their parents. When apprehended by police, he took their bullets and ran off, grabbing young Natalie Borghese, aged 5, and Emi Yatsuma, aged 11. The public has one question: are we safe? This man has separated families and killed countless others. With the police unable to defend us, will the common man have to take up arms to defend himself?" Saber set the paper down on the table with a bang. "This is… Just what have I been tricked into?"
"Hm." Saber turned around, eyes wide, to see black feathers litter the floor until he was drowning in them. He clutched at his throat and attempted to push the wall back, but to no avail. Saber's vision became dark, and his breathing became a mere wheeze.
When Saber got up, the setting was very different. He sat on a red bench while images floated by, their meaning unclear and fuzzy. Opposite him sat a black haired girl, her violet eyes cool and calm. Wings sprouted from her back, and she wore a revealing outfit that suited her title. She had on black leg warmers with grey stripes that nearly concealed her black high-heeled shoes. A black skirt connected to a leotard of sorts hugged her curves and was cut along the sides, though it tactfully avoided revealing her torso and instead opted for being as skin-tight as possible. Her black hair reached her own seat, which she perched on as she gave Saber a sadistic smile.
"Call me the Devil, Saber. I believe you wish to chat?" An image behind the Devil became clear all of a sudden- a picture of a creature with flowing black hair and head in the gallows. A blade prepared to cut its head off, and the executioner was none other than a pink haired goddess with golden eyes. The creature's own eyes were hidden by a ridiculously tacky red headdress, which matched its bony arms and body. One word was inscribed on the bottom of the image: Homulilly.
"Yes, I do, H-"
The sky is red. Despite his firm stance as a magus, Waver felt slightly shaken. He remembered the rhyme- red skies at dawn…- and felt nervous when confronting the new day.
Blaze stared at the sky happily. An explosion of color was all she saw, and one of her hands reached for a gun. Rider grabbed her and put the girl on his shoulder, and all Blaze saw was red.
There was a black feather in her palm.
Emika stared at the dawn and got dressed as quickly as possible. Her hairbrush refused to unravel the large knots in her damp hair, and she resorted to tying it in a bun quickly and messily.
There was a black feather on her head.
Kankri woke up on the street, feeling not-at-all refreshed. She was an amnesiac, or so she gathered from the descriptions of such people. Her last memory was that of a crying girl with brown hair turning red at the tips. A hook symbol was in her glowing eyes as they met Kankri's, and the girl had felt her heart go out to the stranger.
Kankri was certain this was not her real name, but it felt right in some odd way, almost as though someone had told her to use this name. It felt nice on her tongue, so she continued to call herself it.
A black feather fell down and landed in her lap.
The first death of a servant in the Holy Grail war has proceeded. And who is this mysterious girl...?
Berserker: (whisper) Homu-
The mysterious girl has an offer for Saber. Will he accept?
Berserker: For now, accept this omake!
Omake
Emika hurried to school, her uniform lopsided. When she entered the classroom, many classmates gawked at her walking. In fact, her teacher gawked as well. This was to be expected since she had been wheel-chair bound ever since she entered this school. To be walking on her own two feet again would be quite an accomplishment- except nobody knew how it happened.
Emika sat in the back of the class, gossipping with her friend Hotaru. Since both of their secret gaining of power had been revealed, the two had become not-quite-friends but something more than just classmates. It helped that Hotaru was nice and liked nature. Over the weekend following that day, the two had gotten to know each other better.
"Late, Emika?" laughed the girl. The brunette mock scowled and lightly punched her friend in the shoulder. Emika slowly opened her math book, revealing a note.
'Saw object.' To anyone else, those two words were random, but Hotaru knew. However, she wisely held off on questions until lunch.
For the first time ever, Emika left the school with a friend(?) for lunch outside. Fortunately, Hotaru knew of a place nearby called 'Nana's Pizza.' She entered a pay phone booth and called Assassin while Emika ordered.
Ten minutes later, all three of them were sitting in a small booth. The seats were old and worn, with loose threads sticking out and revealing the cushioning. However, their pizza was very good, and Emika and Hotaru eagerly tore into it.
"The object, please." Assassin held out her hand, sighing at the two's antics, though a soft smile graced her lips. A black feather was handed to her, and she vanished. Unperturbed, Emika and Hotaru continued to eat.
"It no longer works." Emika took out her magic coin, which was now dull and nothing like the exciting object it was before. She threw it in the air only for it to drop down with a ding.
"Mine doesn't work either." Hotaru put on her hook and punched the wall, only for her to grab her fist as she learned why people don't punch brick walls with their bare fists. "I think that's okay, though. We can get by without magic." The two took a long path back to school, and Emika's shoes got soaked when she walked in the water. The sun's reflection shone on the surface, and it was as though jewels sparkled on the tip of each wave.
"You're right," said Emika suddenly. "So, Hotaru-" She leaned in and kissed the girl. "Could we have done that without magic?" The stunned student stayed in place for a second before smirking and kissing Emika back, taking the brunette by surprise now.
"No, but we'll get by. Together." The two smiled as they entered the school building.
"Late!" shrieked their teacher.
"...though I kind of wish we could use magic now."
The two were going to the funeral of Hotura's sister. Hakuno Kankri Ai, aged fifteen, was dead. As her body was not found, they were having a separate funeral process for her.
Emika had to resort to standing there, trying to look interested. Reading would be rude, and she did not yet know how to sleep while standing. Of course, when the flowers were being thrown in a pit, all Emika could see was darkness. Hotaru's blood red rose fell down, darkness claiming it just as quickly. For a second, there was a longing in Hotaru's eyes, before she turned to leave.
Hands seemed to clench at Emika's heart as she ran up to Hotaru. Her pale hand grabbed onto the girl's tense shoulder, and Hotaru finally turned around, their eyes meeting. Hotaru was at least half a head taller than Emika, but their eyes met easily.
And they kissed again.
For Hotaru, she was upset about loss, and hardship, and she just wanted to forget it all.
For Emika, she was tired of having her best friend, Itsuki, just there without a chance to reach out and possess him. She just wanted to claim her prize.
Two souls in despair make a symphony of sounds as they meet. The question of how or why is not important here. All that exists is the present, the electrifying spark which runs between the two, the hope they share. Something as fragile as this is not meant to last forever.
End of Emika Kei Omake Arch.
Beginning of Hotaru Ai Omake Arch.
"Remember this and take it to heart: kindness sometimes leads to even greater tragedy."
And finally, here is Berserker's skill sheet!
Servant: Berserker
Master: Kariya Mato
Identity: Mimori Togo/Sumi Washio
Series: Yuki Yuna is a Hero
Sex: Female
Strength: A++
Endurance: A+
Agility: B+++
Mana: B
Luck: C+
Noble Phantasm(s): EX
Class Skills:
Mad Enchantment- The class skill which raises basic parameters in exchange for hindering mental capacities.
C: Sumi's parameters are raised to A+, but her charisma goes down to B rank.
Personal Skills:
Blessing of the Faries- The ability to call upon fairies to help during battle.
EX: At a high prana cost, Sumi can summon up to four fairies to help her in battle. They can block any attack, no matter how powerful.
Personality Switch- The ability to transform into another person.
A: Because of her alternate self, Sumi can transform from being Sumi Washio to Mimori Togo. The switch causes her legs to temporarily stop working but gives her access to more weapons.
Petal Shield- The power to create a very durable shield from petals.
A++: Sumi's shield can handle entry into Earth's atmosphere while at high speeds.
Independent Action- An ability that allows movement even after the Master's magical energy supply has been cut off.
B: After the supply of prana is cut off, Sumi can still draw limited prana from the Shinju for some time.
Charisma- An ability consisting of a person's charm as well as their natural talent to lead.
C: Though she was not chosen as the leader of her team of heroes, Sumi possesses charismatic qualities and the ability to inspire people to keep fighting.
Military Tactics- Tactical knowledge used when many forces are deployed.
As a strict devotee to Japan, Sumi has learned about many tactics used in wars and has the intelligence to deploy them.
Noble Phantasm(s):
Jukai: EX: (Anti-army): A Noble Phantasm which traps specific people in a barrier created by the Shinju. When this barrier is created, vertexes are formed and begin their assault on the Shinju. Any attack on the Jukai will affect the real world, and if the vertexes reach the Shinju, the world is destroyed. However, the vertexes will first target the servants, and they will vanish if Sumi's master uses a command seal to force her into releasing Jukai.
Mankai: A++: An attack in which the user can create an 'ultimate attack,' capable of destroying a vertex within a few shots. Sumi creates a giant gunship that can shoot massive waves of firepower, capable of overpowering Yuki Yuna's mankai form, which can easily defeat the Scorpion vertex. When the mankai is destroyed, Sumi goes through sange, in which she loses the function of a body part.
Hero Form: EX: (Anti-unit): Sumi's power to transform into one of her Hero forms, either her form before the hero system upgrade, or her more armored form after the upgrade.