FATE/NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM
"New Order of the Ages"
Chapter 12: Democracy and Domination
One of the mechanized infantry patrolling the fortress' front gates spotted the group of Servants approaching from the forest. They weren't coming as a horde of combatants, but in a more relaxed fashion. Some robots blocked their path, and the leader commanded, "Halt. State your business."
"Industry and domination!" Robin exclaimed.
The mech soldier responded in tune, "Industry and domination! Presi-King Edison is the greatest CEO!"
"Yes, he is great! By the way, I am Second Lieutenant Anderson Komadori of the 26th Commando Unit! I have captured one of the Celtic Servants and seek to turn him in for interrogation!"
The bowman presented Diarmuid, who had his wrists bound behind his back. His expression appeared strained as he moaned, "How shameful… To think that I would fall so easily to the might of the Presi-King…"
"Understood and confirmed," the robot replied. "He matches the data of Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, Knight of Fianna. Excellent work, Lieutenant Komadori. Please proceed through. Industry and-"
"Domination!" Robin shouted. "If you'll excuse us!"
He took the lead, while the other Servants followed him inside the grand fortress. Once they were safely inside, Robin removed the poorly-tied rope from around Diarmuid's wrists, and the Lancer flexed his hands – it had been their idea to fool the guards by using him as a captive. While they walked through the spectacular hallways lined with white columns, colorful flags and effigies of Edison everywhere, Ituha whispered to Robin, "Um… What was that strange greeting you were doing just now?"
"It's the salute among Edison's troops," he seethed bitterly. "Believe me, I had to resist throwing up my bile while saying that garbage."
"For someone who is supposed to represent democracy, he's got a weird idea of how domination works."
Rama muttered, "He thinks that citizens coming together for a common purpose is 'domination'. How foolish. That's nothing more than commonplace tyranny."
"Not necessarily," Scathach said. "He's doing this not out of vanity, but out of a need to preserve what is left of 'America' before the Celts can destroy it. He must have had quite the political potential along with being a genius inventor."
Nightingale added, "Not only is he fine-tuning everyone and everything to behave the same way, I believe he is administering drugs to suppress emotions like fear and doubt since he has no time to train soldiers properly. It is a frequent tactic that leaders utilize for manipulating their subjects, but I worry of the aftereffects."
"A doctrine of mass production and united thoughts… The complete opposite of that fool and his Celtic army. They have all become muscle-headed mooks with complete disregard of guarding their rear, operating on the principle of individual thought. It shames me to think that I am part of that same culture."
Robin looked bothered as he muttered, "Looks like neither side was decent… I shouldn't have hesitated before. I want to go straight to the target and get this over with."
"Remember, we're not here to kill him," Nightingale reminded him. "We just need to treat him of this mysterious possession plaguing his mind. The method will no doubt be violent, but it is still treatment in the end."
Just then, another man's voice spoke with cold, collected calmness, "That won't be happening today."
The Servants jolted as they heard footsteps approaching them. There stood Karna, fully intent on blocking their way. He frowned in disappointment and muttered, "I'm amazed that Edison's mech troops could be fooled by such a simple ploy… But I digress. I am more astounded that you have the nerve to return here, Nightingale."
"Of course I would come back," she replied. "Last time, I did not have the necessary staff to assist me. Now I have assembled a competent team of caretakers who shall treat the sickness surrounding you all."
"Are you implying that I am ill as well?"
"Naturally. You are plagued with selfish desire, not a wish to protect this world. I suggest you go to a remote location and reflect upon your folly for allying with a possessed man."
"If loyalty can be called a disease, then I admit that I am certainly infected. However, when Edison kneeled before a worthless man such as I and pleaded for my aid, I could not bring myself to refuse. And also… Edison reminds me of an old friend of mine – clever yet foolish, proud yet charitable," Karna said with a light smile.
"How surprising that you would smile at such a thing."
"I am as human as you all are. In that case, if you wish to mend my illness, then you must face me with greater might than last time."
"Hold it," Scathach declared. She and Rama brandished their weapons as the warrior woman said, "We will be your opponents in this match."
"We'll fend him off with everything we've got," Rama said to his comrades. "The rest of you, get going!"
"Right," Nightingale replied. "My apologies, Karna, but my services are needed elsewhere. I'm sure these two great heroes will be enough to snap you out of your delirium. Let's go, everyone!"
She guided the other Servants past the trio as they got into their battle stances and prepared to face each other. No sooner did they depart that Rama struck first, swinging his sword about in a harmonious swivel that forced Karna to block him. Scathach jumped up the walls to gain some height above him and hurl Gae Bolg at his back. He pushed Rama away and hopped aside, and the swordsman likewise had to leap back to avoid friendly fire. Scathach retrieved her spear and rushed Karna from the side, but while he lacked her finesse, he was certainly strong enough to beat her away. Rama jumped and tried to decapitate Karna with a mighty downward cleave, but he swung his spear upward to parry. Sparks scattered everywhere like fireworks as Rama glared at the cool-mannered Karna with intense determination.
Suddenly, Karna's eyes glowed red and fired a beam of concentrated heat at Rama's chest. The swordsman cried out in pain as he was sent flying all the way across the hall. While he was preoccupied, Scathach slashed her polearm right at Karna's back. A mighty clashing sound of metal hitting metal reverberated everywhere, and she realized that her otherwise lethal attack did not work on him.
"An absolute defensive Noble Phantasm," she murmured.
"Correct," Karna replied. With the strength of dozens of men, he wielded his large lance like a hammer and hurled the blade over Scathach's head. She had to raise Gae Bolg in both hands and defend against the crushing blow. The ground around her feet sunk from the incredible force, and her arms and legs were wracked with immeasurable pain as she barely blocked Karna's attack. She sweated and clenched her teeth, ferociously glaring at him. He didn't return any sort of expression, instead making his eye glow again to shoot her down.
"GAH!" Scathach yelped as she sailed backwards, collapsing onto her back so hard that she flipped onto her front side.
"Brahmastra!" Rama shouted, activating his Noble Phantasm and hurling the bright white halo at Karna. Flames surrounded his lance, and he swung hard to intercept the attack. The ring skidded against his weapon and sprayed sparks everywhere. It was much too powerful for him to counter with ordinary strength, but one had to remember that the Son of the Sun God was no average Servant. He possessed a high level of Divinity that gave him the might needed to withstand a Noble Phantasm, though he wasn't exactly keen on doing this repeatedly.
Flames engulfed Karna's form, and he shouted while using his strength to deflect Brahmastra towards the wall, destroying it in a fantastic explosion. He looked rather ragged from the effort he expended, but he wasn't going to just give up so easily. Rama thought he would be worn down enough to attempt another duel with him, so he rushed at the Lancer and flailed his sword about.
The only thing the calm Karna did was whisper, "O, Agni…"
Faster than a person could blink, a huge orb of fire burst all around him, incinerating everything without remorse. A searing shockwave blew in a circular formation, and Rama was caught completely unaware. His hair and clothes caught on fire, and he was thrown back against the wall so hard that he crashed into the next room over. Scathach was far away enough to avoid the brunt of it, but her somersault became a clumsy tumble down the opposite end of the hallway when the shockwave hit her. When she got back to her feet, she conjured a series of Runes to protect herself from the firestorm.
She stared at the center of the fire orb as it died down. Karna remained standing there, perfectly unscathed and expressionless as ever.
Nightingale and the others heard the commotion from Karna's battle in the distance. They even stopped to maintain their balance as they felt the ground shake violently.
"Damn, that's one skirmish I'm glad not to be a part of," Robin grumbled.
"Look sharp, Greenie!" Elizabeth shouted. "We're still in the lion's den, literally and figuratively speaking!"
"You don't need to remind me! And stop calling me that!"
"Then does Hoodie work for you?"
"That's even worse!"
Diarmuid snapped, "Stop bickering, you two! We must all be prepared for combat at a moment's notice!"
"Yeah, yeah…" Robin muttered.
As they rounded the corner into the mezzanine, everyone came to a sudden halt when they found another Servant obstructing passage. She was the purple-haired young woman who wore a dark leotard and large boots, along with a pair of bulky white sleeves. A small doll resembling Colonel Henry Steel Olcott floated next to her, and she held a grimoire in one of her hands.
"Hold it right there," the woman raised her hand to stop them. "What is the meaning of this, Florence? Why have you come back so brazenly?"
"You already know why," Nightingale said.
"Treating Edison of some imaginary illness? I can't believe you're still fixated on that."
"You should have realized it as well, Helena Blavatsky. A woman of your nature should have recognized the problem long ago, yet you've turned a blind eye and allowed it to fester."
"Blavatsky?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "The founder of theosophy and one of the leaders of modern occultism?"
"The very same," Helena smiled, feeling honored to be recognized so easily.
"That's weird. Why is someone like you allying with one of the fathers of modern technology?"
"Oh, that's because he and I knew each other in life. Nothing romantic or anything – we had a strong connection as geniuses of our respective fields."
Robin muttered, "Geniuses? More like intellectuals detached from reality."
"What ever do you mean by that?"
"I've heard about you and your pursuit of the Lemurian continent, and of your faith in some imaginary Mahatama deity. You're just as disconnected from the world as Edison is. No wonder you two are so compatible."
Helena appeared agitated as she declared, "I don't know how or why I have earned such ire from you, but I will not tolerate anyone badmouthing my life's work so casually."
Elizabeth readied her spear and shouted, "If you're going to get in our way, then I'll just have to beat you up until you see reason!"
"Reason? From Elizabeth Bathory? Oh, that's just rich," the occultist giggled. "All right then. I'll go along with your charade and humor you for a bit. If Nightingale says I've been neglecting Edison's disease, and if you two find me so detached from reality, I'd love to see how you will be able to cure me of my supposed ignorance."
"If I may be so bold," Diarmuid interjected and stepped next to Robin and Elizabeth. "I would like to accompany you both in this battle."
"Well, well. Look what we have here – a Celt in the hallowed halls of America itself. Nothing is as much of an affront to common decency as inviting the enemy into our fortress."
"I'd like to argue about how wrong your are of my loyalties, but all I shall say is that my allegiance no longer belongs to the Celtic army. It is to my princess and the friends she made on her journey to resist the Celts' invasion of this fine nation."
"Your princess?" Helena wondered as she looked at Ituha and Fia.
"I won't let anyone lay a finger on her for as long as I live. If she wants to aid Nightingale's cause, then I will fight for the same reason – to treat you all of the self-centered delusions that have guided you until now."
"Interesting. Then let's get started immediately. Show me how wrong my conviction is, or else you shall fade into obscurity along with the legend of the Lemurian continent!"
Nightingale nodded and said, "I'll leave her to you three then. Ituha, Fia, let us hurry on. We will be the ones responsible for operating on Edison himself."
"I don't know how much I can help, but I'll do my best," Ituha murmured nervously.
"Don't worry. Fia and I will be doing most of the treating. Your turn will come up soon enough."
The trio ran past their allies as they surrounded Helena, preventing her from blocking their passage to the throne room. Helena's magical tome hovered out of her grip and opened up to a particular page. The text glowed a bright gold and summoned enough energy to fire a potent beam of light at Robin's group.
"Whoops!" the archer grunted as he and his comrades rolled out of the way. He readied his crossbow and fired several arrows at Helena. She smiled smugly and countered the shots with small lasers from her book.
"Get out of the way!" Elizabeth shouted as she was already descending fast for the occultist, pointing her spear downward.
"Kgh!" Helena grunted while jumping back. She mentally commanded a bunch of small books to sail over the Lancer like a dotted halo, and they opened up to shoot dozens of beams at her. Elizabeth rolled and tumbled away, but her back was struck and she crashed face-first onto the ground. Helena tried to burn her to death with a powerful laser from her primary tome, but Diarmuid caught Elizabeth and got her away from the potent explosion.
Once he made sure his fellow Lancer was safe, he rushed toward Helena with Gae Dearg in front, hoping to nullify her magical capabilities with the spear's curse. She recognized his tactic and flipped away like a gymnast to dodge his attacks. Without warning, her small Colonel Olcott doll bear-hugged Diarmuid's face, completely blocking his view.
"Gwah!? Damn it!" he cursed and pried the thing off him.
"Come, stars!" Helena shouted and raised her arm. Multiple books materialized over him and shot energy beams at him from different directions. His body rattled about before a final shot violently threw him onto his back. Helena looked pleased with herself as she gazed at the wounded Lancers. She almost stepped back, but stopped when she felt something beneath her ankle.
"Oh?" she murmured and looked back. Several traps had been laid all over the ground when she wasn't paying attention. If she had stepped on one, a small needle would have gouged her foot and injected her with deadly poison. She looked around and found the entire floor littered with similar traps.
"How do you like that, missy?" Robin asked. "Not exactly kosher, but I'm not known for fighting fair either."
"Sabotage, hm? Not bad," Helena complimented him and stood on the spot calmly.
"You're surrounded. It's best you give up and let the banshee nurse treat your boss without a fuss."
"He he. You don't seem to understand. I'm not bound to the earth like you are."
"What are you-?"
"Lemuria slumbers in the seas! The Hierarchy graces the heavens! And I stand upon the earth!"
A strange yellow column of light surrounded her, and she floated straight up as if she lost all semblance of gravity. Robin stared up, then widened his eyes as he saw something truly unusual.
"What the hell!?" was all he could utter.
He had every right to be stupefied. The reason Helena hovered without a care in the world was due to a silver disc that looked no different than a UFO from outer space. She passed through it and stood atop, boldly grinning down at her opponents.
"By the heavens!" Diarmuid exclaimed.
"Hey! A smarty-pants theologist has no business being so flashy!" Elizabeth shouted angrily.
"Oh, that's too bad," Helena retorted, then yelled, "Sanat Kumara!"
The UFO dazzled with streaks of colors, then engulfed the entire team with a ray of concentrated golden light that intensified to pure white. She couldn't even hear them scream as the deafening cacophony drowned them out.
The doors to Presi-King Thomas Alva Edison's throne room swung open, and the three remaining Servants stepped through. Nightingale and Fia weren't interested in the décor, but Ituha couldn't resist being amazed by the many patriotic symbols decorating the chamber. Two American flags were crossed over the throne itself, and the room itself was bathed in electric light anomalous of the current time period. Sitting upon the Western States' highest seat was the contradictory ruler himself – the President of America, and the King of its fledgling citizens.
"Whoa," Ituha let out a small gasp as she gazed at his features. Nightingale was right about him appearing as some humanoid chimera, having the body of a human and the face of a white lion. It didn't match the image she had of him as an ordinary gentleman.
"Grrrgh…" Edison's restrained grumble sounded just like a lion's purring. "How could you…? How could you give in to the Celts so easily?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Nightingale rebuked plainly.
"I heard about your foiled assassination plot. Normally the Celts would never allow anyone outside their circle to live, yet here you are, standing before me as the enemy. The only logical conclusion I can come to is that you surrendered to them to save yourselves, and are now doing their dirty work of assassinating me instead!"
"Allying with the Celts? I didn't think you had a thing for such terrible jokes."
"That's not what happened at all, Mr. Presi-King," Ituha implored.
Edison grew curious as he glanced at the child. His anger seemed to subside as he said, "Mr. Presi-King? Hmm, I like the sound of that. For an enemy of the state, you are quite the well-behaved one, little lady. Tell me, what part of my flawless reasoning is incorrect?"
"Well… It's true that my friends tried to kill Medb and Cuchulainn, but they failed. Even so, not all of us Resistance members went on that mission – we split into two groups because there was something else we had to do at the same time. Robin Hood's the only survivor of that assassination attempt, and he just barely escaped with his life."
"Interesting. So what you're saying is that you were defeated and seek my protection. How laughable, considering that the Angel of Crimea is pointing her gun at me."
"Don't compare me to an entity as sweet as fairy floss," Nightingale snapped, inserting a bullet into her pistol. "I am only a nurse who has triaged your care to be the most vital operation we need right now."
"Foolishness! What part of me is ill? I have such a strong body, bursting at the seams with good health, and intellect sharp enough to guide an entire country. Every inch of my being is as top quality as can be!"
"Spare me. These young children, despite their inferior physiques and disabled mental faculties, are far more healthy than you are. They are trying to save this world; all you are accomplishing is bringing it to ruin the same way the Celts are. What else is that but an illness that needs to be treated?"
"You're wrong! My duty is noble and just!"
"But your methods are not!" Ituha exclaimed. "Even if you somehow defeat the Celts, what's going to happen with your people? You're giving them drugs and making them work on mass production lines, turning everyone into mindless drones who cannot think for themselves! You might have united everyone through brute force for now, but what's going to happen with them in the future? Are they going to lose their independence and become reliant upon other despots to guide them? Even if you save America now, the contradiction you've created will ruin this country's course of history anyway!"
"Mmmmrgh…! I… I'm not…"
"There you have it," Nightingale smiled. "Your diagnosis."
"Blasphemy! I am not so ignorant as to forget the democratic foundation of this great nation! Who are you to speak to me so bluntly, child? I do not recognize you from my database!" Edison wondered.
The Archer grew nervous. "I'm, um…"
Nightingale replied, "She is the Celtic Princess and Child of Cuchulainn, Connla. Though I say that, she has discarded her heritage and fights to preserve this world's peace."
"The Celtic Princess?" the lion-man murmured. "Hmm… Yes, I've heard rumors about you. A child who has not even reached eight years old yet, protected by that madman who claims to be her father, and-"
His expression distorted into rage as he pointed at Ituha.
"The entire reason Cuchulainn is laying waste to this precious nation!"
"Ah-?" the young Archer gasped sullenly.
"He's ruining everything so that you will inherit this land, isn't that right!? Thousands upon thousands of innocent people have died because of you! Now you have the nerve to say you don't remember anything about your guilt! For shame! My heart aches to see you being such a selfish brat, asking your father to destroy everyone so you can claim this territory without staining your hands with blood! Well your ploy will not fool me! I see you for the little devil that you are! It is my duty to take your head and display it in the name of America's imminent victory!"
"I… I…" Ituha trembled. Her mind drifted back to what Scathach said before:
"Cuchulainn sees her pain as a part of his own, and he wants to give her a peaceful world so she doesn't experience such sadness anymore."
She bit her lip to suppress her tears.
So it's true… The Mad King really is waging this war for me…
"Now who's the rude one?" Nightingale's bold voice snapped the child back to her senses. "Stop acting like a brat, Edison."
"Excuse me?" the livid man seethed.
"A proper gentleman like you shouldn't go so far as to burden one little girl with all of this world's problems. No matter what her past may be, I will believe in her no matter what. Why else do you think I said she discarded her heritage? She may be my patient, but I also believe she refuses to accept Cuchulainn's methods for making her happy. Even though she has amnesia, she's still following her heart and fighting to make sure no one else suffers at his hand."
"Nonsense! What can a child like her possibly do against the Mad King!?"
"A lot more than you think. She may not be the best fighter around, but she has something that few Servants possess – the ability to save others' souls with her kindness."
"Is that so? Too bad such sentiment won't do much to save us from this war. Nothing except industry and domination will defeat the Celts once and for all!"
Nightingale grinned and said, "Looks like pre-operation procedures are complete. It's time to move on to the next phase – treating the patient with extreme prejudice."
"Bring it on!" Edison roared. "You will soon learn the grave mistake you have made of opposing the King of Inventions!"
The light bulbs functioning as his pauldrons flared with electricity, and he spread his arms forth in a confronting gesture. Nightingale and Fia got ready as well, and the nurse told Ituha, "Stick to the plan. Fia and I will take care of subduing him. Hang back, find your opportunity, and take it when you can."
"Yes, ma'am," Ituha responded.
With that, the two Berserkers charged at Edison together with clenched fists. He cupped his hands to snatch both punches, causing his boots to skid backwards across the red carpet. Fia vaulted onto his shoulder and tried to stab her lance at his face, but he charged his entire body with electricity and shocked both fighters off of him. They felt rattled from the jolting sensation shocking their nerves, but Nightingale scowled and kicked at Edison's midsection. He bent his arm to use as an impromptu shield, then grabbed her leg and hurled her over his head in an arc, slamming her into the marble flooring.
Edison generated a great amount of electric light onto his chest armor and fired a beam at the fallen woman. Fia caught her partner and jumped out of the way just in time, leaving the laser to explode near the throne. As he celebrated his assumed dominance over them with a proud smile, he was suddenly thrown off his feet from a fireball that Ituha hurled at his back, making him crash face-first upon the ground.
He quickly scrambled to his knees and roared, "Damn you!"
The lion-man moved so fast that one would think he was teleporting. He disappeared out of Ituha's sight, only to reappear directly behind her. She noticed his towering shadow and looked back in horror as he got ready to punch her. Fia suddenly rocketed at Edison's chest moments before he could attack however, slamming into him with tremendous strength from her momentum and knocking him away from Ituha.
"You little monster! Who the hell are you!?" he shouted at Fia.
She didn't respond. She only cared about fighting this human-animal hybrid thing, although Ituha had already ordered her not to kill him. She dodged and danced around Edison's massive-looking punches, confounding him further with her deft motions. She found her chance to grab his arm and duck back between his legs, causing him to flip off his feet and onto his back. Fia generated a pure wind lance and bashed it on the ground seconds after he teleported out of the way.
"Time for a thorough disinfection!" Nightingale screamed, firing her gun at him. A couple of shots pierced through his shoulder and exited out the other side.
"Shut up, already! I've heard enough of your deranged obsession, you low-grade Berserker!" Edison raged with the anger of a thousand demons, and he charged at her.
Their fists rammed into each other with the force of raging bulls, generating small shockwaves each time they struck and damaging the ground around them. Both of them appeared incredibly angry and determined to overcome the other. Not even Fia wanted to interfere with this display of raw power and passion, so she waited for the chaos to settle down. Nightingale screamed like a banshee as she performed multiple kicks to stave away Edison's flurry of punches, then snatched his fist when he wasn't expecting it and thrust her other hand against his solar plexus with rocket-like force. He could've sworn he felt a rib or two crack, but he maintained his stance while skidding backwards to a stop.
"Khhhgh!" Edison snarled. "Not bad, Florence Nightingale. You really are the headstrong Angel of Crimea… BUT!"
The area around them darkened, and he leapt high out of the trio's sights. The world around them turned grayscale and gritty like the early days of filming and television.
"Give light equal to everyone! That is the karma that genius is supposed to make!"
The area brightened up, and they found themselves at the base of a tremendous bumper like the 20th Century Fox logo, except the top row had the letters EDI, the second row SON, and the third row 19TH CENTURY plastered all over it as a parody. They could barely see Edison standing atop the D, taking center stage for his bizarre Noble Phantasm.
"WORLD FAITH DOMINATION!"
A brilliant rainbow halo expanded all around him and returned the world to color. The intense heat and electricity he generated engulfed the three Servants in a wave of pain, not to mention the loud trumpets that resounded to the man's glorious image. They were crushed beneath the immense pressure while the ridiculous scene celebrated Edison's huge ego.
"MWA HA HA HAH HAH HAH!"