Web of Strife 4
They were a motley group, trekking through the rough paths in the Einzbern Forest.
Strife, riding his ethereal stead, was in front, Mercy and Redemption out, his eyes and mask sensors on the lookout for an ambush. Saber, in full armor, invisible sword drawn, was next, followed by Shirou and Rin. Bringing up the rear was Rider on her Pegasus, currently grounded, giving Sakura and Illya a lift.
Taking in his surroundings, Shirou Emiya came to the conclusion that the Einzbern forest had changed.
Not physically, of course. It was still heavily forested, and visibility was still poor.
It felt different though. It could have been the lack of the Boundary Field that was dispelled during the closing days of the Grail War.
Personally, to Shirou at least, it was as if some presence was making the woods sick.
No doubt it was the uninvited guest, Casses of the Spider Realm, Yselik. At least, that's what the Horseman said.
He looked up at the Horseman, who was riding his ethereal stead through the woods. Strapped to Strife's back was one of the three 'Dante Cannons', a large, bronze colored and streamlined gun that radiated heat. He had given the other two Dante Cannons to Sakura and Shirou respectfully, advising that they should use them on anything bigger than a bear.
Before they entered the forest, they went over the plan: find all the entrances to Casses underground lair. Set the explosives that Strife had purchased from Vulgrim at these entrances. Detonate all the entrances except for one. Strife, Saber, Rin and Shirou would then enter the underground complex and fight their way to Casses. Rider, Sakura, and Illya would stay and guard the entrance, making sure that no spider or construct would escape.
They had already set all the explosives. Now they were doubling back to an entrance they had found earlier.
Shirou increased his pace until he was walking side by side with Strife.
"Something you need, magus?" Strife asked him.
"I have a few questions that I'd like to ask you, if that's alright."
Strife shrugged, "That's not normally my thing, but I've got time, and there's nothing else to do. Ask away."
"What exactly are you? You're not a servant, or a phantasmal beast. Illya think's that you're a homonculus but-"
"She's technically right." Strife interrupted Shirou raised an eyebrow before Strife continued, "I guess that my kind counts as a homonculus, in the artificial life form sense."
"What do you mean?"
"I, and the rest of my brothers and sister, are Nephilim, the bastard offspring of angel and demon."
"Nephilim? Huh. I expected you to be the anthropomorphic representation of the concept of Strife."
"No, Strife is just a name that I took after... after a certain age. Anything else?"
"Yes actually; you knew Rider and Saber as Heroic Spirits as soon as you saw them. How did you know?"
"Simple." Strife began, "My brother mentioned them in his reports."
Shirou looked baffled, "Your brother? Reports?"
Strife looked down at Shirou, "The Charred Council sends Death to act as their observer for every Grail War since the second. It was his job to ensure that nothing happened that would upset the balance. He observed every major battle, and deduced the identities of all the servants."
Shirou was stunned, "You mean... he was there for the fire eleven years ago? And he just... watched? He didn't try to help anyone?"
"No. By then the Grail War was over. He no longer needed to get involved."
"Why would he need to get involved?"
"In case someone actually won the Grail War, and to kill them before they could make a wish on the Grail."
Shirou thought of his adoptive father, Kiritsugu Emiya, and his wish for world peace. If Angra Mainyu wasn't an issue, and if he had won the Grail War... he would have been killed by some heartless observer for... what?
"Why kill the winner?"
Strife shrugged, "Humans are unpredictable. The winner could wish for something like, 'I wish that half the human race was dead', or 'I wish that the humans would no longer have the desire to fight one another'. Anything that would threaten the Plan."
"The Plan?"
"Humans must ascend in power until they match Heaven and Hell in strength. Then the Seven Seals will be broken, and the End War would truly begin."
Shirou slowed his pace until he was next to Rin once more. he decided that he didn't like the Horsemen, their Charred Council, or their "Balance".
A few minutes later, they stopped in front of a hole in the ground. Strife dismissed his horse and walked in front of it. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a cylinder.
Blue runes appeared on the cylinder. Strife pressed his thumb against them.
Distant booms signaled that the explosives did their job.
"Alright, now for the next part." Strife said before he waved Shirou, Saber, and Rin over.
He drew his guns and, with the two magi and one servant at his back, descended into Casses lair.
Darkness had claimed the cave.
Darkness was one of humankind's primordial fears, and with good reason.
In the pitch darkness of the cave, one could not see much farther than their outstretched hand. It was impossible to see the two beings present.
But all too easy to hear every word.
"I thought you said this location was secure sister?" one shrill voice spoke, as if it's mouth was full of phlegm.
"It was secure! Since the human's tournament, this whole land has been abondoned!" The other voice, sickly sweet, replied.
"Evidently not Casses."
"Vulgrim... Vulgrim sold me the knowledge of this land. He must have sold me out!"
An ear piercing screech split the air, and a great appendage hit the cave floor, shattering stone.
"I will kill him for this! I will rend the flesh from his bones, and then squeeze him dry of every last once of his blood!"
"You will do no such thing Casses!" the Shrill voice commanded, and the one called Casses quieted.
"Vulgrim is too valuable a player to kill. He still has his uses. Besides, how would you catch him? It is impossible to find him if he does not wish to be found."
"That what do you suggest I do sweet sister? Pay him for his future silence?"
"You mean you hadn't already?"
A low hiss filled the air, "Worry about Vulgrim later dear sister. For now, you must eliminate your unwanted house guests."
"Yes... eliminate them!"
The darkness then gave way to the light, as the runes of several hundred constructs illuminated the shadows.
Forged out of brass and stone, they were humanoid in shape, and stood as tall as a man. Each one carried a weapon, unique to each individual. One carried a polearm with a great serated blade atop it's head. One gripped a massive gun, with a chain of ammunition strapped to it's back. Another had no arms, and instead chains with wicked spiked balls replaced the appendages.
The runes also illuminated the many spider like monstrosities as they shuffled around the nonliving army. Some appeared to be supersized spiders, while others were ghoulish mix of humanoid and arachnid body parts.
All were screaming hellish warcries.
And standing behind them all was a great spider, far larger than any of her smaller followers.
"Children!" the great spider roared, "Our sanctum is invaded! Do your duty to me, and kill them all! Whomever brings me their heads will be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams when we return to Depths of Yselik! Fail me, and you'll wish that the intruders were the ones that killed you instead!"
The pitch darkness of the cave didn't bother Strife. He was a Horsemen, his senses far beyond those of mere mortals, allowing him to grow accustomed to almost any environment.
Also his mask, a Nephilim Ranger Helm, gave him night vision, but his young, ignorant human (and the one posthuman) allies didn't need to know that. After all, the darkness didn't bother them either, as simple magecraft could adjust their eyes to the lack of light, eliminating the need for flashlights or torches, and not broadcasting their location to the spiderkin who dwelled within these caves.
"We've been walking for ten minutes now." Saber said in a low voice, "I know the charges we set were to distract them, but shouldn't we have run into at least one of the fiends by now?"
"What, you want me to shoot my gun in the air and alert them to our presence?." Strife said "Because I'll do it. I really will."
Strife stopped midstep, then drew his guns.
Saber looked incredulous, "You're not really going to-"
"They're coming. You got your wish Princess."
Before anyone could say anything the two magi and the one servant heard the dozens of limbs scraping against the cave walls. Shirou readied his Dante Cannon, Rin her magecraft, and Saber her sword.
Out of the shadows, the Spiderkin came.
All manner of beasts entered their sights; some had the appearence of normal spiders, except they were the size of horses. Others had humanoid bodies with scythes for arms and arachnid legs. Most possessed a lower spider body and an upper human body, though their features were alien and monstrous.
The ran on the cave floor, crawled on the sides of the walls, and clung to the ceiling, all scurrying towards the intruders.
Without a word Strife opened fire with Mercy and Redemption, and immediately scored headshots on several Spiderkin. Shirou pulled the trigger on the Dante
Cannon, and orangeish-red fire shot forth from it's mouth, and engulfed even more Spiderkin in flames. A half dozen Gandrs from Rin hit their marks, felling the beasts were they stood. WIthin the first few seconds of battle, the Horseman and his earthling companions had downed a dozen spiderkin;
But they still. Kept. Coming. Closer and closing, using their dead as shield to absorb the fire of the intruders until the horde was but a footlengths away.
"Saber!" Shirou cried out as he dropped his Dante Cannon, "Make us some room!"
Saber nodded, and used her superhuman abilities to jump over her comrades, landing right in front of the Spiderkin. She raised her invisible sword, brought it down in front of her, and bisected three of the beasts before using the mind magecraft to knock the horde back a few meters.
Shirou summoned two blades to his hands and lept into the fray. They were stange things, one green, the other purple, and they seemed to give off smoke every time he swung them, or parried a blow from one of the spiderkin.
Strife aimed at the center of the mob with Redemption before switching his ammo from standard to explosive and let off five shots. The center of the spiderkin mass exploded in fire, scattering the creatures from the force of the explosion.
Of the three dozen spiderkin that Casses had sent to kill the intruders, seven remained. Of those seven, all of them retreated back into the darkness from whence they came.
"I knew there was a reason I brought you people along." Strife said in the smugest voice possible, "We killed most of her flesh and blood followers, though the small construct army remains."
Strife picked up Shirou's discarded Dante Cannon and walked over to the youth, who was pulling his blades out of a particurly ugly spiderkin. To Strife's surprise, upon exiting the creature's body, Shirou's blades disitegrated in a flash of light.
"Interesting weapons you have there magus." Strife said as he handed the Dante Cannon back to Shirou, "I could have sworn I saw weapons just like them in Vulgrim's shop earilier."
"You did." Shirou replied, "My magecraft allows me to copy a weapon almost perfectly and bring it into this world."
Behind his mask Strife raised an eyebrow, "Really? Any kind of weapon?"
Shirou shook his head, "Swords and other bladed weapons mostly. I call it 'Tracing'."
"On some world's it's called 'shoplifting'." Strife replied, "Don't let Vulgrim find out that you can use his merchandise without paying for it, or he's liable to cut your eyes out for stealing."
Shirou blinked. Strife shrugged.
"Well, either that or he'll charge you money every time you 'Trace' one of his inventory." Strife said before continuing down the cave tunnel.
Rin and Saber walked up next to Shirou, who was staring blankly at the departing Horseman.
"Are you hurt anywhere Shirou?" Rin asked.
"No." Shirou replied, "Though remind me to never Trace in front of Vulgrim EVER."
Saber raised an eyebrow, "Why is that?" she asked.
"My eyes depend on it." Shirou replied. "Well, either that or my wallet."