I do not own Fate/Zero or any of the characters used here.
"Gah, its good to be back…" Rider muttered to himself while walking into the Mackenzie residence. "Today sucked so much…"
Waver looked at his Servant with a worried expression on his face. Throughout the whole ride back, Rider had been strangely silent. And that was definitely not normal for the Servant. "Had the whole conversation bothered him that much?" Waver thought to himself while looking down. "I mean, Saber's ideal were a bit… wrong and he seemed so passionate on what a leader should really be. Not only that, but he was actually angry with Saber." "Rider…"
"Sucks that nothing good is on this early. I mean, what is the purpose of watching TV so early if none of the good shows are on?" Rider then sighed as his civilian outfit changed to his usual attire. "Geh, might as well go to sleep. Besides, in a few hours Gundam will be on…."
"Rider, are you alright?" Waver asked while looking at his Servant. Rider glanced back at Waver, who shifted nervously. "Y-you have been quiet ever since we left the Einzbern Manor."
Rider then sighed before saying, "I'm fine kid. It's just that all the crap Saber said about how 'leaders should be martyrs for their ideals' is just really pissing me off."
"So, then everything you said to her was true? You were a leader that made sure your people would be able to move on without you?" Waver asked his Servant, who just nodded.
"Look kid, when you become a leader you have to be prepared for the worst. Because there is always the possibility you can die." Rider told him, his face becoming a bit grim. "I always knew that, even though I never told anyone. It would have just made them worried about me. So that is why I kept shouting out my hopes and dreams to them. So it would become their hopes and dreams. I also did it so my brother, Simon, could get the confidence he needed and move on without me."
"Rider, do you expect not to make it past this war?" Waver asked seriously, only for Rider to flick him in the forehead.
"You dumbass!" Rider yelled before pointing at Waver. "What the Hell gave you that idea? No way in Hell I am loosing the Holy Grail War! And neither will you, not with the mighty Kamina being your Servant!" Rider then grinned. "Seriously, just who the Hell do you think I am?"
Waver had to smile at that. Seems like his Servant had not changed a bit… "W-well you are the Servant Rider of coarse!" Waver declared, making Rider blink. "It's your duty for you to win the Grail for the both of us! You wouldn't have been in this war had thon not have been your intention in the first place!"
"Heh, there you go!" Rider laughed out, making Waver look at him with a confused expression. "There is the manliness hidden within you!"
"Well, I need to go to bed now." Waver said before beginning to climb the stairs to his room. "Tomorrow we will be searching for Caster. If you can beat him, I will get an extra Command Seal. That will increase our chances of winning the war by a lot."
"Caster will definitely be a tough bastard." Rider consented while following his Master. "But I can take him without a problem."
"I'm sure you can, but we need to come up with a plan the first thing we wake up. Going against a Servant like Caster without one would be idiotic." Waver told his Servant before entering his room, plopping onto his bed, and closing his eyes.
Tomorrow would be a hectic day for both of them…
Elsewhere:
Lancer swept the room where Sola-Ui would be sleeping for the duration of the war. They had only returned moments before, and Sola-Ui had gone off to get her (very few in number) things. Sola-Ui seemed… sad ever since the discussion between him and the other Servants. And had not talked to him since. It worried Lancer to a huge degree. Was his Master troubled about something?
"Maybe it is about my wish…" Lancer thought to himself, pausing with his cleaning for a bit. "She must think I am pretty pathetic for my wish to be something like that." Lancer then dropped the broom and walked over to a room over for a minute before carrying over a rolled-up futon. "Or maybe she just feels sorry for me…" Lancer then rolled out the futon on the ground before sighing. "She wouldn't be the first one…"
"Shinji? Are you okay?" Sola-Ui asked as she walked into the 'room'. Since the entire place was dirty and also 'open air' so to speak, she decided it would be best not to put on her nightgown. Instead, she would just wear the outfit she wore today and changed tomorrow (After hypnotizing a household to allow her to use their shower and get breakfast).
"Y-yes, I'm fine Sola-san." Lancer told her as he gulped while looking away. Now whenever they were in the hideout or openly going into town (Without the intention of fighting of coarse) Sola-Ui used his real name. While it was nice of her to do so, it made Lancer feel a bit uncomfortable considering the fact another Master or Servant could be listening in. "I am just setting up your futon."
"That is very kind of you Shinji." Sola-Ui said with a smile while walking in front of the futon and removing her heels. "And you swept this entire filthy place a well. You didn't have to do that for me…"
"But this is where we are staying. I have to make things comfortable for you." Lancer pointed out as Sola-Ui slipped into the futon. "Sola-san…"
"Yes Shinji?" She asked, making Lancer shuffle his feet a bit.
"Did my wish bother you?" Lancer asked, making her blink. "Y-You have been quiet ever since we left the Einzbern Manor. And I think it had to do with my wish…"
Sola-Ui stared at Lancer for a minute in thought. In a sense yes, Lancer's wish did bother her. By wishing for the horrific events that eventually made him into a hero to not exist, he would disappear due to the paradox. While it is Lancer's greatest desire, she could not allow that. "He simply wants his loved ones to stay alive." She thought to herself calmly. "He is riddled with guilt. And the poor thing thinks that by doing this and, in effect not existing, he will atone for it. I can't have that. When I get the Grail, I will simply wish for him to exist by my side. That way he will know he saved his loved ones, and he will find happiness by staying with me."
"Your wish did not bother me Shinji." Sola-Ui said calmly, and internally smiled at Lancer's relieved expression. "Now, come with me to bed."
"W-what?" Lancer sputtered out, making Sola-Ui shift a bit nervously.
"I would feel safer if you were by my side." Sola-Ui responded before looking at Lancer with a pleading expression. "Please Shinji?"
"A-Alright…" Lancer said in an unsure tone while slipping into the futon as well. He turned his back to Sola-Ui, with his cheeks darkening a bit while he closed his eyes. Meanwhile Sola-Ui watched the Servant sleep with a small smile gracing her lips. In a few moments, Lancer (Unintentionally) rolled over to face her, and Sola-Ui wrapped her arms around his form.
"Mother…" Lancer muttered to himself in his sleep, making Sola-Ui's smile grow even more as she closed her eyes.
"It sounds even better when he says it." She thought to herself. "I cannot wait for us to win the war, then I will be able to hear it even more…"
Elsewhere (Dreamscape):
Uryuu blinked as he floated behind a small, black-haired child who seemed to be pestering his older brother to 'train' him. The boy's mother then came in, asking the child not to bother the brother anymore while the father simply drank his cup of tea. All in all, it seemed to be a pretty old-style Japanese family. Uryuu knew this was not his usual dreams, because if it was, this family would have spontaneously turned to itty bitty pieces while staining the entire house with their blood.
Time seemed to pass in a blink of an eye, and the boy had gotten older by at least three years. He seemed to be full of happiness, while his brother just got colder and more distant. Uryuu watched as the boy played with dangerous weapons like Shurriken, Kunai, and other things. The boy even let out freaking fireballs from his mouth. One day, after some late practice, the boy returned to his home and found the entire place completely abandoned. As he walked the streets, the fear in him grew more and more. Eventually, he dared to enter into one of his relatives house's…
And simply found their bloody corpses.
"So freaking cool…" Uryuu muttered to himself with glee as the child discovered more and more bodies as he ran to his home. The fear and horror in his eyes the closer he got. Fearing that his parents met the same fate as the others. And indeed they had, their blood stained the very floor in which he had walked so many times before. Behind them was the one that caused everything, his body still stained with the freshly spilled blood…
The murderer was his own brother.
The boy ran, yet his brother caught up to him. The boy was scared, fearing that he would end up like the rest of his family. However his brother did not slay him. Instead he called the boy weak, and to hate him if he wanted to become strong.
The boy took those words to heart, and utterly loathed the man who was once his brother.
Years passed, the boy had lost his innocence since that day. He yearned for strength, always seeking more and more techniques he could use to fight the man who killed his family. The only one who could remotely relate to him was a blonde spikey-haired boy with whisker marks on his cheeks and blue eyes. Not wishing to be hurt again, the boy simply attempts to ignore him, but that ends up with the blonde boy declaring them rivals.
Time passed, and the boy was assigned to a team with the blonde boy and a pink-haired girl that liked him. Together, the three had many adventures. Each one making the boy slowly forget the pain he felt from that night. But then, a snake-faced man gave him a mark. And the boy was reminded of what he must do. Some time after that, he left his home to gain more power.
He was eventually found by the blonde boy, and they fought in the drenching rain in front of the statues of their forefathers. Their fight becoming more brutal each passing second, with the blonde stating he would take the boy home. And they clashed with one final attack, the boy having his arm covered with black lighting and the blonde holding a glowing sphere.
The blonde missed, allowing the boy to pierce the blonde through the heart with his lightning-covered hand.
As he stood in front of the body, the boy began to cry tears of blood. He had gotten it. The power that the man that was once his brother had. He could not tell if the blood tears were ones of joy or sorrow.
So instead he just left, leaving the body of the blonde in the rain.
He trained under the snake-faced man for years, growing stronger every year. Eventually, he had nothing else to learn and killed the man. He then wandered the land, mastering two of his doujutsu's techniques while searching for the man that was once his brother before he was attacked. Former comrades and teachers ganged up on him, all attempting to end his quest.
He slayed them all, one by one they fell to his blade. His last victim was the pink-haired girl, his sword piercing her heart and going through her body. She used the last of her strength to weakly touch his face before dying.
His last battle was against a beautiful girl with pupil-less eyes and lavender hair. They fought for hours on top of a mountain of corpses until one palm strike hit his chest and utterly obliterated his heart.
He gave a sad smile to the hate-filled gaze of the girl, a girl that reminded him of himself in so many ways, before asking one final and desperate question, "Are you satisfied now that you avenged the dobe?"
His eyes closed forever before he could hear her answer.
And there he laid, on top of a mountain of corpses at the feet of a girl who loved the blonde boy he killed so very long ago for power.
He only wished that he lived long enough to slay the man that was once his brother. To make all the sins he had committed worth it in the end…
End Dream:
Uryuu's eyes opened before he groaned out, "Man, what a weird dream…" He clutched his head for the headache he now had, not to mention the neck cramps he got from sleeping on the cavern floor. "That kid, looked a lot like Caster…" Uryuu muttered to himself before snickering. "If it was, then he had one cool past! I mean, seeing all those people, family members at that, being gutted open like fish! And killing his own best friend and all the people who cared about him? He's the coolest person in the world!"
"What are you babbling about Master?" Caster asked while entering the cave.
Uryuu quickly jumped to his feet and shouted, "I had this totally cool dream man! You were in it and…"
"Stop, I don't want to here it." Caster said in a crisp tone, making Uryuu look at him with a confused expression. "I sensed the presence of a Servant nearby. I am here to tell you to stay here and do not move, no matter what."
"But I thought you said we were holding off on killing so that the big man will be happy with us!" Uryuu shouted in protest, only for Caster to glare at him.
"I either go to fight and kill him right now or wait for him to come here and kill you." Caster replied before walking out. "And you can't die yet." Caster then sped into the woods, making Uryuu slump to his knees.
"Aww man…" Uryuu mumbled to himself in despair.
With Caster:
Caster sped through tree after tree, jumping off their branches in breakneck speeds. The Servant was close by. He could feel it, Hell anyone could feel it if they really tried. The Servant was blearing out his energy like there was no tomorrow. While it may be a trap, he had to deal with the Servant soon. Otherwise the location of his Master will be exposed, and he will die before he could reach the Grail.
That could not happen, not yet.
Caster's eyes then widened as the sound of dull static reached his ears and dodged to the side. The branch he was originally standing on shattered into a million pieces and the ground erupted, sending dust everywhere and blocking Caster's eyesight when he landed on the ground.
"Heh, took me long enough to find you, you goddamn punk!" A familiar voice shouted, making Caster's eyes widen.
"Not him!" Caster thought to himself as the smoke cleared, revealing a figure Caster was hoping he wouldn't have to encounter until the latter stages of the war.
Berserker allowed a savage grin on his face as he cracked his knuckles. "My Master finally got the lead out of his ass today and decided to hunt you guys down! I don't know what your Master did to piss him off so much, but as long as I get the opportunity to kill you I don't care!" Berserker then flew to Caster with his fist cocked back. "And believe me, I will kill you!"
Caster's eyes widened before he used all his speed to duck the blow, and saw that it instead split the tree he was behind in half. As the wood chips flew everywhere, Berserker twisted his body with his right leg cocked back, ready to kick the Servant with all his strength. However as soon as the kick touched Caster, his body erupted into hundreds of snakes. As the snakes launched at Berserker, he growled in anger.
"I am really starting to get pissed off…" Berserker began as he kicked the snakes away, turning them into nothing more than bloody smears on several trees. "…of these fucking tricks of yours!"
"Chidori Katana." Caster's voice came along with the sound of shrill birds to Berserker's ears. Berserker then felt a sword slash his back, and electricity shock him. But Berserker just stood his ground, and grinned as blood erupted from his wound.
"Found you!" Berserker yelled before unsheathing his Katana. He then swung the blade at Caster, who blocked it with his own. However, Caster was launched several feet away by the force of the blow. "You're mine you little shit!" Berserker yelled as he disappeared from view in a blur before re-appearing in front of Caster, ready to bring down his Katana.
"I have no choice." Caster thought to himself. "I may be slightly weakened from my fight with Archer, but if I do not use it I will die here." "Mangekyo Sharingan"
Berserker's mind barely registered Caster's eyes changing color and shape before he sliced the Servant down the middle. As Caster's blood spewed out, Berserker began to giggle before erupting into full-blown laughter. "GAHAHAAHAHAHA! You see now you little shit? I am the strongest! And everyone who looks down on me, will die! I hope you enjoy your stay back on the Throne you fucker! I'll be sure to send a postcard when I get the Grai…!"
"Chidori Senbon!" Caster's voice yelled out from behind him before Berserker felt numerous needles pierce through his skin. Berserker's eyes widened as he turned around to see a panting and bleeding out of the eyes, but otherwise fine, Caster.
"What the fuck?" Berserker muttered to himself as he turned back to the 'Caster' he killed, who simply disappeared from view. "God fucking dammit! Illusions?"
"You talk to much, and I do not wish to keep this farce any longer." Caster said before his eyes focused on Berserker. "Burn. Amaterasu!"
Berserker's eyes then widened as his entire left arm erupted into black flames. "Aw shit, not again!" Berserker yelled as he smashed his arm onto the tree trunk at a high speed, most likely to put out the flames with the wind, but looked surprised as the flames did not leave his arm. Instead the flames spread onto the fallen tree, catching it on fire along with the surrounding trees. "What the fuck?"
"The flames of Amaterasu will burn for seven days and seven nights. Nothing can put them out." Caster told Berserker before clutching his eyes, which seemed to bleed at a much faster rate. "Shit, can the strain already be getting to me?"
"We'll see about that!" Berserker's voice yelled from behind him, making Caster's eyes widen. He turned around and, in almost slow motion, watched as Berserker reared back his flame-covered fist. Caster brought out his sword to block most of the blow, but not before making the flames on Berserker's left fist disappear. Berserker grinned, and shifted his punch into an uppercut which launched the Servant into the air. As Caster flew, Berserker re-appeared above him.
Caster's eyes glinted before, in a flurry of hand signs, he shouted, "Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu!" He then breathed out a huge fireball in the shape of a dragon, which Berserker dodged with ease, however his pants got a bit singed. The dragon made of fire raced into the clouds in the night sky before disappearing.
"Heh, that looked nice but it did jack shit to me!" Berserker yelled as he sped towards Caster and sliced him in half, only for 'Caster' to disappear.
"Shit!" Berserker cursed as he spotted Caster on the forest ground with his hand raised.
"It's over." Caster stated while Berserker heard the rumbling of thunder.
Elsewhere:
"Oh man…" Uryuu muttered to himself as he looked from the cliff to where Caster was fighting the blue haired guy. Black flames were spreading everywhere, and it seemed to be beginning to head towards the city. The clouds, which originally looked like normal ones, became massive and Uryuu could see lightning flash in them. "THIS IS SO FUCKING COOL!" Uryuu grinned as he watched the distant sirens of fire trucks. "That's right man! Kill them all! Make them burn and scream! I…." A tear then left Uryuu's eye. "I will hear all their screams at once! So many corpses, and… and… This has to be the coolest day of my life!"
"You…" A raspy voice growled out, making Uryuu turn to his side to see one Matou Kariya staring at him with his very damaged face filled with pure fury, the worms crawling in his skin as he grinded his teeth. "You're the one who took Rin. You were the one who tried to kill her! You killed all those children you sick fuck!"
"W-what?" Uryuu stammered out as insects flew around the man, their wings shaped like blades and their teeth looking as if they belonged to a shark.
"Burn in Hell you monster!" Kariya shouted as his Blade Wing Worms flew forward and began to eat Uryuu, who screamed in pain as the insects ripped his flesh.
Uryuu reached outwards in an attempt to crawl away, however the excruciating pain he was in sapped him of all his strength. He looked at his outstretched hand, which was now nothing more than chewed up muscle tissue spewing blood everywhere.
"Cool…" Was Uryuu's final thought before the insects went for his face.
Back To Caster:
Caster's eyes widened as he felt his Mana drop at a considerable rate. "W-what?" Caster thought to himself as he canceled his ultimate spell, Kirin, from occurring to internally investigate the reason. His eyes widened even more as he found that he could no longer feel Uryuu's Prana. "No! Why did he have to die now of all times?"
"Heh…" Berserker laughed to himself as his grin grew even more. "Looks like my Master did his job! Now it's time to do mine!"
"I have no choice. I have to use it if I want to stay alive." Caster thought to himself before muttering, "Curse Seal." Caster then felt his entire body leak purplish black colored Mana and envelope his body, changing his skin color to a dark grey and making to hand-like bat wings erupt from his back.
"Heh, looks like you still got some fight left in you!" Berserker said while bringing his right hand forward, a ball of red energy forming while aimed at Caster. "It wouldn't be fun if you didn't! Cero!" A huge red beam then came out, racing at the glaring Caster until it hit dead center, the entire area being turned into a giant crater with dust blocking Berserker's view. "HAHAHA! I finally win! I finally killed the smug little shi…!"
When the dust cleared, it revealed Caster to not only be unharmed, but surrounded by a ghostly purple-colored demonic figure. It possessed horns and jagged teeth on the hood of the armor (Berserker could see two 'eyes' peeking out of the mouth) and earrings. Its body was covered in 'armor' and it possessed four hands. The top right one held an orb of purple energy while the top left one held a massive bow.
"This is my ultimate Noble Phantasm Berserker, Susanoo." Caster said in ragged breaths as an arrow came out of the orb, which the bottom right hand grabbed and placed inside of the arrow. "And it is all I need to end this." The arrow then launched at lightning fast speeds at Berserker, who cursed and moved to the side only for a chunk of his left side to be removed.
"Fuck!" Berserker growled in pain as the orb returned to his right hand, except this time he placed it on his wound which sizzled from the heat. When the wound was cauterized, Berserker glared at Caster and asked, "Why the fuck won't you just die already!"
"You first." Caster growled out as Susanoo launched even more arrows, however Berserker just cut his right palm with his Katana.
"No, I'm ending this shit right now!" Berserker yelled out before pointing his hand at the incoming arrows and Caster. This time blue energy formed into an orb, but it seemed much more chaotic and wild. "Eat this! Gran Rey Cero!" The orb then lurched out at the speed of light, disintegrating the arrows and heading to Caster. Caster's eyes widened asSusanoo crossed all four of its arms into a makeshift shield.
A moment later, in a flash of blue, a good portion of the mountain and forest was utterly annihilated. Leaving nothing more than smoothed out rock.
Berserker then calmly landed on the ground and waited for the dust to clear. When it did, he grinned. On the ground, gasping in pain, was Caster with portions of his body still influenced with the Curse Seal. A wing was still on his back, half of his face still had the X shaped mark and the grey skin tone. His body also was sporting numerous cuts and bruises. Berserker then walked forward, his sandals echoing as they touched the ground. When he was just a foot away from Caster, he roughly kicked him, making the Servant skid across the ground several feet away. It was not an illusion.
"Heh, looks like I got you now punk." Berserker chuckled out, an insane look at his eye as a Cero formed in his right hand. "If you actually do meet the big man, tell him Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez sent ya."
Berserker then heard a rustle in the wind behind him and the click of a gun revolver getting ready to fire. "Let him go." Archer said while glaring at Berserker.
"Huh? Since when did you get here?" Berserker asked curiously, only for Archer to remain stone-faced.
"It's hard to ignore black flames and most of the mountain going away." Archer said plainly only for Berserker to chuckle.
"Heh, guess you are right about that." Berserker laughed out before twisting his body, now aiming the Cero at Archer. "Maybe I'll make Master happy by killing two Servants at once!"
"Berserker…" Kariya rasped out as he limped onto the scene, the worms crawling in his skin more aggressively. "W-we will kill Tohsaka's Servant later. We need to got to the church and get the Command Sea…!" Kariya then coughed out a huge blob of blood, staining the ground and making numerous worms scurry into the ground.
As Kariya kept coughing, Berserker slowly lowered his hand and muttered, "Shit…" He then pushed Archer to the side and went to Kariya, carrying the man over his shoulder.
"I'll settle this later Archer. After hearing the shit he mumbles about your Master, I think I will kill him personally before coming for you." Berserker then turned around before looking over his shoulder. "By the way, you are a little late to save anyone. That prick is as good as dead. My Master killed his and I think he only has a minute left, especially in his condition." Not staying around to watch Archer's eyes widen, Berserker and his Master disappeared in a blur with the sound of sonic signaling their departure.
Archer rushed to Caster's side, putting his gun in his holster and hefting Caster over his shoulder. "Just hang on! I'll…!"
"Don't…" Caster's tired voice rasped out, making Archer freeze in response. "I'm done. I've been done ever since Berserker launched his final attack…"
"Don't say that!" Archer yelled as he raced towards the city, Caster letting out a dry chuckle.
"You know, my life has been filled with nothing but death and betrayal." Caster told Archer while the flames of Amaterasu disappeared, shocking the firefighters that were originally battling the un-extinguishable flames. "My brother betrayed our clan, killing them all. I betrayed my best friend, killing him for power so that I could kill my brother for what he did. I killed so many people to gain even more power, hoping in the end all that I had done would be… worth it." Caster then looked at the distant moon as his body began to fade. "In the end, my actions made someone so much like me that it was like staring into a mirror. It was ironic, really that she killed me…"
"Save your strength!" Archer yelled as they closed in on the Tohsaka Manor.
"I can't believe it is now, through this war, I realize one thing." Caster then left Archer's grip as he disappeared into the night. "I'm nothing more than a hate-filled man who is willing to become a monster for power. I'm no better than Itachi…" Caster's form then completely disappeared. The purple flickers of light that was once his body being snuffed out like candles.
Caster, the man once known as Sasuke Uchiha, was dead.
Tears fell from Archer's eyes as he slumped to the ground on his knees. "No… I've failed to save another life… Again…" Archer cried out as tears fell from his chin onto the dry, dry Earth.
The Holy Grail War has now suffered its first two casualties.
To Be Continued…
Omake- It's A Real Thing! Taiga Dojo Preview!
"Oh! Things are getting really serious now!" Taiga shouted while pointing her Boken at the readers. "Although nobody liked Caster, he was the first to die and give a deep final speech!"
"How come nobody likes me?" Caster asked as he walked into the dojo. "What did I do to deserve this hate?"
"Well, you were kind of a prick in canon." Taiga told Caster, making the man glare at her. "By the way, what is up with your past? It's nowhere near Cannon Naruto!"
"I am not from canon. I'm from an alternate Naruto where I killed the dobe and eventually killed everyone." Caster informed her, making Taiga looked at him with a disturbed face. Suddenly, the dojo doors burst open, revealing an ocean on pink-haired girls.
"SASUKE-KUN!" The Sakura Haruno's of the multiverse shouted before tackling Caster to the ground.
"You did this didn't you?" Taiga asked Illyasviel who just giggled evilly.
"I liked Naruto, not him." She informed Taiga before turning to the readers. "Stay tuned for the next chapter, 'There Will Be Servants'!"
"Check it out…" Taiga muttered as Caster's clothes flew everywhere. She then noticed the dojo doors still opened and shouted, "HERE I COME DARLING!" Taiga then ran out of the room with Illyasviel attempting to catch up to her with a net in hand.
Note- And the first of the Servants bites the dust! To clear some stuff up, this Sasuke was one from a world where Sasuke killed Naruto in the VotE and trained under Orochimaru until he killed him and the rest of his former comrades. He was then promptly killed by a vengeful Hinata before going into the Throne of Heroes. Even though I hate the prick, I tried to make his death a bit deep and sad. And remember, you can only make me work on more chapters by reviewing! It fuels my muse, so review bitches!
…Please?