Land of Steel REMASTERED
Disclaimer: Fate Stay/Night and Campione belong to their respective creators. I don't get any money doing this.
Chapter VI
—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\Emiya Shirou's perspective—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\—\
"I thank you for your warm welcome. My name is Emiya Shirou. Due to certain circumstances, I managed to slay a God and become a Campione. Could you please introduce yourselves?" And raise yourselves too. I ask the three people who had bowed down to me. Even though I knew what being a Campione meant, I was still intimidated by their gesture.
The girl wearing men's clothing answered me. "Certainly, my lord. I am Sayanomiya Kaoru, the heir of the Sayanomiya House and a worker at the History Compilation Committee." "This person here," she gestures at the man in the office suit, "is my direct subordinate, Amakasu Touma. You must have already met Mariya-san here." I look at the high-school uniform wearing girl. Athena already informed me about the strongest mortal Spirit Vision user in the country. Yesterday night, when we attacked the Nanao Shrine, I knocked her unconscious and took the Gorgoneion from her hands. She slightly trembles at my gaze.
Ayane-chan also says her introductions. She sounds properly respectful. We all take seats.
Athena told me that most Campione were highly regarded by Magic Associations. Some Campione took advantage of that by having the Associations fulfill their every whim. I still didn't know what kind of Magic Association the H.C.C. was, so I decided to ask.
"Excuse me. I am still unfamiliar with this History Compilation Committee. Could you please elaborate?"
"The History Compilation Committee is an organization devoted to managing all supernatural events in Japan. We take steps to hide their existence from the normal people through various means such as manipulating the media and memories. It has been our task since the Meiji period to ensure that this country remains stable and prevent the supernatural from interfering with the lives of the normal citizens as much as possible. If we can't manage to shield them then we do our best to mitigate the damage that is done." Sayanomiya-san answers my question with ease.
"Thank you. Would you mind if we get to the heart of the matter? I have a few demands from your organization…"
"Such as?" Amakasu-san prompts me.
"I want a place to live. If possible, I'd like it to be a traditional Japanese house, but a flat will do too. Also, identification papers under my name. You know, birth certificates, living certificate, licenses…" I say it. I shamelessly ask Amakasu-san to give me a house and an identity for free. I do not allow a single ounce of the guilt I am feeling to appear on my face.
"That can be easily accomplished. But why would you require identification proofs? Do you wish to construct a new identity?" Just as I am thinking up an answer for Amakasu-san's question…
"You… want to construct a new identity? Did you do something illegal, like drug dealing—" Ayane-chan stops her question when she is glared at by Sayanomiya-san and Mariya-san. Their eyes then turn on me with an expression of terror. Amakasu-san just makes an impassive expression.
"If you are worried, I am not going to blow her up or anything. And anyway, I have my reasons and I'll keep them to myself for now." Peace returns to the room. Amakasu-san continues.
As I was saying before, the matter about your place of living and identification can be easily accomplished. Would you mind if I continue my questions?" Amakasu-san completely ignores Ayane-chan's question and changes the topic. Relief shows on my face, which decreases the remaining tension in the room.
"Of course."
"Emiya-sama, even though you are clearly a mage, it appears that you aren't affiliated with any associations. Also, even though you know about the existence of magic and Heretic Gods, I can sense that this is the first time you have been interacting with a Magic Association. How did you come to learn your magic?"
"You can guess that, can't you?" From Amakasu-san's question, he appears to have a theory regarding my circumstances…
"Are you someone who accidentally found magic existed and decided to secretly study it?"
"Something like that." Well, I was secretly studying magic, away from the eyes of the Second Owner… (*1)
"Would you mind if I enquire about your magic? That weapon summoning you demonstrated in your fight against Kusanagi Godou… that isn't an Authority, is it? Erica Blandelli said that not a trace of divinity could be sensed from you. Magic which is not infused with divinity cannot compare with the Golgotha spell-words, capable of maiming even Gods. Yet, your swords were capable of standing against the Cuore di Leone reinforced by the Golgotha spell-words… Just how could you accomplish such a feat?" This time, Yuri-san, Sayanomiya-san and Renjou-san's mouths open in surprise. That's only natural; magic capable of maiming Gods is almost unheard of.
In this world, magic without the use of divinity is almost unheard of. Magi in this world do not learn self-hypnotization to control their magic circuits, because magic circuits are not needed in the first place. Divine Words, basically verses from a religious text, play a greater part in the process of spell-casting. They replace the Aria in the process of the stabilization and actualization of the mystery.
Due to being a Campione, I can instinctively use this method of thaumaturgy. Unfortunately, since nobody in this world possesses Magic Circuits and due to my being a third-rate magus who even messed up the procedure of opening Magic Circuits, there is no way I can investigate that.
The interference of Gaia in this world is low to the point of non-existence. Since I can still use my Magic Circuit, there must be a Root in this world, but no one seems to be interested in finding it. Also, I am not sure whether the use of one magecraft by the many will make it weaker.
Even though I can use this world's method of casting spells, I do not know the specifics of it.
"Trace on." I decide to demonstrate my magic. I start self-suggestion and mutter my aria. Prana runs through my circuits, warming them. A mild pain, a side-effect of it, assaults me. I ignore it.
The pain from the circuits is less than 1/100th of the pain suffered by me when I practiced my magecraft with imitation circuits and around 1/1010th of the pain suffered by me while using Archer's arm. When I became a Campione, my body was reborn; my circuits were reborn with it. I opened them as fast as I could. That said, it is completely unnecessary because I can use my body as a circuit with the same efficiency and completely bypass the pain. The self-suggestion is also unnecessary. I do not need to use it anymore; I can access my magic without it. So why am I using it anyway?
' To be a magus is to walk with death.' The rule that applied in my world does not apply here anymore. I have yet to come to terms with that. But soon, I will have to…
Projection complete. Black and white swords which were once borne by Archer appear in my hands. Kanshou and Bakuya.
At my demonstration of magic, Amakasu-san asks me allowance to handle them.
"These… aren't these the legendary Chinese swords, Kanshou and Bakuya? They should be in the level of Divine Artifacts, casually summoning them should be impossible." Abandoning his politeness, Amakasu-san asks me in an accusatory tone.
"This isn't summoning magic, more like creation magic. And it doesn't use divine power." I give a short answer.
"Interesting. So did you learn this magic from a grimoire or something?"
"Actually, no. You could call it basic creation magic, but I screwed up somewhere." I keep my answers short. I am trying not to lie. Archer's experience states that in the long term, lies get annoying. And that's technically the truth because Archer, who was me, mistakenly added the extra six projection processes. I thought projection was not worth the effort and only practiced Structural Analysis and Reinforcement.(*2)
"So, your mistake was that you excluded the infusion of divinity in your spell. After you ascended to a Campione, Pandora saw that and decided to reward your foolishness." That's right. Thanks for coming to the conclusion I was hoping you'd come to.
"A pity… spells that can wound the Gods are a rarity… yet it appears that only you can use that spell. I suppose it could be called a lower form of an Authority, being granted by Pandora." Amakasu-san returns my blades. I make them disappear.
"Um… excuse me. Just how do you use magic without divinity?" Ayane-chan asks this question. She is even more polite, even shy now. Maybe the consistent glares from Mariya-san and Sayanomiya-san helped…
"Only people with a strong will can control their magic without divinity. But basically, this type of magic is fundamentally weaker. Actually, during the Meiji era, a rumour was spread that this type of magic was effective against Campione. Many people got themselves killed while following such stupid, false rumours. Basically, this type of magic, while sounding cool, is very troublesome and mostly useless. Also, spells for this discipline are scarce due almost no one being interested in them." Amakasu-san answers Ayane-chan's question for me while simultaneously tearing apart the thaumaturgy practiced by my world's magi.
The tension in the room increases. Amakasu-san starts apologizing. "Emiya-sama, I'm—" I interrupt him. "I did say that I screwed up in my spell, right? I was lucky my spells worked, after all." I quickly pacify him. Interestingly, since Thaumaturgy is seen as a useless magecraft discipline, it attracts few practitioners. I am more surprised that it even exists in the world.
"Forgive me. Since Renjou-san is a beginner at magic, I thought having her interested in another discipline might be detrimental." The tension goes away.
Just before Ayane-chan says something and digs herself deeper, Amakasu-san guesses her question and answers.
"Renjou-san, you must be confused about the 'strong will' I mentioned before, right? Maybe a comparison might work better. Have you played any of the Persona games?" Persona? The SMT spin-off? I did play the first game but…
"Well, I have played Persona 3 and 4." Well, it's 2012. The series must have increased.
"In P3, the protagonists use their Personas by shooting themselves in the head with their Evokers. That induces extreme stress in their body, conditioning the body to release their Personas." What the hell is an evoker?
"Meanwhile, in P4, Personae are summoned by destroying magical Tarot cards. This helps in the process of releasing their Persona." I think that happened in Persona 2 too, still…
"We could compare Emiya-sama's style to Persona 3 while our style could be compared to Persona 4. Excessive self disciple compared to ritual use. Just as the protagonists in Persona 4 can summon their Persona in the mysterious TV World, we use the divinity surrounding us to use our magic." The explanation ends. Ayane-chan is satisfied with the explanation, while I didn't understand the references. But that's only natural.
Amakasu-san might make a good teacher. Extremely good at giving explanations… No, if a teacher was to be judged only by the quality of his explanations, even Kotomine would be a good teacher. Of course, his sadistic nature would severely demotivate his students, which would defeat the purpose of being a teacher in the first place...
I almost forgot about something. All this while, while I have been giving vague and short answers, Amakasu-san's face has not given a single hint of complaint. Being a Campione, I understand his hesitation to call me out on that, but he should at least have some irritation on his face, shouldn't he? Neither has Sayanomiya-san nor Mariya-san. Even Ayane-chan hasn't called me out on that. Assuming that Amakasu-san has been trained to conceal his expressions still leaves the question of the girls. They shouldn't have such a high level skill.
Can this be a passive power of a Campione? Or did I somehow inherit one of Archer's Servant Skills? I definitely need to research more about the existence known as a Campione.
Amakasu-san continues with his questions.
"During a meeting with a Campione, most Magic Associations are answering the questions of the Campione, not the other way round… I am not required to ask you this, but still, it is my curiosity as a mage. Just how could you create an alliance with Athena, a Heretic Goddess?"
"Campione are the natural enemies of Heretic Gods. But, at that time, Athena was a Fallen Goddess, above a Divine Ancestor, but still not entirely Heretic. Also, she was extremely good at controlling her impulses. Also, I am equally good in the matter of self-control." Of course, another important factor is that I am somewhat inferior to other Campione, due to not being able to gain Authorities. Unfortunately, saying it straight will cause a bit of a controversy.
"I promise this is the final question. Why have you decided to live here in Tokyo, in the presence of another Campione? I do not know much about you, but your earlier statements inform that you are someone who does not like useless battles."
"Campione are existences similar to, yet antagonizing Gods. A Campione is a God's natural enemy as you said before. Also, similar to a Heretic God's tendency to bring disaster to it's surroundings, a Campione's tendency to attract Heretic Gods is more dangerous… you do know what a huge disaster a battle between a Heretic God and a Campione is, right?"
Amakasu-san nods. "During your battle against Kusanagi Godou, only a shrine that no one has ever heard of was destroyed. Compared to that…" Sayanomiya-san gives a wry smile while Mariya-san scowls slightly; maybe she didn't like Amakasu-san's comment about her shrine? Kusanagi Godou has a tendency of destroying monuments. Athena had a vision of the Hamarikyu Gardens lying completely wrecked; luckily, it did not come true.
"As far as I know, misfortune appears in a place where more than one Campione live due to their rivalries. From what I have heard about him, Kusanagi Godou is a person with a somewhat pacific bent who does not like fighting." Mariya-san agrees with me while Amakasu-san and Sayanomiya-san bear a wry expression. Ayane-chan doesn't react due to not knowing who Kusanagi is.
"But if that isn't true, well, I know how he fights. I'll kill him while causing the least collateral damage possible."
My casual statement of being willing to kill makes the atmosphere freeze up. That's exactly what my intention was. Even though our discussion was somewhat casual, no, due to our discussion being casual, they might have forgotten the fact that I am someone who has killed.
Even if I would like to deny that, I am still a 17 year old with unimaginable power. Forgetting that will definitely lead to bad consequences, for both the people around me and myself.
-Chapter End-
(*1) Rin Tohsaka. Please refer to the TYPE-MOON Wiki for more info.
(*2) In Fate and UBW, he sucks at reinforcement and knows a little projection. In HF, he forgoes Projection and is at least average at Reinforcement. The only magic he displays in all three routes at an equal level is Structural Analysis. (Logic: Seriously, traced steel sword beats reinforced wooden sword anyday.)
So, how da ya like this chapter? Amakasu-san takes the part of the interviewer, mostly due to being the oldest person around. Also, the Persona reference is for a reason. If I suddenly decide that I wanna insert a Persona character, I can say that I inserted some foreshadowing, right? Sadly, that most probably won't happen. My Persona knowledge sucks.
Also, Shirou had a console and he played Persona 1 on it. Let's assume that he has a PS/2. If you think there is a pre-2004 PS/PS 2 game a would-be hero of justice would have liked, PM/ email me. What, Shirou don't play games? In my fic, he does. No really, I don't think he spends all the time in his workshop. Seriously, the only spell he perfected was Structural Analysis.
On another count, On another note, I finally completed Heaven's Feel route… on Seorin's LP. Even, if you think it's pathetic, I have finally seen a part of the magic that is Fate/ Stay Night! I AM NOT JUST WINGING IT ANYMORE!
For some reason, typing in UPPERCASE and Bold is kinda fun. As always, thanks to battleking for his help. (I haven't used any for about 3 chapters, and won't use any for 3 more, but then… well, Voban is coming). Inform me about any Fate-verse, Campione-verse and SMT-verse mistakes (There MUST BE, this chapter was basically a info-dump). Also, how do you avoid character bashing? For my case, it's more like concept-bashing. (I hate tsundere, so Ayane-chan keeps falling into misfortune.) The A/N ends now, the boring discussion starts now.
The original topic was supposed to be: Why HF! Shirou vs. Black Berserker is totally overrated. Anyway, instead of that, I'll give you guys a penny for your thoughts. If you guys haven't watched Kara no Kyoukai, close this page THIS INSTANT. Imma gonna spoil, spoil and spoil UNTIL THE WORLD ROTS.
Or you could Ctrl+F 'This says that'.
But that might tempt you to see the spoilers.
Well, whatever. Your call.
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….Still here? Let's GO!
(All the information stated below is taken from the TYPE-MOON Wiki. If you have any problem with it, argue with them, not me.)
Part 1
1) Popular speculation/ canon (Homurahara High!) states that Shirou attends a Japanese High School. He is a Year 2 student. Year 2 means 2nd Year High.
2) Kusanagi Godou is a first year high school student, age 16. Hence Shirou, in Fate Stay Night is around 17 years old.
Part 2
1) Ayako Mitsuzuri is Shirou's classmate, Year 2 Class A.
2)Fate Complete Materials states that Ayako confesses to Mikiya Kokutou and gets rejected. This happens when soon after she enters college/ university.
Part 3
1) Kara no Kyoukai Movie 2: Murder Speculation (Part 1)
It is stated that during August 1995 – March 1996, Mikiya Kokutou attends High School Freshman Ceremony. In essence, during the period of 1995-1996, Mikiya Kokutou is 16 years old.
Also, 1998, March, Mikiya enters university.
This says that Fate Stay Night happens in 1996-1997.
FYI MikiyaKokutou is the original harem protagonist : EVERY ****ING GIRL FALLS FOR HIM. Ryougi Shiki(dual personality girl with some fondness for killing), Azaka Kokutou(his own sister), Kirie Fujou (bedridden psychic), Fujino Asagami (Kohaku precursor), Shizune Seo (psychic high-schooler) and Mana Ryougi (daughter. No, seriously.) Only three female characters do not fall for him and two of them don't meet him.
I will assume that Mikiya-kun rejected Ayako-chan while he was hung up over Shiki-chan being in coma due to being hit by a truck. Mikiya-kun drops out from university the same year he joins and it is clearly stated that Ayako confesses in her first year.
If you are someone who has bothered reading this far, then would you mind going TYPE MOON Wiki and searching for the Ayako Mitsuzuri article? Go to the bottom of the article and read the Fate/Complete Materials note. And now, try to disprove this idea.
Otherwise, I will assume that all the die-hard Fate fanatics cannot disprove it.
And it is canon.
And that will be the proof of my awesomeness.
Still, I am gonna stay with my remark that the Fate game takes place in 2003-2004. A/N over. Bye.