"…" I couldn't say a word. No. I could say something if I wanted to. But there was nothing to say and no one to talk too. There's nothing I can do. Nothing I can do but stare at the roof above me. I stared at the roof for what felt like an eternity until-
"Yo! It's been a while hasn't it, Ayaka?" A man with blue hair and battle armor spoke as he revealed himself to me. I-Is that-
"…L-Lancer?!" I replied as my jaw dropped out of surprise. Why? Why is he here?!
"Now…how about you get your ass out of bed already." Lancer demanded with a serious expression.
"…" I was utterly speechless. I couldn't come up with anything to say in response. A few seconds passed until-
"Fine. You wear glasses, right? Maybe you need them." Lancer spoke as he walked over to me.
"Y-Yes, that would help a bi-AH!" I spoke but I gasped before I could finish speaking as Lancer grabbed me by the arm and pulled me off the bed.
"O-Ow." I groaned in pain as I was forced onto the ground by the Servant in front of me. J-J-Just-
"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!" I shouted at him.
"So, are you going to stand up and fight me or what?" Lancer replied.
"Huh? How the hell do you expect me to fight you?! I'm just a human! No! Even a human would at least try to fight you. But I'm worse than that. I-I can't do anything. I can't do anything at all!" I shouted as I cried.
'Drip. Drip. Drip.' Tears dripped from my eyes as I accepted that I'm worse than average. I'm the worst of the worst.
"Liar." Lancer replied.
"Eh?" I asked.
"I said that was a lie! What do you have cotton in ya ears or somethin?!" Lancer spoke as he shook my head around over and over.
"H-How is that a lie? I-I've always relied on Saber. I have never beat a single person with my own stren-" I spoke only to be cut off before I could finish speaking by Lancer.
"Nope! That's another lie! Jeez, why are ya always puttin yourself down like that?" Lancer asked.
"Because it's the truth. You can't even name a single person I be-" I spoke but I was cut off again.
"The young lady." Lancer replied.
"What?" I asked.
"Oh right. That's what I call her, but you probably just call her Misaya right?" Lancer asked.
"W-Where is Misaya?" I asked.
"I was afraid you'd say that. She's dead." Lancer admitted as he looked downward.
"M-M-Misaya's dead?! H-How is that even possible?!" I snapped back.
"Because she fell from a tall ass building and well, I doubt even I could have survived that fall. When I found her, she was-well you get the idea." Lancer explained.
"Damn it…shit." I cursed as tears dripped down my face nonstop. I wasn't ever friends with Misaya. In fact, for the longest time, she hated me. But now, I feel like…I lost a part of me.
Wait. I-I can save him. I have no servant. And Lancer has no master. Ergo, we can form a pac-no. Even if I could, I have no intention of doing so. If Misaya died, what chance do I have of surviving? Zero. That's what. Plus-
"I-I never beat Misaya be-" I spoke but I was cut off once more.
"No. No. No. Once again, another lie." Lancer replied as he waved his finger at me.
"A-All I did was rely on that purple-haired girl! If it wasn't for her power, I would have lost!" I shouted.
"Enough with the lies! Are you a pathological liar or something?!" Lancer asked.
"I'm not lying! Jeez! You are pissing me off! What part about me being utterly powerless, don't you get?!" I snapped back.
"Then…" Lancer spoke as he made a combat stance.
"…Guess I'll kill ya." Lancer finished. Huh?
"Ah." I gasped. I-Is he serious? No. He's definitely serious. I can tell by the look in his eyes. He really intends to kill me. But what am I supposed to do against a Servant? Every time I encountered one besides Saber, they have tried to kill me. And most would have if it wasn't for Avalon.
Except, now I doubt the sheath inside me will work anymore since I'm no longer Saber's Master. I've never magically healed before that. That's why it's easy to deduce that it won't work for me anymore. So, if Lancer lands a killing blow on me…
…Then I'm really going to die.
"PREPARE YOURSELF!" Lancer roared as my thought process was broken and he swung his fist at me. And then…
"Ha…" Lancer chuckled until-
"See, you're not powerless after all." Lancer finished as he stared at me while I was on top of my bed again.
"AH!" I gasped. I-I-I moved?! How?! I didn't even command my body to move! It's like my body moved all on its o-
"There you go again, deluding yourself." Lancer spoke as he read my thoughts like a book.
"The reason why you think your body moved all on its own is because you want to survive. If that wasn't the case, I would have killed ya, right then and there." Lancer explained. I-Impossible? D-Do I really have the will, the strength that is necessary to keep going?
"No. I doubt it. It was just dumb luck, that's all." I replied as I looked downward. That's right. There's no way that I have the strength to move forward. I saw Onee-chan kill my father. And Onee-chan was about to kill me next. But then Saber stepped in and saved me by killing her.
"Dumb luck? Are ya kidding me?! How can you be so sure?!" Lancer asked.
"Because I don't have a wish anymore. My wish to resurrect Onee-chan died when I remembered killing my father. I have nothing left to live for." I admitted. All I've been doing since that night is reminding myself over and over that I have to save Onee-chan.
Before that night, I was an empty husk moving around and living a sad life with no friends or family to speak of. If Saber was the spark that revived my corpse, then Onee-chan was what granted my spirit back to me. Without a will to live, there's nothing that I can do.
"So ya don't even want to rescue Saber?" Lancer asked.
"A-Are you completely insane?! There's no way I can rescue Saber alone! Are you also expecting me to fight that fake priest and Berserker too?! There's no way in hell I can do that all alone!" I snapped back.
"Well yeah. That's true. That's two, no. Three against one since he's the guy who has Saber right? Against those odds, you'd be slaughtered." Lancer admitted.
"Of course, I would! That's why-" I spoke but before I could finish, I was interrupted.
"That would be the case…" Lancer spoke and paused for dramatic effect until-
"…If I wasn't still around." Lancer finished as he flexed.
"…" I was speechless as all I could think was t-this guy.
"You could do much better than me. After all, I'm so average. I'm sure there are other masters that would be a much better choice than m-" I spoke but was cut off again.
"Nope. There ya go lyin again. You are the only one here who can become my Master. Plus, even if there was, I would vanish before I would reach them. So…" Lancer spoke but paused for dramatic effect again until-
"…It's got to be you." Lancer finished as he pointed at me.
"But I-wait. Why are you here then?" I asked. If Misaya's dead shouldn't that mean Lancer should be gone too? Bigger question, Misaya would have had another command spell! A Master must have one command spell at all times to command a Servant! That's why that fake priest needed mine to command Saber!
But then why didn't she order Lancer to save her?!
"The young lady ordered me to protect ya with her dying breath. So, I'm not leaving just yet. Though I might not last for long." Lancer smiled as his body was becoming a bit translucent. Lancer probably only has five, maybe ten minutes at most before he vanishes. Wait a sec-
"M-Misaya ordered you to protect me?! Why?! Why would she do that?!" I snapped back. I don't understand. No. I couldn't understand! Misaya might have saved me before. But to sacrifice her own life to save me?! No! It's inconceivable!
"I doubt the young lady ever told ya this, but she was dying." Lancer admitted.
"W-What do you mean?" I asked.
"Exactly what I just said. For eight years, Misaya's body was slowly succumbing to the curse that was put on her by her father's servant. So, even if she had me save her before she fell to her death…it wouldn't have done a damn thing." Lancer admitted.
I-I never knew. Misaya never said a word about a curse. And she always appeared to be very healthy. All the times we fought, all the times she cursed at me, all of that time we spent together at her place, she was slowly dying the whole time?!
"…" I was at a loss for words. I couldn't figure out the words to respond to that. But then…
"…Even still, why would she choose to save me? She might have been able to do something, anything with the time she had left, but she chose to save me?! That doesn't make any sense!" I shouted.
"No. You're wrong." Lancer replied.
"Huh?" I muttered.
"My master would never do a thing would no reason. Her brain always worked on logic. Even when she got really mad, she would always logically attempt to think of the next best course of action…" Lancer explained but paused for a second and then…
"…That's why I know that she had a reason to save you. And that reason is…" Lancer paused once more for dramatic effect until-
"…WAS BECAUSE SHE BELIEVED IN YOU!" Lancer roared at the top of his lungs as he pointed at me.
"No, no, no! That's impossible! There's no way that Misaya would believe me! I can't fight. I can't even protect the people that matter most to me. So, there's no way that Misaya would ever believe in an average piece of crap like me!" I shouted as tears dripped down my eyes.
"Oh yeah? Then my Master was wrong?! Is that what ya sayin?!" Lancer replied.
"Of course, she was wrong! She would have to be insane if she actually thought that I would be able to win this Grail War!" I snapped back.
"Are you so pathetic that you're going to let Saber die after everything he did to protect you?!" Lancer shouted.
"Shut up." I muttered as I jumped off the bed and faced him directly.
"I'm sure that he swore to protect you, right?! Does that promise not mean anything to y-" Lancer roared but I cut him off.
"SHUT UP!" I roared at the top of my lungs as I swung my fist at him but then…
"Ha." Lancer chuckled as he caught my fist in his hand.
"You're goin to have to do better than t-" Lancer spoke until-
"I SAID SHUT UP ALREADY!" I roared once more as I-
'BAM!' Punched him right in his face with my other hand!
"Not bad…" Lancer muttered as he spat out his blood onto the ground.
"Not bad at all!" Lancer shouted as he grasped my hand that I used to punch him with and swung it up and down in an effort to congratulate me. I think. But he was using so much force that he was lifting my entire body off of the floor as a result.
"That punch was almost as brutal as the one my master used to give me! Oh, and by my master I mean Scathach, not Misaya." Lancer explained.
"Please…let go…of me…" I spoke as he continued to shake me around like a ragdoll.
"Sure thing." Lancer replied as he dropped me onto the ground.
"O-Ow." I groaned in pain as my chest hit the floor.
"How about…little lady. I'm gonna call you that so it's easy to differentiate between you and Misaya. Plus, you're shorter than her. Good with you?" Lancer asked.
"Fine by me." I replied as I stood up to face him.
"So, little lady. Are ya to fight and kick some priest's ass?" Lancer asked.
"Ha…" I chuckled until-
"…You're goddamn right!" I declared with my blue eyes full of confidence.
"Then…prove it." Lancer asked.
"Heed my words, my will creates your body, and your sword-" I spoke as a gust of wind swirled between me and Lancer but was cut off.
"Lance." Lancer interjected.
"Shut up. And your Lance creates my destiny! If you heed the grail's call and obey my will and reason, then answer me!" I continued.
"I do." Lancer replied.
"Shut up! I ain't done yet! An oath shall be sworn here! I shall attain all virtues of heaven! I shall have dominion of all evils of all of hell! I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in the world! And that I shall defeat all evil in the world!" I continued as my chest shined bright red once more.
"From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power! Come forth from the ring of restraints, Protector of the Holy Balance!" I roared at the top of my lungs as I grasped Lancer's hand while new command spells were burned into my body! The pact is complete! Now, with Lancer by my side, I have a chance to save Saber! This is the beginning of my…
…Turnabout!
Chapter 24: Turnabout!