Chapter 6: Blood for the Old Gods

Sir George wasn't afraid to admit that things were looking grim. The Nazis had them surrounded on three sides, and it wouldn't be long before they moved round behind them. They were all armed with rifles from the First World War in pristine condition, and he bet there were hundreds or thousands ready to take the place of the fallen. As far as he could tell, his Mistress had absolutely no combat training of any kind. And her spells tended to fail from sheer nerves. Against another Saber class Servant, they could overwhelm them through sheer firepower.

But he held Ascalon, a sword made from technology beyond their understanding.

"By the Light of Ascalon." He shouted, his blade glowing with energy. Pushing his Mistress behind cover and letting his armour deflect the bullets, he unleashed the pent up power of Ascalon with a mighty swing of his blade. Jekyll and his Master ducked behind some cover, while Hitler and his Mistress were forced to dive for cover. Most of the Nazis were sliced in two by the blast as rubble fell from the slashed walls. But as he feared, another wave of them appeared from mana, filling up the depleted ranks. While he could put a sizable dent in his forces before falling again, his Mistress's safety came first. A few screams alerted him to action nearly right behind him. He turned to see several Nazis trying to sneak up behind him, now fused together into one mangled mess. As he watched, Beth concentrated on her magic again, and several pieces of rubble vanished to reappear sticking out of several soldiers. His respect for her was growing. "Have at thee." He shouted, slashing at the soldiers again. As he stopped to assess the situation, he was worried to see them bring out an MG 08 to bear on him. His armour may be tough, but he had seen turrets like those tear through entire squads of men like paper. Even holding Ascalon in front of them and letting the energy expand into a shield he still saw the garden they hid behind get shredded. As they set up another turret and were placing the base for a third, he knew they couldn't keep this up.

"To the foyer." He said, grabbing Beth and hiding her behind his armoured form. They ran as best as they could for the safety of the reception area, but he heard Beth scream in pain as several bullets made it through gaps in his defences. He almost threw her behind the counter before hiding behind one of the walls by the entrance. Beth peeked out from behind cover, her face pale from pain. Blood stained her hero uniform along her side. He turned Ascalon so that he could see his enemies along the flat of the blade, before throwing it at them. Using the sword's telekinetic control, he made it fly through at least a dozen troops and the turrets before returning to his hand. But more were taking their place.

"Wh-What do we do?" Beth asked him, fear in her eyes. "Do we run? Stand and fight? Anything?"

"For the moment we can hold them at bay in this room. Despite what people believe it is very difficult to shoot up a room with thick walls like this one. They'll have to get past me if they wish to fight." He spotted the Master of Archer arguing with Jekyll's Master, spitting and screeching in his face. "But if Jekyll joins in we'll have to run for it. I could take him on, but not without endangering your life in the process."

Beth nodded and tried to stand up. She only got halfway before she hissed and clutched at her side. For all he knew, she was bleeding out as they defended themselves. Even if they weren't going to send in Hyde, he still would've considered running from a fight. He went to lift her and run, but his highly trained instincts led him to jumping to the side just as the wall fell in. Hyde came snarling through the other side, his left arm a mass of razor tentacles. George swung his blade expertly, slicing through them with ease. But they fused together to become a fist of stone, slamming him down on one knee as he blocked it. Ascalon burst with energy, sending Hyde reeling long enough for George to reposition himself. But Hyde rushed him again, a distorted mouth snarling on his stomach. They stood there, locked in an epic struggle for dominance and victory.

"Saber? The Nazis are loading some kind of gas canister into a launcher. Is that bad for us?" Hyde and George stopped fighting, remembering the weapons that the Nazis liked to use. Given that they were distorted by legends to be pure evil, then the canister had to hold…

Mustard gas.

"We are leaving." George said firmly, pushing Hyde aside. He then spun Ascalon in a continuous circle, creating a powerful wind tunnel to blow Hyde away. He held onto the ground fiercely, but the canister of gas slammed into his head and released its contents. He howled loudly as the gas enveloped him before being blown back towards the Nazis. But despite the fierce wind assaulting the doorway, another canister made it through and landed close to Beth. She screamed as the yellowish gas filled the room, backing away from it as best as she could. Gritting his teeth, George charged the blade with more mana until the room was falling apart from the force. Finally, Hyde was thrown back outside, slamming into the Nazis as the gas choked them. Without wasting a second, he grabbed Beth and ran through the entrance, blowing away more of the gas to clear a path. Once he was finally outside the apartment building, he summoned his valiant steed, Bayard. It was only after the majestic horse had left the building far behind that he checked on his Master. Her skin was covered in large blisters, some of them filled with yellow pus. The was blood around her mouth, and she coughed up even more. Damnation, this was even worse the normal. At this rate, she was going to die by the end of the night. He didn't have the facilities to treat her.

But he knew someone who did.

As much as Ben was angry with Firecinder and Assassin and wanted a rematch, he couldn't ignore Caster either. They knew nothing about Caster or his master. They could be targeting anyone, especially after Shirou told them about how a Servant could get more mana by harvesting people. At least Assassin was only targeting other Servants, for now. And Grandpa Max really wanted to start getting some results from fighting these guys. The attacks have been scaring people worse than usual. Even Undertown was getting worried.

"Police are still concerned by their inability to access the Tycoon Apartment Flats, given how the immediate area is blocked off by a noxious cloud of what has been confirmed to be Mustard Gas. Most famously used during World War One by the Nazis, this lethal and toxic substance is considered one of the worst bioweapons ever released on a human being. However, police and Plumbers are still unable to decide if this is simply the work of Nazi sympathisers, or the re-emergence of the Nazi Party itself. We will have more news later tonight." Gwen flicked the radio off, the Proto-Truk filling with silence.

"Things are getting worse every day." She said mournfully. "There are more and more people dying for no reason. There's got to be a faster way to end this."

"Unfortunately there isn't, Miss Tennyson." Shirou apologised. "Believe me, I had the same thoughts when I got involved in the War."

"Still, that did help us learn something useful." Rin interrupted. "I doubt regular Mustard Gas could kill off people in less than an hour."

"It doesn't, even in high doses." Rook replied, looking at the Plumber database. "Mustard Gas usually takes up to 24 hours for the first symptoms to take effect. It takes days or even weeks for severe cases to result in death."

"Which means that this gas is altered by people's ideas and beliefs about Mustard Gas. Which means it has to be a Servant behind this."

"So we're looking for a Nazi brought back as a Servant." Ben summed up. After his fight against what must've been Berserker, he managed to figure out how to change back to normal. The Omnitrix now regarded him as a Heroic Spirit too, meaning he had to find his class to turn back to normal. Gwen was relieved. She had been worried that he would've been stuck changing between different heroes forever.

Of course, they had no idea what would happen if he was killed in his true form.

Kevin looked at one of the monitors inside the Proto-Truk, watching as they approached a rusted slaughterhouse. "You guys sure this is the right place? It doesn't look like somewhere anyone would want to live. Or magical at that rate."

"While there are a few other meat works left abandonded, Gwen and Rin said this is the only one on top of a leyline. Casters require incredible amounts of mana for their spells, and so this is the most likely residence." Rook explained.

"Yeah. If that assassin was telling the truth."

"I believe she is. Either we win, and Caster's out of the picture; or Caster wins, and there's less of us gunning for her later on." Arturia replied. "It isn't uncommon for Servants and Masters to team up temporarily to remove a powerful threat."

As for being too quiet, Caster's probably got hidden guards and traps all over the place. Luckily, there's something we can do about that. I just need to use Ben's Omnitrix." Rin added, before fiddling with the faceplate. She scrolled through a series of different images, featuring everything from cannons to axes to even books. The only constant was a sword; a bow; a lance; a wand; a wheel or horse; a black flame; or a dagger. She finally stopped at a mask and dagger, pushing down on the faceplate and lighting the Proto-Truk with golden light. It was lucky that none of the light managed to reach outside, but it was still enough to make them blink the spots from their eyes. Now Ben was a slim, small man dressed in a pitch-black cloak, and a white skull mask over his face. Ben kicked his feet like a child before realising that he was too short to reach the floor.

Kevin tried to muffle his laughing, but he had a lot of trouble keeping himself quiet.

"You're not exactly the one I had in mind, but this form will do during the battle." Rin noted. "In fact, your small stature could be of some use against your opponents, assuming you have to fight in this form."

"Okay. What exactly am I?" Ben hissed, looking at himself.

"You're one of the Hassan-i-Sabbah, the Old Man of the Mountain. But more specifically, you're an Assassin Servant. We'll need you to find the Master of Caster and hold them hostage. If they refuse to surrender, then you'll kill them. Your skills are best suited for…"

"No." Ben interrupted her. "Look, I get that we can't always just bring these guys in like we normally do. But we can't just start killing people without a good reason. For all we know, this guy has a good reason for taking part. Maybe he's trying to bring back a loved one, or heal a sick friend, or something like that. I won't kill him."

"You still don't get it, do you? You are a Heroic Spirit now. Everyone in this war wants to kill you and then end up summoning a god of evil. We can't afford to be idealistic. If we go in there and try to take them both alive, then you'll end up getting us all killed. Is that what you want?" Ben just glared at her, and Rin had the worrying thought that she just insulted an Assassin inside an enclosed space.

If Ben wasn't so naïve, she'd be dead before she could defend herself.

Luckily, Shirou came to her rescue. "Look Ben. I understand what you mean. But think of it this way. Caster and his Master won't know that you're not going to kill him. They'll just think that an Assassin Servant has managed to capture his Master. We can use that to make them both surrender. How does that sound?"

"Better." Ben nodded. "As long as no one does anything stupid, it could work. I'll go first and check for traps." Ben vanished from sight without even opening the doors, leaving everyone else to scramble quietly after him. They crouched behind a battered car left out to rust, and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

"I'm back." Ben said suddenly, startling them and nearly causing Kevin to yell. "I managed to disable some of the traps, but there were a few I wouldn't have a clue about. I can guide you guys around them though. But the creepiest thing was that they were all made from blood. Lots of blood."

"I think we just found our murderer." Gwen said, finally spotting Ben's white mask. "Could Ben possibly just kill Caster? He can't be as tough as other Servants."

"He wouldn't be." Rin admitted. "But he'll have access to enough spells to wipe Ben out several times. Assassin Servants are best suited for killing Masters, not Servants. And if Caster is our killer, then there's no way his Master wouldn't be aware of it. He'll be the easier target."

"I still don't like it." Ben muttered, sneaking forward. He looked back occasionally so that they could see the flash of his white mask, guiding them around innocuous places. But occasionally, Gwen spotted the edges of magic circles arrayed behind bushes and leaves. She didn't have a clue what the incantations were for, but she doubted they were friendly. Or survivable.

But Ben's scouting and sabotage proved true. They found large holes in the defences that let them practically waltz into the Slaughterhouse. He led them on a topsy-turvy trip through conveyer belts and meat hooks in order to reach the foreman office. The quiet, empty processing plant made her think of when they were younger, and helped Phil capture two Wildmutts. Vulpimancers. Whatever they're called.

Arturia, Shirou, Rook, and Kevin all stood by the stairs, hiding behind cover and keeping watch for any sort of sneak attack. Ben, Gwen and Rin headed up the stairs carefully, aware that it could start creaking and groaning at any moment. But Ben's steps were completely silent. In the gloom, it was like he wasn't even there. He managed to jiggle the hinges free before moving the door silently against the railing. Inside, the office showed signs of being lived in. There were clothes strewn everywhere, and a bag full of food on the desk. Where a couch would've been, they found a battered mattress covered with stains. And a man was sleeping under a threadbare blanket.

He was both slightly fat and very malnourished, perhaps someone who lived a comfortable life now left homeless. His head was almost bald, and he had a few liver spots. It was hard to believe that he was really a Master. Ben crept round the office, a dagger in hand, and reached the old man without incident. Moving quickly, he grabbed the Master and had a blade to his throat before he could even fully wake up.

"Alright pal. Here's what's going to happen." Ben growled at him. "You call your Servant here and surrender, or I'll slice your throat wide open." But as he said that, part of the wall faded away to reveal a twin of the man standing before them. No, not a perfect twin. He was much younger than the Master in Ben's hands. Beside him was a shapely woman in a red robe and a skull mask, almost like Assassin.

A trap. It was all a trap.

"Hmph. It appears that your trap worked better than I expected." The man said as he glared at them. "But that's a rather pathetic Assassin you have there. He should've slit my copy's throat and be done with it."

"I agree. You lot must be new to all this. There is no mercy in the Holy Grail War." The woman agreed. She snapped her fingers, and the area started glowing red. "Still, it saves us having to look for you. Sanguis Infernus." Ben barely managed to jump away before the man he was holding exploded, his blood shredding the room. A red seal hovered before Caster, while Gwen had to make do with her mana shield. Rin fired a few blasts at Caster's barrier before leading them out of the room, where the others were already fighting. Their opponents were large demonic beings with red skin and fiery breath, their claws ripping through the machinery with ease and carving grooves into the ground. As she watched, another red seal glowed and turned to liquid, another demon rising from the pool.

"Geez. Some Assassin you are, Ben." Kevin complained as he slammed stone fists into a demon's belly before crushing its head with a mace. "You couldn't even capture one guy."

"They knew we were coming." Ben argued, jumping and dodging the demon strikes. "They had a trap all set up for us. I swear, when I get my hands on Firecinder…"

"Forget about her for now. Right now, we need to get out of here alive." Rin said, her curse ripping through half a demon's head. "Assassin, your Noble Phantasm might still be useful here. Start using it."

"Right." Ben bounded over a demon's hand and ran up it till he grab its face with his hand. "Zabaniya: Cyber Phantasy." Ben jumped away as the demon stared into space, before its entire upper body exploded. The remaining lower body dropped to the ground, falling apart and turning into blood. Ben moved like the wind through more demons, using his Noble Phantasm again and again. By the time he was done, Caster was now standing above them and smirking at them.

"That was well done, Assassin. A pity that it won't be enough. Sanguis Infernus." The blood pooling at the ground flowed into pools, demons growing from those pools until they were surrounded again. "Sanguis Tentare." She slit her wrists with a dagger, and thin tendrils of blood flew from her and sliced towards them. They scattered, carving a path through the demons when they could to try and escape her attack. Ben jumped from post to post, dodging her attacks with almost trivial ease. But demons kept getting in his way, forcing him to destroy them if he wanted to get closer to Caster. He jumped after a final attack, sailing through the air and throwing daggers to distract her. His hand was almost at her throat.

And then he quivered as multiple tendrils skewered him through the arms and chests.

"Well, that didn't go the way I wanted." Ben said as he rematerialized next to Gwen. He kicked out at a demon and practically destroyed its head, before tapping through the Omnitrix in search of a new form. For some reason known only to him – or more likely, a malfunction – he ended up going for Gill de Rais. What could he do? "What? Why would I…?" He gasped, even as he grabbed a metal rod and buried it in another demon's skull. "Of course. I understand. Gwen, help me get some of the remains. Everyone else, keep Caster busy." They all nodded, Shirou and Arturia charging forward to clear a path through the demons towards her. Caster responded in kind.

"Sanguis Arma Ignifera." She said, her blood reforming into dual pistols. The red bullets fired with enough force to create craters in the ground, forcing them to keep moving in random directions to avoid getting killed. While they did that, Ben grabbed several of the remains and moved them towards a circle he drew in blood. He pulled out his spellbook, the pages turning by themselves.

"Cthulhu Fhtagn." Ben recited, the blood and remains before him writhing as mana flooded through them. They were liquefied, and large tentacle monsters started spawning around them. They immediately latched onto the demons, both sides ripping them apart. But while the demons remained dead, Ben's monsters reformed from their own shattered remains.

"Well, that's certainly interesting." Caster said as she jumped high overhead and blasted several of Ben's monsters. "I've never heard of a Servant that could change classes before. But you're still not as good as me." She used her slit wrists to create a circle around several monsters, with Rook almost caught inside it. "Sanguis Explodere." The creatures exploded into fountains of blood as Caster jumped overhead. "Sanguis Imperium." The blood, instead of spawning more monsters, fused together into a tower, allowing Caster to stand on top of it. She opened fire with her pistols, causing the group to scatter again. Ben grabbed a shattered sheet of metal the size of a broadsword, rushing towards her with great speed.

"For Lady Jeanne." He yelled, slicing through the tower in a single blow. Caster jumped away again, her pistols changing and growing in size. By the time she had landed, she was holding onto large tonfas and had two shotguns attached to her heels. They clashed in the centre of the room, her tonfas blocking his blade while his limited agility allowed him to dodge her shotgun attacks. She also fired large cannonballs from the ends of the tonfas, forcing everyone else to keep moving instead of attacking. After trading blows for what felt like minutes, she managed to twist around him and trap his head between her thighs. She grabbed his head with both hands, the blood wrapping around his body.

"Sanguis Quasso." Ben yelled as cracks appeared on his skin, blood leaking everywhere. He swung his sheet of metal, slicing at Caster's legs and drawing copious amounts of blood. But his skin ruptured from her magic, and he faded away again. Caster immediately started blasting away at the others, both to keep them away from her Master and to stop Ben from reforming.

"So, did we have a plan B?" Kevin asked them as Arturia rushed in to distract Caster. After seeing her kill Ben so quickly, the others were wary of engaging her in melee.

"Maybe. I just need to find something that looks good." Ben replied, flicking through the Omnitrix. "What I'd give to be able to see who these guys are." He stopped at a lance surrounded by a sun. "Well, here goes nothing." He slammed down on the faceplate, glowing brightly. The glow was bright enough that even Caster and Arturia stopped to look at it.

Ben was now a white-haired man who simply radiated with power. He wore golden armour and a cape that seemed made of flames, his chest bare save for a red jewel set in the centre. His gaze seemed cold and yet capable of burning a man alive.

"You're a tough man to kill, boy." Caster remarked, summoning her tonfas again. She opened fire on Ben, hiding him behind flames and explosions. She quickly deflected Arturia's blade and jumped away, though her tonfa was shattered and left burning. While she was doing that, Ben strolled out of the flames like they were nothing. "Very tough to kill. I suppose we'll have to continue this another day. Ta-ta." She wrapped herself and her Master in a cloak of blood, making it spin until it flew through the air and punched through the roof. The support beams started shattered from the damage they had suffered, the roof falling down towards them. Gwen summoned her mana barrier, but she was worried that they'd be trapped underneath all of this.

Brahmastra." Ben shouted, his right eye glowing. A powerful and large beam exploded from his face, disintegrating the roof and all the rubble falling onto them. What little rubble was left was sent flying away by the sheer power. They all looked on in awe at such destructive power.

But Caster had managed to escape.

She's going to kill me. Bass thought as he laid in bed still. She is going to kill me through sheer insanity. He turned to look at the crumpled bed sheets stained red with blood, bloody footprints leading away from him and towards the other bedroom. He winced as he felt a stinging pain from his right arm.

"Apologies, Master." Berserker said, stitching together a long gash in his arm. "I am more of a chemist than a doctor, I'm afraid."

"You're still the closest thing we've got. I wouldn't trust the Nazis to fix me up." Bass replied, wincing again. He could feel the worms inside of him empowering his mana as they sifted through the latest donation of energy. The room was silent for a moment. "What was I thinking?"

"Are you referring to taking part in this War, or including your lady friend?"

"Including Stacy. I knew she was a bit off, but I never realised she was completely insane." He thought for a bit. "Do you really think she would've skinned that girl and worn her skin as a suit?"

"I'm afraid I'm hardly an expert on psychological behaviour, but I do believe she would've. My best guess is that it's not so much that the Master of Saber is prettier than her, but that she simply poses a possible distraction or threat to anything in her life. Mark my words, she will hunt that poor girl down and kill her. Fortunately for her, Sir George is more than a match for the entire Nazi army." He said this with pride.

"You really were a big fan of his, weren't you?"

"Good sir, if I wasn't a part of this War against him, I would gladly give my life again in his services." Berserker stopped stitching long enough to wave his arms dramatically, before finishing his work.

"Is that why you were making that serum? According to the books, you were making it because you were worried that an evil side was taking over."

"Well, both are technically true. You see, I'm actually a quarter-alien myself. Some foul creature known as a Lewodan. I originally started my formula to try and remove this side of myself, but when the Forever Knights approached me and ask for my help in removing all aliens from Earth, why I couldn't accept fast enough. It didn't take much to alter the formula to use their own DNA as a weapon to drive them off. Sadly, it didn't quite work out right. And you know the rest, of course."

"You know, the way you talk I'm surprised you don't get along better with Archer. You're both really alike." Bass could tell that he had said the wrong thing, given how Berserker was looking aghast at him.

"What nonsense are you babbling Master? I am simply a patriot of our fair world, seeking to cleanse it of the monsters who seek to invade and take all we own by force until we are little more than slave or cattle. That foul excuse for a man simply desires power for himself."

"Ok, ok. Sorry."

Berserker calmed down, and started mopping his brow with a handkerchief. "Apology accepted Master. I shouldn't have been so angry with you. In truth, I'd imagine that the Nazis would've likely been considered for the Forever Knight ranks at first, before we realised just what they're willing to do to their own people. We may be willing to destroy all beings not from this world and those who aid them, but we are not savages. As soon as they leave, we'll let them go freely. Their allies can leave too if they want. But Earth should belong to its people. Why, according to alien information we found at the time, one could actually buy Earth right from under our noses."

"That is kinda scary." He stretched a bit, and pulled his pants back on. A few more nights of passion like that, and he might not be able to walk again. Stacy had the endurance of an animal. "So what about Saber? This 'Sir George'? Who is he?"

"You don't know. Funny. I would've thought that even today, people would heard of his glorious tale against the 'dragon'."

"Oh." He understood now. "You mean Saint George. Funny. I didn't think that a holy man would've been so anti-alien."

"His tale is precisely why he's so anti-alien. It was not a dragon he fought, but a monster from beyond the stars by the name of Diagon. He arrived on Earth and started enslaving every god-fearing man, woman and child he could get his horrible tentacles on. It was only with the intervention of fate that Sir George received Ascalon, his holy weapon and possible source of immortality. With it, he was immune to Diagon's control, and could fight him equally. Sadly, Diagon proved to be an annoyingly persistent threat. Even removing his heart didn't kill him. Sir George had to use Ascalon to seal him back in his dimension, where he would remain till the end of time. Or until we finally found a way to kill him. The latter, apparently."

"Interesting. And what of his weaknesses? If he was summoned as a Servant, then logic dictates that he had to have died, even if he hadn't admitted as such."

"I'm not actually sure myself. We Forever Knights preferred to speak of his strength rather than his weaknesses. And I feel bad for killing him a second time." He stopped talking and looked up, as Stacy walked back into the room. While she seemed to have sweated off most of the blood, there was still amounts of it in the curves of her breasts. She was still completely naked, a bloody handprint on her stomach.

"I've just recharged Archer's mana through a trade of energy." She informed them. "He wasn't all that willing to partake, but I managed to force myself on him."

Bass wasn't sure what terrified him more. That she seemed to be getting more insane by the minute, or the fact that she just raped pure evil.

"We're going out now. Archer has more bastards to remove from his perfect world. And I need a new suit. I bet you'd love to see me in that bitch's skin, right?" Her voice told him this was a simple question. Her eyes told him that he had better agree, or die.

"Of course." He replied after debating whether his sanity could take it. "I'd imagine you'd look fetching in human skin." She kissed him deeply, her tongue roaming through his mouth, before pushing him away and leaving. He waited until Archer had left too, and the door closed loudly behind them. Berserker got up and headed down the hall, before returning and nodding his head. "We need to get rid of her as soon as possible."

"I cannot argue with that logic." Berserker agreed. "They're getting us far too much attention, not to mention they're attacking human homes. If only we could get them to go after the aliens. Then things would be a bit better. Still, before you start making plans, I would like to remind you that Archer can summon an army to his side. Even in the Grail War, that is a very powerful ability. Not something that should be thrown aside because the owner is completely mad as a hatter."

"But we can't let them get the Grail. Hitler nearly destroyed the world with just normal men and politics. I shudder to think what they could do with an Omnipotent device like the Grail."

"We'll just have to keep close to them then. Once their usefulness is over, it shouldn't be too hard for us to simply kill her, or inform the police about her and Archer."

He didn't like it, but Berserker had a good point. "Alright. But if she brings more Servants down on our heads, we'll have to leave her to fend for herself."

"Agreed."

Sir George banged on the stone wall heavily, his gauntleted fist cracking it. "By the pits of Tartarus." He cursed. "Open this damnable door!"

One of the bricks moved away, revealing a helmeted man glaring at him. "Keep it down out there, knave. You want to bring the Plumbers down on our heads?" He asked him.

"My friend has been gravely injured. She needs medical aid. And I trust only our order."

"What's the password then?"

"The pass…? Pluto take you. I am Sir George, your founder and true king. Open this door."

"Sir George is dead, knave. Pretend to be our glorious leader again, and I'll run you through. Now, what is the password?" George glared at him, before touching Ascalon's point to the centre of the door. With a release of will, the stone shattered and the metal plating underneath buckled until it was opened wide for him. The glow and wind forced the knight back, stumbling over his own heels. As he stepped inside, a wave of Ascalon reversed the damage, until it was as if it never happened. "For…Forgive me, my king. I had never actually seen you in the flesh. I didn't realise it was truly your most holiness."

"Never mind that. I need a doctor. Or at least medical equipment." The knight truly looked at Beth. Her breathing was ragged now, and a fair bit of her skin was blistered and glowing. She was dying. He could feel her mana weakening.

"Of… of course, Sir George. Fortunately, King… I mean, Dr Chadwick has started coming back to his senses. He isn't completely healed, but he remembers enough to work the equipment. Come, this way." They quickly ran through the twisting halls and pipelines that the remnants of the Forever Knights were forced to live in. Without his skill in directions, George would've gotten lost in here easily. Which was the whole point. The Plumbers and Tennyson would waste time trying to navigating these tunnels while they escaped his might. Right now though, all he was aware of was that time was running out for his Master.

In what felt like hours, they eventually arrived in the main hall of their base. Chadwick was smaller than before, barely one and a half times George's height. He was trimming away at the fur covering his face, attempting to tame it and regain his humanity.

"Well Sir Morton?" He grunted. "Did you see off whoever dared to gain access to our castle?"

"Uh, not quite Doctor." Sir Morton stammered. "It was Sir George himself, back from the dead. And his friend is in need of some assistance." Chadwick threw down the razor and turned to face them, anger burning his face. But as soon as he saw Sir George and Ascalon, he trembled in place.

"God's Blood." He gasped. "It really is you, my king. I… I am honoured that you would grace us…"

"We don't have time for pleasantries." George interrupted. Chadwick reacted as though he had slapped him. "My friend is suffering from enhanced Mustard Gas. If we don't get her medical attention she'll die. Help her. That's an order." Chadwick didn't even waste any time, grabbing Beth from him and placing her gently onto a medical table. The advanced systems scanned her body, a list of symptoms coming up on the monitor. Needles injected chemicals into her body while salves were sprayed onto her skin. With any luck, the advanced medical drugs they obtained from illegal aliens would heal all her wounds.

He just hoped that he wasn't too late.

And there's another chapter done and done. When I imagined Lilith fighting, I decided to have her as sort of a Dragon Age Blood Mage meets Avatar Waterbender meets Bayonetta. You can sort of see the inspirations during this fight. And as for Ben's new forms, they are Fate/Hollow Ataraxia Assassin, Fate/Zero Caster, and Fate/Apocrypha Lancer of Red. I chose that particular Assassin because of his Noble Phantasm. I didn't want to give Ben another female form (he's got plenty as it is) and it didn't say if it was limited by Magic Resistance, which I would think a Caster might have some of. Caster I chose because I already used him, and since Ben wouldn't get blood any other way this was the only Servant he could use Prelati's Spellbook against. But I still had to kill him because he wouldn't get used again. As for him sword fighting, according to the Type Moon Wiki, Caster was actually a knight who's only a Caster because of his spellbook. He's not as good as he should be, but he's still better than as a Caster. And as for Lancer, someone as powerful as him is going to be useful later. Ben doesn't really know what he does now, but he'll learn.

As for Stacy and Bass, yeah she is completely insane. Bass may be a sociopath, but even he realises how crazy she is. She's the kind of person who'd happily burn down the building she's living in just to kill others. And that is not a good way to survive the Holy Grail War. But if she dies, we might just get to see Berserker teaming up with Saber. Can't wait.

And with Berserker being a quarter-Lewodan, given how he's a Forever Knight I figured that his inner evil could easily be seen by him as being part alien. I know that they don't have legs, but they were the best aliens I could think of for someone to still look human. Let's just pretend that his human side gave him legs.