Tristan
It was going to work. I knew it was going to work. Caster was certain it was going to work, and he was never certain about anything I come up with. If even he was saying with certainty that everything would run smoothly, then it would run smoothly. I knew that.
…Yet the nerves as time ticked ever onward wouldn't leave me.
Perhaps it wasn't because I was nervous about the system after all?
"…Over a decade since I've last played a game like this" I laughed at myself slightly, shaking my head.
Yeah, that's what it was. I was nervous I was going to be rusty at playing the game. It was a stupid notion; if I was going to be rusty, then the other players would have to be even more rusty, considering none of them participated in the war for the Moon Cell, the last thing to occur that resembled the Holy Grail War system back on Earth even remotely. There was no way I was going to be one of the early eliminations.
…Wasn't dumb enough to not even consider losing a possibility, but losing early? Now that was an impossibility. Even if I was given the worst possible start, it was an impossibility. No way I was going to be that bad at a game of my own design.
Well… at least in part my design.
Fortunately, a knock at the door prevented me from slipping further down the rabbit hole of my thoughts.
"Master" came the voice of Icarus through the door. "Fifteen minutes until the spots open. Father says it's time for you to get ready for the opening."
"Got it, I'm going" I shouted back, taking a deep breath before exiting the room. "Take it your father thinks I'm going to run late if he doesn't send one of you two to fetch me?"
"Something like that" Icarus grinned as he began following me down the corridors to what had come to be known as the launch room. "And while I'm sure Perdix has been driving father insane lately with all his questions and theories, father realizes it's best to have Perdix on hand for the launch, in the event of an extreme emergency."
"Eh, you're too hard on yourself, kid. You're not that far off from your cousin."
"Please, I'm leagues away from Perdix! That's fine with me though; the probes serve as a good enough challenge. At this point, with everything about to go live and put through the real test, I know it's better for me to just get out of father's way."
Icarus stopped for a moment as we turned a corner, but before I could say anything he started up again.
"I know you're not going to be around when the latest probes finish, but I promise I'll have the reports done and set to father the moment I'm able. I can't make any promises or anything, considering the nature of what you're having us attempt, but Perdix and I both think these probes have a good chance of making it past the veils. We'd personally put it at about… eighty-five percent, but father thinks it's more like-"
"Oh, let me guess…" I mused, think for a few seconds. "Something much, much lower."
"Thirty-two percent, to be exact."
"Figured as much" I laughed, before lowering my voice. "Psst. Didn't hear this from me, kid, but your father is someone people from my time would call a downer."
"Yes, I suppose that would fit him" Icarus laughed. "Though he'd just say he's a-"
"Realist" we both said in unison, causing another round of laughter.
"Look, no rush" I continued as the laughter died down. "Not going to be in a position to read over any reports for a while, in all likelihood. Success, fail, eh, don't worry about it. Progress is made through experimentation, and we are trying to chart well past the currently know bounds of possibility, at least from the standpoint of humankind back on Earth. If they work, great. If not, make the adjustments you think you need to make. I trust you two will get it in time."
"Yes, master."
"…When you respond like that, I feel the need to remind you" I sighed. "I'm not actually your master; only your father is contracted to me. You and Perdix are free to do whatever, whenever. If you don't like working on the probes, then don't work on them."
"We know. We don't work on them because we're forced or feel obligated to."
"Good" I nodded as I approached the door to the launch room. "So long as that remains the case."
"Good luck, master" Icarus smiled as the door slid open on my approach. "I know for a fact you'll win!"
"Appreciate the optimism, but nothing is ever certain in a good game. That's what makes them so enjoyable, after all."
With a smile and wink from me the door slid close. That was going to be the last I'd see of Icarus for a good while, and I admit, I was going to miss him. The kids were cool; full of life and energy. Caster really could stand to learn a bit about enjoying life from them.
Though, of course, that was a thought I kept very much private.
"Hey! Caster! Hearing me alright" I shouted into the microphone attached to the headset as I took my spot in the center of the room, standing on the launch pad. "Testing, testing! One, two, one, two!"
"Yes, yes, I hear you loud and clear, child" Caster's grumbling came through the headset. "Far too loudly, if you ask me. Things were stressful enough as is, but then leave it to you to go off and run late to your own-"
"Hey, I'm not running late" I protested, turning to look at the clock above the door to the room. "There's still eleven minutes till go time!"
"It's the same thing child! Now, a quick check on the launch pad. Should be glowing green… now."
"Yep."
"…Red."
"Yep."
"…Blue."
"Yes."
"Yellow."
"Yes."
"Pur-"
"Caster, I think the launch pad is good" I laughed. "Don't need to turn it into a disco stage."
"A what now?"
"Don't worry about it. Point is I'm good here. Just make sure the world remains stabilized as the opening days play out. That's going to be the real-"
"I'm aware, child! Who was it that told you all of this in the first place?!"
"You, naturally" I laughed again.
"I swear to Zeus…"
"But ok. Good. Seems we're all set on our end, so long as everything works as it did during testing. Now we just need the players to show up."
"Haven't you been checking on their progress?!"
"I mean, no? If I did that, I'd know who my competition was, and that'd be cheating. I know how all the systems of the game work because I created the game, so I already hold that advantage. Same reason why we're doing random start positions and requiring catalysts; keep it all as fair as possible."
"Only you would still consider something of this magnitude as a mere game."
"Why, thank you."
"That wasn't a compliment child! I swear I- No, forget it. Not worth it. You're good on your end by your own declaration, so if anything goes wrong there, it's officially your fault for not going through the rest of the checks. You're on your own and I'm getting back to work maintaining everything else and opening the system."
With a click, Caster's voice stopped coming through the headset. Looking at the clock, there was still eight minutes left to go. Eight minutes of silence then. Or… more like fifteen minutes, more likely. Dealing with magi, after all; wouldn't surprise me if they botch their initial attempt to get in, considering technology is involved.
As it turned out though, the actual answer would fall somewhere in between, with Caster's voice once again coming through the headset about twelve minutes after he'd first disconnected.
"All the spots are filled, including your two VIPs, and forty-eight people are present and counted for in the waiting room. We are good to start; patching you through to the waiting room in five… four… three…"
I took a breath as I heard Caster say two, then counted one in my head as I heard the click indicating Caster had cut communications again.
Showtime.
"Greetings, magi of Earth" I began, immediately switching into the role with ease. "First of all, allow me to congratulate you all on being the first group of people to gain access to the Moon Cell. As I'm certain you've come to discover, gaining access is by no means an easy feat, and I am well aware of how… inept… the vast majority of you magi are when it comes to utilizing technology. If nothing else, take pride in the fact you were able to enter this war in the first place, for achieving that alone is something far greater than most magi of the past thousand years could claim to have achieved."
"Secondly, allow me to alleviate your fears, at least in part. No, this muting and paralysis effect on you all is not permanent. Simply couldn't afford to have any of you start causing issues: wandering about, getting into fights before the war even started, or simply interrupting the proceedings. Now, as I'm sure the smarter ones of you there are wondering, yes, I can have you all put into such a state during the war itself. Naturally, you have my word that I won't do this. You won't believe me, and that is the smart course to take, but fortunately, truth does not require one's belief in it for it to be truth."
"Finally, some of you may be in a panic at the realization that your prized catalyst, ever so important, is nowhere to be found on your persons. Fear not, for the system has analyzed and processed your catalyst, assigned it to your unique Master ID, and will have it delivered to you upon your arrival at your starting position. Oh, and yes, the starting positions are randomized."
…Not that any of them were likely to understand that last bit. Well… maybe Johnathan, but besides him… nah.
"With all that said and out of the way, I hereby pronounce this final Holy Grail War as commenced! Best of luck to you all, magi of Earth, and may the best master win."
With that I made sure to remove my headset and take a final, deep breath as the launch pad I was standing on began to glow.
…To the first step of my royal mile. To the first step towards my destiny…
A tingling sensation began running through my entire body, growing more and more intense with each second. Closing my eyes, I could hear the pad humming to life as my arms had a minor, involuntary spasm, and-
Opening my eyes, everything felt fine as I looked out across a flat expanse of white, with a clear, blue sky above. Turning around, I could see the scanner, the capture point for this territory, a few feet in front of me.
"Well, that confirms I'm not dead" I mused to myself as I willed open the player menu.
Good thing I remembered to create a proper tutorial of the game systems a couple months ago. Caster about blew a gasket when I told him I needed it all implemented at basically the last minute, but… well, kind of hard to have a good game when nobody, save me that is, would know how to even open the god damn map, let alone capture territory.
Having created it all though, I had no need for tutorials on the systems of the game. Thus, my ID was already registered as having read all the tutorial messages. …Not that they couldn't be accessed in a pinch, of course.
But actually… I suppose that would be another advantage I have over the others… They require time to read and try to understand the systems the tutorial was telling them about, whereas I don't. Tempo wise, that gives me a huge lead in the early game.
"Eh, what can I say" I mused at my realization. "Even the greatest game of all isn't fair, so ya gotta cut me some slack…"
As for my starting location though…
"…Well damn" I broke out into a grin as I opened up the map of the world and found the one spot that was visible, which was where I was standing. "Xuchang as the starting point."
Considering who I was summoning, starting in China, anywhere in China, was essentially the perfect starting position, even if the specifics didn't give the technical, optimal start.
As for the summoning itself, I closed the map and went to work immediately, etching a summoning circle into the white ground with my heel. For my catalyst… ok, well, maybe I was cheating here. Slightly. But I mean, come on now! How was someone in my position ever supposed to get their hands on a catalyst?! I have no real mortal wealth, no powerful human connections. Hell, I'm wanted in most countries back on Earth! So yes, technically this was cheating, but I already had a Heroic Spirit agree to answer my summons. In my defense, it's not like I'm about to summon Gilgamesh here!
…Wasn't to say I didn't try doing something like that. Just that I'm not… for reasons...
Once the circle was made, I took a few steps back from it and performed the chant. As I ran through the chant, the circle continued to glow a darker and darker red. Then I finished and had my senses blitzed as the circle emitted a bright white flash.
As I blinked the spots out of my vision, I looked at the back of my left hand. Sure enough, three red markings, ones I hadn't seen in over two decades now, were clearly visible once again.
"So, the war has finally started. I do hope it proves worth the wait."
The sly, playful tone captured my attention and I turned my focus away from my hand and towards the speaker.
Standing in the middle of the summoning circle was a younger man, at least compared to myself and certainly with my Administrator of the Moon Cell. He was wearing robes the colors of mainly blue and white, though parts were black and gold detailing was also present. Black hair, longer than mine but definitely not shoulder length yet, though from the current angle it was a bit hard to accurately tell exact length. Attached at the hip was what appeared to be a sword of some kind, inside a rather decorative scabbard. Finally, being held in his right hand, was a long staff, easily taller than either of us were it to be standing straight up.
"Ah, but I suppose tradition should be stuck to, in this case" he continued, never losing the sly grin as he continued with his musings. "Servant, Caster, answering your summoning as per the agreement. Now tell me, master… what have you planned for the first move?"
A/N
And with this, can consider this work to officially be kicking off and underway!
I've decided that I'm going to put the name of whoever's perspective the chapter is being told from up at the start from here on out (if you can't tell, this means I plan on having many, many perspectives xD). Is this going to be a great idea, or blow up in my face... eh, I don't know?
All I can say is that progress, in anything, is made through experimentation, so why not experiment a bit?
