Just an Avenger (II)
Rin woke up late in the morning. Saber was sitting on the armchair next to the windows. "Good morning, Rin."
Rin threw her legs off the bed without a word. It didn't feel like a good morning by any stretch of the imagination.
"I'm going to take a shower. Could you please take care of breakfast?" "I will arrange something," Saber agreed.
Rin was still hung up over Saber's lies. Truthfully they weren't that big of a deal, but they came as yet another blow when Rin was already down for the count. She wasn't in a forgiving mood at that moment.
She went to the bathroom and took off the clothes she had been wearing since the previous day. The same clothes that had a hole in the chest where Lancer's spear had pierced her. The young skin was completely unblemished. The power of Avalon was such that even an attack from a cursed Noble Phantasm had been healed without a trace.
She wanted to punch the naked figure in the mirror. Once again, she had lost someone precious to her. Given the opportunity, she would have smacked that idiot over the head for putting this on her. He really couldn't think of himself even for a moment.
She didn't even know what she should hope for. Would it be better if he was completely gone or if he was trapped inside of his own body while Angra Mainyu did whatever nefarious thing he set out to do? Was there even any way to bring him back?
As a Magus, she knew she shouldn't jeopardize the greater goal for his sake. She also knew that he wouldn't want it either. There was a reason he gave Rider the command to ditch him. Speaking of whom, Rin had no idea where Rider had run off to. Without Shirou to control her, she was a severe liability.
She had no allies left other than Saber, and the enemies counted Kotomine, Lancer, Gilgamesh, Zouken, and that weird Shadow. Plus, there was still one seal left to undo. Though, to be fair, that was the part that worried her the least. Even if she couldn't close it, it could be easily contained, thanks to the barrier around the mountain.
She shook her head and stepped into the shower. Plans were better made on a full stomach.
Cleaning up was a quick affair, then she quickly got dressed and went to the dining room, where Saber had arranged a simple breakfast. They ate silently, and only once she was done drinking her tea did Rin speak again.
"So... let's talk about all possible courses of action," Rin said.
Saber nodded.
"What do you think is the most sensible one?"
"Of all the Servants left, who do you think is most likely to win?"
"Gilgamesh, no doubt. With his vast array of Noble Phantasms and that other thing..." "Agreed. ...Do you think you could take him?"
"With Avalon, I would certainly have a chance. It is said to be able to hold even the Five True Magics at bay. It might give me a window of opportunity to strike him down. The problem, however, is not direct combat. You have already been targeted once. If I take Avalon from you and head into combat, you will be left vulnerable."
The Masters were the weak spot of all Servants, minus those who had achieved true incarnation like Rider and Gilgamesh. The best way to take down Saber was to kill Rin, something that Lancer had already tried to do. As long as she had Avalon within herself though, her survivability was much higher, and by extension so was Saber's.
"I will hold onto it for now and give it to you when it's time to deal with Gilgamesh."
"Let's settle for that for now," Saber agreed. "What else do we have to work with?"
Rin drummed her fingers on the table.
"It's a long shot but... Emiya's Workshop might have something that could make a difference."
Saber arched an eyebrow.
"Very well. We might as well head there immediately if that's the case," Saber said as she got up to her feet. "What are we looking for, exactly?"
"The method to reforge a broken sword."
[br]
Illyasviel was not amused. Waking up with a headache and her arms and feet bound was not her idea of a good morning. Additionally, she was in a bedroom without windows, suggesting some kind of basement. But the real rock bottom was the company.
"Good morning, Einzbern-san."
"Kotomine. To what I owe the pleasure?" her voice was dripping with sarcasm.
"Do forgive these admittedly poor accommodations. Unfortunately, my ability as a host has been somewhat curtailed by recent events."
"Maybe if you stuck to your job as a supervisor, we wouldn't be having this problem," she replied, to which Kotomine gave her an empty smile.
"Perhaps," he conceded. "But that is not the kind of criticism someone from your family can make, considering that this irregular Grail War is entirely the result of the Einzberns' poor attempts at cheating."
"What do you want from me, Kotomine?" she asked.
"You are the Lesser Grail. That alone should be sufficient motivation for holding onto you."
"I am the Lesser Grail anywhere. Lugging me around does you no favor."
"Hm. Well, it's not so much about the container but the contents. Specifically the soul of Servant Caster, which you now hold within you."
"You speak of it as if that's an unintended situation. The souls of the fallen Servants are stored within the Lesser Grail until there's enough of them to activate the Greater Grail."
"You are correct. It would not be anything out of the ordinary if there were just one Lesser Grail as intended. Unfortunately, there is another, and that means that the souls of the deceased Servants are instead split between them. It won't be possible to have a full activation until all are gathered."
"You want to use me as bait to lure Zouken out," she concluded.
"I'm glad we understand each other. Now Einzbern-san, will you try to run if I untie you?" he asked, holding up a knife.
"Where could I possibly run to, Kotomine? I'm the Lesser Grail no matter where I am, and you are right in saying that Zouken will come for me eventually. Everything else being equal, it suits me just fine if the two of you have a swing at each other. No matter who wins or loses, it's a net gain for the world," she replied as Kotomine cut off the rope binding her. "You, however, have a different problem on your hands. I'm the only person who can remove Caster's countermeasures, seeing as you have killed the other one."
"Yes. Another reason why holding onto you will draw Zouken to me. Even if he could make up the difference for the absence of Caster's soul with the souls of Servants of higher quality, such as your Berserker's, he still cannot have his wish without you. He must come to me."
"Hm. He won't be such an easy mark, and you forget that there are other players still on the board."
"Oh, I am very well aware of that, but you needn't worry about it. I have prepared my own method of dealing with them."
"Well, I look forward to seeing what you have in store. That being said, I think it's almost time for lunch, and I hunger. Bring me something to eat."
"I will have something delivered soon," he said. "Since I can't risk having you wander off, I will lock the door to this room once I depart, but there is some reading material on that shelf there and a bathroom behind that door. I trust you can keep yourself entertained without causing any trouble?"
"Yes, yes. Run along now," she said dismissively.
Kotomine gave her a slight nod and walked out, locking the door behind him.
Illya sat on the bed and massaged her wrists where the rope had left its signs. She let out a sigh and brought a hand to her chest.
"You are such a troublesome woman," she said, looking down at her chest. "Whatever shall I do with you?"
The soul within her couldn't speak, but it was still part of Illya now, and emotions didn't require words in order to be conveyed.
"My idiot brother had better stay out of this," she said, even though she knew perfectly well he wouldn't.
He was running out of things to lose, and she didn't want to see what would become of him when it happened. To think that she had gone from wanting to kill him to worrying about his feelings. How did she change so much in so little time? Was it not sharing Berserker's rage anymore, or was it having direct access to Caster's soul?
Perhaps both. Yet, for all that had changed, some things stayed the same, and the inevitable was looming closer and closer with each passing moment.
[br]
Rin spent a few hours going through the notes inside Emiya's Workshop. There was lots of material to cover. Some things came directly from Caster. In all honesty, these notes alone were a fortune. But unfortunately, she couldn't process it all and had to make use of it in a short time. It wasn't just a matter of differences in Magecraft either; she didn't have the experience of a sword-maker. Emiya might have been able to achieve it, but he was no longer with them.
Rin took out a bag and stared at its contents—a shattered blade made of Jewels. Zelretch's broken Mystic Code, which he had left behind as a sort of test to her family. A test that they had yet to resolve after well over two hundred years. She had found it in that damnable chest that had kept her and Saber as its prisoners for days, and there hadn't been the chance to approach Emiya with the request to fix it.
No, she wouldn't have asked. It was up to her family to find a way to do it. She was only considering it now because they were in a bind. Otherwise, she would have waited until after the war and asked him to teach her. Knowing him, he would have agreed without even asking for any compensation, though Caster might have protested.
None of that was possible now, and the Jeweled Sword would remain incomplete. "Did you find anything useful?" Saber asked.
"Yes and no. Nothing that I could use in the short term. I might revisit later though, after the war."
A statement full of implications, none of which were addressed by either of them.
"What now?"
"I guess we should- Saber? What's wrong?" Rin asked.
"There's somebody outside," Saber replied, focusing her senses on the ceiling above them. "Not a Servant."
"Fujimura?"
"They are not her footsteps. I will go first."
Saber wasn't afraid of any human. The only person to give her something close to a challenge was Shirou, and that was when she was holding back most of her strength. Rin followed after her and up the stairs, only to find a person she never thought she would see in these circumstances.
A woman with pale gray hair, wearing casual clothes consisting of a loose hoodie under which bandages could be seen, just like the first time they met. Incidentally, right there at Emiya's place like now.
"Good afternoon, Tohsaka-san."
"Caren Ortensia," said Rin, recognizing her on the spot even though they had only met once before. "Why are you here?"
"I was looking for Shirou. I've been searching for him for quite a while now. What happened to him?"
The Church was technically only an observer in the Grail War, but that neutrality was lost when their appointed supervisor stole a Servant and joined the conflict. Rin was, therefore, very guarded against Caren.
"What makes you think something happened?"
"For starters, you have just avoided answering my question. Then there is the fact that he hasn't been answering his phone and that this place has been empty every time I came here looking for him the past few days. And lastly, you just walked out of his Workshop as if it's public property."
"Why should I tell you anything?"
"So, it's that bad," the nun in disguise sighed.
Rin gritted her teeth. Speaking with this woman was frustrating. Every word that came out of Rin's mouth was used against her. It was like talking with Kotomine. Maybe it was a skill necessary to join the Church.
"Has anybody ever told you that you are extremely annoying?"
"Quite often, yes. Please forgive me. That's just the way I am."
Saber held up her hand to stop Rin from speaking further.
"Rin, perhaps this person might have something of worth to offer. She is someone Shirou trusts. We stand to lose nothing from sharing what we know with her."
"Emiya might have trusted her, but I do not."
"One of you speaks as if Shirou is dead while the other speaks as if he is still alive. This is very frustrating."
Saber looked pointedly at Rin.
"Unless we are resolved to head out now, we might as well have this conversation," Saber advised, "or she's going to ferret what she wants out of us piece by piece."
"Fine," Rin sighed, "but I'm not having this conversation here. Let's move inside the main house."
So they did and walked into Emiya's living room.
"I'm making myself some tea," Rin declared, "would you like some?"
It was as much of an olive branch as she was willing to offer. It wasn't her house, but Rin knew that Shirou would have appreciated it if she treated Caren as a guest.
"Yes, please," Caren replied as she sat at the table.
Minutes later, the three of them were sitting down and drinking together.
"Before I say anything, why have you been looking for Emiya and why are you not wearing your uniform for the Church?"
"The long and short answer is that I've had a fallout with my superiors, and I've been laying low for some time. He and I have been in regular contact until recently.
"He never told us anything about that."
"Does he usually tell you of all the people he helps?"
"What happened with the Church that you had to flee?" Saber asked.
"I was framed for a crime I did not commit. I had to flee in order to prove my innocence. He offered to shelter me and help resolve the situation after the War."
"That is something Shirou would do," Saber agreed.
"...Alright, this is what happened, to the best of my knowledge," Rin said before launching into an explanation of the events of the previous days. Even while only sticking to the things which held any significance, it still took about half an hour to go through everything.
"...So Shirou was taken over by Angra Mainyu. I see," Caren said. Her face was sorrowful.
"Why is it that you don't seem surprised by any of this?" Rin asked. "Did you know something?"
"There were hints right from my first encounter with him. I have a condition called 'Masochistic Spiritualist Constitution' that makes me experience the symptoms of other people's possession."
"Is that the reason for your wounds?" Saber asked, hinting at the bandages under her clothes. She recalled seeing them even when they first met.
"That's correct. When we worked together in Misaki months ago, I had a brief episode around Shirou. We were chasing another possessed individual, and since I was near Shirou most of the time without symptoms, I believed the origin of my reaction was from our target."
"So it is as we suspected," Saber sorrowfully noted. "He has been the host of Angra Mainyu since the end of the last War, and Avalon kept it in check all this time. And he gave up that protection in order to save Rin."
"Yes, there are no doubts about it anymore, assuming there even were still any. I have a question for you now, Ortensia. Can you do something to help us? You are capable of performing exorcisms, right?" Rin asked.
"I can certainly perform an exorcism, but once the host has been fully taken over, the process will kill them. In this sense, it's more of a mercy to kill them. Far more painless too."
"What is the cause of death in this case?" asked Saber. "Is it a physical or metaphysical reason?"
"It's both. The spirit has fully taken root inside the host in cases of complete possession, and forcing it to leave will tear the host's body and mind apart. A... particularly resilient person might survive one or the other, but never both."
Saber and Rin exchanged a look.
"So, if we could hypothetically make sure that the body doesn't die, there is a chance that the host, Shirou, could recover?" Rin asked.
"Do you mean by putting Avalon inside of him? Are you certain it would work?"
"As long as I'm in close proximity, it will," Saber said. "Though we will still have to keep him subdued long enough for the exorcism to be performed."
"We can just cut his limbs," Rin said.
"Rin!"
"What? They will heal, and besides the exorcism itself won't be any better."
"That is true," Caren agreed. "But there is no need for anything that drastic. My Shroud of Magdalene can subdue and restrain any male as long as no harm is inflicted upon them. It will hold him until the exorcism is complete. Regardless, do you understand that while Shirou might survive, he'll probably wish he was dead? It is not a kind thing we'll be doing to him."
"Well, then, he shouldn't have saved my life without expecting me to return the favor. I'll listen to his complaints once I'm done airing my own grievances. Now, are you going to help us, Ortensia?"
"Of course, I will do everything I can to help Shirou. It is my duty to guide the Lord's flock back to His light."
"It's decided then," Saber agreed. "The problem now is how to find him."
"I'm sure he'll make his presence known soon enough," said Caren. "We just need to wait and watch. Let's meet again tonight, in this place. There are some things I need to take care of in the meantime."
"Are you going to be safe?" Rin asked.
"You don't need to worry about me. I managed to escape from Rome all the way here with the Church's agents following after me every step of the way. I will be fine."
Anyone who worked for the Burial Agency had at least a few methods to defend themselves.
"I will see you back here later then," Rin said.
Caren nodded and got up, leaving the house to Rin and Saber.
Rin allowed herself to let out a sigh with something akin to relief. Their problems were far from being fixed, but at least now they had found a possible solution to one of them. If they could bring Emiya back, then Rider would return too. It was still a dangerous task, and there were no guarantees of success. But as long as there was even just one path to victory, then Rin could give it her all.
"Alright, we should head back as well and prepare for what'll come later. We need to be able to act at a moment's notice."
"Of course, Rin," Saber agreed.
They quickly left the Emiya household with far more hope for the future than they had started the day with.
[br]
Deep in the darkness, something stirred. The sounds of wooden sandals and a cane echoed on the rocks. The figure of a hunched old man with sunken eyes appeared.
"Truly an annoying man, that priest," he murmured.
Kotomine Kirei was a dangerous man, and Zouken had made a point of staying out of his way as much as possible these past ten years. They were what one could call 'natural enemies'. Not just because Kotomine was a priest, and Zouken was a Magus on top of an abomination. They were like oil and water. Coexistence was simply impossible.
Now Kotomine had gotten his hands on something Zouken wanted, with the intention of drawing him into a confrontation. If things were different Zouken might have actually had to, but that wasn't the case anymore.
His mouth split into a bone-chilling smile as he looked up at the massive figure in front of him. Blinded and stripped of his skin, the bleeding form of Berserker was bound by dark tendrils.
The demigod was probably aware of Zouken's presence, but ignored it. Madness clouded every corner of his mind now, and Zouken didn't register as a threat or even a subject of passing interest to his senses. He was just an insect among insects.
It was truly a stroke of luck that Zouken's creation had managed to acquire him before he died. Had he been any other Magus, it would have been too late. But the Einzbern weren't the only ones who could cheat the Grail. As the creator of the Command Seal system, Zouken had forced the Grail to give him a set. While the summoning of a new Servant still wasn't possible, he used one of his Commands to force Berserker to 'survive.'
Granted, if this had been any other Heroic Spirit, his order would have merely postponed the inevitable by a little bit, but Herakles was not a run-of-the-mill hero. Even with all of his twelve lives consumed, he still stubbornly carried on through sheer willpower. With Zouken's Command Seal to back him up, he could last long enough for God's Hand to reset, and all of his lives would be restored.
Only a few more hours, and the full might of Herakles would be at his command. Then he would go and fetch the Einzbern Grail. He would like to see Kotomine try to stop him then. The decrepit Magus paid no attention to the other figure in the vicinity. A girl with purple hair suspended in mid-air by the same black tendrils that bound Berserker.
Her eyes were closed, and her breath came in slowly, but she wasn't asleep. Her face was twisted in pain and her skin was marred by sweat. The occasional moan was all that came from her mouth, even though she was suffering a kind of pain that would cripple a grown man in mere moments.
Even now, in spite of having lost all hope for herself, she still refused to break. It would be so much easier to give in and let go of herself. And yet, she still struggled. She still had something that made her refuse to give up.
"Sen... pai."
Her voice was lost in the darkness and drowned out by the wind, with no one to listen to her except the looming consciousness that had been attached to her own. She had to keep it at bay or the world in which he lived would be lost forever. She had to protect that, at least.
It was the only thing that she could do, after all. [XXX]