"Talking"

'Thinking'

"Mental link"

"Noble Phantasms"

POV

Chapter 38: Preparations for departure.

Servants POV

Lucien sat opposite Cecilia, staring at her with a perfectly blank expression as he took a whetstone over his serrated machete. The Firekeeper remained perfectly calm in the face of the somewhat unknown servant. An almost nostalgic tinge in the air was palpable for the both of them in regards to the silence.

"Thee reminds me of Milord." Cecilia spoke after a few moments, Lucien paused briefly, his hollow eyes flickered over her and then down to his weapon.

"You remind me of a friend." He replied "...Well. Guardian or caretaker would be a better word, I suppose." he looked over to Ash, the servant leaning up against a tree and staring across the camp. "...He has the air of someone cursed an' all."

"As doth thee." Cecilia softly responded, Lucien have a mirthless grunt.

"Doesn't surprise me how we can all recognise eachother for that." He shook his head, placing his hacksaw blade on the ground, the weapon seemed to sink into shadow and out of existence "Some old saying about taking one to know one."

"Is mine own presence uncomfortable for thee?"

"...No." He shook his head "She's not gone. Suppose there is comfort to know that all us blood cursed fools have someone there."

"I mean...Its a pretty big bow." Arash gestured to the weapon lying on the ground, he had a wry smile on his face as he stared at it "How far can you shoot with it?"

"Distance is little concern." Gough waved his hand "In your measurements...Perhaps one hundred leagues."

Arash whistled, slowly nodding his head "Well, I suppose that distance makes sense considering...well…" he gestured to the giant with a smile "That's some pretty impressive range. I can manage at least twenty kilometres. More if I use my Noble Phantasm...but I wouldn't be around to fire off anything after using it."

"Oh?"

"It kills me."

"I see. Tis unfortunate, although thee does not seem saddened by it." Arash shrugged, giving a carefree smile.

"Nothing to be sad about." He nodded back "How fast can you fire?"

"Oh...I prefer to make sure I can hit my targets." Gough chuckled "Although I have never had to compete on speed before." the giant mused, slowly nodding his head, then looking down "Perhaps...Three at once. If we speak consecutively...Perhaps a hundred in a minute."

Arash slowly turned his head to stare at the bow, then thought about the size of the arrows that the weapon would take before he laughed, shaking his head "Well, when you are firing off the type of arrows I think you are, you probably don't need that many." he scratched the back of his neck "My arrows are just normal sized ones."

"Oh, but thou has nimbler hands." Gough pointed out, gesturing with his carving knife before returning to the small item he was working on "Thee can loose more arrows than I, canst thou not?"

"Well, there is that." Arash acknowledged "I could probably do ten thousand if I really put my mind to it."

Gough stopped carving, craning his head to look down at the man "Tis a grand number."

"Mine wouldn't pack as much punch as yours." Arash waved his hand "They're good arrows but they are just regular old arrows." he remained silent for a few moments before a good natured smile came to his face "How about a competition."

"A bout in Archery?" Gough guessed, Arash nodded his head in affirmative.

"When we go and fight the big guy responsible for this. A little friendly competition between Archers."

Gough let out a deep and amused chuckle before he nodded his head "If even half of thy claims hold truth to them, twould be a most grand competition indeed. Very well, proud human. Hawkeye Gough accepts thy challenge with good spirits and open arms."

Masters POV

"The Legion is at half strength, My Emperor." Vespasian explain with a despondent expression "The attack on the city caught us by surprise and whatever that thing was, it wiped us out before most could get to their feat."

"This is most troubling." Nero nodded back, a frown on her face as her green eyes narrowed "They have not attempted to pursue?"

"There have been no attacks since." Vespasian affirmed "However, I fear that they are merely biding their time."

"Why did they stop though?" Ritsuka asked, looking at the pair, the heads of everyone in the room turned to him, he felt his mouth go dry and he licked his lips "S-sorry. Its just that...well...You basically said they had you on the ropes and then they just let you escape."

Vespasian frowned at the interruption but slowly nodded his head "No...You are right. Even with Prefect Solaire and the traveller, they could have still wiped us out." he sighed, rubbing his palm over his forehead "It doesn't make any logical sense as to why they would not press their advantage."

"Unless…" Olga stepped towards the table, looking down at the map of the region with a fixated expression. She pointed towards Vallensium "They advanced here attacked you and Saber, but when they routed you, they went no further."

"Indeed." Vespasian nodded, then frowned "You suspect something?"

"I do." Olga nodded her head, flashing up the communicator "Romani."

"Umm...Yo?" Instead of the Doctor, Kerry was on the monitor. The brunette woman blinked as she stared at the assembled group, her legs resting on the desk. She quickly took them off, folding her arms together and doing her best to look as composed and dignified as possible. "I-" she coughed into her fist "-I mean. This is Chaldea command. How can we help you, Director?"

Ritsuka snickered into his hand, Mash herself was looking no better as she bit her lip to contain the small smile she had, the Master fell silent as the murderous glare Olga sent his way while Mash immediately changed her expression back to being perfectly blank. The pale woman stared at them for a few more moments in irritation before she turned back to the hologram "...Where is the Doctor?"

"He...went to the cafeteria." Kerry scratched the back of her neck and chuckled "He was hungry."

"...Where's Da Vinci?"

"In her workshop." Kerry nodded once, then fell silent as the Director stared at her. The woman eventually blinked in realisation "Oh, you want me to get her no-?"

"Yes!"

"R-right!" Kerry fumbled out of the chair, sprinting out of the room leaving behind an empty seat spinning around in circles.

Olga exhaled slowly, closing her eyes, some part of her hoping that the childish trick of merely pretending no one else was in the room would in some way diminish the feeling of embarrassment she was feeling at the state of Chaldea.

"Is everyone at Chaldea like this, or do you simply feel it best to use jesters as a presenting yourselves?" Sulyvahn's dry comment immediately killed any hope of that plan working. Really, she shouldn't have been surprised in the least at this point.

"I-its not that bad." Ritsuka's strained voice came out "We're just a little...understaffed at the moment." Somehow, his attempts at trying to make excuses for Chaldea didn't make her feel any better. In fact, they made her feel worse, reminding her that the entire reason Chaldea was like that in the first place was because of Lev.

"All dead are they?" Olga furrowed her brows, whirling on the Caster and opening her mouth to ask how he could possibly have known anything about their current situation before he stared at her. His blank wooded, root covered face portraying nothing but an aura of self-assurance "Its a logical conclusion. The only reason I can see behind this display is if the competent workers are dead."

Olga clicked her tongue, looking away from him in a huff. It was unbecoming of her to put on such an emotional display like that, but the last few weeks had really been testing her patience.

What the hell was taking Romani and Da Vinci so long!?

"Although I am curious as to what you find so intriguing about this ma-...Oh. Nevermind. I see it." Sulyvahn's shadow fell over her, his voice sounded mildly interested before it became flat. Olga looked over her shoulder at the taller Caster.

"See what?"

"This city." Caster pointed at Vallenisum "It is situated over a Leyline. Although I suspect you already had suspicions about that and merely wished to confirm them." she opened her mouth to reply when the Caster waved his hand "But yes. It now makes sense why they didn't pursue you, they merely needed access to the Ley line itself."

"For their ritual?" Ritsuka guessed, Olga felt the briefest hints of relief that he was learning, albeit slowly, and was getting to the point where he could make a somewhat educated guess.

"Indeed." Sulyvahn nodded "Or, I suspect at least." he placed both his hands on the table, leaning over it "Although the true question is why."

"Because even with their current Ley Lines and the Grail, they lack power." A feminine voice called out, the room trailed their eyes up to see the form of Da Vinci in the hologram. The woman cupped her chin as she looked the Caster up and down "Yes, I can see you aren't completely human, these readings put you closer to an elemental than a normal Heroic Spirit...hmm...A faerie perhaps." she muttered, then shook her head and beamed at them "Doesn't matter right now I suppose. The genius Leonardo Da Vinci has come to support you all!"

"...At least you don't sound like an imbecile." Sulyvahn retorted "But you would likely be correct. Admittedly, opening a doorway into the Abyss is something that took great effort to achieve. However, records on how to achieve it were non-existent in Anor Londo and I never made a journey to the Cathedral archives."

"And Saint Aldrich is from this Cathedral?"

"That is where he resided during his days as a Cleric." Sulyvahn nodded "After the Church fell to the Deep, Aldrich established his own sect of Religion. He has a grand knowledge of many of the old rituals and sorceries of the Deep, far more so than myself."

"How difficult do you suspect it would be to open up a rift into this Reality Marble?"

"Travelling between worlds is nothing complicated." Sulyvahn replied "Although the Abyss resided as a place outside of the world itself, a separate entity kept at bay by the linking of the fire. You have no such fire to protect you...but you seem to have your own natural defences in place to supplement for this missing element."

Olga slowly widened her eyes and nodded rapidly "Gaia. The World would recognise it as a foreign source, something akin to an infection and work against it."

"Is that right?" Sulyvahn mused "Curious. In any event, this would likely require more effort than Aldrich anticipated."

"Would it stop it altogether?" Da Vinci asked, Sulyvahn remained silent for a few moments before slowly shaking his head.

"No. Whatever worldly defences you have will not hold it indefinitely. It required a curse of cycled time itself to hold the Deep at bay for millennia. Even then, parts still slipped through the cracks and caused outbreaks in the Age of Fire." he interlocked his fingers together "Perhaps it could have halted the Abyss near its conception...but that was before it was denied." he let out a dark chuckle "You are dealing with the soul of Humanity itself. Your own nature, it was denied again and again. The Abyss has long since achieved...perhaps not sentience, but it holds a will of its own."

Olga bit her thumb in thought "It will find a way through then…"

"It will." Sulyvahn nodded "Eventually, all Aldrich needs is to merely open the doorway for but the briefest of moments and that would be enough for the Deep to spread."

"Um…" Nero looked around confused "What does this mean for us?"

"You are working against time." Sulyvahn replied "Aldrich needs more power to complete the ritual, however without knowing his location, we cannot act to prevent him from achieving it."

"And the entire region is blanketed in interference, so we cannot track his precise location." Olga bit her lip, her entire expression turning anxious "Great…"

"Not necessarily." Da Vinci's voice echoed out throughout the room "We cannot track the precise location, but if we sent you the right materials we could follow the drainage." Olga and Sulyvahn turned to the screen she was on "A ritual like this, and the draining of the Leylines themselves, they are naturally going to be travelling towards the epicentre of the ritual."

Sulyvahn cupped his chin, slowly nodding his head "We would need only a general direction. Aldrich prefers safety, thus he would likely fortify himself within the closest citadel. Once we narrow down the direction, we'd need only consult the maps for the region."

"This is the only map we have." Vespasian pointed at the parchment on the tap "We have a few details on barbarian strongholds, but that's it."

"Not to mention the possibility that he has crafted a fortress of his own with the Grail." Olga sighed "With enough magical power, it would be childs play to convert the surroundings into fortress."

"We still need access to a Leyline, right?" Ritsuka stepped up to the table, rubbing the back of his head "And the closest one we know about, that is being affected, is in Vallensium."

"We need to take back the city then." Vespasian sighed "And with the men we have on hand...the closest reinforcements are days away."

"Time that would give Aldrich to advance the ritual further." Sulyvahn pointed out "For all my grievances with him, I cannot deny Gwyndolin's skill in Illusion craft." he nodded towards Olga "You recall the armoured warriors who surrounded us. The Sentinels."

Olga blinked "I thought those Golems of some variety."

"No. Illusions." Sulyvahn dismissed "However, they are illusions with weight behind them. More than enough to match Aldrich's more potent creations." he paused "However, he would require enough magical energy for it."

Olga bit her thumb, then looked at Ritsuka "You're going to need to make a contract with the Gwyndolin."

"H-huh?" Ritsuka blinked, pointing at himself "Me? W-what about you?"

"I…" Olga grit her teeth "I lack the affinity for it. I could only form a contract with Berserker because he effectively lacks any form of will of his own."

"R-right…" Ritsuka nodded his head slowly "But...what about the current servants I have?" he scratched the back of his neck "Am I even going to be able to support him?"

"Your current Archer and Gwyndolin both have Independent Action." Olga replied "They will be able to support themselves without drawing upon too much of your magical reserves for some time."

"O-oh." Ritsuka nervously shrugged "Well...if he's up for it. I'll form a contract with...him?" he looked at Sulyvahn "They...they are a boy right?"

The Caster stared down at him for a few moments before he nodded his head once "Yes, despite his appearance, he is actually male. He wanted to be more like his sister." letting loose a mocking snort, he slowly shook his head "Probably hates himself for it now."

Ritsuka wasn't exactly sure how he was supposed to respond to that, so he settled on an awkward nod before he turned away and walked out of the tent, Mash bowed her head at the group then swiftly followed after him.

"Does the God accept sacrifices?" Nero asked Sulyvahn, the Caster seemed to jolt at the suggestion, looking down at her.

"What manner of sacrifice do you plan to offer him?"

Nero cupped her chin in thought "We don't have any bulls or sheep available." she turned to Vespasian "Do we have any pigs left?"

"We salvaged what we could." Vespasian responded "Mainly dry provisions, we have some pigs. Could sacrifice one of those, my Emperor."

"Umu!" Nero beamed, looking back at the Caster "Would he accept a sacrifice of a pig?"

"Your plan to appease Gwyndolin is to, quite literally, offer up cattle for slaughter to gain his favour?"

"Yes. That is how we treat Gods in Rome." Nero nodded "It is best to communicate with them."

"There is something terribly poetic about this situation." Sulyvahn mused "And I am caught between finding it amusing and insulting that I am to take part in it." shrugging his shoulders, he turned away "In any event, it would be better to offer him a meal rather than simply dumping the animal in front of him and cutting its throat. Although I would advise not letting him suspect I was involved in the preparation of the food."

"Can you not cook?"

"Hardly. I was the best cook in Anor Londo."

Nero blinked "Then why not? If you are so proud of your skills."

"Because poisoning the meals is far easier when you are the one making them." Sulyvahn scoffed "How else could I possibly deal with a Lord?"

"...Does not one else think its risky for someone made of wood to be anywhere near an open fire?" Romani's voice came through, the man having come back for the tail-end of the conversation. "Also, how does he taste test things without a mouth?"

"You ask many stupid questions." Sulyvahn replied "And should consider yourself lucky I am not within arms reach of you."

"And believe me. No one appreciates that more than me right now." Romani chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck and looking away. Olga found her eyes drawn to his hands. Or rather, the plate that was currently in his hands.

"Doctor." She began, her voice deceptively calm, despite the inner rage she could feel building up inside her "Is that a cake?"

"Hm?" Romani blinked, looking down at his confectionery, and then back to the Director, unaware of the impending danger he was in, he nodded once and smiled "Yep. I was surprised we still had some left, although I had to sneak past Marcus to get it, for some reason it was hidden away." he chuckled, taking a small piece out of it with his fork and shovelling it into his mouth "Weird, huh?"

"Romani." The man paused, looking at her "Stop eating my chocolate cake."

The Doctor slowly looked down at the Cake he was eating, widening his eyes in alarm and then looking back at the Director, frozen in realisation and now suddenly aware of the burning rage in her eyes.

Olga's patience had slowly been deteriorating. Seeing Romani, the slouch that he was, eating the cake she had been saving for a special occasion was, for her, the last straw. When he didn't immediately put down the cake and beg for forgiveness, she couldn't take it anymore.

"Stop eating my Chocolate cake!"

Ritsuka POV

"A contract?" Gwyndolin tilted his ever so slightly, Ritsuka felt a heavy pressure on his shoulders as Mash stood next to him. "For what purpose?"

"Well…" Ritsuka rubbed the back of his neck "I...I don't know how much you are aware of Servants...but-"

"Do not believe me ignorant, human." Gwyndolin cut him off with a frown "I am aware of the purpose of a contract between spirit and summoner. I ask for what purpose should I accept?"

"You don't have to." The master held up his hands, giving an easy going smile "Its just in case you want to, I know most independent servants can't really use their Noble Phantasm more than once in most cases."

"Thou art correct." Gwyndolin nodded after a few moments "I strained myself considerably with the illusion of the boat...I could manifest perhaps thirty sentinels for an hour before I exhausted myself."

"Do you...want to-"

"This contract." Gwyndolin muttered "What would it do after the collapse of this deviation?"

"I...I have no idea." He blinked, looking to Mash "What would it do?"

"I'm...not sure Senpai." She furrowed her brow "It might bring him to Chaldea or it might end after, he was summoned in response to the Grail here, so it might be like Cu-san in Fuyuki."

"Ah." Ritsuka nodded his head, turning back to the God "Well...um...There you have it your...Lordship?" he cringed at the title, rubbing the back of his neck "S-sorry if I'm being a little casual...just never met a...um...God before." he paused "Well...not properly."

"Obviously." Gwyndolin huffed "Thy mannerisms are…" he paused "Properly?"

"Ah, yeah." He nodded, then furrowed his brow "Your Father was Gwyn, right?"

Gwyndolin gave a single nod, Ritsuka and Mash's eyes lit up with recognition "Ah, we met your older brother then."

"...Beg thy pardon?"

"Mmmh." Ritsuka nodded "He was a little intense, but he helped us out in the end. Faraam, right?"

"Then there was Arkon-san." Mash pointed out, then winced "Although at the time Faraam-san was out enemy so…"

"Arkon...of the Silver Knights? And…" Gwyndolin seemed struggle to get the words out "And...my older brother?"

"Yeah." Ritsuka nodded.

"...I see." Gwyndolin seemed to slump into his illusionary chair "...So...he made it to this Throne of Heroes…"

"Yes, Gwyndolin-san." Mash nodded her head "It was a big surprise though, Ash-san said that all record of him was...erased...from...the...oh." she slowly paled, realising that it had been their own father who had erased the history of the firstborn. Siegward had explained briefly about Arkon accusing the God of Betrayal.

"Hm?" Ritsuka looked at Mash "What's wro...oh…" he slowly widened his eyes, flickering them back to the God who was remarkably still.

"Spoke with my brother, did you?" He asked in a flat voice, all posturing and appearance of grandeur gone.

"W-well...He…um...Gave us some help...killed the person responsible for the Singularity in the end and...asked us to summon him…" He finished in a quiet voice, looking away from the Lord.

"Ah. Yes." Gwyndolin nodded "That sounds like brother." he looked at Mash "Contract, yes? How is it performed."

"A-ah." Mash blinked "Um...Senpai, you need to you the summoning chant."

"I do?" The Master blinked, then looked at Gwyndolin, coughing into his hand "Are...are you sure?"

"Quickly. Before I change my mind." Ritsuka winced at how tired the God sounded, Gwyndolin couldn't even bring himself to put any heat into the threat.

Ash POV

"Because its he's a God and the last thing I want is him after my head." Ash replied "So I would appreciate it if you did not mention my casual use of Abyssal pyromancy."

"But its-" Beatrice began, then paused, seemingly realising the problem before she slowly nodded her head "Ah, right. Lord of Anor Londo. Very...um...Anti-abyss aren't they?"

"Considering that the world was cursed into a near endless cycle of the flame having to be relit to keep it away. Yes." Ash replied in a dull voice "I would say that were 'Anti-abyss.'"

"Hmm." Beatrice nodded her head, her eyes flickering over to he camp before back to Ash "Am I...am I useful?"

"What?" The saber blinked, looking down at her and raising an eyebrow "What do you mean?"

"I feel...I feel as though I haven't been pulling my weight." Beatrice replied, nervously fidgeting her hands "All the other servants have some special skills to them and have been pulling their weight so far...I...I'm just sort of...here."

"There is no need to be so dour." Ash frowned "I am certain that you will have plenty of opportunities to prove yourself in the future."

"That just means I haven't proven myself so far." Beatrice slumped "I don't even have any special skills beyond making catalysts out of sticks." giving a mirthless huff, she stared down at her staff "My sorcery is average at best, I can't exactly teach it to anyone because I learned on the fly as a hermit...even my Noble Phantasm is false."

"False?"

"'Soul Storm'." She rattled off with a frown "Its nothing more than a high ranked sorcery that I reportedly used once...I didn't even use it. It was a case of mistaken identity. Some other hermit who looked a little like me used it once, and suddenly 'Watch out for the Witch Beatrice'...I'm a fraud."

"I got my sword from a man I killed." Ash shrugged, gesturing to his armour "I looted this from a corpse. My bottomless box is filled with the weapons of better warriors. My strength is gifted to me by merely slaying hollows and other beasts." he scoffed "I'm unkindled to begin with."

"What even is that?"

"It means I was so worthless that I could not even link the fire." Ash chuckled "So worthless that I was turned to dust by the Kiln and then when those who truly linked the Fire abandoned their duty were we raised from our graves to succeed where they failed."

Beatrice remained silent for a few moments before she spoke up "What is 'Linking the fire' anyway?"

"...What?" Ash recoiled "What do you...what?"

"You keep mentioning that but I have no idea what you mean." She went on, tilting her head to the side and flushing with embarrassment "Its...its not important is it? I-I don't look like an idiot right now do I?"

Ash was merely staring at her in shock "You...you're...you're from before it…" he muttered "You…" he bit his lip, looking away for a few moments, his eyes occasionally flicking back to her before his shoulders slumped, a frown came upon his face "The linking of the fire...The world was cursed. It remained cursed for millennia. The fire would be linked, or the Age of Dark would come."

"Alright." Beatrice nodded once "But what does that actually mean?"

"It means undead would empower themselves with Souls and then throw themselves upon the first flame as fuel. Offering their essence to renew the Age of Fire." He explained "I was told that, for a time, the undead curse was cured by the linking of the flame...at least until it began to fade again."

"What...but…" Beatrice widened her eyes in shock, taking a step back "But that…That doesn't...How...how long has it been going on for?"

"Gwyndolin would know the answer to that." He replied "As a Lord and child of Gwyn, he would have lived through all the ages." the unkindled saber sighed, looking up at the sky with a blank expression "Not that linking the flame would have done much good in my Age."

"What do you-"

"There were so few humans left…" Ash murmured "So few indeed."

"Hey! Guys!" Ritsuka's voice called out across the camp, the servants turned their heads in his direction to see him and Mash marching towards the centre "Emperor Nero is about to make a speech!"

"...If its another proposal towards my Firekeeper, I will not be pleased." Ash muttered under his breath.

"My Romans!" Nero proclaimed with a wide grin, throwing her arms to the side and somehow sending rose petals across her makeshift stage. "We have, all of us, been at the mercy of fiends for too long!"

Some murmurs of agreement went out across the camp as the Emperor continued on.

"However! We will no longer be subject to the wicked desires of these barbarians and their beasts!" Waving her right arm in the Direction of the Chaldeans, she went on "With the aid of these Noble travellers, we will march into the heart of this invasion of our glorious Empire, slay the wicked monster who has plagued us for too long, and restore our Empire to its prime!"

Cheers went up as hundreds of fists were enthusiastically pumped into the air.

"Umu!" Nero nodded her head "However! We will need to act fast! We shall not have the luxury of time on our side in this War for our survival! As we are now, I shall lead you brave children of Rome myself!"

"She's better at making speeches than me." Ritsuka whispered to Mash, Verndari leaned down behind him.

"She is an Emperor. I think its expected of her."

"Thought I was attending a theatre for second." Lucien muttered "Where did the flowers come from?" furrowing his brows at the red petals "Didn't even see her bring any of them."

"Are they magic?" Gareth whispered in confusion.

"Magic petals would be a new one." Lucien grunted, taking his hat off and scratching his head "And that would be sayin' something."

"Do you stand with your Emperor!?"

"Yeeeaaaah!"

"Umu! Umu!"

"These guys are going to die." The Hunter sighed as he watched the cheering crowd of Legionnaires. Solaire turned his head, giving the Hunter a disapproving frown from behind his helmet.

"There's not need for that."

"I'm being honest." Lucien grumbled back "These lads are better at killing men. Not beasts."

"True." Solaire nodded "However. You are forgetting one thing, my friend."

"Oh?"

Solaire threw a thumb over his shoulder "We have a Giant." Lucien gave him a slow blink, following the thumb and trailing his eyes up to look at Gough.

"...Fair enough."

Masters POV

"At present, Vallensium lies three days away from here." The Legate spoke first "Capturing the city will be difficult. Worse if those creatures are still lingering there."

"Those can be left to us." Ritsuka stepped forward "We can deal with the enemy Servants." turning to the side, he gave Olga a supportive smile "Right, Director?"

"Of course." The woman smirked "It would be embarrassing for us to be defeated with the numbers we have."

"Very well." Vespasian nodded "We'll need a plan then. The gatehouse will still be destroyed, unless the spiders have webbed over it."

"They don't like the light." Ritsuka responded, barely withholding his shiver at the thought of the spiders again "We can attack during the day. If its webbing we need to worry about, then Ash and Quelaag can burn it away." he paused "And maybe the other Berserker we have. He has like...a furnace in his chest." hesitantly adding on, sending a questioning glance at Nero "Does...Does he catch on Fire, Emperor Nero?"

"I...do not know." The woman responded with shrug "In truth...they simply turned up and decided to guard the gate. I have no knowledge of why."

"Alright then." Ritsuka coughed, turning to Vespasian "We can handle the Servants and then if we defeat them quickly enough, help you with anything else?"

Vespasian stared at him for a few moments before nodding his head "The strategy is bare bones, at best." Ritsuka winced at the blunt assessment before the legate cupped his chin "However, it is a plan none the less. With our timeframe apparently so dire, it is the best we have available to us."

"How quickly can we prepare the troops to march?" Nero asked, leaning forwards and crossing her arms, the Legate scrunched up his face for a few moments before slowly nodding his head in affirmation of his own estimations.

"Within the next day." Gesturing around them "Marching during the night is suicide, the spiders will tear us to bits and with your new friends and the God whose aid you have secured, we will be able to form a workable perimeter."

"Umu." Nodding her head in acknowledgement, Nero turned to Ritsuka and Olga "You are welcome to stay in the best tents we have available. I'm sure that the imperial-"

"What the Fuck!?" Came a rather panicked shout from outside the tent, the four individuals paused in their conversation, each sharing a glance before they span around and rushed outside, only to gape at what they saw.

The Roman's nearby were flat on their asses, all gazing up at the newly sprouted mansion, slap bang in the middle of the camp, having seemingly materialised.

"W-what….what is…" Olga gaped like a fish, Nero following suit.

"I explained my talents before, did I not?" Came Gwyndolins self assured voice, they slowly turned their heads down to the entrance of the decorative building to see the Lord casually standing at the open door. "However, it would have been larger had I been a Caster."

"Um...I…" Ritsuka let out a disbelieving chuckle, shaking his head "I think its pretty impressive as is...um...My Lord?"

Gwyndolin's lip curled down "I would prefer thee not address mine person with insincere titles."

Wincing, the master awkwardly nodded his head once "Should I just call you...Archer then? Or Lord Gwyndolin?"

"The Latter shall suffice." Answering his question, the Lord turned away from him and towards the rest of the group "Is there some issue?"

"Issue?" Nero parroted in shock "Absolutely not!" beaming, she strut forwards towards the Lord, stopping just shy of him and throwing her arms wide while gesturing to his newly constructed house "Umu! This is most spectacular! To think you could make such things from nothing!"

"No…" Olga stepped forwards, cupping her chin "This is...These are illusions, aren't they?"

"Indeed." The Lord nodded "Without myself, they would fade away to nothing."

"Incredible…" She muttered, eyes wide "I...I've never seen Gradiation Air used to such an extent before." squinting her eyes, she stepped forwards and gingerly placed her hand on the wall to the building "And Gaia hasn't even rejected it yet." turning her head back to the God, she widened her eyes at his wording "You said you could be summoned as a Caster?"

"If I had been, the sentinels would have been trivial." Gwyndolin waved his hand "Although my more complicated illusions are beyond me." he looked up "My Nobel Phantasm could only create a false day for but a few minutes."

"...False...day?" Olga squeaked, narrowing her eyes and running her Master vision through them to get a look at the stats of their ally. Then raised her eyebrows up her head, slumping her shoulders in disbelief.

His physical stats were nothing impressive, indeed they would have been better suited for a Caster. His Noble Phantasms on the other hand, were nothing short of high tier. Generating an illusion of the sun or the moon to empower himself or rain arrows down. He was an A rank Caster in the class of an Archer. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry at that.

Ash POV

The unkindled Saber sat down just at the edge of the camp, staring off into the distance as the sounds of the soldiers went about behind him. He would have rested with the Fire Keeper, but she seemed to be having fun holding an actual conversation with some of the other servants.

He'd often seen her smile before, but it was a small thing and one she'd only give him whenever he returned because he was her only true company. Sure, Greirat and the like had spoken with her as well as Andre, but they had little to speak of.

It was pleasing to him that she seemed to find friendly acquaintances so easily, she also held a spring in her step that she had lacked back in Lothric. Perhaps it was because she was experiencing so many new things, in any event, it did make him feel just a bit better.

"So, this is where you skulked off to." Like that, whatever good mood he had, was snuffed out. He frown came about behind his helmet as the familiar voice called out behind him. "Admittedly, acting like a dog to obey commands comes easily to you, does it not?"

Ash didn't respond to him, something that elicited a mild chuckle from the Pontiff as he moved to stand just behind the Saber. "Come now, should you be so cold towards your allies? I had thought those of the Sunlight Covenant relished in...what was it? Jolly co-operation?"

"Do not mock me." He snapped back, shooting to his feet and whirling around to face the Pontiff "And do not think to act so cordial. I am well aware of your true nature, False Pontiff."

"False?" Sulyvahn tilted his head "If there are none who would challenge the title, how could it possibly be false?"

"Massacring a city will leave you with no dissenting voices." The snarl in his voice became more apparent "And you usurped the position, it was not handed to you through any deeds."

"Of course I usurped the position." Sulyvahn scoffed, shaking his head "How else was any form of change going to take place." a single finger was raised "But more importantly than that, I had something I wished to ask you. I feel as though you have been avoiding me."

"You should trust your instincts." Ash growled "They would keep you alive longer."

"Refrain from such displays." Sulyvahn waved his hand "I realise you are angry, but you are merely directing it at me."

"I direct it at your actions!"

"My actions? How do they, in any way, affect you?" The Caster cocked his head to the side "If anything, you should be grateful to me."

"Gra...Grateful!?" The Saber stomped forwards until he was face to face with the Caster, the height difference between the two did little to diminish Ash's stature. "Grateful for your butchery? For you slaughter of hundreds of innocents? Of your servitude to Aldrich!?"

"Oh? Did you want to kill them?" Sulyvahn asked in an innocent voice, Ash froze. His body stilled as the air around them began to heat up.

"What?" Hissing the word through his teeth, Ash clenched his hands.

"You are aware that the entire population of Irythill were devote flame worshippers. Unless you believe that they would have merely stood aside while you abandoned your duty and put an end to their entire religion, you would have had to kill them all to." The wooden face of Sulyvahn creaked, the changes in his facial structure indicated a smile taking place "Not to mention Gwyndolin, he would have had you killed for such things."

"I…"

"You, what? Did that not occur to you until just now?"

"My...disagreements with them, do not give cause for what you did."

"Oh? I merely made their bodies reflect their nature." Chuckling, the Caster stepped back and held his hands out in front of him "Mindless hollows who endlessly chase after a smidgen of fire? Does that not sound familiar."

"You...As a joke!?"

"A very amusing one as well, I found. Quite satisfying as well, putting up with their dogged obsession with that crooked belief was vexing." Shaking his head, Sulyvahn shrugged "And really, is there any great loss? Even if I didn't kill them, they would have likely died in the age of Dark anyway."

"You-"

"Yes, I know about that as well." Sulyvahn mused "A Fire Keeper with eyes? Really. Abyssal Pyromancies in your hand now too? You might as well announce to all you ended the First flame...although you do not strike me as a Lord of Hollows. Hm...must have merely not encountered the Church then." He whispered that last part in a disinterest tone "But tell me, Unkindled...when you allowed the flame to fade, when you watched it sputter out and felt the darkness creep in, what did you feel?"

"Why should it matter to you?"

"Considering you realised my long held goal, I feel as though I deserve some words from my successor." He chuckled "But what was it? Did you feel anger? Glee? Nothing?"

"You have nought the right to discuss what I felt!" Ash shouted back "What I did was necessary!"

"Oh? Was it truly?" There was a mocking tone in Sulyvahn's voice "You must have felt very strongly about it then. I suppose that the First Flame should have known that once the Lords abandoned their duty, the Unkindled it raised would as well."

"Tch." Ash clicked his tongue "It was a pathetic little thing, scarcely brighter than a bonfire. I could have put it out by accident if I had kicked ash over it."

"So that was it then, you felt satisfaction?"

"What would you have me say? That I watched the flame sputter out and laughed? That I watched a thousand cycles come to an end as the dark closed in?" Ash huffed "What reaction would please you?"

"...You have no idea what even happened at the end, did you?"

"No." Ash clicked his tongue, looking away "I was pulled away before the dark had gotten close to me."

Sulyvahn stilled, slowly tilting his head to the side "Is that right...I wonder." he mused, staring away at something before letting out a low chuckle "Not that it matters in the end. Still, I had hoped for a less lacklustre response from an unkindled."

"Disappointing you makes it almost worth it."

"Don't be so juvenile. Watching you attempt to attach your emotions to perceived 'rights' is painful to observe." Sulyvahn pointed a crooked finger at the Saber "Admit it, their deaths mean as much to you as they did to me."

"They could have learned."

"No, they really couldn't. Living under the benevolence of Anor Londo for years robbed them of any potential good they could have done."

"And that is for you to judge?"

"If not me then who? Who else was left in the world that held any hint of sanity." Sulyvahn scoffed "Gwyndolin himself looks as though he just crawled out of Ariamis with the melancholy clinging to him. Even before, he never cared for those people, he never even ensured the linking went on! He merely handed it off to those in Lothric and retired to waste away."

Ash narrowed his eyes "And why did the Twin Princes abandon their duty. They had not even linked the fire before they decided they would not fulfil their oath."

"I was merely a humble tutor." Was the reply he received and a careless shrug of the shoulders from the Caster "I offered my opinion on the world to the Princes and they accepted it. Kill them to did you?"

"…"

"Oh? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised." Sulyvahn sighed "A pity. Prince Lothric was the only one to heed my wisdom, I suppose it was expected that he would be killed for it."

"Don't act as if it is some tragedy to you."

"On the contrary, I am quite saddened by the boys death, I put a great deal of effort into his education." Sulyvahn released a breathless sigh "Not that it should matter to greatly to you. I wonder how many you cut down on your quest to uphold my mission."

"What do you want?"

"I want to hear you say it."

"No."

"Denying the words does not make them any less true."

"Being correct that the flame had to end did not make your mission right either." Ash countered "What does it matter anymore. We're both dead and that world probably followed suit."

"That is what is so strange to me, you don't seem to concerned about it." Cupping his chin, Sulyvahn paced around the Saber "Now, the Fire keeper, even with her eyes, would have given vague warnings, Aldrich was like that, but you seem confident in something else...Ah. I see." he paused, slowly turning back to Ash "Found Aria did you?"

"How do you know about her?"

"I come from the painted world, fool." Sulyvahn snarked "Of course I would know about her. Although we never met, Sister Friede was very good at hiding that from me." he suddenly paused, looking at Ash "Kill her as well?"

"Yes."

"Hm." Sulyvahn gave an uncaring shrug "Fair enough. No great loss, what made her wield her scythe against you? Tried to burn away the rot?"

"...Yes."

"That would do it." The Caster mused "I suppose that means Ariandel is dead, simpleton that he was….Let me guess…Gael led you to the painting."

Ash jolted "How did you-"

"Who do you think told me of Aria?" Sulyvahn let out another quiet chuckle as he turned away, striding back towards the camp "But I am satisfied, my questions have been answered."

Ash remained where he was, watching the Caster disappear off back into the camp before he let out a huff of annoyance and turned around to face the outside of their perimeter, he quietly watched as the sun began to set in the distance.

Next Day POV

"Right, everyone!" Ritsuka cleared his throat as he addressed the servants, Olga and Mash were stood next to him "We're going to take up the vanguard position, we'll advance and deal with the more dangerous targets while the Romans come in behind us and sweep up what's left."

Verndari raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"My Liege, are the giant and Arash going to be providing support from the distance?"

"Yeah." Ritsuka nodded, looking to the two archers "Gough and Arash are going to use their range to support any targets we can see." his eyes slowly drifted to Gwyndolin "I...Are you going to help them, Lord Gwyndolin?"

"Hawkeye Gough is a better Archer than I." Gwyndolin replied "My sorceries would be better served on the battlefield."

"Right." Ritsuka nodded, turning back to Verndari "There you have it, Gough and Arash are going to provide cover fire for us-"

"They're going to set us on fire?" Beatrice squeaked.

"What? N-no! Its an expression!"

"O-oh...sorry."

"N-no...no harm." Ritsuka shook his head "Anyway. The two Berserkers…" he paused, turning to Olga "Can I or are you going to say it?"

"You have already begun." Olga waved her hand "And it would do you well to act the part of a competent Master."

"Okay." Turning back, he went on "The two Berserkers are going to be our heavy hitters, they'll be dealing with the nasty things made from corpses, and if he's there, Vordt." he snapped his fingers and pointed further down the line "Gareth and Sif are our fast hitters, they'll be running around doing causing as much chaos as possible. Ash and Quelaag are our resident flame users, so if the spiders appear, that's on you."

"You could at least look me in the eyes when you give me orders." Quelaag joked with a smirk on her face at the fact that Ritsuka was very pointedly not looking in her direction.

"To joke with the human so...you must be quite fond of him."

"S-shut up! I'm not fond of him! It's funny to watch him squirm around like that!"

"Quelaag-san, does that mean you're warming up to us?" Mash asked in a hopeful tone of voice, a bright glow in her eyes, causing the Rider to sulk and look away from her, only to be met with Gough amused laughter.

"Moving on." Ritsuka cleared his throat "While that's happening, Sulyvahn, Lord Gwyndolin and Beatrice are going to be our mid range support because of their use of Spells and such."

"What about Solaire and the Hunter?" Ash asked, crossing his arms "Where shall they be?"

"Solaire, the Hunter and...Cecilia." Ritsuka winced at Ash suddenly stilling "Have offered to run interference, they'll be attacking the small opponents and the weird thing if it appears."

"The Firekeeper. My Firekeepers, is on the front line?"

"She said she can summon a copy of you and that she wanted to help." Ritsuka offered "I wasn't really going to turn her down after than."

"...Fair enough." Ash shrugged "She can be quite stubborn."

"Myself, Olga and Mash are going to be with the Emperor." Ritsuka went on "...Who wanted to be on the frontline as well."

"What?" Olga's head snapped to him so fast "When was I included in that!?"

"Well...Nero commanded it." Ritsuka cringed "She said she wanted the 'pale rose' to behold her magnificence."

"Forget her 'magnificence' she's human you dullard!" Olga snapped "She'll be cut down the first chance that some freakish spider familiar catches her in its sight!"

"See, I thought so to." Ritsuka nodded his head "Then I watched her snap a steel sword with her bare hands."

"...Eh?"

"Its true, Director." Romani's face popped up "She's human, no doubt about it, but her reading are on par with a Servant." he shrugged "I can't explain it, perhaps she's being empowered by the Counter force?"

Olga opened her mouth to argue, then snapped it shut and furrowed her brows "That...makes a disturbing amount of sense." she frowned, crossing her arms "It would also lend credence to the reports that she fought the spiders herself." shaking her head "Regardless, it is is...good plan." she nodded once, a small smile playing on her face "Well done."

"Huh...you must have done something right Fujimaru." Romani grinned "I rarely see her do that."

"Shut up, slouch." Olga hissed at him "I'm still getting you back for that cake."

Romani made a noise akin to a scared cat.

AN: Long chapter this time.

Figured I probably should start making them longer, means I don't spend as much time on differing arcs.

But yes...I have decided…

To do all the Events as well.

Which means that after this Singularity is finished…

Someone is going to Raid Chaldea for Dumplings.