I do not own Fate/Apocrypha nor any other Servants depicted here.

Muster For Battle

Soft friction of rubber against metal echoed through the empty hall as Caules wheeled his sister back to her room. Not a word was spoken between them. She let out a tired sigh.

"Hmm? Is something wrong, sister?" he asked as he stopped wheeling the chair.

"Huh? No, it's nothing. I'm just a little tired," she replied as she tried to assure him.

"Oh," he murmured as he continued to wheel her on. After a moment he commented, "You know... you led the talks very well today."

"Ah, that... yes, I did. Thank you, Caules," she said rather hesitantly.

"You do not sound too confident in yourself, Master."

The wheelchair halted as the siblings looked at her Servant, who had materialized in front of them.

"Huh, what do you mean, Archer?" she asked calmly.

"When I mentioned having the homunculi pilot the planes," he recounted, "You looked a little unsure. Are you that concerned for their lives? I had thought that the lives of fake humans hold little real value among yourselves, merely fodder for the War."

"I just... do not want to simply waste resources," she tried to explain, "After what Jack did..."

"Previously, there did not seem to be any hesitation," he cut her off, "But now, there is. What had happened the previous night to make your mind so?"

She closed her eyes, unable to maintain eye contact with the lenses of his mask. "It isn't that simple to explain," she began, "After what Jack said..."

"To think a few words would be enough to sow doubt in yourself," her Servant said, sounding quite harsh to their ears, "Regardless of what you are feeling, you need to stand firm. The fate of the world depends on it. If you must throw the homunculi at it, do so. There will be time to grieve later when you survive."

She held on to the armrest quite tightly. Even if what her Servant said was true, how could she not feel for them? Especially after hearing what Jack said. The passion with which he championed the rights of his fellow homunculi touched her. Even if they had no souls to speak of, he talked as if they were real people. She could not help but to slowly think of them not as fodder or objects, but as living beings.

"Hey, you're supposed to be her Servant. Why are you arguing with her?" spoke up Caules as he protested the way the Servant was suddenly treating her. "She even won over Saber of Red's Master. How can you say-"

"That does not convince me," Archer replied calmly, "Will she have the nerve to do what must be done? If she is unable to steel her heart, then what right does she have to command me, who is willing to sacrifice all for a singular goal."

This brought silence.

"We are all that stands between the destruction of this world and its survival. If we cannot do what must be done, then all is lost," stated the military Servant, "Hold on to your bleeding heart all you want. I intend to succeed, even if it means finding another Master to work with."

"You will not harm her, Archer," growled out her brother as he stepped in front of the wheelchair and glared straight into the gleaming eye lenses.

"I had the impression that a magus was willing to do anything to further their craft," stated the military Servant, "Apparently, there are outliers to this method. I will not work with a Master who isn't willing to do anything in their power to win. And that includes taking a life. If you will not work with me, then I will find someone that will." With that, he materialized a combat knife.

"You-"

"Caules, enough."

Both of them sent their attention to her. Head bowed down, hand reaching out to grab her brother's wrist, she muttered, "He is not wrong, Caules."

"But, sister..."

"Remember what happened when we were young?" she asked as she raised her head, eyes unable to meet either of theirs. Her hand began to tighten its grip when she recalled that particular memory. Presumably, her brother did as well, since he fell to silence. Looking straight at her Servant, she said, "I cannot deny what you said. I do feel for them. I... cannot bear to send people to their deaths, even if it means success for us. Perhaps, if I didn't seem them as sentient beings, I would. But now..."

"I understand," the Servant replied, much to their surprise, "Such a mindset would be better suited for more peaceful times. At times like these, not so." Turning to look over to a shocked Caules, "I request transfer to him. He has a keen eye for things, untrained as he is. He is also more willing to make difficult decisions." Looking back to her, who nodded in agreement, he ended with, "That will be all, Master."

As he shifted to spirit form, Caules turned around and kneeled in front of her, holding on to the armrests and asked, "Are you sure about this, sister?"

She let out a sigh and nodded, saying, "I am sure, Caules. I'm sure."

"Hey, can you explain something, Ruler?"

Jeanne blinked and asked, "Saber of Red? Is there a problem?"

"How is Berserker still here?" asked the knight as she thumbed over to the armored Servant, "I thought he would've disappeared already since he betrayed them."

"To be honest, I don't know," muttered the Saint of Orléans as she glanced over to Berserker of Red, "I haven't discerned him too closely while on the Hanging Gardens. Perhaps now would be a good time to do so." Truth be told, she wanted to ask Jack about how he was doing after finding out Berserker of Black's death before they turned in for the night. She waited for the other Masters of Black to disperse before acting on her intentions. That was until she got sidetracked by Saber of Red. Even so, she too was a little curious about the green armored Servant.

She focussed her sight on the Servant of Madness and her eyes gleamed for a moment. A second later, she seemed to stumble back in shock. "What did I just see?" she muttered to herself. The Servant in question just ignored her and continued to seemingly stare blankly into space.

"Eh, what did you see Ruler?" asked the Servant of the Sword, surprised by the other Servant's reaction.

Ruler took in a deep breath as she steadied herself and stated, "Something unprecedented." She then turned to face the knight and said, "Unfortunately, I cannot tell you, as it is connected to his skills."

"That other Ruler called him the Doom Slayer," quipped up Saber of Black as he suddenly materialized, "Does it have to do with that?"

"What the hell are you doing here, bastard Saber?" the knight yelled.

"Making sure you guys aren't doing anything sneaky," he snarked back. Turning back to the Ruler class Servant, "So, know anyone calling themselves Doom Slayer?"

The saint shook her head and replied, "While there are a few who would call themselves a slayer of sorts, none have that as their namesake."

"Huh, that's a dead-end," he muttered as he shrugged. Glancing over at him, Saber of Black asked, "But he's still in this, right?"

Berserker let off something that sounded like a grunt and shifted to spirit mode. "I assure you, he is," affirmed Ruler with confidence.

"Alright, I'm out of questions," admitted the young Servant. He then waved at the others and dematerialized while he said, "Seeya around."

"Hmph, whatever," grumbled Saber of Red. Refocussing her efforts on Ruler, she asked cheekily, "Are you sure you can't tell us?"

The saint sighed.

"Absolutely stupid. How much more stupid can it get?" complained Gordes as he walked down the hall that morning, unable to get that revelation out of his head, "Salvation of mankind? Give me a break..." Suddenly, his foot was caught and he stumbled a bit.

"What in the world is..." his voice trailed off the moment he caught sight of what was in front of him.

The rest of the hall had cloth beds lining both sides, all of them filled with injured homunculi. A few of the medical ones were tending to them, as well as that annoying one called Jack. Even more surprising, he could spot Roche, of all people, at the far end of the hall standing in front of one of the beds.

"I'm sorry, excuse me," apologized Rider from behind him as she brushed against him as she brought a bucket of water to the appointed leader of the homunculi.

Grumbling, he stomped off after her. "Here it is, Jack," said Rider as she handed the bucket to him. He caught sight of Gordes and appealed, "Mr. Muzik, please do not stop us. Many of them are in grave condition."

Looking down at the gulping homunculus in the bed in front of him, he grunted out his disdain as he knelt down and felt her pulse. Then, he ordered, "Open your mouth." Peering inside and making some mental analysis, he stated, "Fools, her breathing system is underdeveloped. There are breathing aids in the magic supply cellar. Bring it, and quick!" He frowned as he looked at their surprised faces. "Hurry!" he shouted at them.

"Ah, yes, sir!" exclaimed Rider as she ran for the cellar.

"Why?" muttered Jack.

"What?" retorted the magus as he sent a glare at him.

"I thought you..." started the homunculus.

"Oh, piss off!" he shouted, his temper reaching a boiling point, "Chaos! Everything is in chaos! Servants! Greater Grail War! Greater Grail! It can all rot in hell! Salvation of mankind?! We wanted nothing so grand. All we wanted was a graceful fight of skilled magic and summoned Servants! Why! Why did it turn to this!?"

"If you want someone to blame, we should blame Amakusa Shirou," said Roche as he neared the two, a female homunculus walking next to him. One of the ground commanders for the homunculi.

"Huh, I suppose," the portly magus grumbled in agreement, "That bastard had a long time to plan this all out." Then, noting who was in front of him, he asked in a puzzled manner, "Roche, what are you doing here?"

"Offering them a chance to continue serving Yggdmillennia," the younger magus explained, "If they choose to accept, I will convert them into golems."

"Hmph, I suppose that's fine for those that are beyond repair," agreed Gordes, disgruntled and wanting to have a final say in this as his creations were his responsibility, "But I will check them first. If they really are beyond saving, do what you want."

"Thank you, Gordes," Roche replied happily as he spun on his heels and walked off without waiting for the commander.

"You are quite a surprising magus," she stated as she addressed them, "You're haughty and short-tempered. A catastrophe of a human."

"Who do you think you are talking to?" retorted the magus, his temper rising again. She dared to talk back at him?

"You are a decent alchemist at least," she ended.

"You... infuriating... guh," he grumbled, unsure of the praise, if it was genuine or not, "You could have worded that better."

"I doubt you would want to be compared to the Einzberns," she pointed out.

"Hmph, our family is not as grand. But we'll catch up," he stated as he looked away. His words were certainly not hollow. He would bring up his family name to be just as good as those German alchemists.

"Is that why you are willing to help?" interrupted Jack, presumably directing it at her.

"When you helped us, you gave us something new," she replied as she glanced over to him, "So, I believe this is the best choice for all of us. It will help continue that."

"Enough, we don't have time to waste," announced Gordes, having had enough of this chatter, "You there! Homunculus!" Several turned over to look at him. Realizing his mistake, he groaned, "Oh, damn it! You ought to have some simple names at least."

"Naming the child is the job of the parent," stated the commander.

"I know that!" he retorted, his temper rising yet again, "I should've added something to make you unconditionally obedient."

"I am sure you have the skill to do that too," she simply said.

"Stop sounding so condescending!" he roared. He simply cannot fathom why this one is constantly talking back at him.

The nerve! This simply has to be Jack's fault. I'm sure of it!

"There. The transfer is complete," declared Ruler softly. Archer's Seals were now behind Caules' hand.

"Thank you, Ruler," acknowledged Fiore quietly as she stared at the back of her own hand, devoid of the Seals.

"With time to spare as well," stated the satisfied Servant as the other Master's started filing into the meeting room. As they took their seats, the Servant of the Bow stated, "Before finalizing our alliance with Saber of Red and her..."

"Oi, call me that again and I'll take your head!"

"...Master, we were discussing our plan to board the Hanging Gardens," he continued, ignoring the childish outburst, "As we have discussed yesterday, we will reach the Gardens via plane. Berserker, Assassin and I will provide covering fire against any summons sent against us. Rider and her wyvern will distract and hopefully defeat Rider of Red, if possible."

"If I may, I have something to add, Archer," interjected Ruler, raising her hand.

"Yes, Ruler?" he asked, allowing her to do so.

"The Hanging Gardens also have magical defenses as well as the flying summons," she informed them.

"That does pose a problem," he agreed. Then, he said, "Then, we shall requisition more planes for distraction."

"We do not have enough resources to get more planes, Archer," Fiore told him, "Even if we could, this is still a waste of homunculi and resources."

"What else could we use except more planes?" he asked, wondering why she was still opposed to this. She was no longer his Master. Such insubordination is foolish.

"The planes are at an airfield within driving distance from here. Commercial airplanes used by civilians," explained Caules with a frown, "Military planes during a secret War is not feasible unless you can summon some yourself as part of your Noble Phantasm."

"Tch, most unfortunate," the Servant grunted. They had enough covering fire but nothing to negate whatever magical defenses on the floating fortress. Most vexing.

A flash of light drew his eyes to Berserker. He was holding a huge blocky weapon in both hands that had a glowing green cylinder in the middle.

"That..." muttered Ruler as she trailed off.

"That's a big fucking gun you have there. Are you showing off or something?" asked Saber of Black in a joking manner.

"Why is he showing that? This doesn't make any sense," complained Gordes, with Celenike agreeing.

"Does he think he could counter Assassin's defenses with that?" asked Sisigou with curiosity

"...Looks kinda cool," Saber of Red admitted begrudgingly.

"Hmph, forgive me if I don't believe that you can just counter the defenses of a fortress with just one gun," stated Archer with certainty.

"...Does it satisfy your concerns when I say it could?" queried Ruler as she got over her silence. Berserker dismissed the giant gun and gave her a thumbs-up before crossing his arms in front.

"Hmph," he sounded and addressed the table, "If it doesn't work, then I shall use my Noble Phantasm to neutralize it."

"Are you sure?" asked Caules.

"Affirmative, Master," confirmed the Servant. It irked him that he had this kind of Noble Phantasm... but, he was willing to make full use of it if it resulted in a victory for his side.

"Aside from that, we could use golems instead of homunculi," suggested Roche, "They understand orders and will execute them well."

"That would be a good thing, Roche," replied Fiore quickly.

"...Very well," muttered Archer. Re-addressing the assembled Masters, "The strategy is finalized." Turning to his new Master, "How soon can we gain control of the planes, Master?"

"Give us one day, Archer," the young magus said firmly.

Archer nodded and declared, "Thank you, Master. Everyone, the meeting is adjourned."

Night had fallen and everyone had retired to their rooms, save for a few homunculi maids that were patrolling the halls only guided by candlelight. One such maid was walking down the carpeted hall when she heard some knocking sounds. Puzzled as well as curious, she diverted from her route and sought out the origin of the sounds. Very slowly, as she passed by one of the doors that led to an unused room, the door opened with a slight creak. She stopped and turned around, catching sight of the white door. She neared the entrance of the room and held up the candle stand. Instead of illuminating the doorway, she was faced with pitch-black darkness. And before she could scream out at the top of her lungs, a large pink tentacle lunged out and wrapped itself around her head, dragging her body into the room. A second tentacle swiped the candle and retreated, putting out the wick before the door closed without a sound.

"How intriguing," commented Miraak as a cultist priest dragged the homunculus maid to the center of the room, her neck already broken, "What use would you have for dead bodies, Caster?" The priest laid out the body next to three others. Two males and a female. They were also in a similar state. One male was a wandering guard while the female was escorting the other male back to the homunculi quarters to rest and recover.

"Hmm, you see, unlike my former Master, who messed around with golems of earth and metal," stated Caster of Black as he waved a gleaming, monochrome hand over the four homunculi bodies, "I experimented with flesh. It is fluid. It can be changed, reshaped and remade."

The bodies began to shudder and vibrate as his unnatural power coursed through them.

"It can be made immortal. Undying."

They began to jerk around and bend into impossible angles.

"I can also bring back the dead."

The four bodies rose to their feet and opened their eyes. A flash of blackness gave way to four pairs of ordinary eyes.

"And now, the remaining Servants will have to be faced with a most difficult choice," declared Caster softly as the four kneeled down to him in seeming reverence.

"Ah, I believe I understand your reasons why," exclaimed the other magic-user. Then, the four lay down on the floor, unmoving.

"Indeed," chuckled the old man with a malicious grin, "Come, let us return. These four will not remember our coming and will go on with their business when they awake. We had best be off until then."

Commentary:-

Welcome back to the next chapter of Doubtful Origin. I hope you are well, dear readers, for we live in troubling times. Thus, I hope this new chapter will lift thy spirits. This chapter... has a whole lot of talking and planning. Yes, there is a lack of fighting but I hope the interactions here cover up most of it. We still have one more day before the planes are ready, so expect more of the same until then. Not to mention I doubt there is much to do in the Hanging Gardens so most of the scenes will be earthbound. Archer now becoming Caules's Servant. More questions popping up surrounding Berserker of Red. And finally, Caster of Black, the Ancestor, making devious preparations. What sort of choice is he going to present to those who would try to stop Amakusa Shirou Tokisada? Soon. Very soon.

But for now... If you're able to, please leave a comment or a review after reading, would you kindly?