Not-yet-summer resort: XII

Another member of the family and suddenly their interest in Gawyn - Ash - made a great deal more sense. Though he was less inclined to believe the motives of this one at this point, even if a warning from Gwynevere wasn't something he was inclined to hold much value in at the present time, there was something about the Lancer which set him on edge.

Nahr Alma, the God of Blood.

Even without Gwynevere's warning, he would have been put on edge by a title like that alone, combined with the way they dressed and their choice of weaponry. He held more in common with some sort of grim reaper than any of the other Gods he had encountered thus far, the lack of demand for respect as well.

He hadn't announced their divinity and had kept their name secret.

Like it didn't matter to them.

But even without their relation with Ash and Gwynevere, there was still another matter that demanded his attention. Especially because of the nature of it.

His eyes moved towards Medusa, having regrouped with them but never having for a second taken their eyes off of 'Chris' if that was even their real name in the first place. It was probably an abbreviation of something and he got a very strong feeling he knew what their real name actually was.

"Mother."

The words escaped his lip in a flat tone of voice.

Medusa flinched for a moment but did not turn her head to him, though it was an acknowledgement from them. That would have to be the best he actually got from them in terms of a reply, not that he blamed her for being cautious.

The communicator flashed up.

"Gwynevere has healed everyone and even some of the worst damage to Gareth has been restored to before it was ever done."

To say Romani sounded impressed would have been an understatement, his awe filled tone briefly had him turn his eyes onto the doctor. Though there was an undercurrent to his voice that went beyond being amazed by the power of the Goddess. There was a great deal of relief in his words.

And he knew why that was.

"Thank you for your help, Goddess." Romani bowed his head ever so slightly, directing his attention to the Goddess that was somewhere behind him.

"Your gratitude…" Ritsuka turned his head to the Goddess and kept his expression even, his eyes landing on the way that the tall woman swept her fingers through Mash's hair, evening out some of the more unkempt parts.

Her head raised itself back up, eyes lingered on him for a moment before she shifted aim and onto the doctor. The smile on the face of the woman turned softer, inclining her head ever so slightly towards them.

"It is appreciated, but no thanks is needed for such an act…I have a strong dislike for such needless bloodshed. If it is within my power-"

An exaggerated gagging sound cut her off, the features of the Goddess flattened and a deadpan gaze switched to the direction of the noise. Ritsuka followed along with her gaze and found himself staring at Nahr Alma

The God rolled his eyes before waving a hand. "She's going to go on for another hour if you let her. Just accept their thanks and be on your way, mother. I've never seen a pitcher plant endure long in the presence of actual predators."

"...Then it would seem there is nothing left for me to do." Gwynevere answered blandly, her eyes flickered to him once more and a brow raised. "Unless you would prefer for me to remain and lend my expertise on the matter further…but we both know that whatever aid I offered is one that you would not trust so easily."

His lips pulled thin.

He answered after a second. "Thank you for answering and if we need you again, I will call." he could have sworn she looked a touch surprised at the fact he actually thanked her for the help, but he wasn't going to dismiss what she had done was indeed a good job. "Please spread a little warning when you return, just for the others to be on edge in case something happens."

Gwynevere nodded once, not offering a reply and then started to dissipate into thin air. Vanishing away to wherever she had been before he had called her down here. His eyes lingered on the spot she had vanished, then his gaze was pulled back towards the direction of Medusa.

"Well?"

The Rider rolled her jaw from side to side before replying slowly. "I did not believe it was them. The chances of encountering them were nonexistent. There was nothing that should have allowed for their summoning. The Throne made an exception for me only in that I was…different before I became the Gorgon."

"But Chrysaor was born a monster." Da Vinci's voice supplied. "It would be akin to summoning the Echidna or the Cerberus. Something that wouldn't make even an ounce of sense with the benefit of hindsight…at least for what we know of the Throne. They require some connection with humanity, after all."

And Medusa used to be a Goddess before her fall, he understood that part.

"And yet that right there is something that claims to be your child." He pointed across the room towards Chris, she didn't look as though she even acknowledged he was pointing at them, not in the same way that Medusa did. "And they seem pretty convinced of it, same as you do…are they?"

"...Yes."

Medusa's answer was quiet, barely above a whisper, but he heard it.

His arm dropped back down to his side, he looked over the expression of the Rider and then towards the Saber, he fought back a flinch when she met eyes once again but not for long. The Servant mounted her sunglasses over her face once again and covered up their slitted orbs.

"How long did you know?"

"...I wasn't certain until they admitted it." The Rider replied slowly, turning her head and staring down at him from the corner of her eye for half a second before breaking contact. A sigh escaped them. "But I suspected they were not as you claimed, I would have known another version of me, just as my sisters would have. This…was not another version of me. No matter how they appeared."

"You would not recognise your own blood?" Berserker demanded, stepping forwards and frowning. Ritsuka noted the disapproval in his tone of voice, but he suspected the matter wasn't as simple as he was making it out to be.

"They were born from my death, I never saw them." Medusa answered back swiftly, her gaze fell onto the Servant with a sharpness in her words. "I knew nothing of them until I was summoned, my time as the Gorgon remains as a haze. All I know is that…something was born of my death and fathered what would become the Greek Monsters."

"All of which is moot now."

The declaration from Gawyn was accompanied by the Saber stepping forwards, moving in front of him and with his sword drawn and clenched tightly in his hands. As expected, he was acting much more protectively ever since the fighting had died down.

"They have attacked us for a reason and it lies beyond that door. I am not so convinced that they would stand down on the words of any other than their lord." Gawyn let out a shuddering breath as he continued on. "Regardless of whom the speaker would be or what relation they have to Queen Gwynevere."

Alma turned his head to Gawyn, raising a brow at them before speaking. "You could say that you're upset that she tried to kill your Master, brother. It is a much more honest answer than flapping your lips and speaking with the words of that hag-"

"You shut your mouth!"

The smile that blossomed across the face of Alma was positively ecstatic, his eyes glowed with something. "Oh?~ That sounded like a rather aggressive tone of voice there…I've never heard of a blade getting angry before…and would anger not cloud your duty and make you act carelessly…we wouldn't want that now, would we brother?"

"You-"

"Enough."

Gawyn fell silent, Boudica rested a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back a few steps.

The Rider glared at the Lancer, "Unless you have something else to say, I'd ask you not to start provoking us now. Especially not when we're as likely to trust you as we are to draw swords and start killing one another again."

"...Feisty one, I like you." An approving nod of the head from Lancer, met only with a disinterested grunt from Boudica which indicated how little the praise actually meant to her and, quite frankly, Ritsuka wasn't sure what praise from this person was actually like in the first place either.

Raising his hands, Alma stepped back and looked utterly uncaring for anything that was happening. "Alright, I can keep quiet and let this situation play out…it is going to be much more interesting that way."

Alma's grin told Ritsuka that he knew something was going to happen and he wasn't sure he liked what their definition of 'interesting' was going to be. Though that would have to wait and see, he'd not seen the Lancer do anything wrong so far but there was just something about them that put him on edge. Like being sat next to a tiger and just waiting for the moment where it would snap.

A body covered in tribal cave paintings didn't do much to alleviate his concerns either.

"Gawyn."

His gentle urging brought the Saber back to him, he stepped back and fell to his side once more without another word. Despite how much it looked as though he wanted to say more, reaching up and slamming his helmet closed with a rather aggressive movement. Making it apparent he was still glaring in the direction of the Lancer.

Gawyn didn't like or trust them and Ritsuka would put his faith in the Saber, but he would admit that the intervention of the Lancer had helped them.

"Da Vinci?"

"Readings from through the door have remained unchanged. Not even so much as a twitch from all the magical energy that was being thrown around fairly close to it."

The Casters words were tinged with an undercurrent of concern, apprehension clear in her sentence.

"Given that we had some very powerful Servants battling not too far from them, it tells me that whatever is on the other side of that door isn't in a position to care about it…or they were confident that everything would be sorted out."

Ritsuka hummed and nodded his head, then directed his eyes towards Chris and narrowed them ever so slightly. It was still fresh in his mind, but there was something more than he really wanted to know from them. "If Hanleth didn't want anyone coming here, then why weren't we told about this place to begin with?"

The turn of Chris' head in his direction was slow and begrudging, almost as though she didn't want to answer him. Indeed, her focus seemed to be elsewhere. He'd noted the way her body had been changing over the last minute or so, transforming from a tall muscular lizard humanoid back into the body so similar to her mother. A deliberate action on her part.

"...It was not expected you would come here. There was no reason to warn you."

"Clearly there was. Given you just tried to kill us over it." He shot back with a frown, "Something that important seems to be the sort of thing you would have at least warned someone about…that way we would have had some idea that coming here would have been against your wishes and prepared for it."

Chris scoffed. "That does not encourage you being told about it."

"No…but we were not enemies until we came down here." Something else came forwards. "And why wouldn't Pharros have told us about this place, if she did have a hand in building it from the ground upwards. So that means she didn't know about it in the first place…which means you all kept it a secret from her because you knew she would tell us."

His eyes narrowed.

"And then whatever she told us, you assumed we wouldn't be pleased with."

"..." The pressure exuded from Chris intensified in that moment, he took a deep breath and kept his eyes level with the woman. Confident that she wasn't going to do anything, but he prepared himself for it either way.

"Ooooh! Impressive deduction, Protagonista!~" Da Vinci's singing cut through the tension like a hot knife through butter, his nervousness deflated ever so slightly as he turned his eyes to the Caster for a moment, then shot her a small look. "I'm so proud of you! It must be because you're hanging around Mash so much, she's quite the little detective, you know?"

Ritsuka managed to suppress his urge to chuckle, but he did nod his head up and down. That was probably true, the interests of Mash had been bleeding off onto him for some time now and her little deductions were something to be impressed about. Though he wasn't sure if he was actually as good as she was.

"Da Vinci-san, I don't believe this is the time." A rather urgent whisper from Mash drew his eye back, the girl looked rather flushed about being put on the spot and praised rather suddenly, but he was just happy she was up and moving around again. No signs of damage remained on her, courtesy of Gwynevere.

Though she still looked very much on edge.

A dry snort from up ahead, his attention whipped back around and found Lancer grinning at them once again, nodding his head towards Chris. "You'll have to forgive her, she's a little overzealous when it comes to this sort of thing-"

"Lancer." Chris warned with a low growl, the Lancer responded with an indulgent roll of the eyes and a shake of the head.

His eyes moved between the two of them.

"You are close."

It was Medusa who spoke up first, an odd inflection in her tone of voice that sounded somewhere between surprise and alarm.

"Close?" Nahr inclined his head, then shrugged. "We understand one another, though my own little sprinklings of advice did nothing to her in the grand scheme of things. We just bonded over a shared understanding. Mind you…" he nodded to Medusa, smile shifting once again into something sharper. "She's had you on her head ever since she got summoned…you and my sister, that is-"

"Lancer." Chris' growl deepened, her eyes glowed behind her glasses.

Nahr gave an exaggerated shiver and stepped away from the Saber, still looking bored. "Fair, fair. I'll go back to being quiet now."

Ritsuka doubted that was going to last long.

His eyes once more turned to Medusa, she looked far from being pleased but it was hard to tell what it was really related to. Either the existence of Chris in front of her or the proximity to the Lancer Servant, neither seemed to be appealing to her. But he could talk about that later when they weren't before a captive audience.

The metal door at the far end of the chamber beckoned, untouched by the fighting which had occurred all around it. Through either luck or design, it had avoided even so much as being scratched by even a lump of stray debris.

"So if we walk through that door, you're not going to attack us?"

Chris did not answer him immediately, she instead kept her expression void of emotion before she turned her head away. "...It is not a fight I can win at this present moment. Fighting you would be unwise."

That was probably as good as he was going to get out of her, so his eyes turned instead to the Lancer who nodded his head up and down. Confirming that she was at least being honest with them, or that he was going to intervene. Whichever the case, he knew what to expect from them now, as did everyone else.

But still, watching them match Berserker blow for blow had been daunting enough.

He'd need to call out some big guns if a fight broke out again.

"If you're still so unconvinced…" Lancer spoke once again, not all that surprising.

Then Alma's head angled back and he cupped his hands around his mouth "Oh Berserker!"

A shout pulled from his throat and echoed around the chamber, bouncing off the walls and fading away. Ritsuka grimaced at the volume and sent the Servant a bemused look for a few seconds, then felt something tickle the hairs on the back of his neck, his head whipped around and he watched the floor ripple for a moment like the surface of water.

Then an armoured hand burst out from it and swung down into the floor, pulling up and then the body rose up from the pool of liquid rock, thick white cloth covering their shoulders and draped over chainmail and plate armour. The knight continued to move as though they were rising from the ocean and not from solid rock, the Servant pulled themselves onto their feet and took several steps forwards, their helmet flickered first to him and then in the direction of the Lancer and Saber.

"They were to be kept away from this location."

The first words from the Servants mouth were directed to the duo, a hint of warning in their tone of voice.

Lancer chortled. "You know how curious humans can get when they find a trail of breadcrumbs. They can't help but follow it in the hope of finding a whole loaf…we both know they're not going to leave now and Hanleth hates violence." a wave of the hand. "So…only path left is forwards, right?"

Berserker kept silent for a few seconds, then let out an irritated sigh before they continued onwards. "This is no longer in my hands. Do as you will."

Ritsuka heard a click like a lock, the metal door creaked as it went slightly ajar.

"I will await the consequences of your-"

"Ah, before you go." Lancer stepped forwards, cordial smile and a hand raised to stop the Servant from departing. Berserker waited for only a moment, then turned back to the God with a noise of acknowledgement. "Would you do me a small favour and go and pay attention to the prisoner? All this excitement might make them feel a little…uncomfortable. Especially with how things went here."

The Demon? Why would they need to do that? They had looked pretty secure.

The knight inclined their head in a show of confusion. "For what reason would I do you this favour?"

Nahr just waved a hand. "Because I've brought it up now, you can't really dismiss the possibility now, can you?" his hand curled and then a thumb was jerked behind them towards the metal door. "Especially with who is through that door over there. All it would really take is them being distracted for a split second and then…well…"

Berserker turned their head to the side, then slowly started to sink into the ground once again until they vanished.

The conversation confirmed that there was someone behind the door.

Clapping his hands together, Lancer sent a smile his way. "There, now that all of that has been taken care of, you can walk right on through that door and have all the little mysteries of the world unveiled to you…I know how little you humans enjoy a mystery and prefer an answer, right?"

"...That depends on the mystery." Ritsuka answered slowly, nodding his head to the others before he glanced up at the friendly Berserker and waved them down to him. The blonde Servant inclined forwards and raised a brow at him. "Once we're done, can you go back and find the Director? I get the feeling that it would be safer with you around her."

Berserker briefly glanced in the direction of Chris before turning his gaze back onto him, the blonde rolled his lips inwards and then nodded his head. "I will keep her safe."

With that said, Ritsuka started to walk in the direction of the metal door on the other side, flanked by the group who were all acutely aware of the presence of Chris still in the room. Even after the Saber took several steps backwards to move far out of their path, the swords and spear were still beared onto them.

He reached the door in short order, fingers slipped into the gap and pulled it open with a low groan.

He stopped the second he caught sight of what was inside.

The lighting in the room was virtually nonexistent, as though he was staring into a void.

But he could hear it clear as day, above the light rattling of metal and slow drip of water. The sound of quiet breathing echoed from within the chamber itself. His eyes squinted as he tried to get a better look at what was inside but he ultimately found himself unable to see anything inside of the darkness.

"Mash, do you have that torch?"

She hummed in acknowledgment and passed it over to him, taking it into his hands he pointed it towards the room and flicked the switch on, bathing it in light instantly.

A groan and a rattle, his eyes locked onto the shape in the centre of the room instantly.

Hanging down from the ceiling, their hands bound in blocky wooden cuffs, their entire body was wrapped in rusted iron chains which linked them to every corner of the room without exception. Keeping them bound in a single spot and unable to move, their body twisted and struggled as the light of the torch hit their face.

Or where there face should have been.

Instead, Ritsuka found himself looking only at a cast iron mask, scraggly bits of greying hair peeled out from beneath the metallic covering and draped down over the top of the mask and down like that of a beard.

His eyes roamed over the ragged tunic and the bruised and battered skin, cuts across their body and welts covering their exposed arms and legs. To say nothing of the thick manacles around their ankles, he could just about make out the discoloured skin beneath them from where it had been forced too tight.

"...What the hell is this?"

The words escaped his lips as a quiet demand for whomever might have an answer for him.

This was barbaric.

"Sensor readings confirm this is the heart of the Singularity…or the source of the signal. This Servant is providing magical energy to the entire resort…" He heard Da Vinci make a small noise that sounded like begrudging respect, but it quickly gave way to a tone of disgust. "They've been turned into a mana generator."

The torch shined back to the face as the Servant struggled about for a moment, a whimper emerged from them when the light hit their mask, turning their head away in a vain effort to escape the torch.

Ritsuka brought it away immediately and turned back around to the Servants behind him, both Nahr Alma and Chris looked utterly unapologetic.

"...What manner of savagery is this?"

Gawyn took the words right out of his mouth, the Saber faced the duo and brought up a trembling arm to point to the inside of the chamber. "What crime warranted this…display?"

Nahr shrugged his shoulders. "Don't know, couldn't tell you."

"Not good enough." Ritsuka snapped at them quickly, finding his voice and clenching his jaw. "I can understand keeping someone a prisoner for attacking you but this is…did they consent to become this? Did they agree to be chained up in the dark like some sort of animal?"

Alma just smiled at him, a look so casual it was as though they'd just passed on another on the street. "You'd need to speak with Hanleth about that, though I have to admit…I am surprised you care so much. Do you make it a habit of worrying about complete strangers? How do you know they didn't deserve this treatment-"

"Strung up in a pit like that?" Ritsuka recoiled as though he had been struck. "Like hell they deserve something like that. I was dubious enough when you wanted the demon taken prisoner but this? This isn't…they've been here from the start, haven't they?"

His brows pinched as it became clear. "That's where the power for the Singularity came from, not just a Holy Grail but…them. Turn them into a power source and then next thing you know, you have a whole resort…no wonder this place is off limits."

Ritsuka straightened. "We're going to Hanleth. Now."


Space folded as they slipped through the wall and into the cell.

As expected, they found nothing amiss in the chamber.

Quite why Nahr Alma wanted them to pay a visit to this place was lost to them, but it was hardly as though they could deny the need for security. If there was a breach - however unlikely - then their own summons would prove to be unable to prevent the demon from escaping.

Which did mean that they alone were necessary for the arrival.

It was their first time encountering the demon as well.

Their steps echoed through the cell, mixed with the growling breaths of the prisoner as they started to pace around them. The creature gave little indication of even registering their presence in the room, let alone make an effort to track their movements.

Possibly a result of Hanleth's influence, but that felt far too quick.

Perhaps they just accepted the futility of trying to escape?

Understandable.

Coming to a halt, they stared down at the face of the demon for a few seconds before sweeping their gaze over the bondage. There wasn't any sign of damage nor was there evidence that the demon had made an effort to escape. It would appear as though Alma was simply paranoid about the senses of the demon after all.

Unusual for the God, they never seemed all that fearful in their own memories.

Silently, they turned away from the demon and marched back towards the wall.

The sound of rattling slowed their movements to a crawl, their head tilted ever so slightly as the noise increased in volume. A deep intake of breath and then the heat of the room shifted.

Turning themselves back around, Berserker stared at the Demon who now had their attention fixed solely upon them. A keen gaze in the glowing eyes of the demon as it made a clear effort to lock eyes.

Another intake of breath, this time through the nose and the demon closed their eyes before exhaling through their mouth.

"A smell of brick and mortar."

The declaration was met with silence, they had nothing to speak of with the demon.

"You and this city. One in the same. The sanctuary given body, treading one's own veins as though they were streets."

All of that from a simple smell?

"The city is my Noble Phantasm. Not that this knowledge will afford you anything."

A chuckle came next.

"The body stands before the heart and proclaims itself safe."

Eyes narrowed upon the spoken words, they brought themselves around to fully face the demon. Their hand drifted down to the sword on their hip though they did not take it into their palm just yet. Fingers danced along the hilt.

"Is that a threat against me?" They kept their voice measured, allowing not an ounce of mocking into their words. Instead, they turned their head and let their actions speak for them, making a clear show of aiming a gaze upon the chains before returning their attention to the face of the Demon.

"A promise."

"You would need to free yourself first."

The demon pushed upwards, straining against their manacles and leaning forwards, the rattling got louder and louder before the groan of steel came next. Almost immediately, more chains emerged from the walls and coiled around the body of the demon, dragging them backwards before they could manage to move too far.

Yet they did nothing to fight the new irons, instead they seemed to have expected or perhaps even welcomed them.

They had not been trying to escape, merely adjusting their posture, proven when they stood up straight and stared down at them from their prison. Eyes like the sun dimmed slightly, another rumbling sound like laughter came next, mocking and hiding a truth behind the mirth.

"A King makes guarantees of all promises."

Raising a brow behind their helm, they moved their hand away from their sword and back down to their side.

"A King in chains is no king with power to make good on their promises. Your threats are nothing more than air. Your choices now are simple, accepting the existence of this land or…"

Their vision swam for only a moment, focus slipped away from them.

It returned a moment later, a subtle feeling of heat crept through their body, like pinpricks on their skin.

They dismissed it as the demon making a show of itself, indeed their body glowed just a touch brighter than before.

"Demands without force are meaningless. My heart will not be swayed by words. Only action will guide me. As is the right of the strong above the weak."

Berserker exhaled, turning their head away from the Servant. "I came only to ensure you were still chained. Not to debate ideals, as though such a thing exists for you. Survival of the fittest is not an absolute law to be followed by all."

The demon snorted loudly, "Refusal of reality does not suit you. Belief or denial does not change what is."

A rattle, the arm of the demon pulled at the restraints and dragged the right limb forwards just enough that they could point a crooked and sharp claw towards them. "The strong live. The weak die. My people remain strong against all threats."

"You can proclaim strength while clamped in irons?"

The demon growled, returning the arm to its original place. "I proclaim strength against your attempts to break my spirit. My will to survive is my people. Their will fuels my own. So long as my fire burns, so too does my strength. I carry the heart of my people wherever I tread."

Berserker regarded them silently.

There was conviction in their words, perhaps Lancer was not so incorrect after all.

They certainly had the tenacity one would have expected, matching even the determination of humans when it came to survival and dominance. But that was true of all races they observed, it was merely that the Lordkin had shaped what dominance looked like to humans and thus their society reflected it.

Learned behaviours.

But what learned behaviours were the demons the inheritors of?

None.

"Then your people are trapped with you in this place. You led them down this path of folly and have clamped them in chains yourself."

Inclining their head, their eyes focused on the face of the demon.

…When did it get so warm under their skin?

"You have…you have…you…y-ou…"

Another bout of lightheadedness swept through their body, they wavered on their feet and rocked back and forth before catching themselves.

No.

Something was wrong.

They didn't get sick.

What was…what…

Their head was pounding.

Clasping a hand over their helmet, they groaned and stumbled backwards, losing their balance and collapsing to the ground. The heat burned through their entire body until it felt as though they were aflame. Like something burning right into the centre of their heart.

Burrowing through their body.

White hot needles spread through them, their mouth opened and closed yet nothing escaped.

Nothing but gasps and pants, hot breaths trapped inside their visor.

What was happening?

What had…?

"A city without a heart."

The voice of the demon pounded through their head.

Yet it did not come from outside, it came from within.

"I carry my people within me. I carry the heart of our race. Our flame."

Their vision blurred as they stared across at the Demon.

The chains which trapped them started to glow, heat spread through them until they burned white hot. The bindings melted, dropping to the ground with wet splats, the molten metal hissed as it spread across the ground. The demon exhaled, fire lept from their throat in a single bout of flames.

With powerful steps, the demon marched forwards and resumed speaking. Each word hit them like the force of a punch.

"Our flame was the heart of Izalith."

A large hand reached towards their head as their vision started to darken.

"City without a heart. We will accept it as our new home. For stealing from us. We shall steal back."


There were few perks to working for this place, but if there was a single point that she did find appealing it was the attention to detail that came when they deferred judgement to her on what was the best way forwards with the children.

It also seemed as though she didn't have all her way, however.

Else she would have killed the Lancer within moments of meeting him.

His smile and sickening demeanour made it obvious that he shouldn't have been allowed within the same general space as impressionable young minds, his aura just oozed distrustful or manipulative.

That as without his absurd comments as well focused entirely on her prowess as a hunter, something she would have accepted from anyone else if they had complimented her for her skill. Lancer instead had complimented her for her talent at killing.

Not that she needed to put up with it at the moment, however, the Lancer had vanished into the wind.

Atalanta banished the Servant from her mind the second the light hearted giggles reached her ears, all previous revulsion vanished from her body and her expression softened as it turned to the source of the laughter. The children she had opted to escort around the park were already enjoying themselves.

But it was none more pleasing than with Assassin of Black.

The white haired girl clothed in tattered black rags clung to the pole of the horse she rode, giggling all the while as she threw her head back and made excited noises.

A merry go round seemed the perfect place to take them at the time and the girl loved it.

A shame she hadn't been able to bring Gawyn here either, it would have gone well with his ensemble but it appeared he was needed elsewhere. Or he was required to be elsewhere, was probably the better word.

But that was for another time.

"Archer?"

Her ears twitched in the direction of the voice, her head turned soon after and with great reluctance she tore her eyes away from the happy children - Jack the Ripper, Nursery Rhyme and the Goddess known as Caffrey - and towards the approaching Servant.

Caster, or Pharros as she was better known.

The brunette made a show of looking around her for a moment before she frowned, somewhat thoughtfully, and turned her eyes back to her. "Sorry for disturbing you at the moment, but I was just wondering if you've seen Solaire."

The sun knight, he was at least polite and well mannered.

…And when was the last time she saw him?

Her brows pinched in thought as she tried to recall the last moment in which she had met him.

The sour note made its way back into her mind, though it was soon followed by confusion as well. Turning her gaze towards the Caster and furrowing her brows upon the Servant. "Were you not informed? He told me that Lancer had requested to meet with you both for some matter of importance. Did you not see him then?"

Pharros double taked. "Lancer wanted to speak with us? I haven't seen Lancer in hours, I certainly never spoke with him and Solaire…"

Something was wrong here.

Opening her mouth to speak, her words caught in her throat as something happened in the corner of her eye. Turning her head to where the movement was happening or rather, where the movement was no longer happening.

One of the large knight guards stopped moving entirely, their body froze up as though time had stopped around them.

Then her eyes sought out another and noticed the exact same phenomena.

And then again when she sought out another.

There was something amiss.

"...Return to the manager and inform her of the situation. I believe that Lancer might be involved in something…"

She didn't wait to see if the Caster took her advice, she was already moving towards the children.


Their staff pressed flat into the rock, stone burned red and melted around the point of contact. Liquid fire steamed around their body as they pushed forwards until they finally broke through into the chamber before them.

Taking a step forwards, a growl emerged from their throat like the roar of a furnace and just as hot.

A shift in the pressure of the air, a scent they could mistake for no other and yet so very, very diminished. Not for long, however. It would not have to endure this state of tortured weakness for very much longer.

Carrying themselves forwards with deep crunching steps, their free hand moved forwards.

Their palm glowed bright like the morning sun and pressed against the cold metal of the door. It ceased to the cold, in the instant they made contact the heat of their touch turned the barrier into nothing more than a puddle of spitting orange goo. Stepping through and crunching the doorway with their body.

It split and cracked, accommodating their size.

Drawing themselves to a halt, their eyes roamed over the chained up thing that looked so pitiful and weak to them. But they knew the truth, they were only that way because they had been separated from their true heart for so very long. Left to roam the world as a shadow of their former brilliance.

Dragging the hammer across, they lowered it down until the flat end of the shaped rock was facing the prisoner.

The masked thing turned their head and looked at them, stared deep into their eyes.

A flash of something passed behind the cold metal shell which covered their features, perhaps it was desperation or perhaps it was begging. They did not pay attention to the expression for very long and instead pressed forwards.

The hammer was forced flat against the chest of the Servant, the hiss of scalding flesh and muffled cries of pain hurt them too. They disliked the suffering of this thing which was related to them, even if they did not show it. They carried the same fire in their chest that burned in the heart of every single demon that walked the world.

A sister in all but body.

But this would make them a true sister.

Wisps of red light fluttered from the hammer, seeping through the eye sockets of the mask and into the mind.

The fire spread across the skin of the Servant, dragging more and more from the hammer and cloaking themselves with it. Yet that was not all, they could feel their soul resonate back to them, answering the change and breaking free of the mental anguish they had been under for so long.

The chains shattered, the prisoner remained standing as another echoing cry escaped them.

Bright shapes burst from the back of the body and curled around, thin root-like appendages twisted and curled, the transparent golden light was cloaked in flames, hissing and growling as they fluttered around and scattered embers of light across the room. The once dark chamber was bathed in brilliant amber.

Their hammer was pulled free as they stepped backwards, their tail came around from behind and dragged forth the mass they had pulled with them. The body of the city they were standing within.

Every city needed a heart.

And every heart needed a body.

It was perfect.

Their new mother understood that, the golden wings surged forwards and thrust into the broken body of the knight. Running them through and then curling around their body, wrapping it up in their embrace and pulling back, their limp form was propped upwards like that of a mannequin.

Without even the effort to struggle, the knight remained silent as the light of the flames seeped through the bondage and flooded into their body. The gaps in the armour burned as rays of light poured out from every exposed joint in the suit, the head jerked backwards as a gasp escaped them.

He stared at them, feeling nothing.

It was a fate they deserved for what they had done.

And it was nothing more than a matter of survival, he would ensure his people would always survive.


Ritsuka didn't care much that the doors slammed the moment he threw them open, pausing only for a moment to take in the fact that the room was still a slovenly mess before dismissing it from sight and mind. Though what he did notice was Pharros jerking her head towards him in clear surprise of his actions.

Her mouth opened to say something before she paused, clearly getting a look at his face, and then pinched her brows together in a show of confusion.

By comparison, the face Hanleth made was something more akin to a startled rabbit as she jerked up from her alcove chair, almost cracking her head off the roof of it but still sliding backwards and pressing herself into the backrest. Raising a hand and giving a nervous wave of greeting.

One that he repaid with utter silence as he stomped forwards.

"You look a little upset-"

"I want to know who that person is. The one you have chained up in the dark under this castle."

The reaction of Pharros was immediate, jerking back as though she had been punched in the face and staring at him as though he'd just declared that the sky was green. Then whipping her attention towards Hanleth and shooting them a confused frown.

Hanleth, meanwhile, just opened and closed her mouth several times like a fish on land before slumping down. A rather petulant groan escaped her lips as she hunched forwards and dropped her head into her hands. "How did you even find out about that anyway? Shouldn't you have been more focused on the amusement park?!"

Snapping her head up, she attempted a glare but it came out more like the irritated glare of a child who didn't get their way.

"Do you seriously keep on working even when you're supposed to be relaxing? What the heck is wrong with you? How do you function like that-"

Ritsuka cut her short. "Nevermind how I function like that. This Singularity was weird to begin with and did you think I was going to write it off as just a little quirky?" folding his arms, he raised an incredulous brow at her. "The Director was standing up and singing like a pop idol!"

Hanleth sniffed, then tilted her head. "Was she any good?"

"...She was actually." Ritsuka admitted with a shrug of the shoulders. "That's what caught me so off-guard and-wait, this isn't about that and don't try and change the subject!"

"That person you have imprisoned under the castle has the same feeling as the Demons who have been attacking here." Boudica continued onwards, moving around and levelling a glare towards the Goddess. One that the deity made a pointed effort to turn her head away in order to avoid it. "Not to mention the secrets you were keeping from all the other Servants you had around here. The Berserker that only a select few knew about being some sort of warden, yes?"

The eyes of the Goddess flickered to the Rider for a moment, then darted away and moved past him to the others who had entered the room.

Both Alma and Chris had paced away from them and now stood a good distance from them.

Hanleth pouted at the Lancer. "You led them there, didn't you?"

Alma raised a brow. "I am offended at your accusation, sister. I didn't lead them anywhere. I just followed them down." he grinned, waving a hand towards him. "These little ants scurried down there all by themselves. They had the good instincts to avoid trusting the little watering hole too long."

Chris thinned her lips. "I made efforts to prevent their discovery-"

"By trying to kill us!" Gareth didn't let her get another word out before shouting across to the Saber. "And in a really underhanded attack as well! I thought a security guard was supposed to keep people safe, not stab them in the back the moment they wander off!?"

Ritsuka turned his gaze to the Goddess to see her reaction.

She had turned bone white and was staring at Gareth in abject horror before whipping her head around, scrambling forwards in her chair and nearly falling out of it to loop around the corner and shoot a baffled look at the Saber.

It confirmed that she was indeed far from happy, at least.

"What?! Why would you go and do something like that Chris!?" Hanleth all but demanded, a mixture of shock and alarm. "If they were going there you could have just let me know and then I would have just sent someone down to warn them away! That guy with the sun on his chest would have talked them down-"

"He would not." Chris replied quickly. "And it was not a situation that could be avoided. They have been looking for an excuse to destroy this place and they found one."

Ritsuka frowned at her words.

"That isn't-" He cut himself short, dragging a hand across his face and groaning in exasperation. "Yes, we would have always come to put an end to the Singularity, that was never in doubt, but it wasn't as though we were just walking looking for the slightest reason for us to drop all pretence and smash everything to pieces!"

Chris turned on him. "You mean to imply you would have returned to the park and forgotten the existence of what you saw?"

No.

No he wouldn't have.

"You know what my answer to that is."

"You still need to say it-"

"He doesn't need to say anything." Gawyn stepped in front of him, making an effort to move between the line of sight of Chris and himself. "Not to you or anyone else. A land that spoke of peace and enjoyment, yet built on the anguish of a single being? Unacceptable."

Gawyn turned his head on Hanleth. "And after all you spoke of-"

"I know what I said!"

Ritsuka jolted in surprise, he was not alone as he watched Gawyn do something similar, the both of them stunned into silence from the sudden shift in tone and pressure from the Goddess. No longer looking at Chris and instead looking at the two of them with a rather heated glare.

"I know what I said and I meant every word of it, you think that chaining them down there in the dark was the first thing that came to mind?"

The accusation of the Goddess was met with silence.

"You think I don't know how this looks!? Even though I'm not happy with it, I did the best I could!"

She continued on, he suspected she would have done so even if he tried to come up with an answer.

"When that Servant was summoned they were utterly rabid! Their every moment was a screech of self-depression and wild aggression against everything that went near them. The moment they were in the dark they calmed themselves because that is-"

Hanleth cut herself off, then lowered herself down and flopped, the earlier presence was gone and replaced only with a rather sad looking woman. Unable to meet their eyes as her voice turned quieter and more sorrowful.

"They wanted only one thing and nothing I tried could make them change their mind…not even the use of command seals could stop them from feeling this unending sense of self-loathing for whatever reason so…"

A shuddering breath escaped the Goddess.

"...So I gave them a little bit of what they wanted. I put them in the lowest point of the city and then chained them up. But even then, I didn't give up."

Her head rose up, eyes glistening with tears met his own.

"I put every ounce of strength into keeping them calm and happy, even through their rabid nature and twisted madness I brought them semblances of peace - perhaps the first they had felt in a long time - and they were…they were content with life. They didn't demand to be beaten or whipped or abused, they just…let themselves slip away into the dark and started producing incredible amounts of magical energy."

The pieces slipped into place.

"Which you started to harvest for the amusement park as a reactor for the entire thing, funnelling all of that magical energy at the cost of their misery."

"They're happy!" Hanleth snapped back at him, frowning deeper. "And you would have been happy as well if you'd just left well enough alone."

"Like the demons?" Ritsuka narrowed his eyes, folding his arms and watching as she flinched away. But he already got the general idea of what was happening here, looking her up and down before he clicked his tongue. "They appeared not long after you chained them up, didn't you? Trying to break in and reach them."

Hanleth gave only a silent nod of the head.

"...Because you had one of their relatives chained up in the basement and worked up into producing magical energy for your theme park…and they wanted them free."

Hanleth groaned and slapped her hands against her lap in frustration. "They didn't want to hear anything I had to say to them, probably because they thought I was torturing her-"

"Consensual torture is still torture." Da Vinci's voice echoed through the room a moment later. "You just mixed in a bit of your authority to make the whole thing a bit less painful for them. Because that is what they wanted and that is what you gave them…"

A moment of silence passed, then the Goddess let out an empty snort. "What was I supposed to do? Just kill them and…No. They were someone in pain and I wasn't content to leave them like that when I could do something to help them." her hands pushed out of her jumper sleeves as her head moved between him and Da Vinci. "What was I supposed to do? Just let them suffer like that? How could I have ever called myself a Goddess of bliss if I turned a blind eye to that sort of thing?"

Feet shuffled to his side, glancing and seeing Mash move a little bit as her brows tightened.

"Then the demons weren't trying to be troublemakers." She stated after a few moments of silence, sounding as though she was putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "Because they were just trying to get their friend back but…if you gave them back then you would lose the magical reactor powering the Singularity."

She wouldn't have been able to keep the park around if they lost the demon in the pit.

"...I take it that without the Demon, you have no castle?"

Hanleth nodded once more. "I only ever possessed a small shard of the Holy Grail, it was a lot of magical energy but I…had to embed it within them. They're technically the Holy Grail now so if you want to end the Singularity…you need to go down there and extract it from them but this…"

The Goddess grit her teeth. "What is so wrong with this place? It's the one safe haven that everyone has where they can just relax…why can't you just let it lie? They're happy down there, even if you don't agree with it-"

Ritsuka closed his eyes, inhaling through his nose and then out through his teeth. "It's not a matter of whether I agree or not. Not anymore…that demon who attacked had genuine reason to be against you and I fought him under false pretences."

He heard the sound of metal being drawn, his eyes snapped to the side as he watched Chris slowly unsheathe a sword from the scabbard on her hip and hold it loosely by her side. Not quite threatening yet, but still enough to cause the tension of the room to skyrocket instantly.

"...Then you will now aid the demon, is that what you mean to say?"

Pulling his lips thin, he locked gazes with the Saber before turning his head and breaking eye contact with her.

He didn't know what he was supposed to do now.

By all rights, apparently this was the only way the Berserker could find happiness but he wasn't about to stand by and let someone suffer a beating just so that it could benefit everyone else. No matter how much they seemed to want it.

More of a case of self-flagellation than anything, worse if they had been summoned under the class of Berserker.

He couldn't go back to pretending it wasn't a thing though.

A hand slipped onto his shoulder, his eyes glanced down towards it before rising up and seeing Boudica with a hardness in her gaze, the focus of her attention directed solely onto the Goddess as she started to speak with a clipped tone.

"Did they actually agree to this, or did you just force this upon them?"

Hanleth didn't meet her eyes.

Not for several moments, then she exhaled.

"I tried to speak with them but nothing I said got through, either because of their madness or because they just didn't have an interest…I didn't want to do that but they just didn't leave me with a choice."

"So for the sake of the sake of everyone's happiness you forced the condition upon them." Ritsuka bluntly surmised. "...You really are Ash's sister, huh?"

Hanleth glared at him, yet there wasn't just anger there. It was mixed with desperation as well.

"So you would have just put them down? Seen their misery and executed them? At least I tried. What would you have done? What could you have done?"

Her eyes narrowed as he failed to respond.

"Rendering judgement upon me is all well and good, but don't act as though you hold a better solution in your hands. I did what was best not just for this lone individual, but for everyone else who would have come here, who did come here. Can you say, with absolute honesty, that you did not experience pure joy when walking this park?"

…He couldn't.

Because it was fun.

He rolled his jaw.

"...I can't keep having fun at the expense of someone's pain." A blink, he placed his hands on his hips and nodded. "You're right. I don't know a better way for them to exist, or if there even is one in the first place. Maybe you are right and this is the only path…but I'm not prepared to let someone be tortured and tricked into believing it's genuine relaxation. No matter how many smiles it brings."

That was just how he felt.

It was happiness built on a lie and it didn't matter how appealing the theme park was, it was still built on a lie.

His eyes turned on Pharros, noticing she was silent during the proceeding.

"What do you think about this then?"

The Caster turned her head towards him, her lips rolled inwards and her arms came up. Folding themselves over her chest as she rocked back and forth on her heels, humming to herself for a few moments before shrugging. "It is ultimately up to you, Master. I was only ever brought on as an independent contractor."

His eyes narrowed just a touch. "That isn't a full answer, Pharros. This is a park you built, are you happy with the way it's been constructed?"

Silence.

Pharros met his eyes and then scratched the side of her neck, letting out a slow breath. "It's one person who can't experience happiness except through pain being granted their wish and, through that, they are giving happiness to everyone else. So really…I can't see what the problem actually is in the first place?"

Ritsuka straightened. "I see."

His eyes flickered down, staring at the ground.

It wasn't that he didn't understand what was going on, he did.

They had been put into a bad situation and had made the most of it in such a way that everyone could benefit from it. Really, there didn't seem to be much that could make him sour about it. Save for the fact that it was all built upon a single Servant being forced into an agonising situation based on some own self-loathing demanding they suffer.

And then Hanleth complied with that one demand and ensured they did suffer.

She gave them what they wanted and made them happy and used that rather double-sided blade of a situation to ensure that everyone else could get something out of it as well.

"I understand why you did what you did." He replied slowly to the Goddess, turning his eyes onto her. "And I can accept that you have made this a very wonderful place, all things considered…but you can't ask me to keep going along with this. Not now that I know what happened."

Hanleth curled her lips down and nodded her head sadly. "I figured that would be your answer…"

Then her head turned and shifted towards the Saber, his body tensed as he prepared himself for a-

"Stand down, Chris…"

He blinked.

"You-"

"I'm a Goddess of Bliss, not of pain." Hanleth simply explained, bringing her shoulders up and down. "I can no longer provide what you need here and no matter how much I flood this land with my power, you would no longer appreciate it. So there is no point in it anymore and fighting you to try and force my world would only bring misery to the both of us."

That was…surprisingly easy.

His posture loosened, eyes darting to Chris and watching them.

Sure enough, they had slipped her sword away the moment the Goddess had ordered it.

"Listen I…" Hanleth swallowed and then slumped. "...I'm sorry. I'm really very sorry about how this all worked out…it's my fault so if you want someone to blame, then blame me. Chris and the others were just doing what I told them."

He was…a little caught off guard with how upfront she was being. It wasn't the half-hearted remarks of Velka either, it was…

"...You really mean that, don't you?"

"I just wanted a place where everyone could be happy, where Gawyn could get a fresh start…but it all went pretty terribly…Do what you need to. I won't stop you now."

She looked rather defeated.

"Well. That was very anti-climatic."

The moment was ruined by the almost bored tone used by Alma, Ritsuka turned his eyes onto the Lancer as he brought his hand up and flicked a finger beneath his nails, trying to clean something out from underneath them.

"I thought you'd have both been ready to fight for what you believed was the right path forwards, that's normally how these things go between people, right?"

Ritsuka frowned. "I didn't come here wanting to fight-"

"But you still expected one, right?" Alma cut him short, glancing at him from the corner of his eye. "No predator goes into a hunt expecting a fight either. Rather, they just want an easy meal and then to go back until they get hungry…Animals don't crave battles, no matter how good at killing they are. Doesn't mean they are not prepared for them."

Boudica grunted behind him. "I'm not likely to be upset at your disappointment."

"I wouldn't expect you to." Alma shot them a faint smile. "Like I said. No animal craves battle, that is a purely human concept. Everything else just fights for survival. As they should…which is why I am a little disappointed in you, sister."

His head shifted, a disapproving frown upon his face now. "I thought you would have fought for the survival of your sanctuary."

"I am not a savage beast, brother." Hanleth shot back in a dry tone "...and I can't muster the energy for a fight in the first place. I'd rather spend my time doing anything else except fighting."

"Yes." A long drawl. "Like this place…a very quaint little watering hole you made for yourself and I will admit…I found it appealing for a time. But, like all watering holes, it really does get tiresome after a while, doesn't it?"

Something about the Lancers words put Ritsuka on edge.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Opening his mouth, he made to say something, only to pause as the ground shuddered all around them. A quake which pulsed through not just the floor, but the very walls itself. His eyes turned about on all sides as the groaning continued for what felt like years before it finally simmered down.

"...What was that?"

"Fujimaru-kun! Readings just spiked and the Saint Graph Reading of the Berserker you found is rapidly incre-"

Romani's words were interrupted by an almost casual voice, so much so that he almost missed it entirely. But his eyes had briefly caught the moment that Lancer flashed a smile that was so terrifying it rooted him in place.

"Sounds like it's my cue."

He didn't see them move.

He didn't hear them move.

But he moved.

A wet splat echoed through the chamber, in the same breath of time was the sound of cracking glass and the rattling of a chain.

Then came the weak gasp, like a faint hiss of air from a punctured tire.

A sound that should not be coming from anything living.

Yet that was the noise which emerged from the lips of Hanleth.

Ritsuka could only stare unmovingly at the sight before him.

His eyes traced along the length of the scythe held in the grasp of the Lancer Servant, polearm held flat against his outstretched arm and the tip of the weapon pointed upwards.

The curve of the blade punching clean through the sternum of Hanleth and affixing her to the roof of her own chair, the tip of the blade emerging slick with blood from the chair. Yet that was not it, the chair was now held up, the chain which dangled from the ceiling no longer pulled taut with the weight of the seat, instead it was now held up purely by the strength of the Lancer.

The Goddess blinked several times, still making the weak gasping sound as she opened and closed her mouth.

But what struck him most of all was the innocent smile of the Lancer, as though he had done no wrong.

"Now then. Perhaps things can finally get interesting."