Chapter 134: A long awaited meeting.

"Erik has set off with the large cat." Ledo explained to Sigurd as he got close to the knight, falling into step with him. "Another thing of note is that Gordin is still speaking at length with Pygmy Alsanna."

Sigurd smiled lightly at the news, the fact their conversation was still ongoing after so many minutes was something that was rather pleasing to him. It was always a good day when allies could find the time to sit down and talk with one another, and considering Gordin had been somewhat hesitant to do so it meant the pair of them had found something they shared similar interests in.

"That is good news." Sigurd quickly schooled his features "On another note, there is something I wished to speak with you about."

"Is there?" Ledo couldn't contain the surprise in his voice before humming "I suppose we have not had much of an opportunity to speak with one another yet." he chuckled "You frequently left to find more humans to rescue and I ensured that they were protected when you returned." the knight sighed "If I am to be honest, I was somewhat jealous you got the opportunity to leave."

Sigurd paused for a moment "You are?"

"Hmmm." Another nod of the head "The chance to wander an entirely new land is always something one should take advantage of. To explore the sights and to sample the different cultures." he gave a light hearted laugh "I am always one for new experiences." a hand was raised to Sigurd "Not that I would abandon the people in order to go gallivanting around the countryside while they are besieged by wyverns. That would be the most disgusting behaviour."

"The dragons were something I wished to speak with you about." Sigurd used the entry point to get his question in "As you clearly have experience in fighting them, or those of your order do. I was curious if you had anything we might use when our next battle arises." he explained "Though I am not often one for trickery, I will admit it's uses from time to time. More than that, any advantage you could offer would be welcome."

Ledo fell into a silence, the knight scratched the base of his helmet and produced a metallic grinding noise as a result. Sigurd watched the movement with a blank expression, waiting for the knight to speak up again.

"I fear that anything I could offer would not be valuable at this time." He confessed after a few moments of tense silence, his voice shifting into being rather serious "Through no desire to weaken our position, but I am simply unsure if my own experiences would be of aid considering what has occurred here."

Sigurd frowned "Oh?"

"Kalameet is…" Ledo sighed "As the last of the Ancient Dragons, Kalameet survived the war against the Gods although I suspect that was, in part, due to the actions of the Firstborn. Though we are forbidden to speak of them. Regardless, it was in the later years where the Ancient Dragon came into contact with the abyss…"

"The Abyss?"

"The Pygmy Alsanna, it is the strength of her own soul gone awry." Ledo explained, trying to articulate it "Such an event is not as uncommon as you would have expected, a similar matter occurred in Izalith and gave rise to the Demon race." he quickly shook his head "That aside, I noticed it during the battle that the dragons scales are different to the other Ancients we fought."

Sigurd frowned "A result of the divinity within him?"

"The Div-what?" Ledo did a double take "Ah, you refer to the Dark Soul." he grunted in affirmation "But to answer your question, that is indeed what I refer to. The Everlasting dragons we did battle with were susceptible to the strength of miracles, great bolts of sunlight could cleave their scales from their bodies and render them defenceless…as defenceless as a towering dragon could be." he added on with a slight chuckle.

A lone eyebrow was raised by Sigurd, the only notice he gave for the Berserker to continue onwards with his story.

"Yes, the strength of miracles and the bolts of lightning were a weakness dragons shared." Ledo's voice shifted into one of uncertainty "Although with the power of the Dark Soul now fuelling his existence…I am uncertain that the strength of miracles would be a weakness to him any longer."

Sigurd pursed his lips "The soul that assaults all other divinities, you believe it would counteract divine powers?"

"It could certainly counteract my miracles." Ledo admitted without a moment of hesitation nor a hint of shame "Though I have little care for them and less skill. I much preferred the utilise my strengths where they lay and leave the hurling of powers to my betters in that regard. The power of a God or one with their blood, however?" he teetered his head from side to side "That I am less sure about."

"However, the point is raised that this Kalameet is now a hybrid between human and dragon?"

"A dragon with the essence of a pygmy, I would suggest instead." Ledo corrected "So he might no longer be weak to the power of sunlight spears at all."

Sigurd cupped his chin "Defence against a conceptual weakness, or perhaps overcoming said weakness…" he muttered to himself, then nodded his head and looked back up "Thank you. This has been most insightful, it perhaps more dire news than I had hoped for."

"Worry not." Ledo boasted, slamming a fist against his chest "I much prefer the more direct approach!"

"I could tell by your choice of weaponry." Sigurd chuckled, "A warhammer of that size must take a great amount of strength and as much skill to wield efficiently."

Ledo paused for a moment "You believe so? Many other knights likened me to the fiend Smough. Though perhaps that might be because there were few who would ever be willing to acknowledge that the executioner had skill far and above the likes of we Silver Knights and just shy of the Four Knights of Gwyn." the Berserker pondered aloud "Though the comparison troubled me as well."

"Smough was infamous, I assume?" Sigurd raised an eyebrow "What did he do to become so poorly looked upon?"

"He was a cannibalistic torturer."

"...I see." Sigurd's expression turned sour "That would indeed affect the opinions of those who were around him." he nodded in understanding "I can understand now why you would be troubled by such a comparison."

"I merely ignored them, I likened myself more to Bishop Havel." Ledo exhaled loudly, crossing his arms over his chest as he walked "I strongly believe his aid would be most welcome. Though he might be a tad more inclined to chase down Kalameet than to continue our mission to escort these humans to safety."

Sigurd scrunched his eyebrows up in thought "You mentioned him before, during the conversation with the Kalameet." his lips thinned "He would prioritise his own hatred?"

"Havel despised dragons more so than any of us." Ledo explained with a shrug "Not that it was a difficult matter, but it was still notable. He hated the paledrake Seath and all that came from him, so his opinion on sorcerers was equally low. That being said…hmmm…When I last spoke with Havel he seemed subdued, perhaps resigned to something?" he shifted his stance and tapped his chin with his index finger "So perhaps he was letting go of his hatred in his later years?"

"At any rate, worrying about such things now will not aid us." Sigurd dismissed with a shake of the head, turning his attention away and falling into a silence. He pursed his lips before he opened his mouth to speak "Forgive me if this seems intrusive, but what is your opinion on the ambition of Kalameet?"

"The dragon?" Ledo sounded surprised for a moment before he grunted and waved his hand in dismissal "They are free to do as they wish, I will not be concerned with their ideal one way or the other. All that matters is slaying them."

"That is a more…carefree answer than I expected."

"I am merely doing as I see it is my duty as a knight, the dragon is a danger to all so they must be slain. That is simply the way it is, the motives and ambitions they hold will not change what I have to do…so I will simply put them from my mind." He nodded to Sigurd "If you wish to continue thinking about the dragon, then you may do so but I will not comment upon it because…well…it is not something I can comment upon."

"Hmmmm. Very well, I was a touch curious."

"I suppose I phrased it wrongly, in a different situation I might be a fair bit more interested in it but in the current situation I just…It does not truly matter to me." Ledo spoke in a casual tone of voice "The dragon wants to conquer, so they should expect resistance from those already living here. We are all aware of our part and there is nothing else to be spoken of."

"That much is true, I suppose."

"I'm not doing this because it's my duty as a silver knight to kill dragons though." Ledo hastily added on "Because I just enjoy doing what I want. Right now, I want to protect the place I was summoned to protect, that is all there is to it. I am a little saddened that I won't be able to explore this land but I suppose I can let the knowledge I'm protecting humans give me some solace."

Sigurd's lip twitched upwards at that "It can be a very comforting thought, can it not?"

Cu had Olga standing not far from him, the girl in a basic stance with a stick and a shield in her hand.

"Alright so, while those guys are over there getting run ragged-" Cu jerked his head towards the Norse, Leonidas standing in front of them and barking encouragements while they did star jumps. Olga herself would admit that the scene was rather bizarre but if it got results then she was certain that the norse weren't going to complain.

They actively believed Leonidas to be an Einherjar that was brought down from Valhalla in order to aid them in their quest. The worst thing was that it was hardly like they could say he wasn't a warrior spirit who had been remembered forever in a distant hall after death. Because he was a warrior spirit, a Heroic Spirit who had achieved a place on the Throne of Heroes.

It was disconcerting how easily they lies were being stacked on top of one another with just enough truth between all of them to string together a very convincing picture to those without the proper know how.

"-we're gonna be putting you through your paces." He clapped his hands "My teacher taught me to wield all sorts of weapons so considering we probably won't have a lot of time, I'm just gonna teach you the most basic of basics, right?"

Olga nodded her head once, but didn't say anything. If only to hide the strain in her voice from just how awkward it was to hold the shield in her left hand. Her wrist had already started to shake with how much she was holding it up.

"Good." Cu grinned "First thing is first, get into a stance."

"?" Olga blinked at him, then looked down at herself before looking back at the Caster "I am in a stance."

"...Oh." Cu's smile melted away into an understanding grimace "Right, right…you've never done this before have you?"

"Worry not, Caster!" Olga withheld a sigh as she heard the boisterous voice of Nero approaching her "I know enough to position her correctly!"

"You do, do ya'?" Cu sounded incredulous, crossing his arms over his chest "How come?"

"Imperial privilege." Nero explained simply, which had both the Servant and the Master blink once before they made noises of affirmation. That was indeed something Nero could use, granting her the skills that she so desired. It was probably why she was even a Saber in the first place.

Emperor Nero was famous for many things.

Swinging around a sword that could burst into flames was most certainly not one of them.

"Now then, Pale Rose." Nero stopped by her side, looking her over and humming before she leaned forwards and grabbed her right arm before pulling it up and slightly backwards. Then angling her wrist slightly so that the stick was at a slight angle pointed away from her body.

With a single nod, the Emperor moved around her to the other side, raising the shield up and pushing it closer to the centre of her body.

"Umu!" Nero nodded once, then turned to Cu "There!"

Cu examined the director's stance at a distance, a thoughtful look crossing his face before he started to walk closer to her. He got to about two feet away, looking down on her with an indiscernible expression.

"Well, it does look the part." He admitted, nodding once to himself.

There was a blur of movement and the next thing Olga was aware of, she was staring up at the sky with a feeling as though she had been kicked by a horse. "W-wh-wha-" She panted repeatedly, her hand no longer around her stick and her shield lying at her side.

Cu leaned over her, staring down at her with a half smile and a raised eyebrow "Although looks aren't everything." he nodded to the shield at her side "I'd get that if I were you."

Anger flashed through her veins "What the hell was that!?" she all but roared as she shot to her feet "You-"

"I pushed you down, yeah." Cu looked at her as if she'd said something stupid "What did you think 'battle training' actually meant?" his hands were on his hips, his expression puzzled "It means that we learn through experience. Take heart in the fact that at worse, you'll probably get a couple of bruises."

"You-"

"I could have taught you like my teacher taught me." Cu remarked in a dull voice "At which point, that little shove I gave you would have been my hand burst through your back with your heart in my palm."

The image was enough for Olga to blanch rather suddenly, all traces of anger gone from her body as the crimson red eyes locked on her.

"Is there really a need to frighten her in that way?" Nero scolded the Lancer in a swift rebuttal "We both know that Pale Rose is no warrior, so she cannot be trained as such." the Emperor turned to Olga. "Though I am no trainer, so I confess that I doubt I will be much help here."

"Anyway." Cu coughed, pointing down "Pick up the shield, first task will be blocking." he grinned "Don't worry, I'll be exceedingly gentle."

Olga scowled at him, then reached down and picked the shield up once again and left it out in front of her.

"Well, first off-"

She was looking up at the sky.

"Why did you assume I was going to punch the shield?" Cu remarked as he stared down at her once again, raising an eyebrow at the girl "All I got to do is just…go around?" he shrugged "Try and predict where I am going to do that."

"Wha-You're a Servant!" She blurted out with annoyance as she resumed her glare "Even if I could figure that out, you're still faster than me!"

Cu thinned his lips "Alright…we'll go right the way back to the basics." he stepped back, waving his hand at her "Alright lass, up, up!"

"Tch!" Olga loudly clicked her tongue as she got back to her feet, raising the shield once again.

The palm of the Caster struck the centre of his shield and she found herself falling backwards once again.

"Your stance is all wrong! Again!"

She had the feeling she was going to regret this - if she didn't already - by the end of this training. If it could even be called that, it felt more like the Servant was just using it as an excuse to wail on her and relieve themselves of some of their tension.

With a groan, she was back on her feet and this time looked down at her legs.

"Eyes up here!" Cu shouted out, her head snapped up and she raised the shield to cover her own head. The fist of the Caster lazily struck the side of her shield and twisted it with the impact, Olga stumbled back from the recoil and found the armament on the ground having been knocked from her hands.

"Um-"

Cu placed a hand on her chest and shoved her backwards, the woman released a panicked gasp as she tripped up over her own feet and twisted as she fell, this time landing face first in the snow. "Your grip was all wrong, it was too tight and didn't allow for enough flexibility."

Despite her anger at him, she made sure to correct that next time.

"Too loose!" The watched as the shield was effortlessly pulled from her hands and she was back on the ground staring up at the sky. Her lips curled down into an angered snarl, biting back a scathing remark that she had prepared on her tongue as she jumped back up to her feet.

The Caster raised an eyebrow at her, holding up the shield in his hand and almost showing it off. "Want to go again?"

"Give me back the shield." She growled at him, the Caster chuckled and tossed it back to her, the woman stumbled as she grabbed it.

Her eyes still fixed on the Caster, she slotted it back onto her arm and held it out in front of herself as she adjusted her footing to try and provide herself with some sort of stability, one leg in front while the other was behind.

Then Cu just shoved the shield and she slipped forwards, falling down onto one knee.

"You're not about to run a race, you ever see a warrior hold his shield like a distance sprinter?" The Caster shook his head "You're gonna have to tighten yourself up to get a better go if it. Don't put your leg too far back, slide it a little forwards and square your shoulders. Put your back into defending not just your legs. Again."

She grumbled under her breath.

"And this reni…reno…"

"Renaissance." Da Vinci corrected with an amused chuckle, although Kalameet could infer that it was not something she was doing to be offensive to him. "It was the period in which the entire artistic culture of Europe went through a complete overhaul. Basically everyone was getting involved in reforming the arts." she paused for a moment, moving her hands away from what she was working on. "Well, more like a period where people brought back the classics and made them even better."

Kalameet blinked once at her, then looked away and rested his chin atop his fist while his other hand held the communicator. "Then paintings did not exist before this period?"

"Oh no. Paintings were most certainly a thing before that time but it's during the Renaissance that I would argue they got better. A period of time characterised by the births of some of the greatest artists and inventors of all time." She looked to the screen and flashed the dragon a smile "I assume you know what period I was born in."

"I could guess." Kalameet remarked with a nod of the head, still in a thinker's pose "But you could…look to the past and bring it forwards to make it better?"

"There's nothing wrong with learning the lessons of the past, be it either correcting old mistakes or even finding inspiration for entirely new ideas." Da Vinci explained as she moved her hand to another tool, still working on the device "You're doing something a little similar with how you talked about building your own Camelot, aren't you?"

That gave the dragon pause, his brows scrunched up "I am…looking at the past and finding inspiration for my own Kingdom, is what you are saying?" he inferred, looking at the woman as she hummed and nodded her head. "And what you were speaking of before, these paintings…what are they?"

"Oh ragazzo." Da Vinci sighed quietly, then turned to the screen and fixed Kalameet with a rather serious look. "I'm gonna start talking about this and when I do, you cannot interrupt me, alright? I will take questions at the end and if I ask you something, just reply with a nod of the head or a shake of it. Can you do that?"

"Ye-" He paused when he saw her face, then nodded once.

"Excellent, now the idea of painting was initially just something as simple as capturing the likeness of someone. Normally a portrait, now I suppose you could easily call that a frozen image upon a sheet of paper. You look at something, and then using colours you make a copy of what you see on a piece of paper. Nothing more and nothing less."

A nod.

She smiled "Now comes the Renaissance and suddenly…you can change things up a little bit and even after that time. Now paintings don't need to be so…I don't want to say boring, but a little lacking in creative flair. Don't get me wrong, they were skilled enough but they lacked the vision of a true artist."

Another nod.

"Suddenly, you aren't so restricted and the vision can just…flow onto the canvas. You can depict history how you interpret events to have occurred, bring the images of the past to life with your own visions. It's why there was a lot of religious iconography of the time period that represented famous events in christianity, Adam and Eve, the Creation of Adam…that sort of thing. A lot of it is Artists expressing their vision on it."

A much slower nod of the head, in truth he had questions but the Da Vinci woman had made it clear enough that she would answer them at the end of the talk.

"Now, we could debate until the end of the world - quite literally - about whether or not all art is considered equal. The statement that truth is in the eye of the beholder is more often quite true. There are objective truths in art that the person who painted something like this was skilled. You cannot deny that the 'Creation of Adam' is a painting from a skilled man. It's just not possible."

Kalameet hadn't seen it before so he still was rather lost.

"But it's whether you find the image spiritually beautiful, it causes your heart to beat a little quicker. If it takes your breath away and you know in your blood that this is beautiful. Something like that changes from person to person and is closely entwined with love. If the artist puts his love into a painting then you can feel that when you gaze at their work. Whether you find it beautiful or not, you cannot deny the objective statement that the artists cared a great deal for it."

She paused, noticing the blank stare for a moment before shaking her head "Basically, even if you don't like it, you can agree the person who made it did like it." her lip twitched at the enthusiastic nod of the head she got from the dragon.

"Basically art is now seen as something not just for depicting how a person looks, but for expressionism. It showcases how they appear to the world, how they are seen to the world and the like." Da Vinci gave a more genuine smile "It becomes something that can be used to show the world a whole new interpretation of beauty."

"But the taste changes from person to person, you said?" Kalameet tilted his head in confusion "Then…what is the point?"

"I'll let you in on a secret. An artist might create something and the masses might love it, they might also hate it but to the Artist? They didn't make it to be lavished with praises. They made it because they wanted to, even if they were commissioned by another person…what the artist makes, is what they wanted to make. It is their self laid bare for the world to see." She shrugged "If it is loved? Great. If it isn't? Then it is for the sole enjoyment of the artist and them alone."

"Then…it is something that can be enjoyed by everyone but it still exists solely for the artist? Is the enjoyment of others coincidental?"

Da Vinci made a face "Well…if you're putting something out into the open, then the enjoyment of others is less coincidental and more the goal. Some artists will just go through the motions of making something and then just toss it out into the world without a second thought. They put the time and the effort into it but not the soul. In which case…they haven't made art. They have thrown a bunch of colours on some paper to make it look pleasing to the eye."

"So this Renaissance was about…expressing the vision of humans?" Kalameet guessed, tilting his head "No, no…it was about expanding it? Right?"

Da Vinci nodded her head "Right you are."

"Then it is another…Hmmmm. So you paint to express yourself?" Kalameet muttered, cupping his chin "You put colours on something and it becomes…art?"

"Well, I wouldn't empty out tins of paint onto the floor if that's what you mean."

"...I see." The dragon continued to scratch his chin thoughtfully "What else would you consider to be artistic? You said there was more to this…Renaissance?"

"Hmm? Ah, yes! The wonderful development of science, politics and architecture!"

Kalameet understood…none of those words.

Although there was one thing he was curious about "You said you were born during this time, yes?" at her nod, he continued on "Did you also paint anything?"

She stared at him for nearly ten seconds in complete silence, not a trace of emotion to be found on her face and for a few moments he had believed he had insulted her.

Then she burst out laughing, and it was not just any small chuckle he had heard from her previously. It was a complete laugh from her entire being, her head was thrown back and her eyes were closed as the boisterous laugh continued to echo around the area as though she had heard the funniest joke in the world.

During the time she was laughing, Kalameet himself could do nothing more than stare at her in complete bewilderment, waiting until her laughter was dying down and she focused on him once again, wiping tears from the corner of her eyes. "Sorry, sorry…it was just…I remembered you would know nothing about me and I realised you were being genuine."

Kalameet blinked once "Then my answer?"

"Ah, yes." She coughed into a fist, nodding her head several times "I am something of a painter, yes."

"What did you paint?"

Her smile turned more coy, her head inclined to one side "Why don't you try and guess? I'll give you as long as you need."

He blinked "Guess?" he muttered, frowning to himself "You mean you won't tell me?"

"I'm curious if you understood my words so far, and if you understand what I would paint if I had the chance to."

What would she paint?

That was a topic he didn't really understand still, her words on beauty were something that he still couldn't comprehend. What was objective beauty? Was it the same for humans as it was for dragons?

Da Vinci studied his expression, even through the screen she could still pick up his clear troubled nature on the question. "You don't need to try and answer right away, I'll give you as long as you really need…or until my allies arrive at your home base."

Kalameet hummed to himself, a little pleased that he had more time to think about the subject further. There was something about the subjects the woman talked about that seemed appealing to him. The way in which she talked about creating things and taking inspiration from the past to make something better.

"Can I ask a question?"

Da Vinci raised an eyebrow before nodding her head "Considering I've been talking to you all this time, I think it's fair if you ask a few things of yourself. As long as you let me ask a couple of questions."

"You can." Kalameet nodded his head "But…you spoke of beauty and inspiration from the past." he looked to her "Which do you think is better? Something completely original, or something that comes from the past?"

Da Vinci hummed, rolling her jaw from side to side as she pondered the question "You're asking if I prefer original ideas to an idea inspired from something else. My answer would be they are equal."

The dragon blinked "They are?"

"Of course. There is nothing to say that something is more valuable because it never existed before, and something has less value because it comes from something else." Reaching up, the woman tapped her chin several times. "If I were to give an example, it would be names."

"N-names?" Kalameet spoke in surprise "Why would you give that as an example?"

"Well, say the first person to ever have the name Smith. Does that mean the original Smith is suddenly better than every other Smith purely because they were the first one with the name? What if another Smith later down the line created something revolutionary? Is he still inferior to the first Smith because his name is taken from elsewhere?"

Kalameet opened and closed his mouth several times "Well…No?" he furrowed his eye ridges, his lip curled downwards "I…They are…Hmmmm."

Da Vinci nodded "Now you see it. Something does not become more valuable simply by being the original, it's what a person does with it that counts. Like, the idea of a Kingdom has been done plenty of times before. Are you suddenly going to abandon your idea of a Kingdom because it's not original?"

"Of course not!" Kalameet answered sharply before he saw the pleased smile, realising what he had just wandered into. "Oh…Ooooooh."

"Yep. It's all in the eyes of what someone does. Of course, outright copying leaves a poor taste in my mouth but if you aren't doing that then it's fine. Individual interpretations of the same idea." She pointed at herself "When I think of a Kingdom, a whole litany of words and phrases spring to mind and that's just because they've been done before. Despite the same ingredients being present, you'll rarely find any two kingdoms that are the same…because even if they all have the same titles, it's the individuals inside that make up the difference."

Kalameet hummed "My sister said no two humans are the same…"

"And she's right. People think differently and come to different conclusions. You could put them in the same circumstances and they could come to completely opposite ends. That is just how they are." Da Vinci chuckled "Got a little off track there, but for my answer…in my eyes, it does not matter where the idea came from, it is how the person uses it. What is their masterpiece, so to speak?"

"I…don't know my masterpiece."

"I'd be surprised if you did." Da Vinci bluntly remarked, looking at him oddly "That would be a bit arrogant to say that in the span of a conversation you have gone from having no idea what you're doing to suddenly saying you've developed the perfect vision! You can have a good idea but whether you can apply it is something else. It's not enough to have the creativity to envision a masterpiece, you have to be able to make it as well."

She paused for a moment, then put on a slightly abashed look "Erm…don't take this as me trying to inspire you, though."

Kalameet merely stared at her "...Okay."

"Good, good! Now the-" The communicator suddenly started to crackle, Kalameet furrowed his brows as the image suddenly cut out. He blinked several times and then looked down at the device in his palm.

"...Da Vinci?" He spoke out in confusion, moving his hand to the device and pressing the red button in the centre several times, to little effect. "Da Vinci? Are you there?"

Magic energy swirled behind him, Kalameet was on his feet a split second later with the device cradled in his hand and protectively held behind him while his other hand was extended outwards, ill yellow flames leaking from his scaled fingers towards the direction of the magical energy.

Then he felt it, the slight pressure that seemed to surround his whole body.

Whatever this was, it covered him and likely the entire area as well, almost like he was subtly being pushed inwards by the very air.

The ground several metres from him started to fizzle and hiss, the snow crackled and burst as the temperature around it glowed, the earth itself turned the colour of burnt orange with the area affected widening with each passing second. The ground churned, dirt was upheaved and melted slush washed over the area and across his feet as flames leapt from the ground.

Kalameet very nearly hurled forth a flame in the direction of the bonfire before a voice gave him pause.

"Be at peace, Timeless One from before the Birth."

The voice gave the dragon pause, his hand was indeed stayed by the plea of the new arrival. The dragon looked down at the orange patch of blames and charred roots as they rose from the floor, swirling and interlocking with one another until they formed a shape as disjointed as the voice they possessed. A burning bush warped into the expression of an agonised scream, the singular burning eye locked onto him as the bush solidified itself.

Kalameet narrowed his eyes as the figure, not lowering the hand just yet.

"I come not to trade blows, but to exchange words."

That got him to lower his hand ever so slightly, the flames around his knuckles dimmed in their intensity. "You came to speak with me?" Bringing out the communicator, he held it up for the arrival to see "You claim to do so, yet interrupt a conversation I held with another."

The bush was silent, then gave a hum that sounded apologetic "I was privy to your conversation, Timeless One."

The dragon frowned "You eavesdrop then?" a pause "Yet you appear before me all the same. Why not speak your words openly?"

"They are for you and you alone, truth be told I was loath to interrupt your discussion." The bush confessed "Yet, the time of the end draws soon and the moment I might speak with you was in this one instance, no earlier or later."

"...I will hear your words then, if this is the only time you can give them." Kalameet allowed, nodding his head several times as he tilted his head at the bush. "However, that would be as long as you respond to my own questions."

The bush chuckled again, amused at the inquisitive nature of the dragon "The nature of the inquisitive mind is a wonder to behold, the birth of one who asks the simple questions of why? But not all knowledge is so freely given, when the question is posed. They must all be answered in time, through your own power…or through another's." A tendril of bark and embers extended from one of the pores, its tip pointed at the dragon "You understand this, else you would not ask the questions themselves…what is it that drives man? The answer they hold may not be your own…so you seek to fashion it."

"You speak of learning?"

"I do."

Kalameet hummed for a moment, watching as the tendril retracted back into the main body "You came here to speak with me about why I learn things?" the dragon asked with an odd tone of voice, his head tilted to one side.

"Hahahahahaha…There was a time where I would have asked you many a question, I would have enjoyed watching your rise and the birth of your dream. A land built by dragons and untouched by the Sin."

The dragon's head straightened out "You speak as though my goal is somehow a spectacle."

"The birth of a Kingdom is a spectacle, regardless of whom the sculptor might be." The bush remarked almost casually "It is nothing directed to yourself, but as we near the end I will ask you this one thing…do you fear death?"

"...Death? As I have died before, it is no-"

"Ah, a misphrase." The bush rumbled with amusement, glowing eyes brightening as they focused on him "Do you fear the death of your dream? If you perish, your vision will perish with you."

"That would depend upon who slew me." Kalameet admitted after a few moments, his breath leaving him in a slow sigh "If I were to be felled by one with similar vision to me then I could accept that. Our dreams clashed and theirs was superior. I would lament it but I would not regret it. I would have tried and I would have failed, but I believe it is worth the attempt…If that makes sense to you?"

"...Some would consider falling short of the final end to be the greatest tragedy of all, to leap over every hurdle and to stumble so close…Does that not trouble you?"

"I expected it…From the beginning, it is a matter of equality to me. If I am to kill for the sake of my dream, then I should be expected to be killed for the sake of another's dream."

The bush was silent for quite a while, neither of the two said anything before it offered one final sentence "Then if you were to be slain not for the sake of an equal but opposing dream, but because one disliked your own dream?"

Kalameet's eyes darkened "I do not believe I would accept an end such as that. It is one without respect…To kill for the sake of mere hatred is something that I am…" he looked to the side "It is odd to comment upon it, I know I killed many for the same reason, anger and envy and nothing more. Perhaps I have not yet encountered the right dream, the Da Vinci woman spoke of a place where wyverns killed just for sport. If I had been there, perhaps I would feel differently on the matter."

"To be introspective of one's own hypocrisy is a rare trait, to learn truly from past mistakes and better oneself is another." The praise was genuine, though Kalameet detected an almost pitiful understone in the voice "I sought to create one who could peer beyond the cycles of light and dark, a race who could transcend this order of the world…Not unlike your kind."

Kalameet was quiet for a moment "I cannot tell you of the time before the flame, not in the words I know. It was…different, it was strange and every other word to describe disparity. Is it odd that words of comparison are used for a world without it?"

"Poetic irony, one would say." The bush chuckled before the amusement faded away "To die out of hatred or simple disgust, you say? To have your dream mocked and ridiculed, trampled upon because your killer thought it to be…repulsive to them."

"I cannot see any human accepting such an end, so why should I?"

"You should not." Was the simple but stern reply he received "You seek to change the fate of your people, to rewrite the story of your people…A true Monarch you might have made."

"Might have?"

"...We will not speak again, I suspect…not like this at least." The bush explained, slowly retreating back into the ground "But indulge yourself in this world of resplendence for a little longer, though built on a lie…it holds some comfort for you. But remember. No matter how tender, how exquisite, a lie will forever remain a lie. When the truth is revealed to you…I hope you will not find yourself amongst the crestfallen."

As the bush faded completely from view, Kalameet felt the pressure around him lessen considerably before it vanished altogether.

"-ey! Hey! You didn't break my ACD did you?"

The dragon raised up the communicator to his face, the screen flickering back on as Da Vinci reappeared, the woman blinked in surprise and sighed to herself. "Ah, good. For a moment I was worried you accidentally crushed my precious invention!"

"I would never be so careless with the creation of another…If I destroyed it, my actions would be intentional."

Da Vinci raised an eyebrow at him, a wry smile on her lips "That isn't quite so comforting as you would imagine it to be."

Kalameet blinked once "Comforting? I was being serious…"

The woman rolled her eyes, her expression shifting to being more serious "So what happened anyway? I can't imagine you being the sort to hang up on someone midway through a conversation." she pointed to herself, making an exaggerated face of indignation. It was telling that even Kalameet could tell she was not being completely serious "And to hang up on me of all people?! Inconceivable."

"Though I would never end a conversation in the midst of speaking, especially not with you, I was approached by another…" He directed his head back towards the pile of melted snow "Though he did not give me his name and I do not know what he was…"

Da Vinci paused, inclining her head to the side "Oh? Tell me about this interesting visitor?"

"They took upon themselves the shape of burning shrubbery and spoke with many voices."

He saw the way Da Vinci froze, then her eyes suddenly narrowed in suspicion "Is that right? This is definitely getting strange now…"

"You know them?"

Her head shook in a negative "Only through Class, they call themselves Caster and have appeared to Fuji-" she cut herself off, coughing once to clear her throat "To our allies twice before. In two separate locations at that…for a normal Servant that would be impossible."

"...I can be in two places though."

"Can you be in two separate time periods?"

"...No."

Da Vinci gave a single nod of the head "And there we have it." her finger tapped against the table "Still though, for them to appear in front of you…What did they ask?"

"Many of their words were lost upon me but their parting phrase…He told me to indulge myself in my world made atop a lie?" Kalemeet responded, looking at the woman in confusion "Although I don't know what that means…"

The frown on Da Vinci deepened "Hmmm, I'm not sure. It could mean any number of things that we are simply not aware of…still, it's useful to know that this Servant can indeed move between Singularities…although that in itself is a little concerning."

Kalameet shrugged "I would assume you to know more than me about this. But…what is a Singularity?"

Da Vinci blinked at him, then gaped "Wait you don't know what a-" she cut herself off, her jaw clamped shut and she looked at him somewhat oddly. "You don't know what you're doing, do you?"

Kalameet frowned "I admit I have only just come to terms with the process of Kingdom building but I would not consider it to be-"

"No, no, not that. I meant…" Da Vinci raised her hands, covering her face and sighing into them before drawing them down again "I…suppose you will want me to explain it as well, also why there was no 'Kingdom of Dragons' and why they aren't here anymore, aside from yours."

"That…you make it seem important."

"Because it is. A matter of life and death, quite literally and it goes beyond your actions here in Denmark. It involves the incineration of the entire human race."

"...It does what?"

Olga growled loudly, prompting Cu to roll his eyes at her "We've all been knocked around on our ass before, lass. Getting angry about it is just gonna make you sloppy." with a shake of his head, he stepped back from her to let her stand back up.

The Director's hair was a mess, frazzled and with some of her bangs covering the left side of her face. Her coat was similarly crinkled, patches of snow nestled in between the folds, she could already feel cold water pooling inside of her boots from where snow had gotten inside from her repeated fallings. It was getting uncomfortable and she felt less like she was learning and more like she was being physically abused for sport.

"This is pointless!" She hissed out loud, glaring openly at the Caster with all efforts to compose herself gone, levelling a finger at him with her free hand, the man in question responded with a bored expression. "You're not teaching me anything, you're not even making an effort to teach me anything!"

The druid looked down at his fingernails, unconcerned with her mounting rage.

"You've just said words that make it sound like you know what you're talking about, you even have all these other Servants fooled with it but that's not what this is!" She accused, almost snarling "You're-you're just doing this because you don't like me, isn't that right?"

An eyebrow was raised.

"That's exactly it! You know I've been struggling and you're just getting annoyed at it now, all that losing and you're just gonna blame me for it all! Tell me all this-this nonsense about training me!?" She spat "You're just doing this for sick kicks, you just like watching me roll along the ground again and again, making sure I remember just how weak-"

Cu threw another punch, her eyes narrowed and she swung the shield at the fist, parrying it away.

"And you don't even respect me enough to listen to my grievances!? You just try to ignore me at every turn! Do you not think my words are-"

"You did it, Pale Rose!"

"And you!" Olga whirled on Nero, glaring at her and causing the Blonde to blink "You continually hara-I did what?" she paused, registering what the woman had cheered.

Nero saw the opening and took it "You parried him with ease!" the Emperor proclaimed "With a mighty swing of your shield you deflected his fist! And you did so without even noticing!" her praise continued onwards, then pointed to herself "And that you immediately turn to me upon such a success is truly inspiring! Was my beauty something that caused you to further your efforts?"

Olga stared at her incomprehensibly for a few moments then looked around at the other Servants staring at her.

"I…I did it?"

"Indeed!" She jumped at the bellow of Leonidas, turning to see him looking at her from his position in front of the Norsemen "Though your after words were odd, that was a fine parry for a beginner!" he cupped his chin "It took some time to get you to that level, and I suspect you will have more failures before your next success but your perseverance will carry you through!" he pointed at her, then looked at the Norse "Take inspiration! After so many failures and setbacks, she still has the fire in her heart to snap at her attacker! I expect each and every one of you to have a glimmer of that inferno!"

Olga blinked several times, opening and closing her mouth as she tried to make sense of the shout from the Lancer. "I…did it…" She whispered to herself.

"Umu!" Nero nodded proudly, her hands on her hips "And then were praised for your ability to remain irritated enough to not lose a step when interrupted! Quite the achievement."

"I did it…" She was still repeating to herself, virtually ignoring Nero's words as she looked at the shield, her arms felt sore, her hair was a mess and she didn't even want to be here anymore after all that effort, in spite of all that, she couldn't keep the smile from forming on her face. Nor did she make the effort to prevent it. "I did it! I did it!"

"Nice work." Cu praised for her side.

And she was facing the sky once again.

"Can you do it again though?" The Caster challenged with a teasing grin.

Olga glared at him "I wasn't even ready!"

"So?" Cu snorted "You think your enemy is gonna wait until you're all good and ready?"

She bit back a retort at that, grumbling as she pulled herself back to her feet.

"Hey, that's a big cat." Tarkus' comment broke her train of thought, turning her head to the Saber in bewilderment.

"What?" Her eyes squinted at the Saber "What nonsense are you talking about now?"

Tarkus merely pointed in response, as one their heads turned in the direction he indicated. "See? That's a big cat."

"...What in the shit?" Was Cu's somewhat blunt comment as he stared at it, his arms slacking at his side.

In the distance, perhaps a kilometre or so away as little more than a spec, there was indeed a rather towering and distinct shape of a large black cat with a small figure sitting atop it.

"I didn't know cats got that big." Tarkus continued on, oblivious to the rising tension around him. Turning towards Marie, he tilted his head "Did you know they got that big, Mrs Marie?"

Marie shook her head in negative "They don't, not normally." her attention was still upon the approaching cat.

"Ooooh." Tarkus nodded several times "This must be one of those things that doesn't happen so often." he hummed "I know mother said about growth spurts but I didn't know they got that extreme…Do you think all their siblings are like that or are they really small?" he looked around at the others "Would that be weird if they were all giant or are some of them tiny compared to that one?"

"Who cares about that!" Olga shouted as she went to the communicator on her wrist, pressing it up "What the heck are you doing?! Why aren't you telling us about this!"

Meuniere's face popped up, blinking several times "Huh? How come you're-" he looked to the side and frowned "But you're in a conversation with Da Vinci right now…so how are you able to…?"

"Da Vinci?" Olga did a double take "What are you-nevermind that! What about the giant feline currently bounding towards us!"

"Ah, yes!" Meuniere nodded his head "Phantasmal and the readings accompanying it…They're a match for the readings of the incident in Rome, meaning it's that 'Abyss' or whatever it is called. There's also a Servant signature accompanying them but this one is…Hmmm." he frowned "The Spirit Origin data is already registered in Chaldea's logs as a Servant we've encountered before. Actually fairly recently too."

"What? Who?"

"It…Um…It looks like it was the Berserker from Okeanos, although we never did find out his name in the end, I don't think?" Meuniere scratched his head in puzzlement "At least…I don't think we did, although I might be wrong. Either way, they're approaching you at a decent speed."

"Wha-" She scowled, then clicked off the communicator. Whatever they were saying about her being in a talk with Da Vinci right now could wait, she had something else to deal with. "Alert positions, hold for my command." she nodded to Leonidas, the man sighing rather loudly.

"A shame, however I shall look forward to your tales of victory!" The man loudly boasted, his form starting to split apart as he faded away, returning to Chaldea as the summoning was reversed.

"Alert positions only, you say?" Cu muttered as he stepped at her side, bringing forth his staff.

"They are riding a cat, not a dragon but they were a hostile Servant before." Olga replied back "Therefore, we shall wait until they prove hostile."

Cu shrugged "If you say so."

The giant black cat bounded closer to them with each passing second, its form growing larger and larger. More specific details soon became apparent, it wasn't that the cat was black it was that - like the Berserker Lancelot in Chaldea - it was shrouded in a dark cloud of smoke, hovering just above its fur and cloaking its entire being.

The Servants tensed as one, then when the cat got to about fifty metres it slowed its acceleration right the way down, straightening its legs and leaning backwards to slow itself, upheaving snow as it glided forwards until it halted itself.

The cat was certainly big, a touch smaller than the dragon they had encountered but that still made it ludicrously large. It was also no normal cat, that much could be inferred from the glowing red eyes and huge fangs that protruded from its upper jaw and extended past its lower jaw. Which meant it was a giant sabre tooth tiger.

The Servant atop it seemed almost tame by comparison, horns jutting from the side of his head, orange hair and a stern frown upon his face as he stared at them.

"Are you a friend of the dragons or not?" Olga called out to the Servant at the top of her lungs "If you are, we will destroy you!"

"Destroy." Cu snickered, prompting a quick scowl from the Director.

"Be at peace, warriors. You are in the presence of my Herald and his companion. We are no allies of the Dragons."

Olga jumped in surprise at the voice which seemed to echo around them, the speaker was clearly female and her tone was somewhat authoritative and yet without strong emotion within it.

"Who-?" Her eyes narrowed, a spell that would carry the speaker's voice from afar? It was possible and most certainly the answer. Not an easy magecraft to master but not the most complicated either. Although it would be difficult to discern just how close the speaker in question was.

"Names shall be traded once you prove your worth before me. My Herald will remain, await my arrival and prepare yourself for judgement."

"Hey!" Olga shouted out indignantly "What is that supposed to mean? Who are you to be judging us!"

The wind did not respond to her, so her eyes fell upon the Servant in question "And who are you supposed to be?"

The Servant looked at her and opened his mouth to speak "Gaaargghhhh!"

Olga's posture slackened instantly, her expression scrunched up in confusion "...Huh?"

"Don't worry, Miss Animuspear!" Tarkus dutifully commented "I heard him loud and clear! He said 'Gaaargghhhh!'" The positive tone of the Saber told her that he was smiling behind his helmet, even as she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose.

Light giggles caught her ear, her head snapping to the direction of it and soon laid eyes upon Brynhildr as her lip was twitching upwards, then schooled itself in an effort to appear cool and emotionless once again.

"So…We gonna destroy them yet?"

"Shut up."

"Oh yes, ma'am, Destroyer ma'am!"

"...I will hit you."

"Going from parrying to hitting already? Nice to see you're so enthused by our lessons."

Alsanna nodded her head in satisfaction as she recalled her voice from the winds, it was always strenuous to do that and required a great deal of her focus. She turned to look down and then saw that both Sigurd and Gordin were looking up at her, the former with a blank expression and the latter with his expression hidden behind his helmet.

The Queen frowned lightly at the silent stares "Have you some comment to make?"

Sigurd pursed his lips "Did you not consider your language somewhat…confrontational?" he quizzed.

An eyebrow was raised in response "I see no need to alter my way of speaking, I informed them that I would soon arrive and then we would trade names if I judged them to be helpful allies to our cause. Where would the confrontation arise?"

Gordin coughed into his hand "Telling someone to 'await judgement' is normally used in less…positive environments."

Alsanna looked between the two of them for a few moments, then looked up and straight ahead "...I am certain all will be well."

Sigurd and Gordin looked at each other, then shrugged their shoulders.