Halo: Shattered Fate
The Fate/Grand Order and Halo series, along with all characters and elements, do not belong to me. Both works are respectively properties of Type-Moon and 343 Industries.
Writing Keys:
"Dialogue."
Special
Written Text
"Highlight/Supernatural Voice."
"Magic."
X—X—X—X—X
How much time had passed? Hours? Months? Years?
No, it had unfortunately been less than that, much more less than that. Merely a few seconds according to the timer on his helmet, and still it somehow felt as if all that time had slipped by.
"You are from the future?! Really?!"
"Senpai, please calm down!"
"A contract! Ask him to make a contract with you and bring him to Chaldea!"
It was not difficult to keep his mind off the constant questions that were directed towards him. They entered through one ear and exited through the other. However, John was well aware of the fact that what he was doing wasn't really solving anything.
He needed to solve this problem, as annoying as it was for him. Asking for help from the other Servants didn't appear like it would solve the situation. Marie and Jeanne were both shooting him sorrowful glances as they observed his current predicament, whereas Amadeus found himself silently chuckling to himself.
So the Spartan was on his own. There was no real issue with that, in some ways he was used to it. And if he was capable of confronting the Flood, then he certainly could take on a bunch of civilians with questions that he didn't intend to answer.
"Need some help?" Hope asked him.
"No… maybe later."
A moment later, John straightened himself and lifted up his hand.
The whole camp dropped into silence.
…That was way easier than he thought it would be.
"All of you settle down." His tone of voice was quite similar to that used by Chief Mendez in Reach. "Good, I will answer only two questions. And no shouting."
It was the most that John was willing to offer them, as a token of trust.
Ritsuka, Mash and the woman on the other side of the screen were all exchanging glances. One second later, Ritsuka cleared his throat, bringing his attention towards the young boy.
"Sorry about that." The teenager apologized. "So… you're really from the future?"
A groan came out from the unidentified woman. Of all the questions that the Chaldeans had regarding him, it appeared that this was not one she had intended for Ritsuka to ask.
Nevertheless, he responded to the teenager's question with a single nod of his head.
"What year do you come from?"
Now that was a very tricky question.
In comparison to the previous question, John was hesitant as to whether he should really answer. If he were to tell them that he was from five hundred years into the future then it would simply cause them to go off the rails once again.
And still, he felt he had an obligation to respond. Not because he actually wanted to, but rather due to the expectant look on Mash's face.
"…2560." He finally answered after taking a second.
He still doubted whether he should have done it, but watching the way the lilac-haired girl's eyes brightened in amazement gave him a little comfort.
However, this was the extent to which he was willing to share his information. It was not because he did not trust the two of them, quite the contrary, both Ritsuka and Mash sounded like honest and good kids that if he were to asked them, they would probably keep everything he said as a secret, but rather because he did not trust the individuals on the opposite end of the communications line.
According to Mash's description of their group, Chaldea was an organization that, even though its primary purpose was to preserve human order, it also counted with scientists and magicians who studied and observed the world.
It was more than obvious that he did not trust them. With the UNSC scientists he could give a certain degree of trust, both because Doctor Halsey was a part of them, and because they were all working towards the same goal of saving humanity.
Meanwhile, John had no idea of what the personal motivations of the Chaldean scientists might be. Whether it was the advancement of humanity, or acknowledgement for their achievements. What he was certain, however, was that his knowledge of the events of the future would only bring problems for the present if they were made public.
So it was better to be safe than sorry.
"That's all I will be answering." John said to them, earning disappointed looks from both teens. "I'm not comfortable with disclosing anything that hasn't happened yet... for now."
"H-Hold on a second." Romani said, turning a little pale as his gaze flickered over to him. "What you know could be helpful to mankind! Terrorist attacks, diseases, you could save millions of liv—"
"Okay, that's enough." The woman next to him said calmly. "I know all of you are excited to meet someone from the future, but you need to settle down a bit. If he's not comfortable, then he's not comfortable. We are not going to force him to speak about stuff that he doesn't want to talk about, understood?"
Several noises of affirmation echoed on the other end of the communication line, as the woman had clearly not only addressed the doctor.
John was in mute gratitude with her, despite the fact that it had been her who had been responsible for the disclosure of his own secret. Though he was well aware that he would eventually be exposed, in particular due to his use of firearms.
"Alright." She said, before her brilliant smile returned. "Besides, he said he was not comfortable talking about it for now."
…That had been referring to Ritsuka and Mash, but whatever. That wasn't what was on his mind at this instant.
What was on his mind was whether it was the right time to introduce Hope to them. Up until now the AI had stayed silent, only speaking to him over his internal communications, so nobody outside of Marie and Amadeus was aware of her existence.
He didn't know the reason as to why she was behaving this way. She was more silent, more… withdrawn than she usually was, when normally she would enthusiastically volunteer to introduce herself.
John was starting to grow concerned about her, he wasn't going to deny it.
"Hope?"
"Yes Chief?" She replied.
"Would you like to introduce yourself?" He asked her.
His question seemed to take her by surprise, and she took a moment before answering. "Of course, but are you certain about it? Maintaining the secrecy of a Noble Phantasm is essential for the Heroic Spirits."
"I am." John confidently stated.
"…All right then." Hope said. "Ready."
The Master Chief gave a single slight nod.
He then extended out his hand in front of him, attracting everyone's attention right in his direction.
A few seconds after he shifted his hand so that his palm faced the sky, the holographic emitters within his palm became active and the vivid, bright blue form of Hope was displayed above his hand.
Several moments passed in which nobody said a word. Marie and Amadeus were unsurprised by Hope's presence, with the former looking happy to see her. On the other hand, Jeanne, Ritsuka and Mash were observing the AI with looks of awe, and the latter of astonishment, while the unidentified woman was staring at his companion with the exact same look as when she had first laid her eyes on him.
Eventually, Hope was the one who broke the silence with a cheerful wave at them. "Hi, nice to meet you all."
"Umm… Hello." Jeanne waved back at her, a gentle smile appearing across her face. "It's also a pleasure to meet you, but who might you be?"
She gave a smile toward the saint. "My name is Hope, and I am a Third Generation Smart AI."
"A-An AI?!" An incredulous question then came from the woman of Chaldea. "You are carrying an AI on your armor?! Ah, incredibile! Incredibile!"
John was beginning to question the reason why the woman was so fascinated with him. It was borderline creepy, although upon further reflection he had categorized it as mildly annoying.
"Excuse me, but who are you?" Hope asked one of the many questions which he had towards the woman.
"You don't recognize me? Well, that is rather discouraging." A small pout appeared on her features for a second, before her beaming smile came back to her. "It's a great delight to meet you both, I am the great genius, Leonardo Da Vinci."
… He could not trace any lies in her words. So either she wasn't lying, or she was very skilled at telling lies.
With the track record of the things he was encountering thus far, it was inevitable that it would end up being the latter.
Even so, a part of him still sought to be sure. "The polymath of the Italian Renaissance?"
"Corretta!" She nodded her head affirmatively, sounding pleased that he actually recognized who she was.
"He was a man." John bluntly said.
"Yeah, I was." The woman blinked nonchalantly.
"Explain… please."
"Of course." Still smiling, she shrugged her shoulders a bit. "You see, throughout my whole life I have searched for the desired beauty. That which sits at the top, the epitome. One day I finally stumbled upon her, and I managed to capture her unique beauty in a painting that you may know."
"…The Mona Lisa." Hope said.
John blinked when he heard the name, and he then realized just where he had previously seen her face.
A delighted nod was given by the painter. "That's right. After I had finished painting her, I continued to live my life and then eventually I passed away. So, upon being summoned by Chaldea I thought to myself, 'If I know what the embodiment of beauty is, and I have the ability to become her, then why not? And that's the story of how you see me now."
"…I see." The Master Chief didn't exactly know just what to say after hearing all that. He didn't care at all about the fact that Da Vinci was now a woman, but he was grateful to have an understanding of the reason why. "So you are also a Servant?"
One single nod. "Yes, Caster."
"Understood. In any case, we should adhere to the advice that your Doctor mentioned before he was interrupted." John shot a glance towards the Italian, who didn't appear apologetic in the slightest. "We only have three tents, so you will need to choose who will use them."
"Actually Master Chief," Mash spoke, drawing his attention. She appeared somewhat uncomfortable when he turned his gaze upon her. "I have a few tents stored inside my shield, as well as some food and water, so there will be no problem in regards to sleeping arrangements."
As she said that, the girl walked over to her shield, which was still lying on the ground, and reached out her hand toward the inner side of it.
Then, out of nowhere, two pointed ears with fluffy white hairs peeked out from the inside of the shield, and afterward something came out of it.
John couldn't even find the words to describe it. That thing did not appear like any animal he had ever seen. It was small, about the size of a squirrel or a cat, complete with white fur covering its head and tail. Tied around its neck was a tiny blue and white cloak, bound together in a vine-colored ribbon.
The Master Chief narrowed his eyes at the creature. His instincts were warning him that there was something hidden about the animal, something potentially dangerous.
Almost as if it sensed the manner in which John was observing it, the small white creature slowly turned its head and locked its gaze onto him, with its violet colored eyes narrowing just like his own.
The Master Chief squinted as he stared at the creature. His instincts prickled with warning, indicating that there was something concealed about the animal, something potentially perilous.
"What is that?" The question was posed by Hope, who was eyeing the creature with a hint of curiosity.
Mash was the one who offered an answer, as she began to stroke the animal's head with care. "This is Fou-san, a member of Chaldea."
The creature then let out a 'Fou' sound, sounding as if it was introducing himself.
Both John and Hope still remained at a loss.
"But… What is he?" Hope once again asked.
"Fou-san is… Fou-san."
"…I see."
That was not the answer that they were hoping to hear, and everyone knew it.
Still, John came to the realization that Mash seemed to have no knowledge of what Fou truly was, and so he made the decision to refrain from further questioning her regarding the enigmatic animal.
"Does it even matter what he is?" Marie said, walking toward the little animal with a friendly smile on her lips. "Just look at it, he's so cute!"
From that point on, the attention of most of the members of the group was gradually diverted away from the Spartan. He was quietly thankful that this had happened, as John didn't believe he would be able to withstand being under everyone's constant scrutiny at all times.
It was only later, in the middle of reaching down to grab one of the tents so he could assemble it, that he realized that his finger was tightly placed over the trigger of his rifle, presumably ever since when Fou had first shown up.
X—X—X—X—X
The night had passed without any incident.
Initially, John had the intention of staying awake to stand on watch in the event that the Dragon Witch would choose to launch an attack on them in the middle of the night. However, the intervention of Hope, backed by Jeanne D'Arc, had pushed him to take a short break. Knowing that both women would stubbornly try to change his mind, he only agreed that he would sleep for one hour, no more and no less, and the two had begrudgingly accepted.
Dinner had been cooked by him, with the help of both Ritsuka and Mash. The young man had some knowledge of how to cook, so he seized the opportunity to both help him and teach his companion at the same time. Marie, Amadeus and Jeanne, meanwhile, had been in charge of setting up the dinner table, which had been graciously provided by the Chaldeans.
Once again John chose to overlook the fact that a large table could easily fit inside a shield, only chalking it up to being some sort of pocket dimension akin to those found in fantasy novels.
Dinner had been enjoyable. Everyone had basically complimented him on the food he had prepared, even though he had not thought of it as a significant accomplishment.
He had naturally been asked to remove his helmet, to which he had flatly refused. He had not eaten his share of the meal, as he was just not hungry, and instead he handed it over to Fou. The creature had given him what he believed to be a grateful look before it began to devour the food.
Once the dinner was over, John requested that everyone should go and have some sleep, which fortunately they did without raising any protest. However, Jeanne had decided to accompany him for a while, and he was in no position to decline when she provided him with the very same argument he had previously used on her. Clever.
The two did not talk at all for the time that she was accompanying him, although it did seem as if the saint had something she wanted to share with him. When she eventually departed to her tent, she bade him a courteous farewell, a gesture he reciprocated in kind.
The remainder of the night the Chief had spent it with his back leaning against a tree, from time to time taking a stroll through the area, and often finding himself with his eyes fixed towards the stars above.
His mind wandered among the stars he could identify, some of which he had visited. Unless he was mistaken, one of those stars was Reach. It felt strange to think that there was no human presence on the planet, but he couldn't help feeling a bit of happiness knowing that the world was still safe and intact.
However, his thoughts were cut short when Hope notified him that it was time for him to take some sleep. Aware that arguing with her was going to be in vain, he sat down on the grass and leaned his back flat against the tree, requesting for the AI to inform him in case that she picked up anything suspicious in the vicinity.
When she promised him that she would, he closed his eyes and gradually drifted off to sleep. His dreams were vague, without anything of importance to remember. He was awake before he realized it, having been an hour and a half since he had initially shut his eyes. It did not go unnoticed by him that he had spent half an hour more sleeping, and he was well aware of who was at fault. Nevertheless, he decided to keep his mouth shut, and carry on as if nothing had happened.
When the sun had risen and everyone had awakened, they had discussed what their next course of action would be, eventually settling upon moving to the nearest town to collect information.
Then, the preparations for the departure began. The tents and tables were packed away, and John stood to the side as he inspected his assault rifle. Though he had the option of swapping it for a weapon that would be of greater advantage to him, he believed that, for the time being, it would serve him better than any other rifle.
It was then that Mash, who had gone for a walk together with Marie, came rushing back with an anxious expression on her face, making a beeline directly towards Ritsuka.
"Master! There is a battle nearby and people are under attack!"
John immediately moved towards her. "Where?"
The girl's eyes widened in surprise as he suddenly appeared before her. After a moment, she raised her hand and gestured towards the west with her finger.
The Master Chief turned his head and glanced over to Jeanne, who instantly gave him a nod of comprehension. Wordlessly they both rushed off towards the direction in which the Shielder had pointed.
"H-Hey, wait up!" The sound of Ritsuka's voice echoed in the air as he desperately called out, but he opted to ignore it and continue on his way.
It took them less than sixty seconds to reach the zone where the battle was presumably taking place, thanks to the increased velocity from their conditions as Heroic Spirits.
However, upon reaching the location, they were not met by a battlefield. Instead, they were met with the sight of Queen Marie engrossed in a conversation with a group of bemused soldiers, who appeared to be at a loss for words.
"Marie-san!"
Having caught up with them, Mash called out to the queen, only to pause when her purple eyes dropped upon the scene unfolding in front of them.
Turning around, Marie smiled radiantly as she pressed her fingers before her chest. "Oh, hello! Don't worry, everything is taken care of!" She greeted, before moving towards Jeanne. "Is Amadeus here with you?"
"Um, no, I think he's coming alongside Ritsuka." The Saint answered, at about the same time that Marie clutched her hands together with her own.
"I see, but more importantly, you came running after you heard about the civilians in danger! That's just the kind of compassionate and heroic response I expected from Saint Jeanne!"
It certainly seemed as if the Queen had forgotten that he was standing right next to the Saint whom she was gushing over. John took no offense to that, partly because he was sort of relieved, as he couldn't fathom being the center of Marie's overwhelming excitement.
Jeanne certainly seemed to have a bad time in trying to calm her down. He was on the verge of assisting her, when suddenly he spotted something tiny flying to them from the corner of his eyes.
It was a rock. After a quick calculation, he realized that the small rock was heading straight for Jeanne's head. So, he swiftly put his arm in the way, shielding the saint's head and causing the rock to crash against his armor instead.
The two women blinked once, as Jeanne glanced down onto the rock on the ground for a moment, before she peered forward along with the rest of them.
"Jeanne D'Arc, all of this is your fault! If you had stayed dead then this country would not be in ruins!" The voice originated from a soldier, whose voice was enraged to the core. He, alongside others, raised their swords while they began to march towards them. "You damned Dragon Witch! This will be revenge for what you did to my hometown!"
His words alone were enough for John to understand what was happening.
He could not blame them for the anger which they were feeling. Their reasoning led them to conclude that the Jeanne who was standing next to him was the very individual responsible for incinerating the villages and towns all across France.
Even so, it was a reasoning that was blinded by emotions, primarily by sadness. Understandable, but wrong at the same time.
Attempting to explain the current situation to them would also be a waste of time. Therefore, he thought the best course of action for them to take was to quietly withdraw without causing trouble.
John turned back to the group. Both Amadeus and Ritsuka were standing behind them, having arrived just seconds prior to the soldier flinging the rock, with the latter having a conflicted expression on his face. It was evident that the boy disliked the sight he was witnessing, yet there was also a sense of resignation in his eyes, as if he understood that there was little he could do to change the situation.
Then, he parted his lips to tell them of what their next move should be, only to stop as something suddenly flashed on the motion tracker. A single red dot, unlike the bright yellow ones of the Chaldean group, or the subdued gray from the French soldiers.
Just one single red dot, which Hope had designated to the members of the Dragon Witch's faction.
Swiftly, he spun around and raised his rifle in the direction of whomever the dot belonged to. The muzzle of his weapon was leveled squarely against the woman with the violet hair, who carried the cross-shaped staff. Taking a closer inspection of her, John observed that her deep blue eyes looked lost and hazy, as though she were struggling with an inner impulse within herself.
"Good morning everyone." The woman spoke, using a soft and gentle tone of voice. Everyone's attention, including that of the soldiers who stopped in their tracks, was immediately drawn to her. "What a lovely morning it is."
All the Servants in the group immediately positioned themselves in front of Ritsuka, with Mash standing directly in front of the boy.
His eyes narrowed on her. "Identify yourself."
The woman shot him a curious glance before she let out a chuckle that felt wrong. "Oh, what a blunt man. Hmm, you ask who am I? I wonder. You might say that I'm someone who forced herself into being a fair saint, but who now finds herself enslaved to a fractured one."
Her words didn't sound like they made any sense, but John managed to pick up on something.
Apparently, this woman was also a saint like the one who was currently standing to his right, which would explain the shape of the staff.
"A fractured saint…" He heard Jeanne mutter quietly under her breath.
"Yes, thanks to her actions, my reason has been torn away from me and I have lost myself in madness, forcing me to do unspeakable acts." Her grip on her staff became tighter. "At this moment I am doing my best to restrain myself from attacking all of you."
"Madness Enhancement." A whisper from Mash which prompted him to blink for a moment.
He had read about that before. It was a skill that was characteristic of the Berserker class, which augmented the physical abilities and parameters in return for the sense of reason of the Servant.
That would explain why she looked so…off
A small nod with a sorrowful smile was made by the violet-haired woman. "You are right. If it was up to me, I would gladly join you in defeating the Dragon Witch. But ultimately, it wouldn't be helpful for all of you to have a Servant who would stab you in the back at almost any given opportunity."
"Then why are you here?" The Master Chief asked.
"I was ordered to observe you, but the remnants of my reason are whispering to me that I should test you." She furrowed her brow. "You are facing the Dragon Witch, disaster incarnate, who mounts the ' Ultimate Dragon'. If you can't overcome me, then you will never be victorious against her."
She spoke without any hesitation as she pointed her staff in their direction. His index finger was already touching the trigger, prepared to press it, yet he waited until she made the first move.
"My True Name is Martha. Now come to me, Iron Dragon Tarasque!"
It took him a couple of seconds to recognize who she was.
And it took a second more for him to assimilate what now stood behind her.
The best words he had to describe him was 'Armored Beast'.
His giant head had four horns sprouting out of it, two facing forwards while the other two protruding from both sides of his head. The majority of his body was covered by a deep purplish colored armored shell with sharp spikes all over it. He had six legs, all with claws that would shred a normal person to pieces in less than a second, and a long tail with several spikes sticking from it.
The beast made a growling sound in their direction, and its white eyes seemed to be focused on him for a moment before flicking over to the rest of the group.
"You're going to need a bigger weapon." Hope whispered, sounding equally awed by the giant beast.
"Agreed."
X—X—X—X—X
AUTHOR NOTES:
Here it is. Apologies for the delays, but things in my life delayed me from writing.
I cut the fight with Martha because I wanted to publish the chapter and not make them think I quit. I rewrote the Chief's conversation with Chaldea 4 times, and I still don't know if it's completely right. At least it became easier for me to write thanks to the Anon that recommended to me to use Grammarly on , so I am thankful to him.
Another change I made was to the lines. The ones on and the ones on Spacebattles just bothered me, so I made those simple ones.
All right, I think that's all. That's it for me, I'll be seeing you in the next one. That's it for me, I'll be seeing you in the next one.
N.R