If Ritsuka had a nickel for every time he was knocked out of an aircraft and sent falling to his death, he'd have two nickels. It wasn't much, but it's weird that it happened— oh who was he kidding, it's probably more than twice but he wasn't exactly keeping count. It's just that the memory of his latest plummet to certain doom was still fresh in his mind. That aside, let's backtrack a bit.
Breakfast had come and gone without a hitch; although Senti was snickering the whole time, looking like she wanted to say something but holding herself back… likely because Fu Hua was giving her that look. He had seen the same look from some of his Servants, like Brynhildr towards her sisters— something along the lines of "Step out of line and I won't hesitate to punish you." He wondered what Senti could be thinking but figured it was probably her usual mischievous teasing.
After that, their free time came to a halt when Fu Hua received an urgent message from Theresa to meet her: "We have a situation."
The brief text was enough for the three to beeline for the headmistress's office. There, Tesla and Welt were already waiting with Theresa; the former engrossed in reading something on her tablet, while the latter two were in deep discussion. "Good, you've made it," Welt hummed upon noticing their arrival.
"As I was saying, something came up. I've just received an alert from one of Schicksal's field squads," Theresa started explaining, trying to but was not able to hide the exhaustion in her voice. "I'd send another Valkyrie to deal with it… but there's something about this mission that'd be of interest to everyone here. Tesla?"
"Hmm? Oh, you're here," the AE researcher finally looked up upon hearing her name. She cleared her throat before explaining the situation. The squad had come across a nest of Honkai beast remnants not too far from St Freya and were in the middle of exterminating them when they were ambushed. "—Quantum Shadows. The chances of it being unrelated to him are slim; not when it's this soon after he arrived, especially not this close by."
Ritsuka felt all the eyes on him but didn't visibly react to it, a skill he had picked up over the years. He assumed that Quantum Shadows entering the real world were incredibly rare and very much dangerous. In any case, that meant their next step was clear. Fu Hua tried to interject saying it would be better for only she and Senti to go while Ritsuka stayed here where it was safe. He was naturally against the idea; perhaps from guilt that people might have gotten hurt due to him. Surprisingly, Senti was against it too. "Theresa said it herself, didn't she? The safest place for him is with us."
There's no time to argue about it and, short of knocking him out, nothing Fu Hua could do to make him stay behind. Tesla and Theresa elected to stay back and run support from the school while Welt chose to go with them just in case. Not long after, they were onboard one of Schicksal's transport ships flying over a sea of green. At the speed they were going, it would not take long for them to reach the target site. They just needed to go past this forest into the mountain and—
BEEP! BEEP!
The alarm blaring was all the warning they got before something struck the side of the ship, tearing apart its hull. That was how Ritsuka found himself sucked out of his seat and hurtling towards the forest below. Truly, just a normal day in the office.
"Ritsuka!" was all he heard before everything went black as something hit him…
The shadowy creatures native to that dimension were easily taken care of, even if Kama had to pull double duty to protect herself, the wimp, and the demon-furball. They ended up in a normal-looking forest, surrounded by weird creatures, some of which were injured in some way.
Something about these creatures did not sit right with Kama but she couldn't put a finger on it, putting them out of their misery just seemed like the right thing to do… even though most of them were fine. Either way, she found herself needing to take a break and sit down. Fortunately, Xu Fu was not a total dead weight— she healed her and provided support as best as she could as Kama was not in her Avenger class. "First we were stranded, now we're just plain lost," Kama grumbled, her frustration and annoyance on full display.
"On the bright side, at least we're back on Earth." Xu Fu tried to be a bit more optimistic of the two. At least they were no longer in danger of disappearing from lack of magical energy; surprisingly, this forest was rife with it. It was… odd. Regardless, Kama had flown up earlier to get a lay of the land. That, unfortunately, did little to help as she only learned they were in the middle of a massive forest with no signs of civilization in sight.
Boom!
"Fou! Fou fou!"
"Hey!? Where are you going?!" It was distant but the sound of an explosion naturally caught the two Servants' attention. Fou himself leapt off of Xu Fu's shoulder and bolted through the shrubbery, making the two chase after him.
They then heard a cry fill the air— a name they didn't expect to hear when they really should have: "Ritsuka!"
That explains Fou's quick reaction but… how did he— "Keep an eye on him!" Kama commanded her fellow Servant before flying ahead and up above the tree line to see if she could spot the origin of the voice. What caught her attention first was what likely caused the earlier explosion sound; an airship high in the air, now smoking and crashing towards the forest. More importantly, however, was a pair of figures falling— one of whom was the person they'd been looking for. At this distance, she would not reach him in time and could only watch as someone reached and grabbed her Master before disappearing into the treeline.
Kama flew back down to rejoin Xu Fu… only to grab the Alter Ego and carry her along. It was faster this way despite Xu Fu's panicked cry. Fou somehow was able to keep up and navigate through the trees just as proficiently as she did. As much as she disliked the squirrel-rat, she had to admit it was still quite something.
At the speed they were going, it did not take long before they reached the estimated landing spot. They emerged into the clearing to see their Master passed out on the ground with someone trying to shake him awake: a long ash gray-haired woman with white streaks. Her clothes were rather ornate— mostly black and silver with golden accessories. Lastly, floating next to her was a massive floating sword. The strange woman heard them approaching and swiftly turned around, revealing her crimson eyes. "Who are you?!" She demanded, clearly on edge and distrustful of them.
"We could ask you the same thing," replied Kama, narrowing her eyes as she scanned the strange woman. There was something about this person that… unsettled her. It reminded her a bit of certain others within Chaldea (one of whom was right next to her) but not quite at the same time. Regardless, Kama was on the defensive too and ready to fight her.
Evidently, the mysterious woman standing between them and their Master sensed something about her too, glancing between Kama and Fou. Her eyes narrowed and they felt hostility radiating from the woman. "What are you two…? This sort of presence… No, it can't be…"
"What are you blabbering about?" Kama retorted, her own eyes darting between her and the unconscious Ritsuka. "Now, if you would so kindly step away from him. He's ours."
"Pah! Yours?!" A loud incredulous laugh escaped the mysterious woman, amused at Kama's claim. She reached for her sword, grabbing and pulling the handle to reveal a more normal-sized blood-red blade radiating red lightning. "I have no idea who you are but you should know I won't be giving him up without a fight."
A fight was looking more and more inevitable— even Fou was getting ready to pounce. That meant Xu Fu had to be the one with a clear head. "Uh… Can we all just settle down, please?" She asked with a face that screamed nervousness. "Master might need medical attention over there!"
"And what makes you think I'll— Wait… Master?" The tranquil fury evaporated as the mystery woman did a double take. "Could it be… you're his Servants? Guess he was right, you guys would stop at nothing to find him." She lowered but did not put away her sword.
That was when Kama realized the other Assassin was correct— Ritsuka had already been making new friends here. "Well, that's just like him, isn't it…?
Ritsuka came to with a small groan, feeling a massive headache. He wondered what happened to make him pass out; all he recalled was something hitting him. However, that headache was exasperated by a chorus of cries— "Ritsuka!" "Master!" "Fou!"
Once his vision cleared, he saw the worried faces over him. "Guys, please, my head is still aching here…" he muttered as he sat up. "Where are we this time?"
"Your little guardian angel here said we're in some forest north of the school," Kama answered with a small huff. "Honestly, you got comfortable way too easily. You've only been here for how long and you already have yet another girl being very protective of you."
"If you're trying to shame me, you should know—" "Fou!" "—Stop punching me you little rat!" Senti shouted as Fou hopped off her shoulder onto Ritsuka's.
"That just means he likes you," Ritsuka chuckled as he scratched behind Fou's ears before… "Wait, Fou?" Finally, it registered in his mind what he was looking at. "Kama? Xu Fu too? How did you guys get here?!"
"Wish we could tell you, Master," sighed Xu Fu. Clearly there was a long story but that's for later as Ritsuka realized something else.
"Senti, what happened to the ship? Where's Fu Hua and Welt?" Ritsuka frantically asked the Herrscher to which she only shrugged.
"They crashed not too far away. I know those two, they'll survive without a scratch," Senti gave a reassuring smile. While that's nice to hear, he was still worried about the ship crew that she neglected to mention. "Now then, let's go meet up with them now that you're up. Can you walk though? I can carry you if you need it."
Before Ritsuka could decline Senti's offer and walk on his own, Kama quickly interjected. "I'll carry you. I doubt she could do it after falling from that height."
"Please, as if something like that could put a damper on me!" Senti retorted with clear annoyance. "I can carry him just fine!" As if to prove that, she grabbed Ritsuka and lifted him like a bride much to his embarrassed shock.
"Hey, wai—"
"Hands off him! He did not consent to that!" Kama protested… only to try taking Ritsuka out of Senti's arms and carrying him herself. Fortunately, before they could continue arguing, a small white blur came between the two.
"Fou kyu!" The little Beast cried before kicking both of them in the face, causing Senti to drop Ritsuka. Granted, it didn't hurt that much, but the fact that he could knock them both away, Senti had to hand it to the little furball. He quickly dived down Ritsuka's shirt before either could retaliate, and the two could only swear at him as he popped his head out of Ritsuka's collar.
"You really have to stop picking fights, Fou," Ritsuka sighed, mostly amused at their antics. He quickly hopped to his feet before either of the two could resume arguing. "Shall we get going then?"
Grumbled "yes," came from Senti and Kama while Xu Fu… "Actually, my feet are killing me. Could one of you carry me?" She tried to capitalize on the two's willingness to do so for Ritsuka.
Naturally— "No." —was all she got from them. Though…
"Hmm… I can carry you if—" "Absolutely NOT!" "—alright then."
"Aww…"
Failed. Trounced yet again. Can't he catch a break?
Another way then…
The pests will have to go or he wouldn't be able to reach the pinnacle. One way or another… he'll get rid of him. Time to send a little something his way…
And done with this chapter. We finally get plot shit that may or may not be happening way too fast but hey, better than nothing... probably... Either way, Kama and Senti are going to be at each other's throats, Xu Fu just wants to rest, and Ritsuka has to play babysitter for everyone. Fou is also throwing hands with basically everyone cause he's a feisty boi. And there's now a little someone in the shadows starting to do a little naughty. Who is it? That's a secret~
See y'all next time!