The Banquet of Kings.
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A new chapter, yaaaayyyy.
I would say sorry about my sketchy upload schedule that doesn't even exist, but I can't be bothered to.
So, just enjoy, alright? This one's a long one.
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In the beginning, there was Da'at: Nothing.
At the end of the beginning, from the light Da'at shed to become Nothing came Ein Sof: Infinity.
And because when there is Infinity, Nothing cannot exist. Da'at faded away, deeper and deeper into eternal slumber.
Ages passed.
Ein Sof created the World, then built with the World ten concepts, ten children, ten Emanations. Those ten children banded together, nurturing the World Tree. And that tree cast a shadow upon the World once more, and from that shade, Da'at was reborn.
Da'at had no consciousness, unlike Ein Sof.
Da'at had no authority, unlike the ten Emanations.
Da'at was Nothing, the shadow cast by the canopy of the tree of all existence: Keter.
Thus, Da'at felt null as he was forgotten by Ein Sof, as he was left behind by the ten Emanations.
Ages passed.
Ein Sof created more than the World.
Seven rings of light: the Heavens.
The shadows cast by those rings: The seven circles of Hell.
Heaven became populated by the Angels, beings akin to yet lesser than the ten Emanations. Concepts in physical form, they were, representing the natural laws laid down by Ein Sof.
Hell remained empty.
Da'at did not watch, for Da'at had no eyes. Da'at did not hearken, for Da'at had no ears. Da'at lay slumbering in the void between Heaven and Earth, idle as shards of the essence of the Angels above gathered within Da'at.
Ages passed.
Then, one day, eternities after Da'at's rebirth, Da'at finally stirred.
It should have been impossible, for Da'at had no soul, no consciousness. Thus, Da'at must always lay slumbering, dreaming of a distant future where he had a place to belong.
Yet still, Da'at stirred.
Da'at opened the voids Da'at used as eyes and listlessly searched his domain: the Voids separating Heaven, Earth, and Hell.
There, lost in the darkness, two beings, fragile and soft. Four limbs, a head on their shoulders.
They had physical bodies, unlike Da'at.
They couldn't see everything, unlike Ein Sof.
They held no authority, unlike the Emanations and Angels.
Da'at didn't remember their faces. Da'at didn't remember how they looked, either. The only thing that stuck with Da'at were the sparks that fueled their bodies of flesh and blood. Akin to a rainbow, yet so easy to snuff out. Beautiful and bright, like the distant sparkles created by Ein Sof that Ein Sof placed within the celestial sky beyond the Heavens.
They had come from the Heavens.
They were lost.
Da'at looked upon them with dull interest. No being had come from the Heavens before.
The two noticed Da'at. They pointed at Da'at and walked towards Da'at.
They walked towards Nothing and thus would never reach anything.
But Da'at was intrigued.
The two spoke to Da'at, gentle yet fearful and also innocent.
Da'at listened. Though Da'at couldn't understand their words, he somehow knew where the two wanted to go.
Da'at had no authority, but it could be said Da'at had authority over Nothing. Da'at twisted the void, and opened a gate towards the Earth.
The two looked beyond the portal, overjoyed. They spoke words of gratitude and eternal thanks towards Da'at, yet Da'at could not understand.
The two stepped into the gateway, and it vanished behind them.
Unbeknownst to them, they had left behind something, their memories, as a gift to Da'at. They assimilated with Da'at as the shards of the essence of the Angels of the Heavens.
It shouldn't have affected Da'at, for Da'at was Nothing.
Yet as Da'at gazed upon the memories of those two, of those two humans, of a paradise guarded by one of the Emanations and infinite four-headed Angels, Da'at felt something.
For some reason, Da'at wanted, he wanted, to see that place with his own void-filled eyes.
Thus, Da'at copied the body of one of the two humans.
Thus, Da'at gained an avatar.
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"...Ugh..."
Ritsuka's eyes blinked open as he groaned, holding his head.
"Another dream of my birth, huh?"
He pushed himself from his lying position on one of the old, rotting benches of the old church he was calling home and turned his gaze towards the sky, a sky filled with stars instead of clouds.
Was his sleep schedule shit now that he was on vacation?
Yes.
Would "Mother Emiya," Raiko, Mash, and Asclepius kill him?
The latter would, so yes.
"Are dreams supposed to give you migraines...?"
Well, he couldn't call the visions he has as he sleeps "dreams." They were memories from when he had no consciousness. Thus, they were beyond what a mere human mind could comprehend.
The only reason he was still sane was extensive exposure to stress.
Golden light bathed his form as he turned into a she. Israfel reached into her metallic halo, pulling out whatever instrument Allah decided to give her. Perhaps a song would treat this headache.
"...Seriously...?"
And out came the trumpet blown to signal the literal end of the World.
"Hah..."
She was too defeated and tired to pull out another instrument for some unexplainable reason. The trumpet clattered to the ground, reduced to wisps of fire as her form sunk into the earthy smell of the ancient wooden benches.
It took energy and effort to transform back, and she didn't want to bother with it, even with how little it took.
She groaned.
"Where's Mash and Father when you need them...?"
Mash, her ever-sweet kouhai, was always reliable. As for her father... He was a decent guy so long as he wasn't on that fake idol website managed by Merlin.
And she heard the cooky wizard had recently founded the "Clairvoyant Club" in Chaldea, with Romani, himself, and Caster Gilgamesh as the members.
Solemnly, she prayed to God.
'Please, Lord Almighty. Save your daughter from this mess?'
She regretted that prayer instantly when a chariot almost slammed through the gates of her church.
The bulky, muscular figure of Iskandar, King of Conquerors, walked through the now-broken doors, tailed by the comparatively minuscule figure of the younger version of Lord El-Melloi II.
The shirt Iskandar wore raised some questions, but she couldn't be bothered to ask them.
"Rider," Ritsuka tilted her head from her bench, not bothering to get up, "why have you come? And isn't it rude to barge into a lady's room without knocking?"
"Ah, apologies. But I don't believe we have met. Ruler, I presume?"
Ritsuka nodded.
"Pretty drab place for a saint..." She heard El-Melloi mutter.
She raised her eyebrows at him. Waver Velvet must have gone through some dramatic maturing process to turn this ignorant whimp into the reliable teacher Ritsuka knew.
Now that she thought about it, that process was probably this Grail War.
"A house is a building. A hotel is a building. A church is also a building. All are stone and brick and mud molded by man instead of nature. Stone bares not faith. Mud cannot believe." Silently, she cocked her head, staring into the boy's eyes. His reaction was to jump behind his Servant. "Thus, it matters not where I dwell. A house of God is defined not by its shape or form, but by the people within."
"Well said, well said." Rider chuckled. "Indeed, marble and clay cannot pay homage to the Lord Zeus. You should learn something from the nice lady, boy."
Ritsuka closed her eyes as if trying to get her sister and brother, Liliel, Angel of Night, and Dumah, Angel of Dreams, to embrace her back into their realms. When she realized Iskandar didn't intend to leave, her eyes remained closed as she sighed.
"You haven't answered my question, Rider. Why are you here?"
"Oh, yes. Of course." The redhead cleared his throat, and spoke in a tone far too loud for Ritsuka's migraine-racked head to handle. But hey, it was why Iskandar was fun to hang around. "I, Iskandar, King of Conquorers, invite you to a drinking party in Saber's domain!"
"Uh-huh." Yeah, this is precisely what the Iskandar she knew would do. "And is Saber fine with your plans?"
"Well...uh, I haven't asked yet, but she should be fine with it."
Again, just what she expected the hulking man would do.
She giggled as she pushed herself from her bench. "Fine, fine. Just don't expect me to drink. As you can see, this vessel is underage."
"Magnificent!" The King of Conquerors laughed. "And that won't be a problem. We will merely discuss the true ownership of the Grail. The drink is to get everyone's mood into it."
"Hmm... I see."
"Oh, and where's your Master? The youth with black hair, I believe?"
Ritsuka raised an eyebrow. "Why do you think he's my Master?"
"Well, everyone's Master has already been accounted for. It only makes sense since he has Command Spells."
"Sharp. As expected from a king." Ritsuka hummed. "He's...out on business. I shall not elaborate further."
"Very well. Will you be riding on my chariot, or do you have other means of transportation?"
Ignoring the indignant cries of Lord El-Melloi II, she shook her head. White wings shaded with bronze appeared behind her back without any warning.
"I shall fly next to you. There is no need for a lift."
"Hoh!" Rider's eyes widened as a grin appeared. "Such splendid wings. I had thought the boy was exaggerating when he said he saw an Angel."
His Master turned crimson as he began uselessly hitting his Servant's arm.
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The Einzbern forest was as drab as she remembered. The castle, though, with its torn-down gates and the dim, golden glow of candles and old-fashioned lamps leaking through shattered windows, almost seemed mystical. Ritsuka's eyes landed on the pale blue flowers reflecting moonlight in the garden.
The chariot rumbled through the pile of rubble that once built the doors of this fine dwelling. Rirsuka landed not far behind, and they were greeted by Iri and Saber rushing through the corridor.
"Hello, Saber!"
There was a pregnant pause after Rider's greeting. Judging by the bewildered looks on Iri and Saber's faces, they had no idea what he was doing.
"...Rider? And Ruler?"
"I came because I wanted to see your castle." Rider paid no mind to the sigh his Master let out. "Kind of gloomy in here, don't you think? And what's with that tasteless armor? Are you going to go fight someone? Why aren't you in your fashionable clothes like I am?"
"Rider."
"Hmm?"
"What are you doing here tonight?"
"You can't tell?" Iskandar lifted the barrel in his chariot over his shoulder. "I've come to drink! What else does it look like I'm here to do."
Ritsuka chuckled. How he said it as the most normal thing in the world was hilarious.
"So stop standing there like those Greek statues and show me around this place! Surely this castle has a garden suitable for a banquet? It's far too dusty in here."
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Somehow, they weren't kicked out with the doors barred behind them.
Ritsuka let her eyes wander through the garden.
'A single flower species to populate this entire garden?'
The...unique taste aside, it was a tranquil place Ritsuka didn't mind. A bit gloomy, sure, but at least it wasn't a burning city.
Iskandar's fist fell upon the barrel's top, shattering the poor thing like a fragile glass pane. He dipped his spoon into the wine and brought it to his mouth, taking a long and hearty sip.
Ritsuka discreetly watched, intrigued. When she had tried to smuggle alcohol from the kitchen to get a sit, all he received for his effort was a lengthy scolding from Mash, Emiya, and just about every other Servant who cared.
Iskandar exhaled as he dropped the ladle, a chuckle escaping as he dipped the wooden object into his plundered beverage.
"The Grail is said to belong to the one most worthy to possess it, and the epic battle here in Fuyuki is held to determine exactly who that person is. If it's only meant to decide that fact, there's hardly a need for bloodshed."
He handed the drinking cup to Artoria.
"If the Heroic Spirits can agree on their rankings, then the matter can simply settle itself."
Raising her brow, the King of Knights took the offered drink and downed it in one go. Not expecting such a quick reaction, Rider let loose an impressed huff.
"Then I assume you wish to compare your rank against my own?"
As she spoke, she returned the ladle.
"Indeed, I do. As someone who also claims the title of king, you cannot refuse this opportunity." He took Saber's silence as confirmation to continue. "This is more of a Grail Dialogue than a Grail War, and the matter of who is more suited to claim the Holy Grail will become clear to us as we drink our fill and converse."
Ritsuka sighed. Being underage was sometimes tedious, especially during the awkward teenage years. More specifically, when the darling innocence of childhood faded away yet was not replaced by the maturity that came with adulthood.
Should she scrap her false identity as Israfel and become someone older instead? She knew many angels who were allowed to drink wine.
She wouldn't have the chance to transform, even if she wanted to.
Golden motes of light began to gather as the ambient energy in the air coalesced into the armored figure of the King of Heroes.
"I think that's more than enough nonsense, mongrels."
His arrogant voice, filled with pride, was as loud as Iskandar's declarations.
Saber was immediately on guard, and Irisviel took a weary step backward. Waver, on the other hand, looked ready to faint as he fanned himself using his hand.
Ritsuka almost laughed. The difference between his past and future selves was just that great.
"Archer, what are you doing here?"
"Well, yes. I saw him in town, so I thought I might as well invite him to our little gathering." Iskandar explained carefully to not make the atmosphere more tense than it already was. "You're a little late, don't you think, goldie? Though it stands to reason since you travel on foot, unlike myself."
The ancient king of Babylon glanced discriminantly around, his nose twisting and brows furrowing the more he looked.
"You actually chose to hold a banquet of kings in a depressing place like this?" Ripples, golden and awe-inspiring, appeared behind his back. "How will you recompense me for the rudeness of calling me here?"
Irisviel took another step back while Waver comically fell on his butt.
"Relax yourself, King of Heroes," Ritsuka wondered if intervening was a good idea. But, hey. Things were starting to get predictable. "Not everyone has the entire world's treasury by their fingertips."
Slowly, the golden king's eyes landed on the angel. Those red orbs stared past Ritsuka's hollow shell and into her soul.
"It would be wise for you to hold your tongue, Pretender. Don't think doing me a minor service grants you the right of free speech before your king."
"Perhaps. But it would do you well if you tempered some." Ritsuka responded calmly. She had spent more than a year dealing with Servants of varying personalities.
She knew their breaking points well.
"That arrogance shall do you more harm than good."
Crimson eyes narrowed into slits.
"Fool. Who gave you the right to question my authority?"
Rider stepped in at that moment, sensing that things were about to go haywire.
"Alright, alright. Calm down, the both of you. Here." He gave Archer the ladle with wine, "Have something to drink."
Eyes still narrowed and head not lowering, the King of Heroes took one sip of the beverage offered to him and spat it out.
"What is this disgusting swill? You really thought we could distinguish a hierarchy of Heroic Spirits using this?"
"You don't like it?" Rider swirled the garnet liquid in the wooden spook as he stared at it. "This was among the best I could find in the city marketplace."
"Eh, you can't be expected to find top-quality Tikveš Bela Voda Red in modern shops," Ritsuka shrugged and snapped her fingers. "Allow me."
A round fissure in space appeared, framed by a gate of blue and golden swirls. Clouds rolled from within, carrying the desired object into the angel's waiting hands.
A large goblet of gold, carved with intricate floral and religious patterns. Straw-gold liquid rocked back and forth within, emitting a pleasant sweetness resembling aged wheat and vanilla.
It was the same goblet and wheat ale offered to Ritsuka and Mash by Gilgamesh at the end of the Babylonian Singularity.
"Hoh!" Iskandar watched, intrigued and grinning while Ritsuka grabbed a few cups from her Second Archive.
"I've been meaning to empty this cup for the longest time. Right now is as good a time as any."
She couldn't drink it herself, and the preparations for the final Singularity had stressed her so much that she forgot to share it with her Servants.
"A fine treasure indeed." Iskandar acknowledged as he caught the cups thrown to him by Ritsuka.
As Rider distributed the offered drink, the one who provided it resigned herself to watching the faintly glowing flowers blooming around her.
Magecraft, perhaps? Or was it just a coincidence caused by moonlight?
Oh, well. She'd seen stranger things during her travels.
"Oho! Magnificent!" Iskandar was never one to keep opinions to himself.
Even the stoic Arturia showed surprise at the ale's quality by raising her eyebrows.
"Not bad, Pretender." The King of Heroes begrudgingly acknowledged. "I shall overlook your previous offenses. Consider yourself lucky. My generosity is not always this magnanimous."
"I know that, more than you think."
Looking around, Ritsuka gradually felt the awkwardness of being the only Servant without a beverage in hand settle in. In response, she summoned her Gate, opened a portal to her dimensional space, and pulled out a glimmering golden apple.
"What?" she asked as she noticed the Servants staring at her. Her voice became muffled as she took a bite and chewed. "I may not have as large of a treasury as goldie here, but I'm still something of a collector myself."
"Ah, and is that why you desire the Grail, Ruler?" Iskandar asked. "To collect it?"
"Hm?" Ritsuka's brows furrowed. They didn't know that Rulers summoned to oversee Grail Wars had no desire for the amalgamation of pure Mana gathered from the souls of Seven heroes? That piece of common knowledge should have been planted in their minds when summoned.
The Grail was more computed than she thought, or perhaps it resulted from her unplanned summoning.
Besides, she was a Pretender pretending to be a Ruler, not a genuine Ruler.
"No, I do not desire the Grail in the slightest." She giggled as her eyes landed on the cup they poured drinks from. Oh, if only they knew the significance of that vessel. "Nor do I have a wish to be granted. No, it's more accurate to say it's already been granted."
"And what would that wish be, if you don't mind me asking?" Rider pressed.
Ritsuka hummed. Telling them her wish in her current state and identity wouldn't make sense. But perhaps she could twist the truth. Tell a half-truth that wasn't necessarily a lie.
"I wanted to see how humanity flourished with my own eyes." Ritsuka eventually settled with a response close enough to "I wanted to be human like my father Solomon." "Since the beginning of Ein Sof and the fall of Adam and Eve from Eden, the Great Seraphim have nurtured humanity.
"Raziel showed them the wisdom of the world, Gabriel conveyed them the All-Father's counsel, Zachriel taught them the importance of remembrance, and Azrael brought them the judgment of the eternal abyss.
"My duty is to stand by God's side, mouth pressed to my seven trumpets, waiting for the inevitable end of the world. Thus, I couldn't mingle with humanity like my other siblings.
"Still, I was curious. How did these frail creatures end up as the dominant species of this planet? Hearing from Gabriel was fine 'an all, but I wanted to see it with my own eyes!"
The last traces of the apple vanished into Ritsuka's mouth as she ended her dialog. Rider and Saber nodded in understanding, while Archer showed no visible reaction besides a light scoff.
"I see," Rider began. "To love humanity so, that one would dedicate their entire life and more to its protection. An angel's wish is indeed as pure as their wings."
Archer's reaction was on the opposite side of the spectrum, however.
"To love humanity in its current state is no different than loving the insignificant insects scuttling below the earth." Subtly, a trail of bloodlust was sent by Gilgamesh in Ritsuka's direction. "While it is amusing to hear the ramblings of a fake, a joke gets dull if repeated more than once."
"It seems Caster isn't the only Servant who has gone completely mad." Arturia indignantly muttered. "How could you, after hearing such a noble cause, disregard it as 'ramblings?'"
The King of Heroes seemed to pay no mind to the Round Table's lord. His crimson orbs turned to the female angel, narrowing as they landed on her smile.
"Pretender, if you do not dispel your current sorry state, I shall take it as a personal offense against the king."
"What are you talking about, King Gilgamesh. This is my-"
An explosion rang in everyone's ears as a golden missile struck the ground beside Ritsuka, a single ripple in space cementing what it originated. Instantly, Saber was by her Master while Waver scuttled behind Iskandar.
"Do you take me for a fool, Faker?!" Gilgamesh roared as the Gate of Babylon opened further, the tips of various weapons buzzing with Mana as they were charged beyond their limits. "Pretending to be another before the king is an affront punishable by death! Yet I shall be magnanimous this once and settle for your wings!"
The phantom chains binding the blades to their ripples vanished, and they lunged like hungry canines toward the still-smiling angel. Ritsuka had been through far worse. A few swords whose trajectories were painfully obvious didn't scare her, especially when she was no longer dependent on her summons.
As the blades were about to hit their mark, ribbons of light enveloped their target. The makeshift flashbang temporarily blinded everyone in the garden of blue flowers.
The King of Knights squinted into the white void her eyes showed her, trying to find any semblance of action.
The dust cleared, and the light subsided. Where the copper-haired maiden once sat was a male youth with blue eyes and black hair. White gloves covered his hands, red ribbons adorned his black and white Israelian robes, and two silver shoulder pads were each engraved with a mystic seal.
The weapons previously fired were scattered, stuck in the ground around him. Indignant, his twelve golden wings spread as golden light crystallized around him.
"Branches of Ein Sof." He softly murmured.
Spears of light took form around him, golden and crystalline, shaded silver by the moon's pale blessings. The ripples behind the oldest hero swiftly dispersed into the night as they were impaled by shards of the canopy of the World Tree itself.
The youth's blue eyes returned the piercing gaze of the Babylonian king.
"Hmph." Golden gateways appeared with a flick of their lord's armored wrist. "Finally revealing your true colors, Pretender?"
In response, more spears took shape by Ritsuka's head. "Even a saint will retaliate when attacked, King of Heroes."
Rider had seen enough, it seemed, as he stood between the two armed Servants. "Alright, cool it, you two. There'll be plenty of time to kill each other later."
Another moment was spent as sparks flew between the oldest king and newest angel, neither willing to drop their weapons. The former because his pride wouldn't allow him to, the latter because he learned even a moment's weakness on the battlefield would send him to Azrael's scythe. Eventually, a silent message that both parties understood was sent, and the overwhelming pressure was released as the weapons of legend vanished.
Ritsuka plopped down on his destroyed section of the garden.
"So, Ruler, care to explain the sudden change in appearance?"
And was immediately bombed with a question by the King of Conquers.
How should he proceed? Lying would have Gilgamesh bombard this courtyard with Noble Phantasms or, gods forbid, Broken Phantasms. Though, telling them the truth was a rabbit too long and deep for him to bother with.
So half-truths it is!
"It's one of my skills." Ritsuka calmly responded. "I can allow angles to temporarily take over my body using their Spirit Origins."
"Hoh! What an interesting ability. So, are you some famous Christian saint?" Iskandar asked.
"I don't think people remember me as such." Another lie, but this time was different. "My name is Enoch, the prophet. One who traveled the Angelarium."
Enoch had been turned into the angel Metatron by God for his deeds. As an indistinguishable copy of the mentioned angel, even Gilgamesh, with his Clairvoyance, would have trouble telling real from fake.
"Enoch, the human who eventually became the angel Metatron," Irisviel muttered behind Saber. "Mages have theorized he's one of the only people to have touched upon the Akashic records. Can such a human even be summoned as a Servant?"
"Perhaps, perhaps not. All that occurs is the will of the All-Father." Ritsuka scratched his neck, looking around the garden. "As the King of Man, my wish remains unchanged. I left behind the mortal realms when I ascended to the heavens. As the Age of God declined, I could no longer watch the ones I cared for. Thus, I wished to be able to descend one last time upon the earth. To ensure humanity's survival."
Throwing his head back and gazing up at the star-filled sky, Ritsuka mentally traced the constellations. "Well, that was my wish. What about all of yours?"
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Time flowed quickly as the four spirits drank and clashed ideals. As he already spoke his piece, Ritsuka spent his time munching on more golden apples he retrieved from his inventory.
Gilgamesh had no particular wish for the Grail. What wish could the first king have when he already possessed all the world had to offer?
Iskandar's desire for reincarnation was surprising, especially since the one Ritsuka knew in Chaldea never expressed such a desire. But it fit his personality and dream to a T, the angel supposed.
Arturia, however, was a different story. To regret one's rule so much that she would desire to alter the course of history.
It was depressing.
Archer did nothing but laugh, and Iskandar sobered from the alcohol he ingested in an instant.
The battle of words continued, heated, with both Iskandar and Arturia fervently defending their ideals. As he listened, Ritsuka's face slowly twisted in sadness.
Perhaps if he only knew the King of Knights from Chaldea, he wouldn't feel sadness but faint anger at the King of Conquers for dismissing her wish.
But throughout his long and arduous journey, he contracted with not only the Round Table's king but also its proud and chivalrous knights.
"A king..." Iskandar began, "Must be greedier than any other. He must laugh louder and rage for much longer and embody the extremes of all things, good and evil. For that is why his retainers envy him and also why they adore him. It is why the flames of aspiration can burn within his people, to be as the king is."
Wise words. They embodied the way Iskandar lived, as a comrade, yet not an unreachable martyr. Yet they would not sway Arturia's heart, for as noble as she is, that dragonic blood in her seemed to have passed on its stubbornness.
"Hah...fufufufufufu..." Ritsuka sighed, holding a hand to his face, and laughed. Depressingly and sadly.
Rage on her face, the King of Knights turned to him. "Why do you laugh, Ruler? Archer, I understand. Yet why you? As the King of Man, you should understand why I wish to undo my rule!"
Ritsuka sighed again. Deep breath in, deep breath out.
"Why do I laugh?" He returned her question with another rhetorical one. "I laugh for all your knights that can't. I feel pain and sadness for all your retainers that can't."
Silently, his gaze settled on the King of Knights. "Saber, I have watched humanity's progression since I ascended to the Heavens. To me, every human is like a brethren. It should be a feeling you know well. For you share the same connection with your proud and noble knights.
"So tell me, how can you say you wish to undo all you built together? How can your heart bear to erase the glorious deeds and marks you left together in history? Do you not feel pain at all? At the thought of besmirching your comrades' deeds?"
Bedivere, whose loyalty drove him to walk alone for a thousand years to return the holy sword. Mordred, who wished beyond all else to lift the burden upon her "father's" shoulders. Kay, who desired, if only for a short while, to give his sister a happy childhood.
"Did your knights' loyalty mean nothing to you?"
Clouds shaded the moon, and even the faint glow of the pale blue flowers seemed to darken.
"If you regret it, then so be it. Yet you have no right to change history, especially before you ask permission from your subjects. For the history you wish to erase was not built by you alone. Thus, you alone have no right to erase it."
Silence stretched onward as Ritsuka looked down, then about the courtyard at the dancing shadows. Saber looked like she wanted to respond, yet she turned her attention to her sword as she noticed something amiss in the air.
The first appeared behind Waver in a swirl of smoke.
"E-ee!" In his panic, he crawled behind Iskandar in a rather inelegant manner. "A-Assassin?"
More appeared. In the courtyard, on the roof, in the flowerbeds. With their hidden presence finally revealed, Ritsuka counted around forty.
"So," Iskandar's eyes scanned the people in black. "Is this your doing, Goldie?"
"Tokiomi," Archer growled. "What a shameful cur."
"Th-this isn't fair! Why are there so many Assassins surrounding us?!"
"We are one, divided into many."
"An army, and also one."
"A Servant with many shadows."
"And one."
"A Servant with separate bodies for each of their personalities?" It seems even this naive, the future lord still has some insight. "R-Rider...?"
"Calm yourself." Iskandar dismissed. "Nothing to worry about, boy. Even those rude enough to interrupt our banquet may yet show us who is the greatest king."
"You're going to invite all of them?" Ritsuka asked before looking at the almost empty goblet. "I don't think I have enough ale..."
Still, they were Hassans. They couldn't drink alcohol.
"What? Have you gone blind?" Iskandar asked as he dipped his ladle into his broken barrel, still loaded with wine. "Now, then. Don't be shy! Any who wish to hear our words, come and take a cup. This drink is as your blood!"
A dagger cut the spoon in half. The wine half spilled onto the ground, half stained Rider's questionable shirt as laughter buzzed through the crowd of Hassans.
"Very well." Rider closed his eyes. Acquiescenty, he stood up. "As I said, this drink is as your blood. If you insist on spilling it tonight..."
"Rider." Ritsuka began. "I know this is a selfish request, but can you let me deal with them? You can consider it thanking me for providing you with that beverage if you wish."
Iskandar raised an eyebrow. "Sure, but-"
"Please," Ritsuka insisted. Perhaps with his Noble Phantasm, he could teach Arturia something. "Think of it as a token of a friendship you do not know."
Seeing the look in his eyes, Iskandar nodded and sat back down. Ritsuka smiled as he took off his right glove. Three golden sigils replaced his previous Commands Spells. An experimental mystic that Marisbury tested on him before implanting one in each member of Team A.
"Saber, Archer, Rider, tell me." Ritsuka paused. Everything was so peaceful, just like the calm before the storm. "To save your kingdom, no, to save the world, must you be alone?"
"A hero, a king...must indeed be alone. Always!" Arturia responded.
Hmm. A fitting answer for the King of Knights.
"Then you've learned nothing from my rants. Oh, well. I suppose I'll have to show you." He held up his hand, golden sigils glowing. "By my Sirius Light, I order myself..."
A Sirius Light's activation is paid with the user's life, for their human Magical Circuits are too brittle to handle the strain. Yet an angel is different. They are beings of Miracles, born from the most powerful light of creation. Even the impossible is possible for the children of God.
And right now, as the Servant Pretender, Ritsuka Fujimaru was a genuine angel.
"Shed my human shell, and release my Miracles."
...
They blinked at the sudden light.
The garden was only lit by the dim glow of flowers and the moon, so the sudden brightness caught them off guard.
They stood upon a grassy field, pale blue butterflies dancing around them as the pleasant smell of flowers permeated the air. Rows of doves fluttered above shattered floating mountains. They lined a path, slowly fading behind white marble stairs, and those eventually led to a temple lined with seventy-two pillars.
The Assassins looked around in confusion, some subtly backing away from the thousands of marble stairs.
"A-A Reality Marble?" Irisveil murmured in wonder. "That's impossible. A mental image cast into the real world."
"Close, but not quite." A voice rang from the temple's gate, ecstatic yet regal and brimming with excitement.
Ritsuka walked out from the temple gates, golden wings spread proudly as he looked below at the Servants at the foot of the staircase.
"I welcome you all to the Void between Heaven and Earth: A boundary that connects the two worlds. You could say this is a hidden Texture of the Planet."
This world isn't the Temple of Time, merely a recreation built from memory. Yet it was enhanced with the release of a Great Command, putting it on par with the one born from Solomon's Magical Circuits.
"This was the end of my pilgrimage, yet it was also my beginning. The final throne room that I reached after my ascension. This place is what many would call the gates to Heaven, a utopia that all heroes pass through as they enter the Kingdom of the Clouds."
Behind the temple, ribbons of golden light began to emerge. Faint at first, they soon twisted and merged together to form the glowing trunk of a titanic tree.
Ein Sof, the infinite.
Ten twelve-winged figures manifested by Ritsuka's side, their forms enveloped in golden light.
"Metatron... Metatron..." they praised, "wise king of the heavens..."
Seventy-two shades appeared by the marble pillars as the white stone was replaced with black flesh and crimson eyes.
"Solomon... Solomon..." they cursed, "cruel king of Demons Gods..."
"Hmm." Eyes wandering, Ritsuka allowed himself to feel surprised. Who would have guessed? To think he would be capable of summoning his former enemy. Mere shades they were, reduced from the proud rulers of Hell to watchmen standing guard at a mere replica of Solomon's temple. Still, the Goetic Demons were once angels, though they had fallen eons ago.
Ritsuka snapped his fingers, and the former members of the kingly drinking party appeared behind him.
"T-Teleportation? That kind of mystic is insane!" Waver muttered, back pressed tightly against his Servant.
"Well, this is my world. In other words, I am God." Ritsuka looked to Rider's side, where the inconspicuous goblet still sat. "Rider, could you please pass me that?"
"Of course," Iskandar replied as he gave the cup to Ritsuka. "But I must ask. What are you going to do with that? Surely you can't be thinking of defeating Assassin with it?"
Ritsuka giggled. "That's precisely what I'm going to do."
Chalice of Blood...
He sobered as he held his hands to the sky, white gloves now abandoned, the golden rings on his ten fingers scattered golden light.
That which holds the holy spark of man...
"Now, feast your eyes." The cup shattered into motes of light. "Oh, heavenly father, I beseech thee, allow a Miracle to occur here."
The previously shattered chalice reformed again, yet this time it was different. Charged once more with magical energy taken straight from the heavens, all present realized their blunder as they gazed upon the golden goblet, certain spots stained red with the blood of the Savior.
For a Miracle, a sacrifice must be made.
"H-Holy Grail..!" Arturia gasped as the cup floated up into the sky and vanished into the sprawling canopy of the tree behind them.
For a moment, all was still.
Then, one by one, the stars descended.
Once leaves that fell from the vast canopy, they transformed as they touched the ground.
As the Stars of Mankind descended, all present could do nothing but watch.
Some stood upon the grassy plains, weapons stabbed regally into the earth. Others sat upon shattered mountains, while few even hovered below the clouds.
Demons stood next to the heroes who slayed them. Descendants and ancestors supported each other with disregard for time periods. Pompous fools gave space to humble rulers, and those who sacrificed entire lines to save themselves would aid selfless saints in battle.
Arturia's eyes widened.
An archer in white, holding a harp for a bow.
A swordsman in silver, his blade pulsing with pale blue light.
A spearman perched upon a noble steed, holy spear in his hands.
Were those...
Were those her own knights?
The more she looked, the more she found.
It matters not who or what you are, nor does it matter where and when you are from.
"Behold, the heroes of humanity, their deeds immortalized through both truth and myth. You, who have been the guardians of humankind, I beg you all, lend me your strength!"
Akin to silent agreement, the various Heroic Spirits turned into motes of light. They spread across the horizon, appearing once more as a vast band of light that circled the world.
"This is the passion of the planet, the hopes of mankind!"
Lightning crackled above as thunder roared, the earth and sky blurred, and the horizon lost all meaning as the two realms interweaved. Reality screeched and shattered as the judgment of heaven was brought down.
"Ars Almadel Salomonis!"
And the world was destroyed in a wave of pure holy light.
...
Waver blinked, dumbly looking around as the temple had suddenly been replaced with the courtyard of blue flowers. Ritsuka gazed downward as, in his hands, the shell that once was a Holy Grail appeared. With its magical energy drained, it was now but a fancy drinking cup.
"That's the first time in a long while that I had so much fun." The used chalice fell into his gate, back into his inventory. "Well, I said my piece. I shall take my leave here."
"Wait, Ruler!" Saber hastily began. "I still have-"
"Saber." Ritsuka turned his head. "Think about what Rider and I said, would you? Your dream isn't impossible, but it's not worthwhile to achieve. Do not tarnish the pride of your knights any more than you already have."
"...Who are you, Ruler?" Arturia asked. "How did you summon my own..."
"Hmm. I suppose I can answer that." Ritsuka's wings spread as he prepared to leave. "I am a hero remembered only by other heroes."
"Wait! That doesn't answer any-"
The angel was gone. In his place, a single golden feather fluttered to the ground.
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Well?
Sorry if the conversations were awkward. I've never been all that good with character analysis.
And yes, the sketchy part at the beginning was Ritsuka's memory
If there are any suggestions, leave those in the comments too.
Well, see you all in the next one.