PRIMORDIAL SONG: MELODY OF UNEASE

CHAPTER 7:

THE WOLF, THE TYRANT, AND THE MASTERMIND

As they watched the clash between the other Servants and the automatons, led seemingly by the Phantom of the Opera, Harry gestured to EMIYA, who had stayed back, along with a few of the other Servants. "You know who the old man is?"

"I suspect," the Counter-Guardian said, frowning. "His weapon…it's a chimaera, as I suspect he is too. He is primarily one Heroic Spirit, but with another grafted on somehow. I even got its name when I used Structural Analysis on it."

"What is it?" Harry asked. Ritsuka was directing the battle, and was a little way away from them.

"Reichenbach."

As Harry's eyes widened in recognition, Tiamat frowned. "Reichenbach?"

"Reichenbach Falls, a famous waterfall in Switzerland," Harry said quietly. "Famous particularly for an event in fiction: the final battle between Sherlock Holmes…and his nemesis, James Moriarty. The others met Holmes in the Camelot Singularity, and this guy doesn't match the description, and Ritsuka and the Servants who fought there would have recognised him. But…Moriarty, as far as I know, never used guns, at least himself. He was more of a mastermind, plotting from the shadows. I think he had an enforcer who was a sniper, Sebastian Moran or something, but…"

"There's more. Elements of that gun seemed to remind me of the story of the Freeshooter." On Harry's blank look, EMIYA elaborated, "There's a story about a hunter called Max who sold his soul to a devil called Samael, in exchange for seven magic bullets, six of which would always hit what Max wanted them to hit…but the seventh would take away someone he loved. It was turned into an opera back in the early 1800s, Der Freischutz."

"…So he could be Moriarty, or this Max person, or a hybrid…can we trust him?"

"Only to a degree. He himself admits he isn't trustworthy. But if he is Moriarty…wouldn't he be in charge? It may be that another Servant launched a coup against him, and he's using us to help him regain his throne."

"Hmm…I am not entirely sure," Tiamat mused. "His song, while far from pure, does not quite feel like that I would expect of a criminal mastermind." Her eyes suddenly widened in realisation. "I know this song, how it feels…part of his song has been torn from him, as it was with me!"

EMIYA looked at her sharply. "In other words, you think Archer may have been bifurcated, like you were by Goetia."

"Yes."

EMIYA nodded thoughtfully, and looked over at the battle. "I see. And maybe it was for similar reasons. That version of Archer of Shinjuku might be one opposed to whatever the Demon Pillar's intentions were for this Singularity. So while not necessarily a 'good' side, he might be more moral, or at least inclined to stop our mutual enemy."

"So, in other words, we keep allying ourselves with him, but keep an eye on him, just in case," Harry said grimly. "And if Tia is correct, then his other half is probably in that tower. The problem is, Moriarty is a mastermind…so why is he in the thick of action? This one may not be as inclined to destroy the world or whatever the Demon Pillar has in mind, but he'd still be a schemer, so he's got some sort of plan."

"Whatever it is, should his song sing betrayal, then he will regret it," Tiamat said, before all of them stiffened at the sound of a howl. It was bone-chilling, piercing right to the very soul. Everyone around froze, and then fled, save for the Servants.

"What the hell was that?" EMIYA asked.

Harry shook his head. "I don't know, but if everyone's fleeing, we'd better follow suit. RIDER! GET THE SHIP READY, WE'RE GETTING THE HELL OUT OF HERE!"

As Harry hurried over, Archer of Shinjuku nodded, looking apprehensive himself. "You have the right idea. There are many unwritten rules here in Shinjuku, and paramount is that, if you hear that, and it's close by, you flee!"

As the Golden Hind appeared, Arturia frowned. "What is it that they flee from?"

"The Rider of Shinjuku, a fearsome beast nobody has conquered," Archer of Shinjuku said, as they boarded the Golden Hind.

As the galleon rose into the air, away from the street, Ritsuka, who was looking on, had his eyes widen in shock. "What the hell is that?!"

Harry looked, and saw it loping down the street. A massive wolf, vaguely ethereal, its fur like blue flame. And mounted on it was a rider, in old-fashioned military uniform…well, minus a head. "…Is that a headless horseman?" he asked in sheer disbelief. "Riding a huge bloody wolf?"

Archer of Shinjuku nodded grimly. "Indeed it is. Your observational skills do you credit. But that wolf is not, properly speaking, a Heroic Spirit. While you may have met Servants who come from myth or fiction, this creature, technically, is less even than that. Little more than an urban legend that fades into footnotes in stories. Call it a Phantom Spirit. It should not be a Servant under normal circumstances, and yet, it is. It is also powerful, alacritous, and in a contrary mood."

"Phantom Spirits," EMIYA mused as the galleon climbed. "We met a Servant once who mentioned them. A man by the name of Sherlock Holmes, or so he claimed."

Harry noted a brief flicker of something come over the mysterious Archer's face, and the hypothesis that this was Moriarty seemed to gain more substance. "Be that as it may, Phantom Spirits are indeed peculiar beings. They are often hybrids, summoned as sets, usually a pair. Take this one, for example. They are two entirely unrelated stories, and yet, were merged together."

"You know who they are," Harry said. "Stop beating around the bush, then. I got enough of that at school."

Archer harrumphed. "Allow an old man to indulge in his dramatic urges, hmm? Though I must confess, the wolf, despite being a man-eater, is beyond my ken."

Harry racked his brains, before he said, "But the headless horseman…aside from the Headless Hunt or the myth of a Dullahan, the thing that springs to mind is the Headless Horseman from Sleepy Hollow."

With a snarl, the wolf leapt up, and sank its teeth into the hull of the Golden Hind. The headless body on it began lashing out with scythe-like blades at those close to the railing. Tiamat, with a snarl of her own, gestured. The wolf's jaw exploded in a fountain of gore from Tiamat's Noble Phantasm, Nammu Duranki. While not as effective on Servants as it was on living beings, and certainly not as powerful as it was before, it dislodged the beast enough for it to drop to the street below. As an added touch, Tiamat sardonically hummed a snatch from Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?

"Drake!" Arturia yelled at her fellow Briton. "Can you make the Hind ascend any faster?"

"That damn thing looks agile enough to jump between buildings!" Drake yelled from the helm. "And we're still in the middle of a street with buildings on either side! We need a distraction! Or better yet…" She gestured, and cannons began appearing out of thin air, blasting at the wolf and its rider.

Then, the sound of a motorbike roaring up the street came to their ears. They soon saw it, a rider on a sleek, black motorbike, roaring up the street, heading towards the wolf. Drake ceased her bombardment, and the wolf whirled to attack this latest foe, only to get slashed at by a jet black blade. Arturia, next to him, stiffened. While it was hard to make out the rider, she clearly recognised the weapon. "No…"

The wolf, abused by a number of attacks already, eventually fled, albeit reluctantly, while the motorbike rider began driving up the side of a building…and then flung the bike onto the deck of the Golden Hind. And finally, Harry could get a good look at the rider. He stared in shock, looking to Arturia, and then the bike rider.

"Ho? So, you travel with another iteration of myself?" asked the woman who appeared to be a doppelganger of Arturia. But her pale skin, near-white hair, and baleful golden eyes told a different story. Harry remembered Hermione telling him about one of the first adversaries they fought, at the climax of the Fuyuki Singularity, a version of Arturia who had been corrupted. For simplicity's sake, they had dubbed her 'Arturia Alter'.

She was dressed in shorts, a blouse, and a jacket, rather than the darkened armour Hermione described. If it weren't for her eyes, pallor and demeanour, she'd fit in in normal Shinjuku.

"Arturia Alter!" Ritsuka yelped.

"Yes?" Arturia Alter asked. "Do I know you?"

Before Ritsuka could explain, Arturia, her features hardened, said, "We fought another iteration of you in a previous Singularity. Be you friend or foe?"

"Not a friend, though an ally of convenience if need be," Arturia Alter said. "I am another iteration of the one you fought. I do not remember that battle. Perhaps that is for the best." Her expression was cold and practical, with very little of the admittedly understated warmth Arturia showed.

Mordred, meanwhile, was doing a double take. "What the actual fuck? So, this is what you look like as a Saber Alter, Father?"

Arturia Alter shot her counterpart a look. Anticipating the unanswered question, Arturia said, "We have reconciled. Mordred has my full trust once more."

"…I see. Perhaps you are foolish, and yet…well, I suppose you need all the help you can get. I will admit I certainly do. Though I must ask…what is the Archer doing here?" She indicated Archer of Shinjuku.

"What do you mean?" Ritsuka asked.

Arturia Alter walked up to the Archer of Shinjuku, and peered into his features. "…No recognition," she mused, baffled. "What game are you playing, you old spider?"

"You two have met?" Arturia asked.

"…Yes, and yet, if he is feigning ignorance, he is doing a good job," Arturia Alter remarked.

"I see," Archer of Shinjuku said. "This is the first time I have met you, but not the first time you have met me, I wager."

"Cut the crap," EMIYA said, glaring at the Archer of Shinjuku. "I know who you are…or at least I suspect…and Tiamat believes she knows what your current situation is…so, Professor James Moriarty, stop beating around the bush, and explain."

The old man's eyes widened briefly in surprise, before a resigned smile touched his lips. "I see. So, what gave me away?"

"Your weapon. Structural Analysis is a useful tool in the right hands. You're a hybrid like that beast we fought. And the name Reichenbach was distinctive. You've fused with another of these Phantom Spirits, the Freeshooter Max, correct?"

"In a manner. Most impressive. Most Magi sneer at such a thing, and yet, you do not neglect such a simple tool…but I know what you are, Counter-Guardian…and I am sure you're in for something of a shock yourself, I wager."

"Tiamat believes you were bifurcated, just like she was once," Harry said.

"Indeed I was, into, well, for want of a better term, a good half and a bad one. Yes, I know, that sounds utterly laughable when it comes to me, but…"

"Not wholly," Tiamat said. "My song was not split along lines of good and evil, but rather, along whether I wished to continue my actions as a Beast of Calamity."

"I see. So the name Tiamat is not because your parents were eccentric lovers of Babylonian lore," Moriarty said. "A Beast of Calamity, hmm? And you are probably correct. I am still a rather crooked old man, but I have more standards than my other self, though I am not in full command of my memories. Asking you to trust me about that is, understandably, not helping my case, but powerful though I am, I am outnumbered, and surrounded by people who would kill me if I so much as sneezed wrongly. And given that my other half abandoned me to be slaughtered like livestock out here, well, I do desire revenge if nothing else."

Arturia Alter scrutinised him, before nodding. "I see. But know, then, that I will be watching you like a hawk, Moriarty, and the moment you turn on us is the moment you feel Excalibur Morgan running you through. However, what did you mean when you said this one would be in for a shock?" She indicated EMIYA.

EMIYA nodded. "I too want to know."

"Oh, it's quite simple. One of my other self's enforcers was an Alter counterpart of you, I believe, much as Arturia Alter here is the Alter of…well, my word, I hadn't expected Arturia or Mordred to be of the fairer sex, or Francis Drake for that matter."

Both Arturias groaned, while Mordred put a hand on the older man's shoulder. "Oi, old man? Bring up my womanhood one more time, and I'll give you one where your neck should be. Savvy?"

"Crystal clear, if crude," Moriarty said.

EMIYA, perturbed, asked, "I have an Alter?"

"Yes. I don't know the details of how he came to be, but he is considerably more ruthless than you, old chap. But the face is unmistakeable."

"I do recall that Archer," Arturia Alter remarked. "Dark skin, darker than yours, wields guns. The man seemed hollow inside. Little more than a hound for the Phantom Demon Alliance." She scrutinised Moriarty, before grimacing. "I know I shall regret this. Drake, was it? Follow my directions. We head to my base of operations…"

CHAPTER 7 ANNOTATIONS:

So, Moriarty's identity is revealed, and Salter has arrived! I wanted to make Salter's entrance even more awesome than in canon.

No numbered annotations this time.