PRIMORDIAL SONG: MELODY OF UNEASE

CHAPTER 2:

STATE OF AFFAIRS

Kayneth sat opposite Olga-Marie Animusphere, and studied her. The young woman was clearly nervous, but holding up well. Really, Kayneth thought she handled this whole crisis well, but alas, many others did not think so.

"It seems you are the one to hold my leash, Lord El-Melloi," Olga said bitterly.

"As crude as that term is, it is far from inaccurate. The Magus Association wants more oversight over Chaldea, especially in light of so many prominent Magi perishing in Lev Lainor's sabotage. Many don't consider him capable of such a feat, though, and many of his friends in Clock Tower are watching on, hoping for your downfall. I was chosen because my former student and his own students are quite brilliant and, if necessary, discreet investigators. In truth, I believe some in Clock Tower wished to have them out of the way, to stop them from unearthing more embarrassing secrets. They are discreet when necessary, but if something threatens the secrecy of magecraft…" Kayneth left it in the air.

"I assure you, I've reported nothing but the truth in my communications to Clock Tower!" Olga protested.

"I'm sure you have, but lies of omission are still a possibility," he said with a knowing smile. And he knew that she had been caught out. Not in anything nefarious, but certainly in stuff that many Magi wouldn't hesitate to take advantage of.

Once upon a time, he would have easily been one himself, but becoming a family man had mellowed him somewhat, and while ruthless if need be in the manoeuvrings of Magus politics, he wasn't needlessly so. So, he said in a gentle tone, "Director Animusphere, we're trying to ensure that Chaldea still runs as your father envisioned it, as you have continued it. Especially as, given the report about the Goetia Singularity, that some of these Demon Pillars may have escaped and seek revenge. The United Nations and the Magus Association want accountability, and hopefully, we can do that without compromising your authority over this organisation. But pinning much of the blame on Lev Lainor, as well as the Goetia gestalt, has made you even more enemies in Clock Tower than you have already. By cooperating with this investigation and consenting to the oversight, you can avoid giving them more ammunition than they have already. I know this seems like being punished for doing the right thing, but sadly, that is the reality of the world."

"Of course it is," the young woman said bitterly. "To change the subject somewhat, what was the reaction of the wizards to Potter and Granger's involvement?"

Kayneth chuckled mirthlessly. "Mixed, of course. Many attribute Potter's survival to a miracle, while others to malfeasance. From what I recall, Potter was flung back in time while trying to work on an experimental Time-Turner. He hasn't tried to undergo unauthorised Rayshifts?"

"He's sworn, with Granger's assistance, an Unbreakable Vow to not use our Rayshift technology to do so. He's aware of our tenuous position with Clock Tower and the UN, and he doesn't wish to jeopardise his friends and allies to do so."

"Hmm. Serendipitous, then, that he appeared with Tiamat for the penultimate Singularity, at least of Goetia's Singularities," Kayneth mused. "Many within the Magus Association find that suspicious, though I believe that to be sour grapes, given that two wizards were amongst your Masters, rather than all of them being Magi. You know how fractious the relationship between Magi and wizards are. The fact that two helped save history would sting the pride of many. I admit, I myself am a little nettled, but unfortunately, your situation meant necessity won out over such concerns. However, do you trust them?"

"I would trust both of them with my life," Olga said without hesitation, with her thoughts of More than I trust you remaining unspoken, but writ large on her face. "In addition, for an amateur Magus of no noteworthy bloodline, Ritsuka Fujimaru acquitted himself well, despite his young age and the pressure he was under. Hinako Akuta…well, it goes without saying that my father chose her for a reason. All four of our Masters are to be highly commended for what they did, as is Mash Kyrielight, regardless of what Clock Tower decides to do with Chaldea."

"And to you, I presume?" Kayneth asked. "Quite selfless of you, Director Animusphere. But with any luck, it should not come to that. More than a few have clamoured for Miss Kyrielight to be placed under a Sealing Designation, but I believe that boat sailed when your father's experiments were exposed. Still, please keep in mind that you need to keep your Servants under control as much as possible. That one of them caused an incident shortly before my arrival is a cause for concern."

"Lord El-Melloi, with all due respect to you, and you are due a considerable amount of respect, we are dealing with figures both infamous and famous throughout history and myth. Many of whom, I should add, have considerable enmity with each other. We managed to get, for example, Arjuna and Karna to cooperate, and if you know your Indian mythology, then you'd know that their animosity was a major part of the Mahabharata. Thanks in no small part to Granger, King Arthur and Mordred have reconciled, and you know how the Battle of Camlann ended. In addition, many of the Servants here remember past summonings across timelines where they fought. There was an incident with Jack the Ripper and Atalanta that nearly got messy. We are lucky that, for the most part, the incidents involve relatively minor pranks and the occasional food fight or bar brawl rather than the Servants firing off Noble Phantasms and potentially destroying this facility. The trick is to treat them less as familiars, and more as the people they once were. That may seem novel to a Magus, but believe me, it has worked, and quite successfully. I just hope that Professor Velvet and his protégés don't cause too much disruption…"

Hinako Akuta, once known to history as Consort Yu, Yu the Beauty, Yu Mei-Ren, Yu Miaoyi, and other names, wasn't a people person. It didn't help matters that she was an Elemental, an entity born of the World, an existence almost identical to a True Ancestor. She was certainly a vampire, though for her, drinking blood was strictly voluntary, an easy way to gain mana. Millennia of existence and losses of those close to her made her a bitter, withdrawn misanthrope, and while knowing Hermione and gaining acceptance in Chaldea had helped make her less so, she still despised humanity at large, and Magi in particular.

Which was why she was in the deployment chamber, the simulated globe Chaldeas suspended in the air in the middle of the chamber. Down below, beneath her feet, where she looked, she knew that her former comrades in Team A lay, cryogenically frozen, along with so many other Master candidates. That could have been her, if Hermione hadn't released her from her coffin, knowing her regenerative abilities would save her.

She was currently above two coffins. Specifically, those of Ophelia and Pepe, the two members of Team A she got along best with. Every day, she'd come down here, and pay her respects. Until they got more medical personnel that specialised in cryopreservation recovery, they would remain there, on the brink of death.

As she finished her little vigil, standing, she heard, "You still miss them, huh?"

The voice was unwelcome, not because she particularly disliked the owner of it. As far as humans were concerned, Ritsuka Fujimaru was an exemplar, an accepting young man who, despite his relative ineptitude and naïveté, managed to stand alongside them in saving the world. He showed little concern for her status as a vampire, just seeking reassurance that she wasn't his enemy.

Of course, he was also a naïve little twit at times, and he did have a bad habit of intruding where he wasn't wanted. He meant well, but sometimes, he couldn't quite read the room. "Of course I do. Ophelia and Pepe…you'd like them both. Maybe Kadoc too. He was a whiner, but his aptitude as a Master was pretty good. Anyway, what do you want, Ritsuka?"

"Well, I was going to say hi to the team from Clock Tower. Harry's giving them the orientation spiel, while Olga's dealing with that Lord El-Melloi guy. You want to come with me?"

"Not particularly. Look, no matter how you slice it, these guys, even with the best of intentions, are Clock Tower's proxies, here to show where we are on the pecking order," Hinako said, turning to face Ritsuka. "And if they discover Marisbury knowingly hired a vampire who's practically a True Ancestor…"

"It can't be that bad, surely?"

Hinako flatly stared at him. "You really are a naïve little twit at times, aren't you, Ritsuka? Lady Lorelei Barthemeloi, Vice-Director of Clock Tower, despises vampires of all kinds. How she tolerates Zelretch being in Clock Tower is beyond me. We're already on thin ice, not only due to Marisbury's dirty dealings in creating Mash, and Lev, a popular figure in Clock Tower, being accused of sabotage. But now, we have scores of Servants, to say nothing of a Beast of Calamity on our side, even if reviving Mash with Fou severely reduced both of their power. That makes people nervous, jittery, and one thing I have learned during my years of existence is that nervous people don't take much to scare into aggression. That being said…while I don't trust Lord El-Melloi, Waver and his protégés are another matter. I met him a few times before Marisbury recruited me. For a Magus, he is somewhat scrupulous, and he tries to instil that in his students."

"Does that mean we can trust him?"

"Only to a degree. But…you can't tell them what I am, or what Fou is, never mind Roman's true name. And don't forget to mind your Ps and Qs, especially around Lord El-Melloi, his cousin, and the Edelfelt girl, the blonde one. I've met that little brat Reines before, and she loves getting under people's skin, while Luvia Edelfelt is pretty haughty. As for Lord El-Melloi, well, he's an archetypal Magus, and Magi are not good people usually. Just treat him like you're meeting a noble, be polite, and be courteous, and don't give him any ammo against you, or us."

"…It doesn't seem fair, really," Ritsuka said, looking a bit morose. "We saved the world, and yet, we have to be worried about being punished for it."

"I know. Life isn't fair, but…gratitude in humanity has a short half-life, and Magi even more so. Harry knows this better than anyone. He still annoys me, but for all his faults, I get him. Maybe that's why I don't like him that much. It's like looking into a mirror." Hinako sighed quietly. "Anyway…I'm going to do some summoning later, as a demo for the investigation team. Who knows? I might get him."

"Xiang Yu? But…why do you love him so?"

"Why do you love Mash?" Hinako said with a shrug. "Xiang Yu doesn't have the best reputation, to be sure…but he did that partly to ensure Liu Bang's ascendancy, paving the way. I did tell you how he came to be, right?"

"Yeah. You said something about him being an artificial being, created by Shi Huang Di based on the remains of Nezha?"

"Yes. Xiang Yu was following his programming, you see, after the Emperor who created him died. And yet…never mind. Rest assured, should he come here…well, we have the likes of Attila the Hun, and her body count is legendary, both as her historical self, and as Sephyr, White Titan of Velber. And yet, well, you know her as well as we all do. And look at Tiamat. Without Harry, she could have attempted genocide to create more children, and yet, now, she's a stalwart ally of Chaldea. My beloved, by comparison…well, he should do well here."

"Well, hopefully, we'll get to meet him," Ritsuka said. "It's…well, you shouldn't be so lonely, Hinako. You're a good person."

"And you're still a naïve little twit…but I appreciate it, Ritsuka. Figures that the closest things I have to friends amongst the humans here are an amateur Magus and a wizard. But…keep this in mind. I am almost completely immortal. Very little can kill me. It's hard to treasure friendships, even with those who accept me for who and what I am, because you humans have so short lives compared to me. You're not even out of your teens, and I'm thousands of years old, and may yet live past humanity's extinction. I'll almost certainly outlive you, assuming something doesn't happen to me."

"I guess I'll have to live with that. But being lonely is no way to live, even for an Elemental. You're still a person, Hinako. Even Harry thinks that, despite your problems."

Hinako scoffed. "Okay, you've got a point there. He just thinks I'm a bitch. The feeling is mutual. Still, he's good at what he does. I just wish we got him and Tiamat before the end of the Grand Order."

"He did enough. Without Tiamat and Fou, Mash wouldn't be alive," Ritsuka said. "And we saved more people in that Singularity in Babylonia than, well, Camelot, for example."

"I suppose. Hermione always did say he had a saving people thing, and he does, to a damned fault. Anyway, let's go. Maybe we can meet the watchdogs Clock Tower has seen fit to send our way."

"Hmm. By the way, Hinako…you haven't had those dreams lately, have you?"

"About becoming a Crypter? None at all…"

CHAPTER 2 ANNOTATIONS:

More of Lord El-Melloi being reasonable, and a look into Hinako's psyche. The latter was me trying to reconcile my portrayal of her with her portrayal in the third Lostbelt.

No numbered annotations this time.