PRIMORDIAL SONG: MELODY OF UNEASE

CHAPTER 5:

THE NEXT SINGULARITY

"So…you know the sparrow from Tale of the Tongue-Cut Sparrow?" Harry asked Hinako as they ate in the refectory of Chaldea. Ritsuka, Hermione and Mash were sitting with them, as, of course, was Tiamat.

The vampire rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I'm surprised you even know of that tale. You didn't know who the Japanese Servants were in the Babylonia Singularity."

"I played Okami," Harry said matter-of-factly(1).

"…Fair point," Hinako conceded. "The tale of the Sparrow Inn and the Tongue-Cut Sparrow are broadly true, though I know Beni-Enma well enough to know that the actual tale does differ somewhat."

"Beni-Enma?"

Ritsuka looked to Harry. "King Enma is the judge of the dead in Buddhism, sometimes known as Yama."

"And Beni-Enma is his adopted daughter," Hinako said, her face falling. "I know something of her story. She was a girl who ran away from a brothel, an apprentice prostitute. Keep in mind, she was young, appallingly young by modern standards, and she had been abused. Her throat was crushed, and her tongue sliced, punishment for something I never found out what. She ended up in an inn, albeit a spiritual one, one which was a test of moral fibre. If she had eaten anything without leave, she would have been punished, not that she could have with her mouth and throat in such a state. Instead, as she died, she thanked Buddha for showing her such a bounty before she perished. King Enma took pity on her, and eventually adopted her as his own. Eventually, she became one of his chief judges of Hell. That sounds worse than it really is. Think of her as a less-profane Gordon Ramsey in the shape of a little girl."

"…That's not reassuring," Harry said flatly.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, she's a hellion in the kitchen, especially if you take her classes. I know that Tamamo-no-Mae and Kiyohime took them, and I heard Tomoe Gozen did too. But ultimately, as long as you don't break the rules of the Enma-Tei, she's very friendly and hospitable to guests, a real sweetheart. If we get an opportunity, we'll head there for a holiday. I know some of the places in Japan where you can access the Enma-Tei. And honestly, their massages in the spa section are to die for. Even as an Elemental, sometimes, you just need a good massage. I actually took Hermione there not long before we had to head to Chaldea in earnest."

Harry looked to his friend, who nodded. "Beni-Enma is a nice person, Harry. You'd probably like her…as long as you weren't in one of her kitchen classes. The Enma-Tei had fallen somewhat on lean times, but I helped repair some of the facilities as payment for our stay. Beni-Enma was touched. It's rare that wizards or Magi visit the Enma-Tei, and too many cause trouble. Actually, I think Tamamo keeps in email and Skype correspondence with her and Osakabehime, at least since the Grand Order was resolved."

"Wait, this Enma-Tei place has the internet?" Harry asked, confused.

"It was Osakabehime who suggested it, apparently," Hermione said. "And apparently, she's become an otaku shut-in." On his blank look, Hermione sighed. "Osakabehime is a youkai, associated with foxes and bats, who haunts the Himeji Castle in Himeji. I heard of her through Tamamo and Kiyohime. And apparently she discovered internet shopping. We'll see if we can have Tamamo arrange a Skype talk with Beni-Enma at least. She gets rather lonely at times."

"Loneliness touches our songs many times in our lives," Tiamat remarked. "Still, this Beni-Enma intrigues me. She sounds like a dutiful child, like Ereshkigal."

"Speaking of which, how are she and Ishtar getting along with their doppelgangers?" Mash asked. "Along with the others? I mean, I'm surprised that many of the Clock Tower investigators were those we had as Pseudo-Servants."

"Rather well. Ishtar's actually curious to meet herself as a human, and she's actually latched onto Sakura. So too has Ereshkigal," Harry said. "Our Arturias have met Grey, and after an initial bit of trouble, they're getting along well. After hearing what that poor girl went through…well, I'm glad they reconciled. Waver's getting along well with his Servant counterpart, too."

"Still, we must be cautious," Hinako said. "Most of the group seem to be decent enough people for Magi, but the ones to look out for in particular are Lord El-Melloi and Reines. They seem like consummate Magi, and even if they treat you well, they are closer to the ideal of Magi. I'm not sure I like Luvia Edelfelt either. However, while I don't want to let our guard down around them, the others seem earnest enough, presumably due to Professor Velvet's tutelage. Though that Flat kid…"

"He's one of Professor Velvet's projects," Hermione said. "He's like Luna, only with a looser set of morals. Not actually evil or malevolent, just…strange. His parents apparently tried to have him assassinated."

There was a sudden chime from the PA system, before Da Vinci spoke. "Master Team, we need your presence in the Command Room as soon as possible. I know you guys are having lunch, but we have a problem."

"…What could this be?" Hermione mused.

"Nothing good," Harry said. "Not a full emergency, otherwise, we'd be hearing klaxons, but…Da Vinci sounds concerned."

"And in other news, the ocean is wet," Hinako snarked. "Come on, let's see what they want…"

As they reached the Command Room, they heard Lord El-Melloi and Olga-Marie arguing quietly, or at least engaged in a mildly heated discussion, while Da Vinci and Roman examined the main console with both versions of Waver Velvet, Sakura Edelfelt, and Caules Forvedge. "…Utterly absurd. What event of any interest would happen in that time or place?" Lord El-Melloi scoffed. "At least with the other Singularities, you could see how it could disrupt history, but…"

"That is beside the point, Lord El-Melloi," Olga-Marie said. "What is certain is that this is a Singularity, and not an insignificant one either. True, the readings differ somewhat from the Singularities we dealt with before, but it's still malignant. In addition, that period was significant in culture for various reasons. I can name at least two mundane events that this Singularity could potentially…" She noticed the others arriving, and nodded. "Good, you arrived promptly. Keep in mind, this is an initial briefing."

"Where's the fire this time?" Harry asked.

"Hopefully, not literally, but this is concerning," Da Vinci said, as she came over. "We've detected an atypical Singularity, albeit one of considerable power, forming around Japan. Specifically, Shinjuku in September 1999."

"…Isn't Shinjuku one of Tokyo's districts or something?" Harry asked. "I remember Ritsuka mentioning that place."

"Yes, that's right," Ritsuka said. "Actually, the technical term would be a special ward. But I don't remember much happening in September 1999, at least in Shinjuku. I was just an infant then."

"Two things spring to mind that this atypical Singularity may affect," Olga-Marie said. "During the lead-up to the turn of the Millennium, there was considerable worry about the Millennium Bug affecting certain computers. While this didn't cause the chaos that was feared, such problems could potentially be engineered. Caules here knows for a fact that one of the last of the Icecolle line found the internet useful for spreading curses, so magecraft and technology can be used together in frightening ways. However, the month concerns me, which brings me to my second worry, that this is to do with 101955 Bennu."

The other Masters frowned, puzzled by the odd name, save for Hermione, whose eyes widened. "Oh no! You caught on to that because your family specialises in astromancy, so you'd know about celestial bodies and the like."

Olga-Marie nodded solemnly, but Lord El-Melloi frowned. "Astromancy is not my specialty, and I'm afraid I am unfamiliar with the name, though that sounds like a mundane astronomical classification. What kind of celestial body is this…Bennu?"

"An asteroid," Olga-Marie said. "A Near-Earth Object discovered in September 1999, and whose orbit took it dangerously close to Earth on the 23rd of September that year. Bennu is 500 metres across, making it five times larger than the object that exploded over Tunguska in Russia. While nowhere near as big as, say, the asteroid that impacted what is now the Yucatan Peninsula 65 million years ago, the effects on the world could still be devastating, especially if magecraft of some kind was used to enhance the impact of Bennu, possibly even a Noble Phantasm. And keep in mind, these are merely the mundane threats I have considered. 1999 was also the year prior to the new millennium, and millennialism and turns of centuries both have various kinds of Mystery attached to them, even though dating systems are human, arbitrary constructs. In addition, many people believed the Second Coming of Christ would happen around then, and certainly, many cults flourished during the Nineties. Aum Shinri Kyo, the Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, these and others were involved in destructive events during the Nineties, albeit well before 1999."

"Those are well-reasoned possibilities, Director," Da Vinci said. "I wouldn't have considered the Bennu asteroid a possible threat for this Singularity, to my eternal chagrin, and while a little far-fetched, it's still a possibility that has to be considered. And the problem is, because a Singularity is detached from history, the Counter-Force can do little to counter such destruction."

"Damnation," Kayneth growled. "But…the reports state that a number of Goetia's Demon Pillars may have escaped before the gestalt was destroyed for good. If this atypical Singularity was created by one of them, who's to say this isn't a trap? They're probably spiteful beings who would want revenge on Chaldea. In addition, there will probably be unknown Servants. Director…I will be contacting the Magus Association about this development, but one thing I need you to do is to ensure you only send part of your Master contingent. You have five Masters, counting Potter and Tiamat, and I daresay two or three Masters would do for a deployment."

"Are you telling me how to run our operations?"

"I am advising you. For most of your missions, you had only three Master candidates. You now have five. My team may be compatible as Masters, but I do not know if they have Rayshift capability. But if they should fall in the line of duty, you have to ensure you have some Masters in reserve to either finish the job, or else to continue resolving Singularities. Unfortunately, we cannot revive your other Masters easily. Resuscitation after cryopreservation is far from easy, doubly so when they have grievous injuries, even with magecraft or even wizarding magic. And considering how close this Singularity is to the modern day, you should have less trouble fielding the Servants you need to help resolve it."

Before anyone could say anything else, Ritsuka stepped forward. "If I may, I would like to volunteer for this mission. I have been to Shinjuku several times before, so I know the area quite well. I'd be able to spot any anomalies to the people or the buildings pretty quickly. I'd also like to suggest EMIYA as at least one of the ground team, as he's one of the Servants most familiar with modern Japan."

"The Counter-Guardian?" Lord El-Melloi asked. "Still, your suggestion as to a Servant for the ground team has some merit."

"True, but I suggest bringing in at least Jeanne d'Arc in as well," Olga-Marie said. "With Mash out of commission as a Servant, Jeanne d'Arc is perhaps our best defensive Servant with her Noble Phantasm. I'm sorry, Mash," she added, looking to the lavender-haired girl with a sorrowful look in her eyes. "You'll have to help Da Vinci on monitoring the ground team. Without being able to rely on Galahad's abilities, you'll have to help us."

Mash looked down at her feet, but Ritsuka put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay, Mash. I'm sorry you won't get to fight alongside me, I really am…but monitoring our condition during the Rayshift is still important."

"I know, but…I can't keep you safe personally, Senpai," Mash said. "It's not that I don't trust the other Servants to keep you safe, I just…want to do more."

"What you do is more than enough, Kyrielight," Kayneth said gently. "You have already gone through immense stress and strain due to your experiences in Goetia's Singularities. I daresay some of those hidebound fools in Clock Tower would be hardpressed to go through what you did."

Reines then smirked. "And Fujimaru…I'd suggest not dying and breaking this girl's heart. While a Magus must be prepared to walk hand in hand with death as they work on their craft, it's a fool's errand to do so unnecessarily. And she'd probably drag you out of the Swirl of the Root just to berate you."

Chuckles filled the air, albeit uneasy ones. Olga, looking to reclaim a little of her authority, said, "We'll deploy within a few hours. I want decisions for the ground team in terms of both Masters and Servants ready well before the final countdown phase. Servants who are competent in urban combat are a priority. Make no mistake, we're still not sure of the precise nature of the threat, not just due to the lack of intel on the Singularity, but also because of the seemingly innocuous date. My hypothesis on Bennu could be wrong, as are the other hypotheses involved, so keep an eye out for anything else…"

"So, who'll go?" Hermione asked, the five Masters adjourning to a briefing room to discuss the particulars.

"It's really a choice between either us two, or Harry and Tiamat," Hinako said. "Each pair has its own synergy, and I doubt Tiamat would want to go without Harry. We also still have the necklace that can disguise her more inhuman features if need be. And unlike Mesopotamia, because this is a more recent Singularity, we can field more Servants per Master, though fielding too many may cause confusion."

"…Tia and I will go, if Tia's agreeable with that," Harry said. "Firstly, we only came in at the end of the Grand Order, whereas you guys had fixed the other Singularities. Secondly, and a little more importantly, they might be monitoring us out in the field, and if they realise your true nature, Hinako…"

"I'm aware of that, Harry, but I don't expect to be coddled. Cautious, yes, but I'm not a neophyte. Still, having Hermione in support for this Singularity also makes sense. Of all the Masters, she's perhaps the most knowledgeable about figures from myth and history in general."

"I see little problem with this. The power of my song is not what it once was, but I still have power on a level with a Servant," Tiamat said. "Now, who do we take with us? I wish to take Atalanta and her children, as our songs harmonised well in Babylonia."

"I guess I can take Jeanne with me, along with Mordred and Medusa," Harry mused. "Ritsuka, besides EMIYA, what other Servants have you got in mind?"

"Arturia, definitely, given her experience with modern day Japan, even if it was Fuyuki," Ritsuka said. "Ditto Medea, and Rule Breaker might be handy if we need to stop any other Servants in a hurry. As for additionals…I think we need at least one other Rider. Given that we need them to focus in what is admittedly an otaku's dream, I don't think we can invite Blackbeard along, and if things degenerate into a battle, I want a heavy hitter. I'm putting my vote down for either Saint Martha or Francis Drake, with Quetzlcoatl as another possibility. I also want another Assassin as a scout. I want to bring in Hundred-Faced Hassan, or else King Hassan."

"Don't forget Jaguar Warrior," Harry pointed out. "Her vessel was a Japanese woman, and she has memories of that woman's life, Taiga Fujimura, I think? While she is probably more familiar with Fuyuki than Shinjuku, it's worth a thought, especially as she's a Divine Spirit. Ereshkigal could fit in there too with the right clothing, and she's always wanted to see more of the world. Shame we can't take Mash with us."

"Yes…well, let's get on with it, shall we?" Hermione said. "We don't have long before the preparation phase proper begins. We'll have to finalise the Servant loadout soon…"

CHAPTER 5 ANNOTATIONS:

So, some discussions about the Enma-Tei (inspired by a scene in the event showing Hinako going there for a massage), and the debut of the Shinjuku Pseudo-Singularity.

No numbered annotations this time.