39: Just because it isn't permanent...

"So the villagers have fled, huh…?" The Director mutters as we exit down the well-trodden path that the Domremy Villagers clearly left by. "The closest easily defensible location during that period is probably the Vaucouleurs commune to the north, so I'd assume that's where they're headed. It may not be a proper castle, but it's got stone buildings, so it would probably make a good foundation for a fort."

"...The direction seems to line up with the tracks leaving town, but it's nice to have a name for the place they were headed." I reply. "For the record, Mordred said they can't have left more than a day ago, and the wyverns probably only hit this place within the last couple hours, judging from the freshness of the animal bodies here. If we're fast, we can probably catch up with them, so-"

"If the villagers are headed to Vaucouleurs, catching up is basically irrelevant. It's only a four hour walk to reach it in the first place." She interrupts. "But if they're being pursued by Wyverns, then aiming to catch up with them may not be such a good idea. No, actually, that's an understatement. Let me make it clear - with what we currently know, heading to Vaucouleurs is a pointless, suicidal idea."

...She's right, of course. I hadn't wanted to think about it that way, but now that she points it out, I've got to acknowledge that a scenario like this is technically to our benefit. Any wyverns pursuing the helpless French peasantry are wyverns not pursuing our group. What's more, if last time was anything to go off of, any significant encounter with the enemy seems liable to lead to a steady dogpile of more and more foes crawling out of the woodwork - Tarasque leads to wyverns, which lead to Fafnir, which leads to maybe-Benkei, and we all die horribly again.

However…

"Sorry, but my 'hard men making hard choices' character arc was scrapped. Too much overlap with that Fuyuki Archer." I reply with a shrug. "It can't be helped, we'll just have to fight an army of Wyverns. As long as Mordred can handle around thirty, I think Mash and I can deal with the leftovers. I don't think that they've got the strength to smash stone walls, so we should be able to get a good defensive position."

"Are you nuts!? Just listen to yourself talk! Thirty-!?" The director yells.

"...Senpai said it in a pretty amazing way, but I don't actually disagree." Mash says. "That pile in the farmyard… I don't think I want to let a bunch of civilians end up like that. Um, actually, it's like something inside me is screaming, that I can't let something like that come to pass."

"Yeah, it'd be hard to sleep at night if we let a bunch of civilians get killed when we could've stopped it." Mordred says. "Like I said, wyverns aren't that much worse that vorpal bunnies, so they should be easy if we've got a decent way to not get surrounded - like a stone building."

"Compare it to an animal I actually know about, not some mysterious rabbit! I mean, you said it's a bunny so the assumption is that it's not dangerous, but - actually, Natsuki, you keep giving ridiculous full body shudders every time it comes up, so clearly it's a problem!" The director yells.

"Ah, no, this is just some deep rooted trauma that's only related to me, so don't mind it." I say with a thin smile. Honestly, if Reid could deal with that swarm using that stupid method last time around, odds are Mordred can manage it. "As long as we don't take any crippling injuries before- woah, let's not go raising any flags."

"Ugh, don't you get that it's pointless!?" The Director snaps. "The people of that village, and every other person you'll meet in that singularity- they're already dead!"

I blink. "That's…" Well, I know what she means. We're in the 1400s after all. Everyone here is long dead. "But even so, letting those lives be cut short-"

"-Doesn't matter. As long as the grail is recovered, all changes to the timeline will be reverted. You understand that, right?" She asks. "Every atrocity, every heroic act, and everything in between - all of that is going to disappear with the singularity. It's all going to be erased."

I know that. I already know that. I understand it completely. This time period will vanish, so any action that doesn't bring us closer to our goal is a frivolity. From a detached, emotionless perspective, it's a mistake.

"But even if it's a mistake, it's something I've got to do. Sorry, but that's also a conclusion I reached a long time ago." A melancholy smile graces my lips. That's right. I have to believe that my actions have consequence. Because, even if the evidence vanishes from the world, the record of my actions will remain carved upon my heart.

That's just how it is. Above all, Natsuki Subaru must not be allowed to believe that events that are erased can be forgiven.

"...I'll become something unsightly, otherwise." I conclude, aware as always of the three coiling black somethings hidden within my soul.

There's a pause in the conversation as everyone stares at me for a few seconds - shit, I said something a bit strange there, huh? Quickly, I open my mouth to explain it away-

"Fou!" - dark grey toe beans press against my cheek. "Fou kyu!"

"O-oi, when did you climb up there?" I ask the white squirrel-dog on my shoulder.

"Oh! That's the sixth of Fou-kun's forty-seven secret moves, the super stealth shoulder scramble!" Mash says excitedly.

"Oh, that's right." I nod. "I remember that from the Fuyuki briefing!"

"As if something like that made it into my speech!" Olga yells. "I already know you weren't paying attention back then, so don't try to save face now!"

"It's a secret attack that lets Fou-kun climb someone's shoulder without being noticed at all!" Mash continues.

"No, if the secret move's name is that clear, the explanation is just redundant..." I mutter.

"Fou, oufoufou!" The mysterious animal in question says, lifting his nose in the air.

"Why the hell does he seem so smug…?" Mordred mumbles.

"That's actually Fou-kun's second secret move, emotional resonance!" Mash says. "It lets him convey his emotions even though his face never noticeably changes!"

"I know I'm not one to talk, but you really get excited about the strangest things, Mash-tan…"

The shielder's face turns bright red as she suddenly becomes self-conscious. "Um, that's…"

A strange, almost bird-like cry interrupts her as a shadow passes across the ring of light in the sky.

...Wow, there sure are a lot of them up there, huh?

"Shit, our scanners missed them since they were so far up!" The director says. "But now that we've noticed them, I'm detecting ten, twenty… at least fifty flying enemies approaching from your west!"

"Sorry, Mash! We're in the middle of talking but suddenly wyverns!" I yell as the three of us break out into a run. "If we hurry, we can reach Vaucouleurs before they catch us, so-!"

"-Hang on tight, then!" Mordred shouts as she scoops me up under her left arm and tosses Mash over her shoulder. "Mash, astralize your shield! Master, get a good grip on Ca- Fou!"

""Right!""

Mordred's feet explode in a pulse of red lighting, and from there the true terror begins.

"AAAHHHHH!" "We're gonna diiiieeee!" Mash and I scream, clinging to the Saber for dear life.

"Oh come on, it's not like I'm going to drop you…" Mordred grouses.

A/N:

"Sorry, Mash! We're in the middle of talking but suddenly wyverns!" - is, of course, a callback/call forward to a line from the Olympus Lostbelt.

This one took a while but it is what it is. Not super satisfied with how it turned out, but not every chapter can be a big wow chapter. Next chapter is probably no earlier than next Friday.

Review Responses:

Guest said:

Xorn, I don't get it would something like caster dio Michael look alike as a servent work. If he was summoned as a caster in his first life if possible would he have future memory. And since the sword saints are pretty much guaranteed, how would that work, since their legends are kind of tied, sorry for bad English, fate is not a franchise I am good with

Not entirely clear on who's being referred to... But in general, the Throne of Heroes exists outside of time, so a servant can be summoned from the future - Archer in Fate/Stay Night is from the future, he SHOULD have memories of the future. However, Garcher says he doesn't remember pretty much any of his past, and it's not really clear to me how much of that is from his time as a Counter Guardian, how much is because of his botched summoning, how much is from the Grail or the world messing with his memories, and how much is just him lying.

reydrago said:

And I'm surprised that Satella is count as VII not III in lugunica, seriously...she's as bad as Kiara and Mara

Dodging the rest of your questions since they're kinda spoilery.

She's a love maniac, but her sin is still envy, so realistically she should probably be IV - remember, IV is "Comparison", which encompasses disparity and envy. But she might also be VII, since she's the worst beast of Lugnica.

Slackboy101 said:

Fuckin Berserkalot is hilariously broken when he doesn't have a master that blows up if he goes full Sicko Mode and i love him for it, image how Subaru would flip if he busted out the MP5, the 50. Cal or the Jet

Like I said, Lancelot's probably not gonna pull any super high tech weapons in Orleans, because him having them makes no sense. Well, there's always Accel Zero Order.