Fate/Blackened Sugar

[] You're not even surprised anymore... Well, only a little bit, "Okay, sure. I'll bite. What's this about and will it eventually kill me horribly somehow?"

You were human. There was no denying that. Humans had these things called instincts to ensure their survival and to preserve the continuation of the future generations. At the moment, you stood before the girl named Manaka, a young woman with exceptional talent in magecraft limited only by the body she was currently in.

Right now, you felt the need to run as far as possible... Or eliminate her where she stood. But you couldn't, that would be like throwing a bomb at an inferno or shooting a gun at a tornado. It was a futile effort. So you could only stand before her as she smiled and declared that absurd sentence.

A child?

You're not even surprised anymore...

A sigh left your lips, "Okay, sure. I'll bite. What's this about and will it eventually kill me horribly somehow?"

Manaka blinked at that before cracking an amused look, "Well that's certainly a reaction. But no, it shouldn't kill you. I think."

"That doesn't inspire confidence," you said as you leaned on your cane, "Answer the first question."

"It's a secret weapon that will help us win this war," Manaka giggled as she held her finger before her lips, "After all, I doubt we can hold off an attack by all of the servants at once tonight."

"So you were trying to get some help?" You asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"In a fashion... But Miyu is still empty so the signal is rather weak," Manaka said as she walked past you.

"Signal?" You frowned.

"Servants need to die if we can fully make use of this ritual," Manaka said with that serene smile of hers, "Think of it as using the souls fueling the grail as a means to reach beyond our world into mine. Oh... Come here, I'll show you."

Manaka walked off towards an attraction. You followed her closely and you looked to see that she walked into the Hall of Mirrors.

Following her, you gathered your courage and went in. The lights dimmed as you stepped in while Manaka turned and beckoned you to follow. You did and you were soon surrounded by mirrors reflecting your body.

You saw yourself, the broken man that you were as you had the sense not to get lost in the maze. You followed Manaka as she was no doubt trying to lose you while she was ahead. You were starting to feel a distinct flow of magical energy contained within this hall.

The mirrors themselves seemed to be being used for something but you didn't know what. They were... Bouncing something within them. You could have sworn you saw something in your reflection. Still, that was all it took for you to lose Manaka.

"Over here, Hans."

"No, over here."

"What are you looking there for?"

"Hans, are you lost?"

Her voice echoed all around you, whispering into your ears, speaking into your mind. You kept walking, you kept moving, that was until you had enough and you imbued your cane with a dispel to dismantle her tricks.

The cacophony of voices were silenced and you were left hearing a giggle as Manaka stood ahead of you. She walked to her left and vanished once more.

You followed and eventually, you caught up with her.

You were at the heart of the glass maze, Manaka holding a hand against a large mirror before opening her eyes. She stared at you from the reflection and smiled.

"Here it is!" Manaka asked as she held out her hands, "What do you think?"

You looked around and frowned. There wasn't anything truly out of the ordinary except for this heavy weight of dread weighing down on you. No, you were wrong... You could see thin lines like tree branches interconnecting with each mirror.

The magical energy in this room was dense, a normal person would have passed out.

"Manaka... What is..?" You blinked before you saw it.

An eye.

A blasphemous eye. It was peering behind Manaka through the mirror as you turned to see the figures of people clamouring within the mirrors and being consumed. They were faceless people, normal people, people... Who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Behind you Manaka stepped by, "Don't worry. You're my friend, Hans."

She placed her hand on your shoulder as she whispered into your ear.

"What is this, Manaka?" You asked her with a measured tone as she let you go.

"It's similar to tying a string to a can and speaking through it to deliver your voice to another person. This room, a workshop I made today, is the string that can let me talk to my child," Manaka said as she hummed and held her hands behind her back, "Like I said, the signal isn't strong enough. So my connection is weak... But I can feel it... And it can feel me. Look, it's already sent us help!"

You watched as Manaka stepped back as a body was being slowly pushed out of the mirror. You then beheld a woman with vibrant blue hair, donning armor of divine make as she was slowly being pushed out.

Her body... Was blackened.

Corrupted smoke left her form as her eyes had a hint of gold in them.

"Shells. Empty husks. Once we kill more Servants, we'll be able to call more. We'll be able to win this war. Isn't that great?" Manaka said as she cupped the woman's face.

You shifted in your position, "That's... A servant?"

"An empty husk. Not as powerful but... Powerful enough," Manaka said as she turned to you, "We'll protect Miyu and guarantee an interesting result for this War. Right, Hans?"

"That's... True," you said with a grimace.

"Good! Now we'll need some time before we can get her out. She'll be ready before Miyu reveals herself to the other Masters. No doubt it will be a fine surprise," Manaka said as she giggled.


[] "Tell me, who are you really? How can you do these things? Tell me the truth."
[] "So this is your plan. Fighting the attackers and pulling this surprise when their guard is down?"
[] "What did it take, Manaka, to make this? It almost seems like you knew about this place before I told you last night. Isn't that interesting?"
[] Walk out. You can't stand this place. The air was enough to make your stomach turn.
[] Write in...