Fate/Clusterfuck (Fate/Stay Night)

[Ask Illya]
A plea for help, an answered call. A monster for a monster.

Thanks to @Armoury for the beta!

—

Not one more death, not one more person. Not one more innocent. Not while you still lived. If you could end this all now, at the cost of everything you were, you would. You were a Magus, you chose to be that, and you made your sacrifices. You were dragged into this war against your will, but you fought in it, and bled for it. Just so that it didn't get out of control so that some irresponsible bastard didn't run away with it.

You were a fool. You knew that, you always knew that. It was an impossible goal, for all that Circe and Medea looked human, they weren't. Compared to you, compared to any human, they were gods. Their magic capabilities would be the envy of any mage of the Clocktower green. You couldn't compare to them, you couldn't compare yourself to anything, not really. You were Shirou Emiya, the adopted son of Kiritsugu Emiya. And right now it was all you could do to survive just on the off-chance you could save someone in this wretched war.

You look towards Ruler. "What is this evil you mentioned? You said it was separate from everything else."

"I cannot say as of yet, my apologies," the man replies, and to his credit, he looks truly apologetic. "It isn't in this city, not yet. But it is an evil forming all the same."

You sigh, that was something you would have to deal with then. "Is it a servant?"

"I cannot say," Ruler replies.

You stare at him for a moment longer, then look towards Medea. "Fine, Caster, we're going to visit my sister for help… we're going to need more firepower to deal with that thing."

"No, we are not." Medea hisses. "I can feel our link master, you have almost no mana left of any kind. You have a Berserker you cannot control, and you have a gaping wound that was only recently closed."

"Does it matter?" you ask, genuinely. "I'm constantly getting hurt, but people are dying. The faster we move, the faster we solve this, the less people have to suffer due to the actions of magic."

"You shouldn't be getting hurt either master."

"It's a war," you reply, "I expected some scrapes ever since you explained this to me… except, you didn't. That was Sakura."

The girl in question takes a step back nervously. Ayako, for her part, was looking around nervously, like she wasn't sure if she should be saying something.

"It doesn't matter what happens to me," you gesture out towards the wrecked street below. "But Fuyuki doesn't deserve thi-"

"It matters to me!" Caster growls. Then she steps forward so that she is mere inches away from you. "You don't get to kill yourself, not after saving my life. If you want to see your sister, that's fine. If you want to make a plan so that you can win this war. That's fine. If you want to take the fight to whatever that thing is. That's fine. But you do not get to throw your life away for these… these people! They owe you nothing!"

"Now Medea dear, the way to a man's heart is not to insult his ideals," Circe says.

"I. Didn't. Ask. You." Caster replies.

The witch titters, looking between the two of you in amusement. "My dear piglet says he needs allies, who are we to refute that?"

"What I'm against," Medea hisses. "Is that he plans on chasing after that servant immediately afterwards so that he can feel like he's doing something."

"So you admit that I'm not?" you ask bitterly. "Fuyuki is burning, and I have at least three masters running about… and I only know of Rin. All we've been doing is be attacked, repeatedly."

Caster moves a shaky hand to her face, pushing the hood back by accident as she does so. "Master, I am a caster, we rely on time, patience, and planning. You have a berserker you cannot control, a friendly Archer who appears whenever the mood strikes him, an assassin who appears to disappear into Tartarus whenever the mood suits her, a rogue master and her rogue Shielder, and you are begging favors of a Rider who has kidnapped you."

She lowers the hand, eyebrow twitching. "You are not exactly in a strong position to launch an assault."

"Which is why I want to speak to Illya to see about getting her help. She already agreed to help me find Fujimaru's servant, and did."

"And now you wish to use your rediscovered relationship for more, without thought that she might refuse you."

"At least he's thinking about doing something, instead of just mocking all the ide-" Ayako begins, but her jaw clicks shut as Caster turns to look at her. Caster stares at her for several moments, saying nothing even as Ruby wiggles in Ayako's grip. Then your servant turns to look at you once more. "Well, glad am I to find you two share something in common beyond your age. Now, master, I wish for you to truly think carefully, you wish to defeat this servant? That's fine, but how exactly do you plan on asking another, neutral master to do that? What would she gain beyond strengthening your position?"

"Nothing, but does she need to, we're family."

"Family? Do you think that truly means anything Shirou? Not in a situation like this, what is at stake is a wish. And you wish to throw yourself into even more danger, when you can barely support me at the moment with mana, just so that you can avenge people you don't kno-"

"Does he need more than that you… you miserable woman!?" Sakura shrieks.

All heads as one turn to Sakura, including her own servant.

"I don't see you making up any plans!" Sakura continues. "He wants to help, isn't that enough?! Who cares about something stupid like a wish, I never wanted it, that was my grandfather and brother. Now they are dead. I don't like him being in danger, Shirou is all I have left, but a plan is better than no plan. I can't think of any other ideas, do you just want to hide?" then Sakura blanches, moving a hand to her mouth in apparent horror of what she had been saying.

"No, but I do not wish for my master to throw himself needlessly in danger when he is drained," Caster says, gritting her teeth. "Master, if you wish to speak to Illya, that is entirely up to you. However, do not go after this servant as you are now. It will be the death of you."

You draw in a slow breath, forcing yourself calm. "Fine, I know you are drained yourself Caster. I won't force it."

Caster smiles, then, placing her hands on eitherside of your cheeks… she kisses you. You feel a tingle of your mana being drained, but only slightly. It's a chaste thing, and she pulls away a moment later with a light blush on her cheeks. Then, turning away, she raises her hood up once more.

"Hey! That's my boyfriend!" Ayako growls.

Circe looks at her in confusion. "Yes? What does that have to do with anything?"

"She can't just kiss my boyfriend!" Ayako says, raising her hands as if she was explaining a concept to a child.

"Oh," Circe replies dully. "Well, if you're upset about the kissing then I'm afraid I have bad news for you."

Ayako stares at the witch, saying nothing for several moments. Then she looks towards you. "Shirou? Mind explaining?"

…

You look off towards the north. "Sakura, are you comfortable coming with us to Illya's Castle?"

"Answer the question!"

"Er, um, yes?" Sakura replies, sounding more than a little confused.

You nod your head, "let's be off the-"

A hand grabs your collar, and tugs. You are spun around to find yourself face to face with Ayako, Ruby held like a knife between the two of you. "Explain."

"Indeed, Shirou, explain why you've been cheating on me with other women." Ruby says.

You and Ayako both look down at the stick, staring at it. Then you wrench your gaze away. "... Tantric ritual, I'll explain later. We don't have time for this."

"Oh you better," Ayako growls. "You've been my boyfriend for a week."

You weren't sure what scared you more, her, or that monster. But at the moment, Ayako looked absolutely furious. Far, far more than you had ever seen her before.



—

The trek to the forest went by thankfully unmolested. If one didn't count being glared at by Ayako the whole way. At least now she didn't need to be carried by Circe or Medea, with Ruby held in her hand she was perfectly capable of keeping up with the rest of you… not exactly gracefully, and she seemed utterly mortified by the skirt. But she kept up. It was a matter of minutes before you reached the edge of the forest. It was another half hour after that you reached the path leading to the castle itself, and there, of course, was the guard.

Rider stood atop a branch, one hand placed against the tree, the other dangling, allowing a long chain weapon to swing in the breeze. "So it is you this time," Rider says.

You stare up at her, it is rather hard not to. "What do you mean?"

Rider turns to look out west, deeper into the forest. "Another servant has been about, hiding themselves… but not enough that it is beyond notice. Prodding, looking for ways around the castle." She then looks back to you and your group. "You, meanwhile, simply arrive with an army. Why are you here?"

"He has come to beseech your master for aid, of course, a lost lamb in the night," Circe replies, leaning on her staff. "A man adrift, with no stars to guide him and no gods. He would wish to but speak with her. Might you acquiesce to this request?"

Rider says nothing for a few moments, looking at the lot of you. "No, not with this many, and not with a servant probing the defenses."

Circe smiles, then says… something in Greek.

Medea looks confused, Rider bristles. The chain creaks in her hand, the metal squealing from how tight Rider is gripping it. Then she leaps down onto the ground. She ignores you, she ignores everyone barring Circe. She stares at the witch, Circe grinning from ear to ear like a cat as she matches 'gazes' with Rider.

"You are…" Rider says wistfully.

"Indeed," Circe says, eyes twinkling. "Now, might he speak to your master? Or shall we remain in this cold."

Rider nods her head, "Come."

It was a short trip to the castle, and the place was identical to the last time you had been there.

"Shirou!" Illya's voice shouted in glee just about a second after the door to the foyer opened, and you found Illya wrapped around your midsection a moment later, her head pressed against your stomach. She looked up at you a second later, beaming. "You came to visit! I was going to come by tonight for dinner."

Then she blinks owlishly, looking at the group. "What… is going on?" she asks, then fixates pointedly on Ayako, her head tilting even as Ayako hurriedly looks away. "Shirou… who is that?"

"We'll… discuss that later, are you alright?" you ask.

Illya nods happily. "Yep! Have you come to live here?"

"Not exactly, I actually came to ask you something."

Your sister's head tilts again. "Oh?"

You clear your throat.

You were asking another neutral party to join you, with how much you had asked of her recently, she may very well take that as an insult. But then, Illya also seemed to care about you a great deal, and frankly, you had begun to care about her a great deal as well. So the question was, how were you going to handle this? You didn't think she was going to refuse you, so what plan were you going to put forward?

—

Illya isn't going to refuse, she desperately wants her brother to see her as valuable for good or for ill. The question is, how do you want to go about this?

The battle won't be happening today, Shirou is too drained and Medea would kill him herself if he tried. Of course, he still has to explain the plan to Taiga as well, who may very well kill him this evening.

[] [We need to lure this monster out of the city.]
Somewhere we can fight it without collateral damage, then, we unleash everything. Of course, then it has freedom of movement as well.

[] [We find its master.]
Something, or someone called it. A servant cannot survive without their master. Whether spirit liner or mere familiar.

[] [We hunt it.]
This time, we ambush it. Wherever we find it.