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Fate/Barren Lie: A Fate/Zero Quest
- Thread starter DoBetterLettuce
- Start date
- Fantasy
As it turns out Jackie is as oppressed as they get. He'll like her
True. But the moments he hear anything related to oppressor that guy is likely gonna go wanko. It will likely take time but it will happen... Hope he won't go on a rampage towards London if chatting him win... That guy is pretty much unstoppable...
C4d
Has approximate knowledge of many things.
- Location
- Germany
[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
We aren't opressing anyone so we would be reasonably safe, after all we are just shopping with our daughter. I just hope they don't notice that Jackie is a servant otherwise our ace in the hole of having two servants will be exposed and i would like to keep that a secret as long as possible.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
We aren't opressing anyone so we would be reasonably safe, after all we are just shopping with our daughter. I just hope they don't notice that Jackie is a servant otherwise our ace in the hole of having two servants will be exposed and i would like to keep that a secret as long as possible.
- Location
- Moscow, Russia
[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
Talking to Waver would be nice.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
Talking to Waver would be nice.
- Location
- United States
[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
-[X] Write-In: Tell Assassin to hide; no need to show them you have two servants. They only know you have someone in a komuso hat who apparently can make creepy mist.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
-[X] Write-In: Tell Assassin to hide; no need to show them you have two servants. They only know you have someone in a komuso hat who apparently can make creepy mist.
- Location
- Europe
[X] An effeminate-looking man? woman? wearing a casual green t-shirt and jeans, their hair tied up in a neat ponytail. Lancer, nearly unrecognizeable from last night.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
Vote 12
DoBetterLettuce
"Not Really An Archer"
- Location
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow
[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
Votes are locked, and...
Well.
Berserker.
Okay then. Not sure what else I can say to that, really.
Next chapter should be up in one or two days.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
Votes are locked, and...
Well.
Berserker.
Okay then. Not sure what else I can say to that, really.
Next chapter should be up in one or two days.
Day 17
DoBetterLettuce
"Not Really An Archer"
- Location
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Day 17
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Sometimes, what someone needs is just a little push. A welcome ear, a shoulder to lean on. Most people don't know what they can't do, and define themselves by what they aren't.
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[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
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Well, as far as you can tell, Berserker is... somewhat calm now? The red polo that he's wearing barely covers most of his upper body, bulging monstrously over his massive frame. And even without the rampant bloodlust in his eyes, Berserker still exudes pent-up violence, like a coke bottle ready to burst. His movements are surprisingly delicate considering the massive amount of raw strength he had displayed the night prior.
And you're going over to meet him and his master.
Without Saber to back you up.
Joy.
Assassin, can you go astral? You hope that Berserker's master has some control over him, but you wouldn't count on it. And having another Servant nearby would just be throwing gasoline into the imminent fire.
With these cheerful thoughts running through your mind, you walk up behind Berserker and his master. Berserker pays you no attention, allowing you to walk up and tap the kid's shoulder.
"Uhm, hi?"
The kid practically jumps out of his skin at your touch, whirling around so fast you wonder if he got whiplash.
"Y-you're- the Master of Saber? What do you want?"
Berserker turns around as well, giving you a toothy smile that makes your skin crawl. "Hello, little lady; I must ask, are you an oppressor?"
...why did you think this was a good idea, anyways?
...
"So you're another Master." You ask, questioningly.
You're sitting at a nice cafe, having some nice food, and oh good there's a massive terrifyingly vicious man-mountain and his master sitting across from you. How you convinced them to chat with you is beyond your scope of understanding, but it looks like Berserker isn't going to explode anytime soon. Hopefully. You managed to convince him that you weren't an oppressor, and he seems to have believed you, grinning like a loon as he talked about how "all oppressors must fall".
The kid across from you fidgets a bit, stabbing into his carrot cake viciously with his fork. "...yeah." He's quiet, deep in concentration. His poor carrot cake is more like carrot soup at this point, smashed to a carroty paste.
"Uh, did you-"
"How'd you do that?"
You blink in confusion. "How'd I do what?" For a second, you wonder if he knows about Assassin - but judging by his intrigued, but confused glance, it was about something different.
"How did you walk out there? There was King Ozymandias, Berserker - and, Caster, and Archer - and they could've just ripped you in half - but you just walked out there. How did you even do that? No, just - who are you? Johanna du Soliel - I've never even heard that name before."
His eyes narrow as he stares at you. "And, I've never seen you at the Clocktower, so I would guess you're a hedge mage. But..."
But a hedge mage couldn't do that, right? ...is what the kid seems to be implying.
You smile as disarmingly as you can, taking a sip of your tea as you do so. First impressions go a long way, and you want to make the best one you can.
"I'm Johanna du Soliel, heir of the Du Soliel family, and a magus. As for the reason why..."
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] It was my dream. Looking out at all those heroes, I felt like I needed to be part of the meeting.
[X] I had to stand defiant. To represent our time, rather than the heroes of days past.
[X] Write-In [Why would Johanna walk out there?]
You smile proudly, waiting for any response.
"...I can't tell if you're crazy or insane." the kid responds, flatly.
Ouch. You feel your self-esteem take a brutal hit, but you keep up the smile. The kid stares at you for a second, before snorting. In disbelief or amusement, you don't know. When he raises his head to face you, there's a small smile on his face. "Fine. I guess I'll introduce myself, yeah? My name is Waver Velvet, and this-"
"I AM SPARTACUS, LEADER OF THE SLAVE UPRISING OF ROME!" Berserker roars out.
You blink. Did... did Berserker just yell out his True Name? In public, no less?
You look at Waver, who seems to be melting into his chair with shame, and then back to Berserker. Who seems to see nothing wrong with what he just did, even giving the nearby patrons an eager grin.
He doesn't even seem embarrassed.
Okay then.
"Anyways, why the meetup?" Waver cuts right to the chase. "The Grail War's over, right? So... why are you meeting up with us?"
That's a fair point. You did have something in mind when you walked up to them.
You nod, frowning, as you swirl your glass of iced tea in one hand. "There's a pretty good reason why. You know that the Grail's corrupted, right?" Ozymandias declared it to the entire world, but just in case Waver didn't know, you wanted to preface this discussion with that knowledge. At Waver's hesitant nod, you continue.
"There's something that's been bugging me about the whole thing. I don't think that the Grail just got corrupted by accident."
There's no way that something this massive could happen by accident. The most likely answer was that someone tried tinkering with the ritual, and messed up, but...
"You think that someone messed with it? But why?"
Another good question, but you don't have any answers for that. You shrug, helplessly. "I don't know; I was hoping you would know? You're part of the clean-up team, right?"
"Sort of." He exhales through his nose, his brown bangs flopping over slightly as he leans over the table.
"I joined it as a way to... I don't know, try to learn something? Learn more about the mystery and inner workings of the Grail? But, instead, it's all hush-hush."
He threw his hands up in exasperation, almost hitting Spartacus's shoulder. "The bigwigs are really scared of something, and... well, the Grail War started by itself, right? Once the Grail is turned 'on', then there are natural countermeasures deployed to protect it, and the higher-ups don't want any information to get out about those countermeasures, not even to us, the researchers. We've all been barred from even looking at the Grail. Rumor has it that they're trying to get Zeltrech down here to disengage it, but..."
Yeah, you've heard of the infamous Wizard Marshal. Trying to get him to do something is harder than herding cats - he won't do anything unless he's in a really good mood... and unless he happened to show up in this dimension long enough for you to ask him.
"So, nothing but stupid politics." You grimace. Politics were never your strong suit, but it's almost a necessary part of working at the Clocktower. Part of the reason why you didn't want to travel to London.
You wait, carefully, before responding "Still, I want to be able to do something about this. I want to-"
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Learn more about what triggered the Grail War. That sort of thing doesn't start by itself, and you'd have an easier time if Waver was with you.
[X] Make sure that the Grail is shut down for good. Something of that power shouldn't be kept around, especially if it was broken or defunct.
[X] Write-In
"So? Care to join me?"
Waver paused for a moment, staring back at you cautiously like he's trying to figure out your trick. "So, you want a basic non-violence agreement until we figure this stuff out?" he tests the words as he says them.
"Sure." Not the way you would have put it, but it works. "Do we have a deal?" You hold out your hand for Waver to shake.
He stares at your hand - then back up to your grinning face - and cautiously reaches out his own. "Fine, you have a deal."
"Great! Now, uh... how's the Grail War for you? You mentioned something about your boss..." Small talk might help Waver get more comfortable with talking to you... and you have a feeling that Waver's had it much tougher than you. Which is hard to compare, considering how the first night of the Grail War was you getting kidnapped by a pair of serial killers, but he has to deal with Berserker. Berserker, of all people.
"Ehhh..."
"You don't have to answer if you don't want to, just-"
Waver groaned.
"No, it's just- where do I begin? There's the rampant fighting, the shouting, the unnecessary excursions outside- Berserker woke me up at the middle of the night with his ranting, I've barely been able to get any sleep with him around, my boss is also part of the American clean-up force and part of the War, so I'm scared of him - which will make for a really awkward conversation - and do I even need to mention the fact that the GRAIL IS CORRUPTED? This entire thing is useless, a complete waste of my time."
His rant devolves into muttering as he slumps over, nearly faceplanting into the carrot cake.
You feel like you've accidentally broken Waver, somehow. Poor kid probably was storing that up for a while, and now that he's been given an outlet to rant, he's just... gone.
Oops.
Not that you can't relate, though; the last few days have been pretty bad. Maybe you should try to fix this situation? The other patrons of the cafe are starting to give you weird looks.
Helping Waver:
[X] Encourage him. The War's over, yeah, but he might still be able to complete his wish. I mean, he has a super-destructive Servant; pretty sure he can just point Spartacus at his problems and let him rip.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Stay quiet.
As for continuing this conversation...
Further Conversation Options:
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Waver Velvet? You haven't heard much about their family, maybe you'd like to tell me a bit more about your history?
[X] Talk to... Spartacus. Well, a bit too late to ignore the metaphorical elephant in the room, aye?
[X] Just make casual small talk. You can do that much, right?
[X] Head back home.
Jeez, this whole "interacting with other Masters in a non-threatening manner" is a lot more confusing than you expected. Leaning back in your chair, you wonder how Saber's doing while you aren't there. She did say she had some other business to take care of...
...
...
...
Zen.
Quiet.
It's almost completely silent on the roof of the house, save for the rustling of leaves as the wind brushes through the leafage. The normal hustle and bustle of the city is gone, replaced by a silence that resonates with your core. You can acutely feel the prana that circulates through your body, like water flowing through your body. Pulling the prana together, before releasing it and letting it flow. Meditating was something you were alwasy good at, after the-
No, now isn't the time for thinking. Much less the time for depressing memories.
Silence.
Nothingness. Think about nothing, except your breathing and your heartbeat. Let the ebb and flow of your thinking not affect your meditation, entering the peaceful cove of your inner mind.
...
...
...
Gah! You can't do that with the onlooker around. You stretch out of your seat, leaning back, your gaze meeting the gaze of one of the birds sitting back in the backyard. A bird completely similar to the other birds in the city...
Except you haven't seen any other birds, at all, other than crows. And that bird has been sitting there for the last few minutes, just staring at you. Looking closer, the bird's movements were obviously mechanical; scanning the perimeter and lacking most of the "natural" movements of normal birds. Obviously a familiar, but... whose? And for what purpose? The Grail War's over, right?...
Well, whatever it is, you don't like it. One way or another, you'll have to deal with it. Johanna won't be back for another few hours, so you should try to make a plan.
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] Ignore it. If neccessary, tell Johanna about it. Don't let them know that you're onto them.
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
[X] Write-In.
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Sometimes, what someone needs is just a little push. A welcome ear, a shoulder to lean on. Most people don't know what they can't do, and define themselves by what they aren't.
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[X] A... kid, wearing a green t-shirt, and Berserker. Freaking Berserker. Nopenopenopenopenope.
[X] Talk to them. It's a daunting prospect, but you might get to know more about them? Maybe they aren't so bad, after all? (haha no).
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Well, as far as you can tell, Berserker is... somewhat calm now? The red polo that he's wearing barely covers most of his upper body, bulging monstrously over his massive frame. And even without the rampant bloodlust in his eyes, Berserker still exudes pent-up violence, like a coke bottle ready to burst. His movements are surprisingly delicate considering the massive amount of raw strength he had displayed the night prior.
And you're going over to meet him and his master.
Without Saber to back you up.
Joy.
Assassin, can you go astral? You hope that Berserker's master has some control over him, but you wouldn't count on it. And having another Servant nearby would just be throwing gasoline into the imminent fire.
With these cheerful thoughts running through your mind, you walk up behind Berserker and his master. Berserker pays you no attention, allowing you to walk up and tap the kid's shoulder.
"Uhm, hi?"
The kid practically jumps out of his skin at your touch, whirling around so fast you wonder if he got whiplash.
"Y-you're- the Master of Saber? What do you want?"
Berserker turns around as well, giving you a toothy smile that makes your skin crawl. "Hello, little lady; I must ask, are you an oppressor?"
...why did you think this was a good idea, anyways?
...
"So you're another Master." You ask, questioningly.
You're sitting at a nice cafe, having some nice food, and oh good there's a massive terrifyingly vicious man-mountain and his master sitting across from you. How you convinced them to chat with you is beyond your scope of understanding, but it looks like Berserker isn't going to explode anytime soon. Hopefully. You managed to convince him that you weren't an oppressor, and he seems to have believed you, grinning like a loon as he talked about how "all oppressors must fall".
The kid across from you fidgets a bit, stabbing into his carrot cake viciously with his fork. "...yeah." He's quiet, deep in concentration. His poor carrot cake is more like carrot soup at this point, smashed to a carroty paste.
"Uh, did you-"
"How'd you do that?"
You blink in confusion. "How'd I do what?" For a second, you wonder if he knows about Assassin - but judging by his intrigued, but confused glance, it was about something different.
"How did you walk out there? There was King Ozymandias, Berserker - and, Caster, and Archer - and they could've just ripped you in half - but you just walked out there. How did you even do that? No, just - who are you? Johanna du Soliel - I've never even heard that name before."
His eyes narrow as he stares at you. "And, I've never seen you at the Clocktower, so I would guess you're a hedge mage. But..."
But a hedge mage couldn't do that, right? ...is what the kid seems to be implying.
You smile as disarmingly as you can, taking a sip of your tea as you do so. First impressions go a long way, and you want to make the best one you can.
"I'm Johanna du Soliel, heir of the Du Soliel family, and a magus. As for the reason why..."
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] It was my dream. Looking out at all those heroes, I felt like I needed to be part of the meeting.
[X] I had to stand defiant. To represent our time, rather than the heroes of days past.
[X] Write-In [Why would Johanna walk out there?]
You smile proudly, waiting for any response.
"...I can't tell if you're crazy or insane." the kid responds, flatly.
Ouch. You feel your self-esteem take a brutal hit, but you keep up the smile. The kid stares at you for a second, before snorting. In disbelief or amusement, you don't know. When he raises his head to face you, there's a small smile on his face. "Fine. I guess I'll introduce myself, yeah? My name is Waver Velvet, and this-"
"I AM SPARTACUS, LEADER OF THE SLAVE UPRISING OF ROME!" Berserker roars out.
You blink. Did... did Berserker just yell out his True Name? In public, no less?
You look at Waver, who seems to be melting into his chair with shame, and then back to Berserker. Who seems to see nothing wrong with what he just did, even giving the nearby patrons an eager grin.
He doesn't even seem embarrassed.
Okay then.
Class: Berserker
Keywords: Bloody Regeneration, Monstrous Man, Oppressors?
Master: Waver Velvet
True Name: Spartacus
Strength: A -> B
Endurance: EX -> A+
Agility: D
Mana: E
Luck: D -> D-
Noble Phantasm: A+
Unyielding Will: B: A personal trait shown by Berserker, manifested as a Skill. Berserker's tenacity to continue, against all odds, allows Berserker to ignore danger and pain, and renders most psychological attacks useless. Intimidation or a show of force is useless against Berserker.
Mad Enhancement: EX+: Berserker's Mad Enhancement not only increases his Strength two ranks - but it allows Berserker to further increase his strength against those he considers oppressors. Remarkably sane for a Berserker and capable of speech, Berserker's Madness is to identify any who oppose him - even his own Master - as an "oppressor", granting him inhuman strength to kill them.
Those who do not oppress him do not have to fear his rage- however, should Berserker face a Servant who was an oppressor in life, Berserker's parameters with rise by one whole rank.
Triumphant Return Of The Sword: B: Berserker's Endurance and Luck will rise one whole parameter against Servants that he has fought before. As the return of a gladiator, returning to the pit for another round, he will also gain a semblance of strategy not normally available to those with Mad Enhancement. Will only work on the second battle, and only if Berserker lost the first battle but survived.
Noble Phantasm: The Howl Of A Wounded Beast, Crying Warmonger
Channeling the damage he has accumulated through his battle, Berserker "reverses" that what was done to him. As he was known in life for being the underdog, the one who triumphs at the end - the more hopeless the odds are against Berserker, the stronger his Noble Phantasm. A continuously active Noble Phantasm that heals him over time, forcing his body to move even when pinned down and paralyzed. At full charge, Berserker can release the energy in a massive burst of lightning.
Keywords: Bloody Regeneration, Monstrous Man, Oppressors?
Master: Waver Velvet
True Name: Spartacus
Strength: A -> B
Endurance: EX -> A+
Agility: D
Mana: E
Luck: D -> D-
Noble Phantasm: A+
Unyielding Will: B: A personal trait shown by Berserker, manifested as a Skill. Berserker's tenacity to continue, against all odds, allows Berserker to ignore danger and pain, and renders most psychological attacks useless. Intimidation or a show of force is useless against Berserker.
Mad Enhancement: EX+: Berserker's Mad Enhancement not only increases his Strength two ranks - but it allows Berserker to further increase his strength against those he considers oppressors. Remarkably sane for a Berserker and capable of speech, Berserker's Madness is to identify any who oppose him - even his own Master - as an "oppressor", granting him inhuman strength to kill them.
Those who do not oppress him do not have to fear his rage- however, should Berserker face a Servant who was an oppressor in life, Berserker's parameters with rise by one whole rank.
Triumphant Return Of The Sword: B: Berserker's Endurance and Luck will rise one whole parameter against Servants that he has fought before. As the return of a gladiator, returning to the pit for another round, he will also gain a semblance of strategy not normally available to those with Mad Enhancement. Will only work on the second battle, and only if Berserker lost the first battle but survived.
Noble Phantasm: The Howl Of A Wounded Beast, Crying Warmonger
Channeling the damage he has accumulated through his battle, Berserker "reverses" that what was done to him. As he was known in life for being the underdog, the one who triumphs at the end - the more hopeless the odds are against Berserker, the stronger his Noble Phantasm. A continuously active Noble Phantasm that heals him over time, forcing his body to move even when pinned down and paralyzed. At full charge, Berserker can release the energy in a massive burst of lightning.
"Anyways, why the meetup?" Waver cuts right to the chase. "The Grail War's over, right? So... why are you meeting up with us?"
That's a fair point. You did have something in mind when you walked up to them.
You nod, frowning, as you swirl your glass of iced tea in one hand. "There's a pretty good reason why. You know that the Grail's corrupted, right?" Ozymandias declared it to the entire world, but just in case Waver didn't know, you wanted to preface this discussion with that knowledge. At Waver's hesitant nod, you continue.
"There's something that's been bugging me about the whole thing. I don't think that the Grail just got corrupted by accident."
There's no way that something this massive could happen by accident. The most likely answer was that someone tried tinkering with the ritual, and messed up, but...
"You think that someone messed with it? But why?"
Another good question, but you don't have any answers for that. You shrug, helplessly. "I don't know; I was hoping you would know? You're part of the clean-up team, right?"
"Sort of." He exhales through his nose, his brown bangs flopping over slightly as he leans over the table.
"I joined it as a way to... I don't know, try to learn something? Learn more about the mystery and inner workings of the Grail? But, instead, it's all hush-hush."
He threw his hands up in exasperation, almost hitting Spartacus's shoulder. "The bigwigs are really scared of something, and... well, the Grail War started by itself, right? Once the Grail is turned 'on', then there are natural countermeasures deployed to protect it, and the higher-ups don't want any information to get out about those countermeasures, not even to us, the researchers. We've all been barred from even looking at the Grail. Rumor has it that they're trying to get Zeltrech down here to disengage it, but..."
Yeah, you've heard of the infamous Wizard Marshal. Trying to get him to do something is harder than herding cats - he won't do anything unless he's in a really good mood... and unless he happened to show up in this dimension long enough for you to ask him.
"So, nothing but stupid politics." You grimace. Politics were never your strong suit, but it's almost a necessary part of working at the Clocktower. Part of the reason why you didn't want to travel to London.
You wait, carefully, before responding "Still, I want to be able to do something about this. I want to-"
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Learn more about what triggered the Grail War. That sort of thing doesn't start by itself, and you'd have an easier time if Waver was with you.
[X] Make sure that the Grail is shut down for good. Something of that power shouldn't be kept around, especially if it was broken or defunct.
[X] Write-In
"So? Care to join me?"
Waver paused for a moment, staring back at you cautiously like he's trying to figure out your trick. "So, you want a basic non-violence agreement until we figure this stuff out?" he tests the words as he says them.
"Sure." Not the way you would have put it, but it works. "Do we have a deal?" You hold out your hand for Waver to shake.
He stares at your hand - then back up to your grinning face - and cautiously reaches out his own. "Fine, you have a deal."
"Great! Now, uh... how's the Grail War for you? You mentioned something about your boss..." Small talk might help Waver get more comfortable with talking to you... and you have a feeling that Waver's had it much tougher than you. Which is hard to compare, considering how the first night of the Grail War was you getting kidnapped by a pair of serial killers, but he has to deal with Berserker. Berserker, of all people.
"Ehhh..."
"You don't have to answer if you don't want to, just-"
Waver groaned.
"No, it's just- where do I begin? There's the rampant fighting, the shouting, the unnecessary excursions outside- Berserker woke me up at the middle of the night with his ranting, I've barely been able to get any sleep with him around, my boss is also part of the American clean-up force and part of the War, so I'm scared of him - which will make for a really awkward conversation - and do I even need to mention the fact that the GRAIL IS CORRUPTED? This entire thing is useless, a complete waste of my time."
His rant devolves into muttering as he slumps over, nearly faceplanting into the carrot cake.
You feel like you've accidentally broken Waver, somehow. Poor kid probably was storing that up for a while, and now that he's been given an outlet to rant, he's just... gone.
Oops.
Not that you can't relate, though; the last few days have been pretty bad. Maybe you should try to fix this situation? The other patrons of the cafe are starting to give you weird looks.
Helping Waver:
[X] Encourage him. The War's over, yeah, but he might still be able to complete his wish. I mean, he has a super-destructive Servant; pretty sure he can just point Spartacus at his problems and let him rip.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Stay quiet.
As for continuing this conversation...
Further Conversation Options:
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Waver Velvet? You haven't heard much about their family, maybe you'd like to tell me a bit more about your history?
[X] Talk to... Spartacus. Well, a bit too late to ignore the metaphorical elephant in the room, aye?
[X] Just make casual small talk. You can do that much, right?
[X] Head back home.
Jeez, this whole "interacting with other Masters in a non-threatening manner" is a lot more confusing than you expected. Leaning back in your chair, you wonder how Saber's doing while you aren't there. She did say she had some other business to take care of...
...
...
...
Zen.
Quiet.
It's almost completely silent on the roof of the house, save for the rustling of leaves as the wind brushes through the leafage. The normal hustle and bustle of the city is gone, replaced by a silence that resonates with your core. You can acutely feel the prana that circulates through your body, like water flowing through your body. Pulling the prana together, before releasing it and letting it flow. Meditating was something you were alwasy good at, after the-
No, now isn't the time for thinking. Much less the time for depressing memories.
Silence.
Nothingness. Think about nothing, except your breathing and your heartbeat. Let the ebb and flow of your thinking not affect your meditation, entering the peaceful cove of your inner mind.
...
...
...
Gah! You can't do that with the onlooker around. You stretch out of your seat, leaning back, your gaze meeting the gaze of one of the birds sitting back in the backyard. A bird completely similar to the other birds in the city...
Except you haven't seen any other birds, at all, other than crows. And that bird has been sitting there for the last few minutes, just staring at you. Looking closer, the bird's movements were obviously mechanical; scanning the perimeter and lacking most of the "natural" movements of normal birds. Obviously a familiar, but... whose? And for what purpose? The Grail War's over, right?...
Well, whatever it is, you don't like it. One way or another, you'll have to deal with it. Johanna won't be back for another few hours, so you should try to make a plan.
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] Ignore it. If neccessary, tell Johanna about it. Don't let them know that you're onto them.
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
[X] Write-In.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
[X] I had to stand defiant. To represent our time, rather than the heroes of days past.
[X] Make sure that the Grail is shut down for good. Something of that power shouldn't be kept around, especially if it was broken or defunct.
Considering how we got involved, it might be for the better.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Ignore it. If neccessary, tell Johanna about it. Don't let them know that you're onto them.
[X] Make sure that the Grail is shut down for good. Something of that power shouldn't be kept around, especially if it was broken or defunct.
Considering how we got involved, it might be for the better.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Ignore it. If neccessary, tell Johanna about it. Don't let them know that you're onto them.
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[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
Spartacus is probably great at motivational speeches!
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
Spartacus is probably great at motivational speeches!
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- Location
- Venezuela
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
C4d
Has approximate knowledge of many things.
- Location
- Germany
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
We went out to stand by Saber. We wish to stand against whatever crawls out of the grail and some people just so happen to have person sized WMDs around and would be very helpful in that regard.
And pep talking Waver while inquiring about who else he knows of the masters seems like a good use of our time here, even if everyone is probably assuming we are some insane foreigners thanks to mister mountain of muscles. And now im thinking about Spartacus in a far too tight shirt and pants while still wearing all his bondage gear under it with everyone desperately trying to ignore him. Why is he not in spirit form again?
Also Saber bamboozling the competition!
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
We went out to stand by Saber. We wish to stand against whatever crawls out of the grail and some people just so happen to have person sized WMDs around and would be very helpful in that regard.
And pep talking Waver while inquiring about who else he knows of the masters seems like a good use of our time here, even if everyone is probably assuming we are some insane foreigners thanks to mister mountain of muscles. And now im thinking about Spartacus in a far too tight shirt and pants while still wearing all his bondage gear under it with everyone desperately trying to ignore him. Why is he not in spirit form again?
Also Saber bamboozling the competition!
- Location
- singapore
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
LeianD
Did someone say...chocolate?
- Location
- Philippines
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Ask Spartacus to help him. I mean, Spartacus is his Servant, he can help, right? ...pleasedonthurtme?
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
I'm almost tempted to switch to the Spartacus vote, but it feels a little like trolling Waver, and the poor boy deserves a bit of a break. Not sure how good Johanna is with pep talks but it couldn't hurt, surely.
As for Saber, I'd be up for trying to trick whoever it is, but since I chose the standing together goal talking seems like it would fit better.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
I'm almost tempted to switch to the Spartacus vote, but it feels a little like trolling Waver, and the poor boy deserves a bit of a break. Not sure how good Johanna is with pep talks but it couldn't hurt, surely.
As for Saber, I'd be up for trying to trick whoever it is, but since I chose the standing together goal talking seems like it would fit better.
Karyis
procrastinating as we speak
- Location
- Texas
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
I have a feeling that the other Master is cowboy boy. We've been meaning to get his identity for a while, so why not just go and do so now? It's a perfect opportunity after all.
As for calling out the owner of the familiar...I have a bad feeling that if we ignore it whoever owns it might attack, or be left alone long enough for them to spot Jack. And, if we call them out, there's the possibility that we'll get rid of them long enough for Jack to go by unnoticed by the familiar, leaving our trump card still available to use. Even if we attacked good 'ol Kerry with Assassin, he doesn't know that we're Assassin's Master. I think. Either way, if the familiar is his, then this will prevent Kiritsugu from finding out for sure. Or whoever else is behind the familiar.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
I have a feeling that the other Master is cowboy boy. We've been meaning to get his identity for a while, so why not just go and do so now? It's a perfect opportunity after all.
As for calling out the owner of the familiar...I have a bad feeling that if we ignore it whoever owns it might attack, or be left alone long enough for them to spot Jack. And, if we call them out, there's the possibility that we'll get rid of them long enough for Jack to go by unnoticed by the familiar, leaving our trump card still available to use. Even if we attacked good 'ol Kerry with Assassin, he doesn't know that we're Assassin's Master. I think. Either way, if the familiar is his, then this will prevent Kiritsugu from finding out for sure. Or whoever else is behind the familiar.
- Location
- Moscow, Russia
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] Try to trick them? As far as they know, you're a scary komuso monk with crazy mist powers. You could throw them off even further.
Vote 13
DoBetterLettuce
"Not Really An Archer"
- Location
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
Lots of choices, woo! The Grail War might be "over" but of course there's more to come. Also, the Grail is... well, you'll find out what's different about it later. Suffice to say that a lot of things went wrong. And that the Americans are involved. Of course.
Next Chapter should be up in... one or two days.
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
Lots of choices, woo! The Grail War might be "over" but of course there's more to come. Also, the Grail is... well, you'll find out what's different about it later. Suffice to say that a lot of things went wrong. And that the Americans are involved. Of course.
Next Chapter should be up in... one or two days.
Day 18
DoBetterLettuce
"Not Really An Archer"
- Location
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Day 18
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
He is that fallen lance that lies as hurled... without purpose, meaningless, yet defiant as it erodes. The world hates the idea, hates him, and it blackens as it rusts. Toxic, harmful. Self-destructing. It's easy to be the hero; hard to be the villain.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
With Johanna gone with Assassin, the responsibility of protecting the house falls to you, a duty you're happy to oblige in.
And spying on you? Not something you appreciated, at all. With a flash, you summon your full battle armor, before turning to fully face the familiar.
"Oy, you. I don't know which Master or Servant you belong to, but it seems like you're at the wrong place. Whatever you're looking for ain't here -unless you're looking for a fight, in which case I'd be happy to oblige." You don't even bother trying to hide your smile, keeping a wide, toothy grin as you stare down at the bird.
The bird stares back at you blankly, before flying off in a flutter of wings.
Your grin slowly turns to a frown as, rather than fly off to another location, the bird simply settles back down a few meters away, finally settling down on someone's arm.
"Motherfu-" you growl, glaring down below you at the Servant in your backyard.
Caster looks back at you, unaffected by your annoyed glare, the familiar bird chirping as it stands, perched, on her arm.
"Hello." Her voice is soft, but you hear it from meters away, as if she was whispering it directly into your ear. With a gesture from Caster, the bird simply... falls apart, collapsing into a matrix of pearly-white thread, with only the rough outline of the bird left visible, before disappearing, rolling itself up into itself until it disappears completely from sight.
"So, it's you, Caster." You heft your sword over your shoulder as you jump - ten, twenty, thirty feet in the air- before landing in front of Caster, barely making a sound as you touch back down.
To her credit, Caster doesn't even flinch, not backing down an inch even as you walk forward to greet her, stopping only a meter away.
For most people, that would be a safe distance apart; for you and Caster, you both know that you could cross the distance in an instance. Cut her in half in two heartbeats. A short bark of laughter escapes your lips as your suspicions are confirmed.
"Huh. Consider me surprised. You actually had the guts to come here in person. Nice~"
"I didn't come here to fight, Saber. I came here to ask for your help, actually." Caster's voice is still irritatingly soft; it's like she's not used to speaking to others. It's also obvious that she's not a fighter, either - her movements lack the usual grace that most other fighters have; the ease of movement granted to those proficient in fighting. Her white dress shimmers as she strides forward, a veil of gold and silver, closing the distance even further.
Tch. Caster's not a powerful fighter at all; fighting her wouldn't be a good fight at all. "Dammit, I wish I had found someone else. That Lancer seems like he'd be a good fight..." you mutter, feeling thoroughly cheated out of a good scuffle. That last fight with Archer was only starting to get good when he ran. Still, who knows. Caster might be stronger than she lets on.
"Beg your pardon?"
You shrug in response. "Don't worry about it. Now, what's this about an offer?"
Lazily, you rest your sheathed sword by your side. If Caster noticed that gesture, she didn't comment on it, keeping her gaze locked on you. Normally, you'd like receiving attention from such a pretty lady, but Caster was starting to get on your nerves. She should've recognized by now that you aren't open for negotiations, that you're looking for a fight.
"I need your help to help my Master. I... listen, can I please talk to your Master?"
Caster's plea falls on empty ears as you giver her a sidelong look, scrutinizing her, letting your blood lust rise off of you like an aura, as solid as rain rolling off concrete in waves. No point in keeping up pretenses of a discussion; Caster stiffens in shock as she finally understands how close to death she is. How close you are to killing her.
Too late.
Your sheath flies off, thrown back by the recoil, spinning away in a wooden blur as you rip free your sword, dropping into a low lunge, the sound of metal ringing through the area. A single step forward, your arms already moving in a movement practiced over a lifetime ago, faster than even your mind can comprehend. A single movement, perfected as to rip through flesh and cloth alike, meant cut off Caster's head in an instance.
Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi-!
The aftershock of the slice blasts through the grass around you, picking up and tearing the plants up by their roots, scraping the ground clean. A perfect semicircular outline that traces your swing, follows the inevitable arc of destruction. An arc that stops inches away from Caster. Inches away from her neck, to be precise. Where it stops.
Caster doesn't move.
For her to stand firm in front of your swing... Caster simply stares back at you, her face a blank mask. She doesn't even glance at the blade that came so close to killing her. Traces of blood drip off of Caster's hand - her fingernails have dug into her palm, ripping through the tender flesh. A slow drip.
"...Feh." You let your sword drop down by your side. You feel like you've lost this round, somehow.
You don't miss Caster's exhale of relief as you drop your sword back down. "I take it your test is over?"
Test? She thought this was a test?
You chuckle, bitterly. "Lady, you have a messed-up idea of tests. Sure, I'll ask Johanna. Just... sit pretty, will you?"
Caster obliged, sitting back in the shade while you walked off to relative privacy.
Johanna? We might have a situation on our hands.
...
"What did you want the Grail for?" You ask.
Waver sighs. "Does it really matter? The Grail's corrupted."
"Doesn't matter. Humor me."
Silence.
Then-
"I wanted to use it to make myself respected. That's all I needed; a little respect. To be treated like an actual person at the Clock Tower" Waver looks up at you. "You probably don't understand, but when people can brush you off, ignore you, because of your family... I didn't know that I could feel ashamed of my family. I didn't really understand what true shame was, until... yeah." He stops. "Yeah, you can laugh. I-it's a stupid dream, anyways. A stupid reason to get involved in the Grail War."
You don't laugh.
"Yeah, well... now that dream's dead, I guess I should just-"
"How is it dead? Just-" you stop him before he can say anything "humor me. What's stopping you from being respected in the Clock Tower?"
"Magic circuits, for one." Waver shrugs, already resigned. "Most magus have upwards of twenty. Me? I have five."
You wince. How is he supporting a Servant that way, much less Berserker?
"Yeah, I'm not. Once Spartacus starts moving, I just have to bundle up and try not to die of exhaustion." Waver answers.
Okay, well, that could've gone better.
"And, besides that, unless you're a lord of some degree your papers won't be even considered." Waver continues. "So, even if I have an amazing idea, I can't even share it. Money, talent, pedigree. Those are the things that make the Clocktower go. And I don't have any of those things."
"Aren't there other ways? Other talents? You mentioned something about ideas- can't you just go and keep thinking up new ideas? Keep pumping out papers until they can't ignore you?" You were grasping at straws at this point.
"And? Even if that works, I probably won't get the credit. Some other lord will steal it, and I'll be left with nothing." Waver responds.
There.
"...So?"
"So- What? Look, I just told you-"
"You have a way. You just told me, you can keep on thinking up new ideas. And eventually, they will get read, right? They might get stolen, thrown away, refused- but you know that they're useful, right?" You press on. Waver sets his face in a thin frown, nods once. That's enough confirmation for you.
"Even if they're stolen - does that matter? You don't care about fame. You don't care about money. What you want is respect." You jab his chest. "In a place like the Clock Tower - even if it's a struggle, even if you barely get a tenth of the credit that others get, all you have to do is work harder. If a Lord has to work ten hours a week to come up with an idea - you'll push for a hundred hours a week. Work ten times harder, until they're forced to recognize you, recognize your talent."
"I APPROVE, CONTRACTOR." Spartacus's voice rumbles into the conversation, the insane giant stooping down to face Waver. "WORK! WORK UNTIL YOUR SWEAT BOILS, UNTIL YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WILL DIE - AND THEY WILL BE FORCED TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOU, LEST THEY FACE ME IN TURN!"
For a while, Waver's silent, and you wonder if you've pushed too far. Then-
"Of course. You're right! I'll force all those Lords to recognize me- I don't care how long it takes. I don't care about that. I'll keep working, and they can't stop me. Besides, if they try to stop me-" A downright feral grin appears on Waver's face "-Berserker, you can take care of them, right?"
Berserker smiles hungrily. "OF COURSE."
Um... You think that you've created a monster. A terrifying monster of the Clock Tower. Still, Waver's smiling now. That's a good thing, right? "Thanks, Johanna."
"No problem." You reply. "Anyways, you said something about the other Master, right?"
Waver's smile disappears, and he sits back down. "Yeah. The Master of Archer, and my boss, is Kairi Sisgou, the necromancer."
Necromancer... you've heard of him before. Scouring the barren warzones, a vulture of the war. And partnered with Archer... they're definitely one of the more dangerous pairs. You wonder how open a necromancer would be to a non-aggression pact. You'll definitely have to bring Saber for that meeting.
"He's been working with the Americans with clean-up of the Grail." Seeing the blank look on your face, Waver elaborates. "A few years ago, there was an incident with the Americans trying to replicate the Grail. Unfortunately, there was something else in the Grail."
"The spirit of Zoroastrianism." Right, you've heard this before. "Angra Mainyu."
Waver nods. "Right, so the Americans couldn't really copy the Grail. The Grail was too far gone at this point, so they had to disassemble it. Well, most of it at least."
"What do you mean, most of it? If it was as dangerous as it seemed, why didn't they destroy it fully?"
"They couldn't." Waver sighs. "The bigwigs wanted to keep most of the integral stuff intact, the really important stuff intact, like the summoning of Heroic Spirits. I don't even know if they could destroy it fully without Zeltrech's help, anyways. Still, that left a skeleton frame of the system intact. Somehow, someone must have activated the Greater Grail from the inside; which is almost impossible."
"How so?"
"Zeltrech shenanigans." Waver shrugs. "I don't really know, only the fact that someone had to be in the Greater Grail beforehand, before it was even constructed, to do anything. There's no way in or out of the system. The most airtight system ever created." And if it was created by someone who meddled with the laws of physics and space-time on a regular basis, then it was probably pretty airtight.
For some reason, you think back to the room of symmetry. The bookcases, the library. There's no way that could be it, right? You open your mouth. "Waver, is there-"
Johanna? We might have a situation on our hands. Saber's voice rings through your head.
"Crap." You stop, turning to the side. What sort of situation, Saber?
Um. One that requires your immediate attention?
"Sorry, I need to get going." You press your hands together in an earnest apology, which Waver waves away. "Is there any way that I can contact you, later?"
"I live in south Miyama. Just head over there and use Presence Detection. Duh."
Oh. When he puts it that way, you feel pretty dumb. "Okay, um-"
Waver sighs, this time with a bit of amusement. "Just go, already. If it's that important, you should just go."
You don't need to be told twice. "Well, it was good meeting you, Waver. Good luck!" You wave goodbye to Waver, before making a beeline for home. If this situation is as important as Saber says it is, you need to be there, pronto.
...
What the hell is going on?
Caster. Caster's here, and she has an offer for you.
An offer I can't refuse?
...something like that, yeah.
...
Caster dips into a short bow when you approach. Besides her, and looking supremely uncomfortable, is Saber. Thankfully, it seems like she's unharmed, and save for a patch of land you swear wasn't there before, the backyard seems unharmed as well. You'll have to ask her about that, later.
"Caster." You state, neutrally.
"Lady von Soliel." She shoots back. "A pleasure to meet you."
There, pleasantries out of the way. Time to cut to the chase. "You mentioned something about an offer. What is it?"
Caster nods, not at all offended by your blunt question. She probably expected this. "I would like your assistance in non-lethally taking out another Master, and allowing me to... restrain them, among other things. I need to help them, even if they don't want my help. In return, I will lend my considerable abilities and skills to your cause to the best of my ability."
She pauses, her red eyes boring into yours. "Among other things, my research is capable of allowing for True Immortality, or at least allowing for a large step forward."
True.
Immortality.
You'd be lying if your jaw wasn't on the floor at this point. Forget the Holy Grail, True Immortality was... well, if she wasn't lying to you, then this might even be bigger than the Holy Grail itself.
Caster continues as if she didn't just drop the biggest bombshell in existence. "I also have access to a large amount of healing and defensive magecraft." Yeah, okay, but can we get back to True Immortality? That alone blew most of your expectations right out of the water.
"Right, well..." You're at a loss for words now. Still... "What's the catch? You wouldn't give this information to us for no reason, right?"
"I would ask for full custody over the captured Master, and ask to restrain him in a humane way." Okay, those are reasonable terms.
Your eyes narrow. "Who's the Master?"
"Kiritsugu Emiya."
Ah. No.
You blink. Surely you misheard her, right?
Nope.
Nope. No way.
You're kidding me. Ah. Was your head supposed to be this light?
Kiritsugu Emiya, the Magus Killer, was in this war.
"You're kidding me." You manage to whisper.
"No, I am not. Kiritsugu Emiya is my Master, and I am requesting your assistance to subdue him." Caster replies, pleasantly, as if she was just talking about the weather.
Ah. Ah, ah, ah. You feel like laughing, or crying. Maybe a bit of both. Maybe all of it at once. How has your life gone this far? You were a good girl, you swear. What did you do to deserve this?
"Steady there." Saber grips your shoulder; you didn't even realize that you were swaying. "Listen, can we have a bit of time to think this over? My Master might need to sit down or something." She glares at Caster, daring her to say no. Caster doesn't, thankfully, shaking her head gracefully.
"Of course."
Without another word, Saber's dragging you back inside the house, setting you down on a chair and pouring a glass of water for you. You gulp it down, gratefully, as Saber waits.
"Look, Master, I don't know who this Kiritsugu Emiya guy is, but just give me the word and I'll send Caster off. I only really hesitated because of how forceful she was, but if this offer is really that bad, then I can drive her away. Hell, me and Assassin could probably take her, force her to give up her research." Saber says, bluntly. There's no lost love between her and Caster, it seems. You're thankful for Saber's calming presence.
Still, it seems like you're at an impasse. What should you do?
[X] Accept Caster's terms and offer. You can't pass up True Immortality, and you have Saber and Assassin to help you. Even the Magus Killer can't stand up to two Servants, right? Right?
[X] Refuse Caster's terms and offer. Many people stronger than you have tried to fight the Magus Killer; all of them have failed. No matter what the price, it's not worth it.
[X] Come to a diplomatic agreement. All Caster wants to do is... well, you don't really know what she wants to do, but there's gotta be a better way to resolve this, right?
[X] Counter-offer. You won't accept the current agreement, but you can work with her in a different way. Preferably, a safer way. (Write in what you'll be allowed to do.)
Should you:
[X] Ask Saber for advice. She knows more about this... strategy and politicking than you.
[X] Ask Assassin for advice. Assassin's surprisingly smart, and she may have some unexpected insights for you.
[X] Ask nobody for advice. You have the burden of responsibility, and it falls on you to decide rather than relegate it to someone else. Decisions, decisions.
SERVANT [_H_RLOC_ HOL_ES] 87% CONSUMED. MUST ALLOW FOR FURTHER CONSUMPTION... TO ACTIVATE ENERGY DRAIN. VESSEL IS CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE, WILL COME IN CONTACT DURING REM TRANSPORT...DETECTING. OVERFLOW VALUE E... PARASITE? ENERGY DRAIN, LOCATED...C!RRUPT. C!RRUPT. C!@^R)PT. ^)LE^? ... )&AFFI)MING &N&)GY M!V&M&NT. C!NS)M&... [X] MARTYR O) [X] SAINT
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
He is that fallen lance that lies as hurled... without purpose, meaningless, yet defiant as it erodes. The world hates the idea, hates him, and it blackens as it rusts. Toxic, harmful. Self-destructing. It's easy to be the hero; hard to be the villain.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
[X] Who's the other Master? And... clean-up force? What are the Americans doing here?
[X] I had to stand by Saber. Saber wouldn't respect me otherwise, right?
[X] Be ready for whatever might go wrong. Standing together with the other Masters in solidarity would be a solid step towards that goal.
[X] Pep talk! Tell him there's no point in moping around; wasting time like this would just be lazy. If he wants to achieve his goal, then he needs to work for it!
[X] Call it out. Get some answers from whoever it is, or drive it off.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
With Johanna gone with Assassin, the responsibility of protecting the house falls to you, a duty you're happy to oblige in.
And spying on you? Not something you appreciated, at all. With a flash, you summon your full battle armor, before turning to fully face the familiar.
"Oy, you. I don't know which Master or Servant you belong to, but it seems like you're at the wrong place. Whatever you're looking for ain't here -unless you're looking for a fight, in which case I'd be happy to oblige." You don't even bother trying to hide your smile, keeping a wide, toothy grin as you stare down at the bird.
The bird stares back at you blankly, before flying off in a flutter of wings.
Your grin slowly turns to a frown as, rather than fly off to another location, the bird simply settles back down a few meters away, finally settling down on someone's arm.
"Motherfu-" you growl, glaring down below you at the Servant in your backyard.
Caster looks back at you, unaffected by your annoyed glare, the familiar bird chirping as it stands, perched, on her arm.
"Hello." Her voice is soft, but you hear it from meters away, as if she was whispering it directly into your ear. With a gesture from Caster, the bird simply... falls apart, collapsing into a matrix of pearly-white thread, with only the rough outline of the bird left visible, before disappearing, rolling itself up into itself until it disappears completely from sight.
"So, it's you, Caster." You heft your sword over your shoulder as you jump - ten, twenty, thirty feet in the air- before landing in front of Caster, barely making a sound as you touch back down.
To her credit, Caster doesn't even flinch, not backing down an inch even as you walk forward to greet her, stopping only a meter away.
For most people, that would be a safe distance apart; for you and Caster, you both know that you could cross the distance in an instance. Cut her in half in two heartbeats. A short bark of laughter escapes your lips as your suspicions are confirmed.
"Huh. Consider me surprised. You actually had the guts to come here in person. Nice~"
"I didn't come here to fight, Saber. I came here to ask for your help, actually." Caster's voice is still irritatingly soft; it's like she's not used to speaking to others. It's also obvious that she's not a fighter, either - her movements lack the usual grace that most other fighters have; the ease of movement granted to those proficient in fighting. Her white dress shimmers as she strides forward, a veil of gold and silver, closing the distance even further.
Tch. Caster's not a powerful fighter at all; fighting her wouldn't be a good fight at all. "Dammit, I wish I had found someone else. That Lancer seems like he'd be a good fight..." you mutter, feeling thoroughly cheated out of a good scuffle. That last fight with Archer was only starting to get good when he ran. Still, who knows. Caster might be stronger than she lets on.
"Beg your pardon?"
You shrug in response. "Don't worry about it. Now, what's this about an offer?"
Lazily, you rest your sheathed sword by your side. If Caster noticed that gesture, she didn't comment on it, keeping her gaze locked on you. Normally, you'd like receiving attention from such a pretty lady, but Caster was starting to get on your nerves. She should've recognized by now that you aren't open for negotiations, that you're looking for a fight.
"I need your help to help my Master. I... listen, can I please talk to your Master?"
Caster's plea falls on empty ears as you giver her a sidelong look, scrutinizing her, letting your blood lust rise off of you like an aura, as solid as rain rolling off concrete in waves. No point in keeping up pretenses of a discussion; Caster stiffens in shock as she finally understands how close to death she is. How close you are to killing her.
Too late.
Your sheath flies off, thrown back by the recoil, spinning away in a wooden blur as you rip free your sword, dropping into a low lunge, the sound of metal ringing through the area. A single step forward, your arms already moving in a movement practiced over a lifetime ago, faster than even your mind can comprehend. A single movement, perfected as to rip through flesh and cloth alike, meant cut off Caster's head in an instance.
Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi-!
The aftershock of the slice blasts through the grass around you, picking up and tearing the plants up by their roots, scraping the ground clean. A perfect semicircular outline that traces your swing, follows the inevitable arc of destruction. An arc that stops inches away from Caster. Inches away from her neck, to be precise. Where it stops.
Caster doesn't move.
For her to stand firm in front of your swing... Caster simply stares back at you, her face a blank mask. She doesn't even glance at the blade that came so close to killing her. Traces of blood drip off of Caster's hand - her fingernails have dug into her palm, ripping through the tender flesh. A slow drip.
"...Feh." You let your sword drop down by your side. You feel like you've lost this round, somehow.
Class: Caster
Keywords: Sheer willpower
Master: ?????????
True Name: ?????????
Strength: E
Endurance: E
Agility: C
Mana: A
Luck: B
Noble Phantasm: B
Item Contruction: A: The ability to create impossible items through the use of magecraft. Caster's deep knowledge pertaining to this subject allows her to craft familiars, items, and even weapons out of thread; the items created do not display any innate powers or abilities besides enhanced durability, but Caster can easily modify the threads into a wide variety of items.
Resolute Devotion: A: A skill that represents self-sacrifice and willpower; despite being largely sheltered for most of her life, Caster's belief and devotion to someone is so strong that they can willingly sacrifice themself to protect the one they love. Allows for Caster to ignore both pain and persecution, and even, to an extent, the power of Command Seals.
(Further Skills are hidden).
Keywords: Sheer willpower
Master: ?????????
True Name: ?????????
Strength: E
Endurance: E
Agility: C
Mana: A
Luck: B
Noble Phantasm: B
Item Contruction: A: The ability to create impossible items through the use of magecraft. Caster's deep knowledge pertaining to this subject allows her to craft familiars, items, and even weapons out of thread; the items created do not display any innate powers or abilities besides enhanced durability, but Caster can easily modify the threads into a wide variety of items.
Resolute Devotion: A: A skill that represents self-sacrifice and willpower; despite being largely sheltered for most of her life, Caster's belief and devotion to someone is so strong that they can willingly sacrifice themself to protect the one they love. Allows for Caster to ignore both pain and persecution, and even, to an extent, the power of Command Seals.
(Further Skills are hidden).
You don't miss Caster's exhale of relief as you drop your sword back down. "I take it your test is over?"
Test? She thought this was a test?
You chuckle, bitterly. "Lady, you have a messed-up idea of tests. Sure, I'll ask Johanna. Just... sit pretty, will you?"
Caster obliged, sitting back in the shade while you walked off to relative privacy.
Johanna? We might have a situation on our hands.
...
"What did you want the Grail for?" You ask.
Waver sighs. "Does it really matter? The Grail's corrupted."
"Doesn't matter. Humor me."
Silence.
Then-
"I wanted to use it to make myself respected. That's all I needed; a little respect. To be treated like an actual person at the Clock Tower" Waver looks up at you. "You probably don't understand, but when people can brush you off, ignore you, because of your family... I didn't know that I could feel ashamed of my family. I didn't really understand what true shame was, until... yeah." He stops. "Yeah, you can laugh. I-it's a stupid dream, anyways. A stupid reason to get involved in the Grail War."
You don't laugh.
"Yeah, well... now that dream's dead, I guess I should just-"
"How is it dead? Just-" you stop him before he can say anything "humor me. What's stopping you from being respected in the Clock Tower?"
"Magic circuits, for one." Waver shrugs, already resigned. "Most magus have upwards of twenty. Me? I have five."
You wince. How is he supporting a Servant that way, much less Berserker?
"Yeah, I'm not. Once Spartacus starts moving, I just have to bundle up and try not to die of exhaustion." Waver answers.
Okay, well, that could've gone better.
"And, besides that, unless you're a lord of some degree your papers won't be even considered." Waver continues. "So, even if I have an amazing idea, I can't even share it. Money, talent, pedigree. Those are the things that make the Clocktower go. And I don't have any of those things."
"Aren't there other ways? Other talents? You mentioned something about ideas- can't you just go and keep thinking up new ideas? Keep pumping out papers until they can't ignore you?" You were grasping at straws at this point.
"And? Even if that works, I probably won't get the credit. Some other lord will steal it, and I'll be left with nothing." Waver responds.
There.
"...So?"
"So- What? Look, I just told you-"
"You have a way. You just told me, you can keep on thinking up new ideas. And eventually, they will get read, right? They might get stolen, thrown away, refused- but you know that they're useful, right?" You press on. Waver sets his face in a thin frown, nods once. That's enough confirmation for you.
"Even if they're stolen - does that matter? You don't care about fame. You don't care about money. What you want is respect." You jab his chest. "In a place like the Clock Tower - even if it's a struggle, even if you barely get a tenth of the credit that others get, all you have to do is work harder. If a Lord has to work ten hours a week to come up with an idea - you'll push for a hundred hours a week. Work ten times harder, until they're forced to recognize you, recognize your talent."
"I APPROVE, CONTRACTOR." Spartacus's voice rumbles into the conversation, the insane giant stooping down to face Waver. "WORK! WORK UNTIL YOUR SWEAT BOILS, UNTIL YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WILL DIE - AND THEY WILL BE FORCED TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOU, LEST THEY FACE ME IN TURN!"
For a while, Waver's silent, and you wonder if you've pushed too far. Then-
"Of course. You're right! I'll force all those Lords to recognize me- I don't care how long it takes. I don't care about that. I'll keep working, and they can't stop me. Besides, if they try to stop me-" A downright feral grin appears on Waver's face "-Berserker, you can take care of them, right?"
Berserker smiles hungrily. "OF COURSE."
Um... You think that you've created a monster. A terrifying monster of the Clock Tower. Still, Waver's smiling now. That's a good thing, right? "Thanks, Johanna."
"No problem." You reply. "Anyways, you said something about the other Master, right?"
Waver's smile disappears, and he sits back down. "Yeah. The Master of Archer, and my boss, is Kairi Sisgou, the necromancer."
Necromancer... you've heard of him before. Scouring the barren warzones, a vulture of the war. And partnered with Archer... they're definitely one of the more dangerous pairs. You wonder how open a necromancer would be to a non-aggression pact. You'll definitely have to bring Saber for that meeting.
"He's been working with the Americans with clean-up of the Grail." Seeing the blank look on your face, Waver elaborates. "A few years ago, there was an incident with the Americans trying to replicate the Grail. Unfortunately, there was something else in the Grail."
"The spirit of Zoroastrianism." Right, you've heard this before. "Angra Mainyu."
Waver nods. "Right, so the Americans couldn't really copy the Grail. The Grail was too far gone at this point, so they had to disassemble it. Well, most of it at least."
"What do you mean, most of it? If it was as dangerous as it seemed, why didn't they destroy it fully?"
"They couldn't." Waver sighs. "The bigwigs wanted to keep most of the integral stuff intact, the really important stuff intact, like the summoning of Heroic Spirits. I don't even know if they could destroy it fully without Zeltrech's help, anyways. Still, that left a skeleton frame of the system intact. Somehow, someone must have activated the Greater Grail from the inside; which is almost impossible."
"How so?"
"Zeltrech shenanigans." Waver shrugs. "I don't really know, only the fact that someone had to be in the Greater Grail beforehand, before it was even constructed, to do anything. There's no way in or out of the system. The most airtight system ever created." And if it was created by someone who meddled with the laws of physics and space-time on a regular basis, then it was probably pretty airtight.
For some reason, you think back to the room of symmetry. The bookcases, the library. There's no way that could be it, right? You open your mouth. "Waver, is there-"
Johanna? We might have a situation on our hands. Saber's voice rings through your head.
"Crap." You stop, turning to the side. What sort of situation, Saber?
Um. One that requires your immediate attention?
"Sorry, I need to get going." You press your hands together in an earnest apology, which Waver waves away. "Is there any way that I can contact you, later?"
"I live in south Miyama. Just head over there and use Presence Detection. Duh."
Oh. When he puts it that way, you feel pretty dumb. "Okay, um-"
Waver sighs, this time with a bit of amusement. "Just go, already. If it's that important, you should just go."
You don't need to be told twice. "Well, it was good meeting you, Waver. Good luck!" You wave goodbye to Waver, before making a beeline for home. If this situation is as important as Saber says it is, you need to be there, pronto.
...
What the hell is going on?
Caster. Caster's here, and she has an offer for you.
An offer I can't refuse?
...something like that, yeah.
...
Caster dips into a short bow when you approach. Besides her, and looking supremely uncomfortable, is Saber. Thankfully, it seems like she's unharmed, and save for a patch of land you swear wasn't there before, the backyard seems unharmed as well. You'll have to ask her about that, later.
"Caster." You state, neutrally.
"Lady von Soliel." She shoots back. "A pleasure to meet you."
There, pleasantries out of the way. Time to cut to the chase. "You mentioned something about an offer. What is it?"
Caster nods, not at all offended by your blunt question. She probably expected this. "I would like your assistance in non-lethally taking out another Master, and allowing me to... restrain them, among other things. I need to help them, even if they don't want my help. In return, I will lend my considerable abilities and skills to your cause to the best of my ability."
She pauses, her red eyes boring into yours. "Among other things, my research is capable of allowing for True Immortality, or at least allowing for a large step forward."
True.
Immortality.
You'd be lying if your jaw wasn't on the floor at this point. Forget the Holy Grail, True Immortality was... well, if she wasn't lying to you, then this might even be bigger than the Holy Grail itself.
Caster continues as if she didn't just drop the biggest bombshell in existence. "I also have access to a large amount of healing and defensive magecraft." Yeah, okay, but can we get back to True Immortality? That alone blew most of your expectations right out of the water.
"Right, well..." You're at a loss for words now. Still... "What's the catch? You wouldn't give this information to us for no reason, right?"
"I would ask for full custody over the captured Master, and ask to restrain him in a humane way." Okay, those are reasonable terms.
Your eyes narrow. "Who's the Master?"
"Kiritsugu Emiya."
Ah. No.
You blink. Surely you misheard her, right?
Nope.
Nope. No way.
You're kidding me. Ah. Was your head supposed to be this light?
Kiritsugu Emiya, the Magus Killer, was in this war.
"You're kidding me." You manage to whisper.
"No, I am not. Kiritsugu Emiya is my Master, and I am requesting your assistance to subdue him." Caster replies, pleasantly, as if she was just talking about the weather.
Ah. Ah, ah, ah. You feel like laughing, or crying. Maybe a bit of both. Maybe all of it at once. How has your life gone this far? You were a good girl, you swear. What did you do to deserve this?
"Steady there." Saber grips your shoulder; you didn't even realize that you were swaying. "Listen, can we have a bit of time to think this over? My Master might need to sit down or something." She glares at Caster, daring her to say no. Caster doesn't, thankfully, shaking her head gracefully.
"Of course."
Without another word, Saber's dragging you back inside the house, setting you down on a chair and pouring a glass of water for you. You gulp it down, gratefully, as Saber waits.
"Look, Master, I don't know who this Kiritsugu Emiya guy is, but just give me the word and I'll send Caster off. I only really hesitated because of how forceful she was, but if this offer is really that bad, then I can drive her away. Hell, me and Assassin could probably take her, force her to give up her research." Saber says, bluntly. There's no lost love between her and Caster, it seems. You're thankful for Saber's calming presence.
Still, it seems like you're at an impasse. What should you do?
[X] Accept Caster's terms and offer. You can't pass up True Immortality, and you have Saber and Assassin to help you. Even the Magus Killer can't stand up to two Servants, right? Right?
[X] Refuse Caster's terms and offer. Many people stronger than you have tried to fight the Magus Killer; all of them have failed. No matter what the price, it's not worth it.
[X] Come to a diplomatic agreement. All Caster wants to do is... well, you don't really know what she wants to do, but there's gotta be a better way to resolve this, right?
[X] Counter-offer. You won't accept the current agreement, but you can work with her in a different way. Preferably, a safer way. (Write in what you'll be allowed to do.)
Should you:
[X] Ask Saber for advice. She knows more about this... strategy and politicking than you.
[X] Ask Assassin for advice. Assassin's surprisingly smart, and she may have some unexpected insights for you.
[X] Ask nobody for advice. You have the burden of responsibility, and it falls on you to decide rather than relegate it to someone else. Decisions, decisions.
SERVANT [_H_RLOC_ HOL_ES] 87% CONSUMED. MUST ALLOW FOR FURTHER CONSUMPTION... TO ACTIVATE ENERGY DRAIN. VESSEL IS CURRENTLY UNAVAILABLE, WILL COME IN CONTACT DURING REM TRANSPORT...DETECTING. OVERFLOW VALUE E... PARASITE? ENERGY DRAIN, LOCATED...C!RRUPT. C!RRUPT. C!@^R)PT. ^)LE^? ... )&AFFI)MING &N&)GY M!V&M&NT. C!NS)M&... [X] MARTYR O) [X] SAINT
- Location
- Venezuela
[X] Accept Caster's terms and offer. You can't pass up True Immortality, and you have Saber and Assassin to help you. Even the Magus Killer can't stand up to two Servants, right? Right?
We can do this.
[X] Ask Saber for advice. She knows more about this... strategy and politicking than you.
We can do this.
[X] Ask Saber for advice. She knows more about this... strategy and politicking than you.