Day 7
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Every human being will fight, struggle, and scream - bite off their own leg - curse the gods - if it means they will live another second. So tenacious, these creatures… don't you think that's just wonderful?
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[X] A child, with malice in their eyes. A wraith, in every sense of the word. Unearthly and yet so very real.
[X] Talk, distract him from murder by getting him to think of anything else. See if he's willing to talk about his work.
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You have barely enough time to breathe before Ryuunosuke Uryuu's in front of you, poking you in the side with his foot.
"Hey, hey, don't pass out on me. I waited a long time for this, and it'd be a shame if you died. I'd have to give you to Assassin." He rolls his eyes - and as if on cue, Assassin's there, silently stepping out from behind the serial killer, her twin knives in her hands.
You didn't even see her move. You shiver as Assassin stares at you. There's no malice in her eyes, yet - you can't help but notice the lifelessness in her eyes, like dull , broken glass. There's something missing, something wrong with her. A piece of the puzzle lost, forever; marred by imperfection, or perhaps characterized by such. It's always the dangerous ones that have lost something - or maybe it's those who have lost something that are dangerous? The pain in your gut intensifies, a knife twisting deeper. Your head feels like it's on fire; you try to curl up in a ball around your abdomen.
"Oy, don't ignore me." Ryuunosuke grabs your hair, twisting it painfully to face him. The serial killer's frowning now - annoyed at your reaction. "You there? Say something."
"...yeah, I'm here." Your voice is raspy, dry, and it hurts to talk, irritating your throat. "Where am I?"
"Straight to the point!" He laughs, the room echoing his laughter - which only drives him further into hysterics. Assassin shifts uncomfortably, sitting back on the couch.
And he stops laughing, suddenly, turning back to you. "You're weird, you know that? Earlier you were freaking out, but now - hey. What's wrong with you?" He sounds genuinely, so earnestly confused. Like you're the weird one, not him.
"Do you know what's wrong with you? You're broken, like me - but I can't quite see how. Hey, hey, can you answer me? Pretty please?"
You don't say anything. You can't say anything - Assassin's watching you, so intently that the killing instinct is filling the air, a tangible presence that takes the breath out of your lungs. So instead you jerk your head towards where he was engraving something in the ground.
"Oh, yeah!" Ryuunosuke jumps onto the couch, giddy as a grade-schooler as he bounces on the cushion, almost hitting Assassin. "You're right- you'll be dying soon, so it doesn't even matter. Y'know, I was thinking. Last time -"
He gestures with his right hand, one covered in a red, glowing symbol - Command Seals, arranged in a semicircle pattern like the rings on a tree -
"-I got a demon, but it's so small! I mean, it can kill stuff, but I want a big, scary demon, who can turn the roads red and sticky with blood! Then I realized-" he chuckles a bit, as if having a private joke with himself-
"I didn't have the right sacrifice! Y'know, I used a kid last time, so maybe I should use a woman next time!" He slaps the table; the kid behind you begins to cry, his sobs muffled only by the gag in his mouth. You feel the back of your shirt dampen slightly; you can't focus on that right now, you need to stall. Dissuade him from this.
"But-" you try. "That won't work, right? It's based off the summoner's catalyst, not the... sacrifice."
"Exactly! Yes, you're right, you're completely right." He seems delighted that you're still talking to him. He turns back to you, his eyes wide with maniac glee - the pit of your stomach drops as you realizes his intentions. The television's droning reel of information serves only to intensify the nightmare of the situation that you're in.
"But, I figured out a workaround! See, whenever a demon is summoned, there's all this lightning, and sparks - and maybe, just maybe, if someone were to die in the circle, if they were sacrificed on it - they could become a perfect sacrifice! Oh - and their eyes - what would they do!" He chatters on. "Would they explode? Oh, or would they just burn, pus falling out of it in chunks - oh, I can't want to see!"
This is... You can't say anything. This monster has left you speechless. He seems to think you're speechless as well - just in the wrong way. "Oh, well - isn't it an honor, miss!" He clasps his hands together, his face twisted in a beaming grin. "Well, good luck! I'm almost jealous, in a way - I would want to die like that."
He grabs you - you struggle for a second, until Assassin's dagger tickles your throat, a silent warning - and then you're tossed onto the altar, pinned down by your bindings. There's a rancid smell around you - the wooden smell of the flooring mixing with something sickly sweet and coppery - and you choke on your own tongue, gag in horror as you realize what it is.
Ryuunosuke Uryuu's previous victims were found devoid of all blood, drained from the inside out, and now you know where their blood went. He begins the chant as Assassin watches impassively, as you squirm against your bonds. You can see your own face reflected on the television, the sheer terror in your eyes of the inevitability.
"Fill, fill, fill, fill."
And you know you're going to die.
"Police investigation into the murder of six young woman has found suspect Ryuunosuke Uryuu, but have failed to capture him…"
"Let blood and bone be the essence, let the contract of death be our foundation."
You're going to die, and you can't even scream. There's no point. Nobody will hear you. Please, someone, anyone.
"Mama…"
"the murder of six young woman has found suspect Ryuunosuke Uryuu, but have failed to capture him, experts say he will..."
"I hereby declare, you shall be my sword."
"... continue to kill, projected deaths increasing over the years…"
Did you do anything wrong? What did you do to deserve this?
"Six women dead. Seven women dead. Numbers of victims steadily rising…"
If there was someone out there, listening - Please, God, anyone -
From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three greet words of power,
Come forth from the ring of restraints-
Save me.
...
And the moon fell down to earth.
The entire summoning circle lit up, glowing - before a pillar of light erupted from it, blinding you. The building shakes, pieces of concrete and roof smashing through the ground, destroying the television. It's like looking at divine judgement in action; the light is blinding, disintegrating the area around you in a cone of destruction. You curl up into a ball - your hand is burning, burning, and -
A man in black, suitcase in hand. He's looking at his watch as the red symbols slowly appear on his hand -
A teenager in green, shivering in the cold rain, only to gasp as a red glow suddenly appear. He's up, moving and -
A man, in a red suit. His face is impassive as he stares down at his left hand, red markings clearly seen.
A young man, wearing a cowboy hat, and taking a drag out of a cigarette. He puts it out on a skull - he's surrounded by bones, and the red glow -
There's a moment. As you get to your feet, unsteady and afraid, the ground around you hissing and warped by the heat. As you stand, finally, look up.
The moment of vertigo, where the impossible becomes real, as you comprehend just how very small you are in this world.
The moon. It's full tonight, isn't it?
There's someone standing in front of you. Illuminated by the moonlight - they're wearing a hat - an old, straw tegui that masks their face, and a blue silken robe that frames them against the night sky. A single sword rests by their side. Maybe it's just the impossibility of the situation, of your prayers being answered, but you can't say anything. Not a ghost, nor a spirit - the building was destroyed, everything around you ravaged by the heat, yet - they seemed almost ethereal, as if touching them would break the fragile illusion around you. A part of the world you weren't supposed to see, the dark side of the moon, something forgotten by all yet present all the same. The night breeze caresses your face, brushing through the ruins of the building. There's a burning, in your gut, as something inside you awakens, with a low hum.
And then they spoke.
"I ask of you. Are you my Master?"
You nod, hesitantly.
"Then the contract is complete. Servant Saber, reporting for duty. Let's do this, Master." Saber smiles at you reassuringly - and out of the corner of your eyes you see Ryuunosuke Uryuu struggling to his feet. "Eliminating threat... Enemy Servant approaching, defensive maneuvers!"
There's a flash of serrated steel, and Saber pushes you aside, blocking Assassin's blades with the sheath of their sword, flicking Assassin aside with contemptuous ease. You're transfixed at the sight; your Saber moves like flowing silk, every movement calculated as they pushed Assassin's twin knives back. It was beautiful, how they moved; Saber graceful in their movements, their strikes cutting through the air as a solid wall of swordsmanship that denied Assassin's wild stabs. Every time they collided, you could see the recoil from their collision intensifying their fight - every slash seemed faster, stronger, Saber seemingly reading Assassin's every move.
An unstoppable sword, one that was seemingly everywhere at once. Saber's blade, even while sheathed, sang a song of death as it cut through the air, forcing Assassin into the corner and onto the defensive. "Master, get behind me - it's not safe!" You don't need any more encouragement than that - you're already behind them, ready to bolt.
And Saber moves. If she was fast before - this was so much faster, a single step propelling her in an instance. There was no point A to point B - a flash of blue, the wind picking up in intensity, and Saber's there, knocking Assassin's daggers aside and landing a solid strike to her abdomen. Assassin rolls back, flipping onto the ruined remains of the couch - Saber's suddenly in front of her, the sword curving forward in an unstoppable arc that rips through the cushions, tearing through the ruined concrete with a screech, Assassin barely jumping back in time. Assassin's being cornered - for all her speed, she can't seem to touch Saber, and Saber seems to be getting faster and faster. You look past their fight - Ryuunosuke's running, almost out the door. You can't let that happen.
"Saber, get him!"
"Okay, Master." You can hear the sheer joy in Saber's words; Saber whispers something you can't catch, and as if by magic, their sheathed sword is back by their side. Assassin's already capitalizing on that, her daggers slicing through the air towards-
There's a click, and then - a blur of motion, a single strike that flows outward, a rippling wave of prana-enfused steel that Assassin barely manages to dodge. Not completely, though - there's a line of red on her cheek where the unsheathed sword grazed her.
Ryuunosuke doesn't. A wet splurch, and you barely avoid falling to your knees and puking as Ryuunosuke's bloody head drops to the ground, his body falling down next to it. Whatever Saber did cut straight through everything around you, a horizontal slash - a clear line of destruction, through the walls and furniture. If the building wasn't completely totalled, you suspect it would have been cut through completely. Assassin took one look at Ryuunosuke's body and fled, jumping from rooftop to rooftop and eventually disappearing from sight. Saber made no move to chase.
And now it's deathly quiet. There's sirens in the distance, but they're far off for now. You untie the kid, who runs off - can't say you blame him, considering how Saber was still cleaning blood off their blade - and then it was just you and Saber. Saber turns to you, their posture expectant. "So, what now, Master?" Saber asks. "Any ideas?"
Hell if you knew. There's a war going on, a Holy Grail War, and you've become part of it. Did a whole swan dive past the point of no return. And, by the looks of it, the other Masters have their Command Seals as well - you tilt your palm, revealing the red Command seals on the back of your left hand.
Most of all, you're tired - exhausted, drained emotionally and mentally.
You know you're going back to the Matou household, but then what?
[X] Ask the Matou family for any advice. They must have some connection to the Grail, right? You remember reading something about that...
[X] Ask Saber for advice. Generally get situated with your Servant, as well. Figuring out your Servant's strength is the first step towards finding out an applicable strategy.
[X] Track down Assassin. A lone Servant like her is unstable at best - you need to stop them, somehow.
[X] Sleep. You need to sleep, and - maybe it's not the best course of action - but you're exhausted. Rest and recharge.
[X] Write-In. (Location, action, tactics, what to talk about - anything relevant. You're in an abandoned house that's been almost completely destroyed, and you don't know where you are beyond that.)
