TBH it doesn't, really. Problem is that no Puella Magi actually qualifies for Rider, so you kind of have to resort tho this level of stretching it to fill the slot.
Homura qualifies for Rider with the battleship she used to fight Walpurgisnacht.
With Assasin open, and barring the existence of Puella Magi Hassan-chan, any Meguca that targets non-meguca should be a suitable candidate, including Oriko.
Correction: she didn't use a battleship (or any kind of warship), she either strapped a bunch of missile trucks to a barge or controlled them all independently. You are still correct that Homura would likely qualify as Rider with her ability to take control of vehicles, though.
The scene I am referring to is when she transforms and drops onto the deck of a ship rising out of the water and magically controls it to fire it's weapons at Walpurgisnacht.
If the vessel appears to be too small for Navy Purists to accept it as a ship, I would point out it was still rising in the last shot showing it and also that animators don't always get scale correct.
I also avoided stating that she stored it in her shield.
I prefer to assume the vessel came with those weapons than that needs to raise a small submerged vessel just to make missle trucks float for the time she needed them to fire.
Just as I assume her eyes would be more proportional in real life, rather than assume they are less efficient at detecting light and need to be larger despite an omnipresent glow from all directions.
Indeed, it would be an utter clusterfuck of a Grail War.
Kyouko and Sayaka would refuse to kill each other. Same goes for Homura and Madoka. And Madoka would probably refuse to kill anyone. Homura would want to kill Oriko and Kirika, while Oriko is trying to warn the others that the Grail is corrupt and cursed. Kirika supports Kariya's love and his devotion to Sakura's wellbeing, but she is not capable of saving Sakura, and needs to enlist the help of Sayaka to do so...
Meanwhile, Sayaka is loud, brash, obsessed with childish ideals of justice, and headstrong. Kiritsugu is everything Sayaka hated about Homura multiplied by ten. But Irisviel is a cute! Kiritsugu wants to kill the other Masters, which he doesn't even bother telling Sayaka. Oops...
Mami is filled with regrets about letting everyone down, and thus refuses to harm Madoka, Sayaka, or Kyouko. She's even having second thoughts about her attitude towards Homura...
Homura is conflicted. She desperately wants to Wish for Madoka to have her own life, separate from the Law of Cycles...but attaining that Wish would mean killing the Madoka in front of her. Could she possibly do it...?
Meanwhile, Kirika tells Madoka what Tokiomi did to his daughter, and what Zouken has done to Sakura, and Madoka is not happy. At all.
Oh, and the elder Kotomine, the proctor of the war, is left wondering what the hell is going on. Well, there are seven Servants and seven Masters, so he guesses that everything is still technically okay?
And who does Oriko find as her replacement Master? Is it Irisviel? Is it Rin? Is it the elder Kotomine ("After all, with all of your extra Command Seals, it's not like anyone would be able to find out...")?
---
"You were expecting a cute little girl with twintails, but it was me, DIO!"
"So you are Oriko's Master...no matter."
"With my supreme power of The World, I am unstop--"
*DIO's head is suddenly exploded by a .50 caliber round punching through his brain, followed by several explosives blowing up what is left*
Timestop really trivializes most opponents, Homura thought. That was almost pathetically easy.
The scene I am referring to is when she transforms and drops onto the deck of a ship rising out of the water and magically controls it to fire it's weapons at Walpurgisnacht.
If the vessel appears to be too small for Navy Purists to accept it as a ship, I would point out it was still rising in the last shot showing it and also that animators don't always get scale correct.
I also avoided stating that she stored it in her shield.
I prefer to assume the vessel came with those weapons than that needs to raise a small submerged vessel just to make missle trucks float for the time she needed them to fire.
Just as I assume her eyes would be more proportional in real life, rather than assume they are less efficient at detecting light and need to be larger despite an omnipresent glow from all directions.
I never said anything about scale or size. I say she used a missile truck because you can see the cab if you look closely.
With the vehicle back-lit by the rocket exhaust, you can see what appear to be side-view mirrors, the windshield, and the headlights (you might need to zoom in to see it).
Anyway, if she was using some kind of missile ship, then it's no missile ship that I've ever seen. It doesn't have a visible superstructure, and the weapons it uses appear to be land-based. The weapon configuration is very strange as well, to the point that pretty much nobody has ships like that.
Indeed so, and I imagine Sayaka wouldn't be willing to kill Madoka or Mami either. Hehe a war where nearly everyone knows each other could become hilarious chaotic or grimly terrifying given the command seals, but then those have their limits as well. Also interesting idea about helping Sakura.
Er, yes it would? Dio can't just regenerate without limit. It's why he had to put his head onto Jonathan's body--because he'd flat-out lost his own. Having his head completely destroyed, followed by his body being completely destroyed, would definitely do the trick. Well, it'd do the trick and then the sun would rise, disintegrating whatever was left.
Not to mention that DIO's body was Jonathan's, a Hamon user with Hamon blood (well, the blood of a Hamon user), meaning that his vampire abilities were probably weaker than before (it'd certainly be one explanation for him not using any of his broken-ass vampire abilities he used in Part 1 during Part 3--even his regeneration didn't seem to be nearly as good).
Yes, it's called character development. Even in her darkest despair and greatest insanity, Sayaka was nice and apologetic to Kyouko. Similarly, Kyouko was willing to sacrifice her own life just so that Sayaka wouldn't die alone. Considering that Sayaka would at least know on an intellectual level what Kyouko did after she became a Witch, it just further cements the whole "not willing to kill you" dynamic.
Er, yes it would? Dio can't just regenerate without limit. It's why he had to put his head onto Jonathan's body--because he'd flat-out lost his own. Having his head completely destroyed, followed by his body being completely destroyed, would definitely do the trick.
Nope. Straights put himself back together after being gibleted too, and DIO is way better at the vampire fuckery that Straights was, because he actively pushed the limits of what he could do with it.
Now that? That'd do it. Basically how Jotaro beat him, after all. Giblet him and leave him outside where the sun will rise before he puts himself back together.
And that's not counting that in the JoJo verse, people with the ability to stop time have also been shown to be able to percieve what happens while time is stopped and initiating their own timestop even when someone else has stopped it.
Homura's inital bullet might hit DIO (probably not, since he'd actually be on guard at the time), but that would barely faze him and then he'd pose away the incoming explosives.
And that's not counting that in the JoJo verse, people with the ability to stop time have also been shown to be able to percieve what happens while time is stopped and initiating their own timestop even when someone else has stopped it.
Homura's inital bullet might hit DIO (probably not, since he'd actually be on guard at the time), but that would barely faze him and then he'd pose away the incoming explosives.
The problem is that DIO's timestop doesn't last very long. Like, 10 seconds at most. Homura can keep it up for as long as she has Grief Seeds (even then, the magic cost seems to be pretty low). And he can't exactly do much while Homura's unloading 200 rounds from a SAW into him.
We're not in Mahou-verse either, and The World (Gaia, not the Stand, although probably also the Stand) will actively punch you in the dick for trying to fuck with time. See Kiritsugu.
...Although this is probably far enough off topic that we should stop.
Why not Bebe as rider? Transforming into her snake thing isn't out of the question, right? The only time it's on screen, it is a fairly literal sacrificial summoning shtick too, since it kind of explodes out of her doll form.
Nagisa, in my opinion, would probably fit best in the Rider and Caster classes, depending on how her witch is handled. If a summon, Rider. If a transformation a la Kiyohime, Caster. Give her a version of Item Construction that lets her conjure candy and add plus modifiers to Territory Creation to switch it from passive to active and summon a weakened version of her witch's barrier, and she'd be in business.
I could see it working both ways, with some classes having the Witch and Puella Magi separate and only using one or the other, and others having them fused (like with the Law of Cycles girls in Rebellion and Sayaka in this story). But if they were to be separate servants, I think the Witches would only qualify as Berserkers. Their madness is too deeply entrenched in their "legends" to be anything else.
Eh, although Mad Enhancement is the class skill of Berserkers, that doesn't prevent other classes from having the same skill, and there are other options such as Mental Pollution. My take on this is that class compatibility for witches depends on the nature of the witch. Berserker would be the default class for most of them, but some might also qualify for Avenger (birthed from curses) or Assassin (murdering people in secret) or (in Kriemhild Gretchen's case) Beast.
With Assasin open, and barring the existence of Puella Magi Hassan-chan, any Meguca that targets non-meguca should be a suitable candidate, including Oriko.
Title: Fate/Desiderantes Affectibus
Author: Rowan Seven
Teaser: A doomed master summons an equally tragic servant in the Fourth Holy Grail War. Together, can they change fate or will their journeys once again end in sorrow? Pre-Rebellion.
Rating: PG-13.
Disclaimer: This story contains spoilers for both series. The Fate franchise belongs to Type-Moon. Puella Magi Madoka Magica belongs to Studio Shaft and Aniplex. This story is a work of fanfiction written for fun. I make no claims to either series.
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Chapter Thirteen – This Will Be a Fight to the Finish.
Lancer's face was grim as he stood resolutely before the three Assassins, his enchanted yellow and crimson spears gripped tightly in his hands as he watched the skull-masked figures with cold orange eyes. Their counterparts in the Hyatt Hotel had knocked Sola-Ui unconscious moments ago to make a point, and that was an offense—above and beyond what they had already done—that he could not forgive. Tense seconds passed in wordless silence as the Servants of Shadow waited for the Irish knight's response to their ultimatum, the only sounds the susurrations of the wind and the distant vrooms of cars and trucks speeding by on the bridge below them.
"No," Lancer answered at last, his tone uncompromising and his eyes narrowing into angry slits as he fixed his gaze on the female leader. "I refuse."
"You refuse?" the masked woman repeated, head askew as she examined him and sounding amused. "I don't think you're in any position to decline, Servant of the Spear. You do realize the consequences, do you not?"
"I do, but I wonder if the same can be said of you and whoever commands you," Lancer answered with menacing calmness. "If you murder my mistress, I will eventually fade away. Before I do, I will hunt you down and murder as many of you as I can. However many of you remain will have a fully restored Saber to contend with, a legendary king with a legendary sword in the Grail War's strongest class. Are those consequences you're willing to accept, Assassin?"
Not giving his audience time to respond, Lancer suddenly lunged forward with superhuman speed and flourished his twin cursed spears, aiming for his enemy's de facto spokeswoman. Caught by surprise, the other two Assassins belatedly rushed after the Irish hero and hurled their daggers at his back, but it was too late for them to make a difference. In the blink of an eye Lancer stood in front of their older sister with the sharp tip of Gae Dearg pressed against her throat and a descending Gae Buidhe seeking her heart.
However, the elderly Assassin was already in motion too, tracking the dual noble phantasms with her eyes as she backstepped and fell backward before the Crimson Rose of Exorcism could draw blood. A slender leg shot up, batting the longer spear aside as she somersaulted and interposed a dirk between herself and the lethal, second spear. The dagger shattered, blunting the attack and imparting momentum that she used to push away and land on her feet. Lancer momentarily spun to deflect the two dirks thrown at him by her partners and thrust Gae Buidhe into the torso of the nearest one. The dark-clad figure grunted once in disbelief as his body dissipated into black smoke, catching one last glimpse of Lancer and the unforgiving intensity of his orange-eyed glare as the Irish knight continued his assault. Gae Dearg flashed out and swept low, knocking the second male Assassin off his feet as Lancer completed his rotation and brought both weapons to bear again against his original target. He glowered down at the crouched female Assassin, his weapons poised and ready to strike if she refused his counteroffer.
"I'll give you a new choice instead, Assassin. Release Lady Sola-Ui now and leave. Disappear back into the darkness you crawled out of. If you do this, I swear on my honor I will say nothing of your survival and continue on as if we never met. Do otherwise, and I will—"
"—do absolutely nothing," the masked woman interrupted mockingly, smirking beneath her skull mask while gesturing at her surviving partner to remain where he was. "Your theatrics aren't fooling anyone, child. Your words and actions are brave, but if you truly meant them you'd still be trying to kill me." Tilting her head to the side, the elderly woman tittered as she calmly regarded the Irish knight.
"You have no power here, and acting as though you do won't change anything. This game we're playing? The Hashashin mastered it long ago, and we already know the outcome. Offer us as many choices as you want and threaten and flail about like a petulant child if you desire, but there is only one choice you can make as a loyal knight."
Lancer's glare remained unchanged at these words and his weapons did not move, but derisive amusement slowly crept across his handsome face as he continued to stare down at his blackmailer.
"Had I any room in my heart to forgive what you've done I'd feel pity that you understand so little about chivalry but, alas, my empathy for you only extends to wishing you a quick death," Lancer spoke coldly. "You are a fool, Assassin. It is precisely because I am a knight that I cannot serve as a hired killer. I will not betray Berserker and her master as you have demanded. Honor comes first."
"And you would know all about honor, wouldn't you, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne?" the female Assassin jeered with a cackle. "Still...at least you're not a hypocrite like those wretched Crusaders were."
With the leisurely grace of a satisfied cat, the old woman slowly rose to her feet and regarded Lancer with scornful mirth. "Fine," she all but purred. "If granting Berserker a quick and painless demise is too depraved an act for you, do this the insensibly hard way instead and challenge her to an 'honorable' duel to the death. So long as she dies, the method doesn't matter."
Lancer was silent for a moment, contemplating. "And if Berserker wins?"
"Ha!" the Assassin crowed, hands reaching for her heart as if to hold it in. "Oh, Diarmuid, Diarmuid, we both know the likelihood of that happening, and while seeing you take a fall to save those you promised to protect would be entertaining...well, you of all people should know you're not that lucky."
Turning away from the tragic hero with a contemptuous tsk, the masked woman sashayed across the metal beam to its edge and looked down at the busy traffic bridge below.
"Kill Berserker before the end of tomorrow night. If she still lives past the morning, Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri dies. If you die, Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri also dies. If you reveal my involvement, Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri dies. You may choose the manner and means of Berserker's death, but we'll be watching...and if we see something we don't like, Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri dies. Understood, our dear honorable knight?""
"Why now?" Lancer suddenly asked, sensing that the Assassins were about to disappear and wanting answers. "Why reveal yourselves and act now when you could've continued to remain anonymous until the end of the war? You say you are masters of this so-called game, but your actions trade away a near certain victory for a far less certain outcome."
The female Assassin kept her back to Lancer, revealing nothing, and shrugged.
"It's a secret to everybody...but you're smart. Given time, perhaps you'll solve the mystery. Until you do, though, I wouldn't waste your breath asking me pointless questions. Your precious mistress only has hours to live if you fail to eliminate Berserker, after all."
Cackling once again, Assassin held her arms out to her sides and let herself fall off the bridge. Her long purple hair trailed out behind her as she careened through the air before, in a puff of black smoke, she disappeared into the darkness. The male Assassin behind Lancer followed suit, leaving the Irish knight alone with his own thoughts, an endangered master half a city away, and a nearly impossible needle to thread.
Just like old times, he thought to himself mirthlessly, his mind already racing through stratagems in search of a solution as he waited for Sola-Ui to awaken. He knew there was a way out of this and a plan was already forming, but it would rely heavily on luck...and that was never his strong suit.
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Standing several meters outside the main entrance to the Hyatt Hotel, Waver Velvet looked up at the tall, multi-story tower of steel and glass where his late teacher had recently resided and squinted his green eyes against the gleam of mid-morning sunlight. Rider stood behind him dressed in his eye-sore of an "Admirable Great Tactics" t-shirt and blue jeans, with Zahra clutching his neck and riding him piggyback style with a faint but genuine smile on her face as she looked down at the world from the top of the crimson-haired giant's shoulders. The two would've been the center of attention even without Rider's boisterous laughter, and, while Rider's absolute inability to travel anywhere incognito was an ongoing source of annoyance for Waver, today he found himself grateful. The more he was distracted by his servant's over-the-top antics, the less time he had to talk himself out of what he'd come here to do.
And what, precisely, is that again? You've been thinking about this nonstop since last night and still don't know, do you? Idiot.
Ignoring his own traitorous thoughts, Waver took a deep breath to calm himself and, beckoning his servant to follow, nervously shuffled into the hotel. The main lobby was as elegant as one would expect from a premier luxury hotel but, outside of staff and a few police officers, was sparsely populated. Not unexpected, considering the building had been the site of a failed "terrorist" attack four nights ago, and for the first time the young mage actually felt gratitude for the Magus Killer's modus operandi. This was going to be awkward enough without having an audience too.
"So, this is the place, eh? It's no Babylonian palace, but I'll give it credit for trying," Rider spoke as he strode boldly into the center of the lobby and looked around, eying everything inside—including the people—with an appraising eye and seeming pleased with what he saw. "This will make a fine addition to my list of con—"
Knowing where this was going and that Rider did not have an indoor voice, Waver hastily rushed forward and interjected himself into the conversation before his servant could finish that sentence.
"Not now, Alexei!" he practically hissed, using Iskandar's pseudonym since Zahra was present. "Look, why don't you take Zahra with you to the vending machines and see if she wants anything? Here's some money, and I'll join you in a few minutes after I've made a phone call...but, um, make sure you stay within eyesight, okay? We wouldn't want to get separated, right?" He handed Rider a dozen yen coins and glanced up meaningfully, indicating the magic atelier and newly chosen master that resided within it on the hotel's top floor.
Rider looked down at him contemplatively and grinned, leaving Waver with the uncomfortable feeling that his servant understood his motives for coming here better than he himself did. "A wise suggestion, my friend. After all, there's little fun to be had campaigning on an empty stomach. How about it, Zahra? Shall we see what this majestic inn has for refreshments? If the edibles aren't worth our coin, we can come back tomorrow to pillage and plunder our restitution!"
Zahra's smile widened, and she raised her left fist high into the air enthusiastically. Rider took that as his cue and theatrically marched them over to the vending machines in the far corner of the lobby as Waver sighed long-sufferingly. It wasn't much of a consolation, but at least now with Zahra added to their company Rider's insanity could be passed off as avuncular indulgence rather than some of the crazier excuses the young mage had improvised in the preceding week.
"Well, there's no point putting this off any longer," Waver mumbled unhappily to himself. Trying to hide his anxiety, he walked over to the front desk, used his watch as a spell focus to hypnotize the receptionist into supplying him with the telephone number he wanted, and then found a phone booth within his servant's line of sight. Taking another deep breath, he slowly dialed the telephone number and waited. The phone rang several times, and Waver felt a surge of hope that he would be sent to the answering machine and spared a difficult conversation. His luck wasn't that accommodating, though, and on the eighth ring the receiver finally picked up.
Waver winced at the sheer exhaustion in the soft female voice that answered and felt a twinge of guilt for disturbing her. He hadn't been privy to the details of her relationship with his deceased professor other than knowing that they were engaged, but if she sounded this bad then she must be taking the loss very hard.
"He-Hello!" he stammered, not knowing what type of reception he'd receive. "This is Wa-Waver Velvet. From the Clock Tower. We...we haven't met, but I've taken some of your father's courses."
He mentally and nastily cursed himself in the silent seconds that followed. An entire night to prepare, and this was the best he could do? God, defending his thesis in front of the Association lords would kill him!
"...You were one of Kayneth's students," Sola-Ui commented at last, a crisp alertness entering her tone, and Waver could practically see a metaphorical question mark appear over her head as she puzzled over his phone call.
"Y-Yes. We were both in Fuyuki on similar business, and I...I heard about his passing and wanted to offer my condolences. He was...Lord El-Melloi was—" Waver frowned deeply as he searched his mind for a compliment to pay the dead man, but little came to mind other than Lord El-Melloi's natural talent as a mage and that wasn't something he could mention over the phone. "...His teachings have had a deep impact on my life."
Damn right they have. If he'd been a better teacher, I wouldn't have staked my life on this idiotic Grail War in the first place!
"That is...nice of you to say," Sola-Ui answered neutrally, and Waver felt certain that his words hadn't fooled her for an instant. Then, to his surprise, her voice warmed.
"Kayneth always spoke highly of your work in private. He'd be glad to know that you stopped by to pay your respects and would wish you good luck in your shared endeavor. So, please take care of yourself. Fuyuki's a dangerous place these days."
"Uh...thanks?" Waver replied uncertainly, completely at a loss by the unexpectedly complimentary words that sounded so at odds with the man he'd known. "Lord El-Melloi was...he was brilliant in his field, so, uh, that means a lot to me?"
There was a chuckle on the other end. "I'm glad. Our field of research can be exceptionally cutthroat, but it was Kayneth's passion. I hope you'll become as talented an investigator as he was one day...but I'm getting ahead of myself. You have my thanks for your condolences, and if there's nothing else...? Then I bid you good-bye."
Click!
Waver stared down at the phone in his right hand incredulously as he processed and reprocessed Sola-Ui's words and failed to make sense of them. Kayneth would've been likelier to lecture in jeans and a t-shirt than offer him any praise, let alone wish him good luck in this war! Right? Was Sola-Ui simply repeating trite words as a matter of politeness, or had he completely misjudged his professor? And why warn him about something as obvious as Fuyuki being dangerous? That would make more sense as a threat, but Sola-Ui's tone had been completely mismatched for that.
"So, how'd it go?" Rider asked from behind him, startling Waver who bolted upright, turned to glare, and then slammed the phone back on its hook. A frustrated retort was on the tip of his tongue, but the young mage's confusion won out and he raised a hand to massage his forehead instead.
"I...I really don't know," he muttered as he exited the phone booth, spirits only slightly buoyed as he spied a beaming Zahra with arms full of snacks standing beside his servant. "Sola-Ui didn't sound...unhappy to hear from me, but what she said didn't make any sense. I...we can talk about it later."
"Well, whatever she said and whatever it means, I'm proud of you, boy. Doing the compassionate thing when there's no one and nothing to force you and no obvious advantage is a testament to character, and in recognition of your courage I want you to have this!"
Waver looked down at the offered gift and felt his face scrunch up.
"A king-sized Kit-Kat bar?"
"Only the best for my brave friend!" Rider rejoined with a friendly slap on the back. Waver mumbled unhappily but accepted the candy bar.
"I really shouldn't be surprised by this anymore. I really shouldn't, and yet I still am. ...Still, thank you." Shaking his head once, he leaned down and patted Zahra companionably on the shoulder. "Well, I think we've wasted enough time here. Glenn and Martha wanted us to pick up a few things for them before lunch, but I think we can squeeze in a visit to the park first, if you want. How does that sound to you?"
Zahra nodded her head excitedly, and Waver smiled in return. It was nice to see her so carefree and happy even if she still didn't speak much, and it made him feel as if he had actually accomplished something this morning. Resting his left hand on her back, he gently guided her towards the front door as Rider followed.
"Bye-bye," Zahra called out softly once they were outside, turning and waving farewell to the hotel lobby. Waver followed her gaze but didn't see anyone and, dismissing the oddity as a childish whim, quietly urged her forward. Only when they were completely out of sight did the cloaked figure who had been watching them finally move, its frown hidden by its black hood and white skull mask.
That child...she's more perceptive than expected. I'd be pleased if it wasn't such a nuisance. Still, at least this confirms that our little gambit is working as intended. That's good news for us because, depending on how tonight goes, we might need to call upon her soon.
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Irisviel sat behind Saber on the seat of their customized Yamaha V-Max motorcycle, her arms wrapped around the black-suited servant's waist and her long silver hair billowing out behind her as Saber expertly drove the two-wheeled vehicle through Fuyuki's Miyami district. The homunculus's crimson eyes were animated with wonder as she gazed at the traditional Japanese houses and beautiful scenery they rode past, sights foreign to her after years spent in the perpetual winter and European elegance of the Einzbern's family estate. The two had been traveling like this for the better part of the morning to throw off any potential trackers, and now that it was early afternoon it was finally time for them to see their new base of operations. Irisviel's smile widened as they pulled up to the stone and wooden gateway of their new home.
"So, how is the motorcycle?" Irisviel whispered cheerfully into Saber's right ear as she leaned forward and waited patiently for the King of Knights to park the vehicle before dismounting. "I always wanted to try driving one of these myself, but Kiritsugu had difficulty getting one shipped to my father's castle in Germany."
Putting the kickstand down, Saber politely did not share how she thought it was more likely that Kiritsugu had kept Irisviel away from a motorcycle for her own safety. Instead, she glanced back at her passenger with a genuine smile of her own.
"Excellent. I hope Llamrei will forgive me, but I would've liked to have had one of these in my own age. Its speed is unmatched, and it suits me better than a car." She stepped off the motorcycle and reached out to Irisviel to help her get down. "That aside, do you think this estate is a wise choice for our new base of operations? It lies in the heart of the main battlefield."
Nodding gratefully as she accepted Saber's assistance, Irisviel reexamined the gate and hmmed thoughtfully.
"I'm sure it'll be fine. Secrecy is the hallmark of the Grail War, and the Tohsaka and Matou both have openly established fortifications in the city. The Einzbern are unusual in building that castle in such a distant location, and this new base might be more advantageous because its location is unknown to the others."
"For now, at least. We'll have to take indirect routes from here on out if we want to keep it that way." Taking a ring of keys out of her pocket, Saber turned and unlocked the closed gateway. Opening the door and sparing a moment to peer inside and examine the courtyard for dangers, she gestured for Irisviel to enter first. What the homunculus saw pleased her immensely.
"Hm! I think this is like one of this country's haunted houses!" she exclaimed, stepping forward and spinning with a flourish to take in the rundown but regal Japanese-style manor. It was large by modern Japanese standards, with multiple rooms and engawa hallways stretching left from the main entrance. "I'm sure all the hallways have wooden floors and that the rooms' floors are woven grass, with nice partitions made of paper! I told Kiritsugu once that I wanted to see a Japanese mansion. Maybe he remembered that I said that."
Behind her, Saber brought the motorcycle inside the courtyard and closed the gate behind her. She looked around with a more critical eye but deemed the lodging sufficient for their needs. It would protect them from the elements, had plenty of space for them to store anything they required, and the walled enclosure and trees would keep them hidden from prying eyes.
"We should make a quick survey of the primary residence and then check the storeroom and dojo in the back. According to Hisau, the equipment for your magecraft and the rest of our supplies should've been delivered last night."
Irisviel nodded her head in agreement and followed behind Saber as the two explored the mansion grounds. The rooms had suffered from years of neglect and needed renovations, but despite the dilapidation everything was functional.
"Yes, it's a shame she won't be joining us, but we can't prosecute the Grail War and keep my husband safe at the same time. Keeping him at his own secure location is for the best and frees us up to be more active. I'm afraid that means it'll just be the two of us here for a little while, though."
That didn't bother Saber at all, but she still frowned slightly as she led Irisviel through the backyard into the storage shed. She had sworn an oath to protect the homunculus and watched her closely whenever they were together, and ever since Caster's death two nights ago her charge had been very careful not to lift or pick up anything. Even when she'd wrapped her arms around Saber's waist during the motorcycle ride, the servant's sharp eyes had caught the briefest gleam of a magic thread to secure the hold. She'd pretended not to notice out of respect for Irisviel's privacy, but seeing Irisviel restrain herself in the face of novelty and patiently wait for Saber to open every door and cabinet made it obvious that something was wrong. Now, listening to Irisviel talk about inscribing a magic circle inside the storeroom and ask for help handling her own magic reagents, she knew she could no longer be silent.
"Irisviel, I must ask you something," Saber began calmly, looking at the homunculus with concern. "Are you...are you feeling unwell? You've carefully avoided touching anything recently, and if something is wrong it is important that you tell me about it. It is my duty to ensure your safety whenever it is necessary."
The homunculus's red eyes looked back guiltily, and she sighed apologetically. "You are absolutely right, and I'm sorry. I knew I couldn't keep this hidden for very long anyway, but I was hoping it would get better. It'll be easier to show and then explain, so...may I see your hand? I'm going to squeeze it using all my strength, okay?"
Obligingly, Saber held out her right hand. Irisviel reached for it and, with considerable effort, wrapped her fingers around it and squeezed. The servant barely felt the motion.
"I assure you, I'm not pretending," Irisviel confessed, speaking softly. "I know it's weak, but this is all I can do right now. Just tugging your fingers is the most I can manage. Grasping something or picking it up is beyond me. Ha, just dressing myself this morning was so difficult."
Saber blinked and bit her lower lip, her emerald green eyes shifting from her and Irisviel's joined hands to the homunculus's face. "Bu-but what is the matter with you? Have you been injured?"
Irisviel shook her head sadly but put on a brave smile. "No. I've simply disabled my sense of touch to function better. Just shutting down one of my senses allows me to control my power quite a bit better, and it means I can continue to do everything I must. Being able to do things like this is the specialty of a homunculus."
The blonde servant's eyebrows knit together, and she felt her mouth go dry. "But Irisviel, that can't simply be all there is to it. Why would you do something like this?"
The surrogate master opened her mouth to give her intended answer—the safe answer—but hesitated as she met Saber's gaze and saw the worry in it. Now, with her husband comatose, an alliance of two and potentially three enemy servants, and hidden Assassins, she would be depending on Saber more than ever and it didn't feel right nor wise to conceal the truth from her. Besides, with Avalon no longer inside her, her physical condition would only continue to deteriorate as more servants fell, making it impossible to keep this a secret anyway.
"Because...because I still need to function as a human for a little while longer," Irisviel admitted, reaching out with her other hand to weakly join both with Saber's. "Remember, the skin you're feeling right now...the warmth of my touch...it is all fake. I am a homunculus created specifically for the Holy Grail War, and weakening as the war progresses is inevitable because the homunculus you know as Irisviel...the person standing in front of you right now...is a shell designed to hide the Lesser Grail, the physical vessel that stores the souls of the defeated servants and transmits the winning wishes to the Greater Grail. And as the vessel grows in power, the outer shell must give way to what it—to what I—truly am."
Surprise at this revelation flashed across Saber's youthful features, but she immediately composed herself and stepped closer to the woman she had accompanied and protected for over a week. Raising her left hand and resting it reassuringly on Irisviel's left shoulder, she looked her directly in the eyes and offered words of comfort.
"No matter what you become, you will always be Irisviel to me. And as a knight sworn to protect Irisviel, I must ask—is there anything I can do to help? Please, you can be honest with me."
Irisviel chuckled softly and looked down, a silly but happy grin on her face. "And here I was worried that you would pity me. I should've known better. If anyone could understand the burden of my duty and destiny, it would be King Arthur. Thank you, Saber, and...as to your question, inscribing the magic circle together is a good place to start. Resting in one that is properly connected with the local leylines should improve my condition."
"Understood. If you'll list the necessary reagents, I'll retrieve them and we can begin immediately."
"Yes, but before that..." Irisviel considered her next words carefully, hoping she could do something to bridge the troubled relationship between Saber and Kiritsugu, even if only a little. "My husband is also aware of this, and it is one of the reasons why he has been so cold and ruthless in this war. He...he doesn't want my sacrifice to be in vain. I know I can't ask you to approve of his methods, but please keep that in mind."
Saber stiffened slightly and pursed her lips but still bowed her head in acquiescence as she let Irisviel go and walked over to the chests containing the mage's spellcasting components.
"I will try," she answered simply, knowing that was a dilemma she would now have to face herself as well. Winning this war would make her Irisviel's murderer, but Irisviel was doomed no matter who won, and ensuring that her dying wish was granted would at least honor her short life. It made achieving victory more important than ever, but she and her master weren't the only ones who felt that way, and her green eyes briefly darted to her cursed left hand. She knew that herself and Lancer would remain true to the code of chivalry in this war no matter how greatly either of them needed to win, but she couldn't help but wonder about the others and the lengths they and their masters would resort to.
I'll likely find out soon. With Caster dead and all the masters and servants known, there's nothing to restrain anyone anymore.
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"Argh!" Sayaka groaned, clutching her head as if in pain. "I can't believe I'm so desperate to find a better way to win this war that I'm resorting to math!"
Kariya, experiencing a genuine headache of his own from spending the past hour directing his insect familiars from an old chaise longue, blearily opened his grey eyes and peered at his emoting servant. She sat opposite him in her casual clothes on the other end of the vintage mahogany coffee table between them, resting on the edge of a dusty, art deco armchair with her face crumpled in her hands and her elbows leaning against the round table surface. In front of her was an open notepad she'd salvaged from the derelict study inside the abandoned Edelfelt mansion they were exploring, filled with an illegible jumble of numbers, letters, connecting lines, and other shorthand. Curious, the beleaguered master swung his feet around and leaned forward slightly to take a closer look at his servant's labors but, feeling his headache grow the more he looked at it, he leaned back and groaned tiredly.
"I'm guessing you were the type of friend who asked to copy notes rather than the other way around," Kariya remarked dryly, massaging his forehead with his healthier hand but smiling to show he was joking. Things had improved between the two of them and he was feeling better about relying on Berserker again, but some of the tension from her lies remained.
"Ha ha. You try inventing new ways to divide by two and see if your scribbles look any better," Sayaka retorted with a faux petulant glare, crossing her arms and harrumphing melodramatically. "Trust me, it's not easy figuring out how to win a war premised on killing everyone else without actually killing everyone else."
"That's what you've been working on?" Surprised, Kariya reached for the notebook and lifted it off the table, reexamining it with the new insight. Looking at it again, some of the stick figures could—vaguely—be construed as crudely drawn masters and servants with erased and redrawn lines connecting them to each other, but the meanings of the numbers and letters beneath them remained elusive.
"It'd be nice if it were possible, but the war's founders weren't so kind. Especially not Zouken," Kariya commented, spitting the name out as if it were a curse as he set the pad of paper back down. "Your heart is in the right place, but you'd be better off plotting how to knock off Tokiomi's servant. This is a waste of time."
Sayaka shook her head and, with a proud grin, held up a finger. "Au contraire, Matou. While that might be true in a normal Holy Grail War, this one has me in it and is therefore super special! ...Although, yeah, what little I've come up with does regrettably rely on that jerk, 'I-should-be-in-jail-for-sex-crimes' Archer." Her grin transformed into a scowl as she remembered what the golden servant had said about flower petals and virgins last night but, collecting herself, she pressed on.
"I've 'sensed' every servant except Assassin with my soul gem, and, well, remember how the Grail requires the deaths of six servants to grant wishes? That might give us some wriggle room to work with if the all-powerful magical cup goes for quantity over quality because—Dun-Dun-Duuuun!—Archer has enough magical power to count as at least two servants and possibly even more. Add in another high-class heroic spirit like King Arthur, and Rider, Lancer, and I might be able to sidestep the 'There can be only one!' route altogether...although I'd like it if I could come up with a way to reach a good ending that doesn't call for eliminating Saber too."
Kariya stared at his servant as she finished and frowned. The assessment of Archer's power was alarming in its own right, but there was a gaping flaw with Berserker's thinking that even he couldn't miss, distracting parasitic insects feasting on him from the inside notwithstanding.
"Assuming you're right and the Grail doesn't need six of the seven servants in this war dead, that still doesn't do anything to change the number of wishes the Grail grants," he pointed out, watching his servant closely and wondering if she had a solution to that dilemma too. Judging by the unhappy expression on her face, she didn't.
"That's where the 'inventing new ways to divide by two' angle comes into play and what I've spent the most time jotting into that notebook, but I haven't given up yet!" Sayaka confessed with stubborn optimism as she reached over the table for the pad, turned to the next page, and grabbed a pencil. "If I keep brainstorming ideas I'm bound to come up with a good one eventually!"
Despite himself, Kariya smiled at his servant's antics. That sounded like his spectacularly desperate reasoning. Alternating between chuckling and coughing, he shook his head good-naturedly.
"Well, I still think it's pointless, but I wish you luck. Any particularly reason you're so invested in this, though? Other than the obvious, I mean? I know Lancer and Rider have been a big help to us, but if you're having second thoughts about doing what's necessary..." Kariya slowly trailed off and grimaced, suddenly aware of how much of what he'd just said sounded like a threat. Fortunately, his servant missed the ominousness of his words and instead gazed up at him with a faraway and wistful look in her eyes.
"It...it's what my friend would do," Sayaka answered solemnly, her expression bittersweet. "Finding a better way even when it seems impossible. Now, admittedly, I'm nowhere near as good at that as she is, but I know she'd want me to try and she's one person I refuse to disappoint again. I also know what the other servants want to wish for now, which gives me a basis to work from." Suddenly, her countenance shifted, becoming speculative, and she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper.
"And speaking of trying...hey, Matou, are you absolutely certain we need the Grail to save Sakura? I may not be statted for handling bloodsucking insect swarms, but with Lancer's help and Rider's numbers maybe we could—"
"No."
"But—"
"I said 'no', Berserker!" Kariya shouted, his voice hoarse and his visage agitated. Feeling the crest worms within him react, he rose to his feet and walked over to the study's rear wall. Placing his hands against it, he took several deep breaths to calm himself as Berserker watched him in concern. Only when the hungry stirrings of the crest worms finally receded did Kariya elaborate, but he kept his back turned.
"...Look, I understand what you're getting at, and gods know I've imagined it myself a hundred times since this war started. I want the bastard who calls himself my father dead more than anyone else, but I refuse to do anything that'll risk Sakura's life. Maybe...maybe you and the other servants could kill Zouken, maybe you can't. He's more monster than man now, but even if it is possible...he's spiteful enough to take Sakura down with him, and I won't take that chance. We will win the Grail so he can make his wish and return Sakura to Aoi, and that's final. No buts."
Sayaka remained silent for a long moment after this, her face tight as she thought and contemplated. Finally, returning to her earlier theatrics, she sighed exaggeratedly and raised a hand to her forehead, tsking loudly.
"That's going to make finding ways to condense multiple mutually exclusive wishes into two even harder, but—hey—good thing for you I like a challenge! I'll keep working on devising a better way to win this war, and you can keep on doing what you've been doing to keep us both alive. And speaking of that...how'd your bug séance go? It'd be awesome if they're able to convert this mansion into our new superhero secret hideout."
Happy to change the subject but not happy about the lack of meaningful results from his recent efforts, Kariya groaned and turned around. Slumping, he walked back over to the chaise longue and sat down, running his hands through his hair.
"Not so good. I was hoping that time would've weakened the property's bounded fields enough for me to seize control of them, but they're still going strong and are frustratingly resistant to my family's magecraft. The Edelfelts must've built in countermeasures when they set up shop here in the Third War."
Hearing this, Sayaka stroked her chin and hmmed. "That makes sense. If I knew one of my enemies was a writhing mass of ugly insects, I'd add pest control to my home too. The rest of what you said, though...sorry, but I don't really get what it means. I'm more of a stabbity-stab-stab type of magical girl than a magician."
Shoulders hunched, Kariya exhaled slowly and explained. "My familiars aren't able to claim any territory here, and the bounded fields are designed such that if I try to magically brute force them to my will they'll collapse and give me an even bigger headache than I have right now from the backlash. A more skilled mage might be able to coopt them, but I can only perform the basics. The bounded fields are still good for keeping the non-magically inclined away—hence why the mansion has been untouched for sixty years—but only an Edelfelt can benefit from the protections and warnings the wards offer. When I saw this place on our way back from the church the other night I thought it might be of use to us, but, all things considered, we're better off staying at our campsite in the forest. The only benefit this place offers is that it's in the city proper."
Sayaka nodded and looked around the room. "Well, that's still something if we ever need a quick place to crash near the church, and at least we know for certain now. So, do you want to stay here for the rest of the night or move on? The sun went down a little while ago and—hm?" Tensing in surprise, the servant looked down at the silver ring on her left middle finger and conjured her soul gem. Clutching the orb in her left hand, she watched the interplay of blue light closely for a moment and pursed her lips.
"That's odd. I'm detecting Lancer outside, but the two of us aren't supposed to meet up for another hour, and I have no idea how he'd know to find us here instead of our meeting spot in the woods. You stay put, Matou, and I'll go see what...he...wants..." She trailed off as her soul gem brightened, indicating that the Servant of the Spear was drawing closer. "Or he can come to us and save me the trouble, I guess?"
Dismissing her soul gem, Sayaka stood and summoned her blue and white costume. Stepping in front of her master, she raised a hand to her head and waited. When Lancer materialized in the room a minute later she started a cheerful salute but froze partway when she saw the sorrowful expression on her friend's handsome face. Whatever he'd come here for, it had to be urgent.
"Um, Lancer...is everything okay? You look troubled," Sayaka asked worriedly, taking a step forward but stopping when Lancer held up a hand. The Irish knight looked at her piercingly and, slowly, with obvious reluctance, assumed a battle stance and called forth his crimson and yellow spears.
"I am sorry, Berserker, but circumstances compel me to take up arms against you. Consider this a formal challenge...and for the sake of yourself and your master, do not hold back." Solemnly, with the tragic air of a hero accustomed to the cruel vicissitudes of fate, Lancer took a step forward and pointed Gae Buidhe at her. "This will be a fight to the finish."
To that, there was only one thing Sayaka could say.
"Eh?"
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Author's Notes: I missed my self-imposed 12/25 deadline for this update, but, even though it's late, here's a wish for a happy holiday season and a wonderful new year from Christmas Saint Holy Mami, courtesy of Magia Record:
More seriously, I thank everyone reading this story for their patience. You deserve better than a single update at the beginning of the year and a second at the end, and I deeply appreciate your willingness to bear with me. Knowing that there are people who enjoy reading this fanfic keeps me coming back to work on it, and I assure you that—although it's taking me a long time—I remain fully committed to seeing this story through to its conclusion.
Wishing you good luck and good times in 2018,
Rowan Seven
Eh, although Mad Enhancement is the class skill of Berserkers, that doesn't prevent other classes from having the same skill, and there are other options such as Mental Pollution. My take on this is that class compatibility for witches depends on the nature of the witch. Berserker would be the default class for most of them, but some might also qualify for Avenger (birthed from curses) or Assassin (murdering people in secret) or (in Kriemhild Gretchen's case) Beast.
And Assassin proves it has become far better than in canon. Living up to its name. Shame to see the friendship between Lancer and Sayaka fall apart though.
My one issue is going over Saber and Irisviel's issue when going to the Emiya estate. I would prefer if you just skimmed over it for new content, as it is just a canon retread at this point.
And Assassin proves it has become far better than in canon. Living up to its name. Shame to see the friendship between Lancer and Sayaka fall apart though.
Look, this isn't the first time Sayaka has had a lethal duel with a lovely Lancer, and the last time it (ultimately) ended with friendship, so there's still hope!
Look, this isn't the first time Sayaka has had a lethal duel with a lovely Lancer, and the last time it (ultimately) ended with friendship, so there's still hope!
"Assuming you're right and the Grail doesn't need six of the seven servants in this war, that still doesn't do anything to change the number of wishes the Grail grants," he pointed out, watching his servant closely and wondering if she had a solution to that dilemma too. Judging by the unhappy expression on her face, she didn't.
"That's where the 'inventing new ways to divide by two' angle comes into play and what I've spent the most time jotting into that notebook, but I haven't given up yet!" Sayaka confessed with stubborn optimism as she reached over the table for the pad, turned to the next page, and grabbed a pencil. "If I keep brainstorming ideas I'm bound to come up with a good one eventually!"
Madoka can only interfere with Witches and Magical Girls. As powerful as she is, she can't do anything for anyone else and has to have proxies do it for her without her aid.
There is that one Magical Girl (Queen Isabeau de Bavière) that can grant wishes just like Kyubey, she was a contemporary and enemy of Joan of Arc, so that could maybe work if Kyubey's wish granting abilities extend to people who aren't little girls but I doubt it.
"I wish for everything wrong about this war to be fixed in a way Madoka Kaname would approve of."
Problem solved and Angria can't weasel out death and destruction of humans via rule's lawyering since he's a part of the problem.
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Also I don't think Sayaka knows the grail is corrupt? I'm not sure. Seems like it would be a rather important thing to share with her Master if she does.
Nasu-verse's (Einzbern) Holy Grail doesn't work that way. For it to manifest a wish, its user(s) must be able to visualize how to properly bring about their desired wish to fruition, step-by-step.
Hence, when Kiritsugu was confronted with Angra Mainyu, it was delighted to have encountered a Master whose methods were in-line with its own desired goals of global-wide death and/or destruction.
It did fuck up, by pointing that very fact out and horrifying Kerry-kun, as Emiya had assumed that the Grail could achieve his dream of a world without conflict, through means that he could not imagine himself.
So, the way you phrased Sayaka's prospective wish would never work out; at best, the Grail would give the equivalent of an 'Error: 404, cannot process your request, please re-submit' message. Worst-case? Yep...
)
