Hm. I will accept those terms. I do not plan to retire early, but I see no need to press you further than my colleague."
"You can't be serious—"
"Oh, but I am, Master of Lancer. I am."
Bazett gave the Clock Tower Lord a sidelong glance before shrugging and giving up.
'Confident you need not reveal me now. Brazen bastard, hm.'Lelouch nodded back in faux gratitude. "Please entertain my eccentricities. I know not where that person is watching from, or if they will see, but I can tell you this. Should you survive long enough in this war, you are all invited to the reveal. Until such a time, you will enjoy the company of Zero...Now, I think it is time we watched something informative together. Can't keep talking forever or we will miss the very interesting show."
"Show?" Illya was curious, she didn't know about this part of his plan.
"Indeed! After all, I'm sure all of you are interested in learning who is the Master of Rider and seeing his Servant in action, right?"
It was obvious what their answer would be. Even Marisbury was silent, waiting for Zero to continue. And so the masked man did.
"Now. where is this remote controller-?" Zero looked around his desk, actually looking for it. "Don't tell me we lost it again..."
"Agh!" Zero glanced at Matou's fake master. "W-what's that-?!"
He was scared as his finger pointed at the huge window behind Zero. Other masters were on alert too, with Bazett even standing up in a defensive position, ready to fight.
"Hmm?" Lelouch turned around to see the giant silver claw behind the window. Its long slender and deadly fingers were holding something. "Oh, here it is! Thank you, Q1!"
Zero moved to open the window as the giant claw's fingers carefully gave to its master his lost item before the claw moved out, moving up and disappearing from the eyes of other masters. However, now they knew there was something or someone above their heads. It was easy to see how frightened they were by it.
Matou. Of course it was the Matou boy.
However, Tohsaka wasn't feeling better either. "W-what was that, Zero?"
"My bodyguard. Please, do not mind them."
Zero simply waved off their dread and activated the remote controller. A moment later the wall with trophies on it moved aside, revealing a giant TV screen behind it. With another press of a button, the screen was showing quite familiar to some in the room. Fuyuki's port. It was a live broadcast from several cameras. The drones were really useful when Lelouch and Nobunaga wanted to see how the city was fairing.
With a smirk under his mask and a note of sadism in his tone, the Demon Emperor asked his quests/future victims.
"Who wants to see Waver Velvet, or as he goes by these days, Lord El-Melloi II, another Lord of the Clock Tower, be used as an example as to why you don't come to terrorize territories under my protection?"
Illya was the only one who raised her arm.
Fuyuki Port. A few minutes before that.
The decade has passed that night in port, the one where all servants, except sneaky Assassin, showed themselves. The night that started the Fourth Grail War fully, the night Waver and Iskandar first saw that monster in red.
The night was young as Waver and Rider made their way towards the closed-off areas. Hephaestion would constantly move into spiritual form and sneak behind the corners, going forward while she was invisible to the naked eye. There were still workers since a new shipment was coming in as the master and his servant made their way towards the warehouse, making sure no one saw them. Waver is far, very far, from what anyone would call an expert in stealth. Still, he needed to check if his evidence was correct and even someone like him could manage to hide from regular port workers, granted some magecraft had to be used.
'No boundary fields yet.' Once Faker, now Rider commented as she moved further. "We haven't encountered any so far.'
'The ones we are after wouldn't set their fields this far from the warehouse. If my guess is correct, whatever the shipment is, it will have the weapons that were used to kill Heartless.'
'Bullets, guns, explosives. And something more.' Hephaestion remembered the night she and her former Master were attacked for the last time. 'But are you sure the Sumeragi group is behind all of these?'
Waver narrowed his eyes, his mental link with Rider being silent as he thought about all the evidence they managed to find so far. Ever since he returned to Japan, to this cursed city, he wasted no time and used every opportunity to learn what changed and who might be running things now. It didn't take a genius to figure out that something was wrong. A relatively young corporation was quickly amassing strength all over the nation, with Fuyuki being its key center. Pretty much everything in the city was owned by Sumeragi. This port, while officially not theirs, was only receiving shipments from Sumeragi's subsidiaries.
'The Fifth Grail War started forty years earlier, a new corporation taking over the city where it happens all the time and mysterious armed groups capable of taking down a dangerous first-rate magus armed with their weapons.' Such a thing was nigh impossible. 'A former Lord of the Clock Tower who even had a Servant lost to a non-magi group.' Waver bit his tongue. 'Too many things that happened in the same period, it cannot be a simple coincidence.'
'Hmm, I see your point, but we have yet to get into any boundary fields or sense any magi here. This port is full of simpletons, no mana emanates from their person.' Faker pointed out.
'True, the fact any man we hypnotized here knew nothing doesn't help my theory. However, until we have concrete evidence or lack of it, we can't leave the port. Besides, there is little we can do tonight.'
'Well, unlike someone in my presence, I do enjoy flying over the city and patrolling.' Rider smirked. 'You need more exercise. Forget your lungs, the severe lack of muscles in your arms or legs will be the death of you. How do you expect to fight your way out of a life-or-death situation? Give your enemies cancer with your smoking?'
'That would make a morbidly cruel and slow way to kill someone. And what are you for if you get in that situation?! Servants fight, and Masters provide support. Cancer will take years when magecraft alone would only take a moment's slip-up.'
Fake Rider did want to note aloud that Masters aren't supposed to be on the front lines, but said nothing, smiling instead. 'A bit too literal, but at least you're willing to fight alongside me.'
'I can take care of myself if the situation is too hot, but please, make sure it won't come to that, Rider. Or you will lose your mana supply.'
'Aye, aye, not a fan of raw-dogging it dry either, Master,' Faker, who was faking her role, clenched her fist. 'Quite painful experience, let's avoid that.'
Waver maintained composure and not rising to the joke, only nodding once as the two moved further. The silence between containers was deafening. The port has changed a little bit since he was last there. More area, more goods, more of everything. Few cameras here and there, but nothing too difficult for a Servant who could easily jump over stuck containers with her Master in tow. So far, everything felt ordinary, which might have been part of the illusion. After all, if you want to hide something the best way to do so is in plain sight and be casual about it.
'Here.' Rider pointed towards the distant building, no lights were coming from behind its windows. 'It has the Sumeragi logo.'
'Let me see... warehouse eleven.' Waver took a closer look. 'According to data I managed to get from workers, the next shipment is supposed to arrive around dawn. They have been receiving new cargo every day for the last two weeks. They move the majority of it out of port, but some will stay behind.'
'But why? With how rich they must be, you would think the Sumeragi have no want for storage space within the city. That is unless they don't want this stuff in the city, hide it under the protection of plausible deniability.'
A reasonable assertion.'
Rider was puzzled but not unguarded. 'So far we have yet to encounter any form of defenses here. The lack of actual patrols for their guards as well. If that place truly holds the armory of weapons used to attack me back in London, they would be fools to leave their tools without any guards.'
Waver had to agree, this was too easy. 'Be ready for ambush, Rider. We are deep inside what might become enemy territory in the blink of an eye.'
'Great timing to say it when we're in this deep already, Master.'Rider smiled, her voice inside the mental link sounding too sarcastic. 'Agh, we know what we're getting involved in. Just stay close and if it must come to this, do not hesitate to use Command Seals to get us out of here. If these people are truly the same ones who killed Heartless, your life is in far greater danger.'
"When wasn't it?" Waver sighed, a deadpan expression on his face. 'Getting gunned down by an army of Magus Killer wannabes might be painful but not as painful as anything my 'sister' or colleagues in London might do to me.'
"...none of them knows you are fighting again, are they?" Hephaestion asked with rare softness in her tone. That she didn't keep it to telepathy spoke as much of her exasperation.
Lord El-Melloi II started forward.
"If Reines heard about the war, she wouldn't have allowed me to leave London without her... Same goes for Gray... and a good portion of my students. The last thing I need is a small army of young magi prodigies fighting in this war dying needlessly."
The image alone had Waver freeze, his mind going back to that night, the temple on fire.
*Click*
That sound from ten years ago, the sound of a gun being pointed at you misfiring. Both scariest and at the same time best thing you can hear at that moment. Waver was once again thinking of it, of the final night, a final fight between him and Rider…
'He couldn't allow his students to go through that hell. To be slaughtered by hell spawn.'
"Let's move, Rider. We don't have an entire night to spare." Waver tried to sound calm, and fearless but the thoughts of his past made him weary enough to not watch where he was stepping. This was a port after all and wet ground was always somewhere there, and so Waver stepped onto one before almost falling on his face. He could sense how Rider was smirking, as always someone was getting kicks from his misfortune as she caught him.
"You will make a good jester, but that can wait for after the war ends. Now let's focus on the warehouse."
Waver said nothing but groaned as his servant carried him to the place of interest. Once there, Rider moved into spiritual form before opening the door to her master from within. Once said, both could take a closer look at the secrets this place was hiding.
Wooden boxes, a lot of them and none was opened. Big ones, huge enough to carry enough modern weaponry to arm a few squads. The Clock Tower Lord walked closer and examined the box before checking it with magecraft. Once Waver felt something inside was giving hints of mana, he motioned to Rider to open it. Hephaestion smirked before manifesting her spatha. What they found inside was not the kind of weapon they were expecting.
"Is this a katana?" Waver didn't know what to make of what looked to be a version of the sword Japanese warriors used in the past.
Except it was giant, bigger than human and it was easy to tell it was heavy. Waver carefully touched it, trying to understand what this was for. Normal humans had no way to wield this monstrosity and why would they? It didn't make sense. 'Is it a goddamned art piece?'
Doubtful. He reached out and ran a finger along the flat metal. It thrummed with a soft concentration of energy. Like a medium that's grown saturated with remnant energies that burned through it through constant use. Or was it refinement?
"Whoever attacked you, they couldn't use something like this, unless their entire hit squad could summon a golem to carry it."
And yet there were signs of conflict larger than Waver expected of humans, weren't there. It felt too ridiculous. There they were, examining katana for giants inside the warehouse that was filled with rows of boxes similar to this. He didn't know if it even counted as a weapon if no one could use it properly. Last he checked, this eastern blade had a high skill floor to wield it efficiently. Using it like a medieval sword would have it snapping in half. Rider too was focused on the oversized melee weapon.
"This katana...I feel like something of this size could have been wielded by the things I and Heartless ran into."
Her master narrowed his gaze. "The metal ones you fought with that blasted you with military-grade canons?"
Rider nodded before she looked around, opening other boxes and looking at what they were hiding. Once again they were giant weapons that were used by ancient armies during times of medieval age or feudal Japan. Also one giant shield. Compared to these things, she and her master felt like mice. And it was all owned by Sumeragi.
"We didn't find weapons used by that mysterious strike group then, but these weapons are proof enough that Sumeragi is related to our problem," Waver commented. "No point in staying, let's go, Rid-"
"MASTER GET DOWN!"
Rider shouted as she pushed him aside. Waver hit one of the nearest boxes with his back. Groaning from pain, he was about to ask why the hell she did that if only he hadn't been distracted by the sound of the wall before them getting destroyed as a giant metal hand launched towards Rider. She didn't bother trying to block the upcoming attack, instead trying to move the side and stab the hand as it tried to grab.
However, as her spatha made contact with skin made of steel, it did nothing but create sparkles and only left a scratch. The hand didn't lose a moment and slapped her, sending Rider flying towards the roof of the warehouse and flying beyond it, far away from Waver. Her master shouted, the impact hit hard but he was still conscious.
'Stay down, master! I will get out of here and pick you up!' Even though she launched away, Rider didn't sound panicked at all.
While she was out of sight, the owner of the giant made the hole in the wall bigger, enough for the giant metal head to enter. Waver started with horror at what looked to be some sci-fi robot from children's cartoons.
It was slim judging by its head and its upper torso wasn't seen. He could see black armor and red lines among its main parts. It was kneeling, but standing on its four appendages since it used two hands to stand. He could see the blade, something akin to a mantis blade on its right hand. The head, some sort of helmet looked at Waver, lack of eyes made it hard to understand if it was thinking about anything. Regardless, it would be an absolute truth to say that Lord El-Melloi II was currently petrified with fear.
'It doesn't look like any golem you can create with magecraft-'
KSSSSSSSSHHHH
Its joints hissed as it poised its head towards him, the softest glow of a red light sparking to life before glowing in the shape of an ominous cross. The next instant, it reached out to him as though only figuring out now that he was still there.
'Optical modules? Or is it really a golem?'
He couldn't tell. However, before a giant metal hand could touch him, a bolt of lightning struck its back, making the entire thing jerk from the sudden hit. Waver stared as this metal monster tilted back, silently struggling against the burst of electricity before a familiar woman appeared next to him in a flash.
The different colored eyes of Rider looked at him with concern. "Come, Master! We're leaving! We saw enough for one night."
The professor attempted to stand up, but he was too slow so Rider quickly picked him up and jumped out of the warehouse, creating an exit in the wall behind them with her kick as they went out.
Once the master and his servant were out in the open they could notice a few worrying things.
First, the port that had a number of workers several minutes before was completely empty as though all humans were just gone. No lights were seen or voices were heard, despite the mess they and that thing made in the warehouse.
It was a trap after all.
Rider was about to summon her chariot but the enemy reappeared. Swiping arms where they went. Now they could see this golem, this giant machine in all its size.
It was standing on all fours, making circles around them slowly, akin to a cat that was about to pounce on the mouse before it. Rider couldn't see any weapons on it beyond one mantis blade, however, it was still capable of withstanding her lighting attack, only being hindered slightly. This was bad. Close combat fighting, especially without her chariot, wasn't optimal for her. Moreso with Waver being there, a liability in the fight.
'Master, I will hit it with another lightning bolt before tossing you into the air. Do not fret, my chariot will pick you up-'
"There is something in the water, Rider," Waver commented while his gaze didn't leave the bubbles that were moving over the water's surface, closing their distance.
His servant couldn't take her eyes off the enemy before her, but it didn't change the fact her master was right as two new opponents made their appearance. Another two giant things, clearly more than simple golems just like the first one, jumped out of the water, landing to the side of their comrade.
Both were purple in color, unlike the first they looked bulkier. They had only one orange 'eye', with their heads and shoulders having more edges. However, what was the most important is that these two had more weaponry. Not a mere blade, but each was carrying a katana in one hand and something like a giant machine gun in another. Both aimed their machine guns at Rider and Waver.
Not wasting any second, Rider took hold of her master before making a run for the nearest cover. Once there, she pointed towards the spot between containers.
'Hide there! We can't fly away while these two are this close. I will distract them and come back for you.'
'Rider wait-!'
Before Waver could finish his thought, the servant was already gone. Looking behind his hiding space it was easy to find the woman jumping between two new enemies, throwing a lightning bolt at one while trying to cut another one's leg. The magic attack had some effect, leaving a burned mark on the purple giant, but not stopping it. The slash was less useful, leaving just scratches.
'Tch! Either I'm too weak or I need to find their weak spots.' Rider noticed a moving fist and stepped from its way as the first black machine missed her body.
Three versus one. Her opponents were quick despite their size, but they weren't as fast as a class that triumphed in agility and movement. Especially when she had means of transportation.
When one of the machines attempted to squash her under its leg, it paused as something from behind caught its attention. Its orange eye glanced to the side, only a moment before it was hit by a pair of skeleton wyverns that were harnessed to the chariot. The force of the impact was enough to make one of the purple giants stagger for a few seconds.
The second purple enemy aimed to shoot down the chariot but it was too fast for its arm-mounted machine guns. The one that remained on its fourth meanwhile, didn't pay attention to the new flying object, focusing its attention on the one who summoned it.
"Not going to try to knock my ride out of the sky?! Then show me what you got, metal beast!" Rider taunted emotionally and silent metal golem before it jumped at her.
Rider's multi-color sparkled with excitement as she docked under the huge frame, a lightning bolt already prepared in her hand. Since the smaller one was the only one who was affected in any way, she would take it out first. As she was under it, Rider shot her bolt of lightning, hitting the chest of black armor. Just like the last time, it managed to make the enemy stop in its tracks.
The smaller enemy hit a pair of containers, still working but out of the picture for a few moments. One of the giant purple ones kept trying to shoot down her chariot, while another went to the half-destroyed warehouse. Once there, the metallic monster picked up something from the very first crate she and her master unlocked.
Now, armed with a giant katana that looked just right in the purple opponent's hands, it stared at Rider, its intent clear.
Hephaestion's grip tightened around her sword, her eyes narrowing with resolve as she braced herself for the impending clash. She knew the odds were against them, but she had to protect her Master at any cost. She couldn't let herself lose another one in this life.
With a thunderous roar, Rider ran forward, her spatha aimed for the eye. The purple giant surged forward, its massive hands holding a katana as it was raised high, ready to strike down a puny woman before it. Hephaestion showed no signs of fear, knowing what to do as she leapt forward. She was aiming for the eye, blinding this one before doing the same to another, at least that was what she hoped to achieve.
'These two have the means to shoot us down. The black one with only a blade won't be able to intercept or escape in the air. I need to be quick, if they are controlled or have minds of their own, eventually, they will attempt to find and kill the master.'
She had a few minutes tops. As long as they were focused only on her, Rider could protect her master and create circumstances for their exit out of the port.
Little did the shadow of the king know that the entire fight between her and three metal enemies was nothing but a show for others.
Or that her master was about to meet a monster scarier than a metal giant ever could be.
Waver watched the fight from his hiding spot, visibly angered by this fact.
'I'm supposed to stand next to my servant, not hide in the back.'
That's how his king taught him after all.
'...No, Rider is right, we need to escape. I will just get in her way right now. She isn't him, doesn't fight like he used to. We will need to develop better tactics for when we must engage in combat but it can wait until we are free from this place.'
The master of Rider started to look around, seeing perhaps any way to move around the fight. If Rider wanted them to escape, the very least he could do was find a better location for her to pick him up. Waver knew few offensive spells, obviously, they would do nothing against golems of this size, but at the very least they might help set up a distraction.
'Wait, maybe I can do something to help Rider.' Waver looked around him, seeing one empty car. 'Yes, with a little ingenuity and magecraft I might be able to at least make these things get caught on fire. Doubt that will do a lot of good, but it might at least give some time to get out.'
That was the plan at least, the only thing Waver could do at the moment and so he started. First, the professor looked around, trying to see if anything was easy to set on fire. A few papers glued to the container would do as Waver took them off before walking towards the car. Opening the gas cap and placing the folded paper in it, Waver ran towards the cover, but not before aiming at the spot he needed to hit.
'Let's hope my aim won't disappoint here. One good shot and that thing must explode. Now, I need Rider to-'
The sounds of heels hitting the concrete ground made Clock Tower Lord pause, his gaze turning from the car towards the figure that slowly made her way towards him.
Suddenly the noise of fighting near him ceased to exist, and the world itself felt quiet as Waver's eyes went wide.
The sky was black and yet her red hair was visible, as if it was on fire that moved towards him.
Waver Velvet, the boy who saw it before, the boy who was there, now a man could do nothing but watch the fire move towards him.
'No...no...no, no, no nonononONONONONO-!'
His body refused to get up, to start running, to scream. All he could do was watch her walk as his mind reminded Waver of the past, of his last battle from a decade ago, his survival, his defeat.
Memories of that night from ten years ago returned once again, never pleasant, never happy.
The temple, the monster. The flames, the burning sands. Waver was there, standing next to him before his friend entered that temple. Then everything vanished, gone from this world.
Except the Demon.
Ten years ago, the boy stood before the Demon who took away his king.
'-let it be known that I, Iskandar, will not disappoint you who have chosen honor!'
His last words, Waver heard them, remembered them well. He wouldn't dare to forget his friend's final moment.
And neither could he forget the Demon who almost took his life on that night.
The same Demon who pointed her gun against his head.
And now she was standing before him. She didn't take her red eyes away from him, and yet a rifle formed in the air above her. It quickly aimed at the car Waver planned to blow up before it fired and its car's tank. The explosion was immediate.
The image before Waver. This Demon stood there silently as fire and smoke covered her background.
The same face, the same red eyes were staring at him.
On that night, Waver Velvet, who was once the master of Rider in Fourth Grail War could only stare this Demon in the face and wait for his last moment. Tonight Lord of Clock Tower El-Melloi II and master of Rider in Fifth Grail War could only stare this Demon in the face and await the same.
"I-agh-D-" the boy couldn't say anything, words dying down before they even left his mouth. Tears were as clear as the moon on the port's water surface, but Demon continued to watch.
The Demon smirked, baring her teeth.
She raised her right hand as she made a finger gun and pointed it against Waver's head
"Is that surrender, boy? Or a challenge?"
Demon King Oda Nobunaga asked with a hint of mocking curiosity.
"Click."
The mock sound of pulling the trigger, the taunting expression on her face, and the silent stare of these red flame-like eyes.
The boy couldn't take it anymore. With a raised hand all he could do was run, escape. And so he screamed.
"FAKER! WITH MY COMMAND SE-!"
Hephaestion dodged another strike from the katana as giants attacked.
Block with all her might upcoming blade attack.
Jumping away from a storm of bullets and repeating everything once more.
This was getting exhausting. Rider had to send away her chariot, the chances of her wyverns getting shot were getting more likely the more she used to harass the giant golems. She was supposed to distract them and create opportunities for escape, but these things were relentless and wouldn't give her room to breathe.
'Worst is, I'm getting low on energy. Master can't support me indefinitely, I need to do anything before -'
"FAKER! WITH MY COMMAND SEAL I ORDER YOU TO GET US OUT OF THIS HELL!"
"Huh?" Hephaestion froze mid-air as she felt a sudden urge for power like she never experienced before. Perhaps with this power, she would have been able to defeat her opponents, but with new power-ups come the exact order, one she couldn't refuse no matter what.
Her body moved on its own as time froze around Rider. One moment she was in the middle of fitting three metallic giants, and the next one she was standing before her kneeling Master. Hephaestion was about to ask what was going on, but she immediately felt another presence.
The redhead woman from that forest. The one who proclaimed herself to be Lucifer manifested in physical form.
"Oh, my! Seeing two old friends of mine on the same night, in the same place! It truly must be Fate, won't you agree, Faker?" The Demon King asked coyly, her smirk big enough to piss off Rider.
"You-!"
However, before any words could be said, Hephaestion's new surge power made her move. She picked up Waver, his body was shaking, Rider could feel how weak he was right now as if his heart would stop any second. Without even knowing what to do, her body moved once more, nay, it would be more appropriate to say if the world around them moved since master and servant were gone from the port-
From Hell, Waver felt once again after all these years.
"Well, well, that was a truly interesting performance."
Nobunaga could barely hide her grin, then again why bother hiding? The show these two put up was more than worth it! Everything went according to their plan and she even got a bonus out of it in the form of that boy shivering in fear.
"Ahh! If all reunions will go in such a way, I can't wait to see the stupid expression on that girl's face!" Oda Nobunaga raised her hands at the side, pleased with herself.
Their Knightmares moved around her.
The black Alexander that was meant to act as a guard hound for the port jumped on top of the port's containers. The metallic guard dog was still trying to find the trespassers from a moment ago.
Two Akatsuki Command Zikisan models took a defensive position next to her, even though there was no one to defend Nobu from, or who could attack her. This port, this city was a Demonic domain and now all spectators would be aware of it.
"I hope you enjoyed the show, Lelouch. I bet guests centrally felt something watching it! HAHAHA-!"
Demon King laughed as she stared at the drone flying over the port, the one that captured every moment of this beautiful play and sent it to the temple. And once the said drone moved away from the port, Nobu allowed herself a moment to collect herself before lazily watching over the port that was a little bit roughed up.
"Hmm, we will need to pay for the car I, well, that boy destroyed." Nobu giggled before turning towards the waters that led out of port. "Hmm, if I remember correctly, the next shipment must be in a few hours. This one is important, Lelouch made sure this bunch of Knightmares was fully kitted for the time the war started, Let me see… which toys will be on it, I wonder…"
Nobunaga was sure they were all important chess pieces under the temple already, if not then around Fuyuki's underground warehouses. Seconds later, Nobu snapped her fingers as she remembered which special Knightmare her Lulu was anticipating the most.
"Oh, yeah! The massive gold and black titan! What was its name again-ehh."
While the Demon King was remembering trivial matters, the back in the holy temple Demon Emperor was making sure their guests were having a great time.
Ryuudou Temple.
The guests stayed silent as they finished watching the broadcast. Their lack of words was what Zero wanted and expected to see, the sudden appearance of Marisbury Animusphere almost spoiled his plans, but even the renowned Clock Tower Lord wasn't able to say anything at the moment.
'Who can blame them? As far as they saw, I'm in possession of several golems that are capable of standing against their servants. Fighting my forces one-on-one is far from what they would want, and they can't be sure if others won't backstab them while they are busy with me.'
The broadcast was showing only the fight between Rider and Knightmares, leaving out the appearance of Nobunaga. That was a card that would be played later, ideally when it was time to prune the number of enemy servants.
"Does anyone have anything they wish to say? Feel free to speak your mind now, when we are gathered here as friends." Zero looked between them. Lelouch wasn't expecting younger masters to say anything, he was focused on two adult magi in the room. "I'm sure the display of my forces should be enough to demonstrate that I do not joke around when it comes to my mission of overseeing this Grail War. Play by the rules, and no unwarranted harm shall befall you. Easy to understand, yes?"
Marisbury was silent for a moment, before bowing slightly and turning towards the exit.
"I thank you for hosting such a unique gathering. Caster and I shall take our leave."
'What a difficult man to deal with.' Lelouch wished to use this meeting further to find out more about Marisbury, as well as downplay whatever plot he might offer for other masters. 'I'm curious how the Britannian nobility felt when dealing with my brother. Whatever, my agents will do their best to trail him and Caster, even if I doubt they will find out their exact base of operation.'
Others watched as the man left, and the remaining Masters looked between each other unsure of what to do next. Illya most likely would leave only after her brother, Lelouch half expected her to corner Shirou Emiya and have a sisterly talk with him. Bazett was the first to speak up after Marisbury's departure.
"Lord Zero, I will be blunt, but what exactly is your game here? A man with your powers and resources, surely you would want something after preparing all of this. You are not a Master of this War, and yet I'm skeptical of your status as mere overseer. What if you want Grail for yourself?"
"Oh, this question is quite expected and natural." Zero nodded. "Of course, from your position, I'm too unpredictable. Here I stand, acting as a referee, when in actuality, I can seize the Grail for myself. But it's actually far simpler than you think. In truth my motives are thus: I survived the previous war and have no desire to participate in another. Only mitigate what disaster could result from it."
None seemed to believe him.
"If you would trust anything you learn tonight, it is that I'm not interested in repeating the same tragedy I experienced ten years ago. As for the Grail, honestly, I would be more than pleased if this war, this ritual itself, ceased to exist. Too much unneeded destruction and waste of human lives for a prize that no one has ever won. Or come close to winning, for that matter." He made to shrug and sigh. "Be mindful that in a technical sense, neither I nor Waver Velvet won the 4th Holy Grail War. We didn't lose, but neither of us won. Fact of the matter stands, however, that win or lose, or neither, an entire city was razed to the ground. Not a single victory yet all that blood spilt... Would you honestly say there is merit in a so-called omnipotent wish-granting device?"
Bazett had no answer. She took a step back, arms crossed and in contemplation.
"I don't have high expectations of any of you winning this conflict either. I'm building a new status quo here in Japan and would prefer to do so without such a dangerous magi ritual turning into a factionalized war backed by outsiders breaking out on my territory. At least, not without my approval and supervision."
"You don't think we can win."
Shirou Emiya quickly asked. Less question and more matter of fact, and while yes, Lelouch didn't expect any of them to win, why deter the competition now when one is still raring to go in spite of all the obvious bullshit it's wrought on the city in years past?
"I do not believe a wish would be granted this time around. But I'm only human. No one knows what the future hold. Who knows. If you all play your cards right, you might surprise me, and each other with a better outcome than 'winner takes all'."
As the old saying goes, no plan survives first contact with the enemy. Lelouch and Nobunaga still knew nothing about the Caster of this war and had to be careful around this enemy. The others were easy to predict, in a sense, but it meant little if their enemies would decide to fight together against the Demon couple.
They needed a battleground. If that was the hearts and minds of gullible children or the literal city, it need not matter. Only that he and Nobu be able to discern Marisbury's intentions. And their capability.
"Tonight was a refreshing experience for me, as I'm sure it was for the rest of you. But it is getting late. I am certain I got my point across, and there is little left to be said unless you do want to surrender your command seals and position as a Master in this war. But please, give it a day or two before finalizing your decision. I'm not one to coerce a choice out of the desperate seeking the impossible."
It went without saying none of them offered to surrender on the spot. Hell, one of them was quite keen on staying, judging by how the knight-masked Tohsaka clutched her Command Seals. Ilya wasn't at all perturbed, having finished up one last cup of tea before the show finished.
"In that case, let's call this meeting adjourned. Please, feel free to enjoy the party, outside or here indoors. Staff will cater any questions or needs as you wish. It was my pleasure to meet all of you and goodnight, my dear guests."
With the main event of the night being concluded, the charity event that was going on outside was slowly ending, too. Sumeragi's CEO was perhaps the most extroverted girl Shirou ever knew. Despite being younger than him, she had no qualms dealing with the attention of every adult outside the main temple building with ease. In some way, her mannerism was reminding him of how Zero was easily commanding the tone of the Master's gathering, well, at least until Marisbury appeared.
Speaking of the Clock Tower Lord, the man disappeared without a trace. No doubt the same way he even appeared there tonight. His Servant, whom no one could even properly see because of some obfuscating shadows, went with him.
It was probably magecraft. He couldn't question it without looking like an idiot.
As for the rest of the Masters and Servants, they decided it was time to leave this place. Hanging out near the referee that could order around giant war machines that could match a Servant in power, while being without any sort of alliance to call upon, wasn't a good idea for anyone.
Shirou silently watched as the rest of the masters and their servants left the temple grounds. He noticed the silent look Shinji shot his way before departing with Assassin. Goes without saying that they have a lot to talk about but not right now where others could see.
'Masked man with mysterious history who controls both Sumeragi Industries as well as an army of mechas,' Shirou had to force himself from clenching his hands. He was still inside the main hall of the temple, having decided to be the last one to leave. He silently watched as others were exiting the temple grounds. 'I don't need Saber to tell me that I have to control my emotions out in public. Can't show them that I'm afraid of what all this means for us.'
Even someone who had surface-level knowledge of the moonlight world, it wasn't difficult to see how fickle the situation was. Zero and his rules, Marisbury and his offer. Shirou and Saber had a choice to ally with either of them, of course, after making sure Sakura and Shinji were on board. However, choosing one likely meant confronting the other.
Even if Zero was calling himself a neutral arbiter, it was clear the masked man was only going to allow war to go according to his rules. Outsiders interfering be damned, it seems. Meanwhile, Marisbury's offer was good, too good to come from another Master who wanted to win this war no matter what, if he was willing to offer such a deal. Nothing about their exchange screamed 'friendly'. Heck, Shirou's legs were screaming he had to get out of there if he wants to live long enough to make a difference.
Straight up thrown into a world of mystics and magic with now politics and even mechas. Had he not been taught by Kiritsugu, honestly he'd fear for his life suddenly turning into an anime.
'Dad always told me to be suspicious of any deal that sounded too good to be true. I always thought he was too cynical, but right now I can't deny, my old man is correct in situations like this.'Shirou wished he could let out a sigh, but knew better than to annoy Saber and look inept in Zero's territory. Speaking of his Servant. Saber was standing next to him, waiting for him to leave.
"We spent enough time here. Let us depart," Saber spoke with a cold tone before whispering so only he could hear. "This…banquet could have ended worse. Let's not test our luck before… any buffoons attempt something they'll regret."
She had her usual expression, but Shirou noticed how she glanced at statue of white mecha with weird look. Speaking of it, after seeing the actual mechas, even if they were most likely made via magecraft, the redhead boy felt a little nervous being in the same room as this statue. If it was a statue at all. For all he knew, it could be just another war machine, waiting for an order to attack. A weapon to call upon by Zero...
Shirou froze, thankful for the mask. The last thing he needed right now was Saber scolding him for losing composure.
But… as he looked back at the white knight in the hall, a thought occurred.
'… If these mechas are created by Zero, or someone under him with magecraft... They might not be piloted by humans like in anime but be autonomous weapons. A weapon…'
Emiya Shirou, Master of Saber stared at it, gathering his thoughts before focusing on its 'face' as he activated his structural analysis. Part of him hoped it was a mere decoration, an empty dummy to act as an attraction for guests and nothing else, but the short time Shirou spent in the presence of Zero was enough for the boy to realize something about him.
He wore a mask to hide his secrets. And yet, despite all his secrecy, Shirou was inclined to believe the man when he said he wanted to avert another disaster like the fire.
Nothing about Zero was simple, nor could one rely on a surface-level glance to discern his real intentions. Which is why he hoped against hope that what stood before him was just a statue of a stalwart knight. A symbol of those who defend the weak and protect the innocent. A small prayer that begged he was right to believe the man's intention was pure.
He saw hell.
Ruins of a ghetto, a destroyed city invaded, corpses of civilians littered the crumbled gravel. Lined-up civilians gunned down against the walls. Elderly, infirm, man, woman, child. Blood everywhere. On the walls. On the ground. On his hands.
A scream rang out up above, raising his hands, he reached out amidst the rubble and caught a mother and child as they fell.
He saw hell.
An army of purple mechs ran circles as they attacked one of their own. Soldiers of the same army, infighting. Their weapons trained, prepared to gun down what they saw as a traitor. He jumped in viciously swinging to protect the one who decried his loyalties first.
A flutter of hair from the corner of his eyes. The crack and pop of an explosive up above. No hesitation, he rushed forth, covering not just the fallen mech behind him but the woman that tried to do as he did, armed not with the safety of a shield but instead the strength of her beliefs. Blood stained those beliefs.
He saw hell.
Innocent people, and even his friends, held hostage just a stone's throw away. The feeling of uselessness crept in as he watched one executed, fear and guilt encroaching his core
The white knight stepped forth, volunteering for a suicide mission against impossible odds. A rain of shells that decimated all that came before. Low chances of survival. Colors flashed and the blood on his hands spread to his wrists.
Fists clenched around the controls of the machine, he pushed forward. Almost seemingly determined to die. But more than anything, determined to die being able to save another. All for a sickly, obsessive need to atone.
He saw hell.
Raising his weapons, he fought through the remnants of a landslide, determined to see through his orders to rescue another. A desperate fight against an enemy he thought dealt with.
Zero?
But there, he met a witch of green with golden eyes who saw through his lies. His hypocrisy. Blood enveloped his elbows.
He saw hell.
Ordered to stand down, he listened to the pleas of surrender. But one after another, his comrade-in-arms shot down those who cried out. Blood and guilt crawled up his shoulders.
And then, the real foe arrived. His name was…
What had started as a fever dream of futuristic machines started being plagued by dark emotions and a reckless desire. And what was worse was… the mask.
His mask. Zero's.
But the worst was yet to come. For he saw… hell.
A stadium larger than any Shirou had ever been in. Applause, cheers, celebration… All of it vanished into a storm of gore, gunfire, and anger.
The cries of freedom overcome by the cries of the murdered. The tears of joy sprayed with the blood of the slain. Hundreds dead, massacred. And in the center of it all, she stood there, reaching out a hand to…
Zero.
A gunshot rings out. Her body fallen to the ground. And then…. hatred. Seething hatred.
His bloodstained arms were heavy, dripping with the red of the innocent and well-meaning, trembling as he carried her body, his charge.
The memories of the pilot to the White Reaper, overwhelming, overflowing. With pain. Guilt. Sorrow.
But underneath all that… there was regret. There was obsession. A desperate resolve.
And all those emotions belonged to…
Shirou nearly vomited as the mass of emotions and memories filled his head. Not just that of the weapon, but of the man who sat in its cockpit.
"Boy, what's wrong?" Saber hissed as she helped keep him upright. She was subtle enough about it to help hide his seizure. Her glare was one of suspicion, but also concern. "Are you under attack by something of a magical nature?"
Her cold gaze switched to the statue he'd been facing before moving towards the door. Her grip on his arm was tight, but not painfully so.
"I... I'm fine, Sab—"
"Master of Saber, are you unwell?" His voice sent chills down Shirou's spine. Not one out of fear, just unease. It was a struggle to stay standing. Thankfully, Saber was already moving to shield him with her body while keeping him standing. "Do you perhaps require transport back home? I would make a bad host if I let my dear guest leave in such a state."
There was no animosity in Zero's tone. It was the same professional politeness. But Shirou couldn't help feel like he heard uncertainty even if it lasted for a mere second.
"I-I'm fine. Just a little overwhelmed by today's meeting. It's… this is my first time participating in anything of this scale. I'm not exactly a regular for… magi stuff... Forgive me for worrying you, Zero."
He could feel Saber's eyes looking at him before moving back to the masked host. She was wary, but as it was for his sake, Shirou felt the urge to usher them out. The sooner, the better.
"Very well. I bid you and your Servant a good evening." The true master of the house was silent for a few seconds before giving a small nod. Over his shoulder, he added. "I pray you, as well as your peers will see this ritual to its end... bloodless, at that, Emiya Shirou."
The redhead stared at the man's back before following through with Saber to head out the door. The guy knew his name and his address. Zero knew a lot about the Masters of this war, perhaps everything. Marisbury might have been an unexpected and unwelcome surprise because he wasn't on Zero's radar. Not for the latter's lack of trying, or so Shirou could assume.
'We'll lose.' The same thought once again appeared in his mind as his eyes moved from the masked man to the white mech nearby. One glance was spared before they exited the building. Shirou tried his damnedest to stand on his own, despite still being shaken. 'Zero knows too much about us, we may practically be dancing at the palm of his hand. He could mail us an invite. He could do it with explosives or an ambush, magical or otherwise.'
The man had the weapons, the mechs, for it too.
'We know next to nothing about him... except this.'
Whoever or whatever Lancelot was, who their pilot was… Zero shared a history with them, and it was a deep and dark connection.
'Lancelot… and Kururugi Suzaku…'
The names were unknown to him. But as far as his eyes discerned from the false manikin of a mecha knight—nay, a Knightmare, they were a key to the identity behind the mask.