The night grew weary as the hours passed by, drawing midnight.
The city is silent, save for the nighttime activity and work, everyone had come to rest for the night. Let the day's weariness slip off by hours of sleep.
Yet tonight, its peace will be violated.
All by a single mistake.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Hahaha! Have you seen the look on his face, Rider?! It looks so stupid like as if he can't even tell he was already dead. I know he was dense but to be that dense? He's really a freak, just like Sakura and the rest." Inside the Matou manor, Shinji Matou cackled to himself, relishing tonight's successful business.
Being a master in this blasted war wasn't originally his plan. Without magic circuits or capability for magecraft, he is nothing more than any ordinary boy except being born as Matou, originally called the Makiri Family, one of the administrators of the ritual.
Arrogant he may be, he does have some self-preservation. Against the practitioners of the moonlit world, he's nothing more than an ant. Unfortunately, as his position as a Matou calls for his unwilling help.
His grandfather, that monstrous worm, had decided to make him a fake master to Rider. Using a ritual, he created a Book of false attendant, magical contract that allows him to be a stand-in master for Rider. It was originally to have Sakura, his so precious sister and heir to the Matou family, to be the master but the old worm had decided against it.
The old bastard is actually plotting and it doesn't bode well for anyone.
Given the unwanted burden, Shinji simply accepted his new role with great reluctance and tried his best to stay low against enemy masters who are full-blown magi themselves. Servant or not, he's still a mundane person.
One spell is enough to kill him.
So he stalked in the shadows, using Rider's skills to establish a strong foothold at the start of the war.
He planned to have her consume the entire school to power her up with her Noble Phantasm, Blood Fort Andromeda.
Hideous? Maybe.
But this is a war, he doesn't care if he is sacrificing the lives of his classmates and teachers. Better them than him.
Not like he would miss them.
Then Tohsaka just has to meddle.
He doesn't know how but the bitch actually found out Rider's anchor points and have begun destabilizing them, ruining much of the work he (Rider's) made. As such after remaking the undone points with Rider, they left the school but stayed close to stake out.
Servants can sense other servants by some degree, something Rider told him as he formulated his plan. It was a simple plan but fruitful if done right. Simply put, he just has to wait for Tohsaka to come in with her servant, wait for them to separate and then activate what little anchor points Rider made for Bloodfort Andromeda.
Tohsaka might be a magus but she would be hindered by the activation. It would make her an easy target when Rider blitz into action and kill her.
Except that didn't happen.
Emiya happened.
He doesn't know how or why that dumb fool became a Master in the war but he is so fucking glad it was the case. He gets to have the chance to kill the annoying bastard.
If there's a type of people Shinji hates the most, it's the one's born with talent. Being born in a prominent magus family without the vaunted magic circuits, Shinji's life was anything but comfortable. Everyday, he is reminded of how much of a failure he is with Zouken's ever present threat. The monster in disguise quietly reminds them everyday of how pathetic they are, how they diluted the Makiri blood so much with so many failures. As such, Shinji's hatred for those born with talent and high pedigree.
It's why he hated Tohsaka, the girl flaunting her power and wealth in school without showing it. Her training and charisma made her an untouchable figure to anyone else except those who walk in the moonlit world.
Then there is Emiya.
That bastard!
A natural born prodigy, that's the only word he can describe his peer. Calling the boy his peer was a bit of a stretch as Emiya far surpassed his fellow peers at this point.
His Archery skills are unreal, with a 100% accuracy rate since he learned how to hit a target.
Then the bastard had the gall to quit, because he had perfected Archery!
Because he perfected it!!!
That arrogant asshole! Did he even realize the waste of his talents?! Replacing his bow with a Janitor's toolbox to help people.
A whole lot of rubbish!
But tonight wasn't something he was expecting. Emiya turning up as a master in the war was a blessing in disguise. He gets to personally meet the two people he hated next to his own family.
And when the opportunity arrived, he had Rider strike.
"Ho? To think you had it in you to cull the enemy masters this early in the war. I have underestimated you, Grandson." A deep rumbling chuckle echoed in the manor. From the shadows, Zouken's dilapidated figure emerges. His eyes staring at the boy with mirth beneath the malice.
Shinji snorts, normally he would flinch and show fear to his grandfather but tonight is different.
He had just proved himself tonight.
"Just shows you're not taking me seriously, old man. If this is how weak and incompetent the rest of the competition are, I'll win the damned war in less than a week!" Shinji exclaimed, his earlier success emboldening him.
"Oh indeed. It looks like you are right." Zouken chuckled, uncaring at the veiled insult thrown at him. The prattling of an arrogant child who succeeded in mediocrity is far beneath him. Slowly, he began to approach the boy. His menacing gait unnerving the boy and the servant hidden in the shadows.
"But do tell, which master did you kill tonight?" Zouken asked as his footsteps echoed in the manor
"Hmph, it's Emiya. That fool got himself dragged into something he is way out of his depth." Shinji snorted.
"Confident aren't we?" Zouken smirked, something that Shinji noticed.
The old crone is hiding something.
"...What do you want, old man, I just did what you wanted in this war. Kill all Masters and servants and win the war for that cup of yours." Shinji carefully asked.
"Nothing much, just curious. Didn't you say you killed Emiya?" Zouken stopped in front of the boy, looking at him with a menacing smirk full of teeth.
"So tell me? Why is that his servant is still in the war?"
"What?!" Shinji is floored by the information.
"All that arrogance and yet nothing to show, what did I even expect from you boy." Zouken turned away, dismissing the boy.
As one of the members who designed the ritual, Zouken has access to some backdoors in the ritual. One of them is the ability to take count of the Servants summoned in the war.
"You say you killed the Emiya boy? Well you did a pretty sloppy work if his servant is still in the war. Saber isn't a servant that can simply support themselves without a master for long. The fact they are still in the war means that they're master is still alive!" Zouken pointed out at him, relishing in breaking down the boy's earlier confidence.
"That can't be right! I killed him! I saw it happen! My plan was flawless!" Shinji adamantly rejected the notion. He saw it all happen with his own eyes.
"While Tohsaka was busy trying to kill him, I had Rider throw the killing blow. It was meant for Tohsaka! It should have killed her right then and there but that fool Emiya pushed her away. His reward is a dagger straight to his heart! There's no way he survived that!"
"Emiya Shirou is dead!" Shinji roared.
"Shirou is dead?" It was but a whisper yet it came with deafening silence.
Rider felt conflicting emotions as she watched her true master stumble into the scene. Her expression is numb, eyes glazed and her movements akin to a drunk. The poor girl is breaking down from the sudden news. Not just by the news but from the betrayal.
Rider's Betrayal.
'Rider, please. Don't harm Senpai.'
Rider's ashamed of herself. Even as a Heroic Spirit, she still betrayed those who trusted her. First her sisters, now this broken girl who called for her. Someone who called not for a champion but someone as a companion.
And she just betrayed that trust by putting a dagger to the one person that keeps her alive.
As such, when the shadows swallowed her, she didn't resist. Better this way than to follow more of the horrid boy's orders. This way, she won't betray anyone no more.
Zouken meanwhile didn't see it coming. Everything happened so fast that he failed to react until it's too late. His body was immediately shredded by shadows, clawing and ripping apart his putrid form in an instant they got a hold of him.
Shinji? The poor boy didn't even get the chance to react to realize he was dead as a spike of shadow impaled him from below, from his jaw to his brain straight up.
The shadows rampaged.
It cried.
It wailed.
And it began to consume.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I can't believe you made a deal with Caster of all people." Rin muttered in disbelief to herself as she watched over Emiya's unconscious body.
As another magic circuit died beneath his flesh and was replaced with more, she began to guide it away from important parts or keep it away from pre-existing magic circuits to avoid said circuits to coil around each other.
It was a very perplexing task and condition she would say.
"Huh? What's so bad with it? Caster's pretty hospitable to us." Saber turned her head towards her, keeping her hands on Shirou to keep the Holy Grail currently embedded in the boy.
Currently, the trio are in one of the many rooms of the temple that Caster took as her territory and workshop.
How did this happen? Let's backtrack for a bit.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Flashback...
"This is dumb! This is dumb! This is dumb!" Rin angrily muttered beneath her breath as Archer carried her, following Saber's trail as they raced on top of the Ryuudou mountain temple.
"Having second thoughts of following Saber, master?" Archer snidely commented at her words.
"Shut up, Archer. I don't need your commentary. This is not the time for it." Rin snapped at him. Archer raised an eyebrow at her reaction.
Well, it looks like whatever Saber planned worked along. His master no longer doubts or stresses herself over the situation. Instead, she's more wound up than said boy who is injured. Concern and guilt is running in her mind but their conviction.
She's now ready for the war.
"Hmm, here I thought you're afraid that boy will die."
"He won't die." Rin spat, "He better not be."
Archer silently laughed and stayed silent afterwards, focusing on the steps ahead. He'll leave Rin's ire towards the young Emiya, less headache for him. Although he found his dire condition humorous, he was curious and worried beneath the facade. Something is not adding up.
"Halt!" They were stopped just a few levels to the entrance, by a servant no less.
Assassin.
He was without a doubt Assassin. Garbed in a Japanese kimono, he looked like a Samurai. Purple long hair tied in a ponytail and piercing eyes stared at them. Archer's eyes trailed over the servants weapon and immediately found their name.
'Sasaki Kojirou.' Archer alerted Rin, making the girl wary. The man currently impeding them is renowned as Musashi's rival and possibly equal. Some claimed that the man didn't actually exist but with the servant standing in front of them, his legend is very much real.
Archer warned Rin through their connection, placing down the Magus in order to prepare himself for a possible conflict. Both parties were wary of each other, clearly gauging each other as they stared at one another.
Until Saber took a step forward.
"Assasin, we have come here to bargain with Caster." She said, cradling Shirou's body. The boy is still wracked with pain, his body steaming red as magic circuits run amok beneath his skin.
"How did you know I'm Assassin or better yet, found out about Caster?" There's no point in denial, Assassin went straight to the point.
This is actually bad for him. Sweat breaking from his skin as stared at two servants. If it's only Saber, his chances of winning are less than half but possible. But between two adversaries with Archer and Saber teaming up, might as well commit suicide. The assassin cursed his current summoning and master. If he was properly summoned in this war, maybe he would survive this encounter.
Caster, his master, summoned him as nothing more than a guard dog to her workshop, the temple behind him. Due to his summoning, he's trapped in his position which is the main entrance. It was the best and worst place to guard. Caster's defenses made sure that any intruder would be forced to go through him but it would also mean a significant amount of force could bypass him.
An example is this group.
Two servants and their masters.
"I have no quarrels with you nor with Caster, Assasin. I'm here to bargain. My master is in need of her expertise. My companions are also not a threat, they are here for the well being of my master." Saber replied, pushing her immediate agenda to him. She's in a rush with Shirou's condition worsening.
Meanwhile, Archer and Rin stayed silent during the negotiation. It looks like Saber had a plan so they will play along for now. But it doesn't mean they wouldn't act at the first sign of betrayal. Rin already ordered Archer to kill Assassin at the first sign of betrayal.
Before Assassin can utter a word, a new company arrived in a flourish of purple. Teleportation, heralding Caster's arrival. This time, Archer summoned his favored twin black and white blades while Rin flinched and took a step back away at the potential dangerous servant.
Saber merely took a step to set herself between the two parties.
"You wanted to talk to me, Saber? Well then, let's talk." Caster said, her smirk highlighted by her obscured face beneath her hood.
"I wish to bargain with you." Saber offered.
"I'm listening." Caster is definitely interested, it's not everyday someone offered her a bargain, especially in the middle of a war between servants.
Particularly if it is from a potentially strongest enemy. She had seen her Saber fight Archer. She had seen how outclassed the servant of the bow was; despite his tricks up his sleeves and skills, Saber simply pushed him hard by nothing but the pure strength of her Noble Phantasms, the Round Table.
To think the vaunted King Arthur would join the war.
"You answered the summoning of the war for your wish, am I right?" Saber began, making Caster curious as to why she began with it.
"Of course. All servants who answered the call of the Grail have a wish of their own, even you are not an exception to this." Caster gave her a pointed look to which Saber can't help but let out a small chuckle.
"What's so funny, Saber. Isn't your master currently dying in your arms? Have your wits escaped you already, oh King Arthur?" Rin jolted at the given name. King Arthur?! This cow is King goddamned Arthur!? No wonder Archer got trapped. Under assault by someone so famous and powerful in legends, it's a miracle for Archer to get out unscathed.
'Oh? Is that concern right there, Master?' Archer can't help but tease his Master after feeling out her thoughts.
That earned him a weak punch on his back but only assured him that she isn't so shell shocked by this so many servants in one tight area. The Ryuudou temple stairs are a strong choke point for an attack but a very deadly trap in an all out brawl of multiple servants. If a fight breaks out, Archer is not sure he can guarantee Rin's safety without some injuries.
Hopefully, Saber knows what she is doing.
"I assure you, Caster. My wits are still with me. I simply found humor in such words of how ironic my summoning was." Saber controlled herself, giving Caster a mirthful look before her eyes sharpen.
"But you're right, I'm delaying. I will go straight to the point." With that, Saber summoned her own Holy Grail. Almost immediately, all servants are drawn at the mystical cup materializing in between their midst. Archer and Rin stared bugged-eyed at the impossibility in front of them, with Rin's jaw almost dropping in shock before controlling herself. So that's the Noble Phantasm Saber used to keep Shirou's state stable. Meanwhile, Assassin warily stared at the supposed wish granting cup. He doesn't have a wish per say but he won't mind a rematch to his fated rival once more as a servant.
Caster's thoughts upon seeing the holy artifact are running a mile and more, going through the possibilities and what not at such power in her fingertips.
"This is my holy chalice, the holy grail. It is capable of minor miracles only, an unfortunate detail that can't heal my master's current conditions. As such, I'm granting you usage of my Noble Phantasm in exchange for helping my master's condition. Archer and his master will be the 3rd party that will ensure that this deal won't be broken. Do you accept, Caster?"
"Wait! Wait! I didn't agree to this, Saber!" Rin speaks up, not expecting such a role entrusted to her. Archer frowned before realizing Saber's intentions.
They are there as safeguards for Assassin.
With Saber and Caster brokering in this deal, both Servants cannot act against one another as long as the deal is still in effect. Except theirs, an exception of Assassin that is still free to move without Caster's instructions. The likelihood of Assassin stabbing Saber on the back is low but possible under Caster's orders to seize Saber's minor Holy Grail.
The introduction of that little artifact made the entire ordeal much more complicated. This version of the Holy Grail might be smaller and weaker in scale of granting miracles but it's still a miracle.
Anyone would covet it once revealed.
"Do we have an accord, Caster?" Saber ignored Rin, she trusts Archer's instinct to follow her lead.
"...When will I have the artifact?" Caster frowned. She wanted that little chalice, badly. If she can have it, she can abandon this unnecessary bloodbath and disappear in the modern era and have the second chance of life that she wanted so long. Of course, she can't simply take it without Saber's wrath falling on her. As much as she wanted to, she's in no position to forcibly take the chalice with Archer backing up Saber. Together, Archer and Saber will tear Assassin apart before getting to her.
She would lose her chance!
"The moment my master awakens from his condition." Saber revealed. Caster cursed in her head but nodded in acceptance.
Both parties are wary of betrayal but for the sake of each other's agenda, they will both play.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hours later...
"What a mess." Caster huffed, sweating and breathing after the hard task. Her hood is down, exposing her pale skin and delicate features. Her long ears twitched in the air, a sign of her divine origins.
"How is he?" Saber asked, revealing herself to be in the same room.
Currently, they are in Caster's workshop. In particular, inside of one of the vacant rooms of the temple that is converted to settle a burning up Shirou who is now sleeping peacefully albeit his condition is still the same. His body overheated as his magic circuits ran rampant.
"Stable but bad." Caster grumbled, finding the boy's particular condition very perplexing.
"How so? He looks peaceful and no worse than before." Saber questioned her. Simply put, Shirou's condition looked stable from the outsiders perspective.
"Yes, he doesn't look like he's in his death bed right now but he is still not out of the woods yet." Caster shrugged before continuing.
"Whatever is happening to him, it's not something I have encountered nor ever heard of it. It's very perplexing even for me and I came from the Age of the Gods." Caster grumbled. The only reason she accepted Saber's offer to treat is because of how easy it is for her in general.
How wrong she was.
It would be easy work and a perfect way to earn favor from the powerful servant.
That's what she had thought at first.
"Whatever is happening to him, it's something I can't treat nor alter with." Caster warned the Servant.
"And why is that?" Saber narrowed her eyes.
"Because I don't know what is happening to him." Caster threw her hands up in surrender.
"His body is a mess. It's constantly creating bundles of magic circuits at various points of his body, to the point of bundling them up and coiling them with each other, causing significant pain. At the same time, his body is destroying said magic circuits by the second it formed, which is far more painful compared to the first one. It's a constant vicious cycle of creation and destruction beneath the surface and I don't know how to fix it. Alleviating his pain and cooling him off is the best I can do for your master, Saber." Caster threw what she could gather to Saber. Looking down at the boy, it is a miracle he is still alive with how his body's magic circuits are ripping itself apart and rebuilding itself in his body.
"Not the best results but I will take it. I thank you for your service, Caster." Saber thanked her.
"Don't thank me. It's a deal after all." Caster reminded her with a grumble. It looks like Saber and her master will be staying in her workshop for the time being.
That also meant Archer will be around.
What shitty luck.
End of Flashback...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On the gate entrance, Archer sneezed.
"Already having a cold?" Sasaki gave the red servant a bemused smile. Archer merely rolled his eyes at him but he was also smiling.
Turns out, the two servants aren't so guarded with each other compared to Caster and Saber. Assassin or Sasaki Kojirou is a simple man, a samurai who honed his swordsmanship in mastering a single technique. Meanwhile, Archer is a 3rd rate magus who can only do one specialized branch of magecraft.
The similarities are there. Masters of One by dedication with blood and tears.
"You got a pretty problematic master too?" Sasaki asked.
"I can't say the same for you. It must be hell to work with that witch." Archer snorted at the jab.
"Hah! That's true, how unlucky of me." Sasaki gives a low laugh before looking at the horizon below.
"You fought Saber right? Do you think I can win?" He suddenly asks but Archer already knows that the question is coming.
Since the deal was made, the Assassin servant have been eyeing Saber like a hungry hyena, salivating and waiting to cross blades with the clearly superior servant. Archer would never understand such battle hungry tendencies but he can respect Assassin's goals.
The man simply wishes to hone his technique to the best grindstone he can find and prove his existence as THAT person's rival.
Archer pitied the servant. Sasaki Kojirou is nothing more than a figment of imagination, a supposed imaginary rival to the legendary samurai of Kojirou's era.
A fake.
As such, Archer didn't tell any lies to him.
"You wouldn't last with her in a real fight. Whatever you saw with that witch, Saber was toying with me." Archer grunted.
"Well that's just depressing for you but I think I will manage." Kojirou smiled, now very much eager at the possible clash between him and Saber. He then gave Archer a pointed look.
"Yet the witch has doubts on that fight. Your holding back against Saber. Aren't you?" Assassin accused him.
"Did I or did I not? Who knows?" Archer smirked at the samurai, not answering the accusation.
"And here I thought you would be a good company in guarding this blasted staircase. Turns out you're just as scheming as that witch." Kojirou grumbled.
"Now that's just an unfair comparison, at least I'm not torturing you."
"Not yet and I might just stick you with my blade."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tohsaka Manor
"Shit." Rin cursed as she stared at her now collapsed home.
What just happened!?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~