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[ Archer ]

He followed his Master inside and took note of the interior. Though he was unused to the concept of the furniture coverings, it was very clear to see that Christina didn't frequent every part of her manor on a regular basis. She was actually very attractive, given how she acted and carried herself. It fitted her looks and demeanor very well.

When she sat and asked him her question, Archer couldn't help but break into his signature playful grin again.

"If every Master was as presumptuous as you, we'd have won this war already. But no, I'm not such a simple minded Servant. Yes I do have a bow, but I do not rely on it. All Archers possess godly sight as well as instinct to keep alive. But I'm also an engineer," he paused slightly to look around the dark room and craned his neck a bit before tugging on his beard thoughtfully. He then turned towards Christina, supporting his elbow by folding his hand across his chest, resting under it.

"I'll tell you what else I can do. I can handle a spear and sword with as much proficiency as the next Greek hero. But a word from my stories should tell you the full impart of my abilities," again he paused to fully cross his arms and smiled wider.

"Tell me, Master. What have you heard of the fall of Troy and of the journey to Ithaca?"

He hoped that his question would bring sudden realization to the girl to the full capabilities of her Servant. Yes, she was lucky indeed. Just as he felt lucky to gain such a Master. This one has the intelligence and cunning to survive he thought. How alike they were. How fitting. He had no doubt in his mind that the Grail would be theirs in the end.

His eyes gazed upon the hand presented before him, the command seals present on them proved she was the one who had actually summoned him. Many in the past had tried to fool him before, during those monstrous times when he was summoned as a counter guardian, the times when he was forced to draw his sword and spill the blood of men in the name of "The World" to protect it from the creatures called humans, it had been a cruel fate, but he accepted it gladly as it allowed him to keep these men from destroying what mattered to him most, and now to be able to directly help his family in such a way. His feelings couldn't be put in words, deep inside he was simply happy to see his family had survived till now. But he was still an assassin, and thats all this man would ever be, with his blood crusted blade he would continue to sacrifice his self and his eternal peace to ensure their safety.

He dropped to both knees in front of the girl, the link between him and her gave him her name. He placed his hands against the ground in front of him and bowed low, his head touching the ground to hide his eyes, his master could not be allowed to see the torrent of tears, to show how relieved he was his kin had lived, and that he could once again be useful to them, only this time directly.

He nearly choked on his words but he managed to repress his feelings enough to keep his calm appearance as long as his eyes were hidden, he spoke out his voice slightly shaky threatening to betray his true state, "My life and my sword are yours to command, Sakurazaki-ojou-sama"

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Though doubtful of the man before her, the specific aura of mana that eminated from him was discernable to be that of a master, and he most likely would truly be the one she was summoned by. As such, she adressed the man once more, "I have come forth in response to your summons. From this time forward, my sword shall be with you and your fate shall be with me. Now, our contract is complete."

Saber studied the man ever closely, sensing no fear from him, or in the very least, not much of a hesitation, despite what was most likely his house being destroyed. The mana that the servant cyphoned him was strong, despite an obvious abduction in statistical strength from what she percieved to be a misalignment. However, as servant of the saber, she would most likely overcome her weaknesses with battle prowess, skill and hopefully this master's wit.

Formality aside, the heroic spirit gave a small bow of respect, otherwise looking her master in the eye and giving a simple statement, "Now... Do you have any food master?"

Be it as it may... Saber likes food...

======================

I stand but a meter and a half away from my new servant and companion. The blue clad Japanese Assassin stares at me with icy blue eyes, I stare back with my own. His blue orbs stare at me like an eagle staring at prey, yet there is no hostility in them, only melancholy.

I found myself confused, yet I could nearly see the conflict brewing in Assassin's heart, the heart of the martyr Assassin known as Okita Soushi. His visage falters slightly, a twitch, a small quiver in his lips, a fine movement in his brow. Just what were his thoughts? I wonder to myself as we look into one another's eyes. Even as a descendant of the man, I knew little of him, other than vague tidbits of history. None-the-less, he seems sad as he looks at me ever more. His reaction to seeing my proof of being a master was unexpected in the very least...

This somewhat purposeless silent staring contest is not broken for several moments.

But, seconds later, though those seconds may have very well been hours, I found myself watching Assassin get into the Seiza position, kneeling down on both knees with his feet below him. Promptly after sitting, he bows, a deep bow that one of low caste performed toward one of high caste. I'm thrown further into the confusion of perplexion.

The servant's breathing looked somewhat fast, as if...

As if he were crying...

What was with this? I find myself somewhat flustered and taken a back by this. Yet at the same time, I feel a sense of relief from him as he speaks slowly, his words covered with the utmost honesty and respect, "My life and sword are yours to command, Sakurazaki-ojou-sama."

O...ojou-sama?

I never expected this straight away, but in the very least I was assured of loyalty from him. However, concerned for the feelings and mentality of Assassin, I quickly rush to his side and place my hand on his shoulder and attempt to pull him upright. I speak softly to him, "Hey... I... I'm not sure what's going on right now with you, but you don't need to do all this. We're just here to fight this war..."

I pause for a moment, savoring my words, they seemed right as I let them flow out of my mouth, I speak more, as kindly as possible, "Now... Before we get started tomorrow, let us get some rest and sleep, okay? We can scout the city tomorrow."

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Sleep, it wasn't something he ever got a lot of. He paused a moment to regain his composure, he probably looked weak and emotional in front of his master. Now she looked surprise he wondered why.. "All of? You are my master, pledging my sword to you is only natural, the bushido code would allow nothing less." he paused for a moment returning to his original emotionless visage "Forgive my show of weakness.. please rest master, In this condition I don't exactly need to sleep and we can be attacked at anytime."

He stood up and repositioned the set of swords on his side, his form faded taking the non physical form of servants, as this allowed him to move to where he wanted easier. One can't fight in this form but it was easily enough to sneak around in, but it required you to be close to your master, which was fine, His form shifted to the rooftop of the home before taking his physical form on the roof. Using the shadow the chimney of her house to conceal his location and presence (Such was a natural talent for those under the assassin class) he decided to rest here where he could take any present action. His eyes fluttered close and he sat in Seiza his hands pressed lightly on the top of his thighs. The meditative condition allowed him to both rest yet be alert enough to react immediately, The door was a mere 10 feet away and 2 stories down, a simple jump for him even when he lived, especially so now. The back was locked but still no more then a jump away. this position was strategically perfect.

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Chapter 2 - Day 1: Dawn Raid

As our Magi heroes come to meet their War companions and reacquaint them with the world as they never knew it, the people in the isolated suburbs of Easton would claim witness to their whole world changing in a single night. One of those suburbs, home to Port Mason; a large metropolis city, a base for the entertainments of many. Traditionally a port town, it has slowly gained popularity and status, building a firm commercial foundation. The growth of the city has become well substantiated. Only recently, it has become a guise as a red-light district.

[3:44AM - Port Mason]

The dead of the night raised its arms in vulnerability to the invisible creeping shadows of evil that approached. Darkness had never loomed its deepest until now. As the lights of Port Mason danced with the heat of lust filled minds, a deathly silence advanced and slowly siphoned its energy.

Amongst the twilight and bustling murmur of the city, an entrapping alleyway saw two high school students lying in wait. The two girls, clung to each other fondly, laughing and giggling whilst looking around themselves in earnest. One, a busty blonde leaned down towards her slim figured brunette companion.

"...but you know what he said to me? He said: 'So, Ashley... Did you wanna go out sometime. I know there's a nice place that we can get together...'"

"Oh. My. God. Did he really? That's hot!"

"Aw, shut up! You're so easy!"

"Hey! What are you talking about? You said you'd do this with me today!"

Ashley looked down at her watch anxiously, "It's getting late. I have to go home, no one's coming."

"They'll be here. But if you're going to go anyway, then fine. Do whatever you want, Ashley! I don't care!"

"Lauren... Come on, we should go. It's too dangerous standing here..." The blonde then reached out to take her friend's arm.

Lauren stepped away from Ashley's hand and struck it away from her, "Hey, screw you, Ashley! You can either stay or go, but you're not dragging me with you! I've done this, like, a hundred times already. As you can see, I'm still alive."

Other voices then bounced into the depths of the alley as a ground of young males entered it. Their jovial laughter and lack of levity betraying their age and purpose. They stopped before reaching the girls and looked them over thoroughly. One of them stepped forward and grinned lecherously.

"You girls look good. Better than we'd hoped."

Lauren approached him and flicked her lengths of hair over her shoulder. Straightening herself, she posed confidently before taking the male's arm.

"Planning to have a good time, are we?" Lauren drawled coyly.

"You betcha. What about your friend?"

Ashley frowned disapprovingly, "Lauren, look. I'm going. I'll see you tomorrow."

As the blonde began her path back towards the street, the remainder of the male group stopped her.

"Hey, hey, hey, Baby... Where you going? We thought you were part of the package too."

Lauren's face curled up in disgust, "Guys! Leave her, she's a frigid bitch anyway!"

Before Ashley could look back at her friend, the guys standing next to her cried out in panic before fleeing the alley way. Being driven into paranoia, Ashley looked over her shoulder to witness Lauren and her male escort's bloodied heads sliding off the blade of a five and a half foot sword where they then rolled toward her feet. Her body, frozen with shock suppressed her need to scream. Her eyes widened with an impending terror that shed no words and the blonde was brought to her knees from fear.

It was a figure that seemed to melt into the darkness of the alley, if it were not for the glimmering surface of his armour. The seven foot monster moved sharply, tossing the limp decapitated male in his left hand into the brick wall next to him. Sounds of crushing bone and torn meat caught Ashley's ears before she witnessed the oozing of blood trailing down the wall in streaks. The remnants of both her friend and the male were crushed underfoot of a seven foot monster that now drew towards her.

Pushing her strength into her legs, Ashley recovered and attempted to forget what she had seen by taking flight. Her lungs burned with the thickness of iron in the air, but in filling them, she let out a penetrating scream which was silenced a mere second after. At the cessation of the shriek, her body was torn asunder with an earthward metallic cleave. The two pieces left to peel off the edge of Berserker's sword when he brandished out in the open. At the impact of his fatal slice, several passersby were sprayed with lifeblood of the high school student.

From across the street, many stood in shock. However, many others did not hesitate to activate their self-preservation mechanisms. The monster relentlessly continued his rampage. Whilst the citizens ran, the armoured demon threw an illuminated carved pumpkin at the group which exploded on impact, throwing chunks of baked human flesh and scorched bones onto the surrounding areas. Panic escalated as the screams of few individuals became terrorized mobs of people running escape lines directly out of town.

It was futile; humans were so simplistic that even their escape patterns put them in more danger. It wasn't like schools of fish and the matter of "survival of the fittest." Berserker rotated his blade into a reverse grip and threw it with divine accuracy in the form of a dart. It sailed swiftly, unmercifully, reaching its target without obstacle and into the backs of eight people now skewered into the nearest wall. The armoured behemoth chased after his blade and after wrenching it from the wall, he flicked his sword outwards, thrusting the bodies of the skewered out into the crowd as bloody projectiles, ending the lives of the unfortunate receivers.

His assault continued for not longer than an hour. It had surprised him that a city so large could move so quickly. Unsatisfied, Berserker drew a barrier around the entire city, drenching it in a ruby haze. He stood firm with his blood stained sword in hand, holding it horizontally, he chanted a spell that took up the mana of the dead. A burnt in magic circle rose to the surface of the pavement under his feet and ebbed with a coloured fury that matched the countless blood stains in the city.

It was simply not enough. His Master would not be satisfied. However, he had control of this point now, he was eager to be found. ...Another Servant would be enough to gain his fill...

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[Falke Residence]

If there was someone who could sleep through a carpet-bombing, without flinching a muscle, it would have to be Christina Falke. The woman was a great testimony to the fact that heavy sleepers were indeed very much still present in our modern times. She lay like a brick in her large, fluffy bed on the second floor, in the room just around the corner of the stairway. It, like all the other rooms, was sparsely decorated, only a lone painting on the wall, a desk, a simple wooden chair and a small, round, white shag-carpet at the center of the floor. There was also a small drawer, worn and dusty, which most likely contained her change of clothes, and perhaps other things too, however strangely enough this drawer had a lock on it, and the key was found on a chain, neatly hanging around Christina's neck as she slept.

For her, nights were usually the time to be awake, especially now that the War had started and things would get pretty nasty during the hours when normal people prefered to stay indoors and slack off in their simple-mindedness. However, being that there had only gone one day, the druid-descendant had figured she was allowed to at least spoil herself with one final, good night's rest before having to deal with the hardships of that which was to come.

It was a dreamless sleep, a sleep where one does not dream and see anything, but rather the kind where you simply shut your eyes and open them again the next second, without feeling like you've actually slept. Such was the power of her resting capabilities, and she had often been teased by her older brother, William, for it. William had unfortunately vanished some years ago, during a cruise in the south pacific. Nobody knows what happend, he had simply vanished and no word had been had for years now. He was actually the one who was supposed to be the contestant for the Falke-family in this War, but seeing as he was gone it had only been natural for the obligation and responsability to fall upon the one who was next in line.

To the great dismay of the family however, the one next in line was an unmotivated, lazy, selfish, logic-driven freeter who much prefered doing as she wanted, in both ways, time and pace and did not seem all that engaged in the thought of bringing back the glory of their family, which was the goal.

And perhaps, to some extent, they were correct.

She continued sleeping, heavily and without moving, the soft blanket having slid halfway down the side of the bed and now lying in a crumpled pile on the floor next to it. She breathed lightly.

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Yeah...

It seemed that I had forgotten.

Okita Soushi, Assassin, was... Is not... A person from this time period. As a matter of fact, he wasn't even human. Assassin was a Heroic Spirit, a spirtual being given physical appearance and presence by the grace of the Holy Grail in its cruel game of choosing its temporary master.

A master, that was someone like myself, a magi chosen by the grail to fight for my wish to be granted. That wish was all I truly wanted, and nothing would stand in my way until I would achieve it, or I would most certainly die trying.

But he was right, as a person from another time period, he would not be entitled or bound by the same ethics as these days, he came from a time where the samurai's code of Bushido was still in effect, similar to a knight's chivalry. I nodded at him in acknowledgement, agreeing that it was only natural for him to address me as someone higher than him and think of himself as a humble and lower being.

"It's no problem Assassin, just make sure you don't show your weakness in front of your enemies," I say, well aware that I may be too kind to him, ignoring the pressing feeling that I should treat him like any other person. Soon after, I watched as assassin faded into the air, his physical form dissapating to be replaced by his spiritual form, a very useful tactic for when patrolling the outside world and not wanting to attract attention. I sensed Assassin's prescence on the rooftop and assured myself that there was nothing more I needed from him tonight.

I remove myself from the room and walk to my bedroom, flopping on the increasingly welcoming bed and slipping under the sheets. My aching body and tired eyes soon left themselves to a deep, dreamless slumber...

Next chapter

Blackness...

Such was the realm of a dreamless sleep. A dark abysmal blackness that consumed everything, yet it was only existant for an instant, the blackness was but a flash of nothing that transitioned one from one time to the next, the process called sleep.

But now, the blackness was consumed by a feeling, it felt as if I were suffocating, there was something that was pulling me from my restful sleep, from the reverie of blissful serene silence and rejuvination.

It is then that I realize, I needed to wake up, and so I did. My eyes jolted open and I snapped upright, immediately feeling cold air and droplets of sweat around my body. It was still dark in my room, I look at the clock and see the time, 4:33, it was very early, to say the least. The moon shone brilliantly through my window, yet half of the moonlight was tinted blood red.

Alarmed, I jump out of bed. I look down at myself to see that I'm still in my outside clothes, it seemed that in my fatigue I forgot to change my clothes when I went to sleep. No matter, I look away from myself and outside the window, I see the cool night sky, streaked with a beautiful navy blue and splayed with stars, but off in the distance, on Earth, was a giant red bubble.

Now I realized it, the dense choking air that made me feel as if there was no life in it at all, the very same air of raw magical power. The red dome, the blood dome was a construct of magic, powerful and evil magic. The magic was simple...

It was meant to rip out ones soul.

The soul was a complicated thing, and a thing that only one magi, a man that could rightfully be called by the name of "Sorcerer," could begin to understand. Aside from him, there was but one other kind of being that would resort to such a thing.

A servant.

Truly, I was now experiencing the Holy Grail War.

I ran to my dresser and opened a drawer, stuffing a small box into my skirt pocket and putting on six identical golden bracelets, three on each wrist. These bracelets were not for fashion sense, within each bracelet was nearly a mile's worth of magical string, a string that I needed if I was ever to survive as a mage. The string in the bracelets was retractable, which meant I could reuse them.

I couldn't bother with going down the many stairways and hallways of the house; I open the window that I was looking out of earlier and jump out. A rush of wind and adrenaline passed around and through me as I fell, I cast out string from the bracelets and made a web to catch me, and I landed softly on the ground from a jump of two stories.

I look behind me at the rooftop where Assassin is and call out for him, "Assassin! We need to go!"

I would not wait for him, he would catch up to me easily, despite the fact that I was among the top runners in my school, he would be hundreds of times faster.

I contemplated to myself, why was I running so eagerly into battle? It's not like I wanted to fight yet, not before scouting or familiarizing Assassin with the enviroment. Was I trying to be a hero and save a part of the city? Whatever the reason, I was set on going to battle. No matter how good the enemy servant is, Assassin and I would be better.

After all... Firepower wins battles; Speed wins wars.

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[ Keith ]

He stood silently in the shadows looking at Berserker doing his work. He pulled a long whiff from his cigarette and part of the darkness was cast away by a single speck of orange light from the butt end. He didn't let out the smoke all at once though, but trickled it into small wisps through his lips. The scene of blood and dismembered part did not even warrant him to bat an eyelash.

He watched and followed Berserker throughout the night discretely as his Servant fed with the meager mana that these normal mortals have. He threw down the spent cigarette and looked up to the skies. It's not sun up yet, it'll take a couple of hours before that happens. But the skies were already starting to show a change of colour.

"Berserker. It's almost time. Feed quickly. I promise you a more fulfilling meal soon."

Not that Keith knew who's coming. He didn't care. All that he knew was that someone no doubt was on their way here after watching or sensing the mass mana feed spectacle that Berserker eloquently exhibited. He reached into his pocket and took out a metal case. Inside were specially inscribed bullets from the many magic that came out of various magi that he previously.... retired. His farming of these magical stored bullets will finally show fruit. And he will harvest the souls of the magi within this war with them.

He took a handful of bullets and stowed away the rest of the box. He didn't foresee needing more yet. Besides, his normal bullets that was within easy reach could easily be used to store the magic from other magi foolishly trying to cast something.

The screams of pain and horror from tonight's massacre did nothing to disturb Keith. But he did find the sound soothing after hearing it for so long in his lifetime, though not quite to the level of enjoying it. It's like a casual listener listening to a good ABBA song.

A perfect way to start off the morning.

[6:30AM - Leclaire Estates: Dining Hall]

A complete set of bleary eyed twins sat at the breakfast table this morning not quite sure why they were awake. It was the weekend. They looked at each other with mutual malice.

"Sophie, this is YOUR fault."

"What're you talking about? If you didn't follow me to the basement you wouldn't have even got up at all this morning!"

The two were being typically grumpy children with a lack of sleep, glaring at each other from across the table. However, this general unsettlement seemed to be short lived as they both left the table at the same time. Possibly as they had lost the strength of their antagonism.

"I'm going to cook some toast / I'm getting the newspaper"

Being so used to speaking aloud over each other, they took no notice of each other's difference in choice as they both left the table going their separate ways. Sebastian scuffled into the kitchen with his slippers and constructed the standing stool and then grabbed for a loaf of bread in the box on the counter.

"Caster, Rider! Did you guys want something to eat?"

Sophie toddled to the doorway where the morning paper had slipped through the slot of the doorway and began to unfurl on the floor. Picking it up, she took her place on the table, but this time kneeling up on her chair to spread the oversized pages flat. Naturally, she wanted to see the front page. Always had the best sort of messed up stuff. What she didn't expect to find was what she saw this morning. The pictures were enough to carve a frown so deeply on her childish features that it looked as though she could have matured a few years.

"Seb! We've got a problem!"

Her brother rolled his eyes sardonically, "What? Let me guess: Someone else died yesterday? You know, people die everyday, Sophie. There's nothing you can do."

"No, not one. Four hundred and thirty-eight people at four AM this morning."

"Whoa... Are you serious?"

At her brother's lack of urgency, Sophie's temple throbbed as she gained colour in her face, "WOULD I BE JOKING ABOUT THIS, MORON?!"

Perhaps more scared of his sister than what the threat the newspaper held, he did not hesitate to view the paper this time. Sebastian's jaw dropped in shock. The A4 sized photograph was unmistakably the center of Port Mason, decimated and only God knew what else, only that the plaza looked to have been given a new rust red paint job. They knew better than to assume that the makeover had been a cometic revamp done overnight. The image itself was ghastly and overall frightening for the them both, but neither stripped their stare from it.

"This can only mean..."

"...one thing"

"It's Berserker."

Both children's faces steeled with the readiness of battle and slowly dragging their eyes from the newspaper they called for their Servants.

"Here's what I reckon's going on! Berserker went to go kill a lot of people last night. There's no way he would have done that just for fun. After this, all the other Master's are gonna know where he is."

"So you think he did this on purpose?"

Sophie nodded, "I reckon he did. We gotta go!"

As the girl rushed off to get her satchel from the lounge, she later returned and reached out for the door handle prepared to leave.

Her brother pointed at her body accusingly, "You're not seriously leaving in your pajamas, are you?"

She looked down at herself in dread, realising her brother was right, "Aw, CHEESE PUFF! You're right! C'mon, hurry up and get changed, we have to go!"

"But I'm starving..."

His sister, hardly impressed by his groaning, kicked his leg with gusto, toppling him to the ground, "HURRY UP!"

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[ Archer ]

Archer didn't sit nor stand anywhere inside the manor the entire night and kept watch on top of the roof, invisible as to conserve his mana from appearing substantially and ever vigilant. Though he can't detect anything magical well, he has sharp eyes and could zoom into details if he so wished. Archer spent the entire night till the first perceived light on the horizon, though the sky in general was still dark.

He saw the bloody spectacle of that armoured Servant through the cracks of the surrounding buildings. The most perplexing thing about this Servant was that it had no head. It was wielding a sword though, so if he had to guess, it'd be either Saber or Berserker. Yet Archer surmised his deduction into only Berserker judging by how that brute carried itself. He caught Berserker's act through the alley cracks at several instances but most of the action was hidden by the concrete jungle.

He didn't feel like waking up Christina and stop Berserker however. Why would he? There's still a lot of things that he was not sure of and Archer never made a reckless move without prior information. There will be a more opportune time for Archer to engage but this was not it.

He sat on the roof as the first rays of dawn hits the sky and the sight of the paperboy throwing the newspaper in front of Christina's lawn through the gate. Archer made no move to fetch it. His Master was definitely more than capable of doing that on her own.