---

It was snowing outside. Of course it's always snowing outside in Antarctica, but it's not always snowing quite like this. Not this hard. Snow covered the windows completely, not allowing even a hint of outside light inside Chaldea as the snowstorm raged on. Despite the thick walls, the shriek of the howling winds still made its way into the halls, albeit slightly muffled. On top of all this, a certain somebody had decided today was the best day to cut back on heating to save energy, meaning it was almost as cold inside as it was outside. An employee left their water alone for too long and it had frozen on them, forcing them to get a new cup of water. If you wanted to be even somewhat warm you either needed to be bundled up in as many layers as possible, or be blessed enough to know some form of Magecraft to keep yourself warm. All in all, any sane man or woman would say that this is the most miserable day Chaldea has ever seen in all it's years of existence. Yet despite all that. Despite all the miserable conditions, one person was just as hyper and excited as always.



The woman standing before the assorted Masters, well, the best way to describe her would be to compare her to a puppy. She was a small woman, standing at only 152 cm. She didn't have much weight on her, she was a slim type with a few curves, but nothing outstanding. Of course the only reason you could discern her curves at all would be the fact that she was standing before everyone wearing nothing more than a white button up shirt with red tie, an open green coat, knee high black socks paired with loafers, and a blue skirt reaching down to mid thigh. Her glasses were fogging up which forced her to wipe them off with her fingers every few minutes, but aside from this minor detail she looked completely unaffected by the cold. By all rationale, she should be shivering as the chill set into her bones, struggling to keep her glasses on her face as her teeth chattered and she curled up into herself to preserve heat. Yet she was completely fine.

"Director, they've been here for an entire week." Standing directly next to the now identified Director of Chaldea, was a woman who was so bundled up that you could hardly tell she was a she. Multiple layers of coats and sweaters, only her eyes were visible due to the turtlenecks and hoodies she had up, a distinct blue that stared directly at the group despite talking to the Director beside her. She was wearing several pairs of pants as well, the outermost layer being a thick set of cargo pants not unlike the kind one would wear when going snowboarding. To top it all off, she was wearing a large set of boots that would normally be too big for her feet, only able to fit in them somewhat normally thanks to the multiple pairs of socks she was wearing. The only reason she wasn't wearing gloves was so she could operate the tablet she was holding to her chest, something she clearly regretted shown by how her hands trembled and rubbed against one another to try and generate heat.

"Really? Are you sure? I feel like someone would have said something to me if the A team had shown up so early." The Director looked over at her assistant, a look of confusion on her face as she put her hands on her hips.

"You would be correct in that assumption, I would inform you if the A team had arrived ahead of schedule. This however is the B team set to replace the A team should anything go awry. Nonetheless, I still informed you of their arrival a week ago. You then said, and I quote, 'Oh ok, I'll go talk to them later, I gotta finish this book first!'" While her features were not visible, her tone exuded disappointment and exasperation.

"Oh yeah!" The Director giggled as she looked up at the ceiling, a smile on her face once more. "That sure was one hungry caterpillar. Anyways, I'm Yuna Hoshiyumi, the Director of Chaldea! This right here is my assistant Holly Brooks, she helps me out with remembering stuff that I forget to do!" At the mention of her name, Holly lightly tilted her head in acknowledgement of the Masters while Yuna continued on. "So I'm sure you all read the job description, so I can skip over the boring stuff, but just to do a quick recap! You're all Masters, Mages who summon Heroic Spirits to travel back in time and fix time when it gets wonky!" Yuna rocked back and forth on her heels as she explained, looking at the group with excitement and wonder in her gaze as she continued on. "Or you would if time ever got wonky! We haven't actually discovered any major Singularities yet, so we've mostly just been checking out minor Singularities that pop up! They tend to go away on their own, so we don't even have to Rayshift in to check them out! We just look at them from our time!"

Holly took a quick look at the tablet in her arms, letting out a painful moan as she released her arms from her body and relinquished some of her valuable heat to the halls. "While I'm sure the Director has read all your files..." A quick look at the Director would basically confirm she had no idea who any of these people were. "For the sake of appearances, it would be appreciated if you could introduce yourselves. Quickly mind you, we do have a schedule to keep. Even if the Director has postponed this schedule for a week now." She mumbled the last bit as she curled her arms back to her body, desperately trying to retain warmth.

---

---

A week in, and Marietta already knew she absolutely hated this place. So dull, boring, and so...artificial. Ah, she missed her servants, her manor, her greenhouse and art gallery. She supposed it was to be expected, all the way out here in the arctic. Of course there wouldn't be any greenery or other landscapes for her to draw inspiration from. Just the cold, endless see of frigid snow and ice that Chaldea was based on. It could have been tolerable, perhaps, if she was happy with her coworkers and the administration of this place, but she was less than impressed.

Especially with that director.

Marietta listened silently, dressed incredibly lightly in her usual dress consisting of a light sleeveless dress, beret, stockings, and shoes that would look better on a red carpet than in some state of the art facility. A rune which roughly meant 'warmth' inscribed upon her flesh was good enough to stave off most of the cold, though it wasn't perfect. It took a few times to get right due to the cold, but a painter had nothing if not steady hands. She should have been wearing a heavy jacket still.

'Incompetent' was the word that came to her mind...which begged the question, why was she in charge when someone far more competent was likely a better candidate? Something she'd need to look into in her free time, perhaps. At least some of the other masters appeared mildly more competent, aside from that child who really shouldn't be here. Well, not her place to really do anything for now. She was working here, and as such for now, she would do as was required of her.

As the directors introduction was finished, Marietta's neutral expression turned into the faintest of smiles. Introductions hm? Well, the social game was easy enough to play.

"Suppose I'll introduce myself first, then." Marietta raised a hand, getting everyone's attention with a soft, friendly smile and a kind voice. Best to keep things short, friendly, and casual. "Marietta Lalaurie, a pleasure to make all of your acquaintances. I'll spare most of the details since we're short on time, but I am skilled in both modern and some old Runes, though not many, so if you would have need of them, please don't hesitate to ask." Placing a hand over her chest, Mary tilted her head to the side, widening her smile. "I eagerly look forward to working with all of you."

---

Rosalyn found this director... Annoying. To an extent. Really, Yuna seemed too happy-go-lucky to be a director of a foundation like Chaldea. Slowly, she began to feel that her time here was being... Squandered. Truly this girl couldn't be the director? Rosalyn began to wonder if she had failed somewhere to end up in this situation surrounded by people younger than her. One more so than the others though, as Rosalyn began to simultaneously ponder what skills this young girl carried, the decision making of those in charge of Chaldea to allow one so young to be here and her own abilities to be on the same level as her despite the twenty year difference.

That all didn't matter too much at the moment anyhow. Rosalyn was attempting to listen to what could be described as a speech by the director, though the intermittent banter between her and her assistant made Rosalyn a bit more worried. She sat back and crossed her legs as she watched. The freezing temperature didn't really bother her as her clothes might show off. She was still wearing her jeans, midriff showing button-up shirt and a jacket with an unlit cigarette in her mouth for looks alone. Her magecraft was a blessing in this sort of situation since she could mostly keep herself warm. Still, she couldn't help but wonder why the people in charge her would let it get this cold when it could get someone sick. To be fair, Rosalyn would still most likely tell them to toughen up and get over it.

Though, that most goes toward those that would be the same role as her. She didn't feel quite the same for the assistant woman. Perhaps pity was the the feeling, as she would hate having to act the role of assistant to that sort of director from the amount of information she had. So when she asked if they could quickly introduce themselves she was happy enough to oblige, though a certain painter girl beat her to the punch.

Rosalyn was fairly familiar with Marietta by now. A couple of interactions that was more than she had with the other two masters-to-be. She listened to Marietta give a quick explanation of herself and waited for her finish. She scratched at her hed and stood up, removing the cigarette from her mouth as she did. "Suppose I'll go next." Rosalyn mentioned, looking around the room. "Name's Rosalyn Bell. Chain smoker, specialty is Fire Magecraft and some minor healing magecraft. I'm also a trained Masseuse so if anyone gets sore should--" She looked first at Marietta and then Liliana then to the director and her assistant. Maybe the assistant, but probably not the others. Hard to tell with all the clothes on. "Or rather, anything. I can help. For a price." With that, she replaced the unlit cigarette in her mouth, took a slight bow and sat down then looking to the other two who have yet to introduce themselves.

---

The south pole was a desert of ice. Under normal circumstances, he might have been amused by that. Under the current circumstances, he was finding it difficult to be amused by anything. It was a far cry from the warmth of home, or even the warmth of about 13 hours ago. It was cold. Too cold. Someone had clearly shut off the heater, but why? Was this the legendary 'budget cut' his friends in industry often complained about? The maintenance worker he had spoken too earlier today seemed to think so.

Troublesome. But regardless, it appeared to be his turn to make an introduction now.

If there was one word to describe his appearance, it would be "leather". He was wearing not one, not two, not even three, but four different leather dusters today. Had he even packed a winter coat? Not likely. He was little more than a humanoid made of leather dusters, topped off with a hat as matte black as his boots.

He spat into the trash can the object in his mouth: a long, two-leafed twig. Where he acquired a such a thing in the middle of Antarctica was a different question entirely, and one that would go unanswered, much like the question of "why would anyone turn off the heat under any circumstances in goddamned Antarctica?".

"Howdy y'all. The name's William," the cowboy drawled, tipping his gallon hat unironically, "Chill's making it hard to speak, so I'll be fast: I cast bullets."

It was not an incorrect assessment of his abilities, but not complete either. In the first place, a cowboy always keeps an ace up his sleeve, after all.

This time, William didn't do any fancy gun twirling or anything wild like he would have normally. This was half because following the basic rules of gun safety was important when all you had were allies around, and half because layered leather gloves made dexterous actions difficult. Instead he just gestured to his hip, where a pair of revolvers could be seen.

What a weirdo.

"Pleasure to be working with y'all."

Liliana

Her teeth were chattering relentlessly. It was so cold here, in this sttange foreign land of ice. When she had thought of journeying through the world she had imagined clear blue skies. Beautiful streams of water and vast seas of luscious grass.

Speaking truthfully the snow had been amazing at first... She had soon learnt her lesson as she almost blinded herself by staring at it. No one had told her that the sunlight reflected off it like that... Also there seemed to be no end to the snow, it just continued to fall and fall. Well she didn't have much complaints about that aside from it taking away some of the awe it had inspired beforehand. It quickly became an afterthought in Lilianas mind.

Unlike the snow however... Liliana was of the mind that she would never get used to this strange building. Again she had imagined herself visiting simple constructions of wood and perhaps stone but well... Chaldea was very foreign to her to say the least. Even if she was here for years she would still feel like she was a fish out of water.

Liliana had not dressed particularly warmly. She wore the white dress of her ancestors and had wrapped herself in a fur cloak that her mother had fashioned for her. Whenever she got too anxious she would grasp at her cloak tightly and almost sink into it.

I must not be afraid. I must continue on my path. The lines she had repeated to herself since she had deoarted from her forest rung through her mind once more.

Liliana listened intently as the Director made their introduction. It was still weird to be surrounded by people speaking English, however she was much more comfertable with that than speaking it herself. She nodded along quietly with a polite smile on her lips as the director and their assistant spoke.

Introductions... Ah... Well. Lilianas cheeks were a little flushed thinking about it. She tried her best to restrain herself after realising she had gulped rather nervously.

She listened to the 3 other master patiently, she was still dreading her turn to come however her nerves had been quelled a bit after hearing her new team members introduce themselves.

When it was her turn she tried her best to give the other masters a warm smile as she got up and delivered a practised curtsy.

"Ahh h-hello. My name is... Uh you can call me Liliana!" She spoke rather hastily. Liliana was the name her mother had told her to use. Something about theur tongue not being suitable for others and her true name being rather difficult due to that.

"I am what you would call a druid! I am quite good at herbalism but also witchcraft. I promise i am not a woods witch haha." She let out a kind laugh as she tried out the jest she had been working on since her arrival.

"I-I hope I can be of use to everyone! I am grateful to be here!"

Liliana clasped her hands and bowed before returning to her seat again.

I have made a fool of myself haven't I... Her thoughts were pretty much the same after every social interaction.

---

Yuna nodded with a smile, looking over the assorted Masters in a new light. "Mari, Rosa, Will, and Lili! i'll make sure to remember those names! Those are the names of the people who will save the world! Oh, but no smoking inside! It makes the place smell bad, you have to take it outside if you wanna smoke!" The wind seemingly howled even louder in response to the Director's declaration. Holly shook her head in an exasperated manner, putting her hand on the Director's shoulder to try and ground her.

"Director, you never introduced yourself." The smile quickly faded from her face as she blinked owlishly. Then she rubbed the back of her head as she giggled with a sheepish grin and closed eyes.

"Oh yeah, I guess so huh." She shook her head and put her hands on her hips, legs spread in some sort of superhero pose as she pointed at the Masters with a resolute stare. "I am the Director of Chaldea, The Starchild, The Super Awesome Best Magus Ever! But you may call me..." A dramatic pose as she did a twirl, then another in the opposite direction as she did a little hop. She landed and pointed at the stars, staring straight at the ceiling as if it were the sky itself. "Yuna Hoshiyumi! But my friends just call me Yuna, so you can call me that too."

"We have a schedule to keep Director, important people to introduce..." Holly tapped the tablet impatiently, shivering once more. "When I get my hands on him, I'm going wring his neck for moving the furnace again..." She muttered as she began to walk away.

"Ok ok, fine! Now then friends, let me guide you to the most important room in Chaldea! The Summoning Center!" Yuna looked at a spot on the wall and waved at seemingly nothing, before calling out to seemingly nobody. "Hey Raph! We're heading to the Summoning Center, do the thing!"

They quickly moved towards a door, towards the kitchen actually if their week in Chaldea had taught them anything, but as they stepped through the door

---

The brick wall behind her was cold, as she opened her eyes it would strike her that her cigarette was lit and in her mouth already despite having just stepped through the door leading to the cafeteria. It was also readily apparent that this was not the cafeteria or even Chaldea in general for that matter. Her head was also beating like a drum, a dull pain pounding right behind her eyes as her eyes adjusted to the darkness around her.

Another thing that was unusual was the three strangers around her all dressed in strange robes and garments from far off lands, along with the feeling of something itching on her left hand... "Rosa! What's the sitrep, you all Rayshifted in and then the sensors went mad as you got scattered all over the city!" Yuna was correct, Rosa and the three Servants were in fact in a city. Now that time had passed, she could maybe even realize that one of the strangers surrounding her was in fact her own Servant judging by the connection she was getting from her Command Seals. And would you look at that, she has Command Seals on her left hand. Hopefully she read the dossier talking about all this stuff, or she would be much more confused then she already is.

---

William would find himself in similar circumstances in another part of the city, however he had no familiar voice to offer even a sense of comfort as he looked at the strangers surrounding him. Only flashes of memories, a blinding light as Heroes of old appeared, the Director explaining how the Coffins work, the grin of a child as she pushed the button-

Pain lanced through his head. It would appear as if the first Rayshift had not gone according to plan at all.

A shadow flashed over the Servants and Master, paper raining from the sky as someone leapt across the rooftops. Accompanying the shadow was a laugh, filled with joy and arrogance as it's owner absconded into the night. Upon closer inspection, the papers were revealed to be flyers, each one decorated with a picture of a masked figure and an accompanying message.

---

Lilliana and her group would find themselves standing amongst the ruins of a long destroyed building, the Caster of the group immediately able to sense the presence of a Leyline beneath them. More importantly, was the man staring at them with a wide eyed expression, a very handsome man if Lilliana had anything to say about it...

There was no warning, no explanation, one second he was staring at them with a panicked expression, the next he was full on running away from them like his life depended on it. A decision would have to be made quickly, would they choose to pursue the man in hopes of explaining just where they were, or would they take the opportunity to claim the Leyline beneath them and let him get away?

---

The painter had quite the sight to behold before her. Broken buildings all around, bodies strewn about the battlefield. Yet each one of these bodies were all unique in how none of them were. Each one lacked a face, each one dressed in the same military uniform reminiscent of an ancient centurion, each one with similar slash wounds, yet no blood on them whatsoever. No, instead of plasma and iron, the building blocks of life, they bled something far more sinister. Something that was anathema to life itself. None of them would know just what this was, but they would all know that touching even a drop of it would result in something horrible happening. That thick sludge, that slurry of death and curses. All the worlds evil compiled into something physical, the black mud of Angra Mainyu.

Perhaps it would be best to get away from here and put their heads together to figure out what was going on. Would also be a good time for introductions.

@Pyromania99@Breo@ManyThings@Parallel Hearts

"There's no need to worry, Director, her vital and mental readings are stable. In fact, even though we have lost communication with the others, the medical staff can confirm that their vitals are stable as well. None of the Masters should be at danger right now," none other than Chaldea's Chief Medical Officer said, her calm and soothing voice juxtaposing itself to the Director's frantic tone.

"Rosa, right?" the woman asked in a calming voice. "Could you—or any of the Servants there—please, take a moment to describe your location and condition to us?" she added as the staff desperately tried to figure out what was the Masters' precise location but so far could only take a general guess about Rosa's as well as the Archer, Lancer, and Caster that were beside her.

Based on their general observation, the group current was in an open area very close to a large body of water—perhaps a riverside park?— but the observation team couldn't make it up for sure thanks to a heavy interference.

There was something else they could see in their monitors...

"We detected movement near the Master's location, Director! However, there's no other life signs in the scan's area. Maybe this is just another malfunction, but—" one of the technicians' voices came over the transmission. However, before he could finish his sentence, Rosa's group would be able to listen to the sound of something—or some things—shuffling about in the bushes near their position.

Whatever the source of the readings were, it certainly wasn't a system malfunction.

"Your ritual—if you can even call it that—sent us to a park, near a large, red iron bridge. There's a red glow lining up the horizon and the smell of smoke and charred flesh coming from the city at the other side of the river," Kriemhild answered the questions from Chaldea's staff in a matter of fact tone. Perhaps a delivery that was a by too dry and nonchalant considering that what she described was basically a city turned into Hell on Earth, but nothing that was unexpected given her experience with this type of scenarios.

She was sitting at a nearby bench, facing the river, with her staff resting on her shoulder as she waited for the Master that came with them to wake up. When the transmission came she didn't bother facing the faulty holographic projection as she continued, "You don't need to worry about the girl's health. Once we came here I healed any wounds she might have suffered."

"I was wondering how long it would take for you to find that out. These creatures are everywhere. It's very likely that there's no living person left in this city if this is the state it's right now," Kriemhild said before producing a handful of dragon teeth and tossing them at the ground. From there emerged a small band of Dragon Tooth Warriors, who proceeded to fend off their skeletal brethren in a grim, mechanical-looking battle between mindless constructs.

"I suppose that we should begin our search sooner rather than later. Destroying these creatures won't do us any good. May I ask if the two of you have any means for that, Archer and Lancer? Otherwise, I can do it, but it'll take a long while before I can search the whole city using runes," she said to the other two Servants.

Archer rose to his full height, imposing frame enough to cast shadows over others as he surveyed the area, straightening his clothes and running a hand through blond hair to keep the odd lock out of his face. He heaved a sigh.

Already separated, already having to work it seemed. He spared a glance at those he had landed with, concluding that the first order of business should be to find the other groups, but that much was obvious.

The separation itself was inconvenient, but not much more. Given his legend and his preference for going on ahead and working on his own, the only real issue was that he didn’t know whether his Master was alright or not. Otherwise, it would have suited him just fine.

Hm, hold that thought—

His head shifted, brow rising at the summoned help. At the very least they would take care of small fry and leave them open to pursue more important goals, but the form of summoning was still quite odd.

His gaze turned toward Caster fully this time.

“. . .Afraid not,” He spoke simply with a shrug. “Best I can do is cover ground normally and hope for the best while at it. I suppose in this situation the best we can do is stick as a group in case a fight breaks out and perhaps head for the leylines in the area to smooth things over.”

His gaze turned toward the skeletal warriors coming out from the bushes.

“If your summoned help can deal with those, it should be fine,” He concluded. “And if we run into a more troubling enemy, Lancer can take point, I harass and you can support, Caster?”

If nothing else, the formation should, by its very nature, remain strong. With two Knight-Class defenders and Caster backing them, they should be able to deal with their predicament and defend the Master relatively easily.

---

How did they end up here? Obviously things had gone wrong somewhere. A few scenarios came to mind. Either way, She was standing in the middle of what could only be described as a battlefield. Dead, faceless bodies strewn about everywhere, bleeding a thick black sludge. Honestly? It was difficult to hide her interest. This was exactly the sort of scenes she came here to paint. She'd etch it into her memory. She'd paint quite the macabre masterpiece later.

"Well this is quite the predicament." She voiced calmly, mostly unperturbed by this sudden change of events. She quickly too a mental check of the servants with her. Only one of them was hers, but the others should listen just fine for now until she could find her other servants. They were far, but definitely in the city. Priority number one was finding them and the other masters. "We can save the in depth introductions for later. For now we need to focus on getting our bearings so your classes will suffice for now." Turning to the other dead bodies, Marietta held a hand over her mouth. Ugh, whatever it was it was not something any of them should mess with, even if she was curious about it. Thankfully, one servant of hers was still with her. The one that she was extremely grateful for. Assassin Diomedes. "We should move away from here and find a more easily defensible position...this whatever it is, we should avoid it. Assassin, I need you to scout the area. See if you can find any place that would serve as a temporary base while we figure all this out." The painter turned to the other two servants, bowing her head lightly. "I will be relying on you two for protection while we search."

The city was broken. The corpses that littered the streets spewed forth horrifying sludge from faceless bodies. The buildings themselves were collapsing, too. That destruction was reminiscent, in a way, of another collapse, one that Troilus had never witnessed, but was present somewhere, deep in his mind.

It was scary. But being a hero meant moving forward, no matter how scary things got.

He looked towards his companions. There was a strange familiarity to the other Servants, though he didn’t recognise either immediately.

There was something comforting about the woman that Troilus took a moment to realise. Yes, he recognised that armour, though it looked a little different on a different person. He had polished it at various points, after all. His big brother had been a great hero, so naturally his armour, his sword and spear had been passed down onto various other heroes. That much he knew, at least. But he didn't recognise her. Perhaps she was one of the paladins of France.

The other Servant gave the opposite impression. There was a vague hint of recollection in Troilus’ mind, but he couldn’t put a name to the man. Despite the man’s calm appearance, he gave Troilus an ominous feeling. As if he was taking something away from Troilus just by existing, something important - but something that he couldn’t remember.

Then, the Master spoke. He liked her plan; he certainly wouldn’t mind some distance from that ominous Assassin, even if he was an ally. He looked towards her, smiling sweetly, with a hand held out, not as a greeting, but ready to draw her to him in a protective grasp. “I’m Saber, friend. Don’t worry, I’m here to protect you. No matter what.”

That was the sort of thing a hero should say, right?

@Rune_Alchemist @Red Alice @Rondo of Blood

---

"Chancellor, why aren't the people bowing before me? Their ruler has returned, sent here to save them from this destruction, yet they hide from my grace?"

Caster had already known the answer. They were dead. Their city fell to some disaster and they were the ultimate victims. The girl needed no corpse to be sure about that, as the hell of this city was more than enough to show for it. Even if there were a few who did survive, they would have to be in the minority. She had only bothered to ask her new Master, err, Chancellor(?) about the matter to keep some semblance of hope alive. There is no reason to be happy when those around you have perished. Defeating your enemies in battle was one thing, but a mass killing of an entire city was beyond her. While people may do, life as a collective if special. To extinguish that...

The Pharaoh couldn't bother to think about the rationale behind the people who would do this. It may be the past, a different reality from the one her Chancellor was already from, but the lives lost here were real. And for that, the person behind all of this could never be forgiven.

After all, what Pharaoh lets her people die without fighting to avenge them?

Caster noticed the man staring at them, but she paid him little mind. Her attention was more centered around the leyline beneath her. Whether it was natural Caster instinct or something else, all of her effort was going to be towards securing this leyline. She would have all the time in the world to deal with him, but this was something she had to secure as soon as possible.

Her gaze shifted between the two other Servants she was summoned with. Both seemed like warriors, which was more than enough for her to work with.

"One of you can chase after that man, if you so desire. The other is to stay here with me and my Chancellor. If neither of you want to chase after him, that is also fine. It is risky sending one person off alone. I'm going to secure the leyline under us. If any of you have objections to this plan...

Don't.

Alright! Let us begin!"

With an enthusiastic cheer, Caster began to take control over the leyline.

Fire and smoke trickled into his form, making him whole, making him bound. That was what Gawain sensed, a fleeting flavor that dissolved soon after, leaving nothing but an uncommong certainty. Though the woman before him was certainly a Master, she wasn't his Master. And this world too was no proper battlefield, all narrow fields and impractically tall towers. Destruction abound, yet not a single person in sight.

Except for the wavy-haired man with piercing eyes.

In one moment, Gawain met his gaze. In another, the man bolted, shooting through the empty streets, his cobalt cape trailing behind him. Oho? The petite pharaoh behind him spoke of her own plan, something about securing the Leyline, but ultimately, the young knight wasn't even certain what he was here for. No Holy War roared within his mind, instructing him to the slaughter of his own kind, and only vestigal memories clung to him, speaking of a freezing cold room divorced from the temperate climate before him. But there was someone to race, and that challenge alone was enough to stoke Gawain's competitive spirit. "Fret not, Queen of Sands," Gawain turned, his youthful countenace sparkling despite the dreary circumstances, "This pursuit will not be long at all, and I shall most certainly return with the runaway in tow."

A flick of his own cape (also a rich cobalt blue) and the young knight was off. He dashed up onto a car, leapt up into the air, and by the time he landed, his steadfast charger landed with him. Thundering hooves pursued their quarry, but Gawain drew no weapon yet. This was merely a race, after all, and there wasn't any glory in running through someone in the process of retreating.

Then again, could it really be considered chivalrous to chase after someone who clearly just wants to escape?

Hm...

Ah, blast it, who cares?

"Hey, you!" Gawain called out, waving one hand in the air. "Why you running? What even happened here?"

John Dee came to. He adjusted one of his gloves and pushed his glasses up his nose. The paper falling fown from the rooftops were reflected in his lenses. He quickly snatched one from the air and read it over.

"Hmmph, fancies himself a Master Thief, eh? So bold to reveal his identity so liberally."

He crumpled the paper up and threw it behind his shoulder.

"We can assume Lupin is of the Assassin class. By the glory of God, his protection should be our priority. Even if this Assassin wasn't an Assassin in the traditional sense, presence concealment can be a headache."

He mimed the motion of pulling a book from a shelf. A tome appeared in his hand. He flipped through it and started casting. The grimoire he pulled was The Book of Ambramelin. The book itself was a Kabbalist tome passed from an Egyptain mystic named Abramelin, to Abraham of Worms, to Abraham's son. The story of the tome was that it was a pair of books given to Abraham by Abramelin in exchange for a promise that he would renounce his faith in favour of the Christian God and some gold to distribute to the poor. After having given away his gold, Abramelin parted onto Abraham the true knowledge of the tomes to him. Many copies of the book existed and even distributed but were incomplete due to Abraham's son failing to pass on the knowledge of the sacred science. Except for this particular copy. This was the original, crystalized from Abramelin's own knoweledge. The 'popular' version claimed to be able to gain knowledge and summon the mage's 'guardian angel' and use it to enslave various demonic species. In truth those were translation errors made by Abraham of Worms.

This one contracted demons straight up and contained instructions on constructing 'divine golems'. Of course, Dee himself in the current moment thought he was summoning angels to his aid.

Whatever the truth behind the tome may be, a trio of 'angel-like' guardian familiars are now slowly orbiting around the group, flaming swords brandished, ready to defend their charges.

---

@floodtalon @Grey

---

Lancer had conjured his spear upon arrival, and faced towards the approaching undead with a demonic half-grin. Tragically, they had proven to be non-threats, easily suppressed by Caster's own minions. Boneless Man dematerialized as Mori muttered, "Freakin' wimps. I don't even gotta go down there for crap like that."

That being the case, it was time to focus on the big picture.

"Yeah, I can take a look around real quick. Don't know about nunna that runic crap, but ain't no way these bone losers are catchin' up ta me if I take a jog around their stupid town."

Idly, he tore a bit of stone out of the ground and lobbed it at a skeleton engaged with a warrior, chuckling quietly as he beaned the thing in the head and likely destroyed it. His gaze then shifted to the living human among them, from whom he sensed the tug of a contract. "Yo, this Caster chick and the big guy sound like a real coupla' brainiacs, but you're my boss. Lemme know what plan you're thinkin' of for the fight- or I can just grab ya and we can fuck wayyy off. Definitely an option."

Knowledge of the modern day flowed through Mori's head, and he picked out his favourite bits. The city was obviously fucked to damn shit, but he wondered if there was still some gum or Cheetos around somewhere.

---

At first, I died.

And then I arrived.

Aude's eyes are met with fire and ash, the ruins of a concrete building fell around her and her comrades. Her eyes scanned the area, turning to a little egyptian girl who has been dressed awfully boldly (@Love Detective) and a young knight who looked as if he were a knight she would recognize under her banner or perhaps another Paladin's banner? (@ERode) But no. She didn't remember anyone like that.

The Summoning System tends to change the appearance of a Hero drastically for a Grail War but her purpose for summoning wasn't for that. It was something else entirely.

Hatshepsut, the egyptian loli decides to secure the Leyline with her skill as a Caster and the young knight pursued the rather handsome man that struck her heart.

How odd. She had only eyes for Roland and yet a total stranger- a panicked intruder made her feel all gushy inside for a moment's notice. A skill perhaps? A Noble Phantasm? An inherent trait? One can tell.

"Well you could use the protection, your Highness." Aude smiles at the little caster loli with a determined expression as one of the Holy Swords of Charlemagne's Noble Phantasm appeared in her hand as a vibrant royal blue, the mana converging around it in the shape of a sword. "Wherever this place is, none can get past me. The Paladin of the Olive Branch."

@Stormborn

---

If William had to describe it, he would say it was like waking up downing several bottles of straight tequila, chased with everclear. Hell, he was even on the ground when he finally came to. Had it been just another wild night for this lonesome cowboy, or maybe something more sinister?

"Y'all reckon the moral of this story is don't drink and Rayshift?" he asked, "I sure do hope it is."

Considering the weak flashes of memory and the splitting pain, this being the natural consequence of a welcome party for Heroic Spirits gone horribly awry was by far the ideal option. Every other option was troubling for a lot of different reasons.

William rubbed his temples. Singularities were supposed to be weird, but not this weird. Still, it seemed as if his immediate surroundings were fine. The surrounding architecture was modern, if a bit outdated. Some of it was still under construction. More importantly, the signs were in Japanese, and the newspaper stands indicated it was 1995.

...Fuyuki City, huh?

Now that he had a place and a time, the big question was about the other Masters and Servants. Hell, it didn't seem like he had his complete set right now either, if the connection was anything to go by. That meant the Rayshift had done a little Servant shuffle on them.

Well, that was fine. It's always good to make new friends.

"Oh woah, what's this?" William snatched one of the paper slips slowly fluttering down from the rooftops. He gave it a quick read over before bringing his free hand to his chin in a very iconic thinking position.

"Say... Ain't this callin' card kinda like an autograph though?" He pointed at the very bottom. "Even got his name on it and everything."

He crumpled it up and tossed it into a nearby trash bin. "Oh well."

"Hmmph, fancies himself a Master Thief, eh? So bold to reveal his identity so liberally."

"Heck, I can respect it," William said as he started shedding his extra layers due to the sudden change in climate, "Man's got a logo and a title. That kinda dedication to the aesthetic is highly appreciable, if I do say so myself."

He looked to the two other Servants: a tall, heavily armored man and a shorter, blue haired individual with a very obvious gender. "I'm William. Nice to meet'cha both. Sorry I gotta cut this short, but if either one of y'all are Rider or Assassin, it'd be mighty fine if you had a quick looksie around the area."

"Also," he held up the extra leather dusters in his arms, "I was gonna save these for my own Servants, but if y'all want a leather duster feel free."

He cast an awkward look at Fierabras from beneath his hat. "Uh. Sorry, might be a little snug for you, big guy."

Bellorophon

---

"Heh~ so they're some sort of thief huh?"

Bellorophon plucked a piece of paper out of the air, before throwing it away with a small laugh. A thief, and a grand phantom at the same time. Grandiose, and full of confidence in their declaration. Certainly not traits Bellorophon despised in certain measure.

"I'm William. Nice to meet'cha both. Sorry I gotta cut this short, but if either one of y'all are Rider or Assassin, it'd be mighty fine if you had a quick looksie around the area."

"Hi! I'll scale up that building there and see whats around us then!" They did not even stop to consider what William actually said, and simply burst upwards, the pipelines beneath them bursting open, shooting up water after Bellorophon as they scaled a building quickly, first jumping on the walls, then using the large glob of water to take them to the top. Without a word, a bow materialized in their hands as they looked around the area. But without a psychic link to that Master....

Hello? Master? Can you hear me?

First Bellorophon tried to contact Rosa through their link, even as their eyes scanned the area visible.

@Grey @ItMeGritty @King Cosmos

"I agree with your suggestion," Caster said after Archer made his suggestion known.

"In that case I'll—" before she could finish saying anything else, Lancer said something that made her sigh inwardly.

"I wouldn't refer to the Runes with such crass language if I were you. Lord Wotan is known to take offense at lesser insults, speaking ill of his most treasured possession is a certain way to get yourself smitten," she warned Lancer as she got back to her feet and tapped her staff on the ground, summoning a dark horse wearing an aggressive-looking, equally dark armor.

"Nevertheless, while your Master deals with the Chaldean staff, I shall begin the search. I suppose that we can walk while we talk, right?" Kriemhild said as she drew two runes in the air.

Ansuz, and Berkano, the runes of Odin and Birch, the first of which is an amplifier to the effect of the other runes, channelling the wisdom of Lord Wotan to assist the caster and the second, the rune of search spreading its branches like the pioneer birch.

Her objective was naturally to find any of the Chaldean Masters.

“Ha, I can appreciate such boldness; one with the fortitude to become a Heroic Spirit must have such confidence in themselves.” Holding one of the thief’s papers in his oversized hand Fierabras read the announcement with some interest. His Master was missing, and she wasn’t anywhere close by as far as he could tell, the Servants by his side weren’t the ones he was supposed to be partnered with and he was somehow lacking the memories of why they were here or even where ‘here’ was; nonetheless the giant didn’t seem overly concerned with the present situation.

“It is easy to steal something when no one knows you are coming, to openly announce your plan like this is to invite resistance and opposition; to make his deed all the greater if he succeeds.” Letting the paper fall from his grip to flutter down to the ground with the rest, the Saracen took on a thoughtful expression; he turned to look at the sky above them. “Still, stealing an entire city? He sounds like a conqueror more than a thief. Arsene Lupin; an interesting man, but I doubt he’s the reason why we are here.”

The Singularities; that was something the Saber-class Servant still remembered. Something had gone wrong, had it not? Something that threatened the future of humanity itself?

The Master that was not his own, William, offered them all coats to shield against the weather while the Caster pulled out a book and began summoning familiars of some kind. Fierabras waved the offer away, not that he would have been able to fit his large frame into the duster had he wanted to. “I appreciate the offer, but I am fine. I am Fierabras, a Saber-class Servant; I’m afraid I don’t make much of a scout, but should we run into an enemy you can rely on my sword to protect you.”

@Grey@GreenGoat@ItMeGritty