The dark skies seemed to stretch on forever as Iris stared from her balcony. Over the last few weeks she had spent in Japan, she had grown quite accustomed to the lack of sunlight. If this nation wasn’t such a backwater for magecraft, Iris would expect Dead Apostles to have started flocking here. But even though the skies were dark and barren, the buildings and streets far below were alive with light and activity.

Fuyuki City. Normally Iris would never arrive at a place like this, not without hearing rumors of Mystic Eyes. But this depressing city was apparently the host of a grand ritual, the likes of which Iris had only learned about during her time in the Clocktower.

Iris turned her head back, looking into the penthouse behind her. The room that was once immaculate was now completely wrecked, graffiti sprayed across nearly every inch of the walls and a giant summoning circle dominating the center of the room. It had cost quite a pretty penny to rent such a luxurious room in the Hyatt Hotel - but for a Master like Iris, the expense was well worth it. While not as bustling as it was before the eruption, the hotel still hosted dozens or even hundreds of patrons - scientists who have come to study the eruptions' influences, travelers who wished to see the devastation, and even a few diplomats who have come to discuss foreign aid.

They would serve as excellent shields, barriers to prevent other Masters from reaching Iris and her Servant. The woman turned back to the devastated city, calling out to her Servant as she did so.

“Archer - tonight is the beginning of the war. As a conqueror, how do you suggest we start?”

The servant chuckled at the words of his so-called master. It was a soft but noticeable sound, one that traveled clearly along the midnight breeze. It wasn’t often that he found himself consulted like this. Upon being summoned, he was almost certain he’d be met with a master not to his liking. Needless to say, he was pleasantly surprised by their current arrangement. Archer found his hands reaching up to meet his chin, stroking it in a manner that showed he was deep in thought.

There were multiple things to consider in a situation such as this. He had no doubt that he wasn’t the first to be called into this new era. That thought unnerved him, if only slightly but was what allowed him to respond suitably.

“We already have a nice place set up, a base of operations. My first thought, since that is complete, would be to survey the area and get a feel for just what we’re up against. To beat an enemy, we first have to know them.”

Archer’s brows knitted themselves together, worry was written on his face. His hands seemed to cling onto the railings with even more vigor, all while his head geared itself toward the sky. Now facing the moon, his features were on full display. Sun-kissed skin was illuminated by the faint light of the sun’s other half. With how lively and full of vitality he looked, you could almost say he looked human, but how far from the truth that was. More accurately, he was a conqueror, a beast whose only purpose was to decimate the battlefield. How fitting, he found it that he was again to be used as a tool of war.

“May the games begin.”

He muttered the words under his breath, a small smile snaking its way onto his face. Things would soon get far more interesting than he could even imagine.

He definitely gave off the impression of being a person from a distant time.

Well, that was appropriate for a Heroic Spirit, but even among them, there were many who came from eras that could be better understood by living humans, or who melded better with the modern world when they arrived. In comparison, standing next to this Rider was more like--

--It was like gazing towards a vast sea, blanketed with fog. There was a serenity, but also a weight to his presence. For the magus who had summoned him, it must have seemed impossible to guess what he was thinking.

Was he sad?

The place where they were, as Rider understood it, was a sort of shop for food and drink where a person could sit down and enjoy anything they bought straightaway. There were various unfamiliar drinks and pastries on the menu, all advertised in an unfamiliar script, but thanks to the Grail he knew what it said, and he knew what they were, approximately. This wasn't the sort of place he had expected to be summoned to, and indeed, the nature of the young man who had called him here didn't reflect Rider's own expectation of what a Master would be. As a mage, he had enough power, but his life and the way he presented himself were different. He had not ordered Rider to venture out and destroy an enemy base, nor to sit on his hands and wait for a development. But that suited the hero just as well.

"Battles between Servants are confined to the night," There was a deep strength in Rider's voice, but he sounded too peaceful. Restrained? "But with the state this land is in, that concept loses its meaning. Darkness is nearly everywhere. The limit... Where we can and can't fight begins to break down."

There was no joy in speaking about the way things were in Japan, but it was ever-present. The grace of sunlight was all but absent, and that fact was reflected in the hearts of the people. For Rider, whose memories were filled with vibrant blue skies, open seas, and lush islands, it was heart-wrenching. He didn't speak about the lack of distinguishable day and night as an advantage in war, but only as a sorrowful observation.

"...Come, Master. By now, I'm sure every one of the Servants has been summoned. So, I'm going." The Heroic Spirit stood tall, glancing out at the dismal city through the broad windows of the coffee shop.

In a free-for-all war, there was no advantage to being the first one to enter into combat. Energy would be spent, and his strength would be revealed. Hiding in a secure base and observing the movements of foolish competitors would be the superior strategy in most scenarios. But with a mindset like that, Theseus never would have undertaken any of the deeds that made him a hero in the first place. In his understanding of his Master's motivations, Rider was sure that Shane would have no problem accompanying him. The little bell above the shop's door chimed when Rider pulled it open. He threw a cloak on, took up his staff, and stepped into the volcanic twilight.

“I would not let a man who knew the value of nothing make me doubt the value of myself. I summon the powers of hades, fury of Athena and spirit of Dionysus. Allign the stars to the cost, bring forth the webs of fate weaved in etched gory. Mirror thee the proclamation of the pits.”

The walls glitters with an ethereal glow that lusters over its surface like a cloak of dust and morsels. The dimension or nature surrounding the place itself was otherworldly. Threads that elongated like spider webs enthralls the texture of reality and alters the space to a more fitting court of the Queen of Fairies. The estate itself has a supernatural tinge to its english beauty that surpasses any British gardens. More kin to overcome the very aesthetics of fantasy and dark academia aesthetics.

All of this was done by the work of Caster who simply orchestrated the interior and layers of bounded field by the ancient magics of the gods. However, a very intriguing and annoying presence slapped her out of her headspace. This is just inconvenience. A pleasant one perhaps.

the walls glitters with an ethereal glow that lusters over its surface like a cloak of dust and morsels. The dimension or nature surrounding the lake itself was otherworldly. Threads that elongated like spider webs enthralls the texture of reality and alters the space to a more fitting court of the Queen of Fairies. The estate itself has a supernatural tinge to its Japanese beauty that surpasses any British gardens. More kin to overcome the very aesthetics of fantasy and dark aesthetics.

“H-He told me once that one lifetime of human love was worth the loss. I danced for the end of everything I knew and the beginning of everything I did not. Yet..."

She sees into the orb of her scry. Inching every weave of her magical thread to be tied unto pigeons and ravens, flying across the city.

"It matters not. To remember... to remember... the past. I wish for... for the pain I had to be relieved. Deliver justice. Adorn me, lover of mine. Dionysus I pray to. Scorn my wrath into dark incarnate, burned by the fury I once possessed. Then, master. I know you... will not judge me. W-what I want to say is... thank you for housing me! My prayers and weaving activities are complete, for now. Trust the p-process."

Looking out into the orb, reveals the city's outlines in the most arcane method possible surpassing the use of an ancient spirit board.The war has only begun but, she feels a certain bond edging on her strings. Collecting essence in the air where the birds flew by.

Ariadne.

There was this old tale told among the younger Fraga children, that centuries ago their family had been inflicted one of the worse curses tere can be.

Bad luck

A seemingly innocuous curse but sometimes a little bit of bad luck was all it took to ruin a day, a year or even a life. He was living proof of that, even after all the debacle with his family the world couldn’t let him rest. Oh you are traveling to the USA to escape your family? Whoopsie-daisies your contact mixed your tickets and you ended in japan without knowing the language, Oh you were trying to open a bar? Well too bad you accidentally filled the forms for a café instead, Oh your small business is having a success greater than you anticipated? Here, an unprecedented natural disaster Just. For. You.

And to top it all now he had to deal with a god-forsaken holy grail.

Letting out a sigh he continued to follow Rider, the guy seemed a little crazy seeking to fight an unknown enemy in the middle of the night but perhaps all Heroic Spirits were like that, no that he was really complaining being that Rider appeared to be a High class Servant.

Maybe his luck was finally turning around, and maybe he could even get a quiet night… but he took a step closer to Rider.

Just in case