8am, The Alghul Villa
Aisha's alarm blared from the bedside table.
Grumbling, she reached over and tapped her phone to turn off her alarm, shuffling to the side of her bed. She checked her phone to see what updates there had been since she'd gone to bed at around 4am.
She was trying to call in some help from her organization, some specialists to assist with the unprecedented nature of the war. Naturally, as with any organization- especially one trying to keep a low profile- there were many, many -unnecessary- hiccups and -ridiculous- complications, but these had been dealt with as they came, and this team would be arriving in Athens in the late evening. They had been briefed on only the bare minimum; there was much to discuss when they arrived, and, since she hadn't expected such help to be necessary, there was no place for the team of five in the villa. Instead, they would be set up in a hotel downtown and communication would be handled magically and through email, but this was certainly for the best.
Surely they would be more reliable than Caster. It was nearly impossible for them to be less trustworthy than him.
Sending affirmative messages to her contacts, she stood up and began to stretch as she always did in the morning. Her silk, leopard print pajamas moved with her body as she touched her toes and leaned to both sides. In an hour-and-a-half she would do some proper yoga, but now, it was time for coffee.
Leaving the cozy master bedroom of the mountain villa, she went to the balcony overlooking the central living area. The wide window wall illuminated the space with the warm, crisp light of morning, the light shining off of the marble Acropolis to the point of being blinding. Looking down, she saw the sitting area, the two couches with the 3D model of Athens between them. Caster was there, stooped over the model, examining it closely while stroking his goatee.
"And what are you doing now, Caster?"
She called down with sarcastic disinterest, knowing full well whatever response he gave would be pure bull.
"Well, good morning to you too, Aisha. You are always such a joy in the mornings; you rise like the sun to my night."
He didn't even look at her, seemingly entranced by the model, only waving his hands as he always did to accentuate his sarcasm.
He had been messing with the model for several days, claiming to be using it for battle plans and trying to locate Berserker and his Master. Aisha didn't actually doubt this, this likely wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the whole truth. She knew he was casting magecraft through the model, and likely using it to enhance his clairvoyance, but she wasn't too concerned by this. Though he was doing his best to undermine her and her authority, at the end of the day they were a team, and whatever benefited him should benefit her by extension.
There was another fear too: if she came down too hard on him, he could simply rebel against her, killing her and finding a new Master with a weaker mind. This was a long game, making him think she was putty in his fingers before pulling the rug out from under him when he least expected it. That was part of why she was calling in her team, an extra five allies in her internal power struggle against Caster, an insurance policy. A little bit of leniency, just enough to make him think he was in control, and to let him work his magic- literally and figuratively- for her while she sat back and waited for the Grail to fall into the palm of her hand.
She had to hide her cruel smile as she began to move towards the staircase and down towards the kitchenette where she began to brew a cup of coffee, an expensive Cuban brand with pecan and citrus.
"So, have any more Servants been summoned? It should be about the time that the Grail intervenes to choose its champions... We're still waiting on three aren't we?"
"Ah yes. The last Servant was summoned last night. Unless something goes horribly wrong, all seven champions should be gathered within the city."
Aisha stopped for a moment and thought about what Caster had said, examining it closely in her mind's eye. She slowly turned around from the counter and looked at the man still hanging over the scale model, facing away from her.
She raised her eyebrow, "You're telling me that all three remaining Servants were summoned in a single night?"
"The first three were summoned in a single night; is it really so hard to believe?"
"Don't bullshit me, Caster. I went to bed at four in the morning and you're trying to tell me that three Servants were summoned in the four hours since?"
Caster finally turned to face her, leaning on the model behind him. Aisha actually felt a little anxious that he may end up toppling the map, but, thankfully, that proved not to be an issue.
"Again, I repeat myself: the first three Servants were summoned in a span of four hours, why is it so hard to believe the same could happen again as the Grail chooses the remaining Masters?"
"Then it shouldn't be a problem for you to give me a timeline." Aisha crossed her arms defiantly.
A familiar twisted grin crossed Caster's face, "The final Servant was summoned around 2am; you were fiddling around in your workshop at the time. It was south of here, near the coast, I guess you could call it the slums."
Aisha failed to hide her simmering anger, "And the other two?"
"The first of the two was- hmmm- a week ago now; the top-" he tapped one of the stone pillars on the scale model "-of one of these pillars. It's rather impressive, actually. Its a difficult climb with no roads or anything else. The other was about five or four days ago... a cemetery south of the Acropolis."
"So you-"
"I withheld information, yes." He leaned in as he said this, taunting her.
Her indignation was righteous and immeasurable, "May I ask why?"
"Because I didn't want us to make any moves until after all the Servants were summoned, and because I wanted to see what we're dealing with, what everyone would do as they arrived."
"And was it worth it?"
He shrugged, "We'll see."
She leaned on the counter and rubbed her temple, 'Why is he so difficult? Was it really so hard to give me the bare minimum of information?'
"I told you to keep me updated, Caster." She sneered.
His snarky smile remained as he tilted his head, "I didn't think it was necessary. Besides, it doesn't affect us now does it? Not yet. We can watch from the bleachers while they scramble in the streets below, pulling strings where we may to have the little ones pluck themselves off until only the strong remain." He moved his fingers casually yet deliberately, like a puppeteer, "This strategy, this is my strength as a Caster-class Servant: the longer we wait, the stronger I'll be. I can make the preparations and you can just sit back and relax until we need to get involved."
Aisha stomped towards him and jabbed him in the center of his chest, staring him directly in his sharp, golden eyes. "You will tell me everything that you learn about the goings on of the other Masters and of the war at large, do you understand?"
Anger showed in his arrogant smirk, "Of course, if that's what you want, that's what you'll get."
Realizing the Monkey's Paw inherent in his response, she rushed to contextualize her wish, "I'll ask for reports on a regular basis, when I do, I expect you to tell me everything you know. Otherwise-" She removed her finger and moved back towards the kitchen, "-you may remain quiet unless we are, may be, or wish to be involved. Understand?"
His lips pursed in childish disappointment, "Very well, darling."
"Now, with that settled-" She glared at him to be sure that her point was made, "What do you know of the other new pairs?"
"Hmph. One has taken residence in a hotel downtown. A foreign girl from the east. Her Servant is strange and monstrous, but nonthreatening."
Monstrous but nonthreatening? Aisha noted the oxymoron but said nothing.
"The one that summoned on the mountaintop... I don't know anything about him, honestly. He's doing a ridiculously good job of keeping a low profile; I can't track him. His Servant, on the other hand, could be interesting. From what little I observed of his Spirit Origin, he seems to be some kind of avatar of the sun; an Archer I think."
"That sounds like a problem. If he's an Archer and an solar entity, his clairvoyance is sure to rival your own. You really can't track them?"
He shrugged with defeat, "I can't find him anywhere. I don't know what kind of magecraft he's using, but it's effective. But, as you say, they'll probably find us before long; if we aren't careful, that is."
"Another reason to keep me informed."
"Of course, Master." He still couldn't say 'master' without a sneer in his voice, and it still irritated her.
"What of the final pair?"
"Saber. I don't think there's any need to worry about them."
Aisha couldn't hide her surprise, "Isn't Saber the strongest class?"
He sighed, "No class is inherently stronger than any other, though it is true that the Saber class tends to have more fighters of more renown than the others. However, a tendency is not the same as reality, and, compared to the known servants, he seems to be a bit of a non-entity."
She made a mental note of this Saber. He and the other servant, the 'nonthreatening monster' were paid special attention by Caster, so she would pay extra attention as well. Maybe they could be used in her favor against Caster? Did he feel personally threatened by them?
"And what about the other one, any news on the mystery woman?"
"Afraid not. She seems to pop in and out of existence randomly; impossible to monitor. What's worse is that I'm fairly certain her servant is Assassin." He sighed, "Hopefully she'll get taken out early, and will cease to be our problem."
She grouped the unknown servants into two mental groups.
The first group: Archer and Assassin. These servants could hide from Caster, so an alliance with them would be high-risk-high-reward. In exchange for being able to hold them accountable and tracking their movements, she would have an ally that could work against Caster from the shadows.
The second group: Saber and Lancer. These servants were viewed as non-threats and were apparently easy to track. If they proved useful, they would be the most capable of stabbing Caster in the back when the time came, using his arrogance against him. On the other hand, if they were as useless as Caster presented them as, they were likely good for nothing at all, except maybe a scapegoat or distraction. But, then, assuming he was actually paying them close attention, why would he afford some of his mental effort to track non-entities? It must have something to do with the core purpose of the ritual- maybe they were so weak that they couldn't contribute to the pool? Did he worry that there wouldn't be enough condensed Divinity to achieve true godhood? She wouldn't know until she looked into it herself.
Aisha moved to descend the stairs leading to her workshop, fresh cup of coffee in hand.
"Leaving so soon? I thought we were getting somewhere?" He called after her mockingly.
She stopped at the door and spoke without turning back, "We are."
She moved down the stairs and closed the door behind her. Caster looked on towards the door for several moments, the thoughtful and eerie smile on his face like a creaking door in the dark of night.
....
Aaron was getting dressed, the Temple of Hephaestus made into his temporary living quarters. Maybe it was the fact that his home was, too, an ancient structure of stone, but he felt oddly comfortable in the dry and frankly somewhat stuffy ruin.
Rider manifested behind him, Aaron noticed him by the golden glow which suddenly appeared in the corner of his eye, "Master, the final Servant hath been called, what would thee have us do?"
Aaron chuckled a bit, still unable to truly comprehend the responsibility thrust on his shoulders, "I guess we have some appointments to make, eh Rider?"
....