Sitting cross legged atop a bed, sat a curious looking Rider, idly scratching his beard as he slightly frowned while looking at a floating red dragon plushie.
"What an interesting familiar, where did you acquire such a fierce companion?" He idly probed with a slight smile on his face.
The cute plushie merely continued flapping its wings at the question. "... You'd have to ask my Mother, as she bought me so many that I was forced to start turning them into disposable types of familiars to clear up my room," came a somewhat distorted yet dry voice of Alistair from the dragon.
The grin on Rider's face bloomed, and he couldn't help but smack his leg with a hand, while laughing uproariously. "A fine mother you possess, boy! I can tell she cares for you a lot!"
Waver, who stood a few feet to the side of the bed, glanced at his Servant with mild resignation. "Rider…" he said tiredly.
The familiar gave a slightly fond sigh. "Quite, but I have some important news regarding the war, which I am in the process of informing all the rest of the Masters and Servants still participating in the war," Alistair said in a mildly serious tone.
His words made Rider raise a brow, before he frowned and simultaneously crossed his arms. "Oh? It must be important if you are informing the rest of the Masters," he said while slightly nodding.
"More like extremely important," Alistair remarked seriously. "Caster is in possession of the Lesser Grail."
Rider's second brow shot up his face to reach his first one, before his face turned into a serious frown. "Shouldn't the Grail only be capable of manifesting in the end stage of the war?" Rider questioned sharply.
Waver stood somewhat dazed at the information Alistair had just dumped on him, before scrambling over to Rider's side. "Never mind that! How did she get the cup?!" He asked frantically.
And for once, Rider did not flick his forehead.
A long winded sigh came from Alistair, before he continued. "Irisviel, the silver haired woman who posed as Saber's Master, was apparently the Einzbern's vessel for the Lesser Grail," he explained calmly. "Caster recognised this, as she spotted Lancer's soul entering Irisviel's body when he died, and after surviving what should have been a killing blow, Caster kidnapped her."
Rider's frown deepened at the news, while Waver's eyes widened in surprise and a hint of understanding. "When and where did this battle take place?" Rider asked sternly, causing Waver to nod his head in agreement with the question.
There was a slight pause, with the sound of mumbling coming from the other end of the 'call', before Alistair spoke up. "The battle took place at Ryuudou temple, and Irisviel was kidnapped a little under an hour ago," he explained in a tired tone.
Tapping a finger on his thigh, Rider turned to look at Waver. "Boy, we will head for this temple immediately once Saber's descendant is finished with his report," he demanded, causing Waver to frown.
"Shouldn't we start by searching for Caster instead?" He asked, sounding genuinely confused.
Rider merely glanced at Waver as he slowly shook his head. "For all we know, he could be feeding us false information, as his contract never specified that he couldn't lie," he explained calmly, before turning to look at the flying dragon plushie. "Or am I wrong?"
"A healthy dose of skepticism is a good thing, and no, you are not wrong." Alistair replied in a smooth and confident tone. "But, I'd like to think that my words are trustworthy, and I am more than willing to answer a few more questions to satiate your skepticism."
Rider crossed his arms, while giving the plushie a sceptical look. "Then what can you tell me of the battle at Ryuudou temple?"
There was a slight grunt of annoyance from Alistair's end, but he did give an answer. "I was not there for most of the battle, as I was tasked with killing Lancer, so I only witnessed the aftermath."
Waver blinked in surprise, before suddenly rapidly paling. "Y-you killed Lancer?! Impossible! No human is cap—" Waver's rant was ended swiftly by a finger flick by his Servant, who was looking at the plushie with a far greater interest.
"Saber's descendant, while my Master put it rather crudely, I somewhat agree with his words, such a feat is unprecedented, and I find it hard to believe," he said sternly, as if wishing to convey that he was not one to be lied to.
The sigh Alistair gave in response just came across as tired. "Ugh, believe what you wish, but I had landed a crippling blow on Lancer earlier today, while he was trying to protect his Master. So in our rematch, he was fighting me with one less eye and a gaping hole in his stomach," he explained calmly.
That somewhat mollified Rider, as while it was still ridiculous, Alistair had shown himself capable of fending off Caster's attacks when they first met. So while it was still a bit of a reach for him to believe that he killed Lancer single handedly, he could not refute the possibility of him possessing something similar to a Noble Phantasm, as his family was old and powerful enough to possess one.
Humming to himself, Rider cupped his chin, before slightly nodding his head.
"I see…" he muttered, before focusing back on the plushie. "Well then, do you have any leads on where Caster might have gone?"
The sound of fingers tapping a table could be heard through the plushie. "I am unsure, however, I recommend checking areas with connections to the Leylines, as I suspect Caster might try to 'charge' the Grail with the mana to 'win' the Grail War under everyone's nose," he said seriously.
There was a beat of silence after Alistair's words.
Caster had gone from annoying pest at the beginning of the war, to someone who should only be approached with great caution after stealing all those Command Seals, however now she had turned into the undisputed target for all the Servants due to her little stunt.
Caster needed to be taken out immediately, as she was the greatest danger to the war, while simultaneously the keeper of the grand prize.
Time was now of the essence, meaning that Rider and Waver needed to first check out if Alistair's words held weight by visiting Ryuudou temple, and then assessing if they believed in his words.
Though Rider was inclined to believe him, as if he was lying, another Master Servant pair would go after him, so it was too risky.
"Very well, we thank you for the information, boy," Rider emphasized his appreciation with a thumbs up, and ear to ear smile.
The familiar bobbed up and down, as if nodding as well. "Good, then I shall take my leave, do make sure you keep the kid out of danger. It won't do for someone so young to die at his age."
Waver's brow twitched at the comment, and almost glared at the plushie. "Hey! I-I'm 19! I'm not a kid!"
The stuffed animal slowly rotated in the air, turning to look at Waver. "Are you sure? You look like a fourteen year old," Alistair stated with mild suspicion.
Rider turned to look at his own Master thanks to Alistair's words, and he too gained a mildly suspicious look. "Lying to be conscripted at a younger age was frowned upon in my army," he stated somewhat neutrally.
Waver only balled his fists, before petulantly stomping his foot on the floor. "I'm 19, damn it! I'm just a late bloomer! I still have time to grow!"
The dry look he got from Rider was telling.
"Keep smoking that copium, kid. Maybe it will turn true some day…" Alistair chimed in a dry tone, earning an amused look from Rider.
"Copium?" He asked with interest. The plushie turned to look back at Rider. "Merely a saying, like ligma," he explained dismissively.
Rider let out a small hum, before nodding vigorously. "Very well, I bid you farewell, and I hope to see you on the battlefield, young Alistair!"
Alistair gave a disappointed sigh, as if he was disappointed with Rider's reply, only for the plushie to combust in mid air, almost instantly turning to ash.
Rider's eyes followed the remnants of the fluffy dragon, as the ash fell and formed a neat pile on the floor.
"It would seem our friend has a flair for the dramatics," he idly commented, before pushing himself up from his seated position on the bed.
"We have to move, boy, our base of operations has been compromised by a third party, and I'd be a fool to think that he was the only one who knew our base of operations," Rider explained, while walking over to the gaming console, and picking it and a few games up.
Waver looked thunderstruck at Rider's words, before slamming his hands on his forehead. "Damn it!" He exclaimed, before taking in a shaky breath.
Removing his hands from his face, he turned to look at Rider, who was holding a TV, console, a few games and a box of pizza. "Rider, do you have any idea of where we can move to?"
Waver's Servant gave him a wide smile at the question. "I believe Ryuudou Temple just recently experienced a vacancy," he replied in a sly tone.
~~Fate/False Order~~
Morgan idly tugged at her measuring tape, as a floating notepad scribbled down my measurements.
"Any color or design choices you'd prefer?" She asked, as she moved the tape further down my arm.
Shrugging, I glanced at her with mild amusement. "As long as it does not scream, 'Morgan Made This', then I am fine. Though it would be nice if it looked good," I suggested, earning an amused huff from Morgan.
As she removed the measuring tape from my arm, Morgan conjured a pamphlet and threw it into the air, where it stilled and hovered in front of me.
The image was a rudimentary blueprint of the Arthur Prototype armor, with a mix of Goddess Rhongominiad's own armor, as it had her helmet and lion like mane.
"Ok, I won't even give you shit for plagiarism, as this is awesome," I said with a lot of appreciation lacing my voice.
Morgan gave a hum of approval as she moved past me, snatching the blueprint out from the air as she did.
Noticing her good mood, I thought it best to ask for something I had been considering for a while.
"Would it be possible to get a set for my mother? As I'd feel a lot more safe if she wore something you made," I asked in a somewhat sheepish tone.
Morgan slightly turned to look at me at my request. "What makes you think that I hadn't thought up something?"
Her question made it clear that she had already thought up something for her, which instantly put me at ease.
"Though, unfortunately, hers won't be as good as yours, as the material that I have left in 'Avalon' with the Greater Grail is rather limited. So hers will be overall weaker in strength and mysteries, though it will still be a first rate mystic code, so you shouldn't need to worry."
Her answer made me give a slight shrug. While not completely ideal, at least she was trying to keep my mother safe.
"You could use more of my blood, you know?" I proposed, earning a snort from Morgan. "Please, you need to be in tip top shape for the next two days, so you can't lose any more," she explained in a chiding tone.
I gave a slight grunt at the comment, but I couldn't disagree with her.
To even gain a single gram worth of iron from my blood, it had taken two liters of blood, and Morgan had demanded at least fifty grams if she were to make something good… Safe to say that within the few months I'd had her as my Servant, she had taken more blood from me than Altrouge.
To say that the experience was draining would be an understatement, though I'd be willing to do it again if it was for Mom… naturally, I'd prefer if whatever Morgan made did not need my blood, but apparently the modern day does not exactly have many materials better than my blood.
Albion's scales were a thought, but stealing them from the vault felt like a bit much, so I vetoed the decision. Mom would one day find out, and she'd tear me a new asshole if she learnt that I had stolen anything from the vaults, and I wouldn't be surprised if a certain Troll became my teacher…
The slight shiver that went down my spine must have been the instinctive fear that each and every magus felt when faced with the possibility of apprenticing under Kaleidoscope.
"Hmmm… Is there anything else you could make then?" I probed easily.
Morgan raised a hand under her veil, probably either cupping her chin or tapping it with a finger.
"Here I am rather limited, but back at home, I could have created another fake Excalibur," she said nonchalantly.
I felt myself still at that statement. "A what?"
Morgan removed the hand from under her veil, and turned fully to face me, placing her unoccupied hand on her hip. "I've done it before, and seeing as you have fragments of Caliburn, it means that I have all that I need to make a second one," she explained in a way that came off as somewhat belittling, as if she was speaking to a slow child.
… Which I technically was, as with the whole Accolon plan for Berserker should have made me remember that she had done something similar before.
"Why didn't you offer to make one before we left?" I asked with genuine confusion. As while I was very much against stealing from the vault, I think Mom would be amiable to the idea if in return she got a faithful copy of Excalibur that would be capable of fooling Arthur.
At my question, Morgan turned her head to the side, not meeting my gaze. There was a beat of silence before she sighed, almost causing her to slump forwards.
"I was somewhat… skeptical of throwing any real effort behind our cause, other than the bare minimum for a majority of our time together," she said with a hint of shame.
That was… not ideal, to put it mildly.
Frowning, I asked a follow up question. "But I thought that you agreed to help me from the start?"
Morgan turned to look at me. "I did not expect that someone could bind me to a verbal agreement so easily, as I was planning on wasting time before setting up a fudged geass that I could break without any real repercussions," she said tiredly.
That… that made a lot of sense. And to be fair, the whole point of the verbal contract was to make sure that whoever I summoned wouldn't be able to betray me at a moment's notice, so it would seem that I did a smart thing for once.
"I didn't really work all that hard, and to put it into perspective, the only reason I helped with tying the spear to you, was to spit on Artoria's memories, while ingratiating myself to you," she explained somewhat hesitantly.
"And I once tried to see if I could hoodwink Altrouge's contract, by making a homunculus, that made a homunculus, that had 'conveniently' made a homunculus that was specialized in scheming." She gave a slight pause, before sighing in regret. "I killed them all the second I felt my blood start to rot… after that I gave up on the notion of even retaliating."
Shit.
I definitely owed Altrouge… I don't even care that I'll look like some creep on the two dates I owe her, as she deserves that and more for saving my skin.
But I must say… That was really depressing, expected mind you, but depressing… hurtful even.
I don't know when she thought up this plan, but knowing that I was that close to dying due to me being trusting towards her, and allowing her the space she wished for hurt.
Sighing, I threaded a few fingers through my hair. "I see…"
Morgan took a hesitant step towards me, obviously catching onto my mood. "I–" Morgan seemed to hesitate, before committing, and fully bowing her head. "I'm sorry," she apologized in a tone full of regret, while keeping her head lowered.
"I understand how what I did is certainly a breach of trust," she continued softly. "But I'd like to make up for it."
Not responding, I let her stew for a bit.
"Why?" I asked slowly, and in a neutral tone.
Morgan didn't react, but she did speak up. "I…" she paused. "I don't have any real good feelings towards my 'family', other than my mother," she began, her voice becoming bitter at the word family.
"While I knew that you had no intention of throwing me aside, nor using me as a tool, according to the contract, I still feared that since Altrouge was the holder of the contract, that she could void your end if she wished," she explained calmly, while not trying to have any emotion show.
Morgan was right on the money on that statement, as Altrouge had offered to transfer my side of the contract onto herself, albeit for the price of a kiss, but Morgan certainly had reason to fear that outcome.
"You know my history, I've even seen a few essays that you wrote about me when you were young from assignments given by you mother," she said bitterly, and I could understand the sentiment, as I had been a total suckup and written what would give me the best 'grade' so that I could move on from my family history lessons.
"I feared that with your impression on me, that you'd do the logical thing and kill me the second the war was over, and I'd be unable to even retaliate," she explained, before giving a dark chuckle. "Though, I'm fairly sure that I knew you wouldn't do such a thing after spending a month with you… it's just with your face, and the fact that you are a Pendragon, that caused me to expect such a thing…"
"I just wanted to ensure my safety… I've never been so clear headed, so… unburdened in my life, I–" she paused. "I just… I wanted to feel free for once, myself for once."
I could see her hands balling into fists, slightly trembling from the strength she was using to clutch her hands.
"And from my experience with the Pendragons, I felt that they would never allow me the chance to experience such a thing, and would rather kill me than take the risk of me possibly attacking them…"
"And for that, I am sorry for not returning the trust you gave me, I'm sorry for thinking of you as a potential enemy, and I'm sorry for not treating you with the respect you treated me with!" She apologized in a wobbly tone.
No, she wasn't apologizing, she was begging. Morgan was not one to apologize, nor one to repent, her memories and her attitude gave as much away. So for her to do this, would be the closest I'd ever see her to begging.
Her words held some truth in them… and it was really hard to be mad at her when she, a proud witch, was lowering herself to this extent, while wearing her heart on her sleeve.
Had she broken my trust, yes, and she knew it. Did she have a reason to do so, yes, albeit a weak one.
But after seeing this, after seeing her lay out her sins, telling me things I wouldn't have known without her telling me herself, made it clear that she meant it, that she wished to fix things.
Silently moving towards Morgan, I raised my arms, and pushed her out from her bowing, only meeting slight resistance from her.
As I straightened her up, she seemed to take in a deep breath, while slightly arching her head, trying to keep eye contact with me.
Smiling slightly, I pulled her into a hug. Actions spoke louder than words, and she sounded like she needed a hug.
Her stiffening up only confirmed the fact that she needed more hugs, and I let out a slight chuckle. "I forgive you."
Morgan didn't need to be told that twice, as she threw her arms around me, and her hands practically clutched my back. The feeling almost made me cringe, as it was rather uncomfortable, as 'B' Ranked Strength was nothing to scoff at.
"Thank you," she mumbled, sounding a whole lot less confident than before.
Patting her back with an arm, I tried to be as comforting as possible, as I doubt that she had ever truly begged for forgiveness. And for that alone, I'd be thankful for her gesture.
I didn't respond to her thanks, and allowed her to hold onto me for as long as she needed, while rubbing circles on her back, mirroring what Mom did to me the few times I had been in need of comforting.
This state lasted for a few minutes, before Morgan broke the hug, while looking down, not meeting my gaze. "I–" she cut herself off, her voice still sounded a bit wobbly. "I need to start working, tomorrow will be a busy day, so I need to start as quickly as possible."
Looking at her, I placed a hand on her shoulder. "You can stay for a while longer if you wish, as I do recall promising to give us some time to relax," I offered gently.
Morgan not responding instantly was a good indicator that she was torn on what to do, but she seemed to need some time to herself, and she gently raised a hand, and removed my hand on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, but I'll need to break that agreement," she apologized softly, before slightly tilting her head to look up at me. "But I wouldn't be against us making up for that lost time together in about a week's time," she offered somewhat hesitantly.
Raising a brow, I shot her a smile.
What a roundabout way of telling me that she's confident in our victory, and asking for a date.
"Sure, I'll look forward to it."
And with the confirmation, Morgan fell into her own shadow, disappearing.
~~Fate/False Order~~
Reappearing in my workshop, I lay down on the grass, and looked at the fake sky of 'Avalon'.
Everything should have been good, but if I focused, I could still feel my legs trembling.
That conversation hadn't gone the way I wanted it to go. Mentioning the Fake Excalibur was a mistake… one that had turned out alright, but a mistake nonetheless…
The look of disappointment he subtly gave off was crushing when I mentioned that I had almost broken Altrouge's contract…
It hurt.
The guilt had been gnawing at me for a while, and telling him of what I had done behind his back was liberating. Almost as if releasing a heavy weight that I had been holding onto for a while now.
But Alistair had been kind.
Too kind.
I don't know if he's so kind to me due to a lack of experience, or that he had never been properly betrayed in either of his lives, but I could never be as forgiving.
In his shoes, I'd have told my Servant to kill themselves, if they would have done something like almost breaking a contract like the one Altrouge had me agree to.
Closing my eyes, I tried to relax.
I needed to take things seriously. I couldn't mess up, not with my track record, not right after getting his forgiveness.
He has been the best thing to happen to me so far, which is a travesty in itself, as from an outsider's perspective, he hadn't done much.
But even taking that into account, I couldn't lose him.
Was it pathetic, yes, was I even more so, yes, but Alistair didn't seem to care.
I had been impulsive when I was summoned, and being ensnared in a contract, I only panicked even more…
Acting a slut, trying to tempt him, all just to ensure that he wouldn't back out of his end of our deal, while trying my damndest to piss off the corpse for trapping me in a contract, was in hindsight very foolish.
I had fallen back into habit to get what I wanted, which had clearly failed, and all that should have backfired today.
Best case scenario, I had expected him to move back in with his mother, and ignore me for a while. The most likely scenario being the one where he just didn't accept it, and told me that my wish was on review until the end of the war.
Him killing me was not even on my mind, as I knew him well enough to know that he'd not do such a thing. Be it due to being still slightly fond of me, or using cold logic that I was still his best chance to win the Grail, either reason would be fine.
All I hoped to get out of the apology was time to show that I would repent, and hopefully he'd accept after seeing my sincerity… but he had given me it freely.
I don't know what hurts more, knowing that I don't deserve it, or knowing that I had proven his assignments' analysis of me to be true.
…
I had to show that I was different.
I refuse to take his generosity at face value.
I have been given a chance, a chance to show that I am better, and I will.
Alistair had harped on about giving Artoria a chance, something that I really do not wish to give her.
While she might have been dancing to Merlin's tune, she had probably been doing so while unaware of what he was doing. Meaning that her only true crime was trusting someone who guided her throughout her life.
If I were in her shoes, I'd like to say that I'd have done better, but I cannot say such a thing with a clear conscience anymore.
Alistair was somewhat right, Merlin was at fault, or he at least held most of the fault in our lives.
But now I needed to seriously consider doing such a thing, after all, if I were to do such a thing, I would not half-ass it. Alistair deserved my best, even if it was in forgiving Artoria.
But I'd need to see if she was worth such a thing… I'd have to give her a test, and if she passes, I'll ensure that the sheath inside Kiritsugu ends up with her in Avalon, and I'll bring her back.
Opening my eyes, I pushed myself up from the grass, and glanced up at the Greater Grail.
I needed to earn this, and while Alistair had forgiven me, I could not…
Pursing my lips, I thought of the only thing in between myself and Alistair.
Altrouge…
And she hated me. Truly hated me.
While Alistair himself might not have noticed me almost breaking the contract, Altrouge had not.
The few times I had been in her presence without Alistair, she had glared daggers at me, and I know for a fact that she'd have killed me if it wasn't for Alistair needing me for the war.
I couldn't blame her, as I too had been antagonistic towards her.
And her threat of gutting me if she sees me after the war certainly still stands.
I am certain that I'd not be instantly killed if she saw me after the war, but I'd only have the briefest window of opportunity to patch up our relationship for her not to instantly kill me.
Me offering to save Artoria could be a good start, as I'd need time to prepare for the journey, so I'd have more time to fix things with her…
Taunting and nearly breaking a contract held by the same Ancestor, was not a good way to get in her good graces. And going after the same Ancestor's potential love interest certainly isn't helping.
Sighing, I moved over to the section of my workshop meant for mineralogy.
Sitting atop the table stood a few ingots of steel infused with Alistair's blood. Walking up to the table, I tapped the metal, allowing me to feel that it had been sufficiently 'marinated' with the mysteries in my mirror of Avalon.
Picking up an ingot, I gave a slight smile.
Maybe ensuring that Alistair was well taken care of would be a decent place to start with Altrouge…
Giving her a few blood bags might be an idea as well, as I'd need as many good points with her before she finds out that I want to court the man she's interested in.
…
Sighing, I placed the ingot back on the table.
Why did I have to be interested in someone so sought after by a lovesick Apostle Ancestor?
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57 Hours, 52 Minutes And 11 Seconds Until Zero
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A/N
Welcome back, my reader Overlords, please add this to your library and give me some comments, stones and Reviews, as it would be much appreciated.
Ass-kissing done, now I can move on to more important stuff.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I beseech you, I have a really good reason for being so late! I was, and still am drunk after celebrating an exam well done! I woke up at 12 today, hungover and groggy.
Not wishing to deal with the headache, I did the only smart thing, and downed three shots of vodka. And whenever I felt like I was missing inspiration, I took another shot. Safe to say, but I needed inspiration, as there is only a quarter left.
For those who wish to call my methods stupid, and foolish, then know that I look down upon you! God gave me this blessed liver, and it would be a shame if I let it stay good and healthy! Limits are meant to be broken, same goes with organs, I think!
Now, onto how this is still legible, I must thank my partner in crime, ChatGPT for being fluent in alcoholism, and was able to translate my scrawl into legible English.
So yeah...
Sorry for being late, was busy getting hammered and laid, so I hope that is a more than decent reason for being late.
Now, tell me if there was anything you guys liked with the chapter, not that I can appreciate it right now, as even with the brilliant and fabulous brain that I have, not even my genius can overcome a bit over half a bottle of vodka. And before you worry, I'll be fine, my personal best is two and a bottle of wine... yes it was spread over six hours, but still... I'll be fine. I'm a student, not having once gotten alkanol poisoning is a chime.
Btw, I have made a Discord server for the fic, come on and chat with me!
https://discord.gg/xrHvkpjG
Now I'm tired and have a to drink the rest of my bottle, so have a nice day, and send me some stones or some shit, as I need motivation, since I am not willing to lose this battle!