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Author Topic: Fate / Lunar Sun  (Read 26350 times)

Karnewarrior

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #105 on: June 15, 2014, 05:52:38 pm »

------------------------------------------------------------I support this alliance

“I..................................”

I stop and think for a moment.
Even if I was never trained properly in magic and hardly ever use what I do know, I was told about what Dead Apostles were.

Vampires.
Bloodsucking beasts of horrifically unnatural origin, or worse, a terrible nature wrought by the world itself to kill humans.
Dead Apostles in particular were perfectly efficient human killers, whatever their origin.
Many even possess Reality Marbles.
To any magus, even the leaders of the Magus Association, a fight with a Dead Apostle was something to be avoided.

Their abilities made any human Magus unable to cast True Magic pale in comparison.
A reality Marble. A World Egg.
The ability to invert reality upon itself, and replace the very physics of your local universe with the math of your soul.
It was different for everyone and everything, but to a magus like me, even a magus like Mother or Aunt Ilya..................................

And we couldn't properly trust her either.
Dead Apostles don't feed on blood for a psychological reason, like a True Ancestor.
They physically need to drain the life from a human being to fuel their immortality.
Eventually, she would come for us.

On the other hand..........
The same would apply to our enemies.
And it was true that if she wanted to kill us she likely could have done so earlier.
I can't rule out that she has some sort of psychopathic need to befriend her food, but it's highly unlikely.
Dead Apostles may be strange, and may be murderers.........
But she might be our murderer.

The extra info on Archer would help as well.
I'm still curious as to how a Heroic Spirit from the late nineteenth century exists.
Perhaps Andrea can shed some light on the matter.

Still.

“I don't trust her.”
I state my thoughts clearly.

The blonde vampire pouts, eyes narrowing into slits.
“Oh? So why don't I kill you right now and be done with it?”

Saber immediately settles herself between us and her, Excalibur raised and once again sheathed in whirling air.
“You will not harm my Master while I survive.”
She states a fact, clear as the breaking dawn.

“I already had that planned.”
Andrea is not threatened.

“I vote in favor of alliance. Two to one.”
Arturia breaks the stalemate.

The tension immediately dissipates.
“Well, that's good. I wasn't looking forward to dealing with everything on my own.”
She raises a hand to shield her eyes as the sun breaks over the houses behind us.
“Though it looks like time to go hide. Definitely if I want to catch that hunter by dawn...”

Archer suddenly glances at me, and our eyes meet.
“Saber, can I borrow the kid for a moment?”

Saber follows his gaze.
Her sword vanishes, and she rests an arm on her hip, looking deep in thought.
“Very well, Archer. If you fail to bring him back however...”
It seems Saber still doesn't trust Archer.

Archer shrugs his shoulder towards the other side of the street. This close to the shopping district, I'm not surprised to find the usual housing has been replaced by a quaint little restaurant.

His long duster billows in the wind like a pair of wings as I follow him across the street and into the shop.
Archer picks a table that's secluded, yet highly visible from multiple tables.
From here, we won't be heard, but we will be seen.
I'm struck with the feeling he's done this before....
..........No, I'm sure of it.
If he was an outlaw in life, he would have had to meet people he knew didn't trust him.
He would have had to gain their trust too.

Archer takes off his distinctive hat and lays it on the table between us before sighing deeply.
“You got some balls on you, kid, I'll give you that.”
He rests his elbows on the table and leans on it.

The waitress' untimely arrival takes only a second to disperse.
When Archer's request for whiskey turns up little, he settles for a coffee, which I order as well.

The waitress out of our hair, Archer starts again.
“You're lucky and unlucky at the same time kid.”

“What does that mean?”

“Master's the kind of girl who likes someone who isn't afraid of her. Probably comes from the fact most people are. Problem is, she gets attached to the folk she likes. I've been her Servant less than two weeks and I know that much. Hell, she likes me, I'm sure she's out there kicking pebbles just us being together.”

“What that means....”
Archer continues, idly twirling the hat on the table with one finger.
“Is that she's not just talking about an alliance for the War, Kid. She probably wants you to work with her until you die. Or until she turns you, whichever.”

Archer looks at me seriously, and I take a moment to get a good look at his face.

His face is rounder than I would have expected, and much younger. His hair is cropped short, but what there is of it is sandy blonde, like a movie star. His mouth is frowning at me right now, but the wrinkles suggest it's more used to laughter and revelry than the serious conversation we're having.
And his eyes, blue as robins eggs, are aged well beyond the face.

“Can Saber handle her, assuming she beats you first?”

“Well, I sure as hell ain't going to let that happen. But if she does beat me, and get's a bit of rest, you might be able to scare her off. She's strong, but not really Servant Strong. She managed to handle Berserker because she had the element of surprise, and he was wounded at the time.”

Well, that's a relief at least.

“Not that I'm going to stand by and let you just kill off my Master like that. Even if I had the option. I hope we have an understanding.”

“We do. And Archer? Can I ask a question?”
Our coffee is placed in front of us, and Archer tentatively takes a sip.
He must enjoy whatever is inside, since he closes his eyes and almost whispers the affirmative.

I shake my head.
Servant or not, he's still childish. Almost as childish as Aunt Ilya is.
“Do you think we made the right decision? To ally, I mean.”

Archer thinks for a moment, sipping his coffee.
“How do you get it strained like this? It's so smooth, Even the stuff we had in bars and taverns wasn't like this.”
Don't dodge the question.

Archer opens one eye lazily to look at me.
“I'm not really in a position to say. I'm not part of your little group, even if we're being all friendly now. At some point in the future, even if things go perfectly, we're going to have to turn on each other at the last moment. Is that the right choice? But if the alternative is to fight each other now. Or have Master visit you in your beds tomorrow night. Is that the right choice?”

Archer lowers the coffee cup, now drained. A small brown bead rolls down the side, which he scoops up with one finger and sucks on.

“The right choice is whatever keeps my sister alive until the end of this War.”

“The girl means a lot to you, doesn't she?”

“She's my sister. It's my job to be her shield. Saber's her sword. Without her, we're nothing.”

“I like that loyalty, Kid. Not enough of that nowadays. People like to think for themselves more often than they used to. A lot of the time it works just fine. Hell...”
He lifts his drained cup of coffee.
“Free enterprise is fueled by selfishness. This wouldn't be here if someone didn't want the money for themselves. And a good deal is where both sides go home feeling like they gained something. Problem is, most people don't know when to stop. It's one or the other. Like that Marx guy. He's old news by now, but back when I was alive, it was all fresh.”

He sighs and leans back, sinking into the soft cushions of the booth.
“On one side, the Capitalists fight for selfish enterprise like this. On the other, the Marxists or Communists or whatever they're calling themselves want everyone to be selfless. Except Selfish people aren't always right, and neither are the Selfless people. If you're spending all your time thinking about other folk, you'll starve to death after you give away all your food. And if you hoard it, then everyone hates you, because now they're starving. People just go all in on everything, and it ain't the way to go about it at all.”

“But you're loyal to your sister. As long as you know when the time is to do something she don't want you to do, you'll be good.”

“You've dodged my question again.”

“Like I said. It's up to you. I don't know all your secrets and you sure as hell don't know all of mine. But for right now, you kept your girl alive for one more day. And you can deal with the fallout tomorrow. And the day after that, the next thing on the line. The War won't last forever.”

Archer stands as the waitress approaches the table.
“Thank you for the meal, Ma'am. Always nice to have radiant service and a radiant waitress.”

The waitress blushes deeply and giggles.
“Ah, um..... Don't worry about the bill.... It's on the house.”

“Thank you.”
With an energetic sweep, he scoops his hat off the table and places it on his head.
The sheer speed at which he did it is staggering. My shirt ripples in the breeze, even as I slide out on the other side of him.

The waitress almost flies back across the shop to a gaggle of other women, who start pestering her.

I follow Archer out of the restaurant to find him lazily tossing a few coins with one hand.
“Did you steal those from the waitress?”

He turns his head to look at me.
“Nope.”

You liar.
You picked her pocket.
You probably did it when you put your hat on.

“I don't steal from women or shopkeepers like this. Not if I don't have to.”

“Who's money is it then.”

“You're smart, Kid. Figure it out.”
He waves to Andrea, who has produced a parasol from somewhere on her slight person and is struggling to keep the shade over her whole body.

“Archer, we should get back right away.”

“Right away, Master.”

And with that, the vampire and the Servant leave me, Arturia, and Saber.

“What did he want with you?”
Arturia questions me with a smile on her face, pushing me lightly with both hands.
“Come on, I bet it was some juicy gossip or something. Was he asking you for my hand in marriage?”
She gasps.
“Was he asking for Sabers?!”

Saber looks nonplussed at the suggestion.

“He was most definitely not.”
I flatly correct her.

“Good. I have no desire for my heart to be owned by two double-crossing rogues.”
Saber is firmly against the idea of the hypothetical Archer route.
How disappointing, I think dryly.

“Two?”
Arturia's knack for catching people's slip ups is legendary.

But regardless, there's something more important.
“We're late for school. And I just remembered that we forgot our lunch.”

The wind leaves Arturia and Saber alike with such speed I can almost hear the sound of air escaping.
It's like watching a car tire deflate.

“It's alright though. I brought enough money for us all to have a light lunch from the cafeteria.”
I pat my pocket.
Hm?
It's empty.
My money was just-
My money!

Arturia looks as gloomy as I feel.
“We should go home anyway. If Berserker is willing to attack during the day, we aren't safe, even at school.”

“What about the Matou Master. Did you not say she was attending school as well?”

“We can watch her later. Right now I'm hungry.”
Arturia grips her stomach as if to show how painfully empty it is.

We could head to school to observe the Matou Master. But that would be dangerous. We could also head home, warning Mother and Father and Aunt Ilya...

It’s another tossup. I feel as though these have become incredibly commonplace in my life as late.
I----------------------

1) Go to school

2) Go home early
« Last Edit: July 03, 2014, 06:39:16 pm by Karnewarrior »
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kero42

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #106 on: June 18, 2014, 05:41:44 pm »

Aw, but an Saber/Archer route would be fun, shame we can't actually trust him. 8/

Anyway, I'm not entirely sure what to pick, I want to see the Matou master, but getting to safety is a higher priority so I'll just pick Go home early.
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Cain12

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #107 on: June 18, 2014, 06:56:53 pm »

Aw, but an Saber/Archer route would be fun, shame we can't actually trust him. 8/

Anyway, I'm not entirely sure what to pick, I want to see the Matou master, but getting to safety is a higher priority so I'll just pick Go home early.

I doubt Berserker's master would allow Berserker to strike again so soon after what just happened. Go to School
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Cain12

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #108 on: June 25, 2014, 07:43:09 am »

Aw, but an Saber/Archer route would be fun, shame we can't actually trust him. 8/

Anyway, I'm not entirely sure what to pick, I want to see the Matou master, but getting to safety is a higher priority so I'll just pick Go home early.

I doubt Berserker's master would allow Berserker to strike again so soon after what just happened. Go to School
Okay, didn't want to, but since no one else seems to want to vote. I am changing to Go home early.

Edit: Provided this is still alive of course.


Edit:Nevermind, someone did vote, minutes after my post. Thanks.
« Last Edit: June 25, 2014, 08:32:21 am by Cain12 »
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Harbingerjm

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #109 on: June 25, 2014, 07:47:37 am »

Go to school.
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kero42

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #110 on: June 25, 2014, 08:36:00 am »


I doubt Berserker's master would allow Berserker to strike again so soon after what just happened. Go to School
Okay, didn't want to, but since no one else seems to want to vote. I am changing to Go home early.

Edit: Provided this is still alive of course.


Edit:Nevermind, someone did vote, minutes after my post. Thanks.

Ah, I knew Cain would cave in.

And then Harb came in and voted. Ah, well.
« Last Edit: June 25, 2014, 08:39:10 am by kero42 »
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Sprin

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #111 on: June 26, 2014, 09:40:13 am »

Lets head home I want more Shirou Rin action.
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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #112 on: June 26, 2014, 09:25:11 pm »

Lets head home I want more Shirou Rin action.
And once again we enter a stalemate, and I think we are out of regular voters.
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kero42

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #113 on: June 27, 2014, 03:48:03 pm »

Lets head home I want more Shirou Rin action.

Well, I was actually hoping to see Ilya, but same difference.

Ah, maybe I should change my vote. Or maybe we could hope someone else shows up?
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kero42

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #114 on: June 30, 2014, 07:34:26 am »

Okay, since no one else is going to budge and I would rather not wait for another voter to come along, I'l just change my vote to Go to school.
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Karnewarrior

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #115 on: July 03, 2014, 06:38:21 pm »

------------------------------------------------------------Go to School

“Saber's right. We can think Haruhi Matou is the Matou master all we want, but we need to know for sure. We can get Mother to bring us some food, if you're hungry.”

Saber nods firmly, her armor dissipating into the soft breeze, replaced by the casual blue-and white clothes she was wearing before Berserker appeared. “We should do that right away. It is unwise to fight on an empty stomach.”

I cast a glance in her direction.
“Saber...”

“Yes, Kiritsugu?”

“You eat a lot, don't you?”

Saber freezes, a shocked expression on her face.
Arturia blinks and with her hands raised up to her midsection, backs away from Saber.
What a strange girl, my sister.

“N-no! I just have to keep my prana reserves full, in case of battle.”
Saber finally responds, a full ten seconds after I asked the damning question.

“Aren't you getting all the prana you need from Arturia? I mean, she's a pretty good magus, I thought.”
I'm confused.
Saber doesn't actually need prana.
In fact, she technically doesn't need to eat at all.

As a Heroic Spirit, she doesn't have a physical form the way we think of it, so she doesn't need to sustain it with nutrients like we do.
She's not so much a human with special powers as a sort of ghost who can take a physical form, sustained by magic rather than science.
So she doesn't need to eat at all, which makes me wonder why she ate so much at breakfast.

“Ehhh-----------------------”
Saber makes a strange face.
“W-well, there was so much good food, it would be a shame to let it all go to waste...”

“You stole the last bowl of rice from Father. Didn't you notice how sad he looked? I haven't seen that face since Fujimura-sensei moved out.”

“I-I was hungry?”

“Is that a quest-”

Clunk.
Saber's armor is back on.

“-huh?”

Saber has planted Excalibur into the cement, and is resting both hands on it.
She gazes into the distance with a noble, kingly visage.
“We should get moving. There's no time to waste in this war.”

Clunk, Clunk, Clunk.
Saber rattles away, power-walking towards the school.

“Arturia, do you know what's up with her?”

Arturia gives me the look that tells me I missed something.

“What did I say? Arturia? Arturia! Don't leave me behind!


It's not until lunch that I manage to see Haruhi.

Sakura Matou used to be a regular visitor at the Emiya place, at least so Father says.
Now, I suppose, she's too busy being the head of the Matou clan.
Her Grandfather, the previous head, seems to have suffered some mysterious accident, and was freed of his mortal coil.

The azure haired girl quietly eating her lunch before me was the daughter of that Sakura Matou.
Like a prickly cactus, she exudes the sense that she is unapproachable through her mere appearance.
The violet eyes she got from her mother stare into mine with the blank disinterest of a machine, as she chews a piece of celery.

“H-hey, Haruhi.”
I'm not particularly good friends with Haruhi Matou, but we often see each other walking to school.

“Emiya.”
Haruhi's voice is flat and to the point.
It isn't devoid of emotion, but disconnected from it.
To say it another way, Haruhi Matou's thoughts happen on another level and are separate from her feelings.

“Is that your lunch?”

“No. It is someone elses.”
She scoops up some peanut butter with the celery and bites it.
Ask a stupid question, I suppose.

Why do I feel like this person should be piloting some prototype giant mecha?
“Oh, I... see.”
I take a chance and sit down next to her.
“It's good that I found you, I had some questions I wanted to ask you.”

Haruhi watches me out of the corner of her eye.
She closes her eyes and leans her head back, thinking...
.....No, more like... composing.
Like someone else would compose a letter or an essay.
“I am under no obligation to answer your questions with the truth or at all. You are under no obligation to trust me and have little reason to do so, but previous encounters with you have asserted that you are optimistic to the point of fallacy and will likely take anything I say as the absolute truth, therefore I will answer your line of questioning to it's completion as honestly as I can without compromising myself in some manner.”

“...Yeah.”
Haruhi has a tendency to do this.
Compose paragraphs in her head and relay it all in one breath.
It's hard to answer something that sounds like a disclaimer on a medicine commercial.

We sit in silence for a few minutes.

“Are you confused?”
Haruhi is the one to break the silence, as deadpan as ever.

“No, not really.”
I answer honestly.
“I'm just not certain how to ask you.”

Haruhi looks over at me for a few seconds before turning back to her food.
“If this is a romantic overture, I decline.”
Ouch.

“It's not.”

Seeing her look, I clarify further.
“I'm not asking you out.”

“Then continue. My time is not so free as to permit long pauses.”

“I....”
I take a deep breath.
“There's something I need to tell you........”

Haruhi looks at me, a piece of lettuce hanging from her lips.

“......I'm a magus.”

Haruhi blinks, but her expression doesn't change, save for her mouth opening briefly to suck the lettuce in like some deep-sea fish.
“I guessed.”

“---------------------Eh?”
I look at her in confusion.

“I am guessing you are looking for mutual confirmation. I am a magus as well.”

“-------------------Eh?”

“Furthermore, the timing and manner in which you broached the subject suggests to me you are taking part in a certain ritual confined to this geographical location, one meant to have been destroyed twenty years ago. It also suggests that you wish to know if I am also taking part in this ritual.”

“Uh, yeah. Basically.”

Haruhi sits back and thinks.

“Haruhi, if you are taking part in this war, I want to know, that way we can stop each other from getting hurt.”

“Are you suggesting alliance?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess.”
I'll mention the fact that Arturia is the Master later.
At least I remembered to ask her.
Arturia wasn't happy to ally with the Matous, but agreed that if I could get her on our side even nominally it was a good thing, especially while we needed to keep an eye on Berserker.

“I decline.”

Adrenaline rushes through me.
“Wh-Why?”

“It is required for the ritual to come to completion and the grail to be filled, that six of the seven Servants summoned must be defeated. I have no intention of locking myself into a set order of doing so, nor does my Servant. If we should come upon another Servant in the field, we will judge whether they might be defeated. If we should come upon a combat, we will wait until the stronger weakens themselves upon the weaker, and then strike. There is no point in making an alliance with me. I will betray you without regret or second thoughts, and proceed with the ritual. However, the death of the Master is not necessary to conduct the Heaven's Feel. Barring circumstances eliminating this option, I will escort you to the Church and relieve you of your Command Spells. Your life will be spared, if I have the time. Have a good day, Emiya Kiritsugu.”

“...............ugh..”
This girl...........
........She said all that with the cold precision of a computer.
There's no point in wondering if she was lying.
There was no point in lying.
Like a cool machine, she was asked a question, and I received an answer.
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
She doesn't care about me or for me.
As long as the ritual is completed, she will do anything, good or evil.

A person who can do Evil with the same ease as they do good....
Can that be called a person?
She will kill me with the same emotion she spares my life with.
She will save me with the same face she might kill me with.
A murderer and a savior in equal measure.

Haruhi vanishes into the crowd.
I'm left staring at my lunch, pondering what to make of this new information.


It's time to go home from school.
It's a long weekend after this, so this is the last time I'm going to have to be here.
I--------------------------------------------

1) Return Home.
2) Visit Assassin
3) What is that by the Dojo?


Spoiler (click to show/hide)
« Last Edit: July 31, 2014, 06:02:42 pm by Karnewarrior »
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Thou art I, I art Thou.
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Thou shall be blessed when calling upon personae of the Hangman Arcana.
May this tie bind thee to a brighter future!​
Ikusaba Quest! - Fistfighting space robots for the benefit of your familial bonds to Satan is passe, so you call Sherlock Holmes and ask her to pop by.

Harbingerjm

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #116 on: July 03, 2014, 06:56:11 pm »

3.
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Sprin

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #117 on: July 03, 2014, 07:07:39 pm »

What is that by the Dojo?
Maybe... Its a taco....
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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #118 on: July 04, 2014, 05:28:46 am »

3, wonder who the father is.
« Last Edit: July 04, 2014, 05:33:46 am by Cain12 »
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Karnewarrior

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Re: Fate / Lunar Sun
« Reply #119 on: July 11, 2014, 07:47:26 am »

What is that by the Dojo?
Maybe... Its a taco....
If it was, Saber would have eaten it by now.
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Thou art I, I art Thou.
The trust you have bestowed upon thy comrade is now reciprocated in turn.
Thou shall be blessed when calling upon personae of the Hangman Arcana.
May this tie bind thee to a brighter future!​
Ikusaba Quest! - Fistfighting space robots for the benefit of your familial bonds to Satan is passe, so you call Sherlock Holmes and ask her to pop by.
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