Fate/Mark Last

[Pastor ćhoi]

Victim of the Immoral Majority, red

On one end, the cheese grater's tool demanded some chivalric duel to end all lies and hate and usher in a new era of frenchie bullocking. She was no longer finding him attractive. He was steadily proving himself to be as old as his armor.

"Ei, Urgroßvater, was hast du für große Ohren!"

On the other end, treachery came from the rear. Her own master -her own master!- threatened her with forced compliance over a french whore. Now, threats were a healthy part of every relationship between a superior and a subordinate, but to squander resources on a frenchie? That was akin to walking the streets of Paris and not wanting to burn it to the ground. Surely their leaning tower was proof of the crookedness of the french soul?

"Aber, Großmutter, was hast du für ein entsetzlich großes Maul!"

Riding hood made a sound. A low rumble of disapproval that corrected a geographical oversight.

No, I'm quite sure's it isn't in Italy. Good try though.

On the final end, there was the frenchie. Oh, yes, she played the part of a german dame: inoffensive, moderate, not french, but Rider could see the spark behind those warm eyes that belied a crazed soul. Oh, what grand magecraft was this, that a frenchie could crawl out of the crib and not be beaten to death in this modern, civilized world?

But this actor's farce could go both ways.

"I understand, my master" Rider said, bowing her head down in contrition. Riding Hood disappeared in a flash of red, as did the pistol. "I apologize to you all for my indecent actions. I should have never doubted the honor of our esteemed partners. Your nationality is not an issue-" A stab of pain into her heart. "-and is, in fact, a boon. May you wear it in good health. May you live a full life. " May you not die in the rain alone, surrender monkey. "If my master is agreeable, we will accept this new location."

 

[Artorias]

Assassin of the Night, red

He was conflicted on what he should do. He knew his presence concealment was strong enough for him to move and not be spotted, but the distance between buildings was large and he could get to the other building. However, how much of a presence would he leave? If anything, if any Servant noticed they would just pass it off as a familiar. The shuriken slowly slid back into the pouch before he sucked in some fresh air and let it out slowly. He would have to act quick, extremely quick, and no one was faster than him. Maybe someone could match his speed, but they weren't faster and if someone was. Then he would lose.

He jumped off the building, towards the other and shifted into his spiritual form for only the briefest of seconds as he passed into the barrier and onto the next roof. As soon as he was within the barrier, he shifted out and into presence concealment. What he did was risky, and people would be on high alarm, but they wouldn't be able to pin point his location and he would be safe. Unless they wanted to blow up the top of the building with themselves on it.

He seemed to be late however, as he heard the mentioning of an alliance being made and someone being French. The girl spoke German and the blonde man must be French he assumed. Even with this little information, it might be enough to help.

 

[Akashi]

S A B E R, #3366ff

His sword was resting on his shoulder. His expression was serious. As the red waist-down cape fluttered, along with his white hair, he listened to the enemy Master's apology, while keeping his eyes locked onto Rider, the rebellious little girl. Atleast between both the violet haired girl and the blondie, the former was the most sane and understanding, in their circumstances. Saber kept quiet for now. He had said his part.

As both the Masters were conversing with one another, about the decision for a change of scenery. It was a school, suggested by Lucille, which piqued his curiosity. It reminded him about the school they visited earlier, and if that was the destination she was referring to. "Lucille. Is it the school we passed by earlier? The one you're a student at?" Saber telephatically asked, hoping to sate his the little curiosity that was running around in his mind.

Moments later, he was not surprised by the jibberish being spouted by the enemy Servant, Rider. She was once again speaking in a foreign language. As she kept going, in between, she finally started speaking a language they all could understand. Her attitude changed, as she complied with her Master and started to behave. Despite the apology speech uttered by the blondie, Saber could clearly see that she didn't really mean it, but that was nothing but a trivial matter. It was not important, it was not expected, it was not even needed. They were now perhaps past their little commotion regarding Lucille and her French origins.

A smile plastered on Saber's face. The enemy Servant was finally tamed. "So the mention of command seals put you in your place, huh? Rider?" He rhetorically asked, followed by a smirk on his face. All that was left now, was for Lucille and the enemy Master to decide on their next location so they could move on and away from the rooftop.

But before he was able to ask Lucille if the school is the destination they had decided upon, he was able to sense prana, though only for a small moment, but enough for him to know that the prana he sensed around the rooftop and inside the barrier, was to that of another Servant. He tilted his head to the side, gazing upon the direction he felt it from. Unfortunately for him, he could no longer sense nor feel the uninvited guest. But, he knew. Saber knew that it was definetely inside the barrier, and around their vicinity. His grip on the hilt of his sword was tightened. His expression somewhat showed the signs of excitement.

The only class that came to mind to be able to hide themselves to such a great extent where their entire presence and prana would be concealed, it could only be an Assassin. 'That's quite troublesome...' He chuckled to the thought of it. However, Saber did not know if this new addition to their little party was still there or not, but he assumed that whoever it was, would still be around. If the third Servant guest wasn't attacking earlier, then it would also mean that they were there to collect information. Spies; They reminded Saber about his past life.

Interrupting both Rider and her Master, along with Lucille, Saber spoke up, though with a smile across his face. "Before we discuss our little get together any further, we may want to be careful." Tilting his head to the side, from the corner of his eyes, he diverted his attention towards the little blonde girl.

Despite her looks and personality, he knew she was a formidable Servant, and would bet she was able to sense the new addition as well. "Blondie.. I assume you know we have an uninvited guest snooping around... Wouldn't you say?" He rhetorically asked. Diverting his attention to his surroundings, around the rooftop, his eyes narrowed down, as he slowly canvassed the area.

Saber took a chance, wondering if the enemy Servant was still around. "You know, the barrier around the rooftop is quite basic. A Servant of your caliber should have been able to understand its mechanics. However, that very moment before you concealed your presence entirely, was enough to let me sense the energy of a Servant. And if you're here to obtain some information, I'll make a deal with you." He happily suggested.

"Of course, for that to happen, I'd have to know where you are. And it would be quite weird if I were to speak to nothing but empty air. So if you can reveal where you are, or atleast show yourself, we can sit down and drink some wine together. I've been craving for some for a while now. It has been centuries since I last had a taste. So... Does the offer interest you? Would it make you show yourself? Friend?" Saber struck an interesting deal, though he wondered what type of reaction this would bring upon their little party.

 

[Pyralithia]

Rider's Master, purple

Setting: Skyscraper
Nearby: Saber/Lucille/Assassin/Rider
~~~~
Kil nods to Lucille, she was about to respond when Rider suddenly had a change of tune. Blinking in disbelief she slowly looks to her servant, her magenta eyes suspicious as she raises an eyebrow. 'Ya....Like its ever that easy with you....' But she kept her comments to herself, if Rider was gonna behave, for now, then she wasnt gonna disturb it. Swish She felt someone-most likely a servant, pass through her barrier. Though almost as soon as she felt it, the presence was gone, the only way she could even tell there was an intruder was the warning her barrier gave her.

Kil subtly slides her hand into the pouch at her waist, the other one into her pocket, grasping a couple gems. "Your senses are as sharp as I suspected, Saber." She responds in a calm voice. 'Wine?....Really??..' She rolls her eyes at the snow haired mans words. 'Typical...' Turning her gaze to Lucille she sighs "Well so much for going somewhere more secure...Now we'll be tailed. Any suggestions? I'm not so sure your....Offer will succeed, Saber." At the last part a light teasing tone seeps into her voice

 

[Hologram Summer]

"Sacrifices?" gasped Taka, completely perturbed by what Berserker just ordered him to do. He was aware of the fact that in some cases, Servants can consume raw life force to supplement their mana and this was a common practice for Servants whose Masters were inexperienced magicians. "Are you saying that the mana I supply to you is not enough? Hypnotizing people into servitude is one thing but sacrificing them? I'm afraid that's something I'll have to decline..." frowned the young man.

There was no way that Taka would sacrifice people to Berserker just to win The Holy Grail War. He just didn't roll that way. An onmyoji's job was to protect people from the mystical hazards of the world and he'd be doing the exact opposite if he was to follow his Servant's command. "If you need more mana, I will siphon more from the land with my dogu and transfer it to you. We are not sacrificing anyone just to sustain you." declared Taka sternly.

He left the temple grounds and got started on laying out the talismans for his barrier as well as adding several more defenses to fortify their base. Hardwork was always a good distraction for Taka and he really needed it right now. He wanted to veer his mind away from the gruesome thoughts from Berserker. Most importantly, he didn't want to acknowledge the fact that part of him was worried that he might be wrong for opposing Berserker's plan.

"No way! I'll win this war with minimal bloodshed."

 

[Nevvy]

"How else do you take a leyline?" Berserker asked, genuinely not sure what method didn't involve some sort of sacrifices. He supposed that magic wasn't exactly his area of expertise but that was the only method he had been shown by the grail. Taka was more than enough to merely support him but the fact was that without significant advantages like large amounts of prana to spend, he wasn't about to tell himself or anyone else that he was going to beat many other heroic spirits in a straight fight. Stats or no stats, he knew that well enough without trying. For best and surest victory in war, you brought more troops than the other side to minimize losses. Here was the same thing except that instead of getting more men, you got more prana. It was admittedly close to the same thing to a degree since building the order was the same thing and building up the capacity to get more prana. He personally did not care so much about the methods but this was one of the issues that cropped up every now and then, the lack of the resolve to do what had to be done.

"Do you truly believe that merely sustaining me will be enough to win the war? What do legends tell of my great fighting skill and prowess?" he laughed. This was fact no matter how it was sliced. It so happened that he did not need to necessarily sacrifice people for anything else. In fact, they were much more useful to him alive than dead, providing him mana and serving the Aryan order with both small bits of mana over time and their work. To merely eat them was a waste like killing a cow rather than milking it. Sure, the immediate benefit was greater but it was a waste of resources. He would work it out anyhow by any means, though, so it was merely a small matter in the grand design.

 

[Accelerator]

Freyja, pink

A leaden sigh escaped Freyja's lips due to what little information Assassin had gathered in his espionage mission. However, quantity can be sacrificed if the quality is favorable. The moment Assassin had entered the Boundary Field, she had him relay all information he was gathering straight to her right away. Appearances were disclosed to her almost instantaneously. It seemed that the Saber class Servant sported silver hair, pale white skin and donned midnight-black armor. He carried with him a double-edged sword that was most likely of European origin due to its design so it would seem that this Servant was a Heroic Spirit of Europe. That narrows down things to some degree but there are still numerous European heroes to begin with. Assassin also reported that a blonde pipsqueak that speaks a kind of foreign language that also seems to be from a European Country.

"Seems the Holy grail has taken a penchant for Choosing European Masters and Servants. This should prove to be quite interesting." She mused.

What piqued her interest more was the fact that the Servants were able to detect Assassin's presence the moment he entered the field. A mediocre Servant wouldn't be capable of that so it seemed these weren't pushovers either. This Saber servant, in particular, got her attention as he was the one who detected Assassin in the first place and also called him out to drink wine with him of all things. Such a bold proposal.

"Well, you've been found out, Assassin. There are two Servants present, one of the highest class. And they are in a truce. That puts as at a distinct disadvantage so hostility won't be an option... yet. Better hear out what Saber has to say. But we must exercise caution in this little skirmish. Do as I say down to the last word..." Freyja ordered putting a lot of conviction in her words.

"Firstly, make sure to reveal your present next to Saber's master. Within striking distance. This is our insurance. With you close to her, Saber wouldn't risk attacking you and Rider and her master would not engage you. If they do attack you when Saber's master is in such close proximity, it would be counted as treason. Their alliance crumbles prematurely. However, if either Servant or Master attacks, you have my permission to kill Saber's Master. I will then provide a distraction for your escape. Until they turn hostile, do not engage Saber's master. Oh and do make sure to make an arrogant entrance while praising Saber. Relay everything that is happening to me. Do not worry, I got your back." A grin appeared on her face as she brought her hand towards her bag and fished out a thick book from it. If things proceeded smoothly, she wouldn't need to utilize it here but if this event takes an unfavorable turn, she may be forced to let them have a taste of her power.


Flipping the book to a desired page with showed both the image of a certain mythological weapon and its history, she began muttering two words in preparation for her fail-safe for a possible contingency.

"Trace On..."

 

[RareSecret]

Vivianne Lucille Aufort

According to Saber and Killala, a servant had just breached the barrier Killala set up. Most likely, Assassin. Lucille held a tighter grip on her bead than ever before, and stuck her other hand in her pocket, just in case she needed more beads. The servant could be anywhere at this moment and Lucille needed to be ready. Who knows what they will do?

Saber invited the opposing servant, who was somewhere on the roof top, to drink wine with him. Lucille released a small sigh. Considering the situation they are in a the moment, wine should be the last thing on his mind. Then again, he did mention he was craving some earlier. "Well so much for going somewhere more secure...Now we'll be tailed. Any suggestions? I'm not so sure your....Offer will succeed, Saber." Killala said. Killala thought the same thing. The offer was not going to work, but maybe Saber didn't expect it to work.

Following Saber's lead, Lucille decided to do something as well that would most likely not work, but at least scare them off. "Hello there. Pleased to know that you exist. Unlike Saber here, I'm not your friend, but I would like to be. I'll introduce myself first. My name is Lucille, and I am from France. Now, it's your turn." Lucille spoke aloud to the servant who could be anywhere at this specific moment.

 

[Pastor ćhoi]

Master of Killed, red

"Saber, please." Rider said in a lady's voice, a lady's gentle smile plastered on her face. "It was not the command seals, but conscience and loyalty that made me lay down my claim to your french harlot. Are we all not proponents of chivalry? Do we all not serve honorably? My master's terms are my terms, my master's friends are my friends, regardless of how degenerate their pedigree may be." She met Lucille's eyes for a brief moment, and the smile turned cold. If eye contact could do damage, the whore would have been dead a dozen times over.

Eugene Fischer had his unwashed negros. Adolf Hitler had his jews (and more!). Kaiser Wilhelm had his yellow chinks. This Rider of this Red horse? As a general misanthrope, she liked to think she was above favorites, but the cowardly Canadians and the cheese graters were her most cherished punching bags.

But what about the muslims? Who would give love to the muslim assassin that had entered, uninvited, into their war meeting? Rider sensed him, perhaps more clearly than the average servant due to her unique skillset, but he was gone in a flash. He was a flicker in the mind's eye, and then a brief trail, and then nothing again.

Killed. The first real non-'are we there yet?' use of their telepathic link. Her mind's voice was surprisingly steady, with none of the usual edge of mockery to it. It didn't last. Stay close to me, grandma battery. I would advise some alertness, you dull tard. Be ready to depart at a moment's notice. If it comes down to it, I will blow this place and its steadily increasing gathering of degenerate ethnicities -sorry, gaijin- sky high.

"Le gasp. Thank you for the warning, Saber baby. I must have missed it. See? Friends already." She tried, just tried, not to roll her eyes, and mostly succeeded. It was a reflex by this point. "Do we have a hassan here? Don't be insensitive, Sababy. It is a great sin for a muslim to hold even a bottle of alcohol. To suggest he drink it?" Rider shaked her head gravely, smiling all the way. "Why, if we weren't already at war, you probably just started one."

She paused, as if fighting the urge to add one more line, seemed to be winning, then gave up. "I'm over 18. I can drink." She ignored the dubious looks. "I can. I've been in a bar before. They sold alcohol," she added sheepishly.

She readied herself though. She had other weapons aside from heavy artillery.

 

[Phantom Zero]

Ilsesviel von Einzbern: Party Crasher Extraordinaire(?)

Good. So her Servant wasn't some kind of pansy who wanted to win with diplomacy or some other such nonsense. All the better. "Then we march," she declared ambitiously, eyes set on the top of the tower on which the enemy stood before doing just as she had said, crossing the bridge towards the gathering of Servants.

She stopped in her tracks the moment she cleared the bridge.

Wait. No. That was a dumb idea. A very, very unintelligent idea of the highest calibre. What kind of dumbass would storm up to a rooftop full of hostile Servants and Masters without any preparations? A powerful Servant could only do so much before being overwhelmed by superior numbers. Besides, who knew if they all were already allied or something? She shouldn't be getting too far ahead of herself.

Planning. Tactics. Guile. That was what won Grail Wars. Power only mattered until you encountered someone who handily countered what illusion of power you held. A nigh-immortal Greek demigod cut down in a hail of weapons, a giant regenerating Lovecraftian horror destroyed by a sword of promised victory, and so on. It was all about compatibility and leveraging strengths against enemy weaknesses. Information gathering was surely a priority, but she (sort of) had that covered. More or less. Still, taking initiative had plenty of advantages. One being that everyone was running off assumptions - and Lancers did not have a very lucky track record - and that, with her Servant, she should be able to wipe the floor with a good deal of the Servants in one on one, not counting Master or Noble Phantasm intervention. The key was getting them in solo combat, however.

A thought.

"Change of plans, Lancer," Ilse spoke, "We're not heading to the tower. Too many Servants. Too risky. Even if we had the support, I'm not too confident that you'll be able to reliably take out any combination of Rider, Saber, or Berserker if any of the past wars are any indication... Or Archer, but we don't need to worry about them."

She looked behind herself and pointed to the mountain on the horizon. "There's a temple up there, and I recall the feel of a Servant up there. Which makes sense. It has an anti-Spirit Bounded Field, and because of that it's been used quite a few times in previous wars. Mostly by the magically-savvy, like Caster or an experienced Master." She chuckled. "But we aren't scared of some robed fool with your Magic Resistance, are we? And with what I can do, no two-bit Master should pose much of a threat."

She turned on her heel and began to walk towards Ryuudou Temple.

"And who knows, if it's empty maybe we can steal it for ourselves. An anti-Spirit barrier is very useful in this sort of war."

 

[Nevvy]

Berserker looked off into the distance, feeling an exceedingly strong presence approaching. It was a lot stronger than he was and was about as subtle as a tank. He broke off his chat with his master an quietly gave orders for the temple monks to quietly continue about their business as usual before dropping back into astral form and using his mental link with Taka.

"We've got a powerful servant incoming and I don't think that trying to hold them at the gate would be wise," he sent over, "We'll have to deal with this in another fashion."

He honestly couldn't get a good fix on the servant but he knew that a direct fight wouldn't be to their best interests. Rather than fight hard, they just needed to fight start. Before they had erred in allowing Japan to strike the United States before the entirety of Europe had been conquered. This time he would not repeat that mistake. Instead a defensive measure seemed much smarter. While he couldn't necessarily win in a straight fight, he could certainly make it extremely unprofitable to fight here. The negotiations before the previous war that had worked so well then would so too serve him now. Most of all, he needed to get a better read on the master and the servant that were coming and without being seen. In his astral form, it would be much harder to reliably determine his lack of combat prowess. This kind of underhanded thinking rather disgusted him and didn't befit the grand standard of the Aryan race but this time it would have to be done in the name of success.

 

[Artorias]

Assassin, red

Assassin let out a small sigh as he gathered the orders from his Master. So she wanted him to present himself to Rider and Saber within striking distance of Saber's Master? While the plan may work against Saber, the way the childish Rider acted he couldn't help but feel standing so close wouldn't matter to the brat. She would simply attack without thought, but he was given an order and if disobeyed, she might as well use a command seal to put him in place and do what he was assigned with. Shaking his head, his feet carried him slowly, painfully slow towards Saber's Master and it took close to a good minute or two while the quiet ensued on the chilly night. However, when Rider began to speak she mentioned him being muslim. Last time he checked, he was from Japan and knew next to nothing about the Middle-East, except for what he has gathered from his Master.

In a huff, Assassin appeared within a sword distance, and Assassin was fast enough to draw his blade and cut the Master down. However, he would surely die if he performed such a deed or something else might happen. Somehow, he might convince Saber to join him and his Master, or maybe Saber will join Rider and her Master. The Master played such a vital role in this war.

"The famous Saber class would stoop so low to serve Rider? She is nothing more than a child, a spoiled brat that speaks without thought and acts without a conscious. She would surely turn on you the moment your backs were turned to her." Though he talked about betrayal, he was the Assassin class. However, Assassin is known for killing silently and hiding, not betraying someone to kill them.

He slowly moved one hand, making it clear that he was not going to attack the Master and he removed his helmet, his long black hair pooling out and down his shoulders. Rider could tell from his complexion that he was Asian, probably from Japan as he did have a Katana strapped to his back and not a Dao. He kept the helmet underneath his arm and looked between the four and slowly sucked in a breath of fresh air. He was relaying everything that was happening back to Freyja. Why did I have to reveal myself? They would of never found me unless they decided to blow up the building.

"So, where exactly is this wine?" He raised one eyebrow, staying skeptical of the entire ordeal and was ready to run for it if he had to. Maybe if Rider attacked and he moved, she would almost kill or even kill Saber's Master and he could run away. Well, he may stay behind if the fight does go in his favor and trying to kill one of them.

 

[Akashi]

S A B E R, #3366ff

Standing there, he was waiting for some sort of reaction sooner or later, though was ready if anything unexpected would happen. A disappointing sigh escaped his lips, as he gazed over at Rider's Master. "Have a little faith.." Saber stated, before he diverted his attention towards where the third Servant may possibly be. With his back turned against both Rider and her Master, the little blondie decided to speak up.

Saber frowned at the words of Rider, she was one annoying servant. 'The Holy Grail must've run out of spirits...' He thought to himself. Tilting his head backwards, he gazed upon her with his crimson red eyes.

"Do you ever stop... talking?" He rhetorically spoke, without expecting an answer. It was not neccessary. Seconds later, he moved his attention back towards his surroundings. And he was correct in making the right judgment. A voice rang out from the direction he was looking towards. Moments later, the guest finally revealed himself, however, his positioning was quite interesting.

Hearing the words uttered by the third Servant, made a smirk come across his face. Saber stabbed his sword in the ground. His white hair fluttered as he decided to give a simple response. "Well, You're half right.. She is nothing more than a child, but do you really believe I would serve Rider... Assassin? Don't make me laugh.." The identity was not difficult to figure out. He knew that the only one able to conceal their presence to such an extent is none but the Assassin class.

Within a brief moment, Saber's expression was serious, as he decided to make note of Assassin's approach towards his Master. However, he did not grab his sword or got ready to battle. "Assassin.. You're awfully close to my Master... Aren't you?.." He denounced.

Despite the approach by Assassin, and how close he was to Lucille. Saber had complete faith in her. To be able to summon him through the Holy Grail, would only deem the Master worthy enough to have a Servant such as him. "You shouldn't underestimate her... Assassin..."

"And as for your offer.. I'll have to decline.. I abide by my own will, and once a promise for truce has been made, I honor it." Saber referred to what Assassin said, about creating an alliance with him.

"And don't you worry.. I take precautions no matter who I'm allied with, or who I may face." This was not an idle threat made by Saber. He had great intellect and could probably handle a servant such as Assassin and or even Rider at the same time.

The eerie air flowing around the rooftop changed. Saber decided to break out of all the serious-ness around his vicinity. "Since I dont know much about this city... She might know..." He nodded towards Lucille, referring to the wine.

"One more thing Assassin, why don't you invite your Master as well?. It's rude to show up all by yourself." Saber had taken into account that his Master was somewhere around the area. Maybe inside the building, a few floors down, or on the surface level. He did not try to search for her though.