Anna Newton had not yet understood why she was on that island suspended in the sky. She didn't know what was happening. She only knew that she was kidnapped along with her friend Alisa, and she knew that she had to do everything in her power to survive. For this she had summoned the Servant.
Understandably, there was a lot of turmoil in the air. The city, with its very ancient appearance, was like a gigantic labyrinth and the chances of getting lost were high; fighting a war in such a place was really dangerous. Anna knew the term 'Holy Grail War', she had heard of it when she was studying magic, but she had no experience of such a conflict, she had no idea how to fight or what to do to the Master who would challenge her. She actually didn't even know who could challenge her. She was so distressed that she even feared Alisa's betrayal.
"Where are we going?" asked Alisa, who was following Anna.
"I don't know. Everywhere. I don't want to sit still and wait for a Master... this war is... you know, right?"
"Are you worried about that light we saw?"
"Are you not?"
"Of course I am... I've never seen anything like it in my life."
"It's not reassuring."
"I'm sorry—"
"Don't be such a victim... it's not your fault," Anna said, feigning a smile.
Alisa lowered her gaze and assumed a guilty expression, but Anna, even though she had noticed her strange reaction, didn't ask any questions. She didn't want to know anything.
Next to Anna appeared this tall Servant, with long hair and a thick brown beard; the man, with bare chest and a long fur cloak, was holding a steel bow at the end of which seemed to have a sort of curved blade. Anna's Servant was ω Archer.
"I searched the area. There's a strange structure ahead, it doesn't look like the houses in this city,"he said in his deep voice.
"Can you describe it, ω Archer?" Anna asked, intrigued.
"It has a circular shape, has many columns, it seems to be made of stone..."
"A kind of amphitheater... an arena, perhaps? But it's weird..." She paused for a few seconds. "Were there any people? Other Servants, maybe?"
"I haven't seen anyone, but I can sense even now that Servants are moving into this huge city. None of them are in our close vicinity, but there is constant and... confused movement."
"Well, at least we're not the only ones who don't have a clear direction, I was starting to worry."
"There's another thing, Master..."
"What is it about?"
"During the exploration I could notice something unusual concerning that immense obelisk: the luminous object is... unstable." He paused briefly. "It's not easy to explain it, but it is as if it were an improvised artifact. There is something unusual in the magical energy that emanates, it is not easy to notice it if you do not pay particular attention to it."
"Do you think it could explode... or something?" she asked worriedly.
"I doubt it, but I'm not an expert. It's definitely not something divine, but dark... it definitely has demonic origins. I bet there is a hellish beast behind all this and I swear to you on my honor that I'll kill it with these hands of mine."
Then another Servant appeared behind Alisa's back. This was a woman at least two meters tall, she had two horns similar to those of a cattle and her eyes were scarlet. She was α Archer.
"You remind me of my son" she said amused "'Mom, I'll kill this monster! Mom, I will kill this other monster and I will be the savior of the city'. Calm down, ω Archer, we both know you'll be the first to die."
"What?!" he exclaimed in shock. "You, cow-woman, dare to insult my abilities with so much arrogance?!"
"What did you call me?!" she said, arching her eyebrows.
"Cow-woman! Armed cow!"
"You ugly filthy stinking savage! How dare you insult a king's mother?!"
"Tch! I'm a regicide! I don't believe in the powers of kings! Royal families are just fine targets for my arrows," he exclaimed proudly. "The high-sounding titles are like leaves in the wind."
"Ignorant hound! The Sun, which protects all kings as it protected my son, will punish you for this insolence!"
"Never! The sun will be darkened by my Storm!"
"The only storm I see is that of the nonsense that comes out of your stinking mouth!"
"If it isn't the Storm that obscures the sun, then it will be those gigantic boobs you drag along, cow-woman!"
The woman took one of her arrows, which she kept in a large sheath behind her back, and aimed it at his throat.
"Call me that again and I swear I'll kill you."
"A man is not afraid of death," he said with warrior pride.
She cut off a small piece of his beard.
"Nooooooo!" he yelled in despair. "My beautiful beard! How could you? I'll lose all my masculinity!"
"ω Archer, are you okay?" Anna asked as she approached to him.
"My beard..." he said with tears in his eyes and with that tuft of beard on his hands.
As Anna began to console the Servant, Alisa took Archer aside and asked her:
"What do you think we should do?"
"Don't ask me, you have to decide—"
"I know your story, α Archer, I know you have an ability that allows you to see into the future... I'm talking about the Blessing of Anu—"
"It's not that simple, Master," she explained with a smile. "I don't see the future, but I can deduce how certain things will turn out. I admit to being particularly good at deduction, but far be it from me to want to appropriate the title of 'seer'. I'm able to see some things... but others are completely out of focus."
"Okay... um... what if I asked you to give me some suggestions on how to act?"
"Master, what do you think you're doing? Do you think my advice can somehow change the course of destiny? Things always go in one direction and it cannot be otherwise. My son, the greatest king in history, tried to change his destiny and only at the end did he accept the chains that had been imposed on him by the gods."
"No, I can't accept it..." she said regretfully. "I cannot accept being forced to do something, I cannot accept that I have no choice. I can choose—"
"Choice doesn't rule out fate, Master."
"Be that as it may, I have no intention of living with the idea of not being able to change my life. I have lived in chains for too long and I want to be free. You can't come to me and tell me these things as if..."
"As if...?"
Alisa looked at Anna. That beautiful blonde girl who was looking after ω Archer was, in Alisa's eyes, a sad sight, a living tragedy. The homunculus' eyes got wet and α Archer noticed it immediately.
"Master...?"
"I'm sorry... it's just that... I'm sorry for Anna..."
"I don't think I understand you, you speak confusedly."
"We'll talk about it later..." she said in a low voice.
The girls and the Servants started to move again, within a few minutes it was possible to see the arena and Anna ordered ω Archer to take her to a roof in order to better see that amphitheater.
Alisa stayed behind with her Servant and then, realizing that Anna would not hear her, she said:
"Creatures like me are trained to kill, not befriending humans. I was created by the New Order of Nidhogg for the sole purpose of helping Yukiko Kumahira during the Holy Grail War of Yggdrasil. I was sent to the Clock Tower and was assigned the task of eliminating a man named Bradley Jenkins, I had to pretend to be a student to be able to enter and it wasn't easy..."
"And how did you manage to...?"
"I dyed my hair and also put on contact lenses and then had to forge some documents. These are not things you do without proper planning... but even the most perfect plans can fail with nothing." She paused briefly. "Do you know what stopped me from killing Bradley Jenkins?"
Understandably, there was a lot of turmoil in the air. The city, with its very ancient appearance, was like a gigantic labyrinth and the chances of getting lost were high; fighting a war in such a place was really dangerous. Anna knew the term 'Holy Grail War', she had heard of it when she was studying magic, but she had no experience of such a conflict, she had no idea how to fight or what to do to the Master who would challenge her. She actually didn't even know who could challenge her. She was so distressed that she even feared Alisa's betrayal.
"Where are we going?" asked Alisa, who was following Anna.
"I don't know. Everywhere. I don't want to sit still and wait for a Master... this war is... you know, right?"
"Are you worried about that light we saw?"
"Are you not?"
"Of course I am... I've never seen anything like it in my life."
"It's not reassuring."
"I'm sorry—"
"Don't be such a victim... it's not your fault," Anna said, feigning a smile.
Alisa lowered her gaze and assumed a guilty expression, but Anna, even though she had noticed her strange reaction, didn't ask any questions. She didn't want to know anything.
Next to Anna appeared this tall Servant, with long hair and a thick brown beard; the man, with bare chest and a long fur cloak, was holding a steel bow at the end of which seemed to have a sort of curved blade. Anna's Servant was ω Archer.
"I searched the area. There's a strange structure ahead, it doesn't look like the houses in this city,"he said in his deep voice.
"Can you describe it, ω Archer?" Anna asked, intrigued.
"It has a circular shape, has many columns, it seems to be made of stone..."
"A kind of amphitheater... an arena, perhaps? But it's weird..." She paused for a few seconds. "Were there any people? Other Servants, maybe?"
"I haven't seen anyone, but I can sense even now that Servants are moving into this huge city. None of them are in our close vicinity, but there is constant and... confused movement."
"Well, at least we're not the only ones who don't have a clear direction, I was starting to worry."
"There's another thing, Master..."
"What is it about?"
"During the exploration I could notice something unusual concerning that immense obelisk: the luminous object is... unstable." He paused briefly. "It's not easy to explain it, but it is as if it were an improvised artifact. There is something unusual in the magical energy that emanates, it is not easy to notice it if you do not pay particular attention to it."
"Do you think it could explode... or something?" she asked worriedly.
"I doubt it, but I'm not an expert. It's definitely not something divine, but dark... it definitely has demonic origins. I bet there is a hellish beast behind all this and I swear to you on my honor that I'll kill it with these hands of mine."
Then another Servant appeared behind Alisa's back. This was a woman at least two meters tall, she had two horns similar to those of a cattle and her eyes were scarlet. She was α Archer.
"You remind me of my son" she said amused "'Mom, I'll kill this monster! Mom, I will kill this other monster and I will be the savior of the city'. Calm down, ω Archer, we both know you'll be the first to die."
"What?!" he exclaimed in shock. "You, cow-woman, dare to insult my abilities with so much arrogance?!"
"What did you call me?!" she said, arching her eyebrows.
"Cow-woman! Armed cow!"
"You ugly filthy stinking savage! How dare you insult a king's mother?!"
"Tch! I'm a regicide! I don't believe in the powers of kings! Royal families are just fine targets for my arrows," he exclaimed proudly. "The high-sounding titles are like leaves in the wind."
"Ignorant hound! The Sun, which protects all kings as it protected my son, will punish you for this insolence!"
"Never! The sun will be darkened by my Storm!"
"The only storm I see is that of the nonsense that comes out of your stinking mouth!"
"If it isn't the Storm that obscures the sun, then it will be those gigantic boobs you drag along, cow-woman!"
The woman took one of her arrows, which she kept in a large sheath behind her back, and aimed it at his throat.
"Call me that again and I swear I'll kill you."
"A man is not afraid of death," he said with warrior pride.
She cut off a small piece of his beard.
"Nooooooo!" he yelled in despair. "My beautiful beard! How could you? I'll lose all my masculinity!"
"ω Archer, are you okay?" Anna asked as she approached to him.
"My beard..." he said with tears in his eyes and with that tuft of beard on his hands.
As Anna began to console the Servant, Alisa took Archer aside and asked her:
"What do you think we should do?"
"Don't ask me, you have to decide—"
"I know your story, α Archer, I know you have an ability that allows you to see into the future... I'm talking about the Blessing of Anu—"
"It's not that simple, Master," she explained with a smile. "I don't see the future, but I can deduce how certain things will turn out. I admit to being particularly good at deduction, but far be it from me to want to appropriate the title of 'seer'. I'm able to see some things... but others are completely out of focus."
"Okay... um... what if I asked you to give me some suggestions on how to act?"
"Master, what do you think you're doing? Do you think my advice can somehow change the course of destiny? Things always go in one direction and it cannot be otherwise. My son, the greatest king in history, tried to change his destiny and only at the end did he accept the chains that had been imposed on him by the gods."
"No, I can't accept it..." she said regretfully. "I cannot accept being forced to do something, I cannot accept that I have no choice. I can choose—"
"Choice doesn't rule out fate, Master."
"Be that as it may, I have no intention of living with the idea of not being able to change my life. I have lived in chains for too long and I want to be free. You can't come to me and tell me these things as if..."
"As if...?"
Alisa looked at Anna. That beautiful blonde girl who was looking after ω Archer was, in Alisa's eyes, a sad sight, a living tragedy. The homunculus' eyes got wet and α Archer noticed it immediately.
"Master...?"
"I'm sorry... it's just that... I'm sorry for Anna..."
"I don't think I understand you, you speak confusedly."
"We'll talk about it later..." she said in a low voice.
The girls and the Servants started to move again, within a few minutes it was possible to see the arena and Anna ordered ω Archer to take her to a roof in order to better see that amphitheater.
Alisa stayed behind with her Servant and then, realizing that Anna would not hear her, she said:
"Creatures like me are trained to kill, not befriending humans. I was created by the New Order of Nidhogg for the sole purpose of helping Yukiko Kumahira during the Holy Grail War of Yggdrasil. I was sent to the Clock Tower and was assigned the task of eliminating a man named Bradley Jenkins, I had to pretend to be a student to be able to enter and it wasn't easy..."
"And how did you manage to...?"
"I dyed my hair and also put on contact lenses and then had to forge some documents. These are not things you do without proper planning... but even the most perfect plans can fail with nothing." She paused briefly. "Do you know what stopped me from killing Bradley Jenkins?"
The Servant shook her head.
Alisa smiled sadly. "Nothing. I just didn't want to kill him. There was no reason, no emotion... I just didn't want to."
"So what did you do?"
"I certainly couldn't stay there, I had to leave because... well, because Yukiko would've killed me. However, my plan failed because of my roommate, a certain James Jenkins..."
"Was he related to...?"
"He was Bradley's son, yes. One of those that I had to manipulate to get to my goal. He wasn't particularly sharp, but he was curious enough and it was he who discovered my identity..." The girl sighed. "He threatened me. He wanted to let the professors know and I obviously couldn't let that happen and so, without thinking about it, I fought with him and finally pushed him... and he banged his head against the edge of the table... he passed out..." Alisa wept.
"I'm sorry—"
"That night, Yukiko destroyed the Clock Tower. That night, I became the accomplice of the murder of Anna's boyfriend."
Alisa smiled sadly. "Nothing. I just didn't want to kill him. There was no reason, no emotion... I just didn't want to."
"So what did you do?"
"I certainly couldn't stay there, I had to leave because... well, because Yukiko would've killed me. However, my plan failed because of my roommate, a certain James Jenkins..."
"Was he related to...?"
"He was Bradley's son, yes. One of those that I had to manipulate to get to my goal. He wasn't particularly sharp, but he was curious enough and it was he who discovered my identity..." The girl sighed. "He threatened me. He wanted to let the professors know and I obviously couldn't let that happen and so, without thinking about it, I fought with him and finally pushed him... and he banged his head against the edge of the table... he passed out..." Alisa wept.
"I'm sorry—"
"That night, Yukiko destroyed the Clock Tower. That night, I became the accomplice of the murder of Anna's boyfriend."
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| 'The burden of sin' by BikoWolf |
Sooo... there's this thing called Fate/Yggdrasil that you could read, if you want.😕 I mean, if you really want to know the prequel of all this... you can read Fate/Yggdrasil and download the PDF for free. Click here to do it... it will be painless.😎
