Chapter 5

"They're coming." He said, and Atalanta didn't even need to look to see the grin Achilles was wearing.

"They're sitting on the wall. I'd hardly call that coming." She replied.

"That's how it starts. First on the wall, then through the gate, and finally right at us. It was the same at Troy and every other battlefield. What do you see?"

She couldn't argue, however much she might disagree, he'd seen more battlefields than she had. She had fought a fair number of battles, but she didn't have as much experience in combat or war as him. They might have both been Greek heroes, but they'd lived vastly different lives. Despite that she'd been tasked with preventing him from going wild, and while she'd managed to stop that, she hadn't been able to prevent him from spending the last few days trying to bait them out. Apparently, he'd finally succeeded.

"Four just lept down. No weapons so I can't be sure of their class. A few are remaining on the walls, but I can't tell Servant from Master. They've also sent a force of homunculi out the gate, around 100, I can shoot them down from here."

"No. Let them come. It won't save them."

She felt a sudden chill unrelated to Berserker's bloodlust, though that was certainly enough to put her on guard, pass over her, and knew that someone else was scanning the forest. "Enemy Archer's on the walls, looking for us. You've got more experience at war than me, what do you suggest?"

He stopped to think for a minute before growling and saying "Make them come to us. The farther away they are the harder it'll be for that Archer to hit us. When they get close enough I'll attack them, you stay back and provide support."

She could tell it wasn't what he wanted to do. He most likely wanted to rush right at them and engage them now, but at least some part of him seemed to be inclined to thinking and he hadn't. It seemed his unique form of Mad Enhancement was good for something.

Her eyes were drawn back to the trees in front of her by their rustling. She focused, and could vaguely make out three figures approaching. "They're almost here, I'm going to withdraw and attack them from further back."

She bounded off before he could say anything back, and after a few moments he couldn't even see where she was. He could vaguely make out something moving away from him, but not exactly where she was. She truly was an expert huntress.

It was a relief to see another Greek hero too. The rest of his teammates were either too strange or too suspicious for him to form any real bonds with them. Atalanta was similar enough to him terms of mentality and origin that he could see her as a true comrade.

He was distracted from his musings by the arrival of the three below him. A serious looking knight wielding a sword, an angry woman with what seemed to be a bludgeon, and a small girl knight with an oversized lance.

"Let me guess: Saber, Berserker, and Rider?" he said casually. They were almost certain that Lancer was Vlad III and none of the servants before him looked anywhere near threatening enough to be him. They also wouldn't risk a Caster or Assassin in direct combat, and according to Atalanta Archer was likely on the castle wall. Which left only three classes the servants before him could be.1

Saber nodded in response, and Berserker made what he assumed was a noise of affirmation, while Rider said "Yup! How'd you know?"

"Secret. And those aren't something you're supposed to share on the battlefield. Speaking of secrets is this all of you? If you want time I can let you go back and get the rest."

That he thought they would need all of them went unspoken. It seemed to irritate Berserker and Saber, though, as the two of them immediately took more offensive stances. Rider didn't seem bothered by it though replying "Kind of full of yourself aren't you?"

Berserkers only reply was a feral grin before he launched his first strike at Saber.

The Servant hadn't expected the attack to come with such speed, Berserker could tell that much. He was able to get his blade up, more out of instinct than any actual plan, in an imperfect parry that deflected Berserker's charge but prevented him from countering it. Fortunately for Saber there were two other servants who had no such handicap and had immediately followed up with their attacks.

He narrowly dodged the club the other Berserker swung and the lance Rider had stabbed at him with, and lashed out at the attacking Rider with a kick that sent the servant flying through several trees.

Saber had taken the moment to transition into a overhead swing, one that Berserker let slide harmlessly off his shoulder before returning a thrust that did the same off Saber's side.

That wasn't what he'd been expecting. His strength combined with his spears weight should have pierced almost any armor. Which meant that armor was a Noble Phantasm, or that there was something special about the Servant himself. The glowing glyph on Saber's chest lead him to believe it was the later, but it never hurt to be sure.

He leapt back to disengage, only to have to block as the enemy Berserker swung that giant mace at him again. He could see the surprise in her eyes that she hadn't crushed him, and before she could react he slammed the butt of his spear into her chest and launch her back. It wasn't out of mercy that he'd used the back of the spear, he hadn't been able to block properly and had been out of position to counter. It didn't look like she'd be rejoining the fight anytime soon though, she'd doubled over and seemed to be winded. Didn't matter how strong you were if a blow caught you wrong, it was impossible to fight if you couldn't get air. He started to turn back to Saber as he said

"Now then, it's –" He was cut off by his sudden need to dodge again. Was he doomed to get perpetually attacked while his guard was down? Saber had taken the moment he'd used to deal with Berserker of Black to close the distance and attack.

He came at Rider with short, chopping blows that were hard to deflect with his spear. Whoever this Saber was, he was no amateur at fighting spearmen. He'd closed the distance to where Berserker's spear couldn't get up to full speed and power, and was actively resisting Berserker's best efforts to create the necessary distance for that. He was learning about Saber as they fought, however. The Servant's style was more like a common soldier's than Achilles' own heroic style. Full of short, harsh cuts aimed to dismember and weaken a foe, rather than simply targeting the opponent's vitals.

It would have been effective against another foe, but to Achilles it was just boring. Saber was certainly a master of his style, but it lacked any of the sophistication he'd been hoping for in a battle with other heroes. Which meant it was time to stop playing around. Saber lacked the attribute necessary to hurt him, Berserker already knew that, so rather than countering he planted himself let the next blow Saber launched crash into his side, and returned it with a thrust with all of his might that sent Saber flying back, but ultimately failed to wound the Servant.

That confirmed it then, he couldn't hurt Saber. The Servant had a type of protection similar to his own.

He leaned on his spear as Saber recovered and couldn't help but sigh "Well this won't get us anywhere."

Saber remained silent in the face of his statement and so Berserker continued "You're a surly one. That one might be weak but at least he can be bothered to talk." He said gesturing to the recently returned Rider of Black. He ignored the angry "Hey!" the servant sent back in protest as he continued. "People who forget to be happy here forget how to in Elysium you know. You should work to correct that…"

Saber's only reply was stony silence and a deepening of his frown that Berserker took as disagreement. It didn't matter. He'd seen dozens of serious fools like Saber before, and it hadn't made them any stronger in the end. All it had done was give him a laugh at how they'd lived their lives, as though by trading away their joy they'd get some reward for it, only to die just the same in the end. Just like this one would.

"…before you die, you know?" He finished as the arrow flew past him at what the boom following it informed him was slightly over the speed of sound. It hit Saber dead on, and the look of shock on his face was more than worth it. The fool flew back through half a dozen trees and into a clearing, though Berserker doubted he was actually injured, before falling to the ground stunned. Berserker had to work to prevent himself from laughing, but couldn't hide the grin that came to his face as he stalked toward the downed Servant.

Berserker watched as Rider and Berserker of Black moved to guard their downed comrade. He stopped facing them, and asked with the same grin "How long do think it'll take Melas over there to recover? Ten seconds? Twenty? Do you think it'll be enough time to get both of you, or just one?"

They both tensed up, and Berserker made his decision. The enemy Berserker was less skilled than the Rider, she wouldn't be able to block his spear, and even if she had he doubted she had the speed to react. He could take her out in an instant before turning to finish the Rider. Two servants in one night wouldn't be too bad.

The second he took to make his decision cost him any chance of attacking, however, as his attention was immediately drawn to the glowing green light from where Saber had fallen earlier. He turned to see the Servant preparing his Noble Phantasm and didn't even try to hide his laughter this time.

Saber couldn't hurt him and judging by the grimace on the Servant's face he knew it too. Which meant his idiot of a master had ordered him to against Saber's better judgement. He kept on laughing as Saber began to call the Noble Phantasm name.

Vlad raced toward the battlefield, hoping he wasn't too late.

He'd been keeping pace with homunculi even though he was on the golem horse Caster had created for him, focusing on expanding Kazikli Bey as they advanced toward the enemy servants. The battle was occurring at the edges of the territory he'd claimed so far, as was the plan. Earlier they'd "accidentally" revealed the limits of his territory to the Servant's in the forest when they'd approached. Since then he'd worked to expand his territory in that direction and it now encompassed where the battle was taking place, laying the beginning of their trap.

It was to be their ultimate advantage once he made it to the field. The homunculi would jump the Berserker, while he impaled him with the spears he wouldn't see coming from the ground. The only downside was that he needed to be close to do it, his Noble Phantasm's prana cost rose exponentially the farther away Vlad was and he couldn't accurately aim it without line of sight. He could put it in a general area certainly, but he couldn't aim with any accuracy. There was just as large a chance that he blew everything if he tried to attack the enemy from this range.

He'd left the homunculi behind in his haste, but he could still make out the white dots that indicated they were following him. They still had a chance if they could make it on time. Vlad sent a prayer to the Lord as the light changed from a brilliant green to shades of dark blue and orange, like a sunset in the middle of the night.

The attack wouldn't work, and worse it would reveal Saber's identity. Chiron had warned his Master of Berserker's invulnerability a moment before Saber had invoked his Noble Phantasm, and Darnic had run off a moment later to stop Gordes before it was too late. Saber seemed to be trying to hold out, but not even he could ignore a command seal for long. Lancer wished there had been time for him to learn the enemy Berserker's name, but with Darnic gone he could no longer communicate with Archer through their link. He was effectively moving blind. Archer would still be able to relay information to Berserker and Rider though, who's masters also remained on the wall, and he had no doubt that Archer would take full advantage of that. It was just a matter of Darnic reaching Gordes in time. Lancer sent another prayer, even though he didn't exactly like praying like this, one did not pray only for what one needed after all. It seemed his prayer was answered as he felt a rush of rage from Darnic a moment later.

He sent a prayer of thanks as the light faded, and raced on.

Fran knew they were in a bad position. Saber's Noble Phantasm had been stopped, and even through her Mad Enhancement Berserker knew that was a good thing. Saber's Noble Phantasm was a secret for a reason, and revealing it pointlessly wouldn't help, no matter what Saber's Master thought. She was happy she didn't have that one as her Master.

Unfortunately, Saber had returned to spiritual form, leaving Rider and herself to fend for themselves against Berserker and Archer. Lancer would be there shortly according to her master, but they would still need to hold out until he arrived. Achilles was a hero far beyond the two of them, as much as she hated to admit it. She lacked what was necessary to harm him, not that she was sure she'd be able to win even if she had been able to hurt him. Achilles was a hero who didn't need Mad Enhancement to fight, and he didn't seem to suffer any effects from it either.

She hated Berserker of Red. She had to have Mad Enhancement to be able to fight against him at all, and had to suffer from its effects for even her small stat boosts. Forming words was hard, and her mind seemed to go slower when she thought about anything not related to combat or anger. Despite her Master's kindness and skill at communicating with her she still wanted to be able to talk to him. Being a Berserker made her feel like she had at her lowest, angry and hateful at everything, and she hated that. And she hated the other Berserker for not having to suffer from it.

He turned to her with that infuriating grin and said something she was sure was condescending. She couldn't hear over the anger thrumming through her head. She readied her Blasted Tree of Crucifixion, she would detonate it at full power, the explosion might hit Berserker in a weak point or do some damage that a sword couldn't. She'd be dead either way if she just waited for him to attack.

Fran, when Archer attacks Berserker run past him and go after Archer. Don't stop, even if she attacks you.

Her anger melted away partially as her Master, Caules, voice ran through her head. At least enough for her to recognize what he said and react to it. She sent a feeling of approval a moment later, it was easier than thinking out the full thought, and grinned as an arrow appeared in Berserker of the Red's shoulder.

She took a level of glee she knew she shouldn't have from the shocked look on his face as she rocketed past him, using her Galvanism to speed her charge. She still remembered where the arrow from earlier had been shot from, and ran toward it. She was rewarded a moment later as she got a glimpse of the enemy Archer in the trees. Her green and black dress and hair allowed her to blend in, but there was no missing the reflection of the full moon in her savage eyes, or the void that was her bow amongst the dark blue and greens of the night.

She watched as Archer of Red knocked an arrow and aimed at her. She didn't slow a bit but she did divert some of the prana she was holding into electricity in her mace. Archer fired, and she prepared to release the electricity to destroy it or disrupt its flight, only to watch as the arrow was shot out of the air by another arrow from behind her. She could see the shock, followed quickly by anger, as the enemy Archer realized what had happened. She clamped down on it a second later and almost before Berserker could react three more arrows had been knocked and loosed. Berserker swatted the one aimed at her head away, and simply ignored the other two. No systems were seriously compromised, and she shut down the pain receptors as soon as she felt the arrows pierce her chest and leg.

She had almost gotten close enough to attack when Archer of the Red shot passed her, headed toward where they'd been fighting. Berserker tried to turn, but she'd been going at full speed. Simply reversing her momentum wasn't an option either, with the arrow near her knee it was likely she'd damage something if she tried to pivot on it. She slowed down as quickly as she could without breaking anything and charged after Archer of the Red.

Astolfo knew something was deeply wrong with the enemy Berserker, and given that he was saying that, he knew that meant something.

No enemy should look like that as he was repeatedly pinned down and shot with arrows from the castle. Chir-, no Archer truly was amazing. Berserker had been so strong Astolfo hadn't quite known how to approach him. He couldn't reveal his Noble Phantasm too early, as they needed it when Vlad arrived, but he wasn't as skilled with his sword. Maybe he could have tried to hit him with the book?

Astolfo was drawn out of his musings by Berserker's insane laughter. He's having way too much fun with this, he couldn't help but think. But then Berserker of Black had always looked like he'd been having fun, even when he'd been pressed by Saber. Fran could really stand to take some lessons from him. His concerns didn't matter though, he thought as he let them drift away, they'd be attacking as soon as Vlad arrived.

Which he obligingly did a moment later, dashing out of the forest on his horse. Despite what Astolfo assumed was the rush he'd been in to get here the Servant barely looked disturbed. He looked at Astolfo and nodded before declaring. "Berserker."

The Servant turned to face Vlad and Astoflo, and Archer politely stopped shooting at Berserker to allow him to answer Vlad's challenge. Berserker looked at the King before saying "So you're the Lancer I've been hearing so much about, Dracula right?"

Berserker of the Red should not have done that, Astolfo knew. Even under the full moon and through his Evaporation of Sanity he still knew not to call Vlad Dracula. He very much did not like that name, though if Astolfo had gone down in history as a monster under a different name he didn't image he'd like it very much either. Fortunately, he was much too cute for that to happen anyway.

Vlad did not look cute at the moment, his demeanor hadn't changed much, but his eyes seemed narrower and Astolfo could see the rage behind them at being called that name. Vlad raised his arm and said only two words in reply.

Kazikli Bey.

Spikes erupted from the ground. Berserker was somehow able to dodge them, leaping in the air to avoid impalement. Fortunately, that left him vulnerable to Astolfo's lance. He shot up like a lightning bolt, headed right at the enemy Servant. At the last moment Berserker somehow managed to dodge, though the movement seemed almost inhuman, and brought his spear around to slam Astolfo into the ground. Again. At least he'd hit him on the side this time rather than the stomach.

Before Astolfo could rise for round three, he saw a mass of white shapes jump at the landing Berserker, that he assumed were the homunculi they'd brought with them. Vlad was ready, and Astolfo could see the spikes forming in the ground to rise up and impale, or at least impede, the Servant.

What he hadn't expected was the midnight blue arrow that sprouted from Vlad's outstreached hand as he raised it to block its target, his head. He also watched as another arrow shot down one Chiron had fired that was aimed at the enemy Berserker. It seemed that the enemy Archer had rejoined the fight. He hoped that didn't mean anything had happened to Fran.

A moment to land was all Berserker needed. He set himself and stepped at the charging homunculi.

No! was all he could think as Rider cut them down mercilessly. They might not have been made the same way, but as the Homunculus he'd rescued showed, they were still people.

Any regard Astolfo had had for Berserker faded as he cut through the homunculi. They might as well have not even been there, for all it slowed Berserker. He'd crossed through them in under a second, but at least a third of them fell to the ground in pieces from his charge. Berserker's orange shirt and green hair were splashed with blood from the damage he'd wrought, and the homunculi froze as he turned and smiled at them again.

Even if was Achilles, as his Master had told him, what kind of hero would charge through a crowd that couldn't fight back like that when there were other targets who could? Targeting the weakest point wasn't knightly at all, and certainly not anything fitting of a hero.

Astolfo was already starting to charge at Berserker. He would not make another pass through the homunculi, Astolfo swore that on his name as a Paladin of Charlemange.

It never came to that, however, as the enemy Archer called out "We need to retreat! We've got enough information!" It isn't worth our lives went unspoken but understood. It seemed she no longer liked their odds. The enemy Berserker looked like he wanted to fight longer but clicked his tongue and shot off without saying anything a moment later. In response the entire forest around them blossomed in spikes from Vlad's Noble Phantasm, but he didn't seem to have hit anything and they heard nothing more from either Servant of the Red. Fran came in a moment later shouting with rage, but quieted down when she saw that only the Servants of Black were still around. She was still seething though, he could see that in her eyes.

All of them were in a way. The Berserker and Archer had almost made fools of them, they'd lost thirty homunculi, and gained nothing but the knowledge of Berserker's identity, something they could have gotten from Chiron anyway. They may not have been his homunculus, but they still reminded Astoflo of the one in his room, and he wouldn't let Berserker get away with treating them like they were nothing. The same went for all the servant's he'd belittled during the battle.

Thinking on his homunculus, now might be the perfect time to smuggle him out. Everyone would be distracted from the battle and there was bound to be some confusion with all the homunculi lost tonight. There deaths were still terrible, but hopefully he could get some good out of them.

Astolfo excused himself from the scene, hoping he could get at least something good out of tonight.

Nothing good had come out of tonight, Darnic thought. Their servants had been roundly beaten by a Berserker that could apparently talk and think, they hadn't captured the Berserker like they'd planned to, and Gordes Musik Yggdmillenia had managed to waste two command seals on their most powerful servant.

The fool sat before him with his head down in shame, as it should be. Darnic had thought the mage would do better, being from a respected family and having quality magic circuits, but he'd forgotten that a good mage didn't always have good sense. A lesson he'd seen play out multiple times in the past century, but never more clearly than tonight.

Two command seals! And it was still a better trade than having Saber's identity discovered. The servant himself had reported that he didn't think that his identity had been discovered, but it never hurt to be careful. He would need to post a guard on Saber, one to watch his back at all times. Of the Servants available only Archer and Rider were viable choices. Lancer, Caster, and Berserker weren't suited the task and Assassin had yet to appear. They'd need Archer to command and train troops so he was out. Which meant leaving the protection of their most important Servant in the hands of their most flakey.

Lovely.

Darnic was interrupted by the arrival of Roche Frain Yggdmillenia, the Master of Caster. The young boy seemed to be out of breath having run here.

"Master…said…to tell you…. Riders...escaping with the homunculus." He panted out.

Darnic had to pause for a moment to make sure he'd heard that right. That the boy would call his Servant Master wasn't strange, as Roche had basically apprenticed himself to his Servant as soon as he'd summoned it. Avicebron was a Master at making golems and the entire focus of Roche's families line of magecraft lay in golem construction, that their relationship would be inverted only made sense in a way.

That Rider would take an escaped homunculus was the insane part. What would have compelled the Servant to do such a thing. Had his Evaporation of Sanity affected him that badly?

"Is there anything significant about this homunculus?" Darnic asked after a pause. He had no interest in dealing with a minor problem involving homunculi tonight if he didn't have to.

"Yeah. He thinks it can function as the core."

Darnic sighed. That did make the homunculus rather important. Unfortunately, he didn't feel like doing anything to sort out the problem. There was only so much he could take in one night. He did need to act, however. Half of their Servants were still returning to the castle, the only ones remaining were Archer, Caster and Saber. Archer had other priorities and Caster clearly had no interest in collecting it himself or he wouldn't have sent Roche. Which left only one person.

"Gordes, take Saber recover the homunculus. And do try not to mess up this time, we need all of the participants alive."

Gordes glared at him clearly seething at the insult and at having been given a task he considered below his level. Darnic disagreed. Right now Gordes level was at incompetent child, and Darnic would treat him like one until he proved otherwise. Darnic glared back and Gordes backed down. He gestured for Saber to follow and stormed out of the room. Roche left in a much better mood a few moments later, after giving Darnic a casual bow.

Darnic went for something for his aching head, he somehow doubted he would get much relief in the long term though, his subordinates were proving far more inept than he'd thought they'd be. He couldn't help but wonder if this was this how Vlad had felt defending his kingdom.

Astolfo's plan was going even better than he'd thought it would. They'd made it out of the castle safely, though not undetected. It would still take a while for Caster to send any kind of force that could actually impede Astolfo, and he had no interest in waiting around long enough to allow him to form one. His book had gotten them out of the castle and they were currently going down a mountain trail.

The homunculus might have been a little wobbly, but that was to be expected, he hadn't been walking for very long. Or doing anything for very long, really. It didn't matter, all Astolfo needed to do was get the homunculus to a town, and then everything would be fine. If he couldn't walk all the way than Astolfo would simply carry him. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to want to be carried, something he suspected was a side effect of leaving him alone with Chiron for too long.

He was about to ask again if the homunculus needed to be carried when he ran right into his back a moment later. The reason for it became obvious a moment later when leaned around the homunculus. Saber and his master were standing in front of them, blocking the path. Astolfo stepped in front of the homunculus as Gordes started to walk forward, Saber following dutifully behind.

He couldn't help but sigh "Are you sure you're not keeping a secret or two from me? You're not a Servant or something are you?" The homunculus shook his head in his usual adorably serious way, and Astolfo turned back to face Saber and his Master. It didn't seem they'd appreciated the joke much.

He could hear the annoyance in Gordes voice as he said "We cannot allow that homunculus to escape. Rider, remove yourself."

"Nope." He replied without even bothering to consider it.

That didn't seem to do anything for Gordes temper. He was trying to hide it, but Astolfo could still see the man gnashing his teeth. "Saber, restrain Rider. You can do that much, can't you?"

"Wha-" was all Astolfo managed to get out before Saber pulled him away from the Homunculus and slammed him into a tree. Gordes rushed over and grabbed the homunculus roughly by the arm, which seemed to sap what little strength the homunculus had left, and he collapsed on the ground.

Gordes cursed at the fallen form of the Homunculus, muttering something about how the task was beneath him, as he reached down to grab him again. As he hauled the homunculus to his feet he spoke, as though it would somehow convince the homunculus, "You have troubled me enough… Caster is going to grind you down and use you for a golem. You should be thankful to him! He'll turn that frail body of yours into one of stone."

It wasn't that the homunculus was convinced, but that he was simply tired. Even at a distance and with Saber in his way he could see that. It didn't mean it was a reason to give up though. Even if you were tired it didn't mean you stopped fighting, it just meant that you had to fight even harder.

"You fool! What are your thinking?! Don't hesitate! Don't give up! You want to live, don't you? You said you don't want to die! So keep trying until your last breath! You have that right! No matter what anybody else says—I, Astolfo, will accept you!

Gordes turned and shouted something back, but Astolfo ignored him, they weren't words worth listening to. Instead he focused on the homunculus, and saw the spark of determination light up in his eyes. He saw the magic circuits in the homunculus' arm light up, and Saber's master's reaction of shock. Unfortunately, that was the worst that happened to the man, as his arm turned to metal a moment later, and blunted the worst of the attack.

He could see the fury coursing through Gordes face at the homunculus' defiance, a fury that seemed to be increasing by the moment. He finally broke kicking the homunculus as he shouted "You would try to kill me?! A homunculus?! Kill me?! Never! Never, never, never...!"

Astolfo struggled even harder to escape as Gordes attacked, but he was simply too weak to overpower Saber. He might have been faster and have more Noble Phantasms, but pinned by Saber he had no way to use his advantages. His only hope was to convince the Servant that he was wrong.

"Stop him, Saber! Stop your Master! Quickly...!"

Saber remained silent. But Astolfo wouldn't give up so easily. He gazed directly into Saber's eyes and shouted.

"We took form in this world to have our wishes granted... but that doesn't mean we can just accept anything that happens! Have you forgotten how to be a hero?! I haven't! I am Servant Rider... but I was Charlemagne's paladin, Astolfo! And I won't abandon him! I won't!"

Saber's hand twitched.

He was failing, again.

This wasn't why he'd reincarnated in this war. His wish wasn't to live again to just watch the same things happen over and over and over again. It wasn't to ignore his own will and sense of justice to follow what someone else wanted. And he had no desire to sacrifice everything he was for others again.

He made a good soldier, Siegfried reflected, but a poor hero.

But it doesn't have to stay that way. he thought as he let Rider fall as he walked toward his master. He pulled him away from the homunculus he'd still been kicking on the ground, saying "Stop, Master."

His Master turned back to him with a look of shocked disbelief as Rider ran past him to the downed homunculus. "What did you say, Saber?"

Things weren't off to a good start if past experience told Siegfried anything, but it was still worth a try. "I said, stop. We should heal him, and let him go."

"What are you saying?" his Master asked him with a blank look on his face. It seemed to take him a moment to even process the request, before he schooled his expression and replied.

"Do not utter such nonsense, Saber... why must we heal and release it?"

If his Master needed the reason explained then Siegfried had no doubt he would never understand it. Which meant that appealing to him with the true reason would be pointless. Beside that his real reason was rather selfish, and while his Master would understand that, he would be unlikely to accept it. For the sake of their relationship, however, he would try it.

"I appeal to your good nature, Master. It would not disadvantage us greatly to grant him salvation."

"Enough. Just be quiet."

His outward expression didn't change, but inwardly he could feel his small hopes falling. "Master..."

"Shut up! Shut up shut up shut up! You're my Servant, aren't you? So follow my orders! A mere familiar is not entitled to give me any opinions! Just shut up and do what I tell you to do!"

He could see the hatred burning in his Master's eyes, and could understand it somewhat. He'd seen the same look on some of the other noble's faces from the court when they'd been slighted by one they considered beneath them. He'd seen it when he'd have to tell a tale from the battlefield that outshone that of another noble at party.

Why is one such as this, a mere extension of the King's will, greater than I? Even if he is a prince, one who does menial tasks for the King and us nobles should know his place!

They hadn't been bad people, merely blinded by pride and upbringing. Even though he knew the answer, for their sake he asked. "Will you not save him?"

"I told you to shut...!"

He sunk his fist in Gordes chest without even waiting for his whole answer, he'd heard enough. Siegfried wouldn't back down from this and it was clear his Master was lost in his own pride. If he waited much longer his Master might have used his last command seal, he'd seen too many of the men from those conversations make a terrible mistake in the next battle owing to a need to over compensate. Without even waiting for his unconscious Master to hit the ground he turned his back on him and looked straight at Rider, holding the hand of the homunculus.

"Saber...?"

He could tell the damage was fatal. The homunculus' chest was caved in and he barely seemed to be breathing. His heart was likely crushed, the homunculus was far too fragile for what his Master had done.

He was too late realizing what he'd been doing again. The homunculus couldn't be saved, not without replacing his heart entirely, and Siegfried doubted even Chiron had the knowledge for that. It was all so pointless to. They'd lost the homunculus for a pointless fit of pride from a low-level mission over the core for…a… homunculus.

Homunculi don't have hearts. They have cores.

Just like Servants.

Perhaps all wasn't lost after all.

Without answering Rider's call, he approached the two of them while dispelling his woven plates, sword, and even armor, baring his chest.

He knelt before the dying homunculus as Rider glared at him.

"It's too late... it's too late, damn it! Why did it take you so long?! We could have stopped that idiot of a Master before he did anything!"

Rider was right to feel that way, he should have stopped his master long before things had gotten this far. If he had acted earlier what was about to follow might not have been necessary. He could only nod sadly in response.

"Yes... you are right. Yet again, I have strayed onto the wrong path, because of my doubts I've allowed things to reach the worst possible conclusion."

It truly was no different from then... he had thought that by his obedience and sacrifice things would reach their proper end.

He had always made the wrong decisions at critical moments. Bound to his own desires, he'd tried to overlook the weak who cowered before him. He hadn't sought salvation for himself—so he ignored the silent cries of those who had. Such cruelty and callousness weren't the things he'd striven for.

Why had he repeated those same mistakes even in a second life? Saber's heart tightened in remorse and self-hatred.

"However, there is still a chance. It is not over yet."

"It's impossible, even I know that!" Rider snapped back without looking away. It took Rider a moment to turn around in with violence in his eyes and a clenched fist, when he did he froze as soon as he saw what he was doing.

"Wha...?!" he heard the Servant try to start. He supposed he would have been shocked too. It wasn't every day you saw a person ripping into their own chest. It was the only way to reliably get to his core without damaging it. Using Balmung he might have damaged it or one of the prana path's leading to it, and he had no idea how it would interact with his Armor of Fafnir. Which meant it had to be done by hand. His armor of Fafnir would ignore his own body and his gauntleted fingers helped him to dig into his chest.

It hurt more than he'd imagined, made what was one of the most unpleasant noises he'd ever heard, and was leading to fountains of blood pouring from his chest, but he knew it was what he had to do, and so he endured it.

Rider snapped out of the daze he'd been in as he asked "What, are you...?"

"Perhaps this is not enough to atone for my sins. In fact, I may simply be burdening him with the same ignoble fate and untimely end as mine. But... this life is something he deserves, and is mine to offer."

He finally reached his heart and yanked it out quickly. It was redder than he imagined it would it be, but it still beat strongly, yet to realize it had been removed. He quickly lifted the homunculus and forced him to swallow it. It may have been grotesque, but it wasn't without reason.

While giving he and his master a tour of the lab he'd set up Caster had explained the combat function of each homunculus. His Master had gone on it to see how the homunculi he'd suggested and helped create had been enhanced by Caster. During the tour Caster had explained how each homunculus was able to ingest the core of another to recover its own. A method to allow a homunculus with a damaged core to get some use out of another dead or heavily injured comrade who could no longer fight. Caster truly was a master at golem and homunculus creation, Siegfried had to admit, despite his personal dislike for the measure.

He doubted that Caster had ever imagined a Servant making use of the feature, though.

It would cost him his own life in exchange, but it was more than worth it. He knew that as he felt the homunculus' heart start beating again, and his very form seemed to change in response to the new core.

"Why... why did you...?" Rider asked, dumbstruck.

Siegfried smiled back at him softly as he replied. "Thank you, Rider. I had almost lost sight of my goal."

He felt his feet begin to turn into golden particles. The loss of one of his cores meant that he could no longer remain in this world, but he felt strangely at peace in a way he hadn't in his first death. His death this time was of his own choosing, and while it may have save another, it hadn't simply been because someone had declared it right. It was his choice, decided by his sense of justice.

"No, Saber... you can't! Saber! Don't leave!"

Rider yelled at him with a mix of disbelief, grief, and anger on his face. As he trembled and held back tears, he couldn't help but think Rider looked for all the world like a lovely maiden. The ones who had fought beside him must have done all they could to impress him...

To consider such trifling things even in such a state... I must be hardier a fool than I had realized.

He couldn't help but smile a bit at that.

"Why did you do it...?"

Despite the pain in Rider's voice, he had no intent to explain his motives. How could someone as pure as Rider understand his agony? Rider had always done what he'd thought best, how could he understand the will of someone who had only ever followed what others thought he should do?

However, there was one thing that he was certain of, he thought as he faded away.

"Yes... this, is a good end..."

"You're alive... yes... thank you... thank you, thank you...!" was the first thing the Homunculus heard as he returned to consciousness. He felt Rider rubbing his face on his, and the tears that were cascading down his cheeks.

"Ahh..." was all he could get out. His mouth tasted like iron and it was hard to talk as he tried to swallow the liquid that was in it.

Rider seemed overjoyed at it, however, and eagerly exclaimed.

"Are you all right?! You are, aren't you?! Can you stand? All right, good! Now you can..."

Rider cut off abruptly and as the homunculus looked at himself it was easy to see why.

"What... happened to me?"

He raised his upper body off the ground, with a strength his arms had never had before as he marveled at the changes to his body. It seemed he had undergone a rather unique transformation.

"This was my garden in ages past, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. It's been too long since I last saw them. Well, what do you make of it, Master?"

Semiramis delighted in Shiro's obvious wonder at her Hanging Gardens of Babylon. It truly was a wondrous construct, a majestic floating castle with the greatest plants from every nation hanging over it. It was almost invincible as a weapon and inspired awe in all who saw it.

Much like me, now that I think about it. She thought with a giggle. It seemed her master agreed as he replied saying.

"Wonderful. I trust my requests were met?"

The Garden can meet all of our needs and more, my Master.

"But of course, my Master, let us activate the Garden as soon as Berserker and Archer return. Those dismal Servants of Black will certainly lose their wits when they witness this!" she couldn't help but add.

"Thank you. This is a golden opportunity for us, now that the Saber of Black has vanished due to some unforeseen trouble. No doubt the Rider on our side will move in as well. It will be the decisive battle, the first and final conflict of the Great Grail War."

Despite setbacks to their plan on multiple levels, including Ruler's escape, the lack of a clash between Saber and Rider, and an all-out attack by the Black Servants forcing them back things were still going well. The Black faction had lost their Saber through what seemed to be internal strife, evening the playing field greatly and costing them one of their best Servants.

Now both sides will lack a Saber, I wonder if that could happen in any other War like this. Though I doubt so many exceptional Servants would be summoned in any other War, let alone a Great Grail War. That our Saber is expendable is a testament to how powerful the rest of our Servants are, other than Caster that is, but I more than make up for his deficiencies. I'm beginning to think that the Saber class is a bit overrated.

She was drawn back to the conversation as she heard her class being called. A part of her wished it was her true name, but that was one she quickly clamped down on.

"Let us go, Assassin. I won't let that tragedy happen again, the Greater Grail will be ours." Shiro said with a look of pure determination.

She couldn't help but smile and agree. Together they would be more than powerful enough to bring the Black faction to their knees.

And then they would have the Grail all to themselves.

Berserker of the Red

Achilles, The Greatest Hero of the Trojan War

STR: A

END: A

AGL: A+

MGI: C

LCK: D

NP A+

Noble Phantasms:

Dromeus Kometes, Comet Form A+

Andreias Amarantos, Amaranth of the Brave: B

Diatrekhon Aster Lonkhe, Spear-Tip of the Star Traversing the Skies: B+

One of the Greatest Greek Heroes, summoned at this prime. Being summoned as a Berserker in the Great Grail War has modified his skills, as his Berserker form is from when he fought in the Trojan War. Achilles was driven into a kind of Madness after the death of his companion, Patroclus, and that moment is what his Berserker form would normally represent. The similarities between the clashes of heroes in the Trojan War and Great Grail War is extraordinary, and has warped Achilles nature as a Berserker. He retains his abnormal speed, and has made gains in his experience with fighting other heroes as a result of his battles with Hector and his experiences with Odysseus. He is both stronger and smarter than he would normally be as a Rider or Lancer, though he is much more eager for a fight.

Class Skills:

Mad Enhancement: ?

The Great Grail War has warped Achilles Mad Enhancement Skill, making it a reenactment of his legend. Achilles went what can only be described as mad during the Trojan War after slaying Hector, parading his corpse around in a way unfit for a hero of almost any age. In an ordinary war he would simply have a Mad Enhancement Rank of around E, making him more blood thirsty and war like, though there is a chance that should a master with a close bond die it would immediately increase to A as he sought revenge.

In the Great Grail War, however, the way his Mad Enhancement works has changed. Through spending time with the other Servants and Masters Achilles will doubtless find a "companion" to rely on. War drives men closer together, and Achilles personality makes it especially easy to form these bonds. While Achilles companion is alive, his Mad Enhancement will have only minor affects, such as making him more likely to fight or seek battles. If the companion dies, however, then Achilles will be driven into a frenzy, relentlessly pursuing the one who killed his companion regardless of the situation. This rampage will not stop after they are dead, and will only end once Achilles is slain.

Magic Resistance: D

Being the child of a goddess grants Achilles minor Magic Resistance. The rank is irrelevant while his Andrieas Amarantos is active, as it will negate all attacks that attempt to affect him. If it is lost, however, than Achilles must be wary of even low level magic attacks.

Personal Skills

Battle Continuation: A

Affection of the Goddess: D

His rank of Affection of the Goddess has dropped due to his conduct in the Trojan War. Many of the Gods frowned on his behavior after killing Hector, and Thetis blessing is no longer as strong as it was, counter acted by the ill will of the other Gods.

Bravery: A

Divinity: C

Tactics: E

Achilles time with Odysseus and the other commanders of the Greek forces has taught him the basics of tactics. While insufficient to lead an army, Achilles is more likely to recognize traps and faints and other strategies being employed. This skill is sealed, however, if he enters into his frenzied state.

AN:

So we get to the first battle scene and the end of the first volume. Achilles shows off his stuff as a Berserker and Seigfried dies, though Sieg gets to live now. I'm a lot happier with how this Chapter went than the last one, expect to see more of scenes playing out from a single perspective going forward. It's more interesting when we can only see from one view point, rather than switching back and forth between them. It also makes it so I can retread scenes from the novel, but from a different perspective, making them fresher and interesting to reread.

Some of you may have noticed I've changed how Master Servant communication works. For reason that are never fully laid out, servants and masters who aren't paired can suddenly communicate with each other in Apocrypha. It makes no sense and is always played for convenience in the light novel, such as Chiron talking to Fran about going after Atalanta, but not being able to tell Gordes or Seigfried that Rider is Achilles. I've returned it to the normal Fate style, Masters can only talk with their own Servants. It adds an information asymmetry that is a bit more interesting, and forces coordination between the Masters.

Achilles has undergone the most changes of any returning servant in the story, so I'd like to take a minute to talk about him. His Mad Enhancement has been changed partially because it's a way to keep him in the story as a character, and partially because it's a perfect fit for the Great Grail War. His Noble Phantasms remain unchanged, which is why they aren't listed, all the info is available on the wiki. Achilles companion mentioned in his stat sheet is Atalanta, its why he retreats when she asks him to. He also recognizes that Vlad is a uniquely bad match for him, being able to target his heel far more accurately than any other Servant. Atalanta's request, combined with his own concerns cause him to retreat, he would rather fight in a more glorious battle tomorrow than die in a forest today.

I don't know whether my next upload will be another chapter of this story or my other story, but I'll hopefully see you all soon.