tvk | [Action/Video]

[Action/Video]

[Some nights, the Dark Hour is noisier than others.]

[While the shadows normally remain silent unless actively attacking those able to wander the dark hour, on this night the port area all but resounds with the shrieks of an all-too familiar shadow. A Visceral Maya, bane of those who find themselves new to Prospero.]

[What's peculiar is that the vocalizations almost sound frustrated or scared, as much as a Shadow can emote such things.]

[And unfortunately for anyone with their phone on-hand, the source of the noise just started getting broadcast over the network. The camera, activated via falling-to-the-ground judging from the angle, shows a man pinning a very displeased Visceral Maya to a building with a stopsign while muttering to himself.]

-n't even die right when I kill 'em, huh? Bah, not like it's the weirdest thi- eh? What's this?

[He keeps the shadow pinned against the building, reaching down to pick up and subsequently peer into the phone as a lazy smile crosses his features.]

Yo. Anyone there?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

...So, the two themes we can guess so far are that Casters are better than they let on, and Lancers get shitty masters?

[Another drink? Count him in. Fuck E-Rank luck, and to hell with that fake priest.]

...I think that's a safe assumption.

[Lancer winced faintly, still not sure whether that ache in his chest was his imagination or if the last injury he'd sustained in Fuyuki was still bothering him.]

[Goddamn Kayneth.]

Unfortunate, but a safe assumption.

You win some, you lose some. Sure, I'd have preferred being dealt a better hand, but...

[He moved his glass, watching the liquid inside swirl around with mild interest as a half-smile formed on his features.]

Not sure I completely dislike how it all ended, I guess.

...I truly wish I could say the same.

[Deep down, Lancer was still disgusted with himself. It was going to be an undignified death no matter how he reacted, but...honestly, he'd come to regret how he'd spoken. More so upon learning the Grail was corrupted after he'd cursed it like that.]

I don't mind that it ended. I would just rather have found even one thing in the entire war that could have made it worthwhile.

[There was a slight shifting of Lancer's shoulders, something of a half-hearted attempt at a shrug.]

You want to elaborate on that some? Or, if we're going to take turns, would you rather I go first?

[Certainly, Lancer would love to have a duel with the other Lancer, and to retell the story of the fifth grail war - as he knew it - would give Diarmuid hints as to his weaknesses. However, none would be greater than merely knowing he was Cu Chulainn would.]

[Besides, it was like he'd told some bratty kid once before: If you get along with someone, you might as well drink 'till dawn and share tales with them, even if they may be enemies - and aside from perhaps a friendly duel, he didn't really see the other Lancer becoming one of those.]

...I would not mind going first, if we're to exchange stories. [A quiet, slightly bitter laugh.] Might as well tell them chronologically from Fourth to Fifth, right?

[A deep breath, sigh, and then Lancer started speaking.]

My Master was Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi, an accomplished magus of some level of fame. That's regrettably the only good thing I can say of him. From the day I was summoned, I don't think he liked me--he planned on being Master to Rider, until his artifact was stolen.

The real problem was...he had a fiancee. Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri. I imagine, knowing my name, you can guess where this is going.

[Another drink.]

Everything I did, every move I made, and every single moment spent in combat was to bring him victory. That was my only wish, nothing more. And yet...he never trusted me or my strength in combat. He saw Sola cared about me and assumed only the worst. Near the end, he essentially called me a traitor and nothing more than a puppet.

[Lancer hesitated, looking ashamed both of that and of what else remained to the story.]

Eventually, he negotiated my demise with Kiritsugu Emiya, Saber's former Master. [Lancer pulled his shirt collar aside just enough to show the obvious scar on his chest. Damned human body.] I killed myself in the middle of the duel I had so desperately wanted with Saber.

Worse, I snapped completely. It was too much to bear, knowing my loyalty to Kayneth meant nothing to him...knowing another I had sworn loyalty to just killed me like it didn't even matter. You will surely think less of me, but I...died cursing and hating everything in sight. My fate, Kayneth, Kiritsugu, even the Holy Grail itself.

...I wish I could say I died with dignity even once, prince of light, and I am thoroughly ashamed that I spoke in such a way. But...I don't understand why even my second chance could have failed so badly.

Edited 2011-10-26 00:38 (UTC)

[A brief flash of anger snakes it's way across Lancer's face. While he was well aware of the prerogative most magi had towards treating familiars as tools, the utterly blatant disregard this Kayneth had towards the pride of a heroic spirit...]

[Well, it was infuriating. Enough so that some of the finer details of Diarmuid's tale - Kiritsugu Emiya, the matter of which servant Kayneth was planning on summoning originally, even the curses and oaths Diarmuid had uttered at his end - were forgotten.]

Tch. Maybe some day I'll meet a magus with even a fraction of the honor necessary to understand how a heroic spirit should be treated -- well, that ain't fair to a few of the ones in my war, I guess.

[Having taken some of the wind out of his own sails, he shook his head, still vexed.]

I can't say mind the second chance the war gave me, but I've got to wonder if the idea of the war itself was thought through. Most magi seem completely at odds with the pride we have.

If only. Saber and her Master in the fifth war at least seem to get along regardless of how foolish he is, which is more than I assume many Master-Servant pairs have. And while I wished for nothing more than a second chance, the rate at which it became an utter disaster was alarming.

[Sigh.]

Forgive me, I've spoken a bit too at length. I know the basics of the fifth war from Saber, but if you would like to talk it'd be my honor to listen.

Heh, don't worry about it. Sounded like you needed to get at least that much off your chest, y'know?

[Lancer leaned back in his chair, stretching slightly.]

Funny thing though. I already met and talked with the kid - and by that I mean Emiya - some. And unless he was pulling a joke on me, it sounds like you might need to forget what Saber had to say about the fifth war. He didn't tell me everything, but it sounds like what I remember and what he remembers are two different things entirely.

That's...really the first I've spoken of it in any detail. I should thank you for listening.

Wait--what? I'll admit Emiya's foolish, but he didn't strike me as delusional. And I'm certain Saber isn't, at any rate. Are you insinuating...oh, is there more Second Magic going around here, please tell me you're kidding.

For a fellow countryman, a fellow knight? I can do that much, at least.

[This time Lancer's shrug wasn't half-assed in the least. Expression reverting to something that could be expressed in the current era's vernacular as, "fuckin' sorceries, how do they work?"]

I've already given up on trying to understand it; or at least, I don't think knowing will matter. The fact is that I remember what I remember, and they remember what they do. It might make some things a bit awkward, but that's life - and they're still pretty much the same as I remember them anyway.

At least they've not drastically changed, at least. Saber was more or less how I remembered her, I can't even imagine what I'd think if she was a different person altogether.

Saber? I get the feeling that girl would be the same no matter what happens to her.

['cept for angry mop-yu attacks but whatever.]

Anyway, speaking of "what happened"... Well, guess I'll start with my Master, too. The Master I should've had, anyway. Bazett Fraga McRemitz. A magus from our homeland, and a hell of a woman. I don't doubt that she would've been more than willing to fight alongside me during the war itself, and none of that "rear guard" crap most magi seem so fond of, either.

Problem was, she didn't get that chance. Not too long after she summoned me, the bastard overseeing the war - she knew him before the war, hell, I think he was the one who invited her to it - anyway he surprised her, murdered her, and took her command seals.

[Lancer's smile was nothing if not bitter.]

I doubt that I've gotta say exactly why it took me so long to avenge her.

Anyway, my new Master decided that, rather than Lancer, I was to act more like Assassin. Scout out the other servants, engage each and every one, but kill none. Retreat if my identity was revealed. Gather information. In other words, he was a dull partner as well as an underhanded one.

This and that happened, and I wound up lending Emiya and Tohsaka -- Archer's master -- a hand. They were a great deal more interesting than that shitty priest, so I can't say I really minded the change.

'Course, a sudden change in religion like that was bound not to last. Becoming boring again, he eventually tried to order me to kill Tohsaka. While she was helpless. Damned if I'd kill a woman like that, especially if she couldn't fight back. He changed his orders around a bit when I refused.

[And, as Diarmuid had before him, Cu Chulainn pulled down the neck of his shirt slightly, a tell-tale scar over his own heart. Another trait of the Lancer class, apparently.]

...Still, even Gae Bolg can't finish me that quickly. I had enough time to let Tohsaka loose and see my fake Master off permanantly. Gave the two of us a proper cremation, too.

[He shrugs again, nonchalantly. Heroes die because other people are unreasonable; he'd accepted this as fact when he was alive the first time.]

I suppose I shouldn't complain, all I really wanted was to fight to my heart's content, nothing like a "second chance." Still, I've got to admit I'm disappointed I didn't even really get allowed that much.

...it's really not fair, is it?

[He'd listened attentively, a forlorn but sympathetic smile on his face once the other Lancer was finished.]

We both deserved better--you more than I, but then again, I suppose we're not the only Servants to meet unpleasant ends. Even if there's nothing that can be done about it now, it's just...sickening, somehow.

Ah, perhaps I'm still bitter. I really don't know anymore. [Lancer sighed, leaning his head on his hand.]

Really, I wonder if the war itself just hates Lancers.

[Lancer makes a low, sharp chuckle. A grim laugh.]

It's the only way to make the war fair for the poor magi who didn't summon a Lancer, isn't it? It makes me wonder how our predecessors fared, what unreasonable ends they met due to their masters.

The past is the past, anyway. Best to focus on what's happening now -- we've got new allies, we've got enemies to fight, and we've got this whole "persona" and "shadow" mystery as well.

[He pauses, raising his glass to the other Lancer in a salute.]

Me? I don't think I could ask for much more right about now.

Yes, you're right. If dealing with Kayneth and Sola is the price of exchanging stories with the Hound of Ulster, then I'll accept that much with no further complaint.

[He did the same, smirking faintly.]

All things considered, I doubt I could be happier.

Heh, I'll drink to that. Here's to everything and everyone, the good and the bad. Even those terrible masters; despite their best efforts, or maybe because of 'em, we've wound up pretty well-off in the end.

Sounds as good a reason to me as any.

[Lancer would finish his drink in relative silence, yet it was not an awkward silence. It was as he'd said, he found the company to be pleasant enough, the current situation interesting enough, and his overall outlook on the future?]

[Well, if one was to think of life as a series of adventures, Cu Chulainn - never one to back down - was looking forward to seeing this one through.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Action/Video]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action] 1/2 whoops tl;dr

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action] 1/2 words words words

[action] 2/2 blah blah blah

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]

[action]