Fate/Stay Pony

Fate/Stay Pony

Turn One: Wheel of Fate

        By the Root, my back itches. As in, so much that you’d have to go through eight hundred back scratchers just for my shoulders. I cannot honestly think of any way for this to be worse. No way, no how. The pigeons would just make it funny at this point. I learned after at least two hundred years of this to learn to laugh at yourself. After all, getting stoned worse than Bob Marley tends to leave you with very few options.

        Oh, HI! Didn’t see ya there. Nice to meet ya. I would tell you my name, but at this point, I don’t really give a care. You can just go soak your own head, for all I care.

        … Still here? Okay, fine. I’m a guy who… strange as this may sound, did a thing with my friends and we wound up in a land of cartoon horses. Yeah, yeah. Laugh all you want. But it’s true. Specifically, we wound up as various Servants from the Fate series. Guess who I am? By the way: No hints. You’ll just have to guess.

        “And can anypony tell me what THIS statue represents?” Oh, god. Tourists. Oh, boy. Time for more childish remarks and unfunny jokes.

        “Uh… I can’t really tell… what IS it, exactly?” Oh. It’s kids on a field trip. Much better. Wait, whaddya MEAN you don’t know what I am? C’mon, what’re they teaching kids these days? Don’t even know who I am. That’s just sad.

        “Well, this statue is one of seven, said to represent seven evil warriors that plagued the land over a thousand years ago. Each of them wielded strange and incomprehensible magic, and they left trails of destruction in their wake.” Correction: Berserker left only destruction in his wake. The rest of us, on the other hand (or hoof, if ya wanna get nitpicky), did not. We left a lot of destruction ourselves, but moreso left unpaid checks at diners and empty inventories at clothing stores.

        “That’s really scary, Miss Cheerilee…” Dear, GOD that voice is so annoying. Too high-pitched. Like Bieber.

        “What’s there to be scared of? They’re gone now. And just look at him! He can’t be THAT tough!” Wanna bet? “I bet Rainbow Dash could beat him in no time!”  Huh, I guess ya really did… Wait, Rainbow who? Oh, no… We’re at ‘that’ point, aren’t we? Well, shit. Prepare for anarchy, Equestrians. That is all I have to say to you.

        “Don’t be so sure of that, Scootaloo.” What kind of name is THAT? “This one is considered the strongest of them all.” Well, I don’t mean to toot my own horn… Wait, of course I do. “He was known as Archer.” Yep. That’s my name. Don’t wear it out.

        “Well, why’s he holdin’ up a couple a’ swords?” Is… is that a Texan accent I hear? Dear God, I never thought I’d hear one again. Wait, DO THEY SERIOUSLY NOT KNOW THAT MUCH ABOUT US?

        “Archer, despite his name, was said to be just as good a swordsman as he was with a bow. He wielded a thousand blades, and each of them could splice mountains and crumble valleys.” Well, certainly not ALL of them. Some are borderline useless (looking at you, scimitar #4582), but a good portion are more than useful in the right scenario.

        “Wow…” The entire class spoke in unison, and now were staring in awe at me. My mind forms a grin, and I take a moment to realize their perspective. A man, clad in simple armor, with a long, billowing cloak behind him, and with two blades in his hands, and both are equal in design. A look of raw determination and power upon his features. Short, but spiked, and well-combed, hair, white like the clouds.

        Yeah, I’m awesome. And I know it. C’mon, where’s the barrage of questions? Let’s hear what ya have to say, kids. Go ahead, no need to be shy. Where’s the praise at?

        “What IS he, exactly?” Okay… Now a pink one with a crown (?) on her head stares at me with bewilderment. “And why’s he so ugly?” Excuse me? Hey, the rest of the class does NOT get to laugh at my misery! Only I laugh at my own misery. Okay, scratch that. Saber, too.

        “Well, legends say that he and his allies came from another world, and that they’re known as Servants.” Wow, they actually got that part right.

        “What’re his friends like?” Oh, moving on so soon? But you’re missing the best part of the tour! How could you NOT wanna hear about ME?

        Ms. Cheerilee laughs, “Well, that’s actually a good question. They were all very unique warriors, and it’s said that together, they were unstoppable. His allies include a massive knight whose raw physical strength was enough to directly combat whole armies without the use of any magic or tools. His name was Berserker.”

        Clad in dark blue armor, with a long, lighter blue tassel jutting out from the helmet. The entire form is devoid of any identifying marks. His hands hold no tools, for he needs none. On his back, several long links of cloth, ending in sharp melds of metal, drape down, mimicking the presence of a cape.

        A smirk formed on my features. How ya doing over there, old sport? A sudden, but faint, burst of prana from his direction provides me an answer. Ouch, that’s harsh.

        Cheerilee motions to another shape, beyond my vision, but I still know in my heart who she refers to. “That one over there is called Caster. She’s said to have wielded sorcery that could best even the Princess’s magic.” FYI, it’s called MAGECRAFT. I let my own memory wander, as I remember Caster herself. Small, and with pointed vulpine ears protruding above her head. A large, fluffy tail extends behind her short, low-cut, blue kimono.

        “No way! Nopony has better magic than the Princess!” Honey, I hate to disappoint you, but I’m fairly certain even MY magic has more force than hers. And I use it for swords.

        “That’s just what the legends say. I’m sure that they’ve been warped over time.” Yeah, they’re actually at least 70% accurate so far. C’mon, what else do they have to say? Anything else about me?

Cheerilee points to a statue to my right, which I know isn’t too far from me. Only five meters away, tops. “The next is Lancer, a monstrous warrior who was said to impale anypony who opposed him. He would drink their blood. Legends claim that he was the origin of the vampony.”

        I grimace internally. Lancer is NOT very appreciative of being related to vampires. Okay, while he may technically be one, he’s not directly related to the creation of any Dead Apostles. And we all know that for a fact. I strain my eyes as far as I can. Without access to my magic circuits, I can’t reinforce my eyes. But I can just barely make him out.

        Wearing a long, black, and very clean coat lined with fur, over a clean and well-ironed suit, with a turtleneck poking from underneath. From behind him, his coattails drift out, frozen in stone. A head of white hair, long, and well-kept, hangs over his shoulders. A faint, noble, beard and mustache edge around his mouth and chin. His boots, shining and well-polished, and a yellow box tied to his leg. I dunno, that’s what it looks like.

        Well, old sport, don’t worry. Dracula isn’t all you are. You’re more than that. You’re my best buddy. Just hold it in for a little longer. I release a mental sigh, and look back to the students, who react with visible horror and disgust.

        “Well… er, moving on. The next Heroic Spirit is Assassin.” Oh, joy. More tales of death to tell. “She was said to wait in the shadows, and when her enemies would appear, she would strike, and finish them off before they even knew what hit them. She was said to be practically invisible, and those who attempted to fight her would only seeing thin air.” Yeah, that’s about right. I’m still unsure how even my reinforced vision couldn’t keep up with her. Makes me somewhat cautious.

        I turn my eyes to the area near Berserker, and lock onto a small form. Hair, white as the snow of a dark winter night, and eyes like that of a jungle predator, a deep amber yellow. Clad in only a small, black shirt, arm wraps, a thin pair of undergarments, and stockings, while several small daggers hang from her back. She stands upon small, pink, high-heels, and a scar is present upon the right side of her face.

        Poor girl. Too young for this business. She was scared, damnit! That’s why she did what she did! She’s a scared little girl, caught up in something she never should’ve been! I let a small, soothing wave off prana out, and direct it to her. A smile forms in my mind as I feel her reply in kind. She’s still here. Good.

        “Next is the one known as Rider.” Oh, boy. “She was said to be able to petrify ponies with just a gaze,” Kinda like how we are now? “And was able to use any kind of vehicle or mount as if it were a part of her own body. It was said she could even summon a great and mighty pegasus hat obeyed her no matter what.”

The children gasp at this, and one of them, a pale yellow one with what I swear is the poofiest red hair I have ever seen, raises her hoof, “Ms. Cheerilee, if they were so bad, then why’d this pegasus listen to her?”

Cheerilee smiled, “This pegasus is unlike the ponies you see walking down the street. This pegasus came from their world, and is said to be little more than an obedient animal.” Obedient isn’t the word I’d use. Especially when its definition of ‘obedience’ is to piss all over the carpet right after I clean it.

I turn my eyes to the next one over, and I’m greeted with a woman with long, purple hair, and a simple shirt with a small skirt. She wears thigh-high boots, and fingerless gloves just as long. In her hands are a pair of knives, with long chains extending from the pommels. Over her eyes is a mask, with an elegant marking upon her forehead.

I squirm at the memory of what those eyes can do, but remember that she’s still my friend. A good friend, who saved my life too many times to honestly count. She’s also the only reason the rest of us haven’t butchered each other. Seriously.

 Cheerilee leads her group to my side, and points behind me, “The last member of Archer’s team…” Okay, please don’t. The thought already hurts enough. Please, don’t bring her up. “She was known as Saber, and her skill with a blade exceeded even Archer’s. She was also able to learn any skill, as if she’d trained her whole life for it. She was also known for being Archer’s lover...” You got that right, old sport.

My mind calls forth her image, clear as day. An image I’ll never allow myself to forget. Under any circumstances. A brilliant red dress, with its front being just transparent enough to see her bronzed shin guards, and above that, her silky, pale, and soft legs, leading up to her hips. A low-cut front, revealing the uppermost section of her bosom. Her beautiful blonde hair, tied in a simple bun, but with one particular lock jutting out at a funny angle. Her eyes, a green of untarnished brilliance.

Saber… Even before all of this crap… you were perfect… you didn’t need the power of a Heroic Spirit… you are the one thing I needed most in all of my life.

“Notice how the statues stand back to back. This represents how they refuse to back down in the face of certain doom, and how they were unwilling to be separated.”

Bull.

Fucking.

Shit.

This is Celestia’s final nail in the coffin. She KNOWS we can still see and hear everything. This is simply her last method to break us. Put us so close, but unable to be together. This is the greatest torture, without a doubt. I’ve suffered for a thousand years in stone like this. We all have. Able to be so close, but never truly be there for each other. This isn’t symbolism. This is how you fuck with someone.

“Well, let’s move on.” Yeah. Go ahead. Just go. Please. Let me bury it. “Now, can anypony tell me what THIS statue represents?” Oh, boy… here we go…

“Er… chaos?”

“It’s not chaos, you dodo!”

“Don’t call me things I don’t know the meaning of, and it is too chaos!”

“Is not!”

“You’re both wrong!”

I sigh, and listened as the three kept going on and on, before Cheerilee broke them up. After the group walked away, my ears picked up the sound of faint laughter, and the statue burst into a small shower of pudding. In the place of the stone form, was instead the draconequus Discord. His inane giggling echoed through the garden, as he danced around the seven of us.

“Oh, it is so GOOD to be let free! Ah, I think the Equestrians have had enough stagnation for one millenia. Time to make mischief and cause chaos!” As he begins to speed off, a light bulb manifests over his head, “Hey… I got an idea… if I REALLY want some chaos… what better than the infamous seven Servants?” Wait, seriously? My god… this torture is over…

“Yes, that would be an absolutely SPLENDID idea, wouldn’t it, dear Saber?” I swear to god, if he’s touching her, I WILL RENDER THAT FUCKER LIMB FROM MISSHAPEN LIMB!

“Well, no time like the present! Chaos, ho!” Discord cracks his knuckles, and then sends rays of multicolored light onto us. The sound of stone cracking manifests extremely loudly. I feel my limbs loosening for the first time in centuries. My legs are twigs, and they collapse, sending me onto grass. Real, green, grass. Wait, scratch that. It was green. Now it’s purple.

“Well, whaddya think, guys? How does it feel? Oh, no need to thank me! I know EXACTLY how you fillies and gentlecolts feel, and I couldn’t BEAR to let my fellow inmates suffer any longer!” He manifests a prison suit, which he promptly rips off, and then rips off prison suits from all of us. I swear, the speed at which he can put that stuff ON us… ridiculous…

“Hey, Archie?” I slowly turn my head up, and I’m greeted with that snaggletoothed face. Right about now, it’s the mug I’m happiest to see.

“... What?” Discord grabs me, and lifts me onto my legs, and I find myself barely able to balance.

“We both know the whole ‘clashing of blades’ and ‘glorious combat’ thing isn’t my shtick, so would you mind giving old Celly one for me?”

I grin, and slowly nod in the affirmative. “Just… give us time to recover… We’re completely out of prana… We can’t fight anyone right now…” Discord turns into a bobblehead holding a sign saying ‘I <3 Archie’, and rabidly shakes his noggin.

“Aye yay yay...” I hear Caster off to the side, and she’s rubbing the back of her neck, holding herself against a flower bed. I smile, and reach out to her, grabbing her hand, and pulling her up to her feet.

“Oi… why can’t I feel my everything?” We all turn, to see Lancer on his back, groaning and barely able to move.

“Heh… Hey, Berserker… get that bugger on his feet…” I huff, and watch as the behemoth, obviously recovered the fastest of us, trots to Lancer, and picks him up.

“Archer...” I stop completely, and turn around, and I see her.

“S-Saber…” I take a heavy step, and raise myself onto the elevated flower bed I stood upon all this time. “Saber…” My eyes well up with tears.

Saber takes the same step, and begins to stumble forwards, crushing the flowers in her way. I begin walking the same way, before entering a full-on sprint. Petals spin through the air around us. She jumps into the air, with open arms, “Archer!”

“SABER!” She lands in my arms, and I spin her around, until I realize that I still have no energy, and promptly collapse. Now, she sits atop me, and we both stare into each others’ eyes. This is all I need. This moment can’t be any better.

Okay, scratch that. It’s raining chocolate milk. NOW it’s perfect. All of us laugh, barring Berserker, who just stares at the mysterious sticky substance falling from the air. When some falls in his helmet, he looks straight up and raises his mask up just enough for his mouth to be out, but not enough to dispel his shadowy Noble Phantasm, and extends his tongue, catching the sweet sugary dairy.

I look back to Saber, “Hey… you’ve got some on your face…” I lean forwards, and let my lips press against hers. Oh, yes. This can’t be any better. I grab her by the back of her head, and hold her closer.

Okay, scratch that. She’s using her tongue. I counter her motions, trying to see how much chocolate milk I could steal from her mouth (note to self: Discord deserves an entire truck’s worth of puppies for this).

Lancer nervously waves to me from the corner of my eye, “Guys? Hate to ruin the moment, but… we need to move to a safer location.” Okay, I’m right about one thing. This moment couldn’t have been any better. But it just got a whole lot worse.

Saber stares right at me, “I don’t want to get up…”

“Neither do I, but he’s got a point, old sport…” I slowly raise her off of myself, and then stand up. I aim my hand at her, and pick her up gently. She wobbles for a moment, but steadies her stance. I turn, “Berserker, think you can get all of us off of the mountain?”

Caster looks at me oddly, “Hey… you know where we can go, anyways? We don’t exactly have anyone willing to take us in…” She shivers in the chocolate dairy storm, and squeezes her tail, wringing it out.

I smirk, “I’ve got a few ideas in mind… but we need to see if they’re alright. Assassin, you’ll go with Berserker and I to check on the potential locations.” The dagger wielder nods, and climbs into Berserker’s large arms. I stumble over to him, and clamber upon his back. “Okay, Berserker, you’re gonna need to cooperate with me. I’m gonna reinforce your armor. Despite how much faith I have in your abilities, I still don’t have enough in gravity.” Berserker huffs, before launching himself into the air. As we reach maximum altitude, I send as much od as I can muster, and watch carefully as Berserker’s entire armor becomes coated in a variety of markings and seals.

As we fall to the ground, I notice a train coming to the city. Shit, they got here so soon? I just hope that Discord doesn’t rat us out. I then turn my gaze earthbound, and see Berserker about to hit the ground, and I tighten my grip as much as I can, and feel the impact spread through my comrade’s armor into my body. “Huh… that actually worked.” Berserker grunts, and I point him north-west. That’s the location of the last hideout I set up. Sure enough, Berserker dashes in the direction I indicated, covering vast distances in an instant.

My ears catch the sound of thunder above the castle. Shit, that’s the sign that Discord’s maze game is beginning. “C’mon, hurry up! We don’t have much time!” Berserker unleashes a guttural roar, and his speed multiplies. Within another few seconds, we’re standing before a thick, but small, forest. I step off of Berserker, and trod through the dirt, closely observing the bushes and thickets, reinforcing my eyes and ears. I take note of a particular crevice, and motion for Berserker to come closer. He takes several heavy steps, and when he approaches, I pull aside a thicket, revealing a sizable gap in the earth.

“Within there is a bed or two. They may not be in complete condition, but they should do until we return with better supplies. C’mon, just go in there. We’ll be right back, Assassin.” The girl nods, and clambers off of Berserker’s arms, and slowly climbs down into the pit. I internally wince as I realize that I’m basically asking a little girl to walk right into a dark hole in the ground.

“I promise, we’ll be back…” I pat Assassin on the head, before turning to Berserker, who nods and turns around again. I hop onto his back, now with some more prana in my system than before. I send some through his armor, and into his legs, reinforcing them immensely. Berserker leans back, and then leaps forward, now barely skipping along the many kilometers of earth, with Canterlot quickly coming in front of us. Berserker stops just as he approaches the mountain, and bounds up the side, climbing and grasping at stone, before acquiring a proper footing. He then leaps up again, and again, faster and faster, until we reach the top, landing at the garden, which is now a multi-layered, twisted labryinth.

“Discord!” My voice echoes through the maze. At this point, I care not if we’re found out. In a flash, the draconequus materializes, holding up a banana to his ear.

“He took his suitcase? Marge, honey. I don’t think he’s coming back. Look, I’ll have to call you back. No, I’ll call you. Okay, buh-bye.” He removes the banana from his ear, and squeezes it so hard, the fruit itself is launched from the peel, and lands right in his mouth.

“So, what can I do for you?” I look to Berserker, who grabs Discord by the throat, and applies pressure. The spirit, completely taken by surprise, has no time to even try to slither out.

“Where. Are. The others?” I look at him with a cold, angry glare, and manifest Bakuya, the White Yin Sword, in my right hand. I aim it at his head, “I want an answer. And a quick one.”

“Alright, al-*GACK*-alright!” I tap Berserker, who releases the spirit. Discord floats up, and shakes himself off, “Goodness! The nerve of some ponies! Well, people, in your case. Anyways, they’re in a hidden section of the maze, don’t you worry. I mean, c’mon! I wouldn’t bust you out just to throw you back in! You want them? Here, I’ll bring them.” He snaps his fingers, and the four manifest, plopping on the ground before me.

“Ow!” “Damnit!” “Gah!” “Holy shit!” The four each mutter, rubbing their injured behinds.

“Hey…” I mutter, and they all turn to me. I smirk, “The first hideout I made is still there. Assassin’s waiting for all of us. Now, before we go there, we need supplies. The beds are probably chewed through, and the sheets are most likely dust. While Discord’s causing chaos, we need to get the supplies we can. Caster, I know for a fact that you can send the stuff to where we need to go.” She promptly salutes, and giggles.

“Lancer, you and Rider are going to find what we need, and Berserker will help Caster transport it. I’ll be on lookout. Saber, I’ll be directing you through the streets to guide the guards away from them. Is that understood?”

“Yeah…” “Okay.” “Got it!” “Uh-huh…” I frown. This will not do at all.

“I said, IS THAT UNDERSTOOD?” After a few tours in the Middle East, I’m fairly certain I know how to properly command a squad on my own.

“Sir, YES SIR!” That’s more like it. Then Berserker adds on with a proud roar. My reinforced hearing lets me detect several voices in the maze gasping in confusion.

Discord chuckles, “Heh… This is why I like you guys. Well, if there’s nothing left for us to do together, then I’ll see you all when you’re settled in. Maybe we’ll have a nice cup of coffee and chat? We’ll decide that when the time comes. Tah-tah!” The chaos spirit disappears in a blink of light.

“... I won’t tell him if you won’t tell him.”

“D’you honestly think anyone’s gonna tell him?”

“Uhm… no.”

“Nope.”

“Definitely not.”

“Nay.”

A grunt follows suit.

        At this point, I feel like this whole ‘get thrown into another world as Archer from Fate/Stay Night’ is way better than it seems. Sure, I’m in another world. Sure, I’ve probably been labelled as AWOL because I haven’t been seen for over a thousand years. Sure, I’ll probably never see any of my old friends again. But still, there are a few perks. Perk #1 of being Archer: Outdoing Hawkeye in every sense of the term. I absentmindedly shoot an arrow at an upcoming intersection, to the right, and Saber turns hard to it. Perk #2: Dat ass. Being able to reinforce and enhance one's vision has… very specific perks. Especially when your girl is wearing a skirt. I fire another arrow across from her, indicating she should proceed straight forward.

        She dashes along, and I dispel the arrow, leaving the guards in her dust. One thing you have to admit about them: they are mind-numbingly persistent. So far, they’ve been going at this long enough for Lancer and Rider to have rode Pegasus halfway around Canterlot, and have Berserker and Caster come in to get almost all of the supplies we need. Hell, Berserker could even carry Assassin back to us.

        Rider lands behind me, and I mumble under my breath, before calling back to her, “I’m guessing we don’t have much time left before Discord’s stoned again.” Rider responds in the negative.

        “Damnit. Once they bring him back to the gardens, they’ll see we’re gone. And when that happens… Celestia’s gonna throw a hissy fit... On second thought, maybe it’s NOT such a bad thing…” I fire another arrow, this time right in front of Saber, to signal that our job is done.

        I attune my sight and hearing to her, as she turns to her wannabe pursuers, “Gentlemen, as lovely as this jog has been, I’m afraid my boyfriend’s calling me. He’s the type of guy who can’t be alone for ten minutes before he starts crying.” Oh, you conniving little BITCH! “Well, maybe another time.” She leaps into the air, and Rider catches her on Pegasus without missing a beat.

        Rider takes Saber back to me, and Saber leaps down into my arms. I scowl, “I heard that.”

        “You were supposed to, love.” After she pecks me on the nose, my scowl slides away. I let her go, and turn to the rest of the team, who’s gathered behind us.

        “Well, now that we’re all here, I do believe it’s time for-” A sudden wave of rainbow-colored energy crashes down over the land, and all that was altered by Discord has suddenly become normal again.

        “-us to make our grand reappearance.” The others chuckle and giggle amongst themselves, and I simply manifest my Kanshou and Bakuya. “Let’s crash a party.”

        We wait in the shadows as the festivities go on. After a while, Celestia brings the Elements into another room, of which we easily sneak into. Except Berserker. He’s in the next room over, posing as a suit of armor. For him, that’s easier said than done.

        “Girls, while I am infinitely proud of you for what you’ve done, there is still an even greater task ahead. While Discord was causing chaos, the seven Servants of old used this opportunity to escape their imprisonment.”

        The multi-colored pegasus scoffs, “Ah, c’mon! They can’t be that bad! I mean, we have Equestria’s big old ‘fix-it’ button right here! So, c’mon! Bring ‘em in! I’ll kick their flanks so hard, they’ll WISH they stayed stone!”

        “Rainbow Dash, this is more serious than you believe. These seven are monsters in every sense of the word. Back when they first appeared, countless were slaughtered. Cities were burned. And they were too strong, and too fast for me and my sister to stand against. Do NOT take them lightly. They will not be afraid to fight dirty.”

        Rainbow Dash growls, “Well, I’ll still beat ‘em, one hoof tied behind my back!”

        “Challenge accepted.” I drop from the ceiling, and the others manifest in as many other ways they can, appearing from behind curtains, within a closet, and in the case of Berserker, through the wall.

        “You think you can best us, Element of Loyalty?” I scoff, and level my blades at her, “You boast and boast of your capabilities, but from what I observed, you didn’t even try to oppose Discord. All you did was use the Elements against him. I highly doubt if the tales of your prowess have any merit to them. Unless, of course, you want to prove them against me?” I maintain my bearing as she grits her teeth.

        “You saying I’m all bark and no bite or something?”

        “No. That would imply you were even capable of ‘barking’ as you say. What you do is more along the lines of ‘squeaking’.” That’s it… hit the soft spots, then let them come at you.

        “Okay, you wanna go?” I smugly grin, and dismiss my blades.

        “Go ahead. Show me what you’ve got.” I look to her with a killer’s glare, reinforcing my eyes to preview her muscle movements.

        “Don’t say I didn’t warn ya! HYAAAAAA!” As she charges at me, I notice her right foreleg muscles tightening, and the angle she’s cocking it back indicates that all I need to do to dodge is a simple step to the left.

        I step, and as she tries to understand how I evaded her, I give her a single kick in the chest, letting the sound of ribs cracking echo throughout the halls. As she coughs on the ground, I raise my leg, and stomp her on the head, “Let this be a lesson to you. Attempt to bring harm to any of us, and this will be your fate…” I apply pressure, and the other Elements stiffen in horror. “We will not do anything to you, if, in turn, you leave us be.” I take my boot off of Dash’s head, and walk towards Celestia, “I will not harm a single one of your ‘precious ponies’ if, in turn, you keep your distance. It’s not that hard to understand.” I manifest Kanshou and Bakuya, swinging them about for a moment, as the Elements watch in fascination at my sword-spinning.

        “After all you’ve done, you think you can just walk away from it all?”

I dash forwards, holding my blade to Celestia’s throat, now with a dead-on glare over my features, “YOU think you can lock us up, prisoners in our own bodies, for a thousand years, for acts we committed AGAINST OUR WILL, and just ‘walk away from it all’? You think you can hold me so close, and so far away, from MY Saber, and you’ll just be forgiven? No… I won’t forgive you for this… I will never forgive you for this. You made my Saber cry. The only reason your head is still attached is because I’m tired of killing innocents. You stay on your side of the fence…” I swing my blades about, and dismiss them, “And we’ll stay on ours. Got that?”

Celestia glares, but after a long, drawn-out silence, nods. I turn to Caster, “Get us out of here.”

The magus nods, and as she prepares a magic circle to send us all back to home base, Celestia strikes me in the chest with a magic bolt. Funny thing, magic resistance. My ranking completely nullifies the damage of a spell like that, but it doesn’t stop the force flying at me. So, I get thrown into the wall. And through it. Into the party room.

“You think I’ll sit by and let you prepare for another mass slaughter? I’ll end your threat here and NOW!” Okay, you wanna play this game? We’ll play this game. I hold up my hand, signalling the others should hold back. I kick-flip up, summoning Kanshou and Bakuya. I glare at her, and throw the blades quickly.

“Spirit and technique, flawless and firm.” Celestia deflects the two, and I close in, with another set prepared. “Our strength rips the mountains.” I swing with them in an X motion, knocking her back a fair amount. “Our swords split the water.” The first two curve back, and slice her along the back. “Our names reach the imperial villa.” I hold up another pair, of which I reinforce enough to become Overedge, and I dash forwards, holding them over my head, ready to deal the final strike. “The two of us cannot hold the heavens together.”

“Princess!” Twilight cries out, as I bring the blades down.

“Triple-Linked Crane Wings!” The final slash creates a large burst of od, which flings Celestia back into the floor. I glare at the dust and smoke, preparing another set of the blades. As the dust settles, I see that she’s standing up, but with some heavy wounds.

“Hmph. Look at yourself, Celestia. You would’ve been able to take TWENTY of that kind of attack in your prime. You’ve grown soft in these thousand years. But us? When you sealed us up, you froze us solid. We’re weapons of war, and we haven’t rusted at all.” I swing my blades around, and Celestia hisses as her side oozes scarlet.

“I… won’t let… you… get away!” Her magic manifests a large hammer, emblazoned with the image of a sun.

“... Really, Celestia? Using a weapon against me? You should know how that’s going to end. Like how it always does.” I stare at it, and let my memory formulate its blueprints. I dispel Kanshou and Bakuya, and hold out my hand.

“Trace On.” In my hand, an exact imitation of the weapon appears in my hand. I decide to make a dramatic exit, and turn the hammer into a Broken Phantasm, charging it with as much od as I can manage. I hold it above my head with both hands, “Celestia, as nice as this gift is, we’ll really have to put a rain check on this. Good-bye.” I slam the weapon into the floor, and it shatters, creating an explosion of fiery magic. By the time the dust settles, we’ll already be long gone.

(Twilight Sparkle, 3rd Person)

        “Princess…” As the dust settles, Twilight sees the Servants are gone. The only remnant that they were ever there is the destruction left behind. Meanwhile, Princess Celestia struggles to stand, and falls to her knees.

        “Princess!” Twilight runs to her side, and tries to hold up the diarch.

        “Twilight… I’m fine… I… I can… stand up… on my… own… Guh...:” Celestia falls to the ground, breathing heavily.

        At that moment, the doors swing open, revealing Princess Luna, “Sister!” She dashes over to the fallen alicorn, holding her close, “Sister… please, no… Please, be alright…”

        “Princess, I need you to step back.” A medic appears above Luna, slightly moving her off of her sibling’s body. The medic listens closely to her breathing, and looks over her wounds, “She’ll be fine, given enough rest. But we’d best move her quickly. Don’t want any infections.” He motions to some other medics, who lift the princess, and carry her away.

        “P-Princess Luna?” Twilight looks to the younger diarch with a pleading expression, “Will Princess Celestia be alright?”

        Luna sighs, “My sister is a fighter. She shall recover yet.”

        Twilight looks around, “Just one of them… he did all this by himself… and beat Celestia… But… one thing I don’t understand. Why’d he say that everything he did was ‘against their will’? The legends, and the stories… Thousands slaughtered, cities burned to the ground… How could they have been forced to do that?”

        Luna shakes her head, “Elements, what I am to tell you must not leave this room… Long ago, the Servants came unto this world, as the legends have told. They were summoned by wizards, nefarious beings who made dark contracts for power and wealth. The Servants do not bear those names solely as titles. They were summoned by these dark ones from long ago, and made to do the many deeds they are known for.”

        “But why? Why would anypony obey such terrible orders?”

        “They had little choice. Once, when I met Lancer in battle, he explained to me that Masters- those who made the contract- were given three Command Sigils. These Command Sigils can make a Servant do anything, any one thing. Even if it’s completely against their will, or even impossible. I have seen those Command Sigils be used to take control of even the mighty Berserker, and make him drop to his knees.”

        “But… if they only had three commands, then why did they do that much damage? Three orders can’t go that far, can they?”

        “It was not the Command Sigils themselves, but fear of what they could be MADE to do… The Servants are close to each other. They are almost family. And they knew that the Command Sigils could be used to harm each other. So, they acted out of fear for their friends. They would rather slaughter masses of innocents than harm each other. Know this, Twilight Sparkle, the Servants are willing to destroy countless lives to protect themselves. Imagine what were to happen if somepony with ill intent were to discover how to summon them again? And imagine what were to happen if they were to be threatened again?”

(Archer’s P.O.V)

“Why didn’t you finish her off there?” Caster wonders aloud, as we sit in the den. The rest of the burrow had collapsed during our slumber, and this was the only thing remaining.

I huff, “If I did, then she’d have been seen as a martyr, one who died fighting for the safety of her precious ponies. Then we would’ve never seen the end of it. However, with this, it proves our strength, and it leaves them to sit there and wonder what her limits are. That doesn’t happen when someone’s dead. When you’re dead, nobody questions your strength. But if you’re still alive, that invisible barrier, that intangible bubble of respect, doesn’t exist. They’ll realize they put their ruler on too high a pedestal. They won’t want to obey her orders. And they’ll think ‘the only reason she’s still alive is because he chose for her to be’. They’ll come to see us as so much more powerful than they can hope to be. First day out and they’re already eating out of our hands.” I calmly sip on some of the coffee we ‘acquired’, and let my allies take in the information.

Lancer tilts his head, “So… what now? We just gonna squat here until we run out of food?”

“Of course not, old sport. We’ll make the best of the time we’re given. But, for now, we must wait. They will be on high alert for us. In the meantime… we’ll just relax. Enjoy ourselves…” I hold out my hand, and let out prana into a highly complex and very specific series of intricately connected shapes. While I normally am best at making swords, I can use my magecraft to imitate other shapes. Although, to be frank, making anything other than a sword takes a lot out of me. Well, I think that for this occasion, I can make an exception.

Before me, a pair of large, mostly square blueprints manifest, and are slowly filled with prana, forming into solid shapes. In a moment, a set of speakers form. In my hand, a music player appears, and from it, a wire extends into the speakers. I swipe through the selection for a moment, before stopping at one particular tune. “Oh, by the Root, yes.” I press my finger down on the song, and the den is filled with music. And situational irony. But mostly music.

In a moment, my friends all begin dancing about, laughing and letting their worries fade away. I place the player on one of the speakers, and step over to Saber, “May I have this dance, old sport?”

“Oh, what a gentleman… Mm, sure!” She jumps forwards, and I take her into my arms, swinging her about. Let’s see… So far today, I’ve been busted out of stone prison by the illegitimate lovechild of Disney’s Genie and Frankenstein’s Monster, made out with my girl while chocolate milk rained from the sky, kicked the ass of my #1 enemy, and now I’m dancing with her to rock and roll from the eighties. Best. Day. Ever.

I put her into a spin, and she laughs. I pull her close, and then dip. I count to ‘one one-thousand’ in my head, and pull up. After observing a lot of old movies and dances, the average dip should only be ‘one one-thousand’ seconds long.

“Whoo! You’ve been waiting for this, haven’t you?” Girl, you have no idea. I grin as the next song begins, and bring her close. We dance on, even as the others stop, and head to sleep, never breaking eye contact. This is real. This will never end between us. Ever. Saber’s smile burrows into my memory, and I send her into another spin, as the sun sets and the moon rises into the night sky.