Fate/Legion

Living Poison

"Success!!!"

A pair of servants hear these words, astonished by the sight of their new master; Zachary Forrest, a prodigy from the United States. Flanked by Diarmuid and Elizabeth Bathory, his expression was wide with fascination. Few live to see a single summoning, yet here he was summoning twice. The newly summoned servants were indeed surprised by the sight of their master.

Forrest was, in gentle terms, eccentric. Constantly gleeful and eager to make deals with his fellow masters, it seemed as though the Grail War was nothing more than a game for him. Quick to agree with others and strictly following a chess style strategy, Forrest stood alone as the childish optimist. His attitude shouldn't be mistaken for naivety, however. A certain aura about his smile would always seem... off. His joyfulness is akin to that of a serial killer reveling in the terror of his victims. The desperation of others amused him. So much amusement was it, that Forrest would often put Diarmuid, his head servant, in a multitude of moral grey areas just to watch his reactions. Only the other hour ago he set up a lethal rune trap in two areas; areas that would soon be converged on by two groups of women: one human group and one group of servants (talk about convenient). He ordered both Elizabeth and Cu Chulainn to stay away while Diarmuid was forced to choose which group to save.

While this behavior would normally be unacceptable even among Magi, he was one of a few exceptions. Zachary Forrest was a necromancer. His magic revolved around the resurrection of the dead and the creation of false life. Only those of black hearts could take any interest in the pursuit of its perfection. Even now his base crawled with all manner of undead. While his methods bothered his servants, he was never overly cruel to any victims as he preferred to end them quickly.

A silver haired man and woman stood before him. The man was a caster of sleek build. In his hand he had naught but a quill. On his shoulders rested a pair of ravens. A black trench coat hugged firmly onto him. The woman hovering next to him was of the berserker class. Pale white and wearing a torn grey garb, she wore a cold lifeless stare in her eyes.

The other servants present were indeed intrigued by the creatures before them. Atalanta wasn't present, however, due to a recon mission. Of three of them, it was Diarmund who finally spoke.

"Master", he spoke with earnest,"what servants did you summon here? I would like to know my companions right away."

Forrest merrily giggled from excitement.

"I can't say about one of them, but I can tell you who your new female teammate is", he excited presented her to all servants present,"Friends! I give you the Bell Witch!"

Though none of his servants could possibly know who that was, he paused for effect. When he felt the time was right, he continued.

"In nearly every state in the US there is a legendary creature of the supernatural. In my home state of Tennessee, that legendary creature is the Bell Witch. She terrorized the good Bell family for years before mysteriously vanishing. To give you an idea of her power, think spell craft plus banshee", he smugly boasted.

None of his servants questioned his boast. It was clear he took the greatest pride in these new recruits. Whatever the case, they would only know the Caster for a short amount of time. Forrest had entered an alliance with Yggdmillenia and had promised to loan him the mysterious caster. Who he was and what he can do is unknown. It is for that reason the usually laid back servants of Zachary Forrest are uneasy.

Breaking up the silence was Cu Chulainn. Sitting in a tree, smoking quietly on a cigarette he alone voiced concern.

"So we're just going to hand over a fellow servant to some other master? Is that all we are, eh? Some kind of currency?", the hound spat.

Forrest's eyes glared into a serpent's gaze. A certain aura of authority and hostility emanated from him. Still, his grin did not fade.

"Cute. How cute", Zachary mocked his servant, "I don't know what they do in Ireland, but I am an American. We don't give anything so freely. Think of it as a loan of sorts. But know this, my servants are mine and mine alone. Yggdmillenia will have his war, and I will be the victor."

No one argued after that. Even if they were to, it would get them nowhere.

A feline woman jumped into the clearing, interrupting the silence. It was none other than Atalanta. She had been sent to spy on Bismarck earlier that day. Elegant in the eyes of her fellow servants, Atalanta quickly stood at attention to Forrest, eager to give the report.

"Master, I have finished the recon you asked for."

Forrest nodded the go ahead. As consumed by his new servants as he was, he was also curious about Bismarck, the only master he considered a threat to his chances.

Atalanta continued, "He has fortified his position with traps made by Robin and he's gathering civilians in storage units. He has gained another two servants, but I was unable to get close enough to determine their identities. Your suspicion was correct though. He has entered an alliance with Edelfelt."

"Um, if I may ask, how could you possibly know about an alliance?", Diarmuid questioned.

Atalanta blushed furiously, "That's classified."

Elizabeth shot her a wink as Atalanta turned her head in annoyance.

"Ah come on", Cu Chulainn pressed,"It can't possibly be that classified."

"Never mind that doggy", Elizabeth interjected,"She just followed my advice is all."

Diarmuid raised his brow in curiosity.

"That explains very little", the Irish knight said.

"How to seduce a guy for info", the vampiric girl explained.

"Oh", Diarmuid paused. His eyes began to widen in sudden realization.

Seemingly all eyes turned to Atalanta for answers. Forrest and Cu grinned cockily as Atalanta was officially in the spotlight.

"I-It's not that big a deal. I j-just know a guy, OK?"
___________________________________________

Meanwhile in Bismarck's base of operations:

"Achoo!"

"Are you alright, Achilles?"

"Yeah, I think someone's talking about me."