A Dishonored Demigod

A Servant's Charge

*Several Days Later*
Perseus sits in the clearing behind his house, legs crossed in lotus position. He breathes in and the occupants of his soul are ejected into the physical world along with Excalibur and Dyrnwyn as he tries to fully gain control over his new transformation. His eyes twitch and the veins of his left arm turns pitch black and angrily push against his skin until a trickle of blood rolls out from underneath his eyelids and nose. He gasps and hunches over while coughing out a mouthful of blood and poison that instantly dissolves the ground. Thrafsma is at his side in an instant,"Careful man. Without me you have no regeneration. Let us back in and lets call it a day."
The human shell nods and the beings around him become streams of light that slam into him and knock the wind out of him. He gasps as Thrafsma's regeneration kicks in and Empathy manipulates the poison in his body to purge the foreign substance in his veins. The tar-like substance drips out of his pores and Perseus is tempted to simply cut his arm off and wait for it to regrow than sit through the pain of the purging,"Damn it Empathy! Can't you hurry it up? It feels like my arm is being cooked from the inside!"
He gets no answer and feels Empathy straining to drive away the substance before his eyes brighten and he activates Soul Touch. The skin of his left arm rots away along with the veins and the substance hangs in the air for a moment before gravity takes effect and it splashes on the ground. Perseus sighs and lets his arm return to normal before feeling a familiar presence,"Lord Outsider!"
He kneels before his patron and keeps his head down,"Why are you here? I thought you never left the Crossroads?"
The deity nods,"Usually I never would, even if I value our ongoing game. How goes the boy's training?"
Perseus grimaces,"Slow. He is making progress, but it is slow going as his body isn't accustomed to handling your power. He has the willingness to learn and has a deep seated drive that I've been unable to ascertain. The beast within him has made no attempt to hinder him at all, but I feel that it will not help him unless his pride as a monster or the boy's life is threatened."
He pauses for a moment,"That's not the only reason you're here though is it? Something's wrong."
The Outsider sighs and Perseus only now looks up and sees the bags under his eyes,"My lord?"
The deity waves his subordinate's concern aside,"Just some trouble in another dimension. In it I foresee much needless death and destruction, and a being that will try and intrude on my home."
Perseus growls,"I will eliminate any such threat!"
The Outsider nods,"That's actually why I'm here. I need you to enter this dimension and either turn this power to our side, or destroy it."
He pauses while holding a hand to his head as if he has a headache,"It has tried again. You will be entering the dimension as a spirit that has been summoned to fight for the Holy Grail. Seven other servants stand in your way to the chalice and you must eliminate them. It matters not how you do it. Kill their human masters for all I care, but get to that damned cup. The evil within is your target."
Perseus nods,"What will my limitations be?"
Normally whenever he receives a mission a limit is also imposed on his power to keep him from attracting too much attention. However this time the Outsider smirks,"In this case, there will be no limits. Each of the spirits summoned will posses unique powers so you need not hide your power. However I'd advise you keep a few trump cards just in case."
Perseus nods,"Of course. I will not fail you!"
The Outsider nods,"I don't doubt that. During the entirety of your mission I will take over the boy's training. Now, off with you!"
A dimensional tear opens in front of Perseus and he jumps in without hesitation while the Outsider growls as another headache rattles his brain,"Know your place insect!"
****
Perseus floats in the dimension where his master had sent him, his body in an astral form. He flies over the town he emerge above and closes his eyes while expanding his senses, trying to grasp onto anyone with magic around him. His eyes widen when he gets a faint, almost non-existent feel from a decrepit house that practically begs him to enter and explore. He does so and his ears twitch when he hears whimpering coming up from the floorboards. His eyes narrow and he drops through to see a sight that rivals what he saw when he rescued the diclonius.
The whimpers come from a stone pit carved into the earth and inside it is a young girl, no older than ten years. This isn't what engraves itself in his mind. No, it's the worm-like creatures that crawl around her and chew their way through her skin to enter her that makes him sick, and angry. Very angry. He tries to help her but he's unable to interact with the material world until she whimpers,"Please someone, anyone, help me."
He feels a pull in his soul and his body starts to solidify. In a flash of light he stands before the girl while the worms around them are burned to ashes from the fire flowing out of his hands. When he's done he looks at the girl and smiles as knowledge of the world from his patron flows into him,"Servant Joker has answered your call, my master."
The young girl is silent and her eyes wide before they lose their focus and she faints. Perseus catches her before she can hit the ground and gently lays her down. He quickly casts a sleeping spell on her and Excalibur jumps into his open hand,"The magic on those creatures felt foul. Perhaps they should be, purified?"
Excalibur hums in agreement and Perseus quickly casts a sensing spell over the girl's body to locate any worms inside her,"Seven huh? Could be a lot worse since I doubt the people who put her here would stop as she gets older."
He carefully places the tip of Excalibur on her head and the tip glows a bright gold as the holy aurora in it enters her and latches onto the worms. In a flash they're dissolved by the purity of the Sword of Victory and
Perseus returns it to his shadow. He waits by his master's side for a few minutes until she groggily gets up,"Have a good nap master?"
Her body turns to face him and she looks down at her hand, noting the three command seals fashioned like a serpent's eyes that cover the skin,"Who, who are you?"
Perseus grins and takes off an imaginary hat that he flourishes to the side,"Servant Joker at your service! I'd tell you my real name, but now isn't the ideal time."
The girl bobs her head and asks,"Why was I the one to summon you?"
Perseus grins and lies to her face,"Unlike other servants, I can actively choose who I want to be my master. You wished for help, and I decided to answer it."
The girl trembles a bit before launching herself into him,"Thank you!"
He holds her as she cries and climbs to his feet,"Master. We have to leave. I feel a large collection of malice approaching."
She gasps,"Grandpa! Joker, get us away from him!"
Perseus nods solemnly,"As you wish," and shoots straight up while fire flickers around him to burn a hole through the floor and then the roof of the house as he escapes into the open sky.
He holds the girl secure in his grip while his wings flap to keep them airborne. He casts another sleep spell on her when he sees the fear in her eyes and carries them both to an abandoned temple on the outskirts of the city. As soon as he lands he sets her down and starts to draw runes in the air with his fingers until a complex mix of Greek, Egyptian, and Norse dialect floats in front of him. He touches the text and it shimmers before spreading out to cover the entirety of the temple, and an extra half a mile.
Next he sets to work on the temple itself and uses a modified water spell as a large scale pressure washer that he uses to vaporize an inch of stone off the surface. When he's done he breathes in and tries a trick he'd been working on with Thrafsma. When he opens his mouth again a torrent of blue fire flows out from him and washes over the stone, getting rid of any stubborn stains and other undesirables that weren't washed away.
Half an hour later Perseus finishes transfiguring some pieces of loose stone into a comfortable bed and lays his master down on top before taking his place at the entrance of the temple. He closes his eyes and the full moon shines down on him to bring out Thrafsma's wilder side as he shifts into full beast form. He stays like that until day where his transformation flakes off him as fine dust and his master awakens,"Joker? Where are you?"
He grunts and she joins him on the steps leading to the entrance,"Why hello there little master. Sleep well?"
She nods,"Yes, and I feel different. What did you do?"
Perseus smiles and gently pokes her forehead,"I healed you. Well, more like I used an artifact of mine to destroy those worms in you. If I hadn't I don't think you would've lived to see your 20th year."
She hugs him and thanks him again while he simply pats her head,"There there master."
"Sakura."
Perseus grins,"Oh, my master has decided to be so informal with me? In that case I must return the favor. Please, call me Perseus when we're alone and Thrafsma when I'm in combat or we're with others."
She nods and looks up at him,"I guess this means this is all real. I'm a part of the grail war."
Perseus' eyes harden,"Don't worry at all about the war. I promise you will live to see it through its end, and we will have that glorified cup."
Sakura nods absently,"Yes, the Grail. Joker...what is your wish?"
Perseus stops while recalling his mission,"I want it to prevent a disaster from occurring. What about you, little master? What is your wish?"
Sakura goes silent for a while before speaking softly,"I want," and she hesitates,"I want my family to love me."
At Perseus' questioning gaze she elaborates,"My daddy gave me to the Matou's since my sister showed more promise in magecraft."
She tears up and Perseus conjures a tissue for her to use,"I see. Now though, I will take care of you. You're the same age as my daughter and some of my charges so I hope you don't mind."
He's wrapped in a hug and grins while lifting Sakura onto his shoulders,"Come on little master. It's day, and
I think we should find something to do before the war actually kicks off."
Sakura wraps her hands loosely in Perseus hair and tells him of a place that her uncle took her for ice cream before the servant sets off, blurring through the woods and towards the town.
****
MWAHAHAHA! You all have no idea how badly I've been wanting to get into the fate universe ever since I gave Percy Excalibur! Now that he's there though, things are going to get really good! Hope you all enjoy this next segment of the book and remember to stay frosty!