A Dishonored Demigod

The Joker's Key

As the two servants enter the church Sakura hides herself in Perseus' shadow. All conversation ceases when the three make their way up the rows of pews and Rider takes a seat behind his master while Perseus leans against the wall,"Don't stop on our account. Lets just get this done so we can go back to fighting each other."
With that Risei Kotomine clears his throat and all eye turn to him,"By now I'm sure all you know just how great a threat Caster and his master have become. Indeed the increase in murders have drawn the attention of the authorities, both local and national due to the archaic markings they create with their victims' blood. So far no bodies have been found though."
Perseus snorts and Risei glances at him,"You know where the bodies are?"
"Yeah, in my belly."
The statement spawns absolute silence before Arthuria points her sword at him,"You ate them?! They deserved to be buried, not being used as food!"
Perseus gives a silent burp,"I'm sorry, were you saying something?"
The sword in the knight's hand trembles from her grip before Perseus' face looses all emotion,"Don't even think of scolding me little girl. I ran across Caster's base purely by chance and found the bodies of children nailed to stone pillars. The dead became my food while the living have been healed and have had their memories wiped of what those two lunatics did to them. Just be glad I didn't devour their souls. Still," and he snarls,"that worm got away somehow."
Risei nods,"So he is capable of teleportation? Were you able to discover anything else?"
Perseus' lips press into a thin line,"Demons. He can summon some sort of serpent demon en masse. I believe both Saber and Lancer can agree with me that they're vicious in numbers. Besides that he's quick enough to run and buy himself time."
Tokiomi frowns,"That is unusual given his class. Casters rarely have any physical attributes."
"That's true, especially given who Caster is," Kariya states.
Lord El-melloi leans forward with a look of slight interest,"And I suppose you're going to tell us who he is?"
Perseus nods,"Yeah. In life Caster was Gilles de Rais, or Bluebeard. Kariya-san and I discussed this and we believe the servant system for this war has been corrupted. My summoning alone is evidence enough. The class I'm in never existed before me."
"Yes, the Joker class. My associates in the church have been curious about that and would like to know what your class entails so that a record may be kept," Risei states.
After pondering the request for a few moments,"I don't see why not. It's not like there's anything the rest of you masters could do with the information. The Joker, a class that allows for the servant to freely rotate through the regular classes, and possibly other irregular classes that have existed. I am a saber, lancer, assassin, rider, caster, and berserker all rolled into one servant."
A few seconds of silence pass before Perseus sighs,"If that's all, then I'm leaving. Good luck finding Caster before I do."
****
The next morning finds Perseus meditating while Sakura is out with her uncle. He breathes out and his shadow extends to cover seven feet in every direction. The veins running to his eyes press against the skin as they turn black and drops of the substance leaks from his eyes. He slowly opens his eyes to show the veins in them are completely black and his iris is empty of color,"Okay. Eyes are good, and no pain."
He lets the substance slide through his veins and the skin of his arms is stretched tight. Black veins snake all their way from his neck to the ends of his fingertips to form wickedly sharp claws that poke out of the skin,"Still no pain. Strange."
He allows the substance to slide through his whole body, causing some discomfort from his skin being stretched. Soon enough his whole body is covered in black veins before he feels the skin above his shoulder blades split open and something cracks and groans while extending behind him. A quick look in a transfigured mirror show two sets of wings without any sort of membrane between the bones,"Okay then. New form equals new wings apparently."
He carefully flexes the two appendages and they open up seven feet in either direction. He tries flying and manages to lift off without trouble and does a quick lap round the temple. Glancing back he can see traces of the black substance stretching from bone to bone to form a rough membrane necessary for flight. He lands and takes another moment to examine his wings again,"Hmmm, the ends look pretty sharp. I wonder?"
He flexes the muscles connected to his wings once more and the one on his right lashes out like a sword to slice through a tree three feet thick. "Nice," Perseus says with a savage grin on his face,"now that that's out of the way though I should finally stop putting this off."
He reaches into his shadow and withdraws a pearl the size of a small marble. His hand trembles as he tightens his grip,"Get it together Perseus! It's just a stupid pearl!"
Even he knows that's a lie. The pearl itself represents a part of his former life he had willingly cast off to revive Zoë, his connection to the ocean. Without thinking a second more Perseus crams the pearl in his mouth and swallows. He can feel a warm, almost scalding, feeling spread through his body as the air around him becomes saturated. For the first time in nearly two years Perseus' perpetual grin is absent from his face as tears drip down his cheeks,"Damn...I'd forgotten how good this feels."
A sense of peace descends on him as the the nature of a calm sea makes itself known for the first time in years. Unknown to him his eyes are glowing like two stars and he hesitantly lifts a hand. In mere moments the water locked in the ground flows into his hand and freezes to form a perfect replica of Riptide. He stays silent for a few seconds before laughing,"I've still got it!"
The ice melts and the water flows around him in a ring before he swipes his hand through the air and the water acts as a whip. A deep score in the earth speaks volumes about the strength behind the simple stream of water. A branch cracks and the water splashes against the ground while a darkling appears in front of Perseus with the one who disturbed him,"Boss, this one wanted to see you."
"Very well," Perseus nods,"please take a seat Kirei-san."
The priest looks around,"Pardon my hesitance, but where?"
Perseus waves a hand and a section of the tree trunk behind Kirei extends and knocks the priest's knees out from behind so he sits down in a hollowed piece of curved wood. Perseus sits in the same sort of chair with an air of complete confidence,"Now may I know why you've sought me out, master of Assassin?"
The accusation catches Kirei off guard, shown by the slight widening of his eyes before they return to normal,"Impressive. I didn't think any servant or master had caught on to my play. That's not why I'm here though. I'm here because you're the same as me."
"Oh?" Perseus questions,"in what way? I haven't really invested any time in religion ever since two years ago, so forgive me for not really believing you."
He reaches into his shadow and withdraws a pack of cigarettes,"Do you mind?"
Kirei wrinkles his nose but doesn't object as Perseus creates a flame on the end of his finger to light the end and takes a drag,"I can't become addicted or physically crippled from these, so I've been trying different brands every now and then."
He takes another puff and a small stream of smoke exits his mouth,"Now back to you. Why do you think we're the same?"
Black eyes stare into his soul,"When you fight I've noticed you derive pleasure from inflicting pain. And when you aren't fighting you put on an act."
Perseus coughs on the smoke in his mouth and wheezes before answering,"You're perceptive. Much more perceptive than my master and anyone I've met to date. You're partially right since I do derive pleasure from being in battle, and just fighting in general. To me it just gives me an excuse to commit murder to sate the part of my soul that demands it. However how I act outside of battle isn't an act, but faint imprints of my former emotions. I'm perfectly capable of ignoring them, but it just makes it easier for everyday life if I don't."
He takes another puff,"So, you also derive pleasure from inflicting pain? And your emotions are all an act?"
Kirei looks down while clenching his fist,"I don't know why, but ever since I was young I've never felt joy except when inflicting pain. Is it a problem I've created or is this simply how I was made? I've searched for an answer all my life and I know you have the answer."
Perseus remains silent for a minute while taking drags from his cigarette,"You know," he begins,"I can't give you a definite answer. Based on my past experiences I believe monsters like us have to start as normal humans and be molded into what we are."
Kirei's eyes widen,"You mean you?"
"Yep," Perseus chirps,"I was human before a goddess cursed me and made me a monster. However, that's a story for another day. Tell me Kotomine Kirei, do you feel any joy other then when you kill or cause a person to suffer?"
The priest nods and Perseus shrugs,"So what do you want me to do?"
Kirei leans forward with a hint of longing in his eyes,"I want to know why I was made this way. I want to know why I exist."
Perseus closes his eyes,"I can't give you a definite answer," he answers slowly,"you could lack emotion simply because of a mental problem, or because of a damaged part of your soul. Both of which I can fix...for a price."
"However," he continues before Kirei can interject,"I can't answer the question of your existence. I doubt any being that's walked the planet could answer you. So, what do you think? One for two isn't bad."
Kirei stays silent for some time,"You said you could fix me? How?"
Perseus grins,"Sorry, but I can't tell you until you agree and we shake on it."
"Why do you think I'll agree?"
Perseus chuckles while snubbing the end of his cigarette by wetting the end with a water spell,"You come off as a blunt person. If you were going to decline you would've done so by now."
"So," Perseus starts while extending his hand,"do we have a deal?"
Kirei stares at the hand for a moment before grabbing it with his own,"For better or worse, I want to experience emotions."
The sharklike grin on Perseus' face makes Kirei regret agreeing before he finds the servant's left hand buried in the middle of his chest,"Try not to scream during this part."
Kirei's mouth moves but no sound comes out as he feels Perseus' hand move around in his chest while his eyes glow black,"So if I tweak this then you should feel regret."
A sound like a lock turning fills the air and he grips another part of the priest's soul,"Brace yourself for this because disgust is next."
The rush of self loathing that sweeps over Kirei causes tears to flow down his cheeks before he blearily sees Perseus point a finger towards his head,"Sleep."