Fate/Laoch Gan Finsceal

Chapter 4: Alien Wasteland

FATE/LAOCH GAN FINSCEAL

"Hero Without Legend"

Chapter 4: Alien Wasteland

Ritsuka's eyes shot open.

She had been sleeping deeply, but woke up after experiencing a vivid dream of another's life. She sat up in her bed and wiped her brow of the sweat that permeated her skin. As a Master, she was able to summon her Servants and have them do battle upon her commands. Such perks came at the cost of not only depleting her prana stores, but also exposing her mind to the pasts of these Heroic Spirits. Rarely were these stories solely of greatness and wonder; it felt like a given that Ritsuka was going to see some cruel events thrown into the mix as well. She had to learn to remain strong and not allow these feelings to overtake her heart.

Ritsuka washed her face and left her room to walk around Chaldea's facility for a bit. She didn't want to disturb Mash or Roman so late at night, so she headed for the empty mess hall. During her walk however, she found Lancer leaning against the wall and gazing at the silvery Antarctic scenery.

"Good evening, Master," she greeted her superior.

"Hi, Lancer."

"Did you have trouble sleeping?"

"Well..."

Ritsuka looked away for a second, wondering if she should tell the girl about her dream. To her surprise however, Lancer said, "You dreamed about me, didn't you?"

"What-?"

"I felt a strong connection to you as you slept. You must have experienced my history, right?"

"Um... Yeah, I did."

"So you know what my True Name is?"

"I'm not sure... I remember everything clearly, but your name is somehow coming up a complete blank..."

"I see," Lancer nodded. "That is the horrifying power of Identity Concealment that my geas has bestowed upon me. As I expected, not even my Master is allowed to know who I am by default."

"But Cuchulainn was in that dream as well. Would he know your identity?"

"He should. Only he, Mother, and Teacher can bypass the geas with their innate knowledge of my existence, meaning they are the only ones permitted to say my name."

"So Cuchulainn is the key," Ritsuka realized. "I should tell Dr. Roman and Da Vinci first thing in the morning. If we could find a way to summon him, we could figure out more about you."

"I still don't see why it's such an issue for you though, Master," Lancer tilted her head curiously. "Wouldn't it be better for me to remain as an anonymous Lancer so that we can utilize it against our enemies?"

"Yeah, that's true, but something just feels 'off' about all of this..."

"Meaning?"

"Well, all Heroic Spirits have some kind of legend that they are connected to, which inscribes their history within the Throne of Heroes and allows Magi to summon them as Servants. The idea of a Heroic Spirit being 'anonymous' just doesn't work in such a system. Even if you are unknown to all except a chosen few, your story must have reached the Throne somehow."

"I didn't accomplish anything of consequence in my life however."

"That's not true. You're standing here as a Servant. Therefore, you must have done something to be recognized. Otherwise, none of this will make any sense."