Fate/Irregular Summons

Chapter 8: Strength and Sorcery

FATE/IRREGULAR SUMMONS

Chapter 8: Strength and Sorcery

A day of much-needed respite for the Grail War's contestants soon gave way to night. The sky blanketed all of Fuyuki in the cover of darkness, signifying the hours when battle would commence once again. Shirou had not woken up from his coma for the entire day, and it was likely that his condition wouldn't improve until the following morning. Saber spent some time patrolling the Emiya residence and talking with Taiga, then decided to set up a futon and get some sleep during the late afternoon.

As Shirou slept in his room, a strange collection of hair-thin threads weaved their way through the window and wrapped around his ankles and neck. The tip of the sinewy string pricked into the back of his neck, allowing the controller to manipulate his entire nervous system as if he were a puppet. Without any awareness on his part, he slowly got up and stumbled forth in a dazed sleepwalk. Step by step, he left his home and walked toward Mt. Endou near where he lived.

A spiral staircase. A pair of heavy doors. A golden goblet. The streets of Miyama. A sailing ship. A traffic light. A dagger that spewed blood. His own footsteps. A series of stone stairs. An unknown man walking toward him. A Japanese temple.

Bizarre images flashed in his mind, lacking coherency and chronology. The visions seemed to be a mix of someone else's life from the distant past coupled with sights of the modern world that he was familiar with, each vying for dominance within Shirou's subconsciousness. The whole thing was so weird that it snapped him awake. The cold air immediately chilled his skin, and he panned his eyes around to see where he was.

"Is this... Ryuudou Temple...?" he murmured.

"It is."

A woman's voice he had never heard before echoed within the night. He turned around to see a haze of smoky darkness coagulate like viscous fluid until it formed a humanoid shape. A mysterious lady wearing a black hooded mantle and a purple dress materialized. One could be forgiven for thinking she was a witch given how her dark garments were credited as a source of inspiration for what witches of modern beliefs wore. Her lips, glossed with purple lipstick, crept into a smile as she stared at her captured prey.

****

Rin stood alone within the underground parking lot of a popular cram school. Or, perhaps it was better to say that she had no other human company. The only other things she could see were cars, signs, road paint, vending machines... and a pair of canine-like skeletal monsters scoping her out. She knew what these things were; Dragon Tooth Warriors, or low-level familiars crafted out of dragons' fangs that served only to be expendable soldiers. While each one was so weak that a Mage with basic training could take it out, these monsters were notable for being near-limitless to produce. Servants could wipe out hundreds at once with their Noble Phantasms, but those numbers could be replaced unless the originating spell and/or caster was eliminated.

Rin already understood that the dog-like beasts were no match for her, but the idea wasn't for them to defeat her. Archer warned her about the school's inhabitants being drained of their mana, and so Rin had hurried to cut off the source of the siphoning. Caster was prepared though, having summoned these Dragon Tooth Warriors specifically to stall any interlopers. The creatures snarled and charged at Rin, but she calmly raised her arm and fired two well-aimed Gandr shots at their skulls. The monsters disintegrated into smoky ash, and she took a few steps forward.

A loud crash rocked the area, yet she wasn't fazed as she stared back to see what it was. A giant Dragon Tooth Warrior resembling either a massive lizard or a small dinosaur crashed through the ceiling and sauntered toward her. It rushed in an attempt to bite her head off, but she fired another spell that destroyed this monster as easily as its brethren. She knew more were lying in wait. However, none of them made any move against her. She was free to hurry upstairs and look around for where the draining was most concentrated.