Chapter Text
Seven(eight?) times had the Master of Chaldea, [ ], saved the world. She had been to places she would have believed were pure myth, had she not been told otherwise. The Babylonian Underworld. King Solomon’s Temple of Time. She had seen altered and unaltered histories firsthand.
She’d done a lot, and right now she was dissociating in Chaldea’s lobby.
I… what’s happening right now?
She’d been farming sand in the Underworld until the last possible moment when the underworld sealed off. And she wasn’t sure what for, because all of the servants she was farming materials for were de-summoned yesterday. She’d gotten the confirmation half-way through the event. Or canonically, anyway.
She didn’t remember much of the events of the past week. She remembered being tired. She remembered getting real bitter half-way through the week for some reason, but she must have repressed that memory.
She was tired, still. And sore. She’d been waiting for this day for the greater part of a year now, but as it got closer and closer, she dreaded it more and more. Each day that passed was a day closer to when she could go home, but also a day closer to when she’d have to say goodbye to everyone. They were supposed to be greeting the new director right now, as far as she remembered. She wondered how that was going now.
“S-senpai…” She heard a small voice whisper off to her side, snapping her out of her thoughts.
It was then that she noticed all the soldiers in the room which had appeared suddenly.
Oh… that’s what’s going on right now?
“Hmmmm, have the powers that be already ruled that Chaldea is no more than a criminal cartel, and you have simply neglected to inform us?” Da Vinci said coolly.
Mash next to her clutched her former master’s arm. Mash was nervous, but not as nervous as she could’ve been. It had been a while since she had lost the ability to enter combat as a Pseudo-servant. For reasons unknown, the servant inside her Galahad was no longer responding to her calls. However regardless of the fact that she was now like any other human, she was someone who had gone through 7 singularities alongside her master, not including the minor ones.
She had seen and experienced more than many people did in their entire lifetimes. She wasn’t afraid, and neither was her master. Instead of being just unafraid however, her master was also not all ‘there’ at the moment, though, so to speak.
“Forty soldiers?” She said slowly, as if processing the number in her head. She slouched forward because she couldn’t muster the energy to support her head where it stood.
She was so tired, she wanted to go to sleep right there, but maybe it would’ve been rude. She didn’t know why she would care though.
“…Forty soldiers… Sounds like a challenge quest. Da Vinci could probably solo it… In battle mode. I think there was more that one time in Shinjuku…” She said with a yawn.
“S-senpai!” Mash said, a bit urgently this time.
Well, it was probably true? It was hard to comprehend the scale of servants’ powers on a normal scale. Legendary heroes from myths and legends, most of them could level armies alone given enough mana supply. They never generally fought human enemies though. Shinjuku was one of the few exceptions.
Chaldea’s Da Vinci was split into two separate entities as a servant. Her presence in Chaldea itself was finely tuned for the administrative duties of Chaldea, as well as a bunch of things she didn’t really understand. She understood fighting though. Da Vinci had a separate Spirit Origin tuned for combat, and it was very nice.
Pioneer of the Stars EX! Golden Rule(Body B)! Natural Born Genius EX! Her multi-target Noble Phantasm! And not to mention her thighs. [ ] had expressed how much she appreciated each of those qualities to Da Vinci herself, except for the last part, of course.
Too bad she hadn’t been able to summon her, like at all.
“Wh-why you…!” The new director man began to say.
Da Vinci had to stop herself from laughing out loud to continue her statement.
“That’s a bit out of line, but I would say [ ] is correct. We ARE the mysterious organization that saved the whole world, after all. If there was a warrant for our arrest, you should have come with a small army at least,” She said. “But you only brought a paltry forty soldiers. Doesn’t seem fit to the task, does it? So this isn’t something the Mage’s Association decided, but a call you made on your own right?”
The new director man was sweating a bit. Now that she thought about it though, she didn’t remember what his name was.
“Why don’t we get the Association on the phone and see what they have to say about this?” Da Vinci said with her beautiful smile. “I’m sure they’d love to hear what was going on.”
[ ] had to give credit where credit was due, the soldiers didn’t even flinch from any of the threats they exchanged. [ ] recognized that what she said did indeed amount to a threat, but from what she could tell, none of the forty soldiers stepped out of line at any point during the exchange.
Da Vinci and the new director continued to exchange words, while [ ] continued to completely zone out from the conversation.
Mages were new to her a year ago. Right now she supposed they still were. She hadn’t had the privilege of dealing with many besides Chaldea staff. Chaldea was a microcosm of focused talent and expertise, it wasn’t indicative of the larger world of Mages. This Gordlolf? Goldrolf? Goldrof, Gridlock… whoever he was, he didn’t seem all that close to the world of Mages. Money still seemed to hold sway in the Clock Tower, after all.
From everything she’d heard about the Clock Tower, she wasn’t entirely sure what she felt about it. But, if she had to say she didn’t really think she liked them much. She heard stories from the staff about their friends and some of the higher-ups who were on the nicer side, but also a lot of stories about the assholes. It was about a 4:1 ratio.
She didn’t know, it just seemed so exhausting to be in there, if it was really like what they said.
“…I used the entirety of the Musik family fortune to buy all of Chaldea’s assets and prevent its dismantling.” Goldgolf said. “You see, the Clock Tower people were desperate to get their hands on technology they could bring back to their respective departments.”
He suddenly stood straight and turned up his nose while looking up with an expression of loathing on his face.
“But I just DETEST them. I couldn’t stand to see them get what they want.”
Alright, now she was listening.
“An organization needs all of its parts, just like a human body. It’s barbaric to try and carve out its heart or lop off one of its arms!”
Alright, she liked Gordolf. There was just something refreshing about him. He wasn’t interested in some god-like ambition like saving all of humanity from their sins, or… saving all of humanity from their sins, but he was the type of person that staked their entire life and fortune on the small amount of pride he had as a human being.
She’d seen so many god-tier egos this last year. Seeing one this small was honestly refreshing, and she wished this man well with whatever it was he was doing.
Oh right, he’s doing a hostile takeover.
And then they went to comply with the hostile takeover, after a priest arrived, or something.
--
“That could’ve been very dangerous, Senpai!” Mash scolded her. “Don’t you remember what Da Vinci said in the beginning?”
“Uh… no.” [ ] replied. “I… might not have been paying attention, what was it?”
“Silence is golden!” Da Vinci had said, cutting in. “I have to say, I was quite flattered by your words, [ ], but Mash is right, that had the potential to become dangerous situation. I don’t think it would’ve been dangerous against anyone who’s had experience with Mages, however. Magecraft is a dangerous field, it wouldn’t be surprising for anyone with any experience in Magecraft to be encounter a spell which could kill an entire room in a second. I saw plenty back in my day, and most of those were failures!”
Da Vinci made a flourish by spinning in the office chair they’d managed to get into confinement on the way in.
“But, that’s besides the point. I know the reason [ ] is like this. She’s sad after losing all the servants she’s made a connection with over this past year. She always gets like this when she’s tired, but she lashes out because she’s distracting herself from her own emotions.” Da Vinci said. “Mash, you should giver her a hug!”
“On it, director!” Mash said. She lunged for her master and tackled her to the bed.
“No, wait, stop!” The former master of Chaldea shrieked as Mash pulled her into a tight embrace. In her weakened state she had no choice but to submit.
Da Vinci nodded approvingly from were she sat.
“I suppose while we have you tied up, we should talk about the Church.” Da Vinci said. “That priest wasn’t any ordinary priest. I’m guessing he’s part of their combat team, the Executors.”
[ ] piped up at that. Combat priests was a novel concept. She wondered what kind of weapons they used. All she could think of was the whip and various sub weapons from Castlevania. The Castlevania protagonists hadn’t ever been priests though.
Although, now that she thought about it Jeezy boy used a whip that one time in the temple. Maybe she wasn’t as off as she thought.
“The Executors are supposedly devotees of the blade who spread God’s teaching in his absence,” She explained. “They’re usually fairly monstrous, trained to fight mages and mystical creatures. They believe Mystics belong to solely God’s domain, and they suffer neither Magecraft nor heresy in the name of their Lord. Basically their mission is to bring all human knowledge under their control.”
Mash piped up with an observation.
“I could tell that priest was adept at hunting and fighting, or at least, that’s what Galahad tells me.” Mash said.
“Right, we’ll have to be careful about that one.” Da Vinci said, nodding. “In the meantime, we can probably discuss Koyanskaya as well. She’s almost a total mystery. She isn’t affiliated with the Church or the Mage’s Association. Maybe she was the one who convinced Goredolf to acquire Chaldea. Aside from that…”
The adults began to discuss the various mysteries surrounding their new circumstances, and [ ]’s head began to feel very heavy indeed. Her eyelids were getting heavy too. Embraced by Mash’s softness, and her sweet scent, sleep was calling her, and she’d been ignoring it far too long already.
“Mash… Mash, I’m falling asleep. 3, 2, 1,” [ ] whispered.
And just like that, she was out. Falling asleep at the drop of a hat was a skill she’d been forced to learn by her experiences. Go long enough without sleep and the body will sleep but falling over in an important moment isn’t exactly something you want to happen.
It was never pleasant. She could be out for hours, and the amount of time she remembered sleeping varied per experience. This time she felt like she’d only been asleep for seconds before Mash was shaking her awake.
“How long was I out for, Mash?” She asked blearily. She didn’t feel like she slept at all.
“About 5 minutes, Senpai.” Mash replied.
“Oh…” [ ] groaned softly into her pillow. “Noooooooooo…”
“That’s right, looks like you got called up first.” Da Vinci said. “I know it might be hard on you, but you can sleep as much as you want when you come back!”
There was no point delaying it. Throwing a tantrum wasn’t going to make it over any quicker. Mash helped her to her feet and she staggered off for her questioning.
--
She felt like she’d just walked out of a really easy, but long exam which had the same question reprinted a dozen or so times per page. Half of those questions were just yes or no questions. Half of the later questions she’d already answered in the first half. And somehow they made it drag on for hours.
She wanted so badly to fall to the ground and pass out right now, but if there was something that could salvage the day, it’d be falling asleep next to Mash, listening to her soft breathing soothing her soul.
Suddenly a familiar figure stood in her way. Konyakasksksks or whatever her name was.
“You look exhausted little Kitty,” She said. She walked up and tilted [ ]’s chin upwards to look right into her eyes. “This your first time playing with the big boys? Then you’d better hurry up and learn how the game is played. As they say, experience is every-,”
She was suddenly interrupted by a Fou TackleTM, out of nowhere. Fou wisely went for the legs but unfortunately he was no match for the Konyasaskaskdsa.
“Oh, is this your cat? I’m sorry, I couldn’t help but hit back!” With an expert motion, she lifted her foot and shot it down, pinning Fou to the ground.
Fou made its small cries for help, but unfortunately [ ] was out of sympathy for anybody at this point.
“…That’s what you get for attacking random people, Fou,” She said, crouching down to bother the animal.
While it was like this she could squish its cheeks as much as she wanted to and there was nothing he could do about it.
“Ahem, up here?” Someone that she seemed to have forgotten about said.
[ ] looked upwards without moving from the spot. Leggings. Damn. She looked up slightly higher, catching Konayasaks’s disgusted expression as well as a very nice overall angle indeed.
“No thanks, this is good,” [ ] said.
She sensed the frustration starting to build up. Konyasakaaaaaaa, extended a finger under [ ]’s chin and began to dig a fingernail into her flesh.
“Don’t make me repeat myself, okay?” She said, looking right into [ ]’s eyes, with that same measured smile, but with a deadly expression.
[ ] did as she was told.
“Excellent, now let’s have a little chat, shall we?♥” She said.
Conditioner began to talk, but [ ]’s mind was a mess. She obediently followed along with the conversation as best she could but there was only really one live brain cell floating around in her head, and it was telling her one thing and one thing only.
I want her to tie me up, [ ] thought.
She didn’t think she’d have minded it so much if she was the one doing the interrogating instead of the panel she’d had to speak to. It was too late now. She was imagining being forced to give up her secrets one by one. She dragged her mind back to the conscious world for a moment to make sure she was only drooling inside her mouth.
“Now, how about Team A? The seven people who were originally meant to save the world, not you. Mmmm, maybe I should rephrase that. They were the seven people from whom you stole the opportunity of a lifetime.” Mortal Kombat said, licking her lips. “Now, be a good girl and tell me, how much do you know about those seven people?”
[ ] stared at her blankly.
“…Huh? Don’t tell me you’ve never heard ANYTHING about them the whole time you’ve been here?” Konyakodon said.
“…I never asked.” [ ] replied.
“You’re kidding! I didn’t know you were so cold hearted, [ ]. And you don’t even know their names.” Koyanskaya said. She began to circle around [ ]. “…You stole everything from them. Their jobs… their purpose… even their place at Chaldea. In that case, you really can’t blame them if they wake up pissed off at you, can you?”
[ ] remained silent for a moment.
From a certain point of view, Koyanskaya was right. She had more or less stolen the glory. She hadn’t ever bothered to learn their names or anything about them.
Never mind the fact that they were for all intents and purposes dead to the world. Not as an exaggeration either, if you were going by physical laws. She supposed it was all normal to them by now. But the trick that kept them alive in their coffins, to her, was exactly just that, a trick.
Chaldea itself almost felt like it’d only survived the total incineration of human history because of a trick. It had tricked the world into thinking it didn’t exist, so when the world was destroyed, Chaldea remained. It was simpler to believe that than all the technical information behind it.
In the beginning she’d known about the seven masters. They didn’t really seem that different from the others, when none of the masters had any plans to be freed from stasis for the foreseeable future. She understood the reasons. It was too dangerous and became less and less viable as Chaldea’s resources dwindled.
But she remembered, in the beginning what she’d decided to do. She knew Mash knew them. She knew Da Vinci knew them. She knew she could’ve asked about them at any time, although she really didn’t care about them in the beginning. Instead she made a different choice. “I’ll ask them all when they wake up.”
Singularity after singularity, mission after mission, she completed them all with Mash and a wonderful cast of servants by her side. But how many times had she wished for it? How many times did she lay awake at night, wishing for someone else to take her place? How many times did she wish that when she opened her eyes, she would be somewhere else?
“Why would I remember their names when I don’t even remember yours?” The master of Chaldea said. She wasn’t going to hold back anymore. If she wanted to pick a fight, she would get a fight.
“Why you-“
“Konjac Gel, or whatever your name is, the Seven masters don’t have anything to do with me anymore. You know it yourself, you’re taking over Chaldea, and I no longer have a role.” [ ] said, cutting her off.
She’d been cordial thus far, but she was about to go for the low blows. It wasn’t going to be nice between the two of them soon enough. She was burning that bridge herself, before Marie Kondo did it for her.
“Don’t you have anything more important to do? Someone important to suck off, or something? Groldorlf can’t be your highest ambition here.”
Wasn’t it hypocritical of her to indulge in her sexuality and condemn it at her leisure? Honestly it was pretty bad to be inconsistent like that. But she wasn’t a priest. And this was how you won fights from a disadvantage.
Kublai Khan was obviously more skilled in trickery and manipulation than her, as well as Magecraft, charm, and everything else, probably. The way to beat a superior opponent was to drag into your battlefield and beat her with experience.
Right now she was letting her know that her battlefield was a boxing ring, and [ ] was ready on the other side with two holes punctured in her boxing gloves with fingers going straight up through them, although weren’t long enough to show anything but the tip, but the positioning of the holes made it clear which fingers where sticking up.
“You impudent little…-” Kodak Moment began to speak, but then a shout rang out throughout the hallway.
“K-Koyanskaya!” Goredolf called.
He looked sweatier than usual, and he was flanked by some NFF forces.
“Oh, how lucky for you, it seems we’ll have to cut our conversation a little short,” Code Lyoko said. She leaned in to whisper into her ear.
“This is far from over.” There was something about her tone of voice which made her shiver. Something primal, an innate fear. She was clearly far more than she let on.
The feeling was gone in a flash. In its place, she welled up with pride for being able to stand up for herself and being fighting fit after a year without having to interact all that many other humans.
And then a little while later everything went really poorly.