One Stone For Five Birds

Illyasviel von Einzbern felt a bit odd at the situation and could only stare at the impudent Tohsaka girl standing near her with her hands on her hips, displaying as much annoyance as she physically could with that boorish face of hers.

Bewildered by Rin's proposition and further stupefied by the fact that the smarter of her own two homunculus aids, Sella, saw it as a fruitful opportunity to strike two birds with one stone, Illya fell into deep thought, unable to make any snide or hateful commentary.

It was for this reason that a tense silence enveloped the castle hall all of them were standing in, even the greyish stone blocks seemed petrified, afraid of the hulking mass of muscle standing behind Illya, chest rising and falling with each breath.

Maybe his presence was what made Archer physically manifest with two short swords drawn, ready for any combat, meaningless as Illya knew it would be considering the sheer difference in parameters.

Not to mention the more magically powerful Sella and the dumb yet physically inhuman Leysritt standing between them in their maid attires, with pale hair hidden by gowns and emotionless scarlet eyes boring holes into their 'guest'.

(A/N: Short hair is Leysritt, Long hair is Sella.)

Rin stomped her foot on the red carpet covering the floor beneath them and sighed indignantly, "What'll it be? I don't have all day!"

Archer would have praised her negotiation tactic if not for the fact that they did in fact, have all day. So, he only sighed and facepalmed at her brash demeanour.

Illya smirked at that however, "Go ahead then, leave. Face Lancer, Caster AND Assassin on your own." Her smirk widened further as she placed a hand on her pale cheek, "Maybe Rider could help, that Matou boy seems to like you an awful lot."

"Rider i-"

"Oh right!" A cruel glint crossed the young girl's red eyes, "Him and the servant are dead! So really.."

Illya clasped her hands together, putting on an innocent expression that contrasted far too sharply with her eyes, "Who do you think will be targeted first?" And her words, "A Demigod?" She gestured to Berserker who snarled at the term she'd used for him, "Or whatever that is?" The homunculus girl pointed at an unamused Archer.

Rin clenched her fists but otherwise remained silent, she'd expected this to some extent but god be damned if the Einzbern wasn't the most insufferable little shi- Also wait, Lancer, Caster and Assassin were in cahoots?!

How the hell were any of them supposed to win alone?!

Hell, forget winning, it would be difficult to even dent their operations!

Illya did enjoy the troubled expression on her enemy but she too was in a bit of a conundrum.

Berserker was supremely powerful, perhaps the strongest servant in this war but she would have to be far too conceited if she thought there was no chance of them being in trouble.

Her bird familiars had proved useful and while the information available was minimal, Sella and her together had concluded that the three servants she'd mentioned were working together. Once she added to that the state of the Matou estate and the parameters she'd observed in Lancer with the Master's Perspective, it was easy to note that he was a considerable threat.

"Since you're in so much trouble, I'll help you out." Illya put on her best smile, closing her eyes to the shocked expression on Rin's face, "But..."

"Of course there's a but." Rin crossed her arms and looked away in disappointment, she'd expected too much. Looking away meant she got a faceful of the evening Sun and was forced to look the other way, wincing in pain.

"Rude.. I'll help if my older brother works with us too." If she was going to do this, she was going to make the most of it.

While the other servants would be weakened after such a conflict, Berserker's noble phantasm would let him be in top shape if he got killed even once.

That would mean a six servant conflict would end in the opportunity to get her revenge on everyone in the same moment, maybe even make it more flavourful by having Berserker violate whatever her 'older brother' held dear.

"Older brother?" Rin tilted her head, did these weird homunculi even have such a thing? Sick and old-fashioned as they were?

"Shirou Emiya."

"Eh?"

In her surprise, Rin missed the slightly intrigued glances Archer was sending Illya, wondering if he'd get his wish to murder his past self granted by his half-sibling.

"W..Wait, what?!"

"Don't mind that." Illya hummed, walking past Rin with a pleased, almost innocent smile plastered across her face, "Are you coming?" She looked over her shoulder, genuinely curious.

Doing as was asked of her, Rin followed behind her new, temporary ally but, "I don't like this." It reeked of foul play and fishiness, she didn't want Shirou to get caught up in this shitshow of a Grail War, just for Sakura though! Yes! For Sakura! She didn't care about him or his hands or his skipping! She had no choice here!

"What's not to like?"

Archer answered, dissipating into a spiritual form leaving Rin to be confused about why he seemed oddly, cheerful? Was that the right word?

*

Bazett slammed her gloved fist into a skeleton's face, shattering it to bits and pieces of bones with her rune-enhanced supernatural strength before taking a step back and ducking. She followed the action up with a sweeping right kick, supporting her body with her two hands.

"Do you possess any idea where these creatures are emerging from?"

"Caster's handiwork, I think! Or one of the Masters!" She shouted back at the Saber fighting nearby, leaning backwards just in time to avoid a rusted metal sword that threatened to slice open her face.

They'd just been walking through an oddly underpopulated district of the city in search of Shirou but ended up ambushed by skeletal warriors with lizard-like skulls and tails, armed with rudimentary decayed weaponry.

Saber, if Bazett was being honest, failed to display the strength one would expect from the legendary King Arthur and felt that Aston could have destroyed every single attacker before she could even blink.

Though, thinking calmly, the Enforcer realised her emotional outburst had landed the same servant she wanted to help in turmoil. Turmoil he didn't deserve.

"Enough moping!"

Slapping her own cheeks to drive away unnecessary thoughts, Bazett Fraga McRemitz gave the current conflict her full, undivided attention.

A punch here, a kick there, and soon enough the skeletons had returned to their original dead states.

These things were only meant to hinder or harass, that was easy to grasp considering how weak they'd been and Bazett could only wonder why anyone would want to slow her down and hope things would go according to plan for once.

Saber stared at the back of the magenta-haired magus leading her about the city and nodded to herself, this was necessary. She didn't truly get it but she wanted to talk to her knight again, if not that then she simply wanted to be in his presence.

These feelings were odd for the King of Knights but they were her own desires, desires swirling in a mind that was slowly but surely dragging itself out of guilt and regret over past actions, guilt her knight insisted was baseless.

Ah but she'd always done that, hadn't she?

In face of turmoil, there was always the Knight of Atrocity to fall back upon.

Was that alright?

* * *

FEEDBAAACK!!!!

Guess Jeanne won, I've started posting Fate/Absolution over at patre0n and will post it here after it reaches 8 chaps.

*

You can find upto 7 chapters ahead at patre0n.com/Bleap

Completely filled, ahead actually. This arc is about to end over there.