isleofavalon | Log: Holy Grail War

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Log: Holy Grail War

🧙 WHO: Caster & OPEN (with a couple of closed TLs)
⚔️️ WHAT: Caster's gone on a grief-induced rampage after learning of the death of her lover back home
🕒 WHEN: June 6th, late night
🗺️ WHERE: The Brocéliande woodland
⚠️ WARNINGS: Violence, Arson, Kidnapping, Death Threats, Magical Torture, Grief, potential Body Horror (Will add more as they come up)

So here it was...the Witch of Betrayal finally showing her 'true colours' to Avalon. After that network post, Caster readied herself for whatever would come of it- the forest fire providing an ominous backdrop.

Since she'd come to Avalon, so many had told her she was a good person- and now, she was publicly burning it all to the ground.

[ooc notes: TL prompts will be in the comments!

I don't want Caster to get killed, but I'm all for her potentially getting maimed/scarred provided we plot first. If you don't think it's IC for your character to not just murder her, send me a message so we can plot how she can remove herself from the situation/have someone else intervene before it gets that far!

She'll be using her familiar symbiosis to fight and leaning toward making the actual description of that transformation slightly body-horror-y, but if you're not comfortable with that then just give me the heads up and I'll have her already turned when the thread starts.

Darin will have his own TL for rescuing him/fighting his own familiar fusion, which I'll link here when it's up- feel free to tag one or both as you see fit!]

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. . . Not when it comes to that. That's got nothing to do with me. I can guess what he did to deserve this. That's the way these wars work—we're all just fighting for what we're fighting for, and there's no right or wrong about it. Just different sides trying to survive.

[He'd been thinking about this on the way, trying to figure out what he himself was doing heading into this. That's the situation he came from, wasn't it? Back home, he wasn't fighting for what was right, and neither was Chaldea's Master. All of them, himself, Chaldea, the other Crypters, are fighting for the lot they chose, regardless of any morality. Who can really claim otherwise in a Holy Grail War?

And after putting together those puzzle pieces—and some help from the less private conversations on the network—it's clear what Caster is fighting for, too. Her own war isn't over until this final act ends it. Petty vengeance? Sure, but doesn't he know how that feels himself? Doesn't he know how it feels to have something that's "ended" dumped back in your lap when you thought you might be free of it, and to be asked to swallow it with a smile? How bitter that tastes, how unnatural it feels to choose to accept your death over your pride?

So why come?

There's one other thing he'd realized on the trip.]

But I can tell you're fighting for your Master, not yourself. You couldn't give two shits about how this ends up for you or what your future holds after it's all over. . . . So that's why. You can fight for your Master all you want. Someone else has to be the one to fight for you. . . . Sorry it wasn't someone more impressive, though.

[Though maybe he shouldn't be. Kadoc knows that "fighting for her" is going to involve interfering on some level, not on Archer's behalf, but in terms of damage control. Caster probably wouldn't be thrilled to have someone actually competent handling it. . . . He doesn't say that part yet.]

...you're right. It's- it's exactly that.

[That she was fighting for her Master, that is.

And, not that Caster would admit it directly, but she really didn't care how she ended up at the end of this fight. Sure, the primal fear of death was still there, but when Kate had asked her what her plan was if she survived, Caster couldn't really give an answer.

'Wonder this world as a true witch for what time I have left, perhaps, so long as I have my vengeance.'

That was a non-answer, and she knew it.

But she had been right about one thing. Kadoc had understood. And all the same, he was here to- to fight for her. He wasn't pleading her to stop as Gareth had, or screaming at her to explain herself as Claire or Homura had.

...She felt lost. He was siding with her, even in all this?]

Some would call it foolish to side with the Witch of Betrayal in a Holy Grail War. But...I am glad it's you.

[Ah . . . he hiccups out a little sound, embarrassed, a dry kind of laugh. At both of those things, really. Who has ever been glad it was him, other than Anastasia? And it had taken him so long to realize that, hadn't it? Too long. And as for the rest—]

If anyone's gonna side with a Witch of Betrayal, it should be someone like me. I'm a Crypter. I know you don't know what that means, but I'm the biggest traitor humanity has to offer up. I turned my back on all of Proper Human History. Doesn't matter why. I made my choice to fight on the other side. The only thing I regret is how many times I've failed. . . . So I don't want that to happen again tonight.

[What will he do? What can he do? The fire is still raging; he notes that as an immediate concern, but there's one even more immediate concern first. The man on the network.]

Your hostage. Did you let him go? I'm siding with you, but that means twisting your arm a little about this first. Sorry.

[...Was he embarrassed? Even though she was drowning in her own despair, a part of her found that a little endearing.

Crypter...that was the first she'd heard the term. Once this was all over, she'd have to ask him more about that. For now, there were other matters to contend with.]

...I 'convinced' him to help run interference. That's all.

If you really are set on fighting at my side- we should introduce ourselves properly, shouldn't we? As if a Master like you can't already guess from a display like this.

[Caster held her arms out, gesturing to the blaze around them.]

[Eugh. Interference, huh . . . Kadoc may not know the details, but he can at least make some stabs in the dark as to what that means, and it's nothing he can help with if she's done something to him and set him loose. If he'd been tied up still, he could have set him free, or attempted to convince her to. This is probably out of his hands. That's one concern down, in a less than ideal way, but it is what it is.

There's something else that needs to happen first, anyway. He watches her; the showmanship is familiar. It reminds him of the trials, being on stage together. She has a sense for such things that Kadoc can read the meaning of: it's the part of the villain, played up whole hog and unmistakable. A woman who walks onstage to play a part in a Greek tragedy, in costume that makes it clear to the audience on sight that she isn't to be trusted. Displays like that are chosen and acted for a reason.]

Yeah. That's not the only clue I've picked up, either. But I'd rather not guess. I should hear it because you told me.

['I should hear it because you told me.'

So he was leaving the choice with her. Even if he'd already drawn his own conclusion about who she might have been in life, Caster appreciated that, and the smile she gave in turn was... well, still as twisted as it had ever been tonight, but there was something of a warmth behind all that.

Caster- Medea's weakness had always been those who treated her with genuine kindness.

She couldn't help but think that Kadoc was someone who constantly undersold himself, by playing down his own worth as a Magus and as a Master. She too, remembered how he'd treated her in the trials, and how he'd spoken of his own Servant back home. He was someone who respected and cared for a Servant under his command- and even those who weren't, given the current situation. In a situation like this, he was one who could hold it together.

...That made him a better Master than most.]

Very well, in that case-

[She drew Rule Breaker, turning it over in her hand and letting the blade catch the light, so it would take on a red glow- all part of that same stagecraft which, perhaps, had become such habit she no longer realised she was doing it.]

My name was written in history for a vengeance like this, when I turned my grievances on the supposed 'Hero' who'd wronged me, and truly became known as the 'Witch of Betrayal'. One that the people could blame for all the world's evils.

You might have realised by now, but... I am a Magus from the Age of Gods, the Sorceress Medea.

[For a second—it truly feels like that moment a Master summons a Servant for the first time. Kadoc hasn't exactly lived through many of those, unlike Chaldea's Master, and his first meeting with Anastasia hadn't quite gone like this, to say the least. And yet the vibe is similar anyway. Maybe there's something in it that always feels like this.

He offers her his hand, not for the twisted knife, but to hold and seal the formal introduction. (That knife must be a Noble Phantasm, even if she can't use it here the way she once could. How must that feel? Maybe a little like the magic crest he can't use, or the circuits he can't even feel inside of himself anymore.)]

Medea . . .

[What to say?

He'd made a first impression on Anastasia with his introduction back then, that was for sure. But those words don't apply here, and even if they did, he'd feel so very wrong repeating them. But the sentiment had been powerful, just a statement of intent. He needs that here, too; Medea deserves to know that as much as he'd needed to know her name.]

. . . Your revenge is yours to take care of. I'm not involved in all that. But I will secure your future, even if you can't.

[It did feel that way, didn't it? That similarity wasn't lost on Medea- and perhaps, it was intentional on her part. She was freshly grieving the loss of her own Master, yes, and for however much she loathed the system that let others trample over her will...

There was a certain stability, a familiarity, in having a Master at her side she trusted in this world- who'd come to her even as the fires of her vengeance raged. Especially for a Servant who still struggled so much with the idea of the Holy Grail War truly being over.

As she tucked Rule Breaker away and took his hand with her own, she gave it a firm squeeze. Medea hoped that some of those thoughts would come through in that gesture.]

I don't know how this night will end, or what will become of me in this world once it is all over.

But...if there is something you can see as worth salvaging in all of this, then I may have to rely on you a little.

[That declaration was enough to reassure her that he was determined to make sure she saw the end of this long night, whatever happened in the battles that were to follow.

...She didn't want to die out here. Even in a hopeless situation like this, she was still feared her own death.]

Edited 2021-06-12 12:43 (UTC)

[He meets her eyes and nods firmly, squeezing her hand back in turn. A pact. Kadoc is a shy, retiring soul, who avoids being touched or making eye contact much of the time, but this is different. Here he has something to fight for, now, and he knows what it is and that he'll do anything he can to secure it.

The only issue is how.

In spirit, this feels like a pact between Master and Servant, stepping up onto the stage of the Holy Grail War. In reality, it's nothing of the sort. Not only can Kadoc not command her, but he can't make use of another important aspect of a Command Spell either: overcoming magical limitations with the weight of the contract. They have to approach this entirely differently than they'd probably both like. And beyond that, he hadn't been kidding about Medea's revenge: he'll protect her however he can against Archer and anyone else who comes for her, and take her corner as a Master, especially if Archer brings his own along for the show. But Kadoc isn't inclined to dole out any punishment himself if it comes down to that. If Medea loses, she loses. What matters is that she lives, and avoids the very worst outcomes of despair and alienation that this could lead to.

This is too much thinking. Kadoc lets her hand fall away from his, only to press his to his head and rub through his hair. No more of this circling inside himself; he has to start with what she already knows.]

Tell me what your plan is for all this. I know you have one. That's your Noble Phantasm, isn't it?

[Medea moved the hood of her cloak just a little- not too much, but just enough so he could meet her tired eyes easily.

A pact it was. With a Master at her side she could lean on or who could shield the worst, she didn't need to hold back in enacting her revenge the same way she would otherwise. She shared his anxieties though. Their agreement didn't hold the same power a traditional pact had- they would need another plan.

Once his hand dropped, she turned her attention back to her weapon. Even without most of its power, it still served it's purpose as a ritual knife.]

Yes... 'Rule Breaker', a manifestation of my nature as a betrayer.

I don't know if it can break the bond between Magus and Familiar the way it could at home, I've never tested it. I've at least been able to use it to help set up traps in magic circles throughout the outer edges of the forest- and the smoke from the fire helps conceal them.

...I also have this.

[She held out the enchanted dragon fang again, her familiar watching it closely.]

I've been wondering about that. What is it?

[He can tell it does something. Here in Avalon, Kadoc's lost any skill he once had in being sensitive to magic or sussing out its nature through exposure; it's like a sense of his is gone, and he's only just beginning to be used to it. And yet he can tell just looking at that thing that it's something powerful, and important. He eyes it, and then looks back up to her face, as if the answer might be waiting for him there.]

It's a dragon fang- I used these to create an army of familiars to fight for me at home.

[It was that, in part, which had given Archer a clue to her identity- after all, conjuring an army from dragon's teeth was known in her family, and in her legend. But there was little need to hide that here.]

But the Traders taught me a different magic I can call upon with these as a catalyst. A fusion with my familiar.

...That should give me all the power I need.

—You're gonna fuse with your familiar?

[Whoa whoa whoa, hey now, this is magic he's familiar with, and to say it fucked things up immensely . . . well, it had worked and all, but Kadoc still can't look at it quite neutrally. It's a fraught topic! Explaining the yaga is way beyond what he can get into right now as they're gearing up for battle, but he at least has to know:]

Temporarily, right? You're sure? You're not gonna go twisting your spirit origin permanently for the sake of this?

It shouldn't last much longer than an hour- I've seen someone else on the network do such a thing, but...

[Using a magic this dangerous for the first time during this sort of battle was reckless. She wasn't blind to that. But that level of concern was a little surprising.

Did he know something she didn't?

...She'd seen Hijikata do it. And as far as she knew, he'd returned to normal relatively unscathed. It wasn't as if she hadn't carefully studied the components and spell, either.]

My heart's already been twisted. I doubt this will fracture what's left of me any further.

[Would it twist her spirit origin- damage the very core of who she was? That was a frightening thought. One that she'd probably dwell on further if she had any thought to her own future.]

You'd be surprised when it comes to manipulating the core of what makes you human. Yeah, you're a Heroic Spirit, not exactly a human anymore, but the principle's the same.

. . . Just be careful.

[If there's a way here to do this, maybe there's a way to undo it too. He doesn't know. But he's not going to talk her out of it, is he? He sighs and fusses with his hair, but then he just shrugs, arms crossing.]

...I know.

[She did feel a shiver of fear, but- but it was what she had to do.]

Don't get yourself killed on my behalf, alright?

[Stepping forward, Caster reached out to lay a hand on his shoulder a moment, before looking out toward Camelot.

And behind them, the fire only grew hotter as it continued to rage, the air growing stifling.]

Don't worry. I've got my reasons not to die here.

[But he can feel that prickle at his back, the blaze beginning to fan up even higher. That can't be let to get out of control—he'd come here partially for that reason too, but what the hell can he do about it? It'd been smaller on video, and he'd had stupid thoughts of maybe encasing the whole area in a Light bubble to choke the air out of it. That may have been possible half an hour ago, if he could get a good vantage point, but now? He's at a loss. Hell, maybe he should borrow that dagger, fuse with his own familiar, and hope he ends up with the frost magic he knows the hydra should rightfully have.

Well, but wait a second here. He turns his head to his familiar, hanging there around his neck passively, with a surprised jerk.]

—Can you do something about the flames? We've gotta contain this before everyone dies without anyone getting to the vengeance part. It's served its purpose.

[His familiar says nothing. Kadoc's pretty sure it can't form speech anyway, even though it clearly understands it. With a soft thud, it unwinds from him and lands on the ground, and slithers towards the edge of the blazing forest.]

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Log: Holy Grail War

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