No Appointment Necessary

[Calamity Jane]

She really shouldn’t have tried to pull that bullet out of this guy who had just accepted her contract’s arm.

Well maybe she shouldn’t have hit him in the head that hard either. But either way, she had nicked something that she wasn’t supposed to, and now he was bleeding particularly shocking amounts as well as he had a rather damaged looking part of his head. Maybe I should have used my fist?

“Well you could have killed him, Jane.” Her voice barely carried, her murmur almost not even reaching her own ears. Well yeah, she could have shot him in the head, but there was no way she would have done that.

The guy, she still didn’t know his name, had had the markings of the beginning of command seals! They did not have power when she had seen them, but now they were definitely able to be used.

“Well, hopefully you will use these ones better than that idiot.”

There was no response, of course.

She sighed again. No luck in this area, her eyes peering through even buildings as she searched for something, anything that resembled a hospital. The makeshift bandages, made out of the dead man’s cloths, were not amazingly effective.

If she lost this one too she would need to find a third master. Worst. Luck. Ever.

Although this one didn’t seem so bad, he did seem to have a gun and skills with it. There was a definite need for her to have ammo, she was already down two shots and with her previous master they would have been irreplaceable.

But most importantly, he had had cigarettes on him. She had searched his unresponsive body with her eyes after she had hit the completely confused man in the head, and found a pack of them in his pocket. Well they weren’t his anymore.

Another rooftop. She carefully placed her master down, and began to scan the city once more.

This time, she found something. A walk in clinic, or so the sign said. The doors were barred shut, but then again it was still before even sunrise. Still, what kind of doctor left the sick outside? Well wounded, in this case.

She could have smiled though. There were no lights on in the building, at least seeable from the outside, but there was a woman inside, with a coat that gave her away as a doctor. Or knowing my luck, a janitor who wants to pretend they are a doctor.

The journey there was particularly quick, almost a sprint even if she was trying to keep from bumping the man who was leaking blood on her leather jacket. The door was still barred when she got there though, and she really did not have the patience to knock. It’s not like the doctor would answer, anyways.

Her hands carefully gripped her long skirt, keeping it from interfering as she delivered a kick that near obliterated the iron bars in her way, not to mention the actual door itself, spraying pieces across the darkened room as she entered.

In one side of the room, thankfully untouched by the spray of debris, there was the shocked doctor, or pretend doctor, she really didn’t care right now. Turning her sharp eyes towards the woman, she addressed her with a tone not quite fit for one who had kicked in a door. It was almost non-chalant, like she had spoken to quite a few doctors in her day. People were always getting shot, after all.

“Hey, can you fix up this guy, doc? He’s been shot in the arm, and, well, he also got hit in the head kinda a little too hard.” There was a little blood still oozing from where she had hit him with the grip of her pistol.

He was getting a little annoying to carry, mostly because of the dripping blood, so she set him down on the floor in front of the doctor, kicking away the worst of the glass shards and iron pieces, before pulling out a cigarette and a lighter, also filched from the comatose man. She carefully lit one of the addicting things, and flicked the lighter back into her pouch as she looked between the shocked lady, and her lead weight of a master. Well let’s see if your luck is in, kid!

[Catherine Trandor]

Erin likes to sleep in and wake up early; it was a habit she picked up on her studies in Clock Tower and carried them ever since then. While she wasn’t ready to admit that technology can be useful, she was really thankful that Vicky taught her how to operate the water…heater…machine thing, she can’t really remember their name; it wasn’t quite as easy to remember of a name as a stethoscope.

Sipping her coffee, she began to wonder if the decision of bringing Vicky to Lucca is a good one. She will be safer from overzealous Enforcers with Erin herself around, but bringing a kid like her to a battlefield is still not a good idea. Since the accident in Fuyuki City, strange rumors have been spreading about the Einzbern’s losing control of the Grail process, and the Fuyuki City disaster is a byproduct of that. This is all still a vague possibility, but a plausible explanation nonetheless.

She was about to sigh audibly and sipped her coffee again when the door to her clinic was forcefully barged from the outside.

Bolting upwards, Erin immediately readied the aria for one of her attack spells, but immediately stopped halfway when she saw just what the ‘assailants’ were.

One was a young woman that still looks to be in her 20s wearing a get up that would be right at home in a Rodeo show, while the other is a young man who currently looks half dead from blood loss. Of course, Erin acted as what any sane person would do in this situation.

“Oh my...”

Not exactly the most excited of reaction, but the Clock Tower instructor had seen many things she’d rather not mention. Getting her door broken by a woman carrying a heavily injured man is almost like an ordinary occurrence in comparison.

“Hey, can you fix up this guy, doc? He’s been shot in the arm, and, well, he also got hit in the head kinda a little too hard.”

The young woman made herself at home almost too quickly, snatching the cigarettes from the young man’s prone body and lit one of them on fire, ignoring the clinic’s no smoking signs pestered all over the place. It is as though the woman is unfamiliar with the ordinary custom of a place for treatment and medicine. Erin thought that the young woman comes from a really remote village, stuck in the middle of the 1800s, but immediately perished the thought almost as quickly as it came.

Unless…of course, how unusual for one such as her to be called, but no matter.

“I don’t think you want to leave him as it is on the floor, it’s not very healthy. Come, I’ll lead you to the treatment room.”

Erin motioned for the young woman to follow her into the treatment room. It is still a bit early for all out servant battle, so this might just be the result of a minor skirmish, Erin thought. Before she enters the hallway, she pauses and addresses the pair once again.

“Do keep in mind that this war is supposed to be a secret. Carrying around a wounded man in terms of emergency is fine, but you should take a good care as to not attract the attention of civilians. At least your Master there told you that much, right?”

She figured that the young woman was just suffering from a bit of time and culture shock, she was lucky she barged down the right clinic, else there would be more jobs to do in the days to come. Sighing inaudibly, she waits for the young woman to answer her question.

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

Vicky didn’t really sleep much. Rather, she didn’t really see the point in spending such a large chunk of her time in a voluntary coma. Unlike some people, she had better things to do with her time. So, with her laptop set up in a corner of the clinic, she was already whiling away the wee hours of the morning by shooting terrorists in the face. And she was utterly destroying the opposition, a look of intense concentration on her face, wearing a pair of bulky headphones (Erin had complained about the noise).

At least until she was almost hit in the back of the head with the splintered remnants of what used to be the door.

And she was up in an instant , ripping those headphones from her ears, chair clattering to the ground, already preparing to blow up the explosives that she had stashed (without Erin’s consent) over by the door, hidden in a flowerpot as she yanked her gloves over her fingers, spinning on her heels to confront the violent intruder. And-

“Oh.”

Her poise slumped in an instant. She looked almost disappointed. Well, at the very least, she most certainly wasn’t impressed. Behind her, ‘respawn?’ flashed in large red text on her screen (it was lucky she hadn’t set up wifi yet). She had interrupted her game for… some Amish chick cradling some dead guy in her arms. Wait. No. Correction. She was smoking. Probably not Amish then (Amish could read, right?). And, upon further inspection, prana was positively slaking off her body.

Alright. Maybe a little bit more exciting than she had first anticipated, but…

“Huh,” she muttered to herself, cocking her head at the Servant, who at that moment was explaining herself to Erin in a manner that could only have been described as exceedingly underwhelming, “that was quick.”

But weren’t Servants supposed to be seven-feet tall with lightning shooting out of their eyes? At the very least, a little bit more impressive than a girl in a long dress? Arms crossed, a ponderous expression on her face, she looked like she was deep in thought. Well, considering how she had managed to get her Master done in at such an early date, Vicky supposed it wouldn’t be too outrageous to assume that this particular Servant was, well, weak. The weakest of the whole lot! And to reflect that, a boring appearance! Of course. Naturally the others were going to be much more exciting. She nodded once to herself, satisfied with her hypothesis.

“So, hey, Erin,” game forgotten, she hurried over to where they were gathered around the prone body of some guy, but mostly to take a closer look at the Servant, interrupting them right in the middle of what was probably a Very Important Discussion, “he’s supposed to be the Master and rodeo-lady’s a Servant,, right?”

She didn’t hide her fascinated staring.

“So she eats people?” she frowned, “ she looks too boring to eat people.”

[Calamity Jane]

The cigarettes were a little disappointing. Still comforting, and she felt at home again, but they just… were different. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

“I don’t think you want to leave him as it is on the floor, it’s not very healthy. Come, I’ll lead you to the treatment room.”

“Whatever you say, miss.” She hadn’t had a female doctor work on anyone before, but whatever chance it took. Her Master in front of her wasn’t going to be around long if she just let him heal himself up. She had sort of grown attached to his unresponsive body. If he was anything like that, it was the beginning of a beautiful partnership.

It was all a simple thing, although this woman probably shouldn’t have reacted as such to the door of her clinic being blown in. She had originally expected the woman to be scared, and then have to threaten her to get treatment.

“At least your Master there told you that much, right?”

Wait. She knew about the war? Was she a Master? Her face couldn’t contain her shock, and the cigarette almost dropped right out of her open mouth. Either way, it doesn’t matter. This gal is the only hope he has… well I could take him to another hospital but…

But she wasn’t really sure how fatal the bullet wound would be. Or the head injury for that matter. She had never been hit by a bullet in her career. She had blessed eyes, and senses, it had seemed in her life. Many had tried to hit her, none had succeeded.

That wasn’t to say she had never been injured. Just never hit with a bullet, or an arrow. She clearly remembered riding right into a low hanging post one day while barely able to see from her drunken stupor. Whoops had been the only thing she said. At least after waking up a day later in a doctor’s home.

“We haven’t been what you could call communicating yet, lady. My other Master and I had…” She did not regret her choice one bit. Perhaps if the despicable man had been a little more clear with his orders, he wouldn’t have ended up like he did. In multiple places. “… a little bit of a falling out. Barely said two words to this one yet, but he seems like a right enough fellow.”

She had been about to lift the body of her Master off the ground, and crouched down low to do so when a little girl ran up beside her.

“So, hey, Erin he’s supposed to be the Master and rodeo-lady’s a Servant, right?” The little girl stared right at her tilting her frazzle haired head. “So she eats people?” Rage. In a single instant. Rage and sadness, her eyes already watering as she remembered the boy she destroyed. Consumed. Her fists clenched, and she came close to drawing the gun at her side at a little girl.

“She looks too boring to eat people.” I wish that was the case… While her thoughts were morose, her actions were swift. She reached to grab her gun and…

Bzzz. Bzzz. Something in the pocket of her leather vest was moving! She instantly drew it almost as fast as she could draw her guns, and stared at the thing shaking back and forth in her hand.

Bzzz. Bzzz. “What is this?” She had picked it off her Master. On the front of the object was a picture of a ridiculously old man with a funny looking mustache. She tapped a red button on the front, mainly because it was the most evident, and the picture went away and the buzzing stopped.

Her rage stopped. She had been about to show the girl a calamity, and she couldn’t have known. No one could have. Stopping, and shoving the blocky thing back into her jacket, she lifted her Master again.

A somewhat light smile came back to her face as she dropped the cigarette out of her mouth and put it out with her foot. Just don’t remember it, what’s done is done. Now you might actually have a wish. “So sorry about whatever that was, Erin was it? Where am I taking him again?”

Huh that girl had been using something that was emitting light, just like the small block she had back in her pocket was. Except much bigger. It was kind of fascinating.

"And you, girly, bring that bright thing along. Might as well see something I haven't before while I wait."

[Catherine Trandor]

Erin saw the young woman’s face contorted with shock, the cigarette hanging from her mouth just begging to fall, it’s a miracle it doesn’t. She saw hesitancy on the young woman’s face for a moment, likely weighing the revelation that the doctor in front of her knew about the War. In perspective, she should consider the probability that the servant in front of her is the trigger-happy type, but either way, her master would lose too much blood if she insists to bolt right off the door. After a brief pause, the Rodeo-Girl spoke.

“We haven’t been what you call communicating yet, lady. My other Master and I had…a little bit of a falling out.”

Unusual indeed, Erin thought. So this man wasn’t her first master? And she killed her first master? Or was this man who killed said master? All of these questions and more echoed in Erin’s head for a brief time before she instantly realized that she should assure the Rodeo-Girl that she isn’t one of the Masters, or at least didn’t wish her and her master harm.

“Don’t worry, I’m not a participant. I don’t wish you harm, at least-,“ Her words are cut off when her tagalong slash technical surrogate daughter approaches the Rodeo Girl with surprising speed. Erin tried to warn her with a simple “Hey, Vicky-” before even that warning gets interrupted. With some training, she might be a decent duelist…

“So, hey, Erin he’s supposed to be the Master and rodeo-lady’s a Servant, right?” Erin briefly wondered about just where did Vicky learned about servants, before her mind immediately settled to the notes she left on her desk all night long about a week ago. She managed a “Yes, but ho-,“ before Vicky immediately resumed her questioning towards the Rodeo-Girl.

“So she eats people? She looks too boring to eat people.” Erin nearly had a mental facepalm, or at least the equivalent of one had she not noticed that the Rodeo-Girl looked visibly agitated. She briefly considered leaping and shutting up Vicky with a flying leap before she blurted something equally stupid before the Rodeo-Girl is interrupted by something in her pocket.

Is it a…phone? It looks like one of that remote communication device that Vicky used to own. But how can a servant possess such an item? Unless…

Erin glances towards the girl’s unconscious master. He doesn’t look prepared to risk his life fighting a free for all war to grant his wish. Plus, if the cell phone is his, he would be more tech savvy than a lot of mages. At least more than me, Erin thought. If the Rodeo-Girl’s story is true, then the young man would only be the second master of the girl.

Erin slightly winced when the Rodeo-Girl dropped her cigarette to the floor and put it out with her foot. “So sorry about whatever that was, Erin was it? Where am I taking him again?” She picked up the unconscious young man and motioned for Erin to continue with what she’s going to do.

“Of course, this way to the treatment room please.”

Erin continues to walk towards the treatment room, not paying attention to whatever the Rodeo-Girl said to Vicky in the first place. The servant and Vicky followed her to the room. Holding the room door open, Erin waited for them to enter the treatment room before shutting the door behind her, leaving a stern glare to Vicky.

“Haven’t I told you many times before to not read my notes before my permission?” She said to Vicky in a soft yet stern and commanding voice, before actually turning her attention back to the servant and her master.

“Lay him down on the bed gently please; we don’t want his wounds to worsen.” Erin watches carefully as the Rodeo-Girl prepares to lay down her master into the bed, she glance a bit at the holster on her hips “…Archer isn’t it? It might be rude for me to say this, but do you know what you’re bringing him into by making him your master?”

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

If Victoria was aware of how provocative her comment (which was uttered with only completely innocent intentions) was, she had shown no sign of it, her oddly-coloured eyes still regarding the Servant quizzically as she waited for her response (Although did she really have to think that hard about a simple ‘yes’ and ‘no’ question?). If not for the strange dress, waves of prana, Victoria wouldn’t even have identified her as a Servant. Well, that, and utterly demolishing the door on the way in (there were splinters stuck in the wall), but any old muscleman could’ve done that. Probably.

Still, she could be patient. According to those papers that Erin had left lying around, she could suck souls or something. Of course,, after seeing the real-deal, Vicky had her doubts, but it was unscientific to jump to conclusions.

And then of course she would get ignored as the Servant in wild-west getup pulled out a cellphone from her jacket. A cellphone. It took a while for that to register in Victoria’s mind. Why did a Servant have a cellphone? Even Erin didn’t have a cellphone, and she was from this century! Alright, fine, last century, and because she was still part stodgy-old-traditionalist-magus, but the principle still stood (Mostly).

“So sorry about whatever that was. Erin, was it?”

Yes. Yes. It was Erin. Catherine if you wanted to be technical about it. Good job Servant. You got it right. But what about her question?

“Where am I taking him again?”
“Hey, wait, what about m-“
“Of course,” Erin cut Vicky off sharply, giving her a pointed look when she opened her mouth to protest, “ this way to the treatment room, please.”

Fine. Be boring. See if she cared. Although she definitely wasn’t going to clean up the mess that that guy was leaving on the floor, even if his longcoat was kind of cool. Victoria had seen Erin in action enough that she wasn’t particularly concerned about the guy bleeding out on the floor, but god forbid that she’d be the one cleaning the stains out of the carpet.

“And you, girlie.” Was this ‘girlie’ referring to her, by any chance? “Bring that bright thing along. Might as well see something I haven’t before while I wait.”

Bright thing? Victoria followed the Servant’s gaze to her laptop, ‘RESPAWN?’ in giant, red, block-letters still blinking on and off the screen. Brilliant. She just got ordered around by somebody who was supposed to be a Servant. And not even her Servant. Eh. Whatever. She was planning on bringing it in anyway, despite how the appearance of complying with those demands might’ve seemed.

“I’m Victoria,” she grumbled, but she unplugged her laptop to bring it into the treatment room all the same, “not ‘girlie’.”

She trailed after Erin, laptop tucked under her arm, entering the room after the Servant; where, naturally, her guardian was waiting for her with a reproachful glare.

“Haven’t I told you many times before to not read my notes before my permission?”

Her tone was soft, and words gentle, but Victoria knew that Erin wasn’t happy just from that glower. She looked away, feeling like a child being reprimanded by her teachers.

“…Well you shouldn’t really just leave them lying around,” she muttered, but Erin had already turned her attention away, “ …They were just asking to be read!”

And by then Erin was engaging herself in another one of what was very much a Very Important Discussion. Victoria snorted. They could continue their Most-Definitely-Crucial Conversation on their own while she gamed. Or at least until one of them pulls out the fireworks, although that seemed kind of unlikely now. Whatever. Her batteries could last for several hours. She had forgotten to bring in her headphones, but that was a minor detail.

So, blasting the sound to ‘high’, setting the laptop up on one of the tables, she was back to shooting terrorists in the face. With appropriate accompanying sound effects. Eh. Erin had probably already gotten used to the sound of machinegun-fire in her clinic.

[Calamity Jane]

“…Archer isn’t it? It might be rude for me to day this, but do you know what you’re bringing him into by making him your Master?”

She had just finished placing her Master down, carefully as she was asked. “I know what I’m doing. He had seals, so it was either this or let the both of us get killed. I may not be the best out there, but I’m not going to lose just cause of that fact!”

[/i] She put a little too much emphasis on that, and slammed her hands down on the cushioned table with a loud thump.

Her weapons did kind of give away the fact that she was Archer as well. Not that it was important, the class name. All it did was let her opponents know what would cause their death. Of course her abilities lent themselves to targeting Masters as well.

“So how fa-“ The echo of repeated gunshots rang out from nearby. Her guns flew to her hands in an instant, the drawing motion not even visible.

She blinked.

And she ‘saw’.

Everything was laid out clearly to her eyes. A thousand warped and overlaid curving images. Lines of sight.

Anything inside the radius of her extraordinary vision was targetable. Anything targetable was strikeable. Without fail.

…But this time, it appeared to be a false alarm. The sound was coming from the glowing thing she had seen earlier. In fact… what was happening was slightly entertaining. The little child was pretending to shoot at people.

Children were always the same apparently; time was not a factor in that. She had pretended to run around with a gun as a child, and this one was doing the same. Except with more aid than just imagination.

It was kind of interesting to watch, but the drawing of her guns was likely to alarm the other woman in the room, so she put them back in her holsters.

“Sorry.” Another burst of gunfire. “A bit of a false alarm.” She should have expected that, she had felt no killing intent anywhere, and she always did from gunfire. But she was a little on edge at the moment. A smile managed to creep its way to her face with a little bit of laughter.

“It’s good to see kids never change. But back to before the interruptions, how soon is he going to be back up and walking around if you,” She wiggled her fingers at an attempt to show magic spells, “You know, fix him.” Was that even possible? She had only fought a few Native Magi herself, but had never had a chance to question one. Or really learn anything about them.

But while she was listening to Erin, she was watching what the little girl was doing, yet still meeting Erin’s eyes. It was… entertaining to watch. She almost wanted to give it a try, but leaving her Master alone with even this woman just seemed like a bad idea. Even if she appeared trustworthy.
[/justify]

[Catherine Trandor]

“I know what I’m doing. He had seals, so it was either this or let the both of us get killed. I may not be the best out there, but I’m not going to lose just cause of that fact!”

Erin couldn’t blame the servant for not wanting to lose this early. If she was participating, she will probably try to adopt defeated servants as long as she still has command spells, it’s only natural after all. Still, it’s surprising to know that the young man had seals before she met Archer. Shouldn’t he summon his own servant first? Does he even know how to do that? The fact that he has cell-phone means that he probably came from a young family, or at least a family that specializes in electrics. But questions can be asked after the young man’s wounds treated, Erin mused, so she immediately started to work on examining the wounds.

Erin briefly examined the young man’s body, tearing up the fabric of clothes that gets in the way of treating the wound. Judging by all the blood, the bullet from the gunshot wound had been pulled out…forcefully she might add. There’s a huge wound on his head too, perhaps from repeated blunt trauma, that’s currently making his head a tad worse than his shoulders. Erin briefly glanced to Archer before continuing to work with the wound. She caused all of these wounds within a day of working with him; I wonder what a week could do to his body…

Conventional treatment should prove to be quite slow, and it might be too late. Erin began to concentrate to cast her healing spell when she was interrupted by a loud sound.

A gunshot.

She turns around expecting the worst…only to find that Vicky had brought one of her so called gaming device into the treatment room, with the volume turn to max. Erin turned her attention to Archer, who looked ready to shoot anything at the general direction of the gunshot, as expected of a veteran of gunfights she wager. If Vicky even so much as made a threatening face, she will risk getting shoot at. She couldn’t do that to her foster-kid, even for how much annoying she’s getting this early morning…She should be in bed now too…

“Sorry, a bit of a false alarm.” Archer’s posture relaxed somewhat, it seems she really was jumpy about gunshots, a good ability to have in the Wild West.

“Vicky dear, could you tone down the sound of the device please? I’m trying to work on my patient.” She glanced to Archer’s visibly relaxed expression before continuing. “It seems that our guest here is a bit jumpy regarding gunshots too, so it would be best if you tone it down.” She abandoned the attention to her two companions in this room to turn her concentration back to her patient.

“…how soon is he going to be back up and walking around if you, you know, fix him?”

Erin heard Archer’s voice questioning her, and without turning her attention from Percy, she answers “With conventional treatment, he should have at minimum one month to recover.” She exaggerates her figures a bit, but glancing at Archer’s surprised face is amusing in itself. It’s still a wonder how that cigarette stayed where they are. “But luckily for you, I specialize in healing. Now if you’ll excuse me for a second…”

Placing her hands over the wounds, Erin chants the one-line Aria for her healing spell. The wounds on Percy’s body looks visibly better, as if the body gradually reverts back to the state before the wound took place.

“Now then, he should be fine by noon today.” Erin said while she observed the young man’s figure begin to stir. “Looks like he’s regaining consciousness already, he’s a tough one.”

[Percival Heath]

Percy yawned. After the worst night of his life, which involved getting beaten by a LION MADE OF BONE, kidnapped by SCARECROWS, and then shot, his first action telegraphing the horror of said night was a loud, rumbling yawn. The man sat up, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, apparently ignorant of the bright lights or of the cold, sterile air. He glanced around, tired eyes vapidly acknowledging but not comprehending the two complete strangers and the one half-stranger.

Then, quite suddenly, the events of the past two or three hours deluged upon him in one, crashing instance.

When his eyes passed over Archer for the second time, he blinked once. Then he yelped suddenly, recognizing his shooter and abuser. Instinctively leaping back, he only succeeding in toppling himself. He flailed uselessly, attempting to regain some semblance of balance, but only succeeded in falling over the other side of the bed with a dull thump.

Percy scrabbled to a semi-standing position, rubbing his head, and leaned on the bed for support. He was torn between stumbling backwards and confronting the woman, ending up hunching over the bedside, hands firmly planted on the spread. "Y-you!" He exclaimed. "What are you doing here? You shot me and beat me half to death in that warehouse! I -"

The man blinked halfway through his tirade, as if suddenly aware of something. Nothing hurt any more. His body felt refreshed, rested, renewed. But he could not have been out that long, right...? Train of thought interrupted, he looked left and right sharply, taking in his surroundings with a newfound clarity. All alien to him. What had happened when he was out?

His roving eyes finally stopped at the white-haired woman. He didn't know her, but she was certain to be more trustworthy than his shooter... "Where am I?"

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

Once again, Victoria proceeded blissfully unaware of the disturbance she’d managed to cause. Two near-death-situations within a span of not ten minutes, and Vicky hadn’t even batted an eyelash to either of them.

“Vicky, dear, could you please tone down the sound of your device please? I’m trying to work on my patient.”

After two years, Erin was still calling the laptop a ‘device’ (Really! You’d think she’d learn.), but she Victoria grudgingly turned the sound down. That still didn’t prevent it from being loud enough to be heard clearly throughout the treatment room, and even though Victoria looked over her shoulder sheepishly when the low rumble of a nuke erupted from her speakers, there didn’t seem to be any further complaints (Even if rodeo-servant-lady was looking at her screen rather curiously).

Of course, it was her turn to look perturbed when the patient all of a sudden started flailing on his bed, overturning several medical instruments while ranting about something or other, before finally landing on the floor with a loud thud, and a rather worrying crack.

This time, she remembered to pause her game, turning the sound right down before hurrying over to check out what happened,

Even considering it was Erin who treated him, the guy recovered amazingly quickly. From the snippets of conversation that she had managed to hear, he’d managed to get himself quite a head wound, not to mention a bullet in his arm. It usually took people at least several hours to recover from stuff like that, even after Erin’s treatment. Okay. Fine. He was a Master, maybe that made him sort of special, but to be honest, she really wasn’t expecting anything much after the disappointment the Servant had been.

“You’re in Erin’s clinic!” Victoria chimed in, cut off any answer that Erin might’ve been giving. She wasted no time in launching her own questions, “So, you’re a Master, right? How did you summon your Servant? Who’s your Servant? She’s pretty boring, you know. But why did you get shot in your arm? Did you piss her off? Oh, but how did you know where to find us? Did getting shot in the arm hurt more than getting hit in the head?”

She paused, taking a closer look.

“Hm. You look sort of dumb,” she referred to the rather bewildered look that was gracing his features at the time, “Hey, Erin, are you sure that his head is alright?”

[Calamity Jane]

“Y-you!" Well at least he was awake now, if back to ridiculous stutterings "What are you doing here? You shot me and beat me half to death in that warehouse! I -"

Then he stopped. Thankfully. His rhetoric was completely useless, and now that Calamity had a doctor nearby she was completely willing to go back to hitting him in the head.

“Where am I?”

“Hey, why are you complaining!? You aren’t dead yet! You should be kissing my feet! I don’t really need you, you know.” She did have independent action after all. Which felt weird. Limited to whatever time she was limited to? Even a week was nothing. There had been months when she had done whatever she wanted to. Not just this short week.

“And yo-“

“You’re in Erin’s clinic!” Both Calamity and Erin had been interrupted by the hyperactive little girl. She had left her shining screen again. The loudness that the… thing. She would call it that now. The loudness that the thing had produced was tiny in comparison to the girl’s yammering voice.

“So, you’re a Master, right? How did you summon your Servant? Who’s your Servant? She’s pretty boring, you know. But why did you get shot in your arm? Did you piss her off? Oh, but how did you know where to find us? Did getting shot in the arm hurt more than getting hit in the head? Hm. You look sort of dumb. Hey, Erin, are you sure that his head is alright?”

Reconsidering, it was probably the fact that the little girl… Victoria, that was right, was insulting her that she found the kid’s voice offensive.

Either way, it was.

A great urge to show off had to be supressed. She wouldn’t let this girl get to her. “Boring, little queen?” There wasn’t really anger in her voice, or anything like that. Just disappointment. Did this child named after a British Queen even know who she was talking to? “Viccy,” Her name was way too refined to fully bother with, especially with such a rude child. So she just pulled something out of the air for her. “I was the hero of the plains, I’ve fought more men, seen more places, walked further, rode harder, and done more things than any man, ever. You call me boring, child? When I was your age I had already forded a river carrying my sister, shot a man, been drunk, and seen more places then you ever will, girly.”

And the whole point of that speech needed to be said. “You know how you play with those pretend guns?” Her real ones came out of their holsters… again, pointed at her soon to be Master… also again. “Well I’ve shot real ones. So watch who you call boring!”

Her eyes turned back to the man who should have her contract. “And hey you! You’re my Master!” She grabbed his face and attempted to move it in the correct fashion for the word ‘Yes’ “See, it isn’t so hard to say, you just have to say it! Who cares if I shot you in the arm, I didn’t shoot you in the head! I could have too, you know. I don’t miss~” That last bit brought a smile to her face. She never had missed, and she never would miss.

Even if she said she had no need for him, there was an actual need for her to find a Master. A week was not enough time, even if she had no phantasms. Well unless all the other Servants killed each other. She did need him… just a little bit. It’s not like people with Command Seals are all over the place.

Her gun rose again. “Please… just say yes, I really don’t want to give you brain damage.” She gave no thought to hitting him in the middle of a clinic, even if at this point she was tired of it. There was a need for a Master, even if he was a clueless idiot.

[Jordan Percival Gallagher]

As Jordan walked (OK swayed like a drunken buffoon that had been hit by a bike) to the building that he had remembered as a hospital he noticed that there were drops of blood on the ground that didn't belong to him considering that he had finally stopped bleeding out from before.

"Where did those come from?" He thought to himself as he reached the door and noticed that it looked really busted as if someone had kicked it open. "The drops of blood lead up to the hospital so someone else must have come here before me with decent injuries."

Jordan also noticed a significant amount of yelling coming from the building. Leaning forward he listened to the voices. "I don't know who's talking and what they're talking about, but she sounds hot."

“Hey, why are you complaining!? You aren’t dead yet! You should be kissing my feet! I don’t really need you, you know.”

"And she sounds like she's breaking up with someone. Time to get my injuries treated and then hit on the woman who belongs to that voice." Jordan started to open the door and was able to hear more of the conversation going on.

That is he would have if his injuries didn't instead cause him to slip up, get tangled on his own legs, loudly crash through the door, and then collapse on the floor in a painful heap. "Oh geeze the pain!" Jordan thought to himself as he picked himself off the floor and made it to the "take a knee" position often seen at high school American football games. Placeing a hand on his injuried chest Jordan said to himself "That's what I get for drinking and accidently summoning a ghost due to getting attacked by a Gargoyles reject."

[Percival Heath]

When Percy's answer came, it was not from the doctor, but, predictably, from the gunslinger cowboy (or was it cowgirl? He didn't know what the proper American way of saying it was...). “Hey, why are you complaining!? You aren’t dead yet! You should be kissing my feet! I don’t really need you, you know.”

To a different person, all of this might have made sense. To Percy, though? It just deepened his confusion. The woman, seeing this, continued hurriedly. "And yo-"


The little girl in the corner set aside her computer and spoke, interrupting the woman. “You’re in Erin’s clinic! So, you’re a Master, right? How did you summon your Servant? Who’s your Servant? She’s pretty boring, you know. But why did you get shot in your arm? Did you piss her off? Oh, but how did you know where to find us? Did getting shot in the arm hurt more than getting hit in the head? Hm. You look sort of dumb. Hey, Erin, are you sure that his head is alright?”

Somewhere halfway through the girl's torrent of words, Percy's mind started failing to absorb and comprehend her, filtering only key words. Something about Servants and Masters and a name: Erin. Was she the doctor who had patched him up, then? Percy turned to Erin, ready to thank her, when the cowgirl angrily lashed back at the girl, ranting, raving, and boasting. Percy quickly shut up. He did not want to undercut the cowgirl in the middle of her tirade. He only silently listened, hearing her speak of her deeds. All very, very tall tales, but the way she spoke them, with such passion... despite himself, Percy found himself believing her.

To an extent.

Percy did not show it, though, only folding his arms. As the cowgirl finished, Percy turned to Erin, offering a hand. "Hey, thanks. I'm P-" was all he managed to utter before the girl rapidly turned her attention back to Percy. A hand shot forward, grabbing him by his collar, sharply yanking him forward. "Buh-"

Cowgirl's voice grew insistent, a hint of desperation coloring it. "And hey you! You’re my Master!" Another hand darted forth, fingers planted on his cheeks, attempting to manipulate and deform his mouth, for whatever reason.

She was rewarded with another, confused "Abuh?"

“See, it isn’t so hard to say, you just have to say it! Who cares if I shot you in the arm, I didn’t shoot you in the head! I could have too, you know. I don’t miss~” The last sentence was spoken with a tinge of pride. But still, it was not particularly reassuring, but Percy would give her the benefit of the doubt.

Suddenly, her voice lowered, grew tired, heavy, subdued. “Please… just say yes, I really don’t want to give you brain damage.”

Percy hesitated. The woman did shoot him, and beat him in the face, after all. But on the other hand...

Whatever might have happened, happened. Right now, she just seemed... desperate, maybe even a bit scared. Who knew? She certainly seemed like a decent person, at the very least, based on an impression made over the past thirty seconds.

And if there was something that Percival Heath did not like seeing, it was a sad person, especially if he could do something about it. He might not know about these "Masters" and "Servants" things, but that was secondary. "Uh, if it's really that important to you... sure, I'll be your Master..."

Then he noticed the slowly rising gun. "Uh - "

[Catherine Trandor]

“Hey, Erin, are you sure that his head is alright?”

“He should be fine after that treatment.” Mild to heavy concussion, surely it can cause permanent cranial damage if a lesser person would so far as to receive the injury. However, now Erin’s quite sure that the young man before him is a magus, or at least comes from a lineage of magus, perhaps dormant inside of his blood. After she tried the healing spell before, she certainly felt some kind of a resistance from the young man’s body, no doubt comes from the prana in his magic circuit. Either way, he seems quite clueless about the whole Grail War if he doesn’t have the knowledge to summon a servant even with his command spells, Erin mused. While Erin had heard a rumor about normal humans participating in the previous wars, she’s still skeptical about the selection process, though the possibility about the Grail itself choosing normal humans are certainly not impossible.

While Erin mused about the true nature of the young man in front of her, her surrogate daughter had once again engaged in a war of words with the Archer. Really, you’d think the girl will learn after her short brush with death just a minute earlier, but she seems oblivious as always, Erin mentally sighed. When Archer finished recounting her brief tale of exploits, she immediately turned back to the previously scared young man, just after the poor young man started to recognized her presence and offers a hand of thanks.

“And hey you! You’re my Master!” She said that part while trying to forcefully moves her ‘Master’s’ head, obviously with reduced strength, otherwise his head would be separated from his body right about now. Erin decided to warn the bickering couple before it’s too late.

“For your information, my healing treatment earlier will not fully heal the patient’s wounds until at least 6 hours in. Please refrain from overly straining your body with activities that will re-open the wounds.” Really, you would think that a patient will at least know to rest after injuries, Erin mentally sighed, again. She really needs another cup of coffee; perhaps Vicky would be a dear to her and make her one…or perhaps not.

She recognizes the contract forming procedure that Archer tried to use on her master…even though it’s not really an orthodox one. The Directors of Clock Tower certainly didn’t brief about servants threatening their masters to accept a contract, though Erin knows that it will be an effective method, at least on the short term. Her mood instantly shifted as Archer raises her gun into a ready position, as if sensing danger approaching.

“Settle down Archer, this is neutral ground.” At least the Clock Tower recognizes it as such, though she’s not sure if the Church will also recognizes it as such. “I will not tolerate any fighting within this Clinic, if other servant and master pair should enter the vicinity, you will not engage them in battle, understand?”

Your little outburst earlier was excused because of an emergency situation, Erin wanted to add that little blurb to the sentence but decided against it to give her orders more of a weight. Erin sighed mentally in for the third time the span of no more than a few minutes, perhaps a new record. I want a new cup of coffee.

[Honda Tadakatsu]

Honda had a really sour expression on his face. But you would not be able to tell if you just looked at him. In fact, you would not be able to look at him at this time unless you were a Servant.

He had switched to spirit form to decrease the burden on his Master and the risk of attracting something like that shikigami-like thing from before. That proved to be a wise decision. The supposed "safe" place seemed to have suddenly become popular tonight. And it could turn into a real hot-spot any minute now... There was another Servant inside. As Honda's presence was diminished they hadn't noticed him but he could not risk switching to physical form. His Master had collapsed right at the entrance. If a fight started here he could become involved. And inability to move does not exactly help in dodging attacks. Moreover, judging from the little outburst earlier the enemy was not the type to negotiate. Okay, that might not be true. But her method of negotiation seemed to carry a slight risk of collateral damage.

Actually, all that did not matter. Usually, Honda would not hesitate to waltz straight in and persuade the enemy with overwhelming force and extreme prejudice. His Tonbo-Giri could become a very persuasive argument in any form of parley.Usually. But this situation was too much for him. It was a woman! The enemy Servant was a woman! Honda did not want to go there.

'Everything is fine. If we just wait here, someone will come down. They can call the doctor. There is no reason to start an unnecessary fight...'

Yes, waiting was good...

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

"He should be fine after the treatment."
“Oh. Because he lo-“

Victoria was interrupted by the enraged voice of the Servant, her ears ringing from the sudden volume. She could only stand there in cowed silence, twiddling her thumbs awkwardly, as the Servant let loose her tirade of words. Well, it would make sense. She was a Servant, after all, she had to have done something.

“But for a Servant, you’re still not very interesting,” she offered in a misguided attempted to justify herself, “I mean, you’re not even very tall.”

But she wasn’t listening. Going on about pretend guns and shooting people. She wasn’t really paying much attention, mulling over why this strange lady shouting in her face was so upset. At least until she whipped out her guns (She had completely overlooked them until then). But before Victoria could attempt anything more in her own defense, the Servant turned her guns on her own Master.

“Pulling your gun out-“ she was drowned out by the Servant’s furious shouting.
“And hey you!”
“won’t-“
“You’re my Master!”
“prove…”
“See, it isn’t so hard to say, you just have to say it!”
”…that you’re…”
“Who cares if I shot you in the arm, I didn’t shoot you in the head!”
”…thatyou’re-“
“I could have too, you know.”
”grmble.”
“I don’t miss~”
”…mrfle.”

By the time the Servant calmed down, Victoria was finding herself in a rather curious situation; one that she had never found herself in before. One where she was finding herself at a loss for words. She mulled over this strange and disturbing new development with a furrowed brow, mouth quirked in a childish pout, trusting Erin to mediate the odd spat that had developed in their clinic. She had more important thi-

CRAAAAASH

“Uh.”

The uproarious sound had interrupted both her and Erin mid-sentence. Twice. In one morning. Victoria was beginning to wonder if a cup of coffee might’ve been a good idea, considering how attached Erin seemed to be to the stuff.

“Well, since you guys are busy having a lover’s spat,” she was positively determined to get the last word in edgeways, “I’ll go check it out.”

It was a small annoyance that she had left her mystic code outside at the lobby, but Victoria was fully prepared to blow up the vase if she had to, a plan involving a fabulous amount of fireworks formulating in her head as she hastily made her way back to the entrance. She spotted him through the wall, the heat he was giving off identifying him as human, seemingly hunched over the ground. And near him…

It felt similar to the Servant earlier; a shining conflagration of prana that was almost too obnoxious to miss. But two? In one day? One morning, within a half hour period?

“Um.”

The Servant was nowhere to be seen. There was only another guy, bleeding yet more buckets all over what used to be a cream-coloured carpet (Yep. Definitely not cleaning that up.).

“Was there something you wanted?” she said with an utterly straight face, nevermind that there was a gravely injured party, “Huh. I guess I should call Erin.”

Victoria crossed her arms. He didn’t seem threatening; at least nowhere near as threatening as the pair who blew down their door, nearly braining her in the process.

“But there’s already a patient,” she mused out loud, “but you don’t really look like you can wait.”

[Calamity Jane]

…

That girl… was not even worth responding to.

Not even tall? Did she… what… her height was an advantage!

No, no she is this woman’s daughter, and she just healed my Master. Shooting her would be bad, even if fun, Calamity!

So she just ignored the brat. Would just ignore the brat. Address her Master’s concerns and ignore the brat. Talk to the brat’s mother and ignore the brat.

Her guns itched.

Well her Master accepted the contract… and yet that did not help. They still itched, even when the child was gone. And they were in her hands. All she had to do was squeeze the trigger… Of course she wouldn’t shoot the brat, but shooting that shiny thing she seemed to like might teach her a lesson.

“Settle down Archer, this is neutral ground.”

Wait neutral ground what? What was she talking abo-

She really had not been paying attention. With her eyes it should have been impossible for anyone but Assassin to sneak up on her, and even then it would be difficult. However, right within this same clinic there was another Servant!

Her eyes opened and she saw. The entire clinic, everyone, almost a bird’s eye view but not quite. Her eyes saw around everything, everywhere. For at least a mile, her eyes were everywhere, but she reined it in and focused on the newcomer.

A dark skinned male, collapsed on the floor. A Servant somewhere nearby.

There was no killing intent. Yet still… being this close to the opponent was a disadvantage. A massive one. She had no idea how the other Servant would react. Neutral ground? He could just kill the Catherine woman and then kill her Master.

Of course she could do the same to him. However… that was against what she stood for. They weren’t fighting, and they were on apparently neutral ground. She hadn’t really experienced this before, so for all she knew the woman could be lying.

Yet she wanted to believe the best in people. Why would the woman heal her Master than have him killed? There was that oath of doctors.

Aaaahg, whatever, I’ll just go with my gut.

“Guy,” She didn’t know his name, and the heaven’s would part if she ever actually called any man her Master. “There is another Servant outside. Just a warning, be prepared to run if you hear fighting. In the meantime, take it easy will yah? Don’t need you popping a stitch… or whatever she did.”

She had to resist a strange urge to kick out the door Victoria had shut and go out with her guns pointed. There was a need to appear nice though, even to two guys who had no manners. They didn’t kill the brat outright though, so maybe they were calmer than her.

So she simply stepped out to meet them, swinging the door easily with her foot, calmly, her hands holding her guns at her side, pointed at the ground. It was still a ready stance for her, but her opponents wouldn’t know that.

“Hey guys, sorry but the doctor’s busy now, like she said,” She tilted her head towards the brat. “Want to make an appointment for later~? She called out to the outside of the building with a yell. The Servant was still outside, hiding or something. Obviously she was a Servant, since the other one could sense her, but she felt like teasing them, to test their reactions. It was unlikely the Servant would attack her, no matter what age he came from, he still would have to protect his Master.

Huh, the other guy, the Master, was bleeding rather profusely on the floor. Oh well, he can suck it up for now; the girl doctor has some crazy enough healing to handle it.

[Jordan Percival Gallagher]

“Was there something you wanted?”... “Huh. I guess I should call Erin.”

“But there’s already a patient,” ... “but you don’t really look like you can wait.”

“Hey guys, sorry but the doctor’s busy now, like she said. Want to make an appointment for later~?"

At those words Jordan's eyes opened with a start and he tried to gather his thoughts again. As he focused he noticed he was kneeling on a carpet and that he, yet again, had started bleeding. "It seems like I passed out again. I gotta stop doing that, it's pretty sad." Jordan picked himself off the ground and noticed that he was being looked at by a unhappy looking young girl with... blue and green eyes? "She must have hetero-chromatic eyes. Pretty cool." Jordan thought to himself as he finished getting off of the ground and unsteadily stood up.

Grimacing at his chest Jordan said "Good Morning. I understand that you have people here already and the doctor is busy, but um... this kinda really hurts... a lot. Would it be OK to at last get some wrapping bandages and please?" Jordan then gave his best smile or at least tried to without yelling in pain. Jordan noticed that though he could feel him he could not see the man who saved him earlier. "Well he is a ghost, maybe he just possessed me or something. I'll just talk to him later."

Looking up at the source of the other voice he saw a woman in what looked like a full dress. "Whoa. She is Fine with a capital F. I've got to get to know her better. I hope I heal quickly, I've got to try and break me off a piece of that before more monsters attack." Jordan thought to himself with the only sign he was thinking about her being his eyes widening a little.

[Honda Tadakatsu]

In the end they didn't have to wait long. A young boy came out and up to his Master.

“Was there something you wanted?”... “Huh. I guess I should call Erin.”

“But there’s already a patient,” ... “but you don’t really look like you can wait.”

Indeed, the young man at Honda's feet didn't look good. Honda mused about taking physical form. The enemy Servant seems to have already noticed him, anyway. She must have an advanced detection ability to have noticed him in spirit form from that distance. The wisest decision would be to attack before the woman attacks his Master and take the fight as far away from him as possible. Yet he did not want to deal with women... And there was still a chance to avoid combat.

"If I remain in spirit form it should be treated as a sign of my unwillingness to fight... Yes. I'll just stay here and let my Master handle this situation..."

The woman came out, holding a gun in each hand. Honda panicked for a brief moment. Something... Anything... Be it a pair of hetero-chromatic eyes or the sound of early birds chirping in the background but Honda was desperately trying to distract himself from the issue at hand... The pair of revolvers looked... convenient. "Firearms seem to have progressed significantly... I should try those out sometime." But even with all that effort he could not help but notice the woman opening her mouth.

“Hey guys, sorry but the doctor’s busy now, like she said."

That slightly playful tone and the seemingly innocent words annoyed him. Can't she be a little more straightforward? ...Although, since he understood the meaning behind those words, there was probably no need... Since there was no problem he should not have had issues with such trifles. Yet he was now getting agitated for seemingly no reason. This feeling was... quite nostalgic. This notion was quite a revelation to him. "I wonder if my Luck is broken somehow..."

"Want to make an appointment for later~?"

That sentence was clearly directed at him which... changed the situation. Drastically. Honda knew when to back down from a challenge. And now was definitely not the time. His Master managed to rise to his feet but it seemed to require quite a bit of effort. The young man needed treatment and rest. Judging from his earlier words, his temporary residence was not in the close vicinity so this hospital was their best chance to find shelter. Honda positioned himself between his Master and the woman. Until now he had no intention of switching to physical form, though it seemed like the young man has become accustomed to his role as the proxy between the Servant and the Holy Grail. Yet he materialized. His expression, now quite visible to all, was closer to a scowl than that of sour reluctance. The female Servant, for whatever reason, irritated him. Honda was annoyed. Not at the woman but at himself, for he was acting irrationally. He even materialized with Tonbo-Giri in his hand, not realizing how foolish this was until he had already taken form. Still, the woman addressed him directly and common courtesy required that he answered. But before that... The young man probably didn't even realize that his thoughts were practically written on his face. Or maybe it was because of the link between them that Honda could capture such minute changes in his expression?

"My boy, as your partner this one is quite displeased to see that you are looking at this woman with such eyes right now..."

Oh, wait. Why was he saying this out loud? The Grail granted them the ability to communicate without the need for a vocal component.

"You really do make this one feel like his age, boy. Before thinking about your libido you should consider the state of your own body. Also, take a closer look at her. She is the same as this humble Servant, a ghost of the past. A heroic spirit summoned into this time and place by the power of the Holy Grail. Judging from her choice of weapon she is of the Archer class but that is just a conjecture. As a Master you should be able to tell her abilities simply by concentrating. Can you relay that information to me?"

Having more intelligence on the enemy could never hurt. And in case she was indeed an Archer he'd prefer to avoid combat. While fighting in closed space would probably be disadvantageous to his enemy it was not the kind of environment he was used to so he would have no definite advantage, either. Moreover, with his Master in close proximity the risk was too high. Like with everything, Honda would prefer to settle this issue by applying his Tonbo-Giri to... something. That was the only problem-solving method he really mastered in his life. But drastic times call for drastic measures... -Sigh- Reluctantly turning his gaze towards the woman Honda spoke once again, trying to sound as courteous as it was possible for a man who had always parleyed using his unrivaled spear technique as the main argument. Not that any effort was necessary with his naturally smooth and suave voice. Another reason to dislike this twenty five year old body given to him by the Grail but it had its bright sides. This particularity could not fix his cold tone completely but at least he would not appear outright hostile.

"This one is apologetic but is afraid that he must insist on an immediate appointment. Your demand, while taken into consideration, cannot be fulfilled as the young man behind this one's back requires attention from a healer and some rest. This one would be pleased if you would just regard their situation as well."

He cast a glance towards the young boy with the differently colored eyes.

"Boy, would you be so kind as to call the doctor here? These visitors do not wish to disrupt the tranquil peace of this place so they will refrain from attempts to enter the premises where other patients rest at this time."

[Catherine Trandor]

Erin feels left out for the first time in this morning.

First, she noticed that Vicky had once again gone off on her own, and now she went ahead and greets the newly arrived master and servant pair. From the looks of things, she managed to not embarrass herself while maintaining a civil façade, pretty impressive for a girl with Vicky’s track record. She casts a glance from the opened door and managed to notice the conflagration of prana besides the slumping man in the couch. From the looks of thing, the master managed to get himself injured quite badly, blood seeping from his abdomen.

Two in one day, and it’s not even officially started yet? Sounds like quite the headache, no wonder the top brass seemed remarkably civil with the Church this time around…

Second, Archer had gone ahead and acted like her medical assistant, offering mock respite for the newly arrived duo’s injury plight. While it’s amusing to see Archer’s teasing antics, Erin doubts the other servant will be amused considering the master is now lying on the couch and currently bleeding to near unconsciousness. Erin moves fast in order to stop Archer’s antics by tapping her lightly on her right shoulder.

“I appreciate the concern about the appointment, but it looks like this time there’s no appointment necessary.” As she finishes the sentence, Erin nudged her head to the direction of the bleeding man. “Seems like they have the same problem you had, you can understand that, right?” One of her objectives from the top brass in this war is to minimize casualty and property damage, and with her latter objectives failing already if one looks at her clinic, the least she can do is to minimize casualty with the best that of her abilities. Bringing her head closer to Archer’s ear, she begin to whisper to her, “Besides, this is a good time to be civil and gain some temporary allies don’t you think?” Erin left Archer alone after that sentence for her to ponder while she shifts her attention to the newly arrived odd-couple.

Luckily for Erin, the servant decided to materialize in his full regalia in her waiting room. An oriental looking pole arm materializes with the servant’s form, symbolizing his role in the war as Lancer. Before Erin starts to speak, the young man spoke with an urgent tone about the condition of his master, albeit with a colorfully formal language. This Lancer seems to be in a hurry, which is understandable given his master’s condition, but he seemed to be somewhat upset too because of an unknown reason, probably related to Archer.

And then he had to ruin everything by mentioning the b-word to Vicky.

Realizing what the Lancer had just said to her surrogate daughter, Erin quickly and efficiently makes her way to restrain Vicky, lest the girl will probably snap. Erin still remembers the last time anyone called her a boy, it wasn’t pretty. Restraining her right hand in order to limit her movement and her mouth in order to restrict her chant, Erin decides to address the confused look on the Lancer’s face with a reassuring sentence.

“I’m the doctor here, sorry about the misunderstanding. Yes, you can take your master to the treatment room; I’ll be there in a second.” With that settled, Erin turns her attention back down to Vicky.

“Vicky, calm down please, he doesn’t know anything.” Erin whispered to Vicky’s ear, still restraining her just in case.

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

Well. That was more like it. Victoria had reluctantly lowered her expectations following less than remarkable cowgirl from earlier, but she found herself pleasantly surprised by the far more appropriately impressive Servant; a golden warrior garbed in gilded armour. Sort of like he just stepped out of one of those JRPGs that Vicky was fond of playing, complete down to the ridiculously oversized weapon. He even materialized with a badass scowl, with just the right amount of brooding in his pretty-boy features to mark him as maybe-main-character material.

Alright, maybe he wasn’t a ten-foot tall giant with lightning shooting from his eyes and sparks erupting from his fingers, but this one was more like what a Servant should’ve been.

But the main draw?

It really just came down to looking so much cooler than the other guy.

“Boy, would you be so kind as to call the doctor here?” He even had an appropriately exotic form of speech, “These visitors do not wish to disrupt the tranquil peace of this place so they will refrain from attempts to enter the premises where other patients rest at this time."

So. Who was he talking to? He was staring right at her. Vicky turned around – there was nobody behind her besides Erin. She turned back. He was still staring at her. Was there something on her face?

It took a good while for it to dawn on her.

“So do I look like a boyrmph--!?” her incensed retort was cut short by Erin’s hand clapped firmly over her mouth, “grmlglfggghs--!”
“I’m the doctor here,” mrrrrffhhjgkghdfgkj ,” sorry about the misunderstanding,” Erin fired off hastily, “Yes, you can take your Master to the treatment room. I’ll be there in a second.”

The detonator for those explosives hidden in the vase wasn’t too far out of reach; her back pocket. All she needed to do was flip a switch - except Erin had somehow thought to restrain her arms too. Why did she do that? It wasn’t like exploding a clinic over a Servant was going to do anything to hurt it. As second-impressions went, the golden warrior certainly didn’t do himself any favours.

“Vicky, calm down please, he doesn’t know anything.”

There were several things amiss with that appeal towards Vicky’s better nature; for one, Victoria Devereux was most definitely calm at that particular moment in time, and two, getting Victoria in a reasonable mood usually involved high-explosives in the first place.

However, fortunately or unfortunately and before better or worse, even Victoria knew vetter than to mess around with Servants, not to mention blowing up the front door (or door frame, considering what used to be the door managed to become pulverized splinter-bits embedded all the way over in the far wall) to their clinic usually meant, well, no more-clinic to speak of, not to mention sort of the opposite of keeping low-key.

“I am calm,” the corner of her mouth gave a violent twitch of false cheer as she broke free of Erin’s hold, “Look; very calm. Shouldn’t you be treating that guy over in the clinic or something?”

The golden warrior was safe. For now. Vicky had yet to figure out how Servants were meant to get cancer, but she’d get there eventually.

[Calamity Jane]

"My boy, as your partner this one is quite displeased to see that you are looking at this woman with such eyes right now..."

Ohhhh, so the almost dead guy was one of those types! The pretty boy was even nice enough to say tell her~ The leap at anything kind of guys that seemed to get shot a lot. By her often enough, yeah, but still. It was as if they were magnets for bullets. If bullets were magnetic. Every self-respecting girl kept a derringer on her, just for those times.

Those were the easiest to take advantage of. What they wanted could be hinted at, until they did what you needed and you left. If they pressed too hard, thats what the pistol was for.

Jane had always preferred bigger guns though, and surprisingly they were not even the slightest discouragement. Oh well, maybe he could be forgiven since he was dying. Bleeding, at the very least.

Definitely not fun while dying, she knew that, and he was probably trying to get some last hurrah, or perhaps a strange form of pity. The pretty boy with the massive spear-thing seemed more her style, at least until he started talking.

What. That… is… the most awkward way of talking. Ever. This one? He said ‘This one’? What was that? Seriously, it was almost grating to listen to. Did… did no one ever tell him that? She would have told him, but then there was that giant spear in his hand, and her within striking distance…

There were a few times she could watch her words.

And then, and then he called the little brat a boy. Well that was all she could take, and the fury of the little girl was almost palpable. Absolutely hilarious, and a bright smile lit up her face. She totally deserved it to, and it was all she could do to keep from howling and tearing up in laughter as the doctor whispered in her ear, restraining the biting child with her hand.

“I appreciate the concern about the appointment, but it looks like this time there’s no appointment necessary.”

Allies? Allies when she could barely even stand the way the pretty boy talked, and the other one apparently looked with lust on her, even in a state closer to the grave than the sky. She… supposed it was possible, but allies meant they had to ride together, group up and all that, watch each other’s backs and such.

Well the bleeding Master would definitely be focused on at least her back. Her own Master she didn’t know, but he seemed the trustworthy sort. After all he had brought all those fancy things, and cigarettes, that were now hers.

Maybe this could potentially have some small chance to possibly work out if they were extremely lucky.

Not only that but the doctor ruined any more fun she could have had at all. Admitting the Master and the Servant to the treatment room was kind of anti-climactic; after all she had just played the good receptionist. And then for the doctor to break into the conversation and tell her she was wrong? That won’t do at all!

Composing herself, she began to muster something back of the teasing receptionist she was uselessly playing. “Well,” Her own accent was small, but she was definitely emphasising the lilting drawl of the Midwest now. Just for entertainment purposes. “I suppose she’s done now! I guess we do have an open room after all!”

Once again she smiled, her previous laughter back under control, “Follow me please~ Grabbing a completely random folder thing from in front of her, she followed the doctor to the treatment room, and lightly pushed open the door for them.

Even though she was playing, her eyes were open completely ready to turn and fight. Well to sprint away and start firing at people was more like what she had planned, but that didn’t sound quite as good.

She was not unprepared, even when having fun.

“Well then, here we are!” Fake exuberance filled her voice; this was just strangely hilarious to her. She tossed the folder haphazardly in the basket attached to the door, and watched them file in with a smile. That was real, at least. “Get better soon, bleeding man. Also pretty-boy-with-the-spear make sure to smile at the doctor in thanks~”

Well now for the slightly less fun task. Poking her Master into some semblance of sensibility. Not with the gun this time, he didn’t have quite a sturdy enough skull for that.

There were times where she could be nice… when it benefitted her. Strolling back into her Master’s room, and once again resisting the incredibly strange urge to kick the door open, she sat right down beside the bewildered man, her guns holstered once again.

“Sorry for being so rough earlier, guy-whose-name-I-still-don’t-know, but I was kinda in an urgent mood, you understand.”

There was a decision to be made. She could keep the man in the dark about her nature, since for all he knew right now she was an insane gun toting woman.

Would she throw him right into the ice cold river, or let him slowly wade in? One would make it annoying, and hard to continue, but the other might break his apparently rather stubborn mind.

There was a weird temptation to tell him it was all a dream and to just play along, but then he might try to fly by jumping of a building. She had no idea who would do that, but if anyone would it would be this man.

“I guess we just got off slightly on the wrong foot. After all you know that bad guy you shot and all, I was kind of in an insane frame of mind. Just like you, I’m sure.” She poked his now healed wound as she continued, the doctor’s process had been rather remarkable, “I’m…” She surely couldn’t give her name as Archer, the man would question that. Calamity was too obvious, and also not really a name at all. Her actual name would be too obvious, so she would only keep the epithet attached to Calamity.

Jane.

She would be Jane to him, basically a pseudonym for any who weren’t Americans with some memory of the past. “I’m Jane. Professional Markswoman in this… fight.”

“A few doors down, there is another bleeding guy, as well as another rather weird talking guy with a pretty face and a giant spear thing. The bleeding man is being patched up by the doc as we speak, just like you. Now, they may want to kill us because…” Well she needed a reason now for this… “Because they are hunting me. You see basically there are a bunch of people out there, anywhere from six to God knows how many others, that may be after my head.” Her small hand reached up and brushed her hair back lightly. “I know what yah are thinking too, how could anyone want to scalp a pretty girl like me, right? I mean so nice and delicate and all that stuff? Well I’m not quite that kind, and I’ve made a few kinda crazy enemies. Not nice people who want me dead just cause I’m alive and kicking. Done nothing too illegal, mind you, just got on the wrong side of the wrong kind a people.

Every word she said dug her deeper, she knew that, but then again she loved to spin tales for anyone. Especially if the subject was her. “Yeah… see, I now have a price on my head, and… ummmm…” Where was she supposed to go with this? “Well, I was plannin on meeting a few others who could provide me with refuge here, but never got there because I was captured by that… guy you shot earlier. And I had to shoot you or he would… shoot me! Yes.”

She needed a cigarette for this. Badly. Pulling one out, and using the man’s lighter she breathed in once, and then resumed talking.

"I... have to thank you for shooting him, you most likely saved my life, or saved me from something worse than death." There was nothing like flattery to puff any man up.

A puff on the cigarette once again, and she exhaled, then stomped the half gone thing. It didn't seem to do anything at all for her, only calmed her by going through the motions, rather than anything provided by it.

These modern ones must be weak or something...

“Well, so there are a couple people out there with prices on their heads also, by offending that very same group of people that I did. Might be, if they weren’t lyin to me at least. But I got no clue to who they are. The man out here didn’t outright try tah kill me, so at the very least he is cordial. And yeah, I can definitely tell he is one of the people either out to get me, or be on my side. They are all kinda weird, and hiding as those dress up people because of this weeklong con thing here.”

There had been a few out on the streets as she had been coming to this place, even at such a late hour. She had no idea what they were doing, but apparently they had been dressed weirdly, and even mentioned something about a con, some swindle or something she guessed, maybe price gouging or some similar thing.

“Well so we got a choice, since I got yah involved in all this I need your input, guy.” She still hadn’t left him a real opening to tell her his name. “Basically they’ll be out to kill you too, since you met me. Sorry ‘bout that, really am. So there is possibly one of these guys outside gettin healed by this doc. Do yah want to run, talk to em, or just have me light up that wall and fight them? And trust me, I can do any of those, I am a professional markswoman, after all.

Unholstering both her pistols, she stood in a flash, her tightly belted dress whirling, and aimed both pistols cross armed at the wall. Her eyes opened, and she was ready.

i54.tinypic.com/kda7bb.png

[/IMG][/center]

“I won’t miss, if this is what we have to do.” Her voice was steel now, sure, unbending and unwavering. "I saw their room, it is constructed exactly how this one is; I saw where he was laid, I won't miss." That was technically true, although she saw it as surely now as she did when she opened the door, as if there were no obstructions in the way.

There was no killing intent emanating from her as she stood with her back to her apparent Master. She still did not know him, and this would tell her his character. He did not know it was neutral ground, even if that doc wasn’t lying to save her skin.

She would never fire like this, not yet, not unanswered, not without determining the man she was about to shoot. He was an enemy, and she knew that. But to her, this would be murder.

What would it be to him?
[/justify]

[Percival Heath]

Percy, still sitting on the cheap faux-leather examination table, listened to this girl raptly. However, every word she spoke served to confuse him even more. She was being hunted down by as many as six assassins, if not more!? Yet, at the same time, the other people, the ones that had just walked into the room, may have been willing to help them? Despite being assassins?

“I know what yah are thinking too, how could anyone want to scalp a pretty girl like me, right? I mean so nice and delicate and all that stuff?"

Percy barely managed to repress a snort at that even as his head started twinging unpleasantly. However, he did not interrupt Jane, letting her continue.

There was a bounty on her, one that the man with those... henchmen wouldn't be the right word. Creatures, monsters would be better - but that made no sense.

It all just did not add up, but for the life of him, Percival simply could not piece it together. While he was still trying to connect point A to point Z via route 3.14 taking the SOH-CAH-TOA express, the girl took out a cigarette, lighting it up. She paused to take a brief drag from it - wait, aren't those- and began speaking again.

Something about a convention, and those assassins taking cover by wearing outrageous outfits under the con's jurisdiction?

What. Well, it would explain why she was dressed like some woman out of an old western.

No, wait. It didn't. But that was a question for another time.

But this. This part where the other assassins were also being hunted... that was interesting. They were potential allies?

But amidst all of this, Percy still had to make his choice, now that it was all properly explained. Even if he was a 'Master' or something, he still had the ability to leave her, to go back to his life, minus his cigarettes. Except... he would not. Again, she sounded earnest in her fear and worry - even if the rest of her story made little sense. He was not going to turn someone aside, not when he had the chance to help them.

Then, voice ringing like steel, the girl turned back to him, drawing her twin revolvers. She laid down an ultimatum. "Do yah want to run, talk to em, or just have me light up that wall and fight them? And trust me, I can do any of those, I am a professional markswoman, after all. I won’t miss, if this is what we have to do. I saw their room, it is constructed exactly how this one is; I saw where he was laid, I won't miss."

Percival hesitated. It would make sense if they took these other assassins out and fled into the night... but it wasn't right. They were in a hospital. What would a gunfight bring, but harm? As far as he knew, the doctor and her... daughter? was entirely uninvolved. It wouldn't be fair to them.

Talk to them? That raised more problems - namely that of making their presence known.

So that left running. He could just help the girl leave Lucca, let the storm of assassins die down. Or, barring that, just give her some shelter.

His decision was made. "No, Jane. Put the guns down. We're getting out of here."

He'd have to pay the bill later.

[Jordan Percival Gallagher]

"My boy, as your partner this one is quite displeased to see that you are looking at this woman with such eyes right now..."

At those words Jordan eyes went back to their normal state and he looked at the ghost person he arrived with. More importantly he saw the disappointment in his eyes when he spoke. Jordan started to feel bad about how he was acting, but then relized he heard the ghost talk to him mentally and that threw Jordan off.

"You really do make this one feel like his age, boy. Before thinking about your libido you should consider the state of your own body. Also, take a closer look at her. She is the same as this humble Servant, a ghost of the past. A heroic spirit summoned into this time and place by the power of the Holy Grail. Judging from her choice of weapon she is of the Archer class but that is just a conjecture. As a Master you should be able to tell her abilities simply by concentrating. Can you relay that information to me?"

"Archer class? Heroic Spirit?" Jordan thought to himself. "OK he's talking to me mentally, so maybe I can do the same back since I accidentally summoned him with my blood and that magic circle." Concentrating his thoughts Jordan got ready to talk to the ghost, but got distracted when he then proceeded to call the little girl he had been talking to about help a boy of all things.

How the hell could you not tell that was a girl!? Jordan telepathically yelled at the gho... er "Heroic Spirit" What, do your eyes not work correctly? Can you not tell that by looking at her facial structure and eyes? Or I don't know, just looking at her effing hair?!

“I’m the doctor here, sorry about the misunderstanding. Yes, you can take your master to the treatment room; I’ll be there in a second.”

Jordan turned to the kid now being held back by the doctor (who Jordan noticed was, if possible, hotter than the first woman to him) and said. "My friend is sorry, you see he... drank too much. Otherwise he'd obviously be able to tell your gender. He's such a lightweight. It's really just a complete misunderstanding and he's very very sorry."

Following the doctor Jordan had to use the walls to steady himself but he was able to make it to the room the doctor had brought them to without passing out again.

"Thank you for seeing me doctor." Jordan said "I... might have been poisoned and that coupled with having been slashed at and the one or two drinks I had at that club, it has been a unique night." Smiling (without a grimace cause he had stopped bleeding again) at the doctor Jordan said "I'm sorry for bringing my troubles to your door. You're going through all of this trouble and I don't know if people say it enough so thanks.

Looking at the Heroic Spirit with him and thinking to him Jordan said You said the first lady was an "Archer"? So I guess you Heroic Spirits go by your weapon for a name. So I guess you must be a "Spear-men" or a "Lancer" or a "Pole-man" or something. But since it's just the two of us talking I'd like to know your name.

Also you know already I'm Jordan and I promised to help you out in this... war but I'm gonna need some details before we start all of that. I'll tell you now, I will not murder people just for your amusement or any defeated people even if they are my opponents. If I have to kill it will be because my enemy is truly evil. Jordan stated the facts while looking directly at the spear holding spirit. If we can agree to that then I'll keep my word. So. Deal?

[Honda Tadakatsu]

Honda felt a sudden surge of hostility from the child. Did the word "boy" hold a negative connotation in this language? He did not understand what could have caused such...

'How the hell could you not tell that was a girl!? What, do your eyes not work correctly? Can you not tell that by looking at her facial structure and eyes? Or I don't know, just looking at her effing hair!?'

A telepathic transmission from his Master interrupted Honda's thoughts.
Wait, what? A... girl? No. Cannot be...

“I’m the doctor here, sorry about the misunderstanding. Yes, you can take your master to the treatment room; I’ll be there in a second.”

Another woman ran up to the child and prevented him... her... from doing whatever she was going to do.

“Vicky, calm down please, he doesn’t know anything.”

Indeed, Honda didn't know anything. Right now, his head was too blank to comprehend what's been going on.

"My friend is sorry, you see he... drank too much. Otherwise he'd obviously be able to tell your gender. He's such a lightweight. It's really just a complete misunderstanding and he's very very sorry."

These words didn't even register in Honda's mind. He slowly turned away from the two women and, not unlike any real drunk, wobbled a few steps towards his Master while pressing his hands to his temples. So close. Too close. The first one was just a child but the doctor that appeared so suddenly... why do women always were so much perfume? ... Or was the sensation exagerrated because of his hightened senses? Anyway, that was... ugh... half the populace of this city are women. Honda needed to get used to such surprises if he wanted to complete this mission successfully. But it was okay to take his time adapting, it seems. The other Servant seemed to have lost any willingness to fight so the current situation could be considered safe.

'Master. Since there is no danger of a fight breaking out at this point I'll switch to spirit form for now. Or do you need my help to get to the treatment room?'

The boy started walking, slowly but steadily, supporting himself by leaning on the wall. It seems Honda's help was not necessary.

While the change of locations and treatment took place Honda had some time to contemplate. He acted rashly. Again. This was a frequent problem of his in life, too. He recalled the time he recklessly chose to engage Toyotomi Hideyoshi during the Komaki campaign. Even just trying to buy time when the enemy outnumbers your forces 60 to 1 would have been an impossible feat. Was it luck, or divine providence that Hideyoshi's honor overtook reason that time? Honda didn't think of that choice as a definite mistake, and would doubtlessly take the same course of action yet again if he were to be in a similar situation... he just never learned.

And this time, he dragged an innocent civilian into these matters... Moreover, in anticipation of battle he clearly forgot that, unlike Honda himself, his Master didn't receive information from... the Cosmos, so to say; the warrior was still unsure how much of it came from the Grail. He should explain everything to the boy in detail.

'You said the first lady was an "Archer"? So I guess you Heroic Spirits go by your weapon for a name. So I guess you must be a "Spear-men" or a "Lancer" or a "Pole-man" or something. But since it's just the two of us talking I'd like to know your name.'

'The... lady being Archer is just a conjuncture of mine. But yes, in this war we spirits go by the name of our weapon, or, rather, by their defining characteristic... Surely, you know that legendary heroes often have a just as legendary weapon attached to them... Like prince Takeru Yamato, whose sword, the Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, is arguably more famous than the hero in question.

As for this one, his class is Lancer, as this Tonbo-Giri is his partner in both life and death, and Honda Tadakatsu is his name. During the period of warring states he was a loyal servant of lord Tokugawa Ieyasu. And he retains his loyalty still. As this one has named himself he would like to humbly request that his Master introduces himself as well.'[/color]

'Also you know already I'm Jordan and I promised to help you out in this... war but I'm gonna need some details before we start all of that. I'll tell you now, I will not murder people just for your amusement or any defeated people even if they are my opponents. If I have to kill it will be because my enemy is truly evil. If we can agree to that then I'll keep my word. So. Deal?'

'Jordan. It's a pleasure to finally get to know your name, boy. This one will gladly explain everything in due time but first of all, he has to apologize. The demands that were made back then were inconsiderate. As this one receives additional information from the world itself and, this time, from the holy artifact as well. This one humbly lowers his head while asking for forgiveness.
Now, the explanation will be detailed. If you have any questions please ask and don't worry about interrupting this one as his skill at explaining things is rather lacking in comparison to his thrusts.
As for killing... Jordan, I'm afraid that will be unavoidable. At least, if you count others like this one as "people". Only one shall remain, and only one shall receive the Holy Grail. That is the basic rule of this war. Still, this one is glad to know that his Master would rather avoid needless casualties. He will not feed on civilians unless directly ordered to, and will only attack the enemy's Master if they pose a direct threat to you, boy; your safety is of highest priority. But since you'd rather show mercy to a defeated opponent this one will try not to kill them nor harm them if they can be rendered harmless without doing so.'
[/i]
Honda took a moment to collect his thoughts.

'There are seven heroes summoned into this war by the seven magi chosen by the Holy Grail. There are seven classes, namely: Saber, a hero of the sword, Lancer, a spear-wielding warrior, Archer, who fights with ranged weaponry... though there may be some deviants, Rider, a hero known for their legendary mounts, Caster, a legendary magus, Assassin, who kills from the shadows, and Berserker, a mad warrior. The Grail will only manifest itself once there is one survivor left. And here is the problem, Jordan. Most heroes and most Masters have a desire for the Grail. Even if you dislike the idea, they'll be trying to kill you. Some of them, while not being outright evil, are surely desparate, if they chose to bet their lives on attaining the holy vessel. It will probably be hard to reason with them until they have no chance of victory left.'

[Catherine Trandor]

Erin observes how the newcomer, who looked quite incredulous besides his servant. Familiars can talk telepathically to their masters; Erin heard that servants are not different in that regard. What’s surprising is the apparent lack of knowledge that this new master displayed about that fact. Two clueless masters in one night seems to be not a good sign for the Grail War’s secrecy and the ratio of the servant-master relations, but there is a possibility that this Grail War will have more than 7 participants if the Einzberns are to be believed, Erin would feel sorry for the participant if not for the mess that they would eventually create.

Realizing that she still have Vicky in a lock all this time, Erin loosen up the grip on her surrogate daughter, all the way maintaining a calm, professional aura towards the newcomer Master. She notices that Archer’s current master is up and about, no doubt wanting to regroup with his servant. In that regard, she can’t blame him, though being more discreet about it should be preferred in a war like this. She even suggested a temporary alliance, though Archer seems to not set about the idea, judging on her expression after she heard that line. Not that Erin cared that much, as long as they don’t bring the battle here in the clinic that should be sufficient enough for her.

Entering the treatment room, Erin heard the party guy’s excuse about his wounds, which is plausible enough if he doesn’t speak with a servant on his side. After that he started to space out a bit, occasionally tying to act observant in front of Erin, but she realized that his servant’s talking telepathically about something, most likely about the situation they’re in right now.

“Thank you about the concern, but with the war’s going on I guess you can say that I’ve been expecting it.”She immediately begins examining the wound on Jordan, not content to wait on his reaction about the earlier sentence. “It’s a bit of a gash; I doubt that common thug knife will be able to give you the same wound unless it’s an especially sharp one.” She again put her right hand above the wound. “But I don’t think you want to walk around with a stitch and a bandage, it’s going to restrict your movement.” As she finished the sentence, Erin immediately chants the aria of her spell, which proceeds to mend the wound until no trace of it remains.

Looking at her current patient’s face now, she can’t help to speculate that this new patient of her knows nothing about the Grail War before coming to this city, despite looking that at least he knows a thing or two about thaumaturgy, unlike the last one. Said last patient is currently out of her sights, though she’s sure that Vicky’s still keeping an eye on the other couple…maybe.

“Well, regarding your last statement…how much do you actually know about the situation you’re on?” Erin decided to pry deeper, even though it’s technically not her job. But half of her attention’s still on the other pair, it’s her job to help keep an eye for master and servant pairs after all.

[Victoria Valentina Devereux]

So.

What now.

Erin had disappeared into the treatment room leaving that one guy bleeding to death on the floor and his blind servant with Victoria (even if the Master corrected that oversight fairly quickly, she wasn't going to let that 'boy' comment go anytime soon) . Her gaming laptop was back where the wild-west woman was, but she doubted that Erin'd appreciate her leaving the second couple who barged into their clinic alone. Then again, what did she expect Vicky to do anyway? Give them a tumor? Fix the door? Clean up the bloodstains?

Really. Erin should've known her better by now.

...

......

.........

Nothing was happening.

They were sort of just standing there looking like idiots while staring at nothing for a good few minutes. Victoria made an irritated snort.

...

"A-hem." she cleared her throat loudly.

They weren't paying attention to her in the slightest.

"A-A-hem!" Victoria tried again, plonking herself down on where Erin was sitting not a half-hour ago, "Aren't you dying or something? Should you really be standing?"

She didn't sound concerned in the slightest, leaning backwards on the chair so only the back legs touched the ground, one hand steadying herself on the table, the other playing with her hair. She had adopted an exaggerated expression of utter disinterest, her oddly-coloured eyes regarding the pair lazily. However, the slight pressure on her lower lip; the line that her mouth drew, revealed that she might've been trying a little too hard to act aloof.

Despite the earlier transgression made by the golden Servant, she couldn't help but be fascinated by him. Was he Japanese? He looked like one of those soldiers from Shogun: Total War, except, well, real, and, Victoria admitted grudgingly, cooler. Maybe like a boss-unit, except Total War didn't have boss-units, and even if it did, they probably couldn't fire off energy beams like Servants.

"Erin'll be out in a moment," she said, a hint of derisiveness in her tone, although it probably came across as just sulking, "Just wait there and try not to die or bleed any more over the carpet; she can't heal you if you're dead, and bloodstains are really, really hard to get out of the carpet."

[Calamity Jane]

“Runnin, huh? Can’t say I don’t mind doing that, this guy here could probably cut me up six ways from Sunday. Prefer to… keep my distance, you know.

There was this odd temptation to kick down the door off the room they were inside, to hike up her skirts and just kick it off its hinges. Then again, she had already done a number on the front of the clinic. And they probably owed the doctor, and it’s not like either bill would be small…

Yep it was definitely a good idea to skip town… well skip the building. She actually was not all that sure what would happen to her if she left the town where the Grail was based. Would she disappear? Or would she be fine or only supplied by her Master. She… was not sure, and that worried her. Hopefully the Grail would not keep her bound to this boy if she won it… if that was even what she would wish for now.

The situation had changed, after all. If that had changed, would her wishes not as well?

At the very least her Master wouldn’t make her kill any random civilians… At least as far as she could tell. Knowing her luck though, he could be pretending. But he did seem honest, and earnest. And he actually believed her. That was a big plus, and incredibly useful.

“Well then, let’s retreat and live to fight another day, shall we?” With those words barely having left her mouth she sized up the man in front of her. He was… bigger than her, not that it made a difference, but it would be awkward to anyone out there to see her dragging along a guy that size with no trouble.

That would stand out, that would definitely stand out. Plus he probably wouldn’t like it.

Wait, she was also supposed to convince him she was a normal-if-athletic girl. What would he even say when he saw the state of the entrance to the clinic?

Her mind raced as the door clicked open. “It was like that when I got here!” she nearly shouted as he stared into the devastation that was the waiting room.

“Bu-Whu?” She interrupted her own Master by just pulling him out of the area, and out what remained of the entrance. Really shouldn’t have kicked it so hard. As she looked to see if any of the others were following her, instead she saw the other Master and Servant pair just… staring at each other. Well they were perfect for each other, at least. They looked rather enraptured, after all.

Sigh… it was too bad that golden boy had that really… weird way of talking. He could have been fun to bother. Then again, she might see them later in the war anyways.

Her eyes blinked again, and the vision was gone, and all she could see now was the dark, shattered remnants of the front of the clinic. Nothing I can do about that now…

There was need for a rush earlier, and she had panicked. Now she was just regretting the poor woman's storefront, and she only hoped the doc could magic it back together.

She looked back at Percival, who was still looking perplexedly at the front of the clinic. His mind had to be removed from that. “Hey, what are you waiting for? Why don’t you show me where you live?” A gloved hand prodded his side, “Lead the way~”

[Jordan Percival Gallagher]

(Okay I think I've got how this story is going now correct, Jordan's getting healed, Percival and Jane are booking it, and Vicky will soon go back to playing computer games.)

As Honda finished giving Jordan the info, Jordan could only say one thing. "Damn, this is crazy." Jordan shook his head and then noticed that the doctor had magically healed his injury. "Thank you doctor. I was in pretty bad shape..." Jordan stopped as his mind registered what the doctor had sad to him. "Wait, you know about this war? Is it something that anybody that can use magic is taught or something? No wait, this grail, it doesn't seem like it but it's not the Holy Grail is it?"

Jordan started to rub on his head with his right hand. "It is isn't it? It's the only thing I could think of that would just be called a grail and people would know about it. What does it say about this war that everybody wants the Holy Grail? I mean it's just a cup, sure it's a religious artifact, but still to have to murder people over it? How can anything be worth it?"

Jordan turned to the doctor and asked "Why is this the prize? Something that is nothing more than an artifact? What do magic users like to screw around with people? Have them fight and murder others for an old museum photo-op for tourists? And what, they just laugh it up at our stupidity or something like they think we don't feel? And what about those monsters, don't they know that those thing could and would kill somebody who doesn't know what's happening?

Turning back to Lancer Jordan said "I can't let this go on. We have to do something before more people get hurt. If we can beat the other spirits, do you think we could save the city?

[Honda Tadakatsu]

"I can't let this go on. We have to do something before more people get hurt. If we can beat the other spirits, do you think we could save the city?"

The words of his young Master surprised Tadakatsu. It seems this man knew even less than Honda imagined.

"Jordan, may this one inquire about your knowledge of the magi society of this time?"

This was said out loud, by the mouth of the now materialized Lancer. Being in the presense of a woman was frustrating but there were more important things going on now through his head. Moreover, this particular woman seemed to be involved in the War. 'She does not seem to be a Master, though... A neutral party?' That would be helpful. His Master needed a lecture not only on the nature of this War but also on the nature of the hidden world he managed not to stumble upon up til now.

Hearing Jordan's reply, Honda nodded; indeed, his Master was unfamiliar with the traditions upheld by the magi of the current time. Turning towards the female magus with slight reluctance, Honda did what had to be done. He bowed and pleaded,

"Seeing as she, a magus, knows about the War yet not sensing her Servant nearby this one can surmise that the doctor is either an observer of the Association or a similarly neutral party. He would be grateful if his ignorant Master was briefly filled in on the details of the mentality of the magi of this time as well as the workings of their community later. This one's knowledge about this age is limited to what he recieves from the Grail and the World. It allows him to answer the questions about this War and the miracle that the Grail is yet he is unable to properly convey the characteristic of things unrelated to the topics at hand and common knowledge."

Not waiting for her reply, Honda switched his attention to his young Master again.

"Jordan, the Holy Grail that will manifest in this town is not the Holy Grail you speak of. It is a miracle of similar nature, though. The Grail is not just a vessel. The miracle that it contains is of much greater importance. If that weren't the case why do you suppose beings such as myself, Heroic Spirits who usually appear only in the times of great disasters when humanity itself is a step away from complete annihilation, would answer a summons from an individual human being? The Grail, or, rather, the miracle it contains is what impels the ghosts of the past to appear in this land, in this age. It's power can bring us, who have been taken out of the cycle of reincarnation, back to life. As for the magi who summon us, they all yearn for the Holy Grail. After all, its "miracle" is immeasurable. No matter how great the desire, a Grail should fulfill it..."

Honda sensed that the Servant from before has left the room next door. Leaving her status unresolved would not be a prudent course of action. If that woman was indeed Archer she could become a valuable ally. As a Lancer, Honda was geared towards keeping his enemies at bay, and a long range supporter with superior firepower would be useful... though the idea of trusting his back to a woman almost made Honda shiver. On the other hand, having that same long range fighter as an enemy could prove troublesome, especially if she has no qualms about targeting his Master. If she were to become an enemy it would be best to take her down now, while she is still alone and while he can easily get into range for an attack.

"Jordan, this one requires orders. The woman we met at the entrance is now leaving this building. Leaving her unaccounted for might later prove to be a fatal mistake, especially if she is indeed of the Archer class. This one would prefer to settle the situation now yet he will obey his Master's command."