Endless Gravestones Claymore RP

[Kolox]

- Glasgow - Alternative June 11 2009

In the window of a electric store, a television is showing Glasgows news. A young female presenter stalks to talk.

"..In other news, there was apparent break to Glasgow Cathedral Basements, where graves of many famous saints were stored. Apparently some graves were demolished but it is hard to say if anything was stolen or if anything could have been stolen. This act of vandalism was seen by old church priest, Priest Sebastian. The identity of the thief is unknown. A special envoy from Vatican came and investigated if any of the sacred treasure were harmed by this accident. Until the further notice, the Cathedral is off limits for common folk"

- Glasgow - Alternative June 15 2009

It's a warm and cloudless night in Glasgow and yet no one can be seen on the streets at this hour. A page of newspaper flies, gushed by the wind

"Glasgow Invaded"

"There been several cases of strange flu infecting citizens of Glasgow in past few days. Doctors says that the cause is not certain, but it might be variation of Swine influenza or Bird influenza. The syndroms are similar to that of common flu and yet their effects are greater. One of twenty citizens right now is bed struck. Is it a start of a greater epidemy....

- Glasgow - Alternative June 22 2009 -

A motel offshore the city. A man comes to his room that he paid cash and sat on his bed. He turned the radio on that was next to his bed

"..~~decision was made just 2 days ago, that the whole congress will move from Glasgow, due to increase of sick of the strange flu. Although there was no mortal cases yet, the communication and most of the shops in Glasgow got shut down temporarily. The schools have hastened the summer vacations for the kids. There is also case of constant black outs in city each night in random districts, which could hinder parliament work..~~"

- Glasgow - Alternative June 30 2009 -

A man run down to the nearest shop to hide from rain and wind, his coat was soaked wet and the shop entrance gave little protection from the rain, who mercilessly was falling down and shown no signs of stopping. A reporter and cameraman could be seen in the middle of the screen, shouting.

"~~It's been already 4 days that the whole island was under barrage of heavy and constant rain. In some cities an emergency alarm was called and people were asked to not leave their homes and secure any belongings. The rain is going to weaken but as meteorologist predict, it will not stop soon

- Glasgow - Alterinative July 1 - Today -

The rain purs like it was for days. Normally lively Glasgow is now quite an empty city, with occurrences that happened recently. But only few people in this city should know what really happens. All those anomalia's, light being shut down at night, rain constantly falling and people becoming abnormally weak - it was an effect of summoning holy grail in such crowded city. The churchman were predicting for that for weeks now as the cathedral was shut for any normal visitors. Now only special people will be able to visit the cathedral

Those people will be called "Masters"

(Posted Image)

- Order of posting -

Support Magus
Summoning Magus
Servant
Summoning Magus /Support Magus

[Exar]

The lonely candle that stood atop an apparently shaky tower of books was the only source of light in the dark and mouldy basement. Its flickering flame cast numerous shadows of strange and occult nature against the cold masonry. In the unsteady glow it almost appeared as if the shades were dancing to some sort unknown and wicked melody that was not meant to be heard by human beings. Across the old wooden table, which was covered by a thick layer of dust, a vast amount of sheets and torn-out pages had been scattered and one could not deny that some irreproducible kind of order was visible in the way these documents of a long-forgotten practice had been arranged. Almost of them showed some signs of being...”modified” as whoever had collected and gathered them, also had taken the freedom of adding nearly indecipherable notes that entwined the original writ like a snake. Other pieces of paper had been scribbled with runes, which bore a strong resemblance to the symbols once used by the Norsemen, yet it was obvious that appearance was the only thing they had in common, for they seemed to emit an eerie, unearthly glow, barely noticeable to the human eye.

These very same runes had also been drawn onto the ground that consisted of large, bulky stones loosely held together by the withered moss that had replaced the original substance that had once filled the seams. Together with some lines and other mysterious signs, only an individual knowledgeable about symbolism could possibly hope to identify, they all formed a frighteningly accurate circle, which approximately had a diameter of three meters. In the middle of this genuinely peculiar accumulation of symbols usually attributed to Satanism or the darkest arts of magic, there was a crouched figure, which vividly used something that, in the dim glow of the candle, looked like a red chalk to create another one of these signs. A wan streak of orange-red light illuminated the features of the formerly obscure being. They were those of a man that a few years earlier would still have been considered merely a boy.

Suddenly he paused for a moment, only to finish the last of line that completed the pentagram that made up the heart of the circle. He then began to rummage his pockets, until he retrieved something white that somehow appeared familiar and with utmost carefulness he placed among the runes. Chuckling hoarsely to himself, he rose from the ground with a content expression on his face.

“All of the preparations have been completed.”, he said into the void of the room. “Let us proceed to the main event ....”

This was the day Tancred had been waiting for ever since the day he had learned of the existence of the Holy Grail War. Finally his desire to participate in this competition of the magi had been granted. It had not been easy to get to that point. First he had had to overcome the stubbornness of his father, who had begrudgingly watched as his only son had completely dedicated his life to the studies of the forgotten arts instead of focussing on preparing to take over the company his ancestors had spent most of their lifetime building. Then he had to intrude into a facility of the church, which had been blatantly disguised as a museum, in order to acquire a suited catalyst that would allow him to summon a certain servant, who had been associated with this particular object during his life. In his hand, he still held the very same jewel, which had been used to create the summoning circle. Having used all of its mana, Tancred discarded it onto the floor, where it joined several other gems of various size and shape. He took a last look at his notes, comparing the depictions of the circle with whatever he had created. Inhaling the humid air, which also smelled of copper and paper, he spread out his arms and started to murmur words in a foreign language. He closed his eyes to eliminate every possible source of distraction. Every mistake could have fatal consequences at this point. Concentrating all of his energy on the task that lay ahead of him, he could feel as the magic crest on his arm began to throb, a clear evidence that all of his magic circuits had been connected and were pouring mana into the powerful spell. It was only a matter of time before Tancred would meet his valiant ally face to face. The air around him began to crackle as massive amounts of magical energy build up. Under normal circumstances, the Holy Grail would do most of the summoning work, but since Tancred wanted to play it safe, he had decided to create a very specific and potent spell that would leave little space for any interpretation on part of the Grail.

“Now!” he screamed at the top of his lunges, as he discharged the mana he had reabsorbed from the jewels. There was an incredibly bright flash, followed by a concussive thunder that shook the walls of the cellar. Blinded, Tancred waited curiously for his sight to return, but after he had spent years of waiting, he had no patience left and rubbing eyes, he began to feel along the table, towards the middle of the room. Now it would show if his father had been right after all.

[Assassin396]

Rider

He could feel the draw of his master pulling him from the ether. There was an indescribable cacophany of noise as he was pulled into the present. It felt good to be pulled back to life. It was finally the time to become one of the living again. Memories of his original life again clouded him, followed by new, unknown thoughts. Thoughts of a time that was not his.

The summoning was giving him an understanding of where he was, languages he had never even heard of before, let alone knew how to speak. He was finally pulle dback into the now, he materialised a body around him and stood in the room.

He had long blond hair, down to his shoulders. His face was young and (people said) handsome, majorly tanned after his desert life in the eastern part of the Roman Empire. Black eyes contrasted with his blond hair and gave him a sharp appearance.

He was donned in his black plate-mail again, it had been a long time since he had worn it and the weight felt good against him. He noticed that Ascalon was gone, and Gabriel was not with him. Ah, no, he could feel them at the back of his mind, ready to be called when needed.

Looking down on himself he felt that his father would be proud of how he was now, 18 and ready to take on the world......

Ahh. The world, He looked up and examined the room he was in........... It was dark, a single candle lit the room, causing the shadows to appear to dance along the wall, in the room stood an old wooden table, which was covered by a thick layer of dust, a ridiculous amount of sheets and torn-out pages had been scattered and and he could truly see no attempt at ordering there.

A hand on the table, temporarily blinded by the summoning spell stood a man, it was too dark to really see any features, but he didnt seem to be too old... possibly, it was hard to tell in the lighting. Rider straightened himself and stared at where he thought the mans eyes were.

"I am Rider, and I assume that you are my master. Sir."

[Kolox]

- Intermission -

(Posted Image)

As the last blanket was given to the homeless people in glasgow, the Glasgow cathedral yet again close itself to public. Although the burglary act was done weeks ago, the cathedral was still not functioning as it used to - no tourists, no mass, no weddings. But what people did not know is, that no police officer was even let inside to the cathedral to help the investigation.

The reason was obvious, the clergy knew what the burglar was looking for and from what kind of circle the burglar came for. They also knew the reason of such bold act. Hence any investigation could only damage the secrecy of upcoming event. That and the fact that people and police would be in the cathedral would be a great hindrance.

Aled Mahel just arrived to the cathedral, knowing his new position. There were 12 cloaked priests, 8 men and 4 women, waiting for him. One of them, the tallest one, moved quickly to the newly arrived clergy and welcomed him.

"We are pleased to have you here, your excellency. And with timing better than we could ask for, because we have important news. Today it happened - the last one was summoned"

Aled just nodded his head. He was already well informed about the order and occurrences, he got the data while he was flying here on jet used by Pope himself.

....and as the words were said, someone beside the newly arrived head of the cathedral came through the gates...

------END OF FIRST PART OF INTERMISSION------

- Intermission Part Two -

"Honey..I'm hooome" said a dark and half laughing voice. Nobody could be seen in the room but it the person that entered it knew that it wasn't the case. "Oh come on, don't hide from me, I know we got on the wrong foot, but your totally better of with me right ?" said the same person again.

The silhouette moved to a little hole in the room and hit it with the fist "Wake up, breakfast at Tiffany's" said the voice angrily and then shoved something inside the hole.

"Don't judge me, it's only temporary, I will find some better way soon"

===END OF SECOND PART OF INTERMISSION===

[Exar]

"I am Rider, and I assume that you are my master. Sir."

Doubt befell Tancred, when he heard the youthful voice. Had he failed to summon the servant he wanted after all? In spite of all the preparations he had made? He had not intended to call forth such a weak class. At least he had hoped for one of the knightly classes. Leaning against the heavy table, his vision slowly, almost reluctantly returned and with each moment that passed the blurry shapes and outlines of the small underground lair became more defined. Anxiously he waited impatiently for his senses to reveal the inevitable result of his failure.
What he saw, when the white veil finally had retreated, was nothing like he had expected. In front of him a young man, probably even younger than himself, in a heavy plate mail was standing, surveying the room with wary, black eyes. There was definitely something strange about, although Tancred was not able to exactly determine the source of this sensation. It almost appeared as if the man in front was surrounded by some sort of…glow that seemed to repress the darkness around him. Only now, he became aware of that his left hand was throbbing and looking down on his arm, he saw three strange, entwining symbols. The command spells. So their contract had already been sealed, they only thing for them left to do was to get the formalities done.

Deciding to break the silence, Tancred regained his composure and decided to respond to his servant. Regardless of what he was, if they sought to win the Holy Grail, they would have to cooperate from now on.

”Your assumption is correct. I am Tancred, the magus who has summoned you, to fight alongside me in this War. I suggest we waste as little time as possible, for I am afraid that we were the last of the competitors to join…Forgive me my rudeness, but are you Saint George, the dragonslayer?”

This post has been edited by Exar on Oct 25 2009, 05:09 PM

[Assassin396]

Rider

”Your assumption is correct. I am Tancred, the magus who has summoned you, to fight alongside me in this War. I suggest we waste as little time as possible, for I am afraid that we were the last of the competitors to join…Forgive me my rudeness, but are you Saint George, the dragonslayer?”

George started slightly at this.... Saint? Since when had he become a saint? He scanned back thorugh his new memories.. Oh, he had been made a saint, after that farce of an execution, several years after in fact.

Anyway, so his new masters name was Tancred, that was a very suitable name, a descendant of thought, very apt for a magus, he nodded to himself in approval of this, it was appropriate, unlike his. George looked back at Tancred.

"Yes, I am George Anici, son of Gerontius and Polychrona, Tribune in the service of Emperor Diocletian, vanquisher of the Dragon of Silene"

He frowned as he said this, his master seemed unsure he was actually who he said he was... why? was he a novice? Unless he didnt look like they had recorded in the history annals. He looked down at himself, he thought it was pretty obvious who he was.. he was wearing his Eastern Roman platemail, his familys crest quite obviously emblazoned on the front. How odd.

"If I may ask, master, what were you expecting me to appear as?"

[Exar]

"Yes, I am George Anici, son of Gerontius and Polychrona, Tribune in the service of Emperor Diocletian, vanquisher of the Dragon of Silene"

Upon hearing the servant’s answer, a sigh of relieved escaped Tancred lips. So the summoning had been successful after all. Yet he was still surprised by the appearance of the warrior, for it bore little resemblance to most of the depictions of the saint. Although he was well aware of the fact that the actual Saint George had been born and had lived during the late period of the Roman Empire, he had always believed that the appearance and powers of a heroic spirit depended on how the people of this world imagined him to be and having seen numerous paintings of him, Tancred had not been prepared to be confronted with what looked more like a Roman officer that had little in common with the medieval knight in his shiny armor.

What, however, was bothering him most, was that this man seemed to just have achieved adulthood. Indeed, as his eyes grew used to the darkness, he realized that he was probably a few years younger than him.

Obviously the surprise that showed on his face did not pass by unnoticed. The warrior in mail frowned for a moment and appeared to be started but Tancred’s surprise and inability to immediately recognize him.

"If I may ask, master, what were you expecting me to appear as?"

Now it was Tancred’s turn to frown. It was interesting to see the difference between the myth and the actual person behind it. Apparently Rider had little idea of how history had judged him.

”Well…,” he hesitantly began to speak. It would not be wise to tell him on their first encounter that he had originally hoped to call forth a servant of a stronger class.”To be honest you do not quite look like how the Saint George, who has been described in most sources… apart from that I am also wondering why you have not been summoned as a Lancer-class servant…albeit you were often shown riding a horse, I thought most people would consider you a knight, which should have, under normal circumstances increased the chance of summoning you as one of three knightly servants…but it appears as if assuming this, I have made quite a mistake…”

[Assassin396]

Rider

”To be honest you do not quite look like how the Saint George, who has been described in most sources… apart from that I am also wondering why you have not been summoned as a Lancer-class servant…albeit you were often shown riding a horse, I thought most people would consider you a knight, which should have, under normal circumstances increased the chance of summoning you as one of three knightly servants…but it appears as if assuming this, I have made quite a mistake…”

George cocked his head slightly at this. So Tancred believed that the "knightly" classes were the strongest, and because of the fact that he was not one of them, he was not capable? Although, George did have to admit that maybe because of the fact that he didnt live up to his legend in appearance, his masters fears could be justified. George stared into his masters eyes.

"Master, soon you will most certainly see why I am the Rider class, not Lancer, and you will also see, that just because I am not a knight by this, "modern", definition, it by no means proves that I am weak."

And by Gods will may I succeed at my quest. And by Gods will if I fail, atleast let me not take my master down with me for my selfishness.

"Now, unless you have more questions, I believe you said we have to hurry, do you have a plan of what our first objective is?"

As he said this George faded back into his spirit form as to lessen any strain he may be causing on his master, also this way he could move around much easier.

[Kolox]

- Situation -

As the servant changed into his spirit form, Tancred finally felt the strain of fully summoning of the servant. It was a feat normally impossible but that's why the holy grail war was devised.

Tancred knew as much as anyone - the holy grail was already working, in motion, but to fuel his wish granting power, souls of heroic spirits were needed. As most heroes wouldn't willingly become sacrifice for someone else dream, the "war" part was needed. Normally 7 servants are summoned to fight the war - that number did vary and even classes were different but a set after a while the set number was decided on.

Seven servants - Saber, Lancer and Archer of the knight class and Rider, Berserker, Caster and Assassin. The last one was the most questioned as how such class was allowed to exist. Nevertheless, those were the available classes.

Every newly appointed master was supposed to announce himself to the city head of the church. Not doing such could make him an enemy of the church and magic association, as the secrecy of existence of magic was to be upheld and only by such registration, church was capable of keeping the records of demolitions. If a rogue master existed, the church had permission of Magic Association to eliminate such magus.

But still, if they did register and they decided to use humans as power fuel to their servant. it could be disadvantageous. That's why the very first step of the war is very important.

---TANCRED : OPTIONS ----

1. Let's go the church, today we won't be fighting anyway as I'm too strained
2. Visiting church can wait later - I am too tired after summoning
3. There is no time for church or rest - let's hunt down some enemy servants tonight, Rider
4. Before any planning, Rider, what are you capable of ?


--- INTERMISSION -----

~~"ARCHER"~~

"What is it, Boss" said the invisible existance on top of Glasgow trade market high-tower.

~~"I'VE RECIEVED THE CALL.... THE GRAIL WAR STARTED...BE CAREFUL AS THE.."~~ but the voice didn't finish up

"Whatever - I just need to kill them all off, right ? I think the most efficient way if I just blasted this whole city off. In my days people weren't so corrupt, so weak, so..ugly. It makes me want to show them divine punishment !!"

~~"ARCHER, PLEASE BE CAREFUL..I NEED TO GO NOW..REMEMBER OUR PROMISE"~~

"I remember - and don't worry. There is no "hero" here who could match my speed nor avoid my gaze"

----END OF INTERMISSION----

--Weather Report--

It's 1.00 AM

Dark night - the lights in glasgow yet again went down in most areas. Only Hospitals still have their own generators. It's raining a bit and it's 11*C degrees. The streets are empty and even taxi's are inactive at this hour.

[Exar]

While his servant changed into his spiritual form, Tancred was pondering for moment on what options of taking action they would have tonight. They most logical and actually recommended as well as obligatory first step would be to report to the local head of the church, who would then officially accept his application for this war. If the majority of the master would comply with that, would have to be doubted. Before he could leave his lair and dare to expose himself to the constant and almost omnipresent possibility of an enemy attack, he would have to get to know at least some of his servant’s abilities, otherwise they would not be able to cooperate and harmonize during an actual assault. Teamwork, however, was of great importance if one sought to win this war.

Turning towards where he had last seen the warrior and where he could still sense a faint trait of his presence, Tancred began to speak.

“Ere we consider our future course of actions, I would actually like to know what you are actually capable of...However, you do not need to show off all of your skills, especially since I am planning to continue the use of this masonry as a base of our operations...”

“But it would good to know if and to what degree I can rely onto your strength.” he added with a challenging smirk, awaiting his servant’s hopefully energetic, but moderate response.

[Assassin396]

Rider

“But it would good to know if and to what degree I can rely onto your strength.”

George materialised back in the room infront of Tancred. Ok, so he wanted to know what he could do, without destroying the room, he glanced at the ceiling, too low, he couldnt summon it here, well, his master would just have to settle with seeing Gabriel and Ascalon.

"Ok master, I will show you my capabilities, my weapon is a lance, and my steed is Gabriel."

As he said this he drew on the link between them, summoning Ascalon and Gabriel from, whereever they were stored when he didnt need them, he summoned Ascalon in his right hand, resting the end on the ground he held it sttriaght by gripping the shaft. He summoned Gabriel to his left, Gabriel snorted and George turned slightly to pat him. It had been a very long time since they had been together.

"Well, if you can put two and two together Im sure you can tell how we fight. On foot I "can" fight as if I were a spearman, but you should not rely on me in that state, whereas, when I am mounted..

George smiled back at his masters face.

"Point me in the right direction, and dont get in the way"

Once he had spoken he released Gabriel and sent him back into the ether, keeping his hold on Ascalon he waited for his master to decide where to go next.

If he decided it was time to leave, it would be simple for him to fade back into spirit form, un-summoning Ascalon, and following Tancred.

This post has been edited by Assassin396 on Oct 29 2009, 11:23 AM

[Exar]

||Tancred||

”I see...”, he said in a calm and impassive tone.

Unimpressed by his servant’s mediocre display of powers, Tancred nodded seemingly approving, yet if one had been able to take a closer look at his face, he would have noticed that his eyes had slightly narrowed and that he was wearing a deep frown across his face. His servant had, either unwillingly or on purpose, decided to interpret his request the worst way possible. Instead of informing Tancred about his “rank” among the other heroes or his real combat abilities or his weaknesses and flaws, he had simply remarked that he preferred to fight mounted. Of course he had already come to suchlike a conclusion upon hearing his servant’s class. After all he would make a pathetic Rider without a suitable charger. How was he supposed to notice the powers and properties of St. George’s Noble Phantasm by being allowed only a short glimpse at them? Nevertheless it was better to pretend to be unsatisfied. He could only hope that this would finally coax him out of his shell and cause him to show his true worth on the battlefield. Only then would Tancred reconsider his opinion about the enigmatic soldier in Roman attire. Sighing in resignation Tancred considered rephrasing his question, but he would simply assume that Rider refused to reveal more for now.

”Follow me inconspicuously, but be on your guard. As soon we leave this save haven, there will be the constant peril of a hostile assault.”

Since they had already wasted a lot of time talking about petty matters that would not serve to further their cause, Tancred signalled the now invisible warrior to follow him. Their first move would be to report at the church. Even if he did not like the idea of having to associate with these fanatics, the least he could need would be an additional enemy in form of an Executioner that would be out for his head. Apart from that, this would also be a great opportunity to show Rider around a bit. Knowledge of your surroundings and awareness of what might be a future battleground could only be considered beneficial.

As he was still exhausted and weary from the summoning ritual, he would refrain from moving in the open, if he could avoid it, travelling to the church by either bus, tram or taxi would be a validate option to achieve that goal. Furthermore it would also help to avoid contact with other masters since most magi either avoided such means of transport or would be hesitant to attack, because of the presence of ordinary humans.

[Kolox]

DAY ONE

HOUR 2 AM. DISTRICT - CITY CENTRE - RAIN

(Posted Image)

(Posted Image)

As Tancred and his invisible companion went down the path to the church, they noticed that the city was completely devoid of life. No street lights, no people on the streets and no cars even. Truly a ghost town and in a city that was supposed to 5th biggest in Europe. The rather unnatural occurrences lately must made people either leave the city or lose will to leave their homes whatsoever.

As they strolled through this empty city, time was passing quickly as the darkness and nothing to distract made the whole city both eerie and yet quite..boring if you got used to it. Because despite what one could think, the crime and people bashing the shop windows weren't present, because the powerful impact of holy grail appearing in this city put most people with no control over magic bedridden.

That was extremely convenient for every magi who participated in war. Like kids with big toys, they had the whole city for their playground and little need to worry about being scolded. But that also allowed bad kids to play more freely - so who was truly benefiting on this situation ?

The cathedral was already in sight - a grand monument and one of the oldest in Glasgow, it's aura of solitude and greatness was truely felt in this dark city, although the cathedral itself felt bit out of place in such prospering city of high tower buildings. Nevertheless, the cathedral left not an ounce of doubt that it was here that people of great power and influence resided and that going there would have incredible impact on life of the young magus.

St. George felt bit strange - it was true that the cathedral was old enough to recognize some similarities of his times, yet it did gave complete different feeling than he would image a christian cathedral would give. The city itself was completely odd for him, although he possessed all the information about this era from the Akasha Throne, from where all souls of heroes reside.

Tancred did not wait nor ask George anything, moved forward to the grand doors of the cathedral, but a small doors inside the gates of the cathedral were opened by a strange woman..well, it was hard to say if she was as she was wearing a religious habit, covering that person whole body, yet that person small structure would suggest she was female.

She just left the doors open and let young Tancred come inside....

--- TO BE CONTINUED ----

[Rabbit]

A wave of warmth swept in from the open cathedral doors. Outside was dark and cold due to the rain and the lights were deliberately turned on to give an impression of safety and warmth. Indeed, people who came seeking sanctuary would certainly find it here...for a time. Save for the young woman by the door and a figure kneeling before the altar, the cathedral was more or less empty. Dark wooden pews were arranged on either side amidst the buttressed archways, with devotional statues of the blessed Virgin Mary in their own quiet corners. In many respects, the inside of the cathedral was quite plain, save for the high ceiling that gave one the impression that the building could stretch all the way up to heaven.

The man at the altar suddenly stood up, as if sensing the presence of two intruders or, more likely, he heard the creaking of the door and the draught of cold air. He wore simple white robes without much ornamentation and clasped a golden rosary in his hand.

"I thought you might come here", he said simply. His voice carried down the aisle thanks to the cathedral's natural acoustics, though anyone could tell that there was a lot of skill in voice projection involved.

"I am sorry to say you are not the first, but you are by no means the last. More will come", he continued, turning around. A smile slowly crossed his slightly angular features, "My name is Aled. Aled Mahel. You", he indicated Tancred, "may know me better as the Arbitrator. The Supervisor."

A pause. Aled let the words hang.

"I am certain you have questions. I have answers. Not all the answers perhaps, but answers nonetheless", he ended almost with an afterthought, "ask and you shall receive."

[Assassin396]

Rider

"ask and you shall receive."

George listened to the man half-heartedly, most of his concentration was spent taking in the Cathedral around him.... It was a Protestant cathedral... it seemd quite alien to him. There was no extravagance like there would be in a Catholic Cathedral, no confession boxes... Well, no matter, it was still a church was it not? He was a Christian, it should not matter which side of the coin he looked at aslong as it was the same coin.

George moved his head closer to his masters and whispered "Master with your permission I am going to pray whilst you ask your questions, when you wish us to leave say so"

He moved, still in spirit form over to the pews, close enough to be able to rush to Tancreds aid should he need it, but far enough so that he could pray in peace.

He settled on to the pew. and whispered.

"Our Father, Who Art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name,
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven,
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil. Amen

George found comfort in reciting the ancient words that had been drilled into him in his life, it felt peaceful to be back in the church.

Holy Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do you, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

[Exar]

||Tancred||

Entering the old cathedral through the small door in the main gate, Tancred was welcomed by a surprisingly warm draught that gently caressed his faced and beckoned him to stay and rest his tired limbs. Despite the inhuman time to which he had come to this place, the aisle was still brightly lit and even thought the ranks of pews that bordered the path, which lead to the altar were devoid of any signs of life, a lone man clad in a strange, wavy coat was kneeling in front of the stony table on which several objects of the occult ceremonies of the church were standing. As soon as Tancred and his invisible servant had stepped over the doorsill, the priest suddenly rose to his feet.

Tancred tensed up. Under normal circumstances this very man would have been his mortal enemy, who would not have hesitated a single moment to take every opportunity to free this world of what he considered to be an abomination of nature, a slight to name of the Lord himself. Therefore, even if he had been entrusted with the title of the supervisor of the Holy Grail War by both the Magic Association and the Church, he would not make the mistake of ever turning his back to this man.

”I thought that you might come here.” The priest spoke with a sonorous, yet completely calm voice. He surely was a great preacher and gifted orator that managed to reignite the fire in those who had strayed from the path of the true faith. Unfortunately he would waste all of his rhetorical talent on Tancred, who now began to smile to himself. He would not be swayed easily by mere words.

” I am sorry to say you are not the first, but you are by no means the last. More will come“Turning towards where Tancred was standing, the priest continued in the same serious tone.
” My name is Aled. Aled Mahel. You may know me better as the Arbitrator. The Supervisor. I am certain you have questions. I have answers. Not all the answers perhaps, but answers nonetheless", he ended almost with an afterthought, "ask and you shall receive."

At some point during the priest’s introduction George obviously got bored by the monotonous speech and begged his leave, settling down somewhere just outside of Tancred’s earshot he began to mumble a prayer. Allowing him to do as he pleased, Tancred focused his attention to the man that regarded him with an expectant look. He doubted that he would find much truth in any of the answers this unpleasant fellow would offer, but since this would be his first major confrontation with different magi and spirits, he was in no position to deny the possibility of gathering valuable information.

”When was the first servant summoned? Will this war start as of now or only when all of masters who are willing to officially register for this War have done so or…has it already began? I also would like to know what kind of plague is infesting this town…I strongly doubt that it is a coincidence that a new sickness emerges at the very same time the first participants of this War must have arrived?”

Content with his choice of questions, Tancred folded his arms, while he was measuring the priest with the coldest glance he could manage.

[Kolox]

- Intermission -

2.05 AM - Glasgow City

While going through his rooms, a man was yelling out his vocal cords, trying to contact the invisible partner

"SABER ~~! SABER ~~! WHERE ARE YOU !! I NEED YOU"

Immediately, a heroic knight of Saber class materialised from thin air in front of a man, who was the person who summoned him, the person who possesed something that used to belong to the servant, man that shared his views on this war and man that was prepared to fight his enemies - in other words, his Master.

"Sir, excuse me for my delay. I have shamed myself for making you go outside your room to contact me yet the "items" you have in your house, let's just say, those marvellous constructs of current era amaze me. It amazes me how art of war changed through the centuries and I started to study it to be most efficient in this war for you, Sir. Yet this shall be no excuse for my behaviour and I will take any punishment necessary, sir !"

The knight then stood still and awaited at his Master to respond. The man was quite troubled as he did not know what to say and started to slowly scratch the back of his head.

"Ah, no..err..you see, I called you because I finished my work and then I thought of having some tea and thought you might want some too, Saber" said the man, looking at his servant, towering him. His head was so high up the man needed to stretch his head up to the sky to look his servant into his eyes.

"My apologizes sir, but I am not much of a tea person. Ethnic reasons..but I will accompany you, I have some matters I would like to pursue..

"Oh don't worry about it, my friend...hmm..I think I have some wine in cupboard, I was saving it for special occassion and I think it couldn't be any better than now.. Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, 1940.." said slowly the man, trying to remember the long lost bottle hidden somewhere behind the garbage he hid inside it. There was a maid coming over to clean his home and he always needed to hide all his experiments, so he simply pushed them all into the cupboard and placed a curse of ignorance on the cupboard, so the maid would never think of checking it or even recording it in it's memory. He was very lousy with casting curses so he was quite shocked it worked, couldn't imagine what would happen if he accidentally cursed himself and the maid wouldn't be able to deliver him his favourite cheese cakes...

EXCELLENT..I mean, Sir, If it won't be a trouble, it will be a pleasure to be your company for this evening

"Splendid..oh wait, I forgot to send something that priest in the cathedral..oh well, it can wait" said the man and he slowly moved himself to his room, as the knight fallowed

[Rabbit]

Aled continued to smile. It was a trick he had learned during his years as a priest, that if one showed that he meant no harm the person he was speaking to would not want to hurt him. Eight times out of ten. So he continued to smile and kept his eyes open at all times, facing forward and looking directly at whoever spoke to him. He noticed that the mage did not approach the altar and returned his gaze with a cold stare. He ran a hand through his black hair in dismay he only half felt. It was lined with small streaks of grey here and there despite his young age relative to other members of the clergy.

"Ah, mages. So untrusting. But, I suppose we men of the cloth do not trust the works of your kind so easily either", Mahel said as he stepped down into the aisle. After motioning for the young lady to leave, he prattled on, "even people who do not know of our world have a saying. Never meddle in the affairs of wizards. I wonder if there is more truth to that than they actually know?"

Aled allowed himself a small laugh as the thought of a grouchy old man with a long white beard, a pointy hat and a long wooden staff came to mind, superimposed over the image of this young gentleman.

"But I digress. I am sorry, you had questions you wanted answering", he said as he walked the length of the aisle towards this newest master, "The first master came to me with his servant not too long ago. It must have been two weeks ago. You are neither late nor early. One could say you arrived precisely when you meant to."

A flash of amusement and mockery crossed his eyes.

"As I am sure you are aware, this war will start once all of the servants have been summoned. There is...one other, but I have not heard from them yet. Once they have presented themselves, feel free to lay in to each other to your heart's content."

He was halfway down the aisle.

"A plague, you say? That is worrying but unfortunately I know as much about it as you do."

He had come to stand not more than two feet from the young gentleman. His face hardened into an imperious stare, "but you know the rules. Nothing must compromise the secrecy of this war. I will look into it but it would be in both our interests for you to do the same."

In an instant he had resumed his usual placid expression, "I am sure that you will let me know if there has been any development towards solving this mystery. Perhaps I can assist in devising a solution, since matters like this concern me as the Arbitrator as well. Now then, do you have anything further you wish to ask, my son?"

[Kolox]

- INTERMISSION -

As the moon has fallen, a wolf hid in Glasgow park near Drumchapel, looking at something that should not happen. A powerful blast that made almost all the trees in the park fall down and a fire started. From that fire, stood a giant, who was unharmed by the natures elements. Like the world itself had no power to fight the giant. The stray wolf knew that this giant was an abomination and foe beyond anyone's ability, hence he did what his instincts told him to do - he escaped, although his right foot was bleeding.

HAHA ~~~HARHA ~~ HARHAAHA~~~ HARHHAHAH

A maniacal laugh could be heard in most districts of the city.

A lonely shadow was looking at it. He had a job to investigate such occurrences and he needed to contact his boss as quickly as possible.

The war really started now.

(Posted Image)

===RIDER====

What his master and the priest couldn't feel and what Saint George could feel mainly because of the focus he reached while praying. A lot of lives was lost and a powerful being was somewhere north-west from the church. It was probably not going to get near here and threaten his master but that uncontrolled power would probably go on rampage and many innocent lives could be threatened.

So what should he do ?

- Inform his master and await his orders -
- Inform the priest that city was in jeopardy -
- Ignore the occurance - his master was too weak tonight and we had yet to learn anything
- This crime cannot go unpunished - Rider will sortie immediately -
- Nevertheless, it is dangerous, we should return home immediately

[Assassin396]

Rider

" Once they have presented themselves, feel free to lay in to each other to your heart's content."

Well. That is a slightly different type of priest that George was used to. Less biblical and more arrogant than the priests of his tim....

A massive surge of power blasted through the air... Something massive had appeared in Glasgow.. He assumed that this was not what the priest had in mind. Better warn them, and then go and investigate who or what had caused this explosion of power.

It slightly amused him to notice that neither the priest or his master had noticed this at all.. well, they are only human.

George moved out of his seated position and moved into the aisle, he was slightly behind the priest. He materialised out of spirit form.

"Im sorry father, but I must inform you that your hopes for a secret war have most likely been scuppered.. I believe the last servant has been summoned just now, and he brought a lot of trouble for you, the glow in the window to the North-West may illuminate you as to what I mean.

George walked past him and faced Tancred.

"With your permission Master Im going to investigate the summoning site, if we can find out who and what was summoned we could have an early oppurtunity to take someone out"

He analysed Tancred as he spoke, his master was not in the best of shapes, not surprising considering he had just performed a summoning, he wouldnt be able to safely go all out in a fight for now then..

"You should stay here for the moment, it would be much safer for now, they would not attack the Abitrator"

Without waiting for an answer George started past Tancred and headed for the entrance, he faded as he went, going into spirit form as he moved through the doors and ran towards the north-west, aiming for the source of the flames.

This post has been edited by Assassin396 on Nov 3 2009, 10:50 PM