ITP: Wandering

[promised_victory]

[Action: Throughout Midgard]

[This was not what she'd expected when she had agreed to come here. If she's honest with herself she isn't sure just what she'd been expecting. The last Saber remembers clearly was being on Camlann Hill, her body in excruciating pain, and then.... it's a haze what the Valkyries had said to her even though she remembers the idea behind it and Hephaestus had been kind enough to answer her questions once she was able to. Saber supposes it might have been the blood loss making her delirious at the time, but she remembers agreeing. She had resolved to live without regrets, right?

So she wanders the city, her damaged armor had been repaired and sent ahead to her apartment while she'd been healing. Excalibur, on the other hand, was returned to her and she used invisible air to fashion a sheath at her waist so that she could carry it with her unseen now that she could no longer summon it out of the ether like before. It was always best to be prepared though she felt naked walking like this without her armor on. Light as it was, getting into it would be a hassle now. And she'd enjoyed being able to skip the chore of tying her armor on and removing it at the end of a battle, but that was a fair price to pay for being human again.

That was another she she knew she'd have to get used to, being human again. Saber had expected to die on that hill not get another chance, a proper chance, at living out her life. Everything about life before felt so distant now. Could she even call herself Saber anymore?

While these thoughts go through her mind she looks through the city to get the best feel for the terrain. If she's truly meant to fight for this place she fully intends to get to know it well. It could very well be her home for years before they managed to make even a dent in their enemies' forces.]

(ooc: Putting this up while I have a moment. Will tag replies to both this and Goku's post once I get home from work later on.)

Comments

[championofthesun]

[As luck would have it, Gawain was also out and about. He wanted to get familiarized with the city just in case he needed to get anything himself -- or if the enemy infiltrated the walls.

He had not been expecting this, though. He was about ten feet away and walking in the opposite direction when he spotted her.]

Y-Your Majesty?!

[promised_victory]

[He hadn't expected this? Well, neither had she. Then again the last.... how long has it been for her? A month? Two? Three? She's lost track of time and still half feels like she's in a dream. The last she'd seen of Gawain had been in battle before she'd gotten separated from everyone else to face Mordred. She'd often wondered during her time in the Grail Wars what had become of him. She turns to her nephew, appraising him for a moment and pleased to find him well.

Had he been approached by a Valkyrie as she had?]

Sir Gawain? Have you come to serve here as well? [She lets some hesitation slip into her voice. Irisviel had started her down the road to leaving the mask she normally wore behind, something continued by Shirou in how he treated her more like a guest in his home than as a tool or a King.]

[championofthesun]

[That was definitely his king. No doubt about it. Gawain bent down on one knee.]

Yes, Your Majesty, I have. I answered the call when it came to me.

[The thought that Arturia had become a Servant crossed Gawain's mind...but he didn't sense a Servant's presence from her. When he noticed that, he breathed a sigh of relief.]

[promised_victory]

[Oh geez. The knee. Even if she didn't show it people kneeling before her like that flustered her. She isn't deserving of such a show of respect from one of her own knights and she holds up her hand in front of him, beckoning him to get to his feet.]

Please, Sir Gawain, rise. In this place where we fight for the same cause we are as equals. There is no need to act as such.

[championofthesun]

[Gawain does as he is commanded. However...]

You will always be my king, Your Majesty. And paying you proper reverence is the very least I can do after my foolish actions in Camlann. Had I not run off after Sir Lancelot...

[promised_victory]

[He really had run off after Lancelot?! That whole situation had been the nail that had finally shattered her heart after the affair had started it cracking.]

No, Gawain. No one could blame you for your actions after what I allowed to happen to your kin. [It was her fault his brothers had been slain by Lancelot, after all.] For that you owe me no reverence.

[championofthesun]

...I would be lying if I claimed that the deaths of my brothers no longer hurt...but I have put them behind me. Before I died, I went so far as to implore Lancelot to reconcile with you. Furthermore, had I not embarked on my foolish quest for vengeance, the battle might have turned out very differently. I am the one who must atone for his actions.

[gorgeous_gorgon]

[Rider had been out, too. She was wearing her casual outfit -- glasses, a black sweater, and jeans -- instead of her combat clothes. And she paused when she saw the familiar figure.

Rider almost summoned her daggers out of instinct...then noticed several details that meant this couldn't possibly be Saber Alter. For one, her eyes were green, not gold, and her skin wasn't deathly pale. There was also no black on her form, no visible sword, and (though Rider barely registered it) an ahoge.

But what else confused her was that Saber wasn't exuding the aura of a Servant. No, she felt human. All of this left Rider very confused; for now, she chose to remain silent.]

[promised_victory]

[It takes Saber a moment to recognize her. The only time they had faced one another had been in battle and they had barely exchanged words. But given her casual dress and the nature of this place, Saber realizes it's likely she won't attack.]

....Rider? [Like today hadn't been brainbreaking enough with Gawain here, but Rider as well? Saber knows she shouldn't be surprised by this with her own circumstances here. Still, one hand goes to her hip above where Excalibur's hilt rests just in case. Even if Saber had no need for the Grail any longer, there was no telling how this woman would be outside of the War itself.]

Are you to be my ally or my enemy in this place?

[gorgeous_gorgon]

That would depend on what you want me to be. My only goal is to protect this world so that my Master can live in peace.

[Yes, this definitely was Saber pre-corruption. Though how could she remember the Holy Grail War and not be a Servant? That troubled her.]

[promised_victory]

I.... [She pauses a moment, thinking it over. She wished for Shinji to live in peace? From what she knew of the boy he was a coward who treated his Servant as nothing more than an attack dog--lower than a dog. What had he done to inspire such a wish from Rider?]

I would prefer an ally. You were a great warrior when we battled and seeing as our goals here should not conflict with one another--[She isn't sure of what her goal is beyond fulfilling her obligation to Thor.]--I see no reason for us to battle against one another beyond a friendly spar on occasion.

[gorgeous_gorgon]

If you do not, then neither do I.

There is one question I must ask first. I can tell that you are not a Servant right now. How, then, do you have recollection of the Holy Grail War?

[promised_victory]

[The tough one, the one she kept to herself unless absolutely necessary. However, there is nothing to lose or gain here beyond trust and considering their history it's important to show some kind of trust. Saber doesn't need to give all the details.]

I can understand the confusion. My situation in the Grail War was unique to say the least. [Deep breath as she thinks of how best to phrase it.] I made my pact as I was on my deathbed to attain the Holy Grail and serve as a proper Heroic Spirit after I had my wish granted. For this reason I did not go to the Throne of Heroes after the end of the Grail War as most Heroic Spirits do but back to my dying self. When I finally gave up on the Grail I was approached by the Valkyries and brought here where I was healed. In return for this I must serve Thor to protect this city. Thus I am human again and not a Heroic Spirit.

[puppy_lancer]

[Lancer too has been going around the city exploring. Since there has been no fighting for the last couple of days, he has had some time to think a little bit about his former world and this current one.]

[He sips the warm drink he brought with him. One thing he dislike about having time to think is the fact that the more he thinks, the more his past comes to haunt him. Even now, he is wondering if it is really alright for him to stay here and enjoy himself while the girl who had summoned him is already dead. All things considered, Servants should fade away when their Masters died. In addition to that, he had pledged his loyalty to her.]

["You and you alone are my Master."]

[And yet he had failed her. She had died when he could not find a cure...and he had turned to Ayaka to be his Master. It had been for the purpose of releasing Misaya from her zombie state, but he had still violated that oath.]

[Some hound he was.]

[In his distracted state, he does not notice bumping into the girl until his drink spills over them both.]

Um...sorry.

[promised_victory]

It is all right. I was distracted as we--[She pauses as she looks up at Lancer. As if today had not been filled with enough surprises which led to her initial distraction!

Saber lets herself stare at him for a moment before she snaps her mouth shut and wipes some of the spilled drink from her face.]

Lancer, you're here as well?

[puppy_lancer]

[Lancer is surprised by her words.]

Huh? You know me?

[He looks her up and down.]

I think I would remember if I took out a girl with such an abnormally flat figure, because then you would've charmed me in some other, special way. Were you one of my coworkers from one of my jobs or something?

[promised_victory]

[It's a very good thing she isn't attracted to him. It's the only time she worries about her figure.

Had she made a mistake? Was this the same Lancer or one from another world? It's hard to tell.]

I apologize. I may have mistaken you for someone else with a similar name and appearance.

[puppy_lancer]

Well, you got my name right, at least. I'm Lancer. Maybe I'll remember you if you tell me your name...

[promised_victory]

I am called Saber. Does this name seem at all familiar to you?

[afieldofswords]

[Archer himself is wandering about to make a mental map of Midgard, and is thinking about the mess he had just tossed himself into. Oh, sure it made -sense- for a Counter Guardian to volunteer for a multiversal threat, but now it was dawning on him that a lot of familiar faces he really wasn't sure he wanted to see were here as well.

A lot of them.

Speak of, he notices someone immediately familiar walking along the street. That...wasn't good at all. Saber wasn't someone he necessarily disliked or even had a reason to hold enmity towards, but if this was the same one he knew, she wouldn't appreciate the potshots he took at Shirou in the battle.

So he acts casual and waves to her.]

Yo. Got roped into this mess, too?

[promised_victory]

[She never did, but the last she'd seen of him, well, he'd basically died so Rin, Shirou, and she could escape Einzbern Castle. She also knew Rin had hoped he'd survive the encounter somehow and yet he had fought so valiantly. Still....

Luckily the parallel world part had sunken in by now. She looks up at Archer and nods.]

Yes, I have. I owe much to Hephaestus for allowing my presence here to be possible.

[afieldofswords]

[No hostility. Thankfully. Either she hadn't talked to Shirou or he didn't know a lot of those explosions were his fault. Though something seemed a bit...off compared to the last time he saw her.

She wasn't reading like a heroic spirit to his senses.]

You don't say. Fresh from some kind of danger, then?

[promised_victory]

In a sense.

[And had seriously thought she'd been delirious when the Valkyries arrived, but that's another matter entirely.]

What about you? Would Rin happen to be here as well?

[cannot_fly]

[ Miyu had been out looking at what was offered in each district in order to figure out what areas were the best for certain things like gathering information. It was pretty quiet in till she noticed Saber. ]

How are you able to move around in this world?

[ Only reason why she said that is because Saber looks a lot like the servant card she fought and nearly got destroyed by. ]

[promised_victory]

....The Valkyries healed me.

[How many times is she going to have to explain this?]