tumblr grail (side)blog

a single voice among the chorus.

[holygrailcycle]

I got off my ass and actually made my sideblog a separate blog, because I KNOW I'm gonna wanna interact more this round. Old blog can be found at @holygrail-cycle! Y'know. If that's your thing.

Important tags: #tgrailwar - General main tag. Observations on the War that I write with intent to interact. #tgraildiary - Second verse same as the first, except that these are less focused and more personal. Don't let that stop you from interacting if it activates your almonds though. #!theories - If you want to see me lose my mind in real time.

More to come as the War develops!

Team Status, items, and the current poll can be found here.

[tgrailwar-zero]

Maybe just for now. We can just. Rest. Just for a minute. Just for now. Maybe we can get back into everything just a little later. Let’s just. Rest.

That was a good call. You needed rest.

You laid back down, and closed your eyes.

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And dreamed.

You had a dream.

Well, a memory. And not one of the pseudo-memories from before, but a solid one. A recollection of something that happened- unchanging and fixed in the past. A gentle, fleeting one from when you were traveling to the Sunbeam Row in search of GILGAMESH. The traveling had mostly been a blur. Uninteresting at worst, safe and comfortable at best.

But, you had a memory. Briefly, from the night before you finally reached the Sunbeam Row. Maybe it was because you had him on your mind.

CONSTANTINE was finishing cleaning the camp. He had volunteered to take first watch to do so- it was a simple enough task that didn't require much fuss or help. Just clearing the fires, double-checking the perimeter, making sure that you weren't interrupted in the night. None of your Servants needed sleep, but rest helped, and a rotating schedule of Servants on watch duty helped.

His voice, low and resonant as it was, had woken you up. Or perhaps you were just restless. Either way, you had quietly slipped out of your tent, and looked over at him. He didn't seem to notice you. His attention was elsewhere.

He sat down on a log, taking a quiet breath as he looked up at the sky.

"…O' Father, who art in Heaven…"

His voice was soft, filled with respect and reverence. He clasped his hands together, lowing his head and closing his eyes.

"This body of mine is fleeting. A miracle granted by You, an ability to be the hero I could not be when I was alive. And so I will not ask for blessings for myself, as I have already received Your gifts and am grateful. Once again, I ask you to bless my charges."

"Pain is life's motivator. Evil must exist for the sake of good, and with adversity you have granted us chances to grow. Truly, by Your will, all things happen for a reason, but my friends have struggled plenty, and perhaps they feel that even the sun is their foe as it rises. But You did not make the sun to be feared, nor the moon to be frightening, nor the stars to be untouchable. And yet, here they are, facing a desolate moon and a blistering sun, the stars so far out of their reach that they may forget the meaning of hope."

"So, I ask you this. As we travel and approach our destination, one of many, I ask you this."

"Let there be music."

"Let there be light."

"Let there be laughter."

"Let there be flowers."

"And when the sun rises on them, let it be gentle and warm. And as I fight as this Hero of the Mount, bestow upon me a true faith, a firm hope, and a sincere and perfect charity-- and grant that I may ever do Thy most gracious will."

"…Amen."

You woke up.

Your body rested, you woke up.

[tgrailwar-zero]

Happy 1-Year Anniversary!

I just wanted to take some time to thank everyone who has participated so far in this. I hope that everyone's been enjoying themselves! This wouldn't be even half as entertaining to do without all of you here, so I'm nothing but grateful.

A small note is that due to how my own schedule is panning out, we're shifting back to a (more) weekly update schedule (that I should have been doing in the first place but got overzealous).

A bigger note, is that throughout this 'Anniversary month', I'll be uploading 'Side Stories' surrounding your current party members.

Side Story: Searching for One's Purpose

Side Story: A Thunderous Song of Victory

Side Story: Foreign Rays of Sunlight

Side Story: A Hollow, Beautiful Performance

Side Story: The Interloper's Sword Demon

They'll just be short side-narratives, filling in small blanks and gaps in the story. In more 'in-character' terms, think of them like the dreams shared between Masters and Servants.

Again, thank you all so much for being here and participating!

@lapithae

[holygrailcycle]

It's INSANELY funny that Rider was the front lines in trying to smooth things over with Avenger and make him see reason but the second he has to actually WORK with Avenger he immediately gets huffy.

[holygrailcycle]

Actually now that I'm not on the edge of sleep I want to elaborate on this a bit more because 🥺Rider...

"Decisions aren’t made without reason. And my… personal sentiments aside, I can accept yours. You’re being put in a complicated situation, but I feel as if a choice has to be made. And if you believe in fighting with Avenger rather than staying alongside me, then that’s fine."

(...)

“So, I say it again. If your actions determine our relationship going forward, then you must act. Indecision makes me more cross than anything.” He managed to smile, putting one hand on his sword. “That being said, I am an Emperor of Rome, and I am therefore allowed some pettiness in return if I feel as if I’ve been slighted. If you do leave me for Avenger and he survives, do not expect my forgiveness easily when we cross paths again.”

He said this to us way back when we came across Avenger and Foreigner trying to pacify Alter Ego. The last statement comes in especially hilarious when he then decided to literally leave his team for us.

It still very much applies. Just not for the target he was speaking of then.

Think about how this whole morning looks, from Rider's POV:

He was already clearly worried about us, having to be dragged out of the room by Musashi and Invader to stop standing vigil over our bedside.

I don't know if Avenger talked to them before deciding to take up the vigil in his stead, but regardless Rider very much became aware of it after Valkyrie spills the beans about us being upset over Avenger.

And then he watches, in person, as we try to talk to Avenger... and our every effort gets spurned by neutrality at best and aggravation at worst.

Now, WE are aware of why Avenger would not exactly be jumping for joy at finding us again. But unless I'm misremembering, Rider very much is not. (EDIT: I forgot someone told everyone over The Whisper Net earlier so Rider SHOULD know the circumstances actually.) But he's watching the Servant his Masters chose over him, the Servant his Masters clearly still care for, just... brush them off. Pulling a 'hot and cold' act. For a suicide plan and a 'War' that is nothing more than a means to an incredibly destructive end, not just for the Servants participating but to the rest of humanity.

He's had his time of conflict with us and buried the hatchet (twice), so it's no wonder his imperial pettiness is falling squarely on Avenger now.

(That and of course old team loyalties, etc.)

[holygrailcycle]

It's INSANELY funny that Rider was the front lines in trying to smooth things over with Avenger and make him see reason but the second he has to actually WORK with Avenger he immediately gets huffy.

[tgrailwar-zero]

Wait, Avenger, before you head off, would you consider taking part in the tournament too? Hear us out, last we saw Pretender and Alter Ego, they were (at least for Pretender) relatively unharmed and doing alright, and even if they weren’t, they’re two very powerful servants on their own. If anything happened to them, I doubt they’d go down easy and without a fight, or at least one that we wouldn’t catch wind of collateral from. And for six servants to just up and disappear? There’s a large chance that at least Some of them are still around, maybe just biding their time and hiding as well. Blue team wouldn’t go easy, and charging Red just like that if anything else would probably just lower the chances of the pieces of Blue getting back together.

You mentioned previously considering joining the fight fest with Gunner to get a shot at resources- if we go by the assumption that at least Some of Blue are alive, this would be a sure fire way to reach out to them, to broadcast that you’re still around and for them to reach out to you, in the very least. And a way to get resources for Blue if best comes to pass and they do make their way to you again. We don’t have any confirmation of their deaths, and especially since we know that some of them are very fast (Pretender cough) I think it’s worth a try staying around in one area for a bit to be sought out by team members, gather the group back together. I don’t think we should assume they’re all dead if we have no confirmation for that just yet. And since it’s just a few days away, in best case scenario, you get resources for everyone, in a relatively short time and make a comeback, just like you guys planned, no?

If you’re worried about getting ambushed or taken out, we’ll likely stick around for the fight fest too or be having our own shot at it, and we’ll be around to back you up if anything goes wrong while we’re there too. We’re not on the same team anymore, and I get that, but. Would you consider at least staying for the fighting tournament, Avenger? Like you guys planned previously? This could be the beacon that Blue needs to get back together. I think it’d be worth a shot. Maybe not all hope is lost just yet. Give it a chance?

… And if you’d really prefer being on the down low, maybe you could disguise yourself or give yourself and alias or maybe there could be a phrase we could say on screen if we take part that only Blue team knows that could signal that you’re okay? And you could stay on the sidelines and wait to see if they come to you that way too, and maybe gather resources on the side while waiting? (The tournament is just a few days away, after all) We (or I) won’t try to stop you if nothing truly comes to pass after this and you still choose to go off after, but. We really don’t think that all of Blue is dead (especially Pretender, that guy…), and. …Would you please consider it?

There was an agonizingly long beat of silence as you (unsubtly) tried to convince AVENGER to join your group.

GREY MESSENGER: "…Fine. Since we're both headed to the Megalopolis, I see no issue with staying with your group. However, if you dawdle, I'll leave without you."

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AVENGER joined your party, temporarily!

[tgrailwar-zero]

...Not going to lie, the fact that we are stupid being why you trust us is a fair take but it also is a little depressing.

SIGURD: "I wasn't calling you 'stupid', per se--"

NERO: "I will. I've only known you officially for less than a day, but from my 'inherited experiences', it will take hard work to prove otherwise. As a tutor, I have a lot to do."

AVENGER: "Perhaps 'feckless'? That's an adjective that certainly comes to mind."

CONSTANTINE: "Outside of the fact that you're quite literally 'scatterbrained' through no fault of your own… I think Lord Sigurd meant that you had a poor aptitude for deception and subterfuge, which makes you trustworthy. Magi tend to keep their cards close to their chest, and you're the opposite."

MUSASHI: "Yeah, like you wear your hearts aggressively on your sleeves. It's really easy to tell what you're thinking, even when you were sort of formless, which opens up some weak points."

VALKYRIE: "…Yes. Like with the yelling and crying back in your room…"

With a frantic wave of her hands, your Invader-class Servant came to your rescue.

KUKULKAN: "Hey, everyone? Let's be kind, yes? Nobody is perfect, we all have our shortcomings, and after all... any trait that makes someone a 'bad villain' is good, right?"

SIGURD: "Yes, yes. Thank you, Invader. Let's focus on the positives. You're poor villains, which is for the best."

[holygrailcycle]

I'm not the same Anon as the previous asker, but the possibility of Red Caster and Priestess Aria (the Tiny Tamamo we saw at the Party) existing at the same time is confusing me. I mean, if Priestess Aria is the same type of deal as Setanta (as in, Setanta came from the same Origin Orb as Cu Chulainn, both of them can't be summoned at the same time), so if Aria came from the same Origin Orb as Tamamo, who the heck is Red Caster?

So Tamamo Aria is actually a special deal - she's an Alter Ego that's both 'part of Tamamo' and 'an independent Heroic Spirit'. She's one of the Tamamo Nine, aka Tamamo + the eight personalities that developed after she cut off her extra tails to avoid going complete Amaterasu Mode. If you play/read FGO, Tamamo Cat is another part of this group. It's this attribute of hers that could explain why this is a thing.

That, or: if OG Lunar Grail War Tamamo is sitting at the core and currently undergoing the transformation to become Amaterasu again, I figure the amount of power she's got her hands on probably means that some weird things relating to her will be happening/she's got a lot of ability to do some ridiculous things. After all, we've got another case of a Servant projecting other versions of themself in Red Saber, so it's not impossible that all these Tamamos running around could be offshoots similar to that. And Red Caster just on her own is pretty weird, considering everything she's done to mess with us and the fact that she's going around with three tails.

[holygrailcycle]

Hello, a question! I was gone for a bit before all this, so not sure if I missed it, but do you happen to know if we ever dealt with Red faction’s caster coup or if enough time has passed that we don’t really need to deal with it anymore? Because it does seem like they’re doing alrightish team wise at least? From what I know we met caster apparently before we got to the city, but not sure what happened there either, hope it’s alright to ask you!

Eyo! Hey, this was a good question, because I remembered we did in fact actually get to the Crimson Citadel at some point but forgot to properly review that part of the story.

Quick summary: we met Lucius while on the path to meeting with Saber in the Crimson Citadel, screwed her over and contracted Draco for like five seconds before we immediately pissed her off into breaking contract and vanishing, while simultaneously pissing Rider off and putting him under a Command Spell order to not kill Draco. We got to the Crimson Citadel, lied to the 'Bradamante' offshoot of Saber despite her warning us that she'd see through it, and locked ourselves out of meeting with Saber despite going there with the intention to meet him and talk about Caster.

It's actually kind of hilarious how badly we were fumbling absolutely fucking everything at this point in time. Anyway.

While 'Avenger' was trying to help us clean up a bit of our own mess, Kotomine showed up backstage and gave us the ultimatum of fixing our shit or having no access to any shops. Caster dropped by while we were discussing our options, offering to lend us some assistance as long as Draco was being an issue, and... we... pissed her off into dropping us right on Draco's head.

So. Uh.

TL;DR: No, we did not deal with the potential Caster coup storyline at all. And as things currently stand, it's difficult to tell whether it's still an active threat or has already been dealt with... one way or the other.

[holygrailcycle]

tfw you have a question you want to ask lord hi-fi glasses but it's a more minor beat at this point and pretty self-indulgent. hmmm

[holygrailcycle]

Eh yeah you know what fuck it. Life is short we ball etc etc. Thanks y'all 👍

[holygrailcycle]

tfw you have a question you want to ask lord hi-fi glasses but it's a more minor beat at this point and pretty self-indulgent. hmmm

[holygrailcycle]

I'm still mulling over things and putting together Thoughts regarding Sigurd's Lore Dump about us and the Origin War, so while I percolate, I thought I'd go about identifying the eight other Servants summoned by the Solar Cell/Heavenly Divinity. Some of them we've seen, others will probably be familiar if you've played FGO and kept up with the JP server, and one is... well. One is QUITE interesting. So, in (almost) order of appearance:

The Beastmaster: Tezcatlipoca. In charge of the Pyrrhic Forest. We know he's been replaced by Lancer/Setanta.

The Healer: Asclepius. In charge of the Fugue Hamlet. We set off his defenses by contracting with Rider again and were forced to eliminate him.

The Slayer: Nagao Kagetora. Was mentioned to have been replaced by Nikitich by Sigurd during the banquet.

The Keeper: Ptolemy.

The General: Karna. In charge of Flicker Port. We saw him annihilate Izou during Chapter 2.5.

The Pharaoh: Ozymandias. In charge of the Transient Megalopolis.

The Protector: Gawain.

And last but VERY much not least...

The Priestess: Tamamo no Mae. In charge of Sunbeam Row. Was mentioned to have been replaced by Tamamo Aria by Sigurd during the banquet.

Theurgical Holy Grail War more like the fucking 'Tamamo Everywhere System'. Which makes sense given she seems to have started this whole shebang off in the first place. But if Red Caster and the previous Priestess are one in the same it'd certainly explain a fucking LOT about our encounters with her (including Foreigner calling her a cheater) and how much she knows about us.

So you know. That's fun!!!

[tgrailwar-zero]

... your mercy is much appreciated, Emperor Nero. As for the 'why didn't you summon me immediately' quandary, well. After our big mistake with Lucius, I think a lot of us wanted to avoid fumbling the bag again, so to speak. Not to mention Father Kotomine and Jaguar Warrior seemed like they were looking forward to getting a fellow Monitor back, but... it seems like you don't share the sentiment?

NERO: "Did I ask for your excuses? Or for you to barrage me with questions? And this nonsense… 'War Monitors', 'Origins', 'Priests'… and you all, begging me for information like this. You and this 'Solar Cell' are both causing my head to ache."

She had asked for an explanation, though pointing that out seemed like a poor decision.

Additionally, it seemed like unless she wanted to elaborate further, you may not get any much regarding her manifestation outside of 'she did it', in a manner as natural as breathing. Though her stance regarding the Solar Cell seemed readily apparent.

NERO: "And what's this about worrying about some other Servants? Am I not threat enough? Am I not important enough? My needs are exigent! Did I not declare you my Ensemble? And yet you dance to the tune of others? Should my punishment be harsher?"

CONSTANTINE: "And yet, their 'punishment' so far is simply you joining us. It seems like your mind was set from the beginning, wasn't it?"

Rather boldly, CONSTANTINE spoke up. NERO's expression wavered slightly, her attention focusing intently on him.

NERO: "Mmnn… that 'know-it-all' tone, why are looking as if you figured something out, Constantinus-- or, 'Constantinos', was it?"

CONSTANTINE: "Nothing, you're just a bit gentler than I expected. Or more discerning than you may act. As you said, crimes against the Emperor are a grave offense, and there's no shortage of Servants willing to undercut or slaughter my Masters."

…So this was her being kind? I guess comparatively, people have tried to kill you, so this was 'nicer'…

And, in her verbal tempest, she essentially just vented about her frustrations regarding your actions, and then essentially declared her intent to journey with you.

It seemed like she was someone who trusted her judgement and her judgement alone, for whatever reason. Traveling with CONSTANTINE and KUKULKAN, a king and a god, you felt the most pressure emanating from this Servant alone. While the two of them wore their 'doubt' openly, it seemed as if this Servant was almost devoid of the concept of 'doubt' altogether.

And for good reason- this was an Emperor of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty, from the era where 'Emperor' and 'God' were nearly synonymous. To many, trying to contradict the decree of an Emperor was like trying to argue with the rotation of the sun.

NERO cleared her throat, turning away from CONSTANTINE in a huff.

NERO: "Mm. Well, I have not forgiven them, so they should not feel relieved yet."

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NERO: "Ah, yes! Those are the cheers I desire! My mood is already beginning to brighten! If you simply wish for more of my art, then ask, and I will indulge! My catalogue on the Solar Cell is sparse, but grant me the time, and I shall have a thousand scripts worth of beautiful artistry!"

It seemed like the best way to get on her good side was praise. An artist at heart, it seemed as if she could not deny any form of applause.

NERO: "The peak of artistry! Beloved by all! One who takes the stage, and has their crafts praised by their audience, immortalized forever!"

She declared, definitively.

NERO: "Unfortunately, I cannot share the next act, as I do not remember it. I do not recall what came over me when I first wrote it, just that I was truly pulling the artistry from my heart. My 'beautiful memories'. I wish to find them as well. Without them, it is like sailing through a fogged ocean."

She smiled, somberly.

NERO: "I was a Servant of the Lunar Holy Grail War... I know that, and I know I had a Master. We fought a good war together, against many opponents. Though now, their faces are all blurs to me. Even his. But I remember something, before our 'ending'."

So it seemed like she didn't have her entire set of memories back either. Perhaps more than the average Servant did when they were restored from an Origin, considering her outburst, but it was still limited.

Her expression grew dour.

NERO: "...I do not wish to talk about it right now, it makes my heart ache and my head hurt. I have just been summoned, and was in a pleasant mood. Am I not allowed my own peace for a moment?"

Abruptly, she expressed her desire to change the subject, moving on quickly. Perhaps that's something she'd be open to sharing later.

NERO: "Aha! Now that is a good change of pace! A splendid, beautiful vision indeed! Though that Avenger is a musician, you say? Then he simply has no choice but to join us! Welcome, my new composer!"

It seems as if AVENGER has been/is being conscripted to join your team.

Well, no point in arguing against an Emperor.

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AVENGER: "Pardon?"

[tgrailwar-zero]

Now that we are actually closer to Caster Nero, is there a way for us to check on the exact nature of our contract with her, and how exactly she was summoned? Just extra cautious with how she seemingly summoned herself after being an inert item for some time after Draco’s defeat.

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You felt incredible pushback as you searched for a way in.

NERO: "As if I would let you so wantonly touch the contents of my soul once more! Do you not hear my voice? Am I not talking? If you have a question, then use that terrible cacophony of voices of yours to ask it! You hacker-junkies! Technophiles! Data-scrapers!"

[holygrailcycle]

It's 3am and I've shifted from Riderposting to thinking about Lancer/Setanta and feeling weepy.

Because it's clear when he turned on us that it wasn't because he hated us. Like. He tried to talk to us. He tried to get through. He empathized with us. Not just his own Master but the mass of us - this patchwork of souls in whole.

And it backfired on him. Badly. Nearly got him, one of the most iconic heroes housed within the Throne, killed.

So it's no wonder he's decided to go full throttle this time around. He can't afford to second guess. Because if he tries the same trick twice, there's no guarantee it'll get the same result. He doesn't know if we'd hesitate, or slip up. If he gives us a single inch, this could be the time we actually beat him. And he can't - or doesn't want to - trust that anyone else will be willing to meet his resolve, to pick up where he left off.

Or maybe he just feels like it's his duty to finish the job. To make sure it's him, and no one else, that ends us.

I don't know whether he's grown to hate us in the time between then and now. But before - he probably just saw it as a mercy.

I mean, if you saw an animal going rabid, wouldn't killing it seem like a mercy? A kindness? Something you, a being with the power to offer this kind of ending, should do for its own sake? Isn't that what was happening to us, as far as we're aware at this point? Going rabid, losing our collective mind. A slippery slope into the depths of Madness, dragging our own Servants down with us like the most hateful kind of leash.

Can you blame him, really?

The curse of Gae Bolg is a curse of ending for the things that Cu Chulainn holds dear. He's already accepted the burden of death. No reason to look to anyone else when he's perfectly capable of getting the job done. No matter what it costs him, personally.

Cu Chulainn already accepted the costs when he chose to chase that star, all that time ago.

Of course, as Setanta - as a boy not yet bound to that fate - he might have other options still available to him. If he's willing to consider them. To see them as any kind of possibility without catastrophe being the likely outcome.

I don't know if it's possible to get through to him at this point. I just hope, before the end - whoever's end it ends up being - we get to at least share one drink with him.

It's also clear that fucking SOMETHING happened to us during our 'investigation' in the Origin War. That we weren't always a walking mass of Rage. Musashi said we were never the personable type, but that as time went on our Madness Infection got worse and worse. And even she wanted to try and save us from it... Not destroy us. Not until she had all that time to herself as a Nameless Shade, to turn her mind to the idea that maybe that was what it would take.

Was it us simply giving in to our nature, or an outside influence for the worse? I think it's a decent question worth considering and pursuing.

[holygrailcycle]

Good day. Incoming important announcement regarding our wonderful Rider:

Thank you.

[holygrailcycle]

Rider: I'm going to establish a better relationship with my Masters. I will be more understanding and less exacting. I will trust more in their decisions and allow them to be their own people. I don't want to babysit them, they should have their own freedoms - Musashi, dashing out the door: Lancer's gonna fucking kill them brb Rider, immediately: this is my fault forever i am never leaving them alone again if i bundle them in enough blankets and don't move an inch from this bed then nothing else bad will happen