The East Quarter

Alex chuckled, "I had a few good friends, no loved ones, but I had no real time to have any." He said wistfully, his friends had been brothers and sisters and arms, and the adventures they had were great, and surely would be legends in history. "They were good people, they gave it all for the world they sought, and fought by my side for years. We laughed, we cried, we beat each other to a pulp when we did something stupid. They were as close to family as if ever had." He finished, a small smile on his face, he missed those goofs, they always stood by him,no matter what happened. He wondered how they faired after he passed.
 
“They sound like good fun,” Max answered with an amused quirk of one eyebrow. Beat each other up, did they? He supposed there were no close friendships without a few fights. “You must miss them. I hope you’ll be able to see them again, when you get your wish. I don’t have people like that to rely on, alas. The friends I had, I left behind back home when I set out to find the grail war. They aren’t fighters. My family were, but they aren’t around anymore.”

He frowned, sighing and shaking his head. “They dedicated their lives to putting a stop to magi who commit evil with their powers, but there’s only so much a small group of people can do by their own hands. Eventually they lost their lives to their calling. If I followed in their footsteps, the same would happen to me eventually. Which is why I’m here, doing this, instead. Here and now, in this war, one person can change the world for the better.”

Pausing, Max glanced back at Alex. “Well. Two people.” he corrected himself with a small smile.
 
Alex shook his head at that, "No, you're right one person can change the world, with the help of something else." He said looking around. This boys ideals were solid, he just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right, like a nagging tick at the back of his skull. A dark laughter echoed in his head.
Shaking his head he looked to max, "So wheres our first stop? Surely you have places you want to search."
 
Max raised an eyebrow. "Maybe in the literal sense, but spirit or not, you're still a person," he replied. "Or am I misinterpreting your meaning there? In any case, I'm taking us to the North Quarter. There's a lot of hotels there, so some of the masters may have chosen to set up there. If not, it's central, so we may encounter servants out on patrol themselves. We'll search there for tonight, and if we find nothing, try again during the day - either there or another quarter."
 
Alex chuckled, the boy was right, his words he a double meaning, but he wouldn't elaborate. He thought of what he had seen of the north quarter, there certainly were a lot of hotels, and quite a few bars and clubs, places he'd love to check out while they were out and about. "The areas around the hotels would be our best bet. I'll bet that other masters will be sheltering in at least one of those hotels." He said putting his hands in his pockets, "but they may also be searching just as we are, so we should see them before they see us, if, they see us." He said with a wry smile.
 
"And even if they do see us, as far as they're concerned, we're just another pair of bystanders. Even if they have my description, 'blonde and of average height' matches with half the tourists in this city," Max remarked with a snort. "Without your presence and my circuits to give us away, we should have the element of surprise unless we run into Ruler himself."

He sighed, sticking his hands into his pockets. "It will be a shame to kill those of the masters who've done nothing to deserve it," he murmured. "But their deaths will be a small price to pay for the better future we'll create in the process."
 
Alex nodded, it was true, while he hated taking a life that didn't deserve it, the price needed to be paid for a better world. They continued walking in silence for a while, the only sounds being the occasional car passing by, or the random civilian talking on their phone, but besides that it was a quiet night. A thought then crossed Alex's mind, and he had to ask, "What made you risk everything for this war? Did something happen to drive you to this?"
 
Max considered the question for a few moments before he answered. "Yes and no," he replied. "Ever since I was very young, my parents and my aunt taught me about the dangers of magi who abused their powers. They told me of the philosophy of magi - that to become a magus, you have to abandon your humanity and concepts like 'right' and 'wrong', all in the name of power and progress. I still don't understand how anyone can buy into that and not see that it's a philosophy designed solely to justify abhorrent acts."

He shook his head, grimacing as he continued. "When I was old enough, I was trained to fight and to use magecraft against other magi. My family were mage hunters, but we only targeted those who had committed criminal and vile acts. Experiments on living subjects, murder, sacrifice... I saw so many horrors caused by magi in the name of their craft that they blur together in my memory. The things that they could justify... there were no limits. One moment that stands out to me most clearly is the first time I encountered a homunculi farm."

His expression darkened and he glowered down at the ground. "Homunculi are mimicries of life, created by magi to bear magic as servants, for experiments, or to use as fuel for their rituals. Their lifespans are short, and in most cases lack a strong sense of identity, but aside from that... they're just like people. Humans. They can feel pain, and fear, and any number of emotions if given the chance. They can grow to be indistinguishable from normal humans. And these magi were growing them by the dozen, kept locked underground in a facility designed to drain their magic from them for power, killing them. It was horrifying, yet these magi saw nothing wrong with it. These homunculi simply weren't people to them, weren't even animals. They were just tools. Those are the kind of attitudes and morals that magic creates in people. They throw aside their humanity in pursuit of perfection."

Letting the statement hang for a few moments, Max looked up, his glower fading somewhat to a more contemplative frown. "My parents died when I was still training. My aunt completed it, but died not long after. It's like I said before. Eventually all mage hunters die at the hands of the monsters they pursue. And so to break that cycle, I want to strike at the source. And if I fail..? I don't have much to leave behind without my family. Mage hunters don't make many friends. The kind of magi we deal with would never hesitate to use innocents against us. Risking everything is a lot less daunting when you don't have all that much to lose in the first place."
 
Nameless nodded along as Archer told him what he had learnt, cataloguing the information. The reasoning behind the Servant's recommendations was sound, and he had had much the same thoughts himself during his time blearily getting cleaned up this morning.

Gesturing towards the food he had put aside for Archer, silently telling him to eat, the man begins to dress himself in ths suit he had put on before. Sure, it may have been better to go in a shirt and jeans like many of the residents but... the suits gave him a sense of... safety. Security. The suit will protect him. It never failed before, not even when... when he was caught. He had been in servant garb. That's not a suit.

Snapping our of his miniature reverie just as he automatically straightened the cuff on his blazer, the Master looks towards Archer. "When you're done with that, I have a question for you." He begins as his hand reaches back over the small counter placed on the kitchen and disappears, reappearing a few second later with a small, dark USB.

“How fast do you think you would be able to get through the city unnoticed?”
 
Alex nodded, it made sense, take away everything that a person has and they will fight for anything till their last breath. He'd seen it countless times in war, a man loses his family, and fights until he loses himself. "Be careful, don't let that consume you, to many people who've lost the things they cared for end up losing themselves." He told the youth, giving him a pointed look. "And remember, the path to hell is paved with good intentions."
He looked around at the buildings around him, searching for anything, but alas he didn't find a thing, further they must go then.
 
Shrugging as he quietly and quickly consumed the remaining food on the plate, Archer fell into his own musings. His memories granted by the Throne offered little advice for this peculiar situation he found himself in. From what he could tell, his Master was not the one prepared to summon him, indeed his Master seemed little practiced or versed in any aspect of the Grail War. A unique circumstance, where Archer himself was only of his few sources of information, and the ability to control that information was his until such time as the man requested it.

For a man who'd been so independent in life, this suited him just fine. The loose grip on his leash was something to revel in. He smiled inwardly, glancing up at the sound of the man's voice.

Glancing at the USB, he found he recognized the device. It was plugged into a computer device, containing information that could be accessed by the device it was connected to. Curious, he answered.

"Quickly enough. I'd be unable to move in spiritual form while carrying that, but there's more than one way to pass unseen. What's that meant for?"
 
Max smiled faintly and let out a slight laugh. “Don’t worry, I know. I’ve seen tunnel vision turn many magi into monsters without them even realising it. I don’t want that to happen to me. I’ll regret every drop of undeserving blood I have to spill to do what I must, but those who entered into this war did so knowing that they might perish. And who knows what each of them would do with the grail’s power?"

He paused, turning his eyes forwards again. “Thank you for your concern, though. I’ll make sure I heed your advice.”
 
"Simple. All throughout the city, there are various routers designed to manage and direct the flow of security cameras. This," Nameless explains, holding up the USB. "Has a program on it that will begin working the moment you plug it in to one of these that will allow me to see through these cameras." He places the USB on the table and slides it over towards Archer.

"Now, while I don't know much, I do know that VA-Valerie Gaucher will be one of these... combatants. Using these cameras I can find her and together we can wipe both her and whatever servant she managed to summon out in a single shot. All you need to do is plug that USB into these areas." He continues as he holds up a small map of the city, small dots marking the areas that the routers should be.

He had no idea if Valerie Gauchever really was a combatant, but with the death of her family she had to be back in this town, and there was NO WAY IN HELL he was going to let the opportunity he had been given slip from beneath his nose. That woman was going to die, painfully, and he would be free to win this war.
 
Archer felt a twinge of satisfied surprise at the suggestion, nodding absently as he thought about the implications. He didn't need to updated information from the Throne to understand the usefulness of access to the mundane surveillance systems across the city.

What drew a suddenly sharp, almost irate glare, however, was when his Master identified a target with subtle vehemence. He absently noted the boxes locations, but his scowl was plain and fierce.

"Don't tell me that you have a personal vendetta." The Servant said coldly. "If you want to win this war, I cannot afford to have stained orders influencing my actions against the other Masters and Servants."

His arms slowly came up, crossing over his chest. His eyes now locked on the nameless man who'd summoned him, unwavering, scarcely blinking at all. His expression matched his inner mood and thoughts, detached, cold fury. If allowed, a single-minded focus on a personal enemy for no other reason that hate could expose both of them to ambush by another Servant, regardless of precautions. Tunnel vision was not a luxury to be afforded when there were six...no seven enemies to overcome.

He did not allow his gaze to drift towards the Command Seals his master possessed. He knew he could ultimately not refuse them if used, and his thoughts found a new pattern, little more than an unconfirmed suspicion. If this person his Master spoke of wasn't a combatant in the war and he was forced to take her life...

He awaited a response with eyes slowly narrowing.
 
So. The servant had a problem with killing her? Too bad. He wasn’t going to let her get away just because someone was worried that his anger will get in the way of winning. He knew what was riding on this.

Looking up at Archer, Nameless matches their look of cold fury with one of his own, a raging, intense fire fuelled by pain and nightmares, a small glimpse into what he felt. He wasn’t going to back down from doing what he had to just because some being thought it put them at risk.

“We’re killing her. There is no discussion here. No compromise. After what she and her family did to me, she dies painfully. She’s the last one of those monsters left and i’m not going to let her walk free, not after everything they did.” He speaks, voice trembling with anger at what could be the key to winning suddenly deciding to get in his way.

“I’m not some idiot, Archer. I know the risks of chasing after a target like this but I need this.” He tells the servant, poking him in the chest as his voice cracks. “She can’t be allowed to live. She... and her kind... they tore me open. I wasn’t born with magic. They put it in me. Murdered... I don’t know how many mages and put whatever it is that gives them power inside me. I can feel them, all the time. And it hurts. It hurts so... so badly.”

Nameless looks away at this, one hand clutching his head as he tried to calm himself. “I believe she’s a combatant because of how you came to be. I broke free of them when they were doing whatever it was to summon you. They had to have been doing it for a reason, and if she is the last of them left she would have tried to continue whatever it was that started it. So take the damned USB and get us into the city.”
 
"She's only a target if she's a Master," Archer said flatly. "If she just happens to be a magus in the city, and you force my hand to kill her, then know this very, very simply."

"My next bullet will paint your skull across a few dozen meters. I don't care what her family may have done to you."

The gunslinger snatched the USB drive and looked over the map, coordinating the marked points with his views from high vantage points in the prior afternoon and evening. If this Valerie was a Master, then his Master's wish for a painful death be damned, Archer would grant the mercy of a single instant of pain and then blissful nonexistence. So the man wasn't a natural born magus, it explained the unusual flow of prana to him. He could even understand what he'd been summoned into, what he'd seen now.

It didn't excuse such reckless abandon. The gunslinger altered his appearance somewhat, taking on a more casual attire and pocketing the drive. He turned to head for the door, refusing to acknowledge the man behind him on his way.
 
The previous night... (continued from here)

"For now, yes," Max nodded. "Unless you have a chance to strike safely and without risk, err on the side of caution. Showing our hand this early wouldn't be a good idea. We'll profit more from a battleground we can choose and set up more selectively."

It didn't take too much longer before the pair of them reached the entrance to the subway. Max paused at the gates, turning to nod to Alex. "I'll see you back here tomorrow morning. Good luck out there tonight, and thank you."

Once he'd said his goodbye, he turned and entered their makeshift base, intent on resting up for the next day.
 
@Ver

The night was passing by slowly with hardly a cloud in the sky. Most of the tourist crowd didn't bother coming over in this direction, and so at this point of the night, it was quiet and enjoyable almost. The sea breeze rustled a few of the trees and bushes, and the faint pulse of the music wafted from the beach. Most students would be asleep at this point. Chloe knew most of her friends were, at least.

The senior sat on top of the roof in silence, one headphone covering one ear, the other pushed behind as she worked on homework. The flashlight was held in her mouth, the pen tapping the paper gently. The assignment was due on Monday, though..

She guessed that school wouldn't matter soon. None of it would. Her parents would fuss at her if they knew where she was right now but..

She took the flashlight out of her mouth and looked up expectantly. "... They are taking forever.." She murmured under her breath.
 
"So sorry to keep a lady waiting."

Assassin appeared behind the mysterious girl on top of the roof, materializing out of his spirit form as he coolly adjusted his glasses, before resting his hand on his hip. "Not exactly the most romantic scene under the bright moon, but I suppose it's just as well. I take it you're the one who called me over here then, girlie?" He asked. The Servant probably figured he ought to be more cautious in a scenario like this, especially since he figured he did rather well thus far at keeping his identity (or for that matter, his very existence) incognito, so either he wasn't good enough, or she was good enough. Only time would tell in that regard.

As he examined her, taking her to be little more than a schoolgirl, the blonde man could only raise an eyebrow as it all became more and more suspect. A mere child? Assassin usually wasn't one to judge a book by its cover, but... Hmph. He could only hope he'd get some answers, and soon at that; the Heroic Spirit wasn't sure how patient he could keep in a situation like this, where he felt naked without any sort of advantage or "in the know" about anything.
 
The young lady leaned backwards over her book bag, craning her neck to look at the servant upside down. This allowed her own glasses to slide back up to the bridge of her nose as she flashed him a giggling smile. "Oh hey! You came!" She said, sounding excited, pushing back the headphones into her hoodie's hood. She dropped her book and slowly stood up, brushing the back of her jeans off before turning around to greet the servant face to face.

"Yup, that would be me. Sorry for the cryptic message. Probably had you a bit spooked." An uneasy laugh escaped escaped her lips as she brushed strands of her short red hair behind her ear. She held out a thin looking hand to the blonde man. "My name is Chloe Daveen. Pleasure to meet you finally."

The girl could have been pretty, but there was something that took away from that factor. Maybe it was the strain at the corners of her eyes, or that her skin seemed a tad too pale, or she looked as though she could be easily snapped in half, or that her skin seemed to be a tad too loose on her bones. Or all of the above. She was, however, very tall for a girl her age. And she seemed to be one of those optimistic sorts, the one who always smiled. And she smiled at Assassin as if he was an old friend.
 
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