So, I got a favorable response in the Central Ideas thread here, so I decided to bring this story to TFF. I only have the prologue typed up so far, because I only saw the anime of Fate/Stay Night and I understand that the anime version isn't exactly highly-thought of by most fans of the games. So, any help on various events of F/SN games or routes would be greatly appreciated by me.
Without further stalling by me, here's the prologue!
The Arsenal of Nod 00: The Flames of Rebirth
Disclaimer: I don't own the Command & Conquer universes or the Nasuverse. If nothing else about those fictional areas, know that.
A darkly-dressed man stood in the midst of silent yet horrific devastation with a small group of black-garbed men and women standing a few meters behind, warily keeping their senses trained on their surroundings for any threat directed towards their leader. An observer could almost be excused for wondering why a group of yakuza thugs and their 'big brother' might be in Fuyuki City. That is, if being excused means a bullet through the head or chest, which is what had happened to half of a dozen observers already.
He breathed in deeply, taking in the vivid scents of the land touched by a raging storm of fire just recently. While the men and women who had survived or been miraculously spared by the storm would be told a convenient lie to conceal the fire's cause from the human desire to know why, he knew its true cause. He knew as much about it as he knew about the events that would unfold in the next century on this unassuming and ignorant planet.
The man reflected on the Fourth Holy Grail War, it was such an amusing and innocent name for such a violent conflict that took advantage of several human flaws and sins. Truly, it would take someone who was almost a saint or just plain ignorant of the world' darker sides to end such a long-running competition. Of course, he could hardly think about the conflict without considering its primary backers and how they factored into how his plans would unfold in a few short years. The Mage Association and the Church's supernatural forces would fail to be significant factors once his grand plan for humanity's evolution and enlightenment began. However, he had made certain not to discount their influence of the mundane aspects of humanity for the first few decades until they too crumbled beneath the staggering weight of the transforming mineral upon the world. After all, he of all men or women knew the potency of knowledge and charisma wielded as a weapon against the ignorant masses of the destitute across the world.
As the minutes began to stretch into an hour, the man's bodyguards began to fidget just slightly, causing the formation of a dark smile over the man's face. He did enjoy so the discomfort of his subordinates when he left them to their own devices but still under his supervision. Just before one of his lieutenants gathered up the blasphemous courage to ask his Messiah's reason for coming to this wasteland, an odd sound reached the ears of the men and women present. It was the scratching of rubble scraping against other rubble as it tumbled down and off a nearby pile of debris in the majestic grip of gravity until it could travel downward no longer.
As one, his guards moved swiftly forward to protect their leader's flanks from this sudden sign of a possible attack. Several raised their rifles to train on where the rubble had originated from, only to lower their weapons at the subtle gesture from the Messiah for them to relax but remain aware of other threats. As the bald man walked purposely forward and up the pile of debris, he saw the cause of the sudden fall of the rubble from its position. The cause was the small, burnt hand of a child which had somehow dislodged the concealing debris over it, evoking an almost-pleasant and paternal smile from the bald man. It was indeed a touching sight for even him, despite the series of horrific wars he had planned to unleash upon the people of Earth. As he knelt beside the heart-gripping sight, he could now hear the pathetically weak sounds of occasional whimpering and movement beneath the rubble. The bald man motioned over two of his female guards to join him in uncovering whoever this survivor might be.
When at last the child had been exposed to the air, the boy had screamed out his horrific pain as his many wounds and deep burns were exposed to the harsh winds that still swept over the area. Soon, the boy had stopped from the lack of strength and energy to cry anymore, and he looked up at his three saviors with eyes lined by great trails of salt and burnt flesh. Interestingly, much of the child's brilliant red hair had survived whatever trials that had marked the rest of his body. More to the point, the man and his two assistants noticed that some of the boy's lesser wounds were already in the process of sealing up before their eyes.
The man smiled genially at the boy and spoke softly to him, "Hello, my son. Arise from your grave and cast aside the marks of your imprisonment."
The boy stared blankly back at the man, lacking any comprehension of what had been said to him beyond the first three words. His attempts at speaking came out hesitatingly and weakly at first but gained strength quickly. "A-Ar...Are you my father?"
The back of the bald man's head already had begun rapidly considering this new factor into his plans before calculating that taking on the boy would have no adverse effects upon them and could even improve the execution of them, if the glimmer of power he could feel from the child was indeed the mark of human magecraft within his body and mind. This child could become an agent to possibly bring the assets of the Mage Association to his side within an acceptable time-frame for such an event to be in his. He might even be able to raise the boy here in this city and enable the child to court the children of the city's influential mage families to further his cause to a greater level yet! And perhaps, just possibly, the boy could become an acceptable replacement and heir for himself during the periods of the bald man's plans that called for the disappearance of himself.
Outwardly, the man continued smiling at the boy as he replied, "If you would have me as your father, then certainly my son. I ask only one small thing from you in return: What is your name, my child?"
A minute spark of life within the boy's chest at that time began to grow once more; he once more had a family. This man would would be his father, and perhaps these women with his father could be his aunts or sisters, or even mothers! To a child who had survived such horrors as this boy had, the trivialities no longer mattered! He Had A Family! Finally, the boy smiled back to the bald man who had now picked him up to carry the boy to the location where the man and his associates were currently staying. "My name...is Shirou."
The man smiled back even greater than before the boy, Shirou, as he continued to cradle him against his chest. The boy squirmed a small bit to get comfortable. Just before the boy gave into the sweet healing arms of Morpheus, the man spoke once more. "And my own name is Kane...My son, Shirou."
-And, cut. If you got this far, then yes, Kane is going to adopt Shirou. How that works out will be an interesting story to tell, even before I get to the actual events of Fate/Stay Night. Also, fun fact: If the events of the Fifth Holy Grail War take place in the year 2004, which is when it's published, then the events of Tiberium Dawn will take place between the Fourth and Fifth Grail War. Should be fun.
Without further stalling by me, here's the prologue!
The Arsenal of Nod 00: The Flames of Rebirth
Disclaimer: I don't own the Command & Conquer universes or the Nasuverse. If nothing else about those fictional areas, know that.
A darkly-dressed man stood in the midst of silent yet horrific devastation with a small group of black-garbed men and women standing a few meters behind, warily keeping their senses trained on their surroundings for any threat directed towards their leader. An observer could almost be excused for wondering why a group of yakuza thugs and their 'big brother' might be in Fuyuki City. That is, if being excused means a bullet through the head or chest, which is what had happened to half of a dozen observers already.
He breathed in deeply, taking in the vivid scents of the land touched by a raging storm of fire just recently. While the men and women who had survived or been miraculously spared by the storm would be told a convenient lie to conceal the fire's cause from the human desire to know why, he knew its true cause. He knew as much about it as he knew about the events that would unfold in the next century on this unassuming and ignorant planet.
The man reflected on the Fourth Holy Grail War, it was such an amusing and innocent name for such a violent conflict that took advantage of several human flaws and sins. Truly, it would take someone who was almost a saint or just plain ignorant of the world' darker sides to end such a long-running competition. Of course, he could hardly think about the conflict without considering its primary backers and how they factored into how his plans would unfold in a few short years. The Mage Association and the Church's supernatural forces would fail to be significant factors once his grand plan for humanity's evolution and enlightenment began. However, he had made certain not to discount their influence of the mundane aspects of humanity for the first few decades until they too crumbled beneath the staggering weight of the transforming mineral upon the world. After all, he of all men or women knew the potency of knowledge and charisma wielded as a weapon against the ignorant masses of the destitute across the world.
As the minutes began to stretch into an hour, the man's bodyguards began to fidget just slightly, causing the formation of a dark smile over the man's face. He did enjoy so the discomfort of his subordinates when he left them to their own devices but still under his supervision. Just before one of his lieutenants gathered up the blasphemous courage to ask his Messiah's reason for coming to this wasteland, an odd sound reached the ears of the men and women present. It was the scratching of rubble scraping against other rubble as it tumbled down and off a nearby pile of debris in the majestic grip of gravity until it could travel downward no longer.
As one, his guards moved swiftly forward to protect their leader's flanks from this sudden sign of a possible attack. Several raised their rifles to train on where the rubble had originated from, only to lower their weapons at the subtle gesture from the Messiah for them to relax but remain aware of other threats. As the bald man walked purposely forward and up the pile of debris, he saw the cause of the sudden fall of the rubble from its position. The cause was the small, burnt hand of a child which had somehow dislodged the concealing debris over it, evoking an almost-pleasant and paternal smile from the bald man. It was indeed a touching sight for even him, despite the series of horrific wars he had planned to unleash upon the people of Earth. As he knelt beside the heart-gripping sight, he could now hear the pathetically weak sounds of occasional whimpering and movement beneath the rubble. The bald man motioned over two of his female guards to join him in uncovering whoever this survivor might be.
When at last the child had been exposed to the air, the boy had screamed out his horrific pain as his many wounds and deep burns were exposed to the harsh winds that still swept over the area. Soon, the boy had stopped from the lack of strength and energy to cry anymore, and he looked up at his three saviors with eyes lined by great trails of salt and burnt flesh. Interestingly, much of the child's brilliant red hair had survived whatever trials that had marked the rest of his body. More to the point, the man and his two assistants noticed that some of the boy's lesser wounds were already in the process of sealing up before their eyes.
The man smiled genially at the boy and spoke softly to him, "Hello, my son. Arise from your grave and cast aside the marks of your imprisonment."
The boy stared blankly back at the man, lacking any comprehension of what had been said to him beyond the first three words. His attempts at speaking came out hesitatingly and weakly at first but gained strength quickly. "A-Ar...Are you my father?"
The back of the bald man's head already had begun rapidly considering this new factor into his plans before calculating that taking on the boy would have no adverse effects upon them and could even improve the execution of them, if the glimmer of power he could feel from the child was indeed the mark of human magecraft within his body and mind. This child could become an agent to possibly bring the assets of the Mage Association to his side within an acceptable time-frame for such an event to be in his. He might even be able to raise the boy here in this city and enable the child to court the children of the city's influential mage families to further his cause to a greater level yet! And perhaps, just possibly, the boy could become an acceptable replacement and heir for himself during the periods of the bald man's plans that called for the disappearance of himself.
Outwardly, the man continued smiling at the boy as he replied, "If you would have me as your father, then certainly my son. I ask only one small thing from you in return: What is your name, my child?"
A minute spark of life within the boy's chest at that time began to grow once more; he once more had a family. This man would would be his father, and perhaps these women with his father could be his aunts or sisters, or even mothers! To a child who had survived such horrors as this boy had, the trivialities no longer mattered! He Had A Family! Finally, the boy smiled back to the bald man who had now picked him up to carry the boy to the location where the man and his associates were currently staying. "My name...is Shirou."
The man smiled back even greater than before the boy, Shirou, as he continued to cradle him against his chest. The boy squirmed a small bit to get comfortable. Just before the boy gave into the sweet healing arms of Morpheus, the man spoke once more. "And my own name is Kane...My son, Shirou."
-And, cut. If you got this far, then yes, Kane is going to adopt Shirou. How that works out will be an interesting story to tell, even before I get to the actual events of Fate/Stay Night. Also, fun fact: If the events of the Fifth Holy Grail War take place in the year 2004, which is when it's published, then the events of Tiberium Dawn will take place between the Fourth and Fifth Grail War. Should be fun.
