Chapter 1436: Unknown
With the death of Archimedes, one of Vahn's most significant troubles had been eliminated from the equation. Though there was a fair chance some of the other Heroic Spirits could continue to oppose him, this wasn't particularly concerning, as, like all people, they would be forced to comply with the Common Law if they wanted to avoid destruction. This wasn't up for debate, so Vahn still expected conflict between his, and the Hero's, forces.
Unfortunately, after discussing matters with the Control Program of the Moon Cell, Vahn learned that he couldn't use it to observe and spy on others. He also didn't have access to the data that had been compiled over the last 4.6 billion years, unless, of course, he earned the right to peer into the past after winning the Moon Cell's version of the Holy Grail War.
Though it was a tempting thought, Vahn wasn't particularly interested in the idea of holding the tournament-style event, as, based on the information provided by the Control Program, nearly every participant would end up losing their lives. There were ways around this, but it was still an event that, at the most fundamental level, was designed to sacrifice hundreds of people in the hopes of storing their 'souls' within the Moon Cell's memory banks. It used these fragmented Egos to produce what many would refer to as NPCs, non-player characters, which were just Artificial Intelligences used to establish a standalone virtual society.
In essence, the Moon Cell took advantage of the fact that humanity often reached it when civilization was on the decline. Then, by luring them in with the promise of wishes, it would fulfill the desires of a single person in exchange for the 'souls' of hundreds. This, in turn, allowed it to continue observing humanity for all eternity, as, even if all biological life was extinguished, it could monitor them within a controlled, virtual environment.
While he was privy to this information, Vahn quickly came to discover that there was very little he could do, even as the Chief Administrator. His only real power, outside of initiating the Holy Grail War, was teleporting within the Photonic Abyss. Yet, this was also limited as the Moon Cell had restrictions that guaranteed the privacy of anyone accessing the system. Archimedes could use it to 'spy' on people, but this primarily the result of his designation as the Security Administrator. This had allowed him to flag specific individuals as threats to the Moon Cell operation, gathering information on potential risks and removing them.
Fortunately, with the exceptions of entities like Musashi and Caenis, everyone that had been pulled into the Moon Cell's Photonic Abyss had effectively been trapped inside. This meant, even if he just returned home and ignored them, the Heroic Spirits summoned by Archimedes would be confined inside the Moon Cell for all eternity. Their only means of escape, at least without the aid of Musashi, was to participate in, and win, the Moon Cell Holy Grail War.
From this revelation, Vahn could deduce that Archimedes had intended, over time, to either summon 128 Heroic Spirits, or, based on his use of automatons, create Artificial Humans to serve as sacrificial pawns. There was even a chance that he had intended to use the Empire's forces to trigger the event, as, so long as there was an adequate number of participants, the preliminary phase could be initiated...
Needless to say, Vahn was greatly relieved by Archimedes' death, despite the fact the Moon Cell, having now been activated, was 'compelled' to initiate the procedure to access the Root. If it was left to its own devices, it would slowly create 'Master Candidates' using the data it had compiled, setting the stage for future troubles if ignored. Thus, he would need to closely monitor the Moon Cell, doing his best to limit the number of people inside so that the faux Holy Grail War cannot be initiated and exploited by third parties.
Fortunately, so long as he left a single powerful 'guardian' inside, they should be able to win any unexpected Holy Grail Wars without much effort. After all, the Master Candidates each received a compatible Servant, so, with two Heroic Spirits fighting side-by-side, the chance of anyone being able to defeat them was slim. He could also use his Chief Administrator position to access the 'Far Side' of the Moon, an Imaginary Number Space that was used to quarantine the still-living Velber: 02.
Vahn wasn't in a particular rush to meet with the infamous White Titan, as, in most of the visions he had peered into, they end up fighting. From these same visions, he learned that she, basically, just wanted to be left alone, biding her time until the return of the Umbral Star. Since this was an event that was scheduled to take place around the year 3030, Vahn had more than a thousand years to prepare, ample time to form countermeasures against virtually any threat...
---
Before heading off to confront the group of would-be Heroes, Vahn decided to wait around for the selection of a new Security Administrator. He was given access to the list of available candidates, so, while it wasn't his decision to make, he could still give his input on the matter. He would have to work alongside the new Security Administrator, potentially for hundreds of years, so it would make things a lot easier if he could convince the Control Program to select someone amicable.
After perusing the file for a considerable amount of time, finding names like Sherlock and Da Vinci both listed, Vahn ended up asking, "I noticed this list doesn't contain any Gods or Demigods...is there a reason for this?"
In response to his question, the purple automaton, using the same synthetic voice as before, stated, "Answering inquiry. The beings known as 'Gods' inherit their authority from their Parent Star or have it bestowed unto them by the Planetary System they inhabit. The Moon Cell is capable of emulating this phenomenon. However, due to potential conflicts of interest, Gods and Demigods are excluded from the standard selection criteria. Many have strong ties to specific beliefs and ideals, making their existence a danger to the Moon Cell's operations."
Vahn was tempted to nominate this Record's version of Hestia, but, knowing how troublesome the Greek and Roman Gods were, giving them an excuse to interfere with the Moon Cell didn't seem like the best course of action. Thus, he ultimately decided to leave the decision to the Control Program, albeit after reading the Flow of Fate and determining there wouldn't be any issues. As a result, the Control Program ended up selecting a Russian-American Philosopher named Ayn Rand, the woman who had laid the foundation for the philosophy of Objectivism.
---
Without knowing of Archimedes' death, Musashi, accompanied by Shirou, Berserker, and Caenis. The latter had a unique Skill known as [Pursuit of Vengeance: A], so, as long as she recognized someone as her enemy, she could track them virtually anywhere, even crossing Time and Space. In the distant past, approximately four thousand years in the future of a divergent world, Caenis had used this Skill to track down and ultimately kill Poseidon, stealing his Divine Authority in the process.
It was the slaying of Poseidon, relying on the help of many others, that ultimately elevated her to the status of a Divine Spirit. Since then, Caenis had made it her mission to hunt down and slaughter any men who believed they could use their status and authority to have their way with women. No matter how much time had passed, she had never forgotten the shame of that fateful day, using it as fuel to propel her through the vast ocean of eternity without losing her way.
With Caenis leading the way, it didn't take long for the group to reach a half-formed Ivory Castle, which, as a result of Vahn's departure, had started to fragment at the edges. Despite this, several thousand Attack Programs were waiting in the vicinity, protecting the region with zeal befitting of actual Knights. They had even formed rows and columns, emulated the formations expected of a real army. There were even twelve powerful figures seated atop horses, interspaced among the army of automatons like actual commanders preparing for war.
Seeing the sight with crystal clarity, despite being several dozen kilometers away, Shirou explained, "I don't like this...there are twelve shadows at the back, each giving off dangerous auras. Based on our knowledge of the Empire, I assume these shadows are meant to represent the Knights of the Round Table...how irksome..."
Musashi's eyesight wasn't as developed as Shirou's, but, even without his [Clairvoyance:C], she was able to sense the power contained by the twelve figures. This stirred up her desire to battle, but, at the same time, her intuition told her there was something wrong about this situation. Vahn wasn't the type to hide away while others fought his battles. He had even personally come to attack the Moon Cell, so it made no sense for him to be hiding away inside his castle while strange automatons fought on his behalf.
Never doubting her instinct, Musashi turned to Caenis, asking, "Are you certain Vahn is inside? This doesn't feel right..."
Hearing Musashi's question, Caenis gave her a pointed stare, but, knowing the former was generally right about such things, she didn't immediately lash out. Instead, she focused her senses for several minutes before saying, "I'm not sure...that bastard is different from normal people. It always feels like there are multiple versions of him spread out. I can still sense his presence in this area...almost like it is the castle itself...?"
Musashi frowned slightly in response to Caenis' words, but, seemingly having thought of something, Shirou followed by adding, "This place functions similarly to a Realy Marble...in other words, this is a part of the Emperor. He must have used this castle to lure us out...maybe he already knew of Caenis' Skill before releasing you. Our safest option is to have me scout the interior while the three of you stay posted outside. Try to establish contact with the others while I'm gone..."
Without waiting for a response from the three girls, Shirou pulled up his hoodie before lifting the scarf around his neck to reveal that it was a baklava, concealing all but his eyes. Then, in an instant, his figure seemed to dissolve into the surroundings, his presence vanishing shortly thereafter.
As this wasn't the first time Shirou had gone on a dangerous solo mission, Musashi just released an exasperated sigh before muttering, "That guy is always so eager to place himself in danger..."
Hearing Musashi's comment, Caenis snorted through her nose in response, adding, "He just wants to show off. All men are a bunch of idiots who only think with their lower body, not their brains. Even if he pretends to be a nice guy on the surface, his true nature is no different from that golden bastard."
Since Caenis rarely passed on an opportunity to lambast the very existence of men, Musashi rolled her eyes in response to the horse-like woman's retort. It was impossible to reason with her, leading to Jason referring to her, not-so-affectionately, as an obstinate donkey. This, of course, resulted in him getting thrashed pretty severely, but, considering most of the women in their group had beaten him up, that was par for the course.
With the exception of his personal dolls and the ever-annoying Chang'e, most of the Heroes actually disdained Jason quite a bit. He was a coward that hid behind others, yet, despite his weakness, he touted himself as some great Captain, destined to lead others. His Noble Phantasm was one of the most powerful in their entire group, but due to the conditions required to trigger it, he was all but useless in a short engagement...
Thinking of Jason, Musashi couldn't shake the feeling that he would suffer a rather tragic fate in the near future. It was easy to imagine him saying something to offend Vahn, and, given what she knew of the latter, he wouldn't be very tolerant towards the infamous Captain of the Argonauts. To this end, she could only hope that Jason wasn't the first of their group that Vahn encountered. Fortunately, he had A+ Luck, making Brynhildr, the Valkyrian woman who couldn't even walk a few hundred meters without tripping over her own feet, the most likely target...
(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The Moon Cell is like a baby version of the Root System','Caenis is quite the feminist...*cough*','Someone with the same Luck rating as Lakshmibai!?')
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