I woke up, and the pain hit me pretty hard.
I don't know what was worse, the physical pain, the metaphysical pain, or the headache once my mind caught back up and I realized how fucked I was.
But why was my face covered by something squishy?
"Master, you are awake."
I tilted my head up to see that I both had my head pressed firmly against Lancer's chest and was currently squeezing them.
My hands didn't catch up with my brain because I squeezed them a few more times before I fully understood what was happening.
"Lancer." I felt my voice was a bit hoarse, maybe from how much I threw up after what happened. "...Why…?"
Admittedly, it wasn't the first time we 'slept together'; she was very adamant about protecting me even during the night. But that basically equated to us being on opposite ends of the bed.
This was definitely a first.
"Despite being a Servant, I am still a Divine Spirit, Master. My core is that of a holy entity; thus, close proximity does provide a modicum of revitalization. I apologize, were you uncomfortable? You appeared to be at ease in your unconscious state once I nestled your head between my bosom."
Her expression remained almost entirely blank.
"...thank you, Artoria."
"It is my duty, Master." Though a small hint of a smile shone through as she said that.
I was still getting used to saying her actual name; I think that made her happy.
Part of me wanted to push my head back between her generous bosom and go back to sleep. And I don't think it was entirely the part of me that was dreading what I had to deal with after I got up.
If she were actually naked, I think I wouldn't have been able to pull myself away.
She released me as I rolled to the side and groaned as I pushed myself up out of bed.
I was wrapped in bandages, only in my boxers. I looked at the nightstand, and there was a bottle of pain pills sitting there. The good kind, the kind that needs a prescription and a serious affliction to be prescribed.
It seems Lancer was smart enough to find the medicine cabinet.
Getting hold of regular drugs was rather easy, all things considered. My family had their own stash at various places in the house for an emergency.
She probably didn't know where to find the magical healing stuff.
Though, it's honestly hard to beat regular mundane pain pills when it comes to alleviating pain. Most Magi themselves had their own supplies with how effective they usually were.
I let out a long sigh mixed with a groan. "Everything hurts."
"Pain is acknowledgement of victory, Master."
"I don't feel like I won." I said dryly. "And you're the one who killed him."
"You are barely of age, never having fought an enemy to the death before. Yet, despite being outclassed in both strength and speed and lacking preparation, you held your own and nearly defeated your foe." She said quite pointedly, like she was chiding me.
I rubbed my temples as I really recalled everything that happened. "The Dead Apostle wasn't a Magus; he knew absolutely nothing about Magecraft or anything like that. He called me a wizard." I let out a breath. "And he was a Parahuman, something I didn't think was possible and something I've never heard about until now."
"I saw the events from your perspective through the Dream Cycle." She informed me.
"Ah."
That.
I've only had one dream like that so far with her, and it was something mundane.
Despite what I thought, the Dream Cycle isn't something that pops up every night for a master and servant.
I had a distinct feeling that she may have engineered things so she could see what happened through the Dream Cycle on her end.
I wouldn't put it past something she was capable of, being a Divine Spirit in a Servant Container.
"I'm right fucked, aren't I?" I didn't usually use this kind of crass language in front of her.
"It is a precarious situation." She nodded. "However, most important, you are alive."
Yeah.
Alive.
Yay...
"How long was I out?" I asked.
"A day and a half." She informed me. "I would not suggest turning on your Magic Circuits for a period to recover."
Yeah, my circuits worked overtime there.
I need to get better about my mana usage in combat; I can look back and see several places where I cast a spell and wasted too much.
Put that on the list of other things I need to train.
I reached for the bottle of pain pills and quickly downed a few again.
My head was killing me, as were the other parts of my body too numerous to count. Specifically though, my use of Time Alter did some damage in my head, I think. I have some stuff in the library that should help, but there was a constant sharp pain in my head that wouldn't go away.
I wasn't worried about scars, despite the layers of bandages covering my body; just the same, my family had stuff to help with that.
"Thank you for taking care of me too." I rubbed my bandages. "I'm sure it wasn't easy."
"I am skilled at applying bandages to wounds, Master." She said politely. "I have done so many times in life to myself and others."
Right, wars.
I dropped my head into my hands between my legs.
"You are still unwell. Perhaps more sleep?"
I waved it off. "Can you tell me about what happened before I summoned you?"
"Very well." She accepted my stubbornness here. "I arrived at the location that the attack was taking place. There were many people running away when I arrived, and more who also were using their modern weapons to fight back. I engaged the creatures immediately and dealt with them as quickly as I could. I was also hailed by those 'superheroes' present, but I prioritized the mission after a brief word of peace on my part. It was not until some minutes later that I encountered the people of the church."
"They were helping with the Ghouls."
"Correct." She nodded. "They appeared to have contained a significant portion of it from spilling outwards onto the populace.
"Small mercies then." At least they were doing their job, even if it was at my expense. "The 'Heroes,' they assisted too." She made a brief mention of that.
"Yes, I noted their powers. The ones that appeared also participated in the defense. The one with the ability to run quickly had made significant efforts to remove civilians from harm's way as best as he could."
"That would be Velocity." I explained. "And Armsmaster. The one with the armor and the halberd?"
"I did not recognize him, Master."
"So he wasn't at the Ghoul attack. Presumably, he must have been redirected towards the school almost immediately, and Velocity caught up after." I made a few guesses.
Mentally calculating the distance in my head from the school to the oil rig in the harbor that Armsmaster has his workshop on, it about lines up.
"Considering the Church interfered with the Ghouls as well, it can probably be safe to say that the PRT didn't get any 'samples.'" I mused. "If they did, then I can almost definitely blame the Church as well."
"I did my best to remove any stains they left behind as well."
I nodded. "Letting a bunch of idiots with power get ahold of vampiric blood is just asking for trouble." I stood up again, letting out another groan. "I didn't handle myself well when I was confronting them. There's going to be a follow-up; I should expect the Church to reach out in the next few days if they haven't already."
I blame it on my state of mind at the time. I was uncharacteristically aggressive and angry. Understandably angry, I would like to argue in my defense, but I am blinded a bit by my anger nonetheless.
There were a hundred better ways to deal with it.
The fact that I was barely holding myself up at that point also didn't help.
"Has anyone come to poke around?"
"There are a large number of humans outside your home with their recording devices."
The News.
I had reporters camped outside on my lawn.
"You left them alone?"
"As they were normal humans and did not attempt to intrude further, I did not believe it appropriate to reveal myself." She stated.
"Good. That was the right choice." I let out a thankful sigh of relief.
"Also." She spoke up again. "There is someone here that has been waiting for you. They arrived earlier today, and they were able to walk through your house's bounded fields; thus, I did not treat them like an enemy."
Who?
"Where are they?"
"I believe they are in the kitchen, Master."
I immediately went towards the door despite the quick movements making my body scream out a bit in pain, and I walked out.
The kitchen was a few moments away, turning the corner of the hallway.
I relaxed once I saw who it was.
He noticed me too.
"Uncle." I greeted.
"Frederick." He raised a cup of tea. "You didn't tell me you had a fiancée."
I looked at him, then at the expressionlessness of Artoria next to me.
I never told her not to tell that to people after last time.
Fuck my life.
[Line Break]
The fact that she seemed unconcerned about the guest should have tipped me off. Artoria was critical enough to believe we should sleep in the same bed for her purposes of 'defending me.'
She wouldn't have let a stranger into the house.
Therefore, it wasn't a stranger.
She listened while I talked to him on the phone and presumably recognized his voice or identity if he introduced himself. And considering they very briefly conversed over the phone before, well, it's very easy to guess from there.
Uncle Richard was a gentleman.
In the more traditional sense.
His attitude, his attire, his mannerisms.
Uncle Richard was the type of person who would politely serve you your last meal with expensive wine before pulling the trigger to end it.
He was a strange man, in all honesty.
His duality, that is.
His hands were filthy with all that he gets up to. He genuinely tries to stay out of doing any dirty work, but sometimes it just happens. But also, he's a well-known philanthropist. He donates to charities, he volunteers at soup kitchens, and he even does pro bono work for good causes.
In his own words, you can't become one of the most reputable law firms in the country unless you have blood on your hands.
He and Dad were good friends.
Dad said that he would have made a good Magus.
He was teasing me about the whole fiancée thing; he most certainly knew that it wasn't the whole 'truth.'
If I had a fiancé, it wasn't something I would have hidden from him. My dad always told me that I could trust him, and my dad was a good judge of character.
That, and Dad said that Uncle Richard would rather cut his own hand off rather than reach it into Magus's business. Like trying to steal my legacy or other such nonsense.
In Dad's words, Uncle Richard liked being a big fish in a small pond.
"You've had quite the week." Uncle Richard broke the silence, sipping his tea.
I sat down across the table. "How fucked am I?"
"Language." He chided. "But it's appropriate, I suppose. The answer would be yes."
I let out a long groan. "Lancer said that the News was camped outside."
He glanced at her, then nodded. "She is correct. I had to come in through the back so I wouldn't be noticed. Though, you'll be happy to know that I turned the sprinklers on a few hours ago and made their evening rather unfortunate."
I let out a snort. "When did you come in?"
"Not long ago. I hadn't had time to sleep yet; this is my fourth cup of tea. As soon as I heard about what happened and that I couldn't reach you, I came as soon as I could."
I dropped my head into my hands. "Before you tell me all the ways I'm screwed, do you have any good news for me?"
"Good news?" He hummed. "I suppose I have some good news. I have managed to push back the PRT from knocking your door down. Whether that's hyperbole or not, you won't have to find out. I used the law firm I keep in this city to act as my go-between. Unfortunately, they have very firmly requested that you come down to the PRT Headquarters and give a formal statement."
"How did you get them to back off?"
"I cited your injuries."
"Wouldn't that prompt them to have me sent to the hospital?" I asked.
"It's convenient that your long-standing religious beliefs disapprove of modern medicine." He said dryly. "And considering you are legally entitled to certain rights as an emancipated individual, there was not much they could say about that."
Ah.
At the very least, it seems that I'm not being blamed, so that helps.
"I assume that's not something you can make go away?"
"Unfortunately, my magic wand is limited in this case." He shook his head. "However, as I said, I used my local law firm; my name has not officially been linked to anything thus far; therefore, they will not be expecting my presence when I accompany you."
"They probably think they can run roughshod over me, huh?" I grunted.
"Oh, most certainly. I've dealt with the PRT before; I know how they do things. They will attack you with anything and everything to make you capitulate. Vague threats of lawbreaking followed by vague threats of imprisonment. But, they would just so happen to disappear if you cooperated. Especially with a young man your age, they will assume you are very ignorant about these sorts of matters."
"Wouldn't they be careful considering I presumably had a law firm act on my behalf?"
"They specialize in divorce law." My uncle stated. "The lawyers at the Protectorate are probably salivating over the idea of running circles around some ignorant divorce attorney barely out of law school." My uncle chuckled.
Well, that is some good news.
It makes me feel slightly better.
"Alright, hit me with the bad news." I mentally prepared myself.
My uncle, rather than speak, got up and walked towards the living room; the connected opening let me see everything as he grabbed the remote and turned on the TV.
"...as we got final word. The total death toll has amounted to 243, with another 64 injured. It's being called the worst Biotinker attack since Elisburg. Experts say, "
He changed the channel.
"...Witnesses call it a brutal and traumatizing attack. Five children dead, another 14 injured in the attack on Winslow High School. The PRT has given a statement condemning the one responsible and praising the now unmasked Ward, Shadowstalker, for her involvement in protecting her fellow classmates—
He changed the channel again.
"... The arrival of Legend to Brockton Bay brought a much-needed reprieve from tension. Now, we go to our reporter in the field, Mary."
"Thank you, Denise." The reporter replied as the scene on the TV changed. I recognized it because it was out in front of my house. "I'm standing out in front of the house of Frederick Verde. A name that not many knew before the attack on Winslow, but one that won't soon be forgotten. Many people are now asking the question, "Has a wizard been living among us this entire time?"
He turned the TV off.
He then took out his phone, tapping it a few times before he set it down in front of me. It showed the most trending videos right now, and my face was plastered right at the top.
It was a recording of the fight between myself and the Dead Apostle.
This single video has over 64 million views already.
"Frederick, you're viral."
[Line Break]
A/N
Just the start of things.
Next is an interlude with a PRT debrief and a PHO section.
If you want to read 1 chapter ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty if you can't use the above under the same name.