Da Vinci's video report.
"The entity first appeared on the fourth floor, in one of the staff closets with the cleaning equipment. The first employee to discover the abnormality was clerk REDACTED, who went to investigate why the automated cleaning golems failed to carry out their orders.
When entering the closet, he was shocked to find a sphere a meter in diameter, with one half of it bright white and the other - black. Something (later identified as a Korean word) was written on the lower half, however, was hard to discern due to the blackness of the other half.
Despite any kind of rational judgment (which we now suspect to be a mental intrusion) the employee came into contact with the unknown entity. Nothing happened, however. So, REDACTED left the closet, after moving the supplies.
The next morning, the aforementioned worker was spotted completely bald.
When others asked the reason for his sudden change of style, REDACTED stated that he just woke up bald, with all of his hair strewn on the bed.
The sudden change warranted a medical check-up from Dr. Romani Archiman. This is what he had to say:
"The patient denied having any pains or prior hair loss. He also noted that premature (and sudden balding) was not something genetic."
When the Doctor inquired as to what could have caused this, the employee said, and I quote: "I don't bloody know! Just touched that thing in the broom closet, dat it".
Things of unknown nature suddenly appearing demanded our immediate response and the group of servants (who were in the cafeteria at the time(which is on the same floor)) led by Sir Gawain went to investigate.
*****
"Hey, Gawain,"-gave voice the seemingly female knight.
"Yes, Astolfo?"
"Soooo, what are we looking for? Treasure maybe?! Maybe gold?"-the rider had already (maybe purposefully) forgotten what they were on the lookout for.
"Oh, that's freaking golden!"-voiced his excitement berserker next to them.
Gawain signed. If it wasn't his king's order to uphold the peace in her absence, he would have already left the chaotic duo behind.
But should he succeed, he would see his king's peerless smile! The most radiant in all of the world!
So he explained, once again, their goal.
"We are to monitor if there is any kind of abnormal activity in the closet"
"So it must be a treasure!"
"No, it can be whatever",-the Knight of the Sun denied.
"But it would be better if it was a treasure!"-Astolfo insisted.
"He's right, you know? What's the point of investigating things if it isn't anything cool?"-commented Kintoki
"RIGHT - RIGHT!"-Astolfo nodded energetically.
Thankfully, he didn't need to humor these lunatics any longer.
"We are here,"-he declared with finality as the door slid open, leaving for them to see…
"Ooh, what is this?"-the Rider danced around the flying orb.
"I do not know…"-Gawain stood there, puzzled.
"But it definitely doesn't look like gold or treasure,"-finished Kintoki for him.
Astolfo wasn't disappointed in the slightest, no. It wasn't shiny, but it was spherical and white, and black.
Basically, something he had never seen!
So Astolfo did the most normal thing ever. Touched it!
"OH NO, you don't!"-or tried, as Gawain pulled on Astolfo's cape, keeping him away from the entity.
Kintoki was just as curious, but didn't try to interact. Instead, he leaned closer, cupping his chin, eyes peering into the ball. As if trying to make it spill its secrets.
Needless to say, that didn't fly.
"Well, I can say for a fact, this ain't a demon,-the demon hunter declared, only to add,-which doesn't mean we shouldn't bash it with something heavy. Just to be sure".
"No, I was given specific instructions NOT to touch it,"-the Knight relented, shutting the idea down.
"Well, duh, we aren't going to touch it, we are going to hit it,"-Astolfo didn't see a problem with his words.
And to be fair, no one in the room did.
"You are right, in the event it is hostile, it would pay to get rid of it now, while it's inert,"-Gawain concurred, his features determined.
And there was no one to question the backwards logic. One was a berserker, another - something worse. And Gawain was Gawain.
"Say no more! Golden Eater!"-the giant ax appeared in his hand, as he prepared to strike.
"Wait-wait-wait!"-but Rider got in the way,"What if it gets hurt?!"
"Then it shall. The mission my king left with me will be accomplished! Excalibur Galatin!"
"Aaah!"-rider got out of the way as two attacks flowed into one, devastating strike, shaking Chaldea all over.
Silence reigned.
Until Astolfo peeked out of the safety of the cardboard box.
"Did we get it?"-Where the WE came from in this debacle remains to be seen.
But what was certainly true, was that no, they did not.
When the dust and debris all settled, what remained was the now cleared up space and the sphere, still hanging there.
"Mission failed, we'll get them next time,"-said Kintoki as he wiped the dust from his shades.
In silence, Gawain, strode to the entity and took the small device out of his armor.
"Wait, isn't that the thing we were supposed to use earlier?"-asked Astolfo.
"It is indeed,"-nonchalantly, Gawain confirmed.
"Then why haven't we?"-pushed further Kintoki only to get…
"I forgot?"
"Understandable," "Yeah, totally".
"What the hell is happening here?!"-rushed EMIYA to the scene from the cafeteria.
"Ah, archer, you see, the vile thing refused to die and…"-he was stopped by the counter-guardian.
"Don't want to hear it. I'm actively loosing braincells as we speak. As far as everything is fine,"-he gave a long look to the scene of demolition,-"Mostly fine, I don't care. Just be sure to survive Da Vinci"
The trio looked amongst themselves. They were dead meat walking.
*****
"After the… debacle, the three of them "explained" the situation… or at least they tried before I locked them in a simulator with the Berserker Lancelot.
Regardless, that was the only means available to me at the time as Master, along with some other servants were in the middle of the supply run.
What the… immaculate brainless fools were able to bring to me, however, confirmed the theory of mine at the time - the sudden unidentified entity, was indeed something from the Roland's time - an Abnormality.
What its powers were, was anyone's guess, however, what happened the next day confirmed my worst fears".
*****
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"-the powerful, earth-splitting and ear-shuttering shriek of pure agony echoed throughout Chaldea, waking up everyone who wasn't yet awake.
The cause?
"WHAT HAPPENED TO MY HAIR?!"
One Ishtar was very… upset, yes. Upset, with finding her hair now gone completely.
When some of the nearby servants came to see what was up, well…
"HA-ha. AHAHAHAHa, oh, by all that is unholy. HAHAHAHAHAH"- Oda Nobunaga couldn't hold it in and folded in her laughing fit. The one next to her, one child Gil, was struggling to keep the smile off of his face while also throwing a gaze full of compassion her way.
Needless to say, in the next ten seconds that it took the mesopotamian deity to realize what was happening, the sturdy walls of Chaldea had suffered once again under the fury of a goddess.
Those, however, who weren't attracted by the boisterous laughter, were met with a different scene. Of a trio of (bald) idiots sitting in front of an equally pissed (and incredibly shiny) EMIYA who was radiating intense anger and swords, only his self-control honed over thousands of battles…
-Oi, Faker, I see you have adjusted your image. Quiet bold of you, truly,-came the quip from Gilgamesh and that was about all of EMIYA's patience expended, as the trio of previously blond (and pink) idiots started to dance, trying to escape being skewered. All to Gilgamesh's growing amusement.
It all came to a head when Ishtar came looking for the trio, at which point Astolfo made the only right decision. He summoned his trusted steed and the battle moved elsewhere. Which is to say, all of chaldea.
…To fix all the damages, at least another ten supply runs would be needed.
To add to that, this was also the moment when Ritsuka decided to return
"WHAT IN THE ACTUAL FUCK IS GOING ON?!"-her reaction was… explosive. Romani quickly took to explaining what was happening. The team of Roland, Arturia, Cu, Osakabehime and Minamoto-no-Raikou were listening in as well, having just returned. The wronged mother went to protect her child, while Cu went to gloat at EMIYA's misfortune. Arturia, likewise, went to show her immense disappointment with her subject.
*****
"The area where the sphere resided was locked off and several patrols put near it, to prevent further complications from happening. Roland, as soon as he'd heard about this happening, used his reality marble to figure out the identity of the Abnormality as well as to find countermeasures to it.
What we didn't account for, however, was the presence of traitor in our midst. And when Roland returned, it was already too late."
*****
When everyone went to sleep or to their rooms, the devil in the human flesh went for the kill.
He was, but a single priest. What many seem to discount were his skills that allowed him to fool the royal court of the Russian monarchy.
Rasputin strolled down the halls swiftly and at ease. His countenance betrayed none of his thoughts, his smile so small, no one would suspect the devil hiding within.
And his goal? The room of one paladin.
With two knocks the door before him parts and the priest's lips turns in the most innocent of smiles.
"Hello, young one. Might I ask if you are interested in taking revenge against the veritable demon that caused you misfortune?"
Astolfo stayed silent, winking the sleep out of his eyes. And when he finally realized what was happening he said…
"Err, no, thank you. Master seems to be pretty cross with me, I don't want to make her upset, so…"-as his hand reached for the button to close the door, Rasputin continued with his honeyed words.
"But the god spoke to me of the way to cure your bad luck and all those affected. Indeed, the abominable thing only needs to be graced by god, purified"-imparted the priest, catching Astolfo's attention and making him hesitate.
"I'm quite sure our dear master will appreciate the sheer determination. As I'm sure forgiveness will be then easier for you to grasp. After all, to err is human, to forgive - divine. And our master is the closest being to the divine."
And as small tremors shook Astolfo, a beastly glint passed Rasputin's eyes.
The seeds were planted into the fertile soil. Soon, the fruits will be ripe for the taking. All he has to do is guide the sheep towards the promised place.
"Listen now and listen well, this is what we are going to do…"
*****
Spring to his step, a small tug to his lips, Astolfo stepped through the darkened halls towards the ball.
"Hello dear friends!"-he waved at Cu and Karna, who were staying guard.
"Greetings to you too, Paladin. Now, even though rude, can I ask you to leave? We were tasked by the master to stay vigil over the sphere while Roland tries to figure out solutions,"-Karna asked politely.
"Errr, actually,"-a pause filled the room.
To everyone else it would seem like Astolfo just wanted to find words to say. But in reality he just forgot the plan.
Thankfully, he had enough sense to make things up.
"Master told me to bring one of you guys along. Said she needed the bestest best Lancer out there so…"
"Naturally she'd come to me, of course!"-said Cu his nose held high.
And he probably would have fallen for that.
"But I mean, isn't it like, one in the morning? Isn't she,like, asleep? And couldn't she just call me through the link?"
"Oh, erm, yeah, she just told me to tell you in advance, because we will be going together…"-Astolfo locked his hands behind his back, his eyes drilling through the cold floor.
"Yeah, alright, so why can't we do these preparations in the morning?"
"Well, she said that we need to prepare beforehand. Something like "I want it done before I wake up so we can work our arses off right off the bat"".
"Our Arses? She spent too much with Drake or something?"-the Irish lancer looked Astolfo in the eye.
Something was definitely up here. He just didn't know what exactly. Astolfo looked innocent enough, don't get him wrong. But speaking in coherent, logical sentences just wasn't his style.
He decided to take the plunge though. What's the worst that can happen, right?
"Karna, can you, y'know, take care of everything here? I'll be sure to send someone to change stand in for me".
"Godspeed my friend,"-the other Lancer nodded, continuing on with the night.
"Down with a touch,"-however he failed to react in time to the cowardly attack from the shadows.
With a thud, the hero of charity fell to the floor, not injured and still conscious, but providing just the right opening.
*THANK*
To be immobilized for good.
A dark smirk played on Rasputin's features. Oh how sweet it was when the plan came together.
He stepped over the unconscious body, into the locked area and approached the hanging White and Black sphere.
"Truly, what chaos can you cause? What kind of curse can befall all the people here?"
The ball didn't answer.
"Or was it all a fluke? Mayhaps, but…"-the Priest touched the ball, with nothing happening as of yet.
But the bringer of disorder knew, deep down. The deed was done.
And in the morning, he would see the results of his labor.
*****
"It was then that disaster struck. As we managed to gleam from the security footage, it seems that Rasputin, in collusion with Astolfo, managed to distract our guards which led…"-Da Vinci took off her wig, exposing the absolute baldness of her head,-"to this".
"After the night spent in his library, Roland returned to the hairless land, where all the employees along with servants had their heads forcefully rid of their hair. No kind of magic resistance helped against this. Worse yet, the Abnormality rewritten EVERY saint graph in the facility, making it hard to return heroic spirits to their… basic state".
"And a for Rasputin, and his bold…"-Da Vinci furrowed,-" attempt at subterfuge. He was found laughing madly in the early hours, clearly satisfied with what he did. For that, he was sentenced to a mandatory family therapy with Caren Hortensia, reinforced by the three command seals. Duration? Until his contract with Chaldea expires, which, at this point, is probably never…"-inventor put her coffee cup on the table with solemn finality.
*****
"What the FUCK is going on?! I left you guys for just one night and you all go freaking bald?!"-Roland shouted at the top of his lungs, blinded by the radiance of… pretty much everyone.
The cafeteria went momentarily quiet.
"HE HAS HAIR!"-someone shouted
"GET HIM!""AFTER HIM",-at that point, the crazy crowd was just about ready to swallow Roland whole, and he didn't even have an inkling as to why.
"WAIT!"-it was then that Ritsuka came for the rescue, standing before the servant.
The no small relief in Roland's eyes vanished, as Ritsuka turned to him.
It was then that he saw that manic glint. The desperate hope.
It felt like he was looking at Philip before distorting again. Her movements were abrupt, shoulders hung and a nervous tick made her (now nonexistent) brow twitch.
"Roland-Roland-Roland, tell me, please, that there is a way to undo this whole… thing,"-she motioned to everyone present, as people in the room waited with bated breath.
Roland knew. This was the end of the road for him. He had no good news to bring.
" I only have my sorrow,
And I want nothing more. "
Naturally, he decided to escape.
"BY MY FIRST COMMAND SEAL, ROLAND STAY STILL"
"BY MY SECOND COMMAND SEAL, ROLAND, GIVE UP YOUR HAIR FOR ME"
"BY MY THIRD COMMAND SEAL, ROLAND BECOME BALD! BECAUSE IF I'M GETTING BALD THEN YOU ARE BALDING AS WELL!"
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
All went silent.