177 A Brief Respite

Entry 152:

Linus Ozias POV:

Chaldea is an interesting place. The facility itself is massive, with a similar size to that of the Pentagon building, if not larger, with sections made to divide the various aspects of the organization.

You have the science department, the dormitories, and the various systems in place to run both  Chaldea's system and the fate systems, along with many libraries and rest areas along with many various training facilities. In addition to the garages and the armories, it creates the sense of this being a highly defendable facility.

In addition, the fact that this facility is located in Antarctica, of all places, makes even getting here a challenge. In addition, leaving is nearly impossible for the average mage, as one would have to trek through miles upon miles of snow and ice. 

While climbing down various glaciers to reach even the nearest port city if one could even call it a port city, as it's mostly just an outpost for the Mage Association.

Because of the incineration of Humanity, the weather patterns have become nearly impossible to read as the various increases in Mana are making the weather patterns much more violent, and the facility has been in a perpetual snowstorm since the beginning of my time here.

Luckily, the facility itself has a day-night cycle in order for anyone within the building to tell what time it is, with artificial lighting and heat to make the transition more recognizable. The technology here is rather interesting due to its focus on spiritron technology and the ability to send someone to any point. Even the basic cafeterias have technology decades ahead of everyday people.

To even enter the facility, one would need to have the proper clearance, or else they would literally be disintegrated before they can even enter this place. It's like a super spy villain base on steroids with a Sci-Fi theme. 

I have been able to make some improvements to the facility myself, as adding alternate sources of power will make it so we are less reliant on external sources like the various power plants and nuclear reactors that send energy to this place.

From what I can remember, this organization after all of this is over, will be essentially shut down by the Mages Association due to not remembering the fact that Humanity got incinerated and views the money dump of this place as not worth the effort nor the time. 

That's the problem when dealing with time travel, as due to the innate nature of how this universe works, any changes in history will be forgotten once history is corrected, and as such, no one will remember what we've done other than the people in this facility.

It's for this reason that Goetia isn't able to find this place due to the various systems making it seem to be outside the normal timeline. We are essentially in a blind spot as long as the systems remain running. Whoever is reading this may wonder why I am telling you all this, and maybe it's just to set a scale or simply to describe the setting.

But it's more to remind myself of how this place once looked on the outside, and it looks like a giant circle, similar to the Senate building in Star Wars. Once I'm done with this place and its upgrades, while on the outside, it won't look fundamentally different, the inside will essentially be a country in and of itself.

Such space is necessary due to the nature of having servants that can planet to continent bust on a whim, and I don't even want to think about what will happen if Gilgamesh ever decides to take out the sword of rupture.

On another note, I was able to find Ritsuka eating in the cafeteria after our mission to France, and as I sat down with her, I began to make some small talk. "So, how are you after that last mission, Ritsuka?" She swallows her food and says, "In all honesty, Oz, while getting to explore a past timeline was fun, having to fight monsters and various servants constantly isn't exactly a calming activity."

I nod as I continue, "Well, sadly, we have more singularities left to go, and know if you ever need to talk to someone, I am here, and while I do not have a license in psychiatry, I have dealt with other cases such as this." Ritsuka then smiles and says softly, "Thanks, Oz, that  means a lot, and in all honesty, I would be terrified if I was by myself."

I shake my head and say, "Even without me, you would have been fine. You are stronger than you know." Mash then sits down near us, wearing her normal clothing, and says, "Ozias Senpai is right, delusional master. While you may be a beginner, we are all here to help."

I nod as Ritsuka then asks, "So Mash, do you have anything on your mind?" Mash then pauses as if afraid to speak but says, "Oh, I was just thinking of Gilles de Rais. I knew his history, or so I thought. Jeanne's death broke his heart. In our history, he became a murderer who killed hundreds of children. That bloody France was what he wanted. It was an appropriate sight for a murderer. But still, even then, his real wish was for Jeanne D'Arc to live. That was the source of his rage and his hatred. A pure rage that could destroy a country. Raw feelings are powerful, aren't they? They can destroy the world."

I nod, thinking of others wishing to see the world burn. As I mentioned, "That is not an odd thought process to have Mash as we all feel emotions at the end of the day. In the end, we are all mortal in a way." 

Mash then nods as she says, "Mozart said something similar while we were walking towards Orleans, and while I may not understand emotions nor the heart, being with you both has truly helped with that."

We smile as Ritsuka hugs the eggplant as she says, "Ah! Don't make that face; it's too cute! Oz, take a picture for the scrapbook." I decided to humor her, create a camera, and take a picture of this moment. Mash is currently blushing but is also smiling as if enjoying the moment.

For now, though, I return to speak with Jeanne in her room. As I knock, I hear her scuffle around as she says, "Come in!" I open the door to her room and enter her home to find it filled with religious memorabilia with her flag hung on the wall. I ask, "May we talk?"

Jeanne smiles and nods as we sit down, with Jeanne asking, "So what is it you wish to talk about Lord Ozias?" I simply say, "Jeanne, you may just call me Linus or Oz or whatever. There's no need for the lord title." 

She then vehemently shakes her head, saying, "No, no, and no, you are my lord, and that is final." I then raise my hand and say, "Alright, whatever pleases you, but I am here to ask a question."

Jeanne then looks at me with a questions stare, which looks rather adorable, but I continue, "After the battle with your other self, she handed me her flag to use as a catalyst to summon her, and I am simply here to ask if you want me to and if you would feel comfortable with me doing so?"

The saint, rather than looking hesitant, takes my hand and says, "I will always welcome more people to talk to, especially her, as I can finally be the older sister." I chuckle at this, imagining the two together.

I then nod and say, "I simply just wanted your opinion as I value it as I would rather not summon a servant all of you are not comfortable with, even if we may do so in the future due to the random nature of the Fate system."

Jeanne sits back down and nods. "Yes, the random nature of the summoning system is rather worrisome, but I'm fully willing to work with anyone you summon, my Lord." I wonder what she thinks of Me based on the reverence in her tone, but my objective is completed for now. I then ask, "So, how have you found your room so far? Is it acceptable?"

Jeanne then nods and says, "Yes, I do appreciate having a little slice of home at this time. It's a comforting thing as even all of my stuff is here, which is surprising." It feels nice to have her say that as I answer, "Well, with each servant coming from a different time period and different place, I thought it would be nice for them to have a little slice of what they recognize."

Jeanne then looks to a picture of her family as she says, "I originally lost this picture when I went to fight and retake Orleans, and while my family may be gone, at least I have all of this to remember them by, so I thank you." I then place my hand on her shoulder and say, "If you desire anything else, just let me know within reason, of course, as we are all in this together."

Jeanne immediately says, "Well, I would go ask if you can summon her, but if you could wait a couple of hours so I could prepare her room, as I am so excited to have a sister."

I begin to laugh at her excited manner, and while she blushes, I leave the room with her muttering to herself, to which I then head to the library to find Murasaki knee-deep in books, and as I tap her on the shoulder, she looks up as I ask "I hope you're finding the library to be everything you've hoped for?"

The woman nods as she says, "Yes, this library is very nice, and in all honesty, I am trying to enjoy the quiet before other eccentric personalities invade this place." I can relate as I always enjoyed reading a good book in silence. I then let her know that if she ever finished with the library's contents, she should find me.

Due to the nature of my Tinker of Fiction ability, I also gained all of the literature of each world, so I have billions of books in my mind. I even find Medusa sitting on the opposite side of the library reading various books, to which I leave her to her silence.

Tamamo and Paraclesus discuss the various differences between Tamamo's seals and curses and Paraclesus's alchemy and magecraft. But I let them know we are attempting to summon again. They both nod as I head to the summoning room and find Mash and Ritsuka waiting as Mash places her shield on the summoning platform.

Olga then comes over to the PA and says [All right, all of you, it's time to commence today's summonings and Ritsuka, please do not summon more mapo tofu as it's so spicy that our staff passes out due to the spiciness.]

What she says makes me somewhat laugh as I have seen some of the staff try to eat the tofu only to then literally have flames bursting out of their mouth because of how spicy it is, but hey, it's something to use for the Moon Festival that is tomorrow actually.

Currently, the date is September 28th, 2014, and I do wonder how we're going to celebrate the Moon Festival with everything going on, but I have heard Romani talking about sweet dumplings or something. 

But for now, I stand before the summoning circle, place Jalter's flag, and say the summoning chant. As soon as the summoning finishes, a blaze forms around the room as Jalter appears and says.

"Servant Avenger summoned at your request." Jalter sees me and asks, "What are you standing there for? Let's start this contract; I'm ready to burn some heretics." 

I smile and form the contract, to which she then, like Siegfried, almost falls over as she says quietly, "I understand now."

I give her a questioning look, but she then shakes her head and says, "Well, that's to be expected from you." She then walks over to  my side as Ritsuka says, "Feel free to do another summoning Oz as that was with a catalyst, so I can wait but not too long as the gacha calls to me."

I give her a thankful nod as Jalter looks confused at the phrase as I simply send a mental communication that essentially says I will explain later. Jalter nods, and I repeat the chant.

This time, the summoning circle glows even brighter, and from the circle and from it comes a new challenger, I mean a servant. The being then steps out from the smoke. I can barely make out his white hair and golden armor.