Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Upon finalizing his selection, Vahn watched, his expression one of abject curiosity, as a feminine ’robot’ manifested before him. It was surprisingly tall, standing on some kind of thrusters that not only allowed it to move freely within atmosphere but travel at near-light speeds outside of it. The four, pointed, wings on its back served to aid in this purpose, acting as stabilizers in conjunction with the large, plated, skirt that adorned its waist.

At a glance, the figure before him appeared to be fully mechanical, a robot designed to appear feminine by having secondary sexual characteristics arbitrarily added to its figure. The truth of the matter, however, was that it was actually a very thing aether-nano mesh, covering the body of the startlingly beautiful woman beneath. It was a piece of technology several generations superior to anything that had been developed by the Empire, so, if Da Vinci managed to get her hands on it, transitioning to a space-faring civilization would be a simple matter.

Unaware of Vahn’s thoughts, the ’machine’, possessing a rather sleek full-helmet that had two, vaguely cat-like, antennae tilted its head to the side. Then, hefting the double-sided spear in her right arm, a version of Rhongomynyad possessing two points and a large shield attachment, she aimed it directly toward his face, a synthetic voice stating, "You are not of this world. If I do not find your answer satisfactory, I will have no choice but to eliminate you. Now, tell me, for what purpose have you called me to this world? Has the Saber invasion somehow spread beyond my Universe...?"

Though she was addressing Vahn, the machine-like female turned her attention briefly to the three ’Sabers’ standing off to the side. None of these were her ’targets’, however, so she cast her gaze upon the massive dragon looming a few dozen meters away before returning her attention back to Vahn. He gave off an ’otherworldly’ aura, something that didn’t seem to match the natural world. As her primary duty had been the elimination of ’Foreigners’, her sensors were calibrated to detect their anomalous energy signatures.

Vahn wasn’t overly fond of having a spear shoved in his face, especially one possessing both the Holy and Star elements, but he managed to maintain a smile on his face as he said, "Lower your weapon, Altria Pendragon. Though it isn’t incorrect to say I am your enemy, there is no animosity between us. When we do fight, we’ll do so in a venue where innocent lives will not be pulled into the conflict. Does your sense of justice compel you to slaughter innocents to achieve your goals?"

Hearing Vahn state her True Name, Altria hesitated for a brief moment before pointing her spear away from his face. Then, in much the same way as Sigurd’s rather futuristic helmet, Altira’s began to transform, parting to reveal the face of a beautiful woman with slightly innocent features. She currently had a conflicted look, her glimmering-blue eyes possessing a quality similar to stardust as she adopting a pouting expression and said, "I don’t harm the innocent..."

Not expecting the somewhat adorable response, Vahn raised his brows slightly, resisting the urge to release a light chuckle as he remarked, "How commendable..."

Much like he had for Sigurd, Kojirou, and Gozen, Vahn explained the reason he had summoned Altria, surprising her by the mention of her ’Alter’ form. In fact, the moment she heard mention of the former’s existence, she adopted an even more obvious pout than before, stating, "I’m won’t fight on the same side as that woman. You said they were a group her Heroes, right? Why do they have someone that wants to destroy the Universe on their side? Can you explain that!?"

That Altria’s concerns were understandable, especially considering the dynamic between the two of them, Vahn hadn’t gotten the impression that her gluttonous counterpart was evil. Rather, she seemed pretty content with just spending her time idling about, enjoying various different types of food without a care in the world. Though her battle with Artoria had been rather intense, there had never been a point where she expressly exerted herself in an attempt to kill, maim, or cause unnecessary anguish. She just fought because she was ’supposed’ to, making her relatively tame if the situation didn’t require her to take up arms.

Vahn did his best to convey his thoughts to Altria, but, as if she simply couldn’t tolerate the idea of working with one of her ’targets’, she ended up pointing her spear toward him, saying, "You truly are a despicable and evil man! You’re trying to force me to aid my enemies in order to entertain yourself, aren’t you? Don’t think you can fool me so easily! I am a Cosmic Sheriff, a member of the Galaxian Police Force! You are under arrest for the unlawful exploitation of Servants...!"

Realizing he had underestimated Altria’s rather ’intense’ character, Vahn found himself at a slight loss, his skin tingling due to the energy radiating from the holy spear’s tip. It didn’t seem to matter to her that he was currently her Master, meaning his death would also result in her own erasure...

In an attempt to deescalate the situation, Vahn raised his hands in a placating manner as he said, "I am not going to force you to fight, Altria. Like everyone else, you have the right to choose how you spend this opportunity you have been provided. I understand the responsibility that comes with summoning Heroic Spirits into the world, so, while I’m unaware of the laws dictated by your Galaxian Police Force, it is senseless to claim I am in violation of them. This is not your world, nor even the same Universe...even if you arrested me, what then?"

Though she didn’t stop pointing her spear towards Vahn’s face, Altria adopted another pouting expression, her cheeks puffing out as she issued a frustrated ’muuu’. The standard procedure was to detain criminals before turning them over to the Inter-Galactic Federation for processing. Since the Galaxian Police Force didn’t even exist in this world, something she could confirm using the sensors in her suit, there was no judicial council to enact the Laws that dictated her action. Rather, given Vahn’s position and political status, pointing her spear directly at him would have earned her a harsh rebuke from her superiors...

Seeing the expression on Altria’s face, Vahn realized she was actually pretty gullible. While this was an endearing quality in some, the fact she wielded enough power to potentially injure even a Tier 5 being made her pretty dangerous. That spear in her hand seemed even more dangerous than the infinitely powerful [Rhongomynyad] wielded by Artoria, so, while it didn’t seem like she could make full use of its power, Vahn wasn’t going to underestimate her.

Quickly making up his mind, Vahn took advantage of Altria’s current mental state, using a guiding tone as he said, "You are a Foreigner to this world, a Heroic Spirit that is fundamentally different in nature to the existence you represented back in your home Universe. I’ll admit, it was unfair of me to thrust you into the current situation. I don’t wish to see you become a criminal...tell me, if I were to free you from the contract that binds you, how would you choose to live? So long as it does not endanger the lives of my people, I will support your decision."

Hearing Vahn mention she would become a criminal, Altria began to feel slightly flustered, as, in her past life, she spent a lot of time just trying to clear her name. She no longer had the support of the GPF, so, even if she wanted to quote Intergalactic Law, there was no such organization to back up her claims. This effectively made her a vigilante within Vahn’s world, meaning she was violating several laws, acting with complete disregard for the current situation...

With Altria’s eyes swimming around in their sockets, Vahn realized he had put too much pressure on the rather naive woman. This made him feel a little guilty, so, after releasing a gentle stream of calming energy through his domain, he softly muttered, "There is no reason to panic. Just take a few deep breaths...here, follow after me..."

Perhaps as a result of their Master/Servant relationship, Altria was surprisingly obedient, following Vahn’s rhythm as he walked her through a breathing exercise. This allowed her to gradually calm down, clarity returning to her gaze as a thoughtful look flickered across her pale, starlight-blue, eyes. He could tell she was thinking about his previous words, but, as he was somewhat curious to see how long she would continue following his lead, Vahn walked her through the same exercise until her brain began to feel a little fuzzy from oxygen saturation...

After shaking her head to clear the tingling feeling, Altria felt a lot calmer, her expression forming a familiar smile as she demurely stated, "I’m fine now...thank you..."

Nodding his head, Vahn didn’t beat around the bush, asking, "So, did you think about my words? As I said before, I won’t tell you how to live your life. So long as you follow the Common Laws that have been established by the Empire, you are free to do as you please."

As she had spent the last few minutes thinking things through, Altria began to absentmindedly fiddle with her fringe bangs, a rather girlish, and moderately surprising, display. Then, with her gaze lingering on the various people and features present within the Welsh Dragon’s Chamber, she answered, "I don’t want to fight on the same side as that woman. If she is your enemy, I will stay with the Empire. You do not seem to be as vile and wicked as I expected. I want to see what form your Empire takes...if...if you turn out to be a bad guy, I might have to fight against you..."

Vahn was tempted to ask what she would do if he turned out to be a ’good guy’, but, considering the influence her ’counterparts’ would have on her, that was all but a foregone conclusion. Just by letting them experience the Memory Link, most righteous Heroic Spirits would willingly contribute to his cause. If he allowed Altria to experience his past, it wasn’t difficult even remotely difficult to imagine what kind of reaction she would have...

As the end result was the same, regardless of his actions, Vahn gave an understanding nod in response to Altria’s statement, smiling as he said, "So long as you do not harm the innocent, I am willing to accept your challenge any time. I can sense you possess a phenomenal power, so I’m actually looking forward to sparring with you a few times. For now, however, there are a few other things we need to discuss. Afterward, I’ll help you get situated."

Hearing Vahn’s response, Altria’s smile blossomed even further, earning her a tongue click from Gozen. This caused Altria to give the curious kitsune woman a questioning look, confused about the unexpectedly hostile reaction from the woman she had never met. Unfortunately, her reaction seemed to exacerbate matters, causing Gozen to cross her arms with a glowering expression that conveyed mild disdain.

Before things could escalate further, Vahn interceded, sending a pointed look towards Gozen that caused her to avert her eyes in a pretense of shame. This only further confused Altira, but, before she could make any inquiries, Vahn began to direct them out of the Welsh Dragon’s Chamber. He still had much to discuss with them., and, with time counting down to the moment he booted the Heroes Faction from the Moon Cell, it was better to wrap things up sooner, rather than later. There was still much left to do, but, now that things had developed to this point, Vahn knew it wouldn’t be long before everything was neatly following his arrangements...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: ’Da Vinci is going to have a field day...’,’A surprisingly adorable, yet hot-headed, maiden’,’Just according to keikaku...(T/N: Keikaku means plan)’)