Fate/Grand Order story · Part 2: Cosmos in the Lostbelt, Lostbelt No.4: Saṃsāra of Genesis and Terminus, Yugakshetra
intro.4
Lostbelt No.4: Saṃsāra of Genesis and Terminus, Yugakshetra. 0
1 scenes, 213 lines
1. Before the battle
213 linesOn December 31, 2019, the entirety of human history was erased in a single stroke.
Every trace of civilization was wiped out, and in its place, the earth was left a bleached wasteland.
No one knew why or how it was done. All that was clear is that humanity had been utterly defeated.
No... It's worse than that. We never even had a chance to fight back.
Our destroyer was known as the Foreign God, a being from a distant star wielding unfathomable power.
...anity. We have a message for all of humanity.
This planet will soon be reborn as an old, brand-new world.
Human civilization was a mistake. The path of our growth was incorrect.
And so I have made my decision. I will revolt against all of human historyProper Human History.
We are about to fill this world with inhuman Mystic secrets. We will restore the Age of Gods.
To that end, the gods have descended from a far-off galaxy, and in their wisdom, they have used seven seeds to select new leaders.
These leaders will remake this planet as they see fit. And the one who reign supreme shall be given the right to renew the world itself.
The life-forms from Proper Human History will not be permitted to take part in this war, or even to view it from the sidelines.
Trees of creation have sprung up all across the land. Now, all of the old humanity's endeavors will be set aside, frozen.
My name is Wodime. Kirschtaria Wodime.
On behalf of the seven Crypters, I have a message for those of you who escaped from Chaldea.
No, rather, I have a message for the scant few remnants of the human race: WE will be the inheritors of this planet's history.
Crypters. The seven Masters of the old Chaldea who were supposed to save the world.
Daybit Sem Void. Ophelia Phamrsolone.
Beryl Gut. Kadoc Zemlupus.
Akuta Hinako. Scandinavia Peperoncino.
And their supposed leader, the foremost disciple of Chaldea's first director...Kirschtaria Wodime.
No one had even been certain they were still alive. But no sooner had they awoken than they turned on the world they had been meant to protect.
Chosen by the Foreign God, the seven Crypters were entrusted with caring for the Trees of Emptiness...
...the enormous trees that appeared around the world after its scouring.
Each Tree of Emptiness was followed by a Lostbelt; a hypothetical history that had been pruned from the chronicle of humanity.
There was the Russian Lostbelt, where humans had fused with beasts in order to survive in an ultracold environment.
There was the Scandinavian Lostbelt, where a Ragnarök gone awry had robbed the world of any possible future.
And there was the Chinese Lostbelt, where a single ruler who achieved immortality carried the rest of mankind on their shoulders.
These and other Lostbelts were to grow their territory, with the one emerging triumphant becoming Earth's official history.
As far as the Crypters were concerned, their only enemyor rather, competition, was the other Crypters competing to establish their Lostbelt's dominance.
The few remnants of the old humanityChaldea, were no more than a tiny bump in their road.
Before the world was wiped clean, the Crypters had mounted an attack on the Chaldea Security Organization's headquarters, and destroyed them.
Chaldeas was frozen solid, and Rayshifting, the only possible means by which humanity could have prevented the great reset, was lost.
But...though many lives were lost, and the survivors were forced to make a desperate retreat, the last Master of Chaldea still lived.
Thanks to the Shadow Border, the All-Terrain Void-Transporter that had been developed in secret...
...and its cross-dimensional Zero Sail traversal method, the survivors successfully escaped into Void Space.
Having evaded the great reset, they emerged in the Russian Lostbelt a few months later, in April of 2020.
They went on to defeat Kadoc Zemlupus, the Crypter assigned to the Russian Lostbelt...
...overthrow the Lostbelt's king, Ivan the Terrible, and cut down its Tree of Emptiness.
Then, after another battle in the Scandinavian Lostbelt, they arrived at the Wandering Sea, a workshop that was home to the only other survivors of humanity.
Now, they have gained a new ally in Sion Eltnam, an alchemist from the Atlas Institute left in charge of the Wandering Sea...
...and are setting out on the next step of their quest to defeat the Crypters, and the Foreign God...
So, how was that recap? Did I do a good job jogging your memory!?
Like it was yesterday!
Yes! You glossed over a number of things, but that's basically the long and short of it!
Huh? What about the Chinese Lostbelt, or the other things that happened!?
Oh, you do not need me to tell you about those. They just happened recently, after all.
I will save the recap on Goredolf's grand adventure for another time!
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Anyway, it has now been a few months since you returned from the Chinese Lostbelt.
Once you are all rested up, I am going to have you head out on your next Order, Lostbelt No. 4...
...where you will investigate a strange Lostbelt that has been repeatedly expanding and contracting.
Moreover, the Captain will be joining in on your adventure into a dazzling realm of Indian mythology!
Of course, if I had known then it would take this long to get ready, I would not have hyped it up quite so much.
My original calculations had me modifyinger, convincing Captain a bit sooner than this...
Hey, it wasn't your fault we all got caught up in that...ordeal. Honestly, I'm just glad we were able to verify that we can actually Rayshift again.
Indeed. We now know for certain that we are able to Rayshift from the Wandering Sea as well as from Chaldea.
While the ability to observe time and space outside the Lostbelts may not help in our efforts to remove them, having more options available can only be a good thing.
Though that's not to say some of us aren't a bit worse for wear. I say, Director Goredolf, has your weight returned to normal yet?
It has, not that I had any say in the matter! I still don't think it's right that I was the only one who didn't get to go on break!
Nor do I see why we need an obsolete relic like Rayshifting when we have the Zero Sail!
Go on, Moony, you know I'm right!
Tell them how you and the whole staff are just as sick and tired of Rayshifting as I am!
What're you talking about? They're both mind-blowing technological achievements. You've just gotta use them right.
Also, I was on the staff at the original Chaldea too, so if anything, I'm way more used to Rayshifting.
You agree with me, right, Fujimaru? Rayshifting is way more fun than Zero Sailing, isn't it?
Yeah, I guess. (Monotone)
(Honestly, neither one's exactly a walk in the park.)
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Et tu, boy!? Argh, why did I have to be born so Rayshift-compatible!?
Oh, never mind all that! Sion! There's something I've been meaning to ask you!
We know now that the Crypters' accursed leader, Kirschtaria Wodime, is in the Atlantic Lostbelt.
I'm also told it's the largest Lostbelt in the world by far, and that the branches of its Tree of Emptiness cover Earth's entire stratosphere!
So what possible point could there be in making a pit stop at this Lostbelt in India!?
It is not a pit stop. We need to go there to ensure our chances of victory are as high as possible.
According to Trismegistus, the ocean occupies most of the Atlantic Lostbelt's territory.
And we are not talking a modern-day ocean here. We are talking about one from the Age of Gods, filled to the brim with ether and Demonic Beasts.
As things stand right now, we have no way of crossing an ocean like that safely.
If you were to enter the Atlantic Lostbelt now, you would just end up as so much seaweed.
I-I see. Does that mean we can't get there in the Border?
I'm afraid not. Sion and I have been talking about it, and we both came to the conclusion...
...that it's just not possible to make the Border seaworthy while preserving its existing functionality.
Just because it can sail in Void Space doesn't mean it can do the same in Reality Space. Each ocean requires a completely different means of traversal.
And since the Border is an All-Terrain Void-Transporter, we can't allocate that many resources only to make it capable of sailing on real water.
I guess we could technically do it if we made the hull bigger, but if we did that, we wouldn't have nearly enough staff to run it.
A vehicle that size would need at least sixty professionals to be operated. Can you guess what resource we are lowest on just now?
I guess that would be human resources...
Meunière and the rest of the Border's staff are all doing their best, but...
Right. So you are going to acquire what we need in the Indian Lostbelt.
Fou?
So...you want us to recruit more people there?
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No, no, nothing like that. We already know that you cannot bring anything native to a Lostbelt outside it, right?
No, this is a simple matter of earthbound coordinates.
India has everything we currently lack, so you are going to go there to get it all in one fell swoop.
Is that not right, Captain? We are all done making adjustments and attachments over here.
All you have to do now is personally activate the Aronnax Phantasm in India and attach it.
...Yes, I'll go with them. It's been several months since I started helping out with the Border's maintenance.
It might be as slow as a sea turtle, but I can't help but have some affection for it after all this time.
And I know the Phantasm needs to be activated very carefully, with a precise ritual, and only at particular coordinates.
I don't know if we can even use it in a Lostbelt or not, but we'll never know unless we try.
That said, I'm the one who's going to decide what it becomes. That part is nonnegotiable.
And if I decide it's not going to work, I'm going to come back on my own. Got that, Sion?
Sure, as your Master, I am okay with that. Though I seriously doubt you are capable of being so heartless.
Hmph.
Um...
What are you talking about?
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...We're talking about my coming along with you to India. I thought you'd already been told about that.
Da Vinci, do you remember seeing a steel, pyramid-shaped object somewhere around the dock?
Well, it's mine. I'd like you to store it in the Border for me. In the worst case, we can use it as a shield.
Oh, you mean that weird-looking thing that almost seems like part from a car body kit?
Aha, is that the Aronnax Phantasm thing you were just talking about?
...Yeah. It's not much use for a mermaid that can swim around the ocean freely, though.
Hmm. I can't say I know what it is you're talking about, but the more Servants around who can keep me safe, the better.
Um, thanks? Anyway, glad to be here, everybody.
Oh, and don't worry about my seat. I already installed one for me, and it only takes up half of Meunière's space.
(Whoa, really!? That means Captain's gonna be sitting next to me!)
(This is my big chance to show him what I'm made of! I can't wait to get started!)
All right, but is that our only objective in India? Does this mean we don't have to cut down its Tree of Emptiness?
No, you will definitely be needing to eliminate the Indian Lostbelt while you are there...
...given that it seems to be indirectly responsible for the recent Rayshift incident.
The Indian Lostbelt...
There is a very good chance that these histories that were pruned away after they were deemed unnecessary contain significant and unprecedented threats.
I have determined that we cannot leave this Lostbelt be just because it is low on our list of priorities.
Besides, there is still so much we do not know, and not just about the Trees of Emptiness.
What is going on with the Crypters? Who are the Alter Egos claiming to be Disciples of the Foreign God?
Every Lostbelt we investigate provides us with more data.
Fujimaru. Mash. Da Vinci. Goredolf. Meunière.
As the one supervising the Command Room, and as someone personally wishing for your success, there is something I wish to say.
...You need to eliminate every Lostbelt. We have no choice but to fight, regardless of how painful that choice is.
You need to eliminate them both to improve our chances of victory during the inevitable climactic confrontation, and to return human history to its proper place.
Sion...
Whoops, scratch that! I should know better than to get overly serious before you have even headed out on a mission!
I am sure we will run into more than enough trouble in the Lostbelts, so we should at least try to enjoy ourselves while we are in the base!
All right, that is all for now. Please make sure to review the particulars of this mission on your mobile devices.
This Order will commence at dawn.
Be sure to get plenty of sleep, and come to the dock by the time we agreed on.
Got it!
Roger that!
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...
Huh?
Da Vinci...?
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...
Uh, hello?
Is she...sleepstanding...?
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Oh, Fujimaru. What's up?
We have less than six hours until the mission starts. You should head back to your room and get some rest.
I doubt we'll have many chances to get a full night's sleep once we're in the Lostbelt. Who knows when you'll get another chance to stay in a bed that doesn't rock?
Uh, you might want to check your watch...
It's actually time to go right now, Da Vinci.
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Huh? It's already time? Have I been sleeping standing up this whole time?
...
Hehe, oopsies. I didn't really want to go back to my workshop, so I guess I ended up resting my eyes first a little longer than I meant to.
Well I feel silly☆
Anyway, go on and head down to the dock. I'll catch up with you guys soon!
(Where did she get those roller skates...?)
(She just skated down the hall like it was a giant rink...)
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...As I. Had thought. Da Vinci is having. Some operational difficulties.
Nezha!?
When did you get here!?
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I have. Been behind you. For some time. You must. Have been. So focused. On Da Vinci. That you didn't notice.
In any case. This is. A good chance. To tell. You this. You can't. Let Da Vinci. Push herself. Too much.
She is. Doing everything. Leonardo. Da Vinci would. Be doing. But while. In a much. Smaller body.
That obviously. Puts tremendous strain. On her now. You must. Be aware. Of that.
She may. Have inherited. Leonardo. Da Vinci's. Duties.
But she. Is a. Pseudo-Servant. Just like. Mash is.
We may. Differ in format. But she and. I are. Very similar. I understand. How she. Is feeling.
No. Scratch that. I do. Not know. How she. Is feeling. Da Vinci is. So strong.
Nezha...?
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I said too much. My apologies. So please. Keep this. Between us. Promise?
I am. Coming along. To the Indian Lostbelt. I hope. We can. Continue. To get along.
Same here!
Glad to have you with us again!
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Understood. I promise. I will. Not let. You down.
That said...
The jewel. In my. Chest is. Acting up. A bit. I don't. Think this. Has ever. Happened to. Me before.
...The Indian. Lostbelt is. A very. Bad place. Every part. Of my. Spirit Origin. Is warning. Me not. To go.
Even so. Every Lostbelt. Is dangerous. I am. The Crown. Prince Nezha. I must. Not back down. From a challenge.
If things. Go bad. I know. You will. Help me! I'm sure. I have. Nothing to. Worry about!
Let's go. The others. Are waiting!
Oh man, sorry I'm late! I can't believe I took so long to get ready!
It looks like you are all here. Then let us begin the final rundown!
Your destination is the Indian Lostbelt. Your objective is to help Captain gain experience poi
I mean, power up the Shadow Border, explore the Indian Lostbelt, and ultimately eliminate it.
Captain and I will handle the Shadow Border side of things, so please do not concern yourselves with that.
What I would like you to focus on, Master Fujimaru, is cutting down the Indian Tree of Emptiness.
I estimate you should have room in the Border to fit about twenty days worth of supplies.
While the Aronnax Phantasm will be loaded into the hangar as supplemental equipment...
...you will not need to account for it in battle, as it is not meant for offensive purposes.
I take it we will be summoning reinforcement Servants within the Lostbelt again, as we have done thus far?
Correct. From here, you will need to travel across Void Space to get close to the Indian Lostbelt...
...and from there, you will need to immediately undergo another Zero Sail in order to make your way inside...
Consecutive Zero Sails are draining, even for Servants, and Da Vinci's protection safeguards can only do so much.
So I think it is best if we keep no more than three Servants on standby in the Border.
Then, no matter how many Servants we win over to our side in the future, we'll only be able to take three of them into a Lostbelt with us?
That is how it works out, yes. I am not saying we can never send more than three if we really have to, but the Servants summoned inside a Lostbelt are more powerful anyway.
So when you get there, I would like you to secure a leyline and use Mash's holy relic to form contracts with new Heroic Spirits, just as you have in the other Lostbelts.
All right then...as the Wandering Sea Command Room's supervisor, I have an order for those of you on the field team.
As of this moment, Novum Chaldea will be transitioning to its first battle position.
Field team, go ahead and board the Border, starting with Master Fujimaru.
Once I have confirmed all of your vitals are green, you will begin a Zero Sail...
...and officially commence Order Lostbelt No. 4 along with its Sub-Order, Horned Monster.
Make sure you all give it everything you have, and I look forward to your safe return!