Songs in the Void: A Multiversal Score

TYPE-MOON Universe, Earth, Japan, Fuyuki city.  

The clearing fell into silence as Tatsuo, with is arms still protruding from Saber's chest, Elicia, Sakura, and Rin watched as Saber faded into motes of mana that were drawn into the Lesser Grail. At the same time, the Holy Grail, a combination of the Lesser Grail and the Greater Grail, grew in brightness. Then, once the last mote of mana was drawn into it, it took the form of a large, golden chalice.  

"I guess I'd have been disappointed if it looked like anything else." Elicia muttered as she and the other two Magi made their way towards the Grail.  

"You see something that has the potential to punch a hole to the Root, and that's all you can think of to say?" Rin asked in an incredulous tone.  

"That's a vastly overstated fact." Elicia said, waving Rin off dismissively. "The geniuses who created the Holy Grail ritual kinda messed up. So, it actually can't reach the Root. It does have a whole lot of energy, though."  

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, an obviously curious tone in her voice.  

"Well, to reach the Root, I would have had to die, too." Tatsuo replied. "The power of seven Servants is needed to reach the Root."  

"Yeah, but there lies the problem." Elicia added. "Only someone with a spiritual body can touch the Grail to activate it. Anyone else who touches it would probably die… or something."  

"Are you serious?' Rin asked in dumbfounded amazement. "Then, what have all these Magi been fighting for, for the last… almost two hundred years?"  

"They're right." An elderly male voice said from behind the gathered group.  

Turning around to see who was speaking, Tatsuo, Elicia, Sakura, and Rin were just in time to see Zelretch step through a portal. However, he was not alone. Along with him were Illyasviel, Sella, and Leysritt, the latter two carrying suitcases.  

"Normally, I would be curious to know just how the two of you know such information." Zelretch said sternly before putting on a somewhat sheepish expression. "But… I may have been watching the show earlier… And possibly overheard some secrets that you were telling the young lady with violet hair, Miss Taylor."  

'Right… Possibly overheard…" Tatsuo, Elicia, and Scylla thought at the same time while simultaneously rolling their eyes.  

"Whatever, I'll talk to you about it later." Elicia said, rolling her eyes again. "For now, we've got some wishes to make."  

Turning back towards the Holy Grail, Elicia gestured for Tatsuo to step forward. Nodding in response, Tatsuo did just that and placed his hand against the Grail. Then, he closed his eyes and made his wish.  

A moment later, Illyasviel began to glow with a bright golden light. Then, in front of everyone's eyes, the glow began to expand both upwards and outwards.  

"Why is the glow getting bigger?" Sakura asked while shielding her eyes from the brightness.  

"More importantly, why is she even here?" Rin asked, still remembering how antagonistic Illyasviel had been to her since the first time they met. She then turned to point at Zelretch. "And who is this? Not to mention, how did he get here?"  

"Oh, that's the Wizard Marshall, Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg." Elicia said casually. "Zelretch, these are Matou Sakura and Tohsaka Rin. Though, I bet Sakura's family name will change sooner or later."  

Hearing the old man's identity, Rin's pointing hand dropped to her side as her eyes opened wide while her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. As for Sakura, she, in her usual polite, soft-spoken, demeanor, bowed her head politely.  

"It's an honor to meet you, Wizard Marshall-Dono." Sakura said reverentially.  

"Ther's no need for the formality, Girl." Zelretch said while waving off Sakura's show of etiquette. "All I ask is that if you accept Miss Taylor's offer, take me with you on some of your adventures, will you?"  

"Huh?" Rin asked, immediately getting her mind back in the game when it came to Sakura. "What offer? What adventures?"  

"We can talk about that later." Elicia said, waving off Rin's questions. She then pointed at the glow that shrouded Illyasviel. "it's about to end."  

That drew everyone's gazes back to Illyasviel. And just as Elicia said, the glow surrounding her was beginning to dim. Then, after only a moment, or two, it faded completely.  

"Ahh! Miss Illya!" Sella shouted as Illyasviel came into view again.  

Immediately after her shout, Sella threw herself in front of Illya, who, after growing from 4'4" to 5'1", and gaining many womanly curves with a respectable bust and hip line, was straining to fit in her clothes, with her shirt hiked up far enough to show off the bottoms of her breasts and her midriff, while her skirt just barely reached her thighs.  

"Oh… I'm a lot bigger now." Illyasviel said in wonder as she looked down at her new body.  

"Miss Illya, please!" Sella shouted in a panic. "We need to get you dressed properly. Leysritt, please get something for the Miss to wear from my luggage."  

While Sella was frantically trying to cover Illyasviel's body from view, Leysritt had been glaring at both Tatsuo and Zelretch. However, when she heard Sella's request, she, while still continuing to glare at the only two men in the area, calmly searched through Sella's belongings before pulling out a sleeveless maroon dress with yellow diamond patterns, a pair of leggings, a pair of sandals, and a thigh-length burgundy jacket.  

Then, once Leysritt had the clothing in hand, Sella snatched them from her quickly before shepherding Illyasviel away from the Holy Grail to get her dressed.  

"They may be a little too big for you, Miss." Sella said while trying to regain her calm. "But please bear with it. We can buy new clothes for you later."  

"Aww… But now none of the clothes Lici made for me will fit." Illyasviel said with a pout.  

"Perhaps she will be willing to make more for you if you ask her nicely." Sella said, her voice fading as the two got further away from the group.  

Elicia and Zelretch could not help but smile at that as Leysritt hurried to pack Sella's bag again before hurrying to chase after her mistress and her companion. Meanwhile, Rin looked at Illyasviel, unable to speak, with her eyes almost bulging out of her head. Sakura, on the other hand, only watched in interest before turning to look at Tatsuo when the trio disappeared behind the trees.  

"Assassin, what did you wish for?" Sakura asked softly, yet curiously.  

"Well, my only wish for the Holy Grail was to find a Master who would not betray me." Tatsuo replied without turning around, though it could be heard that he was smiling based on his tone. "And I found that in Lici."  

Elicia smiled in reply.  

"So, instead of using my wish for myself, I used it to fix all the damage the Einzbern's had done to Illya's body." Tatsuo continued. "That's what she asked for, anyway. And now, instead of dying about a year after the Grail War ended, she should be able to live as long as any other Magus… Probably even longer thanks to how many magic circuits she has in that body of hers. On top of that, she should have grown to her natural size, too."  

"That was really kind." Sakura said with a sweet smile.  

"Yeah, I gotta admit that was pretty kind, too." Rin grumbled. "Even if I don't like the brat all that much, she didn't deserve to die so early."  

"She's older than you are, though." Elicia pointed out. "If I remember correctly, she should already be eighteen."  

"What? Seriously?" Rin exclaimed in surprise.  

Even Sakura's eyes widened slightly when she heard that. She then looked in the direction where the three from the Einzberns disappeared, remembering the little girl who looked like she couldn't have been more than eight or nine years old.  

"Anyway, I guess it's my turn now, huh?" Elicia said with a shrug as she took a step towards Tatsuo and placed her hand on his back. "And now for my wish."  

Like Tatsuo had done, Elicia closed her eyes. Then, she communicated her wish to the Grail through Tatsuo.  

*Flash!*  

In the next instant, light flashed next to Tatsuo. And when the light faded, an incredibly beautiful woman with pointed ears, light blue hair, and blue eyes was revealed wearing a black top, a jean jacket, and an ankle length tan skirt.  

"What?" The woman, Medea, or Caster, exclaimed as she gained her senses. "Where am I?"  

"don't worry, we'll explain." Elicia replied with a smile as she took her hand off Tatsuo's back. "For now, just touch the Grail. That way, you'll have a real physical body. You'll lose most of your magical ability, though. But I think that would be a good trade-off if it meant you could live with your hubby for the rest of your life, wouldn't it?"  

Hearing Elicia's voice and what she said, Medea looked around. Immediately recognizing where she was, as she had lived on Mount Enzou for a while after killing her first Master, she quickly put the pieces together and, partially, understood her situation. She then glared at Tatsuo angrily.  

"Hey, don't look at me like that." Tatsuo said with a casual shrug. "You tried to break my pact with Lici. And I couldn't have that."  

Snorting at Tatsuo's nonchalance, Medea turned towards the grail. Then, with more force than strictly necessary, she slapped her hand on the Grail. A moment later, she flickered with golden light before removing her hand.  

Touching herself all over, Medea quickly realized that she no longer had the body of a Servant. She also noticed that she was able to regenerate mana on her own. Though, she frowned when she felt the quality of her magic circuits.  

"Are you serious?' Medea asked rhetorically. "Now, I'm no better than the trash that are called Magi in this modern era."  

Hearing that, Rin bristled in anger while Zelretch laughed. As for Tatsuo, Elicia, and Sakura, they only smiled at Medea's outrage.  

Medea complained a little bit longer, only stopping when Illyasviel, now dressed in Sella's clothes, which were a bit oversized for her, Sella, and Leysritt returned.  

"You know, I thought that would be it." Tatsuo said while tilting his head as he continued to keep his hand on the Holy Grail. Though, he did notice that its glow had dimmed significantly. "I mean, we're each only supposed to get one wish, right?'" 

"That's not actually the case." Zelretch said while stroking his beard. "It seems that way because usually a Master and Servant would ask for something on a much grander scale. But since you asked for such simple things, there was still energy left over."  

"Does that mean we get more wishes?" Elicia asked with her eyes sparkling.  

"Yes." Zelretch replied. "Though, it looks like you'll only get one more on the level of bringing back Caster.'  

"Then, I know what to use it for." Tatsuo said with a smile.  

Everyone, even Elicia was curious to know what Tatsuo would use the remaining energy for. But they could tell that he wanted to keep it a surprise. And what made it even worse was the fact that he would be called back to the Throne of Heroes after his wish was granted.  

Meanwhile, Tatsuo, ignoring the other's curiosity, closed his eyes once again and made another wish. Then, after a moment, the Grail's glow was extinguished before it vanished. Though, it did not disappear. Instead, the Greater Grail returned to the chamber in the cavern on the mountain while the Lesser Grail appeared in the form of the chalice Tatsuo made with Zelretch before floating into Zelretch's outstretched hand.  

"Well, that really should be it." Tatsuo said as he started to flicker with mana. "I guess it's time for goodbyes."  

Hearing that, everyone expected Sakura to have the biggest reaction. However, she only smiled at Tatsuo sweetly. Instead, it was Illyasviel who reacted the hardest, throwing herself at Tatsuo and wrapping her arms and legs around his neck and torso in a tight hug.  

"Thank you, Assassin." Illyasviel said while trying to hold back tears. "You gave me a chance to live for real."  

In response, Tatsuo's smile softened as he patted Illyasviel's back.  

"If you wanna thank me, then just live well." Tatsuo said gently. "And from what I can tell, you got anew grandpa who will probably spoil you rotten if you let him. So, try to enjoy life without turning into a major bitch like you were."  

Hearing that, Illyasviel pouted before she started to hammer her little fists on Tatsuo's chest, making most of those present laugh good-naturedly.  

"She'll have a little sister to tease, too." Zelretch said with a smile. "If Miss Tohsaka accepts my offer, that is."  

"Offer?" Rin asked, tilting her head in confusion, her twin tails swaying with the movement of her head. "What offer."  

"I can tell you're quite the talented Magus." Zelretch replied. "Your skill with [Jewel Magecraft] is outstanding for your age. And that without much formal training from a qualified teacher. And as it just so happens, I invented [Jewel Magecraft]. So, who better than me to become your master?"  

Once again, Rin's eyes widened in surprise. And the excitement in the depths of her eyes was impossible to keep hidden. A moment later, however, that excitement dimmed as she looked at Sakura.  

"Accept his offer, Onee-Sama." Sakura said gently and encouragingly. "An opportunity like this won't come again."  

"She's right, you know?" Zelretch added with a nod. "On top of that, from what I'm sensing, you might even be suitable to learn the [Kaleidoscope]. And should you accept my offer, I'll do my best to teach that, too."  

With Sakura's encouragement and the cherry on top that was True Magic, Rin, without even realizing it, found herself nodding so fast that her twin tails would have become a weapon should anyone have been close enough to be hit by them as they waved through the air.  

"Very Good." Zelretch said with a smile. "Oh, and by the way… You know you don't have to leave your sister, right? I mean, I can be, or get you to, anywhere in the world in just an instant."  

Rin could not help but start blushing immediately after hearing that. She then turned her head away to hide her embarrassment.  

"O-Of course I knew that." Rin said stubbornly. "I just didn't want Sakura to worry about being alone, that's all."  

That drew another round of laughter and a snort from Rin. Meanwhile, Tatsuo was starting to fade more quickly. So, he put Illyasviel down and turned to look at Elicia.  

"Well, it was fun, Lici." Tatsuo said with a smile. "We should do this again."  

"Yeah, we should." Elicia replied with a smile of her own. "And next time, we should bring Fonzie along. Besides, he wouldn't cut me off from his cooking like you did."  

Though Elicia grumbled the last sentence quietly, everyone heard her, making them have to hold back their laughter to not ruin the moment. As for Tatsuo, he was replying to the muttering in his mind.  

'The hell he wouldn't.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'Who do you think it was that told me I should punish you that way if you got out of hand? You just don't know how far you can go with me yet.'  

"Anyway, I'll catch you on the other side." Tatsuo said while waving at everyone present as his body broke down into motes of mana.  

Then, after another moment, Tatsuo vanished, returning to the Throne of Heroes until Elicia decided to leave the world. Meanwhile, he could not help but smile at the [Notification] he received while waiting.  

{[Notifications]  

[Missions]  

[Mission #3] has been completed successfully.  

-Rewards will be granted after returning to your home world.  

-You may return to your home world immediately should you wish.  

-Should you wish to delay your return, you will be forcefully returned in 71 Hours, 12 Minutes, 03 Seconds.}   

'I guess that means Sakura accepted the invitation.' Tatsuo thought to himself while resting in the Throne of Heroes.  

Meanwhile, Elicia, Sakura, Rin, Illyasviel, Sella, Leysritt, and Zelretch were gathered in the suite at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Medea, on the other hand, went to the hospital to visit Souichirou after Elicia told her where he could be found. However, they all noticed it felt a little empty. And that was because there was no sound coming from the kitchen. Nor was there the scent of delicious food wafting throughout the suite.  

However, the feeling of emptiness did not last long, as Elicia had begun telling everyone of hers and Tatsuo's origins. And by the time she was finished, everyone other than Sakura and Zelretch wore completely flabbergasted expressions on their faces.  

"Wait! Wait! Wait!" Rin said while lowering her head and holding up her hands. "Are you telling us that you're some kind of aliens?"  

"Well… Technically." Elicia replied while tilting her head. "I mean, but we are human. Just not from this Earth. So, I guess you're not wrong?"  

"Why did that sound more like a question than a statement?" Illyasviel asked in an amused tone.  

"Tee-Hee." Elicia only giggled in the cutest way she could in lieu of a response.  

"And you invited my sister to join your group of alien mercenaries?" Rin asked, sounding completely exhausted.  

"Yeah, pretty much." Elicia replied with a nod. "But this is making the guy to girl ratio even more skewed. I mean, only three of the soon to be eight members are gonna be guys. I guess we'll have to try and find more guys on other missions."  

"You could just invite me instead." Zelretch said while raising his hand like a student.  

"And are these [Missions] you go on safe?' Rin asked, concern lacing her tone as she completely ignored Zelretch.  

"Well, this is only my first [Mission]." Elicia replied with a shrug. "But it's the second time I've gone to another world. And during that first trip, we hunted wyverns for a week. Tatsuo…. Oh, that's Assassin's real name… even made weapons from their remains. I got to make clothes from them, too."  

While most of the people in the room looked interested to hear the rest of that story, Rin looked mortified as she hugged Sakura tightly.  

"No, I forbid it.!" Rin shouted. "Hasn't she already been through enough? Why can't you just let her live a safe life?'" 

"You know that's not possible when you know about the world's mysteries." Zelretch said regrettably.  

"Zelly is right." Elicia said with a nod.  

"Zelly?" Zelretch asked in amusement.  

"Besides, after joining the [Dimensional Chat]…" Elicia continued.  

"That still sounds like a load of fan fic crap." Illya said with a giggle.  

"… she'll have many opportunities to get stronger." Elicia continued, completely unbothered by the interruption. "On top of that, there is a [Shop] attached to the [Chat]. And let me tell you, you can buy next to anything you can think of from it. I mean, I've bought all kinds of exotic threads."  

Elicia then turned to look at Zelretch with a smile.  

"If you have enough points, you could even buy True Magic." Elicia said happily. "Just think about it, Sakura could become a Magician just from accumulating enough Coins from the daily lottery."  

That statement was enough to leave everyone dumbfounded completely.  

After that, the group talked for a bit more. Then, Elicia took Illyasviel's new measurements before everyone went home, with Zelretch taking Illyasviel, Sella, and Leysritt to the clock tower, Rin returning to the Tohsaka Residence, and Sakura heading back to her apartment in the Shinto District.  

However, when Sakura got home, there was a surprise waiting for her that she was not expecting.