Fate/Heroes - Chapter 3

Several days came and went and every night Gray came to the abandoned apartment building to practice his spearmenship. The once raw and unpolished form slowly revealed a graceful and deadly style capable of battling enemies in both a large number and single combat.

His strikes became as fast as the lightning that flowed from his body causing his speed to grow superhuman even without the Class Cards enhancement.

A dull boom echoed from the rooftop.

The rain dulled the sound by a large amount, but the constant repetitive strikes and lunges made it quite the sight for the other denizens of Gotham City.

Gray knew that people were watching him, and knew this was the last time he could practice in this place. The potential to meet the Batman was growing with everyday, and he neither had a mask, nor a Class Card whose Heroic Spirit changed his face.

Other than Berserker of course. But he vowed to never use that particular Servant again unless their were extenuating circumstances.

He spun around and extended his spear with a flourish. Water droplets bouncing off his refined form creating an area beneath him that was drier than the floor around him.

“…. Faster! Show me the might of the fastest Heroic Spirit!”.

Gray’s body became like a blur as multiple booms echoed in the Gotham night. Police sirens could always be heard during the night, which distracted many from the sounds of gunshots and screaming.

Gray pushed his physical body to its absolute limits. Under the integrating power of his soul with Rider’s, his physical strength, endurance and agility grew in response, although to a lesser degree.

He wouldn’t say that without the Class Cards his strength was equal to a metahuman, but it was definitely the peak of what his mortal body could withstand.

He let out a deep breath and the high pitched screech from his spear and the torrents of wind exerted from it vanished and his body was covered in a heavy rain. The coolness of the liquid drenched his steaming body, and he let out a pleasurable sigh.

“Achilles is one of the more open Heroic Spirits in my possession. Forget about Berserker, even Saber and Archer refuse my call unless I’m in danger. Caster is willing but with her personality its a little bit over the top…..”.

A feeling of sadness flowed into Gray’s mind and he instantly knew where it came from.

“But that doesn’t mean you aren’t my favorite Caster! It’s just that it’s a little weird for me to go through your memories. I’ve never experienced anything from such a beautiful woman’s perspective before!”.

A feeling of happy embarrassment flooded Gray’s mind and he let out another sigh.

Caster, if she possessed all nine of her tails would rival even that of Saver and would be one of his strongest Servants. But even with only a fraction of her original power, she still possessed enough strength to contend with even the close combat Servants like Rider and Lancer.

And would be able to wipe the floor with Gray if she ever wanted to.

The twenty year old retreated back underneath the apartment roof and entered one of the rooms he had cleaned out slightly, making it much more livable than the rest of the other rooms in the building.

Although the stairs to floor 5 and above were destroyed, with Gray’s abilities, such a distance wouldn’t be worth mentioning.

Still clad in the armor of Rider, Gray entered his “home” and laid down on the island bench, the hard wooden bench supported the weight of him and his armor.

He looked around at the pantry filled with snacks and canned goods and sighed at the last ȧsset he owned in this world disappearing as he used his last fifty dollar note to buy these supplies.

Until he found an actual source of income, he had to live off canned foods and packaged chips and snacks. It was fun for the first few days, but after the fifth day the taste of canned soup became rather bland, and the sloppy liquid almost made Gray hurl as he ingested it with less vigor than a sleepy sloth.

“I need to find a place of employment. Anywhere in Gotham City is out of the question as it is both the territory of the Bats, as well as the crime capital of the world. For now, I need to obtain a large amount of money, preferably cash, as its untraceable and doesn’t leave a cyber trail”.

Gray sighed and closed his eyes in thought.

He could rob a bank, but that make him a target for both the Bat Family as well as any member of the Justice League. Becoming an enemy of the Batman would mean becoming the enemy of all the other members of the Justice League.

It did however, align him with members of Gotham’s crime syndicate.

Being closer to the Falcone Family, as well as the countless other villains that walked Gotham’s streets.

The Penguin…. The Joker…. Harley Quinn…. Scarecrow…. Poison Ivy….. Mr Freeze….. Red Hood….. Solomon Grundy….. The Riddler…. where just the famous criminals that Batman had faced in the past. This didn’t include others that were from outside Gotham, just the ones that were created here.

If Gray decide to become a villain, it would automatically make him an enemy of the Justice League, and therefore a criminal in the eyes of the populace.

He narrowed his eyes and shook his head at the thought.

“Becoming a villain wouldn’t be good for my life expectancy in this world. I’d either be forced to do things that even I’m not okay with, or someone would try and do it to me instead”.

Gray let out a loud exhale and rolled onto the floor like a lazy Tamamo Cat.

“How am I supposed to get by in this world. Someone with no other ID except the one I’ve got on me and no money except for the last fifty dollars I spent on food and supplies….. if only some of that illegal money could make its way over to me-! That’s it!”.

Gray stood up, his eyes wide open as he gazed out the broken window and listened to the sound of cop cars chasing criminals.

“If I can’t make money through a job, and I can’t steal money from banks, then I’ll just steal it from those who steal it first! If I take just enough off the top when I hand the thieves in, the cops will just believe that another member of their group took the rest! They won’t suspect me in the slightest!”.

Gray nodded his head in agreement with his own statement and smiled at his thought.

He believed it to be quite a smart one, at least at the beginning.

Little did he know, that his first “heist” would result in meeting someone he wouldn’t forget for a long, long time.