* O DEATH.

      ✦ It’s very rare that someone is able to recognize Artemis within her true form in this city.

     In a way, she supposes it’s a good thing; that others are unaware of who she is and what she’s capable of with having to go through the trouble of making a human disguise. However, because of this, Artemis can’t help but turn around and look at the stranger who has spoken out to her in surprise. Were it not for his serious tone and expression, she would have thought of his words to a jest.

      ❝ Well, look at that; someone is able to tell what I am for once, ❞ comes her reply, suspicion dripping within her tone. 

      ❝ But yeah, that’s right. I’m surprised; hardly anyone here knows who I am just from a glance, ❞

    ❛     of course i’d be able to tell.    ❜    while his saint graph constrained his divinity greatly ( a servant was never truly allowed to encroach upon the territory of a god without suitable constraints ) asclepius was still among their ranks. the god of medicine, or so they had taken to calling him - though even before that, as a demi-god, it was only natural for asclepius to be able to discern a deity from a mortal. he had spent enough time in their company, be it his aunt or the twins that had joined the company of that ship.

    it raised the question of whether or not a blessing from a foreign goddess would be worthwhile to him, however. she was not a familiar face to him, and sp, asclepius can only assume she hails from another land. a different world, potentially. furthermore, he still lacked in gorgon’s blood. a key ingredient to his medicine. a fundamental piece of the puzzle should he wish to recreate it without access to his noble phantasm. 

          NO   tools. 

            For now, the ‘how’ and ‘when’ of her Summoning was irrelevant. What mattered was that, along with her abilities being weakened or blocked off entirely, her medical bag was nowhere to be found. Her pistol of choice, too, was replaced with some… Pellet-shooting disappointment. There was no time to panic — in times like this, triage was needed. Compartmentalization. Do what can be done, and assess afterward. Where was this city’s hospital ?  Its clinics ?  Was there not even a field hospital to be found ?  The only thing that manages to interrupt her frenzied thoughts is a sensation: this is… mana. Some sort of boundary… 

            She encroaches upon said territory without hesitation, relieved — and perhaps a little overjoyed — at the sight of such impeccable hygiene. This was, without a doubt, a clinic… The first she’s managed to find. 

     ❝   You are the one in charge here.   ❞   A statement, not a question. No matter the century, doctors always carried themselves the exact same way.   ❝   My supplies were taken from me when I arrived. Where have you obtained yours ?  Are you in need of assistance ?   ❞

@epidavros​ ——— s.c. 

   florence nightingale was an interesting servant, one the doctor had no trouble in admitting intrigued him. a berserker through and through, but at the same time a woman whose commitment to her occupation remained ever-present. the madness inflicted upon her, engrained in her very saint graph, was no obstacle to this endeavor. the techniques she had shown him in chaldea were novel, as was the concept of nursing as a whole, but she was still a useful aide to have nonetheless. especially in a time where techniques and skills were limited.    

    ❛    i’m the one who established this territory, yes.    ❜

    was this amnesia, perhaps? he had no doubt with a nurse with such willpower as nightingale would continue her pursuit of saving patients even without her memories. from muscle memory alone. but from a glance, asclepius concluded that was not the case. they were servants. it was only natural that they could be called from different points in their summons, if not from entirely separate wars. such was their nature as familiars, tools to be utilized by mages.    ❛    i make my own. patients occasionally bring me materials in the place of payment once their treatment has concluded.    ❜    the caster gestures to a box of supplies under what has become his makeshift desk, tucked away from the sterilized station designated for patients. 

   “ Ow, ow, OW–”

 she knows that this is…entirely her fault. no doubt about it. too excited she had been to just jump right into the nice, cool water and enjoy herself and have fun. it was finally summertime and the water had been calling her name for the longest time and no longer was she going to ignore it! but, in that eagerness, she completely forgot about sunscreen. she did make a mental note to buy some at the store but then got distracted trying to drag one very reluctant Caster alone with her. 

          so, maybe it wasn’t entirely her fault. but she wasn’t going to say that!

   lips are pulled into a very noticeable pout, brows furrowed. this completely sucked– getting sunburned so quickly. that’s gonna make any other activity a complete pain to do…..and she wanted to play volleyball later, too! but that was a no-go; the sand would not be kind to her skin.

    “ The whole point of coming here was to swim, though! Ugh….ut it’s too hot for something like that! Can’t I just……stay under the parasol or something? “

and there it was. the irksome pout he had unfortunately grown so used to seeing. ever the altruist, his patron, especially when it came to the work in the lostbelts - it wasn’t surprising that she had regularly been sent to his office for treatment. treatments the mage wasn’t always compliant with, much to his chagrin. 

    ❛    fine, but i’ll be writing a list of things you have to do to alleviate the burns. do everything i say, and don’t look up alternative treatments. the last thing i need is for you to agitate them.    ❜

there was only so much sulking asclepius could tolerate — the sooner this burn healed, the better. for both of them. though, even as he conceded to her demand, her query made him raise an eyebrow. she wanted to stay here knowing that swimming was out of the question? it wasn’t as if the servant had brought anything that could occupy her.

    ❛    you aren’t sick or injured. what do you wan— tch.    ❜

another doctor, was it. it wasn’t as if asclepius couldn’t respect another of his profession. his own pride aside, other doctors were tolerable. he wouldn’t have to utterly lower his intellect to communicate with a doctor, whereas he typically would to make a point to a patient. this one, in particular, carried himself well on top of that. if he weren’t a servant, asclepius wouldn’t have noticed him come in.

that did not mean that the servant was pleased to have his territory imposed upon, however. this was a place he had set up to further his studies, open to patients who would help with such an endeavor, by way of using the only skill he had been granted access to. a far cry from its usual strength, but enough to make a space to work freely. constraints to his saint graph notwithstanding, a lack of magical ability did not inhibit his ability to practice medicine. that was all that mattered to him. 

    it was a wholly different sensation from that the god experienced in the presence of other gods - his unfortunate family of whom he did his best to distance himself from whenever possible. but all the same, it was the sensation that came with the presence of divinity. one he had not expected to encounter on the streets. one strong enough to stop asclepius in his tracks, to make him turn to the other who had passed him. 

this woman... there was no mistaking it. what a turn of luck.

    ❛    it’s been less than an hour and you’re already like this. did you listen to me at all before jumping in?    ❜

in a way, it was almost impressive how quickly she had managed to turn both the skin on her arms and legs a bright red, burnt from exposure to the sun. that did not excuse his patron being so foolhardy, however. for the master of asclepius to have no apparent regard for their own wellbeing — he would not stand for it. 

and so, he is not in any way gentle when he applies the aloe vera to the burned area, lips still turned in a frown as he focuses on his work. the fact that the caster was even at the beach was a miracle in itself ( though it had been with some protesting on his part, and he had adamantly declared he would not be leaving his spot in the shade once they arrived ). to tend to such a pathetic ailment on top of that — fujimaru ritsuka would certainly owe him in the future. 

thankfully, he did have projects lined up that needed further research. 

the greek god of medicine, summoned as a caster class servant. 

asclepius, according to his myth, was the father of modern medicine. he was originally born a demi-god, the son of apollo ( though raised and educated primarily by chiron the centaur ), and went on to accomplish great feats through his studies. eventually, he even made a medicine capable of reviving the dead. 

the gods didn’t like that. 

this is a greek pantheon callout post. the pantheon is awful always. zeus: bitch. hades: bitch. apollo: bitch. 

either way, he is a doctor. his sole focus is progressing his studies and further developing his understanding, and thus the world’s understanding, of medicine. as a result of this extremely single-minded determination, he isn’t exactly a nice dude. 

he will heal you, but you don’t really have a choice in the matter. and if you speak up or voice complaints, it will only piss him off. he’s the doctor, so you have to listen to him. it’s logical. it only makes sense. don’t be a shitty patient. 

     ❝   I AM NOT ASKING FOR ASSISTANCE NOW ,          but instead for the foreseeable future .   ❞     a  creature  juxtaposed  in  PRIDE   /   made  for  power   —   asking  for  assistance  never  gets  any  easier ,   insult  upon  insult  upon  deadly  injury .   his  body  has  stabilized  for  now ,   but  there’s  no  telling  what  could  happen  the  next  minute   (  survive .   he  must  survive ,   with  his  body  INTACT ,   continue  living  until  he’s  OUT   &   AWAY  from  this  prison   &   able  to  reunite  with  a  familiar  face . )   .   

    ❝   if my time begins running out again   &   my body begins crumbling ,   would you be able to stop it from happening ?   ❞     BEFORE  HIM   :     THE  RUMORED  DOCTOR ,   mask  obscuring  bottom  half  of  his  facial  features ,   their  expression  as  unreadable  as  his  own .     ❝   —–—–—–   i can pay .  ❞

@didaktoras​  //

     ❛     an interesting case, i will admit.     ❜

a fractured ego and the impending collapse of the weaker half. it was logical. the fact that this fragment was able to continue existing despite all the odds was enough to catch the attention of the god of medicine. a new case, an unknown.    ❛     at my full strength, i would certainly be able to prevent your demise. which is, without any doubt, inevitable.     ❜    the inevitability of death meant little to the doctor with his full strength. simply another ailment that could be cured. his work was evidence enough. it was truly a pity that he had been reduced to such a state now.    ❛     but you must know how this city is with regard to power. even if i had the materials, i doubt they would let me craft that particular medicine. delaying your death is currently within the realm of possibility, however.     ❜     

servants did not require sustenance. they were familiars, summoned forth by magical energy, and this city was providing more than enough. monetary payment had no appeal to him. the only tools he trusted were those of his own creation.    ❛     i don’t require money. you can prove useful for providing me with materials though. i cannot create anything from nothing. gods aren’t as all-powerful as they’d like mortals to believe. if you gather what i need, i will serve as your physician. simple.     ❜    if his new patient had to steal to get the caster what he needed, then so be it. so long as it would benefit this new area of study.    

This is far from the first time she’s been mistaken for either of these Goddesses that he speaks of. Rin is certain it won’t be the last either. Truthfully, she doesn’t know how to feel knowing that her body, in whatever time he happens to come from, is being used for something so vague. Then again, she supposes there is no greater honor than being chosen to be the vessel of a powerful servant. Either way, she won’t dwell on it. Not for too long anyway…but if he can provide insight about either of them, then she’d definitely like to know.

“What I lack in divinity I might make up for in knowledge unless you need the power of a Goddess in particular then I can’t really help you there.” As much as she’d like to be helpful, she’s painfully aware while in the presence of servants of Chaldea that whatever she can do pales in comparison. “If it’s something I can help with, I will. For a price, of course.” Such is her way of getting what she wants from him and it is a rather fair exchange. Knowledge for knowledge and such.

“Who exactly are these Goddesses that you speak of? If my face is familiar to you then you must know them.”

     ❛     your knowledge would not serve the medicine i am concocting. a blessing is a necessary ingredient. an irreplaceable piece of the puzzle. which is why a goddess on hand is always useful.     ❜    a pause, then he irritably clicks his tongue.    ❛     my own blessings do little to further my progress.     ❜       

probably at the request of hades, who had been so against his revival ( and the one who had demanded his death to zeus in the first place ). a fact that they had not mentioned when they had allowed the demi-god to ascend to olympus, perhaps so as not to invoke further rage in his father. that had been a messy time. asclepius had been surprised to hear of how angry apollo had actually become when he had been killed. either way, despite having been revived as the god of medcine itself, hades had likely not wanted asclepius to tread into the domain of reviving the dead once more - lest they begin their conflict anew.    

     ❛     hm. somewhat. though i try to avoid speaking to nuisances. they’re both troublesome in their own ways. most divine beings are.     ❜

“ now, now don’t be that way, ”  merlin assures in a brotherly tone, urging the caster to think on the brighter side of his company. the much brighter side, he believed, that lied somewhere in-between ‘ annoying ’ and ’ cheery ’. in a show of defense, he raises his hands and highlights the attempts for harmless chatter being nothing but that,  “ we’re all under the same unfortunate circumstance. it is a matter of how you spend it and we might as well make the best of it, right ? " 

this was merely another turn of a page, another story that was beginning to unfold. there were face to meet —– both familiar and foreign; beautiful places to explore with unjaded wonder. the best of all, however, was the ability and opportunity to share these small globules of discoveries with one another and map out a larger form of knowledge. they were casters, magus adept at magecraft, although severely weakened now. was it still not in their nature to be inquisitive and full of wisdom ?

“ haha, you flatter me though ! i may be a chosen one and better than all other casters, but ‘ grand ’ is just a title. besides, i’d likely botch your studies. as you know, i’m not exactly a full incubus. ”  with a nonchalant smile, he leans upon the wooden staff bestowed by the strangers of this city.  “ perhaps, you should stick to gorgon blood —— i hear the lady in question is here somewhere in this city … ”

     ❛     i never said i wasn’t going to make the most of my time here.    ❜    he scoffs, eyes rolling at what was an unsurprising response from merlin. gods, even his voice went straight through his ears. this was already a headache, and it had barely been five minutes.     ❛     this is a good chance to further develop a way to heal saint graphs. now that we have so many distortions, far more than what i had to work with within chaldea, i have plenty of subjects.     ❜     

he points an accusing finger towards the mage despite his apparent pleasure at the prospect of newfound entertainment, hand hidden by his long sleeve but the gesture obvious nonetheless.    ❛     an uncooperative subject won’t help progress, however, and you are very much so one of the afflicted. that makes you my patient, whether you want to be or not. be honored, ‘chosen one’.     ❜     and if need be, asclepius would grab them by the scruff of their necks to get the data he sought.

     ❛     wait... gorgon is here?     ❜    

     ❛     you’re ...     ❜  

he studies the girl before him a moment, gaze steady as the lower portion of his face remains concealed.    ❛     not either goddess, i take it. rather, the host. or would it be more appropriate to say vessel?     ❜    he hums, tapping a finger against his mask. it was obvious that he cared little for whether she understood his words or not. such was his way.    ❛     i see. i suppose in a place like this, meeting any vessel would be possible.     ❜  

     ❛     still, its a shame. you lack the divinity i need.     ❜  

@didaktoras​

☄ “mmm! another servant spotted! hey, heeeey!?” both arms hoisted in the air, yang guifei attempted to flag down a man she might have deemed ‘shady’ based on how he was skulking around. it seemed there were many types of servants, though that was to be expected based on human history! “answer me already would you!? my arms are getting tired!”

     ❛     shut up. you’re annoying.     ❜   

this was a servant asclepius did not know. unsurprising. the master of chaldea did have a rather unique talent when it came to drawing in a crowd in a short period of time. still, this servant lacked any sense if they could not tell he was ignoring her. just his luck.

BOLD WHATEVER APPLIES TO YOUR MUSE. Add stuff and even change the format to your liking !! Naturally, repost; don’t reblog !!

CLASSIC.

black and white. powder puffs. red lipstick. winged eyeliner. white kitten heels. black lace lingerie. icy blue eyes. rain. abandoned cars. skeletons. acid. poison. voyeurism. switchblades. strangling. overcoats. looking over your shoulder. transatlantic accents. private detectives. dinner parties. haunted mansions. cobwebs. perfect blonde curls. kitchen knives. shock. cellars. dust. ghosts. dark alleys. empty streets. horn-rimmed glasses. radiation. zombies. serial murder. suspicion. paranoia. the city. witches. the devil. cannibalism. conspiracies. amulets. abject terror. the American South. the American Northeast. England. analog cameras.

CRYPTID & URBAN LEGEND.

aliens. blinding light. dark woods. driving at night. claw marks. bite marks. men in black. memory loss. dismembered bodies. sewers. flashlights. cell phones. video cameras. cars with tinted windows. unlabeled cassette tapes. bugs (worms). big cities. urban crimes. clowns. something rustling outside your window. glowing light. unsolved mysteries. suburbia. mirrors. the american pacific northwest. the american midwest. hiking. backpacking.

GOTHIC.

gaslights. corsets. ballrooms. candlelight. mist. starless nights. full moons. cobbled streets. horse-drawn carriages. mysterious strangers. bogs. moors. forests. mountains. castles. velvet. silver. brass. gold. jewels. domino masks. the opera. dangerous romances. tragic romances. violins. roses. lilies. empty graves. crosses. cemeteries. snow. ice. the gallows. crows. milk-white skin. ambiguous illness. fangs. pointed nails. something howling in the night. capes. gloves. top hats. straight razors. lightning. pipe organs. underground caverns. bats. mice. rats. ravens. cats. pearls. attics. talismans. axes. wood. isolation in a room full of people. vampires. werewolves. ghosts. coffins. western europe. eastern europe. bones. churches. catacombs. mausoleums. books.

PARANORMAL.

malevolent spirits. seances. spells. missing bodies. hidden graves. white noise. static. flickering lights. rings of salt. demons. poltergeists. dark histories. old buildings. cold air. wells. urban exploration. a dog barking at unseen things. iconoclasm. black ooze. old photographs. dark bodies of water. crucifixes. priests. possession. exorcisms. dolls.

SLASHER.

bloodbaths. massacres. wanton nudity. newspapers. leather jackets. letterman jackets. converse sneakers. obscured faces. social unrest. bonfires. lakes. babysitters. high school. lockers. dead leaves in the fall. jack-o’-lanterns. passing shadows. outdated television sets. nightmares. psychiatrists. hospitals. unstoppable forces. gunfire. police. landline telephones. improvised weapons. halloween. secrets. revelations. cut wires. character masks. scrunchies. wild curls. jeering children. parties. fire. swearing. revulsion. california. the american midwest. ambulances.

THRILLER.

a pest. there was no other way to describe his fellow caster. of all the servants he had to bump into, of all the servants that he had come to know had been summoned forth by chaldea and its final master ( including his teacher and his father of all people, albeit his father in the form of a sheep ), it had to be the mage of flowers that he encountered. asclepius was not suited to dealing with men like him - cheerful, breezy and most importantly, incessantly irritating. at this point, he’d take dealing with his aunt or his father over this insufferable mage.

     ❛      tch.     ❜