A Fall from Grace, a Change in Leadership

[Aleister Grigori]

The twin doors to the Fuyuki Church were opened now, despite the late hour. It is said that a loyal church never closes its doors to those who seek. And so, Burial Agent Aleister Grigori found himself effortlessly able to access the church. Still, even after ensuring that he was not followed, he slipped stealthily into the church's worship hall. Lines of pews decorated the main floor of the church, with a single podium standing boldly upon a raised platform in the center of the room. The worship hall was decently-sized, and the Church itself was quite large in comparison to many chapels. But for Aleister Grigori, who was on an assignment, now was not the time to admire the undeniable beauty of the church's architecture. First, he had work to do. He turned to face the double doors, and closed them behind him. He did not set the manual lock in place, but instead slipped a hand into his cassock, producing a page of the bible.

With a graceful gesture full of solemn respect for the Word of God, Aleister set the page upon the doors of the Church, before he began murmuring under his breath. If any of the clergy were within earshot, they would have heard the familiar prayer of Saint Michael, made when asking for divine protection. He murmured the words quickly, speaking flawlessly in the latin language. When translated, though, the prayer would be heard thus.

"Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in our hour of conflict; Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God restrain Him, we humbly pray, and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, cast Satan into Hell, and with him all the other evil spirits, who wander through the world, for the ruin of souls. Amen."

With that prayer spoken, the sacrament of this unique sealing-type Black Key took effect. The doors to the church were safeguarded, impossible to physically open and reinforced beyond the level of intermediate magecraft. All of the windows and the doors within the church began to slam shut, causing only a slight disturbance. An invisible barrier erupted from the page Aleister had placed, engulfing the church grounds. Until his work was done, none would enter this holy place. Aleister turned back now to find he was no longer alone. Instead, he stared into the wisened eyes of the dark-haired priest, and also down the barrel of a single-action colt model revolver. The gun was trembling in the hands of the priest, who now had none of the composure he had feigned during his time as Fuyuki's priest. The reason for his lack of composure was clear: Number Seven had arrived in his Church.

"L-l-look here, traitor to your faith!" The old man spat, visibly scared, his arms and knees shaking. "Why do you seal these hallowed grounds!? Do you bring your dark work upon this holy land!? Your lot are the exception to the rule: we do not welcome you, traitor!" The harsh words of the man echoed throughout the worship hall, but none of them would leave its sealed boundaries. The gentle but uninterested gaze of Aleister Grigori settled upon the man's weapon, not his face; a habit of his work. Though, this was not a vampire nor a demon...so, Aleister began to take his normal approach to dealing with human enemies: reasoning with them.

"Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame, Father Cornello." Aleister said, reciting from First Corinthians, 15:34. It was known that when he was on a mission, Aleister would only speak the words of the Holy Word of God, as evidence that he was a Burial Agent whom embraced the faith and truth of Jesus Christ the lord and savior. Hearing these words, the older man growled, more angry than shamed by any standards.

"You hypocrite! Your kind claim to do the work of God by serving that old codger, but you stand here ready to kill me! Your pretty words are all well and good in context, but do not think you will cloud my mind with such pious references, rookie!" Father Cornello reprimanded, though even now Aleister's facial expression did not change. Cornello had never met Aleister personally, and had never seen him off-duty, so of course it was only natural that Cornello would only know this cold side of the Church's "Undying Black Bishop."

"Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—"

"Shut the hell up!" Roared the priest, firing off what was intended to be a warning shot. Instead, the bullet never met the wooden door behind Aleister. A sharp, resonating sound of metal on metal, and a quick spark of fire. The bullet had been deflected, and now one of Aleister's hands was no longer idle, but outstretched to one side. A Black Key was in his hand, and the blade of the bayonet had effortlessly deflected the bullet that was never aimed for him. It was Aleister's way of returning - no, rebuffing - the "warning" given to him by Father Cornello. To make matters worse, the older man was visibly irritated: there was no rage in Aleister's eyes, only pity and sadness, despite the surface-glimpse of no emotion being visible within those honey-colored hues.

"Cling to your faith in Christ, and keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked upon the shores of evil and temptation. Allow God to deliver you from corruption. Return to the Vatican...to the arms of God!" Aleister insisted, trying to reason now with his own words. He always spoke with God's words, but against a member of the church, he was sympathetic. Aleister made the attempt to humanely connect with this man by speaking directly to him, despite being on the job. His eyes actually seemed to water, though he did not cry nor look away from the gun-wielding priest.

"Do you take me for a fool!?" Cornello scoffed. "If I return with you, I'll be in the custody of the Enforcers! You Burial Agents are the worst, and you try to tell me you don't plan to punish me!? If you weren't sent here to noiselessly clean up my 'corruption,' then why seal the doors!? Why draw your weapon for what you must have known was a warning shot!? Your actions contradict your words, heretic!" Aleister was silent at this accusation...true, he had fallen into his role as a sword of the church on this mission, but...

"I was not sent here to apprehend you, originally. Nor was it the papacy's plan that I should inherit Fuyuki Church from you. Even if you were only guilty of helping yourself to the offering plate, the love of the church extends to you; they only sought an apology and a letter of confession, for legal reasons. I didn't even come here to investigate that kind of corruption. It is your other trespasses which alarm His Holiness. I have been ordered to 'take care of you,' and so I am trying to speak with you, my brother!" He was, of course, not related to the priest. But still, Aleister considered him a brother in Christ.

"Don't lie to me!" Cornello warned, his thumb drawing the hammer of the single action army revolver back once more.

"Put your sword back into its sheath; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword." Aleister warned in response, still brandishing his Black Key. He made a final appeal to his brother in Christ. "I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting God the Father, who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—"

Bang! Bang! Bang! Three shots rang out, though thanks to the sealing sacrament placed over the church right now, the reports violently echoed within the confines of the worship hall before dissipating soundlessly into the ether. In that same short time span, Aleister acted with blinding speed. Two bullets were deflected by two Black Key bayonet knives. The third flew towards Aleister's torso, but he limberly ducked beneath the bullet and turned while simultaneously assuming a standing position. He let fly the two Black Keys, one in the shadow of the other's flight path. The first Black Key disarmed the priest by slicing the gun barrel in half, which made Cornello drop the firearm that could no longer discharge. The second bayonet slipped firmly into the priest's throat, and Aleister quietly walked towards Cornello, whom was writhing in pain on the floor.

Mercifully, Aleister removed the bayonet from the corrupted priest's throat, and used it to quickly decapitate him. An unexpected turn of events for young Aleister, whom had only been sent to sanction Father Cornello as the moderator of the upcoming Seventh Holy Grail War, which had started earlier than expected. Aleister had witnessed much corruption over the past two days, but more abhorrent than anything was Cornello's apathy towards the fairness of the war. He lined his own pockets under the guise of "Receiving offerings" from a Master, and in turn provided that Master with information. Aleister had been ordered to apprehend or eliminate Cornello, and with his mission complete, he stood to his full height and flipped open his cell phone. He dialed the secure line to the Vatican's Enforcer Office.

"His will has been done. The spirit of Father Cornello has left this world and is rejoined with the Father. Awaiting further orders and assignment." He stated coolly, using his other hand to adjust his oval-lensed glasses.