Chapter 62 Summoning (1/2)
Batman and Hawkgirl looked down at the ċhėst Gray was carrying, before looked up with a frown as they gazed into the pitch black eyes of the Pseudo-Servant in front of them.
”Affinity? Catalyst? I believe you neglected to mention such things before we decided to summon a Servant?”.
Gray sighed before rubbing his temples. He left his apple in the kitchen and he really wished he had brought it with him.
Pointing to the three objects in the ċhėst below, he spoke with a tone that reminded him of Scathach, as her manner of teaching was a form of teaching that was very much agreeable with the twenty year old.
”When summoning a Servant without a catalyst, the Servant with the most affinity towards is usually summoned. When summoning with a catalyst, you can narrow down the choices of the Servant summoned, to get a more powerful Servant. Any other questions?”.
The Flash tilted his head and frowned but couldn't help but ask.
”Wouldn't the Servant with the most affinity you have be the best choice? If you can work with that Servant the best, wouldn't it be the better choice?”.
Gray shook his head and summoned the spear of Achilles instead. A wave of Divinity was let out by Gray, and it brushed through the superheroes like a gust of wind.
”Tell me, if you summoned Achilles for example, a hero with near invincibility, do you think he would still be able to fight equally with Ryougi Shiki? A woman who can cut through the unkillable? Who can cut through death?”.
The scarlet speedster looked as though he wanted to retort but the memory of the beautiful brunette cutting through Superman's arm came to mind. Even Barry Allen couldn't regenerate from something like that. Especially if Superman could not.
Gray turned towards the three catalysts in the box and spoke. The sword was taken out and placed on one of the circles.
He took out the book next, and the faint lettering on the spine read ”Doyle”, causing Batman's eyes to widen.
”Arthur Conan Doyle? As in Sherlock Holmes? How would he be able to be summoned. He's fictitious. How would-”.
”And Chinese Immortals that can walk on clouds and Greek Heroes who legends are still retold today are not? It is not how true the legend is. It is how it affected the minds of humanity, as well as the Mystery behind their legend. In this day and age were Heroes, such as your selves, rely on technology to get things down, even if that technology is so advanced it may appear as magic, you could never ascend to the Throne of Heroes and become Heroic Spirits. Maybe Diana due to her heritage but that's all”.
Batman stopped talking and rubbed his chin at Gray's words.
Throne of Heroes? Heroic Spirits? Mystery? Terms that he had absolutely no idea about, but they filled in parts of the puzzle that was the man in front of them.
If he gave more pieces, they might be able to find out his powers if they were directed at some other mythological Hero.
Gray pointed to the final catalyst in the box, placing it down gently on the final summoning circle.
He spoke,
”This red garment belonged to a famous Chinese Martial Artist. His name was was Li Shuwen, and he was one of the greatest martial artists in history. His prowess with Bājíquán gave him the title of Demon-Fist Master, and his skill with the spear made many call him Divine Spear Li. Using this as a catalyst would almost guarantee him to be summoned. Whether that be as a Lancer or an Assassin that remains to be seen”.
”In a Holy Grail War, there are Seven normal Classes a Servant can be summoned under. Saber, the Servant of the sword. Lancer, the Servant of the spear. Archer, the Servant of the Bow. Rider, the Servant of the mount. Caster, the Servant of sorcery. Assassin, the Servant of killing. And Berserker the Servant of madness. That is the most general explanation on Classes I am willing to give. There are other classes but don't worry about them, if you summon one, they'll most likely kill you before you can get a chance to explain yourselves”.
The definitive tone in Gray's voice revealed that he wasn't messing around. The Seven Classes ran through the minds of the League, and Batman and Hawkgirl both looked at each other, communicating through the psychic link.
Gray saw them look at each other and watched as they gradually come to a conclusion as all the present members of the Justice League nodded.
Hawkgirl stepped forward and picked up the katana while Batman opted to use the the book written by the famous writer, a first edition of a Study in Scarlet.
Gray looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
”Really? I would've thought you wanted to summon without a catalyst. Can I ask why you chose to do so?”.
Batman looked at Gray without any hint of emotion in his voice.
”Just like you, I have absolutely no obligation to tell you my reasoning”.
Gray gave the Dark Knight a queer look before nodding his head thoughtfully.
Much to the ire of the caped crusader Gray stood up and walked away from the catalyst contained the garment of Li Shuwen, causing Kaldur to frown and point to the red robe belonging to the martial artist. A look of confusion was evident on his face.
”Will you not use the catalyst to summon Gray? I thought that-”.
Gray gave the Atalantean a smile before shaking his head. Gray pulled out a small piece of paper with a Norse Rune inscribed on it. The quality of the paper was high, indicating that the catalyst was a modern one.
He put the rune in the center of his summoning circle, not caring to look at the annoyed gazes of Batman or Hawkgirl as Gray's catalyst wasn't any of the three that he offered them.
”The thing about Servants is that they need magical power to help sustain them. Despite the Age of the Gods still being around, meaning that the mana in the air is still at a high quality and quantity, you as Masters do not possess the power to sustain Servants with high Mana Parameters. If Diana or Aquaman were Masters, then we might be able to discuss some compensation in exchange for high level catalysts”.
Batman looked down at the book and Hawkgirl grasped the handle of the blade tightly as the two accepted Gray's reasoning. Neither had any idea what they were doing. And if Gray decided that he didn't want to help them, there was nothing they could do.