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Columbus’s stay in Chaldea lasted thirty-six minutes.
His summoning had been entirely routine. A new Servant, brought to Chaldea to assist in the ongoing fight for humanity. He received mixed welcomes from those near the summoning chamber. After Agartha, he was known as a villainous slime, but they had worked with Moriarty, Hyde, and other known villains without too much issue. If they didn’t like him, they could at least tolerate him.
Ritsuka was cordial as usual, waving off past betrayals to welcome another ally. He even handled his tour of the facilities, talking and laughing with the man, while reprimanding some of his distasteful behaviors. They went by the training simulators, the personal rooms, some of the smaller, Servant-run shops.
And when they entered the cafeteria, Columbus disintegrated.
No Servant was prepared to react- at this point, they didn’t expect any seriously threatening interpersonal violence. Even Penthsilea and Achilles had worked out a system to avoid each other, and they’d been the Servants that prompted the most serious discussion of whether one would have to be removed to protect the Chaldean community.
So when Quetzalcoatl incinerated Columbus on sight, turning the man to ash right next to their Master, no one knew just how to react.
Quetzalcoatl sighed. Room-arrest had been a small price to pay, but it was terribly boring. She had missed a wrestling bout with Ishtar already, and at this rate she would miss her follow up match with Astraea, too.
She didn't like being known as the first Servant to ever kill another in Chaldea proper, but… when presented with a symbol of genocide, what was she meant to do?
She set her jaw, focusing her inner fire on her enhanced punching bag. It tore in half two punches later, so she grabbed a replacement from her closet and began again. The sweet humans here tried so hard to make something that could keep up with her. It was futile, but nice to see them putting in so much effort for her.
There was a knock at her door.
"Come in, please!"
Visitors! Finally!
Ritsuka came in, smiling that strained, troubled smile of his. "Hola, Quetz."
She beamed back. "Hola, Master!" She jumped over and hugged him tightly, relishing in the contact, then dropped him down as he went rigid. "You should have told me you were coming, I would have made something! You're too light, not eating enough. Mixiotes, maybe?"
She could feign ignorance just a few seconds longer, right?
He chuckled, but the look on his face… "I'd love to, but some other time."
Ritsuka had obviously spent a lot of time preparing himself for this. He hated confrontation, she knew. He hated ruffling feathers. As much as she wanted to keep showering him with positivity, to somehow defuse the bomb, it wouldn't be fair to him.
"Lo siento, Master. I am sorry. You came here for a reason, no?"
Ritsuka nodded, steel in his eyes. She was proud of him. "You killed a fellow Servant. That is unacceptable."
She was proud of him, really. Standing up to divinity, setting rules for her. He was growing into a fine leader.
But even the Aztec kings bowed to her.
"As that man is a symbol of genocide towards my people and many others, I will not apologize. I will accept any punishment you deem necessary." She grit her teeth, trying to repress her divinity. Even thinking about the man made her skin boil. But she would not make this point through fear. "However, I will not accept him into our ranks. If he is summoned here again, I will kill him again."
She saw Ritsuka's right fist clench, saw the glow of command seals through his glove. He didn't give her an order.
"... Quetz, any-"
"Quetzalcoatl," she corrected. Now was not the time for familiarity.
Ritsuka flinched. "Quetzalcoatl. Any Spirit that agrees to help Humanity can arrive here, regardless of their reasons. We have dealt with villains before, as long as we have the same goals we can work-"
She loved his compassion. So many other times, she had been so thankful that Ritsuka was her Master. But he was so, so naive sometimes. He was so compassionate to everybody that he could fail to listen to the person right in front of him.
She swallowed a growl.
"Do not call him a villain. He is not some cartoon antagonist."
He had the presence of mind to look sheepish. "No, but… we know he's capable. He could be helpful, like Moriarty or Jeanne Alter. I know this is hard, I know how hard it was for Arjuna and Karna, but-"
"This is not the same. This is not nearly the same."
"Working with people we never thought we could get along with, isn't that what makes Chaldea what it is?"
She stepped forward, choking her divinity down. Still, cracks of flame leaked out. Ritsuka stepped back.
"Those he represents, the legacies he carries… they killed millions that I gave life to! I created them, Ritsuka Fujimaru! I gave them life! Then, I took on the sun and sustained their crops! I birthed them, fed them, and watched generations pass! The blood on his hands comes from my children!"
She growled this time, solar rage burning in her chest.
"You ask for my understanding? Do not ask for what you do not care to give. I have given you my stance, and I will not be shifted. I refuse to fight beside that man. If you summon him accidentally, I will kill him. If you summon him on purpose, or proceed down this path you're carving out for yourself… you will lose me as an ally."
She took a deep breath, and tried to smile at him. She knew it was a sad attempt. "I don't say this as an idle threat, Fujimaru. It pains me so greatly. You are wonderful, and this place is delightful. But this is a line I refuse to cross. This is something I am willing to sacrifice my incarnation for. Please, understand the gravity of what that means."
"... we need all the help we can get."
Her heart shattered. "This conversation is over, mortal. Leave me."
To Ritsuka's credit, they never summoned Columbus again. By that point, however, his relationship with Quetzalcoatl has suffered irreparable harm.
When he told her that they would not allow Columbus in Chaldea anymore, she nodded as if accepting a mediocre offering. When he apologized for his ignorance, she waved him off. She rejoined the Servant community with her usual jubilance, brawling and wrestling, laughing and drinking.
She beat both Astraea and Ishtar at the same time, by herself. The roar in the stadium shook the halls of Chaldea.
She and Ritsuka didn't avoid each other, and sometimes laughed and joked as they did before. But something was always missing, a closeness they used to have, gone.
Quetzalcoatl never called herself his sister anymore, nor did she acknowledge him as her brother.