An Account of hte 3rd Holy Grail War, Book I

Dramatis Personae

Suzume Tohsaka and Archer


Lloyd Harkins and Rider


Eliza Von Einzburn adn Saber


Sasaki Matou and Besrerker (not shown)


Lancer


Hong Shao Mei and Assassin

1940, RAF Airplane en Route from London to Hong Kong

Suzume Tohsaka grumbled as she tried to read the large book that she held, regardless fo the quakes caused by the turbulence. She turned the page with her gloved hand. Below it, she knew that the red mark was still there. There was no doubt either way—the youngest member of the Tohsaka family had been chosen to be a master…but was it such a good thing? At the moment, the man who was supposed to be the servant of the Archer class was reading what looked like a magazine about cars. Suzume sighed. The man had no resemblance of any servant at all—dressed in a ragged blue coat and a university vest, shirt and pants underneath, Archer could have been one of the many professors at Clock Tower, the headquarters of the Magus Association. His initial reaction to his summoning was to shuffle through her icebox and glugging down 2 bottles of Lager Beer. In fact, Suzume would have reported burglary to the police if not for the fact that Archer had a metal prosthetic left arm and a Chinese sword on his back. However, they now had to go to the city known as Fuyuki. The travesty was almost funny—a Japanese Magus on a British Transport that was to land in Japanese military territory. Only the prospect of being intercepted by German fighters kept her from laughing. The Einzburns would more likely than not simply pay off the German government and congratulating them on removing a single master and servant without trying. Of the three Magical Houses that formed the Holy Grail Wars, the Von Einzburns of Germany were the most devoted to obtaining it. The Makiri and Tohsaka were just as interested, but nowhere as devoted. Soon, in the small backwards city of Fuyuki, the slaughter of the servants would start.

Cruiser U.S.S. Lady Luck

Lloyd Harkins sat on the railing of the ship idly as it docked into Fuyuki port. Clasping the black bible in his hand tightly to his chest, he stepped off the boat into the technologically defunct city of Fuyuki. Japanese merchants were strolling about. Harkins knew Japanese, but he could not speak it well with his Wisconsin accent. Next to him was Risei Kotomine, a fellow minister. That Lloyd was protestant and Kotomine catholic was of no concern—both were members of the Holy Church, and on a mission. This was the first time the Church would step into the affairs of the quarrelsome magus. However, it had not been completely left to choice. Lloyd had not believed his past, as a Magus would catch up to him after he had joined the Church. However, the Oriental Man who calmly watched over the rails of the ship proved that he was wrong. As soon as the ship docked, he turned to Lloyd. “I’ll check out the other servants.” And then he was gone, a cloaked figure weaving through the Japanese customs officials and soldiers. Risei nodded to Lloyd. “He is a well-rounded servant, is he not?” Lloyd considered it. “Perhaps, but why was he put in the Rider class then?” Risei nodded grudgingly. In the last two wars, the carnage back in 1880 and 1820 had almost destroyed Fuyuki. This time, an impartial judge for the church would participate—but now there was a church member with a servant. However, one had to play with the cards that fate dealed him. Being a former gambler, he knew that full well. now what are the stakes against me?


That night, Suzume was possibly even more annoyed than before. Even with the money she had made, the amount made no difference. The best of the hotels was still a shack compared to the apartment she had in London. Worse, still, Archer had left to explore the city. She quietly resumed reading. She remembered the report the Tohsaka family had sent from Fuyuki. “Three servants identified. Matou Sasaki, Servant Berserker. Eliza Von Einzburn, Servant Saber. Lloyd Harkins—connections to church, Servant Rider. Check run on heroic spirit archive. Possible Identity located.

so now there is one servant I know about… Suzume looked at the three marks on her hand. I could call back Archer/// the troublesome thing about the Archer class was its ability, Independent action. All servants of the Archer class had high mobility, and could spend days on end without contact with their masters. Suzume had never seen Archer in action. In fact, the arrival at the hotel had caused him to eat even more than usual…

Lloyd, Risei and Rider still had not found a place to stay—the propaganda against Christians in the 1600’s had not completely left, and harboring enemies to the emperor was not something to be proud of. Lloyd walked through the frigid streets—they reminded him of the place of his birth. Lloyd Harkins was born in 1920 in Ireland, to a prominent Magus Family, and had been trained from birth to be a Magus. However, not long after, the family had joined the IRA, in the hope that it would be able to escape the British Magus Association’s restrictions to the abilities of the Irish Magus. This had failed—miserably. When Lloyd was twelve, the British Government troops had stepped in. With family destroyed, Lloyd had escaped onboard a liner to America, where he had found himself in Wisconsin, America—and there he met Risei Kotomine. From then on, he had ardently given up his abilities as a Magus and wholeheartedly joined the Holy Church. He had thought it behind it—and now this. Risei had thought otherwise. “God has a plan for everyone—it is the will of god that this curse is put on you…perhaps it is god’s will that you get the grail.” Lloyd hoped so. Meanwhile, he strode through the city from door to door. As they walked, they saw a man casually leaned against a wall, his eyes in shadow from the hood of his cloak. Black, Long hair hung down the front of his jacket. “Having trouble getting lodging?” Lloyd inclined his head. “Yes, sir…can you help us?” The man shrugged. “Money opens eyes, doors and minds.” He idly tossed a small roll of Japanese Yen to Lloyd, who caught it. It was not much for someone from America, but quite a lot for the small town of Fuyuki. Lloyd inclined his head several more degrees in surprise. “Thank you, sir…what is your name?” the man laughed and pulled back his hood, revealing a plain face, with long shoulder-length hair. “You can refer to me as ‘archer.’” Risei started. In an instant, three short swords had appeared in his hand. He threw one easily. Possibly faster than Kotomine, the chinese jian leapt out of its sheath at his side, sending the dagger spinning into a wall. Lloyd’s U.S. Standard Issue handgun was also knocked from its hand into a wet ditch. Lloyd put his hand on the seal on his hand, which had suddenly began to glow hot. “Rider!” Instantly, in a flash of light, a spear shot out, parried by Archer. Dressed in a resplendent Purple courtier’s robe and light armor over it, Rider was a much more imposing sight than Archer. Archer’s idle attitude and casual clothes did not give the allusion of a servant. However, now he was cheerfully twirling his sword on its pommel. “Servant rider…good evening,” Archer said cheerfully, the last two words in Chinese. Rider replied in the same language, easily twirling his long spear, its head was decorated with a red pommel. And suddenly, Archer lunged, his sword whistling through the air. In a burst of sparks, Rider turned the slash aside with his spear. Then the two were together in showers of sparks as metal met metal. Archer made a cut for Rider’s legs, who leapt onto a blade and used it as a springboard, leaping over Archer’s head and stabbing forwards—but Archer sidestepped the thrusting spear and pushed the two together—in close quarters, Archer’s shorter sword would be much better at that range. Rider suddenly kicked, forcing the two apart. Lloyd could see he was at a disadvantage. Rider was probably a better fighter at close range, but he had to protect his master and Risei. Possibly worse, Archer could function perfectly without contact with his master with such an independent action rating. Rider could not hope to match it. Lloyd turned to Rider. “Use your noble phantasm.” Rider nodded. “As you wish…Sparrow Wing—feather spear!” Rider’s spear quickly lengthened, and the wind picked up, distorting the air down the length of the spear. Archer nodded. “Wind based? Hirecki, Akiha.” Archer now swung what looked like a Naginata or a Chinese Guan Dao, a type of halberd. Archer slashed, creating a sharp compressed blade of air that shot at Rider. Instantly, he, too stabbed, and around twelve spears of wind shot themselves at Archer—and then the air was split by thunder. Everyone turned to the massive shape that stood on the roof of a house. He was imposing, indeed. Clothed in little but a breastplate and simple pants, the man was definitely muscular—his very arms were enlaced with sinews of muscle, and the long beard and large hammer at his side did not help him look any friendlier. The much smaller, but still quite tall man at his side laughed. “Two sparrows fighting for a worm, eh? Well, all the better for the hawk.” Matou Sasaki and his servant, Berserker, watched the two servants; master and church member turn in surprise. Archer quickly regained his composure. “Delightful…I always wanted to meet Thor in person…your servant is the great god of thunder? Not undeserved for the berserker class. Noble Phantasms are thunder based, presumably Mjollnir.” Sasaki seemed at a loss for a moment, and then regained his composure. “Know a lot, don’t you, servant? Yet you have no chance of standing up to the raw power of Thor. Remember it was one of the Berserker class who won the last war.” Archer laughed. “If I recall, the man who got the grail died not long after because of the strain of supporting berserker…I’ll keep my hopes up for another death.” Sasaki laughed. “And this from Archer…not the fastest, nor the strongest, nor the most powerful, but only cowardly.” Archer smiled. “And yet it was an Archer that destroyed the master of Berserker in the first war.” Sasaki nodded grudgingly. “It won’t happen this time.” Suddenly, Berserker turned and brought out a large shield of rusted steel. Rider’s stab hit it, clanging loudly. “How…ignoble,” Sasaki said airily. Berserker swung his hammer. Sparks and bolts of thunder leapt from its head as it was swung, and Rider jumped aside as the blow left a giant crater in the ground. Risei did not show any trace of wanting to abandon the fight, but Lloyd turned away. “Withdraw, Rider.” As soon as Rider turned, Berserker swung his axe, and a bolt of lightning shot at Rider, who turned his head aside, dodging the blast. However, a new light had appeared—a red bolt of flame cleaved the air as a horse appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Hopping on, Rider rode past Archer, whose hastily shot blade of wind shot right past; past Berserker, who turned in surprise, and then picking up Lloyd and Risei and whisking them away. Behind them, Suzume appeared, two red crystals in hand. Sasaki looked at Suzume. “So you are the Tohsaka family representative?” Suzume nodded. “One would expect an…older master.” Suzume laughed grimly. You’re not much to look at either…you resemble a banker halfway out of a cabaret club. The insult hit home. Sasaki snarled, and read something from his book. Two bolts of lightning shot out at Suzume, who dodged quickly. “Archer, take on the servant…I’ll take the master.” Archer nodded idly, and drew out a tiny cross. Instantly, two blades of blue light flared out from the sides, forming a bow. Suddenly reappearing behind berserker, he fired two shots. Berserker lived up to his reputation—he smashed an arrow aside with a hammer. However, the next arrow hit him in the shoulder. He merely grunted from the impact and launched himself at Archer. Meanwhile, the jewels in Suzume’s hand lit up brightly, and launched themselves at Sasaki. Hurriedly reciting something else, a thin blue barrier appeared in front of him. As weak as it seemed, the barrier did its job, blowing the jewel into bits of flashing light. The two circled each other, shooting blasts of sorcery at each other, to little effect—Sasaki’s recited spells rendered them too slow, and Suzume’s took time to charge and would become obvious when they were done charging. Meanwhile, Archer was already desperately dodging swing after swing. He attempted to block one with his sword, but the blade was shattered effortlessly. Staring in disbelief at the shattered hilt, Archer jumped over another slash at his legs and fired two other blasts from his bow. Berserker rolled aside and sent a bolt of lightning onto Archer’s breastplate, which shattered as he fell to the ground. The two faced each other, Berserker growling menacingly and Archer nursing the wound on his chest. “You sure aren’t undeserving of the rank Berserker…but I won’t allow this to end like this.” Casually, a sword appeared in his hand—a rather insignificant sword. However, it began to glow. “Star of Heaven, strike down my enemy—Ryuuseigan (meteor cannon)!” the sword was hurled at the target. It slowed for a moment, glowing brightly, and then accelerated, becoming a red comet by the time it struck Berserker, who slammed into a wall and collapsed in a cloud of smoke. Archer watched. “I’m sorry for revealing a broken phantasm so early—Caladbolg III accelerates a sword to the speed at which it has the heat and power of a meteor—it’s a wonder you’re still standing. I think there’s another servant here…” he leapt to a roof fired an arrow towards a second floor window—and the arrow shattered on touching, and a blast of black light shot down. Archer backflipped to avoid it. this could only belong to…“So we meet again, Jan Hakura…or should I say servant Archer.” Archer watched the new spectacle—gaudily dressed in a pink and black robe, another servant stood, twirling a sword calmly. Archer laughed. “So you’ll be my opponent as well…Arashi?” Arashi merely laughed in response. “We ARE supposed to be enemies, you know, you should call me by Saber.” Archer shrugged. “What’s the fun in that?” Saber also shrugged. “well, you should turn around.” “Why?” “Because your master is in danger.”

Suzume sidestepped another wild swing—she wouldn’t be able to do it long—she had trouble keeping up with both the Matou’s magic and Berserker’s swings. She blocked another bolt of flame—and saw the hammer closing up. She closed her eyes—and then she heard the sound of metal shattering. She opened her eyes—Archer had blocked with his arm and another sword, which had shattered. His arm and side were now sparking and bleeding profusely. Suzume knew the fight was now hopeless—without a servant, a master was pretty much useless. “Pull out.” Archer nodded. Picking up Suzume, he ran off. Behind him, Berserker made to follow, but Saber landed in front of them. “Now…for old time’s sake, might as well help him…he owes me one.” And the two came together in a clash of sparks.

In the Holy Grail wars, 7 masters must ALWAYS be present. Subtracting the three founding houses (Makiri/Matou, Tohsaka, and Einzburn), there are four remaining servants. If there are no worthy choices, the remaining servants will be allotted randomly to anybody with a magic circuit. Hong Shao Mei did not care about servant, masters, or the Holy Grail. In fact, she cared little for Fuyuki city. Mei was the ambassador for the Chinese government in Japan. In a time where China was under attack by Japan on the mainland, this was not the safest of jobs. However, being raised since birth in Fuyuki, everyone at worst tolerated her presence, and indeed she was welcome in some places. Nevertheless, the appearance of a white-haired woman in her room had totally creeped her out. Having tried to stab the woman with the twin swords hung inside her house, it had taken her some time to calm down and allow the woman to explain. However, the explanation seemed insane. magic and holy Grails and Command spells? When the servant known as Assassin had asked her about her talents, she had been laughed at when she said “Politics, sewing and Archery”. The Archery portion apparently lent some moderate respect to her by her servant. now…what would I want with the holy grail? If Mei had knew the grail existed she would have converted long ago. In any case, she did not have much of a plan—she was not a magus. She would merely wait for other servants to come to her.

Eliza von Einzburn turned in concern to Saber, who was bandaging a wound. The battle with Berserker had gone badly. They had “won” for the occasion, but Berserker still lived, and Saber had been wounded, if less gravely in comparison to Archer. She berated her servant as she opened the curtains of the dreary castle. Snow fluttered past the windows, reminding her of the Einzburn Castle deep in Germany. The Von Einzburns, while retaining the Von that the Kaiser had given them, had never truly dabbled in politics. It had long been entranced with the Holy Grail—they had sent countless knights in the time of Chivalry and had given the greatest sacrifice for the grail—Lizleihi Justizia Von Einzburn, the elder of the Einzburn family at that time, had become the first vessel for the Holy Grail, and still was—a sacrifice unmatched by the other two founding families—the Matou had only involved themselves slightly by setting up the system of Servant Summoning to prevent a world war every 60 years, and the Tohsaka—the Tohsaka had only provided the city of Fuyuki—land the wealth of the Einzburn family could have bought without a second thought. The Matou had won the first war, in 1760. The second, in 1820, had been won by an independent, an Asakura, a shamanic family (commonly despised by both the Magus Tohsaka and the Alchemist Einzburn), and the third had never appeared due to the fact that one of the masters had been a coward and never joined the war. And now, the duty was on her to get the grail for the Einzburn family. However, she had no intention of helping them—she had made it clear. The current elder, Jubstacheit von Einzburn (eighth head of the family) had been somewhat lenient, allowing it and even giving his blessing. Something was up, but she did not know what. But she could not lose—she had the most respected (if not the physically strongest—the Berserker Class takes this prize) and most powerful class, Saber. However, her servant had been wounded. how many chances do I retain?

Suzume glared at Archer. He was SUPPOSED to be recuperating. However, he was merely eating rice and reading with another hand. Suzume’s glares did not faze him. Suzume vigorously combed her white hair as she tried to offset her anger by attempting to recall the dream she had. Then she remembered the disturbing dream that came to her. It was simple, and seemingly normal, but it had disturbed her. She had woken up and brushed her teeth in the mirror back in London—and then she had noticed that her hair was black. According to her parents, her hair had always been white. Well, it hardly mattered—she had to arrange for possible attacks and Activity that might denote the remaining servants. I have little chance of winning with Archer wounded—it would be best to pair up with another master—one of the wild cards who knew nothing about the war. But who?

The man ran, clutching the bag tightly in his arms, the storekeeper who was the former owner of the bag running after him with a butcher knife. However, the man knew Fuyuki well, being raised there since birth. He leapt over a wall, closely followed by the other man, and was about to turn a corner when something stuck into the dirt in front of him—a quivering Javelin. Then a bright light. The storekeeper began to murmur the Hail Mary. So he’s an underground Christian…perhaps the report could be enough to bribe off the local police, the man thought—and then someone stepped out, dressed in resplendent white. “Why are you running,” she inquired. The man looked closely—the woman was wearing a white robe over what looked like an impossibly large amount of armor. The storekeeper behind him called out, “He is stealing my food.” The woman looked at him, and then at the thief. “Is what he says true?” The thief shook his head. this is going to be simple. “That man merely claimed it was mine and attempted to take it by force.” The thief already knew the next question—one frequently posed by police. “What’s in the sack?” “Cucumbers.” The thief had the wisdom to look inside before, as the police frequently repeated tricks. Indeed, it was cucumbers, but the storekeeper wouldn’t give in without a fight. He yelled in protest. “He looked beforehand.” The woman pondered for a few moments, and turned to the storekeeper.
“Do you use this sack often?”
“Yes…”
“What is your occupation?”
“I pickle vegetables in vinegar.”

The woman took the bag and smelled it. “This bag smells of vinegar.” She turned to the thief, who was stunned. “You steal food, and you then flee in dishonor.” Instantly, she stabbed the spear at her side, which burst forth in a burst of light. The storekeeper watched in mixed horror, respect and awe as the thief crumpled to the ground and the bag was handed back to him. “Ma’am, are you an…Angel?” the woman turned and stared at him. “…in a way.” And then she was gone. The storekeeper knew this experience would be with him to the end fo his days—he had seen an angel. He did not see another shape in the rooftops disappear.

Lloyd Harkins laughed as he ate in the church’s upper room. They had finally found a small church. Risei looked at him. “Why are you so amused?” “I’ve heard of hallucinations—but this was outrageous. In confession, one man came and said that he had seen an angel. And then the Angel had skewered a petty thief with a spear…why would an angel do that?” Risei looked up sharply. “You did? Because a woman came and said that an angel like that killed a potential rapist in an alley…” Lloyd looked surprised. “Then it is not an isolated case.” “…no.” Rider spoke up from the other end of the room. “Perhaps it was a servant…” Risei considered it. “Perhaps. This appears to be the servant of a random master—we can defeat it quickly. We could perhaps lure her…” Lloyd looked up. “How?” “Fake a crime…alright, Lloyd, I’m going to need some help.”

Lloyd cursed Risei with every curse he had in mind and in every language (of which Lloyd knew a lot). Of all crimes Risei had to fake, he had to choose a rape. “It would attract a woman servant the most,” Risei had explained. Lloyd knew it made sense—but nobody had told him he would dress up as the woman. “You have long blonde hair…you do look kind of…girly.” Lloyd would have murdered Risei if they had not been such trusted friends—and Lloyd was pretty sure that friendship would be in severe jeopardy if Risei came up with another retarded idea. In two blocks, Risei would jump out and beat the “woman”. Lloyd shuddered to think what would happen if she didn’t come, and Risei took off ALL his clothes while waiting—they would have to slow it down. I have got to be insane… Lloyd took a deep breath and walked into the prepared alley. Risei had pulled all the stoppers on this one—he landed on Lloyd and started hitting at him with a stick (he was meanwhile praying silently that he wouldn’t overdo it—Lloyd was pretty sure God wasn’t helping him, because it certainly hurt). Screaming shrilly, Lloyd felt like an idiot. If the Japanese Police arrived first, this would confirm their worst fears—a Western White homosexual devil displaying promiscuity in women’s clothes. He actually was relieved when a spear landed near them and Rider materialized, already leaping for the light. The two spears clashed—the blue handle and red pommel of Rider’s Chinese spear on the other servant’s spear, which was wooden and covered in intricate winding carvings. Behind the servant who was now obvious as Lancer stood somebody completely cloaked in a gray homespun mantle, covered by a cloak and a scarf that hid all features of the man. Lloyd watched. “You are the master of Lancer?” the person inside nodded. He responded in a voice that identified him as male and foreign. “…yes.” “…who are you?” “there is no need for you to know, merely to be defeated.” Lloyd did not show his anger. “in any case, let’s start this…Rider?” Rider once again thrust forwards. Lancer easily parried it, slipping through and stabbing. Rider bent over at the waist as the spear shot past his torso. He continued bending, somersaulting and kicking the still-flailing spear aside. However, his follow up was turned aside by a gauntleted hand. The two exchanged blows, but Rider soon leapt back—his gauntlets could take less damage. Rider stepped back and nodded in grudging approval. “You have learned well from your lance.” Lancer also returned the compliment. However, both raised their spears at the same time. “Horse of a thousand li [/I](the Chinese measurement of distance)—Scarlet Thunder![/I]” “Mount of Eternal Frost—Fjörsvartnir!” The two surveyed each other. As the name suggested, Scarlet Thunder was a large, powerful looking red Horse. Lancer’s horse was pure white and lean, but the breath that emanated seemed to chill the air. The two shot for each other. The ground seemed to freeze where Fjörsvartnir’s hooves tread, and both unleashed their phantasms at the same time—Lancers, a wall of glittering Crystal, and Riders ten spears of flame. However, Lancer’s crystals simply spread out, avoiding the majority of damage and swarming towards rider. Rider spun his spear in an attempt to block the shafts. In fact, he was generally successful. However, several got through, and he struggled to remain on his horse as he reeled back from two blows to the shoulder. Lloyd groaned.
‘Activate your reality marble!” Rider nodded. “Gao Tang Maoshi Fu (translation: Tang Dynasty Weapons vault, literally”. Lancer’s master looked around in surprise as the five found themselves in a broad plain of grass. Thousands of weapons were stuck into the ground—what looked like fireworks, Guan Do, Jian, Butterfly Blades, Arabian curveswords, Japanese Naginata and Katana, South Asian whip-blades, even the odd Rapier and Greatsword. Then Lancer put her spear in the ground. “release the golden Hall—might of Valhalla!” Suddenly, the two reality marbles collided and fused. The weapons remained, but now in a massive hall, where tables were laid. Lloyd thought that the walls looked like fish scales—on closer inspection, he saw they were thousands upon thousands of overlapping shields. On racks hung European weapons—bows, spears, axes, greatswords, Crossbows—but it was none of these that Lancer looked to. She strode to a dais where a large table stood, a spear stuck in the ground, unlike the one she usually used. “I cannot use this weapon in reality—this is Gungnir, the spear of the ancient God Odin—the original has long been destroyed—this is merely a conceptual weapon.” However, instantly several armored men appeared, wielding a variety of weapons. “Valhalla is the golden hall where wine flows eternal—where the best of warriors live—my reality marble constantly allows me to summon these hosts of Heroic spirits.” Then it hit Lloyd. “You’re a valkyrie!” Lancer did not deny it. “You are not an unperceptive master.” Lloyd was not sure whether to feel ridiculous, dressed in a woman’s dress, or proud that a servant had complimented him. He compromised. “Rider, attack.” Instantly, two chinese daggers rose out fo the ground, shooting at the warriors and killing two. Instantly, a whole host of Norse warriors appeared, yelling and brandishing their weapons. Rider rode into the thick of them, swinging his spear. However, he had no way of avoiding all the wounds, as glancing as they may be. Slowly, he vanished under the cloud of men. Lancer’s master laughed quietly. “Now remove the masters.” Risei drew out his black keys and blocked, but the spear shot through the gaps and struck him in the shoulder. He fell back, cursing as Lancer drew back again—and then Lancer was kicked away, slamming into a wall of shields (which proceeded to crumble onto her). She stood up, her expression neutral. “You’re still alive?” Rider laughed. “Of course.” Lancer’s lips curled. “Then let’s put it to na end in one attack…” instantly, the shields and spears detached themselves and formed a massive wall, with spears and swords jutting out. Rider merely idly picked up a large halberd. He watched as the shield-wall neared—and then he swung. In a flash of light, the shield wall shattered into two, and he shot forwards, to where Lancer prepared Gungnir. He ignored crystal shards shot at him, taking them stoically as he increased momentum and Lancer raised her spear—then the sound of clashing metal and sparks, and then silence. Lloyd opened his eyes—the reality marble had dissipated, and Gungnir was still held in Lancer’s two hands—in two halves. As if time had stopped, Rider stood motionless, where his Feng Tian Jiao had cleaved through the spear and through Rider’s armor, and finally to the floor, where it lay embedded. A few shards of crystals fell from him in the silence, tinkling as it hit the floor. Rider let go of his halberd and stumbled up. Even now, Lancer was beginning to fade, the two halves clattering to the stone pavement of fuyuki as bits of prana drained. Lancer looked idly at her wounds, as if at a bee sting. “…you have my respect.” And then she was gone. Rider straightened up—and then stared at the crossbow bolt that stuck through his armor—it had not harmed hum, but….in a loud bang, the crossbow bolt exploded, engulfing Rider in smoke. Risei and Lloyd (who had changed back into regular clothes) drew their weapons—Rider just stood, watching the curved Arabian sword that had pierced his armor and came out at his back. Then the servant shattered into dust. The person who had done the deed turned—the young-looking face of a woman. Risei cursed (two times; Lloyd wondered who would he go to in confessionals, him being the main priest) and threw a black key, while Lloyd fired off two shots with his revolver. The woman leapt aside easily, stopping on a lamp pole. Lloyd pointed his revolver at her. “Who are you? Are you a servant?” The woman turned and spoke as if to a child. “I have no reason to tell you, but I have no reason to refuse—I am not a servant. My name is Sathya. That is all you need to know.” And then she was gone, Lloyd halfheartedly firing two shots out of his revolver. And then the two realized Lancer’s master was no longer there.

“It appears we have two less servants to worry about,” Saber said, pacing around the room as Eliza stared out the window. “Lancer and Rider were both destroyed in the conflict—but we have a new opponent to worry about…this assassin woman. If she was powerful enough to defeat a servant, she is more than a mere nuisance.” Eliza nodded. She herself was not merely an amateur at fencing, but it was always good to be sure. “The biggest problem, though, is still Archer and Berserker—Berserker is strong and fast enough to defeat both Archer and I, and I know Archer personally—he will not abandon the chance to get a good fight, and his reality marble is the most versatile reality marble I’ve seen for a long time.” Eliza took a sip of her coffee—an import from America. “Archer is badly wounded right now—he is not yet a problem. We can either remove him now or go after Berserker…” Saber shook his head. “We can’t face Berserker directly.” No servant possessed as much raw might as Berserker—but most servants were more intelligent. Berserker’s mad enhancement ability gave a massive boost to all the servant’s abilities, but drove them insane, preventing them from making complicated thoughts—something that all other servants could take advantage of. “Well, we could wait until another servant fights berserker—they would be more willing to ally with us if they are in trouble.” Eliza could not dispute the truth fo Archer’s statement. She nodded and returned to the window.

Even as Eliza contemplated the coming storm, another battle was going on. Sasaki was delighted—he did not have to try to locate a servant—he had managed to run straight into the master of assassin. Assassin was not a good servant in the case of an open battle. Better suited for speed and silence, Assassin was fighting a losing battle. However, she definitely was not going down without a fight. As a bolt of lightning chased Assassin up the top of a new industrial district building, she leapt off the edge, firing two arrows from her large bow as she went. Berserker snarled as the two arrows hit him, and then easily broke them off by swinging his hammer across his chest. Assassin’s master was watching helplessly. It did not matter ultimately---nothing could match Berserker’s power—he had already defeated Archer and Saber, if not permanently, and Rider and Lancer was dead—that left Assassin and Caster unharmed. But the two most dangerous foes were weakened.

Archer and Suzume watched from the lamppost. “Assassin has no chance of winning,” Archer noted dryly. Suzume knew it was true—yet she was in conflict. Assassin’s master is obviously unused to servants…she needs help, one voice said. But the other, the Magus mindset, knew this was disadvantageous—Assassin could easily defeat her if she was caught unawares. Hwoever, her mind was set. “Archer, go protect Assassin.” Archer turned and groaned. “Don’t be such a hero now, I was just having fun.” “Do I need to use a command spell?” Archer sighed. “I hate that kind of blackmail. Assassin’s our enemy—and didn’t I turn out wounded in my last fight against berserker?” Suzume shook her head. “Assassin’s owner does not know how to use her—you should be able to beat her if she decides to revolt. Anyways, you were protecting me last time—you don’t need to do it this time—I’ll stay hidden.” Archer sighed grudgingly. “You have a point…alright, let’s kick some @$$.” He carefully activated his blue bow of light. However, a metal cylinder appeared in his hand, emitting a blue beam of light for ¾ of a meter. He carefully set it on the Quincy bow and drew back, delicately lining up the arrow and Berserker. Finally, he let go.

A seele Schneider (soul cutter in german) is an arrow designed by the Quincy. Resembling a lightsaber, it works differently—it rapidly vibrates to a point where Atoms cannot hold together and ultimately come apart. Therefore, the arrow cut through Berserker’s leg cleanly. However, it already began to smoke and close up as he turned, just in time to block Archer’s Guan Dao as it came down. Assassin and Mei started in surprise. Pressing his advantage, Archer advanced forwards, blocked at every slash by Berserker. Sparks and lightning flew liberally. Finally, Archer managed to land a blow on Berserker’s chest. However, the blow left only a small bloody furrow. Archer started in surprise. And then he saw that there were small pieces of ice on the Guan Dao Blade. “Ice skin?” Sasaki nodded. “As you have told me, Berserker’s true identity is indeed Thor, god of thunder—he also defeated the frost Giant Hrungnir, and thus gained all his noble phantasms—among them the ability to change to eternal ice. Now, Berserker, finish this and get rid of him!” Berserker grunted. Instantly, the hammer began to glow red-hot. He threw it akin to a boomerang, and the hammer struck the Guan Do, which shattered. It then slammed into Archer’s breastplate. It protected him from the worst of the damage, but he was still knocked back by the impact. “…damn, as difficult as usual…I hate fighting Berserkers. Well, can’t do anything about it…might as well step up the pace. bankai, Akiha…Fall from the skies—Heaven Rain! Archer swung his Chinese Jian. Instantly, twelve purple shafts of light, shaped like swords, came down, landing all over Berserker, who stumbled in visible pain. However, he shot forwards again, slamming his hammer into Archer’s Jian, which (for once) held firm. However, a bright light shone behind them—Assassin had finally made her move. From her massive bow, a single arrow burned with pure white light. “Noble Phantasm—The Morning star that splits the darkness—Orion bolt!” Instantly, the arrow shot out—and then Berserker lobbed what looked like a giant rock and shield—and the arrow shattered the shield—and then broke along with the whetstone. Sasaki started in surprise. “You managed to destroy both Hrungnir’s whetstone and his shield?” Archer leapt for the opportunity, but Berserker intercepted his strike, flinging him away. Once again, the hammer whistled through the air, striking Assassin’s bow and sending it flying.

Mei watched from the army truck in which she was hiding behind. Assassin was now making do with her hunting dagger and javelin, but she could not block, and the earlier fight and the use of a noble phantasm had already worn her down. The other man who had assaulted Berserker was now slumped against a wall, barely concious—and there was the bow! The bow had been knocked away, near the side of the truck. She crawled toward it, grabbing it—but she did not have an arrow. She closed her eyes and cursed. going so far, and now I’m going to lose because I forgot to bring a friggin’ stick! And then blue light peeked through her eyelids—a blue arrow was nocked on the string. what the hell… but it was not time to worry about it. She climbed into the flatbed of the truck, drawing carefully the bow and firing at Berserker. The shot struck it in the back. Berserker roared in rage and turned towards Mei. oh shi— And then Archer stood up. “Akiha, second dance—Emperor’s blade! Instantly, the eight shafts of purple light returned to the sword blade, joining as the sword lengthened. Archer swung the blade, sending an arc of white light through Berserker’s left shoulder, sending the arm flying off. Without any Prana to maintain it, the arm vanished into the air. Berserker swung his other arm and hammer—and was driven back by the force of Archer’s phantasm. “Assassin! Fire now!” Mei hurled the bow at Assassin, who caught it. “the morning star that splits the darkness—Orion Bolt! This time the arrow struck true, blowing Berserker into pieces that vanished in moments. Suddenly without a sword to lean on, Archer waved his arms wildly and fell into the dirt, cursing. Sasaki gaped in shock. Instantly, Assassin appeared behind him, holding her hunting dagger to his throat. “Masters can still participate without servants, master…should I keep him from interfering?” Mei shuddered at the thought. “No, he’s already lost his servant.” “But…” “No, Assassin.” Assassin seemed somewhat disappointed. “Well, are we going to wait here until the police get here,” Archer asked. “Come on already then.”