Fate: Turning Wheel

by SashaSeer

As the Wheels of Fate turn, sometimes, there's a hiccup... Collection of Fate One-shots written by mwah.

A Lingering Will

Oh hey look, another collection of Fate one-shots with replacement Servants. Seriously Sasha? Well just don't forget the disclaimer that says you don't own any characters/series depicted in this fic. Oh, wait; I just did that, huh… Oh well, you gunna ask for Servant suggestions like some of the others? Yes, ok cool. Well then, let's get started.

-Break-

He couldn't understand it. Studying the Einzbern records of the ritual clearly said that all that was truly required was the catalyst and the intent. Sure, there was, supposedly, a way for attaining the class the summoner wished, but the ones the Einzbern's knew for sure were only for Berserker, Assassin, and Avenger, all three of which wouldn't have worked with the provided catalyst.

Maybe you really do need the right circle… he thought, since that was the only other explanation as to why Kiritsugu Emiya, the Einzbern representative for the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War, had instead of summoned the strongest Saber, gotten…

"I say again, I am Servant Lancer. I ask of you, are you my Master?" the blonde knight asked, her green eyes showing an intensity to them not unlike Kiritsugu's own.

"I am." Kiritsugu replied after the shock of receiving a Lancer had worn off, before putting forth a question of his own. "Are you truly Arthur Pendragon?" and upon receiving a nod from the young girl, he continued to ponder as to why she wasn't a Saber…

-Break-

The answer to the Magus Killer's question came during Lancer's first struggle in the war against the Servant Rider, whom, judging by the spear and sword he wielded appeared to be some kind of infantry soldier. As the two Servants exchanged blows, Rider's crimson pole arm cutting through Lancer's armor as he himself barely dodged her bloodthirsty spear's thrust; they were interrupted by the sudden intervention of some kind of hover jet ski. Upon said vehicle were two individuals; one a Servant, by virtue of the fact that he was not only familiar with the vehicle, as well as the armor that he wore on his left arm, but also because he was in control of the craft, the other the Master, by virtue of the fact that he was completely terrified of the experience, and that he was grasping his Servant's torso for dear life. Both of them were teenagers, yet the Master appeared to be younger by about a year or two.

After the two dismounted, the knight (for what else could he be with the armor he wore) helping his Master down, the two previously combating Servants had regained their wits, with Lancer taking up a defensive stance against this new threat, and Rider inquiring about the knight's class. With a cocky smirk, the Servant replied in a voice that seemed to resonate with the very earth itself "I suppose there's no harm in that." Whilst hold his arm toward the hover craft he'd arrived upon. It wasn't until he said "I am Servant…" that a sudden flash appeared, and the craft shifted into a gold/blue coloured broadsword that, oddly, resembled a large key. Grabbing the key by the handle, the Servant stated the only class he could be with a weapon such as that "…Saber."

-Break-

After Saber's rather unorthodox introduction, along with the reveal of who Rider's Master was, and the subsequent arrivals of both Archer and Berserker respectively, things got a tad hectic for the Einzbern participants as, after being attacked by the lamppost wielding Berserker, Rider was forced by his own Master to team up against the Servant of the Spear. Lancer did her best to defend against the two, but with Berserker's crazed strength and Rider's body following his Master's absolute command the two easily overpowered the girl's own spear strikes, pushing Lancer back until she was in arms reach of her, assumed, Master. However, as the two opposing Servants drew closer, another flash of light, followed by Saber (only this time clad in an earthily bronze colour armor, with odd prongs on the side of his helm), intercepted and beat away the shadow clad Berserker. "Y'know, if you wanted a fight, I'm sure I could help with that." Saber quipped, only to receive a growl in response.

It was his confusion over the growl that was the cause for Saber's blunder, as he was caught surprised by Berserker's tackle lunge directly afterward, though Saber's own retaliatory strike back did, amusingly, catch Berserker off guard as well. Thus the rivalry of Berserker and Saber was born, as each tried to bash the other into submission; Saber with his wide range of attack manoeuvres, and Berserker with his instant mastery of anything that could be used as a weapon. Shadow and bronze were all anybody could see of the bout, that is until a lull was imposed, courtesy of Lancer's form barrelling through after Rider had dodged her wind enhanced charge. Breaking apart, everyone present could see that Saber had gained a yellow aura surrounding his upper body and weapon, said weapon he was now holding with two hands.

"Let's see how tough you really are Berserker," he proclaimed, before leaping into the air as if to split the Mad Servant in half with his blade. Upon reaching the apex, Saber let loose what some might consider a battle cry of "Critical Impact!" yet before he could finish his strike, Berserker had vanished, the battle having had an adverse affect upon his Master, leaving everyone, Saber included, stunned.

-Break-

Saber's next act within the war came almost 24 hours later, as, after an attempt on Rider and his Master in the form of a hotel bombing ended in failure to eliminate either target from the war, the Einzbern participants were rethinking their strategy when Irisviel sensed something enter the bounded field around their castle headquarters. As Lancer rushed to investigate, she was caught by an odd sight; creatures, hundreds of them, things that couldn't, shouldn't exist, were swarming over the forest outside the castle. These creatures alone would not have caused her to pause in shock, yet it was the fact that most of the creatures had already been slain that was the cause of her hesitation. Further inspection revealed to Lancer that Saber, whom was in the process of slaying more of the creatures, was the one responsible for the slaughter before her. The young man was also encouraging his Master to do some butchering of his own, to which the magus profusely refused. Yet before her thought processes could ask why Saber and his Master were there, Lancer was assaulted by a familiar teal clad Servant.

"Rider." "Lancer." and with that their dual began anew.

-Break-

Meanwhile, the Masters of Lancer and Rider were in a dual of their own within the castle proper. Normally, anyone who'd try to attack any of the Einzbern participants within their own home was going to receive a nasty surprise, due to Kiritsugu Emiya's various preparations. Normally, any assailant would be caught up in the detonation of the mines set up in the hall, which would allow for Kiritsugu and his assistant Maiya to rain down hot lead death. If there were any survivors from that onslaught, they would soon discover the number of hidden weapons the two had placed around the interior, as both Magus Killers would be using them to continue their assault on the invading forces. All of those preparations were made with a particular type of assailant in mind, and, unluckily for Kiritsugu, his current opponent was not the type he had prepared for. For everything that the Emiya magus threw at Kayneth, the man merely walked through with the aid of his Mystic Code Volumen Hydragyrum, the liquid metal acting as a shifting shield.

With each step the Master of Rider took, the more his confidence grew. For years he had heard of the ruthless ferocity of the fearsome Magus Killer, Kiritsugu Emiya, and yet now, here the man was, running in fear from him, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, all because the killer's mundane weaponry weren't having an effect upon him. Of course… he thought, his stride gaining an egotistical hitch in his step, one shouldn't be able to call themselves true magi if they cannot overcome such simple means of combat. It was the same thought many had upon facing off against the Magus Killer for the first time. And it was the first mistake those same individuals had made, as each and every one of them had merely thought Kiritsugu only possessed mundane weaponry. Few of them would even think it possible that he'd possess a Mystic Code of his own, and almost none of them would think one could create a Mystic Code out of a gun.

Which was lucky for Kayneth then that Saber arrived when he did, or he too would have firsthand knowledge as to why Kiritsugu was considered the most atrocious of Magus Killers. Had Emiya had his way, Kayneth would've had to spend a small fortune just to be able to move the wheelchair he'd have found himself in. However, because of Saber's interference Kayneth's life as a magus, and among the able bodied, would continue relatively unscathed. A shame that, really.

However, instead of profusely thanking the Servant of his student as he should've to avoid such a fate, Kayneth decided to aggrandize his, assumed, position of power. "So this is the extent of the terrifying Magus Killer Kiritsugu Emiya? A man who uses mere mundane weaponry, and who needs to ally himself with the Servant of a lowly third generation whelp, all to face off against a true magus. After I kill you, I'll be sure to find the fool that has been spreading lies about your talents, and show them what I think of such things.

"And as for you, Saber, tell that worthless excuse of a magus you call a Master, that if you stay out of my way, I might not unleash Rider upon either of you. Disobey that directive, and Lancer won't be the only one to fall by his blade this night."

"First off, I'm only here as a favour to Lancer's Master. Aside from that Waver and I have no allegiance to Lancer's group." Saber said as he moved between the two magi "Secondly, I really don't appreciate you threatening my Master…" Saber's voice growing evermore dangerous with each step he took closer to the Master of Rider "and while it would be easier if I just cut you down right now…" at this the tip of Saber's weapon was pointed at Kayneth's heart, yet still in range of Volumen Hydragyrum to intercept should the Servant try anything else. For a long while the situation was tense, barely any movement from the three individuals present. Kayneth's glare was held with Saber's visor, with only very subtle twitches of anger over the still raised weapon. Saber's eyes beneath his helm was quickly scanning his surroundings, lingering on Kayneth's body language and Volumen Hydragyrum's shifting form. Kiritsugu, whom was partially obscured due to Saber's armor, had loaded an Origin Bullet in his Thompson Contender, and was waiting for the right moment to strike.

"For now, I won't." Saber concluded, breaking the tense silence both with his voice, and the slight lowering of his blade "You remind me too much of my successor. So, just this once, I'll let you leave, unharmed. Deal?"

The condescending laugh Kayneth gave in response was expected, as was what he said afterwards. "And why should I do that. Oh yes, you may outnumber me, but I believe we all know who has the upper hand in this struggle." But what Saber did after Kayneth gave the order for Volumen Hydragyrum to attack was not.

"FREEZE!" at the command a jet of frozen air and icicles erupted from Saber's weapon and struck the autonomous blob of liquid mercury, solidifying it instantly. The end result was an odd sculpture of ice and metal, as well as the speechless forms of the Masters of Lancer and Rider. Bringing his weapon to rest upon his shoulder, Saber expounded what they had just witnessed. "For nine years my mind was devoted to the sciences, as such I know that at temperatures exceeding 234.28 Kelvin, the kind a significantly powerful Blizzard spell can achieve, liquid mercury will freeze to the point of shattering. Now, the main question is, can I do the same to a human body? If I were you, I'd think twice about whether or not I'd want to test that theory, hmm?"

A few seconds later, Rider was given the order to retreat (as well as carry the solidified Volumen Hydragyrum with him), leaving Lancer free to rescue Irisviel, Maiya, and Waver (whom Saber had left with before heading off to help Kiritsugu) from Kirei Kotomine, and Kayneth returned to his backup hideout with a useless lump of metal and a massively wounded ego. Still at least he had been able to make it under his own power…

-Break-

A few nights (and one gruesome horror lair burning) later, Lancer's group somehow ended up playing host to some… odd guests.

"Why have you come here, Saber, Rider?" Lancer asked the two Servants who were standing on the Einzbern Manor's front porch, both in casual attire (Rider in a jacketless suit, and Saber in the same clothes he usually wore, though instead of armor he wore sneakers and a leather jacket), and both accompanied by a guest of their own (Rider had Sola-Ui and Saber had Waver). Shrugging at the King of Knights' question, Saber responded with "Isn't it obvious?" whilst he and Rider held up the alcoholic beverages the two of them had gotten beforehand. "This is a ceasefire."

It was few moments later when the three Servants, plus their partner of choice (Irisviel having joined Lancer upon the agreement of the ceasefire), each sat down and started to partake of the drinks that had been brought. After the first round, as well discussing various topics, their party was joined by none other than Archer, curious as to their current demeanour. Once the King of Heroes was convinced to sit as well, even providing his own, more potent brew, the topic of discussion shifted to the one common element between them all; the Grail. Specifically, what they would wish for.

"Saber, you can't just ask that!" Waver yelled at his Servant.

"Why not Waver? What's wrong in asking about the thing we are each fighting for? I'm sure the others are just as curious about everyone else's, so why can't I ask?" Saber questioned, to which Waver merely groaned. It was not a rare instance. Throughout their partnership, Saber kept doing things that, while not going against the rules, one shouldn't really do during a Grail War. Yet, Waver would be the first to admit that it was somewhat fun to be around Saber, and with all his Servant had done for him, Waver had wondered at times if what he and Saber had was what it was like to have an older brother.

But then he would do stuff like this, and Waver would wish he had gotten a different Servant.

"I believe it is polite to first provide your reasoning, before asking another theirs." Rider spoke up, causing Saber to relent and provide his reasons for the Grail.

"Fine, guess I'll go first. In life I was arrogant and foolhardy; it cost me the life of my teacher, who was like a father to me, as well as my home and in the end, both my mind and my body. I was then used as a puppet, bringing chaos and destruction where ever I went until after eleven years I was freed by my friends, but with a much larger trial ahead of us." Saber told them, taking a breath before continuing "What I wish for is to prevent the worst of that, the death of Master Eraqus, so that my friends and I could beat back the evil of that man much sooner, and in the process, hopefully, save many more lives than we were able to." He finished his reasons with a long draught from his goblet. Afterwards, Saber clapped Waver on the back and said "Go on Waver, you're next." putting his Master on the spot.

And so it went, everyone giving their reasoning for getting the Grail, though most of them didn't really have a proper wish, and Saber commenting on them after he'd heard them all; Waver wanting it so as to prove his competence as a magus, something he and Saber had already discussed the night of the summoning. Rider merely wanting to serve his Master and have an honourable battle, something Saber encouraged Lancer and Archer to agree to should Rider face any of them. Sola-Ui stating her wish, if she even had one, was private, Saber dropping the matter with her. Archer, again not having a true wish, reasoning that because the Grail is a treasure, it is thus his, and he is merely fighting to see if any are worth the right to claim it, and refusing to believe Saber's reasoning that because they were chosen by the Grail, they automatically have the right. After that, it was Irisviel's turn, saying that her wish was the same as her husband's; a utopia, where a hero of justice can save everyone, without sacrifice.

"Your husband is a lucky man, to have someone who cares enough about his desires to give up her own." Saber spoke, in regards to Irisviel's wish, to which she replied "I desire my husband to be at peace, and his wish would do that."

Lancer, whom never knew her Master had such a reason for wanting the Grail, was so stunned by her charge's words, that she barely registered Saber's voice, until his hand was upon her shoulder. "What?"

"I said, we've all stated our reasons, so what's yours Lancer?" Saber supplied, as everyone else was looking at her, with varying levels of expectancy.

Composing herself, Lancer explained her desire "I would wish for the salvation of my homeland. My reign brought about its destruction, and became my greatest regret, and with the Grail, I will avert that fate, by wishing that I had never ruled in the first place. It is the responsibility of any King to protect their lands, and I will see it through."

The impact of Lancer's words were heavy upon the majority of those present; those who weren't Servants were shocked by her declaration, Rider was filled with sorrow and regret over his enemy's self-destructive selflessness, Saber was grim over his host's desire, and Archer…

"Heh-heh. He-hahahahahahah!"

Archer was laughing at the other king's ideals.

"Archer, what is so funny?" Lancer asked with an edge to her voice.

"You." The gilded ruler claimed, causing anger to rise within Lancer. "You, who were hailed as a King, and here you are saying you regret it. How can I not laugh at something so pathetic?"

"Archer…" Lancer growled, rising to her feet, but was halted midway by Saber's hand, still present upon her shoulder, Archer's laugh continuing unabated.

"Lancer," Rider started in dismay "…do you realise what it is you intend to do?"

"I do." Lancer nodded. "My blade, my life was devoted to my lands, and those that resided within them. I strove to become perfection, sacrificing my humanity, and in the end, my choices led to the ruin of those I swore to protect." A look of remorse decorated Lancer's features as she recounted her past. Breathing deeply, she addressed her next words to Saber, saying "You, out of everyone here understand my desire. You too wish to change fate…" only to stop as Saber's grip (and Archer's incessant laughter) increased.

"Do not compare your regrets with mine, Lancer." Saber said, anger infecting every syllable "We may desire the salvation of lives, but where they differ is the execution. Yes, my choices led to the death and destruction of many, and they will haunt me for as long as I exist…" a hint of sorrow colours Saber's eyes as the memories flare once more within his heart, only to be swept away by another tide of righteous anger with his next sentence "Yet I do not once regret them, for those choices led to the rise of my saviours, and resulted in the legends of both my friends, and myself, to be sown upon the fabric of history, as heroes. My wish doesn't change that, it merely has it culminate much sooner, and with fewer lives lost.

"Yet you, who would sacrifice not only your own legend, but also the legends of those that aided you, those that fought against you, those that succeeded you, you say that I understand? Oh, believe me, I do, I understand that you are a spoilt little girl who has no comprehension of what her childish desire will forge."

"How dare you!" Lancer challenged, rising out of the crushingly calm Servant's grasp "If I can save the lives of my people, if I can ensure that the just laws of the lands are maintained, then I will gladly sacrifice anything and everything for that outcome. That is what it means to be a King; to protect the powerless, to follow what is just, to sacrifice all in service of the land and its people!" Lancer then turned to face both Saber and Archer before demanding "Why is that childish? Why is that funny?"

"If you cannot see it yourself, then what's the point of saying it?" Saber replied, his thoughts turning back to the past, and fate of one so much like Lancer when she herself followed those exact ideals.

"A leader mustn't just be an ideal, they must be strong, uncompromising, certain, and above all, a leader must be an inspiration." Saber said after a moment of reflection "If your people only follow your ideals because of enforcement rather than motivation, then you are nothing more than a dictator. And if you truly believe that it is the King that needs to make sacrifices for the people, then you are nothing more than a fool."

"You…" Lancer growled at the morose Servant, only to be interrupted by Rider. "Saber has a point Lancer. Only those bound by obligation would follow one who strives to be an idea rather than a human."

It was Lancer's anger towards, and her fear of the validity of, their claims of her principles that caused her to lash out at Rider. "You say that, even after you were betrayed by your Lord's petty grudge!?" she spat, only to regret it when Rider's features matched that of Saber's, and he countered with "I was not betrayed by my Lord, I betrayed him. Through adultery, bloodshed, and compulsion did I betray him. When I was finally welcomed back and granted lands of my own, many left his service, and many more tried to take his head, insisting that I take his title, because of his weakness. In the end, my deepest regret was that the blow that felled me, came not from him, but from the boar we were hunting. My shame at not receiving true retribution for my transgressions is why I will never allow such a situation to come to pass again." At those words, Rider glanced at Sola-Ui, hoping that his Master's fiancée understood his meaning. He knew of her feelings towards him, he'd have to be an idiot not to, and he hoped the damage wasn't as bad as it had been then.

Focusing back upon Lancer, Rider continued, just as the moon was obscured by a passing cloud. "Had my Lord been a lesser man, he would've forgiven the travesties I'd done to him from the beginning. Everyone would've abandoned him, and his rule would've ended then and there, as I have no doubt in my mind that many would've fought, and killed, to take the throne from him." The Mounted Servant's words shook Lancer right to her core, shattering her mask of anger, as they rang within her heart. It was no coincidence that Rider had chosen that scenario, and it reminded Lancer of her greatest failure in life.

It was only through the most arrogant of laughs that Lancer was able to regain some measure of composure, as she asked "What are you laughing at now, Archer?"

"Oh?" the gilded knight spoke, as he regarded his silver counterpart. "It's that your anguished face just then was quite the sight to behold.

"It reminded me of a virgin who had just been deflowered in bed. Which, by the way, is exactly what I like in a woman." He laughed, both at his words, and Lancer's indignation.

"Why you…" Lancer started, gripping her invisible sword, yet was halted by Saber, who rose to his feet and asked the King of Heroes "Archer, how do you see us?" as he focused upon a point behind Waver.

"Hn, so, you noticed them too?" the gilded knight smirked, the previous emotions of the gathering replaced with confusion.

"If you could answer the question please…"

"Fine, I see no harm." Archer replied. "You are all mongrels to the true King, yet I would gladly accept your fealty. I may even allow you to take one or two of my treasures, if that were the case."

"I suppose that'll have to do," Saber muttered as he inspected something within his hand. From his vantage point Waver could see it was a sort of charm, or talisman, of some kind. Saber addressed Archer again "I suppose it'd be asking too much for you to intervene?" as Waver shuffled closer to his Servant.

"You are quite perceptive, Saber." Archer replied as an army of Assassins surrounded the small gathering. The arrival of the silent killers caused the other magi present to move closer to their corresponding Servant, who in turn prepared themselves for a fight.

"Rider…" Sola-Ui said, with a hint of panic.

"So many of them… Saber, I…"

"It'll be alright Waver." Saber reassured, before posing one last question to Archer that night. "If you are not going to intervene, then would you mind if I did?"

"You may." Archer chortled.

His tune changed, however, when he saw what it was that Saber meant by his words.

"Wayfinder: ARCHER!" Saber cried as he summoned his armor, and charged the Assassins. It wasn't obvious at first what was happening, as his moves were apparently the same. Even then it was Archer that suspected it first, and that was only until a set of very familiar chains struck a number of the Assassins. The more Saber struck, the more the others began to take notice, especially when Saber launched numerous swords at an Assassin that was creeping upon Waver. Everyone's suspicions were confirmed when Saber started to gain a golden aura, and he took a familiar pose, upon which he cried out "GATE OF BABILON!" and a rippling wall of light appeared behind him.

Saber's Noble Phantasm granted him the techniques and, from the way Archer's goblet had crumpled due to the death grip he was placing it under, Noble Phantasms of other Heroic Spirits.

-Break-

The Assassins didn't last long after that (something Saber was counting on), likewise for the aura around Saber, it fading away before the last Assassin did, it meeting it's end from his original blade. The after-effects of the slaughter were evident as Saber had to lean on Waver for support as he apologized to everyone there; Archer, for using the Servant's abilities without permission (Archer accepting on the terms that a) the wine's flavour would spoil should he seek retribution, and b) that Saber was to never use his techniques ever again), Lancer and Irisviel, for the mess, and Rider and Sola-Ui for assistance back into the city proper, after which Saber and Waver walked back to their base.

The two spent the rest of the night, and most of the following day discussing various topics that were raised at the ceasefire, the least of which was Waver's own lack of self-worth as Saber's Master.

"Waver…" Saber laughed, causing just a tiny spark of anger to rise within the young Master. He doesn't have to laugh at me… Waver thought to himself with a huff. Sensing his Master's frustration, Saber clapped him on the back (a little too hard in Waver's opinion) as he said, reassuringly "You are without a doubt the best Master for me, or any other Servant really. Yeah you have your spoilt and petty sides, but you are young, and, let's face it, human. But you care for those you consider a friend, and are by far one of the bravest Masters in this war. I mean how many of the others actually fought side by side with their Servant?

"As for me though, with all that I've done in life, I would've half expected to be summoned by someone much like that man. If anything, I'd say I'm not a worthy Servant for a Master such as you."

"Saber…" was all Waver could say. Though he wouldn't admit it, Waver had seen with his own eyes what Saber had experienced, it was that, and how his Servant was that made Waver feel inadequate as a Master. Yet here he was saying that despite all that, Waver was the better of the two. It was baffling how such a person could think so highly of a third rate magus such as him. Waver was going to correct Saber on that fact, before the Servant of the Sword proposed that they do something fun, which usually meant training until Waver collapsed, a prospect the young magus was not looking forward to.

-Break-

The peace that Fuyuki sustained from the previous night was shattered in an instant when the Caster duo attacked. Many would say that it was unprovoked, and that it was further proof of their mental instability. Waver and Saber wisely decided to remain mute on their involvement with the subject. The attack itself, that of an eldritch nature, required the intervention of all of the surviving participants before the entire populous was devoured by the creatures Caster had brought forth; Lancer attacking the monstrosity head on as only she could find a foot-hold upon the surface of the river where it sat, with Rider protecting both Waver and Irisviel, as Saber and Archer both provided aerial support.

Despite their valiant (or in Archer's case, tiresome) efforts, Caster's beast was still standing, having suffered little to no damage from the group's onslaught due to it's regenerative abilities. As the struggle continued, it had the unfortunate effect of drawing the attention of not only the mundane citizens of Fuyuki, but also the military.

"Control to Diablo-1. What is your situation?"

"My situation… Um… Its, ah…" the pilot codenamed Diablo-1 replied, unsure exactly of what it was he was witnessing. All he did know was that when his wingman, codenamed Diablo-2, decided to dive down and get a better look at the thing, whatever it was, it ate him, fighter jet and all. This in turn caused Diablo-1 to try to blow the crap out of the thing in a mad, suicidal rush. Unfortunately for Diablo-1, he wouldn't be doing so under his own power, as something big, shadowed, and angry really liked the look of his jet.

"GHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!" came the inhuman roar signalling Berserker's arrival, mixing in with the nerve-wracking sound of his prana corrupting the jet he was riding into something unspeakable.

As Berserker charged, first at Caster's creature, then at Archer, Saber took this opportunity to land and discuss tactics with the others.

"I hope you lot have come up with something, because Lancer and I have barely given that thing a scratch." Saber exclaimed just as Waver said "I'll ask him" to the phone he was holding.

"Saber, you can mimic another Servant's Noble Phantasm, right?" the young Magus asked his knight, to which Saber replied with "Something like that, why?"

It was Irisviel that spoke up next, saying "Lancer has a Noble Phantasm that could destroy the creature, but it was weakened when she was summoned under the Lancer class. If you could mimic it, and use it at the same time she does, it might make up the difference."

"I see…" Saber said, yet before he could inquire about the most important aspect of this plan, Rider interjected with "The only problem with that is the amount of collateral damage such an attack would make. Is there anyway we could make that not be an issue?"

It was Kiritsugu, and by extension Waver since he was relaying everything the former said to the group, that put forward the solution. "Archer's chains?" Waver asked incredulously before realisation dawned upon him and he turned to his Servant "You could use Archer's chains to drag that thing out to sea!"

"Actually, that won't be possible. My Wayfinder won't allow me to replicate Archer and Lancer's skills at the same time, adding to that is the fact that it needs about a day to recharge between each use. Finally, it'd break my promise to Archer himself." The admission of Saber's limitations caused the others present to grow silent, resulting in the aerial battle between Archer and Berserker to be faintly heard once more.

"But…" Saber said as he watched the battle above, his eyes focusing more on the corrupted fighter jet than the pristine vimana. "we might have another option." For Saber, time slowed as his focus increased, locking on to Berserker's craft, right at the second it got close to Archer's. Then, before anyone could ask the Servant of the Sword what he meant by his words, a dark aura, not unlike the one that surrounded Berserker, clad Saber's form one second, and the next he shot upwards, racing towards the night sky with a single whispered phrase. "Sonic Shadow."

-Break-

Despite himself, Archer was enjoying the little 'game' he was playing with Berserker, for what else would anyone call what the mad dog was doing. Which was why, when a second figure clad in shadows, ones that exploded when struck against an enemy, appeared and blew the Mad Knight away, Archer sneered at the interloper whom disturbed his enjoyment. When the impudent whelp, now revealed to be Saber after being shed of his shadows, righted himself upon his vehicle, Archer regarded him the same way as one would regard a discarded piece of food wrapping; as trash.

"Archer," Saber started, not having any of the golden Servant's haughtier-than-thou attitude at the moment, "we need you help us move that thing out into the open."

"And why should I do such a thing?" Archer asked the air ahead of him as he continued to not acknowledge Saber as a person. Some ways behind them Berserker was finally able to regain control of the jet after his scuffle with Saber's Shotlock. Despite the danger, Archer continued to talk. "I have already degraded enough of my most valued treasures against that worm's disgusting hide, and now you ask me to use the one treasure that I value above all else? Were I not more interested with Berserker's wishes to challenge me, I'd wipe your insolent being off the face of this planet."

Seeing no other way to get through to the Servant of the Bow, Saber instead turned his attention upon Berserker, whom in turn was torn between whom it was he wanted to destroy more; Lancer down below, or Saber and Archer both above. The decision was made for him when Saber rocketed past, clipping one of the manoeuvring flaps as he did. Next thing either Berserker or Archer knew, Saber'd landed on the same jet as Berserker, his weapon imbedded into the rear of the craft, and shouting at Archer "SO, IF I DEAL WITH BERSERKER, THEN WILL YOU LISTEN!?" only to receive a scoff in return.

I suppose that'll be enough… Saber thought as he started to draw in the corrupted prana around him. Angered confusion entered Berserker's mind as he tried to see what Saber was doing to his recently made, and acquired, mechanical Noble Phantasm. Saber on the other hand had hoped never to call upon this aspect of his legend again. Oh sure, a little bit every now and then like with the Sonic Shadow, was alright, if necessary. But this, this was the power that'd led to his previous Master's death, and was the direct cause of his fall to that man; it was only natural he'd feel apprehension when using it. Finally addressing Berserker since he'd landed upon his jet, Saber merely said, "I apologise for this. Normally, I'd fight you proper, but since time is of the essence…"

Once more Saber was clad in shadows, only this time it increased around both his arms and weapon, as well as (though nobody could tell) changing his eyes from blue to amber. Unlike before, Saber didn't rush towards Berserker, instead he continued to gather in the corrupted prana. It wasn't until he started to sink within Berserker's jet did the Mad Servant's own combat awareness peg onto what it was that the Servant of the Sword was trying to accomplish. Usually, Saber would have had to charge up this ability with various attacks, spells, and sometimes items, however the darkness within Berserker's corrupted prana was potent enough to cause the bronzed knight to enter his current state just by opening his heart to it. Thus it was, Saber, with a claw of solidified shadow, shot up from beneath Berserker, dislodging the darkness knight from his mount, destroying it in the process, and launching him into the air with an enraged cry of "DARK IMPULSE!"

-Break-

Satisfied with where Berserker had landed, Saber, having removed his helm, returned to hovering beside Archer. From there, the two Servants could see Lancer tiring under the stress of keeping Caster's beast from the people on the shoreline. Time was running out.

"You asked me earlier, why you should help…" Saber expressed, with Archer's gaze focused firmly upon Lancer. "There are many reason's why you should help: The people who could die if you don't. The threat that thing poses to the world at large, both in terms of exposure and danger. Or even because, due to your actions earlier against that thing, your Master ordered you to." Saber continued, the last line earning a scowl in response. "But none of them are the reason why you will help. Remember when I asked how you saw us at the ceasefire… It's because my Noble Phantasm only allows me to use the abilities of those whom I share a bond with, in my heart. From that bond, I can understand what that person feels, deep down…" at this Saber drew breath before continuing "It was through that bond that I was able to guard over my lost friends when I myself had fallen, and it is through that bond that I saw your past, Gilgamesh." upon speaking Archer's name, the King in question broke his gaze from Lancer to look Saber in the eye. "I saw how you and the one whom originally owned those chains of yours became friends. You, whom only had room for perfection, opened your heart to one whom, you even acknowledged, was an imperfect being. Those years you've cherished with more warmth than any trinket in your cold, isolated treasury. And now, in this time and place, when your friend is over 3000 years dead, you've opened your heart once more to another, albeit vastly different, imperfect being; Lancer. You've fallen for her, you wish to see her happy, you wish to take her from her self-destructive path because it would cause her pain, and it is for her sake that you will help us…"

Archer's silence at Saber's words was heavy enough to crush even Caster's monstrosity. The pregnant pause between the two caused Saber severe trepidation, enough that he was half tempted to just use Archer's abilities himself and hope Lancer could deal with the thing, before Archer spoke again, but in a voice that held no arrogance, no ego, just the remnants of a time long past, when he wasn't a Hero, nor a King, but merely a friend to a young man made of mud and clay. "If you ever bring up Enkidu again… I will kill you…" before taking off towards Caster's beast, the chains of his most precious friend trailing behind.

"Understood." Saber said, before he too took flight once more, declaring to the sky "Wayfinder: LANCER!"

-Break-

By the time Saber had rejoined the fray, Archer had ensnared Caster's beast with his chains and was dragging it out beyond the boundaries of Fuyuki's waters. Though slow going, it did grant Lancer enough time to regain her breath as the majority of the beast's tentacles were occupied with trying to free the main body. Despite that though, there were still one or two that attempted to strike out at the water-walking Servant, only to be met by a different water-walking Servant.

"Heads up!" Saber cried, as his blade carved through the creature, before he himself gained traction upon the river much like Lancer had.

Lancer herself, meanwhile, was having trouble processing how Saber was doing so. "How are you achieving this feat?" she asked him, only for the key bearing knight to hold up an orange charm of some sort. Said charm was of a five-point star, with each arm being a pentagonal diamond shape, connected to eachother by a red string, and in the centre was the same emblem that was emblazoned upon Saber's belt when he wasn't clad in armor. The charm was also giving off a faint glow, enough to indicate to Lancer that this was a Noble Phantasm of some sort, and, coupled with Saber's newly acquired skills upon the water, was most likely the one he had used to replicate Archer's abilities.

"Before you get angry, your Master asked me to do this, because she feared your Noble Phantasm wouldn't be enough to deal with that thing." Saber said, back still facing Lancer "Now, does your Noble Phantasm require some sort of preparation?"

"I should be able to use it as soon as Archer has gotten the monster into the ocean."

"Ok then, well I still need to charge up first, so I'm going to make it easier for Archer…" and with that Saber was off, utilizing his imitation of Lancer's Invisible Air to boost his speed.

Lancer, however, decided to gather herself and her prana. Whilst she wasn't lying to Saber about her skills, she would indeed be ready by the time she had specified, her sword still required her to gather prana into it's blade before using it's effects. Even then, the prana build up would take even more time than she was used to, due to the sword no longer being her primary weapon. Thus it enabled everyone present who could see the blade, to marvel even more at its splendour. The lights that the blade called forth hung for far longer, allowing those present to feel the warmth and glory of all the hopes and desires of all whom had called the battle field their home. It's exalted radiance brought Waver to his knees and tears to his eyes, re-awoke Archer's memories of fighting alongside his friend, and to Saber, even if were just a glimpse, a vision of those friends and allies of his…

When Lancer had finished gathering the prana, Archer had dragged the beast out beyond the confines of civilisation, and Saber had charged his own attack, the Servant of the Sword rejoined the Servant of the Spear and asked her "Ready?" as the light from both their blades started to illuminate the area like a second dawn.

Lancer said nothing as she raised her weapon. Saber merely smirked as he followed suit. The last thing the other heard before the world was engulfed in golden light, was the simultaneous cries of the same attack…

"EX-"

Lancer's voice filled with conviction and pride. Saber's filled with raw emotion and magnitude.

"-CALIBUR!"

-Break-

The next morning, as the first rays of light that didn't originate from a weapon started to sweep across the city, Waver and Saber were discussing whether or not they should gain the extra Command Seal, allow Lancer or Archer to claim it, or, since there was at the very least anywhere from one to five extra Command Seals, the two of them request that an extra one be given to all three parties as they were equally responsible for Caster's death. Saber was the one vocal about deciding the matter sooner rather than later, as it was more likely someone else was to snatch it before they had a chance to ask, where as Waver was concerned for Saber's well being. Having seen Saber utilise his Noble Phantasm twice in such a short span, as well as two highly draining abilities between both times, coupled with Waver's low prana supply, all resulted in the thought that Saber was going to fade away from prana exhaustion any moment now.

Though Saber had tried to alleviate his Master's worry, it didn't help that he was panting more than Waver after walking about halfway from where they were staying and the Church itself, nor that he hadn't flown the two of them back last night, instead using public transportation, and finally that in between then and now, Saber hadn't been able to stand without either support or wobbling.

This in turn led to Waver speaking his Servant as thus "We need to rest. I can go back to where I summoned you, and sleep for the day, then you can…" but was cut off by Saber slapping him on the back, though it was only at half strength.

"Waver, I'm fine. I have enough prana to last me a day without doing anything stressful. And even if I had to fight, I've got a couple of things that can help." Saber said with a reassuring grin.

Waver, however, asked the brunet "You mean those drinks of yours?" referring to the things Saber called 'potions'. After his first battle with Berserker, as well as his defeat of Assassin, Saber had drank a greenish liquid from a bottle with three stars and a full moon printed on its side. After doing so, all the fatigue Saber had from those bouts were wiped away, and his wounds healed much faster than anything Waver could've imagined. Waver had then asked how many others Saber had, and his Servant had said he had one more 'Mega-Potion' as he'd called it, at least two 'Mega-Ethers' whatever they were, and one 'Mega-Elixir' that one he said was his absolute last resort.

Back to the conversation, Saber said "Yeah, one Mega-Ether, and my prana supply should be completely full."

"Should be?"

"Well…" Saber said sheepishly "it's a bit complicated, and whilst I haven't really used Ethers for that purpose myself, I've seen and heard of others that have done so, so I'm about 90% certain."

"Let's just hope we don't have to fight then…" Waver said as the two continued onto the Church.

-Break-

As if in response to Waver's off-handed comment, as the two reached the entrance of the Church grounds, they came face to face to not only Rider, but also Rider's Master and Rider's Master's fiancée. Kayneth took one look at Waver, sneered, saw the condition his student's Servant was in, and turned his sneer into a malicious grin.

"Well, well, well. How fortunate are we. Saber, too weak to even stand up straight, and his foolish Master, Waver, who is too stupid to realise he should've restored his Servant's prana supply before showing himself to us." Kayneth crowed, taking pleasure in seeing his student squirm. Yet it was the defiante look in Saber's eyes that made Kayneth laugh loudest. "You wish to fight, in your condition? That is truly the most congenial thing I've ever heard. Hahahahah…"

"Don't underestimate me." Saber said, with a slight strain in his voice, causing Kayneth to laugh even more, before settling into the proper mindset for what was to come.

"Very well then, if you truly wish to have nothing more of this world, then Rider and I will be sure to assist you in that regard." he said to the shaking Servant before turning to Sola-Ui and saying "You go get the Command Seal before anyone else arrives." before handing her a slip of paper and continuing with "If the priest asks, show him this. I'll see you back at the base." and with that, the red-haired young woman headed into the Church, but not before giving one last look to Rider, a look that was ignored by the Servant, but not ignored by the Master.

The remaining four headed to a place that was far from both the Church and any onlookers…

-Break-

When they'd arrived at a secluded area in one of the forests that bordered the city, Rider and Saber both approached one another, whilst Kayneth and Waver stared the other down, the former of both pair achieving leagues better than their counterparts.

"Before we begin…" Rider started, causing all eyes to be drawn to him "Saber, you said you would give me an honourable battle, do you still intend to do so?"

"I do."

"Then I cannot in fair conscious fight you today." Rider proclaimed, much to Kayneth's displeasure.

"What do you mean you can't fight him!?" Kayneth yelled at the Irish hero, whom continued to look as impassive as when he'd made his refusal.

"Master, this Servant has given me his word as a knight that he would fight me honourably should we meet on the field of battle, as did both Archer and Lancer. In his current state, it would be dishonourable for me to fight him. So, I will not." Rider replied, though this didn't ease his Master's frustration, instead it enhanced it.

"You complete, utter idiot!" Kayneth yelled, attention completely upon his Servant as he did so "We are in a WAR! Honour has nothing to do with WAR! You destroy any that oppose you, by any means necessary, until they are physically, mentally, or emotionally destroyed that they stop trying to do the same to YOU!

"Besides that," his voice lowered and steady, closing the distance between himself and Rider as he said this "the only way the grail can appear is if enough Servants are destroyed so that the damn thing can manifest, and, as both you and Sola have told me, Saber is one of the most dangerous Servants in this war. Any advantage we can get, we take. Understand?"

"I do Master." Rider's voice equally as low and steady as he answered "But I cannot ignore the oath of a fellow knight. I will not fight him as he is."

Before Kayneth could launch another tirade at his bull-headed Servant, he was interrupted by Saber. "If it's my condition that you're worried about Rider, then don't be…" he said before tossing a blue hexagonal object, with a hexagram inscribed upon it, up into the air where it shattered and the remains were absorbed by Saber, where upon his stance became firm and sure, and his face, which had earlier been almost sickly, was now as radiant and healthy as it had been during the gathering two nights past. Seeing the expressions upon his opponents' faces, Saber continued with "I'm raring to go if you are." calling upon both his armor and weapon as he did so.

Rider smirked and the two Knights entered a battle ready stance, with Kayneth, suddenly remembering where he was, moving back into position opposite Waver, whom had regained some confidence after seeing his Servant backing up his claim of being capable of fighting should he need to.

As both Master and Servant stared down their opposing number, each going over the battle within their minds moments before they actually crossed blades/spells, they waited tensely for the signal to start attacking. When a stray leaf started to fall, glances were exchanged, the message was sent and received, and upon the leaf's completed decent, the battle began.

-Break-

CLANG!

SWISH!

SHTING!

KRTUDGE!

The sound of metal hitting metal erupted in the closed off battlefield as both Servants slammed, stabbed, and swiped at the other, only to be met with either the metal of their opposing number's weapon, or the empty space that their body had once occupied. Not a word was spoken, as a battlefield was not the place for such things, though it didn't stop the questions for forming inside the minds of the two.

Away from them, their Masters' battle was a little more one sided as Waver, whom didn't have that much in the way of combat magic, despite Saber's best effort, kept having to dodge Kayneth who, despite also not having any combat magic, was far more skilled at Alchemy than Waver, and was pressing that advantage every which way he could. Whilst normally, Kayneth would have Volumen Hydragyrum act as both shield and sword as he surveyed the battlefield, aid Rider when he could, and maybe even distract his opponent so that their Servant couldn't achieve similar support, that tactic, coupled with his way of circumventing the summoning contract to allow Sola-Ui to provide the prana whilst he held the Command Seals, were all ways to conserve prana all for the sake of prolonging Rider's peak capabilities during a battle of attrition. Upon hearing this tactic, Rider had initially disagreed, but Kayneth had convinced him that it was only in the event that Rider faced an opponent too strong to defeat in 'honourable' combat. This would be Kayneth's normal tactic, however they were not being used in this battle for a number of reasons, the biggest two being that Volumen Hydragyrum, had yet to properly thaw that it could be used as Kayneth intended, instead it lumped and clung like a ball of Play-Doh, the second reason was that Kayneth had doubts about Waver's capabilities of actually giving aid to Saber in the first place; the boy hadn't enough familiarity with his magic circuits for both aiding his Servant and battling Kayneth.

Thus using a similar Alchemical combination as those of Atlas Academy (as infuriating as that lot were for Clock Tower's Directors), coupled with some reinforcement upon his limbs and clothes, Kayneth fought much like a seasoned warrior, or, in Servant terms, as if he had a C-Ranked Eye of the Mind (True) active. It was enough that Waver had to focus solely on dodging the elder's strikes, and not on the surrounded area. It was because of this lack of focus that Waver's luck, which had made sure that the most debilitating injury was a glancing blow to the shoulder, ran out and he tripped on an upturned root and was completely open to Kayneth's strike.

"WAVER!" Saber cried out, just as Kayneth's fist was accelerating towards the boy's face. Time slowed once more for the Servant of the Sword as he concentrated, though this time, instead of just focusing on a single target, Saber locked onto both opposing Master and Servant.

As Kayneth was about to kill Waver, he heard a cry of "Dark Volley!" before being struck by multiple versions of what he would call Gandr shots, if Gandr shots were big, visible, and were elementally charged with darkness and fire. After being blasted away from his target by the shots, the Lord El-Melloi removed his now burning coat, and inspected himself for damage, when finding none, his eyes found that Rider had also been struck by whatever it was that Saber had launched, though his resistance had lessened the effect. Nonetheless, Kayneth set about remotely healing his Servant of any damage he'd thus far received.

Saber meanwhile was by Waver's side inspecting the boy, seeing if anything was immediately life threatening. Even though his altered Eye of the Mind (True) informed him Waver was fine, save for a few scrapes and bruises, Saber still healed the boy all the same with a Cure spell, before doing the same to himself, erasing the damage Rider's spear had done earlier. Now I know why Lancer fights this guy without armor… Saber thought, recalling the shock as Rider's spear had passed through his armor to cut into his side. Stupid magic-bypassing curse…

Noticing that Rider was also free of injuries, Saber, focusing on his opponent once more, said to his Master "I won't be able to help you again Waver, so take this." passing into his hands a weapon similar to his own. It was a blade, one that resembled a key, more so than a sword, as the blade was much smaller that Saber's, the hand guard was similar yet didn't have any upward spikes along the hilt, and the teeth resembled more of an 'F' than Saber's 'E'.

Waver was about to ask why Saber would give him something like this, but his Servant had already re-engaged Rider in combat. Not knowing what else to do, Waver instead focused on the training Saber and he had shared as he faced down a now disconcerted Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald.

-Break-

Saber and Rider once more clashed blades, though this time they were wearier of one another, after both having seen something unexpected of their opponent. A Saber that knew magic, and a Rider with a spear that ignored it, both were apprehensive on facing the other. Saber, because his more powerful techniques required magic, was using the straight up basic fighting manoeuvres he'd learned as an apprentice, for fear of anything else leaving him open to impalement, more to the point, seeing as how Rider's weapons appeared to be complementary, Saber was equally suspicious of the opposing Servant's sword as he was of why Rider hadn't called forth anything that resembled a mount yet. Rider, due to Saber's ability to not only heal himself, but also self restore any lost prana, was looking to settle the fight quickly, seeing as both he and Kayneth had been hit by that long range attack, and seeing as now Saber's Master had a similar weapon as his Servant, that and Saber was obviously a 'power' type fighter, all added up to Rider being at a severe disadvantage in a drawn out battle.

As such, the two were more liberal with their words in this exchange.

"Rider, correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't you have something with which to actually ride?" Saber asked, to which Rider responded with "It seems you still don't understand common practice Saber; if you wish to know something, first you must offer a complementary piece of information. As such, I'll answer your question if you answer one of mine first."

"Ask away then."

"Since you asked me about why I've yet to use something available to me, I'll ask you the same; why haven't you used the Noble Phantasm that copies other's capabilities?"

As the two spoke, they kept attacking the other, though with much apprehension. It was during a locking of blades that Saber replied.

"My Noble Phantasm, due to it adding extra skills to my own, is more appropriate for either extremely large or vastly numbered opponents. It isn't really something to be used in single combat. More over, it burns me out far too quickly for this kind of struggle."

As they broke off, Saber then indicated for Rider to answer his previous question, before the two started circling eachother.

Sighing, the Mounted Servant said, "Though I qualify for the Rider Class, my legend doesn't include my steed, merely my weapons, and my curse." At this, sorrow spread across Rider's face, only to be swept away as his mind returned to the battle at hand. "It is for this reason, that my steed, which I had shared many a battle with, isn't considered as a Noble Phantasm, nor is she a skill."

When Rider had finished, the two clashed once more, though with more caution than intensity, but still, silent all the same.

Meanwhile, Waver was fairing far better against Kayneth than he was previously. Instead of merely dodging the elders strikes, Waver was now also blocking, and retaliating as well, though with Kayneth's modifications still active, the retaliations merely had the elder dodge instead of getting hit. Waver had also managed to reinforce himself before Kayneth and he fought again, though not to the extent the elder had. Still, it was enough that Waver was weathering Kayneth's strikes a lot better.

Kayneth meanwhile, was himself struggling against Wavers attacks. Despite his modifications the Lord El-Melloi just didn't have the physicality to endure such stress for long. As such, whilst Waver had yet to actually land a hit, Kayneth was becoming exceedingly tired exerting himself, where as Waver, whom had been training with Saber on and off since summoning him, coupled with a slight boost in capabilities he got from the sword Saber had given him, was only now starting to break a sweat.

And so it was, that Master and Servant, Kayneth and Rider, both had the exact same thought; I must end this now.

On both sides of the battlefield, Master and Servant of the Rider Class prepared what would be their final gambit in this battle. For Rider, it was the flowing of prana into his sword. For Kayneth, it was the retrieval of a phial much like the one that held Volumen Hydragyrum, only instead of the reflective liquidness of mercury, it was practically empty, save for a few wisps of off colour air coming from within.

It was only when their opponents had started to brace themselves, did the two attack.

Rider called out the other Noble Phantasm he wielded in this war "Moralltach!" before charging at Saber, spear ahead, and sword aglow.

Kayneth uncorked the vial and unleash his back up for Volumen Hydragyrum; a serpentine Jinn Familiar. It unwound itself upon the ground, hissing at Kayneth for it's long slumber. "I call upon the second pact as per the terms of our arrangement; kill this boy before me." With a nod, the gaseous snake took off almost as quick as lightning towards Waver.

The two forces struck their foes almost simultaneously, Rider's sword swinging into Saber's range as his blocking blade was deflected by Rider's spear, the Jinn's maw, a hurricane of fangs and blades of wind, opened to engulf Waver's neck. Both strikes an instant death for the victim, both attacks on a collision with their target, and both Master and Servant of the Rider class, once again, thought the same thing; it's over.

CRRSH!

FWISS!

The sounds permeated the air, until both Saber and Waver were standing back to back, each of them barely escaping certain death by luck, skill, and a little bit magic. As well as a little something that Saber's friends called Reaction Abilities; an instant manoeuvre, as a by product of the enhanced awareness granted by the Keyblade, that allows one to escape and or counter certain life threatening/debilitating attacks. Both Rider's and Kayneth's gambits awoke such a manoeuvre in their opponents.

The surprised lull that such feats had inspired in Kayneth and his two familiars was enough time for Saber to call upon his other Noble Phantasm. "Ends of the Earth!" he cried, thrusting his blade towards the sky, before following it with "DEMOLITION!"

Many things happened all at once after that; Saber's blade glowed slightly, meteors started to fall from the sky each of which appeared to be directed by Saber's will, Waver and Saber both fled the scene, and, before any of the others present could follow, the meteors struck the ground in front of them, sending them careening away. When the dust settled, Saber and Waver were nowhere to be seen, the Jinn Kayneth had called for aid had retreated back into it's vial, giving Kayneth it's displeasure of being in the middle of such an event, and said that, as compensation for such a thing, Kayneth had lost the previous pact, and both Kayneth and Rider were beaten up pretty bad, though between Rider's status as a Servant, and Kayneth's reinforcement earlier, it could've been worse.

Still, now they both knew, if push came to shove, they could force Waver and Saber both into a stalemate, if not actually beating them.

As such, Kayneth was only mildly angry at lunch, instead of outright furious…

-Break-

Once they were far enough away from Rider and his Master, Saber and Waver collapsed, both visibly panting, not only from the battle they'd just come from, but also the escape. During the escape, Saber had needed to use another Mega-Ether, as the first one hadn't completely replenished him. Rather it'd given the Servant enough prana to fight evenly against Rider, but by relying on a Noble Phantasm, his Shotlock, and the counter manoeuvre that'd saved him from Rider's final attack had dwindled his reserves to a quarter of what they were since the battle started. Add to the fact that it was him that was keeping Waver armed, and Saber had been returned to a state not unlike the one from earlier.

Now, however, his panting came not from prana exhaustion, but rather physical. Seeing this, Waver asked him "NOW, can we rest?"

"Yeah, *pant*, now we can rest…" Saber agreed.

The next 24 hours saw the two of them in the clearing where Saber had first been summoned, Waver lying flat on the ground, encased in a sleeping bag, making little to no movement as Saber, who was currently in spirit form, kept watch as his prana was being restored. Throughout this time together, the two of them talked, sometimes about their pasts, sometimes about what their plans were for winning, and sometimes about what they thought of their competition. It was when Saber had finished talking about the last topic of discussion, that brought Waver to ask, "Saber, you've said before that some of those we've faced remind you of people from your past… Who were they?"

"You've seen my memories Waver, you should know them yourself…"

"All I saw was enough to get a broad idea, like that they were your friends, yet nothing on who they were personally…"

Saber was silent for a long while, long enough that Waver thought he didn't want to answer. Before Waver had the chance to change the topic once more, his Servant spoke again.

"They were my friends, and my saviours. They brought me back from the brink of the darkness, and managed to finally put an end to the one who had caused us, and so many others, all the pain we had been through… Each of them had made an imprint upon my heart, and when I see those we must now fight against, my heart resonates, as though I were once again seeing my friends." Saber let out a sigh, before continuing. "It is a very strange feeling indeed…"

After that the two remained in silence, Waver even dozing off, Saber's words echoing within his dreams. As for the Servant in question, he continued his vigil, all the while resisting the siren call of his memories cry to once again see his friends faces.

-Break-

It was late when the signal flares flew. It appeared that final battle between the Servants was to take place now. As one each remaining pair headed into the fray: Rider to meet with Lancer and finally have the honourable battle he desired. Lancer to seek retribution for the kidnapping of Irisviel by one whom she thought was Rider. Archer, with his new Master, waiting for the one he truly wished to cross swords with. Berserker rushing to finally kill Lancer with a crazed anticipation. And Saber… Saber was flying, with Waver, just as fast to intercept the Shadowed Knight. When Shadow and Bronze met upon the empty bridge, they stared one another down, calm blue against glowing red.

Berserker roared, as if to say to Saber to stand aside.

"I won't have you interrupting their fight Berserker." was Saber's response as he gathered his armor and weapon.

Not to be out done, Berserker brought forth his own weapon, one that appeared to be from the remains of the jet the Mad Servant had hijacked to use against Archer; the M61 Vulcan auto-cannon.

Recognizing the threat, both from past experience and implanted knowledge, Saber cried out to Waver, "Run!" before a horizontal rain of death was launched towards the two by Berserker.

Placing himself in-between his Master, Saber was struck numerous times before blocking the rest, thanking his lucky stars that Waver was uninjured. Saber however, wasn't so fortunate; whilst the guard technique he'd used was one that also channelled his Cure spell, Berserker's ability to turn any weapon into his own personal Noble Phantasm made the manoeuvre a stall tactic to see which would cease first, Saber's Life, or Berserker's bullets. Ultimately, it would remain undecided, as Berserker soon disregarded the weapon and moved to attack Saber head-on.

The two forces struck once more, though unlike previous bouts, Berserker had the clear upper hand, as Saber was still injured from the onslaught he had previously faced down. Yet, struggling as he was, Saber had already started to form a plan of counter-attack. I'm just going to need a bit of breathing room… he thought to himself as he started to develop the same yellow aura around him that was present during his first fight against the Mad Servant. This time however, instead of letting loose another cry of Critical Impact, Saber swiped his weapon horizontally in front of him, producing a line of six glowing circles brimming with prana, before falling to one leg, with his weapon being the only thing supporting him.

Seeing his opponent in such a state, and believing said opponent's final gambit had failed, Berserker charging in for the kill, only to be caught in an explosion that sent him hurtling backwards when he drew near to one of the glowing circles. It was then that the aura around Saber changed, from a warm yellow, to a harsh brown, as the concrete of the bridge started to crack under his feet.

"Can't believe I have to use this now, of all times…" Saber muttered to himself as Waver saw his Servant pull out another curious item, this one, unlike the other two he'd seen, was orange, and looked like crystallized fire, was crushed instead of drunk or thrown. As the liquid within the bottle was absorbed, Saber's health and vitality greatly improved, and he was back upon his feet, though his blade was still puncturing the ground.

Facing down the already recovered and charging Berserker, Saber gripped the handle of his weapon tight. When Berserker's charge brought him within range, Saber swung his blade, though with more exertion, as the weapon appeared to be heavier than what it had been, only to miss his target as Berserker bended in a way as to avoid the blow, slide underneath Saber's weapon, and face the exposed back of the Servant of the Sword, only to have to dodge the pillar of concrete that tried to skewer the shadow clad Berserker after Saber's blade re-embedded itself into the bridge.

"Nice reflexes." was all Saber said in the face of his attacks being dodged, as he gathered his prana towards the tip of his blade. This time, when Berserker made his next charge, it was Saber who avoided the attack, leaping to the side as the Mad Servant barrelled past. Without missing a beat, Saber spun on his heel and let loose a cry of "ROCK WRECKER!" swiping his blade and producing large spikes of stone and concrete from the floor of the bridge (and riverbed below), Saber launched the chunks at Berserker, catching the offending Servant off guard, enough that Saber's next attack, another Shotlock, one resembling a large shell of prana fired from a gigantic cannon that was formed from Saber's weapon, struck with enough force to engulf the Mad Knight within a brilliant, explosive light. However, taking no chances, Saber let loose a secondary assault, this one threatening to damage the bridge supports and risk the structure's collapse. Saber's weapon returned once more to it's original shape, just as the light faded away, and the only evidence of his attack being a large cloud of smoke and miniscule bits of sediment.

"Saber…" Waver started, only to fall silent as his Servant indicated to wait. Saber himself was scanning the surrounding area, trying to find a hint of Berserker. Usually when fighting an adversary, Saber's altered Eye of the Mind (True) would at least show how much damage Saber would have to inflict upon them in the form of a decreasing bar of health, yet everytime he'd encountered Berserker, Saber could never get an accurate read on even that, just a mesh of green out on the edge of his peripheral vision. Recently however, he learnt that even that could be fooled, as any obscuring Berserker from his gaze erased the green mesh. As such, right now, Saber was honing his senses to try and lock onto Berserker.

Finding nothing, Saber finally allowed some ease back into his frame, as he turned to face his Master, with the majority of his armor fading away. "Sorry about that," he apologised, scratching his head in the process "had to be sure Berserker was finally taken… care… no…" Saber suddenly turned pale to Waver's shock. "That can't be!" the Servant of the Sword exclaimed as he turned back around to see, to truly see, Servant Berserker, as he stood straight and true, damaged, but not broken. Before Berserker was a sword, encased in chains. Grasping it by the hilt, the shadows that'd obscured Berserker's form and stats lifted, fully revealing the deep purple, almost black, metal of Berserker's armor for the first time within this Grail War. As the chains around the sword flew away, the helm on Berserker's head split open straight through the middle, revealing Berserker's true face; a man of wild eyes, snarling mouth, glowing eyes, and unkempt locks of long purple hair.

What Waver saw was merely a man, driving to insanity by the cruelty of his past. What Saber saw, was the true monster the darkness hid from them all, as, for the first time, he could truly see Berserker's 'health bar' and it was beyond any that he had imagined. According to its value, Berserker was as strong as the remnant of the shade, Vanitas, a prospect that Saber was none too happy about. Even worse, it seemed that whatever other effect Berserker's weapon had to lift whatever veil was covering Berserker, it had also apparently healed the Knight, as the only evidence of damage upon him that Saber could see, were the dents and punctures of his armor, though for all Saber knew, that's what it had always looked like under the shadows.

So absorbed by his thoughts Saber was, that the only warning he had of Berserker's attack, was Waver's fearful cry of "SABER!"

The next thing Saber saw was Berserkers blade entering his guard. "Shit!" was the last word from Saber's lips as his armor, encasing him from head to toe in protective metal, was too late to prevent Berserker from severing the Servant of the Sword's chest wide open.

And with that Saber's body fell, lifeless, as his armor and blade, the only reminders of his being left upon the world, clattered to the ground in a discarded heap.

Seeing the remains of his opponent, Berserker's focus then shifted to Waver, as the boy's sob over the loss of his friend punctured the silent, heavy night air.

Stalking towards his new prey, Berserker lifted his sword to strike down the Master of his rival in this war, only to alter his swing at the last moment, so as bat away a high velocity sword that was aiming for his head. Sadistically scouring the steel stockade of scarlet, searching for the source of the souring sword, the scathing savage spied the smug serpentine Servant that was the subject of Berserker's ire.

"Archer!?" Waver cried out in confusion over the gilded Servant's intervention.

Archer meanwhile merely scoffed and said, to no one in particular (though he was addressing Waver), "Do not mistake my intentions for that of a saviour, I merely desired to not have Saber's battle cut short because his Master was foolish enough to die before the end."

When he received nothing but confusion from both Waver and Berserker, Archer said "Behold!" and indicated to the scattered armor of Saber, only when the two looked once more upon the pieces, they were no longer strewn across the road of the bridge, but rather had coalesced once more into…

"Saber." Waver whispered, as he could not believe his own eyes, he had clearly seen Saber fade from existence like the spirit that he was, and yet, right where he had fallen, he kneeled, armor clad, and head bowed, as if in prayer, against the pommel of his imbedded weapon.

Berserker meanwhile growled, both in anger and confusion, though instead of charging at the prostrating Servant, Berserker focused his attentions upon Archer.

BERSERKER…

A voice, or rather a sensation, made of steel and stone, echoed in the minds of those present. Puzzled by the foreign feeling invading the cloud of madness, Berserker held his ground as he tried to find the origin of the 'word'.

BERSERKER…

The sensation echoed once more, this time accompanied by the movement of Saber. Or rather, Saber's armor, for when the figure arose, none could hear flesh residing within the steel. Berserker turned to face the source of the offending sensations perforating his mind.

YOUR FIGHT…

The echoing continued, though louder than before. Waver tried to shut his eyes against the pain in his mind, though was stopped as Archer landed beside him. Staring up at the Servant of the Bow, Waver saw that his gaze, which had once been filled with pompous arrogance, now only contained what Waver could only describe as deference to the empty shell.

"You should not close your eyes boy. A Master should bare witness to their Servant's heart." Archer said, as Berserker continued to stalk towards the final remnants of Saber's will.

IS HERE…

Waver didn't flinch at the sensations that time, nor did he panic as the strange domed barrier of bronzed orange swirls and gold chains of the Will's Cage encompassed the four figures on the bridge, for he knew, in his heart of hearts, that Saber would protect him, just as he'd always done. Yet, unlike those other times, Saber needed him here, how and why, Waver didn't know, only that he would, should the time come. Until then he would watch the final battle between Saber and Berserker, and he would carry those memories within him for the remainder of his days.

As the Will's Cage closed off the stage from the rest of the world, the one thing all within the confines of the city could feel, in those late night hours, were two words, that resonated within their hearts and minds, uniting all whose hearts shined bright in the dark together, to beat back the shadow of the night, and bring on the dawn.

Two words that echoed for generations to come with pride and purpose, two words that gave courage and belonging. The last two words Saber's Lingering Will left upon this earth.

WITH ME!

-Break-

Author's Segment: Whelp I did it again; another fanfic started when there are still so many more to do… uuuggghh…

Anyway, yup, this here is another one of those one shot Servant story collections for the Fate series, only difference is that I'm writing it, and let me tell you this crap ain't short at all… THIS WAS ONLY MEANT TO BE 5000 WORDS MAX, AND YET AT LAST COUNT IT'S WELL OVER 13000 WORDS! AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!

Ok, ok, ok, ok, ok… ok… I'm ok. Right so yeah, you guys know the deal with one of these, send in any Servant ideas you think is good, and I'll try to make it happen, though don't get your hopes up, I intend for this to be updated even less than my other stories… Plus I got tons of other ideas I wanna put in as well, but hey if its interesting enough, I might just have it take priority over the other Servants to come.

Also, I won't just be sticking with the main seven classes, I'll also be throwing in the other canon classes, the unofficial classes, as well as some non-canon ones that I either found to be interesting, or made up myself, the basics of it I'll put in the beginning of the chapters that they appear in, and the mechanics in the Author's Segment of that chapter.

So yeah, hope you all enjoy that, and to see us off, the Servant stats for our first Saber…

P.S. how many of you figured out his identity before the end?

-Break-

Servant: Saber
Master: Waver Velvet
Identity: Terra
Titles: Apprentice Keyblade Master
Series: Kingdom Hearts
Strength: A
Endurance: A
Agility: D
Mana: D
Luck: E-
Noble Phantasm: B

Class Skills-

Magic Resistance – D
Grants protection against magical effects.
Because Saber focused more on his strength and combat abilities, he is only capable of limiting the amount of damage he receives from a magical attack, instead of completely cancelling its effects.

Riding – B
Expertise to ride animals and vehicles.
Saber's rank allows him to ride any non-personal non-magical mount with above-average skill.

Personal Skills-

Battle Continuation – A-
The strength of vitality for predicaments and the ability to withdraw from combat, reaching allied territory alive after being defeated.
A single use skill that activates Lingering Will. Saber is capable of continued battle even if his entire body has fallen.

Eye of the Mind (True) – C+
A heightened capacity of observation, refined through experience.
Saber is capable of seeing the conditions of himself, his allies, and his enemies during battle, in video game terms, as a form of heads-up-display. These include damage dealt and taken (as HP), the amount of prana left for his Noble Phantasm (as D-Link Guage), and available attacks/items/spells (as a Command Menu) just to name a few.

Nature of a Rebellious Spirit – B-
The temperament to never remain at one location and to never embrace a lord.
Saber's quest to prove himself lead him to abandon, and subsequently do battle with, those he had apprenticed under.

Command Styles – B+
An increase of performance that is a result of synchronisation between technique, magic, and body.
By using certain attacks, and or spells, Saber gains an aura of power that can be focused into a single, powerful, strike.

Shotlocks – C-
Combining magical and physical prowess to instantly attack multiple times.
By focusing on the number of enemies, and the number of strikes, Saber can either fire a volley of prana, move at above average speeds to cut, or gather a large amount of prana to launch at any opposing force.

Noble Phantasms-

Ends of the Earth "Gaia Bane" – B+: Anti-Army Type; Saber's main weapon, and the upgraded form of his original weapon. A Keyblade that represents Saber's growth as a person, and the bond he shares with his friends. As such it is also Saber's most versatile Keyblade, being able to take multiple forms including his own personal transport, the Keyblade Glider, which for Saber takes the form of a flying jet-ski/motorcycle. Calling out its name results in ultimate form of a unique merging of both combat and magic known to Saber as the Demolition Finisher, which rains down multiple small meteors that fall according to Saber's will. Length of the blade changes when Saber is clad in armor.

Wayfinder "An Unbreakable Connection" – C: Supplementary Type; Allows Saber to call forth the abilities of those he has linked his heart to.

Lingering Will "The Last Vestiges of Light" – A: Anti-Army/Supplementary Type; Saber's Final Noble Phantasm, one that is only usable should Saber fall against an enemy with Darkness in their heart. It is Saber's armor, animated by his will, and it's only desire is battle. Upon being activated, a hemispherical Bounded Field, acting as a pseudo-Reality Marble, called the Will's Cage is erected cutting off all caught within from the world. It is impenetrable, inescapable, and it remains ever present until Lingering Will has either been slain or destroys his enemy.