Asunder
by SMYGO4EVA
There wasn't any other thrill in his life than a good fight. The thrill was in the details: blood and sweat mixing together, metal against metal, and his heartbeat against the tide. No, he didn't make a name for himself, the Hound of Ulster, for nothing. Not Cu Chulainn, not if he could help it. He didn't want to fight just so he could beast his opponent with a swipe of his spear. He wanted them to prove themselves to him, to prove to him that they were worthy of a glorious, battle-ridden death.
That was what he saw in the one named Archer. They were both Servants in the Holy Grail War, a part of this new life they had been brought into. Under his new name Lancer, they both had Masters to serve, though it wasn't a part of their grand design, not their intention. Archer swung his blades swiftly against the Gae Bolg, the taste of combat unmistakable and all-encompassing. They loved it. Lancer loved every second of it, that prospect of granting a sweet death and a battle worthy of his own creation. He had built whatever it was his Master had plans for, and Archer had done the very same, until betrayal seeped into the very core of him.
Lancer knew there was truly no further to fall; Archer was his challenger, his enemy, and nothing more. There was that deep respect for him, for any opponent he had fought, and Archer held him to that, in an instant. After all, he always welcomed a distraction, and his enemy was no different from him.