Chapter 6
The First Battle Part II
A/N: In advance I apologize for Gils slight in the last chapter. He's supposed to be mocking Cinder when he says master, cause he's Gil and she's no actual master to him. I apologize if it came off otherwise. And it's been shown in every route that Gil will align/spare with those he deems unworthy if it means obtaining his goals, i.e, bringing Saber to him and collecting a grail. Or simply cause he's bored, or gets dust on his jacket. (Unlimited Blade Works Route).
Rubys eyes grew wide.
She'd seen plenty over sixteen years of life. From the Grim devouring entire towns, to Cinder Fall literally disintegrating Pyrrha, and even to Ozpins past with the Immortal mother of Grim: Salem.
And yet, the sheer magnitude of… Of power, she felt before her was absolutely mind boggling!
It was like the very sun itself was shining right above them.
And yet it wasn't.
The Golden light wasn't holy or friendly, and instead of salvation, it sent naught but fear down her spine.
The hair on her neck stood.
Her eyes went wide.
'Master move!'
And instinct overtook her, her body turning to roses on command, and flying her off to the side.
She reformed gasping for air, only to see the ground she had been on had simply ceased to exist.
Her eyes grew wide and she looked up, only to see four swords inches from her face.
Red lights slammed into each one, each sword being utterly obliterated in an instant, and the sheer force throwing Ruby back at least a dozen feet.
Her aura softened the landing on her back, and she quickly rolled to her feet, eyes still wide as she tried her best to survey the battlefield.
Or what should've been a battlefield.
Saber was standing before Jaune, blonde hair swaying back and forth as Ruby tried, and failed, to watch her sword twirl about with expert precision as it cut down any flying object that got near her master.
The Golden man was staring down at the sword wielder from high above, and though she couldn't see it, she could feel his smirk as the barrage of blades never ended.
Yet, oddly, none came her way.
She furrowed her brow.
He had gone for her twice and yet now, was only aiming for Jaune servant.
Why?
Why was-
Crack!
Pain flared in Rubys skull as she fell to the side, her head aching and her vision blurry as she tried to scramble to the side, instinct once more screaming at her to run.
Something lunged for her, and she once more activated her semblance, letting whatever came for her miss in a cloud of roses as she shot further down the street.
Roses reformed and she stumbled back onto the street, boots clanking loudly as she looked for her assailant.
Fire engulfed her vision and Ruby dove to the side, her cape getting singed as she rolled away.
She looked up, and found herself missing Crescent Rose more than ever.
Cinder Fall stared at her with naught but disdain, golden flames circling her as her eye lit up like a fireplace.
"Ruby Rose."
Her lips formed a predatory grin and Ruby took a step back.
She wasn't an idiot. Back at Haven Cinder had simply toyed with Jaune and almost killed both him and Weiss. At Beacon she killed Pyrrha. And though Ruby knew she was far better than she had been a year ago, she knew she would only be able to stall Cinder at best.
But that was with Crescent Rose. With a weapon.
She had none now.
"Cinder, " she hissed, taking a second step back as the woman's grin only grew and she stepped forward.
"Tell me girl, do you even realize how much pain you've caused?"
Thunderous booms echoed out from behind the Maiden, and Ruby spared a glance to the ongoing battle where Saber was still standing and deflecting the sword from the golden portals.
She grit her teeth as Cinder continued speaking," do you know how much you've taken from me?"
Taken? Ruby hadn't taken anything. She knew that.
"I didn't do anything to you," she hissed, carefully stepping back as she readied herself to move, "you killed Pyrrha. You killed Ozpin. You started this."
A laugh, calm and seductive escaped the woman's lips, her smile never dimming as she spoke, "oh I didn't mean you took something just from me. But her."
Pain exploded throughout her back, the sheer luck of her aura already being active saving her life as she stumbled into a spin, her breaths coming in panicked gasps.
Pink and brown eyes. .
Neo.
The smaller girl stared at Ruby with a vicious smile, eyes glistening with murderous intent as she twirled her umbrella and in one smooth motion pulled out her sword.
A silver blade sliced in front of Ruby, her quick back step having saved her from any impact; but heat erupted along her back.
She hurtled forward with a pained scream and Neo was quick to capitalize on it, spinning on her heel and close lining the girl with her forearm.
Ruby choked on air as she hit the ground, fear and panic surging through her as her lungs tried to refill themselves.
This was bad.
She was outnumbered and outgunned and lacking a weapon.
Thunder roared high above, rain, in its ever familiar pitter-patter, began to fall.
Silver raced down at her and once more her semblance saved her life, rose petals fluttering about as she used a burst of speed to escape Neos blade and reformed herself only a dozen feet away.
She grit her teeth as the two women stared at her with thinly veiled hate.
Ruby back stepped but the sounds of explosion and metal on metal kept her from fully retreating the way she came.
Despite her reservations of facing Cinder and Neo together, facing that golden servant was suicide.
'Master, I will create an opening. Flee through the alley. Saber and I will handle the Servants, but you must get yourself and her master away from Gilgamesh.'
The voice, smug as it was, was a relief to hear and she steeled herself as Neo and Cinder both charged her.
Gilgamesh? She couldn't help but ask.
'Yes. The King of Heros. We cannot face him with distractions.'
Distractions. Her and Jaune.
Loath as she was to admit it, he was right. They were out of their depth here.
A high pitched whistling to her left caused her to flinch, but she kept steady and watched as several red streaks of light slammed into the road between Ruby and her attackers.
One even hit Neo, though her form shattered into glass.
Ruby didn't wait.
Roses filled the air, rain rushing by her as she did, and she turned right back towards the fight with the servants.
Golden swords rained down on Saber, invisible blade blocking every one that came near her but she was clearly unable to move with Jaune behind her.
Red lights suddenly slammed into several swords and the lances of purple energy heading towards Saber, explosions suddenly breaking out and literally shearing the rooftops of all the nearby houses.
If she hadn't been intangible she would've been knocked over a hundred times.
As she neared Saber she wondered where her servant was and caught a flash of purple and red off to her far right.
Obviously the other servant with Cinder had engaged Arch- Assassin.
Swords and debris flew past and through her rose form, and she reached the epicenter of the madness to Jaune and Saber.
A second later she reformed, her knees landing on what wet concrete remained behind the Servant and her friend.
Jaune was on his knees, staring at her with wild eyes, "Ruby?"
'Master, quick!'
The urgency in his voice had her adrenaline spike and she grabbed Jaune before instantly reforming into roses and flying as fast as she could towards the nearest alley.
Explosions, far louder than before echoed out from behind her.
She didn't stop when she got to the alley and phased through the fence, over into the next street and into the next alley.
Exhaustion and pain blossomed in her mind, and she forced herself even faster, roses falling to the ground as she flew over and around trash bins, debris and fleeing bystanders.
She reached a new street and her semblance gave out.
With a gasp she reformed, herself and Jaune both tumbling to the ground with a groan.
Exhaustion plagued her limbs and she grit her teeth as she forced herself to her hands and feet.
Dry pavement bit at her hands and she struggled to her feet, Jaunes coughs echoing from behind her as she stood.
She stared back behind her, confident on their escape since no one was following.
But the urgency hadn't left her and she quickly grabbed Jaunes arm, the blonde staring down at her in confusion as she tugged him down the street.
"Ruby?"
She was confident her uncle and the others were likely looking for them, but without her weapon the longer they were separated the worse their chances got.
"We gotta get back to your sisters and warn the others!"
She grit her teeth as they went, boots echoing against dry rock and pavement as they went.
Hopefully Assassin had it handled.
EMIYA growled as he landed on his right foot, careful to use the momentum of his left leg to spin around and unleash a volley of swords at the purple clad servant he knew was Medea.
Purple Glyphs of raw magic sprang to life and blocked each of his projectiles, the forms cracking and splintering but never failing entirely.
He cursed.
With a huff he materialized several more swords and drew back the string on his bow just as lances of purple energy fired at him.
Swords, large and small, appeared from thin air at his sides and shot forth to intercept said lances.
Explosions rocked the air, thundering throughout the entire city as magic and steel collided in a brilliant flash of light.
He released his grip on the bow string, metal sailing through the air as his legs pushed and launched him into the air.
Purple flared to life before his weapons, glyphs intercepting each, but movement to his right had him twisting mid air.
Bone arrows flew through the space he had been.
Familiars, wonderful.
His feet hit the street and he wasted no time in twisting around another Lance of purple before firing off one sword at the Familiars on the roof and another towards the Witch.
But whatever the woman lacked in agility, she made up for in raw defensive power.
Of course his shot was blocked with ease then she suddenly stopped.
He frowned as the the witch's cloak fluttered and she flew higher into the air.
Her lips moved and he knew that staying in the same place was a foolish idea.
He kicked off and watched as the sky grew purple, lighting cracking in the night as the rain fell. Then the sky was bathed in purple and the woman roared, an unending stream of projectiles firing from above and down towards the city.
Screams could be heard from all around, the display of power having been long since noticed by the cities inhabitants.
He grit his teeth and simply, dashed backwards, letting the purple lances of energy rip clean through the building he had been on.
The cascade of energy followed him, but his agility as an Assassin allowed him to near effortlessly dodge each attack.
Of course it-
An absence in his sense, and he quickly spun in the direction his masters presence has disappeared from.
A small, but still visible bubble of darkness had formed not three hundred meters to his left.
A bounded field.
His eyes widened and he looked up.
"I see you've noticed," the woman's voice was smooth yet held no comfort as she continued, "not my finest I'll admit, but it'll allow our masters battle to go uninterrupted."
He grit his teeth, carefully twitching his head to the right as another bone arrow shot past him.
"Still, you won't live to see it," she rose higher in the sky, "my masters mana is far greater than the average mage, as such I don't need to hold back."
That had his eyes going wide. His own Master's reserves, while satisfactory, we're not at the level he knew Rin Tohsaka's were. For a mage like Medea to compliment anothers raw power was alarming.
He furrowed his brow as the sky cracked with lightning and grew purple once more. He could figure that puzzle out later.
Screams of innocents filled the air, and EMIYA could only growl and reload his bow.
His master had managed to block and survive a direct hit from Saber, one of the strongest servants.
Purple rained down on him, and his swords flew to meet the witches power head on.
Hopefully his master could last till he finished Madea.
The screams…
God, the screams and cries.
Sabers rage burned in her hands as Excalibur tore through a lesser holy sword, before she reversed her momentum and used the flat side or her sword to slap aside a rather large halbard.
"Your skill has not waned, King of Knights!" Her eyes narrowed, and her disdain only burned hotter as the man spoke, "your light is brighter here than it was before, tell me why do you fight to protect these people?"
She grit her teeth, as her sword flashed before her and deflected a spear from the French revolution before shattering a Mesopotamia claymore.
"Do you feel responsible for the man you failed?"
She slammed her sword through another weapon from the Gate, and she roared as even the explosions from his swords failed to drown the cries of innocents.
"Glorious! You burn even brighter when reminded of your shortcomings! Come now Saber, Rejoice! You have been gifted another chance!"
The man laughed, as she spun, one sword passing by her neck, another under her arms, and she swiped down another two projectiles with a single swooping arc of her sword.
"Prove yourself worthy, King of Knights, and you will be the highest of all women, the wife to the King of Heroes!"
She couldn't help but grimace, sweat dripping from her forehead even as she once more did the impossible and blocked four swords from the Gate of Bablyon.
A sharp cry rang out from behind her and she spared a glance back even as she batted away another holy relic.
A woman, far down the street with golden hair, and blue eyes. She was on the ground, leg twisted at a wrong angle as she stared up at the golden sky.
An innocent caught in all this.
Then a golden blur, and the woman ceased to exist in a brilliant flash of fire and dirt.
"Monster," Sabers voice cracked as she blocked and parried another set of spears, "you call yourself a king, but no king should throw away the lives of innocent people!"
"People?" Gilgamesh scoffed from above, and even as another dozen golden portals opened behind him and released their fury on her, she could see the disgust on his face, "these are not people. This is nothing more than a false image of my Garden, a cheap copy! These people are fakes!"
She knew she struck a nerve when he waved his hand and spat the last word, more portals opening and unleashing their payload not on her, but on the city around them.
Her eyes went wide as the screams grew, and sirens blared.
" We are not- "
"Think King of Knights," the King roared as his vault unleashed its horde unto Argus, "why have none of the masters known of our strife? Why is the moon broken?"
She paused, and noticed how any blades failed to find her.
"This is a false world. A fake," his lips twisted into a snarl, "the rules do not matter here, and once I have eviscerated this fake world, I will claim you and the grail as is my right."
Saber frowned and set one foot behind her.
"Then come King of Heroes, and see if you can claim anything."
Gilgamesh simply smiled and her world was bathed in metal and golden light.
"Damn it!" Qrow snapped as his scythe twisted and ripped another skeleton in half, "how many of these things are there!"
"They seem endless!" Ren retorted, his own weapon riddling a particularly unlucky familiar with bullets before being smashed by a large Warhammer.
Nora cackled as she spun and twisted, her hammer simply tearing through another three skeletons with ease.
"At least they're weak," the voice of Blake caught their attention and they spared a glance to her as she landed nimbly and rolled to her feet.
"Too weak!" Down the street Yang roared as her fists and shells ripped through a dozen more skeletons.
"Hey wait for me! I need to break some legs!" Nora bounded off and seeing his immediate surroundings cleared Qrow couldn't help but scan the streets and buildings before-
"Dang it!" Weisss voice was crisp and he looked back at the heiress, her glyphs pasted on the side of the purple dome of what had to be magic, behind them.
"Weiss?" Blake called out and the blue eyed girl simply shook her head as she once more reformed her stance and pointed her rapier at the wall of pure magic.
"Great," Qrow growled as he turned back to the sounds of cheering and manic laughter as more skeletons appeared and rushed their two heaviest hitters.
When the dome had appeared, it had to have been his semblance acting up.
He had seen Rubys semblance from the roof, he had seen her rushing to the street they found themselves on even through the rain.
And when he rushed to reach her, her and Jaune teams following on his heels, the dome had simply burst into existence.
Both Yang and Nora had tried breaking through.
The dome hadn't even cracked, and then an army of skeletons simply appeared from under them and swarmed them like locusts to a field.
Individually they were weak, but numbers certainly helped to even the odds.
"Do you think you can get that thing open or not ice princess? " Qrow huffed his eyes roaming to the sky's as purple and golden light filled what should've been a dark night.
"I don't know! I've never seen anything like this!" Weiss hissed back, her glyphs darkening and forcing ungodly amounts of gravity onto the wall of magic.
It was a long shot he knew, but considering their heaviest hitters had failed to scratch the dome, he figured someone with more versatility would be better at cracking it.
Hence why he stayed back and made sure nothing touched the Ice Princess.
She was his best shot of breaking this thing and getting to Ruby after all, he figured the explosions were likely from her servant and whatever other horror he was dealing with.
Whatever it was, if it was keeping that Assasin busy from freeing Ruby then he knew they were in trouble.
Light footsteps caught his ear, and he glanced over at the resident fanus of the group, as she took a spot next to him and spoke, "this is insane, we can't hold these things off forever."
He knew that. But there was no way he was going to let Ruby die. Never.
"We don't have much choice."
The ground shook, and he couldn't help but glance towards the buildings, fresh flashes of golden and purple light igniting the dark sky.
Sirens filled the air and he spared a glance upwards, wondering if Atlas was sending in its guns to protect the city.
"Stay here." he ordered and without waiting for confirmation, he leapt into the air and fired his shotgun behind him, the force propelling him a third of the way up the nearest building. With hard push of his feet he forced his momentum on up and onto the roof.
He scanned the horizon, and his heart almost stopped at the sight.
At least a few blocks down, the city was in chaos. Half the buildings were in tatters and falling apart, a portion were on fire and smoking into the air, and others were simply… gone.
People were running and screaming and just then he watched as Atlas Bullheads arrived on scene.
From so far he couldn't hear any words or see exactly who was what. But he could still see a general picture.
He watched as a floating man with golden portals on all sides looked at the Bullheads, and then the machines were ripped to shreds by dozens of ancient weapons.
A woman wreathed in purple shot into the air, higher than him but far off to the south and he watched as lances of purple energy crashed into the city, screams filling the air and red arrows and swords flew after her.
This…
This was impossible. It was a massacre.
They had to get Ruby out now.
They had-
Something in the back of his mind flared, years of fighting and surviving, and the man instantly dodged backwards as arrows flew past his head.
He twirled his scythe around and looked towards his attacker.
A woman, short with green hair and Lion ears. She was pretty, but her face held no remorse of love for him and he knew without a shadow of a doubt she'd kill him if she got the chance.
"You aren't a master, but I've been ordered to keep you busy while my master attends to other matters." Her Voice carried in the wind and he couldn't help but gulp at the implications.
Weiss needed to get Ruby out now. After all…
The woman's eyes narrowed and she drew her bow.
He had a feeling this wasn't going to go well.
A/N: Not the longest chapter, but its something. This year has been hectic and this is my finished product since all this virus stuff. Hopefully I can get to my other stories while trying to finish my novel. I'm trying to use accurate power scaling, and remember, this is Unlimited Blade Works Gil. So slightly crazy, not FGO Gil who is much kinder. This is the first big battle of the war by the way, and has probably two or three more chapters before the first arc is concluded and we move to arc two of the story. Anyway, hope you enjoyed. God bless and PM if you have questions.
-Metal4k