Fate/Stay Night: Umbra Bello

So… DBZA is done… well that sucks. Sorry if this is where a lot of you get the news… but yeah… check TeamFourStar's channel for that update. But, let's all take a moment to appreciate all that they did in that series. The bars that they set that lead the abridging world to what it is today, including Project Mouthwash. And then wish TFS luck with whatever creative endeavors they want to go after next.

Anyway, chapter 9 is out! And just over a week like I said it would! So that's a thing...

Runelt99- Fou is there for a reason. As for what that reason is… well, that would be major spoilers. Let's just say his importance is tied to what (or whom) he's looking for. So, in a way he's both a cameo, and a link to something important.

Chapter IX: Familiar Sights/End Prologue pt.2

Date: 02/02/2004

Time: 7:25pm

Location: Homurahara Academy, AKA 'Grail Central Station', Courtyard


Theme Song- Fate/Stay Night - "Brave Shine" (FULL Opening) | ENGLISH ver | AmaLee


"There once was a Lancer on a rooftop…"

"Oh... shit." now!? He's showing up now!?

Yup. There he was. Looking down on us from the roof of the building we just came from. Lancer. True Name Cu Chulainn. The living embodiment of the Celtic warrior trope.

Damnit. Coulda sworn we had a few more days…

"Define Real" My circuits ready themselves for battle.

… still fucking stings.

"And on you he just got the drop…" the blue Lancer smirked at some joke only he seemed to get.

I began looking around for immediate escape routes. No way was I gonna be stickin around like a sitting duck while two Servants duked it out.

If I remember correctly, Lancer was mainly here to test the waters, not to actually fight seriously… but he's not exactly keen on following Kirei's orders. I can't expect him to pull any punches.

Can't say Okita has anything resembling a clear advantage here. Lancer is strong. Real strong. If it weren't for his Master, he'd be an obvious pick for potential winner. The biggest threat from him being his Noble Phantasm. So far as we can tell, Assassin doesn't have a good counter to it.

There's some hope that her presence concealment may prevent it from locking on, but him being a Lancer, perception is his forte. All in all, he's the only Servant I don't have a kryptonite for. Which means this fight might already be over if I can't think of something fast...

"He'll lop off your head, and just as his Master said… your heart will soon stop." he seemed to finish up his little… poetry gimmick? That's a new one…

"Master! Stay back!" my Servant ordered. Her voice suddenly turning deeper.

"Right. Servant. I'll leave him to you."

"No I was more worried about him being Irish. Don't want you catching his Bankruptcy."

"That's... " let's not deal with this right now… "... 'sigh', look, just be careful. He's here to test us for his Master, so restrain from showing all your cards if you can. And don't give him an opportunity to gain enough space to throw his spear. If he gets the chance, it's basically game over."

"Anything else?"

"You get a chance? Throw a dog treat at him." I found myself smirking.

"How will that help?"

"I'll find it hi-larious."

"Care to let me in on the joke there bub?" Lancer didn't know whether to be annoyed he was being ignored, or curious at what his target was thinking about.

"I would, but I'm afraid I don't have a mirror to lend you at the moment." I sassed back.

I might be joking, but don't get me wrong, I'm scared shitless right now. In fact, I had to take a breath to stop myself from shaking.

"'Hmph', That's fine." he twirled his spear around for dramatic effect, then changed to an attack stance. "You can explain it while I'm running you through."

I took another look around… it didn't look like there was anywhere I could escape to.

I'm just gonna have to hope Okita has this covered.

"Do your worst Lancer. But I warn you I will not make for an easy kill." I try to make myself sound like some kind of powerful Mage. I know that might only hype up trying to fight me for a guy like him, but it might buy a second or two if it gets him to think a plan through.

"I highly doubt that." ouch… "That said… let's get to the point." his spear lit up in red mana.

"Booo, that sucked." I called out… well, not really. More just made a snide comment about it to Okita.

"(Like you got any room to talk about bad puns…)"

Faster than I could blink, Lancer leapt off the roof of the building, and was coming down fast.

I barely moved an inch before Lancer was barely four feet away from me.

Thrusting his weapon at me, my eyes grew wide in shock at the raw spe-

'CLANG'

Okita phazed into being right on time to deflect the weapon.

I didn't get a good look at what exactly happened next. I was still recovering from the surprise. But from the sounds that were being made, one could get an accurate picture by imagining placing a sword in an industrial blender.

I moved until I felt I was at a relatively safe distance. I wasn't getting caught in the crossfire here.

Holy shit.

Industrial blender is right. It's like a fucking whirlwind of sharp pointy things in there!

I tried using my stat-vision to get any idea about how Okita could counter him, but they were moving too fast. They were just two big blurs clashing, and countering each other at speeds my eyes just couldn't process. The fights in the anime must've been slowed down.

"...damn…" Is this what A+ speed looks like? Or… are they holding back?

'WHAM'!

One of the blurs just got knocked back towards me. I guess it has to be Okita 'cause they aren't cutting me down.

Landing on one other walls of the school, she then seems to use the momentum to launch herself back at Lancer.

'CLANG'!

'RIIIIIING"

The sound of the resulting clash resounded throughout the night. Sending a strong gust of wind in all directions.

However, powerful that blow might have been, it didn't break through any defenses, as Okita leapt back, and was standing by my side while Lancer stood there unscathed with a smile on his face.

It was at this moment that I noticed Okita had been wearing that pink Kimono from when we first met. It was entirely likely that this was her default combat wear.

"Not bad Lancer. But you'll have to work harder if you want to break through this Servant's defense." ah, so the banter begins.

"I'll admit, I was surprised. Your presence concealment shows you're the Assassin Servant, so I assumed your sword skills would be found lacking." Damn, right on the money.

"Step closer Lancer. And I'll show you just how sharp my skills are." she then turns… a complete 180 from the cheery, almost bubbly girl I know into… into something akin to a wolf when she grows an almost evil… no, sadistic smirk, and an aura of fatal intent builds around her. "And you can tell me what you think of them as you're groveling in a puddle of your own blood."

… I think I see why she's a true neutral now.

Anyway... now that they're bantering, I can get a good look at his stats-


Servant- Lancer

True Name- Cu Chulainn

Master- Kirei Kotomine

Sex-Male

Height/Weight- 185cm/70kg

Alignment- Lawful Neutral

Strength- B

Endurance- C

Agility-A

Magical Energy- C

Luck-E

Class Abilities

Magic Resistance- C

-Cancel spells with a chant below two verses. Cannot defend against magecraft on the level of High-Thaumaturgy and Greater Rituals. He has a remarkable resistance to Japanese-related Witchcraft.

Personal Skills

Battle Continuation- A

-Never gives up no matter what. Legend tells that the dying Cú Chulainn tied himself to a tree before taking his last breath. For he who possesses such a legend, the dying struggle is particularly fierce. This is not living dirty, but rather it is the work of preserving a Celtic warrior's enduring fight until the very end

Disengage- C

.-Bonus effect of returning battle conditions to what they were at the beginning of the match.

Divinity- B

-Cú Chulainn is a demigod whose father was an almighty god who possessed every skill: Lugh, the god who governed over the sun and a member of the Danann divine family, and his mother was Deichtine, younger sister of King Conchobar.

Rune Magic- B

-Cú Chulainn has the capacity to use the 18 original Runes (Norse Runes), granted by his mentor Scáthach from his studies with her, appropriately using them to respond in different situations. A nearly first-rate magus, but since he himself sees it as a hindrance, it is not employed much. By making proper use of this, powerful and varied effects are mastered. Other than attacks, this is mainly employed for effects corresponding to the Skills Magic Resistance, Clairvoyance, for raising parameters to Rank A, etc. All of these applications are merely temporary and he cannot employ multiples of those simultaneously.

Protection from Arrows- B

-This is a power Cú Chulainn was born with. It's said that it's possible for him to avoid any long range attack if he has made visual confirmation of his opponent, tracking down ranged weapons with his eyes and defend against them. He can deal with most projectiles even in conditions where the opponent cannot be visually seen. As long as the attack is a thrown type, he can avoid even Noble Phantasms, but he can't gain the effects of this protection with respect to wide range attack types where the attack range of the weapon explodes on impact, or a direct attack by a weapon that has simply long reach.

Noble Phantasms

Gáe Bolg: Barbed Spear that Pierces with Death- Anti Unit- B

-An attack focused on a single target, created by Lancer to suit his own style, that strikes a fatal blow that always pierces the opponent's heart and ruins their body from within with its thousand iron thorns. Once Gáe Bolg's name has been called, the cursed spear reverses the nature of causality, the meaning of "cause and effect" in the order of things, to make it so the cause of the "lance being thrust" comes from the effect of the "opponent's heart being pierced" by it. It determines the opponent's fate simply through its use.

Gáe Bolg: Soaring Spear that Strikes with Death- Anti Army-B+

-It is the "attack that unleashes countless darts at the enemy" that is spoken of in legends. It is the attack that made him a hero which utilizes the full potential of the lance's curse, converting all of Lancer's magical energy into raw energy and releasing the accumulated power after the spear is hurled, detonating on impact with enough power to blow away a multitude of enemies. It does not carry the property or concept of "always pierces the opponent's heart", but both the power and the area of effect are increased. Rather than dispatching a single foe with absolute accuracy, its focus as a technique is to attack the enemies together with the surrounding area in a carpet bombing fashion to cause massive destruction.


I grit my teeth as they begin to battle once again.

If this comes down to a real battle rather than a test, he's got Okita beat in almost every stat besides Luck. And nearly matches her in the stat she excels in. However, I still think her skills have his beat though.

Protection Against Arrows doesn't apply here. Divinity doesn't seem to affect anything either. Rune Magic is versatile, but so far as I could tell, he didn't seem to use it much mid-battle during UBW. Battle Continuation sounds like a pain in the ass, but it is easy to workaround if you remember it's a thing, and don't let your guard down until you're absolutely sure he's dead. Disengage… the wording on that is kinda vague, but from what I get from it, it lets him limp away from a battle with ease.

Again, his Noble Phantasms… those we have no defense against. All we can hope to do is not give him a chance to use them.

As to how his compare to Okita's…

After learning what they actually were a while ago, I realized that they were primarily geared towards leveling the playing field.

Her Coat of Oaths, basically her Shinsengumi uniform, raises each of her stats by one. Meaning it would let her fight on Lancer's level. Two issues are raised with this. First being the fact that it is the Shinsengumi uniform. If she uses it, her chances of being identified shoot up. It also means a big increase in Mana costs. One of the reasons I was able to summon her so long before the war started was the incredible efficiency of the Assassin class. My lack of knowledge of how to properly feed her mana wasn't much of an issue thanks to that efficiency, as she could survive on what other Servants would consider scraps. If she puts on that haori, her power costs shoot back up. I know how to properly supply her now, but I'm still not very experienced with this. And my circuits are still fairly new to being used. I'm not sure if I can handle that spike in energy costs, or for how long if I can.

Then there's her next Noble Phantasm. Her Flag of Sincerity. From what I understand it should let her summon the rest of the Shinsengumi as weak Servants, each with a weak Independent Action skill. While this ability sounds impressive (and it is), the Mana costs are even worse than the haori. Especially if we use it anywhere close to its maximum. And it even states that it is the flag of the Shinsengumi to boot. Maybe if the situation arises we could use some of her friends as backup, or scouts… but not here. Lancer's Anti-Army Gae Bolg will destroy this force with ease.

In short, we can't use either without risk of exposing her identity, and it will most likely wreck my circuits to use in any situation where we might need it.

Still… using any of Assassin's skills is the opposite of what we want to do against Lancer. We need to keep these cards close to our chests if we want to beat Kirei's little faction.

Either way, we may need to use one, or the other if we're gonna make it out of this battle alive.

...damnit.

"Okita, be honest with me, how're you holding against him?"

"Hard to say, the fight's only just started." she said, still distracted by the fighting. "But if he's only testing us like you said… it's going to be rough when he decides to get serious." ...why did she say that like she almost wants this to be a rough fight? I mean… I guess I can understand the warrior mentality here, but… I'm also… y'know… here? She dies, I'm dead. And I don't want to be dead. All my stuff is here. well… all my stuff I bought using dead people's money is here. My actual stuff is in anothe- know what? Never mind.

I feel torn for a few moments before coming to a decision.

"Assassin. I leave the use of your Noble Phantasm- Coat of Oaths, up to your discretion. Reviewing his stats, it should boost you more than enough to turn the tide without revealing your skills." It's risky, but it might be our only choice.

"But if he- 'gah'!" she's interrupted by a jab from Gae Bolg that cuts her shoulder. However, it doesn't slow her down. And she keeps pushing him back. "If he figures out my identity from my coat, he might figure out my skills from there!"

...damn. She's got a point. Even if Lancer doesn't figure it out himself, Kotomine… well he's Japanese for one thing. He'd be more likely than me to be familiar enough with her legend to recognize her coat by description. But beyond that, as overseer of the war there's no doubt he's done his research.

However… that coat is the coat of the Shinsengumi not just Okita. It can belong to anyone of the entire police force. With more than a handful being famous… or infamous depending on how you look at it.

"If he sees your coat, and recognizes it, he'll recognize it as Shinsengumi. He won't know which one you are. That's about as helpful as knowing Saber is a Knight of the Round." as in, that's a lot of people, with a lot of similar personalities, that could all fit as one particular class. And just as Artoria was believed to be a male in her legends, Okita was recorded as being a male in this world as well. Which, while convenient in helping mask her identity, doesn't make sense as, apparently, she never even tried to hide her gender. I can understand maybe one particularly retarded individual mistaking her for a particularly feminine male if they were drunk… but everybody!? Not one person thought to correct the record? Her parents? Her co-workers? How does shit like this happen? Come to think of it… it was 1863 when she was alive. How the hell did a woman join a special forces police group in 1863 and not encounter sexism on a level that would make modern feminists head explode like in Scanners!? And not just not encounter sexism, but have no one make any mention of it at all? And why the hel-

… know what? Fuck it. As a lover of history, this is anxiety inducing. Just gonna gloss over it. Pretend it all makes sense, and roll with it.

"Hai Master!" hm. Guessing the rune is being picky about shit too...

BZZZZZZT-BZZZZZZZT-BZZZZZZT

'CRASH"!

'FWOOOOSH'!

In less than a blink of an eye, she had switched over to her coat. Boosting her stats to just over the Lancer's. She then took a Kasumi no Kamai stance in preparation.

Lancer had been knocked back several feet by one of her strikes, and was analyzing the new situation.

"Okay, maybe you're a famous seamstress…" he thought aloud.

"Heh, you still can't figure me out, but… I'm well aware of your Legend." yeah, cuz I told you.

"Oh me? I'm just a humble Italian plumber. But you? You can call me Mario, Miss Peach." … oh so he does have a sense of humour that doesn't involve stabbing things.

"Eeeh, sorry Sentata. Your princess is in another castle." Assassin quipped back.

Lancer grits his teeth for having been found out, but then chuckles.

"Heh, if ya know who I am, y'know what happened to the last guy who said somethin' like that to me right?" he bites back.

At this Okita gets ready for his attack, but gasps when she sees he's not going for her.

He's coming for me.

I can't run from this.

I can't dodge this.

"Rrrrrraaaaaaarrrgghhh!!" Cu Chulainn charges right in with his spear, however, much to his surprise- "What!?"

She had almost teleported behind him too quickly to perceive.

"Damnit!" his instincts as a warrior were the only thing that saved him from the strike at his neck.

He uses the momentum of that attack to launch a wide swipe of her general direction, but that's about the best he can do.

I can't keep up. Lancer can barely see her movements now.

'CLANG!'

'CLING!'

'CLANG!'

slice

"Dah! Grrrrr!" he just took a cut to the leg! I-I'm not sure how damaging that is, but it's something!

"Assassin! I can't see what you're doing, but keep it up!" I praised her.

"All I can do is strike at less vital areas. Now that he's switched to defense I can't hit anything important!" My Servant let me know.

My circuits seemed to be holding so far. But I could feel the increased strain.

In my exceedingly expert opinion, If she keeps the attack going I could probably keep it going at this rate for just under ten minutes of constant use. Maybe a little more if I needed to really push the limit.

Still, that's likely just enough time for 'death by a thousand cuts' at this rate.

"Doesn't matter! Just get him to bleed enough to force a retreat. Lancer himself might be one to fight to the end, but Kirei likely ordered him to report back alive." Do enough damage, and he might break off.

It's tempting to finish him here and now, but it's incredibly risky. Assassin's Coat of Oaths only levels the playing field, it doesn't bend things entirely in our favor. Right now she's matching him in strength, far surpassing his speed, and kicking his ass in luck. However he still has the endurance advantage. That, and there's his Noble Phantasm that will still catch her at these speeds.

Wait. Actually, his Battle Continuation might be an issue here. It might hold us off long enough for her Noble Phantasm to drain me completely. Yes, in all, he's still too much of a threat to take on alone.

In theory, we can kill him in this fight, but victory is far from guaranteed. I'd rather take him on with a clearer advantage.

"Yosh!" Okita answered back while continuing the fray.

I'd provide commentary on what was going on, but really I can only see so much of it.

I just know that a blue blur is dancing around Lancer, cutting him in less than lethal places once in a while.

He seemed to be getting more, and more frustrated as the fight went on. After about two minutes of this (Or at least what seemed like two minutes if my circuits were to be believed) he seemed to be trying to get some distance. Whether he was trying to escape, or ready his Noble Phantasm is anyone's guess.

I breathed a sigh of relief. This might be counting our chickens before they've hatched, but if this was any indication of how any future fights might go, I- no, we might stand a chance in this war.

"DIE!" the Lancer thrusted hard at what he thought might've been an opportune moment, but he overreached. It let Okita get in between his defenses, and deliver a nasty cut across the waist. Bad luck on our part though. It didn't cut deep enough to really hurt him.

With an angry growl, and a clash of their weapons, the two were separated, and took a moment to catch their breath.

"((Dog like panting before taking a stabilizing breath)), Y'know, I gotta say, I've been having a lot of fun Assassin. Was expecting someone of your class to be a lot more… what's the word..?" he asked himself.

"... subtle?" she answered for him.

"Cowardly, yeah! Still… I think I might have your identity down…" Oh… double shit.

I grit my teeth when I realized that maybe using the Noble Phantasm was the wrong call.

"… a swordswoman of your ability… you can only be Hua Mulan!" or… maybe not?

… food for thought. Do you guys think Servant Mulan might come with an infinite supply of szechuan dipping sauce?

Once more feeling the atmosphere, I could almost taste the irritation in the air.

"Do I look remotely Chinese to you!? Did the Katana not tip you off!?" my Servant called him out.

Whoa, cool it down a bit Okita… you're starting to worry me.

"If it weren't for the Grail I'd have no idea what Chinese means! But regardless…" he loosens his grip on his spear, and drops into a more relaxed stance. "As per my Master's orders, I'm supposed to be testing out all the Servants I run into. And since I'd rather put your skills to the test in a mano-a-womano, I'll have to accommodate the company first!"

Company!? Who coul-

Oh… triple shit.

How the fuck did I forget she would be here too!?

Dropping the ball so hard it's hit the earth's core by now…

"Oh? So you did notice us…"

… wow. She's even cuter in pers-

No-No-No! Focus on the battle!

Rin Tohsaka walked out from behind cover looking very smug.

"I'm a Lancer Servant. Perception is kinda my thing. That, and you weren't exactly inconspicuous standing right there." Lancer pointed out.

My fists tighten. This ain't good. Lancer is one thing. He's clearly an enemy. That, and his Master isn't even fighting to win here. Hell, Kirei isn't even here.

Rin? She's probably my most competent potential ally. But right now, as far as she knows, we're enemy Masters. I have no way to prove what's going on with the war. One way or another, we will probably end up fighting. That means we're fighting her, Lancer, and Archer. The only comforting thought being that they're not joining forces.

This battle just turned completely unwinnable. Even if Okita beats Lancer, she won't beat EMIYA. I won't be able to power the Coat of Oaths long enough to maintain her advantage. That, and Rin has me completely outclassed in combat abilities. Our only hope is that Lancer, and Archer fight, and we get a chance to make a hasty retrea-

No. There's something else.

If these two are here, then that must mean he's here.

Now might be my only chance to get my foot in the door.

Right then. Priority one- save Shirou Emiya. Priority two- get the hell outta here alive.

"Ah, well this is just fucking perfect, why don't all you assholes just start showing up?" I find myself tempting fate.

I know I wasn't ready for this battle. There was gear, and equipment we left at home I coulda used, planning I coulda done….

Fuck it, no use crying over spilled milk. Just gonna have to wing my way outta this.

"Funny you should mention that-! ~Saber~?" Rin snapped her fingers, and Ar-

Wait-What?

No that's… that's definitely Archer that just materialized right now. i-I probably just misheard.

Anyway, there he was. Shirou-but-better. Looking very irritated.

"There are a number of things I feel I have to address at the moment Master-" the red-clad Servant was about to raise a complaint.

"Don't worry about it Satan!" Rin placate-

N-No I definitely heard her say 'Satan'.

...what?

"I know you'll mop the floor with these mooks!" she declared confidently.

"S-Satan?" I questioned… pretty much everything. My hearing. My Sanity. Her Sanity.

"Uhh… Master, is she all there?" oh good, Okita heard it too.

"I… I have no fucking idea." I answered.

"Rin…" her Servant growled out.

"That's right ya no-name hack! Whatever you think your Servant has, they ain't got nuttin' on my Saber!" Tohsaka gloated.

"Rin don't-!" Archer seemed to be trying to get her to back off.

"But… that's not…" I wasn't talking to her. More mumbling my thoughts aloud.

This… this wasn't Rin!

Rin was an eloquent Tsundere with something to prove.

This girl… she was a teenager playing a game.

C-Could this be a cause of the butterfly effect? Or-

"I... thought it was impossible to summon Divine Spirits as Servants?" Assassin voiced her opinion. Seeming to break out of that wolf-like character.

"It is, or at least it should be. But let's all be honest here… it wouldn't be the first time some rule was broken in the Grail Wars." Lancer reminded everyone.

Eh. Fair point. His Master is proof enough of this.

"You have a point Lancer... You also have a decent explanation." Okita made a Dad joke.

"... meh. Three outta ten." I judge.

"Consider yourself a comedian huh?" Lancer readied his combat stance once more. "I look forward to wiping that grin off your face… but first..."

He turns to Archer.

If the Devil truly does stand before me," he doesn't tho? "my duty as a hero compels me to assign him as a priority. As long as that's fine with you Assassin?"

"Depends, think you'll have the juice to keep coming when you're done with him? Cause this is the most excitement I've had in nearly a week." Now that's-

Know what? That's fine. She's a Heroic Spirit. She's supposed to be fighting, and the most we've done the last few weeks is spar.

"Hmph, lady? I could go at it for a whole week." The Lancer-

Is he flirting with my Servant?

Okita appeared by my side in the next moment with an eager smile.

"Hmph, what? Not gonna wish your boyfriend good luck?" I teased her.

"My-? Wh-wh-what!?" She immediately began spluttering. Realizing what both I, and Lancer said. Then devolving into incomprehensible rambling.

I sighed in both amusement, and exasperation. The idea that a Heroic Spirit could be teased was… well, amusing, and exasperating… what do you want from me a fuckin poet!?

"Under normal circumstances, I believe it's customary that two warriors ought to exchange names before trying to kill each other. Care to share Saber?" Lancer probed for information.

"Bite-me. What's yours?" Archer talked back..

"Oh me? Names Mario. First name Mario, last name Mario. Mario-Mario." ha ha.

"Funny, I almost took you for the great Italian spearman Cu Chulame." oof. Ya gonna take that?

"Bite me Bite-me." The Lancer responded. Irritated.

… this… this aint right. Lancer might be one for joking around in the middle of a fight, but Archer?

"I caution you Lancer. You've chosen a terrible opponent as your first…" EMIYA warned as his twin blades appeared in his hands.

Readying for the ensuing fight, I cleared my mind. Once those two start fighting, I'd have an opportunity to move.

"Okita." I get her attention. "Our prospective ally is going to be here tonight, and he's gonna be in danger. Keep an eye out for an out of place redhead."

My Servant looked around, likely using senses more powerful than mine then- "Got him. Dojo, forty meters to your four o clock."

I turn to the area she directed. I saw the dojo in question, but didn't see Emiya, still, I trusted Assassin.

"Right. Second they're distracted, we move to an optimal interception position. You keep watch on him in spirit form, and be ready. I'll work on a way to get him clear." It was a simple plan. An improvised one really, but it's the best I can come up with on the spot.

"Hai!"

I noticed that Archer's facial features seemed to be shifting into something like unbelievable frustration.

"Looking nervous there Saber?" The Lancer asked rhetorically. Personally, I'd say he looks more distracted.

"I am merely granting you the final moments deserved of a lamb about to be slaughtered." Archer threatened.

It took but a moment for the pin to drop.

"I'm starting-!" The Lancer warned.

"Not if I start first-!" 'Saber' charged.

Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt

Clang!

Clang!

Cling!

"Wait for it…" wait until they're fully zoned in…

I've seen this fight before… but it was honestly much cooler to watch in person.

Even better, I can even see what's going on now!

No- I can't get distracted by how cool this is.

"It's a long shot, but I think I got your true identity down!" Lancer claimed, "That blade in your hand is Kansho. That means you have to be the tragic blacksmith of China, Gan Jiang."

Ooo. Not quite buddy. He's just guessing all over the place.

"Secrets out! You got me!" Archer mocked as he attacked once more.

"Actually~!" Rin shouted/

Yeah. This isn't the Rin I know. This just isn't how she acts.

What the hell is going o-

"He's the Fallen Angel, Lu-ci-fer!" she claims, muttering something else not long after.

"...(Okay, what's wrong with her?)" I can't help but ask aloud.

"Rin!" The red Servant shouted as his blade clashed with Lancer's spear with all his strength.

"Rrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaghhhhh!"

A burst of Mana launched Lancer through a building.

That didn't slow him down long, as Lancer leapt out, and brought his spear down- "Your mine!"

"Now!' I judged this as our moment.

Okita disappeared from sight as I moved to the building with as much subtlety as I could.

"It's a good thing I played all that Assassin's Creed…"

I moved into the building, and tried to remember exactly where Shirou was supposed to end up going when-

"I WANT THAT!"

...that voice…

"I'M SORRY!"

I've heard it before… but where?

"Prou!?" Fou snaps me out of that distraction as he hops onto my head.

I shake off this feeling of familiarity.

Second floor. He makes it to at least the second floor before being stabbed.

Running, running, running, running, running,

There was some shouting and-

"Master. I've been engaged!" My Servant alerts me as I find myself in a stairwell.

"Keep 'em busy!" I order.

Looking to my right, I could see him. Generic Protagonist #7… we meet again, for the first time…

He was staring wide-eyed at the two Servants fighting it out.

Well… here goes something…

"Hey you!" heh, genius Rob. Genius.

Well, that caught his attention at least.

"Come with me if you want to live!" … this ain't exactly sci-fi, but it'll do.

"Fou!" I know, I know buddy, i… it was the best I could come up with…

Shirou looked torn about something, looked to see the meat grinder that was two Servants fighting, and decided-

"Shit-Shit-Nope!-" yes. He does want to live.

… okay, that voice is gonna be bugging me for a while. Where have I heard it before!?

"Follow me!" I race up the stairs.

"So uh... would kinda like a little explanation please!?" Emiya asked for information, clearly lost.

"Long story, I'll tell ya later. For now, trust me." Yeah, this is definitely one of those things you'd be sitting down to explain.

Finding myself on the top floor, I begin looking around…

"(Course, I lead us somewhere without an exit. But I guess if it weren't for Lancers awful timing this wouldn't be an issue.) whatever. Just gonna have to make one- come on!" I command as I run down the hall to the closest way to the exit of the school.

"So, can I just get a run down or-!" Emiya again tried getting some information.

I thought up a quick explanation that oughta shut him up for a while.

"You're a Magus right?"

"Um, I do Magecraft, yeah. Why?"

"You ever see Battle Royale?" Since the Hunger Games wont be out for another eight years, that's the best example I can think of.

"Uh… yeah?" oh good.

"Basically that, except with Mages. Again, long story." Like, seriously. So long you'll be able to fit it into three separate timelines. And one prequel.

I stopped in front of one of the classrooms. This will have to do.

"Hold on! Why are you all killing each other!?" wrong place, wrong time for twenty questions my dude.

"I'll explain later, right now, you run home and do your thing!" I ordered as I opened the door.

Just gotta wait for him to summon Saber, fight Lancer, a-

Wait, how's he supposed to summon Saber if Lancer doesn't-?!

"W-Wait! How am I supposed to get ou- No, how are you supposed to-!" Damn! There goes my train of thought.

"We'll figure that out later, Just-GO!" I shouted as I tossed him right into the room and-

SLAM

Slammed the door behind him.

Good, now we just gotta-!

"M-Master 'cough'! He's coming your way!" … ah quadruple shit-!

"HEY!"

… apparently, my day has become one big shit machine. A crap factory if you will. A turdacopia-

"No one gets to assault my friends but ME!" this not-Rin claimed.

"The hell are you-"

"Fou! Fou!" my little friend warned.

I felt it right after he said it. The big mana source coming for my head.

"-fuck!" with advanced warning, my body was just barely able to avoid that spear aiming for my face. However-

Wham!

Pain

"((Noises of sudden pain))!" I was not able to avoid the oncoming dropkick.

Okay… ow. That's gonna bruise...

"There once was a Master in Black,"

I heard him begin to rhyme once more as I tried picking myself off the ground.

"He didn't have a plan of attack. It wasn't too smart, but he fought with heart." Fou tried having my back by biting his ankles,

"((Sounds of small animal pain))" the bastard kicked him across the hall right next to me

"FOU!" I checked to see if he was alright. Luckily there were no permanent injuries I could see, he was just roughed up.

"Sadly," Lancer continued as… oh I see you there… "his grave will be this school."

Rin was approaching him slowly from behind. Gem in hand. If I could time this just right…

"Sorry boyo, I can't let your friend run off. Mage Law and all that. But hey~! Least ya tried!" Lancer 'consoled' me.

"That's where you're wrong Lancer." I tried holding his attention just a second more… "I'm still trying. And if that's not enough, I think I got somebody with enough try-hard for both of us."

Pretty sure that doesn't apply to the original Rin, she's got plenty of raw talent, but this one?

"Your Servant didn't seem to be in a condition to make much of a difference." Lancer pointed out.

Guessing from the coughing she just got hit by the Pneumonia? Dammit… gotta check on her soon…

Still, it wasn't her I was talking about.

"...Who said anything about my Servant?" I smirk, to his confusion.

"100% MAXIMUM-"

"Shite-"

As he turned to face the oncoming shiny, I scooped Fou into my arms and fucking bolted for it!

"-NO CHILL!"

BOOOOOM!

Using the explosion as I cover, I made my way to another stairwell.

"Assassin, what happened?"

"Master! You're okay! I-I'm fine now. It's gone."

"... rally up on me." I order as I make it downstairs.

Sure enough, after a few seconds she appeared before me as I hit the ground floor. She still had her coat on, but I didn't feel the drain as bad anymore since it wasn't in constant use.

She was trying to clean up some blood on her mouth when we met up.

"What happened?" I asked

"I'm okay… I just got too excited I guess…" she admits, disappointed her illness got the better of her..

"... we're going to be having a talk about this when we're done here." I say, leaving no room for argument.

I hadn't given it much thought before, but now that it got in the way of a battle, we're gonna have to do something about it. Or at least look into some preventative measures.

… anyone know how effective cough drops are against Servant skills?

"Meantime, you sure you're good now? Do you need a minute?" I get around to asking.

"I-I'm good." she nodded affirmatively.

Whether she was telling the truth, or simply putting on a brave face... I had no idea. Still, we didn't have much choice.

"Then I hope you're ready for another fight. Lancer's still gonna be after Shirou. Our next move could make it, or break it for a potential alliance." I deliver exposition.

"Understood. I am ready." my Servant sounded determined.

"Right then. You track him down, and keep Lancer off his back till he's ready. I'll be right with you." no way was I keeping up with a Servant. "Good luck."

"Hai!" Okita responds as she disappears once more.

Alright, now I guess we're heading to Emiya's?

I walk outside and see the bloodtrail.

Well, least I don't have to know the precise address…


Minutes later…

Emiya Household

"((Out of breath)) Ok… Cardio… 'pant'... still needs work… good to know." I say, leaning against one of the walls of where the trail ends.

Having jogged all the way here, I can't help but feel like I'm really regretting waiting till my life depended on it to start working out.

Anyway- judging by the sound of excessive violence inside, I'm gonna go ahead and guess that this is it…

Making my way inside, I climb to the roof of the main building to get a better view.

… again, Assassin's Creed.

"-Where are you looking!?"

BZZZZZZZT-BZZZZZZT


"** *** **** ** **** *****, *** **** **** ***** * ***** *** ****?

"**, ** * *** **** ****** ***** **** **, ** **** ** *** ***** ******."


BZZZZZZZT-BZZZZZZT

I know that voice. But this… this isn't like Shirou's. There were… there were echoes in this one. I don't know how to explain it.

It was like… something out of a forgotten dream…

I shake off these feelings… I gotta focus. Probably just some magical bullshit.

I take a moment to look around… this all seems familiar…

Lancer, and Arth-Saber were facing off. Except this time Assassin was there too.

… is it just me, or do Saber, and Assassin look alike?

"Alright, enough games! Which Servant are you?! What is that weapon!?" Lancer demanded to know.

"Confused? Perhaps I'm beating you with my faithful bow, Lancer." the Knight responds.

… so, did Saber, and Archer just… swap classes, ooor..?

"Oh sure Robin Hood, where's the merry men?" the Lancer quips.

"My classification eludes you, but, it sucks to be you." the Knight smiles knowingly, "I've figured out your identity…" clever girl...

"First name Mario, last name Mario…" he jokes.

"Cu Chulainn! Ireland's Child of Light, and faithful dog."

"'Gasp'! But Mario Mario was so foolproof!" Okita remarks sarcastically.

This seems to break Lancer's immersion, as he pauses to ask my Servant, "... so, do I just... have this stamped to my forehead, oooor..?"

I mean… we know because of our Meta knowledge here, Saber's just clever, and Archer's from an alternate future where this already happe-

...

… you don't think-

"Actually, you should feel lucky Lancer. My own Master had no idea who I was when they summoned me… (actually kinda disappointed by that to be honest.)" ...I mean… the Shinsengumi never really came up in American history classes. Go figure.

Still, probably best to provide an excuse/explanation.

"Your skill with a distinct red spear, acting like an almost rabid dog half the time, and just generally being hard to put down. You're the first hero that comes to mind in that regard." it was either gonna be Cu Chulainn, or Rostam.

… why is Shirou looking at me like that?

"And you!" the Knight continues as she looks at Assassin, "A swordswoman of the Far East of your caliber, you can only be- Tomoe Gozen!"

Note to self, look up Japanese legends, and myths late-

...Okita?

She's looking like she just took a punch to the gu-

Oh.

"... Assassin, it's no big deal-" I'd imagine not being recognized when you're a legendary hero would be a tad disappointing.

Although… I mean, look on the bright side. Being compared to what must be a legendary swordswoman in ability would be quite the complement.

Well, that's supposing Tomoe Gozen was actually a legend worth being compared to… again, looking this stuff up later,

"Yeah, that's… kinda the problem." she sighs, "well, at least you got the right country. You're out by a couple centuries."

"...is this important to you?" Saber asks carefully.

Well, it wasn't a couple weeks ago at least…

"Y'know, before I was summoned, I probably wouldn't have cared... but now? I'm starting to." Assassin admits.

… okay, now I'm starting to feel bad.

"C'mon Assassin...I know your legend now. I think it was all pretty cool." I try my best at reassuring her. Saber continued before I could get a response.

"A shame. If this were any other circumstance, I'd be sure to spread your legend around. You're a real blast." she says before seeming to trip up on one of the words, "Blast… I guess that works?"

Wha- What's she doing?

"You're acclimating to all the modern slang the Grail taught us." The Lancer analyzes.

Oh… I guess that makes sense. Modern language might take a minute to grasp for someone from over 1500 years ago. Grail, or no Grai-

"Fo Shizzle." she continues.

….

"...why?" there are… no words.

"It takes a while." really? Okita was pretty much up to speed in like, three minutes. And in an entirely different language to boot. "Don't worry though. You won't have the time to worry about getting it right!"

He seems to be getting another attack ready that involves a lot of red mana.

"I WANT THAT!" alright, alright man. Chill out Kiri-

Wait… what!?

The mana begins to swell before I realize-

Wait… this is whe- "-OH-MY-SHIT, ASSASSIN! BAIL!"

Code Red! Code Red! This is the big one!

"H-Huh!? Oh right-!" she turns to her presence concealment mode as I duck for cover.

"Behold! The fangs of Chullain's dog!" Lancer announced-

"Gae Bolg!"

The spear is thrown, and a fate is sealed.

The Knight is quick to react, and tracks the throw of the spear as easily as she tracked the movement of Assassin.

Still, it hit hard, and fast. So she was almost a goner.

"Your attack was strong but your aim was faulty Lancer!" She declared as-

Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt


-sa deralced ehS "!recnaL ytluaf saw mia ruoy tub gnorts saw kcatta ruoY"

.renog a tsomla saw ehs oS .tsaf dna ,drah tih ti ,llitS

.nissassA fo tnemevom eht dekcart ehs sa ylisae sa raeps eht fo worht eht skcart dna ,tcaer ot kciuq si thginK ehT

nettirwer saw etaf tub ,nworht si raeps ehT


Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt-Bzzzt

… wh-what?

Was that… was that Gae Bolg's effect?

"Your attack was strong but your aim was-'gasp'!"

The spear struck Saber, throwing her about, but didn't hit anything vital. Making a 7/10 landing.

"Okay, not to be a sore loser or anything… but did that attack just miss? That attack rewrites causality!" totally not a sore loser everybody.

Still, he's got a point. It's beyond insane any hero has the ability to resist an attack of that kind, let alone two. Three if you count Hercules regeneration ability. I mean, it will technically kill him, but does it really count if he doesn't stay dead?

I guess you could say people should die when they're killed?

"My instincts, and my luck. Those skills together saved me." Saber explained.

"Well that's dumb." yup, totally not a sore loser. "My attack that will always strike the heart was disrupted by a metaphysical critical role on a D20. In that case," he turns to leave, "my Master has instructed me to return if my Gae Bolg were to ever be used."

He's runnin-?

"You're running?!"

"You're running!?"

"Okay now I'm definitely seeing it." …wow. Now that I can hear them I've started to notice how alike Saber, and Assassin look.

"Yeah! My Master is just a bit concerned about me facing an opponent that can survive fate altering attacks. Besides, I'm not all that interested in a three way. Too many opportunities for cheap shots." he claims as he leaves.

"Aaaaawwww~!" Assassin groans out in disappointment.

S-So he's really leaving? We won?

W-Well we didn't really win, we just failed to lose, but…. We made it out of the first battle on top.

The sheer amount of relief spreading through my body cannot be measu-

"In that case, it seems like it's just you and me Assassin." Saber tries looking around for Okita.

Oh… uh… better clear this up real quick, "Oh-! Uh- no actually! This was just a mistake-!"

"It would seem so Saber." … uh… Assassin? What're ya doin'?

"N-No Assassin! We're here to talk-!" the entire point of this.

"Then, prepare yourself Assassin!" oh please no.

"(Oh, being ignored…)" why do I feel like this is Karma for something?

A swing of a sword, the sound of two swords clash through the night.

There was a blur. An age old dance of blades. Kojiki Kiyomitsu vs Invisible Air. Knight to Samurai.

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLING!

CLA-!

WHAM!

… Okita?

CRASH!

"Assassin!" that did not look good.

C'mon, C'mon, after everything tonight please be oka-

Whosh!

...

Thump-Thump

Thump-Thump

The world slowed down for this moment, my heart pounding in my ears was all I heard. As I turned to behold her approach, I felt as though I was but an ant standing before a Dragon. This girl- this King-wanted me dead.

There was nothing I could do.

I wasn't strong enough to defy her.

I wasn't fast enough to escape her.

All I was, was a dead man.

And yet, beyond all this, I could fee-

C-c-crrrraaackkk

PAIN!

I felt pain.

WHAM!

PAIN!

"((Quiet sounds of excruciating pain))'' There was a sense of great delirium for what felt like ages.

"******!?" someone was saying something, but I was a little out of focus at the moment.

"s-she kicked me in the dick..? why..? why would she kick me in the dick…?" processing… processing…

"M*s**r!?" w-who's- Okita? "MASTER!"

It all came back to me. Where we were, what was going on.

...still stung like a bitch though.

"I-I'll live Oki-Okita!? Are you okay!?" I just saw her get knocked through a wall of concrete.

She seemed surprised for a second before answering, "O-Oh, I'm fine! Nothing this Servant can't take! But what about you!?"

"I said I'll be fine… she just got me pretty damn good… gimme a second here an-"

"WRONG PLACE, WRONG TIME!"

… today is just not my day…

Saber came flying over the walls to attac-

RIN!?

When the fuck did she- riiiight, riiiight, Archer.

… Oh shit, Archer!

He moved just in time to protect Rin from Saber's attacks.

"Shit-Shit-Shit!" he swore as he blocked, and redirected her attacks. "Hold on! Saber- Saber let's talk about this!" he tried communicating, but she wasn't having it.

Shit, if Rin's here-

Wait. is she-

Oh shit. Rin's taken a hit.

I don't know how, or when, but she's bleeding from the head. That's definitely a concussion at best.

"Master! I'm going to engage!" wait- what!?

"O-Okita hold on a second! Remember we need them alive!? A-And didn't you just get knocked through a wall of concrete?" I try to get her to focus.

'Sigh'… why did I have to get one of the Servants with a battle fetish?

"Huh? O-oh… sorry Master. I just got a bit carried away…" she seems deeply disappointed at this.

Damnit. It's impossible to get mad at her.

"Look just… don't let anyone die, especially you!" I ordered.

"Right! I got this!" she responded as she launched herself into the fray.

She immediately blocked a blow meant for Archer who then-

The fuck!?

Get the fuck back here you ungrateful twice orphaned son of a-!

CLANG!

Damnit! Now how are we supposed to de-escalate!?

Think-think-think-thi-

FWOOOSH!

Vibrations rang through the air as Saber knocked Okita back a few feet.

I lock eyes with the Dragon once more.

Oh.

So this is what they call a brush with death?

It wasn't gonna be a low blow this time.

As Excalibur prepared to take my head, I found myself wondering how I got to this moment.

Were my failures tonight my own? Or a result of Fate's cruel hand?

Was all of this the best I could do? Or was my weakness holding me back?

Was I worthy of being a Master? Did I have any right being here?

Should I have run when I had the chance?

…ah shit. Guess I can chalk this up to the last, greatest fuck up of my life.

Wish I had some great last words for all of you… some grand ancient wisdom...

Well, you lot stuck around this long, so I'll give ya this. So listen closely-

Fu-

"Saber! STOP!"

A pulse of energy flies out from the hand of the boy holding the Kings chains.

I wasn't listening for a few moments… just pulling myself together…

I take a deep breath, calm down, and think….

"Okay Master… you wanted to talk our way outta this… I hope you know what you're doing…" Okita snapped me back to reality.

"Funny… I was just thinking the same thing…" I tell her as I try to formulate a plan going forward…

Right… just focus on what I need to do.

What do I need to do?

Well, first step, let's de-escalate. I take a moment to adjust my glasses before speaking,

"Well… Shirou Emiya. Listen up, I'm about to make you a deal you can't refuse." I smirk, setting up a serious moment befo-

"Master! I know that look! Please take this seriously!" my Servant requests.

But ah~, my sweet, innocent manslayer, taking this seriously is the last thing I want to do.

"...care to swap Servants?"

WHACK!

"'Yooooww'! C-C'mon Assassin! I was just joking-!"

"Waaaaah! My Master's being mean!"

While we were having our little skit, Shirou could only stare on in confusion as Saber lowered her blade in bewilderment.


End Theme- Disney's Hercules - GO THE DISTANCE (Michael Bolton) - Caleb Hyles Cover


And that's a wrap! Let me know what you all think in the reviews, and have a great day.