"Talking"

'Thinking'

"Master/Servant Link"

Noble Phantasm


Chapter 26: Disturbance of the Lake.

Illya shot through the sky as she followed after Miyu and Berserker, the shadow wreathed servant still chasing after other magical girl as they moved off the main road and into the forest.

The early rays of sunlight began to crest over the horizon, Illya cringed as she caught a face full of sunlight which led to her blinking repeatedly and rubbing her eyes. By the time she opened them again, she could see no trace of either Miyu or Berserker.

She sweatdropped in response "R-Ruby?" she called out to the stick in her hands "Where did they go?"

"Wait...did you seriously lose sight of them?"

"I had the sun in my eyes!"

"Meh, seems a little weird that something like 'the sun' could hamper your magical girl abilities." Ruby shrugged "Oh well. Anyway, they dropped into the forest a little to your right. You should be able to see-"

A burst of blue light penetrated the tree layer shooting upwards, soon followed by more flashes and the crack of explosions.

"-them soon enough." Ruby continued, undeterred by the small destructive display "Now go get them Illya-chan! Before grumpy old Archer steals the limelight and-"

"Aaaaaaaaahhhh!" A cry of woman interrupted the pair of them, Illya and Ruby snapped their attention behind them just in time to see Archer cradling Bazett in his arms shoot past them. The Servant and woman both looked at Illya as they went past. The former held a remarkably blank expression, save for a small hint of confusion. Likely as to why she was simply floating a few metres above the forest doing nothing.

Bazett was sending a panicked plea of help in her direction for the brief second they locked eyes. Unfortunately for her, Illya was far too bewildered by the display to do much of anything to help her.

The exchange of eyes lasted barely a split second before Illya caught sight of their backs disappear into the forest below. The girl stared at the shrubbery as it absorbed them for a few moments more before she quietly turned to Ruby, who was snickering rather loudly.

"I-I guess he really can sweep women off their feet!" Ruby chuckled, turning to face Illya and wildly gesturing with her wings "Hurry Illya-chan! You'll have to stop that boy! He's like an eroge protagonist!"

"Wh-!? He is not!"

"Ho? And how many girls are interested in your big brother?"

"…" Realisation soon dawned on the girl before she dismissed the thought and scowled at the stick "Don't make me confused!"

"...Sorry." Ruby shrugged "Trying to lighten the mood, whatever else we are about to fight a Servant. Figured you'd at least want something to take your mind off that for a little while."

"...Thanks Ruby." Illya whispered quietly, the stick didn't offer a response as they followed after Archer and Bazett.


Archer took a single step back as a glowing glove barely skimmed past the tip of his nose, the gust of wind produced by the attack ruffled his hair slightly. He kept a completely blank look in the direction of his attacker, Bazett glared at him with a slight dusting of red on her cheeks as he pulled back her fist.

"Do not do that again." She hissed at him and span around "Where did they go?"

"A little unreasonable to attack someone and then make demands of them isn't it?" Archer smirked at her before his expression quickly schooled itself, he moved past her and quickly spared a glance over his shoulder "Follow me, I think we'll hear them soon enough anyway."

The sudden explosion further into the forest and the flash of light penetrating through the gaps between the tree's only served to further emphasise Archer's words. The Servant quickly shot off in the direction of the blast, the dirt beneath his feet exploding outwards as he almost vanished into thin air. Bazett quickly followed after him, despite being faster than a regular human she still trailed behind Archer considerably.


Miyu ducked low as Kanshou slashed through the tree behind her, the black blade shredded the trunk and sent a buckshot of wood splinters firing off in all directions throughout the wood, the highspeed projectiles demolished the surrounding shrubbery and caused a brief downpour of green to fall onto the pair.

Not that Miyu had much time to contemplate it, she quickly through up a translucent barrier as Berserker repositioned his slash into a spinning stab, the tip of Kanshou slammed into her protective screen and instantly was accompanied by the cracking sound of glass as spiderweb shaped lines immediately covered the shield. Miyu grit her teeth as she felt more and more pressure being exerted by the Berserker, his other hand almost slowly fell into place atop his sword arm and suddenly the strength being pressed against her defences increased dramatically.

Her legs began to visibly tremble as her muscles protested from the strain she was putting them through, made worse by the fact that she could still feel the phantom pains that her injuries had incurred a few hours earlier.

Berserker released a low growl as he pushed the sword further down against the shield, the cracks spreading across her protective barrier widening exponentially.

"Miyu-sama!" Sapphire exclaimed, a notable panicked tone to her voice "The protective barrier is-"

The sound of shattering glass cut her off as Kanshou pushed through the defence, accelerating towards the girl. Time slowed down for Miyu as the black sword descended towards her.

Her eyes remained fixed on the point of the blade as it approached her chest, her legs already attempting to move her away from the Berserker. Some pessimistic part of her mind, or realistic at this point, was aware that she was never going to be fast enough.

Then again, she didn't need to be.

A black blur shot over her head and slammed in Berserker's shoulder. The servant recoiled, letting out a brief grunt of pain before more blurs shot over Miyu's head. Raising his arm, the Servant shielded his face as the arrows struck his body, the first skidded off their guard while the second struck inbetween the plates of his armour and buried itself in his forearm.

Berserker took a single step back and diverted his attention away from Miyu and towards the direction of the arrows.

It was a mistake.

Miyu instantly levelled Sapphire at his chest, the buildup of magical energy was the only warning Berserker got before the blue beam of light slammed into his chest at point blank range. The force knocked him off his feet and into a roll backwards. Miyu quickly used the blunder to scramble to her feet and jump into the air, climbing higher into the sky as she leapfrogged from platform to platform to escape the Servant.

Berserker was instantly back to his feet, murderous gaze trailed up towards Miyu and he soon released a low threatening growl at her. The slight singeing of his armour indicating that the attack had been too powerful for what little magic resistance he had. His clawed hand clasped at the damaged section of armour before it moved up to his right shoulder, he clasped the shaft of the arrow stuck in his body before ripping it free, snapping it in half and throwing it away as it dissipated into blue motes of light.

His gaze snapped upwards as trails of red light shot through the sky and descended towards him. Berserker growled and through up his hands in a guard as they fell upon him, the dozens of arrows smashed into the ground around him and exploded in a burst of bright blue light, decimating his surroundings and consuming his form in a cloud of smoke.

Berserker emerged from the cloud, the Servant soon through his head backwards "Gggggggrrrraaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!" and released a cry of rage which echoed across the forest, dispelling what little quiet had been left.

Bazett emerged from the brush, her gloved fists glowing bright blue as she charged the Berserker. His helmet snapped to her instantly, he hunched his body forwards and kicked off the ground, shattering the earth beneath his feet as he rocketed towards her. Bringing the stolen Kanshou above his head, he sliced it through the air towards her neck at the same time she brought her fist up to strike his chin.

Despite her feats of strength, it was obvious Berserker was going to take the woman's head before her punch landed.

"Feuer!" A pink ball of mana slammed into his back and caused the Berserker to stumble forwards slightly, Bazett ducked down low enough so that Kanshou skimmed just over to the top of her head, cutting loose only a few strands of hair. Gritting her teeth, Bazett rocketed her punch upwards towards the Berserker, catching him in the chin with an uppercut.

The Berserker's head snapped up and backwards in a slight daze before the Enforcer cocked her left hand backwards and slammed it into his kidney, the Berserker stumbled and lashed out with a clawed hand towards her head. A solid beam of blue mana struck him from the right side and sent him sprawling through he air, crashing through a nearby tree before he slammed into the ground.

Miyu dropped to the ground next to Bazett, the woman sent her a curt nod before returning her gaze to the Servant as he righted himself. Illya soon floated down into the clearing, the shattered remains of tree's and scorched earth lay below her, providing ample viewing of Berserker as he stood up straight. His red visor scanned the group in front of him before it slowly parted from their forms and towards something further into the forest.

His arm blurred as he swung Kanshou upwards, deflecting another arrow aimed at his body. The arrow was soon followed by dozens more, Berserker swinging the Dao rapidly as he proceeded to deflect the barrage against him, slowly he began to step back as the arrows seemingly forced him into a retreat.

Bazett saw an opening in his guard and shot forwards, Miyu and Illya trailing behind her as they approached the Berserker at top speed.

Then his head snapped to them in an instant, his body ducked low and he swept his leg out as he performed a three hundred and sixty degree ankle height kick.

At the ruins of the tree to his right.

Arrows flew over his head as his heel slammed into the base of the tree at full force, shattering the trunk and launched a spray of wood shavings across the forest, the shaving struck the tree's to his front, obliterating their branches and causing a downpour of leaves, temporarily obscuring Archer's view of him.

Something Berserker took full advantage of.

As the tree collapsed, Berserker clamped onto the trunk with his free hand, red lines instantly spread across it as he pivoted his body. Swinging the tree like a club towards the trio. Bazett's eyes went wide as the slid underneath the tree, the bark narrowly passing just above her nose.

Illya let out a panicked cry and accelerated upwards to avoid the pseudo bat.

Miyu was less fortunate, already in the middle of her jump, the girl could do little more than raise Sapphire and quickly bring up a shield to protect herself. The the barrier was a rushed job and Berserker slammed into it with all the force of a makeshift on par with a low call noble phantasm. The barrier held for a few seconds before it shattered, the trunk struck her in the gut and carried her across the clearing as the tree left Berserkers grip as he charged Bazett. The woman only just returning to her feet as the Berserker fell upon her, she kicked back at full force as Kanshou stabbed into the ground her her chest had been moments before, the blade instead sinking hilt deep into the dirt between her legs.

The pair stared at the blade which had come scant inched to eviscerating her for a few moments before Bazett rocketed to her feet, throwing another jab towards the Berserker. He held up a gauntlet hand and caught her fist as if it were a punch thrown by a child.

Berserker ripped Kanshou out of the ground and swung it up in an arc towards her midsection. Trapped in his grip, she could do little more than watch as the blade destined to cut her in two approached in slow motion.

And was promptly intercepted by a transparent glowing blade, the pairs eyes instantly snapped to Illya. The girl gritting her teeth as she applied all her might to guard the woman. Holding Ruby with two hands like a sword, the top of the mystic code had a condensed point of mana fashioned into a bladed tip extending from the top.

"Ha ha!" Ruby cried out victoriously "I knew you could do it Illya-chan! If Rin can make a sword, then so can-"

"Not now Ru-Oof!" Illya was cut off when Berserker clamped his hand down around Bazett's, a snapping sound akin to running over a bag of dry pasta with a car filled the quiet of the forest, the womans cry of pain turned distant as Berserker flung her away in the same motion, sending her crashing into a nearby tree and slumping over.

Using his momentum to carry through, Berserker pushed Kanshou upwards and broke Illya's guard, sending her arms flailing upwards and exposing her midsection, which he promptly slammed his shin into as he kicked her in a single fluid motion. Illya released a breathless gasp as the Servant rocketed her away from him, her body briefly glowed with a slight shimmer of light as Ruby threw up a quick defensive spell around her.

It was likely the only thing that kept her body from being obliterated then and there. The power behind the kick ensured that she shot across the entire clearing in the woods in scarcely a second before she made contact with the ground. Then bounced. Repeatedly, before eventually coming to a stop on her back.

Her eyes were wide as she attempted to take deep breaths, however with all the air having been exiled from her body by Berserker, it instead came out as rapid pants as she tried and failed to resume breathing.

Berserker took a single step forwards before swinging Kanshou to the side, parrying away the arc of blue light shot by Miyu, the girl glaring at him with as much hate as she could muster.

The servant wreathed in Shadow studied her for a few moments before their body slowly straightened out, no longer being hunched over. Towering above her by nearly two feet, he turned his body slowly enough that she could hear the creaking of his armour.

Something whistled through the air, cutting through several branches as they approached the Berserker. His head snapped to the side and he tilted his body as he avoided a black blade helicoptering through the air where he had last been. His gaze focused entirely on Archer as the Servant had his hand extended outwards from where he had thrown his own Kanshou.

Berserker growled at him, his gaze seemed to shift between him and Miyu before coming to a stop on what he perceived to be the greater threat. Archer shifted his weight as the fell into his own stance.

He hadn't wanted to approach Berserker like this, primarily because he knew that he stood no chance against them in sword play. Even with a Madness enhancement affecting them, they still had as much skill as a top tier Saber. Although given they apparently had some link with the Round Table, the current guess being Mordred, he supposed that made perfect sense for them to outclass him in skill.

Archer kept his poker face well, hoping Berserker wouldn't notice Kanshou's return flight to him. His empty hand twitched as it prepared to catch the return of the Dao. Berserker's head shuddered slightly, as if sensing something but wasn't quite sure what it was. When the whistling of Kanshou came to his ears, his head snapped around to see the sword spinning through the air towards his back.

Berserker growled, leaning his body to the side to avoid the blade. Archer immediately charged forwards, thrusting Bakuya towards the Servant. The shadow garbed servant parried his thrust away, however Archer clasped the handle of Kanshou as it passed by the Berserker, instantly reversing his grip on the blade and allowing the parry to carry him through into a slash at the Servant.

The black blade carved a line through the breastplate of Berserker, the Servant recoiled backwards and let out an angered growl as Archer leapt away from them. Pulling his arm back, Berserker swung towards his body just as he jumped, the gust of air carried by the strike being felt on the back of his neck.

A beam of blue magical energy slammed into his side and sent him stumbling as Miyu unleashed another barrage of projectiles towards him. The Servant deflected the first few with the flat end of Kanshou, however their continued explosions began to wear down at the strength of his stolen blade as minute cracks slowly formed in its frame.

The next ball of magical energy collided with the sword and exploded, the cloud of smoke briefly obscured Berserkers vision as he released a low growl in response, swiping his hand through the air to clear his sight. The moment he did, Archer came rushing towards him.

He quickly forced Berserker on the defensive with a series of wild and seemingly desperate attacks, a mad thrust to the head, a slash to his lower legs and an upwards cut towards his kidneys. Despite being briefly forced on the back foot, Berserker soon regained his momentum and began to demonstrate his superiority.

The Servant parried Archer's Kanshou away as Bakuya sliced through the air towards his head, he raised his forearm at a low angle. The white sword scrapped along the surface of the armour and was redirected away from its original target. Archer clicked his tongue and made to step back as Berserker advanced. Miyu immediately unleashed a fresh barrage of spells into his back, causing him to stumble forwards and allow Archer to make a quick escape.

"Aaaaaarrrrrrgggggghhhhhhaaaaaaaa!" Berserker threw his head back and let out a manic cry as he span around to face Miyu and broke into a sprint, clearing the ground between them in virtually no time at all as he raised Kanshou above his head, gripping it with two hands and swung it downwards.

Miyu leaned back, raising Sapphire as a guard to block his attack. Kanshou connected with the Kaleidostick and sent her sprawling as he forced her back, the sword carried on and shattered the ground as it slammed into it. Berserker wasted no time in chasing after Miyu.

A flash of light was soon followed by a think blade of magical energy colliding with his side, Berserker hissed and stopped, his hand immediately clasping over the burnt section of armour where the mana had pierced through. His head snapped away from Miyu and towards the direction of the attack.

Illya was hunched over on her hands and knee's, still heaving and sputtering to get air back into her lungs, with Ruby extended outwards in his direction. Giving one last gasp, her arm dropped back to the ground as she began to cough heavily, flakes of blood shooting out of her mouth.

"Well, well, well…" Ruby began to speak in a mocking tone "Look at the big bad Knight getting beaten by a pair of A ranked magical girls!" the Mystic code let out a loud laugh as she went on, Archer dropped to the ground in front of the two. Brandishing his married blades with narrowed eyes.

Berserker stopped moving and just stared in their direction, completely ignoring Miyu as the girl struggled to get back to her feet.

"Hard to believe that King Arthur ever lost to such a loser, you must have caught them on a bad day, huh Mordred?"

Dead silence permeated in the wake of the remark.

Then the shuddering of metal began, Berserker's shoulders started trembling as the light of his visor suddenly intensified. The cloud of smoke which surrounded his body immediately picked up in speed, soon spinning around him like a tornado as the rumbling of metal grew in intensity.

Archer took a cautious step back at the display.

"...Maybe I shouldn't have said anything?" Ruby nervously chuckled, Archer bit back a particularly venomous remark at that.

"Nee-san…" Sapphire wasn't apparently as reserved as him "...I believe that was quite a stupid thing to do, angering a Berserker."

"It just slipped out!"

The shuddering stopped.

Berserkers arms dropped to his side, Kanshou fell from his right hand and clattered against the ground. Archer immediately dismissed it from existence, the blade disintegrating into blue motes of light as Berserker continued to glare at them.

Then he stood up straight. The cloud of smoke which surrounded his body exploded outwards and disappeared into the wind. Revealing the set of dark purple armour. It was heavy plate and covered the entire body, slight gashes, dents and burns marks were visible in it from their fight with the group.

The Visor stared at them before Berserker raised their left hand and slowly positioned it behind their back, turning their body to the side so their right arm was facing them. They flexed their hand open as a dark wisps of magical energy slowly filtered towards his hand.

Archer watched with an increasingly nervous expression as the wisps of magical energy slowly coalesced into a shape. The dark sword began to form, the sharpened fingers tightly gripped around the handle as the blade appeared in full.

His Tracing immediately identified the sword by name.

Archer took a single step back, now a lot more pensive about a direct engagement than before. His eyes darted between the sword and its wielder, the Berserker now disturbingly more silent than he had been moments ago.

"...I guess Mordred finally got seri-"

"That's not Mordred." Archer cut her off, he wet his lips as he repositioned himself.

"...Eh?" Ruby's wings slumped "Really? But all that deal with King Arthur...Damn...I lost that bet then...So go on then, who is it?"

Who indeed?

There was only one knight who wielded that blade. One who was blessed by the spirits, who was said to be the strongest knight of the Round Table when it came to swordsmanship.

And only one who permanently darkened the Holy Blade Arondight when he used it to kill his fellow Knights in a fit of madness.

"That is Sir Lancelot." Archer swallowed.

Of course Ruby had to open her, metaphorically, big mouth at that exact moment of the reveal "You mean the guy who slept with his Kings wife!?"

Lancelot instantly disappeared in a burst of speed before Archer could question what possible insanity could have claimed her to announce such a stupid thing. He took a single step back and raised the twin swords above his head as a guard when Lancelot re-appeared in front of him.

Arondight tightly clasped in two hands, Lancelot swung it downwards towards Archer.

The Fae blade made contact with Kanshou and Bakuya-

-and instantly exploded in a shower of broken shards of metal.

Blood splattered across Illya's shocked face as the sound of shattering metal roared in her ears.


Kiritsugu jumped backwards, his calico spraying towards the stream of bugs as he darted across the lawn. His face set in a scowl as another stream of insects burst from the house, circling overhead and forming a low buzzing cloud before they rocketed towards him.

He ducked his head down as the sound of something cracking came to his ears, Kotomine's hand swept out above him. The man throwing a cloud of salt towards the insects, swarm flew into the cloud of blessed salt. Their bodies instantly withering away in a burst of fire. The Priest shot his hand into his coat pocket and withdrew six black keys on each hand.

Spreading his arms wide, he threw them across the yard in a rapid circle, quickly sealing off the section of the garden in a small array of pinned keys. The chittering of insects increased in the wake of his action, Kotomine pushed off the ground in the opposite direction as Kiritsugu, the man doing the same as the insects slammed into the spot where the pair had once stood.

The insects gradually coalesced into the halfway form of Zouken, the man leering down at them with an amused smile "Quite rude for unwanted house guests aren't you? First you break into my home and now make off with my grand daughter?" his eyes fell on Kotomine and narrowed "I dare say that your old Teacher will be less than pleased when he hears of this insult."

"Do not attach your pitiful excuses to this." Kotomine responded with a frown of his own "As far as the Church will be concerned, you have given them ample reason to cease overlooking your actions, especially in regards to recent events."

"Not personal satisfaction?" Zouken chittered away with a mocking smile "Ah...how silly of me...of course such a thing doesn't apply to you."

Kotomine didn't respond except allowing more Black keys to enter his grip and extend into the blades. Zouken's form made to disperse again before something slammed through his head, obliterating it in a shower of chitin. Kotomine and Kiritsugu allowed themselves a momentary surprise before they were back on the defensive as Zouken's insects attacked in force.


Chloe lowered her bow, squinting her eyes at the yard and giving herself a proud smirk.

"Not a bad shot." She admitted to herself, then shivered as she thought back to the wrinkly old man. Her eyes went back to the street as she saw the forms of Caren and Sakura retreat away from the house. The pair were virtually out of harms way at this point.

Her eyes turned back to the sky and narrowed as they searched through it. She had thought that Gilgamesh would have shown up to, at the very least, watch them. Although given how it was virtually daybreak, she suspected he probably wasn't going to show up.

If only because he probably didn't want to get the sun in his eyes.

She gave a quiet chuckle at her own joke. He seemed extraordinarily arrogant in the brief time she had seen him. Not wanting to walk around outside because 'the sun might damage his perfect skin' seemed to be the kind of thing he might have said.

Shaking her head, she dismissed the thoughts and prepared draw another arrow.

She paused as something flashed through her eyes, they went upwards as she barely caught a glimpse of the golden spaceship that Gilgamesh rode in shoot just between the clouds above her head before vanishing.

She frowned. It was heading away from them, her eyes followed the direction it had been moving before her heart fell into her stomach. She instantly dismissed the bow in her hands and leapt off the building, breaking into a full sprint into the direction of Gilgamesh direction.

Which happened to be the direction of her home.


Kotomine ducked low as the swarm shot above his head, he raised his arms in a guard as a section of the flying cloud broke off and flew towards his face. He grit his teeth as they slammed into his arms in force and attempted to latch onto his skin. His strengthening made sure they didn't immediately break though, although he knew that it wouldn't last under a continued assault.

He quickly shot a glare towards Zouken, he needed to deal with the Magus quickly.

Kiritsugu raised his calico and fired a burst towards the centre of the swarm. Destroying a good portion of it before he felt the gun run empty, the cloud split into the form of a giant hand and reached towards him at a much faster speed than before.

'Time Alter: Double Accel!' The world slowed around him as he moved around the cloud at speeds that would have been impossible for a normal human. He disabled the spell and heaved quickly. He hadn't used it in quite some time and his age was starting to show if even that quick burst was enough to cause him to begin to tire.

The fortunate news was that Zouken was running out of familiars. Over half had already been destroyed in their engagement, either through his means or whatever hunting salt that Kotomine had been scattering around. The lack of reinforcements meant that the Black Keys currently buried in the garden surrounding them were likely acting as some kind of barrier.

Kiritsugu spied the swarm. They weren't all attack familiars, they couldn't be. Zouken needed something more complex to act as his body and he wouldn't be able to maintain this form for long. Constantly expending magical energy to keep himself as a cloud of bugs wasn't something he was able to do.

Zouken would eventually have to return to his human form in order to avoid completely breaking apart.

The issue was whether or not the pair of them survived that long.


Archer's hand clasped over the large slash through his chest, he pushed against the ground and jumped as Lancelot span on his heel, brining Arondight in a move to bifurcate him. The black sword barely skimmed past the souls of his feet as he went airborne.

The Knight made to jump after him before a blur of motion had him turn his attention away from Archer and back at ground level.

Bazett slammed her uninjured hand into the side of his knee. There was a groan of metal as Lancelot buckled slightly from the blow and the woman used that to spin around and smack him in the back of the helmet with an overhead punch. He stumbled forwards and suddenly found Ruby pointed at his face, the mystic code glowed a bright pink before it fired.

Lancelot threw his body to the side, the beam of magical energy slamming into his shoulder rather than his head, sending him in a backflip and onto a hard shoulder. The Berserker growled in response, stabbing Arondight into the ground and twisting his grip on the blade. Pulling it upwards in an arc as he returned to his feet, he tore away a section of the ground where the sword had been buried and send it hurtling towards Illya.

The girl recoiled in disgust when she took a lump of wet mud to the face and began to wipe it out of her eyes.

A clang of steed in front of her had her jolt and widen her eyes. Archer stood protectively in front of her, his pained breaths and shaky knees being obvious indications of his poor condition as Lancelot clashed Arondight into his projected Durandal.

Berserker forced Archer further into the ground as he exerted more strength into the blow.

"Install." His head snapped up just in time to parry away a blood red spear aimed at his head. He took a single step backwards as he assessed his foe, staring at Illya clad in a tight fitting blue suit, steel pauldrons on her shoulders. Her body hunched forwards as she twirled Gae Bolg in her hands before assuming a stance.

Then looked down at her clothes and blanched "R-Ruby!? Wh-what is this!?"

"Illya!" The mystic codes voice called out as Lancelot accelerated towards her, Illya raised the spear and managed to block the strike aimed at taking her head. The force of the blow had Gae Bolg rest on her shoulder as she attempted to push it away.

"I-Install." A cough sounded out to their left as a burst of purple light showered over the Berserker, the lower class spells pierced through Lancelots magic resistance and smacked against his armour, sending him reeling under the barrage.

Archer and Illya were quite happy they were only D rank spells, as it did little to either of them in terms of any effectual damage. Bazett kicked away from the ground as the spells strafed the entire area of the Berserker, sliding to a halt just behind Illya and Archer. Her eyes fell on the girls form with a slightly puzzled look.

"The Class Cards can be used in such a manner?" She muttered, then shook her head and raised her only working hand as she focused on the cloud in front of them. Miyu floated above the group, dressed in the same robes as Medea and wielding the Casters staff, her cape spread wide and revealing a small host of magic circles trained on Berserkers location.

A sweeping motion split through the cloud, scattering the dust and revealing the form of Berserker. Lancelot was audibly panting, parts of his armour chipped and scorched from the attack. His hand tightened its grip around Arondight loudly, the only sound that could be heard was his heavy breathing and the creaking of his knuckles.

The red visor looked between all of them, moving from Bazett, to Archer as he got back to his feet, to Illya in Lancers gear and Miyu in Casters.

Lancelot hunched over slightly, an ominous red light sparked across the edge of his sword. His feet shifted into a running stance, his intentions to charge them obvious from his posture.

The group tensed as Miyu's circles in the sky burst into life and instantly rained down upon him as he moved. The beams of slight slammed into the ground just as he kicked off into his sprint, the earth which shattered beneath his feet was consumed in light seconds later.

Dragging Arondight along the ground towards Archer, Lancelot swung the blade up and broke through the Servants hasty guard as he delved right into the middle of the group. The force of the attack had Archer stumble backwards, wincing as his injury to his chest hampered his movement.

Lancelot, however, did not pursue him instead as his sword climbed upwards, he tilted his body and swung down towards Illya. The girl let out a sharp panicked gasp as he held the spear up to block the attack, the downwards slash sent her skating along the ground away from him as he prepared to advance upon her.

His back to them, Bazett was the first to recover from the initial surprise of his sudden attack and launch herself forwards. Fist cocked back and aimed towards the plates of armour along Berserkers spine.

Archer made to follow after her, then he noticed it. The line through the earth where Berserker had dragged his sword suddenly glowed a brilliant bright red. Acting on instinct, Archer grabbed Bazett by the back of her collar and jumped backwards. Scarcely a moment too soon as the earth at their feet released an explosion of red light which sent the pair of them flying away from the Servant.

Illya watched them get blasted back and made to move to help before she found herself frantically defending against the Berserker. She felt the Class card attempt to guide her movements, and she was more than willing to let it do so. The pair of them blurred as Illya launched a rapid series of thrusts towards Lancelot, her face becoming more desperate as he effortlessly parried or deflected them. It wasn't simply that he was faster than her, he was stronger than her as well.

Swiping the spear upwards, he grasped Arondights with two hands and swung down with all his might. Illya jumped backwards as he slammed the sword into the ground, the impact kicking up a small shockwave and sending spiderlike cracks through the surface of the earth.

He stamped his foot forwards and launched himself at her, sweeping upwards towards her midsection. Miyu rewarded his aggression with a dozen beams of magical energy to the chest, Lancelot was instantly forced on the back foot as he moved to avoid Miyu's rapid fire assault against him.

Lancelot's figure blurred as he ducked and weaved inbetween the beams of light, his helmet fixed on Miyu as he made his way backwards.

His hand lashed out towards the ground, grabbing hold of a large wooden splinter along the ground. Reeling his arm back, he got into a throwers position. Miyu instantly widened her eyes and threw out the staff in front of her, rapidly chanting the spells that came to mind under her breath and forming a transparent barrier in front of her as Lancelot threw the projectile at her.

The object slammed into her barrier and formed a minute crack in it before he bent his knee's low, preparing to leap into the sky.

Illya charged him, thrusting the red spear towards his knees. Berserkers head snapped down towards her, he twisted Arondight and made to strike towards her before something slammed into the back of his head and forced him forwards.

Archer bit back a grunt of pain as it felt like his shin had made contact with…

Well, it felt like it hit exactly what he had hit. The overhead kick carried his body over the Berserker and onto his feet, he stumbled backwards as pain flared through his chest once again. It wasn't a very good distraction, but it had been more than enough.

Gae Bolg speared Lancelot through his right knee, the red point penetrating into his kneecap and appearing out the back of his leg. Berserker let out a cry of sheer agony in response as he thrust Arondight towards Illya. The girl jerked the spear sideways, causing Lancelot to flinch in his aim and make the sword shoot just past her cheek.

A beam of magical energy flew over her head and slammed into Berserkers chest, searing through his armour and causing him to release a pained hiss as the attack scorched a large portion of his chest. He stumbled backwards, clutching at his wounded chest as he limped on his wounded leg, barely keeping himself standing.

Bazett's haymaker to his cheek had the helmet snap to the side and the Servant stumble slightly. Illya span her crimson spear and slammed the butt of the weapon into his chin, sending him reeling in response as his vision turned skywards and he put far too much pressure on his wounded knee.

His leg wobbled slightly as he fell backwards, attempting to re-orientate himself.

"Now!" Archer cried out, slamming his copy of Durandal into Arondight and sending it flying from the Berserkers hands. Miyu took the opportunity, a jagged dagger formed in her hand as she shot towards the Berserker Servant.

Archer was struck with a vicious backhand that caused his nose to explode with blood, Miyu slid to a halt in front of the Servant. Lancelots gaze fell on her as she twisted the dagger so it was facing towards the open section of his armour and the burnt patch of his skin.

Lancelot lunged towards her with his left hand, hand outstretched and reaching towards her face as she thrust the dagger towards him.

"Rule Breaker!" She cried out as the tip of the dagger penetrated his skin, instantly the Berserker reeled backwards and released a cry of pain as a the wind buffeted around the pair, the power of his contract being severed. Miyu felt the tug of the Servants ownership and pulled it towards her, soon feeling a burning on the back of her hand.

She winced as the pair recoiled away from each other. The Caster card uninstalled and fell to the ground as she clutched her right hand, twisting it over to stare at the back.

The symbol of a red tree was present on the back of her hand. A red trunk was all that was visible, as there were faint marks on either side of it to signal where the other two command seals would have been. Miyu hissed out between her teeth at the pain before her eyes slowly trailed up towards Berserker.

The Servant had gone quiet, save the heavy panting that was emanating from the helmet. The red visor stared at her with a dull glow as his hands fell upon his wounds. Miyu swallowed thickly as she felt a tiny smile spread across her face.

They had done it…


The door exploded inwards.

Gilgamesh took a single step into the house and instantly crinkled his nose in disgust as his gaze swept across the entry.

"Dull…" He spoke the word as if it were the gravest of insults "And yet far too mundane to belong to such troubling curs. No...a place such as this is too grand for the likes of them…"

Red eyes swept away from the front of the house and into the living room before a smile spread across his features as he stared at the small audience who were left gaping at his sudden arrival. A new feeling of dread soon permeated throughout the room.

"Worms such as yourselves would be better off crawling in the dirt." Red eyes gleamed with amusement as they scanned the group.

Instantly dismissing and focusing on Luvia, Gilgamesh gave a slight hum as he strode forwards, his entire posture reeking of arrogance which in this case was well founded "It does please me that some Mongrels are at least able to carry out the commands of their King." Luvia failed to show the adequate level of euphoria at being the recipient of such praise, earning a narrowing of the eyes. The girl flinched and took a single step backwards.

That was a much better response.

"Ho?" Interest gleamed in his eyes as they fell upon the white haired trio "Homunculus are you...and quite well made it seems. I'm sure your creators are pleased with how you have turned out. However…" his gaze fell upon the halberds being levelled at him from Leysritt and Sella "To dare raise a weapon to a King is tantamount to treason...However I shall assume this is out of fear and a desire to protect your mistress. So I will forgive this disrespect." he snapped his fingers "As a reward for ensuring the Grail was not destroyed by the mad dog. The fake...No. The Thief you currently have hidden away, bring him to me."

"No." Irisviel stepped forwards, her eyes burning with righteous fury. Completely ignoring the irritation which flashed through the Servant "You are not going near my Son."

That seemed to throw Gilgamesh for a loop, his brows climbed up his forehead and he remained silent for a few seconds "Fwaha…" he bit out, seemingly containing his laughter before he threw his head backwards "Fwahahahahah! Hahahahah!" he paused, shaking his head "No...I see it now. The simple instinct of a mother to protect her offspring, that as a mere Homunculus you can approach that emotion reserved only for true humans is a feat worthy of praise." his expression toon turned disappointed "However...it is an emotion you should not possess, a tool should never possess a human heart...your creators can never reciprocate your purity."

"I don't care about that nonsense!" Irisviel hissed, flexing her hand as the glowing string danced between her hands "If I am a tool, then I'm going to use my human heart to protect my son."

"Mistress." Sella stepped in front of her, biting her lip as she spared a glance with Leysritt "Mistress, please take Shirou and run, we will hold him off."

Gilgamesh remained silent as he stared at Irisviel before he seemingly came to a realisation "So you overcame your purpose because of parental love, abandoning your role to become a Grail…" he hummed in thought for a few moments then nodded to himself "So be it. Your intentions have been stated and I will not waste further words with you."

The air behind him split open with several golden portals, all of which slowly produced the sharpened points of swords and spears "The love a true mother is fleeting and if you wish for yours to end then so be it."

"Get away from her!" The glass behind him exploded as Chloe threw herself through the window, her primal scream earned a blank look from Gilgamesh as a sword shot upwards and blocked her twin blades from striking her back. He stared down at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Hmph." He then dismissed her immediately, Rin and Luvia already tensing to make a break for the door while Irisviel shot a panicked glance between Gilgamesh and Chloe. The girl backed away from him, her face still set in a mix between a snarl and a scowl.

Chloe looked past him towards Sella and Leysritt, a silent message was sent to them through her eyes. The pair looked hesitant for a few moments before they nodded back.

Gilgamesh merely snapped his fingers.

All that could be seen from outside the house were flashes of gold light from the window.


AN: Berserker in the bag, Sakura secured and all that's left is Zouken…

And Gil makes a house visit to grab Shirou...of course running into problems but well…

They're only problems for everyone else.

Anyway...Turns out I might have gotten the Summoning Catalysts and Projection thing wrong. Oops…

That's a 'my bad' moment but really, I just didn't want the story to be cluttered with Servants. Anyway, sorry you all had to wait a little longer than usual for this Chapter but I like to think I've really improved my fight scenes.

I think I conveyed how much of a monster Lancelot is in single combat even when fighting against Mages as his opponents.