Well, I'm starting to degrade in mental quality again. Should probably get this out before I trash it, so... here. I'll probably do more on this topic down the line, but for now.
- X Izuku X-
Izuku opened the briefcase with a gulp, picking up the conceptual weapons hidden within. The set of eight ringed dirks glowed purple-black, and lifted off his hand and into the air. He turned, blinking as Leonidas offered him a spear.
"They're fast," Leonidas said, "Though I'm sure you alright know that. Hopefully your Magecraft will be enough, but if it isn't, use your spear to ward them off long enough for assistance to arrive."
Izuku nodded, taking the spear, "Thanks."
"It would not do well for Humanity's last Master to die," Leonidas said, eyes shifting towards the northern gate before he put on his helm, "Are you prepared?"
Izuku glanced at Mash, the Count, Shiki and Billy, before nodding, "Yes."
"...We'll see if you keep that," Leonidas said as the group gathered, walking towards the gate and calling, "Open the first gate!"
Izuku followed the Spartan, soldiers gathering behind them. The first gate slammed shut, and the second opened, letting the rotation of men leaving the battlefield rush in, alongside six demonic beasts. Before they could attack a pair of men lagging behind and carrying a savaged soldier, Izuku, and his Servants, launched into action.
The Spiritfuge launched forwards, impaling one and locking it in place for a moment so Izuku could point his lighter at it, "Jetburn!"
Flames launched from the lighter in a wide spread, igniting the beast and causing a garbled noise of pain to echo from its mouth. The Count was on another in a second, Monte Cristo Mythologie burning them to the bone in the same time it took for Izuku to burn off the fur.
Billy's M1877, chambered in Colt .41 making it a "Thunderer" to the .38 "Lightning" and .32 "Rainmaker" hammered into one beast with six shots, the magical energy ripping through the uridimmu's skull and dropping it. He slid open the loading gate of the revolver, using the ejector rod to remove the empty casings and loading more brass rounds and the casings fell to the dirt and disintegrated into magical energy.
Shiki rushed at another uridimmu, slashing seemingly randomly as the outer edge of her irises turned blue and the inner turned kaleidoscopic. The beast fell into several neat pieces, blood raining from them as they crashed to the earth.
Mash slammed Lord Camelot into another, decapitating them with the edge of the shield and blocking the last from moving forward, where several men and women stabbed under the shield and pierced through the last uridimmu with their spears.
Behind them, the first gate opened, letting the men rush into Uruk before it shut. Izuku swallowed, before speaking up, "Right, you guys know what to do?"
"If it's four legged, angry and moves quickly it dies," Billy said, finishing reloading, "We know, Master."
"Alright then," Izuku said, drawing the Spiritfuge by the ring shaped hilts and setting them back to floating. He supposed it was bit much to hope they would have exorcised the "demonic" beasts, "Let's go."
- X Billy X-
It was a great day in Babylonia, the sun was shining like New Mexico and Henry "Billy the Kid" McCarty, Archer class Servant of Chaldea was doing his level best to keep goddamn hellhounds from tackling his Master and killing them. Yeah, yeah, they weren't hellhounds, they were uri-whatevers, but if they were red like a hellhound, burned with fire like a hellhound, and were demonic like a hellhound, they were hellhounds to him.
Time slowed as one barreled straight towards Billy, flames coiling around it. Swinging his Thunderer around, a loud clap echoed and the magical ammo ripped through the skin with as much ease as a normal bullet would through a rack of tanned leather. Billy adjusted his aim, and gunned down two more before they reached the phalanx protecting the gate. Izuku's dirks pinned one of the large ones in the air, and Billy hammered three shots into its torso before opening the loading gate of his Thunderer and beginning to reload it as quickly as possible. That alone made it so he had the second lowest kill count among the Servants.
Well, that and this being far from his preferred conditions. Night raids, hunting small groups, ambushes, that was what he was best at, not the all out war of the Absolute Demonic Front. But he was here, and Izuku was putting his trust in him, so he was going to do his damned best.
"Shiki!" Izuku said from his spot behind the shield wall, "Billy! There's a… a group of weird tentacled ones coming up on the righ- no, left, left flank! Atalante is about to fight some uridimmu on the walls, I need you to- to-!"
"We've got it," Billy said, smiling at Izuku as he finished reloading his Thunderer, "Right, Shiki?"
The handsome woman nodded, the blood splattering her body somehow only enhancing her appearance and they took off towards the direction Izuku had pointed. Once they were far enough away, Shiki said, "He's not used to this."
"What?"
"It's a frantic slaughter," Shiki said, "he's getting more information by the second than he can deal with."
"He fought two wars."
"This… this isn't a war, McCarthy, this is butchery."
Watching one man who had broke formation be grabbed by one the hellhounds and savaged, Billy couldn't find it in him to disagree. This wasn't like the Lincoln County War, a war of revenge, or even the North American Myth War. This was a struggle to survive, where each man who died was another blow against the Foundation of Humanity.
It was a war they had to win, where losing wasn't an option because the other answer was extinction… but the enemy was stronger, faster and near limitless. For every hound Shiki slashing to pieces and bathed in the blood of, for every one that ran up the wall only to fall down with a green arrow shaft embedded in their head, for every one that Billy gunned down, three more seemed to take their place.
And yet humanity fought like they always did when their back was against the wall. Ferocious, and showing the exact same amount of quarter the Demonic Beasts were showing them. Men and women who definitely deserved to be within the Throne more than a simple cattle thief fought and died, dragging as many beasts with them into the grave as possible.
- X Atalante X-
Atalante drew back Tauropolos's bowstring, two arrows nocked and glowing. The moment the first pair of uridimmu crested the hill, she loosed the arrows, punching through their jaw and sending them plummeting back to the ground. Another arrow appeared, nocked and ready as she drew back the bowstring again. Without pausing to aim, she loosed the arrow through the brain of the beast that was charging her, dodging the frenzied strike from another and stomping on its neck, breaking the spine and kicking off so she could fire another arrow into the last of this pack of uridimmu.
Which was good, because six more packs were coming their way.
"Izuku," Atalante said, "I'm going to need to use it. I'm sorry."
"A-are you sure?" Izuku said, binding demonic beasts long enough for the Count to sweep over them and turn them to ash.
"There are six packs, led by a ugallu coming towards us," Atalante reported.
"T-then do it," Izuku said, swallowing audibly.
Two more arrows appeared as she drew back the bowstring again, two letters wrapped around them, "I respectfully ask for the protection of Apollo and Artemis. Phoebus Catastrophe!"
The arrows flashed green as they flew high into the sky, before vanishing. Seconds later, hundreds of arrows plummeted from the same spot they had vanished, ripping into the uridimmu and ušumgallu, sending them crashing to the ground where more arrows staked them to it.
A hiss came from the communicator on her wrist, and she glanced towards Izuku, whose magic circuits, the ones visible through the Chaldea Combat Uniform, were glowing like a fractal scar on his skin, teeth ground shut and eyes closed.
"We'll keep him safe," the Count said, landing next to Izuku and helping him stand, the now inert dirks of the Spiritfuge in one hand, "but don't do that again if you can avoid it, Atalante."
"Understood," Atalante nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her. She hadn't wanted to hurt Izuku like that.
"Good," The Count said, incinerating two uridimmu that bounded over the shieldwall before either of them hit the ground.
-X Izuku X -
After the Myth War, Izuku had been pretty certain he was a good strategist. His lessons with Lord El-Melloi II helped, and it was normally the only way he could really help his Servants unless they were fighting weak wraiths, animals or regular men and women.
The Demonic Front was putting that to the test, completely and utterly. The small terminal integrated into the Chaldea Combat Suit was projecting an approximation of the battlefield from the palm of Izuku's hand, hostiles marked in red dwarfing the blue friendlies by massive amounts. The Melammu Dingir firing above them blasting holes in the horde of beasts, only for more to charge over their dissolving bodies.
Desperate orders were stuttered out towards Mash and the Count, but even with Lord Camelot crushing them and Monte Cristo Mythologie burning them to ash as fast as they could move, Izuku didn't feel like they were making any gap in the demonic beasts. They were barely holding the line.
"Izuku," Atalante said, voice somber, I'm going to have to use it. I'm sorry."
Izuku swallowed, eyes flickering up to where the Chaste Hunter was standing on the precipice of the wall, "A-are you sure?"
"There are six packs, led by a ugallu coming towards us."
Izuku activated his Magic Circuits, marking spreading across his body from the center of his chest. He gritted his teeth, eyes locked on the beast he had pinned as the Count launched over it and incinerated it with Monte Cristo Mythologie, "T-then do it."
Izuku bit back the pain as his body and soul protested the drawing of the bowstring back, his Magic Circuits burning Od and Mana to accommodate the strain of the Noble Phantasm. His focus of the Spiritfuge broke, as did his assessment of the battlefield. It was only because of the times that Kacchan had underestimated the power of his explosions and burned Izuku that he wasn't completely blacking out from pain.
Finally, the bowstring snapped forward, the arrows launching into the sky as more magical energy burned. Izuku snapped, letting out a hiss as the arrows rained down, falling to his knees as his Magic Circuits heated his body up. Ow, owowowow…
Izuku watched the pair of uridimmu crest over the shieldwall, eyes locked on him. He raised the lighter Roman had given him, drawing more magical energy as he prepared for a Jetburn… only for them to both be submerged in a torrent of black fire as the Count landed in front of him, the Spiritfuge in one hand as he reached down to help Izuku stand, talking to Atalante through the communicators.
"Shiki," Izuku said into his own as he took the Spiritfuge from the Count, lightning a cigarette for the Servant in return, "Billy… how are things with you?"
- X Shiki X-
"Well enough," Shiki said, cutting through several Mušḫuššu is a flurry of knife strikes, the bodies collapsing as blood rained down. Locking her eyes onto another, she lowered her body, ready to charge forward and-
"Good," Izuku said, "K- Get over here, now."
"What?"
"Please. Atalante! Go for the eyes, Mash-!"
"Look out!" Mash said, followed by a horrible roar.
Shiki shared a look with Billy, and then they both charged towards the gate, cresting a hill in seconds… and watching a giant green and black serpent try to drive its claws through Lord Camelot.
- X Izuku X-
Izuku stared up at the bašmu that had burst from the ground at the heart of the shieldwall, trying to hide the fear hammering in his heart as Mash refused to give an inch against the attack that had come immediately after. He curled his hand around the Command Spells emblazoned on the palm of his hand. Should he use one, to help-?
Before he could finish considering that, the two closest ballistas atop the walls twisted to face the poisonous dragon. Magical energy welled up, and then exploded out in a burst of light, blasting holes into the scales of the dragon. It roared, breaking its attack to charge the wall, claws digging into the wall and beginning to force itself up in spite of the massive weight behind it.
"Count!" Izuku said, "I need you to-"
"Understood," the Count nodded, rushing up the scales of the bašmu, dodging the spines dripping with poison even as the dragon crested the wall, gas visible in its mouth as it looked down at the ballista. The Count kicked off, landing on the wall and blasting the weakened spot with Monte Cristo Mythologie.
Even the Magecraft of the Age of the Gods wasn't capable of instantly killing the child of Tiamat, but it did force the monster to stagger slightly, just enough for another Broken Phantasm to go off from the cannon and strike it in the throat, forcing it off the wall…
And right towards Izuku. Izuku clenched his teeth before Atalante scooped him up in a bridal carry and rushed under the long, serpentine tale, dodging the incredibly lethal poison and rushing up the wall before planting Izuku on the top of it. Billy, Shiki and the Count all landed seconds later, Mash not far behind.
"Thank you," Izuku said to the lion eared huntress, taking a moment to smile at her before glancing down at the dragon. This was worse than Fafnir had been in Orleans, the scales were already regrowing from where they had been blasted off, and even the flames of hell were struggling to outburn the regeneration.
"What do we do, Lord Midoriya?" One of the guards asked. Izuku grimaced at the phrasing, before coughing into his hand to hide it.
"We have a few ways to do this," Izuku said, "if we can land a pair of Broken Phantasms on the same spot, it might do it…"
"Or?"
"Or we blast through to a Line," Izuku said, "have the Count burn it to slow the healing long enough, and then have Shiki cut it to kill it… that would work right? You can see it's Lines?"
"If it's alive I can kill it," Shiki said, voice blaise, "even if it's a god. And this is definitely alive."
"Then we'll do that," Izuku said, "It's easier to land one shot before it can attack us back instead of two. Tell the men manning the ballista where to shoot. Billy, Atalante, I need you to buy time by destroying its eyes as many times as possible… y-you can do that, right?"
"Almost had it," Billy sighed, planting a hand on Izuku's shoulder, before glancing at Atalante, "Of course we can, Master. If you think we can do it, it'd make us pretty bad Servants to betray that trust you have in us."
- X Codex X-
Spiritfuge: D-Rank Anti-Spirit Mystic Code:
A Mystic Code created by the Atlas Institute and acquired by Izuku Midoriya, it takes the form of eight dirks with ringed hilts. It is capable of channeling Ether to paralyze and dispel Wraiths and other Spirits, an attempt by the Magus who created it to simulate the Keys of Providence used by the Church through Magecraft.
As a fairly weak Mystic Code, it rapidly loses effectiveness as a Spirit gets more powerful. A weak Phantasmal Species would be paralyzed for a matter of seconds at most, and to attempt to use one on a Heroic or Divine Spirit would be the height of foolishness, as they would be overloaded and destroyed instantly.
It is, however, significantly more effective on a target of possession and even regular humans.
- X AN X-
Not the best, I know. Hopefully it did show Izuku's lack of confidence in ADF compared to where he is now.