Disclaimer: This is a fanfic. Fanfics are by their very definition, non-canon. In fact, back in the chapter The Players Are Set, I put another disclaimer saying I would change the details to how I wanted them to be. So could you guys please stop pointing out and complaining about every little thing that is different from canon and actually write constructive reviews? It would be much appreciated. Now, back to the story.
Old Versus New
Kaori, Misaka, Cendrillon, and Mugino made it back to the mansion. After telling everyone what happened, the Servants decided to head out and search for the Servants of Red as soon as the sun went down. Kairi insisted on going with Hamazura, knowing it was a risk, but saying it would be a waste of resources to not use his expertise and upgraded weapons. The other Masters refused to risk themselves, which they found understandable, though Roche provided Fiamma with small rocks that could transform into life-size golems when fed Mana, which Roche had devised after all of Fiamma's lessons on Mana efficiency. After making sure there was enough chicken soup for dinner, Touma told Toole to protect Reika. As they left, Fiamma told the other Masters that they could watch them on his monitors.
Arturia and Irisviel traveled through the city until they came to the beach. Irisviel took her boots off and started playing in the sand and water. Arturia told her to savor this moment, as in this time of war, they would never know if they could get another.
Tokiomi and Kirei communicated with Kayneth via their familiars. They agreed to have their Servants meet, then call for the others. They were all running out of patience.
As the sun went down, Gilgamesh, Hassan, and Diarmuid met at the docks. As it was winter, there was no one there. Gilgamesh stood on a lamppost to convey his superiority. Kayneth covertly followed, set up a Bounded Field to prevent ordinary people from seeing and hearing them, and hid in a nearby shipping crane. Gilgamesh insulted Diarmuid and called him a mongrel, which the Lancer took in stride and said he would let his weapons do the talking. Gilgamesh pulled a tiny magical device from his hyperspace arsenal known as Gate of Babylon. He explained it would signal the Servants of Red to meet them.
Arturia heard the signal and after instantly changing her black suit to her blue dress and armor, she and Irisviel went to the docks and introduced themselves. Kiritsugu and his assistant/lover Maiya Hisau followed them covertly. Gilgamesh's eyes roamed over Arturia's body, but before he could speak, they all heard a loud yodelling cry as well as a girly-sounding scream. Iskandar came charging in on his flying bull-drawn chariot with Waver screaming and hanging on for dear life.
"Greetings, my comrades! I am Rider of Red. Iskandar, the King of Conquerors!"
Waver slapped him in the back of the head.
"Rider, you idiot!"
Iskandar flicked him in the forehead and he collapsed in pain while clutching his head. Gilgamesh muttered in disgust that he was the only true king around here. Then Kayneth projected his voice and ridiculed Waver. Iskandar defended Waver and ridiculed Kayneth, saying Waver was worthy of him because he rides into battle with him, while Kayneth hides in the shadows. As Kayneth seethed, Angra Mainyu and Berserker of Red came out of Astral Form.
"Hey, bitches! I am Avenger of Red and my partner here is Berserker of Red. We're from the Matou family."
As soon as Berserker of Red saw Arturia, he roared and was about to charge at her, but Angra Mainyu stood in front of him.
"Buddy, remember the Command Spell. You have to kill the Black Faction first."
Berserker of Red growled, but turned so he was no longer looking at Arturia, then stopped and nodded. Gilgamesh called him a rabid dog and Avenger of Red unsightly in disgust, while the others were curious of his identity, especially since the Masters couldn't see his stats. Before anyone could say anything, Caster of Red walked up. When he saw Arturia, he rushed up.
"Can it be? Yes, my wish has already been granted! Welcome, my dear Jeanne d'Arc!"
"Wait, what? Sir, I am afraid you have me confused with someone else."
"How could you!? Are you saying you've forgotten my face? I am Caster of Red, Gilles de Rais! I have been praying solely for your revival and spent my life waiting for a miracle to reunite us! I've come all this way to the end of time just for that, Jeanne!"
Everyone, especially Irisviel stared at him in disbelief, then Arturia cleared her throat.
"Since you have revealed your name, I will reveal mine according to the knightly code. I am Saber of Red. Arturia Pendragon, the King of Knights."
To everybody's shock, Gilles started crying.
"Curse you, God. You have erased my dear Jeanne's memories and driven her mad!"
Suddenly, Gilgamesh launched a sword at the ground near Gilles' feet, creating a small crater and making everyone jump.
"Enough of this nonsense! It is bad enough that I have to deal with two fools calling themselves kings, but I have to listen to your drivel too? I have had the misfortune of receiving such a motley crew, but it does not matter. I will defeat the Black Faction with or without all of you. You can either continue to be fools or prove yourselves useful."
Everyone was taken in by Gilgamesh's Rank A+ Charisma. Berserker of Red, who was about to attack Gilles, stopped. Gilles decided to prove himself in battle, believing this would awaken Jeanne's memories. Though the others were offended by Gilgamesh's insults, they agreed to work together until the Black Faction was defeated. Gilgamesh adjusted his device to signal the Black Faction to come.
The Servants of Black heard the signal and moved out. Hamazura took Kairi on his motorcycle while the others made their own way. In a short time, they all arrived at the docks. As they dismounted the motorcycle, Hamazura made it disappear, but kept his riding suit and helmet on, wanting extra protection. Gilgamesh's eyes lit up when he saw Kaori, but frowned when he beheld her torn up and asymmetrical outfit. He was also disgusted when he saw the other members with their plain outfits except for Cendrillon. After seeing so many women, Diarmuid was slightly pleased when he noticed that none of them were reacting to his Love Spot. This was because Irisviel (and Maiya) were disciplined enough to ignore it, Arturia, Kaori, Misaka, Itsuwa, and Cendrillon all had Magic Resistance of at least Rank C, and Mugino was insane and only had eyes for Hamazura. Iskandar suddenly made an announcement.
"Now that we are all here, I am Rider of Red. Iskandar, the King of Conquerors. There is no need for any of us to throw our lives away for a mere cup. How about all of you forsake the Holy Grail to join my army and become my generals? I will treat all of you as my dear friends, and we shall share the joy of world conquest together!"
Waver facepalmed while Diarmuid shook his head.
"I decline. I swore to give the Holy Grail to my Lord."
Arturia scowled.
"How dare you? I am a king and I cannot lower myself to a subject."
Berserker growled. Gilles, Hassan, and Angra Mainyu all said no. Gilgamesh called him an imbecile. Mugino shook her head while everyone else in the Black Faction said no. Iskandar sighed.
"Negotiations have failed."
Gilgamesh lost patience.
"I am Archer of Red and the One True King. Black Faction, I find you wanting. I will put an end to this farce. Gate of Babylon."
Everybody was shocked when dozens of golden portals appeared behind him, each holding a unique weapon. Waver made his disbelief clear.
"This is impossible. How can he have so many Noble Phantasms!?"
Touma quickly regained his composure. After all, he had faced overpowered opponents and impossible odds all the time when he was alive. He made a strategic decision.
"Berserker of Black, take him."
Mugino did not respond to him, so Hamazura spoke up.
"You heard the Boss."
Mugino sighed and stepped forward, then said one word.
"Meltdowner."
*This Time I Want It All by Pea McGee, the theme song of the wrestler Tessa Blanchard plays*
The Red Faction gasped as dozens of green orbs appeared in the air around her. In essence, it looked like she had a Gate of Babylon of her own, just in a different color.
Gilgamesh was enraged.
"How dare you copy me, you Faker! You shall pay with your life, you mongrel!"
The weapons fired out of his Gate of Babylon portals at Mach speeds. There was a huge explosion, but when the smoke cleared, Mugino was unharmed. There were several wrecked and burned weapons in front of her, but a few intact weapons behind her.
The Red Faction all gave reactions of amazement. Though Berserker of Red's face was hidden by his helmet and the black mist around him, he gave a nod of acknowledgement. Iskandar stroked his beard.
"Impressive."
Waver gave a look of confusion, so Iskandar elaborated.
"Was that too fast for you? When Archer of Red fired his weapons, Berserker of Black's orbs fired blasts of energy that destroyed them. Whatever weapons she missed, she expertly dodged, with greater agility than I would expect from a Berserker."
Gilgamesh was beside himself.
"You dare destroy my priceless treasures!? Your audacity knows no bounds!"
He fired an even larger volley of weapons. Mugino effortlessly destroyed them with her Meltdowner beams. At each destruction, Gilgamesh grew even angrier, while Mugino gave a mad laugh that grew louder and louder as her beautiful face warped into an insane and grotesque grin. The Red Faction had to dodge some of Mugino's stray blasts, with Arturia tackling Irisviel out of the way. Eventually, one of the blasts destroyed the lamppost. Gilgamesh leaped out of the way in time, and to his fury landed on the ground.
"How dare you force me to stand on the same level as you! I will crush you!"
Both Factions gasped as Mugino became completely surrounded by a dome of Gate of Babylon portals. Touma and the others were about to help her, but the weapons fired. Gilgamesh laughed, only to gasp when he looked up and saw Mugino high in the air. It turned out that at the last second, Mugino fired a Meltdowner beam at the ground to launch herself out of the dome. She dived down at Gilgamesh and attempted a flying punch, only for him to sidestep. Since both of their powers were not good for close-range combat, she started attacking him with martial arts. Hamazura was worried.
"Shit, she's too close. Berserker, come back here!"
Gilgamesh, who had been caught off-guard and barely dodged Mugino's strikes, angrily managed to bring a sword into his hand and slash at her, only for her to duck and then backflip away. She then fired a Meltdowner blast downward to launch herself back to the Black Faction's side.
Gilgamesh was practically frothing with rage and prepared to attack again, but Tokiomi, watching through Gilgamesh's senses from his mansion, had other plans and shared them.
"My King, would it not be more fruitful to switch to a different opponent?"
As much as Gilgamesh hated listening to Tokiomi, he had a point. He muttered to himself.
"I am the King. Why should I waste my time on this Mongrel when I have subjects who can do it for me?"
He spoke out loud.
"Enough of this! Red and Black Factions, fight your counterparts!"
*One Hundred Percent by Brandon Yates, the theme of Death Battle: Mob vs Tatsumaki plays*
As the Servants all moved to do so, Hassan hurled a dagger at Kairi, but Hamazura pulled out two pistols and shot it out of the air.
"Master, go!"
Kairi ran, just in time as Kiritsugu and Maiya both attempted to snipe him, causing their bullets to miss. He took cover behind some crates and pulled out his double-barrel shotgun. Hassan and Hamazura began a cat and mouse game while taking potshots at each other with their daggers and guns. Hassan leapt and contorted out of the way of the bullets.
Arturia told Irisviel to find a safe place. The Sabers and Lancers of Red and Black stood side by side facing each other. Arturia held an invisible sword while Diarmuid held a red long spear and yellow short spear in each hand that were wrapped in purple cloth. Kaori held her nodachi while Itsuwa held her spear. Itsuwa sighed.
"Before we begin, I just want to say it is an honor to fight by your side once again, Senpai."
Kaori gave a slight grin before returning to her stoic look.
"Likewise."
Arturia raised an eyebrow.
"You two know each other?"
Kaori shrugged.
"I helped teach her how to fight."
As they prepared for battle, Diarmuid grinned.
"Saber of Red, care to make a wager on who can defeat their opponent first?"
"You are on!"
They charged at each other. Arturia quickly learned Kaori was much stronger and faster than her, but she used her Mana Burst skill to roughly match her strength and speed as they clashed swords, also learning Kaori had no trouble blocking and parrying her invisible sword. Diarmuid and Itsuwa clashed spears and he was pleased that she could handle both of them with only one.
"Ha! I am glad my first opponent is one of both fortitude and skill! I commend you, my lady!"
Itsuwa ignored him and continued her attack.
Gilgamesh and Misaka faced off. Eager to avenge the humiliation Mugino served him, Gilgamesh fired several swords from Gate of Babylon without any banter, only to be surprised when she zapped them with electricity from her hands, making them stop in midair, then made them turn around and fly back at him. He quickly opened Gate of Babylon portals in their path and they flew into them. She was glad her main Noble Phantasm, Electromaster, was continuously active since she was always surrounded by an electromagnetic field, meaning she didn't have to call its name to use it.
Quickly realizing she had power over magnetism, he started launching wooden and stone weapons. She dodged the first few, then gave the ground a small zap, causing iron sand to rise up and shape into a sword in her hand. With the iron sand moving like a chainsaw, she sliced up the other weapons and closed in on him. He was angered yet again, but had the presence of mind to call the sword Durandal to his hand. They clashed weapons; her sword was unable to destroy his own because Durandal is indestructible. Even with God Slayer empowering her, he was much stronger than her, forcing her to give ground. She tried to zap him with an electric blast from her free hand, but he dodged it. She then tried to magnetically pull Durandal out of his hand, but he roared and channelled a massive amount of Mana into his weapon, allowing him to resist the pull.
"No! You will steal nothing from me!"
He attacked again.
Iskandar and Waver in his chariot faced Cendrillon. Waver was already distracted by her beauty. Iskandar sighed.
"Are you really Rider of Black?"
"I am."
"A pity. As much as I would hate to harm such a lovely creature, if you will not join my army, you must die."
"Don't underestimate me."
He ordered his bulls to charge her, but she leapt over them and tried to kick him in the face. He blocked her foot with his forearm and knocked her back. He swung his sword and released a lightning blast from it, but she easily dodged.
"Pumpkin Carriage!"
A magnificent carriage with a pumpkin design, pulled by six horses, driven by a coachman, and with two footmen inside, appeared. She jumped to it and the footmen let her in. As Iskandar and Waver were amazed, she moved to the front and sat next to the coachman.
"Ram them!"
The coachman obeyed and ordered the horses to flank them and charge. Iskandar quickly drove his bulls to dodge them. They started chasing each other while Waver had an epiphany.
"Wait a second, a carriage that looks like a pumpkin? Slippers made of glass? Of course! I read this story when I was a child. Your true name is Cinderella!"
She laughed and talked sarcastically.
"Oh dear, you found me out. Well, I guess I shouldn't hold back now. Glass Slippers!"
She pointed her feet at Iskandar. He was confused for a second, then doubled over and screamed in agony as his feet were cut in half. She was glad Celenike told her his Magic Resistance was only Rank D since the Glass Slippers were Rank C. Waver shrieked as blood sprayed over him, but Iskandar grunted and stood. He didn't have Battle Continuation, but he had the next best thing, indomitable willpower.
"It will take more than than to defeat me!"
He urged his bulls on and fired more lightning strikes.
Gilles faced Fiamma and Gilles was pissed.
"I can tell you are a man of God."
"That is true."
"I hate God! The God who took my Jeanne away from me and has now addled her mind! Which means I hate you!"
He pulled out his spellbook and summoned several tentacled horrors.
"Tear him apart!"
The creatures rushed at Fiamma, who countered by throwing down the stones Roche gave him and turning them into full-size golems. The two small armies battled, but Gilles just summoned more horrors and some of them went past the golems to attack Fiamma directly. Before they could reach him, he used his skill, Mana Burst (Flames), to release a wave of fire to destroy them. Gilles kept summoning more and Fiamma kept destroying them, leaving them at a stalemate.
Berserker of Red faced Mugino. He picked up the remains of the lamppost, causing it to turn black and red as he converted it into a Noble Phantasm. He charged at her, but she fired a Meltdowner blast that destroyed it. He only paused for a moment before running over to a tool shed and breaking the door down. He came out carrying several objects like pipes, wrenches, screwdrivers, hammers, etc all converted to Noble Phantasms. He started hurling them, but she kept destroying them. Kariya, who was watching through his Servant's eyes while racked with pain from his Servant siphoning his Mana and the worms acting up, suddenly had an idea. He raised his hand.
"Berserker of Red! By my Command Spell, remember how to use Broken Phantasms!"
As his second Command Spell vanished, Berserker of Red roared and started charging his makeshift weapons with Mana before throwing them. Whenever they made contact with anything, like the ground or a Meltdowner beam, they exploded like grenades. Mugino was caught off guard and had to move back to avoid the explosions, but it was enough of an opening for her opponent to charge and get up close while brandishing a sledgehammer. He started swinging while she tried to dodge.
Angra Mainyu faced Touma while dual-wielding his claw-like daggers. Touma quickly drew two of Jack the Ripper's knives and dual-wielded them, but was shocked when he saw worms crawling through his opponent's skin. Zouken was watching through his Servant's eyes and looked at Touma's stats. Since he didn't know Touma's identity, his skill, Uncrowned Martial Arts, made Zouken see him as weak, and he relayed this to his Servant. Angra Mainyu laughed.
"You cannot defeat me. For I am Beelzebub, Lord of the Flies!"
He screamed in agony as several worms burst from his body and quickly metamorphosed into monstrous adult flies with blades coming from their bodies. They flew at Touma with an overwhelming rush. Touma started slashing them in half with his knives and punching them with his right hand, which made any that made contact with it disappear, but there were too many and they started biting and slashing at him. To make matters worse, Angra Mainyu activated his skill, Annihilation Wish, to drastically increase his speed and then dart in and out while slashing Touma with his weapons on each pass. It did not matter to him that using this skill caused tremendous damage to his body. Pain was an old friend, and the Mana that both Zouken and the worms still within him provided allowed him to regenerate. Despite the blood pouring from his body, Touma refused to quit.
Kairi continued to trade shots with Kiritsugu and Maiya. He was glad Hamazura had earlier turned his shotgun into a Noble Phantasm, meaning he could charge it with his Mana to conjure new bullets instead of manually reloading. The only problem was that even though his bullets could change direction and track their targets, his opponents could hide behind solid steel to block them. Eventually, he figured out where his opponents were hiding and hurled a grenade at each of them. They exploded, releasing shrapnel and poisonous gas. Slightly injured and coughing, his opponents were forced to retreat so they could heal themselves. Kairi sighed in relief and hid, knowing he didn't stand a chance against Servants.
Hassan and Hamazura continued to stalk each other. When a thrown dagger grazed his helmet, Hamazura put away his pistols and summoned his pump-action shotgun. Having noticed a pattern in his opponent's attacks, he waited, and when the time was right, he shot the ground at his feet, creating a cloud of dust to conceal him. Hassan stopped on a platform, confused, then Hamazura shot the platform, sending it crashing down. As Hassan was lying on the ground stunned, Hamazura shot him in the head, splattering it. Hassan's body disintegrated while Hamazura stopped to catch his breath.
In Tokiomi's mansion, Kirei sighed.
"Zayd has been defeated."
A woman with dark skin and long purple hair in a revealing outfit and a skull mask appeared.
"It matters not. Zayd was one of the weakest of us."
As she said this, more and more people looking similar to either herself or Zayd with some variations appeared. They spoke as one.
"Now that everyone thinks that Assassin of Red is no more, they are vulnerable. We, already Heroic Spirits of the Shadows, shall become the true shadows."
Kirei addressed the woman.
"Very well, Asako. Your Noble Phantasm, Zabaniya: Delusional Illusion, is truly amazing. Continue to spy on the others."
Arturia continued to clash with Kaori while Diarmuid continued to clash with Itsuwa. The two Servants of Black signaled each other with their eyes to stop playing around. They both jumped back and spoke as one.
"Nanasen!"
They swung their nodachi and spear respectively. By pure instinct, the two Servants of Red jumped to the side just in time to avoid seven slashes from their opponents, each gouging the ground where they stood. Diarmuid whistled and turned to Kaori.
"You were not lying about teaching her how to fight."
Suddenly, Kayneth's voice projected, and he was displeased.
"Lancer of Red! Stop fooling around and fight to your full potential! Kill her!"
"Very well, my Lord."
He put his short yellow spear on the ground and held up his long red spear as the cloth around it unravelled. He then rushed at Itsuwa extremely fast and thrust the spear. She tried to intercept it with her own, but to her shock, her spear's tip was destroyed, even though she had used Reinforcement Magecraft to boost its durability. She barely avoided getting skewered through the head. Before he could gloat, she made the remains of her spear disappear before summoning a second spear and going on the attack. This spear was the one that Darnic used as a catalyst to summon her. Earlier, she and Darnic had asked Hamazura to turn it into a Noble Phantasm and he obliged. He quickly got over his shock and continued fighting. She deduced through observation that his spear had similar properties to Touma's right hand, the ability to disrupt Mana, so she resolved to never get hit with it. She parried it by always striking the shaft, never the blade. She started firing various spells like flames and ice, but he was able to nullify them with his blade.
Meanwhile, Kaori started combining spells like flames and ice with her swordplay, but Arturia used her Noble Phantasm, Invisible Air, to generate gusts to blow the spells away. Irisviel was worried. It was clear that Arturia's opponent was much faster than her and she was getting wounded. Irisviel quickly healed her, but knew she couldn't keep it up forever.
Diarmuid pretended to give ground and backed up. Itsuwa deflected his spear to the side and charged at him, but he quickly kicked his short yellow spear into his hand as the cloth around it unravelled. He ducked under her spear and tried to stab her but she got her arm in the way in time. As they disengaged, he was shocked to find his blade did not penetrate her denim jacket's sleeve.
"How did you survive that with no injury?"
"Oh, I can make anything I wear into armor."
"So you won't make this easy. That's fine with me!"
They charged at each other again.
Touma was still taking damage from Angra Mainyu and the flies, but he used his skill, Avenger, to absorb the malice from his opponent and the flies, building up Mana to heal his wounds and increase his strength. With a flurry of strikes, he wiped out all the flies, then stabbed and slashed Angra Mainyu several times, only for his opponent to laugh.
"Verg Avesta!"
Touma was forced to jump back when Angra Mainyu released an explosion of power. When it passed, Angra Mainyu was now in the form of a massive bipedal wolfman made of shadows. Even worse, Touma screamed as the same wounds he inflicted on his foe appeared on his body. The wolfman attacked and Touma struggled to avoid its claws and jaws. He slashed it, but the same injury appeared on his own body. After rolling away, he realized what was going on and put his knives away.
"Heh, this brings back memories."
He charged the wolfman and punched it in the face with his right hand. It instantly turned back into Angra Mainyu and screamed as he was knocked down. He was shocked at what happened, then noticed all the worms that were still in his body had disappeared, as they are curses and all curses disappear when touched by Touma's right hand, Imagine Breaker.
"Oh, shit."
He tried swinging his claw-like daggers from his position on the ground, but Touma caught both of his skinny wrists with his left hand, then straddled him and punched him in the face repeatedly with his right.
"Verg Avesta!"
Nothing happened and his face was quickly turned into hamburger meat. Touma confiscated Angra Mainyu's daggers, converted them to Noble Phantasms and then to spiritual form, then put his opponent in a headlock and started squeezing. Angra Mainyu coughed up blood, but was still defiant.
"Heh heh heh. You may have won this day, but soon, you and everyone you love will go to Hell. Remember my true name, Angra Mainyu. I will see you soon."
From his mansion, Zouken attempted to rescue his Servant. He held up his hand.
"Avenger of Red. By my Command Spell, return to me."
One of his Command Spells disappeared and Angra Mainyu started to dematerialize, but it was too late. Touma snapped his neck and he disintegrated. As Zouken raged, Touma tried to get up, but was heavily injured.
"Damn it."
Gilgamesh quickly learned from Tokiomi that Misaka had Protection From Arrows, meaning he couldn't simply shoot her down with the Gate of Babylon. He attacked her by dual wielding Durandal and a golden axe (AN: The one his Caster self uses). She attacked him with her iron sand sword, electric blasts, and by magnetizing various nearby metal objects, but he blocked them with his weapons or by pulling shields out of the Gate of Babylon. He was getting excited, reminded of his life or death battles from his youth.
"I have to admit. I am actually having fun."
"So am I."
Iskandar absorbed quite a bit of Mana from Waver to regenerate his feet. As he and Cendrillon continued to chase each other with their vehicles, she upped the ante by unleashing various spells from her hands like fire and water. While dodging them, Waver, who was both woozy from losing so much Mana and struggling not to throw up from the incredible speeds they were going, was confused.
"This doesn't make any sense. Cinderella shouldn't know how to do that!"
"Worry about it later, boy!"
Iskandar returned fire with his lightning.
Berserker of Red continued to chase Mugino with his sledgehammer. He was too close for her to use Meltdowner, but she suddenly charged and tackled him, knocking him down and making him drop his weapon. Laughing madly, she grabbed his ankle and started swinging him in a circle, but before she could throw him, he kicked her in the face with his other foot, sending her flying while he backflipped in midair and landed on his feet.
He then rushed over to a shipping container and lifted it like it was light as a feather. As it turned black and red, he charged it with Mana and hurled it at her. Mugino recovered from the kick and saw the massive object headed her way. She prepared to blast it, but from their mansion, Caules realized what was about to happen and attempted to stop her.
"No, Mugino! Don't!"
Too late. As soon as the Meltdowner blast hit the shipping container, it made a spectacular explosion, one so powerful that all the combatants had to pause and stare in shock. Mugino was knocked senseless and her opponent advanced on her. Before he could strike her, he was knocked to the side when he was shot in the head. It was Hamazura, who advanced while rapid firing with his pump-action shotgun. The shots did not penetrate his helmet, but they did knock him down and pin him. Hamazura fired one last shot point-blank, but he was again unaffected and started to get up. Hamazura nervously backed away.
"Oh shit, this was a bad idea."
Before the black knight could attack him, Mugino recovered and fired a Meltdowner blast. It hit the knight's right hand and disintegrated it. He screamed in pain and thrashed around before going into Astral Form and retreating.
Kariya's body was ravaged from the worms and all the Mana his Servant took from him, but he was proud.
"You did well. Heal and we will get them next time. Wait for me, Sakura."
Hamazura turned to Mugino.
"You okay?"
She nodded, then jumped on and started kissing him.
Gilles and Fiamma's stalemate continued. Fiamma was getting worried; he thought he could outlast his opponent, but it wasn't working, and he didn't want to use his Noble Phantasm as it would risk draining his Master. Unfortunately, Roche was getting bored. As a sheltered little boy who doesn't think things through, he made a hasty decision and held out his hand.
"Caster of Black! By my Command Spell, use the Sword of Michael to wipe him out!"
As his Command Spell disappeared, Fiamma gasped and held his right arm up. As a massive red, mirage-like bird claw emerged from his right shoulder, a 40 kilometer long flaming sword appeared, pointing straight up, and was gripped by the bird claw. Gilles gasped in fear and backed away as the sheer heat and holiness of the sword destroyed all his remaining horrors. The golems stopped moving out of confusion. All the other combatants stopped and stared at the sight, stupefied. Kayneth noticed something and gasped.
"Oh no, that massive sword has destroyed my Bounded Field! The public can see us now!"
The other members of Yggdmillennia rounded on Roche and Darnic lectured him.
"Have you gone insane!? If that sword comes down, it will destroy the city, including us!"
"Ah, oops?"
Reika started praying.
"Please Touma, save us!"
Touma heard her and revived. His skills, Battle Continuation and Guardian Knight, empowered him, and as he faced Fiamma, God Slayer empowered him as well. He charged at him. Fiamma was struggling to stop himself from swinging the sword, but he could not resist the Command Spell for long.
"Help me! I can't stop!"
Right before he could bring it down, Touma ran up and punched him in the face with his right hand, knocking him out as the flaming sword disappeared. The golems reverted to small stones. As everyone stared in shock at what just happened, they heard sirens. Touma picked Fiamma up as Hamazura and Kairi ran up.
"Shit, the police are coming. We have to get out of here! He's unconscious, so take him on your motorcycle."
He handed Fiamma over as Hamazura materialized his motorcycle and got on with Kairi carrying Fiamma on his back and sitting behind him.
Gilgamesh wasn't satisfied.
"I am the King and I do not care about the police! This battle isn't over!"
He opened several Gate of Babylon portals. As the Servants of Black prepared to face him while the other Servants of Red looked on in exasperation, Tokiomi sighed and raised his hand.
"Archer of Red, oh great King of Heroes. By my Command Spell, quell your anger and withdraw."
As the Command Spell disappeared, Gilgamesh was furious and looked up.
"You dare order a king to withdraw!? You have some nerve, Tokiomi."
He snapped his fingers and all his portals and weapons disappeared.
"In all this rabble, I see a few shining diamonds."
He looked at Arturia, Kaori, and Misaka as he said that. Then he pointed at Mugino.
"You. I swear that before this war is over, you will die by my hand!"
He disappeared while Mugino merely growled. Gilles disappeared too while Iskandar apologized to Cendrillon for underestimating her. As he and Waver rode away, he thought to himself about the many interesting opponents in store. He had noticed Misaka's battle with Gilgamesh and marveled at her powers, wondering if she was a descendant of Zeus like he was. Arturia and Diarmuid and Kaori and Itsuwa complimented each other and promised to finish their battle before going their separate ways. Diarmuid disappeared while Arturia led Irisviel to safety. Diarmuid and Kayneth hurried back to their hotel while Arturia, Irisviel, Kiritsugu, and Maiya rushed to the Einzbern's castle in Fuyuki. Touma, Misaka, Kaori, Itsuwa, Mugino, and Cendrillon disappeared while Hamazura drove away with Kairi and Fiamma in tow.
In their lair in the sewers, Uryuu was putting the finishing touches on crucifying a bunch of children he and his Servant had kidnapped. Gilles appeared.
"Mr. Bluebeard! Thanks for giving me that crystal ball! That big fight was really cool! Oh, sorry you didn't win…"
Gilles walked up to one of the children and in a fit of rage, crushed his skull with his hand.
"Accursed God! Not only was I unable to defeat that holy man, I was unable to free Jeanne's heart and mind from its prison! We have to work harder. We must make greater depravities and greater blasphemies to prove that God is uncaring. That way, the holy man's will shall be broken and Jeanne will no longer be bound to him!"
"So basically, it's quantity from now on?"
"Yes, exactly that! Very good, Ryuunosuke. Let's start by sacrificing the eleven in the cells. Then, we'll find some more kids to replenish our supplies."
As Gilles walked away, Uryuu turned to the dead child.
"What a waste, though."
The Servants of Black and Kairi returned to Darnic's mansion. Once they were back in Fiamma's territory, Fiamma revived and everybody else fully healed due to being able to absorb extra Mana. They reunited with their Masters. Darnic, Gordes, and Celenike reluctantly admitted that Itsuwa, Kaori, and Cendrillon were impressive. Caules, Fiore, Reika, and Toole fussed over Mugino, Misaka, and Touma while congratulating Touma and Mugino for their victories.. Hamazura and Kairi complemented each other on their victories. Everyone reprimanded Roche for his mistake.
Darnic declared that to discipline the boy, Roche would spend the night in Celenike's dungeon. Everyone agreed and Roche was locked in a pillory. To celebrate surviving their first battle, Touma, Misaka, Kaori, and Itsuwa went to a room to have sex while Hamazura did the same with Mugino and Cendrillon. The Masters agreed, including Celenike (reluctantly). Reika stayed in Toole's room. Fiamma, who never cared about pleasures of the flesh, stayed in the dungeon and he and Celenike watched over Roche.
Thus ends Day 1 of the Holy Grail War.
Author's Note:
The chapter title refers to how the Servants of Red are all from the past and the Servants of Black, though from an alternate universe, are all from the future. It is also a homage to how Kazuma Kamachi, the author of A Certain Magical Index, called the battle between Touma and Stiyl Magnus a conflict of the old (magic) vs the new (science).
The battles were partially inspired by the fic Nerve Damage by CrossyCross and its sadly deleted sequel Nerve Damage: Season 2: Sensory Overload by LoneTaker. They were basically, "Let's use all the resources at our disposal to make the Servants as badass as possible."
I wonder why in Fate, Diarmuid doesn't have Divinity. He should, as he is the son of Donn, the God of the Dead. Here, he has Rank B Divinity, the same as Cu Chulainn.
In my original plans, I wanted either Mugino or Reika to look identical to Diarmuid's lover Grainne to increase the tension, but I decided that was too complicated.
Yes, I massively upgraded Verg Avesta from canon. In canon, it only transfers pain, not injuries, but I decided that is not badass enough.
Touma now has Angra Mainyu's daggers: Tawrich: The Left Fang Grinder and Zarich: The Right Fang Grinder. As Noble Phantasms, they would be Rank C and Anti-Unit. They don't have any special abilities other than being meant to tangle an opponent's weapon.
Hamazura attacking Berserker of Red is based on the scene from Terminator: Dark Fate where Grace attacks the Rev-9 with a shotgun in the car factory.