At the coastline roads of Fuyuki City.
Saber was out of her league.
Narrowly ducking under the Rakuyo's blade, its steel edge barely cutting her cheek, she forced herself to put some distance between her and Maria. From the beginning of their duel, Maria had been unrelenting with her assault, easily stepping into striking distance with her Quickstep.
If she had been at full strength then she could keep up with Maria's insane speed but her left arm still suffered from the previous wound that Lancer's Gae Buidhe had inflicted. It was a wound that could never heal unless the lance was destroyed and while a Command Seal may be able to nullify the effects, it was still a gamble.
"Dear hasn't being nobility taught you not to dance with a preoccupied mind," Taunted Maria as she feinted a strike with the Rakuyo's dagger. Falling for the feint, Artoria tried to block the dagger with Excalibur. "Otherwise the other nobles will devour you like wolves," Hooking the holy blade with the hilt of the dagger, Maria pushed it away from her body as the other blade of the Rakuyo came for Saber's abdomen. With the finesse of being the King of Knights, she was able to move her body so that the blade only grazed her armor.
Trying to make some kind of opening she grabbed Maria's outstretched hand that held the blade with an iron grip. Not letting go for any reason, she charged up some mana into her shoulder. With a yell she bashed her shoulder into Maria with a mighty boom that launched her into the air.
With the finesse and grace of being a lady of Cainhurst and of the Astral Clocktower, Maria immediately took control of her falling form. Whipping out an Evelyn, an elegant firearm that Cainhurst Knights used, she fired a couple of shots at Saber, which she blocked with Excalibur, before landing on the ground with the finesse of an acrobatic.
"Dear oh dear such an unrefined battle style you have their, slamming into your opponents like that? If I didn't know any better, you'd be the King of Barbarians not King of Knights," Mocked Maria as she winked at the enraged Artoria.
"Don't worry about her Saber! She's trying to distract you!" From the sidelines, Irisviel delegated herself to the role of supporting Saber and providing her prana.
Giving her a small smile and a nod of gratitude, Saber cooled her head before she did something rash. "And you Lady Maria, is it not unbecoming of a knight to slander their opponent?"
Accepting the unspoken challenge of wits, Maria fired her own back. "How is one a knight if they allow such a statement to rattle them, we are supposed be etiquette given form. If you allow such an attack on your character to affect you than you are a poor knight." Feeling the urge to dig the knife a little bit deeper, she smiled knowingly at Saber. "Is that why you never saw your son Mordred as a legitimate heir to Camelot? Was it because she was too brutish to be the next King of Knights?"
Saber felt something snap at the mention of her child, Mordred. Glaring daggers, she shouted her anger. "How dare you!" Pushing mana into her feet, she shot forward like a bullet. Within an instant she was face to face with the Cainhurst noble.
Laughing softly, Maria led Saber along like a bull rider would wave a red cape in front of a raging bull. Easily stepping out of strikes that shook the ground and tore up the road, she would respond with clever strikes with the Rakuyo. Saber was so enraged that she didn't even bother to dodge most attacks, she just let her armor take the force of the strikes. With a shout she slammed Excalibur into the ground, creating a big shockwave.
Easily predicting the shockwave, Maria backflipped over the shockwave before landing on the railing of the road overlooking the sea, the waves beneath them trembling from the exchange of blows up above.
"Oh, how cute, like mother like daughter," Cooed Maria.
"You dare!" Saber was beyond furious by now.
"Oh? I was under the impression that you hated your daughter dear Artoria," Stepping off her perch, Maria surveyed the area around them. It was if a tornado had come and destroyed everything. The road was no longer fit for driving and the forestry around them had been torn from their roots. It was a miracle that Irisviel and the car had survived intact from the force of nature known as King Arthur. Standing a few feet in front of Saber, she adopted a curious face.
"I mean if you truly loved her then you've would've claimed her as your child." Leveling a soul-piercing gaze at Artoria that stopped her in her tracks. It was as if she was evaluating her entire soul with just a look of her eyes.
"I...," She stuttered trying to make a comeback.
Not letting the battle just stop there from the exchange of dialogue, Maria stabbed both of her blades into her chest. Irisviel and Saber both stared in horror as the blades protruded out of her chest. Their horror could only be multiplied as Maria seamlessly pulled the now bloodier and longer blades of the Rakuyo with little to no difficulty, as if she was just spreading butter on a piece of toast.
Not letting the horror set in fully, Maria shot up into the air, blood trailing her blades that made a spectacle off of it. From the air she slammed down onto Saber, who was hard-pressed to hold the now awakened frenzy of the Rakuyo. Putting more effort into her strike, Maria forced Saber to look into her now blood red eyes that had replaced a once calm blue.
"There is no hesitation for a knight! Now answer me yes or no? There is no maybe! Did you care for your son," Leaving no room to allow Artoria to leave she pressed the Rakuyo even harder.
"Do I love Mordred?" She thought as the force of the Rakuyo faded away as she thought hard on the question. A memory of her brash son came to mind, her grinning face as she complimented her skills on the battlefield. Yes, she was a bit brash, arrogant of her skills, but in the end, she saw something in Mordred that she thought that she would never see again.
She saw herself, the little girl before the sword, before the burden of salvation was placed on her shoulders.
She may have forgotten the true reason why she never allowed Mordred to succeed her throne but, in her heart, she knew the answer.
"Yes, I do care for her!" She shouted as with newly invigorated strength pushed Maria off of her. With a yell she twirled around, energy gathering around Excalibur, before slamming into Maria. Unable to match the might of Excalibur, Maria was launched away from her. This time she could not land elegantly as tumbled around for a while on the ground before she stopped.
Standing up, Maria dusted her clothes off before smiling proudly at Artoria. Clapping she gave her praise. "There is the conviction that I would expect from the King of Knights. Finally, the little girl holding a sword is gone and the legendary knight has now taken her place."
"Thank you, Maria for your words; they have reminded me of my conviction that I feared to have forgotten," Saber smiled in gratitude.
Maria smirked at how wrong she would in a few seconds. "Oh, you shouldn't thank me yet Saber." Closing her eyes and reaching within, she began to concentrate on the next attack.
Feeling the prana begin concentrating around Maria, Saber already knew what was happening. "This is..."
"A Noble Phantasm!?" Irisviel finished in shock.
The frenzied Rakuyo begun to burn with fire before Maria slowly floated upward as blood begun to encircle her in multiple rings as she readied the Noble Phantasm.
"The Stage is Set." The multiple blood rings exploded into` a bloody shower, forcing anyone near to close their eyes. Opening her eyes, Saber no longer found herself at the Fuyuki coastline but found herself in a royal ballroom. There she stood in the middle of an empty ballroom, Statues of Cainhurst knights lined the room and rich blood red banners hung from the walls. A painting depicting an iron-helmed queen were scattered hung above a wall of the ballroom.
"Only in blood is our true elegance revealed," Boomed Maria as she appeared in the ballroom. Still dressed in her hunter garb but her appearance now had been cleaned up and held this small trace of ethereal flame coming off of it.
Snapping her fingers, a ring of fire encircled them both. The blood colored fire danced exquisitely around them as Maria continued.
"I only have one shot at this," Muttered Artoria as she readied herself for whatever Maria was about to unleash. She couldn't use Excalibur as its full power due to her injury on her left arm so that left her with the Strike Wind.
"Let this be in honor of my queen and king," Maria elegantly bowed, customary in dances between nobles beforehand to properly honor their partner.
"Prepare yourself my friend..." Suddenly the Rakuyo became bathed in the same blood tinged flame that had been encircling them.
"For this is...," She shot off like a missile from her position, blood flaring up behind in her wake. Reaching a few feet before Saber she disappeared into a bloody mist.
Unable to properly register her disappearance, Saber grimaced as a strike shredded some of her arm armor. Looking around her she realized that Maria was dancing around her in a red blur, slashing both of her weapons in a frenzy.
A cut to a leg.
Another to her cheek.
A gash on her shoulder.
The loss of one of her armored gauntlets entirely.
Death by a thousand slashes it seemed.
Then the flames around her had disappeared as she was now suddenly left in the now dark ballroom. However, Saber was not given any time of reprieve as the flames returned but this time they were now dancing around Maria.
Readying both blades as if she were using a rapier, she readied the final attack. Opening her eyes, any present flames became absorbed by the Rakuyo, now blazing intensely with the blood colored flame.
"Valsul Lacrimilor Sângeroase!(The Waltz of Bloody Tears)" She cried out as she stabbed the Rakuyo forward, a spiral bloody force of destruction shot out as it devastated anything in its path.
"Now!" Cried out Saber as she readied her response to the attack. Adopting a similar poise, she released the sacred wind that hid the full glory of the Excalibur with a thrust.
"Strike Air: Hammer of The Wind King!" The Excalibur glowed in all of its majesty as the wind billowed outward with the force of a hurricane.
Both Noble Phantasms collided with each other with a resounding boom, divine winds and eldritch blood smashing into each other.
And soon the ballroom was engulfed in a bright white light
Narrowly dodging a swipe of the Blades of Mercy, Kiritsugu was not faring well against Eileen. While she may not be a full-fledged servant like Saber was, she did have the speed to match them. For him, his Time Alter was beginning to take a toll on his body.
"Distracted?" Eileen said as she came for another swipe with her Blades of Mercy.
"Time Alter: Double Accel!" He cried out once more. He could feel his heart beating like crazy and anymore he would die from the overwork.
"Fool did you think that little trick of yours would work for this long," The Crow called out.
Looking up in shock, Kiritsugu noticed that she was keeping up even with his apparent speed advantage. "A great trick but easy to counter once you wrap your head around it." She explained before landing a clean punch to his gut, easily breaking the Time Alter spell, as he was slammed into a wall.
Not going down without a fight, he tried pulling out Thompson Contender to try and land a lucky shot but Eileen wasn't having any of it. Easily closing the distance, she kicked the Mystic Code far enough that he wouldn't be able to reach it without her blades embedded into him.
"So, it comes to this..." He thought before pulling off his gloves to reveal his Command Seals. Quickly focusing on them he began chanting. "By this Command Seal I order you Saber to..."
Sighing at just stubborn he was being, Eileen threw a dagger coated in a special blue fluid. Stabbing into his skin just lightly for the effect to take hold.
Kiritsugu could only look in shock as the shining Command Seals dulled. Now he had no other tricks left up his sleeve and was now left at the mercy of the Crow.
"Worry not Magus Killer, I'm not here to kill you," Kneeling down she stared at him through her crow mask. "I'm a messenger of sorts for Caster."
"What message does Caster have for me that he would delegate a messenger for?" He asked curiously, trying to gauge what kind of man Caster was.
"He sees you as the only competent master in this Grail War, there was another but he is far too young and inexperienced that you were the only choice left. Believe me the others are significantly worse compared to you." Eileen groaned before she stood up.
"He sees promise in what you and the other masters will bring to the hunt but he fears that you will occupy yourselves in solving this mess by yourself. Gather the other masters if you wish to have any hope of seeing daylight" Steeping onto the edge of a balcony, she looked back at him. "If you wish to transcend the hunt, you must first deal with Amygdala. Your servant will receive the rest of the details," She quoted before leaping off the balcony.
Slowly standing up and leaving the building, Kiritsugu pulled out his phone and quickly dialed in a number. "Maiya are you there?"
"Affirmative Kiritsugu, I have lost my pursuers."
"Did you neutralize them?"
"Yes, but I had help...from Assassin."
"Assassin!? What are they doing there?" A concerned Kiritsugu asked.
"I don't know but they are telling me that the Church is gathering up the other Masters to discuss a plan to deal with Caster."
"I see," Looking around he noticed that things had calmed down considerably. "And what of Irisviel and Saber."
"Assassin informed me that Rider and his master are on their way to where they were last spotted."
"I see," Pulling out a cigarette, he smoked it as he calmly walked down the desolate streets to the Church.
If he had looked up then he would've seen the Orchestrator of this nightmare was floating high above him. Caster smiled as it was all coming together, because after all...
Hunts were most enjoyable when others were present.
With a bright flash the ballroom that Saber had found herself in had disappeared as she had arrived back at the coastline. Looking around she couldn't spot Maria anywhere, had the Noble Phantasm taken her out?
"Saber!" Irisviel ran up to her before engulfing her in a mighty hug. Breaking away from the hug, she cupped her head as she worried over her wounded state. "What happened!? You were gone in a flash and now you come back with all of these wounds on you!"
Looking down her armor had seen better days. Chipped and torn, her armor was a testament to how devasting Maria was as an opponent. The amount of injuries on her was staggering and she was surprised that she was still standing.
"It's over Irisviel, I have triumphed over Maria," She assured.
"Oh, I don't think so," Her voice called out.
From the mist Maria stepped out. While Saber was worse for wear, Maria was completely fine. Pristine as she was when she introduced herself, it was if they hadn't fought at all.
"Surprised? Your little Strike Wind was a nice attack, would've killed any other hunter but you will find that I am no ordinary hunter," Putting a hand on her hip, she laughed a little at their distress. "Rest assured I'm not going to continue this duel. I'll put this battle on hold for now Saber, I would've preferred to share a cup of tea and some biscuits with you but it looks like will have to push that for a later time."
Walking away and slowly dissolving into mist, she waved goodbye to the pair. "A little insight for my favorite servant. Seek Lady Rom if you wish to end this Hunt, but take heed... or the cries of the Orphan shall drown you in a sea of sorrow." And with that Lady Maria was gone.
"Seek Lady Rom?" Saber asked herself until she heard a familiar boisterous voice nearby. Looking back from the road leading to Fuyuki City, Rider was driving his Gordius Wheel towards them.
Stopping near them Rider greeted them with a grin. "I see you have survived Saber from your opponent."
Smiling faintly, she gestured towards her injured state. "I do believe that my survival was possible was because of pity, not because I was victorious."
"Really, because I think that your opponent wished to fight you at your best, without Lancer's curse on you; there is no honor in kicking down an already injured opponent," Offered Waver as he popped his head out of the chariot.
Surprised by the sudden change in his demeanor from the meek boy she saw at the docks she looked at Rider, who proudly grinned at the new Waver Velvet. She smiled in gratitude and thanked him for his advice.
"Rider why are you here?" Asked Irisviel as she approached them.
"The Church is currently gathering up the other masters and servants and we were tasked in bringing you there." Rider explained before he grabbed the reins of the Gordius Wheel.
"Now come Saber! We will escort you back to the Church!" He said before moving the chariot. Not wishing to spend any more time out in the open, Artoria and Irisviel both climbed into the car and followed their escort back to the Church, on guard for whatever horrors lurked in the dark.
For a moment the streets of Fuyuki were quiet, no hunter or eldritch beings running amok.
Because soon...
The true hunt would begin.
Boom Chapter 8 is done. I wanted to get this done before the start of the next week as I have exams to do, so the next chapter probably won't be ready until next week.
How did you guys like Maria's Noble Phantasm? I wanted to do something different for her, and I might do something similar for other hunters as well. Maybe Brador goes into a beast mode like Cu Alter or something like that? The inspiration for the Noble Phantasm, Valsul Lacrimilor Sângeroase, was the origins that Cainhurst was heavily inspired by Dracula's castle, who is Romanian. I was tempted to write the Phantasm in English without it but it just bothered me. Should I do translations for some of them or just leave it in English?
Also I hope the Maria fight was good for you guys.
Welp that's all for now and as always...
May the Cosmos Shine in Your Favor This Day!