Day 5: Shirou — Moonlit Duel
It was just past midnight when Shirou and Rin arrived at the base of Mt. Enzou. Rin had insisted that they advance only with the utmost caution: while Caster herself was probably holed up in the bounded field around Ryuudou Temple, she might have laid traps down on the path to snare overconfident intruders who thought they could leave their guards down until reaching the temple proper. Saber walked in the front of the group, as her Magic Resistance meant that she was the one most likely to survive if she tread on the magical equivalent of a land mine. The two Archers scouted the ground on either side of the path, in case their was some kind of ranged device that could snipe them from a distance. And Crow walked close behind Shirou and Rin, ready to extend his blood blades as a shield for them from any attack; though Crow had no magical talent, the fact that Crow Claw was a Noble Phantasm meant that it should suffice to block any lesser magecraft.
These precautions, while sensible, made for slow going; and what's worse, they seemed to be entirely unnecessary, as the group proceeded up the trail without encountering so much as a single snare. Shirou almost wished they'd encounter a trap just so all their tedious caution wouldn't be wasted effort. However, as they proceeded without the slightest sign of trap or ambush, it became increasingly apparent that Caster must have focused all her energy on fortifying the defenses within her bounded field and that their extreme caution had been unwarranted.
It was not until they were approaching the temple's front gate that Saber drew to a stop and raised her sword.
"I sense the presence of a Servant nearby." she said. "However, the amount of magical energy seems too low for it to be a Caster."
As soon as she had finished speaking, a figure materialized in front of the temple gate. It was a long-haired man in a purple kimono, carrying an extraordinarily long naked blade.
"Greetings." the figure said. "I am Assassin Sasaki Kojirou, and I have been praying for your arrival."
"We have no quarrel with you, Assassin." Saber said cautiously. "We have come seeking Caster, who is operating out of this temple. Though we have you outnumbered, there is no need for conflict between us at this time; allow us to pass, and you may live to fight another day."
"Caster?" Assassin said. "Unfortunately, you are too late. My Master perished earlier this night."
"Caster was your Master?" Saber asked in surprise. "Is that not forbidden?"
"That witch hardly had the greatest respect for rules or boundaries." Assassin said. "She used stolen Command Spells to summon me into her service. And now that she is gone, my prana rapidly wanes as well... so your offer of letting me live to fight another day is also meaningless. I am doomed to perish before morning. But since Fate has graced me with your presence, I shall at least have the privilege of doing battle with a Saber, greatest of the Servant classes, before fading."
"If you have lost your Master, there is no point in continuing to fight on her behalf." Saber said. "Should you not be seeking another Master rather than wasting prana in useless combat?"
"I am bound to this temple gate, unable to leave the area surrounding it." Assassin said. "I was summoned without any chance of winning the Grail War from the start. When I first appeared in this world, I cursed my fate. However, there is one thing that may yet salve my wounded honor. If I am able to duel against a worthy opponent, then this brief and futile existence will not have been entirely worthless. And so, I have been awaiting your arrival, Saber. When Lancer was ambushed by the same Servant which had eliminated my Master before he could fulfill his promise to me, I nearly despaired — but you have shown up before my time ran out, and so my gamble has paid off after all."
"Lancer was here?" Saber asked. "Are you saying that he has been eliminated as well?"
"If you wish to learn what transpired at the temple, then go see for yourself." Assassin said. "You need only win passage through this gate."
"Very well." Saber said, raising her invisible sword. "If that is your desire, then I shall accept your challenge."
"Hold on a moment; let's not do anything reckless." Rin said. "We have four Servants. Instead of agreeing to a one-on-one fight on his terms, it would be a lot less risky for us if we all attacked at once. That way, we could defeat him without risking you being injured or worse."
"That would not be honorable." Saber said. "Assassin has challenged me to single combat; and as a knight, I will not disrespect a fellow warrior's dying wish. Stand back and do not interfere."
"But Saber—" Shirou began.
"I have accepted Sasaki Kojirou's challenge." Saber said. "Unless you wish to disgrace my honor by compelling me with a Command Spell, do as I have instructed."
Rin heaved a sigh.
"Like Master, like Servant, I suppose." she said. "Well, I don't care about what happens to Saber — it's not like she's my Servant. And even if Assassin manages to beat her, he'll use up so much prana in the process that he'll be a total pushover for my Archers afterwards. I promise not to interfere."
"Thank you, Tohsaka." Saber said. "Master Shirou?"
"...Alright." Shirou said. "I won't stop you. But be careful, you hear? Don't go throwing your life away for nothing!"
"That will not be a problem; after all, I fully intend to win." Saber said, then turned to the Assassin. "You have freely given me your name; the code of chivalry requires me to respond in kind. My true name..."
"There is no need." Assassin interrupted. "After all, no such person as Sasaki Kojirou actually exists."
"What do you mean?" Saber asked. "Knowledge of the hero Sasaki Kojirou has been imparted to me by the Throne of Heroes. Unlike the anomalous heroes I have encountered who I have been unable to identify, your legend is known to me."
"Unfortunately, a legend is all it is." Assassin said. "Sasaki Kojirou is a fictional character, one who invented to give Miyamoto Musashi a worthy opponent to duel in the stories written about him. No actual man by that name ever existed. I am nothing but a wraith, a nameless dead soul who was been called upon to fulfill the role of Sasaki Kojirou for the purpose of this Grail War. I have no identity of my own, and no need to know yours. We need no introductions; rather, let us allow our swords to do the talking for us."
"As you wish... Servant Assassin." Saber said. "I, Servant Saber, shall show you the full strength of my swordsmanship."
Assassin took those words to be the initiation of their duel, and struck the moment that she stopped speaking. Though his blade had the length of a spear, it was not the least bit unwieldy in the hands of the epic hero who had wielded it — the nameless wraith called as Assassin had inherited not just the weapon Sasaki Kojirou was alleged to have wield, but also the skill with which he had been alleged to wield it. Thus, Assassin showed no difficulty in controlling the cumbersomely long weapon with flawless perfection. Though only a wraith, he still had the skills of a Servant, and was able to sweep out slashing arcs with stunning speed and grace despite the problematic weight and balance of his weapon. His sword swung so fast that Shirou was only able to perceive it as a blur, and even Saber was hard-pressed to block such lightning-quick blows. Sparks erupted each time their blades crossed, and Saber was at one point forced to dodge backwards to avoid a thrust that she was out of position to parry. Assassin, however, did not press the attack; he waited for Saber to climb back up the steps into his range rather than moving forwards and using his height advantage over Saber on the stairs to give his strikes more force. There must be some reason he wasn't doing so...
After thinking about it for a few moments, Shirou realized that Assassin was fighting with two disadvantages. First, Saber wore knightly armor, whereas he was clad only in a traditional purple kimono. If Saber saw an opportunity for a mutual strike, allowing Assassin's sword to strike her in exchange for her sword striking him, the outcomes of such a gamble were weighted highly in her favor: she could count on her armor to deflect or weaken Assassin's blow, while Assassin would have no defense against being cut down by the full force of Saber's attack. Furthermore, with Saber's sword concealed by Invisible Air, Assassin couldn't see how long it was — what Saber's range was. If he overcommitted, he risked unknowingly placing his heart within reach of her blade and allowing her to attempt the mutual strike gambit. Assassin was too skilled to make such a reckless mistake, and so he held his ground at the top of the top flight of temple stairs: fending Saber off, but holding back from committing to any openings she seemed to offer.
Shirou, with his limited experience of sword combat, wasn't able to tell whether Assassin was doing well or poorly; he might have been overcautiously holding back from genuine opportunities to gain the upper hand over Saber, or he might have been cleverly seeing through cunning feints that Saber was trying to lure him in with. Instead, Shirou had to judge the state of the battle by the expressions on the combatants faces.
Saber's face was composed in the normal mask of neutrality that she usually wore during battle, displaying neither pride nor fear. If she was frustrated by Assassin's success in holding off her attacks or concerned that he might outmatch her, she was not allowing either emotion to show on her face. Assassin, by contrast, was clearly relishing each moment of combat. He fought with a self-satisfied smirk which Shirou might have believed was affected merely to provoke Saber, if not for the clear wholeheartedness of effort spoken to by the speed and grace of his actions. His expression might have been light, but his thrusts and parries were filled with sincerity and passion. Cursed to a brief existence without hope of victory, he had decided he preferred to perish in a blaze of glory rather than slowly fade away, and so fought with all his heart even though he stood to gain nothing from victory.
"You fight well, Saber." Assassin said. "But you have failed to slay me quickly; and so, victory will be mine."
"And how exactly would that be?" Saber asked. "Aren't you the one laboring under a time limit, Assassin?"
"I will indeed fade soon... but only after slaying you." Assassin said. "You've given me time to see through your invisible sword — and without that advantage, your skill cannot match mine."
"Impossible." Saber said. "You're saying that just by trading blows, you've been able to determine its length and width?"
"Precisely." Assassin said. "If you don't believe me... then allow me to demonstrate."
Assassin's swordsmanship suddenly became far more aggressive. Before, not knowing how long Saber's sword was, he had been forced to keep a moderate distance between them as a safety margin. Now, he advanced on Saber, allowing her slashes to miss her by bare millimeters. No matter how furiously she swung her blade, Assassin's reflexes were faster; he darted back and forth like a snake, and Saber's attacks did nothing but ruffle his hair with the wind of their passage.
The relentless pressure of Assassin's own attacks began to force Saber backwards. One step after another, she was forced to back down the staircase leading to the temple gate in order to defend against Assassin's preternaturally quick and agile swordsmanship. A single misstep would throw off her balance and spell her doom, yet she could not spare a single moment to glance away from Assassin's attacks in order to ascertain her footing. Each time Saber was forced to take another hazardous step down, Shirou's heart caught in his throat. However, the female knight's tread was sure and steady, and she did not even once hesitate, let alone falter.
It was the surety of Saber's steps that made Shirou realize that Saber wasn't in as much trouble as she seemed. Her movement down the stairs was not a desperate retreat, but a planned tactic. Looking at the fight with this in mind, Shirou could now see Saber's purpose. Holding a higher position than her on the stairs gave Assassin an advantage, slowing Saber's aggressive pushes while allowing him to add greater force to his own blows. However, the staircase leading to the front gate of Ryuudou Temple was interrupted at regular intervals by wide, flat areas. Saber, having realized this, was slowly pulling back in order to draw Assassin out onto one of these flat grounds, where he'd have less of an advantage.
The moment Saber moved down the last step, she took a large backwards jump that took her to the center of the level section. Assassin did not immediately pursue in order to continue pressing his attack, as he had previously been doing as she retreated down the stairs, but instead calmly stepped forwards onto the flat area. Though he must now surely see what Saber had been doing, Shirou couldn't detect any sign of concern in his expression.
"Now we're on equal footing." Saber said. "You may have been able to correctly judge my sword, but the only reason you've been able to hold off my attacks is because of the terrain advantage offered by the stairs. On level ground, my superior strength will tell."
Assassin shook his head and smiled ruefully.
"Did you think I didn't see through your ploy?" he said. "I only allowed you to retreat because it was to my advantage. You are a truly worthy opponent; if our battle continued as it has, I would have exhausted all of my energy and faded before being able to deal a lethal blow. But now that I have gotten off the narrow stairs and onto more solid footing, I can perform my secret technique."
Assassin spread his feet, moving one farther forwards than the stairway's narrow steps would have allowed. He was clearly moving into an attack stance; Shirou expected to Saber to try and take advantage of the opportunity to strike, but she instead shifted her own stance into a more defensive one. Having experienced Assassin's lightning-fast reflexes firsthand, she must have judged that even if she tried to take advantage of the opening, his superior speed would allow her to cut her down regardless.
"Farewell, beautiful flower." Assassin said, and raised his blade.
As he held the blade in front of him, time seemed to slow to a crawl. Prana flowed into the long, elegant blade, and Shirou felt his own Magic Circuits surge in response. Without even consciously trying, Shirou realized that he was using his Structural Grasp magecraft on Assassin's sword. It was a process that only days ago would have taken him many minutes of uninterrupted concentration, but the gemstone Rin had fed him had locked his circuits open... and swords had always been easiest for him to read. A firing trigger slammed down in his head, and a blueprint of the sword appeared in his mind.
Trace, on. Analysis, complete. Monohoshizao, "laundry hanging pole" — a weapon reputed to have been wielded by the legendary Sasaki Kojirou. Processing recorded experience and usage data... Tsubame Gaeshi. Multi-dimensional refraction technique. Swordsmanship designed to cut down a swallow in mid-flight. A technique which surpassed the common-sense limits of human capability and approached the level of a Noble Phantasm...
"Saber!" Shirou shouted. "It's three simultaneous strikes from different directions! Watch out!"
Assassin's blade blurred as it swept out three simultaneous arcs, enclosing Saber in a cage of certain death. With her superhuman reflexes and keen combat instinct, it would be no trouble at all for Saber to dodge a single strike; and she could use her sword to block a second simultaneous blow. However, that would still leave a third slash to scythe through her. She might be able to rely on her armor to deflect an ordinary blow from Assassin's sword, but this was a technique on the level of a Noble Phantasm; a direct hit would certainly cleave her in two. It seemed that all Saber could do was choose which way she would be bisected.
But Shirou's warning had not been in vain. Realizing that she could not evade or block strikes from three directions at once, Saber instead fell back on the only method she had which could counter a Noble Phantasm: a Noble Phantasm of her own. She released the contained power of Invisible Air, allowing the sheath of compressed air which concealed her sword to explode outwards. It was as though she had unleashed a tornado from the hilt of her sword; there was a tremendous detonation of wind between the two Servants, a great gale which fouled Assassin's aim and deflected his slashes, and the torrent of escaping air propelled Saber backwards out of range of any follow-up strikes. Pushed off of the level ground where she'd been standing, Saber descended the first few feet of the stairway behind her in a brutal backwards tumble; however, with agile reflexes and a flawless sense of balance, she curled into a more controlled roll and managed to come to a stop on her knees on the next lowest leveled platform. She had managed to keep her grip on her sword the entire time; and now, as she stood up, she lifted the unveiled blade aloft for all to see.
Her Noble Phantasm was a golden sword that burned with divine radiance that brought tears to Shirou's eyes — not because the light was painfully bright, but because it stirred an emotion of rapturous yearning in all who saw it. It was a light that surpassed the profane mortal world, a Divine Mystery that was forever unblemished and untarnished by the common vulgarity of human sin. That light embodied an ideal which no human could reach, yet many sought; and which filled the last thoughts of countless soldiers dying on battlefields. No one could look upon that divinely shining blade and fail to feel overwhelmed by such glory.
The sight of the sword filled Shirou with a strange sense of familiarity, and he realized that it was strikingly similar to the golden sword that appeared in his recurring dreams — though not perfectly identical, noted the vague part of his mind that instantly comprehended the structure and nature of any sword he laid eyes on. But such rational logic could not last long in the face of that Noble Phantasm, and all thought fled Shirou's mind save for the sad yet noble beauty of the dream embodied by that golden sword.
"You do me great honor." Sasaki said, his eyes fixed on Saber's weapon like all others. "This is a better end than I could have hoped for. If I am to be sent from this world by that blade, then perhaps this brief existence was worthwhile after all."
Then Saber swung the shining blade, shouting as she did so the sacred true name that would release its power:
"EXCALIBUR!"
The golden light radiating from the sword exploded forwards into a blinding beam of light that shot diagonally up the mountainside, vaporizing everything in its path. The beautiful, all-consuming light completely engulfed the body of Assassin Sasaki Kojirou, blew through the shrine gate behind him, then passed upwards over the shrine itself to vanish into the infinity of the night sky. For a few brief moments, the slanted pillar of divine light connected heaven and earth, bathing the entire mountain in its unearthly radiance. Then, the torrent of golden energy surging from Saber's blade dwindled away, and all was cast once more into darkness.
Shirou was left momentarily blind, the blazing light of Excalibur's blast having ruined his night vision, but his eyes soon readjusted. A great divot had been carved out of the mountainside, but it didn't look like any of the temple's buildings had gotten caught in the blast. Saber had re-sheathed her holy sword within Invisible Air, concealing it once more from sight; but Shirou would never be able to forget the image burned into his mind: the golden sword given by the Lady of the Lake to the rightful king of Britain.
"Saber..." Shirou said. "You're..."
"Yes." Saber said. "My true identity is Arturia Pendragon, King of Britain."
"But you're... well, a girl." Shirou said.
"Proper introductions can wait until later." Rin interrupted. "Every Servant in the city will have seen the way that sword lit up the sky. If we want to investigate what happened at the temple, we should do it quickly and get out of here — unless you fancy another meeting with Berserker so soon."
"I get it." Shirou said. "Come on, Saber, Crow. And stay on guard. Just because Caster's gone doesn't mean we're safe. The Servant that defeated Caster and Lancer might still be nearby."
"Heh." Crow said. "I wouldn't mind getting a little action. I mean, I can respect the desire for an honorable duel, but I'm feeling a bit left out."
"Before you get overenthusiastic, keep in mind that we knew Caster's strengths and weaknesses and came prepared for her." Rin said. "If we run into another enemy, the smart move would be to hold off on fighting until we can learn a little more about them."
"If my Master orders a retreat, I'll retreat." Crow said with a shrug. "But since you aren't my Master, you can just butt right out of my business."
Rin started to say something indignant, then broke off and just shook her head before turning towards the remnants of the blasted gate and began walking up to the temple, flanked on either side by Black Archer and Red Archer. Shirou walked close behind, with Saber and Crow beside him. Together, the group made their way up the slightly damaged stairs and through the blasted area where the temple gate had been gouge out by Excalibur's beam, then finally entered the temple grounds.