Knight vs Cavalry (Battle, pt 2)
(Kuro)
Whatever Sasaku had done, the Caster's Rho Aiases hardly did anything to blunt the driving momentum of Rider's pegasus. Just as Kuro's own was beginning to crack, abruptly the pressure ceased, though the damage done due to the shield Noble Phantasm's troublesome feedback remained.
The sight of a pegasus taking to the sky, seen though the shivered petals that remained was only a brief reprive as a sound from above triggered Kuro's battle instinct. She moved backwards, releasing her shield. Just in time, as Rider, who had dismounted and landed on the top of the shield just out of sight, had sent one of her daggers straight downwards at the shield's owner.
As her enemy started to fall, Kuro quickly summoned and began throwing swords into the path she would take to the ground. However, Rider yanked hard on the chain linked to the dagger now planted in the stones of the courtyard, accelerating her downward motion to avoid the missiles.
Quickly moving through a mental list of Noble Phantasms didn't bring anything to mind. Another flurry of paired swords were scattered by a near-net of chains flying about as Rider's defense. A pair of daggers came back even quicker, and Kuro stepped back while parrying to gain some range and suddenly tripped!
No, she adjusted quickly into a backflip and kept her eyes on Rider while also scanning the ground to see what had been in the way-
Her heart sank when she realized the obstacle had been Rin's prone form, clearly unconscious with blood leaking from her ears. In hindsight, it was obvious what had happened. Even with a Reinforced body, the sharp change in both air pressure and mana density that close to the pegasus, even from behind Rho Aias, would have been enough to knock her out. And now her Master was between the two battling Servants.
Nothing for it.
Rider might have been caught off guard, at least initially, as Kuro flung herself forward much faster than her earlier retreat, sending more swords straight at her as well as curving around. However, ...
(Medusa)
After trying to get some range, the small Archer suddenly reversed course and charged forward - or perhaps that was the plan? By now quite acquainted with the odd motion of these thrown weapons, Medusa simply swung her weapons around, sending the long chains into the path of the black and white swords.
If Archer preferred short range over medium, Rider had the opposite preference. Both Servants could attack capably at medium range, but Medusa's weapons were much less well suited for a direct hand-to-hand action than Archer's dual shortswords. Also, they weren't Noble Phantasms and would stand up in a direct clash, which is why parrying with the chains was much better.
With the usual speed of the Rider class, she dashed forward as well, intending to use Archer's momentum against her. By moving sideways at the last moment, range would be generated by the time both of them were able to slow down and turn to face one another.
But the girl suddenly disappeared just as I began accelerating?
Whipping her daggers around so that the chains closed in, filling the space around her, Medusa continued rather than reversed her course. Suddenly she felt one of the daggers pierce something behind her. -When did she get behind me?-
She turned, still sprinting forward to see Archer on the ground holding her side. Which had one of the chained daggers embedded in it. Then the Servant disappeared in a shimmer of gold.
"Hmm, even so."
Medusa looked at the human lying near her feet, most probably the reason why Archer simply gave up on the fight. It seemed that Sakura would find something to be pleased about tonight.
(Cu Chulainn)
Even as a Lancer (my favorite class to be summoned as), I have some handy skill in rune magecraft. But that doesn't mean I can deal with a Caster's Bounded Field, damnit!
Cu Chulainn groused while walking along the boundary of the field that appeared around the school. Attempting several attacks with Gae Bolg, as well as using various runic counters was not enough to undo the barrier, though he doubted it was only a wall. While the priest had expected it to be a quick job, Lancer couldn't find any obvious cracks or foci to disrupt, which probably meant it was supplied from within.
Probably using the leylines under the school grounds?
He felt his hairs rise as the field disappeared, the prana that had been within starting to dissipate. A Servant jumped over the school gate, with a girl held carefully in her arms. Lancer prepared himself for a fight, though it seemed unlikely.
"Hello there!" he said, cheerfully announcing his presence by tapping his spear aginst the ground. As the purple-haired woman turned to face him, he noticed the odd blindfold she was wearing. "What is it, Lancer?"
"If you'd be kind enough to confirm for me that the field that was there," he pointed behind her, "is gone, then I'd appreciate you saving me the trouble of having to investigate it."
"So your Master can take credit for it?" she replied sarcastically. "It's gone, but I doubt the Overseer will believe you had a hand in it without details. Which I won't be giving you for free."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Cu Chulainn smiled cheerfully. "I just want to report this task done and then look for some fights. Speaking of fights -"
"This isn't the time for a duel," she interrupted him. "We can have a one-on-one deathmatch at another date."
"It's a deal!" he shouted as she quickly made an exit.
He's going to be quite miffed Lancer thought to himself. He had recognized the unconscious Master, in part because he was sure Kirei had sent him out hoping that before the night ended, Tohsaka Rin would have.
It's not my problem, he shrugged before making haste to the church. Who knows, along the way he might meet that crazy Assassin and her Master again.
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(Matou house, Sakura)
Judging by the footsteps coming up the stairs, Shinji both had his battle and won it. Not long after, the person himself burst into her room to find the owner already waiting for him. She said nothing though - this was his moment, after all...
"Part 1 done!" he announced enthusiastically, his voice bouncing around the small room. "And... optional objective complete." He stepped away from the door.
"Rider, please show our guest in." Oh, had he really?
The Servant who entered after being called was impressive as always, but Sakura's attention was immediately caught by the red-and-black dressed girl she was holding.
"She's a little, er, indisposed at the moment," Shinji muttered with a rather subdued tone after taking a look at Sakura's face. "Rider used up quite a bit of mana in the fight, so she... well, you can guess."
"That's fine, that's fine," she said with a smile pushing its way out, unnoticed. "There'll be plenty of time to catch up."
"Right, of course," he said, regaining his usual swagger. "Reunion aside,"
"It's not really a reunion..."
"Whatever you say. More seriously, we encountered two Servants tonight. That Sasaku is not Tohsaka's Servant." He just left that hanging in the air rather than spell it out directly.
No. Way. "Emiya-senpai can't be a Master, he isn't even a magus," she said more to reassure herself than anything. Though the evidence was...
"Hello, I'm right here, you know," Rider's other Master said sourly. "This was not part of the agreement, you know."
"So?" she practically snapped while sweating. "Don't tell me you can't take on the 'Janitor' one-on-one after winning two-on-one..." He wouldn't be like this if he had already killed him, surely.
"We're certain Sasaku is this War's Caster, probably why they were working with Tohsaka and her Archer. We're going to visit Emiya's house to collect him. But I need you to understand that it might get messy."
"I can guess," she continued his thought for him. "I'm sure that with your leadership, Rider will have no issues dealing with a single Caster."
Shinji responded well to having his ego stroked, as always. "Of course. Rider wanted to discuss Tohsaka's accommodations before we left. Hurry it up though, the faster we leave the faster this mess gets wrapped up."
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Notes:
That wraps up roughly the first arc.