The Storm Breaks (Battle)
(Okita Souji)
"We've caught their eye," her comrade of the day warned as scores of matchlock arquebuses appeared, firing themselves at his target.
Moments later, with a roar exceeding that of the guns, something exploded in the air in front of them. Archer frowned momentarily as his guns fired a second volley before falling silent.
"Did you take down their Archer?" Okita asked, wondering if the range of a Servant's matchlock could match that of another's bow.
"The exploding arrow obscured my vision," he replied, resuming their advance. "There's a chance they were hit anyway, but they were a rather small target. Regardless we need to close in to deal the killing blow."
"A small archer who uses exploding arrows," the Saber mused. "That can't be a common combination." Her sword came out smoothly, sitting more comfortably in her hands than when she had been mortal. Pulling out her banner, the signal to charge, Okita sprang forward confidently as the Archer behind her discarded his cape. With a Servant's speed, the critical rush phase would be measured in mere seco-
!
Almost acting on instinct, Okita threw herself to one side as several green streaks flashed through where she had been only a moment earlier. A flat trajectory? But how! As she was recovering, the sound of firearms being shot along with two Shinsengumi signatures disappearing showed that she hadn't been the only one targeted.
Initially, she would have guessed it was the enemy Archer, but on second thought, could it have been a Caster's spell? Though Knight classes had (Magic Resistance), it was also up to the enemy to use a high-rank spell that could pierce it. And my own resistance isn't much, for the Saber class.
She swallowed nervously as Archer's guns began shooting again, moments before she dodged a second volley of the green missiles. A little in front of her, several of them abruptly solidified into black spears that shattered upon being hit by Archer's bullets. There's a gap on our left side. Two more Shinsengumi on that flank winked out of existence, though she remembered that the four still remaining should have some measure of protection from ranged attacks.
I am inevitable; spread my rule throughout the world,
The surrounding air flashed from cold to hot as fire began to run out from Archer as he strode forward, guns flickering in to replace one another in his firing line. The unnatural flames raced out to the right and the left and upwards and inwards, forming an ever-expanding wall that blocked out the external world.
the path of my conquest is paved with innumerable corpses, all living things, spirits and gods.
The wet road disappeared, replaced with a dry baked land as the fire passed over it. Based of her own experience, Okita guessed that Archer was not exactly aiming all his shots, but on the other hand, though the green streaks continued to flash out, now all headed towards him, every single one was intercepted somehow. Trust an archer to hit a spear with a bullet, every single time.
The cries of the innocent and injuries of the resentful are all together reduced to ashes,
The time was now. This is the charge of the Shinsengumi! Scrambling to her feet and making forward and to the left, the Saber chased after the line of world-altering flames as they reached out, circling around where the enemy Servants were doubtless lying in wait. Any moment now they would be dragged into Archer's hellscape and-
I will display your corpses to all the worlds! he proclaimed triumphantly, even over the voices of his guns.
But though they indeed transformed the landscape from a dark and rainy Fuyuki into a vast ash-swept desert, one thing remained unchanged under the dome of fire that now replaced the stormy sky.
A single house, shimmering like a mirage in an oasis, stood fast dead ahead, as though mocking the pressure of Archer's Field-altering Skill.
l
(Rin Tohsaka)
"Kuro, what's going on out there? Caster's going ballistic." Was one way to put it. While her first few volleys shot out in several directions and seemed to have been effective, Sasaku was focused directly forward, her eyes glowing like embers as they focused on a singular threat out beyond the walls her spears were passing through on their way out.
"Their Archer shot a bunch of bullets at me, and now the sky has turned into fire. This is oddly familar..." her Archer replied from her position on the roof. "Where's the Caster who is doing this? I'll try and snipe her."
"It's coming from the Archer," Sasaku replied, letting up on her attacks as Kuro's description and question were relayed. "Ask her to hold until everyone has closed in, then target him. I haven't countered this, so much as the entire Realm was dragged in as one entity; if it gives way, we'll be dropped into the open and it will be a firing squad rather than a battle."
She blinked slowly, accessing the situation. "Shirou, tell Saber he has two enemies incoming. One is the enemy Saber Kuro spotted. Three of the lesser ones are at the front door, so they will encounter Rider soon, Sakura."
l
(Okita Souji)
We were expected, of course. The samurai in front of her was clearly guarding the door at his back, which led from the courtyard they were in, into the main structure. It took only a moment to notice his weapon, which identified its wielder.
"Sasaki Kojirou," she muttered, while passing the banner to the one survivor of the four who had been tasked with securing the left side. Caster had been worried I might run up against a Saber capable of firing off a holy sword like Excalibur Galatine. Guess not.
He eyed her neutrally, apparently unable to identify her in turn. "Officer of the Shinsengumi." Neither side moved.
Okita considered her options. Her opponent had taken up a defensive position, though not necessarily one that gave him an advantage in a duel. Additionally, Archer's strategy was most likely being countered by a Caster's Bounded Field. If so, he was likely to lose out in terms of magical energy reserves, especially since said Caster had clearly prepared well.
Rider and Caster aside that just means it comes down to the assault. If we can take out their Caster then we should collapse their defenses. However, doing so without having to fight through said defenses will be tricky...
Okita moved forward confidently, perhaps a little carelessly as-
Cling!
Kojirou's sword flicked out, making for a decapitation, but while quickly stepping back out of range, his opponent also took the chance to deflect his weapon near its tip. Rather than try to follow up, Kojirou simply returned to a guard stance with a faint, knowing smile. Her attempt to bait out an over-commitment hadn't gone unnoticed.
It isn't surprising that a Servant might be able to use such a massive weapon so casually, but still... She had suspicions that it might be more like a polearm in practice, though he held it like a normal sword. The fact that he had chosen to respond with a cut rather than a thrust was still interesting, though it did give away that she wouldn't be able to exploit point control like against a spearman.
"Watch my back," she ordered her comrade. It was partially to keep him out of the way, though in honestly if Kojirou could cut efficiently with such a blade, it was also likely any 'help' would be dispatched all too easily, even if they both charged him together.
Kojirou had a decent range advantage, and given the two of them were both unarmored a blade-to-blade bind was her best option to close into her range. Without something like that, passing his point still meant he could, for example, cut at her legs ending the battle very quickly indeed.
-If I pretend to leave my left side open, I can probably cover any cut he might make given the length of my sword in a parry. He doesn't have much room to move back, so it will probably come down to grappling and knives.- At that point though, her support could probably dash in and thrust him through, since it wasn't a duel.
Taking a breath, she brought her weapon up, hilt a little above and in front of her right shoulder, much like Kojirou's own guard position.
Now!
Kicking off with a Servant's leg strength, she swiftly entered his range in a blur of speed. The moment she saw Kojirou begin to react, Okita dropped the point of her sword, bringing it to block her right side-!
Clang!
The attack came in about the height of her elbow, which was actually behind her sword, stopping the cut cold. As she had planned to and successfully received it on the flat, Okita was able to keep moving forward instead of having her blade caught on his.
The pressure on her left abruptly let up, and Okita automatically brought her point up and in a sudden flash of doubt, went right, the blade making a sudden clockwise turn.
Clang!
That would have taken off my head. How could be have gotten that sword all the way around to the right side? Did I misread his moves? It couldn't just have been underestimating his speed from her probing feint earlier.
Abruptly diverting to the side, deflecting several more cuts aiming at her arms and feet, she slipped around one of the pillars. As he effortlessly sliced through it, she used the momentary break in line of sight to made good an escape back out of the storm of slashes that had been threatening to hem her in.
As if he had suspected her hopes to the contrary, he continued to advance, just keeping her within the range of his cuts. While even he would need to be somewhat closer to deal real damage, it was clear he intended to score even a light cut on her. It would after all vastly swing the fight in his favor.
She skipped backwards, out of his reach as Kojirou's weapon bit into the ground. Ah, he did go for the foot strike! Though this wouldn't stop a Servant, he nevertheless paused after the miss. Kojirou, smiling while retreating towards the door, casually cut down the pillars on either side in order to avoid leaving those blindspots. As she had guessed a little late, but not fatally so, Kojirou was happy to leave his door as long as he was still able to reach anyone approaching it, which was after all quite some distance given his weapon.
Okita caught her breath, formulating a new plan. If I commit heavily to an attack, he will probably try to parry since his weapon is heavier, or more likely cut on the defense. However, if the Three Thrusts catches his blade...
She adjusted her stance for a stable jumping-off point, aimed for center mass and began moving forward. The enemy Saber hardly changed his guard, but the small movement of his feet gave away his awareness of the coming clash.
He is most likely to be swinging from his right side... Victory will depend on my ability to target and pierce his sword before it comes in and cuts me. To call the window of opportunity it a fraction of a second would be generous, but Okita was not called the genius swordsman of the Shinsengumi for nothing.
(Mumyou Sandanzuki) !
Kojirou's eyes were drawn inexorably to the blade advancing towards him. Although his opponent had apparently lost her Shinsengumi haori somewhere, the Three Thrusts technique completely identified her as their first unit's captain.
He began to cut, but not just once.
(Tsubame Gaeshi) !
Because Sasaki Kojirou didn't exist in the Throne of Heroes, either of them had directly encountered the other's technique before. However, both of them executed their strategy perfectly.
Clang!
Crash!
Crack!
Kojirou's cut struck the side of Okita's weapon, deflecting it.
Okita's First Thrust bit into Kojirou's blade about a third of the way from the guard, the Second Thrust shattered it thus clearing the way for the Third Thrust to continue forward via sheer momentum to pierce her opponent's chest. Right as she drew blood, however, Kojirou's other two cuts sliced horizontally into her right side and vertically down on her left shoulder before abruptly ending as the destruction of the sword caught up, leaving him with a weapon that could not physically reach his opponent.
His Monohoshi Zao had bent every so slightly before breaking. In that sliver of time, its two unblocked cuts had reached his opponent, with her thrust reaching him almost immediately afterwards.
As Kojirou moved backwards and off Okita's sword, she also pulled away instinctively, feeling certain in her victory since her opponent's weapon had been shattered.