18th of November, midday.
Standing atop one of the seaside cliffs of the Kanto region is a heretic god. A prepubescent girl with silver hair, wearing a Greek toga with golden arm and leg bracelets. Most recognize her as [Heretic Athena], the trinity goddess of darkness, earth and wisdom.
"Tsk, was one a step too tardy?" She snaps her tongue in disapproval, annoyed that her target left. Almost twenty days ago Athena lost in battle against the deity known as Lancelot du Lac, and the maidservant he protects managed to create a link between the goddess and the Holy Grail, that accursed desecrator of mother earth!
And now once again does the Grail prevent Athena's success. "Forsooth, 'tis the Holy Grail within one's body… Alerted the prey." The lingering divine presence is also connected to Guinevere herself, so she should be able to tell the exact location of the goddess. If Athena draws close then Guinevere will simply flee, again and again, no matter how often the goddess tries. "As long as this object remaineth in one's body, 'tis impossible to approach the descendant of its creator?"
It's an annoying curse, this grail. Revenge upon that duo will be almost impossible. And other than those two there is also her sworn prey, Kusanagi Godou. She will not let anyone else obtain her kill!
"Fufu. One had wished for a ripened opportunity, but the time for harvest hast arrived. One shall have a decisive showdown against Kusanagi Godou here."
First of all is the most important thing, her duel with Godou. If she loses, so be it, perhaps she could tell him about the newest threat afterwards. If she wins, then the next point on her agenda is exterminating Lancelot and sending his witch to the grave.
Athena starts to smile bravely. Her time is not abundant, and action shall have to be taken quickly. Her battle spirit is raised, and the waves around her respond by crashing even harder against the cliff.
"Superbly done, war god Lancelot. As befitted proper [Steel] inheriting the way of ancients. Desecrating one's immortality in such matter!" Genuine praise for an opponent, given where deserved. Athena too, while lacking the aspect of steel, still holds war as her domain. If she cannot recognize strategy and tactics she would dishonor her own name.
A few other tactics come up in her mind. Perhaps she could travel to the netherworld, and her life would not be sucked dry by the divine artifact in her body.
No, it is not an option. She is a goddess who transcended mortality, so death can be allowed as long as victory is achieved. The only fear she has it that she will leave earth without finishing her business.
Slay the two retainers of the sleeping king of the end.
Have a final, decisive duel with Kusanagi Godou.
If those two parameters are fulfilled, Athena would gladly lay her life away.
"One shall first defeat Kusanagi Godou, then Lancelot shall be vanquished. If this life lingereth still, justice shall be met on that maidservant, and vengeance brought to tha-"
Wait a moment, something is wrong about this situation. She senses it, faint traces of a Campione's presence. But it does not feel like her mortal enemy Godou. She goes over every single Godslayer she has felt:
The one who summoned her into this world, the Balkan devil who slew a myriad of gods? No, it isn't him.
The Italian king who slew her mortal enemies of steel? No, also incorrect.
The martial artist from China, the hidden queen, the black prince, the superhero; no, compared to the other kings this one only gives off a single "scent", as if he only slew a single deity.
It cannot be, an eighth king? Here, in Japan?
"Fufufu… Kusanagi Godou, our reunion will wait. 'twould seem that this one's defeat hast shifted to victory! " He old plans can be discarded. This is a new factor that can turn the tides. She is not like Ares, who would simply blindly rush at his enemies. No, strategy and deceit have always been weapons she relied on, so it is time to make a new strategy for the purpose of fulfilling Athena's desires!
Athena turns into a flock of owls, any traces of her body disappearing from the cliff, investigating the new ray of hope shining in front of her.
-x-
18th of November, evening.
Today Shizuka had the school festival, which surprisingly… kind of sucked. There's still the aftermath of that divine incident at Niseko, which resulted in a class that is completely unable to set up their own class project. Because her class was dismissed from their original activity Shizuka spent most of her time helping the tea club, dressed in a kimono for the sake of attracting visitors.
There were other things she was interested in, but the main problem was that there were no people left who could go with Shizuka to tour the campus. Her friends from class are still in no shape to go to such an event, and while she did promise to go with her brother he was forced to help someone in Kisarasu city {1}, which according to Godou was "a lot of digging."
As a result Shizuka has mainly been doing work for her club until the end of the festival, until a long time after it became dark. Shizuka should be on her way home, but a call from home confirmed that both of the males in the family are not there. Godou is still on the other side of Tokyo Bay while Ichirou decided to reconcile with an old rival of his.
In other words, tonight is "do whatever you want for dinner" night. Walking through the streets of Bunkyo ward Shizuka tries to decide what to eat for dinner. It will certainly be away from home, if a chance exists not to expend work on household matters like this then all members of the family will take it with both hands.
When alone there's no need to eat overly extravagant, a simple fast-food restaurant will do. But which one should she choose? Go traditional with a sushi or ramen stand, or perhaps one of the western food chains? Maybe go for something in-between like MOS Burger?
Oh wait, there's also this Chinese restaurant Shizuka has some connections with. Their food is a bit on the spicy side, but the steamed pork buns they make are quite good.
Sadly enough Shizuka will never arrive at the restaurant, for on the way there she is rudely interrupted:
Even through it is dark outside there should be enough lights left on the streets to allow normal visibility. This is darkness in which a normal person should barely be able to see, but for some reason none of the other people around Shizuka seem to notice, just like they fail to recognize the abnormal person standing some meters away from her:
A young girl of Shizuka's age, probably even younger, but not giving off any sense of childishness. She seems haughty, arrogant even. Not misplaced arrogance, what you see in children and fools, but arrogance stemming from knowledge about oneself and the others, knowing perfectly well that she herself is unmatched.
Adrenaline starts pumping, and the magical power in Shizuka's body is raised. All these are signs pointing out that this girl in front of her is a goddess.
"Fu… unbelievable. Were one not confirming your existence claims of an eight king would be dismissed as ridicule. Pray tell, what is thine name?"
"Kusanagi Shizuka." Her stance on guard, Shizuka summons the stone of fire to her side in response to possible sudden attack. "So what is a heretic goddess like you doing here in the first place?"
The goddess quirks her eyebrow upon hearing Shizuka's name. Kusanagi, the same name as her sworn enemy. While it is not uncommon in myth for heroes to be sib- or niblings, it is practically unheard of for Campione to have any relation by blood. Even a goddess as great as her has never heard of something like that. But if they are family… then perhaps their nature is the same as well, the perfect opening for an exploit.
"Stand down, Kusanagi Shizuka. 'tis not for battle that one is roaming this land. Grave tidings will be disclosed, as there are enemies at large."
Shizuka is listening, but she does not truly trust this goddess yet. After all, one common fact is that gods and godslayers are enemies, whatever the situation. The goddess notices this, and smirks slightly. At least this king is less full of holes compared to her eternal enemy.
"This one's name is Athena, the great goddess ruling over earth, darkness and wisdom. 'twould be natural for thee to declare thyself as this one's opponent, but such battle would only advance the agenda of a greater foe."
"So, who is this great enemy you're talking about, Athena?"
"Slumbering in yonder bay is the strongest steel, the man known as the [King who Manifests at the End of Eras]. 'twould be no problem of mine were he to keep slumbering, but his retainer and maidservant are determined to awake their lord."
"So what is the reason you are telling me all this? Surely it isn't because you want to be nice and helpful to those who slay your kin?"
"Indeed, the one known as Athena is not a goddess who would side with anyone unless for one's own behoof. One fights here solely for revenge, wishing merely the expiry of the war god."
"Hah…" Yeah, this goddess is as neutral as can be, acting just like the goddess Shizuka slew. The only difference is that this time the goals of both goddess and godslayer align instead of oppose. "I'm also opposed to the resurrection of that god, albeit for entirely different reasons. Of course, if you plan to cause any more havoc here in Japan afterwards you'll have to deal with me."
Athena smiles, realizing that her plan of alliance has just been a success. Sure, it may be with the youngest of these devil kings, but age is not a reason to call a king weak, for there are no weak kings.
"Then this one will hereupon swear that she will swiftly depart after victory without causing pandemonium, yet one needs time to close a few loose ends. One can grant all other privileges if this boon is given."
"If you won't cause any harm to the humans living here then I guess you can stay for a day or two." The tension hanging between god and godslayer decreases as the alliance is made. Shizuka stands down, and while the stone is still by her side just in case Athena plans to betray her she is not anymore in a stance ready for battle. Athena too looks slightly less tense, also seeming to accept this temporary cooperation.
"So did you already make a plan of attack, Athena? I doubt that someone known as the goddess of wisdom would simply charge the enemy."
"True, one should not be compared to Ares or that accursed retainer. Kusanagi Shizuka, when didst one say that one's only ally is thee? Whilst that person is a ruffian of the highest caliber, one does not believe that he would decline this offer." Athena looks upwards, as if the very sky holds what she wants to point out as her ally. "Prince of black lightning! Dost thou not want revenge upon thy enemy? Dost thou not want to obtain that grail? For the sake of these goals, wouldst thee not be willing to form an alliance with this one?"
"As much as I dislike such commands I can't say that I'm uninterested in Guinevere's demise." Thunder strikes the ground, and where once lightning struck now stands a tall and slender man with quite the handsome face. The suit he wears, along with his proper air, does give off the feeling of a prince. "Of course, I've no interest in following orders of someone else, be it from a goddess like you, nor from the latest addition to my fellow peers."
From the way he speaks to the magic energy Shizuka perceives, this guy is clearly a Campione. In other words, another troublemaker who entered Japan. "So why does our mister fantastic feel himself too great to listen to others?"
"Of course I do listen to others when they make good points." Alec retorts, clearly not understanding why Shizuka had to make such a sarcastic remark. "The problem is that other than me all Campione are knuckleheaded ruffians, and the deities lose all sense of strategy due to their exceptional arrogance. What we need is a tactician, and since I doubt that you're any different than the rest I'm the only one here with a mind for strategy."
Shizuka protests immediately against those words, claiming that it is outright discriminating. Athena on the other hand simply gives a curt smile as she speaks her words of wisdom:
"Fufu… thou speaks a valid truth, in times of war an army needs to follow the heed of a commander. However, one does not simply proclaim oneself wiser than the goddess of war and strategy, nobleman of lightning speed."
"Then show me your knowledge, goddess of wisdom. Simply from a glance at that authority of… miss Kusanagi here" Really, having two kings with the same surname makes differentiating between the two slightly more difficult. "I can determine the goddess she slew. Can you do the same, Athena?"
The fact that Alec already talks about a goddess means that he probably knows the deity Shizuka defeated. How he knows is a riddle that Shizuka probably will not figure out.
"[Stone]… no, [Fire]… but not [Sun], yet still akin." Athena racks her brain out, trying to find a solution. "A set, multiple stones, so multiple elements?" Possibilities come and go, but the deity it belongs to cannot be figured out this easily. Compared to the knowledge she had when she grasped Kusanagi Godou's [Persian Warlord] this is barely nothing.
Still so much left, still so much left. Purely going by its characteristics there's no way to safely determine the exact deity it originated from. "Though one is ascertained that some manner of trickery has been used by thee this goddess cannot determine the origin of this power like thou didst."
Athena is correct. The only reason Alexandre know the identity of a goddess he has never seen is because of pure luck. "Really, Athena? You cannot grasp that goddess' identity? Kusanagi Shizuka, can you confirm my victory by saying that the goddess you have slain is Nu Wa?"
It's without doubt Nu Wa. Around the time Voban became a Campione there descended a goddess in China under the name of Nu Wa. The goddess who once held territories from Tibet to Japan entered the world and was eventually slain in battle. However, a small part of herself remained on earth in the form of a small white pebble. This treasure was stolen by Britain's thief, who can now safely theorize that this stone probably used to be a shard of the [Heavenly Stone of Wood].
"It's possible." Shizuka can't really accept or deny this remark, though she still seems annoyed that she was called a ruffian. "That goddess never gave me her name, although she is a mother earth goddess from China."
"Yes, 'tis the five stones that hold up heaven!" Athena gets the final revelation that proves that Nu Wa is the slain goddess. "Celestial power with origins of earth! Thou were correct, black prince! Outwitting this goddess through trickery, how befitting of a devil king!"
The fourth king doesn't even register the somewhat snide praise, while Shizuka considers it a bit of bad taste.
"So are you finally willing to listen, Athena?"
Athena nods in agreement, while Shizuka returns to the topic of her being called a ruffian: "Well I'm not. It's hard to agree with someone who calls you a ruffian on sight."
"With two tyrants, a hypocrite, a childish superhero and two absolute morons I don't really expect much better. But very well, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for now. Don't waste this opportunity."
"Tsk." Shizuka really doesn't like this guy, though his description of the rest doesn't spell much good for any future encounters. "Fine then, I guess I'll give you the same for now. Now get back to your plan."
"Hmph. I don't need you to tell me that." And as expected, Alexandre screwed up with the females. Surprisingly it's not quite as bad as usual. Perhaps today is his lucky day, or is there something special about this newest king?
In reality, it's mainly because Gascoigne has the exact opposite luck of women that Godou has… which means that Shizuka is perhaps the only woman Gascoigne can ever score with.
If Doni would see this couple he would probably ship it. Godou would obviously protest loudly. Gascoigne ignores this all and decides to spend time on more important matters, like sharing his plan with the rest, thus beginning this strategy meeting between the three divinely empowered beings.
-x-
18th of November, late evening.
Clairvoyance.
If one would ask someone completely unrelated to the world of magic the meaning of this word, they would probably answer along the lines of "Isn't that some kind of fake superhuman ability of those who call themselves ESP users?" While it is indeed true that it is often associated with the occult it's real use is much less complicated.
Meaning "clear vision" in French, Clairvoyance is a type of magic that allows one to see faraway events happening as if they are close by.
The most famous and powerful one is [Witch Eye], a witchcraft that has a range of over twenty kilometers and doesn't require direct line of sight between target and user. It's only weakness is that the magic is located close to the target, allowing a perceptive person to notice the spell and possibly try to neutralize it.
For Guinevere that weakness is why she cannot use that spell now, because secrecy is of utmost importance. Thus she uses [Sight], hermetic magic granted by Cetan {2} that greatly increases one's eyesight, even in the current darkness of the night.
Right now she is standing on the beach of Koto Ward, the most industrial one among all water-bordering special wards of Tokyo. From here she has a perfect view of the excavation site:
20 people are there, fourteen of them magic users. Most of them will not be a problem to defeat, but there is this one girl who might be problematic. As that girl is capable of divine possession she is someone even Guinevere will have trouble defeating. It would be disrespectful and unneeded to bring out Lancelot for what amounts to ants in the eye of a deity. The only option is to bide her time, letting her plan involving Athena develop.
Athena will have a decisive duel with Kusanagi Godou. Of course, that's the perfect opportunity to use Godou as a pawn so that the holy grail can absorb Athena's energy. The human wielding divine possession will follow her lord, leaving the shrine wide open for thieves, an opening that Guinevere will use. After Athena is slain and the halberd is obtained the floating island can resurface, allowing the king who manifests at the end of eras, the predecessor of Arthur Pendragon, to be awakened once more!
Suddenly the sound of metal clashing with metal vibrates through the air. What was that sound?
Standing there is Lancelot in full armor, his lance drawn after being used to swipe away some bullet-like object. That projectile lands harmlessly on the sand, allowing Guinevere to see just who or what caused this.
An old-fashioned ballpoint fountain pen, reinforced with some sort of authority. The exact nature of that divine power can be easily identified, as among the gods and godslayers there is only one man gaudy enough to attack with a godspeed infused writing device.
"Greetings, Alexandre-sama. Guinevere did not expect you to interfere in this event so early, an action completely unbefitting your style." Getting in at the last moment, taking what he wants, and then escaping again like he never existed in the first place. Those who know Britain's king know how troublesome he is in that regard. Entering like he is some sort of warrior like this goes completely against his own code.
"Perhaps, but you sneaking around scheming little plans perfectly fits your personality." Yes, his skill at handing women is still the polar opposite of Kusanagi Godou. "However, if one does not eventually take action you'll find yourself outmaneuvered by your enemy. With the grail inside of Athena's body, your only protection against me is that knight protecting you."
"This knight finds your appearance odd, Gascoigne." Lancelot watches this opponent with suspicion, clearly disbelieving what he says. "Foolishly charging against this knight, giving up all your advantages in battle because the beloved child cannot access the grail? While one would be interested in facing you in a head-on charge, the likes of you only accept after rigging the battlefield in your favor."
"Indeed, Alexandre-sama, you are not the type to head straight into the fight unlike your brethren. Could it be, your highness arrived here not for battle, but to accept the offer of cooperation Guinevere made eight years ago?" Guinevere adds with a tease.
"Spare me your jokes, Guinevere." Alec replied in a cold manner. "Even I can perform an ungentlemanly act like this if the time for it is right."
"Oh my… Alexandre-sama, you do know that these words can only be spoken by a gentleman? I think that a common thief like you should repent for saying such unfitting words."
"Nonsense." Alec does not need to bother with such a petty (but true) insult. "Look who is talking, a child acting like she is all grown up. If anyone here lacks class then it is certainly you, Guinevere."
"Perhaps a child, yes, but compared to one who is not mature even as an adult I, Guinevere, would say that I am the more stylish one."
"I do not believe that stylish is a word that gives an apt description of you, with those outdated clothes and speech of yours." And thus this talk between two mortal enemies ends like it usually does: A slurry of insults fired at one another, as if they are two children squabbling it out.
Eventually it is Lancelot who breaks the duo apart. "Beloved child, while watching you two talk it out is quite amusing to hear, one believes that our opponent here is stalling for time." Alec doesn't lose his poker face, not confirming or denying those words. Guinevere does not care, for she never doubts the words of her knight.
"Indeed you are correct, Sir Knight. It would not be an uncommon tactic for him, waiting to summon something like those [Furies] of his. While not our original plan, it cannot hurt to strike down an enemy when an opening is presented."
Lancelot steps up while Guinevere backs down. "Gascoigne, one will take your appearance here as a direct challenge to battle. Very well, this knight accepts your challenge!" And with that Lancelot charges at his enemy.
As the owner of the [Eye of the Mind] combined with phenomenal lancing skills even dealing with something like godspeed is no problem. However, Lancelot does not manage to hit the devil king. Not because of particular powers on that Campione's side, it's because Gascoigne only tries to attack Guinevere with fatal attacks.
"Kuh, one should have expected you to go for dirty tricks like that!" Lancelot prevents the death of his companion each time, losing his chance to attack Alec.
"Dirty tricks?" Alexandre speaks out as if those words ae completely foreign to him. "I'm simply trying to lessen the amount of fighting I have to do. If Guinevere dies then your mission is over, white knight. You will stop searching for the [King of the End] and rampage in this land. When that happens I will simply let the godslayer of this country take care of you."
"Then Guinevere will assume that you only said that to force me from the battlefield, did you not, Alexandre-sama?" The witch queen knows her enemy for long enough now to understand the true meaning behind his words. "Very well then, black prince, I will do as you say. Sir knight, Guinevere shall leave this battle to you. Please come back victorious." The witch queen flees from the battlefield, leaving the prince and knight so they can duel one another. She moves to the north-east, to the most eastern ward named Edowara.
She still thinks about reasons for why that cautious devil king decided to suddenly launch an attack. Many options go through her head, but in the end there is another fact that determines the exact reason:
"The grail is moving to the battlefield? Does Athena plan… no, it's obvious now, to think that such a simple strategy was chosen, who would've thought?"
Teaming up. Perhaps the oldest trick in the book, it hasn't lost any of its effectiveness. Gascoigne locks down Lancelot, and Athena comes in as the pincer attack. For the sake of defeating Guinevere and Lancelot their enemies have joined forces.
"Far too foolish, Alexandre! Far too foolish, Athena!" Did they really think Guinevere did not think of such a plan? Of course, there is danger in facing multiple opponents, but the odds are still quite nicely in her favor. There is still a link between divine lance Excalibur and the grail, making Athena just an usable energy source. And while Alec is dangerous, he did not have time to set up his multi-layered traps on Lancelot's battlefield of choice.
In other words, this is like two rooks against a queen, with both sides being around equal strength. However, there are more things that seem to stand in Guinevere's favor. The bond between Athena and Gascoigne is slim at best, knowing how fantastic the latter's luck is with women. If these two are left alone for a few minutes they would probably start fighting each other.
And most importantly, who is protecting wildcard Kusanagi Godou? If he gets told that Athena is wreaking havoc in Tokyo then an alliance between Lancelot and Godou is guaranteed. Would we look at that battle, then her side definitely has the upper hand.
Even better yet, because Kusanagi Godou will leave the battlefield so too will the surveillance of the heavenly reverse halberd, giving Guinevere the perfect chance to steal it.
"Hmm… sir Knight, Guinevere shall leave to obtain the seventh king as an ally. Please hold on for a while longer, and the resurrection of our lord will be within reach!"
Just as Guinevere wants to leave she hears a voice calling out to her: "Before you go and speak with the seventh king, how about you have a talk with the eighth king first?"
There, from the direction of the voice, a human girl who looks the same age as Guinevere. Short brown hair, ordinary clothes, and gives off the power of… an…
No.
No!
Nononononono!
"An eighth? An eighth?!" Of all the stupid, absurd, dumb, asinine, foolish, insane, preposterous, moronic things that could've ruined Guinevere's plans, this is what happens?! In a timespan of less than a month since she last checked a new king was born, and in Japan of all places! There are no words capable of describing this ridicule!
Guinevere quickly realizes her anger, and subdues it for the sake of her own goals. "My apologies for the sudden outburst, your majesty. I, Guinevere, offers her congratulations to the newest king. It saddens me to say that I am afraid our joy will have to be cut short, as another god and godslayer are wreaking havoc in this city. My loyal guardian knight is keeping them at bay, but he might get overwhelmed at any moment. Guinevere beseechs you to stop these villains from ruining your country!"
"So you want me to stop them so you can revive the [King of the End]?" Uh oh… she is aware of Guinevere's plans… "Sorry, but I'm not interested in waking up sleeping gods, and rather put a stop to your ambition."…and to make matters worse this newest king decides to oppose the followers of the strongest steel.
"Tsk." Guinevere is angered by this development. The existence of this evil king is the reason that everything went wrong! However, such anger cannot be shown to the enemy. "Very well then, your highness. Guinevere know when she is outmatched, so she will retreat in loss. My final request will be that you allow the two of us to retreat without harm."
Yes, there is no reason to stay here. Fall back, regroup, and devise a new plan that includes the changed factors.
"Of course, I do not plan to use my powers against someone who is neither god nor godslayer, and I'm also not interested in causing unnecessary strife." Good, she is another moronic king who does not realize the danger that Guinevere truly is! "But if I let you go now you will simply try to awaken that god another time."
Shit, she possesses at least some form of strategic sense! "Your highness, how would one sneak unnoticed through a country protected by two kings? It is impossible for me to reach my lord with two guards of your caliber!"
"Then if it is impossible for you, give up." Shizuka's words seem to contain a glimmer of hope, but it all comes down wither next sentence: "There's magic in this world that can force even kings and deities to hold their oath. Make such a pact with me. Swear to never meddle with the resurrection of your lord, and I will protect you from all harm. Not even Gascoigne will lay a finger on you. Live a happy and ordinary life, free of the sorrows of the past."
To Shizuka this sounds reasonable. She has no interest in killing, so if a peaceful solution like this can work then she will avoid both current and future combat.
Guinevere on the other hand thinks the exact opposite. That is impossible. Absolutely impossible. There is nothing to live for other than reviving that devil-slaying god. Such an existence would be living hell, an eternal hell on earth! Constantly reviving but never able to fulfill her desires. However, she does not want to give up. That is also absolutely impossible.
"Guinevere will have to accept your terms. Pray tell, how do you want to make such a pact, because that has never been a skill in my repertoire." The first step that needs to be taken is to stall for time, hoping that Lancelot can quickly protect her.
"I'm honestly not that knowledgeable about these kind of rituals, but I'm certain that my friends from the History Compilation Committee do know how such a ritual can be performed. If I make a call here I'm certain that they're willing to help me with this."
This is both good and bad for the divine ancestor. If things go right then Guinevere has at least an hour or so before she has to make her oath, giving Lancelot enough time to rescue the maiden just like he did in the stories against Maleagant {3}.
She tells the story to her knight, and gives respectful advice about how they need to create a turnabout: The grail must be activated for the sake of draining Athena's energy. Then the divine lance must be used to scatter her ally. After that Lancelot must return to Guinevere and protect her from harm.
But the knight's response is not good. No golden light fills the sky, proof of her success. No, the report that Lancelot brings back is the opposite:
"It would seem that our foes managed to form a strategy against our trump card. The connection between grail and lance is sealed. Unless the cause is destroyed one will be unable to wield this weapon freely."
Shizuka looks at Guinevere's face, reading her emotions to get some understanding of what her opponent is doing. If what Athena claims is true then the reason for this is probably pretty simple. "I'm afraid that the grail is unusable for the moment. I put a boundary between the grail and this world, so that won't work anymore." The goddess Shizuka slew is Nu Wa, the one who keeps heaven and earth separated by using the four legs of the great turtle. Separating something like this can be done quite easily by using part of the power of [Water]. But that is not all Shizuka sees: "But you never had any intention of following my plans, did you? The only reason you accepted my offer is because you wanted to stall for time."
Oh snap… busted. "Correct. I could never accept such offer, for it goes against everything I stand for. My only purpose is to resurrect my beloved lord. There is nothing else in life besides him, and making said oath is akin to condemning myself in eternal hell." There's no denying that this king is of the more intelligent kind like her eternal enemy, and bluffs don't seem to work anymore. In that case, face the enemy with dignity. "I, Guinevere, will not betray the love she holds for her king!"
"The grip of love, huh?" That emotion only seems to make Shizuka's live more and more difficult. "I'm sorry, Guinevere, but all that is left for you is to fight me. If the two of us fight… you should already know the outcome of such battle."
No escape routes left. No cavalry coming to save Guinevere. In other words this is a complete, absolute defeat for her. Certain victory for this young king… Except for one thing; one mistake that the godslayer made:
"Yes, Guinevere knows how such a battle would end, but there is one mistake you made. While it is true that I cannot even hope to defeat you as I am now, were I to sacrifice my immortality to the [Seal of Snakes and Dragons] even someone like me can defeat a fledgling Campione like you!"
Do not press a desperate foe too hard {4}.
-x-
This is irking. Lancelot does not like this situation at all. "The link between Excalibur and holy grail has been sealed, and the beloved child has been forced to turn to the [Seal of Snakes and Dragons]. Were this knight a god of wisdom like Athena this crisis could've been averted. However, one only knows to foolishly charge at the enemy, so strategic loss was unpreventable." Even though he is fully aware that he was just dealt a heavy blow his tone is still jolly, as if what just happened does not matter at all.
The knight charges at his foe, forcing the enemy to go on the defensive. The problem is that Lancelot can never charge at both his foes at the same time, the two allies always staying on the opposite side of the other. If Lancelot charges at Gascoigne then Athena will strike the white knight with stone arrowheads. If he charges at Athena then Gascoigne's godspeed cannot be prevented with normal ease.
The problem itself is simple: Either Lancelot's side has too little members, or there are too many enemies. The latter cannot be changed that easily with the way Lancelot is fighting. The former, on the other hand…
Lancelot gallops away into the sky, so high that it's like he is but a speck. With only the light of the moon falling on Lancelot it is almost impossible to see him, only the enhanced senses of a godslayer and the traits of a goddess of darkness allowing Lancelot's opponents to keep track of him.
Both Athena and Gascoigne know that Lancelot is planning something, but are not willing to stop it. Even with his usurped authorities Gascoigne cannot form a successful attack that high, and while Athena does have the power of flight entering Lancelot's territory alone is simply foolish.
The duo stares at the sky, where the white speck turns into a curtain of grey that is blocking out the moon.
"A thundercloud?" Gascoinge wonders aloud as he tries to perceive what's behind this new tactic of his enemy. "No, that's not it…"
"…that war god summoned his army!" Athena finishes, realizing just what Lancelot has done.
That is indeed what Lancelot had done upon reaching the summit of the sky. He manifested his bow and arrows and threw them to his sides. Both the bow to his left and the arrows to his right started to shatter into pieces, and those pieces into more fragments, continuing on and on like that for a short while.
"An order to the heroes who follow this knight on his path. Come out, be reborn, and enter this battle as reinforcements. For the sake of slaying king and deity we shall charge forward. Undoubting, unrelenting, never turning back! Go forward, and crush what stands in our way!"
After finishing the words of power the remnants of the bow and arrows stopped shattering, now taking on the shape of slightly more than two hundred knights, each clad in gray armor and saddled on an equally grey horse.
What the purpose is of these knights becomes obvious after Lancelot speaks only a single word: "Charge!" Upon hearing the order the army of grey descends, ready to attack their targets.
Faster and faster, until it looks like a shower of meteors, their power increasing with every meter they move down. When Lancelot did this charge alone back in Europe it had enough power to create a crater more than a mile wide. Now backed up by an army, how big will the catastrophe for Tokyo be?
A third on the way down the group splits in two. Lancelot, leading around a third of the troops, alters its course slightly so he is on the path to the prince of lightning. The other knights are aiming for the queen of darkness, trying to make their [Steel] slay [Earth] once more.
While the troops targeting Athena attack randomly and in disorder, those led by Lancelot take up formation for the sake of slaying Gascoigne. Of course, this is all according to plan for the white war god. If one were to compare the defenses of these two combatants then the dark queen relies on the immortality of earth and her own innate power to block the attacks of her opponents, while the black prince focuses on trapping his enemies in situations they cannot escape from, and if that fails evade with his godspeed. Lancelot is not trapped, so if that speed can be negated somehow then killing that Campione is like shooting fish in a barrel!
Then there is Athena who blocks through pure force, which can be exemplified with her famous shield [Aegis]. She will face the attack head on and negate it through her own power. In other words, tactics like that are meaningless in a battle of power. The only thing that will help to increase the chances of killing that goddess is to increase the amount of knights aiming for her life!
The majority of the knights charge to slay Athena, and the minority follow Lancelot, forming a net around Gascoigne to trap and kill him.
Athena and Gascoigne realize the peril they are in, that this attack is well thought out by their enemy. But does that mean that this attack is enough to slay them?
No, of course not.
Unbeknownst to one another both of them give a small smirk, as they have made up their plan to deflect and defeat this attack. Yes, defeating Lancelot in this situation is difficult but possible.
Their mouths open, each speaking the sacred words of their next authority…
-x-
What stands there in front of Shizuka is not human anymore: Silvery-white scales; Large white wings; A tail covered in sharp fins; Claws on all four limbs, sharp enough to decapitate even the gods; A reptilian head that does not hold any mercy; For the sake of slaying the youngest king, Guinevere has taken on the form of a white dragon!
For that purpose, along with reviving her lord, Guinevere has forfeited her life to temporarily regain her lost divinity. Thus, this will be the first and last battle between Shizuka and Guinevere. Even if Guinevere wins, her death will follow close by.
However, that doesn't matter. The path to resurrecting the [King of the End] is still open. First slay this youngest king, destroying her hold over the Holy Grail; Then find Kusanagi Godou for the sake of using him against Athena; Activate the path to the grail for the sake of draining Athena; Let Lancelot use divine spear Excalibur to slay its natural enemy, the godslayers in this country; With Guinevere's last powers she must obtain the heavenly reverse halberd; Use the halberd to summon the island containing the sleeping king, and the last step is waking him up.
Yes, bringing about a new era is still possible! For his sake Guinevere starts her offense. The wings on her back spread, flapping loudly. But unlike what one expects from dragons this does not make Guinevere soar in the sky. Instead a vortex of wind forms around Guinevere, quickly turning into a cyclone. Violent winds sweep through the neighborhood, uprooting trees and blowing away roof tiles from the nearby houses.
The winds that fly around Shizuka are not strong enough to harm her, but that is not the purpose of these winds. These carry a curse strong enough to even affect Campione.
"Stopping me from moving, Guinevere?" As if there are iron chains covering Shizuka's entire body, preventing her from making any form of motion. Shizuka could perhaps move if she focuses all the magic energy on her own body, dispelling the curse… but that would cost her her entire focus, preventing her from using any authorities.
"Of course, Godslayer!" The dragon answers, still with Guinevere's original voice. "As most kings are slippery bastards who wade through even the most powerful attacks, stopping them in their tracks is the most effective way of dealing with them." Power gathers in Guinevere's mouth, preparing herself for a deathly breath of doom. "Now hold still and I will make your death painless."
"As if I've any intention of dying here!" The stone of fire is still by Shizuka's side. What she needs now is something that can offer both mobility and offense; A tool to evade and a weapon to attack. In other words, a powerful mount.
The stone she holds is [Fire]. It is associated with all avian animals, allowing her to summon all kinds of divine birds. Combining the elements of fire and bird…
There's obviously only one beast that comes to the imagination.
"Guardian of kings, ruler of birds! Your name is Feng Huang!" Shizuka creates the spell for her intended summon, preparing a powerful beast to her side: "Protector of the south, wielder of the vermillion flames! Your name is Suzaku! Immortal bird who rises from his ashes, the absolute symbol of renewal! Your name is Phoenix!"
The ground underneath Shizuka first starts to glow black like ash, before becoming like searing flames. Unlike normal flames these do not hurt Shizuka, feeling more like the comforting warmth of a hearth. Suddenly a large bird appears from underneath Shizuka, big enough that she gets automatically mounted. The bird takes her high in the sky, and for good reason: Where Shizuka just stood is suddenly attacked by a massive frozen beam of death.
Bird and fire have always been a famous combination, with many countries all having a different take on it: From Japan's Suzaku, to China's Feng Huang, or Europe's Phoenix, Egypt's Bennu, Vietnam's Phung, Persia's Simorgh and Russia's aptly named firebird. While there are some slight differences between each incarnation, they are all rulers of the sky who manipulate soaring flames. This king of birds will not be stopped by some measly constraining winds, and since Shizuka is riding him she is also able to move around freely.
And that is not the only advantage Shizuka has. As Shizuka correctly deduced these wings of Guinevere, while capable of creating a vortex, are not able to lift a dragon's massive body weight. While the serpent is stuck to move in two dimensions on the ground Shizuka can move freely in all three!
"So that is your authority? Guinevere sees that that bird of yours is a powerful divine beast, but do not think that your little pet is invincible!" The bird is resistant to wind, and fire is obviously out of the question. It flies too high to be attacked with a physical attack, so that leaves only one weapon for the dragon: "That firebird of yours is famous for rising from its own ashes, being a perfect immortal. However, what would happen if I completely freeze him over? Wouldn't he drop to the ground like a stone?"
Guinevere charges her ice beam again, trying to hit the flying creature. Shizuka does not want to get hit by that, having seen how the previous beam destroyed an entire living block. Another problem is that even a single hit from that beam, even as a scratch, might prove fatal.
The bird she is riding cannot be summoned by anyone else, because it is an amalgamation of several different deities and beasts. The only overlap is that it is a bird who can manipulate fire, so the other unique abilities are much less developed, including the bird's resurrection. Perhaps it has some regeneration, but Shizuka doubts that it can actually recover from being encased in ice.
The first beam fires, but Shizuka and the bird completely evade it. Getting hit even once is fatal, so dodging is of the highest priority. The second highest is to destroy the dragon, so the firebird is ordered to attack in between the beams of ice. Fireballs form under the phoenix' wings, and they shoot out to hit Guinevere.
Perfect hit! All of them landed! Guinevere didn't even try to dodge!
…
And that is because Guinevere had no reason to dodge. The fire, while powerful, only managed to give small burn marks where they hit.
"No effect, huh?" Shizuka asks herself aloud as she looks at the nearly unharmed form of her opponent. Did she make a mistake? Her authority has a limited amount of energy to work with, so creating a perfect being is impossible. Did she focus too much on evasion, causing the bird's attack power to drop?
"Is that all, godslayer? I, Guinevere expected something more powerful from the likes of you! It seems that this is your limit!" Guinevere continues to fire her breaths of ice, still trying to hit her opponent. Shizuka is forced to dodge more, forced to stay on the defensive.
"Limit? I'll just have to hit harder next time!" Bigger fireballs are shot, but still Guinevere does not want to dodge Shizuka's attacks, the attack only causing slightly bigger burns.
No, it's not that she does not want to dodge. If possible, even minor attacks should be evaded if taking them head-on gives no advantage. It's that Guinevere traded in all her reflexive speed and dodging capabilities for pure defensive power!
As the battle stands now Shizuka has no effective way to attack Guinevere, her body still paralyzed by the cursed winds and her mount unable to do any form of effective damage against Guinevere. On the other hand, Guinevere is not fast enough to land a hit on the ruler of the skies, making both sides unable to destroy their enemy.
Is this what they call a stalemate?
-x-
The army of grey knights rapidly descends upon Alexandre and Athena, but they both have a way of dealing with this menace:
"Temporary deaths. Stone coffins. Such is also the ancient mother's power. Knights of the war god, rememberest thy origin as lifeless metal!" Athena suddenly grows taller, going from a prepubescent girl to a woman of eighteen years of age. At the same time her eyes turn darker than the night, darker than the color black itself.
Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Petrify. Whatever stands in the way of the immortal queen will be turned to stone. The vanguard of the knights aimed at her turn rigid immediately, turning them from brave warriors into mere stone projectiles. The magic from their bodies leave, and what is left is not strong enough to harm the ruler of the night.
The line behind these knights become stone as well, becoming like tiny meteors that will not harm Athena. The row behind them too stop living for they are also struck by this curse.
However, every knight behind them stay in perfect shape, as if not hit by the curse at all!
Of the 140 knights send after Athena at least 50 have been turned into harmless stone, but their sacrifice is not in vain. Using the fallen knights as shields to guard against these mystic eyes the remaining galloping warriors manage to evade being petrified!
"Kuh! 'tis to be expected, war god Lancelot, thy servants are as foolhardy as thyself, yet wise on the fields of war! But dost not underestimate this queen, for this one is not done yet!" [Curse of Petrification] managed to clean up around a third of the knights. Another spell needs to be used to blunt the attacks of these raging knights. [Death] will not work, for these knights cannot be considered alive to begin with;
Athena goes past all of her authorities, but there is nothing that can wipe out these knight easily. There is only one conclusion left:
If Athena cannot deal with them, then she has to let them attack. What needs to be changed is not the power of the attack facing her, but the target of these knights!
"Under the epithet of Athena Aethyia one declares her victory over the waters. Under the epithet of Athena Polias one declares her victory over Poseidon. Come, compass one and obeyest thy queen!"
Divine words for an authority not often used by Athena. The trinity goddess quickly moves in a single leap to the sea, and within a second she stands still on the waves, at least a hundred meters out of the coastline. Of course, this level of evasion is not enough. The knights act like homing missiles, slightly altering their course to strike where Athena has repositioned herself.
"One shall not falter before the advance of my enemies. Come, knights of steel. Athena hereby swears, thou shalt not bring one harm!"
A shied of darkness forms, manifesting itself as the legendary [Aegis]. The most famous of shields, and without doubt powerful in its own right.
Holding up the shield in front of her enemies Athena intends to block all strikes from this army.
The army stays hidden behind the statues of their petrified brethren, not looking at what is ahead. Striking Athena is their intention, destroying everything in her surroundings.
The knights strike, but those aimed at Athena do not break through. Athena's shield does not bow down before these warriors.
But does it matter?
Athena made a fatal mistake: She only protected herself, while the descend of these warriors can destroy the whole area! The knight slam into the water, expecting to cause a massive explosion…
Only to pierce right through it.
Normally falling from such height on water is the same as slamming into concrete, and would release all of the energy held within the knights. But this, it is as if there is no water at all, as if the water has become air!
Athena understands, knowing perfectly well the trick she just performed. The only quality of this water she changed is the density of the water. Through magic all water around Athena is just as easily maneuverable as through air, causing the knights to continuously move downward until they hit the bottom of the sea. There they create a massive explosion that severely alters the landscape of the seafloor, much to the anger of all future marine biologists.
"Brave serpents, thy territory has been invaded. Acceptest thou this? Nay! Slaughter the trespassers, smite them with divine fury!" Turning the water around her back to normal Athena releases a tenfold of sea snakes in the water, each at least ten meters long. While the power of numbers is normally a key factor that should mean loss for the ten snakes against the eighty divers, terrain and movement advantages turn it into a slaughterfest in favor of Athena.
That just leaves ten knights for Athena to defeat. Athena summons a bow and arrows in her hands, ready to shoot them all down.
On the other side of the battle Gascoigne also made his plan to evade the sixty knights and Lancelot. Surprisingly enough it is a rather simple plan compared to Athena's attack, a tactic more expected from another of his peers.
"Fly through the water, swim in the sky! The eternally hidden queen, appear to my aid!"
The knights keep on descending, but their formation is rudely disrupted by a new monster:
A beautiful female with the lower body of a mermaid and white wings on her back. She stands about fifteen meters tall, and two spears are held in her hands. Instead of having her being part of some trap the giant slams into the descending knights, dislocating their formation and destroying any semblance of order.
With agile movement that female giant picks out the leader of the knights, the only one clad in white instead of gray.
"Uoooooh!" Lancelot lets out a shout of surprise, being pushed towards the middle of the bay. "Hoho… Gascoigne, you truly managed to take this knight by surprise, never did one expect you to challenge one in a battle of power!"
Yes, it's an unorthodox tactic nobody really saw coming, but it's surprisingly effective. Probably the only reason it works is that nobody but Alec himself expects him to use such a crude move.
Alec doesn't spill any words about the war god's words as he deals with the rest of the knights. Turning into his avatar of lightning he easily escapes the thirty or so knights who were not hindered by the authority he obtained from heretic Melusine. Since the remnants lack any form of teamwork destroying them one on one at godspeed is entirely possible, the defeated enemies falling down on the ground like harmless rubble. Eventually not a single knight manages to impact with ground or king, and with that Tokyo is saved… temporarily.
Ten… twelve… seventeen knights are left from the original sixty, these not being destroyed by the gigantic water spirit nor Alec's godspeed. Should be doable. Looking over at his ally he sees Athena facing even fewer enemies. It seems that all is going well for them.
Time to turn some knights into scrap metal.
-x-
The fight between Shizuka and Guinevere did not advance anywhere in the previous minutes. Guinevere still stands firmly on the ground while Shizuka and her firebird are flying fifty meters above the ground.
Guinevere tries to hit Shizuka, but not a single beam hits the godslayer riding her bird. The more energy she wastes on fighting and destroying the less she has left for waking her king up. If possible, killing her target quickly is the best solution.
Shizuka has the same type of problem: Her phoenix launched many attacks, trying to repeatedly strike the same area for increased damage, but the vortex of wind and the light movement of the dragon decrease her accuracy and prevent any significant damage to form on the dragon's body. Shizuka's time is even more limited than Guinevere: A divine beast like this one will only last for a few minutes, ten at most. Half of that time is already gone, and from what Shizuka feels the maximum time her bird has left is a minute or three.
This would normally not be a problem, as Shizuka can normally switch to another stone and prepare another attack. However, as long as these cursed winds exist Shizuka cannot move and use authorities at the same time. Perhaps if she was well-versed in magic, and trained to the point that she can alter her flow of magic… perhaps then she could use only the bare minimum to escape this curse instead of being forced to let it all out. Since this isn't the case the battle must be finished quickly, or else Shizuka will certainly lose.
As Shizuka fires another volley of flames the dragon counters by shooting her beam of ice again. Fire and ice hit each other, creating a pool of water that for a brief moment hangs still in the air…
…and doesn't drop to the ground.
"Too bad, godslayer! While I may have transformed into a dragon of wind and ice, the element I'm most attuned to is that of water! Now water, Guinevere hereby decrees: become my blades and strike down the arrogant godslayer of the east!" Upon Guinevere's command the water transforms, its form mutating. The water splits into multiple orbs, each of these spheres elongating until they take the shape of a javelin. At least twenty of these weapons appear, and they are all aiming to strike down the godslayer.
Of course, while a powerful attack it is still only a high level form of mortal magic. The water would simply dissipate before piercing Shizuka. On the other hand, for the sake of slaying a divine beast this spell works perfectly, and without her mount this Campione is defenseless!
The phoenix tries to dodge, but to no avail: while most of the spears can be dodged three of them manage to puncture the left wing of the royal bird.
These wounds would be easily curable by the real phoenix, the king of regeneration. However, this is a fake running on a limited amount of energy. If Shizuka were to heal these wounds of her ride then the energy would run out even faster and the bird's remaining time would shorten dramatically.
The wound is going to be deadly. Even through Shizuka tries to make him do otherwise the bird cannot keep its altitude without dropping his master. Slowly they descend toward the ground, moving towards that dragon with sharp claws, razor teeth, a destructive tail, and many more close-ranged weapons of destruction. If she gets close to her opponent it will be an instant game over for the youngest king.
To make matters worse Guinevere doesn't bask in her victory like a supervillain you see in comic books, instead deciding that as long as her opponent is not dead yet it cannot hurt to continue firing beams of sheer cold at your enemy.
Just when Shizuka thought her luck couldn't get any worse her mount gets scratched by the dragon's breath, part of the right wing now being completely frozen in ice.
No, this bird cannot fulfill its function anymore. It has become too slow, too fragile to perform its task as Shizuka's divine beast. There's only one final task that this beast can do, before it will disappear from existence.
"For even immortal life shines the brightest right before its final death!" Final spell words for [Fire], a final act to end this play. The bird, which used to move at fast velocities, now hangs completely still directly above Guinevere. "The final spark that will blaze away all opponents!"
The bird transforms, no longer taking on the form of a majestic bird. Flames, pure flames, meant to be the final attack that annihilates the draconic witch queen. The flames shoot downwards, trying to consume that overgrown lizard whole.
"Hah, this final spark of yours is exactly that, king: a spark! These flames will not defeat me!" Of course, if the stone was used just like back in Niseko then the attack would be a lot more powerful, perhaps even strong enough to defeat Guinevere. But now, after most of its energy was used for the sake of maintaining the form of a phoenix? It is only natural that the energy of these flames is lower. "This is your end, godslayer! Perhaps you would've stood a chance if you were more experienced, but too bad! That moment will never come!"
The flames are not breaking through the skin of the dragon. In other words, the final attack of the firebird has failed. Shizuka's final attack has failed.
"And that's what you've gotten wrong, Guinevere! Let me say the same thing right back to you: Perhaps you would've stood a chance if you had more common sense, but too bad! That moment will never come!" Shizuka is still falling down, but she is moving! And why is there another stone in Shizuka's hand, this time the stone representing the serpent's natural enemy [Steel]?!
"H-How?!" How can she move through these cursed winds and at the same time manifest her powers? "How can you be unaffected by my curse?"
"Didn't I tell you, Guinevere?" Shizuka starts to speak in a lecturing tone, as if admonishing a child. "Your lack of common sense is your undoing! Don't you know the saying 'To be in the eye of the storm'? Within the eye of a tornado there is no wind, that's a fact even a grade schooler would know! If you had even a little bit of common knowledge you wouldn't let me get right above you, but you did! That is why you lose!" Of course, a grade schooler probably doesn't understand the Coriolis forces {5} behind this phenomenon, but one should still have a rudimentary understanding of this fact!
"Damn!" Guinevere realizes her mistake, but is not allowing Shizuka to grab this chance. The breath of ice is almost ready, and since this king is in free fall she cannot dodge the attack.
"Too late, Guinevere!" According to Athena [Steel] desecrates [Earth]. Even the most basic books on magic call dragons manifestations of [Earth] itself. In other words, this stone is the perfect weapon for slaying Guinevere. The moment Guinevere allowed her opponent to draw this weapon she couldn't win anymore. "Dragon-slaying steel, your enemy has arrived! Go and destroy what stands in your way!"
The black stone starts to shine brightly as silvery-grey metal blades appear from the stone and rain down upon the serpent. One of the blades slices straight through Guinevere's neck, causing her to lose focus and completely miss her last beam of frozen death. More and more blades form, until it looks like Guinevere is hit by a silver meteor shower.
A painful cry is given off by Guinevere, inviting herself to the afterlife she will soon go to. But even that sound is completely overshadowed by that of steel ripping flesh and stone.
This attack has caused a definite end to this battle. Shizuka lands on the ground near the dragon, and while it is somewhat painful to fall so many meters her superhuman body doesn't even have a single broken bone, just a few bruises.
Shizuka gets up, standing proud in front of her defeated opponent.
The fight is over, Shizuka has won!
-x-
Lancelot is still struggling against that giant flying mermaid. While recovered from the sudden attack he still has some trouble getting the fight back to his own tempo. While the swings of this mermaid are already dangerous enough to harm steel it doesn't help that she also has a knack for conjuring spears.
Really, a fishwoman throwing spears as if she is in a bullet hell game {6}, what kind of insane person comes up with those things?
Lancelot's gallant steed dodges the incoming barrages, but cannot find an opening against this opponent. The fish acts arrogant, not even looking at her opponent, acting as if he isn't worthy to stain the spirit's vision.
A poor choice if you ask Lancelot, but he will not discuss it. Robbing yourself of your vision is rather stupid battle tactic.
But even though she cannot see Lancelot her attacks are surprisingly accurate. It's as if she can still see him clearly. Perhaps this woman is using something other than sight? Hearing, smelling, feeling the flow of wind, or maybe something completely different?
Only one way to test it out. With a loud clang Lancelot starts to strafe around the water spirit, hoping to get to the face of this familiar.
It does not seem to work. Lances keep trying to slay the horse and its rider, manifesting from nowhere and attacking with deadly precision. Narrowly weaving their way through the sea of weapons the duo tries to reach the other side of this familiar, but they can only move slow enough that the water spirit can nimbly turn around at the same pace. And so it continues, Lancelot keeps dodging, and his opponent keeps his face on the exact opposite of them…
…until it all comes to a sudden halt. The water spirit looks with absolute horror at what stands before her:
A Caucasian girl with honey-colored hair and sky-blue eyes. A tall and slim build, and a face so exquisite it could belong to an angel. Her torso is covered in chain mail, and leather pants cover her long legs. For a woman, this body can be considered flawless.
But her beauty is not the problem. No, why is she standing here like that?
"Hoho, one finally understands. You cannot perceive this knight when one stands completely still." While the voice is certainly feminine now, the way of speaking only belongs to a single person. Can it be? This woman is Lancelot? The water spirit looks back at the horse, where she sees that the steed is only carrying Lancelot's white armor.
"Consider the shedding of armor a gift. It's a secret this knight only tells to those who will not live to survive the tale." Lancelot summons a spear in his, no, her hands. She's fully intent on piercing right through her opponent's face, destroying the familiar and taking her completely out of the battle.
But that is not necessary. Just as Lancelot is ready to start the charge the water spirit puts her hands before her face and flies upward to the heavens. Since her face has been seen this beast will be unsummoned, the one and only restriction on this authority.
Lancelot looks at the disappearing authority. It's a pity that Lancelot cannot turn this in a grandiose fight, but since there are still enemies left she has no time to complain. Not intending to keep her secret out in the open any longer she goes over to her mount and dons the white armor once more, so that "he", Lancelot, can challenge his two opponents once more.
Over at the beach Alexandre kills his last enemy before looking at to the other two battles. Athena has successfully managed to kill her enemies, meaning that Lancelot's authority has failed to succeed its purpose. The other battlefield is slightly less positive, since the authority he obtained from Melusine has just been unsummoned, while Lancelot looks pretty much unharmed.
Sure, this was to be expected. That fishwoman is better for surprise attacks and distractions then she is for prolonged battle. However, Gascoigne had hoped to unsummon her on his own terms because now he has to wait a full day before he can use this authority again.
The godslayer sees that there is a small period of rest in this battle, the moment where the first round of battle flows in the second. The two gods also see that the battle has come to a temporary halt.
Lancelot lets his steed rest as it moves in a slow trot, sparing energy for the next round. Just like a horse Lancelot too is a deity best suited to temporary powerful attacks rather than emitting a constant force. Athena also accepts the quick rest so she can let it all out in the next round of this fight. While her ally has lost temporary use over one authority, the battle is still in favor to the queen and prince… especially since the other battlefield has been decided.
Not surprising, that pathetic [Seal of Snakes and Dragons] is a mere stopgap that doesn't compare to the real deal like Athena.
"War god Lancelot. One hast felt the conclusion of the other battle." Walking back to the shoreline Athena starts some small talk with her mortal enemy. Lancelot follows close by, his horse moving at a leisurely pace.
"Indeed, indeed. One has lost here, completely and utterly. Whether one lives or dies, whether one slays you or not, this knight and his beloved child will lose the battle, while Gascoigne, Athena and your ally will have absolute victory." The knight simply points out the truth while keeping his jolly tone. Even if the objective is lost, then lose in a blaze of glory and power! Victory only places second after the joy of battle!
"So now that Guinevere is slain, what will you do, Lancelot?" Athena is standing close to her ally again, who has taken over the word. "While personally defeating Guinevere has been my original plan, I cannot say that this utter despair for her dissatisfies me. Lancelot, why don't you simply retreat? I've had enough battle for today, and I'm not interested in taking more action then necessary."
It's a clear taunt with no other meaning then that, since all three combatants know that Lancelot will never retreat from his enemy. "Ha. One should not give a known answer. To battle Europe's queen of gods, and at the same time fight Britain's great godslayer; No greater challenge exists than this! This knight hereby swears: We shall create a duel forever remembered by history, the grand battle at the grave of one's lord!"
Lancelot is ready to use his authority, but suddenly he decides not to. There is something wrong. From the direction where Guinevere lost her life, there is something that is very wrong…
-x-
Guinevere is slain, no doubt about that fact. The dragon-slaying steel landed numerous hits on her, a complete massacre.
The colossal body of the dragon is already crumbling into bits of sand, just being muddy enough not to be blown away by the wind. There seems to be still some consciousness in the sand, but that won't last long.
Shizuka is done here, her part of the mission fulfilled. There is no need to enter another battlefield right now, as Shizuka will only add more mayhem to the fight. She just has to kick back, relax, and wait until everything's finished. Black prince Alec will return home with the grail, Athena will die content and Japan is saved from a crisis. Everything has been taken care of.
"…won't… let you…" Except that there is one thing still in the way. The sand of the dragon, the one just slain, gathers together. Did Guinevere use her last strengths to perform some kind of magic spell?
"Give up, Guinevere. This love story of your has ended in a tragedy. You won't resurrect your king."
"Indeed… Guinevere admits her defeat in that matter." Spoken in resignation, the sand remodels itself back in the shape of Guinevere. Is this some sort of revival spell that she just used? Even if it is something like that, it's only temporary, because that new body of hers is so unstable it won't even last ten minutes. "I will not see him again for a long time, and resurrecting him will have to be left in less trustworthy hands. But there is still something this maidservant can do for her liege."
Shizuka looks at these final cries of a dying girl, not seeing any treat in it. She simply stands nearby, hearing the last will of this divine ancestor.
"Soon there will come a day that his highness will walk the earth once again, slaying all godslayers on earth. However, Guinevere believes that she should at least lighten his burden. That will be the last thing this loyal follower will do for him!"
Magic power gathers, a massive amount flows in Guinevere's body. More and more, an amount that would be toxic to normal mages, even a Divine Ancestor should have the rest of her life force eroded. But Guinevere is already dead, so no matter how much she gathers it will not change when she dies.
"O water, descend from the heavens!" The final attack of a cornered animal is the most dangerous moment of its entire life. Guinevere is planning to take down Shizuka with her!
The area around the two girls has already turned into rubble from the previous fight, so there is no need to protect the surroundings. Using the stone of water to summon the rest of the turtle as a disposable shield will do perfectly.
But Guinevere does not seem intent to spend her energy on a final big explosion, even though Shizuka gets the feeling she's planning something like that. No, the energy takes a formless shape, something unperceivable but existing.
"O loyal knight, o perfect knight! This servant apologizes for troubling you, but the devils of this era are running rampant." It can't be, is Guinevere summoning a deity? "Guinevere asks you to hear her plea, for only you can succeed my wishes. For the sake of slaying this king Guinevere beseeches you to come down once more!"
The magic energy flows down into Guinevere's body, a whole new power unlike anything Shizuka has seen before. The energy almost pushes Shizuka back, a powerful gust paving the way for this summoning.
Eventually the wind dies down, and Shizuka finds out that she actually was pushed away, now standing at a distance of around thirty meters away from the divine ancestor.
No, she cannot be called a divine ancestor anymore. That girl looks the same as before: The same long and blond curly hair; The same childish face and prepubescent body; The same black gothic lolita dress; If you simply look at her, there would be no way to call her any different from before. But the power radiating from Guinevere, it's like a tiny flame became a large burning fire.
Shizuka does not know what a divine spirit is, having never read any books on that subject nor heard people talking about it. She does not know what kind of trick Guinevere did nor what the precise results of that spell were. But one thing Shizuka does know. One thing she can say with absolute certainty:
That thing is not Guinevere anymore.
-x-
The other battlefield also notes the sudden new power joining the battlefield, their own continuation of battle being halted for a little bit longer as they want to see what exactly happened over there.
"Is this? Did yonder maidservant summon a heretic god to her side?" Athena wonders in surprise, before realizing the true form of the enemy. "No, one cannot summon a deity without sufficient preparations or materials, and she is found lacking both."
"In other words, Guinevere summoned a divine spirit." The black prince chimes in, also realizing what is happening. "If she has been driven to these tactics then she must be desperate. Turning into a dragon probably wasn't enough to defeat this Kusanagi, so now she resorts to this kind of trickery."
"That maidservant is done for. The [Seal of Snakes and Dragons] has been broken, and now said power has vanquished. Her corpse is deceased, ending its final play. That maiden's final fumes will not cause a turnabout."
"Correct, Athena: this knight will soon lose his foremost ally," Instead of speaking in his usual jolly tone Lancelot sounds different than ever before. For the first time ever the knight sounds annoyed. Is this because he finally lost his entire raison-d'être, with Guinevere dying on the battlefield? "but I'm afraid that it you are wrong about your last remark."
"Fufu, desecrating steel, thou truly believes hope shines for thy companion?"
"Yes, though one can only wonder what dire straits forced the beloved child to commit a crime so heinous. Most likely even summoning the divine spirit of my lord would not be enough to create victory. Perhaps it would be right to say that because there is no deity in heaven or earth capable of reversing the situation but him that she had to resort to calling upon that troublesome man."
Troublesome, a word uttered for the first time by Lancelot. Enemies are challenges, worthy opponents to be defeated. This is the first time Lancelot describes someone as troublesome, something reserved for this deity alone.
"For even the white knight to be so disgusted by his own ally, what could this dying gambit of Guinevere be?" Even Alec is intrigued by this new challenger.
"That is the divine spirit of the only deity that can overcome this trial, yet is also the only deity that this knight dislikes from the bottom of his heart. To make matters worse the beloved child summoned the most annoying version of this warrior. As much as one would like your ally to win this fight one is afraid that it will be my side to obtain victory over there." Lancelot brandishes his spear once more, a sign that combat is about to restart. Athena and Alec do the same, ready to enter round 2. Only a final sentence is spoken by the white war god to finish this chapter of the fight:
"How nostalgic yet infuriating. To think that the two of us are fighting on the same side once more. What do you say, Gawain?"
-x-
{1} Kisarasu City: A city in Kanto, but on the opposite side of Tokyo Bay compared to Tokyo. Here takes place the excavation of the reverse heavenly halberd, location-wise most likely at Sui Shrine in Kisarasu City.
{2} Cetan: Lakota deity of speed, perseverance, wind, determination, the east and immunity to blindness. Takes the form of a giant hawk.
{3} Malaegant: An obscure villain from the Arthur saga who abducted Guinevere. Lancelot rescued Guinevere together with Gawain, and the two then killed Malaegant.
{4} Sun Tzu, the art of war, chapter 7, verse 36.
{5} Coriolis force: Due to the rotation of the earth wind deflects from its original course, this power is named the Coriolis force. In tornadoes it deflects winds to the outside of the tornado, the eye wall, leaving the tornado's eye completely free of wind.
{6} Bullet hell games: A type of video game genre in which you dodge a really large amount of bullets. The most famous example these days is probably Touhou Project, but other famous examples are Ikaruga, the eXceed triology and DoDonPachi.
-x-
Welcome to the end of the fourth chapter.
Let us all hold a moment of silence for Guinevere, whose death is now pretty much inevitable.
If there are any fans of her, I apologize. This was simply the logical outcome of this battle when we consider the new circumstances.
I originally planned to put a long story here of around four hundred words explaining the entire situation, but then I realized that I could do it in two sentences:
-Guinevere managed to become a legitimate threat in volumes 9 and 10 because of manipulation and deceit, not because her side was a powerhouse.
-Guinevere got outwitted.
In other words, the turnabout magic didn't happen.
Compare it to Wei seeing through the plans of Wu and Shu at the battle of red cliffs, Finland missing the likes of Simo Hayha during the winter war or Nobunaga losing the war at Okehazama: If the superior tactic fails then the winner will be the one with the larger power, which this time is the anti-Guinevere alliance.
So yes, team Guinevere is losing, it's the only logical conclusion. However, this does not mean that [King of the End] will not awaken. For now, it will just be... delayed.