Chapter 189

Saber and Caster both ground to a stop behind Berserker as she halted in front of a set of doors, standing in front of a floating bird familiar constructed of glowing wires. The bird seemed to scrutinize the Servant for a moment, hovering in the air, then it turned and flew back to the door, dissolving into threads to squeeze through the thin cracks between the door frame and the door. An audible click sounded out, and Berserker pushed open the doors.

Within the room was a canopy bed that seemed to be almost triple a king size, with burgundy velvet drapes that hung loosely at the corners, tied by golden sashes attached to mahogany posts adorned with engravings topped with gold leaf. Deep within the lap of luxury, a small girl lay sleeping, white hair splayed across the wine-colored bed covers like a sun radiating light.

Unfortunately, the scene was ruined with her sleeping upside down, head at the footboard and feet at the headboards, and her sleeping gown was flipped all the way up. Pure white entered Caster and Saber's vision, before they averted their eyes out of respect. Deep down, they couldn't help but be reminded of their own sleeping habits when they were younger, but only Caster blushed, while Saber pushed down the embarrassment until it was no more.

Berserker's face may have remained blank, but the two Servants could sense an air of mischief around her as she knelt on the bed and crawled on her knees toward her Master, her hands coming up like she was scaring someone as the gloved fingers wriggled like worms, a shudder running up their spine.

Mercilessly, they dove into Illya's belly and defiled her skin, fingernails scrabbling across the surface as they muzzled her clothing, bunching her dress into heaps of fabric as her hands roamed to and fro all over her stomach, sides and belly, tickling her to high heaven.

With a comically high-pitched scream, Illya burst awake and scrambled as fast as she could out of Berserker's grasp, pillows flying into the air. In a flash, she went from lying spread out to huddling in a corner, back against the wall as she hissed at her own Servant.

"Illya-chan, we have visitors."

Her eyes met Saber and Caster's, then her demeanour changed. Detaching from the wall, her face shifted into a slight smile as she smoothed down her dress.

"Come here Berserker."

Obediently, the Servant went over, and promptly got her cheeks pulled as Illy grabbed them and pinched them in her hands.

"What's the meaning of this, bringing two Servants here? Huh?"

"Shey shaid sher Masher wash good ash cushing."

As her cheeks went back and forth from being pulled, Berserker plaintively spelled out her defense, making Illya sigh.

"Also, enemies are on the way."

Her eyes tightened, interconnected lines glowing across her body as she accessed the wards surrounding the forest, and running through it.

A second later, her Circuits lit up in an incandescent glow as a low rumble reached the four of them in the room, a minute trembling of the floor heralding the shattering of the magical barriers placed since the construction of the mansion to deter unwanted visitors.

Berserker rushed out without a word from Illya, carrying her Master on her shoulders as Saber and Caster ran behind her. In the span of a few minutes, they had reached the grand lobby at the entrance and burst through the open doors. There, they found a white haired maid and a familiar red-haired boy standing there.

""Shirou!""

"Leysritt! Where's Sella?"

"She's with Caster's Master, overseeing his recovery."

The maid answered her Master as the trio shared a short reunion.

All five pairs of eyes then turned to the dark, snow covered trees as they heard wind howling from the presence of a high-speed object hurtling through the air. The leafless branches rustled, snow powdering as it fell from the tops of the trees, creating a miniature snowfall within the forest as the trees shook. Then in a blast, the snow scattered in a great cloud in the wake of the travelling Servant, outlining her silhouette behind her as a line of trees collapsed in a line, the red carpet of her own making leading up to the mansion doors.

Saber heard Illya muttering something about reforestation under her breath, but she pushed aside the concerns she had about Berserker and her Master to the side to face the new threat.

As the moonlight landed on her face, she knew without doubt that it was Mordred, yet it also wasn't her at the same time. The eyes were distorted, a shade of tar and pitch that wriggled, reflecting the presence that inhabited the body.

Angra's lips curved into a smile as it saw all it's targets gathered in one place, a feast of mana big enough to empower itself and override the functions of the Grail that still resisted it's advances. One against three Servants was a bit dicey though, and it didn't pounce just yet. Backup was on its way, and it wasn't eager to wreck the body it had just recently acquired.

"Foul being, what have you done with Mordred!"

The armored Mordred from before was something she could still recognize as one of her knights, albeit with her mind clouded by something similar to Madness Enhancement like Lancelot had been, but now the sharp cunning in her eyes and indulgent smile was far from anything that a Berserker without it's intellect would show. The invisible sword in her hands clanked softly against her gauntlets as she stepped forward, eyes tight with controlled fury.

Seeing the emerald irises alight, Mordred chuckled.

"Who would have thought you would have feelings to spare for her."

There was no way to access Mordred's memories through the Throne of Heroes, but the legend of Arthur's fall was well-known, and there were times when Angra had 'taken a break' in the past, where it had come into contact with it.

For a brief second, Saber's mouth contracted into a thin line, the contours of her face shadowed, and then it reverted back to fury. None of them saw it, save for Angra who easily sensed the shadow passing over her heart.

"I wonder whether Mordred would be here too even if I wasn't using her body. I doubt she would have shied away from a confrontation with you, wouldn't you think so?"

Angra prodded Saber, trying to get a reaction out of her, as well as buying time for it's ally to arrive.

"That may be, but at least we would have a fair duel."

Behind her, Caster was already pulling out her catalysts and enchanting Berserker and Saber, golden swords shining in the night as strength like molten lead flowed through her body, power imbuing itself into her limbs and heightening her senses.

"A fair duel? I see why Kiritsugu hated you now."

"Kiritsugu?"

A confused voice from behind her coincided with the creaking of metal as she gripped the hilt a tad tighter, but she didn't turn around.

"I'll explain later Master, for now just stay behind me."

It could see it had struck a sore point with her, but it didn't have time to capitalize on it as she looked ready to charge forward. Mud starting pouring out the body's orifices, running streams of thick substance that made Shirou want to choke with it's rotten stench, which flowed and coalesced into solid forms as it morphed into Mordred/Angra's armor. Spikes, sharp edges and bandages appeared, with parts going so far as to perform self-inflicted damage on the wearer's body as they dug into the skin and drew blood. Stained bandages were wrapped everywhere, and a motley assortment of black tattooes without rhyme or reason rose to the surface on her previously unmarked skin, ridges, bruises, scars and bumps corresponding to the marks appearing as well. It was the body of someone who'd been dragged through the depths of hell and survived, a testament to the torture it had endured.

The sword Angra held dripped with the same, viscous ooze that had made her apparel as it lengthened, transforming from the longsword Clarent was into a jagged, shattered greatsword that looked ridiculous in size, comparable to the massive stone-axe that Heracles would have wielded if he were summoned here.

"Watch out!"

A twinkle in the distant mountains caught Berserker's eye, and then she was on the move.

Immediately, Berserker shielded her Master as both Caster and Saber moved to protect Shirou from the immense explosion that dug a crater into the ground right in front of them, Berserker spinning her dualsaber augmented with lightning to ward off the shockwave while Caster's swords took the brunt of the blow, along with a slight release of Invisible Air to assist.

When the dust had settled, Shirou was still clutching his ears, the super sonic boom rattling his hearing and producing a constant ringing, while Illya was faring slightly better due to forming a barrier around herself a fraction of a second after Berserker had shielded her, sparing her from the side-effects.

Feeling someone grab the back of his shirt, he stumbled along as he was pulled into the doorway of the mansion, dumped on the hard marble floor as his mind tried to make sense of what just happened.

Seeing his bewilderment, Caster knelt in front of him and concentrated, while Saber and Berserker kept watch at the doorway. Words were spoken, though Shirou could only see her mouth move, and the crystal on her staff glittered as mana flowed through it, then Shirou felt his senses gradually being restored.

"It was most likely Archer. We must have our guard up."

Archer? He was here? Why?

As these thoughts flashed through his head, Saber and Berserker were busy keeping an eye on a second attack, as well as their would be attacker Avenger, who appeared to have the same idea as them and was falling back into the forest. At the very least, it didn't seem like Archer and Avenger were allied, but at this distance, Archer held the absolute advantage against them.

Avenger clicked it's tongue at the interruption, a small growl escaping its throat as it reviewed it's options. With Archers involvement, it now became much more dicey, even with Lancer involved. Speaking of which, Lancer was supposed to be heading to her location at full speed a while ago, yet there hadn't been a single word from her for the past ten minutes.

A few miles outside the Einzbern territory, near the limits of Fuyuki city, streaks of azure and gleaming gold clashed with a vortex of shadow over and over, an unlimited exchange of blows at hyper speed as the two Servants collided in a deadly test of martial prowess. While one stayed almost immobile, an immovable fortress standing tall in the night, the other was like a fleet-footed wasp, stringing together countless strikes as her golden stinger weaved a web of fine golden light that surrounded the other as a glimmering net slowly tightening around her, though they were only high-speed mirages created from the dimness.

Amidst the furious combat, Lancer calmly deflected blow after blow from Assassin as she tried to contact her Master, to no avail. There didn't seem to be any Bounded Fields or Mystic Codes employed by the Master of Assassin, so what exactly was Kirei doing, to deliberately ignore her communications?

As she continued in her efforts to link up with the priest, she struggled to fight off Assassin and escape the perilous situation she was forced into. While she was invincible in a charge, she was unable to display her full power when faced with an extremely agile opponent who didn't even let her steed move an inch, attacking from every conceivable angle to prevent her from using her greatest advantage, her mount. Without it, she was reduced to normal swordplay while sitting on a horse, placing her at a further disadvantage as the lack of maneuvrability was especially damning against Assassin.

Already, she could feel the shallow stabs near her shoulder blades and waist sapping her strength, with a deeper cut on her thigh slowly healing as well. While they weren't life-threatening, she was unable to divert her focus into fully healing them with how rapid the Assassin was chaining her attacks, and it impeded her movement even more as they remained open.

Assassin turned on her heel and blitzed back in a 180 degree turn on the spot, nimbly stepping on the rear of the horse as she adjusted her angle just as the spike lance swept to her right, while her sword whipped around in her left hand to maim the lance-wielding arm.

Blood curved in a delicate arc that quickly disappeared as it fell to the ground, a cruel thorn gouging out the flesh from Assassins ribs. Her blade dimmed for a moment, the shades of golden fading to blue as it collided with the pillar of steel. Putting the brunt of her strength into her sword, the edge grinding across dark metallic ridges as sparks fell two weapons, a shrill shriek clawing at Assassin's ears as she bled.

Dirt and grass clung to her body as she tumbled on the ground, a thick wad of blood-churned dirt sticking to her soles as she sank her foot into the earth and kicked away from a burst of red lightning not dissimilar from what she remembered of Avenger. A quick left sidestep took her behind a tree that took the brunt of the blow as the bark fractured under the outpour of mana, raking the wood as it collapsed. The tree splintered into two, revealing empty air behind it as the crackling of branches echoed around the area, twigs snapping and snow crunching along with it.

Standing in the clearing, the slight itch of skin closing and flesh reknitting together kept her senses sharp as she surveyed the area, two feet on the ground. Behind her, the last glowing motes of her steed disappeared, leaving her alone as she spread her feet, taking a peculiar two handed stance with the lance as one hand went to the middle of the shaft, while the other remained on the grip. Un-summoning Llamrei was a one-time trick, leaving her with nothing but her lance and inherent abilities, deprived of her greatest strength. In this arena though, staying on the ground would give her a greater advantage.

A guttural growl issued forth as she dug her lance into the ground and twisted, a sharp blur churning the ground until a shower of dirt and snow was ripped from the earth in a circle around her.

Without slowing down, Assassin burst through the curtain of debris, even while her eyes struggled to track Lancer's movements through the clumps of brown and white filling her sight. The spiked back receded in front of her, only to be abruptly replaced by a jagged circle of earthy brown that rapidly grew in size.

*SWishVMM*

The fallen tree was sliced in half with surgical precision, the two halves creating a massive ruckus as they smashed through the rest of the forest behind Assassin, but she remained a step behind as the lance plunged from the skies in a spine-shattering dive, air wavering with visible vibrations in a cone while lightning split from the pointed tip.

For an instant, the two were locked in a standstill, the forces of gravity assisting the lance as Assassin defied it's efforts to crush her thin frame.

Burnished black metal met blistering plasma as her knees buckled, feet sinking into the dirt as the loose earth jumped from the impact, the surface of the ground rising for an instant. Mouth bared in a snarl, the luminous strips around wrapping her body pulsed brightly, a high-pitched yell tearing free from her throat as her arms swung like a baseball batter, the dark missile plowing into soft soil until it was buried to the hilt.

Her fingers, tightly clenched on the hilt glowed a dull red as blood flushed through the underside of her skin, and it burst into a deep crimson as her flesh wrung itself around the cylinder of metal, strength pumping into every fiber of her being as she brought the blade down in a ferocious overhead swing, a roar of wind splitting the air as the ground shook from her forward stamp.

Unfortunately, Lancer was already within her guard.

For a brief moment, her breath tingled on Assassin's cheek, lashes of gold trembling as cyan pupils slid downwards to meet her amber eyes.

Swifter than the eye could follow, two draconic dark gauntlets gripped her wrist and forearm, then the world spun 360 degrees as she felt her stomach try to fly out of her throat.

A solid impact abruptly made her feel like her intestines had actually come out, though only spittle and blood flew out of her gaping mouth. Her back, which sustained the brunt of the force, felt like it was stuffed with magma, and even more concerning was that she couldn't feel her legs. The sword lost its luster as it spiraled through the air in a pristine arc and embedded itself in a shattered stump, sliding cleanly in to the crossguard.

"Aughh…"

A croak was all she could manage, the last remnants of her breath escaping her lungs as she was summarily punched once, twice, thrice, a flurry of fists raining down as Lancer straddled her and pummeled her into the ground, her body literally sinking into the shifting soil as she became half-buried.

As the final blow landed, a crisp snap resounded in the clearing they made, and Assassin's dirt covered face twitched as a trickle of phlegm and blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. Getting to her feet, Lancer trudged over to where her weapon was embedded in the ground, turning her back on the cross-eagle hole. With a sharp yank, the tip came loose, clods of brown dirt falling from the trenches along the shaft.

Behind her, a pale hand was slowly raised aloft, trembling as it clasped the edges of the hole and clawed at the soil.

Running a hand over the lance, arcing rays of red energy crackled in its wake over the metal surface, breaking the remaining clumps of filth. Restored to its former state, she whipped it to the side, the clanking steel of her gauntlets against the hard shaft ringing in the air.

When she turned around, the bloody, battered body of Assassin standing next to the man shaped hole greeted her eyes.

A single breeze looked enough to knock her over as she slouched heavily to one side, both eyes barely open by a slit. Her arms hung loosely, as light as the cloth that still covered her body. Half her chest was exposed, the covering pulverized by Lancer's fists, ugly purple bruises were sprouting among the fresh patches of blood flowering on her skin.

"You're quite resilient for being an Assassin."

The blond ahoge twitched, lifting a little from the baseball cap it was plastered on.

Her lips moved, but even with Lancer's enhanced senses as a Servant, she could only barely pick up the slightest of rasps.

Abruptly, an explosion rang out in the distance, azure lines traversing the night sky as they divided the stars and imploded in fiery balls of orange replete with their own mushroom clouds.

Turning her attention back to Assassin, she raised her lance with one hand and drew back the weapon, executing a silent thrust that pierced towards the core.

*CHING*

The chime of steel mixed with twigs being snapped, dirt churning as Assassin slid backwards. Twisting her body to the right, her hands rotated the blade as the lance went flying to the left, tucking into a roll that went under Lancers sweeping kick. A wall of portals blinked into existence, spitting out beams which Lancer leapt up to avoid, her horse materializing beneath her mid-air as she seamlessly slid into a ninety degree bank to the left, before braking and ascending further into the air, completing with a hairpin turn to dodge all the colorful beams filling the air like bullet hell.

Coming to a stop, she stared down at Assassin, the distance making her look like a miniature figure barely larger than her hand.

"I said, I'm not done yet."

There was even less chance of Lancer hearing those words now that they were apart, but the intent came across as Assassin raised her blade, both hands clasping the handle as it went parallel to the ground over her shoulder, the tip sagging slightly. She paused to adjust her cap, the brim knocked askew earlier, then she was gone.

Llamrei almost shrieked as a high-pitched neigh issued from it's mouth, leaning into a sharp dive as it galloped with full speed, eddies of wind forming at it's hooves. The unholy lance pierced the air with it, picking up speed as it spun to form it's own miniature tornado, turning both rider and steed into a zephyrean missile.

Flickering through the air, Assassin's form blinked in and out of view as the twin swords manifested in her hands, a void that blended in with the darkness, and a blindingly bright bar of searing plasma.

"Fire"

Air melted as it transformed into scarlet and sapphire coronas blooming from the tip of the blades, rocket boosters hyper-accelerating her to bone-breaking speeds, sonic booms rattling the leaves of the trees. Trails of gold and cerulean formed in her wake, recalling the dust trails of comets that tore through space.

On the distant outcrop, an archer's senses sharpened until they became crystal clear, the winds halting, the flames stilling as time froze in his eyes. It was like an hourglass, the howling air whipping around Lancer, and Assassin was truly a meteor ascending to the heavens. Two indomitable forces, one of the sky, the other of space, and they were bound to clash in a battle of wills.

That is, until his arrow found it's mark.

As a Servant, he could charge his arrows, even breaking them to achieve the maximum potential output at the cost of their stability. He had arrived at the outcropping overlooking the forest approximately an hour ago, sniped the manor entrance ten minutes ago, and had then been focused on Assassin and Lancer for the rest of the time.

Ten minutes of continuous charging released their worth as the cracked projectile forced its way between the two opposing entities, a payload worthy of being called a 'mini-nuke' unleashing devastation that almost warped space itself, the air scrambling away in the face of pure heat and energy expanding and consuming every single molecule. It kept growing for a full ten seconds, seconds stretching into hours for Archer's hyper-attenuated sight, then it shrank faster than it appeared, leaving behind a vacuum that imploded with a omnidirectional rush of air, sucking a clamorous roar of wind that could even be heard by Illya and the rest.

Despite its short lived duration, it achieved it's goal.

Both of them swerved to avoid charging headlong, and the resulting blast of air threw them further of course. Assassin's charge petered out, gravity taking hold of her body as she dropped like a rock, whereas Lancer plowed hooves first into the ground, far ahead of Assassin.

Casting a glance in the direction her assailant, she made an about turn and dashed between the shadows of the trees, zig-zagging the whole way as a steady stream of red dots sailed through the air and planted themselves behind her, steadily following until he lost track of her.

In the ruined clearing, Assassin sank to her knees in exhaustion, dispelling her weapons as the ahoge slumped back down from it's rigid state.

Damn it, got taken by surprise…

She nursed her wounds as the retreated into spirit form, her ally turning his attention back to the situation at the manor entrance.