And there I was. The elevator door had open, I didn't even realize that I was being spoken too, Saber had replied for me. Shinji had been laughing his normal, haughty laugh while putting me down. If there was one thing I was worried about, it was the battle that was about to come. I finally came to my senses when Saber's icy glare turned to me, her previous target being the enemy servant behind the barrier.
"Master!" She yelled. I jumped a bit in reply, looking at her now. She glared at me, angrily. "Please find a way to escape that second world your mind has entered and return to the one at hand! We have a battle at hand!"
Right. Right. We were in a battle now, and Shinji and his Rider-class Servant were already making their way to the battlefield. Saber and I followed in suit, trailing behind them though in order to keep our space. I prayed that the information we had found about them would aid us at all.
Shinji turned around, hands in his pockets. "Now, are you going to give up yet?" He asked, looking at me. The two of us used to be friends, in the loosest sense of the word. Now, that fragile friendship was broken for good. A battle is a battle, and he was my rival now. I gave him my reply, only to hear him sigh in reply.
"If you say so. El Draque here will make sure this battle will end quickly!" he laughed.
Saber twirled her blade as she stood in front of me. "Saying your Servant's name before the battle even starts." She sighed, gripping her crimson blade. "How cocky can one be? If you wanted to let us know, I suggest you tell your foe as they are dying on the floor."
"What's the point in waiting until then? I know I'll win this!" Shinji laughed once more.
Rider looked over, drawing her flintlock pistols and twirling them around her fingers with the greatest of ease. "Now now now, Master, don't get so cocky yet." the pirate shot a look to Saber, who didn't move her eyes. "I suggest that we start the battle. I'm itching for a chance to kill you." She smirked, pointing a pistol at my servant's chest, aiming for her heart.
Saber laughed, holding her blade out, pointing the tip of her sword against the iron sights of Rider's pistol.
The four of us stayed still, not even our breaths made a sound. No one moved an inch. Saber and Rider's eyes locked in the moment of silence. They both knew at this point one false move in this state could, and most likely will, be death. The two females slowly walked around each other in their stances. If there was wind in these places, these digitally made worlds, I bet a gust would kick up some dust, then signal the start of the battle.
It was odd, despite the fact I was up against Francis Drake, a world renowned pirate known for plundering, pillaging, destruction, and possibly rape, despite the fact Francis Drake was a female in this world, that the Servant was actually following a type of code. She never made a move, so I did instead.
I waved my arm to the side, activating one of the skills that I knew from the Code Casting. A weak skill, never the less, but the Stun skill worked, as Rider was apparently readying a special attack while walking.
"Very smart, Master." Saber said, taking the opening and quickly slashing across Rider's chest, sending her back into the ground as my Servant jumped back to safety. There was a small smirk on her face. "Now, I'm guessing that you have officially declared this battle to begin..." She trailed off, rushing at Rider.
Rider quickly jumped off the ground she landed, crossing her flintlock pistols to cut off Saber's attack. "That was smart, I'll give you that..." Rider said, sweeping her leg, knocking Saber to the ground. "Next time don't bother." She smirked, kicking away the red clad Servant back towards me. "Now...Culverin Cannons!" Rider yelled, gracefully flipping to the side as four square suddenly appeared where she stood, cannons to her ship slowly emerging.
Saber rose to her feet and looked on at her rival's attack. She growled and quickly angled her sword in front of her to guard the barrage of the cannons. She groaned a bit, struggling to keep her guard activated. I couldn't just stand there and do nothing, I could tell she was in pain. I called out another Code Cast, one I never took off once I found it. I swung my arm to the side, my Seal glowing in response.
Shinji sighed as my Heal Code Cast was activated to reverse the damage done to Saber. "Are you seriously thinking you can win?" He asked, kicking his feet off the ground and floating just above the ground as if he was sitting at his desk. A large, holographic computer screen and keyboard appeared. He began to hammer away at the keys until his own Code Cast activated, hitting Saber directly, but it didn't seem to affect her in anyway.
Saber simply shrugged it off and rushed at Rider during the opening she had from the attack. "Now no more dirty tricks!" She yelled, reading the guard Rider threw up. "You are such an easy foe to read, you do understand that, correct?" She smirked, stomping on the ground and twirling place, her crimson blade shattering the guard. "I have you now!" My servant yelled, a fiery spirit growing inside her.
Rider grunted, quickly trying to counter the attack, but to no avail. Saber's blade blocked the bullet fired from the flintlock pistol, the only reward the pirate got was the hilt of Saber's blade to her chest. The pink haired warrior gasped, spit flying out of her mouth. She coughed to regain her breath, only to have Saber crash her blade onto her back, Rider's yell of pain ringing out once more.
"C'mon El Draque! Get up get up get up GET UP!" he yelled.
Saber laughed, though her arrogance I've come to tolerate got the best of her. She turned and stabbed her sword into the ground next to her, gripping the hilt. "You honestly think that your puny Servant is a match for me? You don't even know who I am!" She yelled at my rival, seemingly scolding him the way she scolds me, but it seemed to throw him aback.
"Hey! Don't yell at me you flat chested bitch!" he yelled back.
Saber cocked an eyebrow at him, annoyed. "Excuse me, knave. What did you say about me?" Unbeknownst to her, Rider was slowly getting back on her feet.
"You heard me! I bet those mosquito bites you call boobs are big as the brain you have!" My rival yelled, turning the tables on Saber. As much as I did love how prideful my Servant was, I wonder how I would have been if I had chosen the red-clad warrior or that fox eared demon that voice told me about. And no matter how much I tried to get Saber to notice, her only reply was to hold her hand towards me, simply put 'Shut up!'. What else can I do?
"Now listen here knave! You are lucky I didn't have you kiss my feet before we started this battle!" Saber snapped. "Now insult this pathetic Servant of yo-" She started, getting sent to the ground from Rider's pistols. She blew the smoke off the barrels.
"Flawless Shinji, just flawless." She smirked.
Saber rose to her feet, having dragged her sword with her. The warrior spun around, clearly annoyed. "Veil of Petals!" She simply said, brushing some of her hair out of her face. I thought it was odd, the only bit of hair that could be in her face was the ahoge at the top of her head, her bangs were too short, and the rest of hair was done in that fancy bun.
Rider sighed and flipped to the side. "Culverin Cannons!" She yelled, holding a pistol to the air and jumping up in a victory pose, twirling before she landed. She laughed and rested her hands on her hips, watching as Saber stood still.
"I suggest you laugh AFTER you have won!" Saber yelled in reply, a sudden burst of speed. My eyes opened. I have never seen Saber so intent to kill before. That could be she felt threatened by Rider. Perhaps it was her long rang weapons? Her Class? We had more treasure than them, and we knew her name, so there wasn't much else, unless, well, Saber was jealous of Rider's bust. Childish, yes, most likely not the cause, but it's still a valid reason, and since Shinji pointed it out it was just a bigger reason.
"Where did she get that speed?" Shinji growled.
"You moron..the data drop wore off! Time your Code Casts right!" Rider yelled back, focusing her cannon fire in the direction of Saber, scattering the shots as much as she could to try to hit the red clad warrior, she'd even accept a nick at this point. "C'mon c'mon c'mon c'mon!" the pirate yelled frantically as Saber drew near. A smirk slowly formed on my lips, I wanted to laugh, but I took Saber's words to heart: Don't laugh until you know the outcome.
Saber's bust of speed held up as she cut sharp turns around the barren battlefield. She leaped into the air. Rider quickly adjusted the aim of her cannons and firing salvo after salvo after her. Saber's grace still held strong and her attack didn't even start yet. Getting her footing on a stray cannonball, she quickly pushed off it and flew towards Rider, who frantically aimed his flintlock pistols and fired, only to be beaten to the trigger by the swordswoman, who's blade tore through the pink haired pirate. Saber quickly turned around from her stance and swung her blade furiously, taking the opening in Rider's moment of pain to deal as much damage as he could.
Saber twirled her blade after kicking the horribly wounded Rider away from her. "Fount of the Healer!" She yelled. As if she added insult to injury. Saber wasn't hurt much, despite taking some cuts from the shrapnel of the cannonballs. What damage she would heal would only be at skin value...typical.
Rider struggled to her feet, hunched over and panting. "Alright you little twerp you are dead!" She yelled. With a last ditch effort, she jumped high into the air. "Hunt of the Golden Hind: Golden Stag and the Eventide Tempest!" she yelled, landing on a massive ship that materialized from the blackness of data behind her. Her wounds seemed to vanish now as she causally sat on the bow of the boat, slowly getting to her feet as she summoned a artillery cannon above her, and two smaller, auxiliary cannons at her side. She pointed a pistol at Saber. "...fire." She simply said, a sudden maelstrom of cannonballs and bullets being hurdled at Saber, like an ocean of death.
Saber's eyes flew open. "This is her Noble Phantasm...impressive..." She grumbled to herself as she quickly threw up her guard. My own reply was simple: A quick Code Cast of Heal to make sure Saber's vitality was topped off. Now I wish I a Code Cast for something increase her defense or at least her speed to help her out of this. But, it seemed like I didn't need to, as Saber weathered the storm somehow, albeit the wounds she had gathered. She panted a bit. "This will be over...I promise." She said calmly, flicking some more hair out of her eyesight. "Veil of Petals." She simply said, using the blinding speed to attack Rider.
Rider simply stood still, too exhausted to fight back, no more energy left to even summon her cannons, and from the looks of it, Shinji didn't have a Code Cast to help. She closed her eyes and waited for the strike to end the battle. And, her wish was granted. Saber's blade made a powerful cut across Rider's chest.
I watched as Saber panted, holding her post-attack stance. She slowly rose to a proper posture, even in battle, being prim and proper was needed for some ungodly reason. My Servant threw her blade onto her shoulder and walked over, her heels clicking, the only should that was made. As soon as Saber was safely away from Rider and Shinji, the world around us four started to shake, then a massive, never ending red wall of pure data separated Shinji and Rider, and Saber and I. I...don't recall much of what happened, I seemed to blank out at the fact that Shinji was being killed in front of my eyes. He begged for anything to save him as Rider sighed.
"You, Master." She said to me. "You have done well. You have a very capable Servant on your hands." Rider said, her eyes closed as she was slowly deleted. "Heh...no hard feelings, after all, I have nothing against you two as people, just part of the game."
I couldn't believe it. Someone as cynical and evil as Shinji was paired up with this Rider. She was sorry for her actions, as much as she could be, and didn't even fight her own death, as one would call it.
Saber nodded, her sword stabbed into the ground at her side. "I thank you for your apology. And, I say the same to you: No...hard feelings...as people would say int his time."
My mind drifted off more, and suddenly, I found myself back in the school, Rin staring at me. All that was burned into my mind was Shinji simply turning into blackness, then vanishing like ash in the wind. I wasn't even listening to Rin, either. She knew I wasn't either.