Ruler and Amarenzu surveyed the battlefield surrounding them. Noticing Ruler glancing down at her wounded hand, Amarenzu met her concerned gaze with a raised eyebrow. Ruler frowned, "Why have you not healed yourself by now, surely that injury is bothering you." Amarenzu glanced at her bloodied hand, mulling over a few thoughts.
"What you say is true; however, I would have to manually reconnect each damaged nerve. This process would take time and concentration, and I don't plan on being ambushed during the middle of it," answered the white-haired girl.
"Then I will protect you while you repair your hand," Ruler concluded, leaving no room for argument - not that Amarenzu had any. Ruler raised her flag-spear in a defensive position as Amarenzu sat cross-legged and began reconnecting nerves. Expanding a holographic view of her hand, she began her work diligently. Amarenzu paid no mind to the occasional clash of metal connecting to bone or rock, hosting some level of trust towards Ruler.
A sudden rumble of the earth below shook Amarenzu's concentration as well as almost throwing off a path of a nerve. Amarenzu sighed as she redirected the nerve; this is why she didn't want to do this on a battlefield of all places. As soon as she fixed the last nerve, Amarenzu let the glowing warmth of healing magic coarse through one hand and surround the injured one. Flexing her repaired hand, she stood up and faced Ruler who looked at her expectantly.
"Thank you… for watching my back," Amarenzu stated, turning away to look at the floating fortress up in the sky. Blue light encased the sky and shimmering particles rained down from above. She turned to face Ruler again, catching the retreat of a smile. A blue light streaked upwards into the heavens; similar streaks returned its call and decimated part of the area on the far side. A fight amongst Servants, Amarenzu surmised. "Alright, where to?"
"I must reach Red Faction's base and speak with one of their Masters," Ruler replied. The demi-god nodded before the two took off towards the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Upon nearing the floating fortress, purple sigils formed before chains darted out towards the two - specifically Ruler. Attempting to counter the trap, Amarenzu lifted a hand to cast a spell, but more chains shot out of the ground, locking her in place. A hoard of skeletons began to surround the two. Scowling, Amarenzu tugged fruitlessly on the purple chains. Ruler had better luck and magically shrugged them off before she spun her flag, slammed one end into the dirt, and created a wall of wind to expand outwards. The force behind the wind staggered Amarenzu but also destroyed the skeletons.
Ruler firmly gazed up at the fortress above. Suddenly, her eyes widened. Catching this change of expression, Amarenzu went on guard. Whoever was manning the Hanging Gardens could easily attack them again. Ruler whipped around to face the forest to their right. "Another revelation! He must be there!" With that said, Ruler took off, leaving Amarenzu behind. Amarenzu's shoulders sagged as she watch Ruler's retreating form before she darted after her. Honestly, these "revelations" seemed more like a homing device; nevertheless if Amarenzu helped Ruler, maybe Ruler could help her in return.
When Amarenzu finally got close to Ruler, a laser beam shot down towards them. Amarenzu shielded her eyes as well as herself, bracing for the impact; however, the expected burning sensation never came. Lowering her arm from her face, her blue eyes widened at the destruction the beam caused. Ruler stood before her unharmed, a firm gaze (borderlining a glare) directed at the Hanging Gardens. That was some strong magic resist Ruler had going on.
"Amarenzu, let us be off!" Ruler turned, grabbed Amarenzu's wrist, and ran off, towing the demi-god along. It took a minute, but Amarenzu regained her footing and dislodged her wrist from Ruler's grip.
"So who exactly are you looking for again?" Amarenzu inquired, now matching Ruler's speed with ease. Before Ruler could respond, a new Servant appeared before them. A hulking mass of… whatever that was following shortly. The archer halfheartedly shot once at the glob before retreating. 'Gee, thanks random Servant from nowhere,' Amarenzu thought sourly before turning to face the mass of muscle. Surely the Grail was joking, what kind of hero would willingly have this sort of power. Then again, with the corruption of the Grail in the Third War, it wasn't that surprising to see non-heroes summoned. Gilles de Raise posing as a fine example. "Ruler, go find whoever you're looking for; I'll take care of this monstrosity."
"No, I will fight by your side. As Ruler I must eliminate anything that endangers innocents or the Grail War itself," Ruler exclaimed. Amarenzu shook her head in disbelief and sighed.
"Fine, do as you wish," Amarenzu relented, glancing at her temporary companion. Ruler acknowledged her statement and went into a defensive stance. Before the thing could even take another step - or whatever movement it was using, Amarenzu raised a hand, palm facing upwards. Glowing light rippled from above her hand. As it grew brighter, a shape formed, and Amarenzu grabbed at it. With a quick flick of her arm, the light faded, leaving a sword radiating a strange aura in her hand. The blade was more narrow than the average sword, though not as narrow as a rapier, and the guard made a slight v down the blade side. The blade itself gleamed a silvery blue while the rest glimmered gold.
Ruler let out a gasp of shock, eyeing the newest appearance of weaponry, "a Noble Phantasm?!" Amarenzu hummed in affirmation, moving into a guarded stance. The face that peeked out of the massive glob roared at them - more specifically the demi-god, accusing them of being oppressors. Ruler heard the clink of Amarenzu's metal bangles as she moved to hold the sword with both hands. The mass of flesh inched towards them. Ruler shifted her weight, ready to dodge or land a possible attack; however Amarenzu simply stood there, sword ready. The only noticeable movement made in her general direction was the wisps of magic growing up her legs.
The bulky Servant was finally upon them, one of the various hands raised high in the air. The shadow of its hand did not dim the glow of Amarenzu's sword as it hovered above. Ruler's eyes widened as the hand came smashing down, but she found herself too slow to make it there on time. Reaching out with her free hand, she called out her companion's name just as the massive hand crashed onto the ground. The Servant chuckled darkly to himself, ranting on about destroying the oppressors as dust spewed up from the impact point.
A flash of light sliced through the dark haze. "Heh, too slow. Your moves can be read from a mile away!" taunted a familiar voice. There was a sickening slosh of blood as the Servant's hand was cut clean off; Amarenzu stood a few feet forwards, flicking of the blood that clung to her sword. Dashing back, the demi-god put space between her and the berserk Servant. The dust cleared, giving the more sane fighters their vision back. However, the bleeding wound Amarenzu inflicted started to glow before more muscle generated. Amarenzu grimaced, "that is genuinely repulsive."
Testing a train of thought, Amarenzu proceeded to slash through the air; the slash created shot forwards, slicing off another appendage. Just like before, the wound only grew into more muscle. The muscle mass for the Servant must be insanely high, after that man(?) was all muscle. It would be a shame if he had no more muscle to grow back from though. "Hmph. Ruler, cover for me. I require a few seconds," Amarenzu requested, stepping back even further.
Her sword glowed brighter; its shape morphing into something new. She lifted the blade up to the heavens, and blue light swirled into it. Ruler stood before her, glancing her way as blue light encased the area. Muscle Man was transfixed by the light and hardly made any movement. Rings of energy formed, starting at the guard and went up the blade of the sword, and a beam of light shot down from the sky like a bolt of lightning. The air rippled around them. Shocked at the display of magic in front of her, Ruler stepped off to Amarenzu's side instead of directly in front of her. Sure the laser beam from the Hanging Gardens matched that of a magus from ancient times, but this seemed - felt - stronger. Amarenzu finally moved, bringing the blade back more. The sword now let off a blue mist.
"Aetherius!"
The rings of command spells wrapping around her arms slipped off, creating a circle around her. One of them glowed a bright crimson before fading out, and the circle separated and returned to each rings' respective arm. The beam of light arched around the blade as she swung it down again. Light erupted, encasing the surrounding area in white. Ruler couldn't see it, but she felt the tremor shake the ground, heard the cracking of the earth. When it vanished, all that remained of the Servant was a steaming crater. Amarenzu's sword dissipated into blue mist.
[-o-]
"My, my! What extraordinary power!" Caster of Red, Shakespeare, exclaimed, his arms thrown out to his sides. "To think one could simply eliminate the Destroyer of the Oppressors with a single blow!"
Assassin of Red, Semiramis, glanced towards her Master, gaging his expression after witnessing a piece of their plan unravel. To any other person, the priest seemed as passive as ever, but the Wise Queen of Assyria could tell when he was irritated. It certainly didn't help that a homunculus had obtained the power of a deceased Servant and could use it longer than expected. "Hmm, can you tell who that white-haired Servant is?" she inquired, hiding the smidge of curiosity with indifference.
The priest pursed his lips, "I encountered that Servant earlier in the forest; however her identity remains unknown. If I knew she would end up becoming a problem, then I would have chased her down. However, her power may end up becoming useful as well. After all, she isn't technically on either side as of yet." Semiramis mulled over what he said. It was true; the girl could help them to some degree. However, she could also pose as a major threat to the plan. Assassin of Red looked back towards her Master, catching him in deep thought.
"Something wrong?"
He glanced at her; the expression abating to its normal passivity. "Caster," he called, getting the play writer's attention, "did you perchance catch exactly what her Noble Phantasm did?"
Semiramis scoffed, muttering, "you could have just asked me to replay that scene."
The priest's eyes widened as a slightly guilty look crossed his face, "Oh? My apologies-"
"No matter," Semiramis stated, cutting him off before waving her hand. Another hologram appeared showing the girl's Noble Phantasm on repeat. The two watched it while Caster returned to spectate what was currently going on. Semiramis didn't really see anything special, but something seemed off.
"There. Go back and slow it down," her Master ordered. She waved her hand in the opposite direction. It started again just as the girl was about to swing the blade back down and showed a slower version. There was a shift in the air around the blade, subtle, but a keen eye would be able to spot it. The shift could easily be magical energy though, so she wasn't sure as to what he was getting at. Something shimmered, catching her eye, as it looped once more. Without being told to, she moved it back a few seconds before stopping it as soon as she saw it. Leaning forwards, she narrowed her eyes. The detail was so tiny, but once she saw it, she couldn't un-see it. It was right after the air had shifted. Instead of the grass-patched dirt, there were slivers depicting a white-flowered field. It was as if someone shredded two landscapes and haphazardly meshed them together.
Semiramis looked towards the priest. It seemed he noticed it as well. Whoever this Servant was, she was not to be taken lightly. Maybe she should have made more poison.
]-o-[
Amarenzu turned to Ruler, ignoring the burn the magic circuits on the back of her neck let off, "See? I can handle one measly Servant." In truth, she could really only pull that off during certain circumstances. Many Servants could simply attack her as she charged up the attack; however that didn't seem to be the case for Muscle Man. Amarenzu did catch the stunned look, like a moth to a flame, on his actual face as she was powering up. She took her chances with him not making any offensive movements.
Ruler quickly recovered and faced the demi-god with furrowed eyebrows, "if you are able to pull this kind of power off, then what happened earlier."
Amarenzu fumbled for an answer, "That- that doesn't count. He probably had magic resistance or something. Not only that, it takes time to charge up an attack to that degree."
"He?"
Amarenzu nodded, looking off in thought, "An odd looking man now that I think about it… Not many tan, white-haired youths these days, or at all. He was probably a priest as well; he had a golden cross as a pendent.'' Amarenzu studied the change of expressions passing Ruler's face.
"I must find him! He is the one I see in my visions," Ruler exclaimed, turning to run back to where the two were headed.
Grabbing her wrist, Amarenzu stopped her from running off again. "Hang on, if that is who you are looking for, he's likely to have retreated already. We would have better luck finding him in the Hanging Gardens." Ruler weighed the options in her mind which showed visually. She turned to scan the battlefield before her and paused.
There in the distance, she saw something - rather someone. It was Sieg! He was under attack by Saber of Red. Without thinking, she charged forwards. There was no way she was letting him of all people die. Amarenzu was once again left in the dust, but quickly caught up. The demi-god glanced between the homunculus and Ruler. Was there something between them? The boy was going to be killed at this rate; Ruler wouldn't make it in time.
Reinforcing her legs, Amarenzu sprinted faster, outrunning Ruler by a long shot. Conjuring her sword, she clashed with Saber. The speed at which she arrived tossed her coat tails sideways, dust splashing in the same direction. Unearthly blue eyes met fierce teal. The blonde Servant (probably Saber class) looked familiar… Amarenzu glanced down at the other's armor, very knight-esque. Ah, now she remembered her; the knight was the one from the night previous. Oddly enough, the knight seemed to remember her as well, "It's you!"
Amarenzu raised an eyebrow, tilting her head, "Can't say I've had the pleasure of meeting you, but yes, 'tis I." Apparently the knight didn't quite like that answer as she gritted her teeth and pressed down on Amarenzu's blade harder. Tightening her grip on the blade, Amarenzu pushed back with the same force; however her back foot started to inch back.
"Who's side are you on anyway? The priest's or Black faction?" Saber questioned. Amarenzu's eyes narrowed subtly at the mention of a priest, could that be the one that Ruler was looking for? If so, then it made a fraction of sense as to why Ruler was seeking him. From the way Saber worded it, the priest seemed to be in charge of one faction.
"Is neither an option?"
"Don't mess with me!" Saber exclaimed, stepping back before swinging her blade. Amarenzu sidestepped out of the way before dashing behind the knight as she slashed at where the demi-god had moved from. With her left hand, Amarenzu let off a quick Gandr right into the knight's back. The spell only staggered her for a second before she turned with a horizontal slash. 'Another Servant with descent magic resist, troublesome,' Amarenzu noted.
Running a hand down the blade, Amarenzu infused her sword with lightning. Bright blue arched along silver. "You think a little bit of magic is gonna scare me?" the knight asked, eyes fierce.
Amarenzu scoffed, "the Servants participating in this Grail War would hardly deserve being called heroes if they were scared of basic magic." Amarenzu swiped forwards, causing the knight to take a step back. While the blade missed by a hair's width, the lightning carried the attack further, sending a shock through the blonde's armor. The two circled each other, waiting for the other to make a move.
The knight stepped forwards, swinging her blade horizontally. Amarenzu back-stepped before dashing forwards, blade slashing up. The two traded hits, most missing or too minor to even count. Finally, the knight made another horizontal swing, expecting for her white-haired opponent to back-step again, but Amarenzu stepped forwards instead. Right as the blade was about to hit her, Amarenzu brought up her arm and pushed against the incoming sword. Teal eyes widened as steel was deflected by a silver band, leaving her wide open. The Knight of Treachery jumped back as a lightning covered sword grazed her chestplate.
She gripped her sword tighter, clenching her teeth in what Amarenzu suspected to be anger. Red flame started to claw up the knight's sword and swirl around her form. Raising her blade, Amarenzu prepared to block or dodge the next attack. A purple flash caught her eye. Glancing to the right, she saw the Hanging Gardens charging another laser. "Ruler, you need to get those two out of here!" she exclaimed over her shoulder. When she turned to look at the knight, she found that the blonde had already retreated.
The purple light started to grow, in size and intensity. Ruler stepped forwards, a determined look hosted on her face. She unraveled her flag. It was a French flag, going by its pattern. A French, flag-wielding maiden? Could she be the Holy Maiden who liberated Orleans in the Hundred Years' War? Amarenzu stored that train of thought for later. Right now, the imminent laser beam was more important.
Ruler stepped forwards while the pink haired Servant - was that a girl… or a guy? - covered the bleeding homunculus. "Uh, Ruler, what are you doing?" Before Amarenzu could reach her, Ruler's flag glowed gold as she placed it in front of her. 'A Noble Phantasm, eh?' Amarenzu thought shielding her eyes with an arm as the light intensified.
"My flag, please protect my comrades! Luminosite Eternelle!" Gold light burst from the glowing flag, meeting the purple beam that rained down towards them. Judging by Ruler's wince, the beam proved to be more powerful than the last. As Amarenzu glanced to her side, her eyes widen upon seeing the beam being split in two by Ruler's Noble Phantasm. As soon as the purple beam let up, Ruler slumped against her flag. Amarenzu turned to check on the two behind her, noticing how the pink haired Servant laid across the injured homunculus.
Raising an eyebrow, Amarenzu narrowed her eyes at the Servant, "Mind getting off of him? You're only making his injuries worse." The Servant looked back at her in realization before moving off of him, scratching the back of his(?) head.
"Right, sorry, Sieg," the Servant apologized to the homunculus - Sieg. Ruler hoisted herself up, using her flag as support. Just as Ruler made her way to the rest of them, the ground shook, causing each of them to look towards the point of resonance. The fortress had been hovering over the mansion in the distance, and a great whirlwind had wrecked the building, extracting an object from its center.
A pulse of energy caused Amarenzu's form to go ridged. Gleaming in the distance, floated the Greater Grail, the host of the singularity. She watched as it was pulled into the Hanging Gardens. Amarenzu felt a section of her circuits sing as the pull from the Grail grew, calling out to its maker.
"It seems I must go there as well. This will be the last chance I have to speak with the Red Faction," Ruler stated, stepping forwards. She turned to look at the homunculus one last time, "A lecture about your behavior is in order when I return, Sieg." The demi-god shot Ruler a questioning look - which the blonde ignored - before she shifted to face the Hanging Gardens once more.
"I understand. I'll be ready for it," came his reply. 'Hold up, what?!' Amarenzu thought doing a double take on the whole last part of the conversation. Ruler gave a sound of approval before walking off. The demi-god watched the retreating form of Ruler, a knowing look plastered on her face. Dropping the look, Amarenzu turned to the pink haired trap- Servant, "I'm sure I don't have to tell you to take care of him, correct? I don't really want to deal with a pissed-off Ruler."
The Servant shook his/her head, "I'm on it!"
Amarenzu nodded, mostly to herself, before dashing towards Ruler. Catching up to the blonde, Amarenzu side glanced Ruler with a forming smirk. When Ruler finally glanced back at the white-haired youth, Amarenzu spoke, "soo, you and Sieg, eh?" Ruler sharply turned away from her; however Amarenzu caught the dust of pink, gaining her a quiet snicker as she followed Ruler's now brisk walk.
A/N: So, I meant to get this out earlier, but, yeah... It didn't go as planned, so a lot of editing happened. Also, this fic is semi self-indulgence, so there may be some humor that might not quite fit. Also I will be on vacation near the end of June and into the beginning of July, so the update(s) will be more sluggish than they already are. To make up for that, I will try my hardest to have the next chapter (maybe two) out before I leave for that.
Enough about that, thank you to all who are sticking with this story; it means a lot, trust me.