"Talking"
'Thinking'
"Mental link"
"Noble Phantasms"
POV
Chapter 39: Siege Dancer
Vanguard POV
Gough pulled back the string of his bow, the giant arrow was aimed towards its target. The Giant tensed his breathing before he released the projectile. There was a clap of thunder accompanying the release of the arrow as the sound barrier was shattered, within scant few seconds the giants aim rang true.
The front gate, or the amalgamation of spider webs that had replaced it, had been obliterated in the single strike. Gough nodded his head "Thy way is clear. Make haste at once!" he called out as he for another arrow. Arash stood next to him with a blank expression, looking down at his own bow and then back at the Giant.
"Huh...Definitely louder than I thought it would be." He mused, then let out a brief chuckle as he pulled back his own bow "I'll begin providing support. I can already see a few spiders and...what looks like spiders embedded in the backs of the soldiers, so be ready for that."
"Understood." Ritsuka grimaced, holding back a flinch as he turned to Mash, Olga and Nero "Gough has cleared the way into the city, but Arash says that the spiders are already out…" swallowing his bile, he cringed in disgust "...he says they are...embedded in the people."
Nero gave a similar expression, soon followed by rage "To think that they would dare dirty my people so…" growling, she thrust her sword towards the fort, the blade becoming coated in fire "Forward, my Romans! For Rome!"
"For Rome!" Came the accompanying cry as the Legion charged forwards, the Chaldean Masters leading from the front with Mash and Nero acting as they front line fighters. Ritsuka caught a flash in the air before it looked as if lances of light were raining down from the sky onto the buildings.
He smiled "Good shooting Arash!"
"No problem, this the kind of stuff I'm good for….hold up." There was a noticeable frown in Arash's voice "I can just about make something out...looks like something is happening in the centre of the town."
"Any details?"
"Sorry, Master. Not a lot I can see, its obscured by some kind of fog."
"Alright, thanks for the heads up." Turning his head to the others "Arash said he can see some kind of ritual happening in the centre of the town."
"They must have already started then." Olga nodded her head as she jogged alongside him "We'll need to punch through there."
"Then we shall move at once!" Nero proclaimed, dashing forwards "With me!"
"Is she-!?" Olga gaped in shock "Doesn't she have a mind for strategy!? She just ran forwards straight towards the enemies without even waiting for back up!"
"Director." Ritsuka turned to her with a serious expression "I think the Emperor just does what she wants."
"That does sound like Nero-san." Mash affirmed, awkwardly scratching the back of her neck "She seems very...confident."
Olga released a sigh before shaking her head "Berserker!" crying out, her armoured servant came lumbering towards the pair, the horned counterpart following it "Provide her support and clear a path through to the centre of the city."
The Dragon Slayer armour let out a metallic groan before it turned on its heel, facing the direction of the ruins of the city gate before it charged forwards, there was a slight rumbling accompanying its steps as it sprinted across the battlefield, soon passing Nero who let out a brief squeak in surprise, followed by another as the second Berserker passed her as well.
The Romans got to within a few hundred metres of the city gates before thousands of spiders came charging forth.
"Shields!" Vespasian called out, the Romans ground to a halt, thrusting their shields forwards and creating a wall "Stand firm!"
Another clap of thunder soon accompanied an explosion of dirt and body parts as another of Goughs arrows slammed into the central line of the charging spiders, soon followed by hundreds of arrows from Arash. The two archers working in tandem as they picked off the charging creatures.
Vespasian let out a shaky breath as he watched the assault barely make it to his men.
Servants POV
"Thou art impressive." Gough rumbled as he took aim with another arrow "Thee makes up for in quantity what thou lacks in power."
"I can't really comment on power." Arash joked as Gough loosened another arrow, Arash held back a small flinch at the sonic boom "But you certainly live up to what I would expect of an Archer. Those shots are actually pretty damn accurate too."
"I was granted the title of 'Hawkeye'" The Giant replied with a small chuckle "I even once shot down a dragon while blind."
"Oh?" Arash pulled back his bow, swiftly loosening a hundred arrows into the sky, soon raining down on the Spiders which had left the bounds of the city "That sounds like a pretty good achievement to me."
"Tis only natural…" He paused, lowering his bow "I can do no more, they are too close to the arachnids to safely aim."
"Don't worry about it." Arash reassured "You did a heck of a good job already, I'm sure there might be more for you to do."
"One can only hope."
Ash brought his sword down, stabbing through the spider that had jumped at him and pinning it to the ground, blade still embedded in the dirt, he span on his heel whilst thrusting his left hand forwards, he Chaos pyromancy exploded in his hand, letting loose a blast into the face of another spider.
Ripping his blade free, he swung his body in a clockwise fashion, cutting through another dozen attackers.
A ball of fire shot over his head, crashing into a small group of the familiars, looking over his shoulder, he saw Quelaag tighten her hand into a fist before swinging it forwards, a rope of fire shot forth before tensing itself, spinning the makeshift whip over her head she then cracked it into the ground, the glowing lines then exploded outwards in a wall of fire, burning through their attackers.
Ash turned around and waved his hand over "Advance! We've broken through this section!" the Romans tensely nodded their heads, still keeping their eyes on Quelaag but quickly composing themselves as they marched through the breach in the wall.
"I'm surprised none of them have accidentally stabbed me." Quelaag mused with a smirk, Ash let out an incredulous huff as he marched past her, casually stomping on the head of one of the arachnids, the armour plated skin shattered under foot and the let out a crunching sound as he marched over it.
"Do not sound too excited about such things." Ash replied "It would be most awkward for all involved."
"Tch." Quelaag clicked her tongue "You're no fun. Can't even get enjoyment out of riling you up."
"Nor would you wish to." The unkindled replied, backhanding a spider away before he raised his left hand, the fire in his pyromancer glove intensified before he slammed it into the ground, pillars of fire shot up in a radius around them, burning through several opponents and sending the others hissing and reeling.
"Not bad." Quelaag commented with small shrug "Although not all that good either, you're a bit of an amateur."
"I've only known pyromancy for a few weeks, perhaps a month. What do you expect of me?"
"Of course you undead are all like that." The Chaos witch scowled "Spend years crafting a spell to work just right and then some undead comes along and can just cast it like its nothing with a few tries."
Ash paused, throwing an orb of fire at a nearby spider before facing the demon "I would hardly consider it 'a few tries' and it really isn't my fault that unkindled are able to learn new skills quickly."
"Feh, you would think so, wouldn't you?"
On the other side of the city, Verndari slammed his shield into the face of an Accursed, the beast went reeling backwards from the blow, several teeth being knocked from its multi-faceted jaw.
"My Liege, there are more of the abominations present!" He warned over the link as he moved to advance, the Accursed leapt up into the sky, spewing forth grey liquid from its mouth. Verndari clicked his tongue and jumped backwards as the fluid splashed across the ground, there was a sizzling sound as the dirt floor soon began to crack and melt, the nearby grass began to wither and die in mere moments. "They spew forth curses, be warned."
"Appreciate the warning!"
He allowed himself a small smile, to be back on the frontlines and in such an engagement was somewhat nostalgic to him. It was simple, he obeyed his orders and ensured they were carried out.
He composed himself, putting his shield out in front of him as the Accursed charged again, digging his heels into the ground, he met the blow with a small shockwave. The ground beneath his feet cracked but he was not pushed backwards. Gritting his teeth, Verndari slowly began to push forwards, ensuring that the Accursed could not get around him.
"Coming through!" Came a cry from his right, his eyes briefly wandered in that direction to see Gareth charging towards him, Sif already having the sword in his mouth and his eyes firmly placed on the Accursed. Verndari nodded to them, then thrust his shield upwards. Slamming it into the chin of the abomination and sending it stumbling backwards.
Sif was quick to take advantage, sliding to a stop and spinning around, the greatsword in the wolfs mouth glided through the air and effortlessly cut through the rightmost legs below the second knee with little effort. The accursed let out a cry of pain as it fell to its side, Gareth cracking a self assured grin as she thrust her lance forwards into the side of the beasts head, the blue detonation soon followed from the weapon, jolting her arm back and sending half the accursed head flying off in all directions as it slumped over.
"Good work Sif!" Gareth beamed, rubbing the wolf behind the ears, much to the enjoyment of the pseudo steed. Craning her head to look over at Verndari, she gave him a nod, returning the gesture he looked behind him to the Roman detachment he had taken command of.
"Keep advancing and watch the buildings for ambushes!" Turning back around he continued to march forwards as Sif spun around and sprinted off further into the city, slashing away at the spiders and their hosts while Gareth thrust her lance forwards at the occasional hostile.
"My Liege, we have secured passage through the Eastern Wall." He sent the message over the link "How goes your offensive through the central gate?"
Masters POV
Ritsuka, Mash, Olga and Nero all stared blankly at the front gate. Or what remained of it. The Master had barely heard Verndari's question as the two Berserkers laid waste to everything that was in their path.
Ritsuka considered it somewhat therapeutic "Are...are all Berserkers like that?" he asked the Director, the woman was also staring blankly at the carnage.
"Normally? No." Romani's voice came in "They're are only a few exceptions to this, most of the time the Berserkers can only stand on equal with the other Classes because of the madness enhancement." leaning back into his chair, he whistled "Although this is something else...Director, you summoned a pretty good servant."
Resting the shield on his back, the Dragon Slayer Armour gripped its axe with two hands. The left hand resting along the grip at the back of the blade before it slammed the weapon into the ground at an angle, the bladed side facing the ground before it dragged it along the floor, storming through and trampling spiders underfoot before it ripped its weapon free from the ground. Along with a sizeable chunk of debris, most of which began raining down on the spiders and multiple houses.
"Most impressive." Nero nodded her head, then winced as the horned Berserker punched an accursed in the face with enough force that the skull imploded and sent the corpse flying off and through a storehouse "Although...I would prefer that there remains a city to rebuild when we are victorious."
"Its not that bad…" Ritsuka tried his best to run damage control "We still have...a wall." he finished with a wince "...It could be worse?"
Nero turned her head to stare blankly at him for few moments before she slowly nodded her head "Umu...I suppose that is true."
An ear piercing scream cut across the battlefield, there was a brief lull in the combat as the shriek echoed out. The Masters and Nero turned their heads in the direction of the shout, the two Berserkers also halted their movements. Slowly turning their heads towards the source of the warcry.
The Dragon Slayer armour held its shield out in front of itself in a protective manner while the Smelter Demon turned its body to face the new opponent, gripping its greatsword with two hands and releasing a menacing growl as the flames within its chest intensified.
"Wasn't that-" Ritsuka made to identify the sound before the building in front of them exploded outwards, a wave of ice soon followed suit. Olga's Berserker slammed its shield into the ground, shattering the frozen spikes that rushed towards it. The Smelter Demon leapt into the air to avoid them, landing atop the wall nearby with a growl.
The sound of thumping soon followed as Vordt crawled out of the blizzard, the Berserker servant stared at the Dragon Slayer armour and then towards the Smelter Demon, it growled before it threw back its head and let out another roar.
"Berserker!" Olga called out "Attack!"
The two Berserkers charged at the same time. Vordt raced across the ground like a dog while the Dragon Slayer armour leapt forwards, cocking its shield arm back and readying itself to bash the Outrider knight with the edge of the metal shield. Throwing its whole body forth, Vordt slammed into the Dragon Slayer armour at the same time the golem smashed the shield into the servant. The two engaged in a shoving match with neither proving the stronger of the two.
"We've encountered Vordt!" Ritsuka alerted his servants through the mental link "The Directors Servant and the Berserker from Rome are engaging him, has anyone seen the weird creature Solaire spoke of yet?"
"I've got nothing up here." Arash replied "Although I can see Solaire and our Hunter friend figthing through the Eastern side, they went on ahead of Verndari and Cecilia."
"And how is Cecilia doing?" Came Ash's curious voice, a subtle edge of concern was present which elicited a laugh of amusement from the Archer.
"She's doing fine. That shadow of you is making short work of the small fry. Although I notice he's just using a regular old claymore. Must be a limit to how accurate she can make it."
"Well, as long as she's fine."
"Alright then." Ritsuka called back to them, then turned to the others "Haven't seen any signs of the other Servant yet, Director."
Olga bit her thumb but then nodded her head "The Berserkers will be able to deal with the enemy Servant, although have Archer provide support if he can. In the mean time, we shall continue to push through to the centre of the city and see if we can discover what Archer saw."
Heavy footfalls alerted them to movement behind them, the group looked over their shoulder to see a dozen of Gwyndolins sentinels burst through the gate ruins and into the city, swiftly locking onto the accursed targets they could see before they charged forwards. Their movements were slow and painfully choreographed. Against even the most basic servant, they would be little more than a nuisance. However, they had power and numbers on their side which more than made up for their obvious weakness.
Aldrich POV
"Their attack on the city is in full swing." The Caster servant reported "The number of Servants they have at their disposal is far greater than imagined and can be properly dealt with. I have even sensed a Divine Spirit among them."
"Divine...Spirit?" Aldrich rumbled with interest a crooked smile coming onto his face "A Lord is attacking? How curious….have you identified them?"
"Not as of yet, however they seemed to spawn armoured guards through some method of conjuration."
"Ah, Gwyndolin then." Aldrich let out a pleased chuckle "I should not be surprised...how long can you hold out?"
"Not long. They have already breached the walls and have begun advancing towards my location. Shall I withdraw?"
"Have you completed the preparations yet?"
"...No."
"Then you are to remain. Summon your dear pet. That should provide some method of dealing with the Servants, ensure that your preparations are completed before you pass."
"...Yes…" The Caster replied after a brief hesitation.
"You seem to be pleased." Lev noted with a bored expression "Something interesting happen?"
"Well...I have just learned that an old friend I had for dinner is present in this singularity." Crooked teeth split into a pleased smile, Lev's face contorted in disgust as he watched the Saint "However, the Master of Chaldea and his allies are going to take the city, however my goal remains unhindered."
Lev rolled his eyes in annoyance at the bluster "You already stand at a disadvantage due to the lack of servants at your command."
"They are not to be concerned with." The Saint dismissed with a wave of his hand and an uncaring tone "The Duke will fulfil his objective, considering what he owes me. Besides, Lancer is already approaching them as we speak."
"Rather petty commitment that it is." Lev replied with a sigh as he flicked dirt out from underneath his fingernails "But I make no further comments about it. So long as you succeed and Chaldea is ruined, that is fine." there was a brief pause before he let out a low chuckle "Although to think that little Olga Marie managed to make it this far...I'm almost proud of her growth. If it wasn't almost pathetically too late."
Duke Tseldora POV
The Duke cut off the transmission with a small frown on his face, turning his head to gaze further down the street. The sounds of battle were drawing closer to him by the moment, he knew that the Servants would be upon him soon.
The man sighed, he had already fulfilled his wish and was merely carrying out his debt towards the one who had allowed him to. That and he himself had been curious as to what Spiders bathed in the Deep would look like, it was an almost childish fascination he had wanted to see.
One he knew he wouldn't be able to.
He looked back down at the ritual, they were beginning to set up the connection with the Leyline when Chaldea had attacked. And he wouldn't be able to-
He cut himself off from whatever thought he had and widened his eyes in alarm, throwing his body forwards into a roll. It was barely fast enough as he felt something nick at the back of his neck and the rushing of wind caught his ears as something passed through the air where his head had been previously.
"Hm, I had thought you'd have been easier to slay." An almost bored voice came to his ears, getting up from his haphazard dodge, he spun around to face his would be killer. The man, if he could ever have been called that, was lanky. His skin appeared wooden with roots growing over his face, clad in ceremonial white robes which reminded him of a traditional cleric. His right arm was extended out to the side where he had obviously slashed at the dukes head, in that hand he held a long steel sword.
The Duke narrowed his eyes as he pat down his coat "I had thought an Assassin would have been harder to detect."
"Do not think too highly of your skills." The wooden creature replied "I am, in fact, a Caster. Although I will not deny that the class of Assassin is open to me."
Tseldora scowled, his hand going to his hip and unsheathing his estoc. The enemy Caster watched him with barely any reaction before he let out a scoff.
"You must be joking." The tone was bordering amusement "You're going to challenge me to a duel?"
Tseldora gave him a placid smile "Of course not." his other hand quickly whipped out his staff before he slammed it into the ground, letting out a brief burst of light before the floor began to rumble.
The Caster watched this with mild interest as the Dukes spider familiars began to emerge from the ground, swiftly turning to face him and hissing. "I would stand no chance against you in combat." Tseldora went on with a shrug "However, I need only delay you until the time is right."
The Caster let out an amused chuckle in response to this "Delay me? You are barely worth my attention." he relaxed his shoulders "Which is why you shall to receive it."
Tseldora blinked in surprise "Wha-" he stumbled forwards, his sentence cut off as a horrific pain flared through his back. He released a choked gasp as he stumbled, his right hand dropping the estoc and quickly clasping his burning shoulder on his opposite side. He cast a glance over his back to see a woman wearing dark robes and a pointed hat lower her glowing Catalyst.
"You...You dare-!?" Tseldora swung his own Catalyst towards her, the top glowing as it let loose a scattering blast of blue projectiles towards her. The spiders jumped at the first Caster, with barely any effort on his part, he cut through them with ease as Tseldora rushed the female Caster.
Beatrice jumped off the building as the sorceries impacted the location where she had been standing moments ago, turning to face the enemy Caster, the man dressed in mismatching robe, the right half as a pale green colour while the left was a darker tone of green.
Raising her Catalyst she sent another soul arrow towards him, the man scowled and rolled away before waving his Catalyst above his head, several glowing orbs formed above his head as he continued to run, avoiding her blasts against him.
The soul arrows shot forth towards Beatrice, the Witch narrowed her eyes she smirked, swinging her catalyst upwards, light shot forth from the wooden staff and soon condensed into a small blade. The glowing weapon slashed through the minor sorceries with ease.
Tseldora slid to a halt and openly growled at Beatrice, the witch merely twirled her staff before resting it on the ground, a smug look coming onto her face.
"For another practitioner of Sorcery, you aren't as good as I was expecting." Beatrice joked, Tseldora's face scrunched up and went bright red with rage before he let out a howl of anger, another flash of light emerged when he slammed his staff into the ground.
Beatrice smile disappeared and her face became more pensive as more spiders began to emerge, facing towards her. Tseldora smirked at her "Anymore remarks, witch?"
Beatrice remained silent for a few moments before she allowed herself a small smile "I suppose I'm not bad for a distraction."
Tseldora barely registered the words she said before he felt a presence seemingly manifest itself next to him not a moment later, the man turned around just in time to see one of the giant armoured illusions looming over him. He widened his eyes in alarm and attempted to scramble away, he was, however, far too slow as the knight swung its shield at him.
The viscous armoured backhand sent him careening through the air and smashing through the side of a nearby house.
Sulyvahn pointed his Catalyst sword at another target, the blade glowed a deep purple before it shot off a beam of energy towards the spider, the creature being vaporised in the blast.
Turning his head, he managed to catch a glimpse of Tseldora's small flight and subsequent crash as the Sentinel dissipated.
"Thee should have slain him." Gwyndolins voice echoed out around the Caster "T'would have been simpler."
"It is beneath me." Sulyvahn replied casually as he continued to cut down the familiars "And the 'Heretic' witch has the situation under control."
Beatrice shot forth another dozen soul arrows, the blue orbs lancing through the air before they cut through their targets, the spiders having little in the way of magic resistance were easily slain as she made her way towards the House the Duke had been flung into. Peering her head in through the hole, she smirked as she saw the man lying on his back coughing heavily from the impact.
Raising her Catalyst up, she made to fire off a soul spear before a rumbling threw her off balance. Her expression turned anxious as her eyes darted in all directions, the situation was made worse when she heard the Dukes quiet chuckle from the ground.
"What is that?" Beatrice demanded, threateningly pointing her Catalyst at the man, the Duke regarded her with a blank stare before his expression turned smug.
"My beloved." He answered with a grin.
Solaire grabbed Luciens shoulder to steady the man so he didn't fall over. The hunter sent him a small nod in return before he turned his expression back to the surrounding city. The rumbling had gotten worse in the last few seconds.
"In the hell is this?" The Hunter scowled, pulling out his pistol and gunning down another spider before he dropped the weapon into a murky black puddle and allowed it to fade away.
Solaire narrowed his eyes "I...I am not sure." pausing, he paid closer attention to the rumbling, which was now beginning to sound like a thumping sound, although the frequency between strikes was far too many to be considered footsteps.
The Smelter demons clawed hand latched onto the handle of Vordts mace, stopping the swing dead. The Berserker made to growl at the interference before the Dragon Slayer armour slammed its shield into the Outrider knights chin, Vordts head snapped up, the pointed metal chin of his helm having been dented inwards by the force of the strike.
Following the attack through, the Smelter demon lashed out punching Vordt in the face with the hilt of its greatsword, the Berserker stumbled back with a grunt of pain. The Smelter demon made to advance.
There was a brief silence.
Then a beam of pure white heat shot out of the ground, the Smelter demon released a roar as the beam lanced its way up the side of its armour, leaving a melted mark along its body as it burned upwards, the Berserker was sent staggering away.
The Dragon Slayer Armour raised its own shield to block the strike, only for the force behind the beam to impact the shield and knock the Berserker off their feet and onto their back.
"Crap!" Ritsuka cursed, tackling the director to the ground as the beam continued to shoot off in all directions, narrowly sailing over their heads. Mash planted her shield down in front of the pair, the beam caught the side of the cross shield and causing the girl to let out a grunt and dig her heels into the ground to keep herself upright.
"Good Gods!" Nero cried out in alarm, throwing herself down alongside the Masters for cover. The beam soon changed its angle and cut along the ground before shooting off into the air and cutting itself off.
"What the-" Ritsuka slowly got off the Director, completely ignoring her gobsmacked expression "What the hell was that!?"
"What!?" Olga expression turned furious "What were you thinking you brute! Tackling my like that, have some tact!"
"Eh?" Ritsuka turned to her, then blinked in realisation "S-sorry, just the beam came up and well...kind of panicked there."
"Well!...Thank you." She acknowledged with a small nod, then turned her expression back towards the direction the beam had come from.
There was a heavy thump coming from the centre of the city, the spiders and Romans paused as one, all staring off in the direction of the noise.
"Arash...what is it?" Ritsuka nervously called out through the link. The Archer himself was glaring towards the centre of the town, Gough was alongside him in staring down there.
"Fujimaru! Director!" Romani's panicked voice came through the communicator "You've got huge reading approaching you! Its magical energy is way beyond a normal servant!"
"What!?" Olga's voice turned panicked "What do you-"
The central plaza of the city exploded outwards, dirt and cobblestone was hurled in a sudden burst as something pushed its way out from underneath the ground. Arash and Gough were able to get a good look at what it was before anyone else, their view from the top of the nearby mountain side was far enough away that they could just about make out what had caused the explosion.
"I think you're gonna need your bow again." Arash spoke first, a slight hint of worry in his voice, Gough wordlessly nodded his head, drawing back his bow.
"Contact thy Lord. Tell them to make haste away from the plaza."
"On it." Arash acknowledged, soon carrying out the command "Arash to all servants! I'd recommend getting the heck out of there, Gough is about to start letting loose some arrows on the...um...target."
"What target!?" Ritsuka cried back "What the heck was that?"
"Um...are you over your fear of Spiders yet?"
"...Eh?"
"Nevermind then."
Beatrice backed away from the cloud, she and the Pontiff had been the closest to the emergence. The Caster had already jumped away and onto a nearby building. Beatrice wasn't quite as agile as he was, so she settled for making a hasty retreat further down the street.
"Come, my dear!" The enemy caster cried out with joy, marching towards they cloud with his arms wide "My beauty! By beloved!" Beatrice managed to catch glowing red orbs through the clouds as they soon focused in on her, feeling her whole body suddenly overcome with a sudden case of anxiety from the pressure exuded by the things gaze.
"My Freja!"
An ear piercing scream cut through the air, the force of which dissipated the clouds in an instant, leaving behind the being responsible for them in the first place.
"...Oh Fuck!" Beatrice cursed, spinning on her heel and sprinting away as fast as her legs could allow her, the sheer scale of the beast was enough for her to forgo any form of nervousness as she virtually disappeared into the wind, making full use of her D rank agility.
Sulyvahn watched her sprint away before slowly turning his head back to the now named Freja. The giant spider who seemed to possess two heads with one located at the front of the body and one located at the back, the armoured skin looked to be made of deep grey stone with traces of moss covering it.
The size of the beast was easily dwarfing all other spiders, being larger than the buildings surrounding them.
"Thee should have killed the fool!" Gwyndolins voice called out, Sulyvahn withheld a curse, instead opting to take a similar approach to his female counterpart.
In that he quickly fled the scene at a much greater pace than her.
"Okay…" Ritsuka was facing Olga, and Nero while Mash stood in front of them, "So, according to Archer...its a big spider. A big spider that can shoot lazerbeams, if the display a moment ago was any indication."
"Senpai, are you alright?" Mash called back to him with a noticeable concern.
"Me? I'm great, I'm just not going to turn around if that's alright with all of you." He nodded, still not facing the direction the spider was in "Anyway, Arash said that Gough is going to be firing on it any second-"
There was a distant clap of thunder and a whistling sound akin to missile before a blur slammed into the side of Feja. The Spider let out growl of annoyance, slowly turning its head in the direction of the attack. The side that had been struck carrying only a small crack.
"Oh dear…" Gough rumbled "Dragon scales…" he muttered, preparing another arrow "It has dragon scales."
"That bad?" Arash asked, pulling back his own bow.
"We need miracles. I can damage it if I can-"
Freja's mandibles parted, the back of her throat began to glow a bright white colour as energy began to coalesce around her mouth, the spider took in a shark intake of breath before the beam shot outwards, instantly crossing the distance between Freja and Gough.
The Giant widened his eyes behind his helm, throwing his body to the side moments before the beam had a chance to hit him. Freja kept up the assault, aiming her mouth downwards and dragging the beam of light across the mountain towards the giant, cutting through tree's and stone as she came closer and closer to her target.
Gough let out a brief noise of surprise before throwing himself into a roll, the Giant flung themselves down the mountain side, letting out an occasional grunt as he fell.
Arash let out a similar noise of surprise as he sprinted away as well, seeing her targets flee, Freja aimed her beam further up, slicing through the upper parts of the mountain side and causing rocks to become displaced. Cutting off her beam, there was a deep rumble which soon emanated from the mountain. The rumble soon grew into a roar as a chunk of the mountain gave way, rock and hillside churned as they fell causing an avalanche of debris to rain down.
Gough lifted his head from the roll and turned around just in time to take in the scenery, before the scenery soon submerged him underneath it. Arash was sprinting ahead of the Avalanche, briefly catching a glimpse of the giant being buried by it and allowing a scowl to come to his face before he continued on, while he would like nothing better than to help his fellow Archer, there was very little he could do while also trying to outrun landslide of rocks.
Ritsuka, Olga, Mash and Nero watched the land slide with expressions of horror, their heads slowly turning back towards the centre of the town. The Romans were already backing away from the direction of Freja, the giant spider slowly turned its head to face their direction.
Ritsuka felt himself freeze up as the largest arachnid, even larger than Quelaag, he had ever seen fixed its gaze upon him and the other servants. Something slid into his peripheral vision, causing him to let out a girlish scream and spin around to face it.
Beatrice regarded him blankly for a few moments before she turned her head back towards Freja "I think she's the Noble Phantasm of the Caster." she informed them "I wasn't able to kill him, sorry."
"Worry about it later." Ritsuka squeaked "It took out Arash and Gough, so we need to pull back a bit."
"You've got more trouble!" Romani's voice called, and Ritsuka had never hated the man more than he did right now after that particular sentence "There's another servant signature coming in, they're heading right towards you!"
Ritsuka, Mash, Olga and Nero turned their heads to the side, there was a cloud of dust descending along the opposite side of the valley, counter to the direction that Arash and Gough had been. Ritsuka had no doubt that was the new servant. "Can you get any readings on it!"
"They have a pretty average looking Saint graph if I'm honest." He replied, slightly relaxed "I'd say...Four stars?"
Ritsuka gave an incredulous blink "Out of what?"
"...Five."
"Roman!?"
"Sorry! I was trying to make you feel better and take your mind off the giant spider!"
"Not helping!"
A ball of fire slammed into the side of Freja, the spider took no damage save regard it as an annoyance, Ash was perched atop a building and hurriedly leapt away as the spider slammed a leg into the house, obliterating it and sending the Saber flying through the air at an awkward angle.
The ground underneath the middle of Freja soon lit up, a pillar shooting upwards and causing the summon to let out a hiss as it swung around to see Quelaag leaping across buildings with a scowl on her face, already preparing another Pryomancy.
"Leave the Spider to myself and Quelaag!" Ash's voice came through the link "We'll deal with it, I can sense another servant approaching you, how goes the battle with Vordt?"
Ritsuka turned his head just in time to see Vordt slam into the burning Berserkers chest, tackling the Servant through a house as Olga's swiftly picked up its shield and followed after through the debris, the sounds of metal clashing against metal soon followed.
"Its going." Was all he said on the topic, turning his head back towards the cloud of dust "Gareth, Sif. We've got another servant incoming. Can you get over here, please?"
"On our way, Master!" Came Gareth's hurried reply, Ritsuka allowed himself a brief sigh of relief.
"Gareth and Sif are on their way." Ritsuka announced to the odd group that he had "But we don't really have a way of contacting anyone else right now." looking away "Arash? Are you and Gough alright?"
"I'm fine, Gough got caught in the landslide, so we're going to have to wait for him to dig himself out. I'd try and held him, but I don't know what I could do that he couldn't do better in this situation."
"Alright, try and find another place to shoot from, we're going to need those spiders cleared out so we can deal with the big one, and if you can, try and help us with the incoming servant?"
"Do what I can, be ready in a few moments."
"Arash says that Gough got caught in the landslide, and he's having to reposition." Ritsuka informed them "So, we're basically on our own for the time being against the Servant while the others deal with everything else in the town."
"The Servants nearly on top of you!" Romani called out again "It looks like a Lancer class from these readings."
The dust cloud had steadily gotten closer to the point where the group could now make out the faint outline of a figure charging towards them, the shining reflection gave the detail of armour, however that was all they could manage from the Servant thus far.
"Stay behind me, Senpai!" Mash exclaimed, rushing to the front and slamming her shield into the ground, pulling out her straight sword and holding it tightly in her hands. Beatrice stood next to her, although looked far more tense.
"Remain out of danger, Pale Rose." Nero proclaimed, strutting forwards and levelling her sword towards the cloud, the mysterious flames still clinging to her blade as she glared towards it.
"Where is Lancer and Saber?" Olga nervously asked, Ritsuka bit his lip, eyes darting to the side and further into the city, the outer wall now being non-existent due to the spiders laser beam decimating it, providing them with a clear view of the carnage. Roman soldiers frantically involved in desperate struggles against the spiders while there were flashes of light coming from the direction of Freja, the giant spider still involved in the scuffle with Ash and Quelaag.
"They'll be here soon." Hopefully. He neglected to mention the last part as he face the Direction of the cloud, the servant showing no indication of slowing down in the least. The armoured servant locked onto Mash and seemingly picked up their pace considerably.
Ritsuka and Olga backed away, Beatrice held up her staff and let loose a small barrage of spells.
The Lancer barely paid them any mind as they sped towards his body, abruptly rolling forwards causing most to pass over his head before returning to his feet and continuing his sprint towards them.
Mash prepared herself for the collision as the Servant adjusted himself, looking like he was going for a shoulder barge. For a brief moment, Ritsuka thought that Romani had been wrong and it was another Berserker servant.
Then the Servant slid to a halt spinning on their heel as their left hand shot upwards, clasping the underside of the right most section of the cross shield, Mash let out a brief noise of surprise as the Lancer servant literally threw her into the air and away from them.
Continuing on from his pre-emptive strike, he turned on Beatrice, the Caster shooting a Soul spear directly into his chest, there was a glancing blow as he adjusted his body to the side, the spear still impacted him and leaving a burn march across his upper pectoral armour piece.
The problem was that he didn't even flinch. Slipping his other hand onto his weapon, a large halberd, he dragged the base of it along the ground before thrusting the but of the weapon upward in an uppercut, the handle caught Beatrice in the chest, the Caster let loose a bloodied cough as she was violently launched into the air.
Turning his body, the Lancer thrust the halberd forwards like a spear, directly into the flat end of Aestus Estus, Nero grit her teeth as she blocked the strike. The Lancer, remaining silent the whole time, merely pulled the halberd back before performing a roundhouse kick.
Nero widened her eyes in alarm and threw her body back, the armoured heel passing a scant few centimetres in front of her eyes, the moment his heel came back down to Earth, Lancer rotated his body a full ninety degrees before thrusting himself forwards into a shoulder barge.
The flat of her blade was raised again and absorbed most of the impact, however the force was still enough to blast her away.
The entire opening engagement had lasted barely ten seconds.
Lancer swung the Halberd towards the Masters, the weapon slammed into Mash's shield with a weighty clang. Stopping dead in its tracks, Mash grit her teeth due to the force of the blow, it was certainly powerful, although she remembered he Berserker from Fuyuki and how he was still stronger.
They now got a good look at the Lancer.
Ritsuka widened his eyes, this form was exactly the same as the person he had seen in his dreams earlier. Their armour and weapon were identical, although they looked much shorter than he had remembered them being. Although they were still nearly two metres tall, so they were far above his own height and unlike Sulyvahn, this Servant had obvious bulk in his build.
Clad head to toe in steel, decorated armour, he stared them down. He was marginally similar to Verndari in that there was a face carved onto his helm. The empty expression stared at the shield, the head tilted slightly in mild curiosity, as if he hadn't been expecting it before the head straightened out again.
A howl from his right caused him to snap his head to the side, seconds before he raised his arms in front of him to block a strike from Gareth as she thrust her lance into him, the blow knocking the Lancer away and sending him skidding backwards in an explosion of blue light.
Sliding to a halt, he lowered his arms and faced the new opponents. Sif let out a growl with Gareth cocked her lance back and raised her shield "You alright, Master? Mash?"
"Fine…" Ritsuka let out a breath of relief at seeing the duo "Thanks for coming so soon."
"Of course!" Gareth beamed, turning her attention back to the Lancer "Has he introduced himself yet?"
"No."
"What!?" Gareth blinked, looking appalled before facing the Lancer again "No introduction? Why not!? Where's your pride as a…" she squinted, looking at his armour up and down "...A knight? Warrior?"
"Why should I have pride?" The voice called back, cold and emotionless "I kill. That is all that is required of me. To obey commands, to kill when told." he twirled his halberd, facing the group "That is all."
Gareth frowned "That doesn't sound fulfilling, what about a sense of achievement?"
"I complete my purpose. That is all that is required of me." He replied in the same empty tone of voice "Further talk is pointless, prepare yourself."
AN: Those moves...That weapon...Yes.
The one. The only.
Champion Gundyr. You know what this means?
Stat time. Oh, yeah. Tseldora is here as well isn't he?
Gundyr
Servant: Lancer
Strength: B++
Endurance: A (B)
Agility: B+
Mana: D
Luck: E
Noble Phantasm: A
Vindex: B
Weapon is Unbreakable, regardless of stress or attack suffered.
Champion's Wrath: A
'Unexpected Resistance has been met, further strength required.'
Boosts strength to B++
Class Skills:
Magic Resistance: C
Personal Skills:
Instinct: B
Eternal Arms Mastery: C
Will still fight with great skill, regardless of mental hinderance.
Hand to Hand: B
Even when void of his weapon, he remains a fearsome opponent with his extenstive combat techniques
Prisoners Chain: B-
Boosts strength and Agility to B+ while endurance is lowered to B
Battle Continuation: B
Summoning
"Lancer. Gundyr. Use me as you see fit."
Dialogue 1
"Awaiting your instructions."
Dialogue 2
"Is there need of me?"
Dialogue 3
"You are my Master. I am a tool, I have no opinion."
Dialogue 4 (If you have Cu Chulainn Alter)
"A King who is King because he can kill. He stands atop all warriors. It makes sense. I see no issue. I am a warrior because I kill. I kill because I am a warrior. That is it."
Dialogue 5 (If you have Fire Keeper)
"A Fire Keeper. I was to have one. I failed."
Dialogue 6 (If you have Ashen One)
"I judged his skill. He killed me. That was that."
Dialogue 7 (If you have Nightingale)
"She thinks me ill. I do not know what illness is. I merely serve my purpose, that is all."
Dialogue 8 (If you have any of the Cu Chulainn)
"To battle and find enjoyment in it...I do not understand."
Dialogue 9 (If you have Enkidu)
"It is a weapon...They have...a will? I do not understand."
Dialogue 10 (If you have Altera)
"She destroys because that is her role. It makes sense. No...There is more...I...I do not understand."
Dialogue 11 (If you have Emiya Alter)
"I kill because I am told. He kills because he is told. I do not see a difference."
Dialogue 12 (If you have EMIYA)
"He said I am a Living Counter guardian. I do not know what that is. I think he does not like me, or he pities me. I do not understand."
Dialogue 13 (If you have Atalanta)
"She talks of joys of childhood. I do not know...I remember long ago. I remember preparations for my role. The chain around me. I...I can't...I do not understand what she see's in children. I do not understand...What is 'childhood'?"
Dialogue 14 (If you have Caenis)
"The Lancer. She tries to exhibit emotions from me. I don't understand. I...I do not understand anger. She became frustrated and called me soulless. I do not...Did I fail somehow?"
Dialogue 15 (If you have Mordred)
"She was created for a role. She succeed but...She is...sad? Why? I do not understand why she is sad. Is it because she expired after? I do not know."
Dialogue 16 (If you have Avenger Servants)
"I do not understand hatred. So I do not understand why they are controlled by it. Is hatred...useful?"
Likes
"I have no joys."
Hates
"I have no hates."
Wish for the Holy Grail
"I have no wish."
Bond Level 1
"I am useful. That is acceptable."
Blond Level 2
"Your concern is unneeded, I am within optimal parameters."
Blond Level 3
"Why do you question beyond my functions? Is there some issue?"
Bond Level 4
"You continue to question my abilities. I have no issues with my mind. I am within optimal parameters to complete your orders."
Bond Level 5
"I obey, because that is all I am. I am, because I obey. I do not understand anything else. This...feeling when you speak with me. It is pain, but it is not. It is...similar when I look back on a failed objective, but I have obeyed all my orders. Why do I feel this pain when I look back on my life?"
Birthday
"I see."
During an Event
"Am I to be commanded to the front?"
1st Ascension
"I am stronger."
2nd Ascension
"This is an improvement to my body."
3rd Ascension
"I can better fulfil your orders now."
4th Ascension
"I am at my optimal level of abilities. Command me as you would."
Duke Tseldora
Servant: Caster
Strength: E
Endurance: E
Agility: D
Mana: B
Luck: C
Noble Phantasm: A+
Dukes Dear Freja: A+ (Anti-army) Max Target: 100, Max Range: 0-90
Class Skills:
Item Construction: D
Territory Creation: C
Personal Skills:
Appreciation for Spiders: A
Understanding of arachnids, can command them and form links to act as Psuedo-familiars
Brightstone Familiars: B
The Spiders of Brightsone, a mine named after himself, they can be summoned to act as his warriors.
Sorcery: C
Summoning
"I am Tseldora, Duke of Brightsone Cove. Where might I set up my study?"
Dialogue 1
"Have you ever paid close attention to spiders before? Such beautiful creatures they are."
Dialogue 2
"Hm? My studies? They progress fine. A fear of spiders you say? What a ludicrous notion."
Dialogue 3
"Master and Servant? You are my summoner...I would say assistant researcher."
Dialogue 4 (If you have Quetzalcoatl)
"The...um...The Lord has made mention that she has a strong dislike for my precious familiars. I will...keep my distance."
Dialogue 5 (If you have Divine Spirits)
"Lords about...My word. I have never thought to have seen so many!"
Dialogue 6 (If you have Quelaag)
"She is beautiful, isn't she? That armoured carapace, that burning maw, those segmented legs..."
Dialogue 7 (If you have Avicebron)
"I suppose we both have a passion of ours. He wishes to recreate his Adam. I wish to birth my beloved Freja again, I wasn't able to see her in life."
Dialogue 8 (If you have King Vendrick)
"I am keeping my distance from the King right now...Because he would likely have my head if I showed myself before him."
Dialogue 9 (If you have Servants from Dangleic)
"A sense of home...Best I avoid them. They would consider my work to be...how shall we say...morally bankrupt?"
Dialogue 10 (If you have Bearer of the Curse)
"Vile harlot slew my beloved Freja. If I have the opportunity to get even, I will...but don't tell her I said that. She could probably break me over her knee."
Dialogue 10 (If you have Patches)
"There's something strange about him. I told him of my obsession with spiders. He merely laughed at me. But it wasn't malicious...it is as if he was aware of something I didn't know. Or he was laughing that he experienced something I haven't. Rather odd."
Likes
"Likes? I have a passion for spiders...No. That would not be true, I have an obsession with them, because they really are so very interesting."
Hates
"I have a strong dislike for those who hate spiders...no...who actively kill them in front of me. It is something I dislike."
Wish for the Holy Grail
"Well...I would prefer my own research achieve my goal."
Bond Level 1
"Hm? I suppose you aren't terrible to be around at the moment, Master."
Blond Level 2
"My research...Hm? Scared of spiders, you say? You are!? A travesty! We must right this wrong!"
Blond Level 3
"I have come up with several solutions to your fear, although it will take time to cultivate the hive."
Bond Level 4
"You don't mind spiders but you can't say you love them? I suppose that it is good enough for now..."
Bond Level 5
"Assistant, there you are. Come, I have a fresh specimen I wish to show you!"
Birthday
"A birthday? I suppose I should grant you blessings then."
During an Event
"Hm? What a strange noise..."
1st Ascension
"Yes, I have gotten stronger."
2nd Ascension
"This power...it will serve me well."
3rd Ascension
"Soon, my dear Freja, soon..."
4th Ascension
"I am closer to my goal than I ever dreamed possible. This is thanks to your efforts, I hope you will see the end result. Freja is going to be most beautiful!"