Chapter 04: Their First Battles

As a former Argonaut, Medea felt like she'd seen all sorts of warriors and could reasonably counter any type she'd meet during the Holy Grail War. Then she went from admiring the Berserker's beauty to quickly fearing the arrogant smile that had appeared upon the boy's prompting.

Recovering from where she'd landed, Medea choked as her throat was suddenly grabbed before being slammed against a rocky wall.

"I've never really fought magicians back home." Berserker smirked, as if she hadn't just hit her with enough power that the magus was sure would stagger even Heracles. "Don't disappoint me, okay?"

Now that was just begging for a response. "Οθόνη Kαπνού!"

Black smoke burst forth, obscuring Berserker's sight as Medea immediately teleported away from her grip. Flying high into the air, she-

"I can still see you, by the way." Two crimson beams of light pierced through the smoke, nearly hitting her had she not hastily dodged away. A second later, the smoke dispersed from Berserker launching herself towards Caster with her fist cocked again.

"Αστραπή!" Thankfully, the lightning seemed to be effective as Berserker screamed in pain while being slamming down into the earth. "Ενεργειακή Ακτίνα!"

Four beams of powerful energy struck at Berserker, burying her deeper into the ground. "Am I still disappointing you, Berserker?"

"No..." A small but growling voice echoed from the onslaught of her spells. "You're motivating me."

Then she unleased those scarlet energy blasts from her eyes again, except rather than the previously thin but penetrative heat beams, these ones were wide and powerful, easily fighting back against her.

Straining against her until the opposing energies exploded enough force to reduce their surroundings to smoking debris, Medea barely recovered in time to dodge downwards from a punch that would've pulverized her head, the shockwave of it dispersing most of the smoke.

Medea attempted to create distance, yet Berserker was at her side in an instant with a terrifyingly solid grip on her shoulder while still floating.

"Να Απωθηθείτε από Εμένα!" Despite intending to send Berserker away via gravitational repulsion, Medea gasped as she was the one instantly propelled away, sending her crashing into another rocky wall. By the gods, was Berserker actually generating her own gravitational force?!

And almost before Caster could even slide down, Berserker was there seizing her by the throat again. "Goodbye. You were fun to deal with."

"Know your place, you fool!" Medea exploded with raw magical power, successful in repelling the blonde this time before conjuring a series of massive chains to hurl them at her. Berserker barely managed to deflect two of them before getting overwhelmed.

After the barrage of strikes, Medea managed to immobilize Berserker completely with her head being the only part of her body to not be bound.

"Wow! Magic sure is... painful!" Berserker prompted her final word with a powerful flex that shattered the chains and freed herself. "Come on! You can do more, can't you?!"

"Yes. Yes, I can." The skies darkened and rumbled as Medea felt both her ire and magical output rise, the earth itself breaking apart and reforming into battle golems at the ready. Not her preferred Dragon Tooth Warriors, but these mud dolls would've to do as a distraction-

Caster. I require assistance.

Medea paused in her actions, a little befuddled at her Master's words. Ever since summoning her, she'd proven to be a rather resourceful and self-sufficient young woman despite her horrendous lack of selfishness, so to call upon her like this meant that Berserker's Master might actually be more dangerous than he appeared to be. I'm on my way, Master.

Teleporting at once, Medea stilled at the sight of Angelica frozen still to the earth, with Berserker's Master just about to strike her. "Εκρηκτική Φλόγα!"

The boy took the attack head on, getting launched off his feet and rolling to a smoking halt. An instant later, Berserker slammed down between them, hunched protectively as her eyes threatened to discharge that burning gaze of her's again.

"That's enough, Caster." Angelica murmured after she'd been freed and secured. "We're withdrawing."

"As you wish." Caster acquiesced, teleporting them back to the girl's abode. It was a rather lavish hotel room, even if it had been clear that she hadn't been the intended Master to be chosen by the Grail. "I didn't expect you to order a retreat like that."

"It was necessary." Angelica sat down upon her bed, only for the girl's exhaustion to betray her as she quickly laid down onto her back. "Emiya surpassed me in both prana and physical capabilities. The only reason I lasted so long was that he simply couldn't land a hit on me. But he also had no problem with simply drawing out the battle since he clearly had the stamina for it."

That explained why her Master was currently running on fumes at the moment. Taking a seat herself, Medea banished her cloak and laid down beside her while gathering her thoughts. That Berserker was going to be quite the trouble.

A woman with the strength of Heracles, speed and flight capabilities superior to her and those strange ocular energy beams that could literally burn away her spells. For one strange moment, she could've pretended that the woman was a demigod child of Apollo, with how her magical signature seemed similar enough to that of the sun if not for the damning fact that Berserker had definitely not felt like a demigod.

And Medea knew how to spot demigods. Just what in the Underworld was Berserker? Turning to face Angelica, she blinked at how the girl had already fallen asleep.

"Well, I suppose some rest is in order." Medea gently brushed the blonde fringes out of the way of her closed eyes.

"So, how did you do?" Berserker said as she crouched down after putting Shirou up against a tree.

"I was actually doing well." Shirou hissed as his burns slowly healed, thoroughly hating how Caster's magecraft was apparently high-level enough that his healing was taking so long to help him recover, even at nighttime. "Ainsworth and I couldn't hurt each other conventionally, so it was really a matter of who'd get exhausted first. But let's talk about something else."

"Like what?"

"Like your true origins, Berserker." Shirou demanded. "And no more deflecting this time."

Berserker sighed. "So... where do I start?"

If there was truly a higher authority up there, Artoria would like to know just how much influence They had over her life.

Because she had been summoned to a pair of Emiya and Einzbern again, albeit as cousins with the Emiya being much more likable.

Because the Emiya in question once again had an inhuman disposition, except it was definitely biological rather than philosophical this time.

And because once again, her first battle of the Grail War was against a Lancer.

(She could only hope that that dreadful incident with Diarmuid wouldn't repeat itself.)

Sparks flew as her invisible sword repeatedly clashed against his crimson spear, Lancer's skill just as apparent as his might while the air shrieked and cleaved apart from their bout. Compared to Diarmuid, this Lancer apparently had better instincts compared to how sure he was at parrying a weapon he couldn't see with little hesitation in his strikes.

Forcing a lapse in his movements, Artoria charged with the intention of decapitating him. However, Lancer swiftly backstepped out of her range before shooting back forward with a powerful thrust that would tore through her neck and shoulder had she not dodged downwards and swung upwards at his spear with enough force to crater the ground beneath them.

After actually knocking him unsteady for a bit, Artoria pressed forward with her powerful strikes overwhelming Lancer. It wasn't enough to overpower him, but it did keep him on the retreat.

Spinning about once to add more force to her swing, Lancer's spear nearly bent from her blow, forcing him to have to disengage and launched himself upwards and away for some needed distance.

"Damn!" Lancer growled in complaint. "How can you wield a weapon concealed like that?!"

"Practice." Artoria curtly answered as she tried to decapitate him again, Lancer somersaulting over her to dodge her slash and keep away. "Why are you now keeping your distance, Lancer? If you keep retreating, you will give spearmen a bad name."

"Very funny, swordswoman!" Lancer readjusted his stance, holding his spear so that it's blade was pointed forward and downwards. A second later, the spear ignited with bloodlust so violent and palpable that Artoria let herself honestly believe it to be a living beast for an instant.

Then she realized that she was facing a Noble Phantasm being activated.

"I'll have your heart!" Lancer's foot shattered the ground from how hard he stomped as he thrusted forward with fatal speed. "Gáe...!"

Invisible Air churned at the approaching danger, Artoria maximizing her chances of defense as she instinctively knew dodging to be nigh-impossible.

"...Bolg!"

Her instinct proved to be correct when the spear became a crimson beam of bloody energy that n̶e̶a̶r̶l̶y̶ ̶r̶i̶p̶p̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶s̶w̶o̶r̶d̶ ̶o̶u̶t̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶h̶a̶n̶d̶s̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶e̶r̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶c̶e̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶a̶t̶t̶a̶c̶k̶,̶ ̶A̶r̶t̶o̶r̶i̶a̶ ̶b̶a̶r̶e̶l̶y̶ ̶m̶a̶n̶a̶g̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶d̶i̶r̶e̶c̶t̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶o̶f̶f̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶r̶s̶e̶ ignored her defenses to pierce through her chest, Artoria getting flung from the impact of the attack until she crashed against a tree.

Returning his spear back to normal, Lancer growled in disbelief. "...so you dodged my unblockable blow, Saber?!"

She'd 'dodged' it?! She'd parried it away! How could...? Of course...

"A curse?" Artoria winced at how she could feel the shoulder wound refuse to heal properly, a disturbing sensation she found familiar. "On top of that, a blow that reverses cause and effect? Gáe Bolg...? You're... Ireland's Child of Light!"

"Damn, now I've done it." The newly identified Cú Chulainn held his spear up. "That's what I get for failing to make that fatal move land properly. My Master's great, seriously, but she's a bit of a worrywart. And to be honest, it kinda sucks to have to end this without a victory after already disengaging from that red bastard-"

Lancer's words cut off as he was suddenly teleported away. Saber only needed a second to realize what would prompt that before swiftly heading for Illyasviel's location.

Illya grunted as she dodged the Fraga's punches with mild issue, very thankful that Aunt Riruka had been insistent on her physical training. With how her four Zähre had been obliterated by the Enforcer before her, Illya needed to find an opening in order to create a much stronger familiar with Engel Leid.

Until then, Illya would have to deal with the situation while Saber and Lancer fought elsewhere.

"I must rescind my earlier opinion of you." Bazett Fraga McRemitz noted after reeling from a swipe that would've crushed her throat. "I've never encountered or heard of an Einzbern so physically skilled."

"Trust me, my magecraft's a lot better." Illya panted, trickling a little more prana into the necessary hair strands. "Would you like it to be the last thing you see?"

Engel Leid finalized at that moment, Illya ripping off ten hair strands to form Lanze, the autonomous spear nearly clipping at Bazett's head mercilessly. While the Fraga focused on defense, Illya made more Zähre until six of them were flying around her protectively.

She didn't have much in terms of stamina, but nobody was going to be beating her in prana quantity. "Feuer!"

The Zähre fired upon Bazett's form, smoke and dust soon obscuring the area. Not even waiting for confirmation of her demise, one of her Zähre transformed into a Degen and joined Lanze in relentless onslaught.

Until both familiars were suddenly blown away, the smoky dust clearing to reveal Bazett's injured but still combat capable form.

Well, she'd have to fix that. Magically infused strings sheared through the air and ground at her command, reaching subsonic speed with the intent of cleaving Bazett apart into pieces. However, her suit seemed to be very specially customized as the strings refused cut deeper beyond a set inch.

So Illya had to settle for the next best thing: literally stringing her prey up.

Grunting as strings did their best to instead crush her flesh and break her bones due to not cutting through instantly, Bazett choked as a string finally found itself around her throat.

"Sayonara."

And then, string moved to shear through flesh-

"Come, Lancer!"

A crimson flash immediately shredded all of her strings in an instant before the blue-clad spearman paused in his movements with Bazett secured with his free arm.

"Not bad, lassie." Lancer grinned at Illya, his feral mood contrasting Bazett's grim expression as she gingerly touched her bleeding neck. "I guess that this is it for tonight?"

"...I believe so." Bazett grimaced as she traced a finger over the back of her gloved hand, confirming to Illya about the usage of a Command Seal. "We're retreating, Lancer."

With a single bound, Lancer disappeared into distance. A few seconds later, Saber dropped down beside her with a bloody shoulder. "They've retreated?"

"Yes... That was surprisingly intense." Illya sighed as she let relief seep through her. Bazett wasn't as strong as Aunt Riruka or Shirou ever were when they sparred, but it had still been a marked difference when Bazett had inflicted each blow against her with the intent to pulverize.

"That is a Grail War is about, Illyasviel. Every opponent you'll meet will attempt their best to kill you. That's why I was so bothered about your cousin suddenly becoming a Master as well. Berserker and I will eventually clash, thereby forcing you two into becoming enemies." Having accurately guessed her Master's thoughts, Saber commented before clutching her shoulder. "Illyasviel, my wound, if you please. I wish to confirm something."

Illya raised a curious brow before focusing a healing spell through her link. While Saber's wound did glow a bright green briefly, her dissatisfied expression showed that it hadn't worked. "Cursed injury?"

"Indeed." Saber sighed. "Well, I suppose that it is fortunate that I retain full usage of both my hands this time. However-"

"We're making Lancer's death a priority, then." Illya finished for her. "I was so close to finishing off that Fraga, too!"

"I'm glad that we're on the same page, Master." Saber smiled before giving a stern look towards where Lancer had gone. "Come, Illyasviel. We must retire for the night before another enemy happens upon our exhausted selves."

"Sure." Illya replied as she looked up to the night sky.

"You're both back." Leysritt greeted Shirou and Illya with a small smile. "Good."

"We're home." Shirou greeted automatically as he and the other girls filed in, letting Illya head for the bathroom first while Shirou helped Sella in making a quick dinner before they retired for the night.

Then came the mess that was the sleeping arrangements.

"Seriously, Illya?" Shirou sighed exasperatedly at the sight of Illya following him to his room, already dressed in her nightdress.

"In times like this, I feel like it's really important to sleep together for proper safety." Illya wasn't even sounding like she was trying to be hesitant. "We both know that sleeping right next to you is most likely the safest place for me than anywhere else."

Then it got worse with their Servants.

"I just want to see what's it's like to sleep with a guy." Berserker was even worse, a mischievous grin on her lips. "Never really got that option until now. Supergirl's probably a prude herself if I can feel so excited for this."

"We're just going to be sleeping next to you in your bed, Shirou. There'll be nothing too forward, right?" Saber stated, only to worry when neither Berserker nor her own Master agreed with her. "There'll be nothing too forward, right?"

"...fine, just remember that you were the ones insistent on this." Shirou finally caved. The sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could rest his mind. For all of his godly stamina, it was both confusing and relieving that he could apparently get tired like other people, even if he was basically 'convincing' himself to be.

He'd once seen his mother go a whole week without rest and even she had surrendered to the mental strain.

In the end, it was really for the better that they just get it over with. They still had school to deal with tomorrow.

Eight hours later, Shirou was the first to wake. And was immediately face-to-face with a problem.

It wasn't that Illya was sleep-fondling him(again).

It wasn't that Berserker had straddled him, despite her unspoken intention to earlier.

It wasn't even either Liz or Sella catching them in a compromising position.

"Um..." Shirou murmured as he kept looking downwards, too shocked to do anything else.

Below him, with her golden hair free of her bun and spread out like a halo, Saber stared back up with her emerald eyes set in restrained annoyance.

"I have no idea how this happened..." Shirou nervously swallowed, not very eager to check if her sword could run him through. "But I'm so sorry."

"I am well aware that this is an accident, which is why I have not attempted to free you of your head." Saber dryly replied, shifting a little and making Shirou uncomfortably aware of how his hips were positioned between her thighs. "But I would rather not continue to endure the feel of your proof of manhood so closely."

Shirou flew straight up.

Ceiling and roof be damned.

KingVessel: Sorry, Shirou, but Superman's a canon chick magnet himself. Combine that with your own... Hahaha! Give me your reviews~!