Everyone stood slack-jawed at the figure that stood before them. It certainly looked like a king who stood up straight with a serious, no-nonsense demeanor. There was only one problem: she was a female! Now, nobody in Kirito's group was opposed to a woman ruler. However, this was supposed to be the legendary King Arthur.

"There's got to be a mistake," said Leafa.

"I don't know how it could be. It certainly isn't any one of our Noble Spirits," countered Sinon.

"I Wonder if my Noble Spirit will be a woman as well," mused Asuna.

"Excuse me, but what's your name?" asked Kirito.

The Noble Spirit answered, "My name is Altria Pendragon." So there was no mistake. This was indeed Kirito's Noble Spirit.

"I'm sorry," said Lisbeth, "Aren't you supposed to be a man?" Altria let out a small groan of disapproval at the comment.

"It's true that I was required to act and dress as a man during my reign," she admitted, "However, I am indeed a woman, and please call me Saber. My identity is not to be known among the other Noble Spirits." Kirito glared back at his friends. He was already in a committed relationship with Asuna, and now he was going to be fighting side by side with a complete stranger. Asuna grunted in disapproval, while Kirito could merely smile sheepishly.

"Say, how come our Noble Spirits haven't appeared yet?" asked Sinon.

"Apparently, they appear every 15 minutes at random," explained Leafa, "At least, that's what it says here." Leafa pointed to a section of the rules that she had pulled up.

Sinon sighed in exasperation, "Figures that Kirito would get the first Noble Spirit. Let me guess. Next one's will be Asuna's, right?" However, Asuna's was not the next Noble Spirit. After 15 minutes had passed, the sky darkened and from a bolt of lightning came a burly man riding in on a chariot.

"The hunt is on!" cried the Noble Spirit as he descended. He had the appearance of a rugged warrior, clad in medieval armor. "I am the King of Conquerors," he introduced himself, "But you can call me Rider."

Leafa gasped in delight, "Then you must be, mmm?" Rider put a finger to Leafa's lips.

"You mustn't reveal my identity to other Noble Spirits," he cautioned.

"Oh, right," said Leafa, blushing, "I' m sorry." Rider turned to Altria. "You must be Saber, am I correct?"

"You are," responded Saber.

"Then let us have a duel, right here and now!"

Saber shook her head, "I'm sorry, but I need time to prepare. I was just summoned into this world, and I would like to get to know my master more." Asuna folded her arms and turned away in disgust. Rider waved his hand grandly.

"Very well. Very well." he said jovially, "But do not tarry. We are in a contest for the Holy Grail, and I wish all combatants a fair and exciting fight."

"The other Noble Spirits haven't even been summoned yet," mentioned Sinon, "It might be a good idea to see who the competition is."

"Are you sure it's a good idea to give pointers to the competition?" asked Lisbeth.

"Unfair advantage or not, the blue haired girl has a point. We should scope out the competition before determining our battle strategy," said Saber. Asuna muttered something about Saber's tactical skills not being fair, but her bitterness was interrupted by another flash of light. A knight, clad in black armor emerged. Everyone stood in awe at the stately figure.

"And who do I have the pleasure of addressing?" asked Rider. The knight responded with a sky piercing scream, before making a move at Saber, who quickly retaliated with her sword.

"Berserker," she growled through clenched teeth. Lisbeth gasped.

"Then that must be...Stop it!" she cried as she rushed in between the duel, "You shouldn't be fighting!" In a matter of seconds, Lisbeth felt cold steel poking her neck.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't cut your throat!" growled Saber, "Backing down from a fight is disgraceful; a shame worthy of death."

"But…" Kirito put a hand on Lisbeth's shoulder to calm her down.

"This is the Holy Grail Tournament, remember? They're supposed to fight each other."

"I know. I know," sighed Lisbeth, "It's just that that's, well...you know."

"Yeah." Kirito leaned in to whisper so that Saber wouldn't hear, "Just hope Saber doesn't find out, OK?" Berserker was now preoccupied fighting Rider, something that made Saber angry. She pointed an accusing finger at Lisbeth.

"You interrupted my fight with Berserker only to suggest a shameful course of action," she accused, "I'll spare your life, but you must be suitably punished." Saber turned to Kirito, "Perhaps you could keep my master company tonight."

"Company for what?" asked Lisbeth.

Saber's eyes narrowed, "You can please him with your body."

"I won't allow that!" said Kirito. Saber turned coldly towards Kirito.

"Do you wish to disgrace me as well? It is only fair and right that she be shamed for what she has done. Perhaps you wish that she would be whipped, then?"

"No. I wish that you would leave her alone! I'm sorry that she disgraced you, but she's my friend, and I won't have her treated so shamefully. Anyways, aren't you supposed to be a paragon of purity?" Saber glared at Kirito.

"I see there's a lot about me you don't know. My kingdom's ruin was largely my fault, and I'm not afraid to be pragmatic if the situation calls for it." Before anything more could be said, another flash of light erupted. From this light came a handsome man clad in gold with a red cape. He had matching gold tinted hair and an arrogant smirk about him. "Maggots, all of you," he said haughtily. Saber quickly drew her sword.

"What did you call me?" she yelled. The man's smirk only widened.

"Well, well what do we have here? A woman impersonating a knight!"

"I'll have you know I am a king! And I will have your head for that!"

"That was pretty uncalled for," said Sinon.

"Who might you be?" asked Leafa.

"You may call me Archer; or, more preferably, your king."

"Geez, are all of the Noble Spirit's kings?" asked Asuna.

"Not Berserker," said Kirito. He turned to Saber, "Would you like to take on Archer?"

"I'd much prefer to finish my fight with Berserker," said Saber angrily.

"Just as well," said Archer, "It will be fun to watch you get smeared across the ground."

"Keep talking like that, and I'll wipe that stupid grin off your face!"

"Hey! You!" The discourse was interrupted by Rider pointing his finger at Leafa, "Come now! We must make a hasty retreat!"

"Coward!" growled Saber, "You should stay to finish your fight!"

"Ah, how right you are, which is why I am leaving Berserker to you. I overheard you saying that you wished to finish your fight before it was so…" Rider cast a disapproving glare at Lisbeth, "...rudely interrupted. I shall take on Archer."

"An arrogant fool," said Archer.

"Arrogant I may be, but we shall see who's the fool!" With that Rider charged at Archer. However, Archer quickly retaliated by summoning multiple weapons from portals that materialized behind him.

"That's...a Noble Phantasm!" cried Saber.

"Ah, so your showing me your special technique early, eh?" said Rider, "Well then, allow me to show you mine." Suddenly, a grand army appeared behind Rider that pressed forth upon his command.

"Impressive," said Archer, "But let's see you handle...this!" Archer summoned a barrage of arrows while Rider struggled to keep them at bay. Meanwhile, Saber had resumed her fight with Berserker.

"He's strong, but he lacks technique," mused Saber to herself, "I can't sense his combat data." The two clashed swords, trying to cut through their defenses. A smirk crossed Saber's lips. "You'll keep swinging, but you'll never scratch me. I am invincible, for that is the power of my Noble Phantasm." Berserker stopped on Saber's words, then proceeded to attack her wildly, striking at her armor with rapid fury. True to her word, Saber wasn't even scratched.

"Hey, that's not fair!" cried Lisbeth.

"There's got to be some weakness," said Asuna. Berserker stopped attacking and started lunging for Saber's sword. She managed to keep it out of his reach. However, she began to inch closer to a blue flame that had materialized. The final Noble Spirit, Asuna's, was about to appear, but before anyone could get a good look at the heroic legend…

"Gah!" Saber gasped as a blade pierced her torso. Asuna covered her mouth in shock. Kirito quickly rushed to Saber's aid. The blade was removed from Saber's body as she crumpled to the ground. "But...but...how...my...ungh…" Saber collapsed and passed out.

"Your what? Your Noble Phantasm?" The new Noble Spirit was now fully visible. He was tall and lanking, wielding two spears, one in each hand. He had a mess of black hair on the top of his head. "Let me guess," he said, "Your Noble Phantasm grants you invulnerability. Well, too bad for you, my Noble Phantasm cancels out other Noble Phantasms." He turned to Asuna, "Shall I kill her?"

"K-kill her? I mean, you've already defeated her. Isn't that...isn't that enough?"

"My you really are dense. The only person who can obtain the Holy Grail is the one left standing. Therefore, I shall remove all who stand in my way."

"I won't let you," said Kirito.

"Hmph! Foolish boy! I take it you are Saber's master?"

"I am." Saber began to open her eyes.

"Where...where's...Berserker?" she weakly tried to move, but to no avail. Blood drooled from her mouth. Berserker had been about to deal a fatal blow, but Rider quickly came in defense.

"I have a certain amount of respect for Saber," he told Leafa, "I'd hate to see her go down so soon." However, Archer had not forgotten about his own duel with Rider, leaving the latter with two Noble Spirits to contend with.

"Rider, it's too much for you!" cried Leafa.

"Yeah, maybe it is," said Rider, "Perhaps it is best we retreat." Rider grabbed Leafa and spirited her away on his chariot, leaving Berserker, Lancer, Saber, and Archer to themselves.

"C-coward!" moaned Saber before succumbing to her wounds and passing out once more.

"Here," said Asuna, "Have this teleport crystal." She handed a blue gem to Kirito. Lisbeth and Sinon watched their Noble Spirits to see what they would do next. Berserker merely walked away without paying any attention to Archer.

"Such insolence," said Archer.

"That's enough!" said Sinon, "Your arrogance really pisses me off."

"You brazenly address me that way?" asked Archer.

"Ugh! Let's just get out of here." Sinon left while Archer grumbled behind her. This left Asuna and Lisbeth along with Lancer and Berserker. Lisbeth put her arm on Berserker's shoulder.

"I know you're upset, but could you maybe not be so...violent? This is supposed to be a contest, not a blood bath." Lisbeth's words seemed to calm Berserker down. Asuna turned to her Noble Spirit.

"You really are a piece of work, you know that?" he told her.

"Sorry," said Asuna, "I know that you have to take down the other Noble Spirits. It's just that Saber was already wounded and you were just about to kill her. Wouldn't you rather have a proper fight with her?"

"Hmmm...yes," said Lancer, "I admit killing her on the spot would be anticlimactic." He smiled at Asuna, "Maybe you are the right master for me." Asuna smiled back, but her mind was plagued by the thought of Kirito being alone with Saber.

To be continued...