Ch 13: War pt 2

The warehouse interior lay in undeniable ruin, the corridors and hallways smashed in and reduced to ruble leaving a long scar torn through the building. It was not an easy place to navigate anymore and Teana found herself having to take frequent detours around piles of ruble or caved in sections to keep going.

Occasionally she would wince as she saw the remains of some unfortunate who had been caught in the path of this destruction. At least it must have been quick judging from the remains condition.

"Stars 4." Hayate called urgently over the com.

"Control?"

"Stop your search, Terrorist reinforcements have arrived and engaged us in earnest. You have a hostile contact following you into the building from behind. Subject is female with violet hair wearing a brown three piece suite. No barrier jacket seen equipped."

"...Roger." Teana confirmed turning back towards the way she had come. She was not surprised that something like this had happened. In the current situation it was only natural that the terrorists would come in a time like this. The only point that struck her odd was the reported absence of a barrier jacket. Surly they wouldn't be desperate enough to be using ordinary solders to attack a place like this?

She turned and waited charging up her magic "Fake Silhouette." She said softly moving away to the side and ducking behind a pile of ruble. In the center of the scar where she had just left, a perfect mirror image of her was now standing, its long orange hair fluttering lightly in the draft that was moving through the carved out tunnel of destruction offering a obvious target to anyone coming from that direction.

She readied her magic and waited.

Sure enough after a few minutes, from the direction she had just come the described figure made its appearance looking to Teana more like an out of place civilian than anything. The violet haired woman was picking her way through the ruble warily and paused at the sight of her mirror image.

Any possibility of having mistaken her intentions vanished as the woman charged, leaping over a broken wall that was obscuring her path and darting towards her to cover the distance between them. The woman moved exceedingly fast and Teana quickly adjusted her danger estimation of this person from low to high. She moved like one of the Numbers.

"Shoot Barret" From the tip of her guns several magical bullets of orange light shot leaping out at the charging woman, the illusory copy she had made imitating her in every way so that it looked like it was the one who had fired.

The woman leapt into a dive and passed under the bullets, continuing her charge towards the one she perceived as her target.

Teana fired again, this time shooting in a wider area to limit the possibility of dodging. Her enemy however did not stall, but actually proceeded to punch all of her bullets out of the air with incredibly fast strikes from her gloved hands, the magical darts breaking apart in the air as they met a force greater than them.

How...? Perhaps she was wearing a barrier jacket and was employing some sort of concealment for it? That would work to lower people's guard actually. Teana's mind worked in such an efficient pattern, analyzing the situation and immediately considering the most likely explanation as the truth even if it lay outside her experience. It was the mindset of a skilled adapter.

In that case this woman was obviously a powerful and cunning opponent. Deciding to up her firepower Teana gathered her magic steadily into a series of ten orbs behind her back. In the old days she had needed a cartage to do as many as ten at once, however that was years ago. Now, with her magic quite advanced in power from what it had been she no longer needed to rely upon that for this spell. She was able to now create ten orbs all while making her mirror image appear to do the same.

The woman, seeing the charge up attack sped up, finally closing the long gap between her and her supposed enemy.

"Crossfire Shoot!"

At the last moment the woman saved herself, perhaps realizing that she would not make it to her fake target if she kept going she employed the same trick as before in reverse, throwing herself completely backwards off her feet like she was slipping on a banana. Once again the magical barrage passed over her and a moment latter she twisted her body on the ground strangely springing to her feet without the use of her hands.

Finishing the last few steps to her enemy the woman drove her fist into the fake Teana's chest, caving in her entire upper body as though it was made of paper.

At the side Teana winced. If that woman closed with her it would be over fast. She now had two choices. A longer draw out ranged battle or more potently fast solution...

"Optic Hide." Falling back behind her cover Teana's outline blurred. A second latter she was completely transparent.

Illusions were a very rare art, the ability to craft an image out of the air, or distort light so subtly that ones transparency would be convincing was a skill that few among Mages could accomplish and still be able to employ in a fight.

It was this that was one of Teana's greatest points of pride in her ability. Even from her early years she had been able to create convincing illusions on the battlefield and since then her skill had only picked up. It made her a difficult opponent to face even when her enemy's out-powered her. There were after all few good ways to counter a skilled illusionist, and because of their rarity even Mages with long experience had little knowledge of dealing with her.

The woman was now looking around warily for her true aggressor, turning slowly in circles and scanning the entire ruined area with her fists clenched in front of her.

Moving as quietly as she could Teana worked her way slowly closer to her enemy, taking a huge gamble in the process. While it could mean an instant victory, it could also mean the reverse if she were to mess up.

Slowly, stalking in closer and closer Teana stopped only a few feet from her enemy and then lifted her gun, waiting till she was fully facing the other way.

It was over very quickly. With a simple pull of the trigger Teana shot a low powered magical bullet into the woman's back just below the neck. She gave a gasp and collapsed instantly, falling forward onto her face with a thud.

Teana let out a sigh of relief and dropped her invisibility. That had been a dicey moment. The woman was obviously quite alert and she had not know for a bit if she would have sensed something and decided to act on it or not. Thankfully Teana was no slouch when it came to sneaking up on people having taken several classes on silent movement when she had decided to employ this kind of strategy. Apart from this she had also looked into a noise muffling attribute for her barrier jacket. Altogether her stealth capability's were now quite advanced.

"Loop Bind" Her device intoned as she gathered her power around her opponent into cords. In a moment the unconscious suspect was firmly secured by the glowing bonds that had materialized over her.

"Control. This is Starts 4, I have apprehended the suspect."

Their was a log pause over the telecam during which it sounded as though Hayate was busy shouting urgent orders to someone else. Teana felt her pulse quicken. The battle going on outside must be fiercer than she had thought. Just how many terrorists had shown up at once to give a group containing Signum and Nanoah a hard time?

"Stars 4? Is that you?" Hayates urgent voice came addressing her this time.

"Yes this is me, I have secured my follower, she is unconscious."

"Good, turn back and rejoin the group immediately. The one's inside say they have their situation under control, provide assistance to the other Force members as quickly as you can!"

"Roger!"

From what Hayate had sounded like the others were definitely in need of her assistance.

Bending down she grabbed her new hostage, slung her over her shoulder with a grunt. Despite her urge for haste she still couldn't just leave her enemy here tied up. It was strange to note, but now that she felt her she could tell: this Mage really did not have a barrier jacket at all. It was a conundrum to solve another day but for now she was in danger of dieing if the roof caved in.

The woman was heavy but Teana was in very good shape, and with the minor boosts to strength that she received from her magic she was able to carry her without being slowed down to much. Teana began running back towards the entrance. She had come this way picking along carefully for fear of a cave in and if she ran she could probably make it back in only a few minutes.

Running along as quickly as she could manage over the uneven surface of the ruble scar she watched her feet carefully so as not to trip. She was almost there...

"Mistress!" Cross Mirage rang out in warning. Teana whipped her head up in alarm. Standing about a dozen yards in front of her was another woman she did not recognize. Unlike the other this one was shorter, wearing a red coat and black skirt that fell to her knees while her long black hair hung freely behind her.

Once again her foe was not wearing a barrier jacket, and indeed was dressed as if she was going out to some sort of nice restaurant.

Her face however did not match any of this. The dark scowl it held was clearly that of an enemy.

How had she come so close before Cross Mirage alerted her?

"Gandr Shot." Instead of any device the woman's hand was pointed at her as if holding an invisible gun. It was a gesture that any child would immediately know as the "Bang! Your dead!"game This was not imaginary however. From the tip of the woman's finger a series of dark orbs shot out in a burst of rapid fire energy bullets.

Teana, who was still holding her hostage over her shoulder could only level her device at the woman with one hand, knowing already that she was to late.

The bullets of black energy struck her square in the chest with considerable force, knocking the breath out of her and sending her over backwards while her hostage tumbled out of her hands. For a split second something else besides simple force had impacted her with those bullets. A sense of nausea briefly made itself known as the bullets struck her before receding.

Teana hit the ground without major disorientation however. Her barrier jacket had taken the blow quite nicely and goodness knows that they knocked you over in basic training enough times to prepare you for something like this. Immediately seeking to regain her feet she threw her legs forward as hard as possible and arched her back at the same time, her momentum lifting her off the ground and into a low crouch. Her gun hand leveled itself at her target in a single smooth motion.

Altogether it had taken her only a single second to regain her feet and aim her weapon, yet at the same time her opponent had not been idle.

Moving her hands in a graceful circular motion over themselves the woman chanted "Engalts Hinrichtung" and extended one of her hands almost gently towards her at the exact moment that her gun began to come up.

The lightning bolt that sprang forth from her fingertips came and went in an instant, striking her barrier jacket with tremendous force and burning its light green outline into her retina for the split second it was visible. Teana flew backwards hard and hit the ground with a violent jolt.

"Vindas Einascherung"

Teana looked up just in time to see looked up just in time to see her enemy making hand motions as though she was pulling something out of the air. Into her dainty hands a huge sheet of flame suddenly sprang forth and with a shoving motion the mage sent it all streaming down on her.

Teana screamed briefly as the burning wave descended. It was not an explosion but a intense mass of fire that pined her to the ground with its pressure and blazed with searing heat that she could feel through her barrier jacket. She struggled to rise but the flame was relentless and it ground her into the ruble. If this went on her barrier jacket would fail and she would burn to death, but unlike most fire attacks this one showed no sign of letting up. It kept coming steadily like a flamethrower being pored on an already blazing target. Panicking slightly Teana activated her defense right in front of her face.

A golden shield of energy sprang into existence above her warding the fire off. Loosing no time she rolled out from under her protection spell and lifted her gun firing blindly. Sure enough her aim had been true and the woman had been forced to dodge her shots allowing Teana the time to roll to the side and then regain her feet uninterrupted.

Thin ribbons of smoke were coming off her barrier jacket now and Teana winced. The situation was not good. Her opponent had got the drop on her and exploited it for massive damage. "Barrier jacket at 40%" Cross Mirage informed her, confirming her dangerous situation. Now she could only hope she had enough skill to turn this around.

The dark haired woman was glaring at her as she dodged her bullets, her lip curled back in disdain while the sleeve of her shirt had been blown back, perhaps by her own power, revealing her arm which was glowing with strange green letter like pasterns as she pumped more of her black bullets out from her fingertip.

Leveling her gun Teana returned fire once more and then dived to the side again. Her enemy's 'Gandr Shots' hammered into the space she had just left at a rapid fire pace that exceeded her own.

*Scene *

With a series of sharp 'clangs' Signum's sword parried the lightning quick jabs that were thrown her way. The pink haired knight returned with a lunging offense, trying to overwhelm her opponent with her great speed. Her first test in a battle was always to see if an opponent could keep up with her. It was a test that was inevitably failed nine times out of ten.

Lancer however passed with flying colors, the Knight in blue wearing a small grin as he adjusted his footing and kept her from getting inside the reach of his spear with no great struggle. The man meeting her charge better than she could have asked for. Even after witnessing his high speed fight with Erio she could not help but marvel at the Knights swiftness.

Signum felt her blood stir.

Thrusting his lance out to impale her heart only for it to be deflected once again Lancer clicked his tongue and upped his speed again, thrusting his spear at hypersonic speeds towards every part of her body. Her sword met his spear every time, knocking the tip away with a firm grace backed up by a tremendous strength that surpassed his own. His grin widened slightly. Unlike the whelp he had fought earlier it seemed that this one could not be defeated by simple strikes.

Leaping forward and sideways into the air Lancer moved like a flash of light, lashing out from the side to cut open Signum's neck.

She parried the blow with the same ease as the others and adjusted her footing in an instant, pressing in close and slashing forward to cut him diagonally across his chest.

Laevatein met the shaft of Lancers spear with a resounding 'clang' and a shower of brilliant sparks. No sooner had she drawn her sword back again however when Lancer swung his spear like a staff seeking to bash her head in..

Signum threw herself backwards to avoid the blow and then flew up more than a dozen feet into the air, bating her enemy to come after her.

Lancer however did nothing of the sort, simply pausing and looking up at her in surprise. "Where are you going?" He demanded when she did not return to the earth immediately.

"What is the matter Lancer? Are you afraid to face me in the air?" She called down to him coolly.

"Don't mock me! I'm not such a draiodoir that I can walk above the earth."

"You have mastered combat to this level yet you can't fly? You must be ashamed Lancer."

To Signum such a thing was ridiculous. While the majority among Belkan Knights were still ground bound, that someone who had achieved this degree of speed and skill would be unable to was out of place.

"Shut up! The warriors place is always facing his enemy on the ground! Who ever heard of a Knight flying in the air before?"

"You mock me?" Signum said narrowing her eyes at Lancer below her on the ground.

"Yes." Came the sure reply. "Now come down unless you're a coward who fears my spear-point. Calling me a disappointment!" Lancer barked up at her, his face contorting in anger at her jibe.

"Lavanteen." Signum called feeling anger rising inside her. She flipped a cartridge into it with her thumb, her voice wintery. It had been a long time since anyone had blatantly challenged her honor as a Knight, much less anyone with any fighting ability to match her with. More than simple anger she now had a fighter who was worth proving wrong. "Purple Lightning Flash!"

With a 'whoosh!' the blade of her sword burst into towering flame while a ribbon of pure blue energy wound around and around it, coming off in spiral's, a whirlwind spinning away from the inferno.

Arching her sword high she descended to earth like a meteorite bringing the full weight of her title of the General of the Blazing Flame with her.

Seeing her coming Lancer jumped backwards, evading her charging decent just before the area he had been standing in exploded in force and flame, Lavanteen slashing through the pavement and unleashing all the stored up magical energy with a force meant to break the swords of other Knights to pieces during the warring era.

The ground cratered into a huge pit that changed the face of the entire lot and sent burning concrete shrapnel everywhere.

From the center of this crater Signum arose, floating back up to what was once ground level with a grace and dignity that any princess would struggle to match.

"Kheha!" With a short laughing cry Lancer bounded towards her from out of the clearing smoke completely unscathed and with a eager light in his eyes.

Signum, her sword still burning, met the warrior in the air, deflecting all three of his jabs and sending him hurtling back to the ground with her counter strike.

Lancer landed and kept his feet on the inside of the crater in an impressive display of balance before leaping out and landing on the still even ground on the edge of the crater.

Signum rushed at him, plowing into his defense with her burning blade. Lancer blocked with his spear shaft and stood his ground, giving only a few steps before he brought her to a halt. For a moment the two faced each other with their heads only a foot or so away from each other. Lancer was grinning like a feral animal as he stared into Signums cold gaze. Both were unscathed.

"You have quite a sword there woman." He ground out excitedly, his muscles bulging and his arms shaking as he held her back.

"Thank you." Laevatein intoned in its mechanical voice.

"It talks!" Lancer sputtered in surprise.

"This is my blade Laevatein." Signum introduced coldly, her anger, which had still been burning low inside her at his previous insult flared slightly at what she saw as a new one. With a surge of strength she pushed Lancer back with her sword, sending a shock wave through her weapon that was intended to break his spear asunder.

The crimson long spear held however, and Lancer took the shove that sent him all the way across the street and into a building in stride, landing feet first and then drooping to the ground below before charging back at her.

Signum wasted no time returning the charge and the two met in the middle of the street with a furry of blows. Circling around and around each other the two fighters danced and spun thrusting and slashing with unparalleled precision and intensity, the number of blows shared between them moving into the hundreds as mere seconds ticked by.

Signum was griping her sword with both her hands alternating flawlessly between offense and defense, her movements direct and powerfully yet graceful and perfect like a dancer. Lancer's movement was also like that of a dancer but it was to a much different rhythm that he fought to, his movements like that of an animal while his spear jabbed and spun, sometimes stabbing, sometimes twirling around like a staff, always between its wielder and the next blow that might finally manage to catch hi,.

"Your own device is good as well. I did not catch its name." Signum remarked as they battled around each other, weapons ringing.

"My device?" Lancer said quizzically as he dodged Signums sword by a few inches. "What are you talking about?"

Signums eyes narrowed at the man's claim and put more force into her next slash, making Lancers arms nearly buckle when he blocked it.

"Still." He said, sounding slightly strained as he danced backwards avoiding her next, even stronger blow that had been meant to batter him the same way he had done to Erio. "Its not everyday that you meet a talking sword. Are you sure that's not a Noble Phantasim?"

Signum, unfamiliar with the word only narrowed her eyes more and did not answer.

With a final strike she succeeded in forcing Lancer back again, the two opponents taking the time to study each other instead of attacking immediately. Inside her Signum was feeling a mix between exhilaration, mild irritation and confusion.

Her opponents spear work was superb, she had not fought anyone with this level of mastery for a very long time, and the man obviously had the spirit of a fighter (Likely to much in fact) but at the same time something was strange. He was this strong and yet he could not fly, he had made several strange comments and his device... Normally in ancient Belka it was customary to introduce your device along with yourself once your opponent had done the same. Such was customary and part of a Knights reputation lay in the repute and capability of his device so it was always introduced almost without exception, so why...?

"You will not introduce your device?" Signum asked, posing a question that would hopefully dispels this confusion and get his intentions out into the open.

"Again with this device thing?" Lancer asked sounding irritated in return now. "I really have no idea what you're babbling about."

Signum blinked and lowered her sword a fraction of an inch. "You cannot be serious. Where is your pride as a Knight if you have not even given your weapon a name?"

"My spear?" Lancer asked as if confirming what she was talking about. "Of course my spear has a name!" He paused for a moment looking honestly offended, and then his face split into a wicked smile.

"Would you like to hear it?"

Signum narrowed her eyes again as Lancer suddenly adjusted his stance.

Pointing his spear right at her he angled it strangely so that its tip was facing her feet. "Behold, my Noble Phantasm!"

Suddenly Signum became aware of a change in the air. Something was gathering, a dark, bloody, and absolutely lethal feeling was emanating in waves from the spear device that Lancer was holding. Her eyes widening slightly she took in the weapon that he was grasping in his hands. She had noticed it before of course, her sharp eye judging it to be an exquisite weapon from the moment she had laid eyes upon it, but now it seemed to come to life in front of her. The twisting lines that flowed down its length seemed to pulse like veins as the air around them became distorted. The vivid red that colored the spear became so sharp that it seemed like the entire spear from blade to pommel was drenched in fresh blood.

Lancers grin became feral once more.

This was something unexpected. Signums battle instincts were screaming at her, even a child could have understood that if the spear moved she would die. It was not a question of her ability, if the spear moved she would die.

With a flash of speed the Lancer sprang towards her, his spear coming at her driven by its wielders terrible speed. She was not surprised to see that it was glowing.

Sensing her impending death Signum backpedaled. Whatever happened she could not let that spear get close to her while it was like that, this she knew beyond logic. Yet how could she manage that when Lancers foot speed was so great? By now she had discovered that he was faster than her by a small margin, so how?

In less than a second Lancer was before her, his glowing, lethal spear within striking distance now. It could all end very quickly now...

"Gae-"

Reacting to the threat with every bit of speed she had Signum flew straight up off the ground like a cruse missile being fired, the wind from her explosive ascent fanning out with the force of a bundle of dynamite.

"Bolg!"

The name was shouted and the Blue Knight thrust his lance upward following her accent. There was a rushing of energy but by the time it was called Signum had escaped its reach, now floating a hundred feet up in the air looking down at her enemy below thoroughly disquieted.

What in the name of all the Saint Kings was that? Signum had never felt anything exactly like it before, not in all her hundreds of years of existence. Gae Bolg... the name was not familiar, nor did it sound Belkan, and in all that time that strange device had yet to say a word.

Moreover, his confusion about devices... and what he had called his spear, his "Noble Phantasm" he had said. .

Below her on the ground Lancer cursed staring up at her in consternation. "You dodged me." He looked at her intently for a moment or two before his face twitched into a smile again. "You're fortunate, Signum of the Wolkenritter. Not many can claim to have survived me using that."

"I see." She called down, none of her disquiet making it into her voice. "You rely upon some sort of one hit kill technique? You will find that I will not so easily be defeated by such a trick. However Lancer, now you have tried your hand, how will you fair against mine?"

Holding her sword out Laevatein intoned "Schlangerform!" For the second time that night the blade segmented and stretched, becoming an extneded chain of blades connected by a center core. Twisting it through the air with her hand.

Below her Lancer's eyes widened in surprise at her new move, and Signum descended back to earth in a rush, Laevatein coiling around her in a web of steel links.

Lancers spear work was probably the best she had ever seen, and with the great range that Gea Bolg provided him it was difficult even with her skill and speed to get in close enough to strike him with her sword.

But Signum was more than a sword fighter. She was a General, a Knight who excelled in almost every field of combat their was, whether it be swordsmanship, or Archery, or even a long range melee weapon.

Jerking in surprise as she landed accompanied by Laevatein's twisting length Lancer jumped backwards.

With a flick of her wrist Signum swung her sword-whip and it extended link by link chasing him with the speed of a striking snake as he dodged away.

"Keh!" Lancer deflected the whip sword with a snarl and charged back at her with his spear extended, his outline blurring in his mad rush. With a cool swipe Signum lashed out at him again, and then again and again, her sword twisting into coils that cut it forcing Lancer to halt his advance lest he be cut from four angles at once. Then, moving her hand in rhythm to keep up her swords twisting movement she swung once more and then yanked her sword-whip back creating a cage of blades that closed in on Lancer from five angles at once.

It was a deadly trap, and one that she often executed as the sure finish to her enemy's, trapping them in a surrounding cage of blades and then pulling it tight on them.

It was not enough however. With the reflexes of a wild beast Lancer pushed off the ground with a twist and curled his arms and spear around his chest, slipping though on of the sideways gaps in the cage and landing unharmed outside it, his eyes blazing.

Seeing her trap had failed Signum yanked her sword whip back and lashed out again before Lancer could take advantage of its overextended position.

Seeing the whip coming at him again Lancer twisted once more, shooting out of the way and trying to get around this new obstacle Laevatein provided.

What followed was the best display of acrobatics that Signum had possibly ever witnessed. Lashing out with her fluid sword again and again Signum set about filling the air with her blade in every possible angle that she could maneuver it into. The situation had reversed now, with Signum holding the position in long range while Lancer was forced to parry and move faster with his shorter weapon. The pink haired Knight pressed her advantage, laying about with her whipblade with everything she had, making it come in from the right, now the top, now the left and the right at the same time in a slithering weave of death that not even a bird could have escaped.

No matter how she attacked with her whip however, Lancer always found a way to escape. He was like an animistic dancer now, jumping and moving and twirling his spear in ways that Signum had never seen before. To the Knight in blue, it was as if he did not even need to see the attack to dodge it, did not need to lay eyes on it to deflect, moving like he was the wind all her strikes fit like puzzle pieces into his flawless battle dance.

Watching him hold of her determined assault Signum felt her blood stir harder with enthusiasm. Lancer... She found herself adjusting her opinion of him.. She was going all out now, fighting with every bit of her skill, forcing him onto the defense in an assault more ferocious than she had given to anyone except Fate in a hundred years. Whoever he was this Knight was beyond even the other Knights of her era, a warrior whose defensive skill rivaled anything she had ever seen before.

Finishing her attack with one last powerful lash which he blocked with the side of his spear Signum stopped once more and regarded Lancer.

He was as tense as a drawn bowstring, almost crouching as he held his spear with both hands, his eyes shining with battle lust on a level that Signum would never approve of. As if focused by his intense expression the air around them seemed to be boiling with his intent.

"I have underestimated you Lancer. Despite your reluctance, I will ask to know your name."

Lancer grinned and barred his teeth at her request. "Heh. I suppose, since you know the name of my Noble Phantasm there is no hiding it any more. Very well." He said drawing himself upright. Brandishing his spear at her he declared in a proud voice like someone pronouncing a death sentence. "I am the legendary Son of Long Light, the Hound of Ulster, Cuchulain!"

With a bloodthirsty shout the self proclaimed legend charged, slipping under the strike that Signum sent at him with her whip and lunging in at her with his spear thrust out to impale her though the stomach.

*Scene *

On the ruble strewn floor of the warehouse Bazett stirred. Opening her eyes groggily she blinked once or twice before focusing. How had she come here? She had been searching for her enemy and then everything had gone black... she had been knocked out.

Right next to her she could hear the sounds of a magecraft of battle going on, and she recognized the voice of Rin shouting an incantation at some unseen opponent who was firing what sounded like lasers from a sci fi movie in return. It could only be the woman who had incapacitated her earlier.

Trying to get to her feet Bazett found that she could not move and looked down at her arms. Around her entire body what looked like glowing bands of energy had wrapped themselves restraining her arms and legs. She was trapped.

Cursing softly in her head she struggled against the bonds slightly testing them for any weak points that she could possibly exploit, her mind already setting about trying to decide how to best free herself. She strained slightly and then lay still. Her bonds were made from what appeared to be pure prana, and they flowed together perfectly in a way that allowed for no weak points. This was going to be difficult.

Gritting her teeth slightly Bazett flexed her fingers and found to her relief that she could still move them within a decent range. It was tricky, but after a little experimentation she was able to bring her finger up and work her arm into a position that put great pressure on one hand but allowed some small freedom of movement to the other.

This would take concentration.

Bazett closed her eyes, reached into that place deep inside her and envisioned a chisel being driven into stone. Prana surged through her magical circuits rushing through her body and settled into her fingertip with which she began to trace as lightly as possible over the cord that bound her. If she was going to fit it all on properly then she would have to write very small. Bazett traced, and traced, stopping every so often to make sure that her finger was not shaking from the strain of maintaining her awkward angle.

Finally she completed the last character in the Gaelic word 'sever' and with a mental command activated the rune work she had completed.

With a sizzling one of the cords binding her arm snapped and then disappeared. She sighed when she realized that she was still not free, but with one cord down moving her hand to trace another rune combination was only easier. In a few minutes she was free, brushing herself off and looking around.

Sure enough she was still in the warehouse that she had been searching earlier, apparently now taken back almost all the way to the entrance. Only a few dozen yards away was Rin Tohsaka, engaged in what looked to be an intense duel with the same woman who's illusonary trap she must have fallen into earlier.

Both were throwing countless bullets of energy at each other, Rin from her fingertip and the enemy Magus from what looked like a gun. While Rin was pumping out her volleys of Gandr shot faster than the other Magus seemed able to, the orange haired woman was compensating by occasionally conjuring large shields of prana out of thin air, and shooting back every now and then with large beam's that Rin couldn't match.

Any way one looked at it, she had a score to settle.

Gathering prana into the runes writ on her gloves and leggings Bazett charged, covering the distance between her and the orange haired Magus rapidly.

A voice that seemed to come from her gun of all things called out "Mistress!" in warning and the Magus turned rapidly popping off a shot at her as she turned, her face full of alarm.

With a rapid punch Bazett shattered the prana bolt that had been sent her way and closed the distance between them just as the Magus turned to face her and started backpedaling away desperately.

It was to late, and with a single punch to the head that would have caved open the skull of any ordinary person Bazett sent the TSAB Magus into a crumpled heap on the ground.

"Thank you Mc Remits" Rin said walking over and staring down at the unconscious woman. "She was a troublesome one. I don't like the look of our odds if this is to be our average in enemy's."

"It cant be helped." Bazett said also looking down at her. Bending over she pried the gun like Mystic Code from her hands and examined it.

"Criminal adversary's!" A dull mechanical voice from the gun rung out nearly making Bazett drop it. "Release me immediately!"

"Oh, yes." Rin said her voice lighting up in curiosity. "One of those. They talk quite frequently don't they."

"It is very unusual. Is it some sort of computer?"

"I think so." Rin said. "They have combined magic with technology to an incredible degree in this place."

Bazett held it up and together they both briefly examined it with fascination. It was smooth, metallic and double barreled and for a moment it sat gleaming in their hands. Suddenly it blurred and shrunk, loosing its shape and transforming itself into a card in front of their eyes.

"Incredible." Rin breathed, looking at it with more fascination than ever.

Bazett nodded and then tossed it to Rin who pocketed it. "We need to go." To her, a member of the northern Irish Mage clan and an enforcer by trade she was not quite as deeply caught up in magical curiosity as Rin was. The sounds of battle raging outside were far more important.

"Of course." Rin said turning to venture father into the warehouse. She paused briefly, looking down at the unconscious Magus again and then back up at Bazett.

"Shouldn't we..."

"No." Bazett said firmly looking down at her. "Even though she is an enemy she spared my life. I will return the favor for now."

Rin nodded hesitantly but did not challenge her. For Bazett fulfilling her sense of justice was worth taking risks over.

"We need to go. Rin, I have been a long way down that hall. It goes on and on without any sign of ending. If a Servant attacked this place and could not find the Grail then I don't think we could before more TSAB agents show up. We need to pull out."

"What?" Rin screeched, her mouth falling open. "We just got here! After all that you want to leave now?"

"Its been to long." Bazett said shaking her head. "These TSAB Mages were aware of the attack from the moment Berserker and Mahail assaulted this place, we got here only fifteen minutes after Mahail did and the TSAB beat us here. Right now Archer and Lancer are engaged with agents powerful enough to hold them off, in the next few minuets reinforcements are going to arrive and if we are still there by then we will be captured. This place is to big to find the grail in without a Servant to cover the ground quickly."

Rin ground her teeth. "Aright. Lets get out out of here."

Together the two Mages picked there way back to the entrance of the warehouse and looked out. What had been an intact parking lot before they had gone in was now a cratered ruin that looked like it had been strafed by bombers. Of to the side, in one of the few still relatively intact portions of the area, two figures were going at it, both of them blurs, one of pink and the other of blue, the two fighters movements on a level of speed that was to high for the human eye to follow accurately.

Were they not both veteran witnesses to Servant battles neither of them would probably have noticed the helicopters that were swiftly growing larger in the distance.

"Rin!"

"Right." Rin said. Making a few gestures with her hand she called out suddenly "Archer get over here!"

It was not a command seal but a simple order given through her voice projection technique, and it it took a few moments before Archer materialized by her side. The red Knight of the bow was not unscathed, with a trickle of blood running down his face. "Master?"

"We are leaving. Now."

"Of course." Archer said giving the helicopters a glance. They had arrived with remarkable speed and even now appeared to be unloading.

"Lancer!" Bazett called. In the middle of the fray the blue blur leapt back from its opponent and nodded its head.

"We are going! Disengage or finish her off!"

The red haired spear hound clicked his toughe in distaste. "Sorry, Signum. But my master is calling." He said apologetically to the woman he had been fighting. Bazett looked over to see what kind of Mage could have succeeded in holding off Lancer by herself for so long and got a jot of surprise. She had been expecting to see some exhausted bloody Mage who was at their last rope from having fought a Servant by now. Instead, standing tall and proud with a strange long sword clutched firmly in her hand was a woman in a strange almost Knightly outfit.

"You think you can just escape, Cuchulain?"

Bazett blinked in surprise. This... Knight knew his name.

"I am afraid that's the case even if I don't like it. Feel free to follow us, but I cant guarantee that that underhand guy" He said gesturing to Archer. "Will allow us to have a fair fight with each other."

With that Lancer sprung away, crossing the lot in a single jump and landing gracefully next to her.

"Lets go!" With that Lancer slung one of his arms around Bazetts waist and jumped away. Bazett felt the ground vanish from under her feet, and heard the whoosh as Archer followed them. They were away. At least...

"Archer!"

Bazett whipped her head around looking behind them. With a whoosh of displaced air a large dark skinned figure swooped out of the night and slammed into Archer dealing him a flying roundhouse kick to the chest.

The impact sent him flying back, and Rin, who had been holding on to him fell backwards as well.

Bazetts eyes widened as she saw Rin claw the air as she dropped, a look of alarm on her face. With a single jump their Servants had brought them over a hundred feet high, a fall from this distance would be fatal unless Rin knew some trick.

As a matter of fact, Rin did have a trick up her sleeve. For a Magus of her caliber manipulating air pressure to slow her fall was child's play, and if worse came to worse she could reinforce her body to withstand the impact.

But Rin never got a chance to employ any of this. The dark skinned man, sporting silver armor on his arms and legs as well as a pair of wolfs ears sprouting from his head, dove and caught her easily before she fell more than a few feet.

Bazett however was not in a position to stay and watch this play out. Lancer, as agile as he was, was in a mid air jump and had no way to change his direction or stop. And so the two watched helplessly as the figures of Rin and Archer receded.

Below them on the ground Archer hit the cement with a crash, his black armor absorbing some of the impact nicely. Wasting no time he sprung to his feet and materialized his bow, his eyes darting into the sky above. Rin was there, held in the arms of the one who had attacked him.

Drawing it back he took time, aiming to place a shot right in between the eyes of the wolf man when a voice behind him interrupted. "Stop right there!"

Wheeling around with his bow still pulled tight, he was greeted by the sight of the pink haired Knight, her sword drawn and pointed at him.

As soon as he turned and began to level his bow she shot forward, deflected his arrow at point blank range she slashed him from the shoulder to the chest with her sword carving through his armor drawing blood.

Gasping he thew his bow away and summoned his two swords into his hands but it was to late. With irresistible strength the pink haired Knight grasped him by the arm and slammed him into the ground.

"You are under arrest." She said coldly, placing one of her feet on top of him and pining him to the ground with it.

"Archer!" Rin shouted from above. "Dematerialize!"

Straining his head to look upwards from his position he saw Rin gazing at him fiercely from above still grasped inescapably in the arms of the much larger man. It was a combination of command and resignation. Her look carried everything in it he needed to know.

Cutting off his own prana intake from his Master Archer abandoned his physical from, the pink haired Knight giving a startled "What?"as he dissolved.

*Scene *

Standing under the awning of a building some ways away Lancer and Bazett gazed out at the warehouse they had just fled from, the tall Irish Servant pacing around in agitation while he fingered his spear.

In a swirl of red Archer was suddenly there, standing before them with blood dripping down his torso. The moment he appeared he fell back against the wall, his face dark.

"Archer!" Bazett demanded. "Where is Rin?"

"My Master has been taken captive by the enemy." He said simply, beginning to inspect his wound.

"Well?" Lancer demanded. "Lets go!"

"And where would that be Servant of the Lance?" Archer returned.

"What do you mean? To rescue your Master of course!"

"... It is not that simple. Rin has been taken captive by a large force, containing both of our adversary's who held up back before as well as many others now. At this point rescue would be... inadvisable."

Lancer snorted. "Is that your excuse? Don't joke Archer, we must return, no more playing, let us spit them on out Noble Phantasms like pigs! Show them our strength as Hero's and reclaim your Master!"

"Fool." Archer said giving Lancer a hard look. "How will you fight the Knight who you could not defeat before as well as an army alongside her?"

"Lancer, please." Bazett interrupted just before her Servant had a chance to reply. "Archer is right. What will you do?"

Archer looked back towards the Warehouse they had just come from, helicopters were circling in the sky and more were coming even as they stood there.

"... I will dematerialize, follow Rin and find a way to free her. For now we must part ways."

He got up to leave but hesitated for a moment. "Find Saber and her Master." He said at last. "Without us they should be happy to join up with you."

"Right." Bazett said.

Without another word Archer stepped forward and disappeared, his spirit soaring into the sky in pursuit of his Master.

*Scene *

"Commander Hayate, the situation appears to have come under control." One of the aids announced.

"Thank goodness." Hayate muttered. "What is the situation?"

"The terrorists have fled and we have lost track of them, we have taken one prisoner however, structural damage to the warehouse seems to be severe. Stars 4 has been knocked unconscious but seems to be suffering no permanent damage. Her barrier jacket is... holding."

"Very good." Hayate said siting down into her chair with a feeling of relief. She had not even really needed to ask for he situation as everything recorded on any device in the area was being broadcast to her. So she had watched the entire incident in a roller coaster of alarm.

They were facing Knights again. Signum herself had confirmed so and from the way the one in blue fought they were up against a terrible warrior the likes of which was not present in this age anymore...

It was a scary thought. Like a repeat of the Book of Darkness incident. She only could hope that whatever it was they were fighting for this time was not as bad as the Book of Darkness had been.

Chewing the inside of her lip slightly Hayate glanced up back at the screes before her. There was some interesting material in these recordings. Especially in some of what the two mystery women had said right in front of Teana's still active Device...

And then there was the prisoner. This was a great leap forward for them. Briefly looking up at the screen that was depicting Zafira still holding his captive she studied the captured Mage for a little. Long dark hair, sharp features, elegant but inconspicuous clothing... She would have to see to being present at her interrogation, after all this time she felt she wanted to see the enemy face to face.

...But before that she would have to check on Vita.

*Scene *

And that. Is. It. This is the last chapter published under this name. After this I start the re-write in earnest.

And so I leave you here. The Rewrite will be entitled: Fate/Lyrical Crusade

Anyhow, hope to see you there.