At Spear Point

[Scáthach]

Her second life had just started and the first thing that came to her mind was to check what kind of heroes besides herself are summoned to a Grail War, the blue blur jumping from roof to roof while searching a fellow servant to have a little spar with, a Assassin or a Caster wouldn't be as much fun to fight against but in a war to death, the Irish warrior lady Scáthach can't be picky about who shall be her opponent, that is as long as said opponent stand his or her ground and fight back although this should not be a problem when only good warriors are supposed to be summoned and that Scáthach does not need to introduce herself, negating any intimidation effect that the meeting alone could have, it was perfect.

The late night was quite and empty, making it easier to spot anyone else having a night stroll like herself however the city is big and so far, Scáthach had no luck in her quest, it was expected after all, at this time when the masters would be sleeping, the servants would be standing guard and not roll of on they own like a certain female Lancer, this was a great mistake that Scáthach willing committed in order to have her fight, it wasn't even a fight that Scáthach was willing to take to the end even, only wishing to measure the power level of the war participants on this first night, nothing more, nothing less.

There was no need to rush out to battle like this when the fight between servants for the Grail is inevitable and better accounted for when your master is nearby, in a place where you can guarantee said master safety, master which is but only a young child that still have a lot to learn about the world, alone, a easy target for Assassins yet, albeit knowing all that, Scáthach could not contain her thrill, to fight famous warriors that she knew like Cú Chulainn and Conall Cernach, even rumored ones from distant lands like Germanic and British heroes, just the thought of that possibility, such a distant yet close ideal was the fire that drove the female warrior through the cold night like a hunter in search of a prey, little did she know that fate would be so kind as to provide a partner for Scáthach, very soon.

[Cardwyn Driald]

The war was going well~ Seven Servants, or perhaps six Servants and an Angel of Justice, were in this war, and they had already defeated one. The angel had defeated one already, leaving the other Servant masterless and soon to fade into the very air. Watching him scramble away had been rather fun, actually.

But the angel was not one to rest on her laurels, and she had… asked… that they move around at night. She was seeking to win the war in a week, perhaps. It was entirely possible, six Servants in seven days, and Cardwyn had no objections whatsoever to that realm of thought. Had she had objections though, they would have remained unvoiced, as her disagreements always tended to be. Personal, and silent.

At least her prana was regenerating, far faster than normal in this city that seemed to bleed mana from every crevice. A product of the war, perhaps? But despite that, it was still painfully slow compared to what she wished for, and her eyes remained unusable still. Tomorrow, if the restoration continued at the same rate, they would be active again, although to be saved for opponents instead of common criminals. That she could do after this war, but the war was the most important. The angel had made her point clear, her tone rebuking their worthless uses.

No… the uses had not been worthless, simply less useful than they could have been. Judgements from her eyes were never worthless. Not ever, even if the judged had lived a holy and perfect life, harming not even a fly. Not that she had ever encountered someone with such amazing compunctions. Everyone's closet had a few skeletons.

…

An odd sensation prickled down her back a feeling like she was being stalked, yet no glances showed any pursuers. She was sure she had seen the tail end of a fluttering grey cloak, something she had seen no one here wear. Perhaps her imagination was playing tricks on her, seeing what she had last seen her father in around every corner.

She made no mention of it to the Angel, who was still probably disappointed in her lack of a workshop, though Cardwyn had made some motions towards setting it up. That would not be much longer either, but still, in that way, she had failed her Angel. No, she had failed her in numerous ways, from her eyes, to the workshop, to even not being able to support her more from the circuits she had been born with. The lack of her own combat abilities… all of that weighed her head down as she walked, now in more comfortable shoes than the heels she had worn earlier, and a long, tight, black dress, that hung from her shoulders. It did not restrict as much motion as it seemed it would have, after all she had practiced using her knives in many different situations, being slightly restrained was the least of her worries.

There was that sensation again… she really didn’t want to bring it up. What if she was wrong? If she was asked, perhaps she would inform the Angel, but otherwise she did not want to seem weak to her, again.

So she simply kept walking, wondering if they would even find anyone tonight, wondering what they would look like, wondering how they would fight. Not that it would matter in the end, as the Angel would not lose. There was no doubt in her mind when she felt the sheer weight of the Angel’s presence. Nothing, and no one, could compare to that.

It almost brought a smile to her emotionless face, but that was quickly restrained, and never surfaced, just as easily as the scream’s shouts were shut out from the real world.

[] Apologies for the post in which nothing happens, and the terribleness of it, but ajskfl getting back in character for Cardwyn, and there is just a Servant, so Bryn will be having all the fun~ []

[Brynhildr]

Meager 24 hours.. no less had passed since their last battle. Brynhildr had continued to wring out her master for prana like a stuffed doll, and she acted according to that image. But the truth was that in that fallen Valkyrie, there was still a heart beating that knew right from wrong. She had changed to the point of no return, and deemed her past self as guilty of weakness and inadequate to lead.

This was one of the reason why she wished to prove herself once more to make those wings of her count, and not just remain a useless symbol of a lost past. Lancer's mission to become the new god had only begun, but the current state of affairs already made her sick to the stomach. How could the grail force her to rely on such a frail and weak human being? Hadn't she suffered enough through them, and their weakness? None had been reliable, and only shaping the newfound doll was left as an option. She knew that beforehand, and yet it still felt slightly wrong.

Just like destroying one of the masters. The nemesis of one of some other Legendary Heroes had no regrets in exterminating the bug who had dared to reach for the heavens, before she literally burned his wings off. His eyeballs melting like wax before the entirety of this free hull was sending the worthless soul back to get recycled. He had not been worth to stay in this war and less to be at the side of a Noble Spirit who had managed to slip out of the general junk. She had freed him, but on the other hand damned him to a dishonorable end. Hildr was not the kind to remain Idle just because the opportunity seemed too easy, but she still was a Warrior and preferred an honorable battle.

Judging and measuring the potential of warriors was second nature to her kind, and now she was the only one left. Even if she had joined this glorious small Ragnarok as a participant, and not just an observer, the part remained alive within her, a part of her instincts, that she could cast even less easily aside than her heart and feelings. Her face remained an unemotional mask, including the short span of time between sensing an enemy servant and addressing her own master.

"Your presence is not required. Stand aside before you get hurt. I have no time to indulge you during battle."

She could as well have stated to be worried about her well-being, as she was still an essential element for winning this war, but the armor clad warrior woman, despised the very idea of getting sentimental with something like a Master. She was no more than a replaceable tool, and who knew when a cowardly assassin would strike. There was this great risk of losing the source of prana, and finding a new master could not be that easy. Or could it...?

"Stay here."

She had already said those words before, but set her afoot on a nearby building before diving down herself, not minding Cardwyn nor acknowledging her presence, but the uncomfortable feelings remained hidden behind her stoic facade. At first she was not sure if the previous servant might not have found a spare energy tank and was now applying its services to take revenge on the Warrior from the other day.

It was not unusual for a servant or a warrior to attack the killer out of displaced loyalty. Brynhildr was honestly torn as to how she would approach the situation herself and preferred her master much alive, no matter how weird she may be. To her chagrin, she soon could identify the enemy much clearer. It was definitely another servant seeking them out, and as far as she could tell also alone, but that would not be necessarily true.

The entire range of buildings in this area provided some safety from the eyes of normal people and also warranted the masters a partial feeling of privacy from the eyes of the enemy, including other servants. The female warrior in front of her could have done the same thing as Bryn, and attempting to hide the master away from Battle. This would make it difficult to assume the class right away, judging by Battle Continuation but there were always other things, and on the Valkyrie's mind there was only one thing at the moment. Judgement.

A faint clack was the only thing giving her presence away, upon her swift landing before the enemy. She had decided to not show her wings in this conflict and remain incognito. Testing one's worth as a warrior and value as a Heroic Spirit did not require the use of divine skills or tools. She would find out by the sword, or hoping to keep it in its sheath, from her spear like weapon. The weapon materialized and if not for the fact that her presence as a servant gave her away, no matter how quiet her approach may have been, she would by now definitely get detected by this woman with blue hair.

It was honestly a bit rare for Lancer to see a female warrior, who was not a Valkyrie, but as a woman herself, she knew that applying force correctly made a warrior and not just arm muscles. Well, easily said from someone who was said to have the spear throwing power of 100 men during her times.

"I am here to evaluate your worth as a Heroic Spirit."

She might have obtained the right to be chosen as a servant by the grail, but this did not mean that Brynhildr would also accept her. The dark clad warrior was ready for battle, but decided despite her eagerness to wait a little bit. Lancer was new to this entire deal of introducing herself as a warrior, but honored their way of living. If one thing she respected and treasured, it would be her Einherjar. None other than Heroic Spirits fighting under her guidance.

What a ridiculous thought.... I can hardly try to claim their kind as supporters.

It was really regrettable to have received such denouncement and becomign a player on the field. Could she even recruit? An alliance? The thought alone was almost worth laughing.

"............"

[Scáthach]

Patience is a great virtue that always sow rewards for those who are willing to go for the extra effort without apparent return, after all, blindly searching for opponents is a wild hunt from the get-go that depend more on chance when you don't know where to look for and Scáthach patience had reaped her a juicy fruit that came to her, ending the nocturne hunt for the spear warrior. A woman clad in dark armor called her attention instead of taking the opportunity to strike first, a commendable choice for any hero, definitely not a Assassin class servant because of this decision alone.

As Scáthach stop on her tracks and turn around to face her challenger, the fact that the opponent is a warrior like her become more clear, a knight-like armor with distinguishing gold details over the dark purple color, maybe some high ranked warrior of some distant land as this type of armor is unknown to the female Lancer yet it was enough indication that this warrior is a strong one, theoretically speaking that is it, Scáthach had fought many high ranked warriors that did not deserved they spots before and even though this was a Grail War, where only the best warriors were supposed to be summoned, weaklings like those could be summoned as well.

"Evaluate my worth you say . . . "

However, Scáthach know better than to make predictions about one ability before even fighting them, the battle result shall tell all that is needed to know about the enemy prowess, which ironically happens to be a mutual goal between the female warriors, Scáthach does not know for what purpose the knight lady wish to do so and that does not matter, just the end result where both test each other limits. That was enough to have adrenaline rush all over Lancer's body as a smirk come up on her expression together with the summoning of her weapon, the famous spear Gaé Bolg, taking a offensive stance towards her opponent.

"That is exactly the same reason as to why I earn for a fight tonight, must be fate, for us to clash weapons with each other like this."

Just as how this woman was kind enough to not launch a attack when Scáthach was not prepared, she repay the favor with the same coin, waiting for the woman in armor to draw her weapon before attacking, both out of respect and for they mutual wish to see the level of a unknown warrior.

"Draw your weapon! Let's test our worth as warriors!"

[Cardwyn Driald]

"Your presence is not required. Stand aside before you get hurt. I have no time to indulge you during battle. A sudden leap, with a cold steel arm pulling her along, brought her to a rooftop in seconds. She had been completely unprepared for that, but made no move, no mention.“Stay here.”

She sensed someone? Had the sight really been someone else? Something else… no that was too much like her father to be anyone else.

“I shall.” She had learned her lesson though, from the previous day and the Angel’s displeasure though, that she expected Cardwyn to move and take her own actions, but just stay away from the battle. Not just obliviously remain where she was told, despite the fact that all other commands she had received in her life seemed to be asking the opposite, asking her to do exactly what had been requested, no more and no less. Otherwise it had been… painful.

As soon as Cardwyn responded, no while she had been responding, the Angel leapt off the building, dove straight to the ground, with a heavy crash. Cardwyn pulled a knife from down her back, and flicked it open, as she began to slowly move towards the edge of the roof, to watch her Angel fight, or at least search for the presence. Perhaps even see the enemy Master. But most of all she would have to stay out of the fight, as her Angel requested so nicely.

She was crouched, and slowly made her way to an air conditioner on the roof, and peeked around the corner to allow her to gaze down on the streets below. Her eyes quickly saw her Servant, and another one with long blue hair, similar to her own, really. They were talking and… she just couldn’t make out what they were saying.

What they said was of no matter though, she was watching to see her Angel bring justice to a Servant, and to defeat that woman where she stood. She did not have to watch, but she wanted to watch, and her heart was racing with anticipation.

Although… the Angel had warned caution, and she did not see the enemy Master, so she would have to remain out of easy sight, she should watch the entrance to the rooftop, as well as scan the others cautiously. But she also had the Command Seals… no, the Angel would not need any boosts. She would do what she was asked to do, and would only look at the ensuing battle occasionally, despite the fact that her mind just wanted to sit and watch the entire thing.

[Brynhildr]

"Very well. This is not the time to waste our breath on words."

Especially when they opened so much way for falsehood and petty lies. Sweet Talkers managed to get around easily and this had just gotten worse in modern times. How many weaklings and worthless trash held high positions just because of connections and well applied self praise. This was not a new motion either, but her most active times, before the darkness had pulled her down to Earth and lured her into the life of a Queen through betrayal, valued power and valor above the Rest. Or at least this was Brynhildr's impression. The Valkyrie could not identify the enemy, albeit presuming to face off against another Lancer, but judging from appearance this opponent came from the distant past.

She was not the kind to enjoy battle, rather than considering a duty. Lancer readied her own spear. A symbol of her former life and a powerful weapon in their own accord, yet nothing that had gained a proper name and Legend of its own, other than the spear of Brynhildr. But like so usual the weapon was only a part of the warrior and the wielder by far more important. Somehow unusual for her, it was this time the task of Lord Odin's daughter to initiate into battle, and she did.

Emotionless and difficult to read, she dashed forward and thrusted her spear at the enemy's midst. The testing had begun, but the Valkyrie held back, a test not meant to crush the candidate at the entrance, rather than guiding them along the way, but she was not sure how much she could stick to her previous objectives and prepare strong warriors for a great conflict. She was meant to win, and could not afford this, but she was not above those problems.

Brynhildr still had a personality that she could not just switch on and off, no matter how well she was hiding that. Even the most hateful of people could not just shed off their past, it would almost remain their companion, if they liked it or not. Especially someone who yearned after the past would not hate herself from that time entirely, would they? Although she certainly despised her naive self to some extent.

Unfortunately for Lancer, the enemy servant, albeit not exactly standing in clear opposition to each other when it came to goals, was equally difficult to read, except for a very clearly visible confidence in her skills, but this was to be expected of a Warrior, who was more used to fight for personal reasons, than someone just obeying commands, like herself. Well, ..used to obey. The strike in motion, her eyes kept locked on the features of her enemy like a hawk. The fierce attack combining strength with high speed was by far not an all out attack, ignoring the own defense, nor at Lancer's upper end of her abilities, but certainly enough to decimate a careless Caster or Assassin with just one blow.

[Scáthach]

Although combat wasn't the place for chitchatting, this woman did not seemed to be fond of the idea of exchanging a few words between blows, there goes a part of the fun from this fight, not that Scáthach would give up that easily but the woman deep and sorrowful eyes sure made it seem that no joyful talk could happen with her, at least not while this woman kept such a sad view of the world, Scáthach herself knew well how badly things can turn out when and where you least expect, however it wasn't upon Scáthach to change that on this woman.

According to the weapon she drew, the woman also was a Lancer class servant, however her spear did not seemed to any unique traits to it, Scáthach is not one well versed into Noble Phantasms appearances or abilities but as a weapon smith herself, her enemy spear called her attention for not having any apparent abilities, perhaps were it hidden in order to keep the woman identity in check or maybe as a tactic to caught the enemy off-guard when underestimating the 'weak' spear, fair battle tactics that even knights that she trained used them, with that in mind, Scáthach would not allow herself to be caught by surprise, a opening cease to be a problem when you expected to be attacked there.

The attack launched at Scáthach was fast and strong but got deflected upwards as it approached Shady own spear initially aimed to the ground, allowing the enemy spear to even nick her could be bad when she wears no armor at all, parrying and dodging are Shady only defenses, unlike her rival who wear armor, armor that shall be tested now as Scáthach bring her spear edge down at the woman left shoulder plate, aiming to damage it a bit but not enough to cut the woman skin as this is just a spar rather than a fight to death for Scáthach and to give a handicap to a enemy she just met would only make her a easier prey to another servant, that would be a pity to a rival that so far had been exactly what Scáthach expected out of a rival hero.

[Brynhildr]

The rune spear was intercepted, but that was to be expected and the dark clad servant did not try to place any resistance against the motion rather than using the momentum for herself. Twisting her own body to not meet the enemy attack head on, thereby also reducing her own basis and attack power, she somersaulted the bottom part of the spear and followed up with her other leg towards the woman's chin. It was more of an aerial maneuver than a real counter, but someone like Hildr still preferred to carry the battle into the sky.

The enemy had managed to pass Test Phase 1, and Lancer decided to get a bit more serious about further attacks. Something in her form already told that she was quite used to this form of acrobatic attack, despite wearing heavy armor, but the other spear wielder was likely to be an Agility Type as well, and Brynhildr did not expect to lose her in a duel of speed. Well, at least not easily, and counters like these were always risky. On the other hand they were called counter for a reason, because they were applied in a moment when the enemy was most vulnerable.

Did the enemy have the time to fall back or would she receive an unpleasant kick to her head? That was the only point of interest for the fierce Valkyrie, and even if it would hardly take out another Heroic Spirit, this could almost act as its own part of a Test Phase, Endurance. Warriors had to suffer during combat, and there was hardly anyone who could survive by being no more than a glass cannon. But was she one of those people who managed to stand up after receiving countless wounds, able to sacrifice themselves for a greater goal.

"Interesting..." was her only comment during her counter attack, dark hair slowly giving in to the laws of gravity and following Bryn's body in a fast arc, no more than a physical effect, for she was not one of those unnatural beings who could use their hair for attacks. She still had not broken out of her calm demeanoured routine, but something within her began to beat. Maybe it was something like a thrill of fighting someone powerful, rather than just squishing ants and feeling alone in a World of Traitors and Vermin.

Maybe it would even be a pity to eradicate this enemy warrior before her, but that had yet to be decided. Strangely enough their clash was already producing enough energy to alarm some people in the surroundings, but Lancer could not feel anyone else besides her master and even that presence was faint. Nevertheless, expected in this situation. There was no time to spend on the detection of new enemies, and carelessness could only cost her the head IF she really had a suitable candidate in front of her 'leg'.

What were those other souls just aiming for? Glory in Battle? A once Noble Goal, but she could not believe that a Hero would really still believe in that after having gone through all the hardships a natural life of War lead to. Could they really contain all their Anger and Frustration and live on as before? If they were, then they had to be pitied and envied alike, but in either case would get felled by the Valkyrie, who had proclaimed herself a Judge. Her master even seemed to mistake her for an Angel. Although the notion was not entirely incorrect, there were still too many differences. The Wings of Judgment might not be spread tonight though....

[Scáthach]

For someone wearing armor, the enemy woman moved quite well and fast too, unlike Scáthach who have nothing hindering her flexibility and had only paired the incoming attack, the woman had completely avoided hers, that alone was enough to send shivers of thrill down Scáthach spine with each passing second of this exchange between female warriors that promised to be a highly interesting one the more it escalated on and on, for that, Scáthach could not allow herself to be hit this early in the fight, even more on the head for obvious reasons plus a woman must remain elegant and classy even during a battle. Gae Bolg, which was under the enemy woman at this point, would not reach her in time to strike at the woman before Shady herself was hit, even if it did, it would not prevent Scáthach from being hit, which could not happen, making a counter to this counter that had been launched against her not possible at this current situation, leaving only the option of dodging it which was possible thanks to the attack being aimed at Scáthach head instead of her body.

There was no time for anything else but lean backwards to get her head out of the enemy woman attack path, resulting in a back flip with just one hand as Gae Bolg also had to be pulled back alongside it creator and wielder thus returning to they initial positions of a few seconds ago as Scáthach land on her feet.

"For someone who does not like to talk, your thoughts sure are quite loud."

As Brynhildr had yet to change her expression, Scáthach could not tell what meaning the single word that was muttered could have, the enemy woman was a cold and clean wall, a knight that followed duty rather than will, a perfect servant for a master that held control over her with command spells, perhaps her interest in testing other servants strengths be her master order instead of her own will.

"I now wonder if you are just following orders for your master, to test out the ability of other servants for . . . possible alliances or maybe just to know who to face and who to avoid . . . "

Not that Scáthach expected a actual reply to that since telling your plan to the enemy was the dumbest thing anyone could do and even if she did got a answer, it would probably be a lie, that always was the problem with warriors that followed a liege or something similar, the warrior could be the most noble of all but under a corrupt leader, that quality would vanish completely but that was all relative, ever changing as different people looked at it, all that Scáthach need is the answer from her spear as her goal is only to enjoy the fight, reassuming her fighting stance, Scáthach is ready for round two.

[Brynhildr]

Brynhildr had turned midair after feeling the lack of a feedback. The enemy was as expected quite fast and at least capable enough to act according to the situation. There were still big gaps in the profile of the enemy Lancer, which made it difficult to assess her true abilities, but Odin might have been interested in that one.

The Valkyrie had slightly slowed down her descend, yet remained reluctant to simply float down as in the old days. Using an ability to some extent was a second nature to every warrior, even if they held back, but revealing her wings fully a completely different matter, and if one thing had become clear in this encounter it was that the armorclad Lancer was not the only servant who wished to test the opponent.

A rather cocky attitude. Hildr widened her stance, the trustworthy weapon balanced in a line above her head, the pointed edge still directed at the enemy's center. "If my thoughts are that loud, then you are a bad listener or you would not need to ask me those questions," she replied with a sardonic undertone. They were both not ready to start the big finale, and that elven eared woman started to throw out the most important question.

For what were they fighting tonight. It seemed a bit amusing to the person who had once seen the Runes of Wisdom, that they did not help to understand people. How often had she struggled to understand human beings, even after having become one of them. Mankind likely did not understand what they wanted themselves, and this one in front of her was probably no different from the Rest in that matter.

Nevertheless, sometimes words were just words and in other cases the specific words or tone could say much more than just some written letter, and whoever this was had revealed a bit of herself. Brynhildr was no expert, nor someone who could be called empathic, but she still had cared for her Einherjar after they managed to earn her respect and there were many people over generations who had struggled with their life and asked many questions.. to never find an answer. Was the enemy making sure that they were sharing the same goal?

"It seems we are alike and yet quite different. Are you really asking me or yourself about the goal of this encounter? We both have already stated what will be done, and yet... Is it eventually yourself, who is looking for an alliance?"

Brynhildr had not once considered to join forces with everyone, but many things that were fed as input about the Grail War were already proven to be not completely correct. Even if it was impossible to track down servants, it was not outside of her abilities to sense that this was by far not the only encounter between Heroic Spirits.

Seeing this woman with her spear like weapon, unable to imagine her as anything but a Lancer and calling back into her mind that the previous encounter servant was also likely a Lancer was another caveat to her Knowledge. Either it was a unique meeting of several servants enjoying the use of such a weapon, despite being an Archer or Saber, or they were really all Lancers. The number of servants... how many were really involved?

"Lancer..." she made a wild guess, but made it sound like she just knew. It was not exactly difficult to guess this though. "One thing I can say without regret. There is nobody in this War that I will avoid. I am fighting this War to win and not to foolishly rush into one Battle after another, but there is no need nor any interest in staying clear of combat engagements. There can be only one Victor in the End, and cowardice does not exist for me, nor strike me as efficient enough to even consider it.

Her gaze hardened, and stared at this probably suitable choice for a Heroic Spirit as if trying to pierce her soul, and in fact some hardened criminals were not too eager to suffer under her gaze. Brynhildr made no petence of herself playing a Judge and Executor when she spoke as if she were revealing her verdict.

"I'm here to test your worth, and if you are allowed to encounter other fighters in this battle or if you will just be another servant who will meet their unavoidable fate today."

It would indeed not be her first kill in this War. "Is it really an alliance you seek, or just trivial bloodshed? An alliance.... how vexing. Just the mere thought about having to spend time with even more of those disgusting insects made her feel sick to the bottom, but her master was a disappointment in several ways and they might need someone capable of providing shelter.

Brynhildr was certainly a bit arrogant in her feeling of superiority of the other 'presumed' Lancer, yet aware that this might easily turn around when the Battle lasted longer. Ressources were limited and she did not know how often the purple haired enemy had already engaged in combat.

"Is your master a coward?" She slightly decreased the distance to the other servant, but kept her defensive stance. The thought about an alliance still made her angry, but even moreso the fact that she might actually need one in order to keep going. Prana was a very valuable ressource, and Lancer was not one of the Prana magnates of this War. This was the painful and certain truth, and her pride also might be a harsh handicap for the future.

[Scáthach]

For someone who was not wishing to talk at the beginning of this battle, surely spouted a bunch of words after a correct push which was done through luck mostly, Scáthach had no base for her impression of the woman being a faithful follower under a king albeit that not being so uncommon at her time and before it as well, still, a success is a success, whatever critical point Scáthach may have touched, it worked to make her partner to open up a little bit.

"Alliance you say . . . "

The idea was not bad when considering they were both servants from the Lancer class, making one wonder how many more Lancers were out there, would Scáthach meet her students in this war? A alliance might be good if the same happens with every other class but this is not something that Scáthach can decide by herself.

"Who knows, my master would need to ponder about this as well since her life will depend on this choice as well but it might not be a bad idea . . . for the near future~."

Future, yes, Scáthach still had to ascertain this woman ability, it would be counter-productive to ally yourself with a weaker servant that would just drag you down or even unnecessary if there wasn't a enemy or enemies worth of a alliance in order to be defeated.

"I may be able to see into the future but not into your mind, unless you speak it, I cannot know what you expect out of this war, the reverse is also true."

"If you are good enough to fight besides me or not have yet to be seen and that is all I intend to check right now, I don't care if you are looking for allies or not, I just want to have some fun tonight!"

"On this matter, you can say we are the same."

Brynhildr was not the only one who wouldn't back off, albeit for different reasons, both female warriors earned for victory and the Grail thus making any alliance only a choice of who you would like to fight last instead of winning together with said individual or group of heroes, a fact that both of them knew very well and that also made alliances to be very risky on the matter of backstabbing and betrayal.

"You will not be disappointed with me! This much I can assure you!"

"But unfortunately, I cannot say the same about my master, although a coward she is not, she is by far too young to be participating in this war."

Pointing her spear at the woman in front of her, Scáthach was ready to resume the battle, they small talking showed her that the armored woman also was interested in checking her enemies strength, not minding her words and stating to go at full lengths to kill her opponent if unworthy. Something that Scáthach did not intended to happen as she is confident in her skills to be able to beat any opponent she come to face and willing to back up her words with actions as well.

Pointing her spear at the woman head, as a sign that she was ready to attack, Scáthach slowly lowered her stance into a attack position to follow with a swift lunge at her enemy, thrusting her spear at Brin's chest, making full use of her weapon reach and her own speed, having heard about her rival intention, there was no point in playing around anymore, the real battle started now!

[Brynhildr]

"Hmph..."

There was no need to answer and waste one's breath. She only felt a bit of pity for this warrior to have come with yet another useless master. Were there really no souls in this World who had the true ability to command one of those Heroes of Old? While it raised her hopes for an easy Victory, the only handicap she had seen through her arrogance, there was also a small pain in her heart. It was awkward, but all those servants reminded her of her Einherjar in some way, but this was hardly the moment to turn soft.

This is the end, she thought to herself and seemed a bit lazy about avoiding the attack. "!?" A foolish mistake, that she almost realized to late, before turning her weapon around to parry the sliding long edge away from her body.

Impossible! That was fast... too fast.

A sign of honest surprise showed on her face, as she pressed against the attack with equal force. But this was also only providing another reason to see something unexpected. Brynhildr was not using all of her abilities. Just like a Swan was not a Swan without flying, she was also not using everything within her abilities, without spreading her wings, but that did not change that something had happened that she had not deemed possible.

There was a person who could stand up to her in terms of speed, as well as Strength. She had to admit that she was not in a position to test this person by only using a portion of her power and playing the almighty judge, rather than someone who had to fight seriously and on an equal basis. This was a most disturbing outcome. This woman might be her equal!

Lancer spun around in an attempt to get behind the thrust, and reduce the chance of having her poor stance getting turned against her, but she was off balance, clearly taken by surprise. How often had this happened in the past? Had she not already learned her lesson from those hardships? This was not a battle she had sought. Perhaps she was even inferior in this battle, the other servant enjoying herself and putting their very essence into the attacks, while she was just there. But despite having been pushed into the defense, she was for once not filled with regret.

No, she was actually a bit thankful for this new experience. Just because Brynhildr would have to struggle a bit, even while being closer to her original form than during most of her previous life, did not mean that she would lose. For the first time since her summoning, the dark clad woman was actually hoping to win. Even if her face was still not able to follow her heart, the dark mass beating in her tortured body began to awake and thirst for battle. A wrathful demon or vengeful angel, it mattered little as long as she could crush her opponent. Underestimating was over.

This saved me a bit of time.. but it is far form over.

For a servant at least. The normal onlooker would barely take notice that Hildr had even managed to avoid the initial strike, and just see a fast clash of two balls of prana or if lucky making out some movements in their midst, but she had a small time window to prepare for the next series of spear stabs likely to be thrusted relentlessly at almost all sections of her body. Whoever that woman facing her was, she was not as slow as to allow the Valkyrie the necessary time to counter. Because she knew... her opponent would not have it either.

There were many things on her mind, but she was for one not the type for many words, nor willing to use any energy on a meaningless, verbal assessment of her current situation or some pseudo intelligent rebuttal. She would need the energy for the sake of survival. The only question was how far she had to go for that. While their battle had begun for real, and Lancer already had plans to get into the offense again, she wondered a bit if the warrior might not eventually end up getting all out after all.

No point... Brynhildr braced herself for impact.

[Scáthach]

Perhaps Scáthach celebrated her 'success' on making Bryn speak too soon, the woman was quickly to return at keeping her thoughts to herself after having vented off from being touched in her sensitive spot of duty and honor, perhaps was this woman more strict and serious than most knights she had met during her life, a pity but not a loss as both women knew, words had no place in a battle but it also never hurt to know your opponent with words as well.

Since knowing her opponent through actions was something that Scáthach intended from the beginning, that went without saying and albeit the armored woman avoided being hit in the chest, displaying great reflexes and ability that perhaps did not had good opportunities to be used to they fullest, a sharp blade without any challenge up to it level would never stand out from the common blades, causing such a rusty response from a warrior that had experience in the battlefield, either that or this woman lacked confidence in her own skills, which would require Scáthach to force her into a corner in order to drawn out such skills that made this woman into a heroic spirit. In any way, the armored woman allowed Scáthach to take the lead of this duel and set her own pace.

Saving strength in order to pull out faster and shorter stabs, Scáthach wouldn't allow the raven armored woman to escape her range without at least a scratch now, now a easy task when the following attacks wouldn't have enough strength to pierce the enemy armor, making Scáthach to aim her following three attacks at the crevices on the enemy armor like neck, elbows and legs, one hit would already serve to prove her 'worth' to this raven valkyrie.

"I'm not the only one who is a bad listener!"

Putting words in between her attacks, not out of petty rancor or anger but as measured words that were used by her opponent back at her, to incite her opponent to fight back, to take the battle seriously or it wouldn't be any fun for Scáthach to strike down her opponent with ease.

[Brynhildr]

A warrior could think about many things in combat. About the stance, the proper way to hold unto a weapon, and completely unrelated matters. But nothing had place in a situation with so little time as in combat. Fortunately a body was meant to react automatically when the experience existed, except for some poor cripples without reflexes. Brynhildr could not interpret from a mere bout how many battles her opponent had fought, but the Valkyrie had lived long enough and encountered a vast number of enemies, albeit not many even close to the level of her current opponent, to have a body which was better focussed on this battle, than her head.

Pressing hard, that was the other Lancer's response to her mistake, and just as expected. The Valkyrie grabbed her weapon tightly and dashed straight into the attack. A foolish move for someone lacking the initiative? Someone who was too slow? It had previously been seen that the attacker was about as strong and fast as herself, but this did not stop her from taking her up on the challenge and risking more than necessary. But what was this about not listening? There were many people in her life, including herself, that she did not pay attention to, but this bout was different. She could not afford to stop herself from listening to the sound of the air and this person with the curious ears.

However, shortly before meeting the enemy's attack her hand tightened even more and she switched to a one handed style. The muscles in her arm forced to the maximum, Brynhildr a person said to have the power of 100 men in some legends seemed to change to an entirely different approach. If you had two weapons, why not make good use of them? The free hand moved down to the sword at her side.......

Only some minutes into the combat, both had already decided to stop their initial testing and start the bout for real. The Aura likely detectable by enemy servants and masters alike, even the overly cautious Lancer cared little for this, albeit more fighting to show her own strength, rather than enjoying the bout. She was still not ready to understand this part about herself. Unfortunately it was also an unpleasant move to draw the accursed sword for real.

[Scáthach]

Scáthach philosophy on battle was to always go all out, even if the enemy was clearly weaker than herself, this was her way to leave her mark wherever she went, as a woman, as a warrior that crushed with everything that she had, a life style where only the most determined prevailed as even a stronger warrior could be defeated by taking his weaker opponent lightly, this was how Scáthach saw her battles, this is how she led her life and of course, she knew that this was but one of the many ways to follow down the path of a warrior. This current enemy in front of her definitely followed a different path, a path that Scáthach was almost sure to have figured out.

This knight woman is strong indeed, there is no doubt about that after she managed to come back from her awe to the meeting of blades, avoiding the worst for herself, but also clearly a warrior that rarely fought someone on her level, having to go easy on her enemies that were weaker than her, perhaps to teach them? The reason for that was unknown to Shady but the fact that this knight woman was used to meet opponents weaker than herself was obvious now, like a army captain which only job is to take it easy while teaching and guiding new cadets.

Albeit the glaring advantage that this difference in experiences tipped the scales on Scáthach favor, this did not make her happy at all, to defeat a powerful enemy that does not go all out, there could not be any real test of strength like this when her opponent was hiding her true power behind some unknown shell, this made Scáthach both sad and angry, angry enough to strengthen her muscles to push the knight woman away when she held her own spear with a single hand at they clash.

"I don't know what kind of tests you used to run during your life but I'm not like your previous opponents."

These past few seconds were all the proof that the knight woman would need to believe in Scáthach words.

"If you don't fight me for real, you will be the one to die tonight!"

Scáthach did not had the intention to score a kill on her first day when she left her master behind but that does not mean she will allow a opportunity to remove a enemy servant that does not wish to fight from the war to pass by her like that, her tone and expression that were quite lively from excitement had changed to become more serious but without malice, stating her opponent fate if the same were to continue to take her lightly like this, as a simple matter of fact.

[Brynhildr]

"Taking you lightly? I do not," she answered in one go, making it sound like one entire sentence, despite the slight shift in nuance.

"You are a worthy foe indeed. I'd usually congratulate you for your efforts, passing the test, but this is not the time for it. However, you don't know my previous opponents."

This woman was clearly above the average level, but this did not mean that there were none at all close to her level. Not many, but she could recall some. Although those were quite unpleasant memories to be frank. Somehow she felt some lingering feelings towards the man who abased her, and those were not just hatred. She might have cried out wishing to kill him, but hatred did not come alone.

But she remained unwilled to change and accept the current flow, but force her own will on this World, devoid of Justice. If she could make some Einherjar to follow under her wing, this would make things just easier and after obtaining the control and reviving Asgard to her Ideal, she had a need for Angels of Death. Unfortunately, it was unlikely that someone who opposed her in this War for Supremacy would end up joining her.

Nevertheless, she was slightly more amused than annoyed by that enemy. Brynhildr also remained thankful about the small amount of time given to her to resort her feelings. The dark Valkyrie had almost drawn the sword, she preferred to keep sheeted, if possible for the entirety of the War and yet her hand had rested on its hilt before this unknown Heroic Spirit, perhaps a Lancer, forced her back to reality. She calmed down and steadied her grip on the weapon far more trustworthy than her sidearm, renewing her stance.

Lancer still could not grasp her opponent's thoughts. In the battle this did not matter. Their fighting style quite different yet remaining close in basis and they were about evenly matched, that she was sure about. If one would add numbers, the woman who fell through Sigurd, tainted in black by the tragedy around this couple, would see some stats quite similar to herself, while giving off the same vibes to her opponent, albeit with question marks at the side. Of course none was going all out, but perhaps this unknown servant had a good reason to hold some disdain, for Lancer really held back more than necessary.

It was also true, that this woman with her deadly spear was right. Brynhildr could easily die if she did not watch out.

"Very well.... I presume we might change our introduction slightly. Servant Lancer will claim this Victory. The testing, you have passed. Now, I will commence with the real duel. Don't hold a grudge if your life ends here tonight. At least you have earned my respect."

This was probably the best praise she could offer, using a small disfigurement in the concrete as a jumper to boost her own speed for a straight lined forward movement. It was still not on par with a dive, but lacking the hesitation from before, Brynhildr's spear had finally been unsheathed from its mental blockade and approaching the other woman at a speed and with force greater than before.

The terrain is not the best to go all out, but I should consider it.

Nevertheless, fighting at full force would mean to reveal herself to more than just her current opponent, and who in their right mind would like to play into the hands of some unpleasant spectators?

[Scáthach]

Another reaction, this female warrior was interesting in a rather monotone and slow-pacing way, someone that preferred to deal with the matters of life by saying only the necessary, only replying to outside activity, a type of person that Scáthach could have plenty of fun with by poking her with the right questions and sentences at the most opportune moment, that is if they were not going at each other throats like this, perhaps another lost friendship lost in the fires of battle.

"Even if this is not the time for it, I gladly accept your compliment and in the fortunate case that we both live through this duel, I would like to hear about your previous opponents."

"Of course you wouldn't be the only one to talk about previous experiences, it would be unfair and boring, considering your choice of speech."

Fighting the best heroes of different ages was already one of the greatest rewards for a warrior, to prove oneself as the strongest among all participants and the only one eligible to touch the Holy Grail, a trophy with no equal and yet Scáthach earns for more, to know her enemies, to win against a person rather than just a number on the long list of kills that she carry, not as a act of weakness or of faulty resolution towards the war but out of respect to a fellow warrior.

A interesting, albeit obvious fact made itself clear with this last push, the servant classes that were supposed to hold one warrior of each now had two, maybe more, Scáthach had no way to tell, a basic rule has just been broken possibly making this war a bit more dangerous than anticipated.

"I agree, Servant Lancer shall win."

Apparently, they were both Lancers so the statement would remain true no matter who win this duel, however Scáthach had yet to have the same level of respect that she earned towards her enemy, Bryn had yet to attack for real or say anything worth of admiration and respect, that is, until now.

Bryn have finally started to take this seriously, her attack was basic but it had speed and power but that does not take the value out of this demonstration of skill and experience but Scáthach wouldn't allow herself to be taken down by such a attack, it would be a disgrace after all that she said so far. As expected as a attack may have been, it was impossible to dodge this one and blocking never was a choice for Scáthach, parrying was all that was left to her and that was done. Lifting her own spear in order to be parallel to her own body in order to intercept the incoming spear with the shaft of her own weapon, pushing the assailant spear to her left side, opening a good chance for counter kick towards her enemy belly but the dark purple armor made that a inefficient move, instead, Scáthach opt to use a shoulder tackle, stepping in-between Bryn legs and ramming her shoulder at the enemy chest area, intending to push Bryn back through blunt force.

[Brynhildr]

As much as swords were said to be better at short range, spears could also become an item worth applying in short range. Just when the weapon was parried, quite expected in fact, Brynhildr used the lever action to bring the backend of her spear up in a backward up fashion, commonly seen in combat and stepped in just to see her opponent apparently having a very similar idea.

"You go obviously first when you desire to hear. Why should I start list..."

That was all she could manage to bring out before their bodies clashed.... or better the blunt end of Brynildr's spear with the enemy lancer's crotch and the shoulder smacking clearly into her now unprotected chest. Little could the fallen Valkyrie know how much this unknown woman would hurt herself by meeting the weapon and her relatively tough armor with no more than her shoulder, but on the other hand she could clearly feel the force behind the rough encounter behind the solid plate. This old armor was never meant to absorb the shock of attacks rather than just protecting against it like a wall.

This was one of the more unpleasant times when she was reminded of being a woman. The sensation was slightly different, lacking sturdy muscles in this area, that could be found on some of her Einherjar. Lancer coughed slightly, albeit more due to the surprise than having been hurt too much, or she would simply feel the blow a bit later. Yet, getting out of this conflict unharmed had stopped being an option after she realized that this energetic woman could be almost her equal.

However it seemed a bit strange to see this step of action, considering that Brynhildr had more mass and better defenses. Although this foolish appearing attack clearly caught her off guard and did not nearly feel as foolish as it looked. She had to admit to herself that this was an interesting way to get hit, and it has been a while that Lancer suffered damage of any sort. Not including that she had only been summoned recently. However the darkclad woman did not lose her balance, having performed a similar action of her own, after all.

That alone, not actually having won this encounter already, became slightly irritating, although still not clearly surfacing under her helmet. "Interesting...", she muttered under her breath as both parties eventually split apart by the force of the impact of their individual attacks. "An interesting albeit fruitless attempt." If only her words were the truth. She already began to feel it somehow.

[Scáthach]

The idea of giving the armored woman a push back on her attack ended up with a clash of similar motions, which obviously did not ended well for the unprotected Scáthach as her idea never was to have the impact returning to her, a miscalculation based on the lack of spirit in the armored woman previous attacks that was nowhere to be seen now, Scáthach was no masochist to be happy with this new pain at her chest but the fact that her opponent started to take her seriously was enough to put a grin of mixed pain and excitement on her expression.

Albeit losing the duel of body tackle for receiving more damage than her opponent, even if the human shoulder was harder than most other bones, it still could not match the dark steel of her opponent armor, Scáthach balance was not disturbed and the incoming attack at her crotch could be blocked by her own spear as they executed similar moves, both at the tackle and the blunt end of they spears circling into similar positions as well, sending each other back they corners once again but this time, with some slight disadvantage for Scáthach.

"And here I thought you would be just one more that is all talk but shy away during real combat . . . "

Saying that while rubbing her shoulder and analyzing her opponent over again in order to notice any difference on this woman between the start of this duel and now, now studying her opponent like done to a true threat.

"I see that you are not only good at hiding your emotions but your skills as well."

"Have not met many that were this humble before, power was something that all those who had it, and those who didn't as well, liked to flaunt around after all."

Flashes of her sister come to mind, a annoying strong woman who enjoyed not only flaunting it but busting her prowess at Scáthach face for reasons unknown to the Lancer woman, a love-hate relationship that gave Scáthach a small shiver by remembering it.

"Since none of us want to start talking about our identity, why don't we make a bet?"

"According to each hit we take, we give a hint on the same level."

"This shall make our little game much more interesting!"

There is no servant in this war that does not wish to know who they are fighting against, the reasons may vary but acquiring such knowledge could be vital for one victory or defeat, making this deal a very tempting one since even if the other party does not keep it word towards the bet, you are at least getting hits or a double-edged as these small two sentences could be counted as complex psychological attack to disrupt the enemy cool from the actual battle. It is now up to Brynhildr to see this offer in her own way and take accordingly counter-measures.

[Brynhildr]

Her opponent was a person of many words. ... Probably a bit too much for the usually taciturn Brynhildr. A woman whose gentle storytelling was sealed in an armor of malice and of course steel. ..In the form of ether this moment. Whoever this person was, she was not just swift with her spear but also enjoyed to establish some kind of verbal contact, but the dark clad Lancer only partly accepted the challenge, answering it in a more direct and far more violent way.

Leaving no doubt and less time that her intentions were that of slaying her opponent, the fallen Valkyrie accelerated once more, a big mass of raw power in armor moving at high speed into her enemy's range and drew a fast horizontal arc across the field, aiming at the midsection of this talkative but nevertheless talented warrior. Even if most of her attack power came from the momentum, this was not far behind the strength of a woman who was known to be a challenge for 100 men when it came to spear throwing.

Unfortunately for everyone who enjoyed a great literate discussion neither was exactly in the mood for this and Brynhildr also applying most of her energy and breath into the attacks, armor was not exactly light. She most likely exceeding in Battle Powers but also the usage of the very rare ressource called Prana, with each passing minute her opponent could gain the upper hand, albeit burning prana even faster was not the optimal solution, she still had decided for this change of action, anger but also a small passion for things long lost influencing her probably not so unemotional decisions.

"Do as you ... please." The attack was meant to hit before she spoke out the first syllable of the final word, in most instances ending a battle before she had to use this word, more commonly used to express a request, and a word she was not very fond of because of this very reason. Naturally, she did not expect it to end this conflict however.

The other servant was by far too skilled, but only a swift retreat could spare her from a cruel fate... or she would dare to block the blow from a defensive stance, neither having exactly much footing in the already damaged area, another part of the city sacrificed to a Goddess of War's furious strike. Well, at least she was something close to.

The Harbinger of Death did not stop in her tracks albeit having to fiercely penetrate the ground with her right foot for a proper swing, thus turning it a bit into a Kamikaze attack. But be it sheer arrogance or a bit of desperation, Brynhildr had taken this and however it would end, she was ready to take the Result with pure faith in her own Abilities. It was hard to believe that she still was resisting to use her actual prowess in this conflict, her tainted Wings still sealed away.

"FALL!", was pressed fast after the please, making her interaction with the other Servant one of pure actions, but some people were noting how actions could say more than words, and Brynhildr's feelings and actions carried a very clear content... she did not want to lose to this woman. There was now more than just testing one's skill, her pride had taken a dent from the previous attacks, just like her armor.

[Scáthach]

Her opponent was one of few words, that was a established fact already but Scáthach still expected more of a reaction from her enemy after such provocation, a servant identity is a matter of life and death at this war and making a small game out of it was usually more than enough to tickle off those with thick pride, alas this woman was not as simple as that, she showed signs of alteration from stone cold gaze from the start of the battle but not close to lose her cool even once, a truly strong mind resided behind that armor.

Independently of Brynhildr having accepted her proposal or not, the attacks would continue and so her enemy did, taking the initiative, a full swing aimed at her body was made, she either wanted to finish this battle now or get a lot of Scáthach back story in one go, the former being more likely but nevertheless Scáthach wouldn't like to be hit by such a attack nor would such a wide swing hit her. Blocking it was possible but it would be preferred to avoid strains at her limbs that are her tools to attack and dodge, the later being her chosen course of action as her mean to land the first attack of her bet on her opponent.

Using her spear as a pivot point, with the blunt side of her spear at the ground, Scáthach lift herself in the air, her only contact with the ground being her spear, to both avoid Brynhildr attack and counter it with a kick aimed at the beautiful helmet at her opponent head, aiming to knock it off from Brynhildr, a bold counter to face a bold attack, just like how Brynhildr put herself at stake with a stronger but slow attack, so did Scáthach as her only 'footing' would be blow away while she would still be executing her counter, of course, this sudden fall was counted into Scáthach actions in order to not miss her target.

"Don't mind if I do!"

Just like how her enemy line came after the attack, Scáthach reply could not be made at any other time than after her own attack, when her enemy should be seeing only Shady right leg approaching her head, her own spear having been beaten away from it pivot position but not leaving her hand, Scáthach spin her body around itself to minimize the shock of the impact and to also have a mean to not fall with her face at the ground were her attack to miss.

Scáthach hit wasn't assured yet but her mind was already pondering what to ask out of her enemy after this, going direct to the name would be boring, she would need to ask something more exciting like her greatest feat or maybe her greatest regret! The possibilities were enormous and the time limited, ideas racing at the elven Lancer were almost reaching the level of a distraction.

(OOC: Testing color for speech 'bubbles' too)

[Brynhildr]

The armor clad warrior was yet to reach the state of infuriation, but the calm anger remained fueled by the slightly playful behaviour of her opponent. Somehow she still believed fighting to be mostly business, either for her father or for the greater good. That did not mean that there was not still a bit of the naive child or the prideful warrior in her, but there was too much amusement involved on the other side.

However this overjoyed, maybe even absentminded reaction should prove to be beneficial for the dark Lancer. It did not happen any day that someone was falling for a fake attack. At the moment the blue haired young spirited spear user ascended into the sky, Brynhildr accelerated forward and grabbed the free section of the staff full force using her own speed, mass and the centrifugal force resulting from her movement against the helplessly airborne child of battle.

Her strength often told to be equal to that of 100 men was nothing to belittle, yet slightly exaggerated by those weak fools who could never hope to climb up into the realm of Legends to become one of the noteworthy, a Heroic Spirit. Nevertheless, she was sure to have the upper hand in a direct display of strength ...if only it came to that. While the chance existed that the daughter of Odin could end up disarming the elven like warrior, she was not counting on it, rather than just giving her a little taste of actual close combat, Lancers were due to their weapons not necessarily experts.

Brynhildr was certainly a bit surprised but decided to keep her focus. Who would have guessed that the other female would attempt such a bold move at this stage of battle. Did she feel so much pressure that she made such a grave mistake in judgment? The nicknamed Angel of Justice had only begun to get serious and already won!

"Hmph..." she commented victorious before logic caught up with her pride and informed her that it was actually herself who had been careless. Using too much strength for the feint, too much speed to make up the earlier mistake were like a tribute to the enemy.

Lancer had been too absorbed in her own assault, mindlessly accelerating forward, to take a look at the terrain and given up on steady footing, which was one of the most basic and most important parts of Battles. She had not only forced her own speed and strength into the weak side of her enemy but also joined the spinning action herself, and as a result completely lost her balance.

There was only one way not to end up flying herself..... She had to let go, the blunt side of the enemy's spear slightly scratching against the surface of her otherwise spotless armor. A disgrace to the gods. She gritted her teeth, more out of shame than the slight pain in her arm.

"What was I thinking!? Why did I do that? I can not simply grab her and slam her into the ground....[/color] Their physical attributes were by far too similar, and Legends about Strength aside, she was clearly no Herakles.

She could not say how well her opponent would manage to land, but she did not doubt that this attack had been very stupid. Her arm was proof enough. Lancer had hurt it a bit and the arm strength dropped slightly, as an inevitable result. In terms of sheer physical force, Bryn was now either forced to compensate with the other arm or simply accept that a direct clash was from now on not the ultimate way of battle.

"You confuse me.... what do you want to achieve with this? Are you really seriously aiming for a victory? Are you holding back because you feel someone watching?"

The Battle Maiden had no right to judge someone for not going all out, but it was always easier to see the faults in Others, especially when they tried to oversee their own painful darkness as much as this woman who had been wounded deeply in her heart by someone she had trusted more, and loved more than anyone else. She simply did not like the fact that this Grail War would prove to be tougher than she thought, but the most confusing was that they both seemed to have the very same Class.

...No, actually worse. In terms of psychological combat, it was clear who had won. She decided to calm down and sacrificing her own Initiative before continuing a dangerous style of combat.

[Scáthach]

The attack failed, the enemy Lancer dodged the attack and came up with her own counter-attack, grabbing Scáthach own weapon and using it to throw the aerial lancer to the ground, that was the idea that Scáthach got out of her rival movements which were observed with awe, regardless of the danger that this posed to herself, the bravery and nimble movements of the armored Lancer have captivated Scáthach attention, not just because it was beautiful but also because the other Lancer seemed to take upon Scáthach bet on this battle. Even with her position being one of disadvantage, joy was all that the scantily clad Lancer could express, the only exception being when landing badly at the floor because of her rival attack, an injury that would normally hamper any warrior performance however, that was but a minor problem to a servant made of ether.

"Master, I need your help now."

Healing non-fatal wounds was a simple matter for servants, hardly a reason to be as reckless as both Lancers just displayed, it was clear that both took damage from this exchange, the small amount of blood running down Scáthach side was proof of that, unlike her rival, there was no armor to protect or hide her injury but taking a good look at the armored Lancer face will also tell you that she too is harmed. Scáthach stance will remain broken until the healing comes. The danger that this could bring to her own master did not made into Scáthach list of worries at the moment, the break for the recover, the thrill of the battle and the momentary embarrassment was all the female warrior could see.

"You said so yourself, there can be only one victor at the end and I too have a wish that I want to see granted but . . ."

Indeed, all servants are fighting for themselves and for their masters, in order to reach the Holy Grail and have their wishes fulfilled, that is the basic premise of this war but Scáthach have more than just one wish and while it is great that one can make use of a omnipotent device to grant your personal lust and greed, there is also those wishes that are better fulfilled by your own effort and that kind of wish is what Scáthach wanted to realize through this battle. The joyful nature of the female Lancer did not went away but a point of melancholy have been mixed in as this singular wish became the topic of this duel.

"I am not a hero like most, who became famous through epic adventures and conquests, not because I couldn't but because I had no desire for that. All I ever did was to fight strong opponents, regardless of who or what they were."

Aoife was an exception though, the twin sister who was stronger but also an annoying winner was the only challenge that Scáthach happily turned down but that isn't worth the mention, not now, not before this armored Lancer land more hits and start to figure out more about Scáthach true identity. Yes, Lancer was keeping her word towards the one-sided bet she made with this unknown warrior, no matter if she armored Lancer would play along or not, Scáthach still would stay true to her word.

"The problem was that duels against strong opponents will end up with one being dead. Now that I get a second chance at life, I wish to make my wish to last as long as I can make it to! Of course, if you won't back down until either of us is dead, I will gladly accompany you 'till the gates of hell."

By now, the healing from Scáthach master was done and no traces of the injury could be seen anymore, not even the traces of blood on her clothes were visible anymore, thus Scáthach stance regained it initial fervor and pressure, displaying her full intent to resume this battle, as soon as the armored Lancer would reply in kind of course.

(OOC: there ya go Aela, feel free to kill Pink Shiki in any way you desire.)

[Cardwyn Driald]

The Angel’s order was not entirely followed. She couldn’t help but watch the Servant and the Angel fight, watch her Angel win. Though she did continue to creep along the rooftops, looking for her opposing Master. This fake Lancer had to have a Master nearby, somewhere. Justice wasn’t going to lose, but it didn’t hurt to help.

So as the entire fight was going on, the crashing of Divine and cursed weapons ringing through the moonlit night, Cardwyn crouched and moved along, peering into the alleys from the rooftop, and jumping across them when she noticed no one around.

The clashing would go for a while, even if their movements were blurs. Standing against either one for any amount of time would be certain death… but there was no way the Lancer’s Master would be anywhere near that level of threat… hopefully. It seemed impossible.

They were blue and purple lights, streaks through the air as weapons clashed, forms faded and stretched in a combat of speed first and strength second. Sparks, not from any shaving of steel, but from sheer slamming together of sword and spear spun through the air and gave light to their forms. It was almost beautiful, perhaps if the Angel had been fighting her shadow, rather than some harlot pretender who would most surely fall.

No doubt of that existed in Cardwyn’s mind, the thought didn’t even bring a smile to her lips though. The Angel hated her, for good reason. She was useless compared to that. She had been called useless many times in her life, a failure, until finally she was refined by him. She hated him but she listened. Hated it.

She had to prove her worth to Justice, didn’t she? Even if she ordered Cardwyn to stay out of the fight, this was not interference with her battle. Yes, that was how she would put it. How it was.

!!! Cardwyn felt a small outpouring of prana, only for a moment that made her almost stumble and turn her head back to the fight. The Lancer had been healed from her wounds, her body still having streaks and trails of blood, but the wounds had closed… the Master had interfered!

That… that was a mistake. Now Cardwyn could find her, knew where she was, heard scuffling… the footsteps of three? They were one alleyway over, in a cramped corridor, watching the fight and not having a care for the deadly eyes that peeked over the gutters from above.

There were three of them, and all three carried guns. Clearly visible. Barrels glinted in the scattered light, though not quite as ferociously as the weapons of the two in the empty street. Two men, and a young girl, probably around twelve years old with pink hair. She even seemed excitable from here, and something deep within Cardwyn felt a strange, painful pang. But that was easily ignored, far too easily. Something kept her from considering killing the girl though, as she ran through a few plans in her mind.

… And she settled on the most suicidal of the plans. Nothing else would work, and it was only a three story drop. She turned back and stood up, peering over once more before taking one step back. Pivoting on her foot, she turned and in a one step sprint dove over the ledge, downwards at the one watching the back.

A knife plunged between her breasts, seeking her heart.

Her circuits opened in midair, and the stilettos she held realigned in the material, became stronger in the single moment before she struck. The point of the blade stabbed into the back of his neck, his spine, to instantly paralyze him. He wasn’t the holder of the seals.

The second one turned, aiming his gun towards Cardwyn, bringing it up. But by turning to meet her, he had sealed his own fate as her eyes burned with the heat from her circuits, and activated before he even had time to pull the trigger.

He was gasping for air, choking with every breath as the fire consumed the air itself. A broken piece of metal revealed his face to himself, one of three identical brothers. Exactly like the one she had paralyzed, like the one her eyes had activated against. He had sacrificed himself for his brothers, and they had thought him dead, they knew he would be dead from the gunshots, felt his presence fade. But it had not disappeared completely, somehow life still clung to his fake form as fire crept towards his bleeding body. The dead alchemist lay in front of him, he had at least accomplished that, but he was rewarded with so much pain. He did not die, his body refused to let him. It just forced every breath to be pain, pain like he had never felt before as even the breaths his mind forced him to struggle for were unsatisfying, filled with smoke that already reached his eyes.

Fire touched his limp hands, he had prayed that they would not have feeling if he couldn’t move them, but the world was not so kind. He felt the agony, the regret, the hate, the curses of a slow death by fire. His brothers… didn’t save him. No, they killed him! No… was that right? His last thought echoed into the abyss as Cardwyn returned to the real world, looking at the crumpled form of the murdering brother. He was sobbing, as he should.

The little girl had turned, and she too leveled her gun, but Cardwyn was too close, had too much of an advantage. She was too shocked about the state of her companion when Cardwyn cut his throat to mute his cries of pain. Too slow, even with blazing circuits, and the bloodsoaked stiletto pinned the gun to the wall, piercing behind the trigger and cutting off the finger of the child, even as reluctant as Cardwyn was, this girl was still a Master. An enemy.

She cried out, a mix of anguish and an attempt to call her Servant to her. “I command-!” The desperate plea was swiftly silenced by Cardwyn simply smashing the girl’s head into the wall of the alley, hard enough to quiet her consciousness. The child's head hitting the wall was clearly accompanied by the sound of her nose breaking against the solid stone.

Her blade yearned for the throat of the girl, but a thought came unbidden to her mind. Cardwyn couldn’t kill this child; she had done no wrong, surely? Other than enter the war.

There was just that mistake to rectify, that mistake to punish. The payment for daring to stand against an Angel of Justice! Drawing a third stiletto from beneath her dress she reinforced it too, enough to cut through the girl’s small wrist with ease. Some pang of regret filled someone else inside her, set someone else to tears as she split open the seals, cutting the dead hand again and again till the power of the seals went out. A finger and a hand were a small price to pay, when she could have died like her companions.

Letting her body fall to the cobble streets, and bleed there, slowly… a crest was definitely struggling to save her life. It was well enough. She didn’t want to kill children.

Her dress was covered in blood. How sad… it was probably ruined. That was the turn of her thoughts as she walked out onto the street, carrying the hand of the Lancer’s defeated Master to where the Servants fought.

“You shouldn’t cheat.” Was all she said to the pair as she tossed the mangled, bloody thing into the street in front of the blue Lancer.

[Scáthach]

(Bryn asked to be skipped so here I go)

How much time have passed since the start of this battle? For the two warriors, minutes would feel like hours, losing track of time the more absorbed into the duel they became even when experience and knowledge would dictate that duels hardly take more than a few minutes before a conclusion is reached, adding small breaks in order to hold a chat with the rival can widen that time gap by quite some time, given how much each have to say, a point where the dark armored Lancer wasn't of much help. In the end, the exact amount of time spent in this little meeting cannot be measured that easily by one own instincts however, one fact can be said with confidence, it was enough time for the masters to finish their own duel when they skip the talking.

"!"

The shock of realization is unmistakable clear in Scáthach expression, even before the enemy master threw the proof of what Shady already know right in front of her, the dull feeling of 'pain' that came from the lack of prana being received from her master, it felt more like a stab on her back, cutting her strings, not only putting Scáthach life in danger but also interrupting her shot at this war, most likely forever.

The rage of being disrupted in this manner made the Lancer heart grow a bit darker but at the same time, Shady knew very well that aiming for the master, who is an easier prey than the servant, is a valid tactic of war, even more when said master was not more than a naive child. A quickly look at the enemy Lancer master is enough to tell that she is a more capable magi than the child that summoned Scáthach, this should have been obvious from the start, it was obvious from the start but Shady choose to leave her master side in order to follow her own agenda when she was aware of the risks of doing so.

"So that is how you two fight, I see that I was at disadvantage from the start. Willing to go as far as killing a child that would give up when cornered."

"You have a bloody road ahead of you, miss Dark Knight!"

Scáthach is no saint, she too have killed many in her life, children not much older than the master that summoned her, she also does not follow and chivalry or knightly code and there was little time for any sort of bond to be made between master and servant and yet, Scáthach is angry at her enemy for using an underhanded tactic such as this mostly for personal reasons and feelings, the end of her duel and also of her master life are both Scáthach's fault, she knows that very well but taking that anger on herself won't solve anything.

This brings Scáthach to the point of importance now, does she try to kill those two here and now to avenge her short-time master and disappear as well or try to run away in order to survive and maybe postpone this revenge to another date? There isn't much time and this decision isn't entirely up to Scáthach, who can feel her fake life starting to slowly fade away.

(Back to the normal posting order now and I guess we can finish this thread after this last turn.)

[Brynhildr]

"...."

Brynhildr remained quiet and far more settled than her opponent when the little pile of meat landed in their midst, but she was honestly also surprised to see her little puppet so effortlessly slaying an enemy master. But she could not understand why that Lancer, it was clear by now that there were obviously more than just one Lancer Class in this War by now, seemed upset about it. It was a War and People died in those. Could this woman... could she be this naive? The darkclad Valkyrie could not help it and chuckled amused at Lancer's reaction at the sight of the dead master.

"My path has been one of blood for ages and this Grail War won't be any different. Servant versus Servant and Master versus Master. That is the optimal matchup, even though some servants would rather straight down kill the Magi. They both fought and your master has been deemed inappropriate for survival. That's what a fight is about. Only the strong survive. If she didn't wish to die, she should have been stronger or stepped back. Isn't it unfair to receive special treatment because you are a weakling? You were certainly at a disadvantage for having such a sorrow excuse of a master. If all are as useless as the last ones, this War will be an easy Victory..."

Lancer scoffed at the dead body of this child and considered to kick it out of the way and settle this fight, but something within her didn't allow her to act. She actually felt a hint of regret that someone who should not stand on the Battle Field has lost their life. It was different from seeing some Cowards or useless wannabe warriors die.

"At any rate, would your master have spared her opponent? Just because she was a child doesn't mean that she did not know cruelty and how to exert it."

It was a valid Option and thinking that she was in fact just a killer hiding in the form of a young human made her feel a bit better. Even father would under....... no, there was no value in seeking a father's understanding. He was gone, no longer able to play with her life, she was no longer able to make up with him, or her lost love. She sighed, but didn't forego attention for the sake of reminicence. That opponent in front of her was strong, and now she did not have much left to lose. She was like a wounded animal and those were very well known to be extraordinary Prey.

In the worst case she might even go for Brynhildr's puppet and try to cut her lifestrings and so the Valkyrie's power equally in some form of retribution. All because this foolish girl had to show herself. Well, in this way one could not claim her to be a coward who would only backstab people.

"Well, I admit that this girl's death is mostly my fault. If I had taken you more seriously from the start you would have died before her and so eventually saved her life. Although that doesn't mean that she would have given up as you claim. Hmph... it was also a mistake to fight you as a warrior, but there is no helping it now. I will allow you to retreat to bury your fallen comrade, and then you may come back for revenge in that little time you have left, or you can just try to fight now."

It was odd, but somehow this was already the second time that she had given a servant the choice to run after they were deprived off their source of power, and yet it seemed to be the right thing to do. Somehow she didn't wish to strike down a weak opponent, albeit clearly not being above those acts if deemed necessary. Hildr prepared herself for the final round. This servant was a stubborn one when it came to giving up, although that was probably true for any of the servants. It now only depended what kind of handicap she accepted for the sake of her loyalty to this little Girl master.

"Your choice, warrior." It would prove to be interesting in seeing her response....

[Scáthach]

The dark armored Lancer is right, her words ringed true inside Scáthach and that alone hurt more than any attack she could receive in this war, there was indeed no reason for Shiki to receive mercy for being a child, any courtesies like that were threw out the window when the young girl summoned Scáthach, the very same girl that she tried to keep away from this world of pain and death and she failed at that. if Scáthach anger at herself were to be any less she would attempt to make the dark armored Lancer eat those belittling words right back, how dare she speak like that about someone she knew nothing about, is what Scáthach would like to reply to those poisonous words but she was no different, her time with her master was no more than half a hour.

"......"

The things going through Shady's head at the moment weren't the words of her enemy but an attempt to reason why would her master follow her when she requested for the girl to stay at home for this night, surely her presence helped when Shady got injured but that also was the axe for pink puppet life strings, no matter how you look at this event, it is Shady's fault that another child dies like this, how could she wish for another life when what she do is to end others prematurely?

In the same way that the enemy Lancer words sparked those old and recent feelings of guilty, it also strengthened Scáthach resolve towards her goal, just as her enemy said, this is a war and many will have to die for Shady to have her wish attended, other children included, by Scáthach own hand even, definitely not a easy task for this Lancer, who is also a mother with a daughter around that same age, but she could not let her own dream be stopped by a pile of corpses, it was indeed to late to worry about being pure in that matter. There was no reason to expect the enemy to understand or show sympathy for her plight either so the choices here were quite simple.

"I wonder about that, if we fought seriously, you and your master could be the ones dead right now."

Whoever this enemy Lancer may be, it seems that she follows a chivalry code of some sorts, surely Scáthach isn't exactly defenseless because of her master death, at least not right away and yet the enemy gave her enough time to choose what to do next. Certainly a masterless servant isn't a great danger but given the remaining strength that Shady has, it should be enough to use her Noble Phantasm, the demon spear Gáe Bolg, on the enemy Lancer, which should secure the kill of the more annoying enemy, leaving Shady with no trouble to dispatch of the master afterwards but then what? Going to sacrifice her chance at a second life to enact revenge for a girl she just met, even though said girl died because of her? Divided between a stupid and a cold decision, Scáthach had already made her choice.

"I . . . cannot die here together with her. Killing you two right now would only add to the number of corpses here and I pass on returning to that place. I leave her burial in your capable hands."

Scáthach did not had much time, this much is obvious to everyone here, using her little time to bury the girl would cost her own life as well, in fact, there was nothing outside of a miracle that could keep Shady alive right now, to find a servantless master in a matter of minutes is nearly impossible but still is a better chance than zero and Shady will grab that small light of hope if it means granting her wish. Not something that will make Shady leave a good impression with the dark armored Lancer but that did not matter, the scar on her own heart for abandoning the girl is a much bigger blow than a bad image.

With that said, Scáthach jump many meters aways from the enemy duo and from the fighting grounds, taking the opportunity that her enemy gave to her of escaping with her neck still attached. When she was halfway through her escape, Shady stopped for a brief moment to leave a final message to the very first warrior she met at this war.

"I will be back, not for revenge of my master but to finish our fight, Lancer!"


(OOC: Guess this ends the thread unless you two wish to post any last words)