The Clash of Servants (Job)

Job Deets:

The rift sparked and spat, a dancing red lightning bolt upon the landscape. It was barely five feet wide. Yet no matter where one moved, the rift would follow. There was no way to enter Magnolia without touching or dealing with the rift first. It was an unpleasant thought for the mage crouching nearby.

Kyran rubbed his chin as he watched the rift. He had been playing around with it for the last hour or so. Rocks did nothing. Moving did nothing. Spells bounced off. The rift looked like it might be a permanent fixture. And since Kyran had taken the job to deal with the rift, he now had to touch it. He flinched as the rift spat sparks. The rift didn't feel right to his magical senses.

Luckily, he had Adalinda with him. Maybe he could shove her into the rift first. Then he would know if it was safe or not. A perfect solution to his problems. If he would ever deign to be so mean. Sighing, Kyran climbed to his feet. "Looks like we'll have to touch it. They said to deal with the rift and open the way to Magnolia. Stupid bastards. I bet they didn't even know what they were asking us to do." His anger caused his lilting accent to thicken drastically.

Kyran angrily adjusted his bandanna. He hated his accent. It always seemed to point out that he was from a tiny village in the middle of nowhere. Turning away from Adalinda, Kyran straightened his leather coat. He still hadn't managed to replace it and the jobs were demanding it more often than not. Kyran also didn't want Adalinda to see the emotions playing across his face. The demon always rose beneath his features when his emotions got high.

Kill her. Feed on her blood. Kill. Kill. Kill. Let me devour her. The demon purred, its fingers lightly caressing Kyran's mind. It chuckled deeply, knowing Kyran couldn't ignore it. Or maybe you want to devour her. Feel her writhe beneath you. Have flesh slap against flesh. To bite down in the throes of passion and feel her blood fill your throat as she screams in ecstasy.

Kyran stood abruptly and bolted for the rift. He wouldn't listen to the demon. Adalinda was a friend. Only a friend though he could see why someone would find her attractive. There was no substance to the demon's words. None at all. Then why do you deny it so fervently The demon's laughter echoed across his mind as he hit the rift.

It was like being submerged in blood. It forced its way down Kyran's throat. Heat coursed through his veins. Something was branding itself upon his body, upon his very soul. The pain of it made Kyran scream. Needles drove into his flesh. Blows struck his stomach. Knives slashed him open. Then power flooded into him. Power like he had never felt, never known before. Along with it came knowledge. Information about what the rift was dropping them into. Anticipation thrummed through Kyran's entire being.

Then he was out. He was crouching upon the ground, one knee down, the other tucked up against his chest. His voice was gone. The certainty of that filled Kyran as he straightened. His body was different too but it was more important to know where he was. The rift had deposited him upon a murky street. Mist cloaked the city around him, slid across his skin in a soothing motion. Kyran bared his teeth. His eyes darted about, trying to pierce the veil. Where was Adalinda?

She held his command seals. He could feel it. The magical connection between Servant and Master, the representation of the Holy Grail War's pact. Kyran scowled at his inability to find her. Had the rift filled her in? Or would he need to? He tried to use his voice despite his earlier certainty that it was gone. Only an animalistic bellow left his lips. No words. Not until they defeated the other servants and escaped with the Grail.

Unable to spot his master, Kyran turned his eyes upon himself. He was heavily surprised at the sight that met his eyes. His shirt was gone and his pants were transformed into a black divided leather skirt of kinds. His coat now flowed down, unbroken, no patches, augmented with metal here and there to complete his visage. The bracers upon his arms had become metal gauntlets, fully enclosing his hands. While Kyran's new skirt nearly hit the ground, he could feel supple leather encasing his feet and continuing all the way to his knees. His weapons still lay on his body where he had left them.

The other shocking change besides his clothing was his new muscle mass. Kyran had always been fit but he had been lean. Now he had the clearly defined physique of a low level body builder. Closing a hand around someone's neck would probably snap it. Unless all of the changes were simply for show. Kyran wasn't sure if he was happy with that thought or not. Hopefully, Adalinda would find him soon. In the meantime, Kyran would need to find a good way to communicate. Otherwise finishing this Grail War might be a tad difficult.

Word Count: 877

Adalinda was crouching nearby Kyran as they looked at the rift in front of the town of a neighboring city that she had only been to a couple of times. It seemed rather odd to her that it was there. She glared at it quietly as she crouched there, wondering what could have caused this. Tamaria had been the one to convince her to go on another job with Kyran. She felt that they had worked pretty well before, and Ada couldn't deny it. They had a good round of fighting and working together with the plants before. Her eyes glance over to her fellow mage, and takes a deep breath. When he stands, she raises an eyebrow. A snicker comes from her lips as she grins to his accent. She was always interested in strange voices, his was no exception. They amused her with their pronunciations and the like.

Slowly, she stands up straight as well, smoothing out her jacket as she stares ahead to the rift again. "Lets have some fun and see what this silly thing does then, I suppose." She adjusted the collar of her shirt before she prepared herself to go and touch it. She stopped when se noticed Kyran was standing there a moment, blinking back with her bright blue eyes before Kyran bolted for it. She gasped and managed to quickly get out of his way till he jumps right through the portal. "Guess he had jittery nerves..." She mutters as she grabs at her flask and brings the bottle to her lips. "Good thing I've got backup." She snickers. She had some hard liquor in this time, kind of missing her alcohol from a while back.

After the sensation of alcohol coursed through her body, the mage shoved her flask back into it's pocket, and ran to the portal as well. She let up a yelp at feeling the sensation coursing over her. Like something was being injected in her, like she was gaining more strength in her core area. It didn't stop the whole way through, till she tumbled out of the portal, and on top of something slightly hard. She groans as she was on her stomach, feeling a bit woozy.

"The hell..." She groans as she pushes herself off of what it was, before she realized she was on someone's back. She scrambles and rolls off onto her back with an 'oomph!' When she opens her eyes, she looks over to see Kyran's face, and her eyes grow wide. "The hell?!"

She quickly scrambles to her feet and was looking down at her body. She was now wearing a white outfit that seemed to have grown from her original uniform. Her shirt grew at the sides and the back and was nearly like a cape as a shawl with a ribbon was around the top. Her pants had turned white, and her boots went up half of her thighs, while her gloves lost their sailor charm and were just simple white gloves on her hands. She looks over her body, then looked over at Kyran. She was a bit more lithe. More feminine. She shutters at the thought and shakes her head in disgust. "Uuuugh! The hell are we Kyran?!"

Adalinda felt weird here. And, she could also feel that there was a different connection going on here with her companion. Master and Servant? And she was his master? What in the world? Confusion was clearly on her face as she had a snarl on her lips. She didn't like this. Her eyes shoot back to Kyran, and she puffs her cheeks a bit as she was disgruntled with this situation they were thrown into.

Words: 617

Kyran bent down when he felt his master getting closer. It was odd that she was approaching from the sky. Perhaps she had decided to jump into the portal after he had. She landed on his back with a solid thump. Kyran winced realizing he probably should have used his arms. His back was a good deal harder than it usually was. Though catching someone with your back was a bad idea all together now that he thought about it.

Hearing Adalinda's question, Kyran was faced with the issue of communication. He couldn't talk. There was no telepathy in his arsenal. The ground was a strange substance that prevented writing. Kyran growled under his breath. This whole Grail War suddenly got a whole lot more difficult. Kyran wished he had his rings. He could use blood to write a message out. Instead, the mage tried gesturing.

His hand came up to his throat, touching it with two fingers. Then he shook his head. Kyran repeated the gesture twice before getting frustrated. This would get them nowhere. The strange substance on the ground ended a short distance away. Because of the fog, there was no way to tell what lay beyond. Kyran gestured for Adalinda to follow. Luckily there was wet ground just beyond sight.

Kyran bent down and began scratching out his message. 'Locked in war for powerful magical item. Seven powerful Master Servant teams. Must take out every servant to win and escape.' Kyran looked up at Adalinda. The demon's earlier words echoed in his head, making it hard not to notice her more defined curves.

Come now Key. Take a bite. Look at that body. You know you can't resist it. And now you have the strength to do it. Not that you would have to force her. She's drooling for you. The demon cooed. It was stronger now. Different than it had been before. Kyran felt a suspicion that going through the rift had changed it. He wrenched his gaze away from Adalinda. He had been staring too long. She must have noticed.  

Kyran put his finger back to the dirt. 'I can't talk. Think you have absolute control over me.' He paused and pointed at the back of her hand. A symbol had appeared there, sectioned into three parts. 'Command Seals. Can make the impossible possible for a single moment as I MUST obey whatever command you give with them.' Kyran stood up brushing off his hands. That was probably all the information Adalinda needed for now.

Something tingled on the edge of his senses. Kyran dove in front of Adalinda. Something drove into his back unleashing a bellow of pain. The pain wasn't enough to make him move however. He wrapped his arms around his master and took off running. The enemy was cleverly concealing themselves in the buildings behind them. Kyran couldn't risk Adalinda getting hurt or worse killed. That very well might trap him in this war forever.

Kyran's arms created a hard cocoon around Adalinda. He hoped she felt safe as he dashed across the open ground. Three more spots of pain blossomed in his back. Kyran grit his teeth. This was nothing. His tormentors had done worse to him. Trees sprouted from the ground. Good that would make excellent cover. He relaxed his grip on Ada, setting her down once they were deep in the forest.

Reaching back, Kyran yanked the knife from his shoulder. It dripped blood onto the ground. The pattern mesmerized Kyran. Drink it, Kyran. Unleash me onto this world! Let me revel in their blood and tear the screams from their throats! Kyran dropped the knife as if it had burned him. Pulling out any more seemed like a bad idea. He tapped Adalinda's thigh. If he got her attention, Kyran wrote on the ground. 'Pull out the knives? I can't do it myself and the enemy may be closing in on us.' The enemy wasn't but Kyran was not about to explain his problems to Adalinda. They weren't friends yet.

Word Count: 675
Total: 1,552

Kyran's Stats:

As she looks at Kyran, she sees that he motions to his throat, and lets her eyes go into slits as she bites her bottom lip. 'Was he saying he couldn't talk?' She questions herself. She follows as he motioned for her to, and watched his message a  bit, also keeping an eye out around them. At the first message, she snorts.

"Sounds easy enough." She chuckles. She stretches a little, looking at her hands and grumbles as she had more delicate features. She wasn't supposed to be a princess, or a doll. She was a fighter. She looks back at the rest of his scribbles, nodding as her earlier suspicion was confirmed then. "Well, we'll have to make do with wha-ack!" She gasped as Kyran suddenly was in front of her and then grabbed her. "Put me down!" She shouts as he begun running. She tried to wriggle free of his arms, but he held onto her rather tightly that she couldn't. She figured she had to suffer with his holding onto her.

When he finally put her down and she was on her own feet again, she had her hands clenched in fists. "Don't do that again!" She pouts. She didn't like feeling like a damsel. She wasn't weak. She couldn't be weak. She was lost in her grumbling when he tapped her leg, making her glare at him. As she watches his writing again, she slumps her shoulders. "Yeah..." She quickly goes to his back and pulls out the knives quickly and grits her teeth. "There better?" She asks as she holds all the knives, after grabbing the one on the ground as well. She looks at them, examining the metal on it a bit. She keeps the knives on her now, deciding that they'll be great for her to hold onto and use later.

"Since you know more about this place... you said that there were seven other teams, and that we're just fighting for a stupid magical item?" She looks down to her body and shakes her head. She was still hated this thinner body. It infuriated her.

She pauses though as she looks up and hears flapping above them. "Adaaaa!" A squeaky voice came through the trees before a purple blob smacked right onto her and tackled her to the ground. Adalinda smacked the ground, and groans as she peels the purple exceed off of her.

"Tamaria! The hell?! You bloody cat! What are you doing here?! You need to get out of here." She hisses at the cat, who was now pouting and sitting on the ground in front of her. The cat then pauses and looks at her slayer. Immediately she noticed the difference, and Adalinda glares at her and points at her while hissing; "Shush, cat!"

The little exceed squeals in delight and jumps at her. "I had flown in after you, and when I came through, you were being taken away by... I guess Kyran. You look so beautiful though! You should keep this body to score a hot guy." Immediately the mage's face was bright red in fury over her small companions reaction. "Oh! C'mon Ada! Wha-" Ada reached her hand up and turned the cats head to Kyran behind her. "Oh! Hi there! Didn't see you there." The cat sheepishly chuckles before elbowing Adalinda because she approved of his body.

Adalinda glares at Tamaria, making the cat quiet down finally. Adalinda moves to stand on her feet and rubs her temples. "Good... you're here... you can help us get out of this. We're apparently trapped here and have to get a magical item or whatever... and there are seven other teams here with us, and we have to kill them all." She tells her cat. Ada looks over to Kyran, and smirks. "Sound good? Having her help us out?" She chuckles as she taps her fingers together. Of course she had a slight plan going on in her head.

Words: 661
Total: 1,278

Kyran felt like his head was on a swivel as he tried to rely his reaction to Adalinda's words. Being unable to speak was difficult. It was easy to see that Adalinda had been frustrated by being carried. Kyran wanted to explain his reasoning. He was about to write in the dirt again when the cat showed up. The corners of his mouth curled upward as he listened to the pair interact.

He slapped the ground to remind Adalinda he couldn't talk. There were a few things they needed to straighten out before hunting their enemies. First, thank you. Those knives hurt. Second, we are tied together by this stupid magic item. It's very powerful. Also that means if you die, I'm stuck in this war forever. Kyran paused looking up at Adalinda. She was beautiful. The cat was right about that. Her new form pointed out the curves usually covered by muscle. His demon tried speak but Kyran quickly looked back at his writing. Focus on the war. Adalinda was only a potential friend. Females couldn't be trusted. No one could be trusted. You're more powerful than me but let me protect you this once. You can slap me around all you want after we return to Fiore. These Servants are on average S ranks and the Grail gave me a power up to put me on equal footing.

Kyran got up, feeling like he had adequately explained himself. That was when he realized he had forgotten about Tamaria. The exceed hadn't even crossed his thoughts as he wrote. Scowling at himself, Kyran crouched down once more. Yes, lets have Tamaria help. But have her watch out for Archer and Caster. Both of those classes have long range attacks. He got up and carefully patted Tamaria on the head. Archer must have been the one who attacked them. He or she had the advantage outside the tree line.

He could see Adalinda was plotting something. However, there was something in him that didn't want to wait. This was probably the most challenging battle he had ever encountered. Anticipation sang through his veins. The cold of his battle focus seeped through his fingers. He was ready. This whole thing could have been tailor made for him. His duster probably wouldn't survive but Kyran was okay with that. It had been falling apart for a long time.

Archer was approaching. He could feel it on the edges of his consciousness. How to inform Adalinda though. Don't wait. You're Berserker. Kill the arrogant bastard before he can harm our master. Rip him to shreds. Feast on his blood! The demon screamed, thrashing about in Kyran's mind. For once, Kyran agreed with the beast. Why wait? He took off running for the treeline. Eliminate Archer first. Make Tamaria safe. Besides, Archer wouldn't be prepared for a magical Berserker. A grim smile covered Kyran's lips as he cleared the trees. Yes! Fight! Kill! MAIM! DESTROY!! The demon was simply ecstatic that Kyran was following his will for once.

The mist had cleared outside the forest. It wasn't completely gone but the thick blanket from before had receded. The only mist now was a thin veil that hung a good distance above everything. There was open ground, a space of vulnerability for someone like Archer. In fact, that thin shape covered in an elegant suit must be Archer himself. Archer was attempting to zigzag across the open field. It would have made him a harder target for a ranged class. As it was Kyran simply charged across the distance.

Clearly, Archer hadn't expect someone to come charging out of the forest. He was slightly prepared however. A knife flew into Kyran's shoulder. He roared before crashing into the thin form. He punched twice, feeling ribs crack under his blows. Placing his other hand against Archer's side, Kyran let loose three of his Blood Thorns. Archer's breath went out as they pierced his side. That had to be enough for now. Kyran grabbed Archer and threw him against the ground. A knife whistled past his cheek, confirming his suspicions.

Archer was dangerous even when put at a disadvantage. Kyran circled him, hoping Adalinda could help. Archer was stronger than he had expected. Not that he would let that stop him from winning. Kyran's spells were better put to use from a distance. He would have to rely on his fists and his weapons from this close. Archer should be at more of a disadvantage than him.

Archer laughed and spit blood from his mouth. "You are quite formidable, Berserker. I did not expect such a response from one as you. It was rather well thought out. I'll have to remember not to over estimate my opponents in the future. Though I am used to dealing with Sherlock. Such a fantastic opponent does make one tend to lose perspective on others." Kyran cocked his head, unsure as to where Archer was going with this. "Ah well, a lesson for next time. Goodbye Berserker. Thank you for the invigorating challenge." Archer began to glow. Kyran, recognizing the action, leapt away from Archer.

Kyran began running back toward the forest. There was no telling what Archer's Noble Phantasm was. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't explained Noble Phantasm's to Ada either. Shit. He looked over his shoulder. His face visibly paled and he put on an even greater burst of speed. Archer had split into five slightly differing versions of himself. The original was still heavily injured but there was now four other Archers to contend with. "Berserker! Come out and plaaayyyy. Archer called out, all five in sync. Kyran slipped behind a tree.

A knife thumped against the tree. Archer could have placed a knife, or several, into his back while he ran. Apparently, he was quite confident in his ability to win with five Archers on the field. Kyran hoped that Adalinda was hiding and safe. Probably not though, the stubborn woman. Kyran grit his teeth. Maybe Tamaria had pulled her to safety. Kyran peeked around the tree at the advancing line of Archers. He would place his hopes in the exceed for now. There were more pressing problems to deal with.

Word Count: 1038
Total: 2590

Stats:

As the other slapped on the ground, she looks over to him and groans a little before she quickly goes next to him to see what he wrote in the dirt. "Just saying, this sucks. But yeah, welcome." She watched him continue to write out what he wanted to say. She takes a deep breath and puts a hand to her temple after reading it over. "Why do you feel you need to protect me? Is it because I'm skinnier and look like a damsel in distress? Bah! Whatever, sure. Fine. Only because I get to smack you around later..." She grumbles and crosses her arms over her chest. When he approves of Tamaria helping, she nods. "I want her to be a lookout for us. And how are you even knowing all this information on the other teams?!" She throws her hands up as she gives up. She was lost.

When he ran off, Adalinda slightly panicked. She was stronger magic wise here, but she wasn't as strong it felt at the same time. She started to run in the direction he had as well. "Tama! Go on ahead and lead me to Kyran!" She calls out to her exceed as the cat flies on up over her. She continues to run, and groans as she reaches to her chest and holds down herself to keep from her breasts hurting with all the bouncing. She runs till she notices the fog fading away, and looks up as Tamaria came back to her.

"He's fighting someone, Ada. He may need help." She urges her Slayer. Ada growls and simply nods as she prepares a kunai and starts climbing a tree. The gloves kept her from scratching herself, same as the boots. To her surprise, the boots were prefect for climbing too! Perfect. She begun roaming around the trees till she was still hidden from view. The knife that went by Kyran's cheek, actually went in the direction of the forest, and nearly hit her. She hisses quietly to herself as she prepares the kunai. She just had to wait for him to get out of the way. When he started to and gave Adalinda a clear shot, she paused.

The dude was.... glowing? How was he glowing? She had raised her kunai once again to throw it when suddenly there were five. "Shit..." She hissed and starts watch Kyran to haul ass away. "Stupid... couldn't get him before he did this? I hope taking out their main helps out..." She prepares her kunai again chucks it at the main Archer before she runs over the branches to where Tamaria had seen Kyran run to. She shakes her arm out a bit to get her khopesh like sword, and chuckles to herself. "Hook. Line. And sinker." She chuckles to herself while she quickly hooks her legs on the branch and manages to come down as one of the Archers was going after Kyran. She hooked him onto her sword before she yanks the copy up off of the ground and flinging him back towards where he came before Adalinda swings herself back up onto the branch and climbs over to a different tree, hiding out of view of them.

She still had her sword as she saw Tamaria flying a distance away, showing where Key was to her. Tamaria was hiding well enough behind a full branch of leaves, but it was a cramped space that she wasn't able to stretch her wings out behind her.

Words: 586
Total: 1,864

Stats:

Kyran peeked around the edge of the tree in time to see Ada launch her attacks. He smiled slowly. Her kunai sank into the original Archer's throat. He struggled to move forward, only making it a few feet before his knees hit the ground. The other Archers ignored their dying companion as they entered into the forest line. Another Archer screamed. Kyran burst into action. Archer knew where he was. They were trying to hem him in. Slowly cut him to pieces if they could. Or they would pin him down and hunt Adalinda. There was no way he could let them do that. Ada had been made weaker by the cup somehow.

He hit the nearest Archer like a train rush. He screamed as Kyran slammed him into a tree. Grasping the Archer's head in his hands, Kyran fired off two of his Blood Thorn spells. The Archer went limp as the projectiles pierced his brain. The body was dropped as another knife sunk into his back. Kyran growled as he spun. Three Archers were down. Unless the one Adalinda had hooked was still alive. He couldn't see the Archers. They must be hiding within the trees.

Kyran let out a roar. He was done playing these games. Archer's body was still behind him. He had a few seconds before it disappeared. The demon writhed with pleasure inside his mind. It wanted out. Let me out, Key. Let me unleash my fury. I'll devour them, consume them. LET ME OUT. Kyran's head cleared of his dangerous thoughts with the demon's roar. Letting the demon out would be dangerous to Adalinda more than the two Archers. Without knowing where she was, it was unsafe to unleash the beast. The demon howled in disappointment, knowing Kyran's mind.

Archer revealed himself for a split second to throw another knife. Kyran charged into the throw, letting the knife hit him in the shoulder. Archer panicked trying to draw another knife. He grabbed Archer's wrist to prevent the throw. Twisting, Kyran snapped the Servant's wrist. Archer opened his mouth to scream. Kyran jammed his fingers into Archer's throat, brutally cutting off the scream. He may not have unleashed the demon but a deep cold was invading his body. There was only the fight and the kill. The other Archer was wisely staying out of sight. Kyran growled in frustration. He needed his voice back to draw out the last Archer.

Something thundered through the trees. Kyran scowled. That wasn't Archer. He sprinted for the treeline, hoping Ada would take care of the last Archer. Right now, it looked as if Rider was after him. Breaking the treeline allowed Kyran to turn about. The chariot bearing down upon them was golden, shining in the moonlight that was starting to rise above the trees. Kyran smiled at Rider's brazenness. It would have been better, safer, to remain hidden on open ground where he would have been safe. Now he opened himself up to attack. Kyran's muscles coiled as he crouched down. The horses pounded the ground with their hooves. They snorted, their teeth biting at the bit as they bore down upon Kyran.

Kyran leapt. Relying upon his constant training with Master Tigress, he trusted he could easily clear the charging horses. He barely succeeded. His leg extended out, hitting Rider in the chest. The man tumbled backwards out of the chariot. Kyran landed lithely, already drawing Black Flower's Thorn. He slashed across Rider, trying to slash his throat. The armored man rolled away from him, taking the strike to the back. Kyran growled leaping away. Rider was back on his feet drawing his sword. His fingers came up to whistle. No doubt the chariot would be headed back toward them now. Rider needed to be taken out quickly. The whistle of Rider's sword made it impossible for Kyran to bullrush him. The man was swinging his sword in a figure eight in front of him.

Kyran would have to place his trust in Ada. He wasn't happy about it. No one had ever had his back. Could she really be trusted with it? His back still wore the scars from the knives people had stuck in it. Literally. Ada also hadn't given him too much reason to trust her. A few jobs yes. That couldn't mean anything. His expression darkened. Claudia had been nice to him too. She had gain his trust. He could still hear her laughter, feel her knife cut where no one should feel a knife. The demon laughed inside his head. She couldn't love you because no one can love you. You're a beast. A demon, a monster. Adalinda can't accept you any more than Claudia could. Give yourself over to me. Live the simple life. The life of blood. Kyran tried to steel his mind against the demon's word. Yet they rang true. Claudia had been the closest thing to a lover he had ever had. If she couldn't love him, if he hadn't been able to trust her, why trust anyone? Why believe anyone could love him?

Kyran continued circling Rider. The man before him was watching him with cold eyes. His mind was probably calculating something. Kyran couldn't care. He was down to one choice. Trust Ada or sacrifice himself especially if the Servants kept coming. Neither was a choice he wanted to make. Frustration began to build within his chest. The sound of hooves was getting louder. Rider was trying to maneuver him in front of his chariot. Kyran growled, the sound ripping through the otherwise quiet night. His choice had to be made now. With an agonized howl, he threw himself to the side. The chariot thundered past. Rider swung onto it. Kyran watched as it slowly turned to charge him again. Ada had his trust...for now.

Word Count: 972
Total: 3,562

Stats:

Instead of hiding, the other archer had actually hit a tree from Adalinda's throw with her sword. She grins as she quickly skips around the three branches, using her lighter frame to her advantage. She manages to get to the tree where he was leaning under, and snickers. The man was knocked out from the impact of hitting the tree so hard. She holds her hand up as she balances herself on the branch, and glares down to the copy. Tamaria came over as well, struggling to carry a heavy rock. A soft cackle escapes the dragon slayers lips as both she, and her exceed, dropped a rock and javelin down onto the last Archer. The impact of both of the projectiles had cause him to fall over as the two had taken him over basically. "Bet that hurt to the next life." She teases to Tamaria, who snickers and nods.

When the sound of another was near, Adalinda blinks. "Horses?" She looks to Tamaria, who simply shrugs and goes to grab Adalinda under her arms.

"Hey, you're lighter!" The cat exclaims excitedly as soon as she lifts her dragon slayer up off of the tree. Adalinda only glares up at the cat before they both spy the rider down below. Kyran had knocked him off of the chariot. "No, Ada! You don't get to go on the stupid thing! You'll get sick!" The cat hisses before she just drops her slayer onto a branch. Adalinda was quickly scampering down The stupid guy had gotten back in his chariot and was making his way back to Kyran.

Adalinda readied herself to jump, waiting for just the right moment fro the Rider to come right back around to them. She growls and launches herself from it. "Jump out of the damn way of the chariot!" She tells Kyran as she held up the back of her left hand. The hand with the command seals on it. She used her right arm and managed to hook the guy on her khopesh, and yank him right off of his chariot as she throws him over her shoulder, using mainly his own weight against him. He slams against the tree not too far from her, and she snickers. "Dumbass... why fight in a forest? Trees are your worst enemy here." She snickers as Tamaria managed to gain control of the horses and yanks them away from them. As Rider was getting his bearings, Adalinda ran after him and quickly makes use of her khopesh sword, hooking onto a low branch and smacking him upside the head with her foot as he worked his way up off the ground. She grins as she unhooks her arm, and then goes after him once again with her sword. She managed to cut him just right and kicked his shield away from him. Her only worry was his sword now.

The Rider had let out a pained scream and then came at her with his own sword, which made her duck and raise her arm to block the blow, effectively knocking her on her back as she quickly moves and kicks her foot up and launched him over her again, close to his chariot that Tamaria was still driving about. "No! Tammy! Drive it away! Drive it away!" She cries out, scrambling to her feet as she shakes her arm and charges once more. She wasn't backing down, regardless if she wasn't as strong as before. She quickly jumps up and hooks her sword on the guys neck, making her kind of spin around and drag the sword along with her. She gasps as she was on her feet, and unhooks the sword. There was a beautiful cut on the guys neck, and she hadn't intended to do it either. And with that, he fell onto his knees, leaving Adalinda standing with her sword slightly bloodied.

Tamaria came over and blinks to the scene, looking to Adalinda. "You sure you're weak, Ada?" That infuriated the mage once again, pointing the sword at her cat.

"I never said I was weak! Cat, you call me weak again, I'll show you how far under I can put you." She points the sword at Kyran as well. "Same for you..." She threatens, pursing her lips unhappily. She looks around the forest, and shakes her head. He sword lowers down to her side. "Two teams gone... five to go. Let's get going to find them..." It wasn't as much of an order as the other command had been. She looks around, trying to figure out where to go. She actually hand't been paying attention to around them. She sniffs the air, and tries to determine who was next. Tamaria was flying ahead, before she let up a scream and came flying back.

"There's someone throwing fireballs over there!" She cries out. It was back near the city where Kyran had taken Adalinda from to keep her safe.

The mage sighs and points to it. "Guess we have to go back..." She says as she starts making her way there at a slow jog. She wasn't retracting her sword spell, feeling she'd need it still. Honestly, Adalinda was a bit shook up from that action she did on the Rider. She hadn't intended to slit his neck... it kinda just happened.

Words: 888
Total: 2,752

Stats:

Kyran couldn't help but admire how Adalinda took care of Rider so efficiently. There was no hesitation. He suspected Rider's arrogance has led him to attack them in the forest. Turning away from the battle, Kyran saw flashes of fire in the sky. Caster. It had to be. He scowled wondering how they would deal with that issue. Caster had the advantage on both of them. Kyran might end up having to use his Noble Phantasm or his magic.

He turned back toward Adalinda. She had finished off Rider. He quirked an eyebrow when she pointed the sword of him. When had he ever said she was weak? Kyran tried to bend down to write when Ada's command hit his body. He went rigid. Despite his earlier thoughts, the commands weren't absolute. Maybe they would be from a Command Seal but at the moment he was able to resist. Grunting from the effort, Kyran knelt down. He forced a quivering finger into the dirt. 'Never thought you weak. Let's slow down. The next few classes are more powerful than these lack wits. Trying to take on Saber, Assassin, Caster, Lancer and Berserker--assuming there is another one--all at the same time will get us killed.'

Kyran looked up from his writing. He could see Ada was shaken by something. Slowly, he rose from his crouch. His Master needed to be focused. She needed to be ready for what was coming. How did people comfort each other? Panic began to flutter within his chest. This would require touching her. What if he did it wrong? Would she hit him? Would she use that dangerous looking sword upon him? Kyran pulled upon his battle calm. This wasn't about him. It was about Adalinda. As he focused, a image of a crying girl kissing a boy popped into his head. That seemed like a good way to calm her down. Kyran stepped in front of Ada. His hands came up to cup her face. As gently as he could manage, he tilted her head upward. His mouth emitted a small cooing sound. His need to comfort her manifesting? Now what? Kyran brushed his lips against Ada's forehead.

What are you doing? Take those lips, dipshit! Grab her chest! Take her roughly! She's a woman that can take it! She'll probably enjoy it too! Kyran ignored the shouting demon. What would a demon know about comfort? Dropping his hands, Kyran stepped away from Adalinda. He was shaking hard. Probably from his fear of her trying to hurt him. He could only hope she wouldn't. His shaking intensified as Kyran tried to turn away from Ada. His back would be vulnerable if he did that. However Adalinda responded to his tender kiss, Kyran knelt back in the dirt.

'There is one thing you need to know. Noble Phantasms. Its a powerful ability each Servant has. It requires mana from both the Servant and the Master. More so from you than me. Archer's split into five was a Noble Phantasm to give you an idea of what they can do.' He got up, wiping off his hands. Kyran avoided looking at Adalinda. His inability to talk was getting to be a real pain. They hardly could communicate and Kyran wasn't sure how to read body language. It was a great hindrance to helping Adalinda communicate with him.

Kyran looked off toward the city. The night sky continued to light up with explosive flare. Caster must be fighting with someone. That could work to their advantage. Sneaking up upon an opponent was more Assassin's style but they needed every advantage they could get. Hopefully, Caster was fighting several someones and they would all be severely weakened when they arrived. Kyran kept his head turned away from Adalinda waiting for her to give another command. It was important they didn't stray too far from each other. Adalinda's self destructive habits could end up quite badly in the middle of a Servant battle.

Word Count: 664
Total: 4,228

Stats:

The mage nodded in affirmation when the other said he never thought her weak. She watches him write in the dirt again, and she groans. "Really? Ugh..." She rolls her eyes and takes a deep breath while she rubs the back of her head. "Okay... fine... Besides, my magic is terrible against the fire ahead anyways... it could possibly melt it..." She frowns as she looks to her sword. She didn't want to have to despell it so soon, though she may have to. She looks over as Tamaria starts to fly off away from them. Adalinda opens her mouth to call out to her, but Kyran had come up to her and made her look at him.

Confusion was on her face as she blinked. What was he doing? She froze though, as she felt his lips on her forehead. 'He... kissed me?' She thought unsurely to herself. Her sword had actually disappeared, leaving her normal arm in it's place again. "Um...?" She didn't know how to respond to that. Did he like her? Was she missing all his signs? Tamaria did often tell her that she was oblivious to small hints of flirting. Her face gets a bit red, covering her cheeks a little as she didn't know what to to about this.

Her eyes shot back to Kyran as she noticed that he was shaking. "I... it's okay...?" She didn't know why he was shaking. She puts a hand on his arm before he goes down to write in the dirt again. She felt awkward. Tamaria had come back, with her arms full of weapons. The knives from Archer, and the sword from Rider. Adalinda looks up as she raised an eyebrow. "What... what are you doing, Tammy?"

"I... the lovely and beautiful, have just found a way to help you get at least your magic up." She snickers as she puts the weapons on the ground at Ada's feet. "Iron and steal weapons." She simply says as she crosses her arms. Adalinda's eyes lit up as she grins to the sound. Of course. Her recharge. A grin is on her face as she looks back up to the exceed fluttering above them. "I'll find a bag along the way for you to hold them in and snack on for your pleasure."

Adalinda grins, and looks to Kyran again. "I think first things first... we find something for Kyran so he can be treated for his wounds and the like." She was starting to take charge as she took one of the throwing knives and literally took a chunk out of it with her mouth. She was going to enjoy this now. Her eyes shoot towards Tamaria. "Go find the bag, and while you do that, find something to help Kyran out as well." She tells the exceed, who seems to smile as she nods.

"Aye aye, Adalinda." Tamaria grins as she quickly takes off again to go in search of the things.

Adalinda finished off a couple of the throwing knives quickly. She looks back to Kyran, and raised an eyebrow. "There any objections coming from you for that? Or are you okay with this?" She smiles as she pops the last of the fourth knife in her mouth without a second thought.

Words: 547
Total: 3,299

Stats:

Kyran found he liked the blush that formed upon Adalinda's cheeks. Claudia had never blushed. She'd been cool and calm about everything. Adalinda might be alright, somewhat normal. He hesitated when she put her hand on his arm. She had noticed his shaking. Kyran tossed a smile her way, covering her hand with his own. There was no need for her to worry about him. The shaking would pass. It always did. Not peacefully but it did always pass.

He noticed Adalinda eating the weapons when he turned back around. His eyebrows raised in surprise. She could eat weapons? Reaching back, Kyran pulled an arrow from his quiver. The tip was steel, the shaft hollowed iron. He preferred to do more damage over range. Kyran held out the metal arrow to Adalinda. She had enough for now but Kyran figured she might need a snack for later. If she took it, Kyran smiled. If not, he shrugged and stuck the arrow back into his quiver. Then he crouched down to write.

'Please climb onto my back. We can go watch Caster battle from over there.' He paused to point at one of the taller buildings. It towered above the others and wasn't too close to the Caster battle site. Kyran put his finger back to the dirt after pointing it out. 'If you are on my back, you can cast spells while I climb the side. I don't want to get trapped inside the building by another Servant.' Kyran looked at Adalinda and realized she had been talking to Tamaria the entire time. He scowled straightening. That was something he should have noticed.

At Adalinda's question, Kyran shrugged. He hadn't heard what she had said to Tamaria. He would have to wait and see what the plan was. If it was unpleasant, he could always refuse later. With Adalinda's attention on him, Kyran gestured to the message he had written before. He stepped forward and wrapped an arm around her waist. The shiver that always accompanied touch slithered across his skin. Kyran ignored it. They would need to touch in order to successfully beat this thing. Rider and Archer had probably been flukes. Lucky shots in the dark. The other Servants wouldn't be quite so easy to fool and beat.

Kyran let his arm rest for a moment to see how Adalinda reacted. He marveled at how small her waist was. It felt as if his entire hand could encircle her waist. Claudia's waist had been similar. Kyran turned his head away to frown into the darkness. He didn't like it. Ada shouldn't feel like Claudia had. Claudia was a she-devil, nothing but a black hearted coward. So far, the few times that Kyran had interacted with her, Ada had been quite forthright with how she felt. Honest in a way Claudia never had been. He turned back to Adalinda.

If she was still in his arms, Kyran tugged her into a hug. Her head fit perfectly against his chest. He hoped she wouldn't fight. This moment was too nice for that. His arms tightened about Adalinda, not too tight but a safe haven for the lost. All too quickly, Kyran let go. His body shook from the contact but he had a large smile on his face. If she had pulled away, Kyran wrapped his arms around himself. Tears sprang into his eyes. Despite his aversion to touching, sometimes he needed human contact. He wanted nothing more than someone to accept him for who he was. Someone that didn't see the monster but the man.

Regardless of the outcome--the demon staying blissfully quiet--Kyran turned to offer Adalinda his back. He crouched down to give her a better chance to climb onto his back. His body tensed at the vulnerable position he was placing himself in. She had weapons. It would be easy for her to stab him in the back. Kyran forced himself to relax, placing his hands on the ground in front of him. That way he couldn't throw spells at Adalinda once she touched him. Violence was writhing below the surface of his skin. His memories were too close, his agitation growing as they stayed in this crazy war. Kyran needed to find a way to calm himself. So long as Adalinda didn't notice, he would be okay. He wasn't sure how she would react to seeing what he was really like under his calm facade.

Word Count: 740
Total: 4,968

Adalinda nods as Kyran tries to assure her he was fine. She had let go of him to take the weapons when Tamaria had given them to her. As Kyran handed her the arrow, she raised an eyebrow. "You sure? Wouldn't you need it?" She hesitantly grabbed it and sniffed it a moment before she bites into it and has a taste of it. She nods and smirks. "Thanks." She had told him before continuing to talk to her exceed. Her eyes go to the message again after he motions to it, and she starts to read it when Kyran wrapped his arm around her. She blinks and looks up to him, completely unsure about the situation. Slowly, she drops her weapons on the ground off to the side, not wanting to accidentally stab him with them.

"Uhh....?" The mage raises an eyebrow a bit. She didn't really move, but it had started to feel awkward after a moment, before he pulled her into a hug close to him. Her cheeks started to burn. And she hadn't had a sip of alcohol yet either. She didn't know what to feel about this hug. So far, Kyran didn't seem like a toucher, now he was hugging her? Was he thinking she was that startled from killing the Rider guy herself? She would admit, she didn't mean to slit his neck, but it apparently worked in her favor. That, and Tamaria insulted her by asking if she was weak, so she was able to get out of that shock rather quickly.

She glances up to spy Kyran smiling. She sighs and just lets herself be hugged while she put her hands on his hips. She didn't have to like it. He was probably a bit scared or something about the job. Or he still had the jitters she thought he had when they first went into this place. She watched him as he let go, and watched how he was shaking. "You know, you don't have to force yourself to touch me if you don't like it... but since you're insisting that I get on your back..." She trailed off as he had crouched down and gave her his back. She takes a deep breath and quickly gathers her snacks and shoves them ungracefully into whatever room in her pouches she could find. Adalinda stuffed her face with as many throwing knives as she could before she puts herself on his back; arms around his neck, legs around his mid-section. "Sorry if I'm chewing in your ear." She says as she moves to make sure she gets a throwing knife in her mouth. She didn't want it to fall out and drop on him. The sword and the arrow were tucked in a couple belt loops to keep them from falling, but she would still have to watch them for in case they fall out.

Tamaria came flying back a few minutes later. "Hey! Hey guys! I found a clinic nearby and found these!" She quickly cries out excitedly. "And yes, before you asked, I stayed low to the ground and flew fast. Didn't get caught." She snickers. In her hands was a drawstring backpack, and a box with a literal red cross on it. Shaking the box lightly, Tamaria smirks. "This thing has like... twelve bottles in it that I think could help Kyran out a bunch." She grins as she feels proud of herself.

Adalinda had quickly jumped off of Kyrans back and goes to shove all of her little goodies inside of it, taking the kit and stuffing it in there as well. She looks back to Kyran, and raised an eyebrow. "Want one now?" She asks as she pulls out a little vial of thick red liquid. She snorts and shrugs her shoulders. It looked like it could probably help him out. She would hand it to him if he accepted it. If not, she would stick it back in it's box, and put it in her bag for later before she climbed back on his back, making sure she was comfy and he was able to cary her without issues.

Words: 693
Total: 3,992

Stats:

Kyran growled wishing he could speak. It was getting increasingly difficult to not get annoyed with that aspect of his Servanthood. Instead of writing on the ground to explain, Kyran took off the moment he was sure Adalinda was secure. In order to better protect them, he took a zigzag pattern toward the building. There was no telling when a Servant might attack. Running also kept the demon quiet. Kyran had a nasty feeling it might speak up if he stood still with Ada on his back. Unbidden, images of Claudia began to rise. His teeth snapped together, a growl vibrating deep inside his chest. He ached, wanting to tear something asunder just from the thought of his ex. Kyran was forced to stop at the base of the building. He was looking for a good route up when Tamaria reappeared.

His body shook once Ada jumped off. He wasn't used to the contact. Screaming wouldn't help here and Ada needed to be protected. This was the best way. If only he could explain the shaking from before to her. That wasn't forced. It was needed. When she offered him the bottle, Kyran gently pushed it away. His head shook back and forth. He didn't need it now.

Once Adalinda was back on him, Kyran leapt at the building. His training with Sheila paid off. His fingers were able to grasp at the cracks in the stone like substance. Their ascent was swift. Only once did Kyran miss a hold. His foot slipped. Immediately, Kyran reached back to secure Adalinda causing his other foot to come loose. They swung sickeningly over a couple hundred meters to the ground. The only thing keeping them from falling was Kyran's iron grasp. He managed to find purchase again with a few kicks. Then they continued their journey to the top. Once there, Kyran waited for Adalinda to drop off before heading to an edge where he could observe the distant battle.

Caster was teleporting. That much he could tell through the dark. His opponent could have been Lancer or Saber. It definitely was not Berserker or Assassin. The straightforward fighting ruled out Assassin and the smooth movements of the weapon ruled out Berserker. Kyran calmly pulled out Last Sight and began to string the longbow. Caster was dangerous. His opponent was doing well enough, cutting the fireballs and dodging the lightning. All it would take is Caster's Noble Phantasm to finish the Servant off though. Kyran turned back to Adalinda. Setting Last Sight aside, he beckoned her forward. He used an arrow to carve letters into the strange ground.

'Touching you is a pleasure, Ada. I do it to remind myself, you are not Claudia' Kyran nearly broke the arrow as he started stabbing the name, scratching and utterly destroying it. He was breathing hard as he continued. 'If I seem close to death, use my Noble Phantasm. It'll completely heal me.' He stood up and grabbed Last Sight. In a smooth practiced motion, Kyran began firing. Steel death rained down from their perch upon the battlefield. Unfortunately, due to his teleporting, Caster was able to avoid any death shots. Kyran growled in frustration, holding his last arrow.

He knelt next to Ada and tapped her hand with the Command Seals. 'Send me over there. Use one of your Command Seals.' At the end of writing, he dropped the arrow. Kyran was frustrated. They had five opponents left to face. There was no telling how powerful they would be. Caster was right in their faces. They could use this situation to take out not only him, but whoever his opponent happened to be as well. Knock out four Servants within the first couple of hours. Ada would have to come in behind him with Tamaria. There was no time to waste.

Word Count: 639
Total: 5,597

As Kyran scaled the building, Adalinda held on tight without choking him, keeping her eyes out for anything that could attack them. Tamaria had been trying to help him out with making sure Adalinda didn't fall off of him. "I could have carried her..." She mutters as she had landed on the building near them. The exceed watches as Adalinda seems to be a bit off. Did something happen while she had been gone? Adalinda was avoiding looking at Kyran as he went to the edge. She watched where the bolts were going down below. She was intrigued at the fight, itching to go down and brawl out there too. Adalinda knew she shouldn't. Teamwork. She had to focus on that. Her weakness... Both she and Kyran needed to get out of there alive, and it wouldn't happen if she risked getting themselves killed because of her impatience.

As she read over the message Kyran wrote in the ground, Adalinda's face went bright red, and she took a step back. She didn't know how to react. He must like her like she was thinking he did. "Y-yeah... I'm not Claudia... whoever she was." She shakes her head. She was starting to sound a bit sour. She didn't like to be compared to others. "Don't compare me to other bitches, alright? I know I told you on our first mission I'm nothing like others and hate what most girls do." She puts her hands on her hips, and dares to glance at him, trying to figure him out with her eyes. As he scribbled more, she blinks and leans over to read it. She gives a small nod and looks up as he fires more of his arrows down below them. She pouts a little. She wished she could have had more of those arrows. The one in her bag wouldn't hold her off for too long after she devoured it.

When Kyran tapped her command seal hand, Adalinda blinks and looks down to him. As he asks her to send him down there, a grin starts to form on her face. "Kyran," She starts as she points with her hand with the seal on it. "I command you to go down there. Fight. And win. Try to not lose too much health though." She waited till he was gone before she looks to Tamaria. A smirk was on her lips as she climbed onto the wall.

"Ada... I can't fly you down there..." She whines softly as she sees the mage take out another throwing knife and begin to chew on it.. She was almost out of them. "What do you plan on doing...? I hope like hell you aren't contemplating suicide..." Adalinda just grins back at her cat before she lets herself fall back over the edge. She has a wicked grin as she looks back and sees Tammy following her since she had no way else to go down. She catches her cat and cackles a bit as the Exceed clung to her. "You're crazy!" As Adalinda was nearly 10 meters from the ground, large iron wings had sprouted from her back and she was caught by the wind, being able to land after going another couple meters away from the base of the building. She stifles a snicker from Tamaria as she shook in her arms before she quickly took off running to see where Kyran was.

As soon as Adalinda was able to hide effectively, she noticed who Caster was up against instantly. Saber. Saber was a beautiful woman who wore a kimono. She pauses a bit to admire her a bit. "Damn... too bad she's an enemy..." She grumbles to herself. Tamaria smacked her lightly, glaring a bit. Now the exceed decided to shut up and wasn't going to make a comment about getting into a relationship with anyone. "Her blade looks yummy too... Hope Kyran can get it for me." She chuckles quietly to herself as she watches Saber activate her Noble Phantasm. She was just within range and saw the world go black and white around her. When Caster set foot in the spell, he was instantly hit, and seemed to take some damage from it too.

Words: 704
Total: 4,696

Stats:

Kyran scowled at Ada's assumption he was comparing her to Claudia. Looking at his words, he could see how she would take it that way but it still irritated him. He couldn't explain what he meant without giving her a long paragraph. They didn't have time for that. There was no telling if the rift was closing or not. Kyran let out a low groan and massaged his temples. Why did women have to be so complicated? Or was it simply because he couldn't talk that all these issues were popping up?

Adalinda's command didn't help his headache. She didn't seem to get quite how the Command Seals worked. That was admittedly his fault however. He hadn't explained in enough detail. As it was, instead of teleporting, Kyran threw himself off the roof. The wind whipped past his face. It tore at his clothes. Kyran was sure this would end badly. Yet magic infused into his body. He flipped and landed on his feet. The pavement cracked under the force of his landing. As Kyran shot off in the direction of the battle, he left behind a small crater. Adalinda had infused him with a little extra protection. That was nice. He wouldn't take too much damage at least for a short time.

Kyran found himself in the middle of a war zone. Saber was Caster's opponent. He scowled. She was clearly one of the more powerful Servants. Her kimono made her look deceptively innocent, despite the blood on it. Yet whenever Caster struck at her, Saber moved like lightning. Kyran could tell from the burnt parts of the kimono that Caster was only striking glancing blows at best. Saber was very dangerous. He looked around for Caster. The man looked haggard. More than a few arrows stuck out of his robes. Blood nearly saturated the bottom of them. A brief surge of satisfaction flickered through Kyran. Caster wouldn't be a threat for too much longer.

A fireball crashed into the ground in front of him. Kyran leapt away with a guttural yell. Perhaps he was speaking a little too soon. Caster was still in this game. He wouldn't go down easy either. Kyran backed away, fading into the shadows as best he could. Caster's focus was mainly on Saber at this point. So long as Kyran kept out of the way, it would be okay. He was about to settle in for the wait when Ada appeared. He sighed heavily to himself. That woman couldn't sit still. It made her quite attractive to him. She never backed down. He had to wonder what it would be like spending a normal day with her. They had only ever interacted with each other on missions.

Kyran watched Saber activate her Noble Phantasm. The null space surrounding her made him feel uneasy. Caster got a little too close to the null space. Saber's sword snapped out, hitting him in the leg. That was it. Kyran charged forward his hand out. It sank into Caster's chest with little resistance. Kyran's fingers closed instinctively around some object. Caster gasped, his long blonde hair spilling over his shoulder as he looked back at Kyran. His eyes were wide with shock as he dissipated into mana dust. Arrows clattered to the ground. Kyran looked at the object in his hand in shock.

It was a black bow tipped with spikes. Bat wings spread out from the center of the bow which was decorated strangely. Kyran could feel the magic humming within the bow as he looked at it curiously. He tested the string. An arrow made of pure light set upon the bow the moment he pulled. Kyran carefully let the bow relax again. A small grin was spreading across his face. This was an amazing bow. He could give his present to Ada now without any issues. He'd no longer need to carry arrows around. Checking for Ada over his shoulder, Kyran unleashed an arrow in Saber's direction. She cut it down without hesitation.

That was interesting. So her Noble Phantasm provided both ultimate defense and ultimate offense. Kyran placed the new bow on his back. It looked like there was only one way to deal with this threat. Take it head on. Kyran threw a grin at Ada before he stepped into the null space. It was worse than he thought. Blows rained down upon him as he grimly made his way forward. Blood began to stream from his wounds, leaving a trail behind him as he got closer to his target. The pain began to build. He shoved that to the back of his mind. Pain didn't bother him anymore. It never would again. Saber's eyes widened as Kyran continued to approach. He actually began blocking some of her strokes until his duster broke beneath the repeated blows.

Kyran attacked with a roar when he was close enough. Holding out his arm, Kyran sent a storm of Blood Thorns into Saber's body. The Noble Phantasm disappeared as she jerked. Kyran watched her spasm from the repeated hits. When he was finished, she was barely a slab of meat. He felt a little bad about it. His demon chuckled happily in the back of his mind. It prowled, watching as Saber disappeared into blue flecks. Kyran stumbled and fell to his knees. Blood streamed down his body, quickly creating a pool around him. He was fine though. A huge smile was on his face as he struggled to rise once again. The attempt put him flat on his face in the bloody dirt. The pain had finally caught up with his body. Blackness flickered on the edge of his vision. His consciousness threatened to leave him with every passing second. Kyran couldn't have cared less. He had taken on the challenge and beaten it. There was no greater feeling then that.

Word Count: 978
Total: 6, 575

stats:

Adalinda smirks softly to herself as she had heard Kyran's sigh near her when she's in her hiding spot, and glanced over to where he was. She simply points to the two fighting, meaning watch as she peered over to the battle from her spot. As soon as Saber's Noble Phantasm was activated, and Kyran had bolted into the middle of the twos battle, Adalinda's eyes grew wide. She watches from her spot as she watches how he grabs at Caster. She figured he didn't have much longer to live anyways, so it was a great pleasure to see how he died in her mind. Adalinda was more surprised by the fact he pulled a bow out of the guy. She shutters as she felt like Kyran had pulled the bow out of her instead of Caster.

She and Tamaria continued to watch as Kyran went after Saber next. She was thinking HE was getting suicidal on her after he just told her to calm down herself! She was on the edge of her feet, ready to go and attack if Kyran was to get hurt any more than he already has. His sudden use of a spell, made her freeze though as she watched it sink into Saber. She quickly jumped out from behind her hiding spot and was throwing her backpack off of her back and going into it to grab the vials. "Tamaria! Go find more stuff to heal him!" She shouts as she slides in next to him. She really didn't care about the blood getting on her clothes. "Okay! Gonna tell you what you told me. You need to slow down. Unless Tamaria can find more of these vials... I don't know how else to really heal you." She hisses at him.

Adalinda rips off the cork on a vial with her teeth before she opened his mouth and poured it's contents down his throat. "Drink, you shit... I want out of here." She growls now as she glares down quietly. She was honestly scared. How she was able to keep her shaking down to a minimum? That was beyond her. Kyran was her comrade right now, like hell was she going to let him die on her because he was listening to her command. "You disobeyed.... Told you to NOT get hurt too much. What did you do? You nearly get yourself killed." She was pouring two vials down his throat to get him going for now, waiting a few minutes to see how he'll recover so soon.

Tamaria had ran off to go and find more medical stuff for Adalinda to use, but Adalinda was worried about her too. Already they had taken down four of the seven enemies. And she didn't know how the others were. They could have been worse than what they already were up against. She set the box on the ground next to Kyran, sitting there and waiting for him to get up to let him take the rest. Adalinda rubs her temples a bit as she sighs and looks back to see where Tamaria was. She couldn't help but worry what else they'll be up against.

Words: 530
Total: 5,226

Stats:

Something red pierced through the black preventing Kyran from being conscious. His eyes slowly fluttered open. Fogginess pervaded his mind from the near death experience. Looking up at Adalinda, Kyran smiled slowly. His hand curled around her neck and pulled her down into a deep kiss. It was inexperienced at best but Kyran made up for it with his passion. A sparkling purple fog surrounded them while they kissed. As he sank back down onto the ground, Ada was pulled into his mind. The mist congealed around them tightly. It struck out at anyone who approached with bolts of lightning.

They were back in their original bodies, standing in an empty space. Black swam about them, the only clear thing being each other. Kyran seemed confused as he looked around. When his gaze settled upon Adalinda, his confused expression morphed into one of great joy. When his lips moved, for the first time since they arrived in this hellhole, Kyran spoke. "I suppose I have died then. That is the only way I could have awakened to the goddess of my dreams. Your beauty is more than the stars above, greater than any other being upon all of Fiore." His eyes sparkled with the power of his emotions. His heart grew no longer chained by his physical worries. Kyran grasped Adalinda's hands. Immediately the space around them began to fill with moving images.

"Now that I have died, I'm not ashamed to share these with you." Each image showed Kyran. The rectangular boxes hung above them in a dome shape. Many of them showed Kyran at different ages screaming in terror or pain. Kyran's shirt vanished, leaving his body open to Adalinda's gaze. "I didn't have a happy childhood. I don't understand how anyone could given what I went through." One of the rectangles came up behind Kyran's head. It depicted a tiny Kyran toddling along to a house at the end of a lane. It was an upstanding house, surrounded by other houses of equal grandeur.

Kyran sighed letting the memory move along. He could feel it playing out behind him. The tiny Kyran was accepted with smiles and hugs. The two people who had brought him left with waving and laughter. The happy scene soon morphed into one of horror. Kyran was rolling on the floor with another young boy. Several other young boys gathered around cheering them on. The other boy bit Kyran on the shoulder, causing young Kyran to howl. Then young Kyran sank his teeth into his friend's shoulder. He bit down so hard blood filled his mouth. The other boy howled and shoved Kyran away, ripping out part of his shoulder. Within seconds, his tiny body sprouted fur. His face bulged outward into a snout. The young Kyran stood over his friend as a tiny humanoid dog demon. His fur stood on end and drool dripped from his teeth. The other boys weren't scared however. They clapped thinking it was part of the game. The boy fighting Kyran tried to continue the fight with a punch. The tiny Kyran demon exploded into action. The rectangle became filled with blood, showing only what Kyran remembered from that night. "I didn't know I carried the blood of a demon. No one did. As a result, five boys ranging in age from four to six, three adults, four teenagers and a family pet dog died when I lost my temper. I don't remember it much. It was all blood in the end but apparently I also ate some of them." He pulled his hands from Ada's. Shadows flickered within the depths of his blue eyes. The images stayed in place, chronicling the awful life of this blood mage. "I will never forget the next morning however. That will remain burned into my mind for all time.

The scene behind his head morphed. Now it showed the tiny Kyran, his face a mask of horror, between two burly adults. The tiny Kyran was covered in blood from head to toe. The three of them watched the house he had entered in the previous memory burning to the ground. "We should kill this monster. One of the men holding Kyran said. His grip was too tight on Kyran's arm. He would have cried if he wasn't in shock. "He killed Hadok and his entire family, not to mention the youngsters that gathered for the young Getrin's birthday. Leaving him alive might only kill others down the line!" He roughly shook Kyran, nearly pulling the four-year-old's arm from its socket. The other man holding Kyran shook his head. "Let the Village Council deal with him. They'll think up a suitable punishment. After all, he's only a kid. He can be trained into a good attack dog." They pulled Kyran away from the house, barking with laughter and the vision blurred. When it cleared again, Kyran was being held down by the two men. One had a hideous grin on his face. The other had an expression of grim satisfaction. Nearby stood two men in robes. One had scarlet red robes covered in symbols of death and runes of torture. He was holding a glowing iron brand in his hand. The other man had on golden robes. His purple gaze was cold, devoid of emotion. He scared young Kyran worse than any of the others. "Kyran Dyer." The man in scarlet robes said. His voice was a deep timbre. It reminded the young boy of his father. He tried to smile up at the man, wondering if his father was hiding in the scarlet wrappings around his face. "You are sentenced to torture that will continue until your body threatens to give out. At that point, Mr. Tiwin, will heal you. Prepare yourself. The brand was thrust into the young Kyran's stomach. He screamed writhing under the pain that suddenly assaulted his senses. His attempts to escape were futile due to the men holding him down. When they had branded his chest and stomach, they moved onto breaking his fingers. That was followed by hobbling him. After a while, Kyran could scream no more, his throat bleeding, his voice gone from his cries of pain. Kyran lay catatonic as the two men holding him argued with the man in scarlet. They believed he could withstand having his teeth pulled out and his tongue cut out before Mr. Tiwin healed him. The man in scarlet slashed a hand over their arguments and waved the healer forward. He knelt next to the tiny Kyran and cruelly drove his fingers into the brand on his chest. Kyran found himself able to scream anew. It was as if he was being tortured in reverse. Every pain, every little ache amplified and felt in reverse order. The tiny Kyran lay in almost in a coma when the healer was finished.

"They threw me in a box after that. A tiny thing barely enough holes to breath." The rectangle shifted to show the young Kyran laying in a box unmoving. Every so often he would be doused in cold water. His body jerked limply gagging up most of the water that landed in his mouth. "I barely survived my two weeks in that box. I was catatonic, unable to think from the pain they put me in and they stuck me in that box. I didn't understand what had happened or why they punished me. Yet the starvation slowly forced me awake from my slumber. I wish I had died in that box." Kyran's hands clenched into fists. The rectangle behind his head changed once again. It showed Kyran being handed back to his parents. He didn't look good and his parents treated him like something diseased. In the background, stood Mr. Tiwin, a cruel grin plastered across his face. "Of course while Darkwell thought I was properly punished, my parents did not." Multiple rectangles flew in behind Kyran. They showed scenes of him being punished by his mother for little things. They showed his father ignoring him entirely. They showed his five siblings calling him 'it' and pinching or kicking him whenever they got the chance. With every scene showed, the light of a child, the glow of innocence, faded a little more from the little Kyran.

"I was treated as a monster, an outcast by the people who should have loved me the most." A single rectangle appeared behind his head again. It showed a Kyran of maybe five or six sneaking out of the house. He was trying to join a group of boys playing a game outside. They attacked him as soon as they saw him. They shouted, calling him demon child, evil thing. When he returned, his mother punished him by shutting him within a small lockbox that could barely hold him. His frame was folded up, bent over, crushed at the wrong angles simply to fit. "I learned quickly not to go outside either. At least not when other people were around." A rectangle showed Kyran standing in the rain, his arms out, his head up as if the water could wash away his sins or erase his past. It was the only memory of young Kyran where he smiled. "Being constantly in the rain made me sick often. It didn't help my issues but it did help me learn about Tiwin being hired by my family. My older brother Gruen cut my fingers off when I was sorely sick and Tiwin reattached them." The scene played out behind his head. The light that had held on stubbornly in young Kyran's eyes died the moment he saw Tiwin.

A group of rectangles came up behind him again. "At the age of seven, I was taught that I was still a monster, that I would never be anything more than a monster. I was passed around to family members as a personal whipping boy. They didn't punish me themselves but they went out of their way to procure punishments for me." The scenes played in the group of rectangles. Kyran being tortured in almost every way possible, only to be healed by Tiwin's painful magic. He was older in some scenes but the hope of life died a little inside him with every scene that passed. "I tried to kill myself at twelve. I didn't want to live anymore and there was no one in my life who wanted me around anyway. I didn't succeed. I was found in time for Tiwin to rescue me." Kyran held out his arms as the suicide attempt played out behind his head. He drew his finger over a scar near his left hand. It was covered in thorn tattoo. "The attempt left me with this. It also scared my father enough to let me out into the village. He also hired one Sylvia Blodvine to teach me. She would teach me magic as well as a few other things."

Kyran looked up into Adalinda's eyes for the first time since the memories had began playing out behind him. He wasn't sure what he would see her. Kyran wasn't sure what he even wanted to see. He was dead, holding onto a goddess who would return to the world of the living. What she thought about him wouldn't matter in the end. At least that was what he was telling himself. His heart was opened wide to her right now. She could see anything and everything Kyran had ever hidden within his heart. They were playing around them. A few rectangles behind Ada showed Adalinda as Kyran saw her. An angel surrounded by a pure light, with wings of iron reaching down with a gentleness that belied the power of her grasp. His cheeks colored at the sight of those rectangles. Kyran cleared his throat and continued with revealing his shadows to the angel of his heart.

"The villagers treated me relatively normally for the most part. It was normal for them to spit on me, throw a rock or taunt me with a few punches. Sylvia endured those ridicules alongside me. She was an outcast within the village but had had a measure of respect before she accepted me as a pupil. I feel bad for tainting her with my shadows." The rectangles showed a few of the scenes Kyran had mentioned. Many of them had Kyran with some sort of small cut caused by the villagers. Sylvia was a tall woman with a hourglass body. Her chest was rather small and black tresses streamed down Sylvia's body, held away from her face by a bandanna. "My family continued to torture me. This time, it wasn't as a personal whipping boy but rather as punishments for whatever I happened to do wrong." Kyran turned away from Ada as the rectangles began to show the various punishments Kyran had endured. The torture ranged from slaps to removal of limbs.

"When I was twnety, Claudia stepped into the picture." The rectangle, now in front of his face, showed a still of an ethereal beauty. Golden rivers ran down her shoulders. Tanned skin sparkled under the summer sun. Claudia had a body most women would die for. "I should have listened to Sylvia when she warned me away from Claudia. It would have saved me a lot of pain." The memory players showed Kyran happy for the most part. When it showed his interactions with Claudia, it was clear she was taking advantage of him. She was treating him to the most toxic relationship ever. Yet she kept Kyran happy and strung him along with the promise of sex. When he was about 24, Claudia finally gave him what he wanted. Kyran lost his virginity in front of a crowd of people. He was told it was normal, fun even. He had felt uncomfortable but was eager to have something that was supposed to be the most intimate a person could be with someone else. The only time he wouldn't be considered a monster.

Claudia showed him her true face. Through all his tortures, Kyran had never been castrated. Claudia showed him just how painful that could be. She taunted him as she walked around the room with her bloody knife. She could never love him, would never bear his children. The people who had gathered laughed at his pain. Many took the chance to hit him. Tiwin arrived late to healing Kyran. When he saw what had been done, the healer even waited to heal him. The healer whispered into Kyran's ear that now he would never birth any other demon spawn. In the amount of emotional and physical pain Kyran was in, he didn't respond. "Now you see what I meant earlier. I'm not comparing you to Claudia. The only woman I have ever interacted with in a non professional way. It's hard not to think that every woman will react in the same." Kyran turned and reached out to caress Ada's face. "Then you showed me the light in the darkness. You shine like a star in the night that was my life."

His face softened as he looked Ada up and down. His memories were almost through. Suddenly the world shook. The rectangles shattered. Kyran stepped close to Ada and claimed her lips in a kiss. "I love you Ada. It looks like I'll be taken away from the plane of life now that I'm finally at peace. I wish I had had the time to learn romance with you. To court you properly" Kyran ran a thumb over Ada's cheek. He was completely relaxed, something he had never been in all his time with Adalinda. As they rushed upward together, Kyran closed his eyes ready to enter the afterlife.

Kyran opened his eyes and took a deep breath. Ada was next to him. At least he though that was Ada. He couldn't see through the blur over his eyes. Was he actually alive? He shifted and gasped. Pain had burned through his body like a fire. Cuts burned over nearly every inch of his body. Yup still alive. Kyran's cheeks began to burn. He had revealed his entire shame to Ada without confirming he was dead. Kyran covered his face with his hands. What had he done? She would never speak to him again now. There was no way. He was a broken man, unable to have children, unable to even react normally to people. Kyran kept his hands over his face, unwilling to face the reality of what he had done. He wanted to die here.

Word Count: 2765
Total: 9,340

As Kyran had seemed to open his eyes again, Adalinda started to smile, till he had reached up and pulled her down into a kiss. A surprised yelp had come from her as she didn't know how to react to this. She panics a bit as she looks around at the smoke before she felt the weird sensation of him separating his lips from hers, and feeling herself go into his mind a bit. She looks around the area around them, completely unsure how to process this. "The fuck...?" She mutters to herself.

Hearing Kyran speak after so long, Adalinda jumped and looked back at him. She was clearly confused as she shakes her head slowly. She didn't know how to deal with this. He thought he was dead?! The right corner of her lip curled up in confusion as he called her a goddess, before he grabbed her hands. She opens her mouth to speak when the images around them started to come about, heavily distracting her as she clearly was lost at what was going on at the moment. She glances to his body, having realized immediately that his shirt had disappeared. "Kyran..." She finally managed to say before he started showing her of his childhood. She looks worriedly at the rectangle behind him as she wasn't sure how to process what he was doing.

She watched the fight go on in the box, confusion not leaving her fact as she slowly shook her head. "Kyran." She says again, trying to get him to stop for a minute. She stops as he continued on with his tale for her about how his childhood went. She slumps her shoulders, hands free since he let go of them. She hadn't moved, and she kept a frown on her face as she clearly wasn't liking what all she was seeing. Her bright blue eyes absorbing every information that she came across. She was utterly speechless at the sights before her. Her own hands had gone into fists as she watches how he had been treated after the council of his tribe had tortured him to their pleasure. She especially hated the Mr. Tiwin guy. Even his parents became her least favorite people in the images. She gripped her fists harder, digging what little of her nails she had into her skin, knuckles turning white.

Her eyes go onto him as he showed her his tattoo, not speaking since he was clearly intent on showing her what he had endured up till now. They were staring intently on him as he looked at her. She softened her expression and reaches her hand up to pinch her nose a bit. "You're not dead..." She mutters, thinking she said it loud enough for him to hear, but it didn't seem like that was the case as more of his memories came up around them. She noticed the few of her depicted as an angel, and makes a face. She really didn't believe that she was like so. Sylvia seemed rather okay to her at least. But as Claudia came across his memories, she scowled. She already didn't like this woman. She looked to be the kind to do whatever she wanted because she was pretty. She shook her head at the action she strung him to do in front of a crowd of people, having to look away as her cheeks were lightly pink. She wasn't too much of a stranger to the act, but she wasn't too keen on knowing others sexual lives so outright. She had been a bit absorbed in the memories when Kyran had touched her face again, making her face instantly turn red as she looks at him. She wasn't expecting to be touched so casually by him. She scowls again as everything rumbled.

Adalinda opens her eyes to see the last battlefield of Saber and Caster. She slowly lets her eyes glare down to Kyran, raising an eyebrow to him. "You... need to wait before you fucking jump to conclusions..." She mutters as she watches him lay before her. She didn't bother to move as he covered his face. She reaches down and grabs his hands as she makes him sit up against her. She grabs another vial and rips off the cork with her teeth as she puts the vial to his lips. "Drink again." Her voice was flat as she spoke. He'd notice that she was quiet. Adalinda was thinking over all that he showed her within... however long that had just been.

She takes a deep breath and hangs her head. "I'm sorry for what you went through. I couldn't have lived through that myself. You seem much stronger than me in that aspect." She stops as she takes a deep breath once more. She was trying to figure out what to say, now that he was silent again. "I'm sorry, Kyran... I don't... I'm not the angel you see me as. I didn't bring you light. That was all you. There are better women who can do that hell of a lot better than me. I won't see you any differently with your past. You're still Kyran to me. A friend who is reliable, and who has yet to try to get me to stop drinking." She tells him as she grabs the other eight vials, handing it to him. He was well enough to bring his hands to his face, he should be well enough to feed himself the rest of the vials. "Also, you mention the whore around me again... I will be highly pissed." She simply says as she pushes him up to sit up on his own, rather than against her. She stands up as she crosses her arms over her chest as she looks out for Tamaria. Kyran might notice she was acting as if he hadn't showed her anything. Where was that stupid cat when she needed it?

Impatiently, she reaches into her bag and grabs the last throwing knife, starting to munch on it rather angrily. She hears the patter of her Exceeds feet, and takes a rather exhausted sigh as she finished off the knife and her exceed showed up with another bag that was stuffed. "I found three more boxes of the vials! Surprisingly they are a lot of clinics around the area! And they all carry the same stuff." The Exceed chuckles rather happily. She spies Kyran and gasps. "You're awake! Good! Do you feel good? Need more of these vials since they seem to work?" She looks to her dragon slayer, who simply shrugs and motions to Kyran to see if he'll accept more.

"He probably does need more so we can be able to get out of here and back to our daily lives." She says as she shrugs her shoulders and glances around them. Tamaria nods as she grabs another box out of the bag and brings it over to Kyran, setting it on his lap as she smiles sweetly to him.

Words: 1,171
Total: 6,397

Stats:

Kyran wanted to cry. In fact, he probably would have if Adalinda hadn't been standing right there. How could he have been so stupid? Now he couldn't even have a proper talk with her. He could feel his voice being gone again. This was hell. Kyran downed two more of the vials. The rest of the  vials were set aside unopened and undrunk. They weren't really needed. His Noble Phantasm would be enough to completely heal him. Kyran pushed himself up unsteadily, to his feet. His face was a mask, not showing any emotion whatsoever. If she was going to act like he hadn't shown her anything, he would act like everything was okay.

When Tamaria arrived, Kyran smiled at her and patted her head. He took the box from her, gently setting it aside. It was a good thing he did. His sensory abilities regarding servants went off. Looking up, he saw Lancer aiming her spear. The blonde had a fierce look on her face as her spear elongated in their direction. Kyran wrapped his arms around Tamaria, protecting her from the spear she couldn't see. He roared when the spear pierced his shoulder. Kyran gently released Tamaria before grabbing the haft of the spear. Breaking off the head, Kyran spun and sprinted right at Lancer. It was clearly a reckless charge. No planning, no thinking, just running straight at the enemy.

The demon laughed in Kyran's head. I told you she wouldn't want you. You're too broken. No one ever wanted you. Not one. Not even Sylvia wanted you or she wouldn't have left you all alone. It cackled as Lancer tried to hit Kyran with her broken spear. He roared at her causing enough of a flinch to make her attack miss. Kyran slammed into her. Grabbing her neck, Kyran pulled her up over his shoulder and slammed her head into the ground. Holding her by the neck, Kyran unleashed the full brutality of his ravaged soul. His fist pounded into Lancer's face again and again. She tried to defend herself but Kyran savagely destroyed her resistance. Her face became nothing but mush. Still Kyran hit her until she vanished into mana dust. Then Kyran threw back his head and let out a savage roar. Froth foamed about his lips. His eyes were tinged red. It was clear Kyran was deep in a berserker rage. The demon cackled happily inside Kyran's head. It drove the mage to even greater madness.

His body still weak, Kyran raged at his Master's inability to activate his Noble Phantasm. That would heal him straight away. No though. She had to keep that power for herself. Maybe facing Assassin or the other Berserker head on would convince her. Kyran leapt up and ran for the shrine that was past Adalinda. He roared his challenge as he ran by, scooping up his bow along the way. Might want to drive a few--hundred--arrows into Assassin. A bloody grin spread across his face. There would be no feelings, no heartache. Only blood, pain and death.

WC: 511
Total WC: 9,851

Stats:

When Kyran had scooped up Tamaria, the exceed had been a bit scared. She wasn't expecting to be suddenly grabbed like so. Hearing him yell in pain, and the lance that was now in his shoulder, the cat's eyes grew rather wide. "Kyran!" She cries out. Adalinda had smelt Lancer just before she attacked them, and was about to prepare a spell when he had taken care of her all on his own. Her eyes grew wide at his reaction of what he did. She was expecting him to protect her, but this seemed like a whole new level of ferocity from him. Or it seemed to, to Adalinda and Tamaria at least.

Adalinda growls as Kyran had ran passed her. He was being an idiot. "If you fucking kill yourself, I'll kill you in the afterlife!" She shouts as she yanks her bag and starts running after him. "Kyran! Stop!" She was trying to command him. This wasn't what she was wanting to have happen. "Kyran!" She yelped as she almost tripped over a rock, but quickly was able to right herself. When she sees the shrine that Kyran was going after, she starts to panic a bit. "Kyran! Stop! Right now!" She orders, steeling her voice to be more of a command than before.

Approaching the shrine, Adalinda stops a bit short. She saw a man sitting up near the gate. He looked a bit odd to her. Almost surreal with his purple hair and foreign looking clothes. She glares as she lets her eyes slip for a second to Kyran. In that split moment she looks to Kyran, a voice comes loud over from the shrine. "You shall not pass through these gates without defeating me!" He shouts to them. Adalinda glares and blinks in surprise. The guy had disappeared for a moment. She then let up a scream as she was hit on her side and back a couple time before she noticed the guy running back to the shrine. He had hit Adalinda twice. She holds her side a bit as she glares at the assassin.

"Kyran! Attack this son of a bitch. And I command you to quickly drink the other vials before you do so." She hisses. She had held up her hand with the command seal, trying to get him to heal himself more. Tamraia had just run up next to Ada with the second bag she had, and the last six vials Kyran had left to the side before Lancer attacked them. The exceed was a bit shaken up from what had happened. She hadn't been that close to a battle yet till just then. Adalinda reaches into the bag and has the remaining six of the first box Tamaria found, in her hands. She glares at Kyran, and then to the Assassin, who was smirking from atop his shrine. He seemed to know that she was weaker than Kyran and was going after her. She noticed he was moving again. She gasps and takes a step back. He was going to hit her again. She just knew it. As she stepped backwards, she was crashed into. Assassin had crashed right into her.

Adalinda let up a 'kya!' from being smacked by the speedy assassin, and had quickly pulled the vials in to her chest to protect them from the fall. She had smacked her head on the ground a bit, and hesitantly looks up to the assassin. She lets the vials roll onto the ground. She noticed he wasn't holding his sword. The Iron Dragon Slayer smirks rather widely as she scrambles to her feet and grabs hold of the sword, but as soon as she got it, assassin had quickly ran off. "Mm.. a tasty snack..." She mutters as she looks back to Kyran. None of the vials had been broken when she let them roll onto the ground. Ada bet that her being able to get the sword, was nothing but sheer luck, or just a fluke. She had no doubt though, this guy could probably take the sword right back from her if he wanted to since he was able to run pretty fast.

Words: 697
Total: 7,094

Stats:

Kyran struggled against the first command that Adalinda shouted after him. He wasn't going to stop. He would get them home. That was all that mattered. Then maybe he could disappear, wallow in his sadness. Possible slink back into whatever dark pit had spawned him. Her second command was impossible to refuse. He felt his limbs lock into place, his body stopping no matter what commands he gave it. Kyran wanted to roar in frustration. That was even taken from him by Adalinda's command. Assassin was right there. Kyran could see the shifty bastard.

The second Assassin disappeared, Kyran knew where he was going. He was Assassin. That servant would fight dirty even with a sense of honor. Which meant Ada was in trouble. Unfortunately her command kept him from moving. Then he felt the magic of her command seal course through his body. In that moment, Kyran pulled upon her magic. He was going to do this his way. If Adalinda wouldn't activate his Noble Phantasm, he would do it for her. Both Command Seals hit Kyran at the same time. He had to drink and he had to attack and he had to transform. Two of those were easy enough. The vials rained into the ground at his feet. Their contents was swept up in his Noble Phantasm.

A maelstrom swept through the area picking up blood. Red filled the air  spinning faster and faster. Kyran was clearly the focal point of this storm. Assassin was struggling to make his way through it, to stop the Noble Phantasm from completing. Kyran laughed at his effort. The moment he opened his mouth, the storm of blood rushed into it. To anyone else, it would look as if he was going to explode. He did in a sense. His body blew apart to reveal a massive red werewolf, with hands tipped in two inch long talons. Kyran through back his head and howled. Now. Now the fun could really begin.

Things had happened while Kyran had activated his Noble Phantasm. It looked like Assassin had attacked Adalinda yet again. A deep growl rippled through the air from him. The demon curled up happily in the forefront of his mind. It was content with this turn of events. Kyran put his nose to the air and tracked Assassin down. The other Servant seemed to be missing a weapon of any sort. Giant red paws grabbed the dainty little man. The other Servant tried to activate his Noble Phantasm. Kyran could feel it. Except Kyran tore off Assassin's arms. His increased strength in this form was more than enough to handle this pipsqueak. Assassin was slowly torn to bits within the woods. Kyran had no doubt Adalinda could hear the results of his work.

He stalked back through the woods, the blood on his fur masked by the color of his fur. His hulking form stopped in front of Ada. Kyran decided to wait patiently for her to figure out a plan of attack. Berserker would be their toughest foe yet. All Berserkers had powerful Noble Phantasms plus the speed and strength to put them in a class all on their own. They had been lucky so far in dealing with the other Servants. There would be no luck in dealing with Berserker. Kyran hoped that Adalinda would understand that much. If not, he would do his best to protect her.

WC: 570
Total: 10,421

Stats:

Adalinda seemed to just glare in the direction she smelt the assassin going in. A grin was starting to form on her face as she saw Kyran start to transform into his wolf self. She cracks her knuckles a bit and starts to walk slowly in the direction as the assassin after Kyran ran after him for her. She would have to question the guild about doing some other kinds of jobs eventually. Adalinda starts to feel her mana sap from her, and stumbles a little. The pain on her side wasn't helping too much either. She figured this was the Noble Phantasm that Kyran was now using. 'Guess telling him to get him like so, did the trick to activate it.' She was snickering to herself. She was starting

"Ada, have some of the metal... or that sword you have in your hands right now." Tamaria calls out as she hesitantly started to go up to her. Adalinda takes a deep breath. She brings up the sword and literally bites a chunk out of the blade. Tamaria tapped her friends hand with the cold vial, making her glance down to her. "You're kinda looking scary... Ada... can you take this too?" Adalinda takes a deep breath, but nods as she uncorks it with her teeth, shooting the cap out to the side, before she poured it down her throat. She hated the taste of it. It was tart and didn't have too great of a flavor to it in her mind.

As she heard the sounds of Assassin being torn to bits, she stood there with her legs shoulder width apart, her free hand across her chest, and the sword she took from Assassin hanging in her hand as she stood there. She raised an eyebrow as Kyran cam back into view of her. She smelled the blood on him, despite it not being too easily seen. She stays silent for a moment, and takes a deep breath. "You better now?" She questions. She at least figured he needed to blow off some steam from her words. She felt at least a bit bad. Tamaria was confused and raises her eyebrow while her ears fell back in confusion. "Lets get going... Don't need anymore of those vials?" She questions Kyran as she starts to walk off a bit.

"How much more of that Phantasm thing you think you got in you? And do you know what all you can do? I see you're seeming chipper, so you probably healed yourself." She was trying to think. "I feel rather good about this last guy... lets make it a challenge... see how fast we can knock his lights out and end him." A grin was creeping across her face now as she starts to lightly skip ahead. Her wounds were relatively healed. She sticks her nose up, stops skipping for a moment, then tries to search for the last guy. "Oh? He's not too far..." She chuckles as she glances back to Kyran. She motions with her hand for him to follow her, she was excited now.

Tamaria blinks as she looks to Kyran. "I think she's lost her mind...?" She didn't sound too sure of herself as she looks over to her mage ahead of them. Her black and blue hair swaying from side to side. This place did something to Ada, and Tamaria couldn't tell what exactly did it... just that it worried her a little.

Adalinda had led them up to a stadium like building. A grin was on her face as she starts making her way into the building. The smell of the guy was getting stronger to her. A grin forms and she rubs her hands together the grand finale would soon be upon them. "C'mon! Hurry up Kyran." She calls back to him as she steps within the stadium. Instantly, she saw this hulk of a man on the other end of the stadium. A grin forms on her face a little. She looks over to Kyran, if he was behind her, and grins. "I'm ready for this to end with a bang..." She takes another bite of her sword she snatched from the assassin, happily munching on the sword like it was nothing.

Words: 709
Total: 7,803

Stats:

Kyran wasn't sure what to make of Adalinda as she talked. Something seemed off about her. The demon was purring, rolling about in his mind whenever she talked. Could she be infected? Or was this some kind of darkness Ada carried within herself? His worries weren't alleviated when her cat companion commented on her odd behavior. He shrugged in response to the cat's question and hurried to catch up with Adalinda. There was hope that it was only this place affecting Ada. That once they were free, there would be nothing to worry about.

When Kyran saw the hulking figure, he charged forward with abandon. Berserker let out a roar and attacked as well. The two behemoths crashed in the middle of the open area. Kyran's first move was to divest Berserker of his sword. Then they traded blows. Berserker was nearly as fast as Kyran but Kyran had the advantage of claws and teeth. Blood flowed from wounds created by the storm of flying fists. Kyran used that to his advantage. Berserker faltered under Kyran's attacks when they became augmented by spells. Red missiles pierced Berserker front to back. Extra talons gouged his flesh out. Before long, Kyran had Berserker on his knees in front of him. Exhausted, Kyran grasped the hulk's head. A vicious snap reverberated throughout the shrine. Berserker slumped to the ground.

Kyran turned back to Adalinda and began to make his way toward her carefully. He was in enough pain that his body actually recognized it. He could see bone in a few of his wounds. Their attempts to pulverize each other had probably cause a little internal bleeding as well. Once he released his transformation...a bright light made Kyran turn about slowly. What he saw was impossible. Berserker was surrounded by a nebulous of magical energy. The energy was reversing the damage done to the massive fighter.

Oh hell naw! Kyran signaled with a single finger. He pulled out the bow he had gotten from Caster's body. Energy arrows began to fly, bombarding the healing Berserker. Kyran made sure there was nothing left. He fired until Berserker disintegrated into mana dust. A cup began to rise from where Berserker had been standing. The Holy Grail! Kyran dashed forward. At least he attempted to. His wounds made themselves know. Shifting back to a human shape, Kyran healed the worst of his wounds. He made it to the cup and grasped the bottom. Looking for Ada, he smiled. They were done with this hellish nightmare.

WC: 420
Total: 10,841

As Kyran was fighting the other berserker, Adalinda was staying back and watching intently. Her expression was emotionless, except for her eyes, which seemed to be shining with delight now. She seemed to study every movement they both were doing as she stood there. Watching their fists collide with their targets and such. As he was walking back, she continued to eye the berserkers body. He wasn't fading away like the rest of them. She squints as she takes a step forward, being held back by Tamaria.

"Dont..." Tammy whines as she holds onto her hand. The exceed was seeming a bit scared. The body made her feel scared for some reason. She wasn't sure why it made her feel like so, just that it did. Like Adalinda's sudden mood change scared her, this didn't seem much different.

Adalinda starts to snicker as she sees the light around the berserker, and he flicks a finger at the guy. "Destroy him. That's an order. And I don't care how you do it. Just don't die yourself." She simply mutters as she she was ready to use her own magic to help him out now. She watches how he uses the bow and how it seems to pretty much crash into the opponents body and rejected him from healing again and again. When she saw the mana dust starting to float about, she starts to walk towards where the berserker had been laying. As the cup appears, a grin forms on her face. She speeds up to a jog and runs over to Kyran as he grabbed the bottom of the cup. "Well... we won... a cup..." She snorts while rolling her eyes. She frowns for a moment, before shrugging her shoulders. "Thank you for protecting me here... I just hope you don't have to do this again. Also, never speak of this to anyone... ever." She leans over and stretches up enough to kiss his cheek before she grabbed the cup.

As soon as her hand touched the thing, the mage felt a ripple through her body, as well as something weighing on her hip before she felt Tamaria jump on her back. "I think we're going back now!" She cries out to the two of them while holding on tightly. Adalinda let out a gasp as she felt like something was being ripped out of her, like her extra energy she had was now gone. "We're back in... Magnolia?" The exceed mutters from Adalinda's back as the mage slowly nods. The girl looks over and sees her hand is holding Kyrans, and the cup is no longer there. She quickly yanks her hand back and rubs the back of her head as she takes a deep breath.

"Uhhhh.... We're back to normal. Thank goodness. I'm... I'm gonna go first." She nods and jabs her thumb away. She then pauses for a moment, and smirks. "Actually, come with me, I have someplace I need to show you!" She grabs Kyran's wrist and starts to drag him while she ran in the direction of Hargeon town.

Words: 514
Total: 8,317