NeoCardMaker Holy Grail War

[Saikazo 241]

"And this is what people have come to? Disgraceful. I'd tear down these wild thugs and make 'em thankful for it, but Heroic Spirits have rules against that. We'd best find someone that can point us in the right direction. Preferably sober... sober and sane,"

"Look, man, not everyone can be as cool as you," I commented with a shrug. "As for finding someone... well, it's not like I can just ask someone 'Hey, where can I find the Thunderheads?'. That's just a bad idea," I sigh as I look around. "Hey, Hifumi said they hate Mages, so maybe if we do some magic, we'll get their attention," I comment. "Would you be my lovely assistant to my magic show Archer?" I joke. "Anyways, I guess the best way to find them is to cause a small, but non-lethal panic,"

Nodding to myself I walk down the road, running my hands through my hair as I find a target. I make sure to take in the details of their face, their body shape, and everything committed to memory before I purposefully run into the person's side.

"Sorry, I'm sorry," I say as I turn around, making sure my disguise magic made me look like the person I rammed into. "I didn't mean to, I'm in a rush!" After making sure the person got a good look at my face, I kept walking, repeating this process a few times.

Hopefully I'll get results.

[yui 574]

On 8/13/2020 at 8:42 AM, Skaia said:

"Well, that oughta send a message, and that should make him think twice about any robberies or the like. Best to get out of here with the haul that we have while we can, maybe make a return trip later to see if this place is still full of goods." Looking to Assassin, I'll give her a thumbs up saying, "excellent work out there. Let's head back to base and check out our loot." 

"Let's!" Quite happy with the praise she's received, you and Assassin return to your base of operations, to take some time inspecting and testing the Mystic Codes your Servant picked up in the warehouse. The total haul is made up of three items; a black sphere, a cube with runes that neither of you really understand etched into its surface, and a pair of glasses.

On 8/13/2020 at 9:01 AM, Chaos Sonic said:

"Be careful, Rider...I've just about finished with the traps. Just one more..."

>Has now activated all the traps we had ready

"Okay Rider...we're live. Time to get this party REALLY started!"

On 8/14/2020 at 6:33 PM, Tormented said:

"Lancer, let them wear each other out... when it looks like the fight is going one way... finish it. Kill Rider first or save Saber if he looks like he is getting into trouble, there's no need for you to drain yourself. I'm sorry I know you're probably itching to wet your blade but, strategy is important, not that I need to tell you"

@LordCowCow

Copy that, Master!

BGM

With newfound vigor, Rider charged back into the fray against Saber, sliding along the ground between his legs to come up behind the enemy Servant, with a swing of the cutlass clearly intended to lop Saber's head off. A swing that was met with a rise of Saber's arm, letting the blade instead sink into the pauldrons of his armor as Saber turned around to face his foe with a swing of his own greatsword. A blow that Rider tried to parry with his sword, but not being a Saber himself came back to bite him in that moment. Within his hand, Rider's cutlass shattered from the blow, even if its job was done.

"Not bad, but I've got something you and your Master don't."

"Hm?"

"Prep time!" Discarding the broken sword, Rider brought his foot up, slamming it directly into Saber's center of gravity, causing the heavyweight Servant to stumble back. "Now, Master!" On Rider's signal, his Master pulled on a rope from the sidelines, causing the trap to activate. It was an incredibly simple trap, but one that didn't use magic at all, rendering the Saber class's Magic Resistance moot. From beneath his feet, a net closed in around Saber, capturing him and lifting him up several feet from the ground. A predicatment that was punctuated by a shot from Rider's gun, right into the crack on Saber's pauldron, causing it to break.

"Simply put, you can't kill us if we string you up, then shoot your Master dead."

"Honorless coward!"

"It's pragmatic, Saber. We can't all be literal knights in shining armor. Now then..."

"Looks like my cue, Master. I can't get all the way over there if you're staying back, but what I can do..." Lancer stood up, aiming his guandao at the island ahead. Carefully. Precisely. Slowly, Lancer drew his arm back, before slinging it forward, unleashing the weapon and letting it fly through the air. It soared over the water, across the island, and then through the rope holding Saber up, before finally planting itself in the trunk of a tree just inches from Rider.

"Damn. I missed. Next time, I won't play at being an Archer." The weapon faded, dematerializing into nothing as Lancer did the same. Not that Saber's new friend knows my real class; for all he knows, I actually am Archer. There was a great man once, who if he was here, he'd probably say something like "An enemy is subject to the worst possible outcome, if he does not consider and prepare for the worst possible outcome."

"Aw hell, you brought backup?" Master, this is turning on its head real fast. We probably should have taken something like this into account.

16 hours ago, Saikazo said:

"And this is what people have come to? Disgraceful. I'd tear down these wild thugs and make 'em thankful for it, but Heroic Spirits have rules against that. We'd best find someone that can point us in the right direction. Preferably sober... sober and sane,"

"Look, man, not everyone can be as cool as you," I commented with a shrug. "As for finding someone... well, it's not like I can just ask someone 'Hey, where can I find the Thunderheads?'. That's just a bad idea," I sigh as I look around. "Hey, Hifumi said they hate Mages, so maybe if we do some magic, we'll get their attention," I comment. "Would you be my lovely assistant to my magic show Archer?" I joke. "Anyways, I guess the best way to find them is to cause a small, but non-lethal panic,"

Nodding to myself I walk down the road, running my hands through my hair as I find a target. I make sure to take in the details of their face, their body shape, and everything committed to memory before I purposefully run into the person's side.

"Sorry, I'm sorry," I say as I turn around, making sure my disguise magic made me look like the person I rammed into. "I didn't mean to, I'm in a rush!" After making sure the person got a good look at my face, I kept walking, repeating this process a few times.

Hopefully I'll get results.

As you repeat the process of encountering, disguising yourself as, then bumping into people a few times, not much seems to change at first. At a glance, anyway. After a few rounds of this, the people you're encountering seem significantly more threatening, some of them openly carrying guns, knives, or other weapons. Until finally, as you're moving past one such person, their arm suddenly reaches out, grabbing your shoulder as you try to hurry along. "You ain't going nowhere. Orders from the boss are to keep you in one spot."

Only a minute or two passes, before with no less than four men surrounding her, the boss appears. Her appearance perfectly matches the picture Hifumi gave you. This must be Raiko Takanashi.

"You're either very new in town, very bold, or very stupid. Explain yourself," she curtly opens up with. "Now." Even this early in the conversation, she signals for the men around her to fix their guns on you in case you try anything funny. "And drop the disguise."

[Chaos Sonic 442]

8 minutes ago, Yui said:

Copy that, Master!

BGM

With newfound vigor, Rider charged back into the fray against Saber, sliding along the ground between his legs to come up behind the enemy Servant, with a swing of the cutlass clearly intended to lop Saber's head off. A swing that was met with a rise of Saber's arm, letting the blade instead sink into the pauldrons of his armor as Saber turned around to face his foe with a swing of his own greatsword. A blow that Rider tried to parry with his sword, but not being a Saber himself came back to bite him in that moment. Within his hand, Rider's cutlass shattered from the blow, even if its job was done.

"Not bad, but I've got something you and your Master don't."

"Hm?"

"Prep time!" Discarding the broken sword, Rider brought his foot up, slamming it directly into Saber's center of gravity, causing the heavyweight Servant to stumble back. "Now, Master!" On Rider's signal, his Master pulled on a rope from the sidelines, causing the trap to activate. It was an incredibly simple trap, but one that didn't use magic at all, rendering the Saber class's Magic Resistance moot. From beneath his feet, a net closed in around Saber, capturing him and lifting him up several feet from the ground. A predicament that was punctuated by a shot from Rider's gun, right into the crack on Saber's pauldron, causing it to break.

"Simply put, you can't kill us if we string you up, then shoot your Master dead."

"Honorless coward!"

"It's pragmatic, Saber. We can't all be literal knights in shining armor. Now then..."

"Looks like my cue, Master. I can't get all the way over there if you're staying back, but what I can do..." Lancer stood up, aiming his guandao at the island ahead. Carefully. Precisely. Slowly, Lancer drew his arm back, before slinging it forward, unleashing the weapon and letting it fly through the air. It soared over the water, across the island, and then through the rope holding Saber up, before finally planting itself in the trunk of a tree just inches from Rider.

"Damn. I missed. Next time, I won't play at being an Archer." The weapon faded, dematerializing into nothing as Lancer did the same. Not that Saber's new friend knows my real class; for all he knows, I actually am Archer. There was a great man once, who if he was here, he'd probably say something like "An enemy is subject to the worst possible outcome, if he does not consider and prepare for the worst possible outcome."

"Aw hell, you brought backup?" Master, this is turning on its head real fast. We probably should have taken something like this into account.

"OH YOU THINK?! That's LITERALLY what I was saying before!! ...this isn't going very well."

>Whips up quite a bit of Wind Magic in order to pick up some of the sand from the beach to be whirled towards Saber and his master

"Working on at least keeping their vision blurred at the moment. You have a Plan B, right Rider? Or are we just making a strategic retreat and attempting to regroup? Also, not sure if we need to be wary of the assistance over there by...couldn't tell if that was Archer or not...given the aim on it, might've been. Either way, this isn't a good time for us now."

[LordCowCow 839]

"Now THAT'S some sharp shooting!" I call out.

"Ok Saber let's take advantage of this. Time to move to a more advantageous position while we can"

>Moves to get behind Saber and follow his lead

[Ash 237]

Great job Lancer, now get us closer, you've bided Saber and his Master some time, which should in turn give us time to move somewhere that we can provide better support. I still want you keeping yourself relatively hidden, no need to play all our cards at once and besides I suspect neither of the parties involved have played their hand either.

[Skaia 578]

Placing the glasses on, I'll say, "well this is quite handy. We really made out like a couple of bandits, so good job again Assassin. Now, all that's left is planning our next avenue of attack. While I would like to hit up that treasure trove again and give that black market dealer a piece of my mind, attacking twice in rapid succession is just asking for trouble. Though, who knows what other kind of crazy mages or crime groups exist in this city." Looking out the window, in the direction of the harbor I'll ask, "how do you think things are going? Reckon someone's died yet?"  

[Saikazo 241]

"You're either very new in town, very bold, or very stupid. Explain yourself," she curtly opens up with. "Now." Even this early in the conversation, she signals for the men around her to fix their guns on you in case you try anything funny. "And drop the disguise."

"Okay, okay," I say as I raise my hands. "I'm just have to run my hands through my hair to drop the disguise, that's all. Nothin' funny here," I say as I run my hands through my hair, transforming back to normal. I thought about being a bit theatrical, but I could tell, this was not the time. "I am also all the above," I say. "As for my explanation, well, simply put, I just wanted to find you without causing a commotion and getting people hurt, and this was the only way I could think of. As for why I want to find you, well, I have a business proposition for you I think you may find interesting. Do you have a place we can talk where prying ears can't hear, or would you want to do business here and now,"

[yui 574]

On 8/22/2020 at 5:54 PM, Chaos Sonic said:

"OH YOU THINK?! That's LITERALLY what I was saying before!! ...this isn't going very well."

>Whips up quite a bit of Wind Magic in order to pick up some of the sand from the beach to be whirled towards Saber and his master

"Working on at least keeping their vision blurred at the moment. You have a Plan B, right Rider? Or are we just making a strategic retreat and attempting to regroup? Also, not sure if we need to be wary of the assistance over there by...couldn't tell if that was Archer or not...given the aim on it, might've been. Either way, this isn't a good time for us now."

On 8/22/2020 at 6:26 PM, LordCowCow said:

"Now THAT'S some sharp shooting!" I call out.

"Ok Saber let's take advantage of this. Time to move to a more advantageous position while we can"

>Moves to get behind Saber and follow his lead

On 8/23/2020 at 6:17 AM, Tormented said:

Great job Lancer, now get us closer, you've bided Saber and his Master some time, which should in turn give us time to move somewhere that we can provide better support. I still want you keeping yourself relatively hidden, no need to play all our cards at once and besides I suspect neither of the parties involved have played their hand either.

It looks like we won't have to get any closer, Master.

"Times like this call for a change of plans." Rider brings his pistol down, aiming it at Saber's foot before firing. Just as he pulls the trigger, however, Rider also swings his foot forward, kicking up the sand of the island and spraying Saber's face with it, before quickly turning tail and fleeing. "We'll meet again, golden knight!" he calls out, as he and his Master get on the boat the pair had taken out here, start the engine, and with a boost from the Servant's Riding skill, dart off deeper into the ocean. "And next time, we'll keep your friend in mind, too!"

I blame myself for that. If I'd known we'd end up reeling in Saber, I would have asked for more prep time.

"Hmph. A scoundrel through and through," Saber growled, wiping the last of the sand off his face as his targets darted off around a corner of the landscape. "We'll need to corner him on dry land next time."

On 8/23/2020 at 12:38 PM, Skaia said:

Placing the glasses on, I'll say, "well this is quite handy. We really made out like a couple of bandits, so good job again Assassin. Now, all that's left is planning our next avenue of attack. While I would like to hit up that treasure trove again and give that black market dealer a piece of my mind, attacking twice in rapid succession is just asking for trouble. Though, who knows what other kind of crazy mages or crime groups exist in this city." Looking out the window, in the direction of the harbor I'll ask, "how do you think things are going? Reckon someone's died yet?"  

"We've definitely stumbled upon a strange town for this Holy Grail War," Assassin mused. Looking out the harbor-side window, she pondered the possibility of if anyone may have died yet, before suddenly, her attention swung around in the other direction. Toward the factories and warehouses you and her had found the criminals at earlier. "Someone's certainly died," she comments, giving you a nudge to turn around and look at the burning factory where she had found a whole trio of Servants just earlier that night. "Just not at the harbor."

10 hours ago, Saikazo said:

"You're either very new in town, very bold, or very stupid. Explain yourself," she curtly opens up with. "Now." Even this early in the conversation, she signals for the men around her to fix their guns on you in case you try anything funny. "And drop the disguise."

"Okay, okay," I say as I raise my hands. "I'm just have to run my hands through my hair to drop the disguise, that's all. Nothin' funny here," I say as I run my hands through my hair, transforming back to normal. I thought about being a bit theatrical, but I could tell, this was not the time. "I am also all the above," I say. "As for my explanation, well, simply put, I just wanted to find you without causing a commotion and getting people hurt, and this was the only way I could think of. As for why I want to find you, well, I have a business proposition for you I think you may find interesting. Do you have a place we can talk where prying ears can't hear, or would you want to do business here and now,"

"Here's fine. It would be a waste to take you home just to have you shot if we won't get along."

---

Day 3

Remaining Masters: 5

"Pardon my intrusion, but my Master has requested your presence at the church. Make sure to arrive as soon as possible, as this is an urgent matter pertaining to the Holy Grail War." All five remaining Masters, regardless of where they may have been, would receive this visit from Ruler first thing in the morning, and then just as quickly as he came, Ruler would leave, either to find the next Master or to return to his own.

It wasn't until all five Masters were gathered that the boy sitting at the front stood up to address them. "Hello, Masters. We've already met briefly, but in case you've forgotten, I am Nico Aust, a representative of the church overseeing this Holy Grail War. I've gathered you all here to address a threat to the proceedings of this Grail War. Ruler, if you would, please."

A fox-like mask appeared over Ruler's hands, turning toward the wall as its eyes lit up, projecting an image onto the far wall. Of two Servants brawling it out in an old factory. "Last night, a confrontation broke out between the Masters of Caster and Berserker. Who started this fight is irrelevant. What's important is..." The mask switched. Now a red-faced mask with horns took the place of the fox mask, projecting a different image taken from outside. The factory was ablaze, the Masters and Servants in question were nowhere to be seen, and just outside of the building was...

"This. The outcome. Both pairs of Master and Servant were killed when the building was set on fire."

"As you can see here," Nico added, pointing at two girls on the image as it zoomed in, "It was no accident. I'm quite familiar with the nun of this pair. She is a holy woman in title only, and if we allow her to interfere, we'll have our work cut out for us cleaning up her mess in a best-case scenario. So, I'm putting out a bounty on her head." Nico removed the gloves from his hands, holding up a hand that had no less than ntwo Command Seals on it. "Whoever can bring me the head of Bridget Spatz will receive one Command Seal. This won't be a free prize, as she's summoned a Servant of her own, so you'll have to fight for it."

"I was tasked with keeping track of the pair throughout the night to gather intel. I'm unsure what her Master is capable of, but I've been able to conclude that the Servant's class is Avenger. She seems to specialize in setting buildings ablaze, so confronting her indoors is ill-advised. We were also able to get a loose idea of their behaviors. Avenger and her Master are attracted to conflict, but even more than that, they like sniffing out peace so they can destroy it. I wish I could give you more specifics, but it seems Avenger is able to pick up on and destroy my means of surveillance. I lost most of my masks just getting this much information."

"And that's where we now are," Nico sighed. "Bridget and Avenger aren't to be taken lightly, but the freedom an extra Command Seal would grant will hopefully be worth the trouble for whoever decides to take her down. If you have any questions, please don't be afraid to ask them. If not, feel free to hunt down Avenger and her Master, or resume your normal Holy Grail War activities."

[Ash 237]

I shake my head. "Honestly disappointing but at least our friend isn't dead. Could you get us closer to Saber and his master? Although I remain unconvinced of Saber's strength but again I suspect he hasn't put all on the line. If this relationship of ours turns into us saving their hides it won't be a healthy one."

 Post transport to the church-

Whilst this seems like a tempting offer I'm not sure we've much to gain... sure an additional command seal would be useful... but I've yet to use any of them, however this could raise us an opportunity to target those looking to claim the bounty and thus reap the reward in their place.

I kick up off the seat I was sitting in and feign ignorance "You all fight amongst yourselves for this prize, I'm inclined to live and if this Avenger took out two servants it'll have no problem taking out one"

I then wave off as I leave the exit

"Oh before I go, Saber. I shall meet you at the shack."

Lancer get us back to the shack, so we can figure out what our plan of action is.

[Skaia 578]

Before going to the church I'll go to purchase some sunglasses, a hoodie, and a mask. After having my apparel all ready, I'll go to the church. 

Sitting down in a seat, after listening to the speech of the officiator I'll say, "I have several questions. Though, firstly, how was Avenger able to be summoned in the first place? Doesn't strike me as a very standard servant to be running around." 

[LordCowCow 839]

"So, uh, hello people who all want me dead." I wave awkwardly at the group bunched up. "Anyway sounds like this Avenger is a big problem. I don't really get it but guess means more people who want to kill me right?"

"Yeah, Saber, let's avoid whoever this firestarter is. They seem to be targeting the participants so they shouldn't be a problem unless they come to us."

"So, like, should we leave in intervals? Kinda would suck to be ambushed right when we've left the neutral area. I bet there's at least one dastardly duo like that here."

[Chaos Sonic 442]

"Okay...so first off..."
>Points at Saber's Master
"...not my fault...your fault for getting into our trap. Secondly, this is going to be a bit of an issue if two other Masters and Servants are gone...especially the powerhouse that is Berserker."
"Rider...we may have to play nice with these guys...a bit hard since Saber's Master was the first to get in our trap..."
"Do we know anything specific on this duo? Like, perhaps the specifics on where they were last seen? Or rather...where the Master was last seen?"

[Saikazo 241]

I sigh as we were summoned to the church, thinking to myself before changing myself into Caster's Master, so others wouldn't know what I looked like. It seemed another Master had a similar idea, as they were wearing a hoodie, mask, and sunglasses. Shit, someone that was smart. Still, as we sat and listened to the officiator, I took out my phone and snapped pictures of everyone in the room, and making extra sure to take a picture of the rogue servant and Master. An idea was forming in my head, one that was crazy, but would be enough to make up for the loss of Caster and Berserker.

After I took all the pictures, I texted my people, each one individually, sending them all the pictures with the message "We're missing one, but these are all the Masters you need to keep an eye out for. Let me know if you see any of them" I then sent another text to Hifumi, asking if I could crash at his place.

"I have several questions. Though, firstly, how was Avenger able to be summoned in the first place? Doesn't strike me as a very standard servant to be running around." 

"I have one as well actually. How the hell did you summon a Ruler? In all my studies, you aren't supposed to get a Ruler class... ever," I added. "Trust me, as much as I like my servant Assassin, I woulda summoned a Ruler in a heartbeat," I look over to the Master that stated that they were setting a trap. Now that was a good idea...

I text Cordula a plan, doing my best to not grin as I finished it, making sure to listen to the answers to our questions as I did.

 

[yui 574]

On 8/25/2020 at 7:12 PM, Tormented said:

I shake my head. "Honestly disappointing but at least our friend isn't dead. Could you get us closer to Saber and his master? Although I remain unconvinced of Saber's strength but again I suspect he hasn't put all on the line. If this relationship of ours turns into us saving their hides it won't be a healthy one."

 Post transport to the church-

Whilst this seems like a tempting offer I'm not sure we've much to gain... sure an additional command seal would be useful... but I've yet to use any of them, however this could raise us an opportunity to target those looking to claim the bounty and thus reap the reward in their place.

I kick up off the seat I was sitting in and feign ignorance "You all fight amongst yourselves for this prize, I'm inclined to live and if this Avenger took out two servants it'll have no problem taking out one"

I then wave off as I leave the exit

"Oh before I go, Saber. I shall meet you at the shack."

Lancer get us back to the shack, so we can figure out what our plan of action is.

Got it. I'll keep an eye open on our return trip.

On 9/2/2020 at 7:31 PM, Skaia said:

Before going to the church I'll go to purchase some sunglasses, a hoodie, and a mask. After having my apparel all ready, I'll go to the church. 

Sitting down in a seat, after listening to the speech of the officiator I'll say, "I have several questions. Though, firstly, how was Avenger able to be summoned in the first place? Doesn't strike me as a very standard servant to be running around." 

On 9/2/2020 at 9:14 PM, LordCowCow said:

"So, uh, hello people who all want me dead." I wave awkwardly at the group bunched up. "Anyway sounds like this Avenger is a big problem. I don't really get it but guess means more people who want to kill me right?"

"Yeah, Saber, let's avoid whoever this firestarter is. They seem to be targeting the participants so they shouldn't be a problem unless they come to us."

"So, like, should we leave in intervals? Kinda would suck to be ambushed right when we've left the neutral area. I bet there's at least one dastardly duo like that here."

On 9/4/2020 at 1:23 PM, Chaos Sonic said:

"Okay...so first off..."
>Points at Saber's Master
"...not my fault...your fault for getting into our trap. Secondly, this is going to be a bit of an issue if two other Masters and Servants are gone...especially the powerhouse that is Berserker."
"Rider...we may have to play nice with these guys...a bit hard since Saber's Master was the first to get in our trap..."
"Do we know anything specific on this duo? Like, perhaps the specifics on where they were last seen? Or rather...where the Master was last seen?"

44 minutes ago, Saikazo said:

I sigh as we were summoned to the church, thinking to myself before changing myself into Caster's Master, so others wouldn't know what I looked like. It seemed another Master had a similar idea, as they were wearing a hoodie, mask, and sunglasses. Shit, someone that was smart. Still, as we sat and listened to the officiator, I took out my phone and snapped pictures of everyone in the room, and making extra sure to take a picture of the rogue servant and Master. An idea was forming in my head, one that was crazy, but would be enough to make up for the loss of Caster and Berserker.

After I took all the pictures, I texted my people, each one individually, sending them all the pictures with the message "We're missing one, but these are all the Masters you need to keep an eye out for. Let me know if you see any of them" I then sent another text to Hifumi, asking if I could crash at his place.

"I have one as well actually. How the hell did you summon a Ruler? In all my studies, you aren't supposed to get a Ruler class... ever," I added. "Trust me, as much as I like my servant Assassin, I woulda summoned a Ruler in a heartbeat," I look over to the Master that stated that they were setting a trap. Now that was a good idea...

I text Cordula a plan, doing my best to not grin as I finished it, making sure to listen to the answers to our questions as I did.

"All excellent questions. Let's start with the topic of Avenger and her Master. I don't know how Bridget acquired a Servant of this class; the only theory I have is that she's simply a twisted enough person to be able to summon an Avenger. The last we saw of the pair before Ruler had to stop watching them, they were investigating the explosion that decimated the harbor district last night. An explosion that very nearly engulfed the church too, I should add." Nico's eyes narrowed warily, though he made a point to not direct them at anyone in particular.

"Just as has been guessed at, Avenger's presence is a problem. I don't know about the Servant's personal intentions, but her Master will likely try to hunt down any Servants and Masters for her own reasons. On that note, should any of you have to contact me, I'm going to urge you not to visit this church, as I'm going into hiding. There are some mountains north of town with an abandoned mine; Berserker's Master was operating from there previously, and it seems like a fine place to hole myself up as well."

"And that leaves the question of how you summoned me."

"Yes, that. My family's magecraft specializes in Heroic Spirits, as niche as it is. Previous generations of the Aust family have used this specialty to summon Berserkers, but I changed up how to apply said magecraft a bit to summon a Ruler instead."

"As a representative of the Ruler class, I can't say I'm pleased with this arrangement. But I'm here now, so I'll continue to monitor the Holy Grail War as my class dictates." Looking over to Saber's Master, Ruler added "Oh, and don't worry about ambushes on your way out of the church. As these are exceptional circumstances, I'll be monitoring all of you as you leave the church grounds, and interfering if I see any signs of foul play."

[yui 574]

@Tormented@LordCowCow

...and that's what I had in mind. It isn't risk-free, but if we don't take a smaller risk now, we run the chance of taking a much bigger one later on. The only wildcard in the plan is Avenger, but if this works, we can deal with her too. If not... we'll cross that bridge when we reach it. On what was probably a nice kitchen table before this run-down little house fell into disrepair, Lancer had placed a map of the city he'd insisted on purchasing on the way back from the church. Across the map were a few different-colored blocks of wood, each representing one of the Servants in the Holy Grail War. Right now though, the pieces for Assassin and Archer were put aside.

"It'd really be nice if we knew where those other two were, though. It's a lot harder to account for an enemy that you can't find."

"And this is?"

"A map of the city. Accounting for our enemies becomes easier if we know where they're holed up. Sadly..." Resting a finger on the black piece of wood, which was meant to be Rider, Lancer continued "We only know about the one enemy's whereabouts, and even that's more of a logical deduction to one general area than actual knowledge of an exact location. We still haven't seen hide or hair of Assassin or Archer on our end. What about you two?"

@Chaos Sonic

"Well, that was a bust," Rider sighed, thinking back to last night's events. "But everyone probably knows we're a player on this board now, so we've got that going for us. More than that, though... we've got a logistics problem." Gesturing out to the great blue sea before the pair of you, Rider seemed like he was about to elaborate, but decided not to at the last second. "You probably get the deal already. Planning the way to victory is a Master's job after all." Rider's eyes shifted to a seagull perched by the water. Then his hand shifted to the flintlock holstered on his side, and he quickly aimed then fired at the vile creature. "Something for the fish," Rider commented, as the bird fell over into the ocean.

"So, Saber's a problem, and now we've got Avenger on top of it. And I'll be frank with you Master: I'm not very powerful in direct confrontations. We'll have to at least figure out something to do about Saber. We can at least avoid Avenger until we win, grab the Grail, then hightail it out of here. What are you thinking?"

@Saikazo

"So is it just me, or do these dogs really like me?"

"It's because they aren't actually dogs," Hifumi explained, opening up a paper bag and pulling out two hamburgers still wrapped in cheap paper. He checked the contents of the first burger, before setting the second one down in front of him and holding out the first one for you. "They're familiars that sniff out mana. And you're more or less made of the stuff, Archer. I have them take on the forms of dogs because nobody would suspect a dog."

Once your burger had been retrieved, Hifumi took a look at his phone. He showed whatever was on the screen to a couple of the dogs in question. "Speaking of, I've got good news and bad news. I haven't been able to identify this guy with the mask, but I know where he lives, and was able to track down the other Masters too. The bad news is I found another Servant last night, and she's--"

"Avenger. The officiator already filled us in on her. Try to keep those dogs of yours away from her if they find her."

"Got it. Oh, uh, unrelated, but if you ever pay Cordula a visit to check in, maybe don't take Archer with you. Or keep him hidden or something. Just thought of that."

@Skaia

"Surely it wouldn't be that easy," Assassin mused to herself, looking down around the inner city from the balcony of the pagoda the two of you had holed up in. The Avenger problem had been on her mind since the meeting, based on some comments she'd made earlier. No longer content to simply mull over what was what, she turned around to address you directly. "Doesn't something seem off about this, Master? One Command Seal - even if it's powerful - seems like a small reward for someone Nico Aust is clearly so desperate to get rid of. And what's this woman doing in town to begin with? Something isn't adding up."

Assassin cast a quick glance to the map she'd worked on and had been pretty dilligent about updating over the last couple of days. "Two Servants down already... well, those were the ones I was most worried about in the first place. Should we just leave Avenger be and hope she kills off everyone for us, Master?"

[Chaos Sonic 442]

"Yeah, Saber and the Master are going to be a problem. And with you not being suited for direct confrontations, we'll need to find an out for this...but I suppose there's an option for this."

>Watches the dead seagull just float in the water

"We need to establish a partnership with another contestant. Caster and Berserker are out...so two options there are out. Which leaves us with Saber, but there's already bad blood now...Assassin, Lancer and Archer. Between those three, not counting Saber because again...bad blood...those are the options we have. The other idea would be possibly swaying Avenger and their master to our side, but again...we'd have to deal with Avenger at the end."

>Rubs chin slightly

"At this point, we just need to pick a viable option between the three other Heroic Spirits and their Masters. Which one would benefit us more...any insight upon any of this, Rider?"

[Ash 237]

I nod to Lancer. "Did anyone catch any information from the meeting? What the master's look like etc".

[LordCowCow 839]

I sigh as I pet the cat. "I have a feeling the faces we don't already know we still don't know. Not that I'm too worried. Think about it. None of them seemed particularly chummy. I bet we're the only ones grouped up. And worst case scenario is the other three get together."

I put up three fingers. Lowering them one by one. "Assassin. Archer. Rider. All of them we should have the advantage close range and disadvantage long range. So their numbers don't matter so much. We just have to make sure we're not in the open where they can take us out without a fight."

I stretch and lean back. "I imagine that pirate won't try and take on Saber like before. Surprised he managed to get away at all. But if we keep safe he'll have to come for us eventually. Then again, with what a mess he made, wouldn't be surprised if the Avenger goes for him next."

I smile. "Right now I'm more concerned about food. If I have to I can spread the range of the traps. Cast a wider net in case anyone comes skulking."

[Skaia 578]

"Well, you're right that there's something fishy going on with Avenger. How does a servant like that even come to be? Too many questions and practically no answers to them right now..." I'll think for a moment before saying, "well, no matter. There's four servant left, and even if we got rid of some of the more problematic ones, each of them are still probably annoying in their own right. And we don't really know what the status of any alliances are. So, in order to further every goal we have at once, let's go find Avenger."