43 Noble Phantasm
Aston threw aside the burnt 'corpse' of a servant he'd have called a friend with no disregard, the heavy rain already dulling the smell of burnt flesh as Sasaki started disappearing into wisps of light, "...." He did not mock his opponent, turning his mad gaze to the bound Heracles and his captive before grinning, blood dripping from his hands.
The Knight of Atrocity was a destroyer that made examples of King Arthur's enemies, striking fear into the depths of the hearts of those who sought to follow in their footsteps.
Feral, moving on instinct, motivated by madness that knew no match, the knight charged the Golden King and grabbed at his arm in an attempt to rip it clean off but Gilgamesh moved, scowling as he waved his arm and several more sets of chain emerged from ripples in space, coiling around Aston's legs and pulling him high into air, "Hound, what gave you permission to think you could touch my form?"
Truly, the arrogance of mongrels was astounding.
With a flick of his wrist, the rampaging knight was flung off through the air, crashing into the already destroyed temple, buried under it's wooden infrastructure. He groaned and roared only to find that Gilgamesh had gone back to observing Heracles.
Before any could perceive or understand, he'd shot to his feet and lunged for the reincarnated Archer again.
"Stay put for now, mutt." Gilgamesh cast a sideways glance at his 'opponent' if he could be called that, and scowled, launching a barrage of weapons — each a noble phantasm — that the knight made no effort to dodge as they ripped into his flesh, lodging themselves in it, a few going as far as to apply debilitating effects.
"R.....Release contract."
It was only then that the King of Heroes raised a brow, turning to face the Lancer with a mocking grin, "Ho?" It felt as if an arrogant deity were looking down on a foolish human that thought himself strong, preparing to deliver divine judgement for such hubris.
Yet nothing happened, bright blue lightning arched from his form, cracking whipping through the rain-filled air but that was something observable even under normal conditions.
"What? Is that it?" The King felt disappointed, the noble phantasm of a hero of legend — while nothing compared to his own — was meant to be an amusing spectacle, "Mongrel, you'll be sure to pay for this disappointment."
He ignored how the knight tilted his head through his madness, conveying confusion for a moment before grinning widely and roaring with laughter, "R...Requesting partial release.." His voice a barely cognible, jumbled mess, he took a step forward, approaching the curious King of Heroes with slow yet menacing steps.
"Establishing connection with non-native force."
His voice seemed to speed up yet began clearing up, "Successful."
"What are you doing?" It was maybe the first time in his life Gilgamesh failed to immediately parse what was transpiring before his eyes.
His question was answered by the knight running at him, slowly, then with an insane velocity he could barely follow. The last thing he saw was the blue lightning changing into a resplendent white before a ravine opened up as far as the eye could see, the land under disappeared in a straight line, replaced by a dark, endless void, and his arm disappeared.
"What?"
The King of Heroes had his eyes widen in astute shock, witnessing something he could not understand, could not follow.
Something that surpassed his eyes.
An explosion shook the landscape as a pillar of pure energy ascended to the heavens above, blowing a hole thro- no, erasing one of the mountains in the distance in the presence as the dark clouds covering the sky were blown away, replaced by a serene, star-filled night sky.
"Mongrel, what are you? What have you done?!"
He turned around quickly, waving his remaining arm to access the Gate of Babylon, still in the process of understanding the gravity of the threat he faced, "How are you human?!" His eyes told him so, he faced no God or Demigod, no alien or phantasmal beast, just a human.
A being that should have been insignificant, an ant, no, less than even an ant!
Face twisting in rage at the thought of being wounded by such a creature, "I accept your strength but, you reach too far!"
Except his other arm disappeared as well, ripped away in less than an instant, faster than time could grasp and space could bind. This time another mountain disappeared and Gilgamesh only now understood this was the energy the knight was producing by moving alone. Diverting it to the skies, the endless expanse of space, in order to prevent it from changing the shape of the very planet they lived on.
"You don't belong here."
Gilgamesh grinned, excited at what was transpiring yet enraged to no end.
The source of the energy, the nature of the power being displayed, it didn't belong in the world of man.
It wasn't natural, not of their universe.
The knight was but his power was not. It was something foreign.
Where did it come from?
He didn't care, all Gilgamesh knew was he would end it right here for the grave sin of intruding upon his domain. Red lightning cracked out of a golden ripple as a sword that did not resemble a sword slowly came out of it.
"Aston, is it? You are a mons-"
In what many would call an act of great disrespect, the Knight of Atrocity blew through the King of Heroes before he could even finish his words, at a speed and with power that made sure not even a single speck of blood, a single cell of his being was left behind after collision.
In the wake of this action, another massive pillar of pure, raw energy shot off into the sky, under the gazes of a people that would go on to believe it to be a hallucination born of a lack of sleep.
When all was said and done, the Knight of Atrocity finally made his appearance known, standing slightly hunched over where Gilgamesh had previously been. Restricted by the world, by a body of pure flesh and a lack of the magical energy he truly needed, the King of Heroes once again left the world of man at the hands of a monster.
The Lancer's form radiating pure white lightning that seemed to distort the space around it, as did his eyes as he scrutinised his surroundings before slowly shuffling over to his jagged spear and pulling it out of the ground. He turned his eyes to the sky and released a deafening, haunting howl that left a shocked Rin Tohsaka reeling in pain, shaky hands covering her ears.
"Aston!"
The voice of a young, blonde woman drew his attention and for a moment, the monstrous visage of the Knight of Atrocity faltered. He flinched and took a pronounced step backwards, as if afraid.
* * *
If you can't understand his noble phantasm or why he had to request the release of his contract or why Gil calls it foreign with the clues given, wait for next chapter coming soon.
Rin Tohsaka or Oda Nobunaga?
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