Chapter 19

Godrick

As Godrick and Jeanne sat together, there started to be a slight shift in the wind. The trees began to sway back and forth gently. As the seconds passed the winds became stronger, and the trees began to move back and forth more violently.

Jeanne stood from where she sat, looking around to see what caused the great winds. Godrick stood as well, his head now clear from what had happened. He took solace in the fact that his sister was here, and knew they would meet once more. At that time he would get his answers.

They both looked across the valley at the Hanging Gardens, which was now positioned above the castle of Yggdmillennia.

As they watched, a great tornado began to form, ripping into the ground. After a moment a large sphere rose from the hole the tornado had made.

"My goodness." Jeanne said.

The sphere had a large crack in it, showing the inside of the orb. It was the greater grail.

"Come on." Jeanne said as she turned towards Godrick..

"There are already multiple servants making their way to the Gardens. I think this is going to be the perfect opportunity to interrogate the red faction masters." She said as he materialized his halberd and lowered it for her to step on.

"Ready?" She asked to which he gave a sharp nod.

"Then I'll see you up there." She said as he flung her up and into the air. His throw was perfect, as she flew right to the Gardens, and landed right where she needed to after maneuvering herself with her spear.

Deciding to wait a couple minutes to wait for Jeanne to get where she needed to be, Godrick took his halber in his right hand, with the head facing down. He took a deep breath as he readied it then threw it like a spear. The Shockwave of the spear leaving the area blew the trees away as he immediately swapped places with his weapon. Appearing in the air above the Gardens, Godrick began to fall downwards toward the center mass, where he assumed everyone was gathered. He could feel Jeanne running through the halls as she made her way to where the other servants were.

Recalling his halberd, Godrick fell even faster as his heavy weapon dragged him back down to the earth.

Jeanne had just come to the long wide hallway where the servants were gathered. Feeling Godrick suddenly appear high above the Gardens and approaching fast, she gave a subtle smile.

'He does like his dramatic entrances.' She thought to herself.

Returning from her musings, she took in the situation, and her surroundings. She saw multiple servants fighting a single one, trying their best to stop him but nothing worked. As the servant Vlad turned towards her, he fired off multiple spikes in an effort to hurt her. She raised a fist and backhanded them out of the air before looking him in the eyes.

"Vampire." She said calmly as she pointed her spear at him.

Suddenly the ceiling broke apart as Godrick landed on top of Vlad, crushing him beneath his massive size.

Godrick landed by grabbing Vlad by the neck, before forcing him downwards into the ground below causing massive cracks to form in the ground. A couple of the other Servants felt the Hanging Gardens shift under the landing, but the Noble Phantasm returned to level before anything major happened.

Picking Vlad up by his neck Godrick held him in the air, leaving the servant/man to dangle, as he dematerialized his halberd he was holding in his left hand.

"Let go of me you brute!" Vlad shouted with the voice of Darnic, his master.

"What's happened here?" Jeanne said to the Archer of Black.

"Darnic fused with his servant ma'am." The archer answered respectfully.

"Fused?" She said in astonishment.

Vlad was struggling in Godrick's grip. He struck out at the knight with one of his elongated arms only for the knight to catch his strike.

Godrick caught the blow with his left hand, before bringing Vlad/ Darnic into a headbutt that dazed the servant. Godrick then threw the man to the ground, cracking it beneath him, before viciously stomping on his chest to keep him pinned.

Vlad had already turned a couple of the homunculus' into vampires to start his army. They charged Godrick to help their master.

One was met with Godricks fist as he brought it down on the vampire, sending his head straight into his torso. Another had their body popped like a grape, when Godrick backhanded it into the wall.

"No! My dream!" Vlad said as he turned to smoke to escape. He reappeared a little ways away from the knight, and looked at the rest of the homunculi he had turned into vampires.

"Get them!" Vlad said as he turned and fled.

Godrick turned back to Jeanne who readied her spear.

"You go after Lancer, we will handle the rest." She said as the other servant's readied themselves as well.

Godrick turned back to the fleeing vampire and rolled his shoulders as he prepared to chase after him.

He started to run after the servant, which turned into a full on sprint, crashing into anything, and everything in his way. The vampires in his way were crushed under him as he bulldozed through them, turning then into mush. He ran down the long corridor, his thunderous footsteps pushing Vlad to go even faster as his pursuer chased him.

Vlad carefully avoided the traps and the self defense measures that were placed in the hallways of the Hanging Gardens, dodging and weaving through them. Godrick charged through them all, letting the purple and blue beams glance off his armor and shoulders as magical circles appeared to fire at him.

Gaining ground on the fleeing man, Godrick ran even faster, closing the distance.

Seeing no other way, Vlad gave one last burst of speed before turning to face the Juggernaut.

To his surprise Godrick didn't stop running as the knight lowered himself and picked him up over his shoulder, before running straight through the double doors the two had come to, bursting into a chapel room.

As Godrick carried the man into the room, he charged at the nearest exit. That being the wall behind the altar.

Godrick put Vlad through the altar, then the stone reredos that sat behind the altar. They then crashed through the wall into the open air as the two began to fall to the ground far below them.

"You're insane!" Vlad yelled at the behemoth that still held him. He turned to smoke as he tried to escape the man, which succeeded. He then began to fly upwards towards the hole they had left, but suddenly a halberd flew past him, burying itself into the stone above the hole.

"He missed, such a fool. Now I only need to grab the grail and my dream will come true!" Vlad/ Darnic thought as he was almost to the hole. His hopes were destroyed as the knight appeared right above him and once more tackled him as he fell.

The Knight began to drive his fist into vlads face, over and over as the two fell. Vlad once more turned to smoke as he shifted away from Godrick, only to see the knight catch his halberd that flew to his hands. He then proceeded the throw the halberd at Vlad, but before the man could react, the Knight and halberd switched places. Godrick Grabbed Vlad once more as they began to fall. This initiated a game of cat and mouse, as Vlad would turn to smoke to escape the clutches of the knight, only for the knight to throw his halberd at him. Sometimes the knight wouldn't switch places with his weapon, which would leave Vlad in a state of constant stress.

Godrick on the other hand started to feel his adaptation react to the situation. Vlad was technically using a Noble Phantasm at the moment, which meant Godrick could adapt to it. He began to feel the smoke become more solid in his grasp, and over time it stopped working altogether.

As Godrick swapped with his halberd one last time, he gripped Vlad. The man tried to turn to smoke, but nothing happened as he stayed put.

Vlads figure appeared once more, still gripped by Godrick as he realized what was wrong.

"What have you done to me!?" He shouted.

Godrick gave no reply, only positioned himself over Vlad so the man would hit the ground first.

"I commanded you to let go of me, you brute!" Vlad screamed.

As they neared the ground Vlad gave one last howl of terror, before they slammed into the ground. The force of the two hitting the ground sent tremors through the land, causing a large crater where the two landed. To Godricks surprise, Vlad had survived the fall but he wasn't in very good condition.

That changed however as Vlad healed right before the Juggernauts eyes.

Vlad lunged towards Godrick, which was met with a knee to the chin. Godrick then brought his fist down on Vlad's head, sending the Lancer into the ground. The knight then grabbed Vlad by the legs and threw him into the forest, sending him crashing into the trees.

Stepping into the forest himself, Godrick saw Vlad picking himself up from the ground. Ripping a nearby tree from the ground, Godrick threw it at the Lancer. Using a sizable amount of energy once more, Godrick raised his Agility from B to A+. Seeming to disappear from his position as white lightning covered his body, he reappeared behind Vlad.

As the tree flew towards them, Godrick drove his fist into the side of Vlad's head as he turned towards him, forcing his head into the oncoming tree. The tree shattered as it met Vlads face, before he was met with an uppercut from Godricks left fist, sending him into the air.

Godrick grabbed the man's feet as he flew into the air, then slammed him back down into the ground below. The Knight then drove his left fist into the man's stomach, which made him cough up blood.

Vlad tried to bite at the knight, but a sharp headbutt put a stop to the attack.

Now standing over the Vampire, Godrick called his halberd to him once more. Holding it in two hands he prepared to bring it down on Vlad who coward in fear.

Seeing a split moment to escape, the vampire turned to smoke before making his way back up to the Hanging Gardens.

Godrick let him go, and just watched as his target ran back to the hole in the wall.

It would save him a trip of carrying a broken man back up to the Hanging Gardens, so he let him go.

Watching the smoke near the hole, Godrick Grinned, and readied to throw his halberd once more.

Jeanne

As Jeanne and Archer of Black ran through the long corridors chasing the Lancer and Juggernaut, they deftly evaded the traps and defenses that plagued them.

As they ran Jeanne noticed holes in the walls where she assumed the defensive beams glanced off of Godrick.

'He definitely came this way' she thought to herself.

They soon found themselves in front of two beautifully carved doors of wood… that were completely destroyed.

Walking into the chapel, Jeanne saw a figure standing in front of a hole in the wall that led to a very nasty fall to the ground.

"That was rather rude, don't you think ruler of this Holy Grail War?" Shirou Amakusa said as he turned towards her.

She stood in shock as she finally met the master of the red faction.

He gestured towards the hole.

"I think it's incredibly rude to steal a kill, then to ruin my altar and reredos." He said looking at her.

"How is this possible?" Jeanne said as she was brought out of her shock. Pointing her spear towards him she continued.

"A seventeenth servant shouldn't be possible!"

He gave her a sly smile as he looked at her.

"You're wrong. I'm the first servant. And like you, I am a ruler. No, what's strange, is your Juggernaut. I've never seen a servant like him. No records show a servant having a servant. Though you seem more like partners to me. In reality, he is the seventeenth servant." Shirou said.

Choosing to ignore his comments about her partner, she stepped forward, still pointing her spear at him.

"What is your purpose here!" She shouted.

His smile only grew as he answered her.

"It's simple, my dear ruler. To save all of humanity." He said as he spread his arms.

Suddenly black smoke entered through the hole in the wall, before turning into the Lancer of Black, Vlad the third.

They both turned their attention to him, before seeing a halberd bury itself into the stone above the hole.

Godrick appeared outside the hole, and climbed through it, before ramming Vlad to the ground once more. Stomping on his back, he sent the Lancer to the ground as he recalled his halberd which appeared through the hole.

Looking at both Jeanne and shirou, Godrick took his halberd and placed the curve of his ax head around the lancer's throat before slowly pulling back with it, as he pressed down with his foot.

As the servants of black and red appeared in the chapel, Vlad began to scream with Darnics voice as he looked at the servants who had begun to gather through the door to witness the grim execution.

"Help me!" He screamed.

Godrick put an end to the Lancer as he viciously stomped downwards, and at the same time tugged his halberd upwards, decapitating him.

Blue particles filled the air as the Lancer disappeared, never to step foot in this Holy Grail War again.

Godrick planted the butt of his halberd into the ground as he held it steady, looking at all the servants who had gathered. Some looked at him in fear, as others looked at him with respect for killing an enemy they couldn't.

"Care to tell me why you destroyed my chapel?" Shirou asked as he turned toward the Juggernaut.