Sword of Fate | Chapter 4

Title: Night of Fate: VS Lancer

The man was a threat. Not to him, but to his Master. His ally. That was all Kirito needed to know about Lancer.

The black swordsman held his drawn blade by his side. The obsidian-colored blade gleamed underneath the dim light.

He gripped the hilt of his other blade, a crystalline turquoise blade, with his left hand and prepared to draw it at a moment's notice.

There was a brief pause as both warriors surveyed the other, the air tense like a taut rope set to snap.

Kirito made the first move. He charged towards Lancer and swung his crystal sword, drawing it from its sheathe, with the obsidian blade following close behind. "Hah!"

Lancer dodged the attack by leaping backwards, putting distance between him and the new Servant.

The black swordsman was undeterred by his foe's action. He advanced, closing the gap in a flash, and attacked again. His blades cut cross the vertical and horizontal planes, seeking Lancer's blood. For a normal human, there would be no escape.

But Lancer was fast, much faster than a normal human could ever hope becoming.

Crystal and obsidian crashed against unyielding crimson in a spray of sparks. As fast as Kirito's last attack had been, Lancer was faster in his defense.

The weapons screeched as both warriors struggled to overpower the other. A brief moment passed, then Lancer yielded and leapt backwards. He spun his long spear behind him and glared at Kirito. "Tch, of all the Servants the kid summons Saber."

The black swordsman cocked his head to the side. "Saber, eh? I guess that's me." He let out a small smile. "And you must be Lancer."

"Of course." Lancer's face twisted in a feral grin. He lowered his stance, crouching like a blue panther, and then pounced. "You'd better live up to your title, Saber!"

The crimson lance flew towards Kirito's heart, unerring in its path to pierce it.

Kirito parried with his crystal blade and a pure note rang through the night air when the weapons clashed. Within the gap created by the parry began his counterattack.

The defending blade was brought back, and the obsidian blade took its place. Kirito swung the black sword towards Lancer's outstretched arm.

The Servant of the Lance narrowed his eyes, and spun his weapon, knocking Kirito's slash wide.

The swordsman allowed it, turning with the force to attack with his crystal blade.

Lancer batted the attack away like the proceeding slash, and the leapt back to gain space. In such close quarters, the swordsman's dual blades held the slightest advantage over his own weapon in terms of attack speed and locked Lancer into defense.

Kirito grinned and waved his black sword. "What's wrong, Lancer? Not fast enough?"

"Hah, you're funny Saber." Lancer grinned and readied his lance once more. "This isn't even half of it!"

Lancer lunged at a speed surpassing that of all attacks before it. He had been fighting at a human speed, although an exceptional one. Now, the thrust was performed at speeds beyond the capability of any human.

Caught off guard at the sudden change in pace, Kirito barely brought his sword up in time to avoid the lethal blow. Even then, the lance still grazed his arm, leaving a shallow wound.

Lancer wasn't finished. He took advantage of the break in the swordsman's rhythm and pulled his lance back to swing at Kirito's head.

The black swordsman bent backwards, causing the lance to miss its target, but then it vanished.

A faint breeze from his right was the only sign Kirito had of the next attack. He thrust his crystal blade into the ground and in the next instant, Lancer swung his spear at Kirito's left side.

The blade strained against the force of the blow, and a vibrant crystalline note sounded out. Kirito ignored it and slashed at Lancer's outstretched weapon.

This time, Lancer was the one unprepared, and he was sent reeling back by the counter.

In the brief lapse that his attack bought, Kirito gauged his foe. Their exchange had been brief, less than a dozen moves, but it was enough for him to analyze his opponent's abilities.

The man was skilled. That was a fact Kirito could not deny. Lancer was eons beyond any opponent he had faced, except for perhaps Kayaba in their final duel. But Kayaba had been manipulating the System to enhance his moves. Lancer did no such thing.

Every of Lancer's strikes were flawless with no wasted movements. They were as perfect as a 'Sword Skill'- No, better than that. Where Sword Skills were a single attack executed with inhuman ability, Lancer's attacks were inhuman in and of themselves.

Kirito pulled Dark Repulsor out of the ground and readied his blades for the continuation of the battle.

That was fine. As skilled as Lancer might be, he was still human, and humans were predictable. Kirito had underestimated the lancer's speed before, but now he could account for it.

Everything had their tells. Every attack was always telegraphed, no matter how skilled the opponent. Speed was of no consequence, since he could compensate for it by reading several moves ahead. The only possible worry Kirito had was Lancer's skill, but that was fine.

Skill and skills were things Kirito possessed in spades.

The light illuminating the ground faded as a cloud passed over the moon. Darkness prevailed as the two Servants prepared their next moves.

A flash, the darkness dispelled by a spray of sparks. Again, the dual blades clashed against the crimson spear.

Lancer stood firm and shifted his stance. The blades moved past him, diverted, and his crimson lance snaked towards Kirito's heart once more.

The black swordsman didn't flinch, knocking it aside to respond with his own offense. In the next beat, his swords flew in a furious pattern.

Up, down. Arcs, diagonals. The blades seemed to be wreathed in light as they launched towards Lancer at a blinding speed.

Despite the overwhelming attack, the only response from Lancer was the widening of his feral grin.

With dazzling skill, he spun his spear and stopped every strike. "Haha! You're good Saber, but not good enough!" Lancer increased his speed, the spear he wielded becoming all but a brief beam of crimson light as he struck.

Kirito managed to defend against the onslaught, but it seemed to be all he could do. His face was stony, locked in a visage of grim concentration.

A stalemate. Kirito stood his ground, but it seemed inevitable that he would fall.

With every passing second, he lost ground. It was a negligible amount that was regained in the next beat, but it was there. Only a matter of time remained before the battle ended, one way or another.

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