Observing the conflict unfolding from their position above, Assassin watched with a critical eye as Caster's master made their appearance. Standing off across the battlefield, atop an adjacent warehouse, they stood casual in stance and yet at the same time exuding an air of a confident and well seasoned warrior. The dark and malevolent energies surrounding only working to further compound the fact that this one would not be as easy of a target as many of the other masters in this War, that much was clear.

A creak from the right, subtle but still clearly perceptible movements from a few meters below Assassin's skyline perch. Could this be the famed Magus Killer Assassin had be briefed about so extensively over the past few days. If so, then the Hassan would have to admit that they were rather disappointed. To be so lacking in skill and finesse that they were unable to even porperly hide their own movements, was this what classified as a proper Assassin these days? How tragic.

Turning his attention back onto the events ongoing below, Caster and his master had finished a rather short and curt exchange, wherein Caster's master had informed the smaller servant that the King of Knights was slowly attempting to make a tactical retreat, master in tow. Such foolishness was on display here, to bring a liablitily as large and crippling as one's own master into a situation as dangerous and unpredictable as this, how utterly naive of these mighty Knight classes.

True, on one hand, it would certainly protect them from the clutches of Assassin, but on the other would make them so much more susceptible to over more overt and oftentime far more overwhelming risks. Such was the case Saber found herself in right at this moment. Only Archer's Master had the proper idea of conducting this fight from a proper distance away.

Then with no sign or signal at all, Caster was in the air at the center of the docks, the long barrel or his pistol braced against his forearm, oranged-tinted speck glinting darkly in the light. A shiver ran down Assasin's spine, his body tensing and eyes narrowing instinctively the moment Caster began to speak.

"Play time is over Caster... I want everyone on these docks dead by the end of the hour." The cyclopic man that was suppoed Caster's master had spoken before. Words sure and without any lack of confidence.

Though divided his attentions may have been, he had heard everything Caster and his master had discussed down below, and from the confidence and already established blatant ability the sorcerer had demonstrated thus far, Assassin had no intention of being anywhere near this general area by the time Caster's next 'trick' began. Quickly, and without a sound, Assassin leapt up from his perch, diving into the shadows of the building to his rear and started on his escape.

He knew he was supposed to stay until the conflict had resolved as he was instructed, but as he had yet to recieve a message reprimanding him for his tactical retreat, he assumed his Master agreed, that it was indeed time to leave while the chance was still there. After all, there may be hundred of them, but their numbers were finite and when one perished there would no recovering that lost fraction of their power.

Behind him, Caster's voice rang forth throughout the entirety of the area around them.

"TInker, Tailor, Soldier, Sailor... Mein bullets punish all without distinction!"

And then -

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

- Four shots rang out into the now suddenly silent night air, the area all around flashing blue for ever hit of the hammer into the barrel of the gun. And the sounds of fighting recomenced, steel meeting steel as cries of pain, anger, frustration and death rose up from the area behind him. Without relent, Assassin pushed his legs to move faster, harder, for death was clearly was nipping at his heels.

"Maiya! No!"

"Rider, we have to get out of here!"

"Lancer to my side!"

And steadily, the sound of the conflict behind him began to ebb, growing fainter and fainter as Assassin made his way onwards, leaping from building to building, over cars and then eventually onto the path leading to back to the city. Then at the edge of his vision, a flicker of blue, coinsided by the sound of shattering walls and rending metal.

Shifting to look, Assassin watched, time slowing to a crawl and in morbid fascination, as a brilliant streak of blue light bore a hole through the wall of a nearby building, through several parked cars currently on sitting on the docks and then finally through his own cloak covered chest. The light, no - bullet, not at all slowing in speed, as Assassin crumpled to the ground and, in a rather detached sort of manner, noted that it was headed straight in the direction of the Tokiomi residence.

}{0}{

As Caster fired his gun, chaos rapidly descended unto the battlefield. And though the mage fired only in a single direction, the hail of bullets, all shrouded in bright blue energy splintered apart and blooming like a flower, rushed towards each of their own respective targets. Bringing his spears up, Lancer dove towards the side as on the of the shots curved downwards in his direction, sweeping low against the ground, leaving long deep fissures in the asphalt they stood upon.

Missing it's first intended mark, the bullet then curved upwards, switching direction almost beautifully as it then rushed towards Lancer's master. However, his lord was not a high-tiered mage for nothing and though initially startled by the simultaneous assault had rapidly drawn forth his Volumen Hydragyrum to shield and encapsulate his form. Utilizing the hardening property of the spell to strengthen the liquid metal into a barrier stronger than any metal.

Across the way, Rider and his own Master had taken immediately to the skies, their mighty chariot dancing through the skies followed by their own streak of blue, elegantly keeping pace. Ducking low as the bullet striking at his Master's shell redirected to strike him, Lancer shifted in his position and leapt to his Master's side, a single narrow opening emerging from the shifting silver to allow them access to one another.

"Milord! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Came the embittered response. "Where is Caster?"

Turning back to survey the battlefield, Lancer felt his grip on his spear tighten. "Caster is beside his master, watching across the way. Both are open to attack, but I doubt it would be a wise move." He took care not to mention that Caster was enjoying himself far too much as he watched them struggle, as he was sure his lord would be less than appreciative of that additional fact.

"And the rest?"

"Rider has taken to the skies alongside his master. Saber has been backed into a corner, and is struggling to keep Caster's assault at bay and the Magus Killer Milord and Milady have informed me of has just now made his appareance." And he had, stumbling out of one the nearby storehouses, covered in blood clearly not his own, one leg injured and yet still pushing his way forward.

"He is injured however. Clearly Caster's attack had reached him long before he could properly defend himself."

Kayneth scoffed, sounding smug, the sound nearly overshadowed by another crash of the impacting the impenetrable walls of the solid Hydragyrum. "Really? Well then, if he's pathetic enough to fall to Caster here, then clearly he's not worth our time."

And with a swift motion, Lancer raised spears, watching was the bullet richoted off its intended mark, shift itself mid air and rush in his direction. With a solid arc, he brought the blade of Gae Dearg down onto the projectile, the blue haze surrounding its form immediately vanishing upon hit and bullet clattering to the ground. Unmoving.

"And considering the fact that clearly, our main opponents now at this time would be Archer and Caster, all we need do is play our cards right and have Caster finish off the rest of our measly foes for us before we come for him." Kayneth, chuckled darkly. "Perhaps it was most fortuitous then, that Waver Velvet stole my first artifact. Otherwise, we would not have access to your most convenient Noble Phantasm Lancer."

Unsure how to properly respond, Diarmuid merely nodded. "Yes, Milord." Because his Master did have a point. Though far, far more powerful than any of them had initially been expecting, Caster was still a mage, a sorcerer and practiioner of the magical arts. Given their circumstances, they out of all the other servant present had perhaps the most advantageous position against the monstrously strong child servant.

Gae Dearg was the bane of all magic, and by extension, all those who casted magic as well. As such, they out all those present had the greatest chance overall of killing this wretched creature.

"Well, well. What's this?" A coy voice spoke then, off to the side, light and yet resonating with cruelty. Shifting in his postion, Lancer leveled his spears against the aforementioned creature, frown growing deeper the child merely stared at the inert bullet lying cold between them.

A hum, and then without even looking at Diarmuid himself, Caster raised his gun fired off a shot, another streak of blue rushing towards Lancer. Without missing a step, Lancer countered the shot, blocking the bullet with the side of Gae Dearg and knocking the projectile aside. It too landed inert, the magic keeping it alive and moving now now dead and gone.

Hands on his hips, Caster frowned. "Well that's no fun."

"Well this is no game Caster."

Then a grin. "But of course." And with a flourish, the child servant pulled forth another firearm from the recessess of his coat, excessively large much like the last but black instead of silver. In the span of milliseconds, Caster took aim with the gun, leveling the barrel right at Lancer's head, before turning not a single second sooner to take aim at the Volumen Hydragyrum.

Seeing his intent, the moment the aim was shifted, Lancer dove forward, not towards Caster, but instead towards his master trapped within the mercurial sphere. Lashing out with Gae Dearg, Diarmuid had only but a moment to cut his way into the Hydragyrum and then out again with Kayneth in tow, before the entire construct itself was blown away in the wake of Caster's shot. Without a doubt, if he had moved just a little bit slower, both he and his master would have been out of the war already.

Leaping away not a moment later, Lancer released his hold upon his master, allowing the other man to quickly gather his bearings and extend a hand.

"Fervor, meis sanguis!" Kayneth roared, breathing heavily and features a mix of fear, rage and indignation at having been saved from near death. "Scalp!"

And in an instant the scattered puddles of mercurial liquid rushed toward Caster, thin needlike tendrils rising high into the air and rocketing forward. Caster was swekered in less than a blink of an eye, but knowing just what the child servant was capable of, neither Lancer nor his master knew not to let their guards.

The blond servant laughed heartily, both eyes run through and out of the skull with solid shards of glittering silver. "Oooh, I can feel the mercury coursing through my viens. Wunderbarr! Combat adaptive and toxic to the touch, a truly impressive construct."

"You haven't seen anything yet!" And Kayneth crushed his extended hand out into a fist, the mercurial ichor forming the Hydragyrum rapidily pushing deeper into Caster's form, occupying veins, arteries and capilaries as whole sections of the servant's skin grew dark and black and began sloughing away.

Then Caster vanished, appearing suddenly right in between both Lancer and Kayneth, arms out and swinging, bladed cards held tight between his fingers. As trail of brilliant crimson blooming across Kayneth's chest and Lancer's arm, Diarmuid quickly struck back, thrusting Gae Buidhe directly into the creature's side, the entire blade of the shortspear vanishing completely within Caster's chest.

Caster let out a cough, blood pouring from his mouth as he looked on at Lancer in what looked like a mixture of shock and pleasant surprise. Slowly, the young servant brought a hand to rest upon Gae Buidhe, and with a small huff staggered back and away, the spear pulling free and the colour of crimson.

"The wound, it's not healing..." Lancer heard Caster muse, swaying slightly, features pale as snow as he flipped open his jacket to reveal blood just pouring from the opening in his side. With a sickening sort of crack, Caster snapped his head to meet Diamuid's eyes. "Impressive. My, you are a clever one, mein bruder. I might just have to take you a little more seriously."

And from the puddles of his blood scattered across the ground around them, the shapes of insects and beasts and men and eyes began roiling and clawing their way out from the crawling red surface. Arms and legs and tendrils and jaws all rising out from the sanguine depths to reach and claw.

Then Caster's form froze for the just the briefest of moments, and the creatures drew back, blood shifting from all around them to gather and pool at the smaller servant's feet. "But tragically, it seem, we will have to save that for a later date mein bruder. Till then."

And Caster vanished, leaving both Lancer and his Master, the only beings, they realized then, still present upon the docks.

}{0}{

"Seras. Alucard. Return to me at once, new developments in the war have just made themselves known. It seems you're not the only one the grail has pulled from the grave vampire."

"Praise be to God and his Angels, for gifting me this final chance to lay low this wicked shepherd and the beasts that she's collared."