Finis Chaldea

A dance indeed, yet only the first few steps had been taken. If Lucius were to make the call, he'd presume the encroaching crescendo and accompanying change of pace. Blades gleamed in the light of a rising sun as they moved about at speeds no ordinary human could hope to keep track of. Ah, and suddenly, there was a sound Lucius sorely missed: the sound of a sword grinding against armor. This instance was not accompanied by the sensation of cutting through armor, though. How strange. He hadn't been required to use much force for the sake of rendering normal shields and armor. This one would take a bit of elbow grease, so it seemed. First, something had to be done about her current movements. She was spinning again, and her sword was rising. Only his head and upper left side were viable targets from that angle. Well... that wouldn't be an issue.

Already having momentum toward his right side, Lucius kicked off with his left foot. He vaulted and rolled aside as a result, but the act of rolling into a new rise would be the issue. When rising, he also launched himself forward again. The same sword he'd used only a blink before was rising as well, sweeping through the earth as it did so. Lucius boasted more than enough raw strength to tear the ground asunder with this simple movement, launching a wave of dirt and rock at the blonde woman's face as the ground was split beneath her. Said split would be nothing resembling normal, but instead one that would continue to grow until even a horse could easily fall into it. Its creation was not Lucius' primary intention, though; his aim was to leap toward Artoria during a moment of lost visibility. A flying kick was performed, aimed at the queen's middle torso. If he struck her, it would not be the growing crevice she had to be concerned about. In deciding he needed to apply strength in addition to technique, Lucius utilized enough force to send one of Artoria's size careening across the field and into a forested area several dozen meters toward the sun. If such a thing were to play out as he intended, he would be found immediately chasing Artoria into that very same forest, wearing the widest and toothiest of grins.

A certain oddity about the Queen of Knights was about to become obvious to all present, well at least the ones who were not already aware. Lucius was quite maneuverable for a man of his size, another good point in his favor. Out of the way with a roll, and once against not allowing her sword to make contact with his person. 'Tsk.' That sound in her mind was not annoyance though, it was sarcasm. Still, this was rather interesting, as he rose just as quickly along with his sword. The weapon wasn't aimed at Artoria, but tore the ground asunder, and sent a wave of dirt and rocks at her face. She expected such tactics from those less honorable than herself. She did the only thing she could do and blinked and squinted within this dust cloud. She braced, an attack was coming and there would be nothing to be done about it without having some idea of where it was coming from. What did bracing get her? Kicked about like a ragdoll as she flew towards the forest closest to the sun, a few of her ribs cracked under that pressure. She felt the strength of that kick in the depths of her torso and as she flew by, she laughed. Her ribs would be healed fairly easily by her own abilities so they were not a real worry to her. "Haha-hahaha!!~" Melodic laughter was heard as she twisted in the air. That fight against Enkidu had done her the world of good for her ability to recover from being tossed about. Her feet made contact with a tree trunk and it cracked under the pressure, being felled in the same moment she kicked off, heading straight forward to face Lucius a grin just as wide on her own face. Excalibur still in her hands, she aimed a powerful stab towards that man's torso with the full speed of her current moment behind her.

Mordred sat atop their horse, with confusion on their visage beneath their helmet. "Did Father get hit hard enough to go flying and laugh about it?" They asked seeming to want clarification about it. "Is that normal?" Gareth asked seemingly worried about the situation. The Queen of Knights had some strange habits and each of her Knights found out about them in turn. There was something ever so slightly unnerving about the idea of being hit that hard and laughing about it with an almost instant recovery. The Queen of Knights was inhuman by Mordred's on standards but they were happy thinking she might actually enjoy something. To Mordred such a thing would only add to the perfect image of their Father in their own mind.

Laughter? Ah... that was an interesting way to react after receiving a bone-shattering blow and being thrown across an open field. Were they the same? Lucius thought as much. He could view this one as an individual who grew into combat just as he had, thrown into a life of endless carnage until the only source of enjoyment was whatever challenge finally came next. Either that was the case, or she was a literal madwoman. Regardless of the situation... she was proving to be exactly the opponent he'd trained to face. As he charged, he witnessed the quick recovery of his enemy. He hadn't even made it over yet, and she was launching herself toward him. How... exciting! The tip of Artoria's blade was aimed at his chest while she moved through the air. Surely she didn't think that would work. Oh well; he'd find out the full plan in a matter of moments. For the time being, Lucius neither swayed nor defended. What he chose to do was continue forward, sending both feet ahead of himself to initiate a long slide across the grass. He faced upward during said slide, allowing Artoria to pass overhead while Lucius' blade swung horizontally at the passing woman. Such a speedy slash could not manage to do anything against the quality of armor she boasted, but it was rather well-placed. He aimed not at cuirass or plackart, but just beneath the latter. It seemed his aim was to gash just between abdomen and pelvis, while severing the leather holding the lames of her armor in place.

Meanwhile, two of the four knights accompanying Artoria Pendragon had questions that would always appear eventually. The younger ones had yet to witness combat of this caliber. Lancelot had abandoned his own horse, electing to spare it the weight of two armored men and a giant shield. He stood next to the beast, hand against its neck while watching a battle that was only becoming more distant as time passed. "Normal? No, it's not. Not for humans. One thing worth learning as a Knight of the Round Table is that our queen is anything but human. That doesn't just apply to the attitude or lack of empathy. In a fight like this, it's like giving a poor kid some new toy they've been waiting all year to play with."

Artoria had started to enjoy herself. Any combatant who could hit her that hard, would lead to a glorious battle. Why? Because there was something new and interesting about them, it was a challenge to overcome and that was what Artoria wanted out of life. Most of the time anyways. That laughter and charge were met by movements of Lucius he dropped and slid, her eyes sparkled with amusement and she saw a grin not unlike her own. He aimed a quick slash as she passed through the area that would have been his body. But in a singular moment they seemed to understand each other quite well. 'Oh. That is why he is dangerous... we are alike.' Her musings were accompanied by her drawing up her legs into her chest, on instinct alone. She seemed to roll into a ball, but she couldn't quite avoid the slash that rid of the side pieces of her armor. Instead she managed only to protect the flesh of her pelvis with the armor of her greaves, beneath that dress. Those side pieces fell away as she rolled herself to the ground before quickly standing once more. She could summon that armor again, but it was better for her if she avoided to so immediately, she might need it as a surprise tactic. "Tricky, tricky..." she murmured, as she raised her arms into the air. She immediately aimed to swing her sword downward in his direction, a shining beam of light travelling along the path of the sword swing. Not the activated from of Excalibur, but a test swing to with a great deal of power behind it. Enough to mar the ground between herself and this man and damage the full front of his body should it make contact. Yes, Artoria was testing the waters quite a bit.

According to Lancelot, the Queen of Knights could be considered inhuman because of her attitude and lack of emotional understanding, but as young knights they all needed to realize that the Queen was also the type to enjoy battles against strong opponents. 'Why shouldn't she?!' this was Mordred's only thought. The Queen did not pick on the weak... this was a good trait to have. She was content to protect others even the knights. Without emotional attachment and empathy she could be fair in her judgements. Everything said about her as if it was negative made her a good ruler. "Well, if she's having fun... I suppose we shouldn't really question it..." Gareth said. The Queen was always so composed and distantly friendly with her own knights, even spoiling her own nieces and nephews. To see her smiling while in a battle that seemed a struggle at best was strange to consider. Is this why she assured them all it would be fine? Was there something to taking on a challenge like this, that the rest of them could not understand? Should they even try to? It was human nature to struggle, and in this case all looked like worms before Artoria's might! Mordred had this thought and was proud beyond reason. 'She's perfect.'

There was no flesh felt under Lucius' blade. While most may have considered that annoying or even disappointing, he was infinitely satisfied. Too long had he been mowing down one enemy after another, regardless of their supposed strength. He had even developed a long-term habit of picking apart armor pieces to keep a mental score for himself, all to maintain high entertainment value. Currently, he could take a count of one against the Queen of Knights... yet his satisfaction came from the fact that he'd been aiming for more, and did not find the desired outcome. After they'd passed one another, Lucius vaulted his way up to stand, twisting in place to view the enemy queen again. It would have been no surprise to him if she manifested those armor pieces again; she'd already called upon it at random not long before. What he did find surprising though, was the chant of tricky, tricky from Artoria. If anything, he should have been the one saying something like that. The people on this layer of the world were allegedly cut from a different cloth. From what he heard, this woman was just some bitch or something like that. Nonsense. He could see it in her every move; there was nothing common about this person. Even the way she raised her sword overhead was such a practiced and elegant thing, he couldn't pick a single fault in it. If she weren't built like a teenager, he would have been in trouble ages ago.

Now, what was the point of that sword being lifted? Ah... it seemed the time to evolve the state of combat had come already. It was almost a shame to see that swelling of mana around Excalibur, but he was also looking forward to greater discovery of Artoria's abilities. Lucius' left hand gripped the hilt of his own sword tightly, lifting it at an angle to expel his own energy. His wave would meet Artoria's, crossing it and causing the dispersal of each side. In that moment though, it would almost seem as if Lucius' wave continued moving forward. In fact, he swung his sword twice, leaving the return stroke's wave to continue toward Artoria after the initial clash.

Lancelot continued watching intently. This battlefield would not survive the battle itself. Three crevices had already been created in the land, and those two were only just beginning to mar it. Galahad seemed to have the right idea about things regarding their queen. So long as she had something to enjoy, there was nothing anyone could complain about. Besides... Lancelot himself couldn't blame anyone for finding the thrill of combat. "No, we shouldn't. You might even understand for yourself eventually. Fighting can be fun, if you can find the fun in it. It's at least very satisfying to win, so surely you can imagine the fun had by someone who doesn't lose."

Artoria still had no idea who this man was, but she was starting to like him quite a bit. She learned everything about people while facing them in combat, and right now she was certain this man could have been one of her favorite people. So full of different tactics, not easy to win against, he was the sort of person she liked to destroy in combat. One of the people who made it difficult for her to be the best an earned victory! Ah, he was even managing against her practice swing. It was neutralized as it would have reached him by a slash of his own power, and another was still coming towards her. "Invisible Air," the whole of her blade was coated in wind based magic, which she used to buffer it against the coming strike. The constant use of it, hid the blade from sight but she was using primarily to boost her own attack power. She could not overcome him with her physical power alone, it was a surprising fact but an amusing one just the same. A stab forward of her blade would cause that mana to shoot off in a beam which would penetrate that energy slash which came before her, it would disperse it. Beyond that it seemed to function a bit like a javelin aiming to puncture the center of Lucius' being with the force of a lance. 'If he hadn't come here to kill me... I might have found myself another practice partner...' she mused. But that wouldn't be it. She'd already said she was going to kill him, so she'd have to make that happen.

The Queen sought victory! That made sense to Mordred. That one had been silent for quite a while, but had come to some strange conclusions about Artoria in those moments. The Queen of Knights was a quiet woman who did not feel normal emotions. She was a person who would fight all battles herself not sacrificing any except the battlefield. There was no way to dissuade Mordred from their current line of thought. The combination of the Queen's apparent flaws made her the best Queen that could possibly exist. Mordred wished to be just like her... Mordred wished the others would shut up! Even now, Artoria was locked in battle and it was their duty to witness perfection at work!

Ah, his destined opponent wielded a bit of magic as well. That was rather interesting; he hadn't been told to expect anything magical. He was surprised, and pleasantly so. What more did she have to show him? He heard enough to expect a high ceiling for the skill she possessed, and he was informed directly about the output of Excalibur. This magecraft was nothing mentioned, and he couldn't be more elated to see it. "Heh? Not bad," he said, opening his mouth to vocalize a thought for the first time since their earliest moments. He looked onward like some sort of excitable child while she thrusted her sword forward, releasing another burst of mana that emerged with piercing qualities this time. Lucius ran forward once more, veering left while switching his sword into his right hand. That javelin of mana was far too straightforward to be concerning, so he ran past it. En route to the woman herself, he let his sword trail along the reverse path of Artoria's attack. In fact, he took a roundabout path to place himself on the opposite side of her. Lucius had a desire to put Artoria Pendragon toward the forest he'd previously kicked her toward. Whatever the reason was, it was not yet something he would act upon. He was right back to watching, waiting for a certain opportunity. Soon, he was quite sure that opportunity would present itself.

A vocalization occurred from this man for the first time since their battle began. A smirk crossed the face of Artoria Pendragon as she heard his words. "Funny, I had the same thoughts about you... mere seconds ago," she said with the utmost amusement. In truth, a person so skilled that she was required to try her absolute best was far from the worst type of opponent for her to face. It let her fall back into the quiet of her mind. It forced her into exerting herself, and there was nothing better than facing a challenging opponent head on. This was an ideal... a way of life. He made his way forward avoiding the javelin like shot of energy but she expected that after all his other feats of movement. He truly should be commended for remaining so agile while having use of a sword. What was more, that constant switching of his sword hand seemed to be something of note as well. 'That dexterity is beyond normal. I suppose someone called the Emperor of Swords should be able to do something like that with ease.' Her thoughts moved in her head as her eyes and body followed this man around her rear. Once more her back was placed against the forest and she faced this man more directly. Excalibur was in front of her, cloaked in wind-based mana invisible to the naked eye. She couldn't help but be excited, perhaps now she could close the distance between them properly.

At the same time, Mordred was noticing quite a bit about the Queen of Knights' fighting style. In the time since the Queen had returned to Camelot, aside from the battle cry 'Excalibur' no use of magic had been seen. Was she really so very capable but so very unmotivated? Or was it instead a matter of restraint? Did she avoid using such things because everyone else was too weak to face her? That would be shameful! Why would she continue to look after them knowing how far above them she stood? She was a dominating force in the world and none truly deserved to stand beside her. Well, because she was a kind. Not understanding, not understandable but perfect for the actual role of looking over people. Untouchable, unquestionable... Artoria Pendragon was something well beyond what any of these people deserved, and still they did this. Watching the Queen show them up in such grand fashion. It was pitiful, but also exciting.

Silence fell upon the battlefield... at least, in terms of combat. Artoria's blade was sheathed in magic which rendered it invisible. Lucius imagined he had a solid enough image of the blade in his head by now; perhaps he could manage against it without issue? Or, perhaps he would turn the tide of combat and have no need to worry about some invisible sword at all. More important though, was the strangeness of their battle presently. It wasn't much of a battle at all for the moment. No, it had become a moment of reprieve and conversation... but only a moment. "Should I be flattered? People don't usually survive long enough to think that about me," he commented. There was truth in such a statement. For several hundred years now, Lucius had known only slaughter on the battlefield. One, two, three, even ten warriors at a time made no difference to him until today. When hearing about the capabilities of Artoria's knights from his own men, he'd occasionally thought to fight them for a bit of enjoyment. Ah, but he always went back to wondering what the person in charge of such a group could be capable of. This was well worth the wait.

Already, Lucius seemed done with discussion. He'd reinitiate the battle, and he'd do so with flare... in a more literal sense. That sword in his right hand rose high overhead, seeming prepared to produce another long-ranged attack as mana coursed through its blade. Ah, but he would not do something so simple against this opponent; gone was the time for that sort of attack. His positioning would be utilized first. Since Artoria made it clear she liked to watch her opponent's weapon so much, he'd give her something to look at. The sun was to her back as Lucius had organized, leaving him the perfect opportunity to tilt his blade just slightly. At the apex of its rise, the flat of Lucius' sword reflected a bright flash of sunlight toward Artoria's eyes. He could have used that same moment to unleash a wave, but again, it would be far too easy, far too... expected. What would he do then?

... He'd unleash a wave. Having already unveiled enough tricks and planning, Lucius would have to be some lesser, even less bloodthirsty combatant to do something that basic. Knowing this, and expecting ingenuity to be anticipated, he immediately slashed diagonally to send a splitting shockwave toward the queen's torso. He'd gotten a good feel of her armor twice now from his sword grinding against its segments; he would not be holding back enough to let it function as such a strong defense anymore.

A moment of peace. Artoria did not expect it to last very long but she'd accept it for what it was. The Queen of Knights faced her opponent with the sun at her back and a smile on her face. Apparently this man thought to wonder if he should be flattered by her statements. And went on to claim that people did not normally live long enough around him to think about him. Those words were confusing and a little bit sad. "If you wish to be flattered I have no problem with it. I came here expecting to perform an execution and I found glorious combat," she said with a cheeky smirk. Truly, that very sentiment made it almost a shame that she was definitely going to kill this man at her earliest convenience. She'd already staked a claim to his head, and he was out to get her, so there were no options other than his death. 'Ah, but what is the right thing to say to that last bit?' she questioned of the low survival rate of his combat partners. "You have my condolences. That sounds terribly boring."

Even after speaking Artoria did not expect much of a break from this man. He seemed to be seeking headway against her with purpose. And he'd take the first action to working it up with the movement of her sword. 'What is that a slash or?' Oh? Right... the sun was at her back, a glare made her eyes close, as she tried to blink away the light. Using the battlefield to one's advantage was a top tier tactic. Doing so in a way which did not make it obvious that this was what was being attempted was masterful. Artoria would have had nothing but a compliments to pay if this was something other than a death match. Moving without sight was a bad decision, her own was still dotted by blinding light. And that sword arm had yet to come down? A shockwave of some sort? Probably... Her armor was quite sturdy she should still be fine for the most part, but she should definitely re-summon it afterwards. Her blade was still in front of herself, the winds from Invisible Air should eat away a bit of the wave right?

Well, yes, but it wasn't nearly enough. A diagonal slash made its way to Artoria's torso and though it was mitigated just a bit, it still managed to cut through her armor on either side of her sword, shattering it and... reaching skin? It hurt! "Shit." she swore under her breath as her armor fell away, and a gentle spray of her own blood ensued. Even while feeling the danger of this man's presence, she did not expect anyone from the lower level to actually break through her armor. Perhaps this was the arrogance of the Queen of Knights. Still, she learned her lessons easily, and though the wounds were already starting to heal, there was still a large gash from one of her shoulders reaching almost to her hip. Her own blood was successfully drawn today, how many managed such a feat in a thousand years? Not many while anyone could see. In the last millennium only the King of Heroes, Enkidu and the despairing child of the Holy Grail War had spilled her blood. "I take it back. You should be flattered. It really is a shame you came here to kill me. A slash like that is proof we could have been friends," she said as she felt the tightness of her bleeding wounds closing. Hm... she wouldn't have full use of that shoulder for a bit.. that was problematic.