Bone of my Bow

Chapter 4

  Archer was going as fast as he could while carrying me, trying to get to Rin and Emiya before anything too dire happened. Rin hadn't come home even after it was already dark out, and checking Emiya's house showed they weren't there either. However, I had a strong feeling I knew where they were given the recent circumstances.

  I didn't know why Rin wouldn't involve me in this, but Archer confirmed with his impeccable eyesight that they were indeed near Ryudo Temple. He gave me details of what he saw miles away, telling me how Rin, Emiya, and Saber were all fighting Caster and her Master.

  Caster's Master apparently fought head-on rather than let his Servant do all of the work, and he was kicking Rin and Emiya's ass.

  When we finally reached them, Archer dropped me when I signaled, and I fell through the air while aiming for the man in a suit. Magic wrapped around my legs, strengthening them before I landed. The man leapt out of the way to dodge, and my impact with the ground caused a crater to form in the old concrete. Archer provided cover fire for Saber against Caster, and I swiftly kicked through the dust cloud.

  My leg made contact with the other Master, sending him skidding across the road. He was also using strengthening magic, taking the blow in full without damage. Emiya was panting on his knees behind me, a look of relief on his face. However, I saw Rin unconscious against a safety rail over the cliff, and red crept into my vision.

  Magic wrapped around my fists as I attacked the man, and his movements showed he knew how to actually fight. We were striking at one another, dodging and landing blows as our magic collided. Each impact caused sparks, and I increased how much mana I was using to try and overpower him.

  The man quickly jumped out of the way, and my fist tore through the block of solid concrete holding up the street lamp. I swung again, and Caster swooped in to rescue her Master from the blow since Saber was coming from the other side to block him in.

  "Master!" Caster quickly grabbed him and took to the sky. Rather than counterattack, they instead retreated. Watching to make sure they were truly gone, I then turned to the others and saw Rin was awake and standing over Emiya with a serious look on her face.

  "Where's Archer?" Rin rose her voice while turning to look at me.

  'Trees.' I replied. 'And we need to talk.'

  "....Uh, right. We should get home first." Rin looked a bit embarrassed as she crossed her arms, knowing she'd messed up by not telling me about her plan to catch Caster's Master.

✧☾✧

  Snow gently fell as I walked up to the home with older architecture as I had a bag hanging from my shoulder. I wasn't all too sure about this, but Rin had mentioned she wouldn't be the only one here. Her text did throw me for a loop when she had asked me to bring her a bag of clothes.

  Apparently, she was helping Emiya since his Projection spells the previous night had caused his arm to go entirely numb. From how it sounded, I could only guess he had overworked his circuits. I didn't know much about helping in this situation, I only knew in better case scenarios the numbness was temporary, and in worst could cause necrosis.

  Ringing the doorbell, I stood there and waited. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw that Archer was nowhere in sight. Either he was wandering around nearby, or he'd gone somewhere higher to keep a lookout like he often tended to.

  Rin answered the door and took her bag. We talked briefly, and I was surprised to hear she'd actually done dishes after dinner. Saber was currently in the living room with Emiya's legal guardian, but since the woman wasn't a Mage and knew nothing about what was actually going on, Rin was using a 'school project' as a reason for her staying.