Songs in the Void: A Multiversal Score

TYPE-MOON Universe, Earth, Japan, Fuyuki City.  

"Hey, I've never seen you so quiet before." Tatsuo said while carrying Rin through the streets of Fuyuki city towards Mount Enzou. "Are you okay?"  

Ever since Archer's defeat, Rin had been silent. Though, she did nod in agreement to Tatsuo's invitation to witness the final battle of the Holy Grail War. But as such an outspoken girl, Tatsuo found this a bit strange.  

And just as expected, Rin did not answer Tatsuo's question. So, he had no way of knowing what she was thinking.  

'At times like this, I wish Yakumo was here.' Tatsuo thought to himself.  

Although he knew Yakumo's telepathic abilities would probably not work on Rin, he could not help thinking about her. And those thoughts led him to thinking about the other women in his life who seemed to have feelings for him, as well. Namely, Violet, Mai, Aletia, Tio, and Shea.  

'How in the world did I manage to get so many girls interested in me?' Tatsuo asked himself, unaware of what he had done, except in Tio's case, to gain the affection of so many women. 'I guess the hero saving the beauty trope is so common for a reason. But that doesn't really fit in Mai-Nee's case.'  

Little did Tatsuo know, being part dragon actually had the benefit, or curse, depending on your outlook, of drawing those of the opposite sex to yourself.  

Meanwhile, as Tatsuo and Rin were lost in their thoughts, they eventually arrived at the base of Mount Enzou. However, the stairs pedestrians usually used to climb the mountain were still inaccessible after the landslide Caster caused during Lancer and Berserker's fight a few days ago.  

"Well, I guess we're going up the hard way." Tatsuo muttered as he adjusted his grip on Rin.  

Rin, on the other hand, finally shows something more than the lost expression she had been wearing ever since Archer's defeat. Because this was the first time she had visited Mount Enzou since the accident, this was the first time she was seeing the devastation Caster's spell caused.  

"I heard it was bad… But I wasn't expecting this." Rin muttered quietly while looking up at the mountain.  

"Oh, so you didn't lose your voice." Tatsuo said as he took a step toward the rubble that was still in the process of being cleaned up. "That's good. Sakura would have probably been really pissed off at me if she thought I did something to you."  

Hearing that, Rin's head snapped in Tatsuo's direction. She then snorted before lowering her head and retreating into her thoughts once again. In response, Tatsuo only shrugged his shoulders. Then, he started making his way up the mountain.  

"Well, they're already here." Tatsuo said. "I was hoping to make it here before them. But I guess Saber carried Sakura like I'm doing for you. And I don't' have to worry about Lici, she's probably faster than both of us, anyway."  

Once again, Tatsuo's words pulled Rin out of her thoughts. Glancing at Tatsuo's, she remembered something that Elicia had said before about being able to handle the entire Holy Grail War alone. But she had dismissed it back then. But after hearing what Tatsuo said, she could not help but wonder if it were actually true.  

Eventually, Tatsuo, with Rin in his arms, reached a height where the stairs had not been destroyed. And when he did, he put Rin down and started walking the rest of the way with her by his side.  

However, as they got closer to the temple, they could feel the huge mass of mana that was the Holy Grail more clearly. On top of that, they could also tell that there were no people walking around, drawn by the bright light the Grail was emitting. But that was normal. The Holy Grail Warwas supposed to be kept secret from the normal people of the city. So, there was probably some type of Magecraft that kept them from even perceiving it.  

Not long later, the two reached the top of the stairs before walking around the temple and making their way to a lake that was positioned behind it. When they arrived, they could see three people, Elicia, Sakura, and Saber waiting for them.  

"You sure took your time." Elicia said while waving at the new arrivals.  

Tatsuo only shrugged his shoulders in response. Meanwhile, Rin picked up her pace and sped towards her sister.  

"Sakura, you're alright." Rin said, audible relief in her tone.  

"Yes, I'm fine, Onee-Sama." Sakura said in her usual gentle tone. "I was never in danger. In fact, we just sat down and ate snacks while watching Saber and Rider fight."  

Hearing that, Rin's mouth and eyes opened wide in disbelief. Then, she turned to look at Elicia, who was currently talking to Tatsuo and Saber. And because she looked in their direction, she noticed the slightly sour expression on Saber's face.  

"What's wrong with Saber?" Rin asked in a whisper.  

In response, Sakura smiled lightly. Then, she leaned in to whisper into Rin's ear.  

"She's a little upset that she didn't get to have any of the snacks Assassin made after she was done fighting Rider." Sakura said with a slight giggle in her tone. "And it made her even more upset when she found out that whether she wins or loses against him, she won't get to have anymore."  

Rin was caught off guard to hear such a ridiculous reason. But when she remembered how good Tatsuo's cooking was, she could understand. She then shot a sympathetic gaze in Saber's direction.  

Meanwhile, Tatsuo, Elicia, and Saber were gathered to discuss the duel the two Servants would be having shortly.  

"So, here's the deal." Elicia said with a smile. "I'm just gonna let the two of you fight however you want. The kicker is that I won't be sending any extra mana to either of you. So, if you need help using your [Noble Phantasms], you just won't be able to use them. And if you can use them without my help, it will be on you to gauge how much mana you'll have left after you use it. Got it?"  

"No problem." Tatsuo replied with an easy going shrug.  

"Understood." Saber replied, her expression turning solemn as she replied. A moment later, however, she did something no one expected, turning to look at Tatsuo with upturned puppy dog eyes. "But before we start, do you have any more snacks?"  

The area around the lake fell silent for a moment after Saber spoke. However, the silence did not last long. The first to regain their senses, Elicia, broke into loud, hardy laughter while doubling over at the waist and supporting herself with her hands on her knees. Sakura was the next to crack, as she started to giggle while covering her mouth with her hands. And while Tatsuo and Rin stayed silent, they also reacted to Saber's question.  

While Rin's mouth and eyes opened even wider than before, Tatsuo only rolled his eyes. He then turned around to take some distance from Saber, which made her shoulders slump in disappointment. Yet, before she could start wallowing in that disappointment, her head snapped up and she reached out to catch something that was flying towards her.  

Looking down to see what she had just caught on reflex, Saber smiled brightly when she saw that it was a muffin wrapped in cellophane. Then, she quickly unwrapped it and started nibbling like a starved chipmunk.  

With that, Elicia also ushered Sakura and Rin to take some distance while Saber ate. Meanwhile, Tatsuo stopped and turned around when he was about thirty feet away from Saber.  

"We can get started when you're done eating." Tatsuo said as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.  

Nodding quickly in response, Saber doubled the speed at which she ate. Then, after almost inhaling the muffin, she wiped away the crumbs with the back of her gauntleted left hand while summoning her sword into her right.  

"I'm ready when you are." Saber said in a solemn tone.  

In response, Tatsuo uncrossed his arms. Then, he summoned his modified trench knives into his hands while taking his fighting stance while making eye contact with Saber.  

The two stood perfectly still for a few moments after that. Meanwhile, Elicia, Sakura, and Rin watched with baited breaths. Though, it was clear that Sakura and Rin were more nervous than Elicia, who was only looking forward to a good show.  

*Swoosh!*  

After an undetermined amount of time, a breeze blew across the clearing. Then, as soon as the blades of grass stopped moving with the wind, both Tatsuo and Saber vanished from where they stood.  

*Swish!*  

A moment later, they met in the middle of their starting positions. And when they did, Saber swung down with a vertical slash that Tatsuo side stepped to his left to avoid. He then threw a right hook aimed at Saber's abdomen in retaliation.  

In response, Saber quickly stepped back, just barely avoiding the blades covering Tatsuo's hands. She then adjusted her grip on her hilt and slashed upwards and to the right, aiming at Tatsuo's outstretched right arm.  

Lowering his posture, Tatsuo ducked under Saber's slash. However, the end of his pony tail was cut off when it flapped with his movement. Yet, that did not seem to bother him as he swept his right leg at Saber's ankles.  

Taking a quick step backwards, Saber avoided having her footing disturbed. However, she was forced to guard with the flat of her blade when Tatsuo continued his momentum and rolled into a spinning side kick.  

*Clang~~~~~~~~~~!*  

The sound of the impact echoed throughout the clearing. Even so, despite the force behind Tatsuo's kick, Saber did not step back even a little. Instead, she put more force into her arms and pushed forward, trying her best to disrupt Tatsuo's balance.  

But to Saber's surprise, instead of pushing against Saber's sword, he let himself be pushed away, side-flipping away. As a result of the loss of a counterforce, Saber ended up slightly overextending, which Tatsuo intended to take advantage of.  

While in midair, Tatsuo swung both arms at Saber, ejecting a number of needles from his wrist guards.  

*Ting!* *Ting!* *Ting!* *Ting!* *Ting!*  

Saber, however, was not caught off guard, as she swung her sword rapidly to deflect each projectile with ease. However, just as she slashed to deflect the last one, Tatsuo once again appeared in front of her with his blades crossed and aimed at Saber's throat.  

*Clang!*  

Once again, however, Saber was able to defend in the nick of time, as she positioned her sword at the intersection of Tatsuo's blades.  

"You're quite skilled in frontal combat for an assassin." Saber said calmly as she once again met eyes with Tatsuo. "I must say, I'm rather impressed."  

"And I'm glad that you're closer to your full potential, Saber." Tatsuo replied. "Otherwise, this would have been boring. But still, you're not showing me everything yet."  

"Neither are you." Saber said bluntly.  

"Yeah, I just wanted to give you a little time to warm up." Tatsuo said cockily. "But I think it's time for us to take this seriously, don't you?"  

Instead of replying verbally, Saber's eyes narrowed slightly. Then, she quickly shifted to her left with her sword still caught between Tatsuo's knives, took a step forward, and dug the pommel of her sword into Tatsuo's abdomen.  

"Gahh!" Tatsuo groaned as the air was knocked out of his lungs.  

*Swish!*  

Saber then followed up by separating the blade from Tatsuo's knives by lowering her sword into a low stance before swinging upwards at Tatsuo's chest.  

Tatsuo, despite not being able to breath properly, reacted quickly by bending his back out of the way of Saber's slash. At the same time, he flipped the knife in his right hand into a reverse grip before stabbing at Saber's abdomen.  

*Screech!*  

To avoid Tatsuo's stab, Saber simply took a step forward. As a result, Tatsuo's blade only scraped against her waist guard. At the same time, Saber turned quickly and swung down at Tatsuo while he was still in an awkward position.  

*Clang!*  

*Bang!*  

Quickly pulling his weapons in front of himself to defend, Tatsuo was slammed back first into the ground due to the force behind Saber's slash. However, he did not stay on the ground for long, as he rolled to his side to avoid Saber's follow up downward stab before pushing himself up and away while throwing another volley of needles.  

This time, instead of deflecting the needles with her sword, Saber raised her gauntlet to cover her face while allowing the needles to strike her armor as she dashed forward in pursuit of Tatsuo.  

Seeing Saber hot on his trail, Tatsuo took off, dashing to his right. he then threw another volley of needles, knowing that they would do little to slow Saber down. And just as he expected, Saber once again raised her arm to let the needles clink off of her armor However, that was exactly what Tatsuo was waiting for.  

As soon as Saber raised her arm, blocking her field of vision, Tatsuo quickly changed direction. Then, before Saber could lower her arm, he appeared right in front of her and grabbed her raised arm. He then stepped in hard and slammed his shoulder into her chest plate.  

*Clang!*  

Tatsuo's attack momentarily knocked Saber off balance. Tatsuo then stepped in even further, twisted so that his back was against her chest, lowered his center of gravity, and threw the King of Knights over his shoulder.  

*Bang!*  

A moment later, Saber's back slammed into the ground. Though, she took care to protect her head and neck when she fell. All the while, she did not release her sword. As a result, she swept it upwards at Tatsuo's arms, forcing him to release her other arm and step back.  

*Swish!*  

Saber then rolled over and swept her sword at Tatsuo's legs, causing him to take another step backwards before performing a rising slash as she got to her feet.  

*Clang!*  

Reacting quickly, Tatsuo planted his back foot before throwing a heavy left hook at the flat of Saber's blade, the sound of impact echoing around the area. Then, he stepped in and threw a roundhouse kick at Saber's head with his right leg that she ducked to dodge.  

Then, with the knife in his right hand held in a reverse grip, Tatsuo stabbed downwards at Saber's head. However, Saber reacted just as quickly, rolling forward to avoid the stab. Then, once she was on her feet again, slashed at Tatsuo's legs.  

*Clang!*  

However, instead of dodging, Tatsuo blocked the strike with the blades covering the fingers on his left hand. But thanks to the strength behind Saber's slash, he was forced slightly off balance.  

Seeing an opening, Saber's mana flared around her, taking the form of blue flames burning around her petite body. Then, with a yet unseen burst of speed, she stepped forward, swinging her blade upwards, aiming to cut Tatsuo across the chest.  

And this time, Saber's blade found its target, drawing first blood in this fight. Though, the wound was not deep enough to cause Tatsuo to lose his ability to fight at full capacity.  

Meanwhile, as the battle fell into a slight lull after Saber's attack landed, Sakura and Rin were finally able to find their voices.  

"Incredible." Sakura muttered as she kept her eyes trained on the two Servants in the distance.  

"Something tells me that either of them would have been able to defeat Berserker on their own." Rin said in an airy tone. She then turned to look at Elicia. "And you somehow ended up with both of them."  

"Yup!" Elicia said energetically, enjoying the fight between her Servants. "But Assassin was already at a disadvantage because of his lower strength. And now that Saber has started using [Mana Burst], things are gonna get even harder for him."  

Sakura and Rin had noticed those same things, too. On a few occasions, Tatsuo had been knocked slightly off balance when their weapons collided. And each time, Saber was able to take advantage.  

However, when they saw the look on Tatsuo's face after he quickly inspected his injury, they both knew the battle was far from over.  

"Is he…?" Rin asked in a dumbfounded tone.  

"Smiling?" Sakura asked, finishing her older sister's question.  

"Yeah, Assassin has been looking forward to this ever since we managed to convince Emiya to step down. Like I told Zelretch, even though he was summoned as an Assassin, he's skilled enough to be every class other than a Rider. So, he likes a good fight as much as any of the Knight-Class Servants."  

Back on the battlefield, Tatsuo had just rubbed his hand over the light wound on his chest. And when he saw the blood on his fingers, he smiled just as Sakura and Rin observed. Then, his smile spread wider as he raised his head to look at Saber again.  

"Good! Very good!" Tatsuo said excitedly. "This is what I've been waiting for, for the whole War. I thought I would get a fight like this from Lancer. But when his Master interfered, things got outta control and he lost with both of us unsatisfied."  

Tatsuo then dashed forward, appearing in front of Saber in an instant with is knives swinging down at her shoulders.  

*Clang!*  

Saber calmly raised her sword above her head to block. However, her eyes widened slightly when she saw that Tatsuo's eyes had changed. Now, instead of purple pupils with white sclerae, his pupils had expanded to cover most of his eyes while his irises stretched into slits.  

On top of that, with that slight change in his appearance, the sense of suppression she was feeling increased, as well.  

"But now, I'm gonna enjoy this fight to my heart's content." Tatsuo continued while pushing his knives against Saber's blade. "So, don't disappoint me, King of Knights."