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With barrier falling, several of the ships started getting hit with the energy mortars that were still streaming through the sky in a massive concentration without any signs of the intensity slowing down. Splinters of wood shot through the air, but the flagship and its passengers were able to break off and flee to the east. Unfortunately for them, their respite didn’t last long as the targeted area of the bombardment quickly followed them and enveloped their escape route.
“All hands, to the deck! Defend the Master to your dying breath!” Kuro no Rider shouted, before kneeling and meeting his Master’s eye level, as she herself hadn’t the strength to get up. The ship’s crew and oarsmen quickly came armed to the deck and desperately rallied to hold back the fireballs that came closest to the ship, be it with arrows, thrown spears, or their own flesh.
Sitting up, the girl took a deep breath before asking with a tone of resignation, “Rider, what are you doing? They can’t move the ship any further like this.”
“I’m not going to lie to you, Master: my hopes for winning the war are sunk. This is as far as I go.” He stoically answered, then added, “It seems that whoever’s trying to kill us has a power similar to that of the gods who told me how to protect my city, so my defenses were ill-equipped to hold it off.”
Trembling in fear and her voice stopping in her throat, the girl barely whispered, “W-what are you -?”
Picking her up, the Servant answered, “What I’m saying is you’ll have to go on without me, Kokutou Mizuri. I won’t stand for letting you die like this; keep a low profile once you get ashore. I stored a bit of the power of your earlier Command Spell using a Skill I have; I’ll use it to get you out of here and cushion you against the inertia.”
“Rider? Wait, I’m not a shot-put BAAAAAAAALLLLL!” She yelled as he hurled her off the ship, passing between the paths of the energy-mortars and toward the eastern shore. Streaking through the air, she found a small amount of the energy from the Command Spell had returned to her, reinforcing her body and slightly revitalizing her. Had it not, she would no doubt have immediately lost consciousness from a concussion and a critically-damaged spine due to the sudden acceleration. Reaching toward the water as she fell, her gloves skimmed across its surface and began slowing her descent. Gliding along, she eventually came to a stop near what appeared to be a largely-empty dock for private boats bordering a canal leading north. Treading water in spite of her fatigue with the help of her gloves, which happened to be a Mystic Code crafted from a kelpie’s hide, she caught one of the rods supporting the walkways and turned around to see what had become of her Servant.
