[h2][center]Kazamyr Silvestrov[/center][/h2]
Around the corner, in the dark interior of his vehicle, the Master of Rider threw back his head in silent laughter.

Oh, wasn't this just rich? An Assassin accepting a head-on duel, and a Master who appeared to have trouble accepting that this was a [i]war.[/i] He'd known these two wouldn't be the kind of opponents he'd expected to be facing from almost the moment he saw them, but for them to be such a delightfully entertaining pair... such a wonderfully foolish and vulnerable pair... ah, what luck!

His attention was split for a moment as the familiar he'd had stationed near the Church caught sight of another pair. A Servant and Master, apparently, and if her headwear was anything to go by, the former was a Caster. Rather than stick around to watch or eavesdrop, however, the bird on the church's roof silently took off, flapping away into the darkened sky. Kazamyr had already lost one familiar tonight, and a Caster-class Servant would be all the more likely to detect and destroy his prying eyes if he kept them around too long. He'd caught a glimpse, but that would have to do for now.

In the meantime, he had a far more pressing situation on his hands.

[i]"A united front, then?"[/i]

The crow that had lead Rider to the scene fluttered up to perch atop his shield, and from its beak came a harsh croak of a voice, a shrill and broken imitation of Kazamyr's own smoother tones.

[i]"Ah, so tempting, so tempting!"[/i] It hopped on one foot, making a gurgling noise that was perhaps an attempt at mimicking laughter. [i]"But what is a mouse's allegiance to a cat? Any good hunter knows that his prey cannot be trusted."[/i] The bird fell still, turning its head slightly to stare at the enemy master with one pitch-black eye. [i]"Is your proposition honest, or are you simply trying to wriggle out of our jaws and live another day? Actually, don't answer. I'll find out for myself."[/i] The familiar's head turned towards Kazamyr's servant.

[i]"Have at them, Rider. If they think they're strong enough to be worth more as allies than enemies, let them prove it here."[/i]