A/N: Almost at the end! This chapter will summarize the post-FE7, pre-FE6 fates of the Black Fang members (and related characters), as well as Dusk and any paired endings.

Chapter 37 – Fate of the Fang

Lloyd, White Wolf -and- Fiora, Wingborne Warrior

With permission from Lord Hector and Lord Eliwood, Lloyd slowly but steadily rebuilt the Black Fang within the borders of Ostia and Pherae. Although at the core he followed his father's ideology of protecting the innocent and the common man, he changed the nature of the Fang to make it more morally sound. Lloyd now focused on quality over quantity when it came to Fang members; new recruits and officers were chosen based on their moral rectitude and were tested thoroughly to detect and reject any traces of corruption.

Another major change in the Fang was the missions and tasks that they carried out. Lloyd shifted the focus of the Black Fang away from assassinating corrupt nobles to defending their innocent victims from the backlash of their wicked schemes. Many villages in Lycia and eventually Bern would claim that Black Fang members, and sometimes even Lloyd and the Four Fangs themselves, would often interfere with and defeat bandits or soldiers who were harassing civilians without good reason. The assassination of nobles was only used as an absolute last resort and if no other solutions could be effectively used. These changes would eventually garner significant political advantages for the Black Fang, as many nobles who would once have regarded the organization as a threat or danger and sought its destruction would now see potential benefits in letting the new Fang conduct its missions unopposed. As a result, they would later turn a blind eye to or even lend their support.

To avoid the manipulation that Nergal had used against them in the past, Lloyd refused to service nobles either in Lycia or in Bern with Black Fang units, with the exceptions of Hector and Eliwood, unless it was solely to protect them from potential assassinations. Instead, he always operated on his own agenda, which was secretive to outsiders but ultimately well-intentioned.

Lloyd never forgot about Fiora, and his love for her was part of his motivation to remake the Fang so that she would not have any regrets when she finally rejoined him. After one year's time, he traveled alone to Ilia and submit a request to the Ilian mercenary guild. Fiora sought out Lloyd as soon as she was able to, and they got married soon after Lloyd returned to Pherae. Unlike Sonia, Fiora proved to be a very proactive leader of the Fang, often training egasus and wyvern riders and riding out to lead missions alongside Black Fang forces. She would very quickly become much beloved by the Black Fang's members and was treated with as much respect as the Four Fangs themselves.

Although it took many years for the Black Fang to regain its strength, the leadership of Lloyd and Fiora would ultimately return it to power, its ranks now filled with morally strong, skilled, and dedicated men instead of the liars and murderers that infiltrated it under Sonia's command. When Lloyd was ready, he moved the majority of the Black Fang's forces secretly back to Bern, leaving a small contingent behind to serve Lord Hector. To Lloyd's surprise and delight, their old fortresses and bases were mostly left unoccupied and they were able to consolidate their strength in these bastions. There they would wait, Lloyd ever vigilant for the evil that would one day rise in Bern.

Linus, Rabid Hound

Apart from Fiora after she was reunited with Lloyd, Linus would become the most significant source of support for his brother as they slowly rebuilt the Fang in Lycia. Out of the Four Fangs, Linus was most often seen on the front lines of the Black Fang, leading his forces against bandits and soldiers who were attacking innocent civilians. He would soon earn a reputation as the champion of the people, and evildoers throughout the land feared his wrath.

Despite his reputation and his high standing among the Black Fang, he never showed any interest in actually commanding it. When Lloyd offered to share total command of the Black Fang with him, he adamantly refused, believing that Lloyd's leadership was superior and that his brother was the right person for the position. Like his brother, he never forgot the words of Archsage Athos, and when the Black Fang moved back to Bern, he too stood watch for the return of the darkness.

Jaffar, Angel of Death –and- Nino, Pious Mage

The two were married three years after the war against Nergal ended. Although both were willing to actively serve the Black Fang, Jaffar insisted that in exchange for his continued service Nino would only engage in open missions in which she could be carefully guarded, a condition that Lloyd gladly accepted. While Linus and Lloyd directed the front lines, Jaffar would instead hide in the shadows in order to silently and efficiently take down bandit leaders and corrupt nobles. To friend and enemy alike, he would soon become the representation of the Fang's justice, a silent protector of the oppressed and a shadow of vengeance to the wicked.

While Jaffar carried out the Black Fang's will from the shadows, Nino became a symbol of hope and goodness both outside and inside the Fang. Her cheerful and kindhearted personality inspired Black Fang members under her command, and she would personally seek out troubled Fang members and ease their pain. This earned her their undying loyalty and her forces fiercely protected her with their very lives. Despite her soft demeanor, Nino proved to be an effective fighter in her own right and personally defeated many bandit leaders in combat with her mastery of anima magic.

It was not until the Black Fang finally returned to Bern that Jaffar and Nino felt safe enough to start a family of their own. They would be gifted with two twin boys shortly after they returned to their old home, who would be lovingly raised not just by them but also by their friends and family.

Legault, The Hurricane

The Hurricane who had once deserted the Fang would not only be welcomed back by his organization, but was also promoted by Lloyd and ascended to become one of the Four Fangs. Under Lloyd, Legault's duties would drastically differ. Although he would still be in charge of executing traitors to the Fang, gone were the days where he was ordered to finish off weakened soldiers and those who wanted to leave on principle.

Instead, Lloyd assigned Legault a completely new and unique task. Legault would train a select few members of the Black Fang to form an elite Shadow Guard, whose primary purpose would be to act as counter-assassins on behalf of nobility that were not morally bankrupt. To teach the Shadow Guard how to defend against assassinations, Legault trained them to be master assassins themselves. Although they never once actively sought to shed blood, over the years Legault and the Shadow Guard would thwart hundreds of assassination attempts on innocent nobles in both Lycia and Bern.

Dusk, Legendary Sorcerer of Arcadia

The mighty Drakon Sorcerer and legendary tactician vanished soon after Hector's and Eliwood's coronation ceremonies. Etruria, Bern, and even Lycia searched for him to no avail; it had seemed as though he had disappeared off the face of Elibe. In truth, Dusk returned to Arcadia after completing his quest to defeat Nergal and the forces of evil. He returned to a hero's welcome in his hometown, and was granted the honor or being the youngest elder to ever be elected to the Arcadian leadership.

Taking the lessons of the dangers of power to heart, Dusk dedicated himself to protecting the mighty tomes that he had retrieved from Nergal and his forces and keeping them out of the wrong hands. Although he kept the Luce and Gespenst tomes for himself, he turned over the Ereshkigal tome to Arcadia's elders, knowing that the tome was too dangerous to be kept in the wrong hands. At his insistence, the elders also sealed away the tomes containing the ancient arts of creating morphs. It was far too easy for that kind of magic to be corrupted and twisted for evil purposes, as Nergal had demonstrated.

Although he lived in peace for many years teaching the arts of all four disciplines of magic to apprentices and hopefuls in Arcadia, the memories of his friends and the Archsage's ominous prophecy never left his mind. Fifteen years after his return, troubling rumors and reports started to spread into Arcadia about Bern's increasing aggressiveness. Acting on these rumors, Dusk would set out from Arcadia just as he did years before, ready to lead the future children of Lycia in battle against the darkness.

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A/N: I know this is longer than the typical one-screen epilogue shots, but I think that more detail of the futures of Lloyd, Fiora, Linus, Jaffar, Nino, Legault, and even Dusk were mostly necessary in this case given that the fic centralizes around these characters for the most part.

A brief explanation of what I meant when I wrote that the new Fang was more politically favored over the old one. The Old Fang (even before its corruption) focused on assassinating corrupt nobles. Many nobles, wicked or otherwise, would no doubt want to see this threat destroyed and they're not unjustified in believing so. The new Fang, by contrast, focuses on helping subjects rather than assassination. Instead of being threats to power, the Black Fang under Lloyd is now an organization that can help nobles solve their problems with bandits and overly aggressive soldiers. Nobody's going to complain about bandits being routed out (if they do, then something's not right about the noble in question). With the case of the Shadow Guard, some nobles can now get some of the best anti-assassination protection available. With these new benefits open to the nobility, they now have good reason to support or at least ignore the Fang rather than seek its destruction.

There will be one chapter left, and then this fic is done!