Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon. I also do not own the Megami Tensei franchise, it belongs to Atlus.

Aftermath

Chapter 31

Sakura and her companions stepped through the doorway to find themselves at the base of what looked like a ziggurat. All around them, the grassy steppes stretched out as far as the eye could see, while above them cloudy skies were only just starting to be tinted with the colors of the dawn. More interesting though were the fires burning merrily on the stairs leading up the ziggurat, despite there being no apparent fuel for them to feed on.

A cold breeze gusted, causing Irisviel and the child to shiver. Without hesitating, Kiritsugu pulled off his coat and draped it over Irisviel…or at least he tried, before Irisviel pointedly took the coat from her husband, and draped it over the child instead. Kiritsugu rubbed the back of his head, and then shrugged…

…before staring as Kayneth offered his coat. The mage-lord shrugged as Kiritsugu stared. "Don't misunderstand." Kayneth said. "I merely do as expected of a gentleman of good breeding and status."

"…right." Kiritsugu said, though he didn't refuse either. Taking the offered coat with a nod of gratitude, he draped it over Irisviel's shoulders, who bowed deeply in gratitude. Kayneth nodded in acknowledgement.

As for Sakura, she approached the ziggurat's base with a suspicious air. Reaching out with a hand, she abruptly pulled it back with a surprised hiss of pain. "The flames chewed through my resistance?" she thought in surprise. "Ah…I see…so that's the Trial of the Will. Can I reach the pinnacle of the ziggurat…the pinnacle of power…entirely on my own…without the power my father gave me…?"

Sakura briefly closed her eyes, a bittersweet smile playing on her lips as she chuckled in understanding. "…alright then…" she whispered. "…if that's the way it is…there's no turning back anyway. Whether I win or lose…better to go out fighting…"

Turning back to her companions, she looked at each of them in the eyes one by one. Kayneth and Kiritsugu were coolly-neutral, while the child looked ever so slightly concerned. Irisviel though looked really worried, both she and the child probably having deduced what the trial involved.

Did the men?

Bah…what does it matter?

"…witness me." Sakura said, before turning to the ziggurat once more. And then taking a deep breath, ran forward. Flames roared hungrily as they caught on the wool of her dress and mantle alike, and Sakura grit her teeth at the burning pain as her skin burned and blackened, peeling away as the flesh beneath cooked and oozed.

It didn't matter.

Pain was an old friend.

Compared to the sensation of worms tearing into her flesh, ripping through those parts of her body which should be inviolate, wriggling inside her bodily cavities and nesting around and even inside her organs, nibbling and chewing on them…

…this was nothing.

Then she stumbled, falling on her hands against the stone, as the leather of her sandals melted and burned away. Forcing herself back to her feet, her nose filling with the stink of smoke and what seemed like cooking pork, Sakura gasped and coughed as she saw the flesh of her hands tearing away, parts of it left behind fused to the red-hot stone of the steps.

Gritting her teeth once more, Sakura ripped her bare feet clear of the stones, forced herself up another step…

…and stumbled once more, and fell onto the steps again.

"…no…I can't…this isn't…" panicked thoughts flashed through Sakura's mind as she realized that the flames had ruined her leg's tendons, leaving them and her feet unable to support her weight. And if they couldn't…

…how was she able to keep climbing?

…

…

…

…

…

No…it couldn't end like this. Not like this…

Louis nodded once at Sakura, his face set with sadness and acceptance, before turning away.

Sakura grit her teeth, and ignoring the way her flesh tore and sloughed off, dragged herself up. Step by step, she forced her way up several levels, until she reached a landing, and peering up struggled to see through greasy clouds of smoke – wafting from her burning body – up the stairs and several more landings to the ziggurat's peak.

Then she cried out, as the heat caused an eyeball to burst, boiling blood, pus, and other fluids spilling over the charring flesh of her cheek.

Kariya smiled sadly, before looking down and away with sadness and grief.

A feral growl escaped Sakura's throat as she pulled herself across the landing, ignoring the way her breasts and belly tore and allowed her internal organs to spill out, burning against the red-hot stone, forcing herself up to the next set of stairs. Pushing herself up on hands reduced to blackened and crumbling flesh and bone, Sakura collapsed as her wrists gave way, crying out weakly as her face fell on its side against the stone.

Shirou looked at Sakura with a pleading and encouraging look on his face, fists clenched and beating at the air in front of him.

Sakura's only remaining eye widened, the red iris beginning to glow. "I…I…I…" she forced out, as her nose melted off and crimson lines lit up along her face, down her body and wound around her limbs, even those that were no longer there. And then they flashed to gold, as Sakura screamed in defiance. "…I WON'T LET IT END LIKE THIS!"

Gold turned to blinding white, following by an explosion of power that snuffed out all the fires on the ziggurat, and blasting outwards across the steppe. Kiritsugu and everyone else present at the ziggurat's base were sent flying by the blast, tumbling across the grassy ground before finally coming to a halt. For a few moments, the just lay there, groaning and moaning at the dull ache of their bodies, and then they began to stir.

It was Kayneth who first noticed it, a rapidly growing – closing – wave of blinding light stretching end-to-end across the horizon. And then before he could speak, they were all sent tumbling again, this time in the ziggurat's direction, as the light coalesced at its peak.

For several long moments, there was only a wild shimmering of golden light, flickering back and forth. And then the shimmering steadied, giving way to form and solidity, until Sakura stood once more on the world, high atop the ziggurat's peak, staring in wonder at her arms and at herself.

As before, she wore a calf-length Roman dress in white wool over a pair of sandals, but now gleaming plates of celestial bronze had affixed themselves over her body. Her greaves and arm guards both featured sharpened flanges, while her breastplate had been outwardly sculpted into the visage of a glaring buck, a pair of horns curving up and out.

Sculpted eyes glared out from her pauldrons, and patting at her head, Sakura felt a circlet of gold around her head, a trio of gems at its crown. Then feeling a nudge at her soul, Sakura turned, the white cape which had replaced her mantle swirling around her, and looked into the shadowy depths of the shrine behind her.

Following the call, she entered the shrine, her eyes instantly adjusting and then widening at the sight that met her. There, resting on a pedestal in the middle of the shrine, was a spear, made from gilded wood with inscriptions in raised relief running along the shaft in what looked like Babylonian cuneiform, well over a meter long, and made even longer by the crystalline spearhead, almost twelve inches long if Sakura guessed.

Picking up the spear, Sakura ran her hands over the shaft, and marveling at how right it felt in her hands. She practiced a few forms with it, and then feeling the call once more, let the spear slide back in her hands, until she held the spearhead eye level to herself.

And then driven purely by instinct, Sakura stabbed the spearhead through her hand, ignoring the pain and letting her blood soak into the crystal. It drank it up like a thirsty man drank up water, the spearhead and the inscriptions alike turning red as blood, and staying that way as Sakura pulled the spear out of her hand, the wound closing in an instant.

Flourishing the spear, Sakura whispered words…no…not words…a name that boiled out from the depths of her soul. This spear…this weapon…it was a part of her. How could she not know much less deny its name?

"Chorus…Chorus de Maledicto…" she whispered, and then slammed the spear's end against the ground, held two-handed pointed upwards before her. And all was light.

"…thankfully civilian casualties are light," Luvia said with a sigh as she plopped down on a piece of broken masonry. "With most of the dead being metropolitan police and SDF troops. Still, it comes to over one thousand and five hundred dead, and the only reason it isn't higher is because of the fairies and the Ring of Gaia helping the SDF out."

"And the city was just starting to recover from the attack months ago…" Shirou mournfully said.

"Yeah…" Luvia said with a nod. "Between this attack and the previous one, as well as similar incidents across Japan…all in all, the damage comes close to a hundred billion Yen."

Luvia paused, and narrowed her eyes. "It doesn't help that this latest attack has the attackers with clear Christian imagery and motifs." She warned. "I've heard riots have broken out in Tokyo and other places, with churches being burned to the ground by angry mobs. I've also heard that the papal nuncio and other high-ranking church personnel in Japan have been taken into protective custody, and that the SDF had to place security cordons around related areas like the Vatican's mission in Tokyo. Otherwise, the mobs would storm them."

"Yeah, and it's no different here too." Kariya said, looking extremely angry as he walked over, for all that he was nursing a broken arm and had bloody bandages wrapped over a third of his face, including an eye. Taiga immediately hurried over, and caught the man in a hug that had Shirou raising his eyebrows. Kariya winced as Taiga's gesture caused his injuries to flare up. "There are whispers, you know. Spreading around the refugee camps and the beltline. They're saying the old Tokugawa Shoguns had the right idea. Ban Christianity here, and kick all the Christians out, except those here for business or diplomatic reasons. And considering how these…angels…"

Kariya paused at that to spit. "…came out of the blue and started slaughtering people for no reason," he continued. "I can't say I blame them. Or for that matter, thanking the ones who fought to defend them. The fairies for one, and the Ring for another."

"And Japan's already majority polytheist." Luvia said in an offhand manner. "If anything, this is going to make people cling to their native faith even more. Especially since from what I know, the kami of the Shinto religion aren't all that different from the fey themselves."

"It's more complicated than that," Taiga said while scratching a cheek. "But it's close enough. Though that makes me think we better not let people find out I can channel Susanoo's powers as my Persona. I can imagine their possible reactions, and I'd rather it not become reality."

"You afraid they might start worshipping you, Fuji-nee?" Shirou teased, and smirked as Taiga stuck her tongue out at him.

"Anyway," Kariya began. "Any word on Sakura and her father?"

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear." Louis said, literally appearing out of nowhere and walking out from behind a broken pillar nearby. "My apologies for not involving myself in this, but I had bigger fish to fry. And before you ask, I will tell you this."

Louis paused, and then turned to Shirou. "That Archangel you killed," Louis continued. "Raphael? He wasn't in charge. Not really…of this operation, yes, but of each and every one of them around the world? No…there are bigger, more powerful figures pulling the strings. So I went and made sure they wouldn't get any ideas beyond what's already in motion."

Kariya made a sound of disgust, while everyone present had grim expressions on their faces. "They're not going to give up, are they?" Luvia asked.

"…I'd rather they reveal more of their hand before putting them down for good." Louis admitted after a moment, and then silenced the horrified Taiga and Kariya with a look. "The Three Wise Men aren't all that formidable when all is said and done. They're schemers, and while they can cause a lot of trouble, there are worse figures who can replace them if we take them out too early."

"Pick our poisons, huh?" Kariya asked in disguise. "I don't like it…but I suppose it just can't be helped."

"As you say," Louis said. "As for Sakura…well, she should be around soon…ah, like I said, speak of the devil, and he shall appear, or shall I say she?"

Louis smiled as everyone turned in the direction of a sudden gust of wind, and eyes widened at the sight of a swirling portal opening out into empty steppes. And then Sakura walked through the portal, encased in golden armor, white cloth billowing in the wind, and crowned in gold set with a trio of gems that shone with rainbow light.

"Sakura…" Shirou began as Luvia got to her feet. "…is that you?"

Sakura smirked, striking a casual pose with a hand on her waist. "Looks like I missed something big." She said while looking around. "But it also looks like you dealt with it, and got upgrades in the process."

"…yeah," Shirou said, before giving a sigh. "Not really sure I should be happy though, and we could have used your help…"

"Shirou? Is that you?"

Shirou trailed off, eyes wide and mouth working wordlessly in surprise, staring at one of two figures to come through the portal next. Sakura's smile softened, and she stepped aside, before gesturing invitingly at Shirou.

"D-dad…?" Shirou said, shakily stepping forward. "Is that…is that really you?"

"My gods…" Kiritsugu said as he stared at his son. "…Shirou you've grown up."

Shirou didn't bother to waste words. Instead, he ran forward, and engulfed Kiritsugu in a tight embrace. Irisviel could only smile at the sight, unable to deny her adopted son's genuine feelings for her husband (as well as some amusement at how Kiritsugu staggered at Shirou's plate-armored weight), even more so as Kiritsugu hugged him back. It only lasted for a few moments, but it was worth all the world.

"Dad…" Shirou said with a shaky voice, tears trickling from his eyes. "…how?"

"Well, let's just say I made a deal with the devil." Kiritsugu said with a shrug. "Not really sure what I was thinking at the time, but that's not important. Shirou, I have someone I want to introduce to you."

Kiritsugu paused, and then smiling, placed an arm around Irisviel's shoulders. "Shirou," he said. "This is my wife, Irisviel von Einzbern. Your mother."

Shirou stared. Irisviel smiled at him. "Hello Shirou." She said. "It's nice to meet you. And I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you growing up."

"…I…" Shirou fumbled while shaking his head, and then giving a stuttering laugh. "…I…I have a mom…"

"Yes, you do." Irisviel said, walking forward to put her hands on Shirou's shoulders and smiling wider.

Shirou smiled wider, and then to Irisviel's surprise, hugged her tight. Her knees buckled from Shirou's plate-armored weight, needing Kiritsugu to support them both, but Irisviel didn't mind. "…I have a mom…" Shirou happily babbled. "…I have a mom…"

"Yeah, you do." Kiritsugu said with a smile.

"…Uncle…Kariya…" the child said in disbelief, and causing Kariya's eyes to go wide.

"…Sakura…is that you?" he said, staggering forward with eyes wide, staring at his adopted niece, as she had been ten years ago.

"…but…you died…" the child whispered. "…I saw you die…the worms…they ate you…"

"…yes, they did." Kariya grimly said. "But I'm back now. And this time, I won't leave you again."

The child shook her head. "…no…" she said. "…it can't be…you can't…you can't go against grandfather's will…no one can…"

"Oh, but I can." Louis cut in, and twirling a finger through the air. It rippled and then coalesced into the image of what looked like a sphere of black rock suspended over a bubbling pool of lava, and chained to it spread-eagled with the chains pulled tight was a very familiar figure. "I understand that that little amateur who once called himself Makiri Zolgen and then Zouken Matou had quite the promise…but at the end of the day, he is not even close to being a factor in the grand design of the cosmos. Just a pawn which once managed to scratch the hand which moved it."

Louis snapped his fingers and the image disappeared. "He will be of no further concern to you, child." He said, and the way his mismatched eyes bored into her own was enough to convince the child not to disagree. "As per our agreement, for which you have my thanks."

"Dad, you're scaring my younger self." Sakura said, walking over to address her father directly.

Louis smiled and nodded, before adjusting his daughter's crown. Well, it was more a circlet, but that was semantics when all is said and done. "I'm sorry." He apologized. "I had every confidence in you, but the last trial…the Trial of the Will…"

"It's fine." Sakura interrupted with a smile. "Power is something that's earned, not given. Just like everything else. Otherwise, you wouldn't value it. And the other trials certainly earned me more than power."

"Oh?"

"I met my brother, and we promised to spend time when we could in the future. I also admitted quite a few truths about myself. Very useful, no doubt…"

Louis smiled, and then leaned forward to kiss Sakura on the forehead. Then leaning back, he smoothed her cape, and then looked her in the eyes. "It's all just about ready." He said. "The endgame. Just a few more preparations, and we can begin."

"I'm ready." Sakura said with a nod. "The Dance of Curse will break the chains, and free these Worlds to win a tomorrow that never ends."

"Poetic, aren't we?"

"I like to think I got it from you."

Louis just laughed.

"Lord Archibald," Luvia said. "I see you've gained a second lease on life. Congratulations…and let me offer you the hope it goes better than the last time."

"It's actually Lord El-Melloi," Kayneth corrected. "Which you should know if you recognize me by sight."

"I mean no disrespect," Luvia replied. "Either to yourself, or to your little sister, the current lord, Lady Reines El-Melloi Archisorte."

Kayneth blinked, and then an expression of delight dawned on his face. "Ah, so little Reines is now Lord El-Melloi?" he asked while clapping his hands together. "I am very delighted to hear that, and even happier for little Reines to climb so high. Though…considering I've been told it's only been ten years since my previous demise, Reines wouldn't even be twenty yet. Who is her regent, if I might ask?"

"That would be Lord Waver El-Melloi II."

Kayneth's face turned wooden. "…any relation to Waver Velvet?" he asked tonelessly.

Luvia blinked. "I believe that was his name before becoming Lord El-Melloi II." She said.

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Kayneth shouted, pacing around with hands on his head, his face a mix of outrage and worry. "That snot-nosed upstart of a brat is Lord El-Melloi II? How? Why? This won't do at all! I needs must take things in hand once more before he ruins everything! He must have tricked Reines somehow. Oh no…could he have designs on her? I'LL KILL HIM!"

Kayneth paused, and then coughed before giving a courtly bow to Luvia. "My apologies, my lady." He said. "Such a disgraceful show is beneath us…may I have the honor of your name?"

Luvia clicked her heels together, and gave a bow cavalry-style. "I have the honor, my lord," she began. "To be named Luviagelita Edelfelt, the Eighth Head of Edelfelt, and as of this day, the Star Maiden Incarnate, Avatar of the Goddess Astraea."

"Ah…a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Edelfelt. Truly…the star goddess has chosen a most worthy figure as her avatar."

"I am flattered to hear that, my lord."

"I would be most grateful, Lady Edelfelt," Kayneth began after a moment. "And much obliged to you, if you could arrange transport to London. There are…certain, matters that need my personal attention."

"That can be arranged." Luvia said with a nod. "Though, if I may say so, my lord, it's been ten years since you've been in the Clock Tower. Between such a length of time and recent events, it would be wise to put off your departure until you have been brought up to speed. At the expense of sounding…immodest, I dare to say I am more than able to inform you of all the changes in the past ten years, and can even offer a private line to my sister in the Clock Tower, that she may inform you of the most recent events therein."

Kayneth stroked his chin in thought, his eyes showing the turmoil between his reasoned intellect and his emotional desires. At length though, he finally nodded. "A most prudent and wise line of reasoning, Lady Edelfelt." He said. "And a most generous offer too, and one which I accept. Though I cannot speak for my family at this time, I can offer my gratitude and obligation to you for your assistance."

"You are welcome, Lord Kayneth." Luvia said. "It's best that we hold such conversations in private, of course. That, and it must wait until I do my part in at least calming things down after recent events here."

"…hmm…I suppose so…it is only a matter of noblesse oblige."

"As you say, my lord, as you say."

Pixie settled down on top of Sakura's head, and then leaning over her crown, looked upside down into Sakura's eyes. "Hey!" she said.

"Hey to you too." Sakura replied.

Pixie pouted. "Couldn't you have brought me along?" she asked. "From the sound of things you had a lot of fun."

"I couldn't." Sakura said. "They were my trials. I had to face them, and overcome them completely on my own. It wouldn't mean anything if I had help on the way."

"…point." Pixie admitted. "Your boyfriend's got a lot of us worked up, though. In a good way, of course. No one knows how – not even mom – but he's somehow a reflection or something of Excalibur and its scabbard. More than that, he's got those two, or at least this multiversal cluster's version of them, and they've not only accepted him as their wielder, they've also let him draw on and use the Sword of Selection as he pleases."

"What can I say?" Sakura smugly said. "Sempai is special."

"You're only saying that because you like him."

"So what if I do?"

"…good point."

"Ha!" Sakura laughed, even as Pixie took off and hovered in front of her. "Anyway…so what do your relatives think about sempai having Excalibur and its scabbard? Or rather, what do you think they're worked up about?"

"Simply put," Pixie said with a shrug. "He's the Chosen One. If not for King – or is it queen – Arthur having also been granted Excalibur by Aunt Vivian once more, they might try to put your boyfriend on the throne of Britain."

"…not really sure that's going to work…"

"…like that matters to my relatives."

"…good point."

"For now, though," Pixie continued. "They're willing to let Shirou use Excalibur as he pleases, to reshape the world for the better. It's not like Excalibur would have chosen him if he wasn't worthy of it in every way anyway. Your boyfriend being associated with you and the Star Maiden also helps."

"Along with your mother binding our fates together." Sakura said.

"That too." Pixie admitted.

"Oh well," Sakura said with a sigh. "We'll just have to make the best of it. What will be, will be."

"All too true." Pixie agreed, and sharing a smile with Sakura.

A/N

And so the Trial of the Will is complete, and with it Sakura's trials. Now she has her full power available to her. Woe, woe, woe, to all who stand against her.

Yes, Kayneth loved/loves his little sister. Instead of selling/marrying her off, he made her heiress to the Archisorte branch of the El-Melloi lineage. Probably even more than that, considering the way Reines practically worships him. Canon Rin, take notes. When the snobbiest Master of the Fourth Holy Grail War makes for a better sibling than someone supposedly good on the inside as you're claimed to be, it doesn't say well about you at all.

Especially since your Shadow is so much more Human than you are.