Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon. Nor do I own the Resident Evil franchise, it belongs to Capcom.

For the Future

Chapter 16

It was well past nightfall when the kill-team's helicopter arrived at Mineta-San Jose International Airport, Yggdmillennia's An-12 waiting fully-fueled and resupplied on the tarmac. Gordes jogged over along with several other homunculi as the kill-team disembarked, Celenike giving a quick look around them. Aside from ground crews packing up and driving service vehicles away, there was no one else nearby on the tarmac. There were few more airliners waiting at the terminal, but they were hooked up to their boarding tubes, with even the recent crisis not enough to completely stop the constant mass transit of people around the world.

That said, some of those ground crews were also approaching, driving a fuel tanker to top up the marine helicopter which had brought them to the airport. Celenike and the rest of the kill-team ignored them, instead focusing on Gordes who gave a curt bow as he arrived. "My lady," he began. "It's good to see you safe and sound, though if I may be so frank, you have seen better days."

Celenike gave a rueful smile at that, before looking down at her dirty uniform and at the similarly-ruined clothes of her companions. "That we have." She agreed. "Still, we are victorious, and all in one piece. Compared to that, what is a bit of grime, or even a ruined uniform or dress?"

"I see your point, my lady." Gordes said with a nod. "The crisis is resolved, then?"

"It is." Celenike said with a nod of her own as they began to walk in the direction of their An-12. "Of course, there's still managing the aftermath, but that can wait until we can make a full report in London, where the College of Law's crisis committee will make the final arrangements. That said, it should all be smooth sailing going forward from here."

As if on cue, there was the sound of ripping cloth, as though someone was cutting through a sheet of cotton with a knife. Eyes turned in its direction, watching as a pair of clawed hands pulled open a seam in reality, before a horse-faced giant poked its head and upper torso out of a space that bled chilling cold and sickening unlight. A sextet of eyes with red sclera and black irises blinked in their direction, and the monster hissed like a snake, a long and forked tongue slipping in and out of fangs that dripped foam that melted the asphalt and concrete where it dripped onto the ground.

"Oh, come on!" Sakura angrily shouted.

"Is there no end to this?" Juvia just as angrily shouted.

"This has got to stop." Celenike said in exasperation.

Alarmed shouts could be heard, the ground crews breaking and running while the marine pilots took their helicopter and flew away as fast as they could. The monster ignored them, focused on the kill-team and the Yggdmillennia homunculi, stepping out of the portal to reveal a heavily-armored body with four humanoid arms tipped with claws, as well as reptilian legs below the waist.

And there, on the right side of the monster's chest, there was the faintest outcrop, of what looked like a Human face, twisted in a mix of excruciating agony and unbearable ecstasy. It took them a few moments to recognize it, but when they did, they knew who it was: Angelica Ainsworth.

"Evade!" Gordes barked, and everyone obeyed on instinct as the monster lashed out with its tongue.

One homunculus wasn't fast – or lucky – enough, and found himself held up in the air, vainly struggling as he was tied up with his arms pressed tight against his waist by the monster's tongue. Then the tip of the tongue pressed itself against the homunculus' mouth, the homunculus making muffled gurgling noises as the monster forced something several times down its throat. Everyone else on the ground watched with horrified expressions as the homunculus' belly bloated up, and then he was released, placed on the ground with earie gentleness, the homunculus periodically coughing up white fluid while his bloated stomach twitched and throbbed.

Juvia gave a wordless scream, all too familiar with what had been done to the unfortunate homunculus. She charged in, her scream drowning out Sakura's words before the Japanese magus vanished into Imaginary Numbers Space, and leaping up, flipped through the air to bring her foot down on the monster's head.

The monster was fast, though, fast enough bat Juvia away in midair, sending her flying several meters and tumbling across the tarmac for several more meters. Then glowing white beams lanced into the monster, cutting shallow wounds into its flesh, homunculi raining down magically-powered energy beams. Others charged in with their halberds, while Celenike was busy casting a spell, arms held wide and an ethereal wind blowing out her cape behind her.

The monster hissed in displeasure as the beams cut into it, before lashing out with its tongue and four arms. It batted away halberds as they cut at its limbs and joints, forcing a few homunculi away only to get attacked by other homunculi from another direction, then hissed in anger as yet more homunculi brutally euthanized the homunculus it had earlier impregnated with G-Embryos.

"Everyone," Celenike lightly said. "Stand clear, please."

The homunculi obeyed, springing away before Celenike lobbed a sphere of inky black at the monster. The monster hissed and spread its arms as though accepting the challenge presented by Celenike's spell. Then the sphere of inky black slammed into it, accompanied by the thunderous crack of air filling a vacuum, and they watched as the badly wounded monster fell to its knees.

Celenike clicked her tongue in disappointment. "I expected more from my Aphotic Sphere." She said. "More work is required…"

She trailed off as Juvia jumped in, flipping through the air and kicking at the monster's face. It hissed in anger and pain, even more so as she kicked off and away, only to be caught in midair by one of the monster's claws. It hissed in satisfaction and expectation, its tongue positioning itself to impregnate her.

Unfortunately for the monster, Juvia's arms were free, and her right hand was full of gems. "Die." She spat, before throwing the gems at the monster's body. "Sivustatuli!"

The resulting explosion blew off the monster's upper arms and sent it flying backwards, while also flinging Juvia away. She fell hard on the ground, and she scurried away, staggering back to her feet and falling back.

"Did I get it?" she asked the rest of the kill-team.

"Hard to say." Celenike laconically said.

"Fucking damn it…" Juvia breathed, struggling to stay standing. "…I'm running on fumes here…I'm out of gems too…and where the hell's my cousin?"

"Looks like she legged it…" Celenike mused before narrowing his eyes. "…or she's up to something…"

Then the smoke cleared, and Juvia groaned while Celenike sighed as the monster got up, its upper arms missing but its wounds already sealing up with twisted scar tissue. Three of its eyes were gone, but the other three were intact, and glaring angrily at them. With a hiss of mindless rage, it charged at them, Celenike pointing her cane at the monster but the waves of prana it emitted had no effect beyond enraging it further.

"My lady!" Gordes said, quickly putting himself between Celenike and the monster, the former immediately releasing her spell lest she inflict brain damage on her chief of staff.

"Lord Musik!" Juvia shouted in concern. "Watch…!"

She cut off abruptly, as Gordes hit the monster with a solid haymaker that sent it staggering back several steps. Then Juvia's jaw fell open, as Gordes tore off his uniform top, then his undershirt, exposing slab-like pectorals, rock-hard six-packs, and arms the size of cannon barrels. The monster similarly hissed in disbelief, only for Gordes to charge in and deliver a solid right hook that managed to send the monster flying this time around.

"…seriously?" Juvia finally managed.

"Let me guess," Celenike remarked in an amused tone. "You thought of him as a fat old man, fit only to give orders from safety behind the lines but otherwise helpless up close."

"…yes."

Celenike laughed, even as Juvia watched in disbelief as Gordes repeatedly hammered the monster's face into a mass of bruises and broken bones with an unrelenting barrage of right and left hooks. A desperate claw was batted aside with an arm, and when the monster wrapped its tongue around Gordes' neck, the old man simply grabbed it with his other hand, and bringing the squirming tip to his mouth, bit down hard and tore it off.

The monster screamed and scrambled away in agony, Gordes spitting out the piece of tongue in his mouth and stomping over to resume the brutal beatdown. "Gordes Musik Yggdmillennia has the highest close combat rating in the whole of Yggdmillennia." Celenike said. "I'm sure you can see that now."

"…yes, I can." Juvia admitted, a hand on her head in disbelief at how such an unimpressive-looking man was actually so jacked.

Meanwhile, Gordes landed a punch into the monster's gut, and as it keeled forward, backhanded it away several meters across the tarmac. Stopping on all fours, the monster shook its head, then narrowing its eyes, hissed in rage before charging like a bull.

Gordes adjusted his footing and spread his arms, then catching the monster's charge, grunted as the force pushed him back several steps. Then he grunted again, before finding his grip to lift the frantically flailing monster and bringing it down in a suplex.

Juvia couldn't help it. She let out a loud whoop of approval, pumping both hands into the air. "Ten out of ten!" she yelled.

"Charge cycle engaged." The thought abruptly slipped into the kill-team's minds, all of them turning in its direction. There in the distance, was a tri-pronged construct of metal jutting out from Imaginary Numbers Space, crackling with energy. "Zarathustra Cannon: firing preparations complete. Safety locks released. Energy level at 0.3%. All safeties disengaged. Firing vector confirmed, locking on target. Raise the trigger."

"Oh, shit!" Juvia swore, before grabbing and dragging a surprised Celenike away. "We have to find cover, now! Sakura's going to fire her x-ray laser, and we're right in the target zone!"

Celenike blinked before looking over her shoulder. "Gordes!" she shouted while starting to run herself. "Incoming! Disengage and evacuate the target zone!"

Gordes' response was to pull out a hammer from Imaginary Numbers Space, and slamming it into the monster's chin shattered its jaw. A second blow hammered the monster down to the ground, and then Gordes was also retreating into Imaginary Numbers Space.

"Contrast gauge at brightness twenty," Sakura continued to telepathically broadcast her firing procedure for the Zarathustra Cannon even as Gordes pinned it in place. "Target confirmed as fourth-stage G-Virus mutant. Range confirmed at one hundred meters. Firing in ten seconds. Signal all allies: brace for shock and flash. Firing in…five, four, three, two, one. Zarathustra Cannon: fire!"

Thunder boomed as focused x-ray radiation cut through the atmosphere between it and the target, while simultaneously superheating atmospheric gases to incandescence. The beam lashed out for less than a second before cutting out, leaving only a crater filled with molten glass along with a trench with more molten glass in the direction of the Zarathustra Cannon.

As for the monster that was once Angelica Ainsworth, there was no sign. Hopefully, this death would stick.

A moment later, and the Zarathustra Cannon withdrew back into Imaginary Numbers Space, Sakura already poring over her priceless superweapon in the wake of a firing to ensure it had suffered no damage whatsoever. That, and to replace its safety locks, of course.

As for the rest of the kill-team…

"…wow." Celenike could only say.

"Yeah, wow." Juvia said with a nod.

"Tohsaka has an x-ray laser?" Gordes asked in disbelief. "How…?

"She built it, apparently." Juvia said with a shrug. "My sister only knows that much, only that it's somehow an extension of Sakura's own studies into demonology. No, I don't know how there could even be a connection there."

"…it's a mystery, I suppose." Celenike said before giving a smile. "A miracle, you could even call it. Very impressive."

"So…an x-ray laser…" Gordes began, as Sakura reappeared and climbed up into the plane just as they were preparing to leave.

"Yes." Sakura laconically replied as the plane crew sealed the door behind her.

Gordes hummed in thought, rubbing his chin. "I suppose building an x-ray laser isn't too difficult for anyone who could get the rank of pride, and has ample resources to boot." He admitted. "But to bring it up to that level of power…how do you do it?"

Sakura blinked and smiled. "I'm assuming you don't have the Sorcery Trait, Imaginary Numbers." She said while briefly closing her eyes. "If so, how did you manage to access Imaginary Number Space?"

"Oh, so it's going to be like that, huh?" Gordes asked with a laugh. "Oh, very well. Keep your secrets."

Sakura hummed before deciding to be generous. "I'm recycling." She said, causing Gordes to look surprised and confused.

"What?" he asked.

"I'm recycling." She said with a crafty yet somehow cruel smile. "My family's trash, that is."

Gordes didn't understand, but Sakura refused to elaborate further. "Well," Celenike said with a cough. "The Clock Tower's legal agents will handle the aftermath of Tohsaka here firing off her x-ray laser…"

"Zarathustra." Sakura lightly interrupted.

"I beg your pardon?" Celenike asked.

"Its name is Zarathustra." Sakura replied. "My x-ray laser…I call it the Zarathustra Cannon."

"You named it after the prophet of Zoroastrianism?" Juvia asked before lifting an eyebrow. "Or are you referencing Friedrich Nietzsche?"

Sakura shrugged. "Why not both?" she asked back, before quoting the great German philosopher, and in his native language to boot. "Man muss noch Chaos in sich haben, um einen tanzenden Stern gebären zu können."

"A student of philosophy, are we now?" Gordes asked. "You continue to surprise and impress. Well, I suppose there are worse philosophical schools to follow than that of the Nietzschean Superman. Marxism, for one. Kantian ontological moralism, for another."

"Kant is dull, boring, and uninspiring." Sakura replied shortly. "Maybe I'm just too jaded and cynical, but I find it hard to believe there's such a thing as objective morality."

"There isn't." Juvia said. "Morality is something Humanity came up with for its own convenience, or was imposed on it by Divine Spirits in the Age of Gods."

"Meanwhile, Marxism is just complete and utter stupidity." Sakura continued with a nod at her cousin. "A philosophy for not-haves to justify lashing out at those who have, and who would rather everyone live equally in misery than to have some be rich and others be poor."

Celenike gave a very loud cough. "As someone who remembers the old Soviet Union," she began with Gordes giving a sage nod. "I can agree with the notion that Marxism is rubbish, but we're getting off-subject here."

"Sorry." Sakura said with a small bow.

"As I was saying," Celenike continued. "The Clock Tower's legal agents will handle the complications over the firing of Tohsaka's Zarathustra Cannon. In the meantime, we will return to London, and make our final report to the College of Law. In case of further potential complications…"

"In other words," Juvia grouched. "In case Ainsworth somehow managed to survive taking an x-ray laser to the face and continues to go after us."

"I don't think that thing from earlier was Angelica anymore." Sakura said with a shake of her head. "I mean, sure, its base genome was Angelica's, but by that point, the degree of mutations plus the apparent loss of higher-level thinking capability…"

"AS I WAS SAYING…" Celenike cut in, a vein throbbing on her forehead at the repeated interruptions. "…we won't be landing at Heathrow, but at a small private airport outside the city. Also present will be an enhanced security team from the College of Law and the Department of Zoology. Hopefully, that should be sufficient to contain any further outbreaks."

"Makes sense." Sakura said with a nod.

"Besides," Juvia added. "An An-12 landing at Heathrow will draw quite a lot of attention."

"So it would." Celenike agreed, even as their plane began to taxi for takeoff.

Sakura replaced her underwear as she finished taking a shower in the plane's toilet, before regarding the uniform set provided to her by the Yggdmillennia homunculi. Apparently, she – and Juvia – would be receiving the rank of captain, something usually held by the heads of the various scion families. Well, most of them, at any rate.

Celenike, as the overall head of Yggdmillennia, held the rank of grand marshal.

As chief of staff, Gordes held the rank of field marshal.

Various other senior family heads held ranks higher than captain, though it was rare for a homunculus to hold a rank higher than lieutenant. Gordes' adjutant, for example, was one of those exceptions.

Sakura sighed, and shaking her head, began putting on the uniform. First was a short-sleeved shirt in pale blue with a turtleneck collar, followed by fitted white trousers with gold trim along the creases. Then a black belt with an ornamental silvered buckle, one shaped like the Sun Cross. After that there were black socks and matching boots, and finally a white uniform top, a long-sleeved button-down coat with a high collar, gold trim along its edges in front.

Her captain's stripes on the cuffs were also in gold, while golden leaves on her collar indicated her status as an officer. She didn't have any epaulettes, though, not being of command rank, not that she ever would be, since her rank was purely ceremonial.

That said, her ancestors would almost certainly turn in their graves if she ever joined Yggdmillennia.

Hell, her father might actually rise from the grave in outrage.

The thought made the notion of joining very appealing, Sakura smiling a vicious smile at the thought before pushing it aside. No…she valued her independence way too much. Just mending ties with the Edelfelts – something that would already make her father and paternal grandparents turn in their graves – as well as her arrangements with El-Melloi were already infringing quite a bit on her independence.

Any more was…unappealing, even more so given her plans for the future.

Soon…very soon now…I will build a door…and opening it…usurp the Throne of Heaven.

Sakura smiled as ambition unbound stirred its fires in her soul, before burying it with a lifetime of deceit. Not just yet…not yet…she still had some things to finish first…there was no guarantee she could succeed in her great ambition…and she couldn't leave her sister all alone in the world…the one thing that still kept her Human…

…the one thing that kept her from becoming like her good-for-nothing parents…

Sakura sighed, and finishing up, opened the door. "Done…?" Juvia asked.

"Done." Sakura said, walking past with a nod and a smile. "Enjoy."

"Oh, believe me, I will." Juvia said with smile before sighing. "But not as much as I would a sauna."

Sakura laughed at that, a genuinely good-natured laugh, because it was all too true. The Japanese loved their hot springs, after all, and so she could understand her cousin's longing for a good hour or two soaking in some steam at a sauna.

"Once we get back to London, I'm sure you can find a sauna." Sakura said.

"Oh, I certainly will," Juvia said before winking and closing the door. "Even if I have to build one myself."

Sakura laughed again, and shaking her head, headed off to the main cabin.

A/N

Yes, Angelica survived getting hit by four JDAMs. If you call that surviving, of course. As mentioned in-chapter, each and every reanimation twists and corrupts her genes to the point that it's questionable if what gets up is even Angelica anymore.

Not to mention, as her – its – mutations further progress along, G-Angelica actually becomes less and less dangerous, as it depends increasingly on simple brute force over intelligent applications thereof. Contrast how she was throwing Sakura around and even almost killed her when they first fought, where now Gordes – for all that he's not actually a pushover – is throwing G-Angelica around like a ragdoll.

No, Sakura is not joining Yggdmillennia. She just got a ceremonial rank as a friend and ally of the family. And yes, she has ambitions of reaching the Root, like a good magus. Only unlike her ancestors, who plotted to cheat their way to it using the Greater Grail, Sakura actually plans to work her ass off to reach it. And she has been.