""""ALL HAIL THE WINTER KING!"""

Izuku found himself in front of a mysterious stranger, sitting on a Throne. Eyes glowing green. His hair, a mix of green and black flowing to his shoulders. And most eye-catching was the antler on top of his head.

"Hello, Son," the man smirked, as if he told a inside joke only he knew about. He then looked at Izuku in the eye, his expression now serious. "Do you have any understanding of how close you came to not making it? To ruining everything? Sixteen hundred years of planning. The fate of the world. And you're willing to throw it away, all for a girl?"

"Ah, so I'm still alive. Was wondering about that," Izuku replied.

"You died, Son. Completely. The Mantle pulled you back from the brink. You were gone. Then—suddenly—you weren't. How did you know it will resurrect you?"

"I didn't. Wouldn't have made a difference if I did; Ochaco's life is more important. Especially now."

"And the fate of the world? Did you completely ignore the billions who would die, without you? Would you sacrifice them, all for a girl?" he challenged.

"'A death is a tragedy, a million is a statistic'; you can't really understand something like that. I'd be sad if Mom died, or Itsuka. Heck, I'd even be sad if something happened to Mineta-kun," Izuku shook his head. "But such a large number is just that. A number. I will fight for what is mine. My Companions. My Wife. My Children. My Home."

"You are no Arthur," he observed.

"No, I'm afraid not. You screwed up, Dad. You and Merlin both."

The Horned God chuckled, amused by how he took it. He leaned back from his Throne, "Oh, I meant that in a good way. Arthur was an asshole. He got all my Chosen killed..." Despite the stoic voice, Izuku couldn't help but sense a certain bitterness to it, "...never mind the bloom of Camelot. If I'd known what the outcome would be, I would have never signed up for it."

'His Chosen?' Izuku remembered the names. Ailidh. Conwenna. Keitha. Three names he held dear. 'But why?'

"And do you think your Chosen knew?"

"The Coven? There was no way they didn't; Sorcery was alive around them. They remind me of Her so much it was almost painful. No, they walked into Arthur's meatgrinder, knowing full well it would be their end. Each said farewell to me in her own way, only afterwards did I realize it was forever."

There was something about the way his father talked about his Chosen. His expression, his voice, he wouldn't have recognized it before making Mina a Chosen, or even a little after that. But now, he realized...

He 'stepped' forward, "You loved them, didn't you?"

His father gazed above, as if reminiscing of memories thousands of years ago. "Love, huh? Perhaps," he said, looking back to Izuku. "More importantly, they belonged to me. I told them I would protect them, forever. But in the end they died protecting me and the Court of Tír na nÓg."

For a second, he felt like he knew exactly what his father was feeling. It wasn't magic or anything. But he didn't feel like it made sense.

"And Merlin? Did he know?"

"Probably. That man played five-dimensional chess against reality itself, and never lost a game. I just wish he hadn't been so careless with the pieces; I cared for some of them."

"How much do you know? Of what is to come?"

"Not much. I know the Outsiders will return, this time in full force. I know the goal was to use you against them. But a lot of the possible futures end differently. If you die, the Worlds will burn. Countless lives will be lost, gods and mortals."

He nodded. He had a feeling it would be like that from the beginning.

His expression hardened, looking at his father for the answer he'd wondered for years. "Why did you leave us? Mom and me? Why didn't you bring her to Tír na nÓg, make her Chosen?"

The man smiled. "Your mother's, Inko's magic made being around her a constant challenge. A pleasant one, certainly. But exhausting. And I needed to keep you hidden, both Courts have been compromised by the Cult."

"What do you mean, about Mom's nature? She's not a mage."

"No, but she had her own...magic. She's what Ailidh called Blessed by the Voices; a Sorceress in such complete harmony with the underlying music that separating her will from that of The Voices is impossible."

Izuku scoffed. If he was gonna tell a lie, there were better ones. "Come on, Mom's not a Sorceress. I should know, I've been quite intimately familiar with two of them."

His father's brow lowered, "I assure you she is. I have been quite intimately familiar with far more of them. Including your mother. Most Sorceresses listen, and let themselves be guided by the Voices," he said. The image of Midnight appeared in his head, having a drink at a table with him as she told him an ancient tale of Her. "A few, exceedingly rare ones, can influence the flow of probability and the future." This time it was Mina, manipulating tens of thousands of probability as her power siphoned from Izuku swept across the battlefield. "Your mother bends reality without even thinking about it."

His eyes widened, "How? She's a veterinarian, not anyone important."

"I would assume she has what she wanted. A job she loves, where she works with things she loves. A handsome son, destined for great things. A world where the rain falls only when it's convenient."

"She...she didn't get you. She still misses you, you know?"

"I wouldn't be what she needed. Her dreams were for a handsome stranger to sweep her off her feet, then for her life to go as she had planned. Which it did."

"And her bending reality? Why didn't it just sweep you back when she wanted you?"

"My roots are deep; I'm hard to move. Though I could feel the wind of her will shaking the branches those first couple of months. And occasionally since."

"But...why? Why her? Why a girl in Japan?"

"Merlin wanted to try something; to combine my bloodline with the most potent bloodline of Sorcery he could find. To create something new."

"Then he screwed up. I'm not a sorcerer...there are no voices whispering guidance into my ear. My actions are my own. Even when I fucked up."

"Perhaps. Though your mother would have said the same, if less crudely. I decided a long time ago not to bet against Merlin; the bastard usually got what he wanted."

Izuku took a moment to let the information sink in. His mother, a Sorceress? How had he never realized that before? Nevermind he himself was a Sorcerer?

He remembered what he mentioned, "You said the Courts are compromised? How?"

"The War is coming, and the power of the Cult waxes as the as the Outsiders draw near. They've made overdues. Allies. I have pruned the tree in Tír na nÓg, but I fear Erec did nothing to fix Camelot. And the Fae are both proud and secretive; there's undoubtedly some bad apples I didn't find."

Another thing he needed to worry about. Maybe Ochaco could give her opinion later.

"What about the Cult? What do you know about them?"

"The Outsiders are not alive. Not as we know it. Theirs is the antithesis of life. And the Cult of Necromancers are their priests on Earth."

"Sounds like praying to a hungry tiger."

"Oh, they frequently get eaten in the process. But there's always a steady supply of fools eager to trade their lives for power. Previously they would hang around the edges of the incursion, growing fat from misery unleashed. But this time it's different."

"In what way?"

"This time it's war. And the Outsiders are using the Cult to prepare the way for them. Merlin wanted you hidden, an Ace in the hole. Or a Joker, as it were."

"You failed, then. They still found me. Damn near killed me."

"You stayed hidden far longer than I expected, truth be told. Cult Seers have been frantically searching since long before the plan was even formed. If you were so weak as to fall for something like a Hellhound, nevermind a mortal with a knife, you'd have been useless to us."

"That undead purse-puppy damned near killed me. And I was barely 13."

"A latent Sorcerer is a damned hard thing to kill. Though it does seem to manifest very differently for you than it did for Inko. Her life was charmed, but you..."

"...nearly got stabbed in the eye, chewed on, almost got disassembled, had my magic broken by a War God, got donut by a Lich. Not to mention being served medium-to-well done by a dragon. Doesn't sound too charmed, if you ask me."

"And yet, each time it causes you to grow stronger. The Voices don't ask what you want. They do to you what you need."

"And I needed, evidently, was to become extra crispy."

"Son, what you needed was to become a God. Don't you feel the Mantle settling around you? The flow of Power?"

"Not really. But I've always been bad about seeing stuff like that. Apart from there at the end. For a moment, I saw...everything."

"It will come to you. Just be very careful. That Mantle of the King to Come has more power than you can fully understand. More power than I'd entrust most of my direct vassals with, and certainly more than an 18-year-old Evoker should have. Control it, or it will control you."

"And Nemuri? She set me up for this BBQ, didn't she? Is she one of your Chosen as well?"

"Nemuri isn't anyone's Chosen. Hasn't been for a very long time. She serves herself, and the Voices."

"She set me up. She knew this would happen."

"Likely. And if she hadn't?"

"I wouldn't have become Crème Brûlée?"

"Stop whining. What else?"

He didn't understand where his father was going for until he took half a minute to calm down and really think about it.

"Erec would still be King. Ochaco would be engaged with Lord Yarkow, not married to me. Damnit."

"And?"

"And I wouldn't be the Winter King. That's what you're driving at, isn't it?"

"The Voices are on the side of Life. And you are their chosen Champion, as surely as you are Merlin's, or mine. But never make the mistake of thinking them sentimental. If you had to be flogged to the edge of death to win this race, Nemuri will be right behind you with a crop."

"Cheerful thought."

"Nemuri's spent an age preparing for this war. Listen to her, but listen to what she says, not just what you heard."

That one particularly hit him like a sledgehammer to the face. Looking back at what Midnight said yesterday, not a single lie was told. At least not overtly. Midnight said she heard from her sources in the Court and that Ochaco no longer being a virgin was known. But it was him to connected the two together unnecessarily. The same thing with The Hunt. Erec's plan for marrying off Ochaco. He felt so stupid falling for the oldest trick in the book.

His hands brushed his head, feeling his face heat up from the mix of embarrassment and frustration.

His father continued. "She doesn't like lying; none of the Powers do...it weakens them. But what you heard, and what she said aren't always the same thing."

Izuku sighed, walking back and forth. He needed to rethink a lot of things. "Right. So be careful with her, then?"

"Always. I always am. Your little pink Chosen might have more raw power, but Nemuri is far more dangerous. And in the War to come, she is one of your best allies; in this she speaks for the Voices. But unlike your Chosen, her loyalty is not to you. It never will be."

"So. Friendly, but not loyal. How very catlike."

"You're waking up, Son. We're out of time. One last thing..."

"Yeah?"

"Arthur got it wrong. You did the right thing, for the right reasons. If we can't protect those we care about, then fuck destiny. No victory is worth losing yourself for."

Izuku smiled, "I know."

He was enveloped by a bright light, and his eyes snapped open. The looked around and saw the eternal summer sun of The Glade. He felt the grass on his skin. Beside him, was Ochaco, her eyes went wide as she grabbed his hand. "You are awake, My Love. You came back to me. I...I was not certain."

"Always, Ochaco. I will always come back to you. No matter what."

"How do you feel, Love? You came...you came far too close to not making it."

"I'm good, I think. Everything appears to work. X?"

Time stopped as the voice of his sword, Excalibur, entered his head. 'You're healthy. Too healthy. You should be dead.'

'Be nice, X.'

'I'm serious. There's just no way you should be able to recover from that, even with the ridiculous Power the Mantle provides. Your soul was burnt!'

'Some aspect of regeneration from the Mantle itself, I assume?'

X laughed at that. 'Certainly wasn't last time. I felt Arthur die, facing the Outsiders. There were no search lights shooting out of his eyes as he woke up again unchanged.'

'Hardly unchanged, I suspect. Though be alive and unburned is an improvement on the alternative.'

'Indeed. But how did it happen? I know you father's Power is tied to death and rebirth, but that shouldn't carry over to you.'

'What do you mean?'

'He has many titles. The Horned Lord. The Hunter. The Oldest. Cernunnos. The Green Man. The Opener and Closer of Doors. Those last two are linked to death and being reborn stronger. Tradition says the Green Man is sacrificed on Samhain, wanders the underworld, then is reborn at Winter Solstice.'

'Samhain...that's Halloween, right? I must've totally missed it.'

'October 31st, you pulled me out of the damned rock. I'd say you were busy...'

'...dying. Yeah. So you think this is a cycle? That I am cursed to die and be reborn again, and again? 'Cause that's gonna get really old, really fast.'

'How the hell would I know? By the rules I know, you should be six feet under somewhere, not sitting here arguing with me.'

'Okay. I'll take that over the alternatives. How do I use the power of the Mantle?'

'You...don't? Please? I've got the brakes on right now, but it's a completely different beast than last time. There's a raw elemental fury to the magic in this one. It scares me.'

'It's supposed to be scary, X. We're supposed to be scary.'

'Look, I felt that last Mantle. I don't know what your Father or Nimue have been up to, but this is completely different.'

'Like summer and winter? X, we're preparing to fight a war.'

'I just worry you'll unmake a reality or two before you get that far.'

'Let's not do that. I've got most of my stuff on this one. So, how do we fix this?'

'You need to find someone to teach you control. Hell, even with your own Spark you were a small step from splitting the planet. Whatever the Mantle provides makes that look cute and cuddly.'

'How about Booker?'

'Maybe?' the sword sighed in exasperation. 'I don't fucking know. I'm a sword for crying out loud! I'm supposed to cut things. Not play nursemaid to a hungry magical hurricane.'

'Think of it as a promotion.'

X didn't have a head, but Izuku could feel him shaking his...for some reason. 'So, what does it feel to be a god?'

'My body doesn't quite feel like my own. As magic is overflowing.'

'Yeah, there's a bit of glow. Hopefully the girls will like it. Anything else?'

'I think there's more magical Power as well, even with just my Spark.'

'Yeah, that's what I thought,' he sighed. 'Anyway, I'd leave you to talk to the ladies.' Time flowed again, allowing him to continue his talk wit Ochaco.

"Izuku...do you remember what happened yesterday?"

"I remember dying. And being reborn again, thanks to you."

"I didn't know if it would work. But I had to try. I couldn't lose you. Not like that. Not ever."

"I'm here, don't worry. And unharmed, it appears. Though not quite unchanged."

"I do not care. You are back. That is all that matters. Do you...remember anything else?"

"I remember getting married to the girl of my dreams."

"Forgive me, My Heart. I could not think of any other way to save you."

"What on earth should I forgive?"

"I forced to you to marry me on your deathbed."

Izuku chuckled. "You didn't force me to do anything. I only regret I didn't ask you earlier. Ochaco Uraraka Pendragon, will you marry me? My life would be empty without you."

This time, it was Ochaco's turn to laugh. "Foolish man. You are supposed to ask before the wedding."

"A good point. I'll try to do better next time," he said.

Ochaco possessively wrapped her arms around him. "You are already married to me, Dear. There will not be a next time. Not until death do us part. Which will be for a very long time. Please, take better care of yourself. Do you remember anything else?"

"I remember finally seeing the Sparks. Yours, shining bright and strong. And Arcus' Spark, golden and kind."

"Are you certain?"

"Of course. I could see the Spark, in your belly. And I saw what he will grow up to be. Brown hair, pointed ears. Green eyes, with a hint of mischief. Maybe he was 5 or 6, moving through the forms as you guided him."

"You saw the future? But...how? I cannot see his Spark, neither could Kodai. And a Healer could sense far more precisely than mine."

"He's real; I know that in my heart. I wonder...if I tapped into Sorcery there, at the end. Like Merlin and my father wanted."

"What Sorcery, My Heart?"

"My mother is a Sorceress, I think. Just not aware of it. At least that's what my father said. He called her Blessed by The Voices. Does that mean anything to you?"

"No, I am sorry. Sorcery is secretive at the best of times. Maybe you could ask Mina later. What do you mean your 'father said'?"

"I met him, while I was sleeping. He told me about mom. And the War to come."

"My Heart...are you certain? Could it have been just a dream?"

"It didn't have the feeling of a dream. Not any more than I dreamed of Arcus. Or the power of the Mantle. He said the Outsiders are coming. Soon."

Ochaco looked into his eyes, and smiled. "I believe you."

He kissed her and said, "I love you, Ochaco. Always."

She felt her knees go weak from the relief. As if a burden had been lifted. She'd spent all night, terrified that he'd wake up, and never be the same. To never be the man she fell in love with. But the look in his eye, his smile...

He was still the same man. Her man.

Her husband.

"And I, you," she said. "I am glad, My Heart. I felt my soul die, watching you after the attack. Then...then the Mantle healed you. But until you opened your eyes, I could not be certain you were really coming back to me. Kodai said you were healthy, but I could not stop worrying."

"It's okay. I'm back. At least now, we could be together all the time."

Ochaco didn't say anything as she looked down, averting her gaze from his.

"I know I'm not going to like this."

"I have...to go back. To Camelot. With my Father dead, I am the Queen. There is funeral to organize, a new government to set up."

Izuku sighed, "That's fine. I'll come along. Booker can wait."

He was already walking back, but Ochaco stopped him. "Wait. Have you thought how that would look? My Father burnt by magical fire, and here I am with my surprisingly new Evoker Husband and his new militia? Who just happened to be there when my Father died?"

"We didn't kill him!" Izuku protested, his words making Glade groan and the earth shake.

"We were planning to. Or certainly threatened him into abdicating. We may be innocent of regicide, though it is not as if we did not harbour the intention."

"So what do we do? It's a bit too late to elope at this point. And what are they going to do? Both Excalibur and the Mantle acknowledged my claim. Our claim," Izuku said, his shoulder tensing.

She put her hand on his shoulder, "We do it slowly. Statecraft does not move at the speed of fireballs, nor the levers of power respond well to raw Evoker force."

"I'm pretty sure that with the Mantle, I've got enough brute force to push the incalcitrant lever."

"And break my Court in the process? Would you have our reign start in terror? It rarely gets better from there."

"There's something you need to know. My father said that both Courts were compromised. That there are nobles flirting with the Cult. As the Outsiders draw nearer, the Lord of the Cult will only grow stronger."

Her eyes widened at the revelation. "That is quite troubling. How certain are you?"

"I had a god show up in my dreams to tell me? I dunno how certain that is. But I don't want you sitting there, alone, and without the support in case the Cult decides to move on you."

"I would hardly be alone, My Love. I would be surrounded by Knights and house Guardians. And my husband and his army only hours away," she reassured him. Her brow furrowed as she put her hand on her chin, thinking. "Ferreting them will certainly be a tricky task. One that requires guile than brute force."

Seeing that Ochaco wasn't budging, Izuku said, "God damnit, Ochaco."

Her eyes softened, she knew where he was coming from, especially now, her hand tracing her belly. "I will be fine, My Love. If I find something, I will send for you. My messenger will say they have a message for you, from Arcus."

"And you're...off? Like that?"

"Perhaps tomorrow morning. I am just married, if not the grand ceremony I always expected. I deserve at least a night with my Husband and child before returning to the mess of the Court."

"Right. What are we waiting for?"

"We have to greet your Companions first, My Heart. They have all been waiting for you to come back to us."

"How were they?"

"Mina is finally sleeping. She was crying quite hysterically. Kendo and Shimura setting up some kind of defensive position over the Gate. Well, mostly Kendo instructing her, and Shimura blowing holes in the ground. Kodai has been here continuously, insisting she needs to monitor you, 'as the group's Healer,' she kept saying. But Mina finally sedated her about an hour ago when she nearly collapsed from exhaustion."

"What about Yaoyorozu and her fox?"

"Yaomomo has returned to UA. She needed them and her family kept informed. Kitsune-san went with her."

"What about the rest?"

"The dhampir, Toga Himiko, had been strangely quiet since she saw you injured. She has kept to herself since then but I noticed her hands trembling. You should probably check up on her. Kyouka, Toru, Komori, and Shiozaki are gathered together. I think Shiozaki is performing some kind of mass."

Izuku chuckled, "The heck are those four doing?"

"You should probably get to them before they start their religion worshipping you."

He sighed, thinking it might already be too late, considering his last visit to Ibara. 'I just hope she hadn't infected them with her craziness as well. A sexy nun outfit might be great, but getting worshipped is kinda...'

Suddenly, a voice rang out. "Daddy! Oh, my God! I was sosososo worried about you!" Mina screamed, jumping into his arms, her body shaking. Her makeup running down her cheeks. "I...I felt you die. And then I felt the Mantle. It scared me, for a moment I thought I was staring at the sun. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay, Mina."

"You're alive, barely," Yui said, following Mina. "God knows how. I've never read or seen anything like that. It wasn't just regeneration. Whatever happened replicated your scars."

"That's nice. I have good memories from some of those," Izuku said, remembering his gym exercise with Nana.

"Izuku, you daft fecking cunt. When I said set something on fire, I didn't mean yer face," Nana said, slapping his back.

"Easy mistake to make. Glad you made it out okay," he told her.

"Feeling better, Master?" Itsuka said, a complicated expression on her face.

"Alive. Which is a step up from what I was expecting," Izuku replied.

When he wondered if she was gonna bring it up later, she sighed, "I won't. I know it wouldn't have mattered what I said. You'd have protected the Princess regardless."

'I really need to fix my poker face.'

Izuku noticed Himiko standing in front, just staring at the ground. "Himi, you okay?"

She solemnly nodded.

'At least she responds to me.' "Hey, anything I can do for you?"

Normally, she would fixate on the 'anything' part, but she looked at Izuku with a sober expression. She was about to say something but she looked around, seeing the others before closing her mouth and slowly shaking her head while looking at the ground.

'I really will have to talk to her later.'

"He is not here, for he has risen," Ibara quoted softly, her eyes gleaming with a mix of reverence and devotion.

"No, I am here. What the heck are you talking about?"

Next, Izuku heard the rustling of grass as Kyouka approached, "You...absolute IDIOT!" her jacks lashed out and sent vibrations to his temple. It, of course, did absolutely nothing.

Izuku smiled, patting her head. Kyouka felt tears gathering in her eyes. She held his hand on her head tight, making sure he didn't pull it back, afraid it would never return again.

Toru approached, her hand on Kyouka's back. "It's okay, he's a tough cookie!" she said, though Izuku noticed her eyes rimmed with a deep shade of crimson.

"I'm okay. Really," he looked at Kinoko who was at the back. Rather than being worried like the rest, her smile was unwavering. Unlike the rest who were also putting up a brave face, he felt like hers had no doubt.

He gave her a soft smile, which was reciprocated.

He didn't know why he knew that much about her feelings. 'It just felt right. Is this Sorcery?'

Mina gasped, her cheeks dyed lavender. "Daddy? The Voices are saying you're a God now?"

"It's still me, Mina. I'm just holding the Mantle of The Once and Future King. Which gives me powers, I guess."

Ibara's ears twitched, and a small smile grew on her lips.

Mina cheered, "That is so cool! Will we have other Chosen? Then we can all snuggle up in bed together; it'll be, like, totally awesome!"

"I...well. Maybe?"

"It'll be so neat. And Ochaco can join us too!"

"By the way..." Izuku asked. "What happened to the Training Camp?"

Welcome back!

This is a direct continuation of Evoker's Destiny. Glad that you're here to continue the story with me. If you haven't read it, whatcha doin' reading this far ahead? 😅 I'll try to incorporate the jargons organically, but really, the assumption's you've read at least the info chapters.

In this chapter, there are a lot of things revealed. Though it also left some things unanswered.

No wedding night, for now.

As always, if you have feedback or questions, you can always tell me. :)