Part 95: Fate

Fate



The final stage of the game. Now that Saber Venus has made her debut, remember that scene where Nero talked about Simon Magus, and how Nero eventually became a Caster-class Servant in the FGO Summer 2017 event? Well, her Noble Phantasm as a Caster featured this as a cameo appearance.



Her Noble Phantasm in this form, Lauda Lentum Domus Illustrius, is basically her summoning a giant theater, adorned with a statue of herself as Saber Venus, and firing a huge volley of projectiles at the enemy. No one ever accused Nero of quiet modesty.


Golden Poem stage 7

It's impossible to break the outer armor. You'll need to destroy it from within. There's a path that leads inside. I can see it opened after the last attack. Hurry. Get inside!



...Damn it, those tentacles are in the way. It's connected to the tentacles that are blocking the entrance... If you destroy them, it should open up!



A lot of the drama is taken out when you remember we did this with Archimedes in his Side Story, even if you can't play that until you finish Golden Poem, but anyway... Saber Venus is basically identical to Nero's regular movements, except she does get a pretty considerable upgrade to one of her special moves. Her normal attacks are also a lot more flashy, thanks to using the Sword of Mars rather than her regular sword.

Two other major differences are that Saber Venus has no Noble Phantasm (that she can use in gameplay), and she can't Moon Drive or Crux. HOWEVER, and this is a big difference in Free Battle, is that all of her attacks count toward staggering an enemy, even if they're Moon Driven / Cruxed themselves (haven't tried her against Super enemies). So Saber Venus is very much offensive-based, and actually plays a bit differently than regular Nero just for that reason. An interesting situation.

You and I together can surmount anything, even the Ark!

Once you destroy one of the tentacles...

Just as planned. If you attack them, an entrance will open. Keep it up! You should be able to see the entrance!



You remember Altera's projectile attack, where she fired off three orbs that homed in on targets? Nero gets something like that, to replace that attack where she flings her weird shield thing on her arm forward in a semi-circle. It's a huge improvement on that rather ineffective attack. Once you finish Golden Poem, though, you can use Saber Venus in Free Battle, but she does start at level 1, so keep that in mind. Golden Poem Saber Venus inherits regular Nero's levels. Once all tentacles have been subdued...

The entranced opened! Go... Destroy it from inside!



Yeah we'll get on top of that. In order to get an EX rank, though, you really need to hang around outside Velber II grinding kills / combo, because there's no way you're going to get EX rank if you go into Velber II right away. The little tentacles won't spawn infinitely, but you should be able to get about a 2500-3000 hit combo.



You wanna know how much damage these partitions do on Very Hard? Keep in mind I'm level 53, by far the highest of any other Servant in the game (if you're not crazily grinding with one character, Nero will almost certainly end up at a much higher level than anyone else, just because she has two story arcs as opposed to one), and all the attendant defense associated with that high level.



Instantly KO's me at full health. Luckily whatever combination of Install Skills gives you a free revive I had equipped on Nero, so I didn't break up the flow too much here. As you approach the core...

This sinsterly heavy mana... We're close, Praetor!



As with our previous outing on this stage, do as you will to the core. Remember that destroying this thing gives a TON of EXP.



There's more than one core?! Destroy the second one, Saber!







Nero Claudius: racist against tentacles.



You do get a pretty nice brouhaha for this final gaggle. Nero's orbs attack is really good at keeping away hammer dudes and do damage to everything in range. Once you're done with these jokers...

Great job! The entrance opened. This is it. Are you... No, there's no need to insult you like that.



Wouldn't be Nero without getting off-track every now and then. Near the end...

Finally, the last core! How dare you toy with us?



This is it...





As a final note, I gained six levels in this stage. Told you those cores give a bunch of EXP.







The end of the Zero Dark

A convergence of mana from a higher plane...! But the matrix computing function in the Ark is on the same level as the Moon Cell!



Analysis complete! Shield set for complete multidimensional defense! Even if this is your ultimate play, I will completely deflect it! Let loose your attack! I will obliterate your hope along with your arrogance, Saber Venus!

Don't make me laugh! It is you who will be obliterated, Scholar! To continue to evolve in the face of the unchanging... That is what love is! If you believe you can analyze it, then do your very best! Burn this sight into your very eyes! Do not forget this, even as you rot in the darkest depths of the universe!



The victory of our Earth, the culmination of all our hopes and dreams throughout the ages! The fruit borne of our efforts, of our life and civilization! From the stage resplendent with flowers, I dedicate this to the skies of the far-off Stella! Behold my Anti-Star Noble Phantasm, "Aestus Domus Aurea", or...











Hear well my decree! I am the Emperor of the Raining Blades!







Oh...? Hey, come on, now. The connection must've cut out, and just when it was getting good.

I know exactly how you feel, but don't complain, Cu Chulainn. It looks as though our liege has fulfilled her duty.



You have done it, my Sovereign. I am proud of you as my... No, as the one who guided Leo's journey.





...You've even gathered the gods on your side. I'm impressed, Emperor.





It feels less like they were defeated in battle, and more like they were swept away all at once, like fireworks popping in the sky.

It was probably exactly as Altera said. All of the Umbral forces in the Zero Dark would be automatically recalled when the fragment of the Umbral Star was destroyed. So...

So, what?

It means we're victorious. The Umbral Star, having lost its objective coordinates, will wander in the blackness for the time being.

Oh... Heavens me... So that means Ms. Saber has destroyed that thing after all... She's done what the gods couldn't. I wonder if that counts as blasphemy... And i cheered her on. I left the impossible to someone too stupid to know it was impossible. Hmm, that worked out well. I'll still have words with her for attempting to usurp my perfect wifedom, but...still, brilliantly done. They earned their victory for sure.






New life

The final light that shot forth from Saber Venus utterly destroyed the Ark of the Stars from the inside. There's no trace of its walls or tentacles. All of it is gone. Even if it had some sort of automatic reconstruction feature, it would be impossible for it to regenerate now. Although the Zero Dark still exists, the only reason the Moon Cell had originally kept this area around was to stop the Ark from interfering with anything. It won't be long now until the entire area is deleted. The Umbral Star's territory. Altera's prison for all those years. This place is no longer of use to anyone, not even the Moon Cell or SE.RA.PH. I think it's only right that it fades away.



Look well, Altera. This battle has ended, and we are the victors in truth and totality. A victory for love, for us, and for you as well. All thanks to this very sword. By this sword, and by your generosity, we struck the enemy down.

...



They're particles of the high-density spiritrons that formed the Titan Altera's Cyber Frame. She's crumbling. This is the exact scene we saw in the record. The titan continues to fall. Everything that formed the person she was... Her Mind, Body, and Soul... Everything that tied her to SE.RA.PH is disappearing. She's crumbling. She's crumbling. It's as if tears are raining down. Not the tears of the great goddess who saved the world, but the tears of the heavens, shed by the stars that watch over us. They pour upon us, endlessly. No one could stop these tears from falling.



The Cyber Frame, having lost the mana needed to live, falls to the Zero Dark as a deluge of inorganic mass. And then, bit by bit...it disappears. All while sparkling with the ephemeral, glowing light of the spiritrons. I know why this is happening. We're the ones who made it happen. We should have known that if we destroyed the fragment of the Umbral Star, so deeply tied to Altera, she too would disappear. The Ark formed the basis of the Titan's existence. With the Ark destroyed, the results were inevitable. But still...

Do not cry, my Praetor. Though I see no tears upon your cheeks, your expression is unmistakably one of lamentation. Yet this scene calls not for sorrow. ...I pray you, banish your grief, my Praetor.

Saber's actions reflect her words. There are no tears on her face, not a shred of doubt. Why...? Even though she stands before this overflowing, endless rain that cruelly accelerates the torrent of debris... Her golden hair is swaying. Her emerald eyes, sparkling like jewels formed by her burning pasion, quietly watch over the crumbling Altera. It's not that she doesn't see what's going on. Saber is surely seeing this with her own eyes. So why is she smiling?

...Look, my Praetor. No one else in the world can bear witness to this. You and I must see it through until the end.







If you'll recall the Sephyr battles, this cube represents her core.



...Through the cracks in the core of the Cyber Frame, I see...a little girl? She's dressed in white from head to toe. Her eyelids part just a little, revealing eyes that burn as red as the stars. It's Altera. There's no mistaking it. There she is - younger than before, but lying right there. The Titan continues to fall to ruin around us, and yet... For a moment, I can barely comprehend it. All I can do is look back at Saber. And then, finally, I get it. I get why Saber was smiling all this time.

Ah, my apologies. It seems I owe you an explanation. But I was otherwise occupied with battle, and I thought it better for you to see this for yourself. I once broke my promise to Altera. I was unable to save the Body of the Praetor, and so I swore that I would not make the same mistake twice. I destroyed the Umbral Star and severed the command link that linked it to Altera. The might of Venus does not exist to defeat one's enemies. ...It exists to save the ones you love. Although her outer shell as the White Titan crumbles to dust, her true self is what you see before you.

It's also similar to the Altera found by the Huns in her backstory. The one that was the remains of the terrestrial Sephyr.

That light... She used it to cut the connection, just before she destroyed the Ark! Brilliant. To think that she had been able to adjust for something so small while emanating such an overwhelming, unprecedented level of dimensional magic...! But why did she not tell me any of that?

Well, you see... At the time, you were using the entirety of your magical circuits and nerves to keep the power of Venus in SE.RA.PH. I-It's not that wished to surprise you, or that I wanted to keep it a secret! Nor did I withhold it out of caution, in case it failed to work. It was merely that both you and I were so preoccupied with what was in front of us that I lacked the wherewithal to tell you. ...I'm sorry.

Oh, no. I didn't mean to blame you or anything. I just never thought we'd see her again, and yet here we are, all three of us.



The girl in white opens her eyes all the way. They sparkle like rubies. I can see Saber and myself reflected in them. Her eyes are kind as well as beautiful.

...Saber...and my Master...? I... Why... What's... Is this a...dream...?

No, you have awakened from your dream. This is the world in which you are meant to live. This is the future that you have won for yourself. While it is a serial phantasm created with spiritrons, it differs little from the reality on the surface of Earth. Good morning, Altera. Yes, it is only proper that we begin anew with a greeting!

Good...morning...? The Umbral... I am a vassal...of des...truction...

You are not an enemy of civilization, nor do you feed off of life. Now, Altera. Listen carefully to me. That body of yours was made by Velber, based on information taken from the Earth and Moon. One could say you are the "Child of the Umbral Star". Although this fragment of Velber has been destroyed, your life is something else entirely. A child chooses not their place of birth, but the path they walk! Your life begins anew! And so I shall promise you! No longer shall you need to destroy or subjugate. Your life will flourish amongst the civilizations who welcome you. Welcome to the world. Long days full of love await you. And so you should smile, with pride in your heart.



...Okay.

Yes! What a glorious smile!

The little girl in white gives a faint little smile. Saber lights up with joy and returns a glowing smile of her own. I feel a smile forming at the corners of my mouth as well. Even though we were fighting for our lives just moments ago, there's nothing but happiness for us now. Who should I even thank first? Saber? Altera? After I figure that out, I should use the Regalia to see how everyone else is doing. I need to make sure that nobody's been hurt and that Altera's rebirth hasn't caused any side effects. Of course, I haven't forgotten about Caster. I need to thank her for keeping our home safe along with Archer and the rest. I have something I should tell her in particular, too. I need to give my thanks to the seven Servants who supported our cause. Following that, we have to search the entirety of the new SE.RA.PH... We need to suppress any rogue attack programs, whether they're tied to the Umbral Star or not. We also need to find NPCs and escort them to safety, and begin the search for any remaining Masters. Oh, there's so much to do. But...for the time being...for the two girls in front of me...

...Master... Good morning...?

What are you standing around for, my Praetor? Say something to her.

Oh, yes. That's right. I must have gotten caught up thinking about everything else. Well then, first...












Golden Poem credits





What a staggering legacy that silly little VN from 2004 left...















A new tour



What, you thought Giant Altera killed Elizabeth? Pffft. Elizabeth NEVER dies.

Aaaah, I can't even...! What is this?! What is this, what is this, why am I always stuck playing the supporting role?! What kind of gigs are you bringing me, Producer?! Why is a top idol like me getting booked for so much junk?! Ugh...! I was so close! Don't you forget about this, squirrel! Or you, Saber! I haven't given up yet... This is definitely not the end of this, you hear me?!

Yeah, we're counting on that.