Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon.

Screwing Over Tokiomi

Suffer Not the Witch to Live

Warmth filled the air of the Italian countryside in the spring, shining down with the Sunlight from a blue sky dotted with puffy white clouds. Flocks of birds wheeled through the air, chirping as they went, or hopped as they pleased on the green fields and hills and the dirt roads which went to and from the towns and villages dotting the countryside.

Church bells sounded the hour, the joyous sound of children's voice soon echoing in the air as they were let out of the orphanage to play in the warmth and the Sun in the courtyard. A nun followed them out, smiling indulgently as she kept an eye on the frolicking children, all the while making her way towards a bench in an out-of-the-way corner.

Sitting down, she leaned back and relaxed, violet eyes keeping an eye on the children to make sure that even as children were allowed to act as they should at their age, they would not take it too far. It wasn't long before exactly that happened, as a pair of seven-year old boys began to argue and hit each other over a mere toy.

In an instant, the nun was up on her feet, and quickly marching over to the two boys. "Now, the two of you stop that." She admonished sharply. Eyes turned to her, the playground going still and quiet, though Sister Clara Rossi smiled to take the edge off her voice, kneeling down to the children's level and gently placing her hands on their shoulders. "Friends shouldn't fight each other. Do you really think you can go to Heaven if you do?"

"Sorry, sister." One of the boys said, and the other boy nodded.

"Sorry, sister." He also said before turning to the other boy with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Nico."

The first boy also smiled and nodded apologetically. "I'm sorry too, Leandro." He said.

Clara smiled wider and nodded, getting to her feet while fondly ruffling the two boys' hair. "Listen," she began. "Violence is never the answer against your fellow man, except against heretics, heathens, and monsters. And even then, there's always a chance for the first two to repent, and atone for their sins."

The boys nodded, and Clara nodded again. "Now," she said. "I want you two to go to the chapel, and to each pray one Our Father for fighting each other, alright?"

"Yes, sister." They chorused, and with another nod from the nun ran off to do as asked. Clara watched them go as the rest of the children resumed playing, and then turned towards the main building as she saw movement from the corner of her eyes.

"Sister Clara," one of the sister superiors began, standing next in front of a man Clara knew well, dressed in the black and red robes of a Cardinal of the Holy Church. "Cardinal Mazzilli is here to see you."

"Yes, of course." Clara said, walking closer. "I am at His Eminence's disposal. That said, sister, if you could please watch the children while I'm gone…"

"But of course, Sister Clara." The sister superior said. "It's no trouble at all."

Clara nodded, walking forward to speak to the cardinal face-to-face, while the sister superior walked past to take over watching the children at play. "Cardinal Mazzilli," Clara began. "This is an unexpected pleasure I am honored by your presence."

"We should speak privately, sister." The cardinal said without preamble. "The matters to be discussed are not for the ears of the innocent."

"Yes, of course." Clara said with a nod, a hardness coming to her violet eyes. "I completely understand."

The cardinal nodded, and standing aside, allowed the nun to lead him to someplace more private to speak in.

"To what do I owe this visit, Your Eminence?"

Clara and the cardinal stood in the empty dining room, at the far side of where the diners would get their food from. "We've received word from one of our agents in the Far East." The cardinal began. "A certain Risei Kotomine…apparently, the Zolgen lineage or as it is known in this day and age, the Matou lineage, is coming to an end. They're bloodline has thinned to nothing, and none of their children possess the ability to perform Thaumaturgy any longer."

"Humph," Clara snorted. "And what does that matter to us? Is it not good? That a line of heretics finally lose that which drives them to sin and corruption? Should this not be seen as a blessing in disguise? Finally reduced to the level of ordinary men, they have a chance to live good, ordinary lives. Even heathens have the chance to earn salvation, if not through faith, then through good deeds."

"Normally yes," the cardinal said with a nod. "But the situation is more complicated than that."

"Oh?"

"What do you know the Zolgen lineage?"

"None," Clara said. "Though it seems they are of some importance from what you are implying."

"Indeed they are." The cardinal said. "Calling them a lineage is actually a misnomer, as ultimately any one of them who possess the ability to perform Thaumaturgy are turned into puppets for their patriarch. A one-time peer of Paracelsus, who then turned to dark arts to extend his life to the present day, a heretic of Russian origin by the name of Makiri Zolgen, though in this day and age he is better known as Zouken Matou."

"A vampire?" Clara breathed.

"Yes…but not a Dead Apostle." The cardinal added. "Therein lies the technicality as to why he has not been slated for execution as of yet."

"…I see." Clara said with narrowed. "I do not agree with such reasoning, but it is also not my place to question the decisions of those who are chosen by the Lord to guide the Holy Church on its appointed path."

The cardinal was silent for a moment. "Things have changed, however." He said. "What do you know of the Holy Grail War?"

Clara raised an eyebrow. "I have heard of it." She said. "A competition between heretics for the chance to gain possession of a falsification of the legendary vessel which caught the blood of the Lord as he was crucified on his cross."

"It's more complicated than that," the cardinal said. "But the point of the matter is that Zolgen was among three individuals who established such a system nearly two hundred years ago. Under normal circumstances we would not have allowed such a…mocking, competition to even begin with, but alas, we were not able to bring our influence to bear until after third iteration of such a competition nearly fifty years ago."

"…and?"

"We agreed to…arbitrate, the conduct of the competition." The cardinal said. "The…Grail, of the city is a falsity, and as such is of no value to us. But being a…facsimile, of one of our holiest relics, we have a claim on it, no matter how tenuous."

"A political decision then."

"Yes," the cardinal said with narrowed eyes. "And that provides an opportunity to circumvent the technicality which has kept us from dispensing swift and just retribution for the defilement of the sacred Human form that Zolgen embodies. Normally, we'd allow him to simply rot away with the death of his lineage, but it seems that he might just be able to go around the problem."

Clara raised an eyebrow, and then narrowed her eyes in realization. "I see." She said contemptuously. "So, another family of heretics would sell one of their own children as though they were cattle, and to a monster no less? Truly, there is no depth to which such heretics would not sink to."

"Quite," Cardinal Mazzilli said with a nod. "But this matter becomes even more complicated, as the treacherous family in question were once secret Christians, from times past when the Japanese persecuted our brothers and sisters in the faith."

An oppressive silence fell. "…apostates…" Clara whispered malevolently. "…recusants…renegades…"

"Sister," Cardinal Mazzilli began. "Return to Rome immediately and assume command of your platoon. From there you will be taken to Fuyuki City in Japan, with orders to execute Makiri Zolgen once and for all, and to deliver retribution against the apostate Tokiomi Tohsaka."

"Deus vult, Your Eminence." Clara said with a small bow.

The cardinal nodded, though he narrowed his eyes. "Sister," he began.

"Yes, Your Eminence?"

"Remember to show mercy on the innocent."

"…the children…of course. I completely understand."

Matou guards stood protectively around the front of the Tohsaka property, prepared to escort the soon-to-be adopted heiress of their family to one of the three up-armored Toyotas which waited behind them. Zouken Matou sat expectantly in one of them, and as Sakura Tohsaka approached, leered at her with a smile.

Tokiomi Tohsaka looked on in silence, his wife and children doing likewise inside his house. Nearby, Risei and Kirei Kotomine looked on in silence, their faces like stone, neither willing to meet Tokiomi's eyes during the whole morning.

Tokiomi had thought it merely a gesture born of their protests against his decision, but he knew he was right. Though he knew that Sakura would face incredible pain and hardship to become the Matou heiress, such was the lot of a magus, and while she wouldn't understand now, in time she would come to be grateful for the chance that had been given to her.

Not just to become a powerful magus in her own right, but also a chance to go down in history. Dying crossing blades with her one-time sister, a worthy rival to the one who would win the Grail and using it reached the ultimate goal of the magi, the Root itself.

What kind of father would he be to hope for nothing less?

Not that the priests understood that of course. Though Tokiomi didn't blame them, given their different beliefs, even if it was somewhat…disappointing on Kirei's part, as he had been Tokiomi's apprentice for some time now.

Then Tokiomi was jolting from his thoughts as Sakura turned and wailed out for her mother, that she didn't want to go. A bit disappointing, but then again she was still just a child. A bit of weakness now could be indulged, though once training began it would have to be stamped out.

So Tokiomi just smiled reassuringly and waved goodbye, and as the guard pulled her away, Sakura sniffled and wiped at her eyes…

…and then both were stopping as a platinum-blonde woman appeared seemingly out of nowhere, standing between Sakura, the guard holding her, and the car with Zouken inside. Said woman wore a more…militant, variant of the habit usually worn by members of the Holy Church, and she glared at the guard with violet eyes that shone with hate.

"Tell me," she began in heavily-accented Japanese. "You are a guard in Makiri Zolgen's service, are you not?"

The guard let Sakura go and drew his baton. "Lady," he rumbled. "I don't know where you…"

Faster than the eye could follow the priestess (?) drew a gun and fired once, literally blowing the guard's head apart like a ripe melon. There was a profound and terrifying silence as the gunshot echoed and the body fell to the ground, and then chaos erupted.

The other Matou guards swore and rushed forward, drawing batons of their own. Sakura screamed and ran for her house, and Tokiomi made to open his circuits as well…

…and then pain, incredible pain, and shock and betrayal as a cold-faced Kirei severed the arm with the Tohsaka Crest off Tokiomi's body, and then moving almost too fast to follow, tore it apart with his Black Keys.

And then Tokiomi was crying out as he was sent flying, kicked by Kirei to slam against the wall of his own house with enough force to crack stone.

Clara Rossi raised the carta extremis bearing her orders into the air, the parchment written with black ink and sealed in red wax and parchment. "By order of His Eminence Cardinal Sireno Mazzilli of the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition," she proclaimed. "With the authority of the Holy Father and in the Name of the Lord God Almighty, Makiri Zolgen is found guilty in absentia of the crime of defacement and sacrilege of the sacred Human form, of heresy, witchcraft, and the practice of forbidden arts, and is thus sentenced to death. Furthermore, Tokiomi Tohsaka is also found guilty in absentia of the crime of conspiring with an enemy of mankind, of heresy, apostasy, witchcraft, and the practice of forbidden arts, though by the virtues of his ancestors is granted clemency and the chance to atone for his crimes. May the justice of the Lord account in all balance. Amen."

The Toyotas exploded in fire and burning wreckage, and then there was the sound of buzzing, of countless insectoid wings flapping all at once, of chitin against chitin, of wet bodies sliding against each other. And then it erupted, a great swarm of monstrously-twisted insects, erupting from the wreck in front of her, and bearing down as though to consume her.

Clara raised her guns, newly-reloaded after she'd executed the other guards before proclaiming the Inquisition's judgment. 9.5 mm rounds originally designed for big game hunting fired one after another from her custom Berettas, each bullet forged from thrice-blessed silver and inscribed at the microscopic level with anti-demonic, anti-vampiric, and anti-magic glyphs and runes.

Again and again she fired, each round simply reducing dozens if not hundreds of the vile familiars to mulch with every shot, and forcing the swarm to recoil. And then her guns clicked empty, and a twitch of her fingers ejected the spent clips.

The swarm moved to attack…

…and was again torn apart as three more Executors arrived, moving to attack along with Kirei. Black Keys flew through the air, each one pinning a page of Holy Scripture through the blade, and cutting a swath through the swarm as they flew.

"Ask me," Clara chanted as she drove one of her Black Keys into the ground, and pinning a page of Holy Scripture to the ground. "And I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession."

Walking around the battlefield as her fellow Executors fought the monster to a standstill, she drove another Black Key and pinned another page of Holy Scripture to the ground. "You will break them with a rod of iron," she continued to chant. "You will dash them to pieces like pottery."

"Therefore, you kings," she chanted as she drove another Black Key and pinned another page of Holy Scripture to the ground. "Be wise, be warned, you rulers of the Earth."

"Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate His rule with trembling."

"Kiss His son, or He will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for His wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him."

Kirei and the three other Executors leaped away as the circle was complete, the swarm buzzing around and seeming to be unable to move, as Black Keys were thrown and formed a pattern on the ground. And then the swarm seemed to fall in itself, melting back into the twisted form of Zouken Matou, who crumpled and groaned in the light of the Sun, and fell to his knees.

The five Executors approached, hands held out palm-outward, forming an unbroken circle around the vampire. "I will kill, I will let live." They chanted. "I will harm and heal."

"No…stop…" Zouken groaned, struggling to move and escape to no avail.

"None will escape my sight." They continued to chant. "Be crushed."

"…no…no…no…" Zouken groaned, heaving to and fro, his flesh visibly writhing in a vain and desperate attempt to escape his impending demise.

"I welcome those who have grown old and those who have lost." The chanting continued. "Devote yourself to me. Learn from me. Obey me. Rest. I am light and relieve you of your burdens. Ask for forgiveness here. I, the incarnation, shall swear."

"…NOOOOOOOOOOOOO…" Zouken wailed, his voice growing weaker and softer before petering out into nothingness.

"Kyrie Eleison."

There was a flash of golden light from the five Executors' hands, and then Zouken's body was burning in pale and cold flame, crumbling to ash which was then swept away by the wind. "It is done." Clara said while crossing herself.

The other Executors did likewise, crossing themselves and praying for themselves, each other, and the soul of the one they had passed sentence on. In the distance, smoke rose as the rest of the Eighth Sacrament's strike force put the Zolgen property to the torch, and stamped out his legacy once and for all.

A/N

Damn, Zouken apologists are everywhere nowadays. I'd really prefer not to use the ignore function, but this is getting out of hand.

Still, it's not like I didn't have fun writing this, and I did take a piece of advice from some of the intelligent people around. More variety is needed, so…why not go with the Holy Church? Those guys need more time in the limelight, and unlike the Mages Association who are very hands-off and care little for magi committing all sorts of shit so long as they don't risk exposing the moonlit world, actually do good for both Humanity and the world.