EPILOGUE:

THE CONTINUING STRUGGLE AGAINST FATE

Casca had come a long way, she knew. While the wounds inflicted on her heart, mind and soul during the Eclipse hadn't healed completely, she was now better, close to what she was before the Eclipse, no, before Griffith was imprisoned. Guts' departure, Griffith vanishing, and her argument with Harry, those opened up the cracks that the Eclipse used as shatterpoints. And while cracks were still there, she felt better.

She felt stronger too. Although she never mastered the magic of this world as much as either Harry or Schierke did, she could use it, teaming up with Harry to strengthen their spells, though she still specialised in swordplay. She was now back to her physical peak…no, better.

She could never be as strong as Guts, wielding the Dragonslayer with seemingly little effort. Nor could she be as powerful as Harry was in magic, and certainly not as versatile. But she could get stronger, hone her skills. She was their commander, something she almost forgot. With Griffith having betrayed them, become Femto, the Band of the Hawk, for all that there were only four of them left, needed a leader.

Rickert's mission was to protect Charlotte and Anna from the forces searching for them. Guts was to thin out the Apostles. And Casca and Harry were to find out what they can about the Godhand, the Apostles, and the Behelits, as well as train themselves.

Admittedly, Flora couldn't offer them much in the way of concrete information about the Godhand. She alluded to them being puppets of a higher, or rather, a lower power, but she didn't know exactly what it was, only that it existed, deep within the layers of the Astral World, right at the bottom. But she also taught them much about magic. Harry had become more powerful. But would it be enough to take on the Godhand?

Then again, of all the Godhand, it was Femto she wanted to kill, that Harry and Guts wanted to kill. Even now, she couldn't escape the feeling of being violated by him that haunted her memories and nightmares. And seeing him again only unearthed the old memories.

However, there was one bit of good news. Casca had managed to overcome the last of her fear of intimacy a little while ago. It wasn't absent, rather, she was able to bed Harry without her having flashbacks to Femto. Flora helped with her counselling, and some concoctions, helping mitigate the worst of it.

She still couldn't have children. What Femto did to her couldn't be undone. Harry had considered seeing if he could find a way back to Earth, try something called IVF and see if that worked, and Casca was actually considering it. Having a child was not the be-all and end-all of her existence, but it would be a nice thing to have with Harry.

They already had one child, true, and like Harry, Casca's feelings of disgust and fear had given way to pity, and a desire to help the demonically-tainted creature. Perhaps she could find a way of restoring what its form should have been, though Flora admitted, even she didn't know if it was possible. Sometimes, she joined Harry in watching and contemplating their child, and wondering whether they could restore them to what they should have been.

It had been two years since the Eclipse now. Two years since they departed Godo's smithy for this place. Casca wasn't sure whether they had learned anything truly new, and yet, this time was needed, to heal, and to train. Guts' last missive in the diary said that he was heading to Misty Valley, having heard rumours of something happening there.

Their bonds had grown with Flora and Schierke. They felt like family. And yet…Casca felt ill at ease. Their time here was not one of indolence and idleness, and yet, Guts was seemingly doing more. And what was more, Casca couldn't help but shake a feeling of foreboding. That something terrible was about to happen, or perhaps already had.

She was sitting on a log, cleaning her sword, when she sensed Schierke sitting down next to him. "You're leaving soon, aren't you?" the young witch asked.

"…I don't know when, but yes. I've got this sense of foreboding. Something's going to happen soon."

"…I agree. So does Mistress Flora and Harry," the green-haired girl said. "But…we don't know what. The Eclipse is only supposed to happen every 216 years, and it's only been two. And there's five members of the Godhand now. That logically suggests that they have a full complement…which itself is disturbing. If they have a full complement…what are their plans now?"

"Nothing good, that's all I can say," Casca said, watching as the dumpy form of a golem waddled by.

"There is one thing, actually. Harry's using his Astral Form to try and track down Guts, see what's happening to him. But…he relayed to me that he's spotted the Holy Iron Chain Knights in the vicinity of Misty Valley. Led by that Farnese girl, along with Serpico and the Bridge Knight. It seems they haven't wholly given up on pursuing you two, or Guts. If Guts gets caught between an Apostle and the Holy Iron Chain Knights…"

Casca nodded. Guts was ridiculously tough, but he was far from invincible, and so many of his fights against Apostles led to him being injured in some way lately. If the Holy Iron Chain Knights stumbled across him after one of these battles, they might be able to capture him.

"If he gets into too much trouble, we might have to go and help him this time," Casca said. "I mean…we will come back, but I'm not sure how much more we can learn from Flora, not when so many people are suffering and dying."

Schierke looked away. "I understand. I don't like it, but I understand. You said you would come back, though."

Casca nodded, before gently hugging the young witch. "…I promise. You're family, Schierke, by choice if not by blood. My own family sold me, even if I've forgiven them for that, while you never really knew your birth parents. Neither did Harry. You're like a little sister, and a daughter both."

Schierke smiled sadly, before she touched Casca's hand. "When you leave…I'll use some of my hair to act as a link for thought transference. If nothing else, I can see what you see through your eyes, and hear what you hear, and speak to you, maybe give you advice. Just…I know you two are intimate again, so could you give me some warning before you do while you're on the road?" The young witch blushed a little, bashfully.

"Sure. It's not like Harry and I will be needing much privacy that often anyway. We've only just reached the point where we can…you know. But I'd be glad to hear your voice while we're on the road…"

They received an unexpected visitor later that day. One that three of those knew…but one of them hadn't, two if you counted Ivalera. A familiar armoured form sitting astride a horse.

As Schierke boggled at the Skull Knight, Flora smiled. "It's a pleasure to see you, old friend."

"Meeting you is one of the few pleasures I have left, Lady Flora," the Skull Knight said, his tone soft. But then, it sharpened. "…You have felt it too?"

"Unfortunately. As have we all. The Godhand's plans are ripening, are they not?"

"I believe so. What they intend, I know not…yet. Though I have nasty suspicions." His gaze went over to Harry and Casca. "I have come for you both. Warrior…Wizard…your comrade the Struggler is walking into a battle that will tax his reserves. He is sandwiched between two Apostles. One, he knows he is coming across, but the other pursues him."

"…You want us to help him?" Casca asked.

"Indeed. But…there was something else." His glowing eyes turned to Harry. "You, Wizard, are a stone thrown into the river of causality. I see dimly into the shadows of possible futures. You can change the destiny of many children with cruel fates…two in particular. One of whom, I would have considered folly to even try…and yet, the possibility is there. I will take you to near the Misty Valley."

Harry looked at the Skull Knight. This felt like manipulation, and he felt his hackles rising, but…he had one question to ask. "If we go there…can we save lives?"

"…Potentially more than the Struggler would save alone," the Skull Knight said solemnly. "Not all lives can be saved. This is a cruel maxim of the world. But to try and save as many as possible is not folly."

Harry looked at Casca, who gave a rueful smile. "Of course that's the part you'd ask about," she said. She then met the Skull Knight's gaze. "The Band of the Hawk barely exists anymore. We were soldiers…but now, if we can do anything to save others from the Apostles, then we'll do it. Nobody should have to go what we went through…what I went through." Her fist clenched. "Even if we can never stop the Godhand, less Apostles causing misery for the people is only a good thing."

"Well said, Warrior. Now…prepare yourselves, and say your farewells. We must make haste…"

Their preparations were hasty, but not overly so. They prepared, checked, and double-checked with as much swiftness as they could manage. Their farewells took less time, but were perhaps more meaningful. They had grown close to Flora and Schierke…and to a lesser degree, to Ivalera. This might be the last time they'd see them. After all, fighting an Apostle was no small matter.

Soon, though, Harry and Casca found themselves riding on the Skull Knight's horse, Harry clinging to Casca, while Casca clung to the Skull Knight. The horse moved at ridiculously swift speeds, and Harry had to wonder whether the Skull Knight was using some sort of magic to cut out some of the distance. It would explain a lot. Then again, he had no idea of how the Skull Knight managed to breach the Eclipse.

He remembered something Flora had brought up, more as a philosophical question. Was the destiny of humanity governed by transcendental law, or by some entity, like the hand of God? It was a truth that many humans had no control over their destiny, and over their own will. And yet, there were those who fought, contended, and struggled against this fate.

And there was another thing that Flora had shared with him, a speculation as to what the Godhand truly served. She posited the fact that gods could be created, instead of being creators. And perhaps, deep in the abyssal layers of the Astral World, something dark was born of a human desire to have an origin of all that was evil in the world. An Idea of Evil as it were, the dark heart of all human souls.

If there was something like that responsible for the misery he, Guts and Casca had gone through, he was going to stab it. Preferably in whatever passed for its dick for starters.

Still, that was for another time. They had more pressing issues to deal with. And he hoped they wouldn't be too late…

Behind the helmet, whatever remained of the man who wore the armour of the Skull Knight smiled, though whether it was with lips, or some spectral wisp, few knew. But there was a smile all the same. The Struggler, a single-minded fighter who had been born from death itself. The Warrior, a woman who had fought all her life against the preconceptions of society. And the Wizard, the pebble in the pond, the edge of the coin, a herald of chaos.

Soon, they would be forced to confront the next advent of the one they had once loved, and now loathed. But even then, the future was far from certain, not as fixed as it once was. He would warn them about what was to come…but what could they do? Some parts were fixed. But other parts? Could more people be saved? Would others die? Who could say? This chaos obscured the future. But it was not a chaos the Skull Knight was afraid of. In his long, long life, a period of existence that spanned over a millennium, he had seen many different kinds of chaos.

And this chaos…it had the potential for good or evil. For triumph and defeat. All that was needed was to navigate it, and find victory against the forces of darkness.

Navigating chaos was a struggle. But then, so was life. A never-ending struggle. And after so many years, the Skull Knight, after seeing Guts, Casca, and Harry in action, allowed a small ember of hope to be kindled. That perhaps their actions could do some good for the world. Nothing was certain, and perhaps it was little more than a comforting lie, a dream of victory. But perhaps it could become truth.

Dreams were dangerous, seductive things. But sometimes, they may just come true.

THE END

EPILOGUE ANNOTATIONS (ORIGINAL):

So, there you have it. The conclusion to Ubi Amor, Ibi Dolor. True, there's the possibility of a sequel set during the Conviction Arc, but sequels to my works have palled for me, lately, so there's no guarantee of one.

I'm sorry if this ending is a bit rushed, guys. But…well, I wanted to end it by this point in the story from the beginning. I wanted to end the main story with the Golden Age's end, and the framing story with the beginning of the Conviction Arc.

If I do do the Conviction Arc, and there's no guarantee of that, I might bring in some Potterverse characters, who have finally tracked down Harry. One thing I'm definitely doing is bumping off Nina. I despise her. Luca, on the other hand, is now one of my favourite characters who isn't part of the regulars.

Anyway…I hope you guys have enjoyed this fic. I can't guarantee a sequel, but if I manage to write some of it, I'll post an update chapter. Otherwise…well, here it is. Completed, like the fic that inspired it. I owe the fact this fic exists to deathbearABC123 and Harry Potter and the Berserker. Thank you very much for your help in formulating this story, even if it's inferior to your work.

Well, this is it. Thank you, and hope you enjoyed it.

ANNOTATIONS (REVISION):

After trying to start a sequel to this story…I realised I couldn't, not without it feeling not quite right. After a brief discussion with the very patient and understanding deathbearABC123…I decided to change the ending.

There's a reason for that. Lately, I've been catching up with the manga, and while I've been reading the Conviction Arc, I'd finally read the Misty Valley Arc. I realised that there was quite a bit of potential there, something I should have realised when I read Harry Potter and the Berserker. Rosine is easily the most sympathetic of the Apostles so far, despite her cruelty, while Jill…as well-meaning and powerful as Guts' "There's no paradise for you to run to" speech was, I felt she could be helped better. Whether that means Rosine will survive as in Harry Potter and the Berserker, I don't know, but things will be very different if she does.

This does not mean a sequel will definitely happen. I've just changed the ending to reflect a possible sequel that has a better chance of happening. Hopefully, you guys will get to see it happen.

No numbered annotations this time.