Unlimited
A oneshot by captain_n00b
Disclaimer: Fate/stay night and Campione both belong to their respective owners, and this work is made purely for the enjoyment of the author and readers.
"Thank…you…"
Those were the first words to leave the Heretic God's mouth since the start of the battle. And it was only now, when he was dying and vanishing, did he say them.
"…it was no problem," replied Godou, having correctly assumed why the God was thanking him. He didn't even know his name, amazingly enough. It was only through sheer luck that he was already wounded, and seriously at that, when they had begun their fight. If that wasn't lucky enough, it was because of another Heretic God, meaning that that was one less that Godou had to fight.
The God chuckled, his breath slowly getting weaker.
"Don't…let it…consume…you…"
He disappeared right after.
Godou bowed his head in respect of the God he was forced to slay. Though the other man was admittedly trying to kill him, even he could tell that he didn't mean any of it, and that it was all because he became Heretic.
He was curious though. The God was obviously talking about his Authority when he spoke his last words. What could it be that he would offer a warning?
Godou focused and tried to think about the Authority, and for the words to come to hi-
Bzzzzzzzzzzt!
He gripped his head in pain.
"What the hell?"
"Godou!"
Having regained his balance after the sudden headache, he looked around for the source of the familiar voice. There.
A blonde girl, Erica, rushed towards him from the opening of the park, with a brunette, Yuri, closely following her. They had originally been helping Godou fight the Heretic God, but they were thrown out of the park by one of his blows, followed by them being locked out by some weird barrier.
Godou, thankful that they were safe and that nothing happened while he had been locked in combat, smiled at the sight of them rushing towards him.
"Well? How did it go? I assume you defeated him, considering you're still standing here and he's gone," Erica asked, hands on her hips and directing a look towards the Campione.
"Relax, I was able to do it. There's a minor complication though…" Godou admitted, looking troubled as he said so.
"Oh? And what would that be, Godou-san?" Yuri asked, having just caught up with Erica.
"Yes, Godou. What's the problem?" Erica asked as well.
"I can't seem to access the Authority I gained from him. Whenever I think about it, it's like static suddenly appears in my head, giving me a headache at the same time," he stated, scratching his head over it.
"Weird…" both Erica and Yuri stated, mulling it over with Godou.
Not being able to think of any solution as to the problem, and what a problem it was at that, Erica proposed that they should at the very least get some rest first, and that they could think more about it tomorrow at school.
It was quite late at night after all.
Agreeing to the proposal, the three then went their separate ways, each heading home to get some rest and prepare themselves for the following day.
Unlimited
Fire and brimstone. Screams of pain and of anguish. Destruction and death everywhere. Cries for salvation.
For a minute, Godou thought he was in hell.
Blinking his eyes, it was then that he noticed that he was in a city on fire. And weirdly enough, he was calm about the whole thing. Whereas usually he would be worried and doing his best to save who he could using his Authorities, he felt absolutely nothing in regards to what was going on around him. In fact, he felt pretty disconnected from the whole thing, as if none of what was happening was even real.
Looking around, it was then that he noticed the boy.
He had lifeless eyes, burned skin, and was dragging his feet, obviously too tired to stand.
And still, the boy walked on.
There were numerous people around him, all of them trapped under debris or on fire, screaming at him to save their children, their wives, their husbands, their fathers, their mothers.
And still, the boy walked on.
He bore witness to people helping each other, giving water and aid to others, even when they needed it themselves. All of it was useless, since all of them were eventually consumed by the fire or crushed by the falling building chunks.
And still, the boy walked on.
He threw everything away. His memories. His fears. His doubts. His sadness. His happiness. His aspirations, his needs, his whole self. Everything.
All so that he could keep walking.
Finally though, he had enough. The boy couldn't walk forever, and so finally, he collapsed, face up. It was then that the rain finally started pouring, that the fire started to die down. Looking up at the sky, the boy thought nothing, had nothing.
And then a man appeared. He was wearing a black suit, and had messy black hair. His face was ragged, and he looked troubled. Still though, when he caught sight of the boy, his face broke into a smile.
And even Godou, someone who normally had a hard time reading other people, could see the question in the boy's eyes.
Could I be that happy someday?
Unlimited
Beautiful.
That was the very first thing to cross his mind.
Absolutely beautiful.
He had no sense of self, no sense of purpose, nothing. Nothing mattered.
Nothing, except for that sword.
He hadn't even fully focused on it, and he knew that it was a beautiful weapon.
And then, it all faded away
Unlimited
He woke up with a gasp.
His body was drenched his sweat, his fists were clenched, and he was hyperventilating. Godou looked around the room before confirming that yes, there wasn't any fire happening, and that yes, there were no half-dead little boys nearby.
Sighing in relief, he got up and went to the bathroom, checking the time while he did so.
It was 3:00 AM.
Annoyed at waking up so early, Godou turned on the lights and proceeded to wash his face. It was only then did he notice the tears flowing steadily from his eyes.
The Campione looked at himself in the mirror for a while, before leaning against the bathroom wall, slowly sliding down until he was sitting. His forehead rested against his knees while his hands covered his head.
'What was that?'
He had had nightmares before. Everyone does. What he just had though…that couldn't have been a simple nightmare. It was too vivid, too detailed, and too realistic to be one. And what's more, it didn't even involve him. In fact, he was simply an unaffected bystander, nothing more and nothing else.
It was as if he was just there to witness the trial that that boy was going through.
Thinking about that boy again, Godou grimaced.
He thought he knew pain. He was a Campione after all, and life threatening battles were part of the package of being one. He had experienced many ways in which supernatural beings were trying to kill him, and every single one of them were pretty bad. If he weren't a Campione, he would have been dead multiple times over.
What that boy went through though…that was something that he wouldn't have wished on anyone, not even his worst enemy. The fact that the boy lived at the very end was unimportant. After all, he had practically thrown away everything that had made him human just to live.
It was extremely horrific.
"What was it all about though?" Godou asked himself.
That dream came out of nowhere. Not once did he hear about any great fire like that in Japan that had happened recently. Not once did he himself get involved in any when he was younger. There was no reason for this dream to suddenly appear.
Unless…
"It must have had something to do with that Heretic God," Godou thought out loud, narrowing his eyes in though as he did so. "This never happened before though…what's the point in all of it?"
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him.
'Maybe I should try accessing the Authority again.'
Closing his eyes and controlling his breathing, Godou thought hard about the Authority.
Bzzzzzzzzzt!
He gripped his head in pain and groaned. The headache was worse than before…but it worked. He had the first line of the incantation.
Opening his eyes again and staring at the opposite wall, Godou said it out loud, just to get a feel of the words on his tongue.
"I am the bone of my sword."
AN: So, I honestly didn't expect that I'd actually make this. It's been so long since I took the time to make a story, or even a chapter for one, and so this really came out of nowhere.
It was just one of the plot bunnies bouncing around in my head, working with the other plot bunnies to multiply like the buggers that they are.
Eventually though, the day came when the internet was down, there was nothing else to do, and I had around an hour on my hands. Thus, this baby was born.
As I said above, this is a oneshot. I could theoretically continue it, but I feel it would be better done if written by someone else (as long as that someone else has a sense of good writing and grammar…or at the very least a beta), especially since I have a habit of just discontinuing stories that I write because I'm too lazy to continue it.
I hope you enjoyed this little prologue-ish thing. If any of you who read this are interested in picking it up, leave me a PM or review.
