Disclaimer: I do not own fate/campione materials

Chapter IV

The roaring sound of an engine played in the background. The train was making its way to a little town on the coast. Located at about 230 km from Cagliari, Dorgali was a town surrounded by mountains and valleys.

"Hmm…Emiya Shirou is it? So to put it in simpler terms, you are one who can be called a freelance mage, is that correct?" a certain blonde beauty asked in a suspicious tone.

"Yes. You are correct." I affirmed her question.

"Hmm…" she hummed provocatively. "Are you really?"

"It's my turn to ask questions now." I interrupted her before I was interrogated further.

We were currently on the train to Dorgali. The two of us were dragged along to go there with her after she had a phone call previously. Though Godou had his complaints, I for one was keen to know what made the knight anxious during the phonecall. After we were done eating some sandwiches for lunch along the way, Erica bombarded me with questions of my origin where I was able to cover up most of it. Though I didn't lie when I mentioned that I was working as a freelancer, I doubt that was enough to convince this lady here.

The blonde girl shrugged. "Fine. I'll know soon enough. So, what is it that you want to know?"

"Everything you know about the situation, about these [Heretic God] and also about what's happening at Dorgali. I need to know what we are facing." I enquired.

"Oh? I thought you already knew? Judging from the conversation you had with this guy here." She sneered.

"This and that are different. I merely guessed its definition based on what I know and experienced. Isn't it best to ask the one who really knows about this?"

She sighed in annoyance and began explaining.

"Gods. In ancient times, these gods were born from the myths that humans have passed along through generations. The essence of the earth, sky, stars and their constituent elements, these are what comprises the supernatural core of the myths forming the existence of the 'Gods' that we, magi have hypothesized." Erica clarified, crossing her legs.

With a finger pointing upwards, she continued her lecture. "[Heretic Gods] in the meantime are those that rebel against their myths that form their core. They went against the very principal of their existence, appearing at places unrelated to them and bringing great calamity and destruction wherever they go."

"So basically, they can be said to be corrupted then?" I interrupted.

"No, not exactly. They still maintain their pride as gods and retain their abilities as spoken in their myths and legends. The only difference is that they do not act as they did in their myths. Where they were supposed to protect humans, they end up harming them. Where they were once gentle and benevolent, they would instead bring violence and disaster for humankind. A heretic is one that refuses to conform to the established standards of conduct. For in this case, they have abandoned their very purpose."

Interesting. So it's different from what Berserker was. When I found out his identity later, it turned out that he was the demi god, Heracles. From what I know, Heracles was a proud warrior and a champion for his people. After seeing his state in the war; robbed of sanity and reason, his only purpose was to destroy anything that was in his way. It's probably because he had a very capable master whom he would obey that he didn't go out of control. Even from the info I got from the 4th war, Berserker constantly acted on its own accord, putting a heavy burden on his master.

However it's because that he lost his sanity that I could somehow breathe a sigh of relief. Without his sanity intact, he was incapable of unleashing his full potential. If that were to happen, I believe he would be a more formidable foe with his exceptional skill. In other words, these [Heretic Gods] cannot be taken lightly.

"You seem to be in deep thought. Care to share what's on your mind?" disrupting my train of thought, Erica enquired in a sceptical manner.

"It's nothing. So, can you tell me about what's happening here?"

"Hmph." Probably because I refuse to answer her, she started to get irritated. "So far, including the [Boar] yesterday, there have been four other appearances of divine beasts on the island of Sardinia. The [Camel] at Bosa, the [Ram] at Orgosolo, the [Bull] at Barumini and now the [Boar] at Cagliari. Moreover, that mysterious youth we saw that day was spotted at every incident and with that a [Wind] deity would show up to vanquish them. Other than you, he's the most suspicious." She said, emphasizing my name.

"And the place that we are going to, what's happening there? Is it another appearance?" Ignoring that statement, I urged her to continue.

Eyeing me distrustfully, she continued on. "You're quite sharp. Yes. I've received info from a spirit user that there's a massive amount of energy gathering there. Though I brought you guys along because there's still much I need to extract from you, it would be wiser if you two go into hiding. Who knows what we are going to go up against. Don't worry, no matter how far you try to run or hide from me, I will still find you with magic."

Well that's reassuring. Godou shifted slightly, disturbed by that fact.

"Hey Emiya-kun, you act as though you've met them before. Do you have any experience with them?" asking out of the blue, Godou finally opened his mouth after listening to something that doesn't make sense to him. Is he on my side or her side!? Sigh...

"Well something like that." Seven of them to be exact, though two of whom were not from the age of gods. One of the two was a fictional character while the other was from a certain someone's future. "But this and that are different and I'd rather not talk about it."

"And why is that?" Erica narrowed her eyes. "If you did meet them and managed to walk away unharmed, then why not tell us the details? Who knows it might be useful for our encounter later on. Or…could it be?" as though realising something, her tone became serious. "Could you be a Campione!?"

Campione? A champion? As I gave a puzzled looked, I turned to Godou to see if he knows. Who knows if it's unique to this world? When he gave me a clueless face, I sighed. Who am I kidding? Of course he doesn't know. "Care to elaborate on this, Campione?"

"What? Don't tell me you don't know. If you're a mage, it is common knowledge to know what a Campione is. Speaking of which, you should know about [Heretic Gods] yourself if you really are a freelancer. This guy here is acceptable since he's oblivious to the magic world. You however, were even able to halt the divine beast but yet do not know of them… Who are you exactly?" she asked impatiently.

Silence ensued. Only the sound of the engine grumbled at the background. Suddenly, a flash of lightning accompanied by the sound of thunder broke the awkward silence. The sky grew darker and darker. I squinted my eyes as I viewed the surrounding environment.

"A storm is coming." I let out a whisper. Following my gaze, Erica too tensed up. As we made eye contact, we understood immediately. Something is coming and it's bringing in a storm with it.

"Let's put this aside for now. We have a more troublesome situation at hand." Erica said.

"Agreed." I immediately answered her. I have a bad premonition about this. It's best to put aside our differences and concentrate on handling the situation first.

As the train arrived at the station, we proceeded to take a bus that was just a ten minutes journey to Dorgali. When we got out of the bus, we were welcomed with flashes of light and a heavy rain. The one responsible for that was probably the giant beast floating in the sky.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me." Godou complained.

"Hey looks like you've got your wish." I jokingly said back.

"Heh. A goat? Seriously? Man I don't think I can go on. My reasoning is crumbling away." he whined as the giant [Goat] hovered high up in the sky.

Moving gracefully in the sky, the [Goat] danced in the clouds. As though choreographing the clouds and winds, thunder and lightning, it was a spectacular sight that would leave you in awe.

With blinding flashes of light, rain started to pour down heavily on the small town. Many people shut their windows and doors, unaware of a divine beast high up above them. Only when the lightning strikes frequent and the gust of wind got stronger did they notice it was no longer safe and started to flee from their homes.

"You, I need you to go into hiding. Go and find a place to hide and seek refuge." Addressing Godou, Erica gave out instructions as soon we saw the [Goat]. "As for you, is it possible to use that chain of yours again to restrain that beast?" she turned to me.

"No, I can't. It's too high up." I explained. Though it's true that Enkidu was the best solution to this predicament, it consumes a high amount of prana and every time I traced that chain, it makes me nauseous. My pride just doesn't allow that.

"Then you're useless." She snapped. Ouch, that kinda hurts. "Then go with him to hide. Like I said before, I can find you no matter how good or far you hide. So be my guest."

"Then what about you? Do you have a plan?" I asked the knight.

"Don't mind me. Just concentrate on finding a safe place to hide." Her aura suddenly changed as she went into her combat mode.

"Come, my sword, Cuore di Leone. Blade that guards the throne of the lion! I beseech the predecessor of red and black. Grant your protection to my body and my chivalry!"

Chanting her spell, she summoned her sword but this time with a cape along with her. Adorned with a red cape and black stripes, it intensified her beauty even more. Standing tall and proud, she gave off a majestic aura, full with confidence and bravery. I can tell that she's a very capable woman that can lead to victory, like a certain king who wields a golden sword despite that small frame of hers.

"I'm going to go closer to investigate. You guys go." as soon as she completed her sentence, she dashed straight to town.

"Alright Godou, you should run. Godou?" The guy in question stood there with a blush in his face. "Hello?" I waved my hands in front of his face to get his attention back.

"Huh?" snapping out to reality, he finally noticed me.

"Well she is attractive, that I have to admit but be careful who you fall for. That girl is trouble if you stick around her too long." I gave him a man to man advice.

"Wh-what are you talking about!? I'm not falling for an arrogant girl like that!" Godou retorted back.

"I'm just saying. Well I'm no lady-killer so I can't really say." I scratched my head. Though I had experienced dating Rin, the way she thinks is still a mystery to me. I don't think I can ever understand woman. They are a unique existence themselves. "Alright back to the topic. Godou, I need you to focus here. I need you to go seek refuge together with the townspeople."

"Then how about you? Are you going to follow Erica?" Godou asked back.

"Don't worry about me. I've got a plan of my own." Though it might be difficult in this weather but I'll do what I can.

"Go!" Without waiting for his reply, I shouted at my back as I hurried to my task.

*Scene Break*

The storm rages on.

The howl of the wind grew louder and louder. The heavy raindrops stung against the skin, reinforced by the speed of the one travelling. Combined with the strong wind, it evaporated faster, taking the heat away with it.

Cold. She was cold. Her clothes were drenched from the icy rain. Still she continued to run. With her feet barely touching the ground, Erica was leaping. Using [Leap] magic, it allowed her to jump a far distance that people would even mistook her for flying.

Erica analysed her situation. Thunder and lightning struck the town mercilessly. Buildings destroyed, pavements carved out and objects were flying around carried by the storm. Hearing the screams of people fleeing the town, Erica gritted her teeth, frustrated at the fact that she can't help. Even if she did, it would not change anything. She had to first get rid of the source of the problem, which was now leisurely hovering up the sky.

Erica continued leaping; looking for any building high enough that could shorten the distance between her and the divine beast. Regrettably, there were none. The highest she could find was a tower about six to seven storeys tall. No choice. Landing at the top of the tower, Erica looked up to the sky.

High up in the sky was the [Goat]. Though she was here to investigate, it was useless if the subject was too high to reach. She needed to get its attention. There was a method however; she had never used it before in real combat. It was a risky method. As she contemplates on her decision, lightning continued to strike the town. There's no time. It could be dangerous but that's where the fun lies. Well why not just try it out first? If she wanted to become a [Diavolo Rosso], she must first learn to take risks. A small smile formed at her mouth.

Thrusting out her sword up in the air, she started chanting.

"Eli Eli lama sabachthani? Oh Lord, why hast thou forsaken me?"

A secret technique passed down by the Copper Black Cross, it was a spell that was recognised as one of the most difficult of the secret arts. The Golgotha spell. Its words were an incantation of fury and prayers, calling forth hate and regret. Forming a bone chilling atmosphere that would make a person's heart go numb, the [Goat] lowered its gaze. Noticing the disturbance in the atmosphere, the [Goat] descended towards her.

Goats are naturally intelligent animals, clever and alert to their surroundings but was this [Goat] the same? Does this beast contain the same divinity, the same power as other divine beast?

The only way was to determine it herself. Transforming her sword into a spear, she infused her spell words of despair on it, allowing it to hurt even the gods. Thus, the spear of Longinus was formed.

With the curse that never misses the target, Erica threw her spear towards the oncoming beast.

Striking its lower abdomen, a small open wound was formed. Crying out in pain, the [Goat] gave out a strong sense of hostility.

She smiled. Her hunch was correct. This beast could still be taken down by her level of power.

Time to go. As the knight recalled back her sword, she hastily jumped away from her position, seconds before it was struck by lightning.

Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, Erica continued to dodge the onslaught of lightning aimed at her. She needed to lure the beast away from the town. There were still plenty of townspeople fleeing to safety.

"Guh!" Five lightning strikes struck her position simultaneously. Barely managing to evade the attack, she escaped with only graze on her arm.

The attack intensified as even more lightning simultaneously attempted to strike her. Dodging was becoming difficult. Coupled by the strong wind and slippery ground, it affected her speed to manoeuvre.

"C'mon, over here! Head to safety!" A familiar voice was heard shouting in Japanese.

"What is he thinking? I told him to hide but why is he still here? He can't even speak Italian. How does he expect people to understand?" complaining to herself at act of the reckless boy, a small smile crept on her face. "Idiot."

*Scene Break*

"Wai-"

"Go!" Emiya cut him off before he could speak, running into the darkness of the storm.

CLASH! The ground breaking sound of thunder rumbled in the background. Left alone to fend for himself, Godou was at lost as to what to do.

The [Goat] was clearly visible in the dark sky, dancing with the clouds, and unleashing lightning across town. People were flooding the streets, fleeing from the storm that was wreaking havoc onto their home. Confusion spread as flashes of lightning blinded them temporarily. Cries and wails of despair were muffled by the deafening roar of thunder.

As Godou jogged to the direction of the fleeing crowd, his nightmare came true as he stumbled upon a scene that made his stomach churned. "How horrible."

Charred beyond recognition, black figures that resembled the human body littered around. Having lightning mercilessly rained on them, those that were struck were burnt alive, stiffened at their last position in their attempt to flee, dying at where they stand.

"Ugh…" The stench of burnt flesh coupled with the gruesome sight was too revolting for a normal person like Godou to stomach.

"Aiuto! Aiuto!" Screams of what seemed to be pleas of help could be heard repetitively. Seeing the state of those that failed to escaped, he was torn between saving himself and going there to help.

"Argh damn it!" Cursing himself, he chose the latter. Though he would usually leave it to authorities to handle the saving but they themselves had their hands full handling the situation. If he were to run away himself, the guilt of ignoring the fate of the people in need when he could make a difference would haunt him forever.

Running to the direction of the pleas, he discovered a house on the verge of collapsing. The front porch was covered with rubbles from the rooftop, blocking the entrance. A woman was inside, banging on the door desperately while screaming for help. Cries of a baby were also present, wailing loudly.

Looking for an alternative escape route, Godou encircled the house, finding a window that was blocked by a few wooden pieces from a destroyed crate. Clearing the rubble of wood, Godou broke the window with one of the wooden pieces.

"Over here!" Shouting in Japanese, he caught the attention of the woman holding a baby. The interior of the house was covered with rubbles. There was barely any space to move around. Luckily the pathway from the door to the window was not covered badly.

The disheveled woman hurried to the window and passed her baby to Godou. As she was about to step out of her house using a wooden stool as a stepping stone, the building was struck by lightning. Shaking vigorously the building could no longer withstand the burden and started to collapse. Reacting instinctively, Godou pulled the woman to him before she fell back to her crumbling house.

"Ugh" Pained ached in his right shoulder as he put stress on it, carrying the woman who was too exhausted and her child to safety.

As the building behind them crumbled down, it attracted the attention of a policeman who was looking very haggard. He came running to them and shouting what seemed to be 'Are you ok?' in Italian.

Nodding his head as a sign of acknowledgement, the policeman bought the woman and her child to safety. There were still people evacuating the premises and it was obvious that the policemen were lacking in manpower.

Volunteering himself, he continued to shout instructions to the townspeople with basic hand gestures, guiding them to safety. The lightning strikes were getting more recurrent. He too had to proceed to safety soon if he were to survive.

BOOM! Striking a nearby building, a little girl fell on her knees, covering her ears from the devastating crashing sound. Paralysed by fear, she continued to stay rooted on the ground, crying. Nobody looked back at her, busy running for their lives.

Seeing this, Godou hurried to the little girl. "Hey are you alright? Where's your mom and dad?" speaking in Japanese, of course the girl did not understand. She cried even louder, scared at the events that were alien to her. Making a troubled face, Godou tried once again to converse with the girl.

The rooftop of the building they were under was starting to fall apart. Unaware of the danger above them, Godou finally managed to convince the girl to stand.

"Godou!" The shout of his name alerted him of the present danger tumbling towards them. Unable to evade in time, Godou shielded the girl using his body, hoping to at least protect this frightened little girl.

He waited for the debris to fall onto them but nothing came. Instead what came were complains. "Idiot! What do you think you're doing endangering yourself!?" a beautiful voice rang in his ears. He didn't know how relief he was to hear her voice. Erica was standing there with a frown on her face. "Though I have a lot of complains, now is not the time. Hurry and escape with the girl."

"GAOO!" The roar of the [Goat] echoed throughout the storm.

'Damn it!' cursing under her breath, Erica transformed her sword into a shield and quickly bought it up, just in time to block the multiple lighting strikes.

"Guh!" Though she managed to block the strikes, it left her vulnerable as it sent electricity jolting throughout her body, paralysing her. Unable to move, she let out a gasp of pain.

"…Hurry…run" With her body paralysed, she barely managed to spit out those words.

"Wait, I can't leave you alone. You'll die!" Godou protested. Quivering in fear, the girl in his arms started to cry again. He had to bring this girl to safety but that means Erica would be left unprotected. He didn't know what to do. He felt powerless, useless, unable to do anything. If only he had power, he could save them both.

Bleating loudly, the [Goat] descended closer. A cluster of dark clouds gathered above the beast. Electrostatic charges were accumulating in the clouds. 'Is it going to unleash a final attack? Even if we were to run, we would still get caught by the explosion. Is this the end?' Lost at what to do, Godou could only fall into despair. He held Erica and the girl together tightly in his embrace, shielding them from oncoming onslaught. Knowing that it was a futile effort, he still did not give up.

CRASH!

Blinded by the bright flash of light, Godou waited for strike that would end them. The sound of thunder was louder than usual but nothing came. Everyone was unharmed. Even the streets were not hit. What happened?

"Intercepted." A soft whisper. "It was intercepted. Something went and took the blow instead." Struggling to stand, Erica stared at a distance.

"Hey are you alright? Can you move?" Voicing out his concerns, Godou supported Erica who was still under the influence of paralysis.

"I'm fine. More importantly, what was that?" Erica squinted her eyes to the direction of the mountain valleys.

Roar! The beast's painful cries resonated in the background.

Multiple arrows were bombarding the beast. Though it did little damage, it was enough to distract the [Goat]. Changing targets, the white beast flew towards the source of the arrows.

For now Godou and the rest were safe, as the [Goat] made its way to the mountains, bringing along the storm with it.

"What happened? Where did those shots come from?" Godou asked confused.

"Archer." Erica gave him a short answer. 'There's an archer around the vicinity of the mountains. Whoever it is, he's good. To be able to snipe accurately to intercept the lightning, he's no ordinary archer.' Her face turned serious. 'Could it be that guy? It can't be. He's a sword wielder, not an archer. If not, then could it be the youth?' Multiple questions filled her mind.

As the [Goat] was lured away by the archer, Erica reinforced her eyes to the limits, trying to make out the position of the archer. It was useless with the weather condition. In any case she needs to get closer and to do that she needed to recover from this paralysis. It was more or less five minutes before she could move freely again with her recovery magic doing its job.

"It's gone. We're saved." sighing in relief, Godou released the girl in his arms. "Don't worry. You're safe now." Giving her a reassuring smile, the little girl just stared at him. Unable to comprehend what he said, she just gave a small nod.

"No, it's not over yet. The [Goat] is still there. If my speculation is correct, a [Wind] deity will appear to get rid of it." Erica reminded him. Though she could hardly move, she still tried to speak.

Reminded of the still present problem, Godou's face turned grim. "The youth." he whispered.

"Yes. There is still the youth. If I'm not wrong, he would appear soon." Erica continued.

"No, not that. The youth...He's there...He's standing there observing." Godou pointed out.

"What!? Where?" Suddenly on high alert, she searched for the subject of the conversation.

There, standing a few blocks away from them was the youth. Purple hair, with worn out tattered robe and emitting a strange feeling, he stood there, gazing at the white beast. Noticing their stares, the youth turned to them and gave off a smile while heading away.

"I'm going there to talk to him." Godou said out of the blue.

"Wait! What are planning to do?" she retorted.

When he was about to move off, he was halted by a small weight. Still clutching on his shirt, the little girl held on to him, not allowing him to go. She looked up at him with eyes, pleading him not to go.

"Agatha!" someone exclaimed. A young woman in her late-twenties ran to the girl with relief. "Mama!" the girl cried in relief as she was embraced by her mother.

"I'm glad you found your mother." Godou said softly to the girl while patting her head. The mother said something to him in Italian that he didn't understand, repeating the same word again and again.

"She's saying thanks for taking care of her daughter." Erica translated for him. She was struggling to move herself despite the paralysis still in effect.

The family of two then departed somewhere to safety. The little girl continued waving at him as the anxious mother carried her along.

"I see..." It was not the first time someone thanked him for helping them but these feelings he felt was somewhat different. Seeing the joy and relief of the mother reunited with her daughter struck something within him. 'Perhaps I should do some humanitarian work sometime when I get back' he thought to himself.

"Hold on for a while. Don't do anything rash. My paralysis won't take much longer." Erica claimed.

"I can't wait much longer. We can't afford to lose him. If what you said is correct, then that guy might be the one responsible for all this mess. I'm going to talk to him to convince him to stop all these incidents." Godou turned to her. "I don't want to see anyone else gets hurt." With that, he went off to chase after the youth.

"W-wait! You don't know what you're up against. He might be a dangerous mage. Godou!" her advice fell on deaf ears. She could only grit her teeth as she concentrated all her power in her recovering magic. She got a bad feeling that things won't go that well for them.

AN: Happy Chinese New Year! Congratulations to all the Chinese around the world! Yeah! :D

I've been busy these few weeks with reports and test to do. Luckily I wrote this chapter earlier if not I don't think I could submit this today.

Anyway, how was the chapter? Not much action here. Just some humanitarian work. This time the main spotlight is on Godou. I'm trying to develop his character further for future references. I have plans for him so wait and see. For the archer, I guess you probably know who is it.

Well for the questions that were posted in the reviews, first of, make no mistake. Shirou is still somewhat an airhead in girls. Try to decipher how I depict Shirou's personality. For who will be Campione, I've already set it in my head. I hope that it will go well. I rather not explain too much here cause that will be a spoiler and that would defeat the whole purpose of reading the story.

The next chapter will be quite on delay since I still got exams and reports to do so probably about a month or so.

Haha. I don't know what else to say here. Oh I've already tried my best with my friend to check for any grammar mistakes so if there is still some, hope you guys can forgive them.

For the next chapter, there will be more Shirou and some explosions! I think you already know what I'm talking about. haha. Your thoughts and reviews are important to me so that I know what I'm lacking in. Well until next time. See ya!