Chapter 3

The streets of the city were empty, which was a godsend. Caren wasn't sure what she'd do if there were still people who decided to wander around. She didn't want to trouble Shirou during a hunt, as involving civilians was a big no no for Shirou.

She could tell that everyone seemed to have some doubts regarding her Shirou, however, she knew better. Liliana, at least, seemed to believe that he could win, which Caren was glad about. 'Shirou doesn't need someone who doubts him after all.'

Of course, she knew that no one knew that Shirou hunted down dead apostles and daemons for living, and that he was good at it. Adding onto that, he sparred with Gilgamesh often, allowing him to keep up with heroic spirits when the Holy Grail War began.

Of course, actually defeating a heroic spirit was another story, but she was confident that he would be able to pull such a feat off given the right circumstances. So, for her, it wasn't that big of a surprise he managed to become a campione.

That was when he was still human. Now, his body was now on par with the monsters and beings that he fought. So, she was extremely confident that he would be able face off against anything thrown at him. No one could ever claim that they had more faith in him than her after all.

Of course, Shirou was an executor, a holy warrior who enforced God's will, a true weapon who safeguarded mankind. So, Caren knew that he was the perfect fit to be a campione, hunting down 'heretic' gods and protecting mankind and God's creations.

Then, there was her. She was an exorcist, a representative of the church. If Shirou was a weapon, Caren was his sheathe and wielder, the one who made sure he remained Shirou and kept him shining bright and radiant with her love and faith. She was his and he was her's.

Which is why she wasn't all that worried about Liliana joining them. She was already proving to be very helpful with their current mission. Caren liked her, especially since her personality made it easy for her to terrorize. Plus, she thought it'd be nice for Shirou to interact with others since their departure from their world.

She then hummed to herself. 'I wonder if there will be others who will come to him. Considering Liliana, it's a likely outcome. Well, no matter. I'll always be first anyways.' She thought with a dark giggle, one that caused Liliana to shudder a bit.

"Um, Lady Caren, will these be enough to help Lord Shirou?" She asked, with Caren remembering where she was. She cleared her throat before grabbing another black key and sticking it into the ground, before Liliana picked her up and flew her to the next destination.

"Just Caren is fine, Lili." She replied, causing Liliana to sputter. "And yes, they will. Once we finish up, Shirou's trump card will be complete. Well, one of them anyways." She said with a smile. "This specific trump card is actually quite a spectacle. Though, I admit, I've never had to make one so large before. I assume Shirou is facing something whose concept is close with the demonic."

"These swords do give off a divine feel. I've never seen anything like them before." Liliana said, looking at one of the swords in Caren's hands.

"These swords are the scriptures of God made manifest. Conceptual weapons meant to battle the evil and unnatural. I'm sadly not as familiar with their use as Shirou is, but I do know the things Shirou is capable of using them for. Such as this grand holy sacrament that Shirou created himself, after much research and trial and error. If you ask nicely, Shirou may teach you how to use them." She said, sticking another sword into the ground.

They then heard a loud explosion, before looking towards the location of where Shirou went, seeing smoke rising from the air. 'It's time.' She thought, before looking at Liliana. "Do you have a way to fire something into the air to signal Shirou? Preferably with a blue light?" She asked, with Liliana thinking for a moment.

"I do, and it'll be blue." Caren smiled, 'Good, that way Shirou will know that the other heretic god hasn't entered yet. At least, if he remembers our code.'

"Okay, let's get somewhere high up and fire it off. Shirou's going to need to use this if he's still fighting." She said seriously. She knew that Shirou wouldn't be struggling this hard normally, but she had a feeling that Shirou was facing something from their religion, especially with her setting this certain sacrament up for him. There was only one conclusion she could come to, 'It's likely a demon.'


Shirou was not having an easy time. Tarasque was helping him out quite a bit, but getting a clean shot against him wasn't easy. Apollyon, or rather, Abbadon was an enemy that may have been a bit much at the moment. However, Shirou knew that the heretic god was being careful.

After the first round of attacks, a prayer from Martha's staff and his black keys, Abaddon seemed to recognize that Shirou had holy weapons that completely went against his nature. So, he was being annoyingly careful not to allow another hit.

Then there was the fact he was quite fast with his wings, though with Tarasque, he wasn't having much trouble in keeping him in front of him. Admittedly, Shirou was being careful with his abilities. He was being sure to keep dragon slaying saint up and running, though Tarasque was putting a massive strain on him.

Using two of the authorities at the same time wasn't something he should do, but he needed to gauge his power. So far, Shirou had seen that Abaddon was a formidable combatant, managing to cut his arms a few times. However, Shirou could tell that he wasn't fighting in his normal way. It was more curiosity at this point.

So, Shirou would turn that curiosity into seriousness. He allowed the staff and Tarasque to return, before calling his bow. "Oh, have you seen the futile nature of your actions? If so, then allow me to end this farce." Shirou merely smirked. He traced a weapon that had been upgraded, one that would serve him well.

A twisted black blade appeared in his hand, before Shirou nocked the arrow. "I am the bone of my sword. Hunt him down, Hrunting!" Without allowing the god to gather himself, Shirou let loose a proper noble phantasm. One that soared with precision, however, Abaddon was able to dodge the attack at the last moment.

"You possess some tricks, priest, however, my experience outranks yours." Shirou narrowed his eyes, before calling Kanshou and Bakuya to his hands, throwing them, along with another pair at the heretic god, who merely laughed as he prepared to bat them away.

"You talk too much." Was Shirou's reply, as Abaddon hit one of the swords, causing it to explode in his face, just as Hrunting returned and struck the heretic god in the back. The result was a large explosion of noble phantasms. Of course, Shirou knew better than to count him out. He quickly traced the Sword of Strange Hangings.

Out of the smoke of the resulting blast came a ball of red and black energy, reminiscent of flames. Shirou quickly jumped to the side, before the ball exploded where he had been standing, spreading small flames that didn't seem to diminish at all. Shirou couldn't help but feel like those flames would be bad news if it were to hit him.

He looked back and saw the previously white and silver heretic god, now colored in black and grey, with his armor and wings taking on the same charred appearance as his staff. He could see blood coming from his body, obviously from the wounds from his broken phantasms. Honestly, he was amazed that he tanked each one.

However, Shirou already planned on something like that happening. He could tell that Apollyon was the outer shell, now he was dealing with Abaddon. Which was actually a lot more dangerous. "How dare you?! I'm going to kill you, but not before I make you suffer untold pain, pain that your religion only speaks of!"

Shirou looked at the flames. 'Hellfire then? Likely a flame that burns the soul, more akin to a curse than actual flames. I really can't let those hit me.' Shirou could see multiple balls of flame begin to form around the former angel. However, he could feel his dragon slaying saint begin to respond to the form of the god he was facing.

Shirou knew that Abaddon's core was merely a concept of Satan himself, with other legends and stories being added on in the end. Shirou then noticed a blue flare being fired up in the city. Normally, he would assume that this meant the other heretic god had entered the city, but blue was a specific color that Caren picked out to message him.

He couldn't help the small smirk from appearing on his face. 'Fighting him head to head isn't smart, even with dragon slaying saint identifying him as a serpent. Tarasque has already been used, however, I still have his shield. I also have Fragarach, however, that isn't something I can just pull out with another heretic god nearby.'

'However, with that flare, I have a chance to end this decisively. I just need to lure him into the city.' He thought to himself, knowing that Enbarr was still nearby. 'Caren's going to hate this.' Shirou took a deep breath, before looking up at Abaddon.

"Tell me Abaddon, your authorities are tied to the abyss and other fallen angel abilities, correct?" He asked, already knowing the answer. "You can't use one of them, can you?" Abaddon narrowed his eyes at him. "Originally, you could summon souls from your abyss, but you no longer possess that right, do you? Ever since you lost the keys to the kingdom..."

Before Shirou could finish, seven of the balls of fire shot forward, with even Abaddon flying forward at a much higher speed than normal. 'Not good.' Shirou channeled as much magical energy into his legs, before deciding to jump towards the heretic god. The moment their swords clashed, the balls of flames all exploded, while flames began to jump from his sword.

The resulting shockwave was able to push most of the flames away, however, flames did manage to strike his body. His shoulder was hit with his back even being hit, though his shroud managed to repel the vast majority of them. With Abaddon no longer being restrained by his fake form, his attacks held far more power, with him being thrown away by their strike.

Shirou wasn't focused on the strike though, rather, he was more focused on the amount of pain his body was now in. Rather, he was being reminded of his time in the Fuyuki fire, as well as experiencing Grail mud and the shadow. While the flames weren't at that level, the pain was extraordinary. The moment he attempted to stand, he nearly fell over, with his vision swimming.

"Enbarr!" He managed to yell out, before multiple blades of black shadows zipped by, piercing his leg and chest. 'What was that?!' He thought, looking up, seeing Abaddon forming arrows of black shadows above him, before coating them in the red and black flames, along with his sword, staff, and wings. Shirou raised his left hand, before Enbarr raced by, allowing him to grab ahold of the reins and pull himself up.

"Like I'd allow you to run away!" He heard the heretic speak, however, Shirou knew Enbarr's speed would keep him ahead of Abaddon.

"I am the bone of my sword." Shirou turned around, allowing his horse to run to their destination freely, "Rho Aias!" He activated his best defense just as the attacks were launched, blocking fatal blows, though the flames were eroding the first layer of his seven layer shield. Abaddon's eyes narrowed, before he began to pack more energy into the attacks.

'I just need to hold until we reach the center.' He thought weakly, before more of the attacks began to strike his shield. It was unrelenting, and with the flames corroding his shield, he was quickly running out of time. However, he wouldn't give up. "Set, activation of grand sacrament, begin."

The moment he said those words, he felt the drain on his magical energy. It was a sacrament, or rather a spell, that usually required Shirou to use multiple different artifacts and work arounds to even achieve a weak outcome. However, he now had the ability to use a completed version of this spell.

All in all, it was nothing too impressive. At its core, it was a baptism rite, however, it was a baptism rite that could effect any spiritual body and divinity. No matter who was hit by it, it would enforce a forceful law upon the spirit, crushing it entirely, inspired by the conceptual abilities of the black keys.

It incorporated many different elements, however, the most important of those elements was the base. Using the seal of Solomon, along with other religious iconography, he could perform a sacrament that targeted the unnatural. The idea came from witnessing Ciel's greater magecraft, Calvaria's Star, though Shirou wasn't Ciel, so he required a different means of achieving the result.

Using Idea Blood was one way, however, Shirou was no longer restricted by his old self, all he required was the concept of a sword, and he already had that. "I kill, and I let live. I harm, and I heal. My faith and my body are unshakeable steel. Steel that is unbroken, Steel that is unbending." Already, the outer layers of the seal began to light up. There would now be no escape.

He quickly gripped the cross on his neck with his free hand. It wasn't for the spell, it was the visions and regrets the burns were torturing him with. Likely, it could feel the activation of his sacrament, and it was on hyperdrive trying to kill him. However, his will would not break. "Have withstood pain to be the ultimate steel, a shepherd for the masses."

Before he could continue, his shield broke and the resulting explosion blasted him from Enbarr's back, also resulting in the horse's de-materialization. However, he was already in the center. All he needed was to touch the black key in front of him, and finish the incantation. "I am light and shall relieve all your burdens."

Rather than focus on Abaddon, he focused on crawling towards the black key, however, he knew that it would be nearly impossible to reach with the constant attacks. However, he heard the heretic god let out a pained cry, "You dare attack me with such a weapon?!" He guessed it was Caren and Liliana, however, it was what he needed.

Already, the light had engulfed the area around them, save for the inner circle of the seal. "A sword of god, drawn for his children. Repent and ask forgiveness here. I, the reincarnation, shall swear." The inner ring activated, the light shooting upwards into the sky, the flames and burns being cleansed immediately.

Without the flames, Shirou was able to fully regain his strength for a moment, reaching out and gripping the black key so tightly, that it cut into his hand, allowing his blood to flow into the ground. "What is this?!" He heard, before Shirou finished his chant.

"Christe Eleison." The light brightened considerably, with Shirou hearing a crash behind him with pained yells and snarls. Shirou pushed himself up and made his way to his feet. He then drew Merodach from its scabbard for the first time. He turned and saw Abaddon being pinned to the ground, attempting to resist the sacrament.

Any flames he called were immediately snuffed out, any shadows he produced were chased back, and any attempt to call upon his authority was locked. Shirou knew this wouldn't work on all heretic gods, but against this one, it worked nearly perfectly. Because of his association with angels, it didn't kill him immediately, but it was enough bind him.

"You rely on such a cheap trick to defeat me?! Who do you think you are?!" Shirou could only look on with a disinterested face, though he was still quite injured. He could feel the presence of the second heretic god watching. 'A shame, I wished to catch him in it too.'

Shirou took a deep breath. "This was never a battle of strength. It was a battle of concepts. I used a bloodthirsty blade to destroy your holy armor, and everything from there was to destroy what you really are. Though, since you aren't the real thing, you didn't get crushed outright." He said calmly, attempting to ignore the lingering pain.

"Now, be honored, for you'll be finished by by the The Original Sin, Merodach, the first holy blade that selects the king." Shirou said, holding up his sword, channeling magical energy into the blade, seeing the fallen god attempt to struggle. "Pass judgement, Merodach." With a single swing, Shirou vaporized the location Abaddon.


He looked on, before stumbling and catching himself on his sword. 'Okay, now take the bait.' He thought to himself. Admittedly, it wasn't a complete lie that Shirou was in a weakened state. His dragon slaying saint authority had run its course, now leaving him weakened by a fair bit. Tarasque couldn't be summoned for another day, and Enbarr needed to recover.

This wasn't counting the wounds he had taken. All in all, the toll on his body was quite significant. He could also feel his body attempting to adapt to whatever authority he had taken, much like the first time. He didn't know how it worked just yet, but taking in the authority was actually messing with him more than he thought.

However, he couldn't rest and allow it to happen naturally, as there was still the threat of an unknown shadow god. He managed to peer up, seeing Caren and Liliana looking down at him with worried expressions. He noticed that Liliana had a bow in her hands, which was rather surprising, considering he knew that she likely saved his life.

Though, he couldn't relax and thank her just yet. While he still had Merodach and magical energy, he didn't wish to prolong his battle. Doing so may end up more detrimental in the long run. So, he would bet it all on a chance. "Well, that was most entertaining god-slayer. Seeing your kind struggle so foolishly for powers that don't belong to you will always be most entertaining."

Shirou turned, before some sort of shadow struck towards him, causing him to raise his sword up, blocking the attack but causing him to lose his sword. Two more struck, with Shirou dodging them by the thinnest of margins. "It seems you still have some fight left in you. Though, I'm guessing you are in no condition for another fight."

"Then you wouldn't mind rescheduling this until I'm fully rested. After all, you're a god. Killing a weakened foe doesn't seem like a very godly thing to do, after all." Shirou replied, with the god laughing in reply.

"Oh, that's a good joke, and may work on any other god, but I know better than to leave my mortal enemies alive lest they become thorns in my side later. No, unfortunately, killing you here and now is the best choice. With your sword of light gone, I know you're powerless, especially after using those authorities earlier."

Shirou could only let out a small, wry chuckle. "You'd be right. As I am a priest, you should know my words are true. Though, I'd prefer to go out like a warrior, if you don't mind." He spoke calmly, looking up at that figure shrouded in shadows. He could make out some ethereal eyes narrow for a moment, before shadows engulfed the area.

"If you believe those women will help you here, you are wrong. I won't make the same mistake as that fool. This is my domain, my authority, and none may escape it. Those that dwell in shadows don't reveal themselves until the perfect opportunity. Be swallowed up by darkness, dragged into the abyss, and may your soul fade, Erebos."

The shadow seemed to swell, before beginning to condense upon Shirou's location. He unattached the case on his back, allowing it to fall to the ground. The god's eyes seemed to widen in delight, with the shadows dancing in response, knowing the God-Slayer had given up.

The case then opened, releasing three lead balls into the air. Shirou held his hand out, the lead balls rotating in the air above the palm of his hand. The shadow was now about to reach him. "Answerer." Shirou took a step back, readying himself to throw a straight punch. The lead balls then began to light up with runes, with a blade materializing out of them.

Blue lightning began to arc around him and his fist. Inside the pitch black dome, only the arcs of blue lightning were visible, though they were enough to fully illuminate the figure of Shirou. With one final movement, locked in place by a shadow, locked inside of the abyss, and just before the weight of nothingness crushed him, Shirou launched forward with one last punch. "Fragarach!"


Outside of the black dome, Caren watched on, though, her vision swam for a moment. She could feel something was off, as she watched the black dome encase Shirou, despite feeling like she had seen that happen already. Just as quickly, a thin blue light pierced the shadow, causing breaks to appear on the shadow, almost like glass.

The next moment, a shadowy body fully broke the glass-like shadow, being thrown into the wall of a building. She had felt and seen something similar before. Her eyes narrowed, 'Fragarach.' It was the ultimate counter, one used by their very close friend, Bazett. She didn't know that Shirou had the ability to use their world's version of it.

She could tell the heretic god was fatally injured, with Shirou's followup attack not helping matters. Assuming Shirou used his martial arts, the god likely had his heart pierced, before he delivered a powerful punch that, more than likely, nearly crushed the god's heart. The god's body cratered the wall, before multiple black keys were thrown into his body, pinning him there.

Caren then saw Shirou, finally free of the obscuring shadow. She could tell he was exhausted. However, she knew his mind was likely locked in. She let out a hum. "I see, so shadow binding still works on it. Probably more so, considering it's a shadow itself." She muttered to herself. She could see the two speaking to each other, though it was likely a formality.

Though, she was still able to hear Shirou perfectly. "It wasn't a lie. I simply bet my life on a single strike. As I am now, facing you seriously would likely not end favorably for me. Though, you would have still died. I'm simply trying not to worry someone needlessly." Shirou said, walking over and picking up his sword.

"You're a strange one. You bet your life, to make it so that someone wouldn't worry?" The god replied, his voice and breathing becoming weaker.

"Counter intuitive, I know. Yet, I am without the accumulated wounds I would have received fighting you. Honestly, binding you there was also a stroke of luck. I didn't expect it to work on the embodiment of shadows. Though, I'll take it. I didn't want you pulling off some kind of escape." Shirou said with a sigh, walking over to the god.

"My authorities may not be as numerous as others, but in terms of versatility, I'm sure it will serve you well after my death. I have a feeling you're not that different from me. Surrounded by darkness, embraced by it even, yet, you have yet to fall." Shirou seemed to still for a moment, before Caren saw his shoulder's moving, likely from him laughing.

"Shirou Kotomine, perhaps he would have agreed with that statement. Unfortunately for you, that man no longer exists. Shirou Hortensia is all that remains, and even with your authority and the fallen angel's, I won't succumb. She saw to that a long time ago, from the moment she decided to...nevermind." He said, raising his sword.

"Ah, I see. You were saved then." She saw Shirou merely nod at his words. "A curse and a blessing, I envy that." Shirou then swung his sword, finishing the god. All of the weapons used then faded away into motes of lights.

"Caren, I'm finished." He said quietly, before leaning against the wall and sliding down, exhausted. Caren and Liliana quickly descended down, before checking on Shirou. Caren then frowned, before wrapping him up in her shroud. 'He made it seem like he was in trouble, but he's just asleep.' She thought, before another dark smile made its way onto her face.


Elsewhere, two figures were watching from afar, being sure to distance themselves from the city. "That sword and its light, it was so...familiar. We must know more about him. I have a feeling that he's a special existence that could change things. Perhaps, he may help in regards to our annoying problem." The smaller girl said. The larger one merely nodded its head, though it was clearly intrigued at the young God-Slayer.

Another set of eyes of was watching, though she couldn't meet him in person just yet. However, it was only a matter of time. "The Seventh is so much more different than the others. However, there is not enough information on him. I'll have to wait and see what the Copper-Black Cross finds, then I'll decide." She thought to herself, before focusing on Caren and Liliana. "Very interesting."


Done, finished this chapter before going on to some others, simply because I felt like finishing this chapter. I'm working on other chapters as well, but this one was really just coming along faster than others. Anyways, this chapter was really full of just fighting and things, so it was a little easier to get through. Though, I was able to add in some fun bits, especially with Caren. Now, I want to say that Shirou basically cheated in this chapter, though he could have also fought a lot differently and won, but that wasn't the point. Shirou's first fight was more of Shirou's church side fighting evil, which is why he said it wasn't all about strength, otherwise he would have pulled out some heavier stuff. He was testing out things, figuring out what worked and what didn't, but also he wanted to fight a specific way against an enemy of the church. Simple as that.

The second fight, which wasn't much of a fight, was to highlight that Shirou's trump cards are numerous, but they aren't instant win weapons like they would normally be. Fragarach would normally be an instant win, but Erebus tanked it, but Shirou was able to follow up quickly with one last burst, once again relying on conceptual weapons. These fights won't always be this easy. Luckily for Shirou, Erebus's authority was counted as an always active trump card, much like Herc's god hand, so Fragarach activated. Neither of these two were god's of steel, which are enemies Shirou will face that will be significantly tougher, not to mention other Campione. Shirou's grand baptism rite is something I developed from numerous other things, but I'll explain how it works next chapter, with Shirou explaining it. It isn't as simple as it seems. Shirou's UBW incantation is partially mixed in for a reason.

Also, Godou will be a campione, I'm not killing him off. That'd be boring, as I have some interactions planned for the two of them. It will not be what some are thinking. I'm also trying to keep in mind the two worlds, trying to mesh them together. I remember reading something once, where the writer wrote that Type Moon mages had nothing on Campione, which I sort of heavily disagreed with, at least partially. Heretic gods and Campione have an innate magic resistance, that's obvious, but that's also because spells in Campione are borrowed from Gods' powers, unlike Type Moon. They'd still resist spells with magic resistance, but I don't think it'd be a one sided stomp, as some mages are insane with some of their spells. Tangent, I know, but it is hard to scale and I'm attempting to do my best.

Also, Godou won't be a main character, Shirou won't always be in Japan, and I'm not going to turn Shirou into some kind overpowered beast, or underpowered. He's strong, especially with his tracing, but it'd be boring to see him stomp everyone and also have no real development whatsoever. I think him and Caren have plenty of room to grow, since their relationship is sort of...I'd say distorted, but I'm going to say it's more just odd. I wanted to hint at that in this chapter. Anyways, thanks for reading, I appreciate the reviews and feeback, it really helps. If you have questions, feel free to ask, I usually answer them. I do have a poll up, if you want to check it out, deciding on what pattern I should go with in my story updates. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed and, as always, until next time.