In the dim light of Chaldea's halls during the night time, Gilgamesh paced wearily. Heroic spirit though he may be, his past life and traumas haunted him much like any other.
It was then that he began to sing in his native tongue.
Gilgamesh: "Shima inni! Eṭlūtu! Shima inni ia ashi! Shima inni! Shibuut āli rapshi Uruk. Shima inni ia ashi! Ana ku ana Enkidu! Enkidu! Ibriia abakki! Kīma lallariti, únambar ṣarpish..."
Da Vinci could hear the king from her workshop as he sang of his past grief. Despite how prideful the king was and despite the unimaginable power he held. He was still, at one point, a man. Child of a god or otherwise, even the strongest heroes had traumas they could never let go of.
She walked out and saw Gilgamesh leaning against his bedroom door, a solemn expression plastered across his face.
She headed to the cafeteria quietly and made both herself and Gilgamesh some coffee. She then walked back to the hallway and tapped his shoulder. Gilgamesh turned slowly and saw her outstretched hand with the coffee mug in her hand.
Saying nothing, she invited him into the workshop. He was in a good mood, so he obliged and took a seat at her desk.
Da Vinci: "That song was beautiful, King Gilgamesh."
Gilgamesh: "Indeed. It was a song written in the time of mourning for my friend."
Da Vinci: "Enkidu. The weapon of the gods. The chain of heaven made to bind you to the gods."
Gilgamesh: "Indeed. By far the greatest treasure I ever possessed and nothing shall replace it."
Da Vinci nodded before sipping her coffee slowly. Normally Gilgamesh would berate her for attempting to give him anything other than the finest drinks possible, however he wasn't in the mood for his usual pride.
He also had a bit of a sweet spot for tea and coffee, Abzu forbid if Ishtar ever found out.
Gilgamesh: "... I find myself surprised. I never would have painted you for the empathetic type."
Da Vinci: "I've had my fair share of struggles as well, your highness. Though your connection to Enkidu is rather remarkable. You two were inseparable, like a married couple."
Gilgamesh chuckled as he sipped his coffee.
Gilgamesh: "Enkidu and I were joined as brothers. My mother accepted him as her son after all. Clay though he may have been moulded from, my brother he always shall be."
Da Vinci: "I thought they had no gender."
Gilgamesh: "Perhaps at one time he did. However he accepted that he was my brother under my mother, Ninsun. So I refer to him as male."
Da Vinci: "Huh. Fair enough."
Gilgamesh looked to his right hand where he had cradled Enkidu's head in his final moments
Gilgamesh: "Enkidu... Ibriia abakki."
Meanwhile back in London, Y/n felt his arm tense up. He placed his hand over his wrist to calm it down as he stood across from Lartoria Alter.
Lalter: "Putting this as simply as I possibly can. You are to be my new master."
Y/n: "I see. I shall accept that position only when we have returned to Chaldea. Sakura needs you now, Lalter."
Lalter was clearly unimpressed by his response and she held him by the collar while leaning in so their faces were mere inches apart.
Lalter: "I shall not accept no for an answer."
Y/n: "As I said, we can form a contract when we get to Chaldea. I'm not leaving Sakura without a servant while we're here."
Lalter's amber eyes glared into Y/n's as they slowly turned green.
Lalter: "The girl is still weak. Not fit to be my master. I shall not-"
Y/n: "You will fucking listen to what I say, Artoria."
Lalter let go of Y/n's collar and backed up as he began to hover off the ground, towering over her more than usual.
Y/n: "You may be a form of the king of Britain, but a king has no authority, no sway, over the word of a deity."
Lalter backed off further until she was backed up against the wall as Y/n's hair turned as white as snow.
Abzu's full authority leaked through Y/n's voice as he held back the urge to throw it all away and attack the lancer. However he was thankfully more patient than that and simply settled for intimidation.
Y/n: "Heed these words, Artoria. You will remain as Sakura's servant until such times as we can ensure her safety. Am. I. Clear?"
Lalter: "... V- Very well. I shall stay with her for the time being."
Y/n nodded before allowing his eyes and hair to return to normal. Lalter took a second to recompose herself, however she spotted something out of the corner of her eye and thrust her lance in that general direction. The person she had stabbed at however, caught the lance with no issue.
???: "It would be very much appreciated if you could not."
The woman laughed as Lalter tried again and she kept laughing as Lalter thrust her lance towards where the woman was vulnerable, however it did nothing but poke her with the tip.
Now that I think about it, that paragraph can be taken in many ways... fuck it, too lazy to change it, we move!
Lalter: "This is getting me nowhere! Release the thirteen fangs!"
The woman laughed again as she brushed her hair to one side.
Lalter: "Thrust and feast, RHONGO-"
???: "Chains of Heaven!"
Both women gasped in surprise as Y/n re-emerged from the apartment with the golden chains of heaven binding them both.
The blonde woman didn't struggle as Lalter did however. She merely eyes Y/n with silent curiosity.
???: "Boy, how do you control these chains?"
Y/n: "First of all, never call me that."
???: "Haha! You speak as if a mortal has any authority over the goddess of Beauty and War?"
Y/n: "Bitch, you ain't Ishtar!"
???: "Oh? Is that what you think, Boy?"
Abzu: "Y/n, that both is and is not Ishtar."
Y/n: "Explain, buffoon."
Abzu: "The Ishtar you know was the one that loved to horde material wealth and was, for all intents and purposes, useless. This one is hellbent on battle and war."
Y/n: "I see... Inanna."
Inanna: "Ah, I see you do know me after all."
Y/n: "Yeah, I'm used to seeing you in another form. Hell, I wasn't expecting you to show up so early."
Inanna: "Well, as you have surmised, I am not the Ishtar you know. I am another half of her, Inanna."
Y/n: "You still an archer with stormtrooper aim?"
Inanna: "Goodness no."
Y/n: "Good."
Inanna: "I am a berserker."
Inanna proved her point by lifting a rather large and intricate golden mace.
Inanna: "Now then, answer my question. How do you control those chains?"
Y/n remained quiet before sighing. He then rolled up his sleeve, Inanna's eyes widened in surprise as she saw the scar where his previous arm was severed by Sakura's ribbons.
Inanna: "You... Lost your arm."
Lalter tilted her head in curiosity as Y/n pulled his sleeve back down over the scar.
Inanna: "I see. So that clay fool gave his arm to you."
Y/n was about to bitch slap Inanna for that comment, however he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Jekyll at the door.
Jekyll: "It's time. We have to go to the clock tower, there's been servant activity there recently."
Y/n: "Alright, are the others still asleep?"
Jekyll: "Yes, as such I shall go with you."
Y/n: "You sure? What about Edward?"
Jekyll: "I'll only let Hyde out if the situation absolutely calls for it."
Inanna: "I'm not leaving until I get a good look at how you handle that fools arm so seamlessly."
Y/n: "Surprisingly, Ishtar was more tolerable than you, Inanna. Shush your face."
Inanna: "I will break you in half, boy."
Y/n: "And I'll break every bone in your body a thousand times over if I have to. So once again, shut your whore mouth and back off."
Inanna: "And why should I do that!?"
Jekyll: "And she fell right into it."
Y/n: "Because I'm about to turn left, and I don't wanna smack you with my dick!"
Inanna didn't appreciate that and her sexual frustration fuelled argument with Y/n continued until the three got to the clock tower.
Inanna: "I literally got railed in my sleep, granted the bastard was wiped off the face of the earth when I woke up, but it still counts."
Y/n: "I bet the only reason you didn't enjoy it is because, much like Dumuzid, he didn't stick around for too long."
Jekyll: "Pfft, that's a low blow, Y/n."
Inanna: "Asshole!"
Y/n: "We all know that's where ya prefer it anyway, bitch. I can even ask Gil and he can confirm it."
Inanna: "I'm going to kill you."
Y/n: "Jekyll, what're we at now?"
Jekyll: "I lost count at seventeen."
Y/n chuckled before kicking the doors to the clock tower open. Immediately both he and Jekyll went silent. Jekyll clutched a glass vial in his hands before the two headed further in. Inanna was curious about their silence and watched as Y/n pushed his back against a wall.
Jekyll did the same before Y/n stamped his foot once, as he did so, some manner of eyeless beast emerged from the shadows. A soul eater.
Jekyll knew they needed to take action, and made his choice. He popped the cork off of the vial and downed the green liquid within. Y/n watched in silence as Jekyll stepped out and the sould eater turned to charge at him. However, when he blinked, his eyes burned red and a deranged smile spread across his face. Y/n was ready to see the depraved serial murderer Edward Hyde in action...
Until he opened his mouth.
Hyde: "Oi! Why the fuck does your face look like a fuckin' ballsack!?"
Both Inanna and Y/n were stunned by the one-eighty that was Hyde.
The soul eater growled at him before charging, Hyde however laughed loudly and grabbed it by the neck before literally RKO'ing that bitch into the stone floor.
Hyde: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I would feel sorry for ya, BUT GUESS TEH FUCK WHAT? I DON'T, SO SUCK MY SLAPPER!! AHAHAHAHAHA!!"
Y/n: "First Lancelot, Then Ash, now Hyde. Fucking Christ."
Hyde: "HEY, I HEAR YOU TALKIN' OVER THERE, CUNTADOODLE BITCH!"
Y/n sighed before he and Inanna started looking around for anything that might prove useful. Clearly Either Babbage or Zouken himself had been here since the place looked totalled, the lack of claw marks told Y/n that the soul eater had not been into this section of the building.
He then saw a black iron door at the end of a hallway, immediately the faint sound of a child screaming echoed quietly in the back of his mind. He slapped himself in the face to try and rid himself of the sounds. Parts of his chest felt like they were on fire and his abdomen split into a roaring agony, causing him to finally collapse on the spot. His pupils were tiny dots in an ocean of white as he tried to stand, only for the pain to return, even worse than before.
Inanna saw what was happening and was about to rush over when she saw a masculine shape take form next to Y/n. Her eyes widened as she saw the long, white hair and gentle, green eyes.
Inanna: "F- Father..."
Abzu kneeled down and put his hand on Y/n's back.
Abzu: "Nga amelserru. Za-e wabalu annu margidda."
Y/n tried to stand again and found the pain to be lesser than before, however it was still almost unbearable.
Abzu: "Annu margidda su nasu tiit."
Y/n finally got to his feet as Abzu stood alongside him. The primordial god nodded before vanishing back into Y/n's mindscape.
Hyde: "... What in the nine FUCKS was that?"
Inanna: "Why was Abzu here!?"
Y/n smirked before lifting his shirt, revealing the Mesopotamian markings on his abdomen.
Inanna stepped back in shock as Y/n turned to the black iron door. His expression darkened before he walked over and kicked it open.
Looking down at the rectangular room, he saw a large stone table. His vision flashed momentarily and he saw a small child laid on top of the stone with his chest and abdomen lying completely open. Three men were stood nearby in surgical scrubs.
???1: "If the other members of the clock tower find out about this, Hans-"
???2: "They will not. I assure you, gentlemen. On the name of Einzbern I swear they shall never know of what happens here. Now then, get the rings."
Y/n slowly walked down to the table and placed his hand upon the cold stone.
Y/n: "This is where I was made..."
Abzu: "Indeed. We mustn't linger here however."
Y/n nodded silently before heading up to the others. Inanna kept her distance while Hyde ranted about how the booze that Jekyll always drank made him want to commit crimes against humanity. After a while, they headed back with some documents that were clearly laid out for a reason. They hoped Hans and Shakespeare would be able to see if they would be of any help at all.
However Y/n couldn't shake the cold shiver that ran down his spine as he remembered that room, where he and Abzu were bound together.
He scratched at his chest upon remembering the vision he saw of himself on the stone table, cut open and barely hanging on to consciousness.
Y/n: "... The bastard got off easy."
Abzu: "On that, we agree."
End of Chapter.
Next Time: The Steam Mech Inventor.