Finis Chaldea

And without a hitch, there was the confidence of Artoria Pendragon that bordered on arrogance... if it didn't cross the threshold completely. Who did give Lancelot du Lac permission to think he could win against Artoria Pendragon? Well, there was a list that he would proceed to give with a raised finger to accompany each member. "Hmm. Me. You, just about. The Lady of the Lake. Me. Oh, and did I mention... me?" Alright, so he didn't have much of a real list, but that didn't matter very much. At this very moment, he considered challenging Artoria to a match just to prove he could take her down without that ridiculous weapon, Excalibur, in her carry. Woe, it was not a worthwhile endeavor; he didn't think such a challenge was in good taste. "There's no need to address my character. I wanted to be a knight; that still counts as reward," he insisted. Now then, it seemed he would be testing his ability against the Medjay of Egypt within the week. By Artoria's own recommendation, they were quite the capable bunch. Good; he wanted nothing less for those he'd be working and training with at some point in the near future. "I will take care, but no promises if you're giving them a ringing endorsement like that. It sounds like something I should be excited about."

Kur was telling no jokes. Impossible! Surely she was still continuing the same dysfunctional jest to keep him entertained. How did she keep up such a terrible joke while keeping a straight face? He had to admire her dedication. "Fuhahaha! You are tenacious, I'll give you that. You make it sound as if that stupid snake shared the spoils of my labor with everyone in the world but me!" Ah, what a good humor this put the king in. Though... then she kept talking. He was exhausted. He didn't eat, he didn't drink; he just kept pushing through several metric tons of work. Was he really so old, that much was enough to kill him? Why wasn't this just another matter of falling asleep for seven days?! Oh... she really wasn't making this up on the spot. "... Hah?" he questioned, outright baffled. "What is the point of keeping a body that has no life?! Fine! If you insist on being too useless to return me, I'll make my own way out! If fate believes death is enough to kill me, then fate will be the next thing I make a fool of! The judges of Irkalla will not hold me!"

The list that Lancelot had to give of people who'd made him believe he could win against her in a fight were, himself, Artoria (almost) and the Lake Fairy, but also himself and himself. A wide grin crossed her face. "I cannot say I do not like the confidence, but when all you have backing you is yourself and the Fae Princess you should be a bit more cautious. I never gave you any such hope..." Artoria's words spoke of a confidence she only truly allowed herself in combat. One day maybe, that would leak through to her other actions, but as it stood the part of that conversation went unsaid. 'Even the Fae Princess knows, the only one who can beat me, is me.' The thought, clear as day in the mind of Artoria Pendragon would be one that was acknowledged eventually by the universe, ah but that wasn't entirely true anymore. The King of Heroes had properly bested her in open combat, not that anyone needed to know that. "Wanting to serve me is no reward. It seems more or less a punishment. Any King could have knighted you..." she asserted which was the truth of the matter. Though there were many things wrong in Albion initially, including the fact that aside from Artoria herself many were only taking in the children of nobles to be Knights. Such a dumb rule, right up there with women not being allowed to rule. All the wheels broken by Artoria. All the rules she could not stand rewritten. All the codes of Chivalry condensed to show true goodness. This was Artoria's contribution to the world. Hope. Not just in the form of light shining because of Excalibur but in her very being. "I think it will be good exercise for you specifically. I do wonder how you will handle losing your combat advantage..." she said with a gentle upturn of her lips but no more spoken.

Meanwhile Gilgamesh thought Kur to be telling jokes. Perhaps he'd never met this goddess before, but she did not have that much humor in her soul. The words she'd spoken were nothing but the truth. "That laughter of yours is somehow both annoying and infectious. Is that a skill, how do you do that?" she asked seemingly interested in how he managed to laugh in a way that both warmed her soul and made her want to hook him up with her scythe. "That is precisely what happened. I am explaining it to you," she said... she'd talked to many souls in the moments of their deaths, but none were in a greater state of disbelief than the King of Heroes. The audacity of the King of Heroes to call her too useless to return him. He had no idea the true state of the world and the gods themselves. Kur understood this point ever so gently because of her recent developments. "This is Irkalla. A realm of mine forced upon me by the other gods when I was a child. And what I say is law within the space. So by my Authority this body of yours, was returned to its prime... its life still remaining. Only being here keeps you lifeless in the strictest sense, but... again I can do nothing about that. Sometimes it is better to admit being useless in some aspects, than to let yourself hang on to something you are no longer fit to undertake," she said. Well that was pretty gloomy and ominous despite the juxtaposition of her most cheerful visage. "The judges cannot hold you?" she asked with a raised brow. Oh she had a most devious idea. "Become a Judge then, King Gilgamesh." Kur's words would title this man as a Judge in the Underworld and with that Kur began walking away. "Consider that my last gift to you. I do consider us kindred after all, given the way we ended up with jobs we did not want. I wouldn't be so presumptuous as to try and stop you... not when I think your life is better served above. I cannot violate the Authority of the Underworld but I'm sure since Fate cannot hold you, Death may have to release you from its grasp as well..." And with that the girl with those ever so gentle red eyes seemed to disappear into the darkness of the underworld.

"You didn't have to. I got all the hope I needed before you showed up," Lancelot countered. Truly, he was one who did not rely on the hope provided by Artoria Pendragon for his own sake. That was enough for the fate of Albion thus far, but not for himself directly. As for any desire to serve Artoria, the notion itself was just slightly out of place. "I didn't want to serve you. I didn't even know who you were; I just wanted to be a knight. Careful. You're starting to sound like that king upstairs~" he joked, content to take his leave on that note. If they were rising soon, final preparations were to be made beforehand. Lancelot would move to take some of those into his own hands, though he stopped mid-exit to share another thought. "Oh, but don't get me wrong. When it's all said and done, I'm glad it was you in the end. Anyway, I'm off to the barracks. There are just a few extra things I want to take care of."

Gilgamesh had been returned to his prime, according to the Underworld's mistress. Strangely, he didn't feel very different─ only less tired. That much was to be expected though, wasn't it? No matter. Whether he was in peak physical condition or not, he would be making his way out of the Underworld... though there was something else he could do whilst here. There was a light in the king's eye as he properly realized where he was, and all those who could be found here. Beyond searching for Enkidu, he could find secrets related to the eventual death of Artoria Pendragon. Perhaps this sudden death would be something fruitful. Now then, what was this about becoming a Judge of the Underworld? He had no use for a title like that, but it seemed to have already been imparted. "I did not come here to become a laborer, Irkalla!" he griped. Still, if he was only lifeless by technicality, there was confirmation that he could leave on a whim. He could do so without this alleged gift, but... he'd never been dead before. What would become of Finis Chaldea? Well, perhaps being a Judge would help with that. Surely someone from Chaldea would perish. If they were someone to pardon and send back into the cycle of life, he could send a message with him. Regardless, Kur was gone in a blink, so there was no real arguing with this position anyway. If ever he saw her again though, she'd have to be dealt with accordingly for this little push. Oh well. While here, it was in his best interest to go looking for signs of Enkidu's soul. . .

"Good..." she said happily. It was nice to know she wasn't shouldering literally everyone's hopes and dreams. Lancelot's next words though, were strange to hit her ears. "Queen of Knights," she said as if that explained everything. Though that comment about the King of Heroes didn't go unnoticed. Her eyes widened just gently. One day she should do the right thing and beat the hell out of everyone who mentioned that connection. But, she'd grown out of that particular stage of aggression by now. "As you like, Lancelot..." she said as she carried on from that point forward.

Forward. That was indeed the way to go. A trip to Loch Ness? Yes, she checked it was sustainable, even if it was the only place visible in this area it would stand. A walk around to tell everyone the boundaries of their placement when she planned to lift this place. Done. Making sure all crops were where they needed to be and nothing real was going on? Also done. Yes. Days passed in blinks as the Queen of Knights did everything within her own power to make sure that Albion would transition upward with ease. In the meantime. On the sixth day after doing all the things she was doing. She found her way to the Dozmary Lake and stood at its edge. A little fairy in her water goblet had alerted her to her presence being necessary and so she arrived. Still playing with that little dagger even as she stepped out onto the water. Within just a moment the still waters began to ripple and out popped the Fae Vivian. She looked frazzled but in her hand was Excalibur, but not the form Artoria was used to. No, this was a giant sword within its own scabbard, making the Queen of Knights eyes widen. "Fae Princess, what is that?!" she asked seemingly cross. "Excalibur, Little Sister what does it look like?" she said offering it to the lass. The sword itself had a blade so long it was nearly bigger than she was as a person. "It is fucking huge! What am I supposed to do with it?" she asked seemingly upset about the prospect. "It is huge yes, but we no longer have mystery to force big things into small packages. That is as small as Excalibur can be outside of that age. Why do you think the swords I've given to everyone else are so big, it isn't a matter of sexism it is a matter of possibility. So wield it!" snapped the Lake Fairy. "This is payback is it not?" asked Artoria with a pout that was unknown to others. "It is not. I swear I could make it no smaller, and I have spent days trying. Your own is a work in progress but this will work well enough until I can give it back to you. Trust me, Little Sister this is best for everyone," she said Artoria looked at her and she seemed both tired and agitated. "It is still almost unwieldy... I would need two hands constantly," she said trying to be more understanding while pinching the bridge of her nose with her fore and middle fingers. "Or get yourself turned back into a man. Your teen boy self could wield it pretty easily," Vivian commented only to see her sister's eyes open with wild fire behind her irises. "I will never be a man again." What a declaration. Well, it seemed that Artoria had made up her mind about her own gender at least. "Okay, fine, fine. Just use it then. Keep it with you... it's very important that you keep it with you." Vivian commented. This sword was a great sword. Ornate in its own right but not quite the same type of sword she was used to. Artoria had never picked up a weapon she could not wield but... this as going to take some adjustment.

Across a span of six days, Gilgamesh familiarized himself with the realm of Kur. Originating as a thing of Mesopotamian influence, the organization was familiar enough that it nearly felt like a bleak version of Uruk. Sadly, he hardly found the time to search for any sign of Enkidu. The world was a large and terrible place. Like clockwork, souls descended into Kur to be judged. Luckily though, among the many souls he dealt with during the week was one he recognized. A young woman from Larsa was under the king's scrutiny by the third day. Upon inspecting this woman, he found her to be only a normal maiden living her life to the fullest, until losing it in a fire. Of course, Gilgamesh had already discovered that he was the only physical Judge of the Underworld. The other seven were all more akin to automatous functions at each gate, but Gilgamesh had them disabled for the sake of having a citizen of Mesopotamia reach him properly. Besides, there was no point to there being seven artificial intelligences and a Judge with a mind of his own. He could have them enabled again now that this woman stood before him, though. "You, woman. You have done no wrong, and are therefore innocent of any crimes that would have you bound here forever. You will be returned to the world as you are, but hear me. I have a message that must be delivered to great Uruk. You will speak to Siduri, and tell her of the king's eventual return. Tell her that if the queen comes looking for her stallion, she will be able to ride into the sunset in due time."

The woman stood before the King of Heroes and knew exactly who he was. The King of Uruk, and he was here... judging the dead?! Her head was bowed but those golden eyes of hers planted firmly on her own feet. Yes, she'd died in a fire, it wasn't a particularly graceful death by any means but she had managed to get out all of the children who'd been staying within those walls. That was well enough. It'd been stated by this man that she could be sent back, as she was even. "I, Adina of Larsa, will deliver your message. And thank you for the favorable judgement," she said wondering what kind of thing that was to make someone else say, but making the assumption that it was best it was delievered with no edits in mind. Perhaps, she'd just apologize before she said it, that way she didn't sound presumptuous. Deeply tan, long haired in a plain bit of clothing. She dressed modestly for the type of place she lived but was not unkempt in any manner. She would see the King of Heroes message delivered and would go on with her life as usual.

"I will keep it with me. Do you know how long it will be before my true blade is returned to my hand?" she asked of her sister while standing aside and giving a few practice swings to the larger blade. It was still well made, and balanced, just quite a bit larger than she would have liked. "I am sorry, but the timing on it is seven years," she said softly. Artoria nearly dropped Excalibur, and had to clutch tighter to avoid losing it in the water. "SEVEN WHAT!" she exclaimed. "Seven years, it is the best I can do. Healing a sword like that one takes time, energy, and strange magic. I am doing my best honestly. Which is why I created the second one," Vivian said. Of course, Artoria looked at Vivian in this moment and walked over to her sister who was a few steps away. "Do not worry. I am sure even a blade this size can become an extension of me in that amount of time," Artoria managed. She looked at her her elder sister and saw earnestness. There was no reason to make her life more stressful on purpose. "Do remember to get some sleep and take care of yourself..." she finished which made Vivian smile. "You do not need to look after me, Little Sister. That is my job. I will take a bit of rest, but I am still very busy... good luck with your ascension. I should be available a bit more often but do not push it," she chided knowing her sister was about to call upon her in just a few short hours. And as such the pair would part, with the Lady Vivian sinking back into the lake. And Artoria heading back to Camelot with that sword strewn over her shoulder, getting used to its weight all the while. "Listen here you unruly brat. I care not how big you are... you answer to me, we shall be the best of friends."

"Good. When you are done delivering this message, remain within the walls of Uruk. Have Siduri arrange a place of rest and work if you are in need. Your remuneration for this task will be granted upon my return," Gilgamesh said to the woman of Larsa named Adina. With that, he would send her on her way via an ascending path of rock, which led those who passed judgement back to the area of their original death. Annoyingly, he could not construct that path for himself, because the Judges in place would not acknowledge him. He could have simply joined Adina on her journey outwards, but what good would that have done? Gilgamesh certainly couldn't expect to follow some random person out of the Underworld whenever he died, and to do so would require that he leave the seven Judges disabled when leaving. There had to be another way... and more importantly, he still had to go searching for Enkidu and any information about the eventual fall of Artoria. Now that the messenger had been found and sent to Uruk, though, the king could at least reenable the Judges and go about his business. How long would it take him to find something? Well, he had little choice but to take the long path to that discovery.

Adina was given passage and apparently the ability to seek both shelter and employment within the walls of Uruk. Actually, it was apparently imperative that she remain within for whatever reward she was to receive for delivering that particular message. She walked the path put before her with another bow and headed out. She would appear back near the burned building in Larsa and within a day reach the walls of Uruk. She knew no better place to look for the King's assistant than within the palace so she approached it. Upon entering she saw a veiled woman standing nearby the throne. She bowed to her and spoke to her calmly. "I am looking for Siduri, do you know this person?" she asked. Siduri's left brow rose, and she spoke. "I am the one you seek, what can I do for you?" she said. "I have a message from the Judge of the Underworld, King Gilgamesh..." she explained. "I am Adina of Larsa, and I died in a fire a few days ago," she clarified of her own situation. "Yes, I received word of that... I was sending people to help with that process," she said remorsefully. "Within the Underworld there was a judge who said I could return as I was innocent and told me to deliver a message which I will speak as he spoke it to me," she said as if bracing the woman. Strangely, instead of harboring anything resembling disbelief, Siduri took a deep breath as if steeling her nerve for whatever random thing was about to leave this woman's mouth. "You will speak to Siduri, and tell her of the king's eventual return. Tell her that if the queen comes looking for her stallion, she will be able to ride into the sunset in due time." these words left Adina's mouth with the tone and cadence that could only be spoken by the King of Heroes. The exhale that left Siduri was one of both calm and worry. At least he would be returning but to have to use those words to inform the Queen of Knights of his demise was not something she looked forward to.

"I see, well... Those are my King's words, of this I have no doubt. Stay within the palace. Have bath and food and wine... and if you have interest... I will figure out a task you can undertake until the King's return to reward you..." she said, knowing how the King of Heroes operated in most cases. "He said something similar. I... was a tutor among the children of Larsa. A task like that is one I would both enjoy and be good at," she said quietly. "Oh?" Siduri had a thought. The King was planning to marry the Queen of Knights and have her birth his heirs. She imagined either would teach combat to the children, but common sense was lacking in both for various reasons. "I think I can find quite a useful set of tasks for you. Come we will get you settled." and just like that a new person was added to the King's Household and Siduri would continue the necessary tasks of running the country until one more suited showed themselves.

With the seven Judges reactivated, Gilgamesh went about his search. The Underworld was a vaster land than any on the surface, so his journey would be long indeed. He would not be dissuaded by time and effort. Even dead, the king would work himself to death again for his goals. Perhaps he would somehow die in the Underworld and be reborn where he belonged; wouldn't that be an interesting day? Whatever happened, he would keep moving forward. So many layers existed on this plane of reality; all of them would have to be checked. Gilgamesh saw various places that buried the wealthy but the greatest problem was that Enkidu had no wealth to speak of. Irrespective of Gilgamesh's many offers, Enkidu took nothing, claiming that a weapon needed nothing. With that being the case, he expected his friend to exist only in the afterlife regions of commoners... unless there were areas dedicated to heroes. Finding the answer to this curiosity would be half of the journey, but there was always a chance he would find answers for Artoria's unique situation along the way.

Artoria in the time that passed returned to Camelot and upon reaching the foregrounds she stood in the middle of them. Seven days she'd taken to gather everything she needed. To check and double check readiness and now the Queen of Knights stood. The new version of Excalibur planted in the ground beside her, and in her right hand, the Holy Spear, Rhongomyniad. In that perfect blue dress of hers, at high noon, the Queen of Knights was engulfed by light as she channeled her own power into her spear. In exchange, instead of directly interacting with the Nexus she was giving several 'tabs' of information within her vision. She alone decided the lands that would rise in the Kingdom of Albion. And after a few moments with eyes that glowed with divine light, the entire kingdom with the exception of the now village and citadel surrounding Loch Ness rose into the sky. "Albion ascends!" she said offering that little smirk she always did upon the accomplishment of a great task. Albion took a strange place in the sky, directly north east of Mt. Mashu, putting it strangely in range, of the Holy Knights Headquarters, within distance of Egypt and depending on ones feeling within walking distance of Uruk if not for all of them being separate islands.

With this task accomplished, she banished Rhongomyniad not content to hold it for too long and took a deep breath. She'd actually completed the task she'd set out to do. It was time, to see the King of Heroes. Well... not just yet. Without Rhongomyniad in her hands, she freely pulled up the great sword, Excalibur and slung it over her shoulder. "All is done. Settle in, I'm going on a walk!" That was the first declaration of Queen Artoria Pendragon after achieving true greatness. And where was she going? Well straight to a lake, to summon her sister and get passage to Egypt, she would speak to the Pharaoh Nefertari.

On that seventh day, Gilgamesh continued traversing the Underworld. He didn't seem to be making very much headway, if any at all. Numerous cages of souls were opened and manifested. He spoke with many of them, seeking Enkidu and seeking knowledge of the Queen of Knights' downfall. Sadly, he received neither answer across multiple days. Even worse was the fact that thousands of souls and acres were ahead of him. Gilgamesh searched the dredges high and low, hearing more annoying plights of those who thought themselves unworthy of afterlife imprisonment, when they were in fact fated to this place for ages to come. "Damn that Kur. She should have known what I sought, yet she left me here with no knowledge of where to go," he griped as souls, one by one, were shoved back in their places of imprisonment. Surely Albion had ascended by now. If he took too long, the moment of Artoria's passing would be over before Gilgamesh found his way out of this hole. Perhaps it was time for the king to make a choice, between continuing his search for Enkidu and finding answers for the future. . .

Finding answers for the future... Artoria had announced her walk and taken off. With Excalibur in her hands, none would question her whereabouts and she wasn't going anywhere unsafe to herself. She had reached the lake, summoned her sister and been given an earful. "I'm not a fucking taxi! You cannot simply use me to come and go as you please!" yes, those were the sweet words that Artoria remembered after greeting her sister. The answer that she was exactly that didn't seem to sit well with the Fae but then rather suddenly, Artoria received an apology from her sister. According to Vivian she was just tired and cranky. How strange. Artoria knew her sisters and brother like she knew no other people in either world. And rare was it indeed for Hoshimi Rie to present herself as anything other than what she wanted to be seen as. What could have been wrong with her sister was the thought which plagued Artoria's mind as she approached the Pharaohs Pyramid if only because it would help distract her from things much more frightening to her. Upon her approach to their shared throne she was alerted to the fact that they were in fact inhabiting a workshop. She was pointed in the direction of this and stopped shy of the open door, not sure she wanted to enter. "Pharoahs, the Queen of Knights wishes to grace you... could you spare a few moments?" she asked ever so politely.

In a moment like this, Nefertari was hard at work. The clothing she pieced together here and now was not for the Queen of Knights and thus she didn't bother hiding it. No, she'd had a bit of inspiration and was working on a male ensemble with a small jacket and strangely open pants on a mannequin. "Queen of Knights, you may enter. We are decent, there is nothing to worry about..." Nefertari answered back. Such put Artoria at ease as she stepped into the doorway. "Good Afternoon to you both, I came to let you know... Albion has risen we are your newest neighbors and a few of my Knights would like to train against your Medjay," she offered normal news initially though obviously there was something else on her mind.

While the King of Heroes trifled in matters even he did not understand, the Queen of Knights took a journey of a different nature. Her path led her to Egypt, where two pharaohs were each in a state of great interest. Nefertari sauntered about as always, piecing together fabrics left and right. In the meantime, Ozymandias would be found in the only place he could imagine himself being: within the very same room. Indeed, Artoria's approach was made while Ozymandias sat at a nearby table. His elbows were propped against said table, his chin resting atop laced fingers. "Welcome again, ye Mighty," he said to the Queen of Knights, though his eyes could never be peeled away from Nefertari at work. He was essentially always smiling throughout life, and those who understood would never have to wonder why. Whether they did or not though, he would be sure they were informed regardless. "You've picked a wonderful time to rise. Gaze upon the phases of the moon, and despair! You are fortunate enough to see greatness this day," he announced.

It seemed the Knights of the Round table desired a thrashing. That would certainly be an interesting thing to watch... Or at least Ozymandias would call it interesting, if not for his present form of entertainment. "Ho. If it is the Medjay they want to give them a thwarting, I believe Renen, Amset and Serenity are in the vicinity right now. Neither of them is the friendliest to face in combat, but it would be entertaining to watch them and your knights learn from each other."

Gaze upon the phases of the moon and despair. These were the words of the Sun King as he watched his wife in a rather childish manner. Artoria couldn't help but have to suppress a chuckle at the outlandishness of such a sight, but still she could respect it. Especially given the amount of focus in one like Nefertari as she worked diligently on a piece unlike any she'd seen before. "You are quite right, I have never truly seen work made to look so entertaining," she said with that knowing little smirk. Truly, she'd not seen anyone who seemed to enjoy craftsmanship as much as the two pharaohs did while they were in action. As such she was more than content to watch the pieces be put together. "Well come on give us a hand. Place yours here..." she said waving Artoria over. Strange she was being looped into such a thing, but she supposed she was interrupting it was only right to help. Her hands found themselves against a piece of fabric that could hardly be called a shirt while, Nefertari made sure there was enough space for those hands to fit. "Yes, to die, for~" she claimed.

Meanwhile, Artoria seemed to be blissfully ignorant of whom such a work was for. And instead chose to simply do what the woman said while leaving Excalibur's new great sword form against the table. "Ah, I recognize that one, Renen, I faced a while back. She reminded me a bit of Lancelot. That would be good for him..." she said giving it a bit of thought. "I will pass along those names to the ones interested you have my thanks..." she said having never forgotten the name of a single person she'd faced in direct combat. Ah yes but there was another question. "All done, what do you think?" she asked as Artoria drew her hands back and looked at the ensemble. "It looks mage-like but strangely I find it rather tasteful, even with the amount of skin such a thing would show," Artoria mentioned with a few nods of her head. "Good good," said Nefertari while shooting a wink in the direction of the Sun King. "Now congratulations on your ascension. All is well in Albion, yes?" she asked of the lass which made Artoria nod. "Yes, all is well... I actually came by for guidance of a more specific variety, Pharaoh, could I borrow your wife for a more delicate conversation?" Yes, Artoria was beating around the bush and looked like a child caught doing something naughty instead of like an adult Queen of an entire nation. "Hoh? That sounds like man problems. I'll get wine!~" these were the words of an unknown which made Artoria's eyes shift in the direction of the doorway as a woman with shorthair and tanned skin slipped off only seconds after eye contact was made. "Sorry about that, that was Serenity. She's my big sis, and honestly, one of the best people to have such a conversation with. A bit crude sometimes, but very discrete." Nefertari's words sank into Artoria's ears and with her eyes on the woman, she was quite certain she was being honest about her faith in her big sister. "That is fine, to be honest, I cannot currently speak to my own sister and I would find a bit of advice on the matter comforting," she said the huge grin on her Nefertari's face happened as she left and she kissed the Sun King on her way out just briefly. With the Queen of Knights grabbing hold of her great sword before exiting behind the female pharaoh who went to join the one known as Serenity in a comfortable sitting room. Lounging pillows, dim lighting and three small golden goblets currently being filled by the woman with the short purple hair having apparently decided that she was sitting in on this conversation.

Artoria Pendragon knew of the Medjay called Renen, as stated by the young queen herself. Ozymandias refrained from laughing, hilarious though it was to watch her nonchalantly uphold a conversation while unknowingly helping the stitch of her husband's new wardrobe. "Renan is brilliant. I wouldn't exactly compare her to your Lancelot, but I understand how the conclusion was made. I'll tell her to be alert," he said, mostly talking just to distract himself from the threat of laughter within. Much to Ozymandias' dismay, Artoria's purpose in this visit was to have a discussion... specifically with Nefertari. Aghast, Ozymandias let his mouth hang open in an exaggerated gesture. "You want to what?" the pharaoh asked during this overblown expression of shock. "Every time someone steps into my temple lately, it's always to sweep my wife away! Hmph. The audacity of mankind triumphs over the gods again, it seems." A huff passed his lips, along with mock dejection shown with a turn of his head after Nefertari's approach and kiss. Serenity sneaked her way in as always, even ushering the other women along to another room. The absolute nerve of them! "Fine! I will show magnanimity and allow you a few moments alone with greatness. Do not leave me waiting."

Ozymandias could see how Artoria drew likeness between Renan and Lancelot, though he wouldn't himself call them similar. Of course the Queen of Knights realized herself that they were two people standing on opposite sides of the same coin, she would still call them more alike than different. Of course, that was simply her way, as a matter of simplification. They are two people blessed by waters who use them to fight. Too bad, it seemed as if she'd caused mock anger in the Pharaoh as she wanted to whisk away his wife for a discussion. His words about her audacity and his mock indignation made the Queen of Knights face redden gently. "Sincerely, I do not mean such a thing... I just need... what does Galahad call it," she gave it some thought. "A girl's opinion," she clarified. She really didn't mean to leave him out, she just wasn't ready to say the things she wanted to in front of a man. Surely, it wouldn't be so bad. "I will not keep her long..." mentioned the Knight Queen.

Within that space though, she leaned Excalibur against the cushion and flopped down next to it. She managed to look graceful but still completely overwhelmed. "I have never seen man problems so clearly on a girl's face before... even this one was better at hiding it~" Serenity broke the silence and handed the Queen of Knights one of those goblets. Nefertari took one for herself and chided her elder sister. "Leave her alone, Ronnie... our Queen here is pretty exceptional but a bit new to the whole thing," she said giving a bit of reassurance to the Queen of Knights. "So, I should start by saying that I have some understanding, but I have questions... about dating and sex," Yes that was how the Queen of Knights started this conversation and now Nefertari and Serenity were staring at each other with wicked almost animal like glares going between them. "I cannot ask my own sister, because I think she is far beyond my understanding as a person..." she clarified taking another sip of wine. She'd almost been spoiled on wine that came from Gilgamesh but it would be Serenity who spoke up. "Don't worry, I broke out the good stuff. Anyway... what exactly is your question, you almost sound like a virgin trying to understand how it will fit..." Serenity said which made Nefertari nudge her a bit. Artoria managed to look wide eyed for a second but then recovered. "Actually, that is a large part of the question, yes. Most of it actually..." she said. "I am not used to any of this... I lived my original life as one without feelings at all so I am often uncertain. I like the King of Heroes, do not tell him I said that. And previously found myself in a rather compromising position. I am willing to face it now but... it defies my own logic." Artoria's words made both Nefertari and Serenity give her approving nods. "That isn't really so much a problem. Monsters like those can be pretty scary the first time you come across them but you can tame any one you wish as long as you are ready for them," said Nefertari. These words were too flowery for what Serenity would have advised so she said more. "Or to be more clear, just make sure he's done his part to get you to the big finish a few times first. If it's slick just about anything will be able to slide in." Artoria literally choked on wine. She now fully understood, both why Nefertari said this woman would be good for the conversation and why she'd warned her of crudeness.

And so, Ozymandias was left alone in a room with another man's clothes. What sort of situation was this for a pharaoh to be in? It took only a few moments for a sigh of absolute boredom to be heaved. That damn Serenity could have been good for conversation in the interim of this "girl talk" Artoria spoke of, but it seemed she would never be one to leave herself out of that. Actually... now that he was alone, Ozymandias could reminisce a bit. He recalled Serenity, or rather Veronica Corbyn, being overheard during a particular phone call less than 24 hours after he met the woman he wound up marrying in another world. With that memory in place, he laughed all by his lonesome. Someone like Artoria Pendragon would not be capable of dealing with Serenity and her wiles, he believed. Well... maybe he would eventually hear some interesting and hilarious tidbits about the exchange. Even if Nefertari didn't tell him herself, he was quite sure Serenity would be forthright about it.

Meanwhile, the empire of AS-IKU was greeted by its sovereign, the God of Water, Enki. It was high time he checked on the mortals and their progress on the first grand temple of Ishtar. Things seemed to be coming along quite nicely, and there were even several busts being worked on just outside the temple. Satisfied by the meeting of his speed-based demand, Enki thought it was about time he paid a visit to Celestia once more. Ah, but first, a few more moments to bask in his own glory. . .

Artoria was still choking with wine definitely in her lungs right now. She now had one hand over her chest and the other holding her goblet. She was trying to take a breath and only succeeding a couple of times through her nose. "Yes, definitely through the nose. It'll get easier..." Serenity said seeming to be only a little amused by the whole of this situation. Nefertari nudged her again, and she pushed back. "What, that was too flowery... she needed to know the truth," she said as if this was perfectly reasonable. "I did need to know the truth. I just did not expect it to attack me like a rampaging bull. I was unguarded," said the Queen of Knights with a face the color of a beet. "Yeah, I did warn you. Anyway, the physical aspect isn't a problem as long as you are ready," Nefertari mentioned going back to her own drink. "So, should I brace?" that was the question of a warrior virgin and both of the women across from her shook their heads in unison, holding up a hand each to emphasize. "Never brace. Not ever, sex does not have to be a battle... and for one who has never before partaken, you should relax..." said Nefertari. Serenity surprisingly enough agreed. "Surrender, might even be a better word. You don't wanna hurt yourself... unless you're into that," said the woman with the shorter hair. Artoria seemed to be processing this information rather carefully.

No bracing, relaxing, surrendering... "To what end? Why should I do these things? What actually happens?" Now both Serenity and Nefertari were choking. The Queen was a virgin in the most absolute sense of the word. She did not understand what it was to have or enjoy an orgasm, no wonder sex did not make sense to her. "I do not understand why you both are choking now..." Artoria said wondering what she'd just said to elicit such a reaction. It would be Nefertari who managed to share the combined disbelief of the former family Corbyn. "We expected that you might not fully grasp sex. We did not expect you to not know why people have sex... aside from making babies it feels great..." Nefertari said honestly. To be as clear as possible there was Serenity who thought maybe the lass was just mistaken in not knowing. "Like a tingling sensation building up with pressure between your legs until it kind of just... releases. Seriously? It's like the best thing ever. It will relax your whole body, set your whole day or night right, make you forgive stupidity, or be stupid... you know anything," Serenity was certain this did not need more explanation than that. Artoria gave it some thought. Seven days prior to this one while they were in the Nexus she'd felt the start of those feelings that Serenity mentioned but not this release. Ah, but the King of Heroes had used that term too... is that what he was referencing. Big finish, climax, orgasm... were these all names for whatever the completion of that feeling was? That all sounded fine in theory but she'd never taken such a thing in practice. "I understand the start... but not the end, we were interrupted by the White Titan..." said Artoria, that clicked within the mind of Nefertari, that did indeed explain both the look on the girl's face and Gilgamesh's discontent upon their arrival. "Damn, that sucks. Nothing worse than missing a good one. You probably wouldn't be asking anything if you'd actually gotten there," said Serenity. She was quite certain nature took care of these questions on its own most of the time. But until it did, she was here to promote positive sexual outlooks in everyone. "You were annoyed, then right? Just a bit with no understanding of why? It was the interruption that did it, whether you realized it or not." Nefertari spoke factual information only. And in hearing all these words she could put into perspective a potential plan of action. She now understood it mechanically. She had a goal in mind to reach, and she knew her partner of choice... now all that was left was... "How do I approach him?"

Enki could not know greater satisfaction if he tried. No, that wasn't true... there was greater satisfaction on its way! All he had to do was seize it, and he would do exactly that. Following a quick inspection of Ishtar's newest temple, he vanished from the offshoot of Finis Chaldea, reappearing in Celestia. Climbing a long stairwell was all it took to reach the chamber of Ishtar herself. In only a week or so, he would enter with a visage full of elation for the second time. "Oh Ishtar~♪ I come bearing the most wonderful news!" he announced within seconds of marching into the goddess' room. She wouldn't be required to remain here for very long; he'd see to that personally.

In the meantime, Gilgamesh walked through the Underworld and sneezed up a veritable storm. In dying, had he become susceptible to illness? That didn't make sense. That whore Ishtar must have been talking about him! Or, perhaps there was a positive reason, like an organized mourning of his demise... or even just the lack of his presence, provided his message was delivered in a timely manner. Nevertheless, he wasn't having any luck at all. He'd decided the search for Enkidu would be a very long one; it would take much more time than he had before sacrificing the future. So, he made the impossibly difficult decision of putting off the past attachment to gamble on the future. How far had he fallen? He couldn't truly believe the ideal future was guaranteed; he simply demanded that it be so. Things hadn't exactly gone according to his perfect plans in recent decades, though, so what if this ended the same? The King of Heroes continued wandering, wondering if his friend would be furious for being abandoned over a gamble... but win or lose, he would return for his brother again.

Ishtar was lounging in her temple as she always did. Of course, right at the moment she was eating grapes and watching... Gilgamesh in her crystal ball. What a shame this man had died of overwork. Perhaps if she ever got out of here, she'd make her way down into Kur's domain and free him. He'd have no choice but to appreciate her for coming to get him. Then he would not know what to do with himself. He'd throw himself at her feet! Yes, he'd give her everything and when they showed up back in Uruk he'd have her temples placed back and lock up that boy-king! Hell, maybe he'd kill her, she was an annoyance that Ishtar didn't like, too many men followed her around, what the hell kind of title for a woman was Queen of Knights?! Ugh... as she thought over that little annoyance, a sound was accosting her ears. Of course, she rolled her eyes and shifted the view on her screen, why? Because she knew for a fact that Enki would have issue with her staring at Gilgamesh all the time. It was best if she kept that hobby to herself for a while yet. At least until she was sure of the placement of her temples. "Oh? You have wonderful news? Do tell..." she feigned interest, anything less than she could descend meant nothing but annoyance for her.

At the same time, Artoria's question was being addressed by Serenity and Nefertari. "A date would be easiest. For the type you are, dinner... a walk... something like that," Nefertari offered tangible ideas for an actual date. Of course, Serenity had an entirely different perspective to give, "Look there are like hundreds of ways to get yourself laid, and only about three of them will end badly for you. Just spend some time with him, preferably alone without any potentially world ending threats and let nature take its course," she said taking a sip of wine before finishing the thought completely. "And, if that doesn't work have some drinks. Liquid courage will have you saying fuck the consequences and trying anything your body seems to like~" That was the sort of classic advice given by Veronica Corbyn. Nefertari laughed just a bit. She couldn't help it. "Damnit Ronnie, you can't give someone that kind of advice all the time," she said only to look at the stunned Queen of Knights. "That drinking thing explains so much about my life right now..." she said. Oh right, Nefertari was at dinner when the Queen of Knights had already had six drinks and couldn't keep her eyes off the King of Heroes. "I suppose you did have quite a few at your party, since you are certain before you started drinking this time. The drinks thing isn't terrible advice. And if nothing else it'd help you relax and keep you from tensing up too much..." this was the combined advice of the women. In all of this Artoria could completely understand. Her drink finished she sat her cup down and nodded. "I find all of this helpful. Thank you both... " she said to Serenity and Nefertari. "I am not much for advice, but if you ever need a sword... I will help," Artoria said these words and Serenity smiled. "See, the Queen of Knights gets it. Sometimes you just need someone to ride with you while you do violent stuff!" said Serenity. At the same time Artoria reached out for the hand of Nefertari content to take her back to her waiting husband. "Our Knight-Queen offers the strangest thing. I'd have told you all that for free you know. I'm always willing to help out a fellow Queen~" And with that she returned with Artoria to Ozymandias and her workshop, after less than an hour's time.

Whatever Ishtar had been doing prior to Enki's arrival was none of his business, nor was it his concern. He'd come with the best of news, and he needed Ishtar to confirm exactly how good said news was. As he sauntered over to the woman's fore, Enki plucked a grape from the bundle and held it out toward Ishtar's lips. "Oh I do, and I will. The Great Temple of Ishtar has been successfully completed. Worshippers are beginning to flock and learn your image from the first series of busts. Construction is beginning on the rest, and the busts will become full statues once the rest can be accurately depicted. Can you feel it? I do wait to hear news of your ability to bless those mortals with a sight they don't deserve."

Meanwhile, Nefertari was being returned to her... patiently waiting husband by the Queen of Knights. It had only taken an hour, but Pharaoh Ozymandias was quite dependent. In the absence of his wife, he could find nothing to do but swim around in his own thoughts until... he lost consciousness. Of course, he'd never even left the table he previously watched Nefertari from. His face was buried in the table by the time of return. His mouth was agape, drool slipping past parted lips. He was even snoring, just slightly. If nothing else, he would always use the absence of Nefertari as an opportunity to catch up on his rest─ even if accidentally.

Upon entering, Enki took it upon himself to pluck a grape and offer it to her lips. She'd eat it while he explained what was happening for her now. Apparently she had a great temple which had already been constructed. She had a series of busts that were waiting on the rest of her proportions so they could place statues there. Oh? How interesting. Not enough could be said about how much of a boost it was to have someone like Enki serving her. He probably didn't see it as such, but at the end of the day, he was in her room serving her grapes, saying all the work he was having done on her behalf. And if that wasn't service, she wasn't sure she understood the meaning of the word. "That is great news," she said after finishing that bite of grape. "I can feel something... not quite the pull I normally have. But there is nothing I enjoy more than worship~" she said happily. Could she feel it? Almost... there was a gentle tingle, perhaps just a little bit more worship and she'd be able to move forward. Or rather, maybe she was too preoccupied with her own thoughts to concentrate on the words and praises of regular mortals. Maybe she'd give it a test run and port herself to Gilgamesh instead? Yeah, then she could blame lack of worship on her late arrival.

At the same time, Nefertari and Artoria found themselves back at the workshop, while Ozymandias sit... snoring?! Artoria's eyes widened and Nefertari stifled a laugh as she let go of the Queen's hand and motioned for her to watch. She walked over to Ozymandias and pecked his cheek only to begin talking like nothing happened. "My Sun and Stars, I've only been gone for five minutes, was that enough to leave you sleeping?" she asked as if this amount was truthful. Why? Because it was funny and her aiming to wake him in such a way, made the Queen of Knights eyes light up while she covered her mouth, trying her best not to laugh at this woman's antics. Why was she doing this? "I will leave the Pharaohs to their day. I do thank you for parting with your wife, Sun King..." she said throwing that big copy of Excalibur over her shoulder with her other hand she very easily found herself walking away. As always, when on a walk Artoria's adventures would lead her to many places, but mostly she needed some moments of calm thought, she needed to steel her nerve and approach the King of Heroes directly. She would show an interest, maybe have dinner and then... whatever wanted to happen could happen. She would show that man the most genuine version of herself she knew... whenever the jitters stopped.

Great news indeed. Enki awaited the moment Ishtar could be pulled from this wretched room leading to nothing. The moment a path was fully formed between her temple in Celestia, and the temple in AS-IKU, he would know true elation. Ah, it was only a matter of time. "Not enough then, eh? That's no good. There is no point to any of it if your influence isn't even greater than it was before. I will allow nothing less than the sort of improvement I've seen of my own reach," the water god insisted. He could not claim a queen who stood as low as the mortals, or even just a little higher. A goddess should be as such, especially when connected to him at the top of the world. "The completed statues should do a lot of heavy lifting, whenever you are open to another observation. Otherwise, the surrounding lesser temples will have to suffice for now."

Ozymandias had been asleep for the better part of an hour. He definitely felt as if it has been that long when the warmth of Nefertari's lips met his cheek, rousing him from slumber. What was this, though? It had been only five minutes? "Hrmph..." the pharaoh mumbled while peeling open his eyes. "Five minutes? No, surely it has been a month," he argued. One could surmise that he almost believed his own words, considering how long time seemed to drag on when his queen was away. Of course, he was awake now... and that typically meant only one thing. "Fat lot of good that does for a good morning. I should─" Suddenly, Ozymandias fell silent. He could see the Queen of Knights standing within the room, and thought the better of what he'd been prepared to say. Oh. Right. Something had been going on before he lost consciousness. "─ Oh. Right, yes. Think nothing of it," he said in regard to Artoria's gratitude. "Much luck with your... thing─ whatever it was."

Enki was talking again, but at least his words made her happy. Yes, he should hold mortals to a higher standard for her sake. He should definitely make sure she had only the best. Her exact placement in the world should only be more elevated than everyone else. She was the Queen of Heaven! And one day that would become the Queen of Everything!! Yes, she enjoyed that. "Well, I've been stuck here for over a decade... I suppose I can make an allowance or two, just for you... that would leave me here a few more days. I am magnanious enough. And I will try to reach the new temples, but I'll need to change my wardrobe a bit... I can't appear in this old thing for new people, nor for you..." Yes, if she put it like that maybe she could get rid of him under the guise of offering him something new to look at before her next showed up in front of her. At the very least, it would give her a bit of time to try and save Gilgamesh and get his loyalty while she used Enki for his extended reach. Eventually, she could see herself easily taking everything from both of these men, but at least Gilgamesh was easy enough on the eyes that she could keep him around after milking him dry.

Five minutes but more like a month? Artoria couldn't help but let out an audible sound at such a ridiculous statement. "Aww..." she managed, sounding strangely like the Queen of Saints. Perhaps that was the place the cutesy noises came from. Observing cuteness was apparently good for the soul. Whatever the case, whatever words were about to come out of the Sun King's mouth he cut off himself. Very interesting and good for Artoria, she didn't think she needed anymore scarring this day. 'Thank you Sun King, on my honor, next time we can all hang out!' she declared in her soul. Ozymandias was the person today who had not scarred her psyche, and thus he was deserving of praise. She raised a hand to the luck and disappeared. How long would it take for her to get her life together? A few hours, but eventually she'd find herself once more in Uruk casually walking towards the Ziggurat. As always she stopped the statue of his friend Enkidu, patted the heads of children, answered questions about her sword and heard strangely the tale of herself slaying the White Titan at the side of the King of Heroes. Interesting. Soon after, she walked up to the Ziggurant only to enter that sword slung over her left shoulder now, and strangely found, the King of Heroes not on his throne. But Siduri still standing at the side of it. "Star-Blessed wine-maker, where is the King of Heroes?" she asked letting her business be known in the most casual of ways. "I would have words."

That was a statement Siduri had heard before. Of all the things she expected, she did not expect the Queen of Knights to show within a week of her defeat of the White Titan. She did not expect the lass to seek Gilgamesh out herself and she did not expect to have to be the bearer of bad news which was still somehow good. "I am sorry my Queen. I have words to share with you... but I fear you will not like what I have to say," Siduri said. Artoria managed to look shocked confusion playing behind those emerald eyes of hers. "You have nothing to fear, Siduri. I will hear what you have to say..." she said, planting Excalibur into the stone still fully sheathed, just so she could approach the veiled woman more directly. She stood arms before her, hands clasped together just like a little lady. Very non-threatening so she'd been told, and as such she expected a bit more confidence from Siduri. "Alright my Queen, just a few things. I need you not to react too loudly. I need to whisper these words directly to you so they are not heard by others and I would prefer you not pick up your sword for several moments after I tell you this information..." she said carefully. Artoria was now infinitely curious. And so she could agree to the terms. What could Siduri possibly have to say. She came close and leaned down whispering strange news into Artoria's ear. As she heard the message her face shifted between several different emotions. The King has died. His body went with him to Kur. He is outside the reincarnation... but he is coming back... eventually. "He. What?" Artoria was trying to remain calm but it was taking all she had not to pick up Excalibur and march into a temple and demand entrance to the underworld to thrash the King of Heroes personally. How dare he die? She took a week to get here... he waited ten years to die in a week?! It was ludicrous. "What I said is truth, a woman who died in a recent fire returned from there with a message for the Queen. It can only be you... if you would like I could have her repeat it to you directly." Siduri's words were addressed to Artoria, but she'd could see the Queen of Knights was struggling with something. That could only be taken as a positive sign overall. She wished she'd seen such a thing in better circumstances. "Bring her." Artoria said these words with her hands still clasped before her. She was doing good, keeping up her mask but... she was furious below the surface. And with that, Siduri called a single name, "Adina."

Ah yes, only he could be given a bit of leeway in expectation. What choice did Ishtar have? Without his aid, she'd already been stuck here for a decade. Without his aid, she'd be stuck here with Anu and Ki forevermore. He had no such sway over Kur's future, but it was clear Ishtar was the one he should be aiming for anyway. No other could solidify his reign so clearly as her. "It will not be another decade, I assure you. Even a few days might be a stretch. Of course, I'd much rather you be able to show your beauty to the mortals right now. But... relying on humans has its limits, sadly," he said with a shrug and a sigh. Ishtar spoke of a change to her wardrobe, for the same of appearing before himself and before new people in general. A new ensemble upon her visage was quite exciting as an idea. Oh, was it her intention to do so now? What an interesting little segue, if so. "Oh? When you talk like that, I fear for the groin of all who see your next appearance─ even myself."

Yes, it was rather true that right at the moment she could do nothing but rely on one such as Enki. But perhaps he was semi-reliable to start with, after all... it had been him to rescue her from the Underworld. Of course, that didn't mean she'd be admitting that to him. Ishtar was a firm believer that if you gave a man that sort of control over your even a little, he'd run around as if he was important and to put it simply, she believed him to be doing exactly what he needed to be doing. He was supporting her needs and desires and that was his job as both a man and someone who had any inclination to lay with her. Whether she actually lay with him or not. "Yes, even I can be somewhat understanding at times like this," she said as if it actually mattered. In truth she fully planned to see Gilgamesh before descending upon the rest of the world, making sure he realized that she should be most important in his life before taking over whatever space Enki had for himself. Whatever the case, she could at least take solace in his words. Another of those shrill laughs escaped her as she held a hand up to her face. "Of course they should, any appearance of mine is worthy of nothing short of pain!" she said laughing, still she supposed if she was changing clothes it was about time to get up. "Well go on then... we wouldn't want you ruining the surprise now would we?~" she said being somewhat flirty. Of course she had no intention of giving more of herself to this man without getting more of herself in return. Which in her own mind meant she probably wouldn't have to worry about him again until after she could fully connect to the temples.

Adina a lovely looking young woman with dark hair and golden colored eyes appeared. She had on a light veil now as well and bright intelligence behind her eyes entered within moments of her name being called. It seemed she was prepared for this, but she looked no less worried than Siduri had looked when Artoria first entered. Artoria looked over this woman as Siduri ushered her over. "This is the Queen the message is for," said Siduri. Adina looked at Artoria Pendragon for the first time and even with her tanned skin her own face flushed. Did she really have to repeat such a message directly to her. It seemed almost rude as a thing to say to such a petite and well-put together young lady. Oh well, that was fine right, she'd just preface it as a message from the King and that would absolve her right. "Right... the words I am about to speak are not my own. I should start by saying that..." she mentioned. And in that same moment Artoria went to grasp the bridge of her nose with her thumb and fore finger closing her eyes as if to fight off a building tension headache. Why? Because she knew this woman was about to say something outlandish. "Carry on. On my honor irrespective of my reaction... I will not be upset with you," she said trying to be comforting and wondering if she would succeed. Of course, Adina could see this woman was one of her word and Siduri's silent affirmation made her take a breath and step forward delivering a message the likes of which Artoria couldn't have expected. "If the queen comes looking for her stallion, she will be able to ride into the sunset in due time." She said stepping back and taking a bow. How would Artoria respond to this absolutely Gilgamesh style wording for his return aimed rather directly at her? The Queen of Knights had her entire face to red and she managed to look shocked beyond words. Actually exactly that, she couldn't even help her whispered reaction. "Why the fuck would he say something like that... it is completely unreasonable to expect someone to say something like that to another human being. I will slay him myself!" That was Artoria's immediate resolution. Meanwhile both of the other women laughed. True to her words, Artoria Pendragon was not upset with either of them, and all of her ire was aimed at the King of Heroes himself.

"Forgive me, I should not have said something like that... Thank you, for delivering such a ridiculous message from him. Since we do not know of the King's Return, I will take over his duties until anything is decided between myself and the other grail holders.." Artoria said picking up Excalibur and dragging it up the steps. She'd sit in Gilgamesh's throne and think over a few preparatory things that would need taking care of. "Siduri, I assume you have no problem taking a few orders from me?" she asked of the woman. She would not overwork anyone but she knew Gilgamesh would have left no one in charge, as much of a Tyrant as he played himself up as. "Of course I would be honored to serve the Queen in the King's absence," Siduri noted still standing where she was. "Good, there are several things I need done. I need messages sent to the Pharaohs and the Queen of Saints. If anyone else should be made aware of the situation it should be them. Have them meet me... tomorrow morning. I have no need of rushing on their parts," she said Siduri began writing such notes on her tablet. "It will be done." she said carefully. "I also need to send words to the Knights and let them know I will be staying here for a while. I would have them report here in the morning for training, but this place has no training grounds correct?" she asked of Siduri. "No such place exists, my Queen. Our king does not know that sort of diligence," said the wine-maker. "Fine... there has to be an open spot big enough within the walls I can take control of during my time... what about that spot where the large temple once stood. Surely nothing has been put there?" Artoria posed that inquiry while starting to look over tablets. "That one is open." Siduri liked this new rhythm of work. "Fine, I am taking it. Send word to my Knights to report there in the morning for training. I will take care of telling them everything they need to know myself then. In the meantime," there was a pause from Artoria as she sat one hand in her lap and the other on a on a tablet, "Why is this in Akkadian?" she asked of the tablet. Just then Medusa showed up quickly switching a stack of tablets for the stack where Artoria had just pulled from. "Sorry, I am switching those. It was the last stack. Here are the ones in common. I assume you are taking over for a while," she said to Artoria. "Yes, oh, you are the Rider, what is your name?" she asked of the woman who looked a bit surprised. "Medusa." she said quickly giving a bow. "Thank you Medusa," and just like that Artoria went back to reading the tablet. The information she found was pretty normal. It was daily running of a Kingdom. Easy enough to take care of, she could do this and whittle down the number of tablets until the morning.

"Of course. It is a kindness from the likes of us just to give the mortals some breathing room," Enki agreed. Ishtar would go on to laugh at the thought of putting others into a state of rut, or so it seemed. Enki had nothing positive nor negative to say about this, but it was interesting nonetheless to see the goddess' spirits so high. Personally, he would have been beyond sullen if he were locked away in a place like this. Ah, she was now shooing him. True enough, there would be no point in Enki witnessing Ishtar's change to a new ensemble. The surprise, he was certain, would be worth waiting for. "I should expect no less. Do give me a shout when you've found something, if you are feeling so... generous." With that said, Enki turned on his heel and made way for the exit. He would not be leaving Celestia, but he would be returning to his own temple within it to send orders to his citizens. More temples had to be constructed, and it seemed the busts would not yet be turned to full statues. Those mortals had to be informed as to their next order of business.

Meanwhile, Gilgamesh's journey through the underworld continued. The dredges were no place to find the information he sought, so he was left with two more choices. One he saved for later was the deceased who held great wealth in life while the option he followed first was the lowest of the low. Those who practiced rituals forbidden by the gods, and those who lost their path reaching high above human capacity─ they were his first targets on this leg of the journey. Such souls were kept at the lowest point of the Underworld, where the darkness became thick... almost so thick that he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. Alas, this was no journey through the mountain of Mashu; it was almost a sunny vacation compared to that hellish trip.

Ishtar was nodding her head and laughing. Thinking only of her improved wardrobe and maybe how it would rouse the loins of the King of Heroes. She could imagine it now... Her descending into the Underworld through their sacred connection. Offering him a way out in exchange only for is unparalleled loyalty and worship. He should kill the boy-queen and then... they could do glorious things together. And since she can appear anywhere that he is, it wouldn't even matter that she had no temples in Uruk. No, she'd turn his great Ziggurat into her temple instead. She could see that too, sitting atop his throne, receiving gifts from all the land. That was perfect. Even more perfect was the idea of Enki leaving. "Yes, if I feel so inclined you will be the first to know..." she said as she began rummaging through things. She eventually found a thing white number. Just barely capable of holding back her massive bosom. It had one of those greek style feels to it, but it was clasped in gold as she would prefer. And with it came the tiniest pair of panties. They were white as well, just enough to be called coverage. They were held together by golden clasps on the side. Actually this whole ideal look would leave here exposed, generally, dressed in white and dripped in gold. It was the perfect compliment to her green eyes and hair. She chose a crown of jeweled flowers with a tiny tiara like forehead piece to toss her locks through. Yes, she looked like she'd just gotten herself together. She definitely looked stunning enough for her king or to sit atop the throne in the Ziggurat. She should take a look at that again make sure it was fit for her pleasure. And then she looked and what she saw, made her blood boil.

Artoria Pendragon sat atop Gilgamesh's throne working rather diligently on the massive array of tablets to be found there. She'd been at this a few hours already and seemed to be making decent headway. But for every stack she cleared, Medusa seemed content to bring her another one. The bits for the ascension of Albion were all but clear already. That had taken little time, but now there was a whole host of other problems to deal with. The blonde lass pulled gently at her collar. Why was it so hot in here?, she could do not but wonder. "Blessed wine-maker, tell me have I suffered a heat stroke?" she asked carefully. Siduri's brow rose. Yes, there was a little heat creeping up the neck of Artoria Pendragon but it was hardly anything more than she was always like. A bath and change in attire would do the Queen a world of good pretty soon. "No, my Queen. You have not suffered anything of that nature..." she said some six hours after Artoria's arrival the sun was finally setting and she had started to breathe a sigh of relief. "So can you tell me why this man in... Nippur is requesting, twenty cows in exchange for a mere 20 shekels of silver? At last check the going rate on a cow was 10 shekels for one." she asked as Siduri sighed. She'd forgotten to slip that one out but, there was no use being dishonest with the Queen of Knights while they were dealing with this problem. "The man from Nippur often makes requests like that... he can be talked down and mitigated my Queen. I meant to take that one myself, my apologies..." Siduri said offering to take said tablet from Artoria but the Queen of Knights would not surrender it. "No, instead of taking on this request. Tell this man to report to me, I would have words. I would see him make such an audacious request while looking me in the eye." Artoria said. What a strange and different request. Siduri was almost uncertain about it. Gilgamesh himself was always on the warpath, but the Queen of Knights didn't seem to be the type. As far as she'd handled the requests coming in, everything she'd offered had been fair with little gripping. Even a few innovative fixes had been offered in the interim. Perhaps this was something to see. "As you wish, my Queen. I will make that request. The Pharaohs and the Queen of Saints will arrive after sunrise. And your Knights will be at the newly coined training grounds at their usual time as well..." she said carefully. "Fine. I will work through this night for the sake of making headway but I will take rest tomorrow," said Artoria. She was not the absolute workaholic Gilgamesh was, she knew better than to work herself to death.

At the same time, after watching a moment too long of Artoria sitting atop Gilgamesh's throne, Ishtar descended into the Underworld. She would be standing before Gilgamesh wherever he was in her new ensemble, seeking both praise and vindication. She would offer him an out to this place, and in exchange he would make sure the boy-queen never sat in her spot again. "Rejoice! I have come to save you... that you might remove that boy-queen from my throne and worship me properly!" said Ishtar. Yes... she was exactly this sort of person Ishtar was. She'd dressed newly for him, she wished to be inspected and praised, and he would definitely do what she wished after gazing upon her newly dressed form.

By the time Ishtar finished angrily observing the actions of Artoria Pendragon, Gilgamesh had passed through the deepest darkness of the Underworld. Torches that should have been blue, were now green around him. Souls that should have been lamenting their fate, were now writhing in agony while undergoing the most brutal cleansing. This was the land of mankind's worst. How fitting it was that Ishtar would appear only when Gilgamesh perused this section. "H'oh? Have I finally gone mad enough to hallucinate?" he wondered aloud, sparing no curiosity about his own state of mind. That little getup was different, but there was no mistaking Ishtar even if one could not see her face. Ah, but her face was no less annoying to look at than it always was. Who gave her permission to stand before him again, and here of all places? He should have prioritized the breaking of that damned link.

Alas, what Ishtar declared during her arrival was something of interest indeed. She'd come to... save him? Did that moronic wench truly have knowledge he did not? The thought of that was infuriating on its own, but there was further mention of some boy-queen sitting atop "her" throne. So, Artoria Pendragon had risen? Good. Nevertheless, now was a time to... regrettably, deal with Ishtar existing in front of him. "You, save me? And what ability do you purport to possess, that you might free another of Irkalla when you, yourself, were once held by its firmest clutches? Speak quickly, for time is short, and my patience is shorter."

Those writhing in agony on this level were hardly worth a secondary glance from a Goddess known as Ishtar. Obviously, their bad life choices had nothing to do with her. Instead she would focus her attention on the one thing in the world worth it, the King of Heroes and all he had to offer her. Ah, but what was this? He thought he was hallucinating? Why shouldn't he? She was marvelous? "Hahahahaha!~ Fear not, I am real, you might feast your eyes upon my splendor!~" Ishtar's responses were as they would always be. The sort of thing done because she was easily flattered and lived off attention. Oh, he wanted to know how she was going to help him? And his patience was low? Obviously it would be, he was in a rush to reclaim his throne and serve, as he always would. "Well, I was once in the situation. I am aware of how one can leave without Kur having to allow it. You were made a judge, so you can take hold of the grains and waters of life. Sprinkling them on your body will allow you resistance to the hands that would drag you back into the clutches of death. And if you take them for yourself he Gallu will not follow," she said with superiority in her visage. "Hahaha!~ So, see... it is I, the glorious Ishtar who will be the reason you can leave this wretched place. You may carry us both out now... and sing my praises freely!" she said. Yes, in rushing down here she'd forgotten the only way she'd get out of the Underworld would be to go by similar methods. Or she'd have to die and lost some other piece of herself in the process. But surely Gilgamesh was ready to serve, and being just her type she'd reward him.

Meanwhile Artoria Pendragon worked through the night. When darkness settled in Uruk, she could be much more relaxed. No longer dying of heat exhaustion, she was even having a cup of wine as she read through and gave instructions for tablets. And then when she felt like it was necessary she would question Siduri while she read. "Do you not sleep, Blessed Wine-Maker?" she asked which made Siduri smile. "It isn't as much a necessity for me. I take rest when I need to or when I am released to, but I do wish to make sure you settle well first," she said to Artoria. A small smirk came to the lips of the Queen of Knights. This woman was amazing. Perhaps whenever she came across it, she'd make sure she received an increase in her wages, or a bonus of some sort? Whatever the case she definitely required a lot of credit for keeping this place running while her sovereign was missing. "I will allow this extra diligence, but do not over do it. If you feel tired, you are free to take leave... make sure Medusa knows the same. I will not overwork anyone," she said as she finished yet another tablet. Full dozens of stacks had been sorted handled and moved into storage. But at the same time more would be pouring in. After a while, 16 hours of work, Artoria stood. "You could have your breaks now if you wish. I am going to stretch my limbs and my Knights should be arriving shortly. I'll return within five hours, in time to greet the Pharaohs, and the Queen of Saints." she said as she reached over and picked up Excalibur. She slung it over her right shoulder gripping it with the same hand as she headed out to begin her own exercises that she always took up before training began properly.

If there was any doubt of Ishtar being the one who stood before him, it was all removed the moment she spoke. It seemed she truly believed he was glad to see her, the reason for his many woes and struggles. Well... she was in luck today. Today, Gilgamesh would break his promise of killing her the moment she appeared before him. It was all for the future; any information she had about leaving Irkalla was worth letting her draw a few more breaths. As such, Gilgamesh stood with crossed arms and no excess of patience while she... literally explained the entire ordeal. Where was this foolish goddess' tact? Any leverage she could have had over him, even for a moment, flew out of her mouth with her words. "H'oh? The Gallus will not touch one who does such things? Fuhahaha! I see; I was a fool to not think of it myself!" he announced, laughing hardily enough that he had to hold his own face and abdomen. "To think it would be you, Ishtar, to make my journey all the more easier this time. Very well. One of my worries has been set at ease, so you will be rewarded appropriately this once." How would Gilgamesh offer this alleged "reward" to the goddess Ishtar? He would... turn his back on her. Indeed, she'd surely bought him a few days, weeks, or maybe even months of time. He didn't have to figure out the method of his own exit, so he could continue searching the wretched Underworld for answers that much longer. With that being the case, his gift to Ishtar would be... her continued existence, for a time.

Yes, Ishtar had given the information of her plan to free Gilgamesh directly to him. And no, she didn't think of holding back that information for a better time. She gave it because she wanted to be praised, and also because he was her ride out of here. She hadn't forgotten why she wanted to come here. She'd done so because she wished to have him remove the boy-queen from her throne. So, his happiness was followed by mild praise. Surely he would say more, right? RIGHT!? No, his reward was him turning away from her? "What kind of reward is that? I have given you the keys to your redemption!" she exclaimed. She deserved more, she deserved praise and for him to do what she needed him to do. "Now, you will free us from this underworld and go to your Ziggurat and remove the boy-queen from my throne and praise my properly!" The demand was in place and her hands were crossed under her chest. It seemed she'd had forgotten that this man wanted to kill her. Or rather she didn't understand how serious he was about that fact. She'd also inadvertantly just revealed that she could not leave this place while he was also here. Whatever the case, she expected more from mankind. She'd been given every reason to believe she deserved it.

Meanwhile Artoria had gone out to do her morning training. Among the first of the Knights to arrive was Agravain. Who seemed to be ever so nervous. Artoria stood within the middle of this open space she'd cleared out with her own hands. Artoria stood giving two handed swings with this large version of Excalibur and whispering to it, happily. "Oh look friend, our niece has arrived, she looks appropriately terrified," she mentioned as if chatting with her own friend. of course, Agravain looked as if she hadn't slept since the night of the party. At first, she'd thought that Artoria was busy and would punish her later. She'd heard about the fight against the white Titan and figured that the Queen of Knights would punish her the day after. But she'd done her training with Gareth instead. All the while Agravain had become jumpy, irritable and moody. When was she going to strike and punish her for her evasive behavior? She was becoming paranoid all over again. "My Queen please," Agravain dropped to one knee at Artoria's side. "I am going crazy, not knowing when my punishment is coming is too much for my heart to bear. Please, train me today. Fight against me, do something. I cannot take this treatment anymore..." she pleaded with Artoria. In this moment the smallest smirk appeared on Artoria's face and she paused to plant Excalibur in the ground. She reached out and said the words she always found herself saying in moments like these. "Lift your head, Agravain," she said. Which the lass did, meeting Artoria's green eyes with ones that had turned vivid red with her emotional distress. "Now you know the problem with being evasive do you not?" she asked of the girl. "Yes, I understand I should not have hidden it for so long, I am sorry Aunty!" she said admitting defeat and desiring nothing more than getting her punishment over with. "Then you need fear no punishment, but remember this... I will not tolerate such behavior from you again." said Artoria as she patted the lass on the head. This was a relief to Agravain. The lass passed out as her muscles relaxed. She hadn't been to sleep lately either. "Silly girl, you cannot pretend to be so harsh while being so afraid," Artoria picked up the girl like she would carry a small child and laid her off to the side for a moment or two of sleep, completely with Artoria's own cloak under her head. Any others who showed up could receive training and whatever information Artoria had for them. The Lady Kay was running Camelot in Artoria's absence, but otherwise the rest could come and go between Albion and Mesopotamia. In the meantime, Artoria went back to her practice swings.

Ishtar had given him a key. Yes, she had certainly done just that... though it was no key to redemption of any sort. What she granted him was a key he would have discovered the location of eventually, with or without her annoying intrusion. Interestingly enough though, Ishtar went on to admit something she should have kept silent about. Free us from the Underworld, she said. Ah, and with that was a specification that "her" throne was in his ziggurat. So then, Artoria had finally taken up the mantle of queen where she belonged. How exciting. As for the kind of reward he offered, well... "You fool. I have given you exactly the reward you deserve. I told you what would happen if you appeared before me, so of course me turning my back to you is magnanimity in its purest form," he explained. Since Ishtar always wanted to be such a petulant child, though, he supposed it was time he turned around and offered her something more fitting. "What is it you want then, hm? No... I will guess. You want an entire realm crawling to you. You wish to be offered everything that all denizens of the world have to offer, including an offer of my own golden rod to fill your loins until you burst. Tell me, do I presume correctly?" He was quite curious now. If Ishtar expressed such desire, he knew just what he would be doing next. Just thinking of it, Gilgamesh bore the largest grin. Yes, this was worth a brief intermission. "If these are your desires, surely that is why you appear before me wearing those promiscuous rags. You should not have wasted your time. Why should you not appear bare as the day you were born?"

Gilgamesh spoke of how it was his magnanimity to turn away given what he'd promised to do to her every time she appeared before him. "But you can't have meant that, look at me..." she said as if it was outrageous. "No man denies me!" she meant this. Truly it was inconceivable that any man would actually turn her down for any reason. Ah, but it seemed he was willing to correct his own error. He was turning to her now! Glorious. He even claimed to wish to guess what she wanted. Ishtar doubted he understood the full scope of her desires, but his following words came rather close to her truest desires. "Yes! Finally I knew you of all people understood my wishes. This is why... you should offer it all to me," she said. Truly she made the assumption that someone knowing what she wanted, should mean they should give it to her. Work was for those who were less perfect, but everything about her was perfection. She shouldn't have to scrape and try and offer, she should just be given and everyone else should be thankful for the privilege to provide. Oh? He'd noticed her change in attire. Obviously, this meant he was looking at her truly now. He couldn't resist her. Yes, she would win over that boy-queen this day and have Gilgamesh all to herself! But what was this, he said she should have appeared before him as the day she was born? Well of course she should have... "Fine! I will show you all of my glory that you might not resist me again!" she said. She stripped off those clothes she'd donned for this purpose. Light fabrics and gold fell from her form as she stood before him in the Underworld completely naked. Yes, in all of her glory head held high. "Yes, I will receive you... you do not have to beg!"

In the meantime Artoria finished her training. Of course, it'd taken quite a bit to get everything together, but, her Knights had taken well enough to her explanation of things. The King of Heroes was out, and she'd taken up looking after his kingdom in his absence. She'd left the Lady Kay one of her most trusted in charge, and sent the Lady Galahad in the meantime to have a look around Mesopotamia so that she could have a better understanding of its people. Artoria returned to the Ziggurat, hot and slightly exhausted. Her arms aching just a bit from the new weight of Excalibur but she was having no problems lifting and swinging it about. In the meantime, the Queen of Saints was chatting with Siduri in the throne room and looked at her sister happily. "Eri-nee!!" she squealed like an excited child as she bounded over. "Good Morning, Emi... I just got back from training do not do this..." she said holding the lass at arm's length. "Well then I guess we'll have a bath together!" she said giving the full hug she'd come in for, squeezing tightly before mentioning anything else. "You really are gross though..." she said finding it funny. "I warned you!" Artoria bit back. The arrival of the Pharaohs, would be all she needed as she kept one hand on Excalibur but in the other summoned the Holy Spear Rhongomyniad. She'd rather have the conversation of the death of Gilgamesh in private.

Allegedly, no man denied the goddess Ishtar. Lies. King Gilgamesh did as he pleased, and few things pleased him more than putting that bitch of a goddess in her place. Now that he understood she could not leave the Underworld at random, he could have even more fun. There was so much he had to offer her; she didn't even know the full scope of it. She'd have an inkling soon enough, though. Ishtar discarded those miniscule strips of fabric that hardly covered an inch of her body, unveiling all of her glory for the king to witness. To her credit, he did take her bare form under his scrutiny. It truly was a shame. Physically speaking, there could be none who compared to the Queen of Heaven herself; that was a fact of reality in this world. On the outside, she could be likened to the juiciest fruit offered to a starving child. Alas, that fruit bore a corrupt pit of seeds that rotted everything under the surface. No matter. It had become obvious ages ago that Ishtar's interior was in stark contrast to her external appearance. Now then, what was all this talk of begging? He'd done no such thing, but as he took measured steps toward the naked goddess, he snorted in amusement. "You've gone senile with age if you thought I would beg, Ishtar. But... since you speak of begging, you are free to do so. Go on. To your knees, Queen of Heaven. Beg your king's favor," he commanded, those slit pupils set in crimson narrowing to blade-like sharpness.

Meanwhile, Artoria's stay in the Citadel of Uruk was to receive not only Jeanne d'Arc, but the pharaohs of Egypt as well. The greatest Cosmic Sphinx landed just outside the ziggurat, releasing Ozymandias from its back upon doing so. He hadn't been to Uruk in quite some time, but he relished in the sun warming his back just as it did back home. Upon making footfall, he extended an arm, knowing Nefertari remained atop the sphinx. "Still no grand ceremony to greet its great visitors, eh? When will these Mesopotamians learn?"

Men always came to Ishtar with strange requests. And most of them she denied on the face of audacity alone. But... the King of Heroes was always something she herself wanted... to that end she was always a bit more lenient with him. Yes. That is the way that worked. Obviously, she'd allowed her death before, because he wished to vent his frustrations. Even now, he made demands of her begging and she gave it barely a second of consideration. Something about those eyes of his and words spoken with arrogance of delivery made her want to submit to his will. Her own consciousness would not allow her to full deny her own nature. "I said I wouldn't make you... but," she had already dropped to her knees she supposed she might as well beg a bit right? It'd get her that golden rod of his, and once it was within her she'd have him under her control as well. Yes, that was obviously the plan this was nothing but a necessary exchange to get what she wanted. She'd done worse just bedding Enki. "I beg my king give me his golden rod. I want it more than anything and only I, Queen of Heaven am fit to receive it!" She made this declaration from from below him and found that this angle would be perfect for the inspection of that tool.

Meanwhile Artoria stood side by side with her younger sister. Her arm on the hilt of Rhongomyniad and her other on the giant form of Excalibur. Of course, the Pharaohs had arrived she'd seen the Cosmic Sphnix flying in, she smiled knowing they would soon be with them. Nefertari slid down the side of the creature and into the Pharaoh Ozymandias outstretched reach. "There is hardly a need for such a thing, my Sun and Stars. Besides, it was a message from the Queen of Knights which brought us here, and if we have learned anything it is that she doesn't like a party~" she said carefully. Down down from the Sphinx they would approach the inner Ziggurat's throne room to see Artoria and Jeanne d'Arc. "Pharaohs, I am apologetic calling upon you again so soon. But I have news and you three should hear it..." she said rather evasively for her. The Queen of Knights still looked a bit like she was dying, but instead of wasting time, once they were in range enough she poured herself into the Holy Spear opening up that magical room which she spoke to first. "No funny business this time. I will be returned to the time I left or we shall have problems..." she said to the Nexus. "I did this for our protection during this," she said after banishing, Rhongomyniad from her hand and going back to holding the bridge of her nose. It was annoying to have to explain and her own sister was watching the frustration play across her older sister's face. Whatever she was about to say, she thought needed both privacy and a moment to prepare. "So, I came here yesterday after raising Albion to discover that the King of Heroes is dead. Outside of the normal life cycle and unable to return by normal means..." said Artoria to go ahead and get that out of the way. She was still holding her nose but that was more or less to keep her from exploding into a rage induced ball. "I took over his duties unless one of you would rather, but he sent word he will be coming back eventually. I simply do not wish to incite a panic of any kind."

How would Ishtar be reacting to the King of Heroes' demands? By acquiescing, of course. The foolish goddess was on her knees before she even spoke properly, fully nude and prostrating herself before his golden majesty. Had she appeared to him this way the first time, perhaps she could have gotten something resembling what she wanted. Alas, she dug a hole for herself, and it was nigh time Gilgamesh filled that hole with the burial dirt. Well... first, he had to keep an ear open for the begging. Just as she'd done before, Ishtar spoke the words of her own desire. She wanted his golden rod, and only she was fit to receive it? "Hmph. Very well," he said. With that, the king's arms were open, albeit lowered to leave his hands at hip-level. Ishtar thought herself in position to inspect his groin, and... she was free to try. "This behavior suits you far better, does it not? But, that is not the only purpose of a mouth like yours. Open it," he demanded further. Gilgamesh seemed in position and willing to allow Ishtar's approach, as if she were allowed to claim what she sought of her own accord under implied conditions. Was that the case, though? Well, she was allowed to try. If she were to acquiesce, however, the simple touch of his beltline would be the very moment her wrists and throat were bound by the Chains of Heaven. The only question was: would she have learned her lesson from the last time?

Joined by Nefertari, Ozymandias scoffed at the idea of them receiving no reception. "Sure, she sent the invite. What does that say of Uruk, though? The Golden King has more than enough showboating in his nature to make a scene for special guests. I would expect it from him," he explained. Strange though was the idea that Artoria Pendragon had been the one to call them here. That conversation between her, Nefertari and Serenity must have done the pale queen the world of good. Sadly, that had nothing to do with why she was the one calling them in. Mere moments after their arrival to the throne room of Uruk, they were met by the Queen of Knights herself... and subsequently dragged into the Nexus by her Holy Lance. It took no time at all for the news she had to be given, though it was clearly information she was displeased to share. The King of Heroes was dead, separate from the cycle of rebirth others in this world knew, yet still returning? That was... infinitely strange. Even so, it wasn't too much of an issue in Ozymandias' mind. "Bloody hell, you really don't beat around the bush in normal situations," the pharaoh mused, sighing and scratching his scalp. "So... this is a problem. Somewhat. Frankly, I believe the Golden King will be more pleased than anything to see you on his throne whenever he returns. The rest of us... would not see that sort of reaction, I'm sure. No matter. We have been here long enough, so I am willing to offer the guidance and assistance of the Sun to you, Mighty. I assume your own country is more accepting of being without its ruler's presence for some time."

Ishtar had spoken those ridiculous words after going to her knees before the King of Heroes, and he appeared to be acquiescing to her wishes. If this was all it took to get what she wanted she would be getting everything she desired. How short was Ishtar's memory? Too short to remember that a mere decade prior the King of Heroes had murdered her after she said something as outlandish as the thing she just said. Well, whatever. She opened her mouth as he asked and planned to have a look at the rod that would be wasted on that boy-queen if she did not interfere. So what would she do? Well, she'd reach, why wouldn't she. She said it was hers, she was the only one worthy of it, and she would take it. She reached for his belt line with all of the happiness of a small child being given sweets, only she did not receive them. From the second her hand touched his beltline each of her wrists was taken up by the Chains of Heaven. Oh no. Her divinity would be her undoing in this case, as the Chains of Heaven could hold her. But they weren't just around her wrists, one also was wrapped around her throat. She was choking almost immediately after trying to take a breath. "You cannot do this. Let me go, and I'll forgive you for this overstep!" Yes she would say that, obviously she was still in charge here. Yes, she forgot completely the last time she said such a thing she died, perhaps next time she'd remember and stay out of his sight?!

Artoria's conversation with Nefertari and Serenity had done her a world of good. Too bad she hadn't gotten to put that goodness into practice. Instead, she'd wound up her evening with extra work on her hands and more things to do than she originally planned. Nefertari heard the news of the Queen of Knights and immediately felt bad for the lass, obviously she'd made up her mind the previous day and it'd been thwarted by fate itself. "Poor Queen, of course we'll back you if you need us to, but you do not seem the type to require that sort of assistance," she said carefully. Ozymandias' reaction included more shock than normal at the way the girl had blurted out the information she had to say and it made Artoria sigh. "My apologies, I am told I can be a bit too blunt for normal things... so I try not to be, sometimes. I would simply rather have this conversation quickly enough to decide what is happening without extra time being taken," Artoria said heaving a bit of a sigh. "Obviously for anyone who asks the King is on a journey, I do not think telling others that the man who rules the world has died is a good idea. It seems like the sort of thing to incite panic," she clarified what she was actually planning to do. Jeanne had been quiet for several moments seemingly shocked by the information she'd received. "Eri-nee do you need a hug?" she asked of the lass, which made Artoria look at her strangely. "Why would I need a hug? You just gave me a hug..." she said quickly. Oh, Nefertari realized given their previous conversation that this girl didn't understand the point of comforting hugs either. How weird was her life before? "That was a, 'I haven't seen you in a while hug', this one would be because you feel bad and don't know what to do about it... You know, with like back rubs and head pats," The Queen of Saints mentioned. Artoria looked at her sister for several seconds seeming to think over the information. "Maybe later." she said giving all due consideration to a hug for the point of comfort. "Anyway, I do not mind taking over such duties, I have already started technically. And Albion is self-sufficient, I do not know why his kingdom requires so much upkeep. But I am not known for flexibility in the way I operate. I simply meant to warn you in case I find my own antics necessary," she said. Most would know that the Queen of Knights came to rule Albion by leading a rebellion and wrestling the entire country into submission one battle at a time. Though she could easily manage the administration, she had no problem using violence to quiet the masses. "Oh and Queen Nefertari, could I bother you about something to wear, I am dying of heat in this place... I do not understand how any of you manage anything in these desert climates!" Ah, that was one bit of help she'd accept without any fuss. Nefertari looked at her for several seconds and nodded. "Of course, give me a few minutes, I can easily modify you one like what you have on for the heat~" she said gesturing to the woman's outfit. "My thanks, if that is all I will return us to the Ziggurat. I had Siduri prepare breakfast in case anyone else was hungry... you are more than welcome to eat with me," she said. Well, Artoria couldn't be called a bad host, technically.

Just as he anticipated, Ishtar left open her mouth and began reaching for his trousers. She truly was just a common whore under all that bravado, wasn't she? "H'oh? Do you truly think to take it into your mouth in the middle of Irkalla? How indecent," he chided. Gilgamesh seemed oddly pleased when the Chains of Heaven, his own friend Enkidu, bound the goddess by wrists and neck. She would not be getting out of those until he saw fit, but as he was thoroughly enjoying himself by now, it was not his intention just yet. Ishtar wanted to be released, though. That didn't matter. She'd forgive him for this overstep? What a fool. "What overstep? This is the place you belong, Ishtar. On your knees, begging to have your throat filled─ that is your life's one true purpose. Submission is the only thing that suits the likes of you, especially whilst bound by chain." If ever there was a man to rest his groin in the face of a kneeling woman while demeaning her for reasons not sexual in nature to himself, Gilgamesh was that man. Ishtar was such a pitiful existence, she could not even be truly pitied at all. She could, however, be told about herself. "Whore goddess of Uruk, dare you lie and proclaim that restraints do not suit you? If I were to relieve myself using your face, even tightening those chains, would you not achieve release of your own from only that? No truth escapes my eyes, Ishtar. As I look upon you now, I see only a jade whom I could leave covered in the fruit of my loins in the depths of Kur... only to have her satisfaction shining through the milt like a beacon."

Meanwhile, Ozymandias was waving off the antics of Artoria Pendragon. He was shocked by the suddenness of her words, but it was just as much about the information itself. "Save your apologies. I'd rather address important things directly. This is just a lot," he admitted. A nod accompanied Ozymandias' understanding of Artoria's intentions. It would indeed be a terrible idea to inform the masses of Gilgamesh's demise. The King of Heroes had previously taken a journey long enough to be absent during Egypt's ascension, however, so that sort of story would work perfectly fine. "If not panic, then rebellion. Though it seems he tries not to be, the Golden King is still a tyrant. I'm sure there are quite a few who would like to take advantage of his absence this time. I do wonder though, how did he manage to get himself killed?" Ozymandias wondered. He was prepared to vacate the Nexus, but this was a powerful curiosity that had to be answered before he ate anything.

Of course, breakfast itself was first being seen by another individual who entered the ziggurat. Tall, tan of skin, possessing short, dark hair, and accompanied by a large lion of his own was the king of Nippur to answer Artoria's summons. He sported no shoes, red harem pants, a beige wrap slung over his shoulders, and jewelry of pure silver at his waist, ankles, wrists, even draped over his chest. Upon his arrival, Siduri was the first he met... much to his apparent pleasure. "A pleasure as always, wine-maker. Where is the Golden One, and who is this queen your message speaks of? Surely you have not taken the hand of a mad tyrant instead of my own?"

Was Ishtar truly planning to have the King of Heroes within her mouth inside of Irkalla? Well, no. It wasn't her intention to do anything other than reveal the man inspect his manhood and make him do what she wished with it. Of course, simply having access to it would have given her all the leverage she needed to have the man at her beck and call which she obviously wanted. But, the King of Heroes had words to share. She was a common whore, submission? On her knees with her mouth open begging for anything? No these weren't things natural to her personality at all. "That isn't it... I was willing to make allowances for you, because you fit my preferences and can give me what I want. You are the one being difficult about it, daring to try and resist perfection for no reason at all. I could have everything I want and you refuse to give it to me!" she said. Her attitude was still haughty as it ever was, but she wasn't really lying. What she allowed those who gave her offerings to do, seemed to relate directly to how much they could give, or how much she liked them. It was obvious to her that Gilgamesh could give her everything she wanted, making her the only god of the world and could give her access to his entire treasury. She wanted everything to have for herself. She wanted to lounge about, have sex, get offerings and lord over everyone. She wanted every other woman to know they couldn't compete and wanted every other man to know they could not have her if she didn't wish it. A pedestal above the rest of mankind was what she wanted with unlimited access to the Golden King when she wished. Why was everyone else so difficult.

Meanwhile Artoria had a healthy conversation with the Pharaohs, and the Queen of Saints while the female Pharoah seemed to be rather quickly piecing together a more desert appropriate outfit for her. "The King of Heroes is indeed trying not to be a tyrant... I cannot discount that effort," Artoria paused. Her own mind did not go to nice place. She was currently not a tyrant, but she'd already reigned in the entirety of Albion. There wasn't a single person who would challenge her for her rule in any case, and she only planned to hand it over on her own terms. A rebellion brewing in Uruk, that made a smile come to her face. "If one wishes to approach the Ziggurat with a rebellion while I sit on that throne they are more than welcome to. I have never seen one from that direction before, and I have not yet given my new friend a proper proving yet~" Artoria said in a manner most casual. "Eri-nee! Too violent!" these were the words of the Queen of Saints, who understood completely the threat of such a statement, which just caused Artoria to shrug. "I am not walking up to their doors starting anything... I feel like I could take it as justification and wipe out more than half the tablets in the process," she said which only made her younger sister look more aghast. "On my honor I will do nothing more violent than I need to while I am in charge, little sister..." said Artoria. "You are no fun," she mentioned seeming not to notice that she was the one who found violence fun. "Queen of Knights, that is pretty tyrannical at face value. Are you sure you're the same lass who came talking to me yesterday?" Nefertari stated as she handed over a dress much like the one Artoria was already wearing. "Absolutely, I am the same person you talked to yesterday...and I never said I was not a tyrant. I have just mellowed out a bit more... thank you abundantly for something so wonderous, Queen of Queens," she said. as if this was a perfectly reasonable explanation. Ah, that last question, how did Gilgamesh die... "All conclusions we can come to say he died of exhaustion... ridiculous man," Artoria's tone didn't hold scorn but instead something akin to admiration. "That is the dining room. I am going to have a quick bath and get changed. I will join you in a few minutes. Feel free to start without me..." she said to the group. Artoria made another door for herself to the baths in the interim. Nefertari went to the dining room along with Jeanne and presumably Ozzy while Artoria had a quick bath to get rid of the morning's training and her previous day's sweat.

The tall dark and somewhat handsome man in his oversized pants was of course happy to see Siduri. She managed to look uninterested even behind a veil but managed to play reasonably nicely just the same. "Rim-Sin, King of Nippur, very nice to see you. You arrived here a bit earlier than expected," she mentioned wondering how he Queen would handle this situation. "I do not have that sort of relationship with my King. The Queen is the Queen she currently sits on the throne of Uruk, she would likely introduce herself and our King is currently on a journey..." clear concise small talk was made until Artoria emerged from the bath a few moments later. Ah, she finally look refreshed. Her golden spun locks up in her bun, a bit less tight than normal but with that added braid on the side. She was wearing a blue dress much like her original one with the large window over her chest, but instead of a big fluffy skirt hers was a bit sleeker now, with high splits up the legs instead. Still rather easy to move in but with a gentle breeze licking her skin in all directions. This of course, included the skin on her back which was exposed down to the small of her back leaving her feeling admittedly less hot even post bath than she had in the previous day. She had long white sleeves on and golden wedged shoes because apparently they were necessary. Whatever the case, she had as always that large copy of Excalibur being carried over one shoulder. "I feel so much better. For the life of me I cannot stand the weather here, but Queen of Queens gets all of the praise and anything she wishes this day. You agree do you not friend?" she asked aloud of her sword seeming to have taking her bonding with it rather seriously. Of course her whispered words would end as soon as this extra body of the other man came into view... she'd never seen this one before she wondered if this was the man who'd sent the rather audacious message.