Finis Chaldea

[Bloodedge]

It was fair enough to say Artoria owned swords that were smaller than his member. Alas, now she simply had a larger sword to utilize for different purposes, no? It wasn't as if any other who walked this planet could claim ownership of this divine construct, after all. "Hah! You are free to wield this with two hands as well, if it pleases you," he mentioned. The question at hand though, was whether she would actually take his member into her hand or not. The answer was... yes, she would. Artoria's refusal of backing down from challenges would be her undoing, and the proof of this was no clearer than the moment her hand made contact with his rod. The King of Heroes had never known a moment more exciting. Of course, this showed in the immediate mighty throb that seemed to challenge the queen's dainty touch. Gilgamesh thought to loose his own grip of himself right away, mostly leaving the Queen of Knights to her apparent careful inspection of it.

"H'oh?" Her approach was curious indeed. Never had he witnessed more virginal behavior than Artoria Pendragon displayed here and now, and strangely enough, never did he think it would be a pleasant experience. Perhaps he should have taken more women that were like this? No, that wouldn't have worked at all. He was no stranger to the inexperienced partner, but this was a new breed entirely. So, naturally, Gilgamesh could only prod away with his words even more. "I will forgive your hubris in thinking that will be sufficient. This is not a thing to ponder over, Queen of Knights. You should be preparing for the greatest battle of your mortal life; yet another campaign that will certainly bring an end to you."

[Apollymi]

The Queen of Knights had her hand around a foreign member and that was met by a mighty pulse. That was something she understood as well. Strangely enough, her mind had something else to say about such a reaction, natural though it may have been. 'Impudence.' Wait, why was everything a fight for Artoria Pendragon? It probably had something to do with that surname of hers, that core in her body and her very soul. No matter. Gilgamesh always seemed so capable of bringing such upset reactions out of her. "If it pleases me?" she said that as if curious about it. She didn't know if this should be something that pleased her. She didn't dislike the feel of this in her hands, though she did not understand how it was meant to provide her comfort. Whatever the case since she could not back down it was only appropriate to move forward.

But what was this? The King of Heroes was goading her into actions? Did he not know such things would only work on her so much. Even now... with a mind full of nothing but her own curiosities and her loins tingling by method she did not yet understand. Her reactions could not be so easily manipulated. "You do not have to tell me that King of Heroes. Besides I am allowed whatever preparations I wish... it is not hubris to take a practice swing." Artoria had no idea how to flirt. That being said, aggression in any form was pretty standard to her being, and being a bit cheeky here and now was not entirely uncalled for. Even so, those words probably sounded a lot more flirty than she would have intended, given the flush on her face and those subtle moans still taking place as she was fondled. Oh well, she would meet effort with effort and the movement of that dainty hand in earnest would happen. The King of Heroes threatened to lead her to bliss, she did not know what that meant exactly but she did understand the basic functions of male anatomy and did not think negatively of doing this. One step at a time, as nature intends, do not fight her own body, do not try and be anyone specific. She could technically work within those confines, especially while not knowing what to expect from this new experience. She was a virgin yes, she was inexperienced yes, but she wasn't opposed to this situation as it was unfolding. Even if she hadn't had eight chalices of wine, she likely could have expressed less than disinterest in this case. All of this was the King of Heroes' doing, whether he realized it yet or not.

[Bloodedge]

Ah, it seemed the king's call to action would only work so well in the long-run against Artoria. He could expect nothing less of her than resistance to force; that was one of the reasons she shined so brilliantly. He did not have to tell her, though, she said. Interesting. He could form no earnest argument against her proclamation, though he had every reason to address the "practice swing" she spoke of. "Hubristic though it may not be to take a practice swing, it remains a showing of utmost audacity that you would go to war without proper armor." Gilgamesh's grip of the woman's undercarriage intensified as these words were offered. She had some nerve to take hold of his bare form without so much as freeing a single layer of her own. Oh well; he'd chalk it up to being part of her inexperience. Whatever the case, he supposed he could allow a larger window of opportunity for acclimation. Did that mean he would allow it silently? Well, there was essentially no such thing as silence to the King of Heroes, so... no. He would talk and talk, exemplifying every ounce of pride that welled up inside his soul by the second. At the same time, he would continue making forward progress in spite of the barrier betwixt himself and Artoria. "And yes... if it pleases you. Do you not feel it? Has the thought of this thing invading your own body not yet taken your mind and ignited your femininity? If not, allow it a few more moments. I'm sure it will come naturally soon enough."

[Apollymi]

Artoria was feeling ever so slightly more comfortable. Whether this was because of the moment, the company or simply because she felt less out of sorts as time went on was a question only to be answered in hindsight. Here and now, her hand moved along Gilgamesh's girth as he had no real arguments for her in this moment except to mention her lack of armor for this endeavor. He couldn't have meant that as she would have interpreted it. Was this a reference to his nudity and her own lack thereof? Probably. The nerve of him! Though she was no prude it was a bit outlandish that he made himself superiorly naked and expected someone else to do the same at random. "Umm~" that gentle moan would escape her lips before she could speak properly. Why was he like this? "It seems it is you who lacks understanding. It sounds like it is my turn to offer forgiveness, for the lack of clothing diversity you know. A dress such as this is not the type to be removed of one's own accord. If you wanted me to remove it, I'd have to remove my hands from you..." she said the cheekiest of smirks appearing on her face. The entire blue and gold section of her dress was a single large piece with accessories and a singlet as an undergarment beneath. But it fastened behind her person and thus required either both of her own hands or a spare set of arms for her to free herself. That Queen of Queens, knew what she was doing when creating such a dress, Artoria would have to ask for help or be completely comfortable looking crazed trying to escape this outfit. "The hands you demanded I put on you in the first place..." she stated though that wasn't exact the reason she hadn't removed clothes, she could take a victory if she wished to. "Or there is always the option of you taking such a matter into your own hands, as you have the extended reach I do not possess~" that was definitely flirty. Well, sort of, she still didn't know how much she could say without shifting her own personality on purpose. As for the thought of his manhood inspiring her to femininity and invading her body, she wasn't quite there yet, even as she fondled it directly. "I would say I am still uncertain of how that works, but I'll be gracious enough to allow you to try and make that shift in my mind." Hm, that was definitely her own thought. She definitely meant that, still it was strange. She'd never said a sentence like that before in her life. Being around the King of Heroes did strange things to the Queen of Knights.

[Bloodedge]

With another moan from Artoria, there was an accompanying throb from Gilgamesh. Every time they met, they participated in a different sort of dance. So far, this one was far closer in nature to the type he considered ideal for them. Alas, he lacked understanding about something according to the woman herself. She could not so easily discard her own clothing without either releasing his girth, or having someone else do the disrobing. Oh? She even said as much herself, offering a very specific implication when declaring that he had greater reach than herself. So then, she had some womanly wiles about her yet. That was quite interesting to see from one such as herself. Gilgamesh could express no distaste for this whatsoever─ especially as his body was already responding via the repeated throbbing within her grasp. She even kept going beyond that initial statement, teasing his mind with her words quite successfully. "H'oh? You appear to have awakened a side I rather enjoy," he said as his free hand made its way to her chin. "I will be sure to repay your entertaining banter with a proper ravishing."

Gilgamesh's hand remained on the woman's chin just long enough to tilt her face toward his own. Unbroken eye-contact would ensue as that same hand moved toward that ridiculous dress of hers. He would see it unfastened, but while his hands were occupied, he made another decision for the better of their endeavors. "This place is unfit for our meeting. You, voice! To my chambers!" he ordered of the Nexus. In a blink, the pair would find themselves in a room quite familiar to both of them: the overly-extravagant bedroom of Gilgamesh himself. There, next to that oversized bed, he located the clasps in the neck of Artoria's dress. One by one, they were taken apart until gravity spread her outer top. Too many layers, he thought. Oh well.

[Apollymi]

Gilgamesh's manhood throbbed in the Queen of Knights' hand. Perhaps one day she'd have a full understanding of what such a thing was connected to, but for now, she'd take it as a sign of mutual benefit. Still, she didn't quite understand what the benefit was yet, but perhaps she would soon enough. Whatever the case, it seemed her most recent speech was taken well, as the King of Heroes claimed to enjoy the side of her that presented such teasing. Hm, that was good to know, she supposed. Perhaps next time she'd manage to do so with purpose instead of her words accidentally inciting such excitement. Whatever the case, she was promised a ravishing in exchange for banter. "I somehow feel those things are not at all equivalent," she said immediately. Did she want a ravishing? That sounded dangerous. Still, she could not pull away from the endeavor. As it currently looked she'd end up bedding the King of Heroes because she was curious and found it intolerable to back down.

The King of Heroes' free hand was soon enough tilting her chin, and he was staring into her eyes. Being the sort of person she was she was looking back, she was pretty sure she liked those eyes specifically, at the very least they were interesting to look at. Soon enough though the King of Heroes made his desires of the moment known. Having the pair of them transported back to his bedroom. One of his hands was still busy below her waist while the other took the consent given to pull apart the layers at her neck. It was not at all normal for the Queen of Knights to feel exposed, still she'd not undressed in front of a man she held any interest in before. Her face gained a slightly reddened tint, was this about to be strange? She didn't know. At some points she felt fine and secure at others, she felt quite new and blind. This was a mixture of emotions she was not used to... and there was still that tingling in her loins so very close to bubbling over her entire form.

Still as Artoria's dress fell away, revealing a corset tightened slip of white fabric across her chest and the lightest possible material. There was a sound crossing the space, echoing in the Ziggurat. It was such an intense sound, it could have shattered eardrums and glass but the sound itself seemed to rattle the very foundations of the land. And then the darkened sky, gave way to a giant sweeping laser beam in the distance, somewhere in the nearby desert a battle was taking place. An an inhuman cry that reached way too far, put an immediate stop to Artoria's heartbeat. What was that?

[Bloodedge]

"Hmph. Equivalent they are not. However, I intend to spoil you nonetheless. Tonight is the night your life gains new purpose," the king declared. Truly, he did not plan on stopping with this woman until she lost whatever she currently called sanity. Enough with the crumbling walls; he now had the chance to batter away at Artoria's every defense using his own groin. It was exciting, it was magnificent even as a thought. This was the opportunity of a lifetime as he saw it, and one he would not let slip from his grasp.

Speaking of slipping, there was quite a bit going on already. That blue garment that could be worn so brilliantly by the Queen of Knights was gone, giving way to unguarded shoulders, one of which would quickly find Gilgamesh's hand gliding across its exposed flesh. Such silky skin she managed while being so battle-hardened. There was certainly no point in restraint now that he'd come so far. There were two annoying little buttons on the white dress that remained; that would not be allowed to stand. The dexterity of a bowman was utilized to unfasten those bothersome things with one hand, while still his gaze was fixed on Artoria's face. Just as the efforts of his other hand were picking up below her waist, however, there was a strange occurrence. That sound rang loudly throughout the Citadel of Uruk. Though he normally would have decided it was nothing worth his attention, a vision heralded by the glowing of his eyes said otherwise. Immediately, he wanted nothing more than to blame that harlot, Ishtar. Sadly, she could not be blamed for this. Had it been so many thousands of years already? They should have had more time than this, or at the very least a few more hours. Would he once again have his desires stripped from him by the world?

"Cursed fate," Gilgamesh growled through a grimace. This was not something avoidable. Others inhabiting Chaldea were easily capable of keeping this threat at bay, but they would not be able to fell it completely. It seemed, once more, action was required of him. Begrudgingly, he opted to speak on this matter, even as his motions continued by instinct alone. "It would seem the world itself is in favor of your defiance. The world-ender has arrived for the first time since the Great Divide."

[Apollymi]

"Spoil me?" Those words did not make sense right beside each other. Not as a reference for Artoria herself, of this the Queen of Knights was certain. Still she hadn't stopped her work even as her clothes fell away she seemed to have no real problems with her nudity. Still a strange hand crossing her shoulder was so different. Why was he inspecting her? Did he like her look? Well the firmness of his manhood said he didn't mind. Though she was still just a tad apprehensive about the amount this man seemed to like her when his options were so plentiful. Oh well, she didn't have time to think of it, he was still moving those fingers of his, and his others were popping the buttons of her top. Welp, her clothing started to fall away properly. Slipping away, exposing the shoulders, and more until of course the problem of the world presented itself.

Her whole body was on fire, until the moment her heart had stopped beating she had been prepared to surrender her body completely. No, that was wrong, she was willing to fight him kicking screaming and maybe with teeth all the way to this form of bliss he offered. But it seemed that they would not be breaching such a threshold today. Well, not completely, his motions continued by instinct alone and she was so dangerously close to the edge. The movement of her hand would come to a stop as the name of this creature came out of the King of Heroes mouth. "I have no idea what a world-ender is... but I feel annoyed now so we can go dispatch it," she said the movements of her hands finally coming to a halt. Strange, as she removed her hand from his manhood she found herself a little bit depressed to have stopped. Was that normal as well? She'd think about it while killing something. Finally she tried to remove herself from his person, stepping away and fastening those two buttons back. The blue dress that had fallen to her waist could easily be put back in place now with her own arms up in the air. Yes, the Queen of Knights too was all about her priorities, though she'd admitted she was annoyed by the interruption, perhaps it was a step in the right direction?

Whatever the case, a glowing white titan like creature was wreaking havoc in the desert. Lasers escaped its mouth as it aimed to crush everything it came across underfoot.

[Bloodedge]

Something had a death-wish today. Of this, Gilgamesh was certain. Artoria was already in the process of redressing herself, so it seemed the fun he'd been building up to would have to be set aside at the very least. What a cursed fate this was. He and destiny would have to share a few words eventually, but for now, he was watching the Queen of Knights' clothes move in exactly the wrong direction. When would opportunity strike again? He could not know unless he sorted through the possibilities, though that was something he refused to do. Gilgamesh would have to find out as the common folk did.

He could not disallow the queen's retreat. No, he had to release her and watch as those buttons were fastened, and that outer article returned to its place. After all, knowledge had to be imparted. The "world-ender" as he called it was an age-old god beyond those known to the world. He knew Artoria to be a key piece in felling it this time, and to do so, she needed to be equipped with sufficient information. "It is no surprise that you've never heard of it. Very well. Perhaps regaling you will stave off enough of the fury to help keep the world from burning when I reach that damnable beast," he said. The very same golden armor he'd once used to face Artoria herself manifested on his body as he stepped back, though his torso and arms remained bare. Step in the right direction or not, Gilgamesh continued to wear all of his disgruntled rage as a shameful badge while readying himself. "You have questioned this world, have you not? In truth, this world and the other were once one and the same. This Age of Gods we live in is the aftermath of the Great Divide that split this world into three pieces, two physical and one non. Everything discarded from the three, Mystery and all associated with it, became the Void beyond. The world was split because of a great threat, an extraterrestrial creature that travels the cosmos and consumes all life. Its first envoy was too powerful a foe when Mystery governed the reality of our world, so Mystery was thrown to the Void during the split. That allowed the beast sent by the world-ender to be felled by the former gods, weakened though they were in the aftermath. Such is the reason for my existence: to be the linchpin solidifying the gods' power structure, allowing them to annihilate the returning creature by being mighty enough to do so. Instead, it will be mankind saving itself from obliteration."

Indeed, an act of mankind would be what saved mankind. One-third human though he was, Gilgamesh had made the decision alongside Enkidu ages ago. Now, there were others who could fight. All of Finis Chaldea would have no choice but to rise to the occasion, even by their own decisions to live. To Artoria though, he extended a hand to accompany the unnecessarily-stern expression plastered on his face. "Artoria Pendragon! Will you rise to the occasion of felling a primordial, incongruous god? Your sword would serve well."

[Apollymi]

While she redressed, Gilgamesh did the same. Strangely, Artoria was a bit annoyed by that as well. Still, his chest was bare for her appreciation. Wait. Appreciation? When did she decide she liked looking at him? Her eyes quickly shifted away from him as her hands extended behind her neck and fastened once loosed clasps. All the while, she heard the words of the King of Heroes. She was now fighting something else... that slight ache between her legs, which she was sure she'd never felt before seemed somewhat defiant. Should she seek more of his attention? Maybe?

Whatever the case, she was told the story of this world. Which was the one they came from originally and this one, split into three parts with Mystery cast out into the void. What remained of the worlds was the creative part of the Nexus, the version of the world they'd come from without magic, and this version of the world with it. Fair enough she supposed. The world-ender had showed up sometime before... according to him and the split had been necessary to save the world. Fine, but this time apparently humanity would be saving itself? Interesting. Artoria was annoyed and beyond that a bit excited, she liked fighting after all. Still a very serious Gilgamesh gave her a question which made a smile cross her face. It seemed like he'd forgotten what she'd told him not too long ago. "That is not a real question, King of Heroes. I will always be available to act as humanity's protector. The fact that I get to fight something new is a bonus in this case~" she said. Oh, that was a bit of her real personality. The part of her that enjoyed new challenges and wanted simply to give violence to whatever she came across. Of course, she was still summarily unarmed, but a bit of water would see her sword return to her hand. "I require still water. I would have my sword." Artoria was nearly giddy beyond her annoyance, how long had it been since she'd faced something that would allow her to kill without restraint?