Awakening

Fofofofofoooo.

We've never gone this fast before!! It reminds me of the Arash Airlines flight, Master!

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I know you're about to black out, but please hang on! The Laḫmu is headed for the center of the Persian Gulf!

That's probably where Tiamat is! If the Laḫmu drops the Holy Grail there, we'll never recover it!

Even worse, if Tiamat wakes up from the Grail's magical energy

Don't worry, we'll catch up! We got them in sight!

Quetzalcoatlus, this is the last push! Blast that Laḫmu with a plancha at max speed!

Kweh!

Yes! We got it! It's falling down to the shore! Let's go finish it off!

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Now's not the time to be charming, Fujimaru! I just did what was necessary, yes!

The Laḫmu crashed on the beach! Now, just finish it off and take the Grail

Wait, what is this Spirit Origin reading!? Quetzalcoatl, what's going on!?

Not possible!

This wasn't how...how it was supposed to be...! Mother created me to be the first of the new human race..!

That was why I destroyed Mesopotamia... That was why I did everything...

Even without any experience, any memory, or any love in this body, I believed Mother had hopes for me...!

Gyaha! Gyahaha! Gyahahahahaha! Over. There! He. Ran. Over. There!

Corner him. Capture him! Break him. Break. The. Defect!

This can't be...

There was nothing, this land had nothing...!

I was expendable from the start... I was just a fake from the beginning...!

No future, no hopes, no will...not even friends...I had nothing.

The only thing I had was that I was Tiamat's only child. And that was the only thing I could cling to...

Aha. Found. You.

...

(So this is where it ends. Just like the old humans... I can't believe it...)

(...I guess I wasn't anything special... Just like anything else, I can be hurt...broken...)

(...Ah, if only I'd known... I wish I'd gone to see him one last time）

...

Huh...? You...saved...me?

...Run. Now. Enkidu. Although. You. May. Not. Be. Long. Either.

You're...the one they brought yesterday...

But why? Why would you save me...?

...Find. Happiness. Please. Find. Your. Happiness.

Dearest. Friend. Enki...du.

We. People of Uruk. Will. Never. Forget. Our gratitude. For. You.

You. Gave. The. Lone. King. A life. You. Led. Him. To the. Path. Towards. A. Great king.

There. Was. No. One. Who. Did. Not. Grieve your. Death. No. One. Forgot your. Death.

...I too. I too. Was. So sad.

That. Is. Why. Find happiness. Enkidu. Beautiful one. Of. Green.

Aah... So glad. Thank. You. I was. Able to. Tell you.

Thank you. Thank. You. Thank. Yo

...

What is this I didn't even know you.

How come I know your name and face though... You thanking me

I don't have any right to receive your gratitu Urg

Urgguuuuugh...! Aaaaaaaaaaaaagh...!!!

Another Spirit Origin detected. It's a Servant! But this is

That is correct. You lot stand no chance against me.

The Wandering Tales of Shana-oh, Act II... Usumidori: Steps of Heaven.

Gah! We were nearly there...! Who are you!?

Guardian of Tiamat. Servant, Ushiwakamaru.

It can't be. Ushiwakamaru...?

The Holy Grail will be delivered to Mother. You humans are not worthy of it.

However, if you want to catch up to it, then I'll grant your wish. I'll bring your heads back to the black sea with me. Just your heads.

...It's not Ushiwakamaru. That's not Ushiwakamaru, Mash!

Her Spirit Origin signature and appearance may be the same, but everything else is different! It's the same way the Laḫmu changed!

Don't hesitate, Mash, Fujimaru! She's become one of Tiamat's children!

Exactly. I've never felt better, never felt more like myself from before.

This blade is the voice of love and hate. I shall offer all of you to Mother...!

Ushiwakamaru has vanished... But now we can follow the Laḫmu...

That's impossible. You're going to die here.

She's back!? No, wait. That's

That's right. Die here. Die like the insects you are.

Those who survive on the battlefield. Those who forget it. Those who avoid the battlefield. Those who abandoned me there...

All of them must die. I'll kill them. I'll kill you. I'll kill every single human.

And thenYoritomo, that fool Yoshitsune... I'll rip the ENTIRE Genji clan apart!!!

Multiple enemy Servants detected...! Doctor, what is this...!?

She's multiplying. Just like the Lahmu! I...don't think this new Ushiwakamaru can die!

As long as a finger or single strand of hair survives, a new Ushiwakamaru will grow from it!

This is the worst! There's nothing we can do! Fujimaru, run!

Even if you had a Noble Phantasm that could completely obliterate it, that thing won't stay dead!

Because...Ushiwakamaru's Spirit Origin signature is mixed in with the sea behind her!

There's literally no end to this!

I did tell you... I'm going to kill you.

The only Noble Phantasm that could destroy this sea would be one capable of gathering all the magical energy of the entire era.

In other words, only the light bands covering the heavens can rival Mother now. Do any of you have such a powerful Noble Phantasm?

Heh. Funny you should say that, yes! You know, we just might? But, well, first...

I cannot forgive the way you make Fujimaru and Mash suffer!

Before I bring out the big guns, I'm going smash your face in with my macana, yes!

Shut up, false goddess! I shall smash that pathetic wooden sword of yours to pieces!

Humph... Perhaps you really weren't all talk.

But you can't win. While we fought, the Grail was delivered to Mother.

...Yes. We failed... We couldn't get past Ushiwakamaru...

...Why? I don't know.

The old me died in the sea of mud. What you see before you is a dead woman, stripped of her reason and turned into a being of pure instinct.

The truth is, I always had this in me, Fujimaru.

There was a black, inhuman part of me that hated the world of man, and wanted to kill more than anything.

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A huge number of Laḫmu has appeared again...! So...so many! Uruk isn't in any state to handle this many!

...So it's begun, huh? I must go, then. I don't want to run out of things to kill.

Now, should I destroy Uruk while its people try to fortify its little walls, or play with the refugees trying to escape beyond the Northern Wall?

Either way, I'm abandoning this body. I have no interest in clinging to something so wounded.

Farewell, survivors of Chaldea. I commend your efforts in slaying me...

...Hollow victory though it is. Death no longer holds meaning for me.

...Let's head back to Uruk, Master! Even if we don't make it in time, we can't just stay here!

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Y-you're right, but...! Holding my hand like that is helping...!

Yes, that's a good idea. I agree with Fujimaru.

...And I'm sorry. I failed to stop the Laḫmu from escaping.

No, it's not your fault. Nobody could've predicted something like that would happen.

More importantly, we need to do what Fujimaru said, and head for the observation point!

It's an emergency, but that doesn't mean we can run around blindly! First we need to know what's going on!

And we need to rest, if even only for a few minutes.

You've been fighting this whole time. I want to at least get these two some rest in a room with a roof.

Yes, of course! Good idea, Doctor, yes! First, let's eat! Eat!

Like the great lucha announcers say, you can't get in the ring on an empty stomach, yes!

You're late, Chaldeans! What happened? Tell me everything!

K-King Gilgamesh!?

I'm not ripping anyone off. I was inspired! Why do you think I went to the observation post last time?

I made a communication system for this very moment!

Hmm. So it's not quite perfect, huh?

I thought it would be boring to copy Chaldea, so I attempted to make a more refined communications system. And it seems I didn't quite succeed. It's infuriating!

But it is very good for something done in a rush, right? You have my permission to praise my prowess as a mage!

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Wow, what is this!? I can see them, meow! Hey, Kuku, I'm right here!

What's going on over there? Everything's in chaos here!

Those Laḫmu attacked again! But this time, amazingly, we're kinda holding them off!

His Majesty rolled out those big bows on the castle walls! Three hundred and sixty of them!

Obviously. I prepared enough to repel an attack from any direction. They can hold off the Lahmus for an hour or so.

But! The soldiers won't last any longer than that! Nor will my magical energy!

That's all I have to report! Now, what about you fools?

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...

What were you people doing!? What happened at Eridu?

Hey! Calm down, Gilgamesh! Listen, Kingu's heart was the Grail!

Tiamat was using the Grail as a power source to control what was left of Enkidu!

Then a Laḫmu took the Grail, and threw it into the center of the Persian Gulf, which is where we are now!

It's all my fault! Quetzalcoatl did it! Does that settle it? I think that settles it, right? Great! Then we're done talking about it forever!

So do you have a plan!? I'm open to ideas right now! Even yours!

I see. That was...succinct, Quetzalcoatl. Now let me tell you what I think!

First! We got the results from the water analysis.

The black seawater is Tiamat's Authority itself!

It infects those who touch it, and Tiamat's Authority is copied into their cells and makes them into her slaves.

The Laḫmu were born from the mud of Tiamat. They probably aren't affected by it.

But anyone else, Servant or human, that touches that black mud will be absorbed by Tiamat!

I see! So don't touch it! And if you have to touch it, touch as little as possible to protect yourself, meow!

That's right... Mother... I mean Tiamat's Authority includes self-modification, multiplication, and bio-fusion.

But her most powerful one is the "Amino Geas," or cell compulsion.

Once they're inside that mud, it will Darken any Servant.

Ishtar! You're here!

Yes, I'm sorry I'm late. But I got Eridu back on its feet.

The people are evacuated to the basement of Eridu's ziggurat, instead of heading to Uruk.

They can hole up in there for a day. Even Laḫmu can't break in there easily.

A Darkening mud, you say? I've never seen it, but what an annoying concept to deal with.

Whatever. Second! The observation post not only recorded the water quality, but also the height of the water and waves!

They observed an unusual water level. The moment the Grail was stolen from you, the water started to rise by the minute!

By my calculations, the observation post will be swallowed in three hours, and the black sea will overflow onto land.

What we're going to see is something even worse than the great flood that once destroyed Mesopotamia.

It'll be a black sea of mud that turns all life it touches into monsters!

If that happens, Uruk, and all of human history, are finished!

If Mesopotamia, the great civilization and basis for urban society, is turned into a world of monsters, the Foundation of Humanity will collapse!

We won't let that happen! Doctor, give us a plan!

Do you have one!? You have one, right!?

...I do. I do, but... This is...

It doesn't matter. Tell me! At the very least, I'll listen!

Oh, fine! I'll tell you! I just observed a Spirit Origin signature at the center of the Persian Gulf!

It's a Holy Grail, with an ultra-ultra-ultra-class Magical Reactor Core with more than seven times the magical energy of a Grail...

There's no doubt that this is the primordial Demonic Beast who birthed the world of Mesopotamia! The Spirit Origin belongs to Tiamat!

If this calamity, this sea, is Tiamat's Authority, our only solution is to defeat Tiamat herself!

...!

Whoaaa... I figured this atmospheric shaking was the aftereffect of Mother coming to the surface...

...

...It may be that slaying Tiamat and destroying her Spirit Origin would stop the mud. But is that possible?

She's on a completely different level than the Demon Gods you've fought before. Are you willing to do it anyway, Fujimaru?

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Well said. I will work with that plan, then.

I can't send you reinforcements, but don't worry about Uruk.

Bring me Tiamat's head!

That means my winged serpents will be our mounts.

If only we had a flying golden ship, that would sure be nice...

Humph.

So we'll approach with the serpents. ...Um, I think Senpai should command from here.

There's risk that the water could touch you during combat. And if you were to fall into the sea...

Impossible. How can Servants win without a Master?

The further a Servant is from their Master, the less efficient the magical energy transfer. And you'll need the Command Spells, too.

Mash, the time to prioritize your Master's safety over all else is long past. Right, Fujimaru?

...That's right. Master Fujimaru. I'm sending you out, knowing the danger.

Way too late! You are not allowed to get cold feet now!

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Then it's decided. Fujimaru is coming even if we have to chain them to a flying serpent.

The problem is what to do when the Laḫmu attack en route. I'll be okay, but what about the others?

You'll have to use the combat tactic Jaguar Warrior suggested. Put up a barrier of magical energy on your feet and fight atop the water.

An experienced Servant can do that easily. What about you, Mash? Have you ever done that?

I haven't, but I'll do my best! If there's any trick to it, please let me know!

Fwahaha! There's no time, fool. But it's the king's duty to aid such courage in a time of need!

I thought this might happen, so I hid a water-repelling talisman in that observation post.

I call it a water strider. If it's just you, it should keep the water away so you won't fall in.

You're pretty handy, aren't you!? Are you sure you're not better suited as a mage than you are a warrior?

Heh. I'm ready for any situation. Well, maybe not Lancers.

Go then, Fujimaru of Chaldea, Mash, and the survivors of the Three Stooge Goddess Alliance!

Your enemy is the primordial creature called Tiamat... The one who births the Laḫmu, the very source of Demonic Beasts!

More and more Laḫmu are surfacing! We need to stop this unending Demonic Beast factory, fast!

They're not responding to us... They must have dull senses right when they come out of the water.

They're only capable of carrying out simple orders, like "go to the surface," or "kill the old humans."

But that's just for now. As time passes, their consciousness will synchronize with the others and they'll be like the ones we saw at Eridu.

Sheesh... They finally grow up and gain individuality, but then they go back to a colony. All our efforts were for nothing.

Those things aren't the new humanity. They're just soulless tools. In the name of the goddess, me, I will destroy them all, yes!

Everyone, they're here! Multiple enemies! Laḫmu and Demonic Beasts!

We're almost offshore! Take them out quickly!

Abnormal Spirit Origin confirmed! It's here! Two hundred meters from contact!

You should be able to see it! The source of this abnormality is at the ocean's surface!

Ahhhh.

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Enemy confirmed on ocean surface! But that Is that really...?

That's Tiamat...? Really?

So beautiful... and melancholy... She doesn't seem anything like the Mother of Demonic Beasts...

Y-yes... I've never seen her before myself, but... Those big horns symbolize land, and her eyes reflect the stars of the inner sea...

That is the Goddess of Creation, Tiamat. No doubt about it.

Her womb was the soil of life itself, then it was cast away after fulfilling its purpose of creation.

In myths, they say she was killed by the gods, but in reality things were slightly different.

She was abandoned. She was abandoned by the entire world, by all the children she brought forth.

After the planet's environment settled and life was established, she was deemed unnecessary and exiled.

She wasn't sent to the old world that lies underneath, but to the Reverse Side. The lifeless World of the Void.

...Right. For the primates who gained the phylogenetic tree, she was too dangerous because she had the potential to create another world entirely.

The fear was the foundation built with great pains would get mixed with the next world's foundation.

So they sealed her off. Infinitely. And now, she has returned.

Whether the Mage King pulled her out of the World of the Void, or if it was humanity itself that called her forth...

In either case, she should no longer belong on this planet.

We need her to enter a deep slumber once more. We need her to, but...

But it looks like a seal's been placed on her. Her limbs are bound together.

She just woke up... No, that's not it. Is this why the Laḫmu brought her the Holy Grail?

It doesn't look like she's noticed us, so maybe we can just take her down while she's bound?

I have visual confirmation of Tiamat here, too! This is your chance. Her limbs are still immobile!

She's completely sealed! Only her torso and head are free!

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Yes! Enemy target, Tiamat! Commencing the final battle of this Singuuuuah!?

Ahhhh.

Ahhhh, Aaaaaa, aaaaaaa!

Ugh...!! My body...I can't move!?

The magical energy within Tiamat is surging! No, something's happening!

She's putting out as much energy as a hydrogen bomb! If she fires, Uruk will get blasted even from that distance!

Don't let her shoot, Fujimaru! Defeat her before she makes her move!

Ahhhh, Aaaaaa, aaaaaaa!

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Amazing, you did it...! Confirming collapse of Tiamat's Spirit Origin!

The Magical Reactor has also stopped! Your attacks defeated Tiamat, mud and all!

Now just wait for the ocean to return to normal, retrieve the Grail, and mission accomplished!

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...Um, Senpai. I had this feeling during the battle with Tiamat,

but perhaps those restraints that tied her down...I think she made them herself.

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...I can't be positive about this, but that's the only logical explanation. I mean, Tiamat was, well...

She was voluntarily taking our attacks. As if she was giving us her life.

We simply couldn't comprehend her intent... It seems Tiamat was awakened by the power of the Holy Grail...

But perhaps if the Laḫmu hadn't delivered the Holy Grail, she would have stayed in the ocean forever?

Mash, even if that's true, it wouldn't change anything, no. Tiamat's mere existence is a threat to humanity.

Whether she was dragged up by the Mage King, or lured out, we had to defeat her the moment she came to this worl

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...Confirming reconstruction of Spirit Origin. No, transformation into a mega-structure post-dispersion, increasing scale...

Impossible. Can there be such a creature? This is no longer a living being. This, this is

Water levels of the Persian Gulf are rising again! First wave reaching the coast in 5, 4, 3

Observation post submerged! The tidal wave was directed, and it's heading farther onto land!

This is deliberate! It's planning to head straight to Uruk and swallow it all up!

Wait, seriously!? Can't we stop it!? Didn't we defeat Tiamat!?

Yeah, but we just made a huge mistake! What we defeated was just its brain!

Everyone, leave that airspace immediately! The real thing is surfacing from below...!

...

...

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Aaaaaahhh, aaaaaaa...

...Truly a monster.

A mobile creature factory. She has enough magical energy to travel between stars. She has ample life origins stored within her body...

Humanity needs a few more centuries to reach this divine ark... This is...this is the Tiamat's true form!

She's not even looking at us... She's glaring straight ahead towards Uruk...

Looks like we're being spared for now, but what should we do!? Quetzalcoatl, what do you think?

We absoooollllllutely can't win! Nope!

I mean, the difference in size is mind-blowing, no!? I can't use a joint lock on her, the most powerful move in lucha!

Si! Nice response, Fujimaru! A sense of humor is important!

That's impossible, no! Conservation of mass works for gods as well! It's a laaaaaw!

That kind of Authority only existed in the era of Genesis! Not even aliens can take that thing down now!

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Quetzalcoatl. Are you saying you can't defeat Tiamat even with your real Noble Phantasm... Even with your full-powered Authority?

...No. It'd be cruel to get your hopes up, so I will be blunt.

Even with Ishtar's Authority, or with any other power currently left in Mesopotamia

We can't so much as scratch Tiamat.

...I see. Thanks. I get the situation now.

Fujimaru, retreat! Return to Uruk immediately, and rejoin King Gilgamesh!

Now that the situation is so far beyond us, we need to consolidate our forces!

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Good answer. You haven't been disheartened yet! Then surely we still have some options left!

Whoa, Tiamat is advancing...!? She can move with all that weight, in that giant body!?

Aaaaaahhh. Aaaaaaaaaa!

Second wave incoming...! Oh no, its momentum will carry it straight to Uruk!

Echo confirmed from observation post three!

The black mud swallowed Girsu City, and is flowing towards Umma and Uruk!

This isn't a wave. They're like flames flaring up!

The walls of Umma City can't withstand it! Estimated time of arrival

I don't care! Raise the anchors! Deploy the Fangs of Napishtim!

Yessir! Send signals by reflections! Deploy the Fangs!

Fangs of Napishtim successfully deployed! It managed to divert the black mud!

However, it's badly damaged after firing! It doesn't look like it can block the next wave...!

Figures, but we have no choice! Start the repair work at once!

No need to return it to perfect shape. Maintain its framework if nothing else! That will stop it for a while!

Yes, my king!

...The time has finally come. I have been awaiting this moment with bitter anticipation for six months.

Tiamat, the Mother of All Beasts. What's beyond this mythical battle is something even I cannot foresee.

Will you swallow the world, or will humanity be worthy of flourishing...

It's time to see that question answered. Let the final battle of the Age of Gods begin!