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Chapter 44 - Tiamat’s Warning

2800 BCE

"I was a goddess, Gilgahlad." Tiamat, the five-headed dragon, hissed with her dying breath. Her scales were as black as pitch and each of her pairs of eyes were different colors—a set for each divine element she wielded. A pool of blood surrounded her body as she lay on the cold stone in a dark damp cave. All her children were gone, dead and dismembered. She could barely focus her eyes on anything.

"I am called Gilgamesh, now, King of Uruk." Commented the warrior standing at her feet. His tone was dry and unempathetic. His companion was near the entrance to the small cave, finishing off one of the final wyrmlings.

"No matter." She dismissed. "I wasn't gathering power for nothing, you know." She heaved her breaths. She struggled to take in air. She only had enough energy to move one of her heads. "I know you fought alongside us at one time. You should understand."

Gilgamesh laughed. "You actively encouraged life to wage war with itself. You sought destruction, the same as your parents. You think I would understand? Do you know why they call you Shiva the Destroyer of Worlds?" He laughed harder.

"I encouraged survival of the fittest." She corrected. "Your efforts were in vain. They will come again. They will come to destroy all that you hold dear. It may not be now or tomorrow. But, those cages you made will not hold them. It is only a temporary binding. As a matter-of-fact, if anything, you are giving them time to amass power and strength. And when, not if, they come, I hope for your sake, a plan is in place to get rid of them once and for all."

"There is no way a binding using all the powers of every Minor One across the multiverse will break, Tiamat." Gilgamesh dismissed her warning.

Tiamat's breath faltered. Her time was at hand. Any moment, she would be vanquished and one less power to fight the Great Ones would be around.

"Uth! Come!" Gilgamesh called his companion over.

"Yes, father?" She replied. She looked just as devoid of emotion as her father. Uth looked very different from her father. For one, Gilgamesh stood at an impressive seven feet tall and bore an imposing figure of muscles, clad in traditional Sumerian armor. His exploits were legendary. Uth, on the other hand, bore the image of a wolf if it had become man. And, while she could shift back into a complete human form, she was petite and lithe. She did not bear the same impressiveness as her father.

"I shall teach you the very seal I used to cast away the Great Ones. For when the Minor Ones and my father, Galadyn came to me to end the War of Aeons, I was to make sure that they would no longer pose a threat to the multiverse." Gilgamesh then quickly explained how to seal away a god. As Tiamat's body began to disintegrate, Gilgamesh then sealed away her soul. "One day, my child, when my end is near, I will count on you to seal my power away as well. It will be necessary for the future."

"Yes, father." Uth said firmly as both she and her father walked back to the entrance of the cave.

"I shall seal off this cave." Gilgamesh said as he walked out of the cave. "Come, we have a journey to finish." And then, they were gone. Nothing remained in the cave except the dead children of Tiamat and a glowing red orb. The entrance had been sealed with stone, denying any light to be seen.

Almost immediately after the pair left, a lone figure suddenly moved from within the darkness. With a wave of his hand, he gathered the souls of the fallen wyrmlings. He started to walk closer to the glowing orb. The light of which began to illuminate his face. Rammel looked up at the orb.

With a heavy sigh, he opined, "You're wasted here in this darkness, Tiamat. I shall make a place for you eventually. Until then, your power shall slumber." He began to place the smaller souls around Tiamat's, each protected in their own barrier. "At least, I shall give you your children to keep you company." He turned away from the orb. "You were correct. When, not if, they come, we have to be prepared for them. We cannot count on someone like Gilgahlad any longer. His power has corrupted his thinking. He no longer values the things he did nor does he truly care for the same things he berated you for. No, we shall find another way. Until then, your power shall sleep here." And then, he was gone.