A colossal shadow, vast enough to blot out the sky, slowly emerged from the depths beneath the Persian Gulf. Its immense form seemed capable of tearing apart the heavens and everything around it, now standing silently upon the sea's surface.
Curved, textured horns extended outward from its head, and sky-blue hair cascaded down like a waterfall. Cross-shaped pupils gleamed with an unsettling crimson light.
From the primordial Sea of Life, black waves surged, and the sky seemed to collapse. The Song of Creation, belonging to this land, resounded in their ears.
"Aaaaaaaaaa… Aaaaaaaaa!!!"
A sacred, melodious, yet lighthearted Song of Creation poured from her mouth.
The moment she emerged from the Imaginary Numbers Space into the real world, the overwhelming authority of the Goddess of Beginning was fully revealed.
Accompanying the surging tides of the primordial Sea of Life was Tiamat's supreme will.
It wasn't just the sheer pressure but also the terrifying power that could shake any living being to its core…
The last time Roy felt such a sense of crisis was during the Fourth Holy Grail War, when a younger, weaker version of himself first faced an Angel.
This level of self-unsealing was, frankly, absurd…
What in the world had those Demon God Pillars fed Tiamat? How many Holy Grails' worth of magical energy could achieve this?
"So this is Tiamat… I had some expectations about her condition, but seeing it with my own eyes, it's far beyond imagination. Now I understand why the Counter Force sent me and that old man…"
"Her Saint Graph is so vast it's almost unimaginable, and her mere existence guarantees the extinction of human history… The Beast class. Truly formidable. Facing her alone would be a death sentence."
"But this grotesque, maddened appearance, it's hard to believe this is the Goddess of Beginning. Still, if this is the form of her vengeance against the children who betrayed her, against humanity, it makes sense… So, we two foreign gods are supposed to bear the original sin of Sumerian gods by facing this Goddess of Beginning?" Quetzalcoatl couldn't help but add.
"Obviously. The Sumerian gods are either hiding or unfit to face her, so this daunting task falls to us two outsiders."
Unlike Roy's foresight, Tezcatlipoca had already sensed something was off when he killed Kingu, who had taken Enkidu's body.
As a god embodying the duality of all things, unlike the carefree Quetzalcoatl, his perception and sensitivity to malice were razor-sharp.
He had noticed something unusual about Gorgon back at the Blood Fort Andromeda.
Gorgon, the third of the Gorgon sisters in Greek mythology, originally Medusa. Her tragic fate, cursed and transformed, was a state where her monstrous nature as the prototype was overly emphasized. She was in a transitional phase, not yet fully the beast "Gorgon." And normally wouldn't be summoned as a Servant… She was already a being that could be called the Queen of Magical Beasts.
Yet Gorgon, harboring vengeance against humanity, was actually a creation of Tiamat, an extension of her Counter Force!!!
This Goddess of Beginning had grafted her hatred for humanity, her desire for vengeance, and her authority over the Sea of Life onto Gorgon.
Thus, despite having no connection to magical beasts, Gorgon could endlessly produce them to ravage the Mesopotamian plains.
By grafting her hatred and vengeance onto Gorgon, Tiamat temporarily suppressed her Beast nature, slumbering in the dream woven by Merlin.
But with Gorgon's defeat, the authority of the Sea of Life and the hatred returned to Tiamat's body. Her rationality began to erode under the weight of that hatred, and her Beast nature reawakened.
Thus, the Evils of Humanity manifested.
"Whoa!! That's some insane power."
Dodging a crimson beam unleashed from Tiamat's open mouth, Tezcatlipoca couldn't help but exclaim, "This Goddess of Beginning has some serious morning temper…"
"Stop gawking and start thinking about how to hold this thing back! I don't think Tiamat's going to be defeated by our tickling attacks on the Sea of Life. And where's Master? Why'd he vanish all of a sudden?"
"Master went to retrieve the thing I was tasked to bring him. We'll need that weapon to deal with Tiamat. For now, we'll hold the line until he gets back."
Brandishing his spear, Tezcatlipoca delivered a powerful, clean slash, effortlessly cutting through the surging Sea of Life and striking heavily at Tiamat's leg.
Clang!!!
A piercing sound rang out, accompanied by a shower of sparks.
But after the strike, Tezcatlipoca's enhanced, full-force slash had barely scratched Tiamat's tough skin, causing minimal impact.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa… aaaaaa!!!"
Feeling genuine pain, Tiamat let out a slightly enraged song, her crimson, star-shaped gaze locking onto Tezcatlipoca.
"It didn't do a thing…"
"Yeah, it didn't do a thing, did it?"
"So what do we do now, Tezcatlipoca? You're usually full of tricks, aren't you? Come up with some clever ideas to help us deal with or at least stall Tiamat!"
"Stall her? You say that like it's easy. She's completely ignoring our attacks, focused on heading to the Mesopotamian plains. Compared to her children who betrayed her, we foreign gods and this mage seem to be low priority. She doesn't want to bother with us."
"Even if she doesn't want to bother, we have to engage her. At Tiamat's current speed, she'll cross the ocean and reach Uruk in less than half a day. If we can't slow her down, it's all over."
"I know that, but give me a moment to think of something!!"
Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca, old rivals from Aztec mythology, couldn't help but bicker even in such a dire moment, though their actions didn't falter.
Tezcatlipoca continued drawing Tiamat's aggro from below, buying time for Roy's return while strategizing their next move.
Meanwhile, Quetzalcoatl leapt onto Tiamat's mountain-like body, channeling divine power to envelop her fists, feet, and entire frame in crimson solar flames.
She dashed at blinding speed, striking different parts of Tiamat's body with heavy punches, searching for any exploitable weakness.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Wrestling techniques!!
Flaming Flying Kick!!
Blazing Fist!!
Seizing the opportunity Tezcatlipoca created, Quetzalcoatl unleashed her full arsenal, pouring everything into her assault on Tiamat.
In an instant, Tiamat's colossal, mountain-like body erupted in a series of explosions. Red light and blasts echoed from head to toe without pause, and the pain radiating from her body further enraged the Goddess of Beginning.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
"What's going on? Is this all our attacks can do? She's ridiculously strong."
After relentless punches and kicks, Quetzalcoatl arrived at a grim conclusion.
This Mother of Genesis's body was astonishingly durable. Her passionate punches couldn't inflict meaningful damage, akin to a human being pelted with pebbles, annoying but inconsequential. Her combo attacks had not only failed to harm Tiamat but had fully enraged her, granting her a berserk boost.
Her serious chain of attacks did no real damage… and were treated as mere insect bites. How humiliating for a god!
Though she wasn't her true divine self, this was still the result of her earnest assault. That combo was strong enough to leave Humbaba half-crippled, yet Tiamat dismissed it like she was swatting bugs?
While she took no real damage, the insult stung deeply.
"Hahaha, You idiot, using your fists on her? Did you really think brute strength could do anything against the Goddess of Beginning?"
"Shut up! Got any better ideas? You're just scraping at this colossus yourself!"
Quetzalcoatl shot Tezcatlipoca a glare. "So how are we supposed to confront this gigantic Tiamat and stall her? Forget her near-invincible shell; just her [Nega-Genesis] authority is enough to give us a headache. Short of unleashing our Noble Phantasms, I don't see how we can threaten her. And don't forget, Tiamat hasn't even taken flight yet, gods can fly, you know."
While continuing to pummel Tiamat's head with heavy fists, Quetzalcoatl griped at the smug Tezcatlipoca. "By the way, aren't you a Grand Servant? The Beast is here, time to shine! Take her down or seal her, something!"
"…"
Tezcatlipoca, trimming Tiamat's feet with his bone spear below, was momentarily speechless.
"You moron, if I could solo something of this caliber, would I need to team up with you?!!"
"My Noble Phantasm and Grand status can only be used at the perfect moment. Using them now would just waste the opportunity."
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
As if tired of the two insects' squabbling, Tiamat scanned her surroundings while they argued. She slowly raised her marble-white right hand, extending a slender index finger toward Tezcatlipoca, who was darting below.
Then, a terrifying beam of magical energy shot out.
Perhaps the aura of a Grand Servant had drawn the enmity of the Evils of Humanity.
Or perhaps he'd been too successful at pulling her aggro.
Either way, Tezcatlipoca, who had been stalling at the battlefield's edge and strategizing, became the first target of Tiamat's attack since her revival!!
His brows furrowed as a visceral sense of mortal danger washed over him.
___
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