43 Chapter 43 – Death is the old mistress of humanity.
Here's the new chapter!
Sorry for the delay!
Reason: Positive for Chikungunya!
*(I was worse than when I had COVID, my joints never hurt so much! Even walking was painful!)
*Any images in this chapter do not belong to me! It belongs to their respective artists/creators!
Attention: Remember, the *Auxiliary chapter* is reserved for the design characters ch7osen by ME. But if you don't like it, feel free to choose the design you like for the characters.
Without further ado, enjoy the chapter!
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Pov. Thor.
Waking up in the morning and seeing a giant, winged, bull skeleton coming toward you was a good way to change your routine.
I mean, it wasn't the most normal thing in the world.
Not because it was weird. After all, I am part of the supernatural world.
But why was it something that changed my routine.
I knew what it was.
After all, Gugalanna had a 'reputation'.
The 'gateway' to the classification of the 'strongest beings'.
Occupying the 10th position along with other beings.
In addition to being the only one in the top 10 not to have the ability to think for a simple reason.
Gugalanna is an autonomous weapon.
A weapon that was created shortly after Enlil's 'sword of rupture'.
While I wanted to test my strength against this thing and possibly get into the Top 10 with my win, there was one small quirk.
This was not my fight.
I don't have enough reason to 'defend' Uruk.
Besides, Uruk already had his protector.
"Do not fear my people! As I had already promised at the beginning of my reign, no one will harm what is mine!" said Gilgamesh.
The people of Uruk seemed to hear the decree of King Gilgamesh, who was accompanied by Enkidu.
It looked like Gilgamesh and Enkidu were going to face the creature.
"Oh! My friend Thor. Do you want to fight too? It will be a worthy fight that even the great sky father Anu will descend from the stars and honor you with the highest honor you deserve!" said Gilgamesh.
I noticed that Enkidu stared at Gilgamesh in confusion.
"Wait… 'you' not 'we'? And what about you Gilgamesh?" asked Enkidu.
Gilgamesh just laughed before replying.
"Fuhahahaha! My friend, you tell good jokes... I was already born with the highest honor, bestowed upon me by 'fate' itself, how do you think I have such ability?" asked Gilgamesh, creating a white-colored portal with golden strokes.
This was something Gilgamesh always said when asked about something he considered 'superfluous'.
'Fate' bestowed him with power.
And with each passing day... More and more I believe that 'fate' has given Gilgamesh a helping hand.
My old man was one of the most perverted men I've ever met in my entire life...
Although I have not yet met Enki.
And Enki had a reputation that compared to Odin...
Well, by the rumors and stories, if I were to compare Odin with Enki in the perversion aspect...
Odin would be a chaste virgin.
Anyway, if there was anything useful that Odin taught me, it was one thing...
'Fate' is absolute.
The wisest of Asgard said so.
Although I rarely take my old man seriously.
I always listened to my mother Frigg.
When I arrived in this world the first thing I saw was Frigg, she was a good mother. And she always told me about the stories of this world.
I learned a lot from her.
One of those lessons learned was about 'destiny'.
According to Frigg 'fate' was not necessarily the strongest or the most powerful.
The 'fate' was absolute for good reason.
The ability to define the fate of all living and non-living beings.
Without a doubt, I was in the plans of fate.
I really need to visit the Norns...
"I'm sorry Gilgamesh, but it's not my duty… I'm neither king nor protector of this city. Also, I'm a god remember? I don't think the Anunnaqui will let it go if I interfere directly," I said.
It was a poor excuse.
But it was the best I had at the moment.
"I understand my friend, it's a pity... Come on Enkidu, let's become a legend to men and gods!" said Gilgamesh.
The king then ran toward Gugalanna, with Enkidu following him.
And in the palace, I stayed.
Sitting and eating my breakfast brought by a servant.
I wasn't the least bit worried, even from a distance it was possible to see that Gilgamesh and Enkidu were managing to make Gugalanna retreat. As I had no reason to help, I just stood by as the king of Uruk and his best friend fought a weapon created by the gods...
In a way, the 'sacred gear' was the name of the weapons made by the god of the bible and given to humans, while the Gugalanna was technically a 'divine gear'.
Of course, I knew that the 'sacred gears' are already being created by the god of the bible himself.
After all, there were already rumors of humans with supernatural abilities, but nothing of note.
I suspected the big G was already granting humans that kind of power.
But again... Would the Anunnaqui miss the giant bull?
The answer was too obvious...
Definitely yes.
However, if I'm right about Gilgamesh's ability bestowed by 'fate' itself...
Perhaps I can get my hands on Gugalanna in the future, without needing to come into conflict with the Anunnaki.
"My, my ~… Were you waiting for me?" said a voice.
It was a female voice, and for just a brief moment I thought it was Inanna again.
But as soon as I turned around, I was wrong... Even through it was woman...
It wasn't Inanna.
"It's kind of unlikely for me to wait for someone I don't know... Who would you be?" I asked.
I was suspicious.
She just gave me an innocent smile.
"You don't need to be so alert son of Odin... After all, my son considers you a friend, my name is Ninsun" said the woman.
Ninsun, the goddess of healing.
I was immediately interested, after all...
She also has other interesting abilities.
"Oh?... What did you come here for? Did you come to tell me my future?" I asked.
The ability to see into the future was one of those interesting abilities.
Ninsun just kept smiling.
"You may already know, this ability of mine is not very reliable for a simple reason... I'm not one of the 'agents of fate', if I remember correctly, one of the Norns has the same power that I have, but I assure you that she is more reliable and powerful," Ninsun said.
I just shrugged.
"It doesn't really matter if your ability is weaker or stronger, I just want an answer to my question, not an excuse," I said.
Ninsun just stared at me.
For a brief moment, I saw Ninsun's eyes gleam.
And she froze in place.
Pov. Third-person.
Though in Thor's vision, the goddess Ninsun had frozen in place...
In Ninsun's vision, she went to another place...
A place she knew all too well.
The dimensional gap.
Home of 'infinity' and 'dream'.
And Ninsun saw Thor floating... and bleeding.
Thor's entire body was covered in blood and it looked like he was unconscious.
Ninsun also noticed someone else...or rather, something else.
It was a hideous creature, it seemed that the whole body had the characteristics of various animals, having seven necks, seven heads, with ten horns, as well as seven long tails; plus four stout arms and two legs that are even thicker than the arms.
Its main body is that of a primate leaning forward and is covered in black fur and what appears to be scales all over its body.
Ninsun was fully aware that this was just a vision and that this was not real and will probably never happen.
But the goddess cannot think that if this creature, this beast, existed...
It would be the end of the world.
The creature seemed to be just staring at Thor, waiting for something.
It was then that Ninsun saw Thor open his eyes, not in fear... not in determination...
But in acceptance.
"I'm sorry Lóriði... I'm going to be late for your birthday," said Thor.
It was then that Ninsun saw Thor face the hideous creature.
And start talking a... chant.
"I, the one who is about to fight, will drown myself in madness in search of power..." said Thor.
One sentence.
A phrase that made Ninsun break out in a cold sweat...
And Ninsun suspected it was just the beginning of a chant.
Before Thor continued with the chant.
Hundreds of seals appeared.
Forbidden stamps.
And then a flash of light blinded Ninsun, and the beast had been sealed away, but... Thor had fallen into a crevice created from the seals and the chant's quote.
Thor was gone.
And then Ninsun blinked just once before realizing that her 'vision of the future' was gone.
Pov. Thor.
"Well... You will disappear from this dimension" said Ninsun.
... What?
"... What do you mean by that? Does that mean I'm going to die?" I asked.
Ninsun just shrugged.
"It's like I said, this power of mine isn't very accurate. I just saw a brief flash, you were fighting something... A scary thing with seven heads... And then you started to say a few words, but suddenly hundreds of seals appeared, that was the last thing I saw before from the flash of light," Ninsun said solemnly.
This was not what I expected...
Fighting a seven-headed thing?
To vanish?
Was I... Sealed?
...No, Ninsun said 'disappear from this dimension', but then...
Where did I go?
"Don't be too worried about it, what I said may not even come to fruition," Ninsun said.
Ninsun's words snapped me out of my thoughts.
"I'm curious... What do you want from me?" I asked.
Ninsun just stared at me and then looked at Gugalanna who was being knocked to the ground.
"*sigh*... I need a favor" said Ninsun.
I got curious.
"And what kind of favor would that be?" I asked.
Obviously, I wouldn't commit to a 'favor' if it didn't do me any good.
"I hear you've already met with Thoth, I need you to convince him to help me with a small project at the behest of the god Marduk..." said Ninsun.
Oh? The next leader of the Anunnaki?
"And may I know what project that would be?" I asked.
Ninsun flashed a dreamy smile.
"It will be the rebuilding of a ziggurat in Babylon, Marduk wants to make a different ziggurat, the purpose of the ziggurat is to bring men closer to the gods once again, for a reason... cities, they are worshiping Yhwh. Marduk sees this as an affront to the pantheon," Ninsun said.
Bring men closer to the gods again...
"I thought you had already given up on this idea of bringing men and gods together after Nereus' failure with the 'perfect city', Marduk wants to repeat the failure?" I asked, scoffing at the idea.
'Atlantis', or the 'utopian' city, has been built before...
And it was a failure.
But Ninsun looked solemn.
"I know it sounds crazy, but we need to do something, otherwise our influence will be reduced and we are not strong enough if there is a direct war against Yhwh. Not even Enlil, who is the strongest of us, can defeat him... So we need to look for another form of influence and the best way is to enchant the ancient ziggurat that was built by the mortal Enmercar, the grandfather of Gilgamesh" said Ninsun.
I'm sure I could convince Thoth to help, after all the old bird is always interested in that sort of thing.
And earning a favor from this goddess can be useful in the future.
"Very well, I will speak with Thoth... And I will call in this favor in the future" I said.
Ninsun smiled in response.
"Thank you, I won't forget that. Finally the 'foundation of heaven and earth' will be rebuilt... Etemenanki will no longer be a dream" said Ninsun dreamily.
So that's the name of the ziggurat...
Etemenanki.
- Location: Underworld / Devils' Territory.
Pov. Third-person.
The underworld is quite similar to the human world, but with a much larger landmass as there are no oceans, only lakes. In addition to the sky being purple during the day and night.
In the midst of this place was a place that stood out from the rest.
In isolation, there was a mansion in the middle of nowhere.
Every devil feared this place, but not because of the mansion's appearance...
But of those who lived in it...
At that moment there was someone who appeared from a teleportation magic circle in front of the mansion.
It was Lucifer.
And he was together with three other beings.
The first was Lucifer's most trusted general, Leviathan himself.
The second was 'Lucifer's right hand', Lord Lucifuge himself.
The latter was quite similar to Lord Lucifuge, except for being considerably younger.
"Lord Lucifuge, remember that although there is a certain 'rivalry' between you and Stolas, I hope you will maintain your composure..." Lucifer said, looking at Lord Lucifuge.
The older Lucifuge nodded quickly.
"Surely my king... My son Sebastian will also follow your orders," said Lord Lucifuge.
The rivalry between Lucifuge and Stola was for a simple fact.
Both were Lucifer's most trusted devils, and both had divergent beliefs and ideals.
And so the little group entered Stolas' mansion.
Lord Lucifuge, you don't like Stolas for one simple reason...
"AAAARGGGHHH!"
Screams could be heard throughout the mansion.
Only Lucifer remained expressionless.
Leviathan and the younger Lucifuge looked nervous.
While the older Lucifuge had a disgusted expression as he knew exactly what was happening.
As the small group, led by Lucifer, walked into the house, the screams intensified. However, another sound began to be heard.
"~um hum hum hum hum hum hum~"
Someone was humming through the screams of agony.
Lucifuge frowned as the group finally found the source.
Someone was lying and trapped on a table, and another being was standing next to that table.
The being that was standing was the origin of the singing, while the one that was lying down...
"AAARGHHH! Please! Let me go! I didn't do anything to you!" he shouted the being that was lying down.
The being that screamed in agony was easily identifiable as a fur-covered creature with only one eye on its head and a large mouth full of sharp teeth in the region of its body where the navel should have been.
"Oh? I know you didn't do anything wrong to me... However, that's not relevant. What I want to know is how humans transform into you" said the being standing next to the table wearing a kind of mask.
This was 'Lucifer's left hand'.
Stolas.
"I don't know! I've already told you everything I know! The first shaman of my land cursed the forest, any elder who leaves the tribe on a full moon night will be transformed into the same thing like me!" cried the creature in despair.
Stolas seemed to consider.
"I see... In that case, I must find out for myself," said Stolas, holding up a hand.
Stolas's hand had blades for fingers.
But before Stolas could continue with his action, Lucifer interrupted him.
"Stolas, you have other priorities at the moment..." Lucifer said calmly.
Stolas seemed to finally notice the presence of more people in his room.
"Master Lucifer! How rude of me, sorry for not receiving you at the entrance of my humble home, although the defenses of my house recognize you and your company..." said Stolas bowing to Lucifer.
The creature on the table also noticed the number of people and screamed in desperation.
"Please! Help me! This monster is going to – " said the creature, before being interrupted.
Stolas had raised his hand and closed it into a fist, resulting in the table in the room shifting at Stolas' command and crushing the creature that was lying on it.
Stolas then looked at Lucifer and just went back to talking.
"I'm sorry to hear such laughable words master Lucifer, I like to 'hum' to the rhythm of the screams, so I keep them awake and aware, it helps me pass the time while I work…" said Stolas, bowing again.
Lucifer was unconcerned.
"Don't worry about it, I must say I've never seen such a creature... I'm curious, what's its name?" Lucifer asked.
Stolas seemed to like the question.
"I don't have the specific name... It was Douma Valefor who captured him and brought him to me in exchange for some blood potions; according to young Valefor, the locals call it the Mapinguary, and it looks like these creatures were once human," Stolas said excitedly.
Lucifer just nodded.
"I see… But then, how is the other project?" Lucifer asked curiously.
Stolas seemed to quickly consider his words before replying.
"Lotan's cloning was a success, however... It will only be able to live for a single millennium at most," said Stolas.
Lucifer frowned... After all, that was a short time.
Lucifer hoped he could use Lotan's clone in the war he was planning, but it seems that wouldn't be possible as Lucifer was just waiting for an opportunity and that opportunity definitely wouldn't come in this millennium.
Lucifer then looked at General Leviathan.
"Congratulations on your second marriage, General... Remember, our race is not that fertile so I suggest you 'try' more 'often', I expect a second heir of yours in at most half a millennium" Lucifer said.
Leviathan soon knelt down.
"Thank you, my lord... I will not disappoint you" said Leviathan.
Although he didn't like the idea of 'contaminating' his bloodline, Leviathan knew that it would be complete idiocy to go against Lucifer's wishes.
"I hope so, Leviathan... Or else your first son will have to assume the responsibilities of an heir a little sooner than expected due to your unexpected 'absence'," Lucifer said, narrowing his eyes.
For those present in the room, the warning was clear...
'Fail me and you'll lose your head'.
- Location: Uruk.
Pov. Thor.
A month had passed since Gilgamesh and Enkidu's victory over Gugalanna. In the first week after the victory, something happened.
Enkidu became sick.
A fatal disease...
He ended up dying a week after showing the signs of the disease, Gilgamesh stayed by the side of his best friend for seven days and seven nights, until Enkidu gave his last breath of life...
Well... At least until I resurrect him with the magic taught by Thoth.
Obviously, I would not let Enkidu die, as that would trigger Gilgamesh's quest for the 'plant of youth'... The same plant that was in my possession.
However, my solution didn't seem to be definitive, since the next day after I had resurrected Enkidu, he got sick again and ended up dying again.
And I ended up resurrecting Enkidu...
Again.
For the rest of the month that followed I practically resurrected Enkidu several times... I didn't care, as it didn't deplete my divine power, so I was fine.
But it was in the middle of tonight, at the end of the month, that things got a little...
Interesting.
"For my father's sake, stop resurrecting him Asgardian!" shouted my guest.
This was Anu.
The sky father and former leader of the Anunnaki before his son Enlil took the power.
And right now, he was complaining to me about something trivial.
That it was about me not letting Enkidu die from the disease Anu was causing.
By Inanna's behest, by the way.
Apparently, Inanna didn't like being refused by Gilgamesh again and being hit by Enkidu with a piece of Gugalanna's body.
Specifically, a piece of Gugalanna's left hind leg.
Yes, in short, Enkidu created baseball with a piece of Gugalanna serving as a bat...
And Inanna serving as a ball.
"With all due respect, Anu… Why are you doing your great-granddaughter's bidding? You are more powerful, as well as holding more authority than her, you are the father of Enlil, so why are you obeying Inanna?" I asked.
After all, it didn't make any sense.
Then Anu began to explain.
"For two simple reasons. First, Enkidu has just humiliated someone from the Anunnaki pantheon, this doesn't bring a good image to us, especially now with the increasing worship of humans to Yhwh, WITHIN our territory. The second reason is that Inanna is very dear to my wife, Ki, so..." said Anu, the last explanation being said with an embarrassed tone.
So his wife, Ki, is blackmailing the husband, Anu, into following Inanna's will... It's time to change the game.
I just smiled at Anu and walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.
"I see... Come with me my friend, I will teach you what a 'THOT' is" I said mysteriously.
As I pushed Anu through the palace.
Anu looked confused.
"You mean Thoth the god of knowledge? Ra's nephew?" asked Anu, confused.
I just smile.
"... No... But I assure you it will be a valuable lesson you will learn," I said.
It will be an interesting conversation.
- Location: Zagros Mountains / Entrance of the Kur (Sumerian Underworld / Home of Ereshkigal)
Pov. Thor.
Kur was...
Dingy.
After all, the Kur is basically several connected caves located deep in the soil of Sumerian territory, where the inhabitants were believed to continue 'a dark version of life on Earth'. The only food or drink was dry powder, but the deceased's relatives poured libations for them to drink from time to time.
Unlike many other afterlives in the ancient world, in Kur, there was no final judgment of the deceased and the dead were neither punished nor rewarded for their deeds in life.
In addition to the souls of the deceased, the Kur was also home to the 'descendants of Arali', the demons of the Sumerian world.
I was here for one reason only.
I came for Adapa's soul.
But first I had to find 'her'.
Although generally if the deceased is 'forgotten' the soul will disappear, Adapa was a special case.
After all... He was the son of Enki.
There was only one being who could help me find Adapa's soul.
Ereshkigal.
The 'owner' of this place is called Kur.
My thoughts were interrupted as I saw my first destination...
The gates of the underworld.
"Stop right there! Who are you?!" shouted someone.
I turned towards the origin and saw someone walking towards me with an ax in their hands.
I raised an eyebrow.
"I just want to talk with Ereshkigal, I came to ask her a favor..." I said, trying to explain.
But it looks like this guy doesn't want to have a reasonable conversation...
"My beloved wants nothing to do with you, I am Nergal, the guardian of the 7 gates and I will not let you through," said the being, now identified as Nergal.
I knew that sooner or later I would find this guy.
After all... Nergal was the only god to disrespect Ereshkigal, it was only after Enki warned him of the power of the 'Queen of the Sumerian Underworld' that Nergal decided to apologize to Ereshkigal personally.
However, no one imagined that Nergal would end up falling in love with Ereshkigal's appearance.
Unfortunately, for Nergal, the sentiment was not 'returned'.
But he was still devoted to Ereshkigal.
"...I just want to ask Ereshkigal for something, not you," I said.
Nergal then approached and stood just an arm's length away from me.
"The goddess Inanna also wanted to demand to speak with Ereshkigal to have her husband, Dumuzidi, back from the dead, Inanna thought her goddess status would help, but... Inanna arrived at Ereshkigal's palace completely naked, as she passed at every gate she was to give up something of value, by order of Ereshkigal. Now tell me how you expect to get through the gates if your god status is of no use here in the Kur?" asked Nergal, mockingly.
Nergal was taller than me… maybe he has nine feet.
And as a god of war, he was quite confident.
Too confident...
"...then I will ask you to 'please' open the gate for me so I can have my talk with Ereshkigal in private," I said.
Nergal stared in disbelief before acting.
"Ha... Haha... Hahahahahahahaha! Do you really think I'm going to open all seven gates out of 'goodwill', just because you asked, please? You know how to tell jokes, Asgardian! Hahahahahahaha!" said Nergal, as he laughed.
I remained expressionless.
"...I never said you would open the gate out of 'goodwill'..." I said.
That seemed to stop Nergal's laughter before he looked at me.
- Location: Ganzir / Ereshkigal Palace.
Pov. Third-person.
Ganzir's palace was no ordinary 'castle'.
After all... It was located underground.
So it was just the biggest cave in the entire Kur.
And in the center of Ganzir was a woman, sitting on a throne and playing with a green fire between her fingers.
The woman was the 'queen of the Sumerian underworld', Ereshkigal herself.
She was in that moment, reflecting as she looked at the small flame in her fingers.
"... Only in death do you realize that life is just an instant," said Ereshkigal.
Ereshkigal, like most gods of death, lives in isolation from the other gods.
There are few gods of death who still remain sociable with the rest of the pantheon.
Ereshkigal just didn't feel the loneliness because of two beings.
Husbishag, the 'secretary' of Ereshkigal.
And Namtar, the Sumerian god of fate, the messenger of Ereshkigal and husband of Husbishag.
The two were Ereshkigal's best friends, and they protected her from other beings...
All was peaceful until Ereshkigal froze and released the flame from her hands because she had sensed a disturbance in her realm.
"…The first gate was…opened?" said Ereshkigal, confused.
For Ereshkigal, it was confusing, after all, Nergal had orders not to open the gates to anyone except two beings, but...
It was not the time to open those gates yet.
Which can only mean one thing.
Someone broke through the first gate of Kur.
Ereshkigal, realizing the situation, frowned.
It was then that someone caught the goddess's attention.
"Ma'am, we have a... troublesome guest," someone said.
That was Husbishag.
As soon as Husbishag finished speaking, Ereshkigal felt a new disturbance...
The second gate has been breached.
It was then that a new voice echoed through Ganzir.
"What is happening? I felt two earthquakes all over Kur?!"
It was Namtar, one of the agents of fate and god of luck, as well as being the husband of Husbishag.
As Ereshkigal and her allies thought about what was happening, just a few minutes later the third, fourth, and fifth gates were breached.
- Location: Kur / Sixth Gate.
Pov. Third-person.
The gates of the Kur only opened according to the will of Ereshkigal and the Kurds.
And they remained closed the rest of the time.
*BOOM*
The sixth gate was knocked down by the collision of something...
It was then that something started trying to get up from the rubble of the sixth gate.
It was Nergal.
"Ple – Please, I've already apologized and said I would open all the gates for you," said Nergal.
Nergal was completely wounded.
It was then that someone walked through the sixth gate and approached Nergal, who was still trying to get to his feet.
It was Thor.
"And I've already said that I accept your apologies... But I still prefer to use your body as a 'key' to open the gates," said Thor, narrowing his eyes.
The Norse god then raised his foot in a ready-to-kick position.
Nergal seeing what was going to happen yelled quickly.
"Wait!" shouted Nergal.
But he was ignored and ended up being kicked by Thor... for the sixth time in a row.
Nergal's body crossed the entire area of the cave, from the sixth gate to the seventh gate.
As soon as the body reached the seventh gate, the last gate was destroyed as did the six previous gates.
The seventh gate was the entrance to the Ganzir area, the home of Ereshkigal.
As Thor passed through the seventh gate he saw three beings in the center of the cave, these beings remained silent, staring at Nergal's now unconscious body.
It was only then that the woman, who appeared to be the leader, looked at Thor.
"I am Ereshkigal, ruler of the Kur and ruler of the dead... May I know who you are and why my only guard at the gates of the underworld lies unconscious at my feet?" asked Ereshkigal.
Thor just explained calmly.
"…My name is Thor and I came here just to ask you a favor, but it seems your guard wasn't very…reasonable. So I asked him to open the gate politely," said Thor.
Ereshkigal, as well as Namtar and Husbishag, looked surprised by Thor's response.
"...politely?" said Ereshkigal, looking at the unconscious Nergal and the seventh gate knocked to the ground.
But it was Namtar who had a different reaction right after hearing Thor's name.
Namtar had the look of recognition.
"... Thor?... So it's you" said Namtar.
Thor looked at Namtar, confused.
"... What? Have you ever heard of me? I've never seen you before," said Thor, frowning in confusion.
Namtar seemed amused by the situation.
"Not exactly. As one of the agents of fate, I have 'friends' in a few pantheons, your pantheon is one of them... Verðandi doesn't like you very much and Skuld thinks you're funny for some reason" said Namtar.
Thor was confused and afraid, after all, it seemed that the Norns were talking about him.
Before Thor asked Namtar more about Narnas, Ereshkigal chose that moment to interrupt the conversation.
"You said you wanted a favor from me... What favor would that be?" asked Ereshkigal, curious.
Thor then looked up to Ereshkigal and chose his words carefully.
"I'd like to ask Adapa's soul for –" said Thor, before being interrupted.
"No! There's a good reason the Kur has known 'the land of no return', no soul should return to the world of the living beings!" said Ereshkigal.
Thor knew this could happen after all the name Kur is a short abbreviation of 'Kur-No-Gia' which means exactly what Ereshkigal had said.
'The land of no return'.
"Ereshkigal, I know this is a rather unusual request. However, I'd like to do it the right way..." said Thor.
This caught Ereshkigal's attention.
"What do I mean by the 'right way'?" asked Ereshkigal, curious.
Thor then smiled.
"I know that for the souls of mortals there is no judgment, only the supernatural is a fair judgment... However, Adapa should be a special case," said Thor.
Husbishag soon interrupted.
"And why would Adapa be special? Why is he the first human chosen by the gods of our pantheon?" asked Husbishag.
Thor continued to smile.
"No… For being tricked by accident. He shouldn't be judged as a human, but as a supernatural being," Thor said innocently.
Ereshkigal frowned in response.
"... What do you mean by that?" asked Ereshkigal.
Thor then explained.
"I know that a long time ago, Adapa refused the gift given by Anu, which was the 'water and bread of life' made from the 'plant of youth' and therefore Adapa refused immortality, however, there is a great mistake as it was unfair," said Thor.
This made Husbishag, Namtar, and especially Ereshkigal more and more interested.
"…And what mistake would that be?" asked Namtar.
That was a question Ereshkigal was ready to ask as well.
"Simple... Enki unintentionally caused Adapa to remain a mortal, if Adapa had not obeyed Enki's instructions he would be immortal and therefore there would be a judgment for a supernatural being or there would not even be a judgment at all, because he would be an immortal," said Thor.
This was one of the few pieces of knowledge Thor still had of his previous life, and Frigg had also expressed that this might have happened, but no one wanted to make amends or... No one knew.
What Thor said made Ereshkigal nervous, because it meant Adapa shouldn't even be in the Kur because of Enki's mistake.
An error.
Ereshkigal's first possible mistake.
And for a goddess who took pride in her work as ruler of the underworld...
It was like the end of the world.
"What?! No no no no, that couldn't have happened! Do you know what that means?!" said Ereshkigal in panic.
That was a side that Thor found fun to see.
For Thor, it was like seeing a not-so-lonely version of Hel.
Ereshkigal grabbed Husbishag and shook her to the point that Husbishag was disoriented.
"What will become of me?! Can you imagine if my little sister found out about this?! Inanna will never leave me alone again!" screamed Ereshkigal, still in a panic.
Namtar soon tried to stop Ereshkigal from hyperventilating.
"My lady, calm down!... Remember you are in front of a stranger" said Namtar, whispering the last part.
Ereshkigal froze and glanced in Thor's direction, who was grinning amusedly, then dropped Husbishag.
"*Ahem* It's a pretty…substantiated claim…but what would be your solution?" asks Ereshkigal.
Thor then took a step forward.
"I propose a second chance. Let the soul make the decision, after all, Enki, purposely or not, made Adapa blind and foolish... If Adapa chooses to live, then he will live according to his will" said Thor.
Ereshkigal seemed to consider before making a decision.
"...Consider it done," said Ereshkigal.
For Thor... It's never been so simple to recruit someone.
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Well... That's it, folks!
Hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Until next time, don't forget to leave a comment!
*Updates: Even after I've improved considerably and got back to work, having gone so long without writing, I'm lacking motivation... I really want to finish this fanfic so I'll try to continue in due course.
Title of the next chapter:
Chapter 44 – The Journey Continues! Next stop: the land of the 'young master'!
