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[gates_of_babylon]

 Is this truly the state of the world?

[Gilgamesh asked the machine while not realizing it was on, wondering if he was simply being shown a farce of the Earth. The reality of the world around him sunk in quickly, but he seemed a little disappointed. The King stood in the middle of the street, holding his tablet in one hand and visible in the corner of the screen he held a golden crown with a jeweled ring attached to the front of it.]

So few survivors left. With this artifact being the only interesting thing presented to me...

[His teeth clenched and his expression hardened.]  What a torrid vacation. The degradation of the world is no surprise, but these spoils are a disappointment. At the very least, I would have preferred to see the 'end' of civilization as it happened rather than being inclined to save it in its aftermath.

I, Gilgamesh, shall oversee this.

Comments

[gates_of_babylon]

[He smiled, touching his fingers impatiently against his bicep, arms crossed in mocking, relaxed gesture.]

Your Servant must be rather powerful.

[emptysword]

She is.

[There's a nod from him, as well as a slight smile from him. Far be it for him to have the capability to actually be smug at this time point, but wow, having a sort of civil conversation with this guy is already a miracle in itself...]

[gates_of_babylon]

[With Shirou's growing charisma--he could be a florist or even a Heroic Spirit now! The gap between those two was surprisingly small, honestly.

Gilgamesh acknowledged Shirou's facial tic, eyes settling on the younger man with his minor, pleased expression.]

Here, then. Do you understand the depth of this world's situation?

[emptysword]

...

[There's a silence as he contemplated it.]

To put it simply, the world's pretty much surviving from whatever got it to this state, and our missions through time were just to disrupt whoever the Initiatives are facing against.

[He might not know much, but he's a fighter, and thus it's sort of normal for him to know only the gist of a situation.]

[gates_of_babylon]

H'oh. [Shirou got one thing right according to the King, which was acceptable. Though, he was only making a face-value assessment. So, Gilgamesh pursued it.]

Beyond that, boy. Do not simply reinstate what you've 'heard'.

[emptysword]

...

[Silence.]

I can feel that it's dying slowly, and the inhabitants are just shells of what humanity are supposed to be.

[...This husk of a broken world was exactly why he wanted to be a hero in the first place.

To prevent something like this happening.]

I might not be good with words, but I do know that if we don't do anything, they all will die.

[gates_of_babylon]

Shells... [Gilgamesh let the thought wander. At a glance, most would believe Shirou was correct, but Gilgamesh had seen those looks in human beings.

When the Bull of the Heavens razed the Earth, people had grown accustomed to death and decay. They wore the same looks.]

No. This is a land of survivors. There is no need for a farce in humanity anymore. They know their lives are tethered to an unsafe vessel and act accordingly.

You behold the true living--not the walking dead.

[emptysword]

...The other side of the coin, huh.

[His words rang true in the boy's mind, and as much as he hates to agree with an old adversary, this time there's no ill will involved at the moment.

There was a little bit of respect as he muttered this.]

[gates_of_babylon]

You cannot be expected to understand so early in your life, boy. [Gilgamesh shrugged loftily, deciding that he understood fully now what he wanted to do in this world. Of all things, like any other goal he set for himself, it was a fairly precise one, yet loaded with a multitude of complexities.

Being the observer and the manipulator in the same breath.]

Yet, it's been assigned to you the task to work with this land.

[emptysword]

Yeah.

[...]

Maybe my path is something people calls foolish, but I'll give them aid no matter what happens to me.

['as long as I get to save someone...']

[gates_of_babylon]

Foolishness is something else entirely. No, perhaps it's simply naivety. You wear the same intent as a warrior first given a blade.

You simply don't know what you wish to wield it for when the world changes you. I imagine you're still too young to understand how your ideals will meet with reality.

[emptysword]

It's not wrong.

[His ideals were never wrong. After all, being a hero was what Shirou Emiya always dreamed of.

And for someone to say things like that... Well, he's used to it, to be honest.]

[gates_of_babylon]

Oh, no. It never is. I do not deny the truth you lend to yourself, but I do know better. Any hero who 'progresses' will know how the world will shape this view.

[With a smile, Gilgamesh shrugged nonchalantly.]

I'm not the one you'll argue with in the end.