Eight Gods on a Windowsill

When the world came to, my father and I were standing before a very odd temple. Built directly into the stone with elaborate carvings upon its face, this temple reminded me of every ancient wonder from the old world. Eurasian design was incorporated throughout, a blend like nothing I'd ever seen before. Here the trees bent over the entrance like they were pruned to do so, enveloping the walkway with reddish leaves.

"Who is Uth?" I asked my father as we made our way closer to the temple. I was being very careful with my steps, I didn't know exactly what lay beneath all the leaves on the ground.

"She is the daughter of Gilgahlad, the man called Gilgamesh." Rammel responded.

"Gilgamesh?!" I balked. "How can she still be alive? He was king more than eight thousand years ago."

"He was born many more years ago than that. His father, Galadyn is one of the Great Ones. As one of the first Fractions, I am not surprised he lived as long as he did." Came Rammel's retort. "I'm more surprised he died. Mortal weapons could never kill a Fraction like him."

"What about Jesus?"

"Yeshu'a? He's not dead. No. Not even close." Rammel laughed a little. "Fractions like you, can be harmed. You're made of tough stuff. But, you can still be harmed. To kill a Fraction like Yeshu'a or Gilgahlad, you would need something much greater. An ethereal weapon." He paused. "One like Malda or Quetzalli."

We were deep in our conversation. I didn't even realize we had walked up to the entrance of the temple. I took a better look at what I saw. There were all kinds of architectural features from crenellations to buttresses and reliefs all carved into the stone. Some of the reliefs depicted a five-headed dragon fighting Gilgamesh, which was probably Tiamat. Others showed different achievements of Gilgamesh throughout his lifetime. There was even one of him before eight people encased in bubbles, which made me think of his achievement of sealing the Great Ones. The surface of the rock looked so busy with all the different conglomerations of styles present, yet looked like everything belonged there.

"We probably should go in." I finally said after a long silence.

Rammel nodded.

The inside of the temple was very similar to the outside of the building. Reliefs dotted the walls. A large fresco covered the entire ceiling. The fresco showed a young woman surrounded by wolves fighting off several men. The woman was not petite and shapely like what someone would normally see in most frescos on Earth. She was stocky and was definitely the main focus of the fresco, showing that it was her leaving the bodies in her wake.

"I suppose that is Uth?" I pointed at the fresco.

"Many years ago, yes." Came a voice from the other side of the temple. "Many years ago, indeed." There was a slight tap of a cane I didn't notice before. And, when I turned to see the owner of the voice, I was greeted by an elderly woman with bright white hair, gray eyes, many wrinkles upon her face, and hunched over her cane. She was dragging one leg behind her in a shuffle that said she'd been injured or it was a club foot. She looked like a woman in her nineties.

Rammel looked her over, carefully. "Enheduutha, can you tell us where we can find Lady Uth?" He had barely moved past the doorway.

"Not many come looking for her these days." The woman responded. "I am Muirgel, the head priestess of the Temple of Gilgamesh." She motioned for us to follow her. "Come, I will bring you to Lady Uth. You may regret what you ask. She doesn't take many visitors these days and I don't know what kind of mood she will be in."

We followed.

Muirgel walked slowly, across the length of the chapel, through a very worn door, down a long corridor, until she reached a padlocked room. The corridor was dimly lit. I could barely see anything in front of my face. "Here we are." Muirgel unlocked the padlock and began to open the door.

"Why would you lock someone in a room?" I questioned. It made no sense that she would be locked into a room.

Rammel tried to hush me.

Muirgel heard me anyway. "She asked to be locked in here." She slowly opened the door. "She's been grieving for a hundred years." Then, as she opened the door wide enough to allow us in, she commented. "My esteemed guests, Uth the Wolf Mother." She brandished her hand like a wand, waving it around a very poorly kept room. There were scarred pieces of wood furniture, ripped upholstered chairs, pieces of fabric and wood all over the floor, pillows torn to pieces, and even the walls had claw marks in them. Somewhere among the chaos sat a very wrinkled old woman, her eyes closed and arms out in a meditative manner. There were scars on her face and arms. She sat on the only unharmed pillow and before her was a squat little table with a giant bite mark taken out of it.

"Back foul beast." She said calmly. "I can smell you. O' traitorous one, foul enemy of my father." Her voice started to take hold with more fervor as she spoke. "I can smell many of you. Traitors all. You came for my father. One by one. You came for me. Back foul beast."

"Uth." My father's voice was extremely calm. "We come in peace. None of us are here to harm you."

"Rammel, you have sided with these traitors?" She questioned. She still had yet to open her eyes.

"Uth, open your eyes and you shall see there is none of those traitors here." He retorted.

Uth slowly opened up her eyes. They were white with cataracts and corneal opacity from injury. I could tell she did her best to focus them on us. "Muirgel, tell me. Who is with Rammel? These eyes can no longer see anything more than light and shapes."

I took the chance to answer for myself. "I am called Mara, Rammel's daughter."

"Why is it you smell of Grammel and Tiamat?" Came her response. "I can smell them." She rose to her feet quickly despite her age and looks. Her fingers turned to claws and white-gray fur began to form across her skin. "I haven't had a good fight in ages."

"She is to take the place of your father, Uth. Since your father's shortsightedness allowed for the return of the Great Ones." Rammel said carefully, calmly. I could tell he wasn't even taking her on. "I have taken the liberty of sealing many strong souls in her. She has even continued my work. Sealing the Great Ones is no longer an option."

"My father said those seals would never break. You lie."

Rammel shook his head. "No. Your father was overconfident. I know you can feel it. A'grappa has returned." He paused to let his words sink in. "You are in no position to battle them, not as you are."

"Then, why did you come here?" Muirgel began to help Uth back onto the pillow. Uth continued. "If not for my help, what purpose do you have in coming here?"

Rammel took a seat before Uth. He quickly and quietly motioned for me to do the same. He calmly began to orate his narrative. "I can understand your hesitance, Uth. I was sent here by Lousfrith. I have an inkling as to why. Your father's good deeds shall not go unnoticed or disregarded in the annals of history; but, that was not all there was to him. You know it as well as I do. He chose the blade over diplomacy many times. That said, my daughter has a particularly useful ability to absorb the powers of many. Death is not a prerequisite." He paused a moment, shifting around on the floor. Finally, he pulled a piece of broken wood from underneath him and cast it aside. "You may sense the embodiment of your father's enemies in her. But, that is not all she contains. If you allow yourself to sense further, you will notice much more than that. But, all this power she has amassed is not enough to take on A'grappa." He paused again. "This is where I humbly ask for your assistance. I have a feeling that you may have something that can make her stronger, more able, more resilient in the face of the Great Ones."

Uth took a breath. She began to mull over Rammel's words. She motioned for Muirgel to come close. To which Muirgel leaned in, while propping herself upon her cane. "Fetch," she said with a pause, "Fetch the Holiest of Urns."

"Mother, you don't mean to give them that do you?" Came Muirgel's response.

"I said fetch."

Muirgel scampered off like a whipped pup.

Uth shook her head. "Children." She followed with a hearty laugh. Then, immediately she returned to a more serious tone. "I guess it doesn't pay to mope and cry over something so long ago. Rammel, for your sake, and for it alone, I will give this most precious of things to you. After all, you unwittingly helped avenge my father when you took care of Grammel. I am not surprised that you went about trying to rid the multiverse of the Great Ones in the way you have. It was a great misdeed to only have sealed them so long ago."

"I have come to understand that now." Rammel solemnly agreed.

I felt very out of place in their conversation. But, I sat quietly. Learning, listening, and planning for my next move. Now that I had some idea of what A'grappa's abilities were, I had to think of countermeasures for them. I would be very stupid to think that his abilities were limited to only what he displayed, however. He was one of the Great Ones for a reason. It was definitely going to take much more than I had now to take him down. I worried about the others getting hurt again. My father's strength was not enough to protect them. And, he was much stronger than most of the Minor Ones as it were.

"Child." Uth abruptly called out to me. "Mara, you called yourself?"

"Yes?" I answered sheepishly. Something about this woman made me jump. I had no idea what it was; except, I didn't feel right around her. I felt like I was fifteen all over again.

She put her hands together, slowly pulling them apart again. As she did, a large wooden crate made its appearance between them. Once the crate was fully formed, she spoke once more. "In this crate are three weapons. Bring them to Lousfrith. She will know what to do with them. These were my father's, created through very tough trials."

I nodded.

"One more thing." She reached out her hand towards me. "Give me your hand." I did as she asked, placing my hand in hers. Immediately, I felt warmth radiate between our hands. She began reciting something in a dead language, "Ina qātī aškun šattīya petû, pīya naša, ana šūti kīma ša atâmi."

My father's eyes went wide. "You really mean to do that?"

The warmth faded. Uth retracted her hand. "I've already done it, Lord of the Fields."

"The ramifications of doing that is very dire." He tried to argue.

"The ramifications of my having done so only means that Muirgel better hurry with the urn I asked for." She responded. "I believe that you are very right, Rammel. There isn't much time left to decide on what needs to be done. There is only time for action."

It was at that moment when Muirgel finally made her appearance back into the room carrying a very large blue and gold urn. "Mother, it is here. The Holiest of Urns." Then she noticed the crate on the table. "Why have you removed these from storage? You don't mean to give these to her as well?"

"My child, we no longer can afford the luxury of chance and waiting. I have made my decision. I will aid Rammel in his endeavor. Even if it means success or failure." She paused. "Place my father's Soul Crystal upon the table, Muirgel." Uth's daughter did as she was told. "From this day forth, you are the keeper of this temple."

"Mother," Muirgel queried, confused. "I don't understand."

"I do." I stood up, placing my hand on the urn. Immediately, the urn began to glow red as I could feel the crystal within begin to be absorbed into my body. It seemed like several minutes passed. Once the urn's glow faded, I knew it was complete.

"Rammel," Uth's words were starting to fade, "Remember what I told you. And, Muirgel, do not be sad. My time here is at an end. By the time Rammel and Mara leave here, I will be gone. Even now, Mara's pull on my soul is strong. That only means she will be able to wield great strength when the time comes." She paused a moment to collect her thoughts. "Muirgel, do as I have instructed you all these years. With time, all things bloom." She beckoned her daughter close to her. "Come, I have one last parting gift for you, my child." She placed her hands upon Muirgel's face, "Attardu māda ša šutamqû ina qātīka, ullānu kīma ša atû."

I watched as Muirgel's form and image reversed in age. She went from a wrinkled woman to one with long brown hair, warm gray eyes, and fair features. Her posture became erect as she no longer felt the need to hunch over her cane. The scars on her body remained, yet her leg seemed more than healed. She couldn't help but look at her hands, her body, and react with awe.

"My youth!" Her voice was no longer the weary tired of age but that full of energy. "Why have you done this?"

"Do not ask why, my child. Accept that which you are given." Uth said, quite labored. "I purposefully did not teach you the many spells my father did to me. I knew once he was gone, his era was over. So, too, would be the need for his kind of answers to what the cosmos would throw towards us." She smiled. "Relish in all that you have now." Uth looked at her hand, which had become quite translucent. "My time is almost up." She turned to me as she faded, "Use both the knowledge and the power given to you wisely, Mara." And then, she was gone.

My father put his hand upon the crate and it, too, vanished. "It is time we return to Lousfrith." He said to me. Then, he turned to Muirgel, "Child, remember all that your mother has done. She does so not for the fate of the multiverse, but for you. You are her greatest treasure. Just the same as Mara is mine."