Proofreader & Editor: Lotas
A deluge?
Is this an attempt at World Annihilation?
Enkidu's expression changed slightly.
"Forgive my boldness, Divine Enlil, but this land is home not only to Uruk and its king but also to many of your faithful followers and the beloved of the earth. Would not a deluge that drowns the surface be… excessive?"
"Boom!"
With a point of his finger, Enlil summoned a violent storm that caught Enkidu off guard and hurled him away.
"Enkidu, you are but a tool, a weapon we created. A weapon needs no will of its own; you need only to carry out my orders without question. Speak out of turn again, and I will destroy you!"
To the gods, a weapon is merely a tool to be wielded. The notion of a weapon possessing self-will is intolerable to them. After all, it's just a weapon; destroying and reforging it is no difficult task.
Enkidu bowed his head, seemingly submissive.
"There are too many humans on earth, which is why Gilgamesh, who should have been the wedge of heaven, has become what he is now. But his time ends here. Use the deluge to flood the surface, kill off ninety percent of humanity, and let the remaining ten percent repopulate. Our faith will then be unshakable."
Enlil was quite pleased with this plan, believing it to be the best course of action.
"Summon the god of water, Enki!"
"Divine Enlil, the god Enki is no longer in the heavens."
A divine messenger, kneeling outside the palace doors, entered with a respectful bow.
"What? Where has he gone?"
Enlil frowned, puzzled.
"I am not certain."
The messenger shook his head.
Left with no choice, Enlil departed from his palace and flew toward the abode of Enki, the god of water. Yet, for some reason, many palaces along the way seemed eerily deserted. The gods who had gathered to punish Gilgamesh had vanished without a trace.
"Marduk, do you know where the god Enki has gone? And why are so many gods missing?"
Enlil approached Marduk with his questions.
"Enki? That traitor has turned deserter and fled to the inner world!"
Marduk's youthful face twisted with rage upon hearing this.
"Before he left, he convinced many gods to abandon the surface and return to the inner world. Seventy percent have deserted!"
Enlil's face darkened considerably.
Enki held a special status among the gods; many knew his true form as one of the primordial triad, the god Ea. If he had persuaded others as Ea, it was certain that many gods would follow him to the inner world!
After all, among the myriad gods, only a select few were of the highest rank. Most were lesser deities. With their temples destroyed and their power greatly diminished, reclaiming their faith was a lost cause. Fleeing to the inner world was their only salvation, at least there they could preserve their lives.
"Is Adad still here?"
Enlil inquired again.
"He is."
Marduk replied.
"That's a relief."
Enlil sighed slightly, then issued a decisive command.
"Bring Adad to me!"
He had intended for Enki, the god of water, to wield the Sword of Ending and flood the entire land. With Enki gone to the inner world, Enlil had no choice but to settle for Adad, the god of storms and rain.
Adad's status in Sumerian mythology was not high; he didn't even rank among the seven chief gods, holding dominion only over storms and rain.
However, as his myth spread to the Canaanite region, Adad became known as Baal, a deity of much higher standing, even surpassing Enlil.
Sumerian mythology was among the earliest in the world, and many later myths can find their origins within it.
Enkidu, from a distance, overheard the secret conversation between Enlil and Marduk. Clenching his fists in secret, he silently left Enlil's temple and flew toward the lower realm.
Soon, the god Adad revealed his divine might. Dark clouds obscured the sky, thunder roared in all directions, and fierce winds howled incessantly.
This astonishing phenomenon shrouded the skies above the city-state of Uruk, nearly covering half of the Mesopotamian plain.
The Sumerian people gathered in Uruk looked up at the lightning and thunder, falling to their knees in terror, some wailing in despair, others praying devoutly.
In the blink of an eye, torrential rain poured from the heavens, drenching Uruk in an unforgiving downpour.
"King, it's terrible! The rain is too heavy; many people outside the city have been swept away by the flood!"
A valiant spirit soldier rushed into the great hall, urgently reporting to Xu Zong, who sat at the head.
"Don't panic! Siduri, issue the order immediately for all citizens to take shelter from the rain. Open the city's floodgates to drain the water inside. Soldier, go at once and connect the moat with the two great rivers on either side. This project should have been completed long ago. Divert the water into the Tigris and Euphrates and into the sea. Go now!"
"Yes!"
Siduri hurried toward the city gates, while the spirit soldier dissipated into particles, rushing to the flood control project outside the city.
Xu Zong stood in the great hall, his expression somber.
Myths from around the world tell of battles against floods. In the outer world, these are natural disasters, but in the inner world, they are signs of divine wrath! He had prepared well in advance, constructing flood defenses around Uruk. Although there would be some sacrifices, as long as the moat and the two rivers were connected in time to drain the rainwater into the sea, civilization would not be destroyed.
"Gilgamesh!"
A beam of light descended from the sky, and Enkidu appeared before the great hall, drenched and looking troubled, obviously having braved the storm to get there.
"The god Adad is responsible for this downpour. If it continues, the entire civilization will eventually be submerged!"
"What's the rush?"
Xu Zong saw him arrive and smiled cheerfully.
"As a weapon of the gods, you are ultimately their pawn. Yet here you are, delivering a message. Don't you find yourself quite the heretic?"
Enkidu was taken aback.
His words were a perfect echo of what he had once scolded Xu Zong with. He never imagined he would become the heretic in Xu Zong's eyes.
"Ha…"
Enkidu's shoulders slumped as he sighed deeply, then a defiant smile spread across his face.
"Forget it, if being a heretic is what it takes, so be it. I refuse to indulge the whims of the gods. There are too many wonderful things on this earth to be destroyed by them!"
"Hahaha! A weapon of the gods with its own will, I'd love to see Enlil's face when he sees this!"
Xu Zong laughed heartily, his laughter rhythmic as if he had practiced it for a long time.
"Now's not the time for this. We need to find a way to repel the god Adad!"
Enkidu gave him a somewhat speechless and disdainful look. What an unpleasant laugh.
"Of course, I know that!"
Xu Zong rose from his throne and walked outside the great hall.
"It seems he should be in the sky…"
Xu Zong looked up at the stormy sky, where the thunderstorm raged, a veritable no-man's-land where any life that entered would be instantly obliterated.
"Do you plan to fight him head-on?"
Enkidu approached, asking tentatively.
"I'd like to test just how strong a god can be!"
Xu Zong smiled with delight, his figure floating up into the sky.
Enkidu replenished his strength, his body shining with a golden glow, and he too ascended into the heavens.
Within the boundless storm clouds, a towering figure nearly three meters tall, muscular and bearded, floated amidst the divine energy that influenced the weather over the entire Mesopotamian plain, especially over the city-state of Uruk below.
But this mighty god was now furrowing his brow. Observing Uruk, he saw the city's swift response: the rainwater that poured in was channeled through the floodgates into the moat, then flowed into the sea.
"Damn it, how was Gilgamesh so well-prepared in advance!"
Adad felt frustrated.
Unlike Enki, the god of water, who could summon a deluge with the Sword of Ending to instantly flood the land, Adad needed several days of heavy rain to accumulate enough water for a flood.
But with Uruk's successful flood response, the rain he summoned was all flowing into the sea, making it nearly impossible for him to flood the Mesopotamian plain even in decades!
"Hey, self-proclaimed weapon, turn into chains and bind him."
"You're really not polite!"
Suddenly, Adad heard two voices arguing nearby.
Out of nowhere, a golden light roared from a distance, transforming into a vast expanse of silver chains that entangled him from all directions.
"The Chains of Heaven?"
Adad was shocked and quickly dodged to escape.
"Enkidu, are you rebelling!"
"A god who doesn't protect the earth is unworthy!"
Countless silver chains came at him, forcing Adad to retreat. He looked at the chains with boundless anger.
"Fine, fine, I'll report this to Enlil!"
Adad left in frustration, throwing a threat at Enkidu before turning into a beam of light and fleeing into the distant sky.
Unable to catch up, Enkidu stopped, his face tinged with sadness.
"Once Enlil learns of this, you're as good as dead."
Xu Zong flew over and landed beside Enkidu.
"I know."
Enkidu looked somewhat forlorn.
"To fight for the earth, I have no regrets. It's just a pity that I've only opened my eyes for a short while and haven't seen all the beauty and grandeur of this land!"
"Hmm."
Xu Zong shrugged.
"Then, there's only one answer."
As soon as he finished speaking, he flew in the direction Adad had fled.
"Let's go!"
"Where to?"
Enkidu paused, then followed, asking in surprise.
"Do I even need to say?"
A fierce smile spread across Xu Zong's face.
"Kill Enlil and destroy his damned heaven!"