A/N: aaaaah and here we are again. Time to run again:3

Chapter Fourteen

Gilgamesh sat upon his throne carelessly, sneering at the advisors who some how managed to escape being killed. They cowered before him as Mei sat on one side of him, hands in her lap, stuffed up her voluminous sleeves. Asma glared imperiously at them as Fathia leaned a little closer to Gilgamesh. �You attempted to kill the king�s children and the king�s women, to take over the king�s position for yourselves. And your rebel group has been flushed out in the night by my dear Mei here.� Mei smirked faintly at the men, her cold smile sending shivers down the men�s spines.

�Please have mercy on us! Please!� cried one of the men.

Gilgamesh snorted and stood up, towering over them. �No, my king. Allow me.� Asma came forward, her red veil covering her brown hair and complimented her eyes. Her dress was even red, trimmed in gold thread. The glare she was fixing on the men was a murderous one. Gilgamesh wanted to argue, but the look she gave him made his heart jump slightly. What was it about these women that caused him to lose himself?! He was Gilgamesh, the great king of Babylon, born of the gods and ruled as a god for thousands of years before now!

A thought occurred to him. The rebels wronged him by attacking his family; however, it was the women who were truly wronged for they were the ones who were poisoned and not him. He smirked deviously and turned to the men as their rebel companions were forced in by a loyal group of soldiers handpicked by Mei. �You know, I think I might just let the ladies take care of this in their own ways. You attacked my family, yes, however, you attacked them FIRST.� He smirked even more and caused one of the men to start crying like a baby. �I�ll let the women handle this one. Fathia. That means you, as well, for you were in this also.�

Fathia blushed faintly and moved out from behind the throne. As he walked closer, she looked away and hid her face behind a veil. He grabbed her wrist and looked at her from the side of his vision. �You are a royal concubine, Fathia, bound to me as a wife would be bound to a husband. For once, act like a queen and not the cowed daughter of a merchant.� Then, he walked to his throne and sat upon it, once again careless, but assessing the actions of his women. Mei stood and walked over as well, her hands still stuffed up inside of her sleeves.

Fathia straightened and looked over at Gilgamesh, the white veil showing her black hair slightly, her dark blue dress trimmed in silver to contrast. She turned and looked to her attackers and those who wished her and her daughter dead and straightened. He was right. By all accounts, she was only a step down from being a queen. If he chose one of them to serve as head wife, that wife would be queen and they would still be bound to him as wives would be. She looked at the men forced before her and the other two wives and pulled her veil off slowly. Her long black hair was bound back tightly in a braid as she had always done since her mother did her hair for her. She pulled the tie from it and let her black hair fan out. The men in front of her simply stared at her. A few of them spat at her. Gilgamesh shot to his feet, but Asma held up a hand.

�I am Fathia, daughter of Adnan, a lowly merchant in Umm Qasr, and a Spanish woman, Yasma. I was given to my king as a gift for his taking over Babylon. I have lived for most of my life not voicing� anything� of what I feel about things, for my father always said women were to be seen and not heard.� Fathia�s cheeks were rosy with anger as she fought to keep herself from losing her nerve. �Well, I shall be heard by you! You have attempted to harm not only my king, but my daughter, Jalila! You attempted to harm my �sisters� and kill them! You have done all this to rid yourself of a king who has brought the tribes together again and let them prosper!�

She grabbed the sword off of one of the guards and sliced off the head of the one who was closest to her that had spat on her. �NO MORE! I will tolerate NO MORE of this!� she cried.

Asma held up her hand and Fathia looked over, puzzled. She was shaking visibly and looked away from Asma as she held the veil up to her face and clenched her eyes shut, sniffling silently as her shoulders shook. Asma, watching the other woman, nodded and then looked to the men gathered before her. �For those who don�t seem to remember, I am the daughter of the former ruler of this land, the once great Ghazi. When this king came in and took over, I was furious and am still angry with him for it, however, I see the heart he has and know that he can be good.� She pulled the veil off her hair and it was already unbound underneath, her long brown hair wild and curly as she fixed the veil around her shoulders like one would do a shawl. �You have done the worst, most unthinkable things toward my family and I shall take great pleasure in parading you in front of the masses and have them see your shameful natures and shameful appearances.�

�I think that is a very fine idea, dear Asma,� said Mei softly, smirking coldly at the men before her still. �I should enjoy that adventure if it pleases our king.�

Asma looked over her shoulder at Gilgamesh and saw him staring at all three of them with delight and a bit of awe. �Do as you please, ladies, for it was you they harmed first. I take great pride in watching you three demolish everything these men have stood for since they started conspiring against me.�

As if on cue, the men were suddenly pulled up, save the beheaded man, and walked out of the palace with Asma, Fathia and Mei behind them. Gilgamesh stood up and walked out onto the balcony to watch, great amusement evident on his handsome face. The women had the men paraded out in front of them and had them line up on their knees in front of the steps to the palace. People began to gather around to see what was going to happen. He called out to them all. �People of Babylon. This is what happens when you turn traitor to your king. My wives were attacked and my children attacked as well, in an attempt to rid me and my progeny from this world. I, therefore, grant approval for my three favorite wives to take care of the punishment.�

Asma lifted up a sword made in the old style from behind her, which had been apparently stowed away on her belt, and held it up for all to see. �I am Asma! Daughter of Ghazi! Mother of Imani and wife of Gilgamesh! Hear me now, for I will not repeat it! If you so much as lay a hand on my family or my king, I will personally deal out the death of your entire family and you just as you have tried to do to me!�

Fathia nodded and pulled the veil over her unbound hair and picked up the sword. �As will I! I am Fathia, daughter of a merchant trader, but I am a wife of Gilgamesh and the mother of his daughter Jalila! I, too, will deal out the same punishment that you have tried to do to me!�

Mei smiled colding at the people. �Let this serve as a warning, dear peasants of this grotesque land. These women and myself are not little cowed women, hiding away behind our husband. We choose to stay quiet for we have nothing to add that hasn�t already been said.� For once, she pulled her hands from her sleeves and many little knives filled them, all sharp and dangerous. �With that said, let us remind you that being the ladies we are we do not tolerate being attacked or our king being attacked.�

As one, all three women moved forward and slaughtered the men in front of them. Asma sliced their backs and heads, Fathia stabbed and cut their heads off and Mei slit their throats. As the men lay bleeding and jerking before the mass of people, they moved back together on the steps. Once more, Gilgamesh spoke, his voice echoing off the walls. �As I said again, don�t trifle with what is the king�s! You have no right to it and I will make sure you pay if you do!� Then, he walked back into the throne room as the women walked up the steps and into the palace. Asma pulled her hair under the red veil she wore as Fathia attempted to braid hers back once more and do the same with her veil, though it had been in place before. They made their way up to the throne room and were greeted by Gilgamesh who was sitting on his throne, smirking at them appreciatively. �Well done, ladies, well done.�

Mei blushed faintly and walked over, kissing Gilgamesh a moment before sitting down on her place next to the throne. Asma eyed Gilgamesh and crossed her arms in front of her chest imperiously. �This does not mean I do not forget my anger for you killing my father.�

�He was a coward and lazy. He was too easy to kill and thus doesn�t matter. You, on the other hand, are quite the little princess,� he said, grinning faintly at her as he ruffled his hair. Asma�s cheeks darkened as she relaxed slightly. Without a word, she walked over and kissed Gilgamesh, flicking her tongue out into his mouth as her fingers dug into his hair. She moved away after a moment and flushed even more darkly in her cheeks, hiding her face behind her hand. Then, she walked off quickly into the hallway. Gilgamesh smirked and chuckled softly. So he really did have an effect on these women! He would certainly have to get rid of the others, who so bored him or angered him with their irritating personalities. He looked to Fathia as she walked closer. �And you, Fathia? You certainly looked very lovely as you took that man�s head. Like a warrior woman.�

Fathia�s cheeks went bright pink as she pulled the veil from her face. �Tha� thank you, my lord.� He offered a hand toward her and she walked over slowly and put hers in his. He pulled her closer and kissed her gently, gazing at her through his lashes as he pulled away.

He grinned faintly and touched her cheek. �You are very lovely when you become impassioned,� he said softly and let go of her.

Fathia moved away, blushing heavily with her rosy lips looking a little darker in color. After a moment, she touched her cheeks and smiled faintly at him, a warm smile on those pink lips of hers. �Thank you, my husband.� Then, she moved away and out of the throne room.

Gilgamesh eyed Mei from the corner of his eye and smirked. �When will you speak up and confess to being a clever mastermind?�

�I have no idea what you speak of, my dear,� she said as she cleaned her knives, sleeves rolled back to her elbows as she worked.

�You planned out that whole display. You knew that Asma and Fathia were going to be very angry after the event and you put the seed of the killing in their minds this morning, didn�t you.�

Mei looked to Gilgamesh and smirked faintly, her small mouth turning up slightly at the corners. �Asma is very passionate and holds her pedigree close to her heart. Fathia is cowed and needs reassurance and confidence. Asma was easy, but you made Fathia come out of her shell.�

�So you admit that you plotted out a little of how this would play out,� said Gilgamesh, eyeing the small woman.

�I admit to nothing,� she said and went back to her knives. �Except giving Asma a small thought of what I would like to do to the men who so wronged us all.�

Gilgamesh grinned and lay back against his throne. �Devious, clever, intriguing woman, you are. I love it.� At that, Mei blushed faintly under the white powder on her face and went back to cleaning her knives.

He had heard that word before. Servant meant he would be a slave again. �Iei.. slave... iei slave!�

Arturia frowned and narrowed her eyes. �So you do know a few words of English?�

Emiya looked to Arturia in surprise and moved away from her suspicious glare. Once more, he spoke in a long string of words that she could only equate to something that came from the moon. �Emiya!� she said loudly. He immediately quieted down and moved a little more away from her, afraid. She moved closer and took a hold of his collar and pulled him down closer to her. �You will come with me and I will teach you English.� With that, she pulled him out the door.

Emiya chattered excitedly in that weird language of his, shoving at her hand. �Iei! Iei! IEI!� Suddenly, the ground beneath her grew bright. The walls around her disappeared and were replaced with a snowy landscape like it looked outside. In the background were flames and in the sky were clouds. All over the snowy ground were swords stuck in the ground. It looked like a graveyard of swords from fallen warriors.

She looked over her shoulder to see Emiya running away from her and grabbing a sword, throwing it at her fast. He was afraid. It was his fear driving this bizarre hallucination and he was a wizard at that! Immediately, she dodged the blade and felt her armor come up over her body. Emiya ran at her with another sword, eyes wide with fear. If he was the one who had made this thing, he was the key to disabling it.

Emiya cried out in pain as the clawed tips of her gauntlet bit into his face and ripped three gashes across his face. He hit the ground as the strange world disappeared, holding his face as he yelped in pain, curling up on the ground. She made the armor disappear and walked over to Emiya, picking him up and hauling him back to her room. She sat him down roughly and pulled a kit over to heal him. �Don�t ever use that magic on me, Emiya. I was not trying to hurt you and yet you pulled that nasty bit of work on me! Do that again and I will not simply claw your face! Oh do stop moaning, it�s not as bad as that!� she snapped.

Emiya stopped whimpering when she put her hands on his face. He blinked at her in surprise, at least through one eye, as she looked closely at the damage she had created. His cheeks flushed faintly as he stared at her. �A-tu-ri-ah,� he said.

She flicked her gold eyes up at him and nodded. �Arturia, yes.�

Emiya frowned faintly and closed his eyes. �Aaar� Ar-tu-ru-ria?�

Arturia�s eyes widened and she dabbed at his cuts gently. �Ar-tu-ria.�

Emiya frowned more and knitted his eyebrows together. �Ar-tu-ria.� His eye opened suddenly and he smiled faintly. �Arturia!�

Arturia smiled faintly and nodded. �Yes, that is my name. Now, don�t talk. I must deal with your cuts.�

Emiya closed his eyes once more and let Arturia touch his face and put something foul smelling and stinging onto his cuts. When he moved his face, he could open his other eye and blinked. He looked up at her as she put a stopper into a phial of liquid. �Don�t ask what this is. It is a potion my master keeps for such things so we won�t bleed to death. Your wounds are healed to a certain extent. They still need to heal, but you should be able to see through your eye now.�

As she put the liquid away, Emiya groped around for a mirror and picked up her little hand mirror made of polished silver. As he looked at himself, he saw that the claw marks across his face were partially healed, the new skin forming on them, but still scabbed over. His face had not been worth much to him, but now that he was damaged, he sort of missed his face being whole.

He looked over to Arturia and blushed faintly when she looked to him. �You are not a slave.�

�Nani?� Emiya blinked at Arturia in confusion. She said slave, but she said something he didn�t understand.

Arturia pointed to Emiya. �Iei slave.�

Emiya�s eyes widened almost to bulging. When had she learned his home language?!

�Iei means no, correct?� Arturia frowned when Emiya didn�t seem to understand. �Iei means no, yes?�

�Iei,� he said as he shook his head. �Hai.� Then, he nodded his head.

�Iei� meant no and �Hai� meant yes, then, she decided. �You,� she said, pointing at his chest, �Are iei slave. Iei is NO in English.�

�No.� Emiya was confused, but thought that was correct.

�Hai is yes.�

�Yessu,� he said.

�Yes.�

�Yes.�

�Good.�

Arturia nodded and pointed to herself. �Woman.�

�Wo-man?�

Arturia nodded and pointed to him. �Man.�

�Emiyashirou,� he said, thinking she was naming him something else.

�Emiya is man. Arturia is woman.�

Emiya frowned faintly. It then hit him. She was teaching him her language! �Man.� So in her language, he was a �man�.

Arturia nodded and smiled faintly. �Hai.�

Emiya grinned faintly, looking a little mischievous. �Yes.�

Arturia blinked and smiled faintly. �Yes.� After that, she took him down to Merlin to help her give him a crash course in English in hopes of being able to teach him more.

Conochbar sighed and sat down, crumpling the document and tossing it aside. He hated having to deal with these sorts of politics! Also, the neighboring Connacht was getting a little uppity, namely his step-father�s new lover Maeve. Maeve was in a game against her husband and was requesting Ulster�s prized bull to have as her own against her husband so she might win whatever ridiculous bet she had made. He wrote a stern reply and sent it along with a few other notes to a messenger boy.

Conochbar smiled faintly as he thought of young Cuchulainn finally settling down with a wife. At least he would be kept out of trouble. With that in mind, Conochbar went back to dealing with various documents.