Odyssey: Perilous Seas

## Videos

**Odyssey: Perilous Seas** is part of SMITE's annual Odyssey event series made for the introduction of Charybdis and Cliodhna. The story for this event takes place right after the conclusion of Court of Midnight's story. It began on August 24, 2021 and ended on January 25, 2022.

## Welcome to the Odyssey: Perilous Seas

### Collect Odyssey Points!

Collect  Odyssey Points by purchasing Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skins, The upcoming Digital Loot Pack, Chest Skins released up until the month of November, New Theme bundle skins, New Viewer Pass Skins, and by participating in the Battle Pass.

### Explore the World!

Discover new Territories! Receive a  Map Fragment to unlock more unique Territories for every 20,000  Odyssey Points you earn.

### Get Cool Rewards!

Go on Voyages in each Territory and complete the Quests to uncover rare and epic rewards such as Odyssey Bonus Chests, Cosmetic Items, Team Boosters,  Favor, and SMITE  Gems!

## Odyssey Bundles

All Exclusive Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skins will be purchasable with  Gems. Odyssey Collection Reward items will be unlocked by earning enough  Odyssey Points and can be tracked on the Odyssey reward bar.  Odyssey Points can be earned by buying Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skins and can also be earned by participating in the Battle Pass, purchasing the Digital Loot Pack, and purchasing select items in the SMITE Store until November 2021.

Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skins will release with an initial discount of 33% off for the first 2 weeks! Get each Skin for 500  Gems at launch or pick it up later on at full price for 750  Gems.

Each Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skin includes a cosmetic item and 10,000  Odyssey Points.

### Chapter 1

* Mystic Magus
* Kero Kero

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### Chapter 2

* Senko Sage
* Silver Bullet

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### Chapter 3

* Sentai
* Prince of the Night

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### Chapter 4

* Wise Hare
* Molten Machina

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### Chapter 5

* C.A.T. Force
* Cosmic Fortune

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### Chapter 6

* Geomancer
* Nightbringer Demon

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### Chapter 7

* Oni Ronin
* Plushie

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### Chapter 8

* Soul Slayer
* Infinite Overseer

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## Odyssey Rewards

Unlock rewards by earning  Odyssey Points! Receive Collection Bonus Skins every 40,000  Odyssey Points up to the final Tier 5 Toon Mania Cthulhu Reward Skin at 160,000  Odyssey Points!

Go on Quest Voyages in a Territory on the Odyssey map to uncover more rewards including Odyssey Bonus Chests,  Gems,  Favor, Boosters,  Viewer Points, and Cosmetic Items!

For every 10,000  Odyssey Points you collect after 160,000, you will receive an Odyssey Bonus Chest reward! This maxes out at 350,000  Odyssey Points.

* 40,000
* 80,000
* 120,000
* 160,000

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## Quest Map

### Territories

During the Odyssey you will encounter a map with 9 Territories. Each Territory will differ in environment and have its own Quests and rewards that vary from all the others. Some Territories will even have corrupted areas with more difficult Quests.

Your first Territory, Kingdom of Babylon, will be free, that way you will be able to familiarize yourself with the new system. To unlock more Territories, earn 20,000  Odyssey Points which will grant you a  Map Fragment. When selecting any Territory it will show the rewards that can be claimed from completing Quests in that Territory. It will also show how many Quests you have completed.

Let the exploration begin!

### Voyage Quests

Unlocking a Territory will zoom you into that Territory on the map. Once zoomed in, you will see a range of trails called Voyages. These Voyages can lead to different Landmarks. Each Voyage will have Quests along it and a Territory can have a range of 10 -14 Quests in total. You can only have 1 Voyage started at a time from any Territory.

Choose a Voyage by selecting a Landmark in the Territory that stands out to you. Confirm you want to start that Voyage and begin your journey! Completing a Voyage to the Landmark will grant you a rare reward, additionally, Quests along the Voyage will grant you more common rewards. Come back to the Territory in order to select a new Voyage once you have completed your last one!

###  Kingdom of Babylon Territory

* Ishtar Gates Voyage
* Hanging Gardens Voyage
* Lion Monolith Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Get 15 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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Play 1 Game
Reward
Gain 15,000 Gold.
Reward
Jump 10 times before a game starts.
Reward

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Play an Assassin in 2 games.
Reward
Get 50 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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###  Savanna Territory

* Great Acacia Voyage
* Statue of Olorun Voyage
* Igbo Palace Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Play a mage in 1 game.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Deal 15,000 Player Damage.
Reward
Play a Hunter in 1 Game.
Reward

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Play an Assassin in 1 game.
Reward
Earn 10,000 gold.
Reward

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###  The Emerald Isle Territory

* Celtic Cross Voyage
* Blarney Castle Voyage
* Dolmen Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Jump 10 times before the game starts.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 20,000 Gold.
Reward
Play a Guardian in 1 Game.
Reward

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Deal 50,000 Player Damage.
Reward
Play 3 Games.
Reward

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###  Bharata Khanda Territory

* Statue of Ravana Voyage
* Temple of Ganesha Voyage
* Ganges Temple Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Get 15 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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Deal 50,000 Player Damage.
Reward
Play 2 Games.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 10,000 Gold.
Reward
Play a Warrior in 1 Game.
Reward
Jump 10 times before the Game starts.
Reward

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###  The Bayou Territory

* Steamboat Voyage
* French Quarter Voyage
* Cemetry Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Play a Hunter in 1 Game.
Reward
Jump 10 times before the Game starts.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 15,000 Gold.
Reward

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Earn 60,000 Gold.
Reward
Play a Mage in 2 Games.
Reward

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###  The Fertile Crescent Territory

* Djoser Ziggurat Voyage
* Temple of Philae Voyage
* Abu Simbel Voyage
* Khufu Ship Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Get 20 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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Earn 40,000 Gold.
Reward
Get 40 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 10,000 Gold.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Play a Mage in 1 Game.
Reward
Deal 20,000 Player Damage.
Reward

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###  Mycenaean Territory

* Amphitheatre Voyage
* Temple of Athena Voyage
* Parthenon Voyage

Play 3 Games.
Reward
Deal 50,000 Player Damage.
Reward

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Play a Hunter in 1 Game.
Reward
Play 1 Game.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 15,000 Gold.
Reward

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###  The Kami Lands Territory

* Zen Garden Voyage
* Shinto Shrine Voyage
* Pagoda Voyage
* Statue of Raijin Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Deal 20,000 Player Damage.
Reward

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Play 1 Game.
Reward
Deal 15,000 Player Damage.
Reward
Play an Assassin in 1 Game.
Reward

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Earn 10,000 Gold.
Reward
Play a Guardian in 1 Game.
Reward

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Play 3 Games.
Reward
Get 40 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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###  The Yucatan Territory

* Temple of Kukulkan Voyage
* Pitz Field Voyage

Play 1 Game.
Reward
Get 10 Kills and Assists.
Reward
Play a Warrior in 1 Game.
Reward

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Deal 15,000 Damage.
Reward
Play 1 Game.
Reward
Earn 10,000 Gold.
Reward
Get 15 Kills and Assists.
Reward

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###  Strait of Messina Territory

* The Kyrenia Voyage
* The Kepen Voyage
* The Bireme Voyage
* The Pentakonter Voyage
* The Triere Voyage

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#### Special Conversation

A unique conversation between Scylla and Charybdis can be heard in the Strait of Messina territory. The conversation slowly continues along with the player's progress through the territory's quests.

* ▶️ Scylla: /Sighs/ "Charybdis?"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "What is it, Scylla?"
* ▶️ Scylla: "Do you think the gods will be surprised when we show up?"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "I hope so."
* ▶️ Scylla: "Hehe, especially Zeus!"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "Yes. Especially him."

* ▶️ Scylla: "Tiamat hates Zeus too. I think that's why she freed you."
* ▶️ Charybdis: "And now we can punish him for everything he did to me. To us!"
* ▶️ Scylla: "Yeah, heheh! Do you think they'll try to stop us?"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "I hope not...for their sakes."

* ▶️ Charybdis: "Do you hear them Scylla? They want us to stop."
* ▶️ Scylla: "Hehehaha! They always say that, but I never dooo!"
* ▶️ Scylla: "And will you, sister?"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "Neither will I. Not until the gods themselves beg me for forgiveness!"

* ▶️ Charybdis: "Which is it? Smash, crush, or drown?"
* ▶️ Scylla: "How about all of the above? Hehehehaha."
* ▶️ Scylla: "Smash them. Crush them! AND DROWN THEM! HAHAHAHA!"
* ▶️ Charybdis: /sighs/ "Oh Scylla..."

* ▶️ Scylla: "Hey, Charybdis?"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "Yeah, Scylla?"
* ▶️ Scylla: "Am I the rock, or am I the hard place? Hehe."
* ▶️ Charybdis: "Ehh..whichever you prefer, sister. It doesn't matter to me."
* ▶️ Scylla: "Really? Hahaha okay, you can be the rock!"

* ▶️ Charybdis: "We're almost done, sister!"
* ▶️ Scylla: "Now can we find Zeus? I'm getting bored!"
* ▶️ Charybdis: "So let's go find him and show him what it really means to be caught between a rock and a hard place."
* ▶️ Scylla: "YEAAHHH! Hahahaha!"

## FAQ

### What is eligible for Odyssey Points in the SMITE Store?

These items will reward you with  Odyssey Points:

* Odyssey Skins = 10,000  Odyssey Points
* NEW Chest skins while the Odyssey is active (whether rolled or directly purchased) = 10,000  Odyssey Points
* Upcoming Digital Lootpack = 10,000  Odyssey Points
* Battle Pass Free completion = 15,000  Odyssey Points
* Battle Pass Premium completion = 5,000  Odyssey Points
* NEW Viewer Pass Skin = 10,000  Odyssey Points
* NEW Skins in Theme Bundles = 10,000  Odyssey Points
* You can earn a total of 55,000  Odyssey Points for FREE by completing a quest in the King of Babylon territory and participating in the 2 Battle Passes while the Odyssey: Perilous Seas event is active

### Where can I track how many Odyssey points I have earned?

You can see how many Odyssey Points you have earned by going to the Rewards tab in the Odyssey event. There you will also be able to see the Odyssey Reward tiers and your next obtainable Reward.

### What do I get with the Buy All?

Players who Buy All will receive all active Odyssey Event Skins. Every two weeks new Skins will be unlocked and added to the player's inventory.

The player will receive all Reward Skins for the 40,000, 80,000, 120,000 and 160,000 Reward Tiers on day 1 of the 8.8 update, including the Unlimited Tier 5 Cthulhu Skin.

### I did the Buy All option, do I unlock all the map fragments and the territories?

Yes, players who Buy All will unlock all territories and will be able to start one Quest voyage in any territory.

### How do I start a Quest voyage?

First begin in your free territory or unlock a new territory by earning 20,000  Odyssey Points. Then select a landmark, one of the sights or structures you see in the territory. Selecting it will ask if you want to start that landmark’s Quest voyage. Quests from the same voyage can be completed simultaneously. Accept the Quest and begin your voyage!

### What are the corrupted voyages?

Corrupted voyages reward the RAREST items, but beware, the Quests are more difficult to complete!

### How many Collection Reward Skins are there?

4, you will receive a Collection Reward Skin at 40,000, 80,000, 120,000, and 160,000  Odyssey Points!

### How do I get the Tier 5 Reward Skin?

Unlock the Unlimited Tier 5 Cthulhu Skin by earning 160,000  Odyssey Points or buying all 16 Odyssey: Perilous Seas Skins. The T5 Cthulhu Skin can be unlocked instantly by purchasing the Buy All option!

## Lore

### Deluge

Tiamat climbed onto the summit of her great temple and watched as the storm of her making battered Olympus. Great waves lapped at the foothills and torrential rains flooded the home of the gods. But it was not enough.

Already, she could feel the storm’s fury beginning to abate. She was not the only one with some influence over the elements. The gods of Olympus had combined their efforts to disperse the storm. She hissed in annoyance. It was too much to hope that they might have learned their lesson. More stringent methods of discipline were required.

She looked down as three others joined her on the roof. Neith smiled sadly as she took in Tiamat’s expression. “It is even as you predicted, Persephone. They seek to calm the storm. To defy our mother.”

“Not all of them,” Persephone said, quickly. “Some, but not all.”

“Does it matter?” the third of the trio, Morgan Le Fay, said, in mild tones. “They have not expelled Tiamat’s enemies from Olympus. Therefore, Olympus is our enemy.”

Persephone turned. “We do not have to be enemies.”

“Zeus has already cast his gauntlet,” Neith said, gently. “For better or worse, the gods of Olympus have made their choice.” The goddess of fate seemed neither surprised nor particularly pleased with the state of affairs, Tiamat thought. Unlike Morgan, who saw opportunity in the chaos, Neith’s eye was on the bigger picture. For her, this was all but prelude for what was to come.

“Not all of them. Some might yet see sense, if we but wait -” Persephone began. But Tiamat cut her off with a low growl. She looked down at Persephone.

“No. No more waiting. Neith is right, child. The die has been cast. Let fate take its course, for good or ill. Olympus must be taught the folly of standing against me – and they must be taught now, before Gilgamesh infects others with his foolishness. Before they come against me as Marduk and his ilk did, in ancient times.”

Tiamat reared to her full height and spread her shimmering wings wide. “The Olympians wish to face me? I shall show them I am not to be trifled with. I will fall upon them as the hawk seizes the mouse and I shall devour them!”

“Or you could teach them a more lasting lesson,” Persephone said, loudly.

Tiamat paused her wings spread; her head tilted. “Speak your mind, child,” she invited, after a moment’s contemplation.

“It is Zeus who is Gilgamesh’s strongest ally. For now, at least. But remove Zeus, and you remove any influence he might exert on the other gods. Without Zeus, Gilgamesh will have no one to speak for him.”

“What of Merlin?” Morgan began. Persephone rounded on her.

“From what you have claimed, sorceress, Merlin plays his own game. And in any event, he has no influence on the gods. They will no more take his counsel than they would my own. But Zeus – Zeus still has some standing. Not as much as he once did, perhaps, but enough to make things difficult. Humble him, and the other gods will think twice about supporting Gilgamesh.”

“How would you suggest I deal with him?” Tiamat asked.

Persephone gestured to the raging waters of the storm. “Zeus has many enemies, my lady. There are more than a few who long for the chance to destroy him – and many more besides who deserve the opportunity. Show the gods that your ranks do not solely consist of the ambitious -” Here she tossed a meaningful glance at Morgan, whose eyes narrowed in annoyance, before continuing. “- but of the wronged and deserving as well. Show them that you are not a monster, but a queen – and a just queen at that.”

Tiamat hesitated. She glanced in the direction of Olympus. “And how might I do that?” she asked again, more softly this time. Every fibre of her being demanded she fling herself at her enemies, fangs and talons bared. To rend and burn and smash, until she stood alone – triumphant. That had always been her way.

But times had changed. The old ways would not serve here. To try and batter her opponents into submission single-handed would only see her humbled once more – or worse. No, if the world was to be set right, she must set aside her own desires and act as queen.

Persephone took a breath. “Let him drown in the sins of his past. As I said, Zeus has many enemies. I know of two such you could rally to your cause with ease. Persecuted. Maligned. Forgotten. Much as you were at the beginning of all things.”

Tiamat studied the young goddess for long moments. Then, she leaned close.

“Tell me.”

\*

Lightning arced down towards the domed roof of Olympus. The crackling bolt stopped – bent – flashed away, to strike a distant mountaintop. From a covered portico some distance below, Gilgamesh watched in no little awe as Zeus and his companions deflected the worst of the storm.

There were four of them, altogether – one positioned at each cardinal direction. Zeus to the north, Susano the south, Ao Kung the west, and Chaac the east. Together the four gods of the storm and the rain pitted their wills against that of Tiamat – and, as far as Gilgamesh could tell, they were prevailing, if somewhat more slowly than he liked to see.

Singly, none of them would have been a match for her storm. But together, they were almost her equal. Steadily, the storm’s strength lessened. Soon, Olympus might even stop flooding. “Inspiring, isn’t it?” he said, looking at his companion. Bellona grunted and ran her hand through her short, shaggy hair.

“Necessity makes for strange bedfellows,” she said.

“You would know,” Gilgamesh retorted. He smiled at her expression. “I am teasing.”

Bellona punched him in the arm. “I did what I did to stop Cthulhu,” she protested. “If I knew then what I know now, I might have tried to come up with a different strategy. One that didn’t involve trusting a duplicitous cur like Set.” She watched as Zeus deflected another bolt of lightning. “She hasn’t attacked yet.”

“She will,” Gilgamesh said, confidently. “She cannot resist the direct approach. She will attack Olympus herself, because to do otherwise might imply that she fears the gods.”

“She has good reason to do so,” Bellona said. “Your gods imprisoned her once. Surely we can do so again.”

“Perhaps. But it is best to make no assumptions. When she attacks, we will have all the proof we require to convince the gods of the rightness of our cause.” Gilgamesh stroked his beard and turned to his companion. “But on to other matters – you were telling me of the others like me: Arthur, Hercules and this new one…Mulan, was it? They were all mortal once, were they not?”

Bellona shook her head. “Hercules was a demigod like yourself, but was elevated by my pantheon for his heroism. Arthur and Mulan were mere mortals though, before their ascension.” She paused, a thoughtful look on her face. “How they did so is still something of a mystery – whether it was the faith of their people, their deeds or some combination is unknown.”

“Perhaps I should speak with Arthur again.” Gilgamesh tugged on his beard, considering this information. Immortality – divinity – was something he strongly desired. The gods of his people had promised it to him, if he but defeated Tiamat. But it seemed there were other routes – easier ones, perhaps – to that which he sought. Why wage a war he did not have to? In truth, he had little grudge against Tiamat. She was a monster, true – but this world was full of monsters. She was tyrant; but had he not been a tyrant, in his youth? He had learned better and so might Tiamat, if given the opportunity.

Gilgamesh sighed. That was the crux of it. Tiamat was not the type to learn from her mistakes. She was too old for that, too powerful. One might as well try and teach the sea not to drown the land. If she was not bound, there was no telling the sort of chaos she would wreak – the harm she might do – in her efforts to claim dominion over the world.

So, he would humble her as the gods had commanded, and receive his reward gladly. But even so, a small mote of doubt persisted – after all, Marduk and the other Babylonian gods had betrayed Tiamat…and they might well do the same to Gilgamesh, for whom they had little affection. That they needed him now was no guarantee that they would follow through with their end of the bargain, especially given their past conflicts. The gods were nothing if not capricious, and only a fool trusted them fully.

His hand tightened on the hilt of his sword as he considered again how he had found himself here. Summoned from the netherworld into a world that was much changed, given a divine task by the very gods who had sent him into unwitting exile, and now seeking the aid of other, unfamiliar gods to fight an enemy whose anger he could not help but sympathize with. Oh Enkidu, what would you say, to see the foolishness of my predicament, he thought, sadly. His friend was gone, down into the lands of the dead, and there he would remain for so long as the gods decreed.

A fate Gilgamesh was determined not to share – whatever the cost.

The wind turned suddenly and he raised a hand to protect his face from a shift in the stinging rain. Bellona, as was her wont, ignored it. “They are getting the upper-hand, I think,” he said. “Soon, this storm will be no more than a drizzle.”

Instead of replying, Bellona peered towards the distant shape of Tiamat’s temple, as if trying to force their enemy to appear through sheer will. “Where is she?” she said again.

Gilgamesh smiled and shook his head. “Patience, my friend. We will have our hands full soon enough, I think.”

\*

Tiamat dove down, down – to the very bottom of the sea. The surging waters grew calm in her wake, soothed by her presence. That calm rippled outwards with every beat of her powerful wings. On the surface, a storm raged. But below, all was placid.

At last, Tiamat’s claws touched bottom, sending up slow plumes of silt. Before her, the mouth of a vast lava tube stretched across the sea-bed. The interior of the rocky conduit was murky and shadowed. Even so, Tiamat knew that something – someone – lurked within. She heard the clank of an unseen chain.

“Come out, child,” Tiamat crooned. “I would see your face.” But there was no response, save the rattle of a chain. Then, a sudden inhalation and a whoosh of water as a fierce riptide raced out of the tube and hammered at her with the force of a hundred storms. It surged about her, forming a whirlpool. Tiamat grunted, impressed by the power on display. Any other might have been hurled away by the raging waters. She flexed her wings, disrupting the waters. “You are strong. That is good.”

“What do you want?” a soft, childlike voice asked. Tiamat turned to see a horrific shape floating behind her – a child, a girl from beneath whose flowing dress emerged a quartet of monstrous dog-headed tentacles. The cherubic features were twisted into an expression of malice so profound that even Tiamat was momentarily taken aback.

“Scylla,” she began. Persephone had told her the child’s name – both their names. Tiamat had seen at once why the goddess had recommended them. More, hearing of the cruelties they had endured, she was determined to free them.

“You are not welcome here,” the child hissed. Her dog-heads stirred, tongues lolling, mad eyes gleaming with barely restrained kill-frenzy. Tiamat turned and spread her crackling wings through the waters, causing them to boil and froth about her. “Leave. Do not disturb her. We have had enough of gods and goddesses.”

“Your compassion does you credit, Scylla. Even in your madness, you have not forgotten your sister. But rest easy, I mean neither her nor you any harm.” Tiamat extended a clawed talon. “On the contrary, child, I am here to help you both.”

“Help…us?” asked a voice, from the mouth of the cave. The frothing waters stilled. “No one can help us. We are cursed…cursed…”

“Yes,” Tiamat said. “By Zeus.”

“Zeus.” The voice had become a full-throated snarl. The waters began to grow agitated once more. In the dark of the cave, something moved. Coming closer. “I hate him.”

“We hate him,” Scylla added, her dog-heads growling in excitement.

Tiamat leaned forward her eyes gleaming. “As well you should. He has hurt you. And for that, he should be punished, don’t you think?”

A small form stepped out of the cave, one leg manacled to a heavy, barnacle encrusted chain. A child – a girl – much like Scylla, save that one arm was hidden beneath a tattered cloak. But she was no child, not really. Not anymore. Or, rather, she was a child only the mother of monsters could love.

Charybdis looked up at Tiamat, her innocent features twisted into an expression of predatory glee. “Yes,” she said, smiling fiercely. “Oh yes.”

### Vengeance

Gilgamesh charged through the surf, the roar of the sea loud in his ears. A geyser of water rose upwards to an impossible height, dragging much of the unfortunate fishing fleet – and their crews – with it. Mortals tumbled through the air as their vessels were crushed and broken by the force of the geyser. He could hear something below the screams and the crash of water – a high, thin sound – like the singing of a child.

As he puzzled over this, a gust of air rocked him as the Roman deity, Mercury, sped past, running across the very surface of the water. “I’ll catch the sailors, can you get them to shore?” he shouted, his words coming so quickly that they nearly blurred into one. Mercury was gone before Gilgamesh could reply, racing around the circumference of the geyser, snatching hapless mortals out of the air as he went. Those he caught, he deposited safely in the shallows near Gilgamesh before speeding back to rescue others.

Gilgamesh gestured towards the shore. “Go – see to your families,” he bellowed in his most authoritative voice – the voice of a king. “Get as far from the water as you can!” They went, faces tight with fear. He heard a shout and turned to see Mercury hurled towards shore by a sudden undulation of water.

A wave rose, and Gilgamesh met it with a sweep of his blade, parting the turbulent waters to reveal their attacker. She seemed to be no more than a child – a young girl. He hesitated, unprepared for the sight, though Bellona and the others had warned him. Her dark eyes fixed on him, and he was struck by the rage in them – the sheer, unadulterated hatred.

Was this the being responsible for the devastation that had swept the coasts since the dissipation of Tiamat’s storm? It seemed inconceivable. In the weeks following Zeus’ successful calming of the skies, a new threat had occupied the attentions of the Olympians and their allies. Savage attacks on dozens of coastal towns and island villages had drawn the gods’ eyes from Tiamat’s temple-palace to the lands of their worshippers.

Gilgamesh had faced monsters before – but this was no monster. Merely a child. He was a king and kings did not make war on children. He made to speak, to bid her surrender, and she flung back the ragged edge of her cloak to reveal a monstrous growth where her arm ought to have been. The growth pulsed, and Gilgamesh was nearly knocked backwards by a forceful exhalation of water. “I don’t know you,” the child – the monster – said. “You’re not an Olympian. But it doesn’t matter. If you stand with them, you’re my enemy too.”

Gilgamesh was driven steadily backwards by the stream of water. Dazed, he shook his head. He heard the splash of footsteps and only just manage to interpose his sword as a dagger sought his vitals. The girl leapt back at his riposte, a snarl of fury on her face. He raised his sword and made to pursue, but the water surged suddenly, separating them.

He turned as the broad form of Poseidon rose from the waves, trident in hand. “Leave her, boy. She is not yours to face. You are no Olympian, whatever Zeus might say.”

Gilgamesh was about to remark on Poseidon’s impertinence when he heard a crash from nearby. He turned and saw Bellona running up the buckling deck of a sinking ship as the second of their opponents rose over the shattered prow – another child, but this one more clearly monstrous. Scylla, they called this one. Serpentine dog-heads lunged out from under the child’s flowing dress and arrowed towards Bellona, snapping at her as she fended them off. The goddess fought to defend the hapless mortal crew, alongside Mulan and Arthur.

Yemoja and Susano were nearby, attempting to calm the raging waters stirred up by the two monsters before they smashed into the fishing village. As he watched, the first monster flung out her grotesque arm, causing the waters to rise in a frenzy. It was all the two gods could do to contain her power. His hand tightened on the hilt of his sword. “Where is Zeus?” he demanded, looking at Poseidon. “He should be here by now. These people belong to him, after all. They are his worshippers.”

“My brother picks his moments – he will strike only when he is certain of victory,” Poseidon said. “Charybdis will be chained once more, and Scylla with her. Both of them will be…where they belong.” There was something in his voice as he said it – regret, perhaps. Gilgamesh studied him.

He knew little of the two creatures they faced, save that they seemed to bear his ally a grudge – and that Tiamat had freed the one called Charybdis. The two creatures had gone on a rampage in the days since, flooding the land, toppling temples and ravaging towns.

He looked back at Charybdis. “What is she?”

“My daughter,” Poseidon said, softly. His expression was one of pain as he watched his child battle his fellow Olympians. “Zeus…punished her, for a mistake I made.” He looked at Gilgamesh. “That is who you have allied yourself with, King Gilgamesh. My brother is courageous, but also arrogant and spiteful.”

Gilgamesh made no reply. Poseidon moved into the water – not towards Charybdis, but rather towards Scylla. As he watched, the Olympian drove his trident into the water, and a wave swelled and smashed into the monster, carrying her away from Bellona and the others. She squalled in fury as Poseidon moved to engage her, his face an unreadable mask.

Bellona and the others splashed towards him. The goddess of war shook wet hair from her face. “I will have words with that old fool after this – Scylla was mine,” she groused.

“We are not here for them, but for the mortals,” Mulan said. “Better this fight had not happened at all.” She looked at Gilgamesh. “The fishermen?”

“Alive. The same cannot be said of their ships.”

Bellona shrugged. “They can build more ships.”

“And in the meantime, they starve,” Mulan said, flatly. “Their children starve. All because we chose this place to make a stand.”

Bellona rounded on her. “It is not we who started this…those two monsters have been preying on the towns and villages of the Ionian Sea for weeks now, ever since Tiamat freed them. If we had not intervened, who knows what they might have done.”

“And if Zeus had not cursed them, had not bound them, there would be no fight at all,” Mulan said, not flinching from the other goddess’ gaze. “It is all of one piece. You cannot take one from the other.” She looked towards the shore, and the flooded town. “Time and again the gods fight one another, and time and again, it is this world and the people who inhabit it that suffers the repercussions of our inability to simply talk to one another.”

Gilgamesh’s eyes strayed to where Arthur herded a group of discombobulated mortals to shore, using Excalibur to part the waves that threatened to drag them back out to sea. Merlin was nowhere to be seen, but that was not surprising. He had his own plans, that one.

“Suffering is part of war,” Bellona said. “Better a little suffering now than what they’ll endure at Tiamat’s claws. Isn’t that right, Gilgamesh?”

Mulan frowned. “Is it? Because she had done nothing until you attacked her.” She looked at Gilgamesh. Again, he felt a flicker of discomfort as her words struck home. Once, he had made his own people’s lives miserable with his unthinking arrogance. Was he doing the same now? He tried to push the thought aside, but it lingered like a bad smell.

“What would you have had me do?” he asked, meeting her gaze. “I am not in the habit of letting my enemies choose the battlefield.” Bellona nodded in agreement. She had counselled attacking swiftly, before Tiamat even realized Gilgamesh had returned. He’d seen the wisdom of it then, but now…

“There are other ways to wage war,” Mulan pressed. “Did you consider any of them?”

Gilgamesh paused. In truth, he was coming to wonder if he had not made a mistake. Perhaps he’d allowed his eagerness to guide him into a rash decision. He did not say so, of course. Instead, he started towards shore, still pondering the matter. If there was a different way, perhaps he was the one destined to find it.

“Come, let us see to the evacuation. Before any more of these mortals are harmed.”

\*

Charybdis drew the waters up and lashed out at the gods moving towards her. They were trying to trap her. Mercury darted past her torrent and raced for her, a length of chain in his hands. Magic chain, she knew, forged especially to bind her.

She stepped back, skipping across the surface of the water as lightly as she once had at her father’s behest. Poseidon. He was here too, somewhere – watching. Just as he’d watched her in her imprisonment. Never speaking, never visiting. Just watching. As if he were ashamed of her, or maybe himself. Or maybe he’d just been making sure she stayed where she was, chained to the bottom of the ocean floor.

It didn’t matter anymore. She was free. Free to destroy the world that had been denied her by a god’s pronouncement. She would crush every boat and drown every mortal if that was what it took to make Zeus face her.

Mercury reached her a moment later, slowed somewhat by the weight of the chains. He swung them, and caught her arm – her normal arm. She cried out in pain as the magics sapped her strength. “Scylla – help me!”

Laughing, Scylla scythed through the roiling waters and one of her dog-heads snapped at Mercury, forcing him to release the chain and flee. Scylla took up position beside her, a mad grin stretched across her cherubic features. “This is so much fun,” she giggled. “So many playmates for us to bend and break!”

Charybdis winced as she untangled the chain and cast it away. “We are not doing this because it’s fun, Scylla – we are doing it to draw out Zeus. To punish him.” Every place and vessel they had attacked had held a shrine to Zeus, or been dedicated to his name. Every mortal sent fleeing had done so with a prayer to Zeus on their lips. She’d been certain it would draw him out. But so far, he was nowhere to be seen, and now the other Olympians had caught up with them. “Perhaps we should retreat and try again later…”

Scylla sneered. “Things are just getting good! Besides, if we make enough trouble for them, he’s certain to show up.” She giggled again as the other gods drew near. Some Charybdis recognized, others she did not. But all of them seemed intent on preventing she and Scylla from completing the destruction of the village.

Mercury skidded to a stop nearby. “If you want Zeus, he’ll be here directly…” He glanced up. Instinctively, Charybdis followed his gaze.

Lightning split the sky.

A thunderbolt struck the water and flung Charybdis one way and Scylla the other. Stunned, Charybdis looked up to see Zeus descending from on high, another crackling bolt held ready in his fist. He scowled down at her. “I thought you’d have learned your lesson last time, child. If you’d had any sense, you’d have stayed at the bottom of the sea where I put you. Both of you.”

Scylla recovered first. She shrieked wordlessly and leapt from the water. Zeus flung his thunderbolt and caught her full in the chest, knocking her back into the water. He dropped into the surf and reached for Scylla, hauling her up by the front of her dress. She lolled in his grip, stunned. He looked at Mercury. “The chain. Get it.”

Mercury hastened to obey. Zeus looked at Charybdis. She bared her teeth at him. “You wanted them to tire us out, didn’t you? Too cowardly to meet us in battle yourself. Maybe that’s why you’re not king anymore.”

Zeus smirked. “What I am or am not is not yet decided. But in this moment, you are my prisoner once again, daughter of Poseidon – and for the same reason. You made yourself an ally of my enemy, and that is never wise…is it, brother?”

Charybdis felt a presence behind her and turned. Her father stood behind her, his trident aimed at her throat. Zeus joined him. Poseidon gazed at her sorrowfully. “These mortals have done nothing to you, daughter. They are innocent. You cannot be allowed to harm them. I cannot allow it.”

“You – you cannot allow it?” she snarled, her monstrous limb swelling and pulsing as she rose to her feet, the water lapping at her. “I served you, father – I loved you – and you let Zeus make me this. I was as innocent as these mortals. Was I not as deserving of your protection?”

Poseidon stared at her. Then, slowly, he bowed his head. “I am sorry, my daughter. I am so sorry.” The tip of the trident wavered. Mercury was racing towards them, chains in hand. Charybdis bowed her head as well. Some part of her had known it would end this way. It was her fate to be betrayed and forgotten.

“Why do you apologize, brother? It is her foolishness which is to blame, not yours. Not this time.” Zeus reached out a hand for the chain, as Mercury drew near. He turned to greet the approaching god.

Poseidon whirled and drove the ferrule of his trident into Zeus’ midsection, doubling him over. At the same moment, the ocean heaved and Mercury was hurled into the air. A wave caught him and dragged him under.

Zeus staggered, a look of surprise on his face. Poseidon gestured, and another wave crashed down, flattening the former king of Olympus. “That won’t keep him down for long,” Poseidon said as he looked at his daughter. Charybdis stared at him in shock. He must have taken her surprise for hesitation, for he added, “I do not expect you to forgive me, child – but you must listen. Zeus will recover in a few moments and I cannot protect you from all of them. We must go. Now.”

Charybdis started to reply – stopped. Then, “Scylla too. We cannot leave her.”

Poseidon hesitated, but only for a moment. “Of course.” He stooped and picked up Scylla, cradling her against his chest. Moments later, they dove beneath the riotous waters and began to swim away, faster than any could follow.

“Where are we going, father?” Charybdis asked.

“The only place we can go, child. To seek sanctuary with the one who freed you.” Poseidon glanced at her.

“War is here, and I have chosen my side.”

### Cry of the Banshee

Zeus fell from the heavens like a thunderbolt. Scylla rose to meet the former king of Olympus, a wild grin on her cherubic features. The sea shook at the violence of their meeting, as if the very waters were in pain. Perhaps they were. Merlin watched the struggle from a safe distance away, hidden by his strongest magics. He wanted none of the gods present to sense him – especially Arthur. They would not understand why he’d come, and he had no wish to waste his time attempting to explain. He would tell them when the deed was done, and not before.

Nearby, a crew of terrified fisherman were herded onto shore by Zeus’ allies, including King Gilgamesh. As ever in the conflicts of the gods, it was the mortals who suffered the worst. When great powers strove against one another, the weak were often caught in the middle. Merlin considered intervening – his magics might bring the battle to a swift conclusion. But that would not serve his greater purpose…so he did nothing.

In any event, the newcomer was making a good showing – he played the role of the protector well, if not gladly. Arthur, on the other hand, had been born for it. His eyes strayed to the man he’d made king, and he felt a flush of pride as Arthur shattered the hull of a hurled boat before it could strike the knot of cowering fishermen. As was inevitable in such moments, his thoughts turned to Camelot – to all that could have been.

But Camelot was gone. The Camelot they knew, at least. In this time and place it was just some nameless village in the wilds of Britannia, and its people were woad-painted savages who worshiped their own gods. In a few centuries it might well resemble the land they had left. Or maybe not. Maybe it would be something new.

Merlin knew that he could make it be as it was. He could transform it – by guile and force and luck. There was strength in him enough for that. He had considered it, in the wake of Cthulhu’s defeat. Some of the gods might frown in displeasure, but none would gainsay him. After all, had he and Arthur not defended those lands as if they were their own?

All that had stopped him was the sure knowledge of Arthur’s disapproval. In the end, it had been enough. He could endure anything save that.

“He is in his element,” a familiar voice murmured, close beside him. He stiffened, ready to unleash a sorcerous blast, but forced himself to relax. He turned to see Morgan Le Fay standing nearby, a serene look on her face.

“Yes,” he said. “Come to help your monstrous allies, Morgan?”

“Not my allies. Say rather, the allies of my ally.” She gestured to the roiling sea and the combatants. “Perhaps not even that. Tiamat freed Charybdis, but she did not intend for her to go on a rampage. She thought the sisters would head straight for Olympus.”

“She should have known better. Monsters cannot be trusted.”

Morgan shrugged. “I said much the same. I was ignored.”

“She treats you poorly, then. Perhaps you chose the wrong side.”

\*

The only side I am on is mine, Merlin. The same as you.”

Merlin frowned. “I serve Arthur.”

She gestured towards Arthur. “Then why are you not at his side? Why are you lurking here, hidden behind a veil of magic?”

Anger washed through him, but again he restrained himself. “Did you come for a fight, Morgan? If so, we can have at it.” He held up a hand and fire kindled about his fingers. For a moment, he thought she might take him up on his offer. The sword that hovered behind her quivered. Then she gestured and the blade dipped.

“I did not come to fight. I did not know you would be here.” She looked at him. “In fact, why are you here?”

“For the same reason you are, no doubt.” Merlin’s eyes never left Arthur as he spoke. “Look at him.”

“What am I supposed to see? A king? A god?”

“A good man,” Merlin said. “He is not here for glory or revenge; he came to help. Because it was the right thing to do.”

“You sound surprised.”

“Well, perhaps I am. I didn’t teach him that.”

Morgan laughed. “No, nor I!”

Merlin glanced at her. “No. We taught him many things between us, but never how to be kind. He needed no help from us on that score.”

Morgan’s expression softened, but only for a moment. “Do you ever regret it, Merlin? Taking that innocent youth and twisting him into your ideal king?”

“Every day,” Merlin said, without hesitation. “But I would do it all again.” He paused. Talking with Morgan was always dangerous – more dangerous than facing her in battle. She was clever and cunning, and could twist any crumb of information – no matter how incidental – to her own ends, if she so desired. But in this instance, it did not matter. She would know his purpose soon enough, if she didn’t already. “I came here for the same reason you did,” he repeated. “To speak to her.”

Morgan was silent for several moments. Then, softly, “I forgot that you could hear her song as well.” She looked at him. “You know what her presence means, I trust?”

“I do.” Again, his gaze strayed to the man he had taught to be king. Arthur was shepherding mortals to shore, keeping them calm, allaying their fears, as he had done innumerable times before, even in the direst of circumstances. It was, quite simply, who he was. And it was why he would never truly side with Gilgamesh in his war. Arthur’s gift was that he always chose the right side, if not necessarily the winning side. And there was no right side here. He looked at her. “Do you know what it means, Morgan? Truly?”

“It means the end,” Morgan said. “An end,” Merlin corrected.

Morgan snorted. “Semantics.” She paused. “I heard her in the Celtic lands, you know – during the war against Cthulhu. I often wondered if that was what you were doing while Arthur met the creature’s servants on the battlefield.”

“No. I was looking for a different sort of ally.”

Morgan frowned, perplexed. “Who?”

Merlin hesitated. “Jormungandr.”

\*

Morgan stared at him for a moment, and then laughed. Merlin tried to speak, and she waved him to silence, still laughing. “No, no – give me a moment,” she wheezed. She eyed him and then fell to laughing again. Merlin waited for her to regain control, his temper fraying. Finally, Morgan wiped a tear from her eye and said, “You hoped to – what? Convince the dragon to fight Cthulhu? On the gods’ behalf?”

“No,” Merlin said, stiffly. “On behalf of the mortals.”

Morgan shook her head. “He would not have listened to you, Merlin.”

“It does not matter in any event. I could not find him.”

Morgan laughed again. “Then you must not have been trying very hard.” She gestured airily. “Jormungandr went north, after his defeat. The lands most familiar to him, I expect. He encountered that loathsome worm, Fafnir, and drove him out, taking the dragon’s fiefdom for himself. The mortals who inhabited those lands regard him as a saviour. They sacrifice a fatted calf to him at every turning of the moon, and he in turn protected them from Cthulhu’s madness.”

Merlin stared at her. “How do you know all of this?”

Morgan shrugged. “I made it a point to learn the creature’s fate, given all the trouble he caused. I thought the knowledge of his whereabouts might prove valuable.”Merlin peered at her. “You have not told Tiamat yet.” It was not a question.

“No.”

“Why? Surely Jormungandr would make a fine ally for her.”

Another shrug. “A secret told too soon is worthless.”

Before Merlin could reply, their conversation was interrupted by the faint sound of someone singing. Faint, but growing louder. A woman’s voice, but there was a hollowness to it that put Merlin in mind of newly dug graves. It sent a chill through him, and from the look on Morgan’s face she felt similarly. “She’s here,” he said, and she nodded.

“Cliodhna,” she murmured. “Queen of the Banshees.” In their world, Cliodhna had been but a legend; dimly recalled and little spoken of, save as a warning to the unwary. But here, she was as mighty and as terrible as those tales promised. And, as the old stories had promised, she was drawn to places of great suffering and fear. This place was certainly that, at least for the moment.

She was clad in ragged robes the color of night, and her flesh was all but translucent. Her bones glowed faintly, giving her a ghostly appearance. She approached across the water, moving lightly atop the waves. The sea surged and fell about her, as if eager to deliver her to land, or perhaps to simply be rid of her presence.

Her song rose and fell like the waves, and Merlin winced as she drew nearer. She paused, standing unseen and unheard among the gathered mortals on the shore – as if taking a tally of them. Merlin glanced at Morgan, and then cleared his throat.

Cliodhna ceased singing and turned her chill gaze upon them. She betrayed no surprise at their presence. Instead, she smiled and Merlin felt another chill run through him. “My lady,” he called out. “I would speak with you.”

“We would speak with you,” Morgan interjected, glaring at him.

Cliodhna drifted towards them, in no great hurry. “I know you both,” she said. “You are familiar to me and yet not. You belong to another age, another turn of the wheel. And yet here you are – lost.” The air grew cold around them as she approached. The queen of the banshees radiated a fell power that Merlin knew was as old as his own – older even. The sort of power that had weathered the world’s ending more than once, and would again. “Yes, I know you both and I know what you wish to ask me.”

Merlin glanced at Morgan. “And your answer?”

Cliodhna studied them both in silence, her spectral features showing nothing of her thoughts. “We of the Tuatha De Danannan take no sides in the wars of the gods,” she said at last. “To do so would be to unbalance the great cycle.”

“It is already worse than unbalanced,” Morgan said, sharply. She pointed an accusing finger at Merlin. “It is broken! Thanks to him and those like him!” She took a step towards Cliodhna. “But with your power, we might yet fix things…”

Cliodhna shook her head. “You cannot fix what is not broken.”

Merlin frowned. “What do you mean? Jormungandr was defeated. The cycle was averted…wasn’t it?”

Cliodhna stroked his cheek with something like tenderness, and he could not help but shudder in revulsion at her cold touch. “So arrogant. To think that you could halt what must be. You have only delayed the inevitable. And one dragon will do as well as another.”

Morgan hesitated, looking back and forth between them. “What do you mean? Tiamat has no intention of ending the world.”

Cliodhna’s smile was as cold as the grave. “What is intended and what is accomplished are often two different things. Something you both well know.”

Merlin paused. “If defeating Jormungandr did not break the cycle – what would?” He asked the question without thinking, mind still awhirl with the realization of how futile his sacrifices – and Arthur’s – had been. Morgan seemed equally stunned.

Cliodhna turned, her bleak gaze fixing upon the mortals. “The gods are a fire, growing in strength until they consume themselves and the world. The fire rages and new growth occurs when it finally snuffs itself out. That has always been the way of it. But fire can be managed – controlled. It does not have to rage unchecked.”

“Controlled – how?”

Cliodhna glanced at him. “You know how. The question is whether you can bring yourselves to do it.”

Merlin stared at her, trying to understand. What did it mean? The answer came to him then, and he felt a queasy sensation in his stomach as he realized what must be done.

He stepped back and looked at Morgan. “There is no right side,” he said.

Morgan frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“Gilgamesh – Tiamat. There is no right side. There is no war to be won.” He gestured, indicating the flooded town, the frightened fisherman, the battle raging between the gods and those they’d wronged. “There will always be another dragon. Another Jormungandr or Cthulhu or Tiamat. In the end, the fire will not be denied. So, it must be controlled.”

Morgan stared at him in bewilderment. “I don’t understand…what are you saying?”

“A secret told too soon is worthless,” he said, repeating her earlier words back to her. “But a secret told too late is equally so.” Forgetting himself, he caught her by the shoulders. It was as if they were master and student once more, all enmity forgotten.

“You mean…?” she began, eyes wide.

“Yes,” he said. “I think it is time to introduce one dragon to another...”

### Dragonfire

“Morgan tells me that you cannot be trusted,” Tiamat rumbled. She glanced down at the figure who stood beside her on the snow-capped peak of a mountain. Below them, the icy panorama of the northern forests spread out as far as the eye could see.

“She is a funny one to speak of such things,” Merlin said. He looked up and met her gaze without flinching. “But you can rely on me, in this matter at least.”

Tiamat gave a raspy laugh. “Let us hope so. For your sake.” She leaned down, fixing him with glittering eyes. “You both agree that the answers I seek are here, in this uncivilized place.” She swept out a claw, indicating the forested valley below. A few stray plumes of smoke rose from among the trees, indicating mortal habitation. “But until now, you have sided with my enemies – with Gilgamesh. Why should I trust you now?”

Merlin paused, considering his next words carefully. Morgan had warned him that Tiamat was unpredictable. She was searching for a reason to lash out, to give in to her worse nature. “You seek the same thing that Olorun does – a reason for all that has occurred. If you discover it, it may well convince him to put aside his hesitation and join you, against Gilgamesh and Zeus and all the others who seek your undoing.”

“And why would he do that?”

“Because Olorun is no fool. He desires the safety of the world as much as you do. As much as you claim to do.” He knew he risked provoking her with such words, but she had to be made to see. Else all he had done was for nothing. Tiamat was the key – he was certain of it now. Cliodna had as good as told him that.

She growled low in her throat as she studied him. Then, she jabbed him in the sternum with a claw; not hard enough to harm him, but enough to make him stumble back a few steps. “Careful, Merlin. Thus far you have given me no reason to show you any kindness. Not like gentle Poseidon, who brought my wayward wards back to me after their foolish rampage.”

Merlin rubbed his chest. “Yes, well, one should know better than to trust the wisdom of monsters.” He hesitated. “Present company excluded, obviously.”

“Obviously,” Tiamat said, in an amused growl. She turned back towards the valley. “Where is he then, this fearsome guardian of the world cycle?”

“I am here, listening to you,” an awful, familiar voice snarled. The sound of it made Merlin’s blood curdle in his veins. Instinctively, he fell into a defensive stance and began to weave a spell, though he could not tell where Jormungandr’s voice had come from. But a gesture from Tiamat prevented him from completing it.

She extended her crackling wings and reared to her full, impressive height. “Come out, little one. Let me see you.”

Big as Tiamat was, Jormungandr was bigger. The peak shook as he rose from beneath the snows, shedding it from his dark scales. Merlin realized that the creature had been coiled about the peak, likely sleeping when they’d arrived. He stretched himself up over them, his great head bent so that he could study them.

“Merlin,” Jormungandr said. “Have you come to try and finish me off? It is not enough that you humbled me? Give me one good reason that I should not swallow you whole, here and now…”

Tiamat interposed herself between them. “I am the reason, little one.”

Jormungandr paused. “Little?”

Tiamat flapped her wings and rose into the air. “You are a child. Children are little, even when they are grown. You know me – or if not me, then what I am. You might have made the sea your home, but I am the sea. And everything in it belongs to me.”

Jormungandr faced her. “I belong to no one, ancient one.” Merlin thought he detected something in the creature’s voice – respect, perhaps.

Merlin stepped out from behind her. “We did not come to fight, Jormungandr.”

“Then why did you come, Merlin?” Jormungandr asked, swinging his head towards Merlin. “Why do you disturb me in my exile?”

“We need your help,” Merlin said.

Jormungandr stared at them both for long moments, and then loosed a thunderous guffaw. “My help?” He shook his wide head and turned as if to depart. “It is too late for me to help you, Merlin. Or any of the gods.”

“You need do nothing save tell me how to fix what is broken,” Tiamat growled. She rose into the air and circled Jormungandr, preventing his departure. He bristled with anger, and his growl caused avalanches of snow to roll down the cliff.

“Watch your tone, old one. While you slept, I saw to the balance.”

“A balance that would not have been necessary had the gods not condemned me to a dreamless slumber,” Tiamat snarled. Jormungandr reared up to face her.

“But they did. You were humbled as was I. And now things are as they are.”

The two faced one another, and the air rippled with their anger. Tiamat had been spoiling for a fight, and Jormungandr had never shied away from one. Merlin took a step back, wondering if he ought to leave them to it. The problem of Tiamat might solve itself. Something flickered out of the corner of his eye and he turned.

Cliodna.

She stood some distance away, watching them. He did not know when she had arrived, or how, but she was here now, watching them. Waiting. Merlin felt his urge to depart drain away as he met her cool gaze. If Cliodna was here, then this was a moment heralding great bloodshed – great doom. If he left Tiamat to face Jormungandr, the world might well crack beneath the ferocity of their conflict.

He could not allow that to happen. Not here. Not now. It was up to him. He steeled himself. “I am the one who broke the balance,” he said. “The fault is mine. I saw only the destruction you brought, Jormungandr – not the creation that followed. I thought I was doing what was right. But I only made things worse. Even as I did with Camelot.”

Jormungandr studied him. Then he gave a long, rumbling sigh and the tension eased from his serpentine frame. “You are not the first.”

Merlin looked up sharply. “What?”

“You are not the first. It is in the nature of the gods to struggle against fate. Mostly they don’t succeed. Sometimes they do. But when they do, things get worse. The world frays beneath the weight of their conflict. Cracks form, and things from outside creep in.”

“Cthulhu,” Merlin said.

“Cthulhu is one of them, yes. I bound him long ago, during a previous turn of the wheel. He thought to make the newborn world his own, and I stopped him.” Jormungandr leaned towards Merlin. “But there are worse things than the Great Dreamer waiting in the darkness…and more powerful by far. Unless the world cycle is repaired.

”“And you know how to do this?” Merlin asked.

Jormungandr gave a rumbling laugh. “Oh yes, Merlin. But I do not think you have the stomach for it. Either of you.”

Merlin felt a chill at his words, and glanced towards where he’d last seen Cliodna. She was gone now, as if she had never been. The crisis had been averted, if only for the moment. But the point had been made. Something had to happen. Something had to change – or else what came next might make Cthulhu’s rampage seem as the gentlest of spring rains. What was wrong had to be put right.

Merlin looked at his ally. She nodded slowly and looked at Jormungandr.

“Tell us,” Tiamat said, simply.

Gilgamesh pushed the doors of Tiamat’s temple-palace wide, and strode inside boldly, but without the aggression of his first visit. Zeus, Bellona and the others followed him. Besides his original allies, only three other gods accompanied him – Mulan, Arthur and Chaac. Olorun had insisted on keeping the group small. Too many might be seen as an attack; something they all wished to avoid at the moment.

In the wake of Charybdis’ attack, Gilgamesh had had time to think about what he had learned, and, perhaps more importantly, what he had observed. He had expected Tiamat to make war on Olympus, on any pantheon she deemed a rival to her ambitions. Marduk and the other gods of Babylon had warned him that her rage would not be contained – that she would sweep over the world like a floodtide and drown it in darkness.

But she had not. Instead, she had restrained herself. She had made allies and fought only when attacked. Charybdis’ rampage had been uncoordinated, designed to draw out Zeus. But once it failed, no more attacks had come in the days that followed. Only…silence. As if Tiamat were chagrined by the actions of the beings she had taken under her wing.

Gilgamesh glanced at Zeus. The former king of Olympus was subdued. Shaken, perhaps, by Poseidon’s betrayal. From what he knew of his ally, Zeus had been humbled repeatedly since his release from the underworld, but he refused to change his ways. Gilgamesh wondered if that was how Enkidu had seen him – bull-headed, egotistical and unwilling to back down, even when in the wrong. But in the end, he had learned better. So too might Zeus, if given the chance.

“Where are you, traitor?” Zeus roared suddenly, his voice echoing like thunder. “Face me, brother! Or I will bring this temple down around your ears.”

“Calm yourself, Thunderer,” Chaac said. “We are not here to soothe your ego.”

“Then why are you here?” a voice called out. Gilgamesh paused.

“Neith,” Zeus grunted. He seemed taken aback by the speaker.

“To talk,” Gilgamesh said, loudly. “To speak to the mistress of this place.” He held up his sword, spun it around and sheathed it. Then he stepped forward, hands empty.

Others emerged as well. Some Gilgamesh recognized from his brief time in Olympus, others he knew only by reputation. Cunning Persephone, aged Sylvanus, mountainous Geb…even the earth-mother, Terra. Poseidon stood among them, beside his daughter Charybdis. She glared at the newcomers with obvious malice, but when she made to step forward, Poseidon restrained her with a gentle touch.

“And what could you have to say to her?” Neith replied, stepping into the open. The question was not hostile, but simply inquisitive.

“That is between she and I, my lady,” Gilgamesh said. He paused. “There are more of you than I thought.”

“Not enough,” Zeus said. Lightning sparked off of him. Neith looked at him briefly and then turned her gaze back to Gilgamesh.

“Yes. There are many who desire an end to this ceaseless cycle of conflict. An end to the choosing of sides. An end to the destruction.” Neith looked around. “The weave of fate has become frayed. It must be repaired, and Tiamat will be instrumental.”

“And how do you know this?” Chaac demanded.

“Because I have seen it,” Neith said, serenely.

“And what else have you seen?” Gilgamesh asked, softly.

She smiled sadly. “Not that.”

Gilgamesh grunted and shook his head. “I should have guessed it would not be so easy. Nothing worth having is ever easily attained, I suppose. Or so Enkidu used to say.” He sighed. “Fine. She is instrumental. How?”

Neith did not reply. From behind him, he heard Zeus laugh. “She does not know.”

“Is that true?” Gilgamesh asked.

Neith frowned, looking suddenly uncertain. “As I said, the weave of fate is frayed – the future is unwritten, and the past comes unravelled. What was once immutable is now fluid. Ragnarok was the spark. All that has occurred since is because of it.”

Zeus took a step towards Neith, and brandished a crackling fist. “Then where is Hades? Should he not be here as well, given that his is the hand that kindled that spark?”

“My husband is seeing to his duties,” Persephone said, as she stepped to join Neith. “As he should have done from the first. I speak for him, in this.”

“Perhaps I should send you back to him as a pile of ashes,” Zeus said. He lifted his hand, as if to summon a bolt of lightning. Persephone tensed – but before anyone could react, Mulan had her sword drawn and pressed to Zeus’ throat. A moment later, Bellona had her own blade drawn, but she stepped back at Gilgamesh’s gesture.

“And then we will be right back where we started – at each other’s throats, warring while the world burns,” Mulan said firmly. She looked at Gilgamesh as she slowly pulled her sword away from Zeus’ throat. “That is why we are here, remember? To talk – to find some common ground, before we succumb to the same pointless conflict that has consumed the pantheons since Hades tried to claim the power of Ragnarok for himself.”

“Mulan is right,” Persephone said, hurriedly, and something in her tone made Gilgamesh wonder whether she had been waiting for this moment. She turned to Neith and the others who’d allied with Tiamat. “Tiamat was right to restrain herself. War has only ever brought us more war. We are creatures of conflict, but never like this – never to such a scale as has become common of late. That is the flaw that Tiamat has seen, that we have all seen. And now we must do something about it.”

“You are both right.” Gilgamesh took a deep breath – and sat down, arranging himself cross-legged on the floor. He peered up at Neith, taking some small pleasure in the look of surprise on her face. “There has been too much war of late, I think. Too many battles for too little gain.” He smiled.

“I think it is time to try something different.”