Fragments of Chaldea

The lahmu are supposed to be as powerful as sphinxes, but I decided to pull a slight nerf on them. Yes, they’re powerful, but as stated in canon, they’re still learning. As such, they have basic instincts still, but also unrefined combat skills. Throwing themselves at the enemy hive-mind style becomes a viable tactic earlier, but their combat effectiveness is worse as well. It’s why chewing through them is fairly easy with so many powerful servants present.

It’s about time for the humor to evaporate. Babylonia was a mix of both, but we’ve hit the drama and tragedy of the latter half. What better way to mark that than two deaths at once, plus a lot of fairly gory scenes. I felt I toned them down well enough, because the original draft had them pretty gruesome by comparison. Again, if it feels a touch to descriptive, I can bump the rating to M.

Samila’s death was guaranteed already based on the singularity, but I wished to make it impactful to two people at once. It serves as a stark contrast of reaction based on another death in Their Guiding Light. Gilgamesh’s way of handling death of someone he understands and accepts is well composed and stark compared to most. Medusa, who has been dragged through mud, helped serve as the direct visual to this.

Siduri’s goodbye scene was fairly tragic as it is, but I decided to bump it a touch. I wanted a way to show how far Gilgamesh has come, and it made for a fairly good spot to do it. It also made it more meaningful since there’s now a servant with confirmation it was actually her instead of just the white-flag-waving reference.

Also, there’s some slight alterations done to the canonical timeline here. Ushiwakamaru was directly responsible for letting the grail slip away, but she only stopped Gabrielle’s team here. That means there’s nothing stopping Gudao’s from intercepting the grail, but I have a workaround for that next chapter. It’s a minor adaptation, but its results will be fairly obvious.S

The first one is pretty recognizable. It can play during the beginning battle sequences too for extra emotion, but it’s mainly for Samila’s scene (V).

The second one is for Siduri’s scene. (VIII)

One thing people would want to see besides Enkidu and Gilgamesh properly reuniting? The two fighting. Too bad it’s Kingu though. It did give me leeway for some interesting changes and adaptations though. One would be his lack of the Presence Detection A+ and some other skills. Technically its manipulation, but I can take some creative liberty where I please at times. Make things more interesting and so forth.

I also did it when Gilgamesh closes in to actually do a close quarters sequence. Usually he would be at a disadvantage, but sometimes it’s fun to play with symbolic meanings. Take Heracles breaking free of Enkidu during the UBW Route to make one final attempt at Gilgamesh, but still fails. That’s not supposed to be possible, but it happened as a literary moment to show he’s overcome a serious obstacle to try and achieve something. In this case, it’s Gilgamesh overcoming his lack of skill in his determination to defeat the imposter (and thus, obtain the cord).

Also, Easter Egg. I’m sure you’ve noticed the uncanny resemblance in the last strike of their duel. As a fun fact, the shield was carefully chosen too, albiet Gilgamesh’s “goldified” version since it’s the original. For those questioning if he’d dare copy that, there’s three points to consider. (1) He has the genuine original, so if a faker could do it with a copy, his pride believes he could do it better. (2) He’s determined to grab that cord, and this is not an enemy to let pride get in the way of that. (3) No one else is looking except maybe Ishtar, but she wouldn’t recognize it.

Bonus (4) In the heat of battle, who knows if he even planned it?

As a small note, the number of monsters is getting pretty ridiculous to try and write. It’s mostly not my numbers though, it’s Nasu’s. The only numbers I bended were the pterosaurs, but that was because there was no number stated to begin with. 100,000 monsters in the second generation though? Sometimes the spectacle creep makes me scratch my head.

But that’s enough harping about numbers. I’ll make it all work when the time comes.

Not much showtime for the actual Tiamat fight, but that was covered heavily in Babylonia. Again, with Medusa’s Fragment being number 48, you can be sure I’ll get back to it. Gotta keep the focus on Gilgamesh, especially with the epic One-on-One duel. Thus, the only others who really get prime showcase are Ishtar and Iskander, who are intercepting monsters trying to interfere. What great wingmen.

You’ll notice the humor dropped significantly since the start. Yup. It’s finally time to throw the tragedy levers. Also, as a side note, if I get too descriptive and gory, please tell me. I’ll either tone it down a bit or bump the rating to M to solve that. The next part of Babylonia was pretty gruesome, and I don’t intend to skimp on that either.

There’s only one soundtrack for this piece, but this week I decided to do an example breakdown of how I visualize it.

Segment VI was a difficult scene to write. The reason is, the canon decisions both don’t actually fit what Gudao would say. He’d have his own unique answer based off of those two combined. Going off that, I wrote the scene as he would answer, and how the jaded Ereshkigal would likely reply. The amount of times I’ve revised this scene is ridiculous, and there was even a last-minute revision to fix an unintended inference from Gudao. You can thank my proofreader SKYS for saving Segment VI by helping me figure out its last, lingering issues.

Everything else turned out fine, honestly. Even the Ozymandias scene flowed smoothly and straight onto the document without any hassle. Yes, the grammar error when he mentions “I and Moses” was also intentional. Closest friend or not, he would definitely place himself first.

Having Ozymandias and Gilgamesh actually talk about their similarities with friends was bound to happen. They’re often depicted and shown as rivals or friends, so this would definitely be one of the key components to that. There are differences, but working with that was simple enough.

I took a spin with certain pseudo-servants still be recognized as “living” by the Chaldea system. To be fair, they did come to Chaldea by very different means, so I felt the stretch was fair.

As shown in the last two scenes, I changed the locations and circumstances involving Ana receiving the wreath. In this one, it’s her whole family getting them and it’s at the palace party. Combining the Embassy party and King Gil’s welcoming party was one of the time savers when condensing parts of the storyline.S

The first was chosen for III, but it can also be played for II.

The second one plays for VIII, but it can work partially for VII as well.

Writing this chapter was both fun and tricky. The same things needed to happen as the canon story, but it had to be woven properly. There were servants to consider, situations to mold, and problems to introduce in order to make it all mesh. As an example, if I decided to bring Karna anywhere, whose skill allows him to read the heart of the individual, then the entire speculation over Quetz would have been ruined in Section I.

Others were easier, like convincing Jaguarman over to their side through use of Emiya bait. I gave a glimpse into the reunion between Jaguarman and Emiya, but nothing too big. Again, while definitely a touching scene, it is not something I wanted to linger on, but I at least gave a glimpse.  

Gilgamesh is starting to show his adjusted colors now by not letting his anger and arrogance get the better of him. I wanted to depict it first using his careful analyzation of what Quetzalcoatl was up to. He’s a very insightful person who’s keen at observation, so it made for a good step.

This supplement has the biggest advancements in “background” development of the masters since the earliest part of fragments. In particular, you’re now aware of the origins of the two masters, which would make sense if you consider how I’ve been making them act. Their elements can be dropped whenever, since they’re not as “crucial” as knowing what their origin is, per se.  

The Utahraptor is a new, very minor addition that obviously wasn’t in the canon story. I didn’t make it part of Quetz’s kit though, but as another beast that roams around the jungle near Eridu. She’s able to call upon its aid, though it’s far weaker than the Quetzalcoatlus that fly about overhead. I thought it was a fitting addition since it’s roughly what the fictional Velociraptor would look like in real life, and I needed some sort of ground-based threat for them.

I usually have to split protag interactions between Gudao and Gabrielle, so while I made Quetz jokingly propose to Gudao, she wound up liking Gabrielle even more. Can you blame her? After pulling that recklessly brave move of her own free will, she was sure to win the rider’s admiration… and Gilgamesh’s scolding.S

The beginning is slow until the 0:41 mark, so it lends itself well to “starting” during the scene before where there’s more contemplation. Everything 0:42 and on is clearly the battle sequence.

Far more action in the chapters to come. This is one of the two last pure dialogue chapters, and the second one will be arriving soon as well.

Compared to the other days, Gilgamesh had a pretty even day today. Though seeing Kingu made his rage boil, it also did wonders to vent his anger. There were also no real arguments since he considers bickering with his other half commonplace at this point. Hope he enjoys the calm before the real storm begins, because the winds will be picking up from here. I won’t go too much into his train of thought because… well, it should be obvious at this point after so many chapters.

Good on you, Enkidu. Pushing Gil to do things when you’re not even present… technically… sorta.

If you thought the final scene looked ambiguously like a marriage, you were kinda right. I did that on purpose, but it’s definitely a top tier platonic relationship I’ve been painting. Clearly that wasn’t the king’s intent; Gilgamesh would just likely wish to make a big deal of that occasion since Enkidu is the only person he’d ever consider a friend.

New characters are starting to play smaller roles in Gilgamesh’s train of thought. Though Iskander is playing a very partial, listening role at the moment, he’ll be more helpful to Gilgamesh later down the line. This chapter it was Ana who unknowingly started a new concept for him. Since his arrogance is being withheld to an extent, he’s noticing more and more things. It just took a small servant with an unknowing statement to make him see the little things that matter.

For those wondering, Medusa isn’t getting too much screentime. She’s suffering from her own nightmare, but I’m not delving into it too deeply because it’s not her story. It’s an unfortunate collateral damage, but it was necessary to trim the fic down from a potentially colossal scale. This was never intended to be a full retelling as glimpsed by the small “anchor” scenes that barely shed light.

That said, longtime fans are well aware how far ahead I plan. So… I will go right ahead and get some hype started early for a change by dropping a reveal: I saved Medusa’s fragment for a reason. It’s number 48.S

This one is for more contemplative scenes. It doesn’t fit for II and VIII though, though it wasn’t chosen for them. It’s a repeat selection, but it’s a great piece.

And now a long battle sequence.

Fortunately, this wasn’t as confusing as writing defending the town during TGL. There were three distinct locations so it was easy for people to get their bearings, though I gave just enough details to describe rough locations. Otherwise, it still roughly followed the plan of the original story as stated… even so much as to the demise of key servants. No matter how much you try, some things will always happen. It’s simply just a matter of designing how it happened to make it feasible and not too contrived.

That was the only real trick. How was Ushiwakamaru going to follow her same path when Chaldea has all these resources? As a free agent, she and Benkei didn’t need to follow any master’s order, nor do they receive the telepathic messages. Cut off communication and draw in a perceived, dire circumstance through instinct, and she’ll still try to do the honorable thing.

The only remaining issue was handling her actual demise, but with enough of Gudao’s forces injured and with no communication, that secures that. Not even Ishtar’s assistance will be enough at that point. It could still be seen as somewhat contrived, but with the condition of Gudao’s team, a tactical withdrawal (or retreat, heh) was still the best bet to at least regain a telepathic link.

On the other hand, Leonidas’ demise was much simpler. He needs someone to protect from the composite goddess, and there just happens to be two very specific targets for the maddened deity. It was honestly a ruthless dose of tragedy to stack them like that, but it definitely did the trick. This is a tragic story after all.

All that lined up smoothly, but I purposefully ensured Gilgamesh and Enkidu would not get that proper fight. With so many around, it just wasn’t possible for them to get an even one on one, but Gilgamesh got a few other things out of it. This chapter didn’t have a huge focus on him, but it was still apparent. There was a lot of added fluff to this piece in particular, and it wound up being a good decision since it became far less convoluted and confusing with inconsistent jumps.S

There’s only one for this chapter, because it’s battle sequences.

That said, I will admit I also played this a few times just for laughs. This is not a real soundtrack pick (joke pick), but it sure as hell fits the theme of the latter half.

This chapter I wanted to portray a few peculiar points from different angles. As many are aware, Gilgamesh has very good self awareness. His sense of self is what caused him to be rejected by the grail at the end of Fate/Zero, but there’s still a difference between knowing who you are, accepting who you are, and acknowledging your faults as something that can be improved. His arrogance has blinded him to what he can be; He’s content and proud of what he is, so why does he need to change? This chapter merely placed the final nail in the coffin after everything he’s heard, witnessed, and experienced in the past ten days.

Fun Fact: Thank the FoC memorial essence mechanic and FGO in general. If it wasn’t for Child Gil’s memories in combination with being in Babylonia, this provides one of the rare extremes that can actually move an ocean.

I decided to give the old woman at the flower shop a name as opposed to what the game did. I’m pretty sure she remained nameless and only served as one plot key, but that’s not fun. I feel like she has some extra potential, so I have her influential to Gilgamesh in a way too.

Lots of moon scenes. If you still haven’t guessed by now, which would be a surprise, it’s a pretty centralized theme that helps tie many things together. I’ll go into my whole opinion of the matter at the “End of Story” insight. The Epilogue will contain the last bits necessary to tie everything completely together, of course.

Besides the end, which is the stepping stone for the first serious battle depiction, this chapter has the final necessary components to Gilgamesh’ call to action. It seemingly took ages for him to realize the true state of things, but it was the only real way. In all honesty, I feel it was a touch short considering how many days they’ve been in the singularity, but there was a lot that he has been through. Now it’s just a matter of making it happen through the guidance of the remaining parts.

As a small side mention, there are only four character slots allowed for mention on FF.net, but if I could have just two more I would add them. They’ve only just reached the start their minor roles in comparison to the others, but Iskander and Ozymandias also play roles in this whole endeavor. Iskander’s begins next chapter though.S

There’s only one soundtrack because it just fits too well with the entire feeling of this chapter… except the end, obviously. That one doesn’t have a piece though.

This chapter has a lot of jumping around than initially designed. Before the poll was placed, this was practically going to be all Gil scenarios when ruling. Admittedly, it may have even grown a tad stale if this were the case, so the extra scenes did help to put some perspective and anchor to the Babylonia story. Not enough, but just enough proper information for those who have not read Babylonia.

It still surprises me how many are reading this and haven’t read either Babylonia or Fragments (or both).

The battle sequence at the lighthouse was intentionally left out. I will not state the full reason, but it was simply redundant with the more heavier weight scene X in the mix. The same case happened for most of the enemy Ishtar’s scene, where she’s pretty much overwhelmed anyway since Chaldea knows exactly what Ishtar is capable of. It pays to have your own servant.

To no surprise, Gilgamesh has a rough start relearning how to be a proper king, and I made sure to explain very clearly why. While it’s mostly the fault of his arrogance, I did enough drops to explain to what extent and what other factors played in. I also made sure to give Siduri some confident attitude to show there were a rare few who were very willing to criticize the king without fear. If anyone was capable of doing that, it was Siduri I’d imagine.

Comedy still sporadically appears in these chapters, but that’s part of the main story too. There’s a lot of uplifting parts to balance the entire story as a whole… and make the ending that much more potentially painful. This is a tragedy, but it’s not a full tragedy. FF.net doesn’t have much variety in terms of picking suitable genres, sadly. Simply enjoy the uplifting parts, because starting in Chapter 5, those are going to be showing up less often.

Soundtrack Disclaimer: The music doesn’t fit 100% all the time since it can’t be customized. When I pick music for a chapter or scene, it’s because it was the most inspiring piece played when writing. While it may work for me and what I visualize, it might not work for you. Feel free to give it a try.

There’s two pieces as usual. First works in the beginning and middle, doing a fair job of bringing the ambiance of the varying scenes.

The second one is better for the much more serious talks, such as VI, VIII, IX, and X.

Complimentary Gilgamesh “Onore” button for the last line!

Time skip! Giant time skip… but it happens in the story too, so that’s fine.

Evidenced here, yes, I did just pull the “character bloat” drawback in spades. There’s now a lot more servants running around alongside already established ones, which could make for some confusion. Just remember, folks, the central characters are always highlighted compared to rest. It’s already fairly obvious who’s going to be followed in this story to help compliment Gilgamesh; Think of the others mainly as fill in their own ways, or as complimenting colors to help paint the scenery around the actual subjects.

I hope this chapter also serves as a precedent and confidence-booster that I can place a whole bunch of servants together without making things too confusing.

In this chapter, it becomes more obvious which scenes are more akin to “fluff” I was talking about when saying if people wanted me to extend the supplement. Some of the newly added scenes are very well hidden, but this chapter makes it fairly obvious which ones were expansions. Specifically, sections II, III, IV, V, and VII are clearly added for fluff value.

What I mean by this, is if you remove those scenes, you don’t really lose any insight into Gilgamesh’s character development. In regards to the main premise and plot of my story, they are without a doubt basically meaningless. However, they serve a different purpose, and that’s to show subtle changes in the original storyline of Babylonia as it this fic runs alongside it. They act as anchors so the reader, who has read Babylonia, can look at those scenes and go “Oh okay. This is where we are in relation to the story.”

As stated before, I’m not going too deeply into the main story unless it’s necessary. References and scenes like this are your small portals that tether the stories together.

I really didn’t talk much about what happened in this author’s note, because it’s not necessary. Gilgamesh mellowed out a touch thanks to being in his kingdom and the experiences he’s endured thus far. There’s really nothing more to point out with him or the supporting characters at this time. Next chapter is the real ticket for finding out how Gilgamesh handles his new… or old… predicament.

I think two per chapter seems about right for music. Might increase, might only be one in the future. Who knows. Will vary per chapter most likely.

Soundtrack Disclaimer: The music doesn’t fit 100% all the time since it can’t be customized. When I pick music for a chapter or scene, it’s because it was the most inspiring piece played when writing. While it may work for me and what I visualize, it might not work for you. Feel free to give it a try.

First soundtrack fits most of the chapter. It’s very upbeat yet relaxing, so I find this fitting.

The second part, which has more thought and rather tame discussions, fits better with this one running in the background.