| Fan Fiction |
by Aelk
“You found me and took me home and tied me up like a beast’s muzzle.”
That was the first sentence she said to him.
Shamash smiled contentedly as he puts on the white robes he had worn on his wedding last night. Since he will never be returning again, he must at least bring something over to remind himself of Anzu.
The ear ring and the robes he wore are the best option.
He took a glance at her, now his legitimate wife, and draws the bedspread over her porcelain shoulders.
Yet just before he took his leave, carrying nothing with him at all, a hand from beneath the bedspread grabbed his tightly.
“I will see you off… till the end.”
Anzu spoke clear-headedly with her eyes closed, revealing the fact that she has not slept at all too. It was then Shamash knew that nothing could stop her anymore.
Every step they took towards their destination afterwards was heavy. Though unwilling, the two pressed on towards the altar of the Bahaaj Temple where they made their vows. The sound of the trinkling waters coming from a small stream outside was loud, due to the absence of people despite the Temple’s past glory. But even louder than that delicate sound was the pounding of their hearts.
Once the last step was taken, he will be gone forever.
Anzu tried hard not to cry, although a quiet tear had already escaped her containment. It was then her felt something --- a warmth…
“Hold onto my hand tight,” Shamash requested.
And she did, with all her strength; she locked her fingers between his. They walked the rest of the short path slowly, hand in hand.
At the end of the path were Helke and Hanna, whom too knew of the situation and came to bid their brother farewell.
”Bro…”
“Brother Shamash, must you really leave…?”
The children had a bitter face that pained his heart. Suppressing his feelings forcefully, Shamash bent down and gave both of them a pat on their small heads.
“Every miracle will come with a price. Helke… you must take care of Hanna after I’m gone.”
”I… will…”
The little boy knitted his brows, and the swirling tears welling up in his eyes were quickly wiped away to allow his brother to leave in peace. Hanna could not bear to watch any longer, and buried her face in her friend’s chest weakly.
Shamash stopped for a moment before the final step into the pentagon formed by five stone tablets inscribing the prayers to the deities. He has told himself not to hesitate, but his heart acted otherwise.
[Continue on.]
Ishtar’s voice stung his mind. She did not sound angry at his hesitation, but her words were callous.
“I… can’t stop right here…”
Shamash broke the silence of the surroundings, and bit his lips tight almost to the point of bleeding as he took the final stride into the pentagon.
All of a sudden, a glaring blue light surrounded him, as if a flexible cage where he could no longer escape from. A mysteriously hard object soon began to form near his feet, like exquisite shackles restraining his any movements. Winds were raging in this enclosed area, and Anzu could no longer go any forward due to the natural barrier.
“Shamash…!”
She could not take it; her heart could not take the separation at all. Even though she has convinced herself that it will be alright, but the grief in her heart was worse than anything she has experienced.
“This is all wrong…”
Anzu began to bang on the oval metallic object resembling an egg that was soon growing till Shamash’s torso. Continuously, she pounded the celestial material with her frail hands till the point where they began to turn red.
”Anzu, what are you doing?! Stop!!”
No matter how hard he shouted, it seemed as if she could not longer hear him. He was now separated from all sounds and noises of this world, and he knew it would be just a matter of a few more minutes before this world he once hated and loved was shut away from him.
”… …”
She has stopped in her efforts of reaching him, but her fists were still on the blockade.
“Anzu, listen,” he thus began their last conversation even if he knew she might not be able to hear him. With his final efforts, he reached out for her by stretching his arms out and touched the thin layer of barrier separating them apart.
“I’m sorry… Anzu… but this is for the world. A price I had to pay in exchange for seeing you one more time.”
“…”
Though she could not see or hear him, Anzu did not speak a word and felt his feelings.
“A few thousands of years will pass…”
His doubts caused him to hesitate for a moment.
“But this ring here, on my ear… will be a proof that our love existed.”
A final piece of the strange material filled up the egg-liked object like a jigsaw puzzle, completely shutting Shamash from the rest of the world. The grieving Anzu could not longer be seen. Then, a piercing cold air swirling around him numbed his senses. He felt giddy all of a sudden, and lost his footing within the egg. Yet an unseen force seemed to be levitating him just as he was about to fall.
[Cry no more… and fall into deep slumber with my soul…]
Ishtar’s voice was too soothing that she sounded sinister. His dizziness soon made him sleepy. He felt very relaxed, and the pain in his heart was slowly being wiped away.
“No….” his heart struggled, “I don’t want to forget …”
[But you must forget. To avoid any partiality you may carry during the judgment.]
“No….”
[Goodnight, Shamash.]
He felt abit chilly, and brought his knees closer to him. He crouched like a fetus, and fell into a very, very deep sleep.
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Seeing that the deity’s egg had formed completely, Anzu knew that she could not see Shamash anymore. She closed her eyes and stayed silent for a moment, before turning to the two children behind her again.
“Let’s go… Helke, Hanna.”
As she held their hands on each side, the trio then turned away from the altar and walked silently away. Even though the sorrow in her heart will never go away, she will learn to live with it.
After that day, the Temple of Bahaaj was completely vacated due to the outbreak of a slow and lengthy war, and was never occupied by the worshippers of the deities again.
But a message was left behind by the priests who received Anzu’s message from the deity, and wrote about the fate of the world in the form of a letter placed cautiously in a box near the altar and the egg:
“Goddess Ishtar’s soul currently resides in a vessel, biding for the time to ripen.
When she awakens, Judgment Day will come.
That will be the day when the world’s conflicts can no longer be halted.
To let us continue to live or to retrieve back the souls Anu and her bestowed?
All these originate from the very sins of us and the misuse of Ishtar’s empathy.
There is no way we can escape.
This message is not for anybody, but rather a letter of atonement and regret.
We are unable to live till the day of Her Judgment, and see for ourselves Her wrath,
but we pray with all our hearts,
that who ever reads this will be able to find a way to save us all.
There is but one last hope: The azure that which Her soul laid deeply asleep in. Believe with all your heart that the world is still worth saving, and the skies will pardon us all.”
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It has been six months since he fell into his deep sleep, and she was living with the two children in the shack he built near the temple. The meadows were still green and lively, the snowy mountains as chilly and frightening as ever; and yet these scenic sights could not cheer her up.
She was ill, and though countless physicians came to see her, they could not find a cure. After all, it was her heart that has ailed.
“Anzu… please, eat this stew. Hanna made them just for you.”
Helke was holding a spoon near her mouth, urging for her to try the food. She concurred with the children’s wish, and took up a sip from the stew. Yet all she ate that day was that spoonful, as the subsequent sips were all being rejected by her body --- It was as if her body was trying to kill her, even though she tried very hard to force the food down.
“I’m sorry, Hanna… I could not take in the wonderful stew you made for me…”
That night, Anzu found that the kids were sleeping by the side of her bed. They were hugging her bedspread for warmth. Such kind children, she thought, as she gave up her bedspread and covered them completely in it.
Weakened as she was, she decided to take a stroll across the meadows like how she used to do with him. A series of rough coughs plagued her as she walked, and as she covered a satisfying distance, she stood still to admire the night sky. There were no stars that night, as if they were all hiding from the terrible tragedy they would be seeing.
“… Are you dreaming now in your deep sleep…?” she thought bitterly, “are you dreaming about the children, and me?”
Her cough attacks suddenly worsened, leading to her collapsing onto the grass. She felt a stabbing pain in her chest, and crutched her robes tightly. She felt her breaths being drawn away from her, and soon before long, she knew she was dying.
“I can’t die like this…?”
She wants to live for the sake of the two children, for the sake of seeing him again. Yet the pain was causing her to tear. The children were fast asleep in the shack; they could not feel her anguish right now. They were the only ones whom she would worry about if she leaves the world. But… her time is up.
Her lungs’ final grasp for air failed, and her senses faded away from the world once and for all.
***************************************************************************************************
The next thing she knew, she was already a wandering soul. She was once a priestess, and thus she knew of the cycle of life and reincarnation. The deities once told her, that reincarnation would give the souls a new body, and new memories. She does not want to forget about Shamash, and hence, she chose to wander.
How many years has it been since she died? She had lost count of time. Usually a soul would fade if it was without a body or flesh and blood for too long. But she was special, for her soul was fused with a little bit of the deity Anu’s. Such is the case for all souls who carried Mu. As they reincarnate, their new bodies would have the same powers as their previous life.
The day and night changes dutifully everyday, and the passing of time waited for no man. Four millenniums had already passed, and she grew weary of her wandering. One particular night, she came to the place where the palace for the humans once stood.
Replacing the palace was a tall and majestic building. The dwellers were still the humans, but their way of life had changed to become very accustomed to the presence of Machinas.
A baby’s high-pitched cry attracted her, and she followed it to witness the arrival of a new life.
“She will be named Iris.”
The new mother said blissfully to her midwife while holding her girl in her arms. Just then, a sudden contraction in her stomach caused her to almost drop her baby.
“Ugh…There is… …”
Twins…? Anzu’s soul watched on as the event unfolds.
“Carry on the effort you used just now, your majesty!”
The midwife urged her mistress on.
The second twin was finally being delivered after the painstaking struggle for a few long hours, which felt far longer than Anzu’s wandering. Although the second baby had the same looks as her sister, there was something different --- Her lungs were not drawing in air and her skin was slightly purplish. No matter how hard the midwife tried, her first cry of life was never sounded.
“Y-your majesty… the second princess is…stillborn…”
The midwife stuttered in fear.
“No…Please… Let her live… Please…”
The twins’ mother wept, and the tragedy at this place tugged at the emotions of Anzu strongly.
“Poor lady…” Anzu sympathizes with the mother as she blamed herself for incurring the wrath of the deities. The second daughter had no soul even though her physical body was perfectly fine.
It was then Anzu recalled something, something deep within her mortal memories. These are… the memories of Lilith? Anzu understood everything now. She knew in an instance, that her wandering has come to an end.
“I never thought I would meet Lilith like this.”
Even though she could not feel anything, her intangible hands touched the mother’s wet cheek.
“Poor thing… But don’t worry anymore; I will save your child…”
Anzu took one more glance at the stillborn baby, and dived into that small body in an instance. She was being reincarnated into this very body, her memories will be wiped out.
Yet she knew that she will be meeting him again.
She will become a new individual, but she does not mind as long as she is able to help him in his journey.
A blinding white light encompassed the room they were in, and as the healing Mu was passed on to this little princess, she was revived. The cycle of their fates were turning once more.
“Wait for me… Shamash.”
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A/N
This is the end =)
I hope i havent left anythng hanging...
uh oh, maybe i did O_O.
so how about one more chapter, or i add it
to one of my short stories?
anyway the short stories will not be up
so soon, my brain's not working anymore D:
Thank you all for not abandoning this story,
especially Eversnow and Sierra :))) It's been a
long process, since i took a break in between the
updates. Ah... i felt so accomplished all of a sudden
T^T~