Got a pretty large reception from people, nice. As I said, I'm just releasing these Chapters because I could and I plan to come back to add little things like foreshadowing.
Thanks to all who told me of some errors. I went through about 3 drafts of the 1st chapter and some things can persist if I don't notice them. For those on balance, trust me when I say Ainz is powerful.
Thank you all for leaving review and I am still looking for a beta if anyone is interested. Just send me a message on Fanfiction or Discord at REDthunderBOAR #8067.
I also have a poll up on My Profile, "Should Fiore die early?" Its a bit of a predicament for me as I need to figure something out and this has me stomp. If you can either vote here or in the reviews I will be closing it in about 3 days. Enjoy the story!
The Hanging Garden of Babylon was filled to the brim with exquisite architecture and materials that would have stunned the common man of both new and old. From the stone mason walls that lined the building to the exotic carpets that lined every walkway. It was a construct created for Royalty. The Gardens itself was built by the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar II at the height of his legend. Which was the thing bugging Ainz, Semiramis did not construct the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
From his understanding, Servants were phantasmal beings that had aspects of conjuration, illusion, and a little necromancy to their making. Their phantasms were a creation by the belief of people; giving the Servant more power and the ability to fool the world into creating powerful illusions known as Noble Phantasms. That means one only needs enough people to believe a servant can do something for that aspect to become truth. So, Semiramis was the creator of the Hanging Garden of Babylon, as Nebuchadnezzar II also created it.
While Ainz was curious in the reason why human belief could influence this world so much more than his own, he needed to concentrate on the task of getting out of this deathtrap. Every nook and cranny was Semiramis' Noble Phantasm. With this advantage they were likely surveying the Servants at all times. Of course Ainz did not know the capabilities of the Gardens in that respect, his paranoia lead him to fleeing.
Of course, leaving was not that simple. Ainz instead was wondering from room to room to make his path hard to follow while discovering the purpose of the Gardens. Winged Skeletons were almost everywhere, a creature type Ainz has never seen before but were only a low tier undead. Some rooms had massive crystal rods, which emanated with power. Many of the outlining room had cavities which lead to dirt. From all this, Ainz could guess the Hanging Garden was in fact a flying fortress.
As he walked, he passed by Spartacus who was wondering as well, like a man without a task. Ainz decided not to deal with the mad man, since it would not result good for either of their healths. He has yet to meet any other Servants, which caused Ainz to smile. Not knowing anything placed him at a massive disadvantage.
Now where's the way out?
Climbing another pair of staircases, he arrived at another hall with a phantom sigh. He was thankful for his undead body, walking for miles of staircase was something he would have dreaded. Luckily, he was going up, which meant one more staircase into getting out of here.
As he looked forward, he could spy the figure of a tall, moderately built men with green hair. Ainz could not have asked for a worse person to find, but here he crossed Achilles. Knowing warriors, Achilles would have already noticed Ainz, so he willingly moved forward to hopefully pass the man even if Ainz's struggles were futile.
"Hey Caster, have you heard from your master yet?" Achilles kept his back to Ainz, asking a weird question.
"No, umu, he has yet to contact me." Ainz decided to be truthful with Achilles, no reason not to.
"Is that so…" Achilles was pondering about something, but Ainz didn't stick around. If he did, something might have come across while Ainz was vulnerable.
Ainz was summoned by someone, but he never met the person or even heard a thought. Masters and Servants were able to communicate through telepathy normally, but something so simple has yet to occur. It worried Ainz greatly the more he thought about it.
Through their experiments in Nazarick, [Telepathy] and its limitations were explored to the fullest extent. If one broke a series of beings and then trained them, they could create a local hivemind of monstrous efficiency. On the other hand was that when inhibited with mental effects, [Telepathy] would become useless.
If my Master was incapacitated, they might make a move against us Servants. Damn it!
Thinking this, Ainz quickened his pace. He soon reached what appeared to be a doorway, moonlight gleaming in. He exited without much issue, but he looked over his back. What Ainz saw gleaming down the doorway was just the halls and chambers that he explored. They gleaned in a welcoming elegance, beautiful carpet and masonry that would attract any man.
Nothing is following me, good. I can't let my guard down though.
[Silent Cast: Complete Unknowable]
With his figure hidden, Ainz ran forward into the forest and mountains.
As Ainz started to lose his [Complete Unknowable], he could see a plains going towards a small town. It was still night but the sky was shining brightly as the moon lit it. To Ainz, the sky reminded him of Blue Earth's tales of how the sky was not covered in smog but instead lit with thousands of little lights. To see the sky of earth left Ainz with a warm feeling, but he couldn't stay here for long. In his hands was an animal he killed along the way, so he decided not to waste the creature.
"[Create Lesser Undead]"
The carcass twisted and turned, molding into the shape of a bird. As the necrotic ooze left it, a skeletal bird was left. This was a [Bone Vulture], a weak undead that was meant for surveillance in graveyards and tombs. To Ainz, it was going to become a spy.
"[Create Greater Item] [Complete Unknowable]"
Within Ainz's hand appeared a small necklace. Ainz slipped it on the bird, small runes glowing with power with the bird disappearing from view.
What is being used is one of the many applications of Runecraft™. While magic items only have a certain amount of charges, Runecraft™ can sustain an enchantment over an indefinite period of time. This was accomplished by the runes fueling the spell with mana. The issue is that only spells that last longer than one minute can be sustained. This however includes [Gate], [Fly], and [Complete Unknowable].
For the Vulture Ainz summoned, it would normally be found easily when entering the Hanging Gardens. With the new [Amulet of Complete Unknowable] made with Runecraft™ it became unnoticeable to a normal human and hopefully Servants.
This will serve as an experiment too.
Ainz gave it the mental command to fly into the Hanging Gardens and find his master. With the bird flying towards it, Ainz casted another spell, [Undead Slave Sight]. In the corner of his vision, a screen came up with the view of the Vulture. With this, he could easily tell when the bird found his master without the use of a higher cost divination spell.
As it flew away, Ainz readied himself to cross the plains. While many would scoff at his level of fear, Ainz was sure everyone was watching it.
At one side was Yggdmillennia, the group of magi who caused this war and the other was the Red Faction, those who joined together to eliminate them. This grasslands acted as a buffer between them and Red team. Since it was uncultured and untrimmed, a trail would be made by someone like Assassin crossing the way using presence concealment. Another was if Red used a flying mount to launch an assault. There was no cover; no trees to dive into or mountains to rout; making aerial assault impossible. Ainz will also assume the enemy Archer can detect incorporeal Servants from far away.
But are they ready for the Hanging Gardens?
Ainz needed to put that thought away for now. He started with casting [Fly]. With this, Ainz would prevent a trail from being made as he skirted the high grass. The next spell he used was [Complete Unknowable] once again. He will not rely on his incorporeal form but his stealth magic.
Ok, three, two, one, move!
Ainz shot like a bullet towards the city. If Archer of Black had some form of True Sight, speed was going to be the deciding factor. As he flew, a light show started near the horizon. Looking to his right, a battle was raging between Servants. Ainz however deciding stopping might get him killed, and doubled his efforts.
Ainz was scared of fighting because Servant form was in fact weaker than his original unliving body. If Ainz rated it, he would place it at about level 60, bordering his original nullification. While he didn't know the effects on his summoning, his magic was obviously weaker. The spell [Fly] seemed slower than it usually was and his Mana reserves were smaller than normal.
These tied with the annoying feeling of being slowly eroded by the world only added to his paranoia. He didn't notice it much when he was in the Hanging Gardens, but the world was actively hostile to him. He could feel something similar to a frantic attack on his body, no matter how weak.
If I anger Alaya too, I might get an entire squad of Counter Guardians to come kill me.
Ainz made a note to keep himself as far from influencing the Humans of this world as possible when he finally arrived at the town. The cobblestone streets of a the older town laid at Ainz's feet. Walking, he noticed that the place was scarce, almost dead. If it weren't for a the few lights lit, Ainz would declare this place a ghost town.
As he walked, his Vulture's vision came upon a velvet red room. It was decorated in fine cloths of Middle Eastern origin with couches surrounding a table at the center. On the table was a ornated smoker sitting at the center of the room; filling it with dangerous smoke. The Vulture looked around until it stared at a conservatively dressed girl.
So she is my master…
The woman, along with the rest of the room, were knocked out. None of them seemed to notice the bird entering, which meant Samermis didn't either.
Ainz had two options now, he could either take the Command Seal from his Master or bring her back to him. His issue was that if keeping her as his Master held any merit.
If I let her remain, she might be incapacitated again. They might have made the poison addictive, which at my current strength I might not be able to heal.
Of course, taking the seals would take Ainz away from a Mana source. While his reserves were monstrous even in this form, combat would drain them along with the World's constant attacks.
I could live about 2 days without her. If I must I could just eat souls. Being near the countryside, people could easily go missing.
He would just need to be cautious though. Killing those who mattered or would give society benefits would cause Alaya to send Counter Guardians. If he did not monitor his actions, he could threaten Humanity's future and so his own.
Suddenly, a spark came into Ainz's mind. It was a thought he had while in the Throne of Heroes. Something he could do now!
It will need to wait though. I need to make a base so my resurrection is hidden.
With a mental command, Ainz ordered the [Bone Vulture] to kill his Master and remove the Command Seals. The undead did a quick job, not even alerting the other's of its presence as it gulped down her arm like a seagull and took flight.
As Ainz returned to his own vision, he saw dancing lights of red coming from a nearby alley. With a gentle lift, he arrived on a nearby rooftop to view the carnage as a Servant-Master duo tare Golems and Humans apart.
The town of _ was like Mordred's time back in Britain under King Arthur. While the rest of the world innovated this place was an old blight if only to angered Mordred. He wanted a chance to do modern things like roller coasters and car racing. Instead the bastards just had to hold this Holy Damn War in the most backwater part of the whole damn world.
"Agh, I'm going to kill Black for bringing the Grail here!" Mordred seethed into the night air.
Kairi, Mordred's Master, lit himself a cigarette off the other's temper and took in a pull, "Well Darnic likes old things, or at least I heard about it. Guy's obsessed with stayin alive, so he forced the locals under his wing to do the same." He let out a calm cloud of smoke, watching it scale towards the sky, "He still lives in a castle in this day and age."
Mordred looked over to his partner with a feral smile, "Oh really? Maybe I should just get a tank and drive through his gate. The Grail talked about them and they sound fun."
The Master gave his Servant a stare before a sighing, "Don't bother. It's a hassle getting one and almost all the Servants can just destroy it with you in it."
The Servant came back with a spiteful look, "Oh come one, can't you let me dream!"
"I'm a realist. It's better to just steal a jet instead of a tank." A chuckled smoke came out of Kairi's mouth, "Only the Caster and Archer Servants can face it. Haha, with your riding skill I wouldn't be surprised if even they had trouble fighting us."
"That sounds awesome!" Mordred let out a great laughter as they continued walking down the alleyway.
Mordred saw Kairi's inquisitive eye for a moment, "So what's up with you and Shirou's loving Assassin? Bad blood?" He let out another trail of smoke.
The Traitorous Knight let out his words in unhidden disgust, "She smelled like my Mother."
"Morgan Le Fay? So Assassins going to be a problem then." He scrunched up his current cigarette with a scow.
Mordred took out his blade Clarent with a caretaker's eye, "Oh she smells just like Morgan." A solemn tone took over, "I should have just cut here where she stood." The Treacherous Knight took a few practice swings in the air.
Kairi watched his Servant practiced his swings before a sighed, "Then I trust your judgement."
They continued for another block before Mordred's instincts kicked in. He could hear movement from the rooftops and the nearby allies. Placing his hand in front of Kairi, he nodded towards the alleys and roof.
His Master opened their telepathic link, 'So, what are we facing?'
'Weaklings. Some human like creatures and Golems. The roof's got archers and swordsmen on the ground.'
Mordred could hear a mental whistle, 'Damn, didn't think Darnic would be that far behind. Still using bows and arrows.'
Mordred took another look around, 'There's golems with the Swordsmen. I can cull the latter, the Golems are going to slow me.'
'Worry about the Golems, I can easily take about 7 of the newborn Homunculi. More won't be a problem.' Mordred could hear a sense of reassurance.
"Alright then Master!" Mordred readied his sword, "I'll trust you than!"
Mordred decided to scare the others senselessly. He ran towards into the Alley, delivering a cleave right through the Golem. Ever since Mordred arrived in the Throne of Heroes, he was practicing his swordsmanship for a chance to become the next King of Britain. It was so long since he struck another's flesh and he loved it. The song of Battle and Chivalry shall begun again!
The Homunculi around the Golem went towards Mordred with swords, but in attacks too fast for the human eye, they were all made into mincemeat.
Running out of the Alley, The Knight of Treachery watched his Master dodge the several empowered arrows, firing his shotgun to eliminate the opposition. A single blast cut down 5 of the homunculi with their blood splattering on the stone. A modern weapon, maybe he could convince Kairi to get him one!
Mordred flicked his attention away from the gun towards the incoming Golems. In his moment of aw they exited their alleyways to attack his Master. With a voice of anger Mordred charged at them, "You're facing me you bastards!".
The Golems turned the moment Mordred called out to them, trying to from a vanguard for the homunculi. It didn't stop Mordred as he released a flood of mana through the air. Red lightning light the air as the helm came down. His face morphed into the smile of a feral wolf as he released the proof of his might.
The Golems tried to block with their arms, but the streaks of red lightning went through them. The bodies of the Golems morphed into blocks of rock as if they their stone flesh was paper.
To Mordred, they were too slow and too fat. While such a large figure was imposing they could not move very fast nor far. At their current speed, any knight worth his salt would be able to slay at least 3 of them before he died. Mordred however revealed in the carnage he brought upon these fools.
The Treacherous Knight continued his onslaught as even the sky seemed to shatter from Mordred's ferocity. Left, right, and down, these were the attacks that decimated a number of the Golems. Simple they were yet followed through with barbaric efficiency.
Mordred was a person where his life's majority was committed to the battlefield. He could remember the stories Chivalry and Might, the times he could remember reading the stories of Siegfried and Heracles. Mordred allowed the orchestra of war to ring as he played his tune in hope of a new tale!
With the last barbaric cleave, Mordred slayed the last of the Golems. While he could not see anyone, his gut pointed his senses to the nearby roof. Mordred looked at nothing, but for that moment he could feel the presence of a Servant.
In a quick burst of power, he arrived at his Master's front. Kairi was healthy for a battle against a few dozen homunculi and was lighting a cigarette. The moment Mordred appeared in front he abandoned his smoke for his firearm.
Mordred looked up at the roof and hollered with a voice fit for a viking, "You there! Come out and fight me you damn it!"
The Knights senses could feel the enemy moving. The Servant moved from the rooftop, slowly arriving at the ground. Several questions came to Mordred's mind when the concealment gave way, allowing the Treacherous Knight to view the being.
What was obvious was that this person was no Assassin. He wore black, gody robes that covered his entire form. In his hands was a golden staff and his face was covered with a red mask. While Mordred would normally gauk at a Caster for coming this close, his senses told him that confronting this being was a really bad idea.
"You, Caster!" Mordred yelled out at the Servant, "These your men!?"
Caster looked around the alleyways that were covered in corpses. He shook his head, "No, this attack was by Yggdmillennia." He placed his hand on his chest, giving a noble bow, "I am Caster of Red however. It is a pleasure to meet you, Saber of Red."
Mordred could hear the cocking the shotgun as his Master talked through their link, 'Think you can take him?'
While Mordred could only vent his frustrations, 'I don't know! I don't feel anything from him, but my guts telling me to run.'
The Knight could hear his Master's tongue click. After a few moment, Kairi spoke in a sarcastic manner, "So Caster, what bring you out this late at night?"
They watched the Caster stay still for a second, before he spoke in a manner fit for a King, "I fled from the priest, Shirou Kotomine. He has betrayed the Masters of Red, and I fear he will act against the Servants soon." Mordred got the feeling of a sharpened eye, "I have come to make an alliance with you."
Mordred suddenly had an urge. The man carried himself like one. He spoke like one. And he now gave off the feeling like one.
The Kingslayer starred at Caster, eyes sharpened to a fine point. While Mordred knew he was wrong, the fury flared up in him. Arthur wouldn't disguise himself for a war. His Father wouldn't be a Caster class. Father was a King, but so was this mystery man.
The Knight of Treachery pointed the kingslaying blade Clarent towards Caster. With a voice full of hatred and malice Mordred seethed, "Take off the mask, Caster. Who are YOU."
The two watched slowly placed his hands on his mask. Mordred's emotions changed from corrupting anger to almost mortified curiosity as she could see the face of the king. It was a skull, picked to the bone with a flame occupying each eye socket. The more Mordred studied the being, the more he felt fear.
His instincts burnt like a hot metal as Mordred couldn't decide between running or fighting. The person was obviously a Servant, and Mordred's instincts told him the person in front of him was more of a match than a supreme being. What they did tell Mordred was this thing was not alive or mere king, but the Ruler of Death.
He could hear from behind the words, "Impossible…" Even his master, a Necromancer, was entranced by the supreme being.
The Kingslayer tightened his blade in retaliation. Mordred couldn't let Kairi face this person alone just because he was scarred by a face.
The being flicked his cloak, revealing a ribcage and a glowing red stomach. Caster spoke as if he was a passionate man trying to persuade a king to his cause, "I am Ainz Ooal Gown, Caster of the Red Faction and The Sorcerer King!" The beady eyes seemed to glow in a powerful crimson glow as
Mordred could feel a wave of fear creep over himself. It felt foreign to even the world, but as a Servant of the Holy Grail War, Knight of the Round Table, and Heir King Arthur's Throne; Mordred will stand tall against even Death himself.
Mordred stabbed the ground with Clarent, the ground rippling with his mana. He will not bow to this being, for he was the representative to Arthur's rule. A fierce smile adorned his face as the feeling of facing Death, no Ainz Ooal Gown, gave Mordred something equal to sating his lust for war.
The Heir to King Arthur's Throne bellowed in a load voice so that the heavens and Ainz Ooal Gown can hear him, "I am Mordred Pendragon, Knight of King Arthur's Round Table and Heir to his Throne! I fight in this was are Saber of Red, Ainz Ooal Gown!"
The feeling of dread went away as Mordred strengthened his resolve. The two stared at each other for a few moments before Ainz spoke, "I thank you for the warm welcome, Sir Mordred. As I have said before, Shirou Kotomine has betrayed us."
Mordred gave out a laugh. So he was right, "I'm are not surprised. If the guy's got a bitch for a Servant he's got to be equally a Bitch." Finishing his laughter, Mordred continued, "So you want to take sanctuary with us, eh?"
"If you are able of course."
Mordred looked over to his Master, who's hair was riled up. The Necromancer looked like someone just threw him into a wood shipper, but he seemed mostly composed. He gave Mordred a shaky nod before taking out another of his smokes.
"It seems we can have you, Lord Ainz. I'd like to warn you, my Master's got something of a fetish for dead things." A cheery face appeared on Mordred's face. If this guy's an enemy of Faction Bitch than he's more than an Ally for their creepy crypt.
He watched the skeleton make a chuckle as he approached them, "I do not mind the dead. Hmm, that is actually very beneficial." As he walked towards Mordred with his bony hand extended, "Then we are allies?"
Mordred grew a wicked smile of confidence before grabbing the skeleton's hand with the strength of a Knight, "I guess we are!"