Two days later.
The moment had finally arrived.
Arthur had prepared himself as best he could—physically, mentally, and emotionally—even though he knew that no amount of preparation truly mattered when it came to jumping between realities.
At its core, it was an absolute gamble. A coin spinning in midair between two extremes: either everything would go exactly as planned and he would return to the world of his beloved androids… or the complete opposite would happen, and he would be hurled into some random corner of the multiverse, where the laws of logic would probably be on permanent vacation.
Jean was sitting on the porch steps, arms crossed, trying to look relaxed—clearly without success. Gwen, on the other hand, paced back and forth restlessly, as if standing still were impossible in that situation.
Arthur stood a few meters ahead of them, focused on the Tempad strapped to his forearm.
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Gwen asked, breaking the silence.
Arthur didn't look up right away.
"'Work' is a very strong word," he replied. "I prefer to think of it as 'it won't explode immediately.'"
"That doesn't help at all," Jean sighed.
"I know," Arthur said with a crooked smile. "But lying wouldn't help either."
He made one last adjustment, and the Tempad emitted a sharp sound, followed by a steady glow.
"Ready."
Arthur turned to face them.
"Well… this is it."
Gwen stopped pacing and looked at him, arms crossed, trying to hide her concern.
"You talk like you're just going for a walk around the block."
"Statistically, crossing realities is just a block away… only raised to infinity," he replied with a shrug.
Jean stood up, walked over to him, and hugged him.
"Come back in one piece," she said firmly. "No alternate versions, no missing limbs, and preferably don't bring someone who's trying to destroy the planet with you."
"I can't promise the last part," Arthur replied. "But I'll do my best."
Gwen rolled her eyes but ended up smiling.
"Just… don't disappear for too long, okay?"
Arthur nodded. Then he raised his arm and pressed the center of the Tempad.
The air in front of him warped for a second before an orange holographic door formed.
Arthur gently kissed Jean's and Gwen's lips before turning and walking toward the door.
"See you soon," he said, casting one last look back.
Before either of them could respond, he took a step forward… and crossed through.
Moments later, the door closed.
---xXx---
His body was pulled, stretched, and compressed all at once, as if it were being run through a grumpy cosmic blender. Arthur felt the ground disappear, reappear, turn into a ceiling, turn into a wall, turn into… something that definitely should not exist.
He was flung out of the first dimension straight into another.
For a second, he was falling through a world where everything looked like liquid paint, colors dripping like oil on water. The next moment, he passed through a place where a guy who looked like Elvis pointed at him and shouted, "HEY, YOU AGAIN?" In another reality, he floated through a universe where everything looked hand-drawn—including himself, who for a few moments turned into a poorly made scribble.
"Oh, great…" he muttered as he was pulled into yet another rift. "I've entered economy mode."
He passed through a dimension where he seemed to be made of glass, another where his bones were temporarily outside his body (which he decided to completely ignore), and yet another where everything was absurdly slow—including his scream of frustration, which took a full five seconds to finish.
"This was definitely NOT in the calculations!"
In the blink of an eye, he was spat out into yet another reality… and then, suddenly, everything stopped.
Arthur stumbled two steps out of the door, clearly disoriented. He looked around in confusion, trying to understand where he was. And then his gaze finally landed on the man standing a few meters away from him.
The two stared at each other blankly.
"…Who are you?" Arthur asked, confused.
"Well…" the man replied with a strange smile. "I suppose I'm you."
Arthur frowned. "Okay, smart guy… can you tell me where exactly I am?"
"You're in Metropolis," the man replied, crossing his arms. "Or rather… what's left of Metropolis. Also, you can just call me Gil."
"Metropolis…?" Arthur repeated, even more confused. His eyes scanned the burned ruins, the shattered horizon, the smell of dust and hatred thick in the air.
"Yes, yes, that's right," Gil said, waving his hand impatiently. "Now, changing the subject—how did you end up here?"
"I have no idea," Arthur admitted with a sigh. "I… probably should've configured this thing better before starting the tests…"
He raised his arm and began fiddling with the Tempad, muttering to himself as he tried to find a way back.
Gil raised an eyebrow. "And that thing is…?"
Arthur lifted the device. "This? A Tempad. It lets you travel through dimensions… or through time—"
And he immediately realized the colossal mistake he had just made.
"Time travel, huh?" Gil murmured, his eyes narrowing. "Hand over that Tempad."
Arthur sighed in resignation. "No. And… look, as another you, I'll tell you this: messing with time travel is never a good idea."
Gil smiled.
It was not a good smile.
"If you won't hand it over willingly…" His voice sank into a threatening darkness. "…then it'll be by force."
Around him, dozens—perhaps hundreds—of golden portals opened in the air.
All kinds of weapons emerged from within them.
Arthur let out a nervous but defiant chuckle. "Two can play that game, pal."
And then golden portals began to open around him as well, just as numerous as the other's.
He extended his hand and pulled Koryuga from one of them.
The silence between them lasted a single second—and then both attacked.
Each of the golden portals began firing their weapons at one another. Gil charged at Arthur, every strike carrying the experience of hundreds of battles.
Arthur kept up with his movements for a while, but it was useless. He wasn't weak by any means. But compared to this twisted version of himself… he was just a rough draft.
Arthur used Koryuga to parry a curved strike from Gil's axe that would have torn his head off. He leapt backward, his expression serious.
"Okay. This just went from insane to personal."
Gil only smiled.
"You should try harder."
Before Arthur could react, Gil twisted his wrist and pulled a spear from the golden portal beside him.
Then he hurled it at Arthur at an absurd speed.
SHLACK!
The spear pierced straight through Arthur's torso.
The impact lifted him off the ground, pinning him in the air for a second before he dropped to his knees, coughing up blood.
"…Man…" Arthur gasped. "…this is officially the dumbest way to die. Impaled by a dark version of myself."
"Don't… don't you dare walk away… If I'm going to die, I want an audience," Arthur mocked weakly.
"How dramatic." Gil pulled the weapon from Arthur's chest.
"Relax. I was just testing you."
Arthur blinked. "What?"
"You heard me." Gil approached, storing the weapon inside a portal. "And surprise… you passed."
"Pass… passed what?!" Arthur tried to stand, failing miserably. There was a huge hole in his torso where his heart should have been—it was already a miracle he was still alive.
But Gil continued, ignoring his confusion:
"I'm going to make my final sacrifice for this world. And finding you… a younger, cleaner version of me… was a blessing at this moment."
Gil stopped in front of him, his eyes tired but strangely serene.
And then, without hesitation…
He raised his hand and plunged his fingers into his own chest.
The sound of flesh tearing echoed like a wet thunderclap.
He removed his own heart—pulsing, burning, and radiating fierce energy. Blood ran down his arm, shining like dark gold.
Arthur, still kneeling, stared at the scene, completely petrified.
"When I transplant this into you…" Gil said, holding the heart up before him, "…you will become a Heroic Spirit and gain my abilities from when I was still just Gilgamesh. Unfortunately, they will override any abilities you have that aren't related to our past as the King of Uruk or my own powers. But I'm sure they'll be useful to you."
Arthur swallowed hard, his voice trembling. "Wh… why?"
Gil knelt in front of him, bringing the heart close to Arthur's chest.
"Because I can't allow the things that happened to me… to happen to you."
And then he pressed the heart against Arthur's chest.
The organ fused with his flesh like fire meeting water, snapping into place. Arthur screamed as energy surged through his body, burning, rebuilding, and reshaping his very existence.
Gil took a deep breath, pale from blood loss. "It'll take some time for the heart to fully bind to your body… but it will work."
"Lastly…" he said as a dark glow spread over his arm. "This here is a special gift…"
He touched Arthur's chest and transferred all that energy into his body.
Unlike what happened with the heart, Arthur felt a wave of energy circulate through him.
"It'll keep you existing without the need for a master, and it'll also be useful for where you're going next," Gil said.
He opened a portal and pulled out a small transparent bottle filled with a clear liquid.
"Drink."
Arthur barely had time to question it. As soon as the liquid touched his tongue, a strange energy surged through his body.
And then… his age began to regress.
His muscles redefined, his face grew younger. He had returned to being a fifteen-year-old boy.
"Perfect. Even that ugly scar on your cheek is gone," Gil smiled. "This way, it'll be much easier for your body to adapt to this power."
"Now… you're going to a very interesting world…"
He took a ring from the golden portal beside him and placed it on his finger.
Immediately after, a portal opened—a golden spiral crackling with sparks.
"…Hm… It'll be a different version of a world you might know. That should make things more interesting. Maybe you'll even make some cool friends there… maybe even get some girls."
"It'll take a while before you finally return home, but it'll be worth it. And don't worry—I'll make sure the flow of time in your universe is MUCH slower than in the world you're going to. Don't even ask me how I'm going to do that," Gil said.
Arthur blinked as he finally came back to his senses and realized what had happened to him. "What?"
KICK.
Gil literally kicked him into the portal.
And Arthur vanished before he could finish his sentence.
(End of the chapter)
A/N: Due to a certain incident, there was a slight change of plans regarding the world he is going to