Story and Artwork by Leonard Pigg

I am Bilgamesh. I have a brother named Gilgamesh. Lugalbanda is our father. My mother, Ninsun, bore him a single son. During this time, the gods were restricted on the amount of beings they could create as their collective divine energies were connected in that era. However, Lugalbanda had created something truly unique and powerful. He wanted another Gilgamesh.

Using his great mystic powers, he accessed the multiverse itself. There, he discovered another reality in which similar events took place. The Lugalbanda and Ninsun of that dimension bore a son, Bilgamesh. In order to have another demigod child and to avoid the detection of the gods of his realm, he spirited me away to this world, away from my parental counterparts.

I had been raised alongside my brother, who always seemed to be the one that got all the glory and fame. Ironically, we are the same man. Duplicates of one another, with the multiverse as our true heritage. He and I have taken different paths, as I prefer to rule from the shadows.

He is believed to be a great hero. A former king. He wasn’t always that way. I know he has a dark side and the difference between us is that I embrace my own. Centuries ago, he left his kingdom to wander the Earth with a man-beast named Enkidu instead of seeking the pleasures of conquering new worlds with I, his real brother. Enkidu died and he fell into a depression, even seeking a way to bring him back. He failed and took a divine sleep for a century or so, then resurfaced in the modern era as a superhero, a super-powered servant to the masses.

I watched from a distance as mankind and their technology evolved, while more powerful beings emerged. I chose a different path and left Earth. I found a planet that had no pantheon or great champions to protect it and I set myself up as the higher power. I don’t remember the original name of the planet but I decided to name it after myself. For over a century, I reigned, allowing the population to cater to my whims and, in turn, I drove away invasions and stopped disasters as needed. With my strength and durability, there were no challenges.

Planet Bilgamesh was safe from all harm. I was a good god-king and, over time, I got bored. My lust for violence would be sated with the occasional insurrection or even otherworldly threat but those days seemed to be few and far between. Then I realized that every good religion needs an ending, a great conflict. Something to herald an end to all things.

The species of this planet never seemed to grow or change, which sickened me. They looked like humans but had an orange pallor to their skin. Although they could give me great pleasure, I was unable to procreate with them, despite being a demigod. They had taken to calling themselves “Bilgamites” and were no more advanced than when I first arrived. That’s when I decided that this species had no place in a harsh universe like this. God Bilgamesh demanded an Armageddon to end their existence and I realized the best way was for me to destroy the entire planet and everyone on it.

I have a ship that is shaped like a silver bubble at the top of my castle. It was confiscated from a race of invaders and I made it into a monument of success and my means to leave this world. I decided that my pogrom will begin at the end of the week, after the day of rest. They will all Rest In Peace after that.