video; [KINGOFHEROES]

[babbylon]

[The feed opens to Gilgamesh lounging on a couch, wine in hand, smirking faintly at nothing in particular. A snowy white lion which some of you may recognize lies curled on the floor, napping away; as for Gilgamesh himself, he's as relaxed as could be. Quite a far cry from his time in imprisonment.

And indeed, when he speaks, he sounds confident as ever—albeit in a lazy sort of way, words flowing like syrup.]

What does "heroism" mean to you?

[An open-ended question he allows to hang, for a moment or so, before continuing on.]

Would you consider what we're doing here to fall along those lines? Or, perhaps... yes, I'm aware some of you are new to this little group activity of ours, regarding the sun. And doubtful that you're all as sincerely invested as ALASTAIR wishes us to be. It does seem a bit trifling.

[Only Gilgamesh could consider the death of light itself to be trifling. He yawns, then rolls over, kicking his feet impatiently like a child awaiting entertainment.]

If they all died, it wouldn't really matter, would it? ALASTAIR would spirit us away to the next grand adventure and the cycle starts anew.

[In his obstinance, Gilgamesh dumps his wine right on the floor. He seems to revel in it, in the mess he's made. In the mess he intends to make.]

So I suppose what I'm asking is [smile blossoming into a grin] do you believe it's possible to save everyone, at the expense of yourself? Is that the proper way of a hero, or just someone naive enough to pursue "goodness"? To those we put atop pedestals, were they ever worth admiring at all?

[His eyes narrow at his jewelry. To call them serpentine would be an understatement.]

To those who believe firmly in the principles of justice—do you earnestly think you were doing the right thing all along? I wonder.

Comments

video | username; sieglindesullivan

[grunehexe]

[Sieglinde has... so many questions. Where did that lion come from? How bad was that wine to get poured on the floor?

And what did make a hero, anyway, when you thought about it? It wasn't just sacrifice, and it wasn't just a sense of justice... nor did she believe it was something so easily decided by humans and not the test of time. But firstly....]

Are you truly interested in the opinions of the masses in regards to the nature of a hero?

[It seemed to her as if it was more pointed than that.]

[babbylon]

Interested may be too strong of a word for it.

[Meaning no, not really. As usual, he's just finding ways to eat up time in between whatever passed for missions.]

Let's go with "fleetingly curious" for now.

video | un: pearl

[beyourrock]

[Well, he does bring up a good point. After Anwick, Pearl had questioned ALASTAIR'S motives, only briefly. But this new mission of theirs, trying to bring the sun back... those concerns rose to the surface once again. She exhales heavily, with a slump of her shoulders.]

I'm not sure if we are doing the right thing anymore. [She shrugs and looks down at her lap.]

This was originally a conflict between humans and goblins. And we just came right into the middle of it all. Meddling, if anything. And it's only gotten us locked up... more than once.

[babbylon]

Are you losing faith, Pearl?

[He doesn't comment on it either way. Just stares, unblinkingly, at the necklace, expecting an answer.]

video; un: hawkeye

[strictdiscipline]

[Gilgamesh's nonchalance—in both voice and behavior—do little to settle Riza's unease upon seeing his face display so proudly over the network once more. Despite Pearl's willingness to befriend him, Riza finds herself unwilling just yet to let down her guard around him.]

Perhaps you should share your own thoughts on the matter first.

[Fair trade, and all that.]

[babbylon]

Haven't I already?

[If she'd been listening closely, she would've realized he already gave his stance away: the heroes we idolize are lies. But just for her sake, he sighs and assumes a burdensome shrug, elaborating a bit more.]

Heroism is, in itself, a meaningless term. The definition varies much too broadly and the stereotypes are, how we shall say...

[His pupils thin, like little black razors in a sea of red.]

...incorrect.

text . un : clarkegriffin

[regida]

no. they aren’t worth admiring. i don’t think that heroes exist.

what we’re doing here, it isn’t heroism. and what we’ve already done has crossed the line of the right thing. if the right thing exists, either.

it seems like you wouldn’t care, if everyone died here.

are you going to clean that up?

[babbylon]

Heroes do exist. Just not as we imagine them to be.

[Though he can agree with the rest of the sentiment, and appreciate the healthy dose of skepticism present.]

Let's see, something like clean-up duty... I'd regulate it to someone else. I only step in when absolutely necessary, as a rule.

[ VIDEO ] UN: FruitsParfaitSamurai

[naturallywavy]

_{[ dully: ]}
Pulling the little piece of cardboard out of a roll of toilet paper to use for yourself and leaving the paper itself for everyone else.

_{[ He's very unimpressed with this entire network post. ]}

[babbylon]

[He's trying to be Serious McPhilosopher, here, alright, don't go raining all over his melodramatic parade with your TP antics. Stupid Gintoki.]

By your definition, double ply likely qualifies as heroic.

text | un: leonardo

[kamiizumi]

I don't think defining heroism matters.

If I think of something as heroic, or if someone else agrees or doesn't...that doesn't change that at the end of the day, I have to do what I think I can live with myself for doing, and that matters more than what anyone else thinks about it.

[babbylon]

This is, by objective standards, correct.

[And probably the most realistic answer received so far. Bravo, Leonardo.]

But many heroes can't even manage so much. They deteriorate. They lose focus. They lose sight of the very thing they were trying to save. And eventually, they cease to be heroes at all. They cannot live with themselves any longer; they become the ones we must hunt.

[So defined many Heroes of the Holy Grail War, tragic souls lost to themselves and to the world and fighting for a false ideal. He truly ruled over a kingdom of fools.]

video | un: unknownrealms

[headlining]

One man's hero is another man's villain, you know. It all just depends on which side you're standing.

[Heroes, villains...they all make a good story, in the end, and that's all that matters to Keats. He shakes his head with a smirk.]

Other than that, I don't really think true heroes exist. They're more often than not just concepts only found in fairytales and legends. People can have noble intentions and do heroic deeds, but nobody's without a bad bone somewhere in their body, you know?

[babbylon]

Those who stand above all others reserve the sole right to make such judgments.

[He's referring to himself, of course. As if that obnoxious sneer didn't give it away.]

Yet truth exists in fiction. For example, we have King Arthur walking among us now, along with the hound of Culann. So these things you call stories can be given life in ways you may not expect. And if we're to speak of true heroes, who else exists but Gilgamesh?

[No points awarded for guessing who's speaking. He doesn't look terribly heroic drowning himself in drink, but... well, there is a lion. That counts for something, right?]

Good or bad, light and dark, righteousness and wickedness... all those qualities can be held by heroes. Even heroes can sin. Sometimes especially so.

video / username: levi

[powerdriven]

[ his mouth is flapping, yet all that comes out is blah, blah, blah... why should anyone dignify it with a proper response? had he actually been wrong to think that there was some greater meaning behind that harassment in the jail? ]

Are you still stuck on this same, tired question?

[ what gives ]

[babbylon]

Well, I don't know if you were aware of this or not, but...

username: happybirthday

[adoube]

What does Big Cat think???



[ Cutting to the pov that matters here. ]

[babbylon]

[You again? Gilgamesh could fall for this again, but he steels himself. He's ready. Troll away, happybirthday, you're going to have a much tougher time of it now. Gilgamesh even leans over to pet the animal in his apparently contented sleep.]

Shishi seems to think heroism is a fond pat on the mane and a few treats. Or more than a few, if we're being honest.

Video | un: Clara

[spacegirl]

[This is a complicated few questions to consider. And really, it feels like opening up a can of worms in the form of inviting everyone that can see this to have a story sharing session that thinly conceals everyone's need for a good therapist. ]

Everyone's going to have their own definition of being a hero. To me, it means doing whatever it takes to save someone. Even if it takes sacrificing yourself. There's nothing naive about putting someone else before yourself. Not when you're sure it's what you want to do.

[There's a pause, and she gives him a curious look.]

Why does all of this matter to you?

[babbylon]

[The eyes that look back at her are almost searingly red, but they too are no worse than inquisitive. Sharp, but not necessarily unkind—for the moment, anyway.]

I hold the title "King of Heroes" and therefore rule over all such beings. I find amusement in how others view the nature of my station.

[In other words, a candid confession that he's less interested in playing therapist and more interested in poking at people with a proverbial stick. And judging from how this post has gone so far, he's been pretty successful riling up the masses. Score another one for the King of Lounge Queens.]

video; 1hitko

[unoradinary]

[He really is hung up on this.

Or, well, she's starting to think so. You can't keep talking about heroes while denying you actually care about it before someone's gonna get an impression, Gil.]

There's no point in saying they don't exist just because they ain't defined absolutely...that kind of answer makes it sound like you're afraid to commit. "It is but it isn't." "Maybe but not always." Isn't that boring, anyway? I think so.

A hero fights to make people happy. The ones I grew up with weren't even real, but...that's what they taught me.

[babbylon]

[He really is. And it really shows, especially now.]

...I'm forbidding you from answering this question. So I've disregarded everything you just said.

video | username; sion

[sunderings]

It would matter, if the people were to perish here.

[ Quite cordially: ]

Those who would perpetuate such a meaningless cycle, allowing for world after world to meet with its doom as though its inhabitants were nothing more than a drink to discard, are all those who I would wish to defeat.

If you are truly the King of Heroes, you too would share this sentiment.

[babbylon]

[...that's a bit bizarre. And more than a little uppity, though ultimately Gilgamesh does decide to engage because he's just that bored, apparently.]

And what do you know of kingship? Who would dare presume familiarity with my station as though it were their own?

video; UN: red streak

[sanicspeed]

Is it really possible to save everyone? Probably not. Even if you could be everywhere at the same time, you still can't be omnipotent. But as long as you try your hardest to work towards a goal that helps others, I think that's all you need to be a hero.

[babbylon]

What if I said you could?

audio; un: coolskeleton95

[boneafide]

You sure asked a lot of questions!

But my answer is yes. To all of them except that one about it not mattering!

[babbylon]

[...well, at least it's not happybirthday. He assumes that username isn't literal.]

Why does it matter, then? Regale me.

text. un: mr. kuulguy

[hideyourself]

are you feeling some regret over your handle? that's unfortunate... maybe you could ask for a rename token.

[babbylon]

[Gods, you're one of Gintoki's goons, aren't you? Supreme lineface.]

Don't waste my time, mongrel. It isn't very "kuul" of you.

text | username; amends

[darkbarrage]

Why're you so interested?
All of us shouldn't be here, anyway.
This world probably was supposed to solve this kind of stuff on its own, but with us here, there's no way it's gonna grow the way it's supposed to.
No one really wins.
Besides, heroes do stuff like this on their own, they don't need some weird organization dropping them places.

[babbylon]

One might say it's my responsibility to monitor this sort of thing.

[Which, at least in part, was true. But he may be stretching the truth about some other aspects of it. Possibly.]

But if there's no victor, then that means there's no real point to even trying. It's all wasted effort. Is that what you really believe?

video; username: butterfly

[digophelia]

You and I have had this discussion before.

[ Where, in fact, Alice compared heroism to her father's actions. ]

[babbylon]

[Alice...]

So we have. You do idolize that man, don't you?

video, @taranto

[heavyhitter]

Aw man, what the hell! That looked like good wine.

[babbylon]

[Gilgamesh swirls the glass around and, as if by magic, it refills itself.]

Better?

text; un: Hawke

[bougy]

( heroism--what a word that is. this post has her thinking for a long time about her own personal exploits and efforts on behalf of others, herself, her family, her city. in the end what she answers to isn't one of the many questions broached, but rather an intention that seems plainly to her to be communicated by this query. )

If you want to be amused at someone's expense, why not just ask for jokes? I know a few good ones.

[babbylon]

[Siiiiip. Wait, when did he get more wine? Ah, the wonders of magic.]

Then amuse me. If you can.

video | un: dark rescue

[promises_to_keep]

[Lea doesn't look too impressed by this show. The lion is cool, but he thinks this guy is trying way too hard.]

So you deem yourself 'king of heroes', and then ask what makes a hero? Sounds to me like you're just looking for validation. [Yawn.] We all die, eventually, so saving someone now is really only prolonging the inevitable, isn't it? Why should it make you a hero to throw your own life away for somebody else? Especially, as in this case, for people you may not even know?

[Surely he believes there are greater goods and all that nonsense--he died for one of them already himself--but he certainly doesn't think that makes him a hero. He doesn't want the title.]

[babbylon]

It was not a title self-assigned but rather one earned by the virtue of my birth.

[...which is to say, yes, he called himself that, so did everyone else, and so it stuck.]

And it is not a matter of validation. Don't you also wonder what your comrades think of the subject?

video; ( username: snowdoe )

[mightymax]

[He hits closer to home than Max expected, opening the video. Maybe that's what he was going for, and if so, it kind of worked. She's never felt like a hero, and she certainly doesn't feel like she fits in, but still, it's something she's thought about.

She really did like the idea behind the Everyday Heroes contest. It's a shame . . .]

We can't always save everyone, but that doesn't mean we can't be heroes. It just . . . depends on who you ask.

[Is that the point he was making?]

[babbylon]

[It may very well have been. He also may have been targeting people like you, Max, because he hones in almost immediately.]

I'm asking you.

text; un: fairyking

[slothking]

The meaning of heroism depends on the individual I guess.

Many in the kingdom back home considered myself and my comrades heroes even though we were criminals, ten years ago. I never quite understood that way of thinking but then again I don't understand most humans.

[babbylon]

[Gilgamesh chuckles despite himself.]

Humans are backwards creatures, hardly complicated but certainly confusing. I cannot say I find much fault in that logic.

audio. un: kashuukiyomitsu

[hardtohandle]

Eeh, last I checked, ALASTAIR didn't ask us to be heroes. We have a job, we can do it or not do it. Like you said, who knows how much ALASTAIR cares about this place. Last time we followed their orders that world was destroyed. Really heroic, right? [he sniffs dismissively]

... It would be really boring, though, if we sat around and did nothing.

[babbylon]

Creation and destruction are part of the same cycle. There's no inherent sin or wrongdoing in it.

Username: sakurakinomoto

[keystaff]

What does 'heroism' mean? I guess....in the stories, and in the news and things you hear about people who risk themselves to save others. Maybe it sort of depends on the intentions, on how people view what happens, but. That's what I think?

[As if he or anyone else would consider any other sort of answer. In some ways, being so young, Sakura is still a little stuck in that black and white view, even if she is aware of the murky grey in between it.]

I don't know if any of this is really right or wrong, the way we're getting involved, but...our intentions, ALASTAIR's intentions aren't bad? We're trying to help, at least. If I see someone in trouble, I know I try to help.

[At the expense of her own safety and health, at times, with her chasing after the Clow Cards.]

[babbylon]

[Ah, Sakura... so innocent, so young, so naive to the ways of the world. Gilgamesh smiles to hear a child's view on it, and no matter how brave she may have been, that's exactly what she was: a child playing at being an adult.

He wonders what kind of person she'll be when she's older, when she's had her heart broken time and time again. He almost looks forward to it.]

It is not enough to simply try. More will be expected from you than that, Sakura, and what will you do then?

[His brows raise and his eyes appear to darken.]

What will you do when you fail? Give up, or...?

text un: flowerpower

[showmeyourwreath]

[gr8 b8 m8]

You are really bored, aren't you.

[If she hadn't already spoken to him, she might have been a little apprehensive, but given an answer, but nah.

This is what he looks like, though. Huh. He's alright, she supposes. Maybe.]

And messy.

[wow what a waste of wine.]

[babbylon]

This is far from messy.

[He sounds adamant about this.]

When I make a mess, you'll know it.