(Ereshgal POV)
If I had still believed there was anything human left inside me, that thought was gone now.
There I was.
Coming back to life.
My body was forcing itself together piece by piece. Skin tightened over dry flesh, slowly regaining color and moisture as fresh stains of blood spread across it. Beneath it, muscles grew in violent spasms. Bones shifted with dry cracks, widening the shoulders, stretching the limbs, rebuilding what should have stayed dead.
I was living what I believed to be Akhem's final memory.
The moment he entered that cave, I had already felt uneasy. But when I saw the dried corpse lying in the center of the chamber, I knew.
It was me.
And the drop of blood that had fallen into my mouth was what started all of this. Without it, how many years would I have stayed in that cave?
How long would my body have remained there, dry and forgotten, waiting for something that might never come?
I turned toward Akhem. My red eyes fixed on him.
Then I disappeared from his sight. He did not even have time to feel fear before my teeth were buried in his neck.
…
I opened my eyes slowly.
For a moment, I only stared ahead, the memory still clinging to me like blood that would not wash away.
What was I? And who had done this to me?
I needed answers. I had to go back. There had to be something in that cave. Some kind of clue.
"Eresh, are you okay?" Kisaya asked beside me.
I blinked and turned toward her.
"Yes" I said after a moment. "Don't worry."
I smiled faintly.
The memories were finally complete. Everything had connected.
If I thought about them, I could reach Akhem's memories the same way I could reach Liraya's. That thought should have disturbed me more than it did.
By then, we were on the third day of the journey. Lureh had already grown comfortable enough to speak more freely, and somehow, she and Kisaya had become friends. Or close enough to it.
Of course, that also meant the two of them had started asking every question that came to mind. In the end, while always keeping enough distance from the criminals to avoid being overheard, I told them almost everything. The ring I had taken from Liraya. The way her memories had stayed with me. The fact that some of her abilities seemed to have passed to me as well.
Kisaya stared at me.
"Wait" Kisaya said slowly. "Is that why you knew how to make bread?"
I nodded.
"Exactly."
For a moment, neither of them said anything.
Then Lureh murmured, "That is terrifying."
"Useful" Kisaya corrected.
"Both" I said.
The air grew quieter after that. My eyes returned to the road ahead, and the smile slowly faded from my face.
"Focus" I told them. "We are entering Kish territory." That was the most dangerous part of the road.
Sippar, Kish, and Uruk stood close to one another for a simple reason.
The Euphrates. The river made the land too fertile to ignore. Any city that controlled enough of it could feed its people, and survive longer than those trapped on poorer soil.
All three were strong in their own way, but Kish was different.
It carried enormous prestige. Some said the first chosen had appeared there, and whether that was true or not, people believed it enough for the name of Kish to hold weight. It was powerful, old, and used to being obeyed.
It did not rule the other cities directly.
Pressure was enough.
Most cities lowered their heads eventually. Uruk was one of the few that could resist. For that reason, with the city's current situation, it made sense for Enmebaragesi to move.
It was the perfect chance to weaken us.
The deeper we entered Kish's territory, the more signs of control appeared along the road. Guards. Small posts. Watch points near narrow paths. Men standing beneath the sun with spears in hand, watching every cart that passed as if waiting for a reason to stop it.
They stopped us a few times. Fortunately, nothing came of it.
We kept moving. By the fifth day of the journey, the thirst returned. Or bloodlust, as Lureh had decided to call it.
This time, I chose the other criminal.
He did not resist or say a word. After looking at me for a moment, he lowered his head again, as if he had already accepted whatever was going to happen.
We did the same as before.
Kisaya stayed close, ready to pull me away. I drank only enough to quiet the thirst, and once it was done, Kisaya separated us by force before I could take too much.
Everything went as planned. At least, until he woke up. Lureh crouched beside him and asked the same question she had asked the other one.
"Do you wish to be healed?"
The man said nothing. He lay there on his back, staring at nothing, his breathing even and his heartbeat calm.
Lureh waited a moment, then repeated it.
"Do you wish to be healed?"
Still nothing. Without that answer, she could not heal him.
Time passed.
It was the night of the following day, and if nothing went wrong, we would reach Uruk tomorrow. Before entering the city, we still had to meet Ishtal's contact.
But before that… "Kisaya."
She was adjusting the fire when I called her. She turned to look at me.
"You know we can't reveal ourselves until the right moment, don't you?"
She nodded.
"And that moment is the coronation."
She nodded again. I watched her for a moment before asking the real question.
"What happens if you run into Namur before then?"
Silence. I heard her swallow.
"You have two options" I said. "If you truly believe you can hold yourself back, then staying inside could help us a lot. You're still a captain. Having you there would be useful."
Her eyes lowered slightly, but she did not answer.
"But if you're not sure" I continued, "then you need to come with us and stay hidden."
The fire crackled between us. Kisaya remained quiet for a while, thinking it over. I did not rush her. If she returned openly and lost control before the right moment, everything could collapse before we even reached Kudur.
Finally, she took a slow breath.
"I'll hide with you."
I nodded. That was what I thought was best. But if she had truly believed she could endure it, I would have trusted her.
Both of them were already asleep inside the cart. I sat a little away from them, looking up at the stars while the night settled around us.
Then I heard a whisper.
"Tsk… listen to me. I know you don't talk, but we have to escape."
It came from the criminal who had been causing trouble. Of course, the other one did not answer.
"Look at us" he whispered again, sharper this time. "They're killing us slowly. We have to leave now, while I've got my strength back."
Silence.
"You really are a worthless bastard. Your family died because of you, didn't they? Useless."
The quiet criminal's heartbeat jumped, and for the first time, he spoke.
"We're condemned to death" he said quietly. "The end is the same either way. What does it matter how it comes?"
"If you want to die, then die. You probably deserve it." The other man shifted against his ropes. "But I'm getting out of here."
A few moments later, I heard the faint scrape of rope loosening. The sound came from the date palm where we had tied them, not far from the cart.
I stayed where I was and let him continue.
He freed himself slowly, then struck the quiet criminal once, hard enough to make him grunt. After that, he moved toward the river.
I stood without hurry and followed him.
At first, he walked, careful not to make too much noise. Then, once he had put enough distance between himself and the cart, he started running. A breathless laugh escaped him as he moved.
"I did it" he muttered. "I did it. I escaped those lunatics."
He kept running, smiling to himself. I caught up almost immediately, but I did not show myself. Instead, I stepped on a branch hard enough for it to snap.
He spun around at once. By then, I was no longer there.
I stood behind him, leaned close to his ear, and whispered "You almost made it."
He turned with a startled cry and swung at my face. I leaned back just enough for his fist to pass in front of me.
His eyes widened. Before he could recover, he threw another punch. Then another. I stepped aside each time, moving only as much as I needed to. He was strong for a normal man, and desperate enough to be dangerous to someone else.
"Stop moving!" he shouted. I tilted my head slightly as his fist cut through empty air again.
"You should try aiming better."
His face twisted with frustration. He rushed forward, trying to grab me this time. I let his hands almost reach my tunic before I shifted behind him.
He spun around, breathing harder now. He charged again, wild this time. His punches lost shape, becoming nothing but force and panic. I avoided them with ease, watching him exhaust himself little by little. The more he missed, the more desperate he became.
Finally, he stumbled and nearly fell to one knee.
"I wasn't supposed to die like this" he said, voice shaking with rage.
I looked at him in silence.
"I didn't want to betray them" he said. "Not all of them. I only gave up the route. That was it. I thought they would take the cargo, maybe kill the guards, but not everyone." His breathing grew uneven. "They slaughtered them. And then they called me the traitor. Me."
He laughed once. "I didn't know they would do that."
Even if he was telling the truth, it did not matter. He had given up the route, and everyone had died because of it. He deserved to die.
"And?"
His expression froze.
"I said I didn't know."
"I heard you." For a moment, he seemed unable to understand my answer.
Then his face twisted again.
"You bastard!"
He lunged at me with everything he had left. This time, I did not move away immediately. I let him come close, let him think he might reach me. Then I stepped to the side and caught his wrist mid-swing.
His body stopped at once. He tried to pull free.
I tightened my grip just enough for him to feel the difference between us.
"I don't care why you did it" I said quietly. "I don't care who you betrayed, what you expected, or how much you regret it now."
I pulled him closer.
"Now you're just food."