Chapter III

Year 5 of the reign of empress Lim-Kiririsha, 23rd day of the month of Nisanu

After a couple days of river travel, ECSS agents Uktannu Kuttimu and Ahati Ninevina reached Harran. Having rested for a bit and leaving their belongings in a hotel, they went out to explore the area and search for further leads on their case. Harran was the westernmost large city in Assyria, having nearly forty thousand inhabitants. However, due to it being situated on a small separate tributary of the Euphrates, it was somewhat isolated and did not fully share the same culture as the core of Assyria or even the western Euphrates region. It had a mixed population, containing Babylonians, Hurrians, Arameans, Amorites, Hittites, and others, with Assyrians being one of the smaller populations here, though their numbers were increasing over the years, as many Assyrians moved here from the east to have access to cheaper real estate, as opposed to the expensive overcrowded apartments of Ashur. Thus, somewhat counterintuitively, Harran was a prime spot for the organizing of the Assyrian Liberation Army’s activities, as it was far away from the centers of power and so was in a way more lawless and less observed by the central authority of Assyria and the Eastern Coalition as a whole.

“So he said it was a bar,” Uktannu said as he was walking through the city center with Ahati. “The question is which one. We can’t go searching through every one of them.”

“We could ask more agents to be deployed here, patrols to be increased. That way we could cover more ground,” Ahati suggested.

“No, that won’t do. We don’t want to attract any more attention. The ALA does its meetings here precisely because Harran is not so regulated and patrolled. If we bring in dozens of agents and hundreds of troops, the ALA will scurry out and find some new meeting place, probably one even more difficult to locate. We have to act as if the ECSS doesn’t know anything. Let the bastards think they are still in the clear.”

“Hm, I suppose that does make sense. So it’s just the two of us then?”

“Yeah. At least until our two friends return from their prisoner torture session.”

“Where do we start then?”

“Did you get the list of all the bars in the city?”

“Yes. There are quite a few of them here, but we can discard some immediately. Some are used mostly or exclusively by various ethnic groups – Arameans, Amorites, Hittites. There’s even one for Arabs. So naturally, Assyrians going there would arouse too much suspicion. Same for the bars frequented by the guards, soldiers, and other government employees. If a bar is too small it won’t do either, because everyone knows everyone there. There are also a few bars exclusively for women, and some for the nobles, esteemed guests, and other important people. And some are politically affiliated in a way which would not be to the liking of the ALA.”

“So how many candidates does this leave us?”

“I’d say five or six. But could go up to eight, they may not be as strict with their criteria as we are. Besides, like the prisoner said, they switch their meeting places.”

“Right. That’s too many. We can’t have our eyes on all of them at the same time. This won’t do. In that case, I think we should head over to the gate patrol commander and ask him about this.”

The two of them went over to the office of the commander of the city gate’s guards, situated in the southern portion of the city, where the tributary flowed south to join the Euphrates.

“Commander Uktannu Kuttimu and agent Ahati Ninevina, Eastern Coalition Secret Service,” Uktannu presented their badges to the commander as they entered.

“Secret Service, huh? What brings you here?” the commander lifted his eyes from his desk and asked.

“We need you to keep an eye on a certain person of interest for us and inform me if you’ve seen them enter or leave the city. We believe this person is a risk to the national security and need to find them as soon as possible.”

“Alright. Can you give me a description?”

“Well, uh, we don’t know much. It’s probably an Egyptian. However, they would present themselves as a person from Amurru, that’s what their documents, obviously forged, would say.”

“We get many people from Amurru here every day, commander.”

“He would probably be a merchant,” Ahati said. “Well, appearing as one, at least.”

“Is it a man or a woman?”

“We, uhm, also don’t know. Probably a man. But a woman is also a possibility,” Uktannu said. “Probably at least twenty five and no older than fifty, I suppose? An agent of the Kemet Intelligence Agency, clearly.”

“You’re not giving me much to go on.”

“Logically, this person would arrive from Tuttul by a ship, private most likely, stay here for a day or two, and then leave the way they came. And would have visited the city many times over the previous few years. Monthly, weekly, I don’t know.”

“They would also speak the High Akkadian dialect, rather than the Assyrian one or even the commoners’ Babylonian. As Egyptians are trained in Akkadian, but mostly to converse with other officials and nobles,” Ahati added.

“Good catch, Ahati. Yes, that would be another identifiable feature,” Uktannu said.

“Hm, well, we don’t talk much with the travellers, we just check their shipping manifests and that’s all. However, we could question some of the suspects a bit more, determine their dialect. That could make it clearer,” the guard commander said.

“That would be very much appreciated. Do you have anyone in mind already?”

“Maybe. There are some people who might fit your descriptions, now that I think about it. They sail in, mill around for a day or two, and then leave, returning about once every month. Would seem like average traders, except they don’t seem to sell or buy much of anything. But who am I to ask them, maybe they are just tourists or religious pilgrims, maybe they’re just visiting family or friends on the way, fuck if I know. We don’t ask, it’s not the faction border. But may be worth investigating.”

“Indeed. Do take a look at them the next time they come.”

“What do you want me to do after they’ve been questioned? Detain them?”

“No, that would just arouse suspicion. Let them pass, just quietly inform me of their arrival and where they are headed. We will take care of everything after that.”

“I’ll let you know if we come across anything. It may take a while though. Do you need lodgings?”

“No, we’re fine, we have it figured out. And we’re ready to wait for however long we need to. Keep in touch, commander.”

“I will. Enjoy Harran, agents.”

Over the following weeks, the ECSS agents, soon joined by their colleagues from Mari, stayed in Harran and investigated all the suspects they could find. The gate commander informed them of a few peculiar arrivals, but these never yielded much to the agents, as these people turned out to be either regular merchants or tourists, or decoys who did not do much except purposefully arouse suspicion and distract the government from the real culprits, as far as the agents could tell. Thus, Uktannu chose to leave them alone and allow them to come and go, so that the real OFK agent would not be alerted to anything and so would still eventually come to Harran for a real meeting with the ALA.

Meanwhile, the Assyrian government started cracking down even harder on the ALA. Part of the Assyrian army was mobilized for this task, and even some units from Babylonia and Elam were sent to Assyria to help deal with the organization. Thousands of arrests were made and hundreds of executions, as the prisons could not sustain such large populations. Some of these new prisoners were genuine ALA members, but others were just their associates and allies, members of somewhat related gangs, political opponents suspected of having ties with the ALA, or just regular citizens being caught at the wrong place and wrong time, but the Eastern Coalition wanted to leave no stone unturned and eradicate the organization as soon as possible. At the same time, this chaotic period was used by the Assyrian government to impose some restrictions on the population and remove a few opposing figures while the attention was fully on the ALA.

Eventually, through coercion and torture, the other agents and soldiers found a link to Harran, however they stayed off the city as the ECSS wanted to give their original team more time there to apprehend the main culprit, which would become impossible if the police or army presence became too large. So the operatives of the Annunitum’s Wrath task force continued their work as they had with no further interference, other than a few other agents lying low as a backup.

“Do you think people are starting to get too fat these days?” Timgiratee asked Uktannu.

The two of them were at one of Harran’s bars, pretending to sip their beers – though Timgiratee was actually drinking his – while in reality they were once again searching for a possible OFK agent in there, as they had received yet another tip from the gate commander.

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

“What? What do you mean by that?” Uktannu looked confused.

“I’m just saying, that’s what it looks like.”

“You calling me fat?”

“No, I’m talking in general. People seem to be fatter than they were even a few years ago.”

“A few years ago, we had a damn war going on here.”

“Still the crop yields were increasing, with all those technologies Shilhak imported here.”

“Well I suppose that is true.”

“And just look around here. You’d think this was a palace tavern full of noble fatties, but no, it’s even middle-class drunkards as well now.”

“I think you are just projecting. You yourself gained a few minas over the years, haven’t you?”

“Shit, maybe. But even then, I still look good. It’s nothing compared to Ashur. You’ve been there recently, commander? I’m telling you, it’s turning into a terrible sight.”

“What the fuck are you on about?”

“Listen, I have nothing against women in positions in power. But before, they still made sure to remain slim and fit and hot. Which is not the case now, let me tell you. Any one of them can get a high paying job in the capital for just being a woman and so they start neglecting their appearance and… size. Obviously not all of them, still far from it, but I’m just saying, maybe it’s time we start looking in other places for women who-”

“Shut the fuck up, Ahati’s coming,” Uktannu pointed.

Ahati came down from the second floor of the bar and approached the two of them.

“Oh, hey, Ahati,” Timgiratee said. “Got bored upstairs?”

“You know you’re not supposed to be drinking during these missions?” Ahati said frustratedly.

“I’m not drinking,” Timgiratee pushed away his almost empty bottle and burped.

“Is that so?”

“Well, in any event, not like anything happens during these recon missions of ours here. So why not enjoy the time and the money we spent?”

“Today might be different. We overheard an interesting conversation. You should join us to check it out.”

“We definitely should,” Uktannu stood up. “Get your ass up, Tim, enough fucking about.”

The three of them went up to the second floor and joined Nidintu at one of the tables. She directed their attention to a booth on the far side of the room, which was not well lit and had two men discussing something rather quietly. Other than them, there were only a few other people spread throughout the floor and so most of the tables were empty.

“They only have one bottle on the table, and it hasn’t even been touched,” Nidintu said.

“That’s what the decoys do too,” Uktannu replied.

“Yes, but Ahati says one of them speaks native Assyrian, while the other is a foreigner and has the High Akkadian dialect. Both men, about thirty. Pretty sure we caught something about the Mari bombing.”

“We should move closer to hear them better.”

“Wouldn’t make sense for all of us to move,” Ahati said.

“Indeed. But a couple of us can,” Nidintu said. “Wouldn’t be nearly as suspicious. Right, Uktannu?”

“Why, of course, didn’t think you’d ask,” Uktannu grinned. “Be ready to apprehend them,” he said to Ahati and Timgiratee as he got up and walked away with Nidintu.

“Copy that,” Ahati reached into her bag with her bow and arrows.

Uktannu and Nidintu walked through the room and sat at a booth behind the suspects.

“Finally, we are alone. Won’t have those kids bothering us anymore and interrupting our fun,” Nidintu sat down on Uktannu’s lap and said loudly enough for the suspects to hear.

“That’s right, babe. We picked the perfect spot,” Uktannu said.

Nidintu leaned closer and kissed him.

“Damn, I don’t think those two making out was part of the mission brief, huh,” Timgiratee said as he was watching them. “Uktannu, you sly beast…”

“They’re not the ones we should be watching,” Ahati said.

“Oh, yeah. Right.”

As Nidintu and Uktannu were kissing, they clearly overheard the conversation by the two figures in the other booth.

“-which is why this is the best offer I can give you right now. We can’t give more, it would be too risky,” the first man said in the High Akkadian dialect and slid a piece of papyrus, with a royal Egyptian seal on it, as Nidintu could see, over the table to the other man.

“It’s still not enough, man! We need more and we need some powerful stuff. You hear what’s happening – we’re losing men fast. We need to make a strike before there’s no one left,” the second man said in the Assyrian dialect.

“Well, maybe then you shouldn’t have done what you did. You know that was not our deal.”

“How else would we achieve our goals? That was the only way.”

“We’ve discussed that enough already. What’s done is done, but now all I’m saying is that we cannot provide more than-”

“Hold up, I need to take care of this,” the Assyrian man, overhearing the sounds from the booth behind them, turned to it. “Hey, what are you two doing here?”

“Is there a problem?” Uktannu asked.

“Find some other place to fuck, we’re discussing business here!”

“Oh, I believe that. Important business indeed.”

“Come on, let’s just find another table,” the man speaking High Akkadian stood up.

“Where are you going? The party is just starting,” Uktannu stood up and followed him.

“Get the fuck out of our sight!” the Assyrian man pushed him.

“Or what? The Liberation army will blow up another civilian building?”

The two suspects froze, but after a moment the foreigner started sprinting for the nearby window, and the Assyrian tried to follow him, but had his head smashed against the wall and knocked out by Uktannu. The commander then rushed to get the other man, but was too late, as the foreigner smashed through the window and jumped out of the building. Ahati launched an arrow at him, but barely missed.

“I’m on him,” Nidintu said, as she took off her high heels and jumped out of the window as well.

“Wait- Okay, sure,” Uktannu said. “Ahati, take position here and shoot at the fucker, I’ll go down.”

“And me?” Timgiratee asked.

“Guard the Assyrian!” Uktannu shouted, as he rushed down the stairs.

“Great. I’m always getting the most exciting tasks…”

He noticed the other patrons on the floor staring at the scene and the unconscious Assyrian.

“Oh, uh, don’t worry. It’s all good. Secret Service business,” Timgiratee explained to them as he was dragging the Assyrian’s body to restrain him.

The patrons did not question the scene further and mostly returned to their own business. Meanwhile, the foreigner was rushing through the street, hoping to get away from the agents, though Nidintu was right on his heels. Uktannu had also left the bar and joined the pursuit, but he was still quite far behind the two of them. He took another street in order to cut off the runaway. As this chase continued, Ahati climbed out of the window onto the roof, steadied her bow, and aimed it at the escaping foreigner. Before he could make a turn and leave her sight, she launched an arrow at him.

It hit him in the right thigh, and he collapsed on the street, right next to the river. Nidintu caught up to him and disarmed him of his daggers, which he tried to grab after seeing her approach. Uktannu reached them as well and immediately restrained the man so that he could not move his hands.

“You seem to be out of options, mister KIA agent,” Nidintu said as she was standing over him. “Nowhere to run to anymore.”

“Maybe. Except to Osiris,” he said as he bit on something.

Nidintu understood this and reacted immediately, forcing her long nailed fingers into his mouth. The man tried to bite them off, but his mouth was forced open by Uktannu. In a few moments, Nidintu found the pill and dislodged it with her nails.

“Poison pill, really?” she threw it away after taking a look at it. “Decent attempt, but you won’t escape us this easily.”

“Huh, guess that makes those nails worth it,” Uktannu said.

“No! Fuck! Fuck! This can’t be!” the captured man shouted frantically.

“Calm down, Egyptian. Now’s not the time for panicking. That will come later. You may think this was the worst that Nidintu could do to you, but you couldn’t be more wrong. Now, get up. A long night awaits us.”

The captured KIA agent, after treatment of his arrow wound, was taken to the local ECSS office for interrogation, as was his Assyrian companion. However, the latter proved to be just a messenger and not one who knew much, and so was sent to the regular prison in Harran to await his trial just like countless others. Thus, the ECSS agents focused on their KIA target, whom they restrained to a chair and put in a dark room for further interrogation.

“He doesn’t seem to be very cooperative,” Uktannu said after leaving the room.

“Yeah, no shit. They are trained for that, just like we are,” Timgiratee said.

“I don’t think they train them for girls like me,” Nidintu smirked.

“Well, go ahead. Do what you have to,” Uktannu motioned to the door.

“Aren’t you going to join me, Uk?”

“No, I don’t think I will. I don’t want to know what you will do to him.”

“Shame. Well, I’ll crack him by myself then, don’t worry.”

“Right. Good luck on that, we’ll get ourselves some drinks in the meantime.”

“Get one for me as well, I feel I might need one or a few.”

“Sure enough.”

“See you in a bit,” Nidintu said as she entered the room with the prisoner.

“Alright, let’s leave this place for a while. Believe me, you don’t want to see her when she goes all in.”

A few hours later, when it was almost dawn, Nidintu went up to the waiting room and called up the other agents. Uktannu woke Timgiratee and Ahati up and the four of them returned to the interrogation room. Other than Nidintu, they were all quite shocked by the sight they saw once they opened the door. The captured man’s clothes were ripped, his body had many deep cuts and had been bleeding in most places, he was missing some nails and even fingers, and had some broken bones.

“So, uh, what was the thing that finally broke him? Did you threaten to crush one of his balls again?” Uktannu asked.

“No. Eyes,” Nidintu replied.

“You mean… Oh… Oh, by the gods.”

“He is agent Antef of the Kemet Intelligence Agency. He had been visiting Harran for about three years now, regularly meeting with his ALA friends. They would report their work to him, and he would relay it to the KIA, which would in turn relay it to the Commonwealth government. The KIA supplied the ALA with all types of weapons, including swords, bows, armor, and materials for explosives. However, this appears to be a somewhat secret operation even within the Commonwealth, as the pharaoh knows little about it and the main organizer of this operation is general Shu-Kutum.”

“Tiglath’s second in command for a long time…”

“Yeah. He climbed the ranks in the OFK quite well and is apparently now using his position to support the ALA.”

“But still, the OFK may very well deny all this, right? All we have right now is a spoken confession from this guy.”

“Not really. I found some royal seals of the Commonwealth on him – well, technically they were from his ship and the guards brought them here – and so managed to forge a letter ordering another weapons’ shipment from the OFK. Only needed a signature from him after that, and it only took a few fingers.”

“Can you give me the letter?”

“Here,” Nidintu handed him a papyrus letter.

“Good thinking on this. I’ll send it to Carchemish immediately and inform the authorities around the border. Then those shipments should be caught right as they are being transported over the border. We could even directly see how they are leaving OFK territory. And so we would finally have definitive proof.”

“So there we have it. ”

“This may finally be the last piece we need to connect it all. And did he know anything about the ALA itself?”

“Oh yes. Naram-Eil. That’s the name of the current leader of the ALA, and he gave me a rough description of him. He doesn’t know where he is, as Naram switches bases often enough, but now that we know who the head is, we should be able to find it and cut it off.”

“Great job, Nidintu. But, uh, is this guy dead?”

“No. Not yet, at least.”

“What are we going to do with him? We can’t send him back to the OFK in this condition, right?” Timgiratee asked.

“No, we can’t,” Uktannu agreed. “If we got all we could out of him, I’d say we kill him, burn his body, and blame it on one of the ALA guys. A deal gone wrong or something, who cares. Everyone knows these terrorists are batshit crazy, so it would be believable.”

“The OFK wouldn’t claim him as one of their own anyways, they would deny everything to preserve their innocence in this matter.”

“Indeed. So he won’t be causing us any problems.”

“Just give the word then, chief,” Nidintu picked up one of her bloody daggers on the instrument table.

“Whenever you’re ready.”

“This… wasn’t supposed to end like… like this. I… I didn’t deserve any of this…” Antef muttered.

“It is what it is. You knew the risks,” Nidintu said, before slashing the throat of the KIA agent.