They passed through the chambers with an increasing unease. The first three were affected by the earthquake, harboring cracks on the walls and on the floor. Parts of them had collapsed, albeit not to the point of being impassable. The party did not find any more containers, or ghouls. The last chamber was unusually spacious, with two separate entrances, an enormous door sealed shut and metal scaffolding on the walls. Nua suddenly remembered the Southern Temple’s goliaths. These structures were almost identical to the ones that bound the giant mechanisms in place.
She asked Anki to investigate the other side of the giant door, because if this was a stable for the ushumgars, or whatever a chamber like that was called, there should be an exit out of the temple. Unfortunately, the only thing outside was solid rock – and the king obliged to show the proof through the etheric window. This made no sense until Nua thought about it and finally realized what bothered her about the tower from the very beginning.
Unlike in the Southern Temple, there were no signs of battle. No udugs guarding the corridors and no skeletons wrapped in the golden armor. Now the party stumbled upon the place, or one of the places, where the ushumgars or other machines should be stationed and found none. Moreover, the exit has been blocked. Not all denizens left, though. There was the matter of people resting in the containers for hundreds of years, until the earth had trembled, and they met their delayed demise at the claws of the ghouls.
“They sealed the temple with sick people inside,” she said to Anki. “Do you think they were the victims of the plague? You said that it carried not only to the royalty but also the cousins. So maybe the common chambers were chock full of them.”
“I am not sure.” The blue spirit appeared to frown. “My daughter would extend the same medical care to all of her subjects, and even at the peak of our empire diseases that required long treatment still existed. They might as well have been regular people, too ill to be transferred elsewhere.”
“Do you think she could have left the temple?”
“We’ll find out soon enough. The elevator is on the left and straight ahead,” the king added. “I will go forward.”
He disappeared.
Quintus was already heading to the left, his eyes focused on the impossible-to-miss, script-covered silver door. It was surrounded by columns adorned with reliefs that represented sick people and animals apparently on their way to the temple, interchangeably with flying goliaths. What followed was about a quarter of an hourglass of Oswald reading emegir signs, and Nua opening the door with a jolt of ether. She thought she could get used to this leisurely pace. Still, an uneasy, hard-to-express feeling, kept nagging in the back of her mind.
Unperturbed, they followed the corridor. It was a contrast with the ruined passage. While the place they came from looked plain and functional, this area resembled the entrance to the Southern Temple. The walls were adorned with reliefs in several metallic colors; silver and blue prevailed. Nua didn’t know if this was True Silver, but she could see the greed in the eyes of her companions. Raya held them off.
“This is just plating,” she said, pointing to a nicked relief. The plain, white stone was peeking through the layer of silver thinner than skin on a grape. “Save your efforts.”
Finally, they reached their destination and the promised elevator.
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Nua was not surprised, not really, to find herself in another temple hall, in front of a statue of the divine.
Unlike the idol they found earlier, this Ninisina’s Nammu sculpture was half as tall as Anki’s, which made her large enough to reach the second floor of any building in the Overlord’s Mercy. It was clear that the other, smaller statue was a copy. Here, the dyes were not damaged by the time. Her dress was the color of a night sky, adorned with golden thread, her skin was copper, and her curls ebony. The dog that accompanied her was so lifelike that Nua half expected it to start barking.
Looking at her, Nua felt a pang of sadness. The warmth in the goddess’ smile made her reconsider going against Anki’s wishes. She looked like a good person. Someone that Nua would like to know.
She shook her head. This was art, not the real thing. Powerful people usually weren’t nice. She could have been a tyrant just as well.
The figure was standing on an Oswald-sized pedestal with an altar in front, and right away Nua noticed a similar chalice. The last time she saw one, Flavius opened the door to the carriage shaft with a gruesome mixture of ancient ashes and ether so concentrated it could explode on touch.
It’s like I’m going back, she thought.
Quintus cleared his throat.
“I don’t see any passage,” he mentioned.
“It’s in the pedestal,” Nua answered. “See the chalice? I think this is where I put the ether in.”
“Are you sure? It isn’t hand-shaped,” the poet remarked.
“I can always try. What do the Muses say?”
Quintus focused, then tensed. His eyes went wide as saucers.
“Mortal danger.”
“So, is it a dead end?” Oswald asked.
“My ability didn’t warn me of any danger,” Nua argued. “It just told me about the passage. Maybe it’s because I’m supposed to be here, or something.”
“We are not going to take risks anymore,” the Northerner stated. “I don’t know how reliable your ability is. I know that the Muses are rarely wrong.”
Quietly, Nua called.
“Anki?”
A window appeared in space.
“Just a minute. I’m figuring out the directions.”
“They don’t want me to open the door. Quintus says it’s dangerous.”
“No wonder. There are heavy security measures left in place. I can sense at least a dozen of wraith dogs and at least one golem.
“What?!”
“By the Sun. I am impressed. I have trouble getting through the wall.”
“Anki! Warn me in advance! I have almost used the chalice!”
“Oh, that would be fine. I told you, I have full access to this part of the tower.”
“Are you very much, absolutely sure your daughter left you this whole access after you died?”
A moment of silence.
“Anki!!”
The king appeared out of the blue, made a circle around the altar, hummed and hawed. Then, he returned to Nua, floating at her eyes’ level.
“There is only one way to find out,” he stated. “As far as us gods are concerned, it is usually the correct route.”
“What, try? They won’t let me. I’m not even sure that I should.”
“I’m not talking about using the chalice. Ask her first,” Anki rose up, facing the statue. “Ninisina Nammu was worshipped as a goddess like we all were. If you want her mercy, get down on your knees and pray. I mean, this place is both a medical facility and a temple. You need a certain decorum.”
“Are you all right, Nua?” Quintus touched her arm. “You’ve kind of spaced out here.”
“I was thinking.” Nua took a few steps toward the altar. “Don’t worry. I won’t use the chalice for now.”
She didn’t feel like praying. After all their travels, she had a hard time thinking of Anki as a divine being, and as a result, she couldn’t bring herself to worship his daughter. Sure, they were powerful in their day and age, but so far, Anki proved himself to be very human.
But what is a prayer, thought Nua, if not a very polite request?
“Dear Ninisima Nammu,” she said, getting surprised glances from her companions. “We come here as guests, in peace and without evil in our hearts. I’d like to ask you nicely if I can visit your chambers and open the elevator. Please tell me if my ether is any good and if I have full access to this part of the tower.”
More weird glances. Great. Anki’s manner of speech rubs off me, Nua thought.
“She knows her name,” Lykomedes hissed. “She actually knows her name!”
“Of course I do. It’s my people’s goddess, dammit,” Nua huffed. She wanted to continue, throwing in a few insults that she thought adequate, but when she blinked and opened her eyes, she found herself standing in an entirely different place.