Elinor’s smile tempered as she walked beside her sister through the gateway to the 7th and final gate of Irkalla, where her last Keeper waited, head bowed.
She promptly used her authority over her realm to grant protection to the teens from the divine energies, relieving the twin songstresses of the burdensome task, considering their aptitude was far more limited than her.
Being the personification of Irkalla itself—born to that role—Elinor had total control over her realm; even if somewhat restricted in her current mortal state, it obeyed her without question due to her authority.
It also meant that a healthy portion of her Existence had been saved due to Elinor holding things together as Irkalla’s counterpart; they were different sides of the same coin, and to eradicate one, you had to destroy the other.
Keeping that in mind, Elinor was fascinated by the prospect that this Greater Seed could grant something she lacked—further putting evidence behind the idea it was of a greater status than potentially an Existence itself—if properly nourished, it could provide a pathway to grow to something greater.
Her lips lifted into a smirk once passing through the gateway as her Inner Realm naturally acclimated to her current mortal status, restricting all those that came into contact with her to the 3rd-dimensional sphere of her realm or forcing those that wished to interact with her through many dimensional filters to not overwhelm their mortal faculties.
“Supreme Lady, welcome back to your domain; all is in order, as you dictated, and none but those with your approval have entered your inner sanctum.”
“Neti,” she returned, motioning to the group behind her, “I am granting permission for those that follow me to enter Ganzir.”
The tall, dark-skinned man’s appraising, solid-gold irises drifted between Sari’aél, Thor, Apate, the teens, the musical twin goddesses, and, finally, Ishtar; they were only able to interact with the 12th-dimensional entity or see him at all due to Neti constraining himself to a mortal sphere, which would be the same for all the other higher-dimensional entities they’d meet.
“I will bear record of it. Do you wish for a report on the dealings between the Gates, Supreme Lady?”
Elinor caught her sister’s tight mouth at the title of ‘Supreme Lady,’ which was used for her in the high heavens before her descent and loss; her personality would be in flux until Aidrh’ruz performed the same feat of uniting their past lives, which amused Elinor, at least for the moment.
“I will hear it once my business is concluded. Open the gates to my palace.”
“Understood.”
He bowed and stepped to the side as the colossal, colorful gate of divine stone parted.
“It is quite lovely here,” Sari’aél whispered while floating forward in their march toward the opening doors. “A wilderness of a garden of splendor that goes on for eternity?”
Apate cleared her throat with a low chuckle, scanning the scale of Irkalla. “This is beyond the 6th Gate… I’ve been to Irkalla—well, a version of it—and, umm… It was not this big or… intimidating.”
Ishtar huffed. “Yes, well, you should see Anshar. Perhaps I will…”
She slowed to a stop, making Elinor pause to frown in her direction. “What?”
All eyes went to the glorious, golden-haired woman as she turned to stare behind them, voice becoming hoarse. “Ninatta, Kulitta…”
The twins bowed their heads, voices somber as the latter answered first.
“Yes, Mistress. Anshar has… been moved within the First Gate of Irkalla.”
“When the Red Wave came, all but the Eighth Gate fell due to your weakened state in fighting your sister.”
Ishtar’s fingers tightened with her jaw, and Elinor could feel her indignation at the thought of the High Heavens taking refuge inside Irkalla, yet those questions would have to wait.
“Ishtar,” she whispered, knowing her sister would immediately wish to take action as the war goddess she was, “we will address that when meeting with our hosts, but for now, we meet my children.”
“…Sister…”
Seeing the anger in her younger twin, Elinor sighed. “Perhaps you have become more mature, Ishtar. You can discuss the state of your dominion with your servants as we walk; you needn’t fear eavesdropping within my walls, and we will discuss things shortly.”
The tucked under lower lip of Ishtar’s slight nod spoke to the changes that had passed between them since beginning their challenge, and Elinor wondered if she also had had an effect on her sister when they had their spiritual battle in the womb.
Renewing her pace, her sister moved to the side to speak privately with the songstresses.
Adoncia hurried to her side to act as her maid, more than a little intimidated by the godly figures that came into focus ahead of them. All of the humans seemed overwhelmed as space seemed to bend; Elinor was manipulating the area to bridge the open entrance to the doors of her grand palace, which was beyond the scope of words.
“Excuse my ignorance, Empress,” Adronica whispered through the Nexus, “but your sister named the High Heavens Anshar?”
Hehe. Not precisely, Elinor chuckled, vision drifting to Thor and Apate as they hastened their pace to take the opposite side of the maid. Hmm. Give me a moment.
Her attention was pulled to Apate and Thor as the trickster spoke first.
“Could we get some info, Mistress, because… I’m, uh… lost?”
Thor nodded in question, scanning the well-spring of life blooming throughout her innermost gate. “Irkalla was a barren land of death and desolation… not this budding paradise of life and beauty… How is thy realm supposed to reflect Hel? I do not see the resemblance.”
Slowing their progress to her palace as the gates closed behind them, manipulating space to shrink the impossible-to-cross distance without those with authority bridging space, Elinor turned to the curious eyes locked on her; Ishtar’s expression, off to her right, told a story about the state of her dominion.
“It seems there were many differences between our Existences regarding my people, Thor, Apate… For the benefit of you all, I will explain Creation.”
Elinor looked up at the fathomless skies above, shadowed in darkness with a mysterious light that blanketed her realm, and Sari’aél held her hands against her breast in anticipation with the teens listening intently to her story.
Now that they were within Ganzir’s impenetrable walls and away from any prying ears of whoever may be inhabiting her realm from the heavenly sphere—even the older deities of her own domain—she had to plant the seeds to understand the gut-churning feelings these recent revelations brought.
“This was the first stage:
“In the beginning, there was the female, Kishar, ‘Whole Earth,’ and male, Anshar, ‘Whole Heaven,’ who gave their lives to fashion the two great realms Anu and Irkalla. Out of both came our ancestors, one—our former Supreme King—naming himself after the High Heavens he was born from, while Ki took rulership over Irkalla, she gained the land’s displeasure after feeling disrespected by the land when she did not take Irkalla’s name. Immediately, there were problems…
“Though they ruled over their land and birthed many offspring to help maintain the balance, things were swiftly falling apart.”
“Why?” Sari’aél gasped. “Did Anu and Ki not have enough power to maintain order?”
Elinor shook her head, hands held behind her back as she recalled the stories told in her youth, and, though she had only obtained glimpses of the Bead of their Existence, now that there were questions in her mind, cracks were forming in the stories of her youth, told by Ningal, her mother, who, at the time, went by Nikkal.
“They held great power, yet it rebelled against them by the discourtesies shown to them, being unruly and wild; it caused a great deal of trouble for the Supreme Gods and Goddesses, and, even after dividing the many aspects of their dominions to those that they created, things were still set to fall apart, and the majority of that great fissure came from Irkalla.”
Elinor’s eyes lingered on her palace as its great spires towered in the distance—beyond the scope to explain—as it only grew, stunning those around her on their path on the infinite road between her 7th Gate and the palace’s vast walls.
“Discussions were held among the Great Supreme Gods and Goddesses, and it was decided that Anu and Irkalla needed to be tamed by drawing from many aspects of each deity to collect into a fruit that was eaten by Ningal—representing Earth—known as the First Great Queen, then Sin—representing Heaven—the Lord of the Moon, and Ningal’s husband.”
Her vision narrowed as she pondered the resulting unity of carefully selected attributes that had been nurtured in the remarkable fruit her parents had eaten.
The question was: why didn’t the Sky Father and Earth Mother have the fortitude to tame the two, and why did the attributes given to Ishtar and herself provide what their forebearers lacked?
Her focus went to Apate as the woman listened carefully. She knew things Elinor wished to probe for—being an ancient Celestial Personification—age did not always equate to power.
“U-Umm, excuse me, Empress?” Alisa squeaked after the ensuing silence that took them as the others digested the information.
“Yes?” she asked, giving the nervous teenage girl a half-smile.
“What do you mean the Heavens and Earth were untamed and unruly—what does that even look like?”
Thor decided to test his own understanding while glancing down at the hammer strapped to his belt, and there was a frown on his lips. “If I follow thy story correctly, Irkalla, thy Existence was the embodiment of thy ancestors, much as Odin was the fashioner of Primordial Asgard, and the fabric of the two spheres were being ripped apart by the aspects they were created from?”
A wry smirk came from Apate at his question. “Are you stupid, Thor?”
“Doth thy mouth know no limits, Trickster? Speak thy foul words!”
“Humph.” The woman fidgeted with her bound, wine-colored hair, amusement falling. “Irkalla felt disrespected in her tale due to its name not being taken up, yet the heavens were also unruly, despite receiving what it believed itself due? Read between the lines, idiot.”
Thor scratched his temple with a hot stream of air that passed through his lips. “Thou presumes I did not understand the implication, Harlot, but my question was—”
“Shhh!” Sari’aél hissed, putting her fingers to her lips in what Elinor assumed was something she was mirroring from her time with the human children. “What happened next, Empress?! Ningal and Sin ate the fruit!”
“Sex,” Apate giggled, causing the Seraph’s eyes to blank.
“Sex?” The angel’s head tilted to the side with her lustrous, golden eyes. “I do not know what that word fully entails; Empress, you were going to have Theresa teach me this subject?”
Apate doubled over as the teens’ faces flushed. “Hahaha! Are—are you serious?! I can teach you—”
“No,” Elinor flatly denied, making the woman’s jaw snap shut. “In short, Sari’aél, it is a method of procreation, such as your father’s fruit tree.”
The woman’s eyes brightened. “Is that what sex is? If so, why do people become so flustered when the word is mentioned; it seems to have a powerful effect on the mind and body of lesser creatures.”
“That it does,” she mused. “As to the story… Yes. Ningal took the Cores of Heaven and Earth into her womb, where they were bathed in the united energies she’d ingested with Sin’s budding seed… to create Inanna and me.”
Sal’s eyes were big, and he almost stumbled as his imagination spun wildly. “So… so, Ningal and Sin were your parents—are your parents?”
Elinor nodded, wondering if she’d have time to see her father at the end of this short visit; he wasn’t allowed into her palace. There was much to do, and the High Heavens were no doubt gathering as they felt their mistress’ presence near.
“For her feats, my mother’s name was given the title, Ningikuga, or ‘The Pure One Who Purifies The Earth,’ and has been one of the few universally respected figures within both Heaven and Earth. And… there she is.”
A small smile lifted her lips as they came to the front gate of her palace, where her children, Hušbišag—her eldest’s spouse—and her mother stood. Elinor’s inner peace diminished upon not seeing her husband’s face.
It was soon dismissed when Thor stopped dead in his tracks at her daughter’s fierce smile as she drew a shining violet blade from Irkalla’s vault. It was her favorite—the same color as her thick hair and eyes—and she flicked it to the side while striding forward; Ishtar’s solemn mood lifted into a smirk at the girl’s sudden blitz.
“Irkalla?” Thor mumbled.
“Hehe. I’d like to introduce my daughter—”
Her purple braid swinging and energy crackling around the girl, chains split space to attack, yet not one link dared touch her, rejecting the order Nungal gave; the bindings spun wildly, unsure what to do in their panic to not anger their supreme queen.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Mom!”
Summoning the Staff of the Dead, Elinor strode forward, twisting the spear around to meet her daughter in combat. “Impatient as always, Little Chain!”
“Heh!”
Their blades met, and Elinor used her momentum to draw the girl to the left as she continued to expertly spin it in a whirlwind of forms to catch Elinor off-guard and, to Elinor’s delight, her daughter actually made her move back. “You’re rusty!”
“Well, spend several hundred-thousand years as a mortal and see what becomes of your skills…” Elinor cooed, spinning to trip the girl, yet she used the momentum to carry into a twirling side swipe, making her position the curve of her staff to catch the strike. “Oh, learned a few new tricks?”
“Haha…” Nungal giggled as Elinor closed the distance in their playful exchange to release her spear and tackle her daughter to the ground. “Uck—how do you stand… moving this slow! No, if you…”
“Checkmate!” Elinor returned, locking her legs around her torso and arm around her slim throat, trapping the girl in place. “Yield?”
“Ack—never…”
Alisa squeaked, holding her hands to her mouth as Elinor firmed her grip and twisted, snapping her daughter’s neck.
“W-What?!”
“Oof. Brutal,” Apate forced a chuckle. “Oh—she’s not dead.”
Sal rubbed his neck as Elinor climbed off her daughter’s back, looking into the beautiful, dead violet eyes of Irkalla’s Head Jailor. “She… looks pretty—woah!”
Elinor rolled around her shoulders as Nungal rose to her butt and snapped her neck back into place with a short grunt. “Agh… You were taking it easy on me!”
Sari’aél clapped. “A wonderful reunion! She adapted well to the unfamiliar fighting style, Empress.”
Ishtar snickered while approaching the rising girl. “She had to, Dear. You can’t expect to fight as a mortal for the first time and win against your mother… it would be hard enough for me.”
“Pfft! Not in your dreams, Aunt Inanna, and you’re next then!” Nungal growled, twisting her sword in a flourishing manner before adjusting her clothing to hide her half-exposed front. “I’ll chain you again.”
“Darling,” the blonde laughed, “when did you ever chain me? Your mother was the one who bound me to Irkalla; if you’ll remember, I know it was long ago.”
“I never got the chance!” Nungal grinned, chains encircling the two. “I can’t use most of my birthright against my mother, but you’re free game!”
Elinor released a short chuckle. “Nungal… my time is limited.”
Her daughter’s shoulders drooped, and she promptly retracted her chains and sword. “Yes, Mother. You brought other deities into the palace?”
“Just noticed?” Ishtar hummed, glaring at the pools of ethereal water that shimmered a pure white. “My birthright I fought to reclaim… right before my eyes. Cruel, Sister.”
“It isn’t yours at all,” Nungal returned, watching Las, her brothers, and grandmother approach them. “Namtar, is everything ready?”
Ishtar ignored the girl’s jab, returning to Elinor’s side, but her focus was on Thor. He wore a neutral expression, but her ‘mother senses’ told her he was appraising her daughter as any man would when considering the future of his son; she’d wormed the idea into his head, after all, and Nungal was just the type of goddess a true warrior would want for his son.
Her middle child reached her first, bending down to throw his arms around her. “Mother! You’ve changed so much since we last met—you feel so… warm!”
“Hehe. I suppose you have your aunt to thank for that, Ninazu…” She giggled as Masmu slithered out from within her clothing to wrap around his neck and flick her tongue against his ear, transferring her memories to him. “I knew this pretty little snake was your doing!”
“I, eh-hah, wanted to understand more about what was happening with you, Mother; she had a terrible time finding you.”
Elinor held her hand out for Masmu to return to coil around her neck. “Hmm. I look forward to seeing how she grows… Namtar. How is my eldest?”
He smiled patiently, holding his wife’s hand as they both bowed, followed by her mother, being the last to join them.
“Supreme Lady.”
“Mother, I have much to inform you about the state of Irkalla; I understand you do not have a full vision of the realm in your current state.”
“We will speak in private in a moment, Namtar,” Elinor said, moving forward to his surprise to hug him.
“Mother?”
“Hmm-hmm. That, I am… Now, what do you have to say?” she asked, vision shifting to her own mother.
Sari’aél excitedly spoke to Nungal, informing the interested girl about their current journey, and the teens didn’t know who to focus on; it was overwhelming enough being in the glorious presence of these beyond gorgeous gods and goddesses in true form, even with protection.
There was a softness in the Great Queen’s face as she moved to embrace her; it felt strange, experiencing emotions to this degree for Irkalla, yet Elinor remembered it well from her own mother.
“Never did I believe your heart would soften to such a degree… I also worry for your safety in such turbulent times with this change. Above all, I knew you could overcome anything…”
They pulled away for Ishtar to follow, a happy smile lifting her twin’s lips. “Mother… I haven’t seen you in so long.”
“Hehe. The product of living in Ganzir, I’m afraid. How is your father?”
“You haven’t seen him?” Ishtar probed, pulling away with concern.
“Namtar has informed me of his grandfather’s daily activities in Irkalla, but I do not know how things have progressed before this mess; I was concerned about your relationship with him.”
“Ah, heh… well, I will say my conquest of Heaven did come with… problems,” her twin whispered, looking to the side. “My other siblings supported me.”
“Even I did,” Elinor smirked. “A little responsibility would do you good.”
“Typical… Weren’t you in a hurry, Sister?”
“Unfortunately… Thor!” she redirected, causing the man to frown as she motioned to her confused daughter and the tiger Beastkin.
“What art thou scheming, Lady?”
Valentina almost tripped on her jog to present herself. “Y-Yes, Empress?!”
“What is it, Mom? Uh… I can’t say I’ve seen that look in your eyes before,” she mumbled, glancing between the tight-muscled Asgardian and her.
A devilish gleam touched her emerald irises as she lifted the fan the twins had gifted her to hide her smirk and cause a bit more tension in the apprehensive man; some forms of anxiety were necessary to set the mood.
“I’d like you to better acquaint yourself with Valentina and Thor in what time we have; you will be marking this tiger girl as your God Touched.”
“Thor… Huh, he’s totally different from the Thor you told me about—feels totally different,” she repeated, purple eyes moving up and down the tall, muscular man’s physique. “He’s way stronger… he can't be as strong as you, right? I must be reading his shielded Core wrong.”
“Possibly stronger,” Elinor chirped, making her family freeze in place, likely believing the same as her daughter. “Hehe. He is a Primordial Asgardian, and… he has a son, named…”
“Lóriði,” Thor grinned, looking up at her own family. “Thou hatha well-established clan, it appears, Lady Irkalla. Thy suggestion to meet thy people hath improved my views of High Mesopotamia… At least thy version.”
“I’m so glad!” Elinor caught her sister’s smirk, knowing precisely what she was doing, and by the amusement that touched her mother’s eyes, she had, as well. “Why don’t you change into something more… appropriate for the occasion and show them to the Wellspring of Life; I’m sure it will help in many ways, Thor—oh, and beer, Nungal—our best!”
Thor promptly nodded. “Thou hath been a greater host in this than all I have heard of thy people in the Lower Rea—ack! L-Lady?”
Nungal blinked as she looked down at her changing clothes, as Elinor knew the girl would use from past visions granted her of the various activities her family did. “Hmm? Aren’t we going to go bathe?”
Letting her hair flow freely—not enjoying the feel of it bound while relaxing—she added a bikini with a light purple pareo.
Her soft skin and ample curves were contrasted by her tight abbs and muscular thighs; it was rare that she found the time to do such a thing, and usually, it coincided with her siblings since there was a designated area for the activity to isolate any issues that could be brought into the pool.
Her bright violet eyes brightened with her smile. “Oh! I can craft something more appropriate for Valentina and you… Here, let me…”
“No—I’m fine,” he grunted, looking away and putting his hand on the head of his hammer, sheathed at his belt. “I would enjoy learning of thy culture and how it differs… Beer would be much help in this.”
Checkmate!
Elinor cheered, knowing the alcohol would affect him without a doubt and loosen him up to connect with her daughter; it couldn’t hurt if he bonded a bit more with the boy he’d be mentoring, too.
“Sal, Alisa… why don’t you two join them? I need some time with my eldest, in any case.”
Her maid’s gut tightened at not being named and not knowing her purpose, her vision shifting between her brother and his girlfriend.
Taking the invitation as the ability to jump in, Sal’s face beamed with excitement. “Who is going to touch—I mean, what God Touched—umm, will I be the, uh… the thing?!”
They all giggled at the boy’s vigor, and he caught Thor’s attention, or the man just wanted to keep his eyes off her daughter’s exposed skin.
Ishtar laughed, pointing at her eldest child. “Allow me, Sister—I can guess what you have in mind—it’s Namtar, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Elinor confirmed, knowing Ishtar was trying to show she was paying close attention to her actions and schemes after only just returning from consciousness. “Why don’t you see if you can guess four of four!”
“Four?” Everyone turned expectantly to the shining star of a woman as her sister held a hand to her chin, vision shifting between them, and after a second, she muttered, “You’re hiding something, Sister. You wouldn’t bring our mother or Hušbišag into this, which means there’s someone else you have in mind.”
Elinor kept her smile in place, but this proved Ishtar hadn’t lost her edge; she could guess there was something more happening behind the scenes than she was letting on—she didn’t have to just blurt it out, though—a miscalculation on her part, which made her want to reconsider how she viewed her little sister.
They’d both changed, which introduced possible flaws in strategy moving forward; Ishtar probably let that slip to force an answer, display she was keeping up, and show she hadn’t lost her fangs.
Apate hadn’t missed a word, carefully dissecting everything present as a trickster of her caliber would; her power came through manipulation, and that required knowing the players and their goals.
However, Elinor wasn’t ready to reveal the fourth person that would touch her maid’s spirit to the others, even if Ishtar would learn of her suspicions shortly after they split up.
“Are you going to make a guess or admit defeat?” Elinor snickered.
A tight smile lifted her sister’s lips as her celestial gaze drifted between those present. “I will hold my tongue as to the fourth, but the others aren’t difficult to ascertain.”
Left hand held under her bust as her right drew a line between the parties, Ishtar smirked. “Valentina screams Nungal—she’ll become your little tiger goddess after being touched by Nungal’s burning spirit.
“Sal, as I said, would be touched by Namtar; his poise and devotion to you will help to refine the boy’s fervor and determination.
“The third is obviously the timid girl, Alisa, and Ninazu is her God.”
The teenage girl’s fingers balled into fists as she held them against her belly, not looking at Ishtar.
Sal huffed, crossing his arms. “Alisa isn’t timid; she’s my girlfriend and always ready to break the rules and do stuff with me.”
“Sal…” Alisa whispered, scooting over to grab the edge of his shirt and shake her head for him to stop.
Elinor sighed, snapping her fan shut to draw their attention. “She is aware of her own faults, which is why Ninazu will help her overcome them.”
Her middle child gave the teenage girl a compassionate smile as he moved to join them. “As you command, Mother; she will become a coiled snake, hidden in the bushes, and ready to strike those without the intelligence to leave her be.”
Masmu hissed her approval from around Elinor’s throat, and Elinor motioned to her silent mother. “Take Ishtar’s songbirds, and if you could greet her Heavenly Host within the First Gate and inform them I will be with them shortly, it would be wonderful.”
Bowing her head in acknowledgment, Ningal had a glow in her smile that Elinor couldn’t recall seeing in any vision past. “At once, Queen of the Great Earth.”
“Hmm…”
“Something wrong?” she asked, forehead creasing a tad.
“Mmh… I will make a new decree. You may refer to me as your daughter or by name. Now, I expect them to be read, Mother.”
“Thank you, Ereshkigal,” her mother chirped, showing a beaming blush that made her heart sing; Elinor certainly did affect how she dealt with her natural family, which this proved beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Ishtar’s arms were folded as she watched her attendants bow to her and leave with the elder deity. “Hmm. Where will our discussion take place, Sister?”
Elinor gestured toward her palace, making her family’s eyes widen in shock at the invitation for outsiders to enter her holy grounds, yet not one said a word in protest; her decision was final and unquestionable.
“Apate, Namtar, Adoncia, join Ishtar and me.”
“Yes, Mistress,” the trickster returned, showing a masked smile. “She’d figured out what the topic of this discussion would be by the small hint she’d sent Thor; it was best to keep crafty women like her under one’s wing than against.”
“As you command, Mother.” He turned and guided the way into the palace, instantaneously transporting them through the closed doors to enter the colossal entrance hall that put Nethermore’s to shame. “What room are we to use?”
Elinor frowned, predicting resistance as she looked around her palace; she just hoped certain people weren’t involved in what she feared. “To be honest, Namtar… I don’t know. Take me to a place restricted to all… A place I forbade all entry.”
As expected, her son froze in place, processing her conflicting orders, and it was her sister that broke the ensuing silence.
“A place you made off-limits to your own children… including Namtar?”
“I suspect you have a similar place, Sister,” Elinor muttered, keeping her unrelenting gaze on her son. “I am ordering you to break a command I gave before my leave. Did I instruct you to deny such an order?”
Namtar only hesitated a moment, not making any gesture to acknowledge her question other than transporting her to an utterly plain hallway lined with eternal torches, instead answering her in action.
“So…” Elinor hummed, reading between the lines by his attitude and teleportation. “I told you before I took on this mortal form to not inform me of this place’s existence. Hehe. A miscalculation on my part or planned, I wonder?”
Her sister giggled, spreading her fan to hide her lips as Adoncia frowned at the twin’s lilting tone. “I suspect planned, knowing you, Sister; if you needed to visit this place, a way had to be open while not bringing attention to it. In short, you’d need to be aware of its existence to question Namtar about it, meaning you learned of it from a 3rd source and needed to have access for some reason. Also, who’s to say you didn’t inform anyone else of such a place?”
Namtar shook his head as Elinor took them forward, Apate scanning the environment without comment, which was unusual for the teenage-influenced woman. “I was unaware of this area under the palace until you informed me just before departing, Mother, and now that you have entered… I am to ask for what purpose before we proceed.”
Slowing to a halt, she turned to Apate as she answered. “I believe your grandparents haven’t been entirely truthful about the origin of our Existence, and I received enough knowledge from other sources to put that into question. I will not be a puppet, and you know that very well, Namtar.”
Apate, Adoncia, and her son shivered at the sudden intensity of her voice and gaze.
“I… understand, Mother. I do not know where this leads, but if you have a reason, I will hold my tongue… Although, I must ask if bringing Aunt Ishtar and this… other being to such a forbidden place is truly what you desire?”
“It is,” Elinor muttered, starting their journey without delay. “Apate, tell me how you recall the creation of High Mesopotamia as a Celestial, born in the early days of your Great Existence. Who were the true creators?”
The woman puffed out a long breath before chuckling and adding a forced smile. “For High Mesopotamia—I’m not sure if this will be the same since so much is different here—but… the founder of your Existence was the Primordial Beings… Abzu and Tiamat—eck?!”
Elinor’s jaw locked as a rumble shook the earth, and her hand went to her chest with the pressure that compressed her heart at the names.
“Mother! That tremor… It was felt throughout all of Irkalla! Something is radiating beneath us… This heat is like…”
Adoncia slowed beside her, eyes defocusing for a moment. “You don’t mean…”
“Me,” Elinor answered, fingernails digging into her palm. “And, yes, Adoncia; this is why I was unsure how your connection would do.”
“I… will not disappoint you, Empress,” she whispered, her voice a tad dry.
“Humph. Well, if just their names create this reaction from Irkalla, it’s no wonder they wished to stamp out all mention of them. We continue.”
Her chest tightened the closer she came to this living storm that raged beneath the Core of everything she was as if it were Irkalla attempting to keep something enormous contained as it raged; she knew Ishtar’s cold, shimmering blue eyes reflecting her own thoughts.
What are Anu, Ki, and Antu trying to hide from us?
Was I tricked into being the warden of our first ancestors… and if so, why was the newer generation left in the dark? What crime did they commit? I will not condemn someone I have never met nor understand their imprisonment, and the fact I learned about this from outside sources…
Elinor’s nose twisted with mixed emotions; her other half felt an internal tremor at the thought that her parents would have manipulated her in this way or been a part of this plot to hold someone she had no say in their sentence. It was not their place; she was the judge, juror, and executioner.
They broke the laws they swore to me when I took their duty and hid my true purpose… I will not abide it! Did I know? Why would I give myself a false tale throughout my 10,000 lives—tell my children false stories?! I will have my answers.