(Ereshgal POV)
The cloak scratched my throat. The hood pressed down until the edge sat just under my nose, cutting my vision to a narrow slit. It was suffocating, but I had to wear it.
We stood in the Corridor of Light.
Pale stone walls enclosed the space, rough and uneven in the flickering torchlight. From here, it looked like an ordinary corridor.
But I could see the spiritual energy she'd warned me about, moving slowly through the air, gathering and flowing deeper inside.
We stepped in.
Shamash's spiritual energy pressed against me. Mine stirred, just like Kisaya had said. Supposedly, it should've repelled it.
Then it surged—sudden, wild.
But It didn't push back. It started devouring…
What? This wasn't what was supposed to happen. Was it destroying Shamash's energy or… feeding on it?
The glow of the Corridor dimmed, and the surrounding spiritual energy drew back. Mine didn't. It followed, pulling, straining to break free, to chase.
I had to stop it.
I focused, holding it in place, forcing it back until it settled inside me again.
"Eresh?" Kisaya's voice came from nearby, calm.
"Nothing… I'll tell you later" I said.
Tomorrow morning we would meet Ishtal. Tonight we would sleep inside the city. That was the plan.
She held my gaze for a second—not that she could see my eyes under the hood—then nodded.
We kept moving.
At the exit, an acolyte stood to the right. He startled when he saw me, his mouth opening, then quickly closed it when he recognized Kisaya.
Straightening at once.
"Welcome back, Lady Kisaya" he said with care. "The High Chosen told me you would return with company. The other chosen is permitted to enter without any test."
Kisaya nodded. "Do you know where we can stay the night?"
The acolyte reached into his robe and pulled out a clay token marked with a sun disc and spreading lines.
"All chosen are treated as important guests in the city. Therefore, you may stay at a temple of Shamash."
He placed the token in Kisaya's palm, his fingers trembling slightly as he pulled his hand back.
"If you present this token at any temple, you will be allowed to spend the night."
She took it. "Where's the nearest one?"
"Ten minutes in that direction" he said, pointing down a clean, straight avenue lined with torches that burned softly under the night air.
We nodded and walked on.
"Did you see how that acolyte was acting when you spoke to him?" I asked. "Are you famous or something?"
Kisaya laughed quietly. "Jealous?"
I huffed a quiet laugh. "Please. He looked like he was about to faint."
We both laughed softly, the sound fading into the night as we walked.
The streets spread out in neat lines, clean and quiet. I lifted my hood just enough to see it all—the paved roads, the bright torches, the houses built with care. Everything looked so calm, so perfect.
I stopped.
How could they live like this while others suffered outside?
I heard laughter somewhere ahead. Voices talking over dinner. Doors closing, footsteps on stone, a woman humming to a child. The sounds of a city that believed it was safe.
"Excuse me… if there are so many of you, could you please move aside? Others need to pass."
A voice behind us.
I turned. A man stood there looking at the ground, dark hair, short beard. He didn't look up at first.
"So many of us?" I asked.
He looked up and blinked. Surprise flickered across his face. His eyes landed on Kisaya, then lingered a moment too long on me.
"Can I help you with something?" I asked.
"No, I'm sorry. I was distracted and thought there were more people. My apologies" he said, stepping aside and hurrying past.
I glanced at Kisaya. We both shrugged the same way without meaning to, then kept going.
It was late, and there weren't many people out.
The few who were turned to look as we passed; walking around with a cloak and hood at this hour drew attention. But no one stopped us, they trusted their light more than they feared the dark.
We reached it at last.
The temple of Shamash stood ahead, its white stone walls enclosing a small courtyard and a short flight of steps leading to the entrance. A carved sun disc hung above the doorway, its grooves catching the torchlight. Scenes of judges and scales decorated the walls. The doors were open, but the light inside was faint, showing it was closed for the night.
A guard stood before the threshold. His eyes tracked us as we approached.
"No entries allowed at night" he said immediately. "Please return during the day."
Kisaya raised the token.
"We were told we could stay here for the night."
His eyes widened. Shock, then a quick change in tone.
"Of course! No problem at all! Please follow me."
He led us in.
The courtyard smelled of stone and oil. Braziers burned low beneath the columns. Inside, the floor was made of pale slabs, clean and smooth. Benches lined the walls, and a narrow aisle led to a small inner shrine with a sun disc above a carved seat.
When I crossed into the temple, something inside me pulled back. It wasn't pain, just a sense of not belonging, like walking into a place that still remembers you as a stranger.
A priestess appeared from a side passage, wearing a simple corded sash over a long linen dress. Her hair was bound with thin strands of gold thread, and her arms were bare except for a single bronze bracelet.
"Welcome to the temple."
We returned the greeting.
"I was just about to rest" she said. "Please, follow me. I'll guide you to your room."
We went up a narrow stair. At the top was a quiet hall with doors on each side, rolled reed mats against the walls, and the faint smell of cedar in the air.
She opened a door.
"Here, please" the priestess said, then stepped back and went to another room.
The room held two beds, a jug and a cup on a small stand, a shallow basin, and a clay lamp. In the center sat a small plant with broad dark leaves, carefully tended. Everything was neat and simple, with nothing unnecessary.
We sat, one bed each. The cloak felt heavier once I stopped moving.
I pulled the hood back.
"What happened back there? In the Corridor" Kisaya asked.
I told her what had happened. How, at the moment my spiritual energy should've repelled Shamash's, it started to consume it instead.
"So that's why I felt Shamash's energy weaken for a moment" she said, her voice low with concern. After a pause, she added "Your spiritual energy must be wild and aggressive by nature. Instead of pushing it out, it tried to destroy it."
I nodded, though I wasn't entirely convinced.
We lay down. The beds were narrow but clean. Kisaya rolled to her side with her back to the wall, spear within reach of her hand even in sleep.
I closed my eyes.
The temple creaked softly around us, the wood settling, the oil lamps whispering.
Kisaya's breath evened. She fell asleep quickly.
When everything fell quiet, the thirst returned, the hunger that never really left. In the silence, it grew sharper. I could still hold it back, for now.
I stayed awake, trying to sleep.
But I couldn't.