Chapter 6 "Echoes of Blood and Oath"
The forest was thick, the canopy above tangled so tightly that only slivers of moonlight pierced through. Bilgames pushed aside a branch as Enmebaragesi followed close behind, their clothes torn and damp from the river's escape. The cries of Ur's soldiers had long since faded into the night, leaving only the chorus of cicadas and the distant rush of water.
"There," Enmebaragesi whispered, pointing to a flickering light ahead.
An ancient shrine lay nestled among the trees, half-swallowed by ivy and moss. A single oil lamp burned near the doorway, and the scent of incense clung to the air like old memory.
Bilgames raised a hand to knock when the door creaked open.
"Who disturbs Mamu's threshold at this hour?" a frail voice called.
An old woman stepped forward, her face lined with years, hair bound in silver threads. Her eyes, though clouded, were sharp.
Enmebaragesi stepped forward. "We seek refuge, holy mother."
The priestess peered closer. "Enmebaragesi, child of Lugalbanda's house?"
Enmebaragesi hesitated, then nodded. "It's me."
"And who is this?" Mamu asked, her gaze settling on Bilgames.
"A soldier," Bilgames grunted.
Mamu's eyes narrowed. "Remove your tunic, boy."
Bilgames scowled. "Why?"
"Because I asked it, and the gods watch over my threshold," Mamu said, her voice firm despite her age.
Enmebaragesi nudged him. "Do it. Trust her."
With a sigh, Bilgames peeled off the ragged cloth. Mamu stepped closer, her fingers tracing a birthmark near his shoulder — a faint swirl, like a crescent moon encircling a star.
She inhaled sharply. "Lugalbanda's mark."
Bilgames frowned. "It's just a blemish."
Mamu shook her head. "I've seen that mark thrice before — on Lugalbanda, on Ninsun, and once… on a baby born under a blood moon. That mark belongs to royal blood."
Enmebaragesi grabbed his arm. "I told you, Bilgames!"
"I'm no prince," Bilgames growled. "I was raised by Azi, a fisher's widow. No royal cradle, no palace walls. Just a poor boy from the river's edge."
"And yet the blood sings," Mamu murmured, her hand still resting lightly on his shoulder. "You may deny the gods, boy, but they do not deny you."
Bilgames shook his head, stepping back. "Enough of this. All my life, I've been mocked, beaten, cast out. And now — now you speak of marks and bloodlines. Why would the gods forge me for this?"
"Because you are meant to change Uruk's fate," Mamu said, her voice softening. "But whether as its savior or destroyer, that choice is yours."
The priestess gestured for them to follow and offered them water and bread, seating them by the hearth as a storm rumbled overhead, thickening the air with the scent of rain and earth.
As they ate in silence, Mamu watched them both. After a long moment, she spoke again.
"I knew your father," she said quietly.
Bilgames looked up, eyes narrowing. "You knew Azi's husband?"
Mamu's lips twitched. "No, boy. I speak of Lugalbanda."
Bilgames stared.
Enmebaragesi swallowed. "She knew him, Bilgames. And… I wasn't fully honest before. I told you I was Ninsun's daughter. But the truth is… I am Lugalbanda's daughter by a concubine."
Bilgames stiffened, a long silence stretching between them.
Mamu nodded. "The girl's mother died young. The court feared for Ene's safety, so she was hidden, even from many in the palace. But her blood is his."
Bilgames's face darkened. "You lied to me."
"I had to," Enmebaragesi said, voice trembling. "In Uruk, claiming anything less than Ninsun's blood would have seen me dead the moment my father fell. It was survival."
He stared at her, then away. "And what am I supposed to do with this now?"
"Accept it," Mamu said. "Or deny it. But the world moves regardless. Dumuzid's men hunt you. The gods mark you. You must choose."
Bilgames's jaw clenched, and he rose to his feet. "I need air."
He stepped out into the rain, standing beneath the swollen storm clouds.
In Uruk's great hall, Dumuzid's fury cracked like a whip.
"Where is he?" he roared.
Before him knelt Kaleb, bloodied and bound.
"I'll not betray him," Kaleb spat, his face bruised but his gaze defiant.
Draco stepped forward. "I know where they fled. Into the forests beyond the eastern hills."
Dumuzid sneered. "Of course you do, snake. And what do you seek for this loyalty? Favor? Coin? Or merely survival?"
"I serve Uruk, my king. And you," Draco lied smoothly.
At that moment, a cloaked figure entered, bearing Innana's sigil.
"My lord King," the messenger bowed, his voice cold and sharp. "The goddess demands an accounting. Who is this Bilgames? What blood runs in his veins?"
Dumuzid's face paled slightly but held firm. "A soldier. No more."
The messenger's smile was razor-thin. "The goddess knows more. And she will have your head if lies pass your lips."
"I swear it by the gods of Uruk, he is a bastard of unknown birth."
"Then you'll not object if we peel back every stone in your house, speak to every servant, every soldier, every concubine," the messenger replied smoothly. "For the goddess demands clarity."
"Enough!" Dumuzid barked. "I have sent men to investigate, and they have brought in a woman named Azi. She raised the boy. Draco — go hunt him. Tell him to surrender or Azi dies. Also, spread word that Bilgames betrayed Uruk and fled with Ur's tribute."
Draco bowed with a cruel grin. "As you command, Majesty."
At the shrine, Bilgames stared into the fire.
"I should leave," he muttered.
Enmebaragesi sat beside him. "You should stay. Dumuzid will not forgive this. He fears what you are, even if you refuse to believe it."
"I'll win back his favor," Bilgames insisted. "I'll defeat Ur's army, prove my loyalty. Free my mother."
Enmebaragesi sighed. "You still don't see it. Dumuzid didn't arrest Azi because of what you did. He was waiting for an excuse. He fears you, Bilgames. Just as he feared my father, just as he struck him down."
"You don't know that."
"I do. I saw it. I was seven. I watched him murder Lugalbanda with my own eyes."
Bilgames's hand tightened around his cup.
"You have a choice," Enmebaragesi whispered. "Go to Nippur and find Lugal, your uncle. Rally those who remember your father. Or march back to Uruk alone and let yourself be cut down."
"Be clever. Gather strength first. Strike when you can truly win."
Bilgames shook his head. "I'll think on it."
Draco's arrival was silent as mist as Bilgames sat by the river.
"Bilgames," he called into the night.
The warrior rose, hand on his blade. "You travel alone?"
"A message from Dumuzid. Azi lives, but not for long. Surrender and she lives."
Bilgames narrowed his eyes. "Why send you? Where are the palace runners?"
Draco smirked. "Who trusts palace mouths in times like these? The streets whisper, Bilgames. Uruk calls you traitor. Some would see you dead before you reached the gates."
A tense moment as Bilgames suppressed his fury. "You speak of a traitor, but that traitor is you, Draco. I made you serve under Kaleb so one day you could be his second when I made him a general. But you're too ambitious. You can't wait to surpass him. Or is it me you hope to surpass?"
Draco said nothing.
Bilgames's voice hardened. "Let me show you what I do to traitors."
Bilgames wielded his weapon and charged. Draco retracted his own weapon, then steel flashed. They fought — a brief, brutal clash in the rain-soaked clearing. Bilgames's strength pinned Draco to a tree, his spear tip at the man's throat.
"Speak truth, or bleed."
Draco gasped. "I serve no one but survival. The city turns against you. The king has branded you a traitor. Half your men curse your name."
"Half is not all," Bilgames growled. "And I'll see to the other half myself."
With a savage headbutt, Draco dropped to the ground.
"Tell Dumuzid I'll return," Bilgames hissed. "But on my terms."
At dawn, the storm broke.
Bilgames stood at the cliff's edge, Uruk's distant walls glinting in the rising light.
Enmebaragesi approached quietly. "Decided?"
He nodded. "I'll march home. Free my mother. Defeat Uruk's army. And if Dumuzid dares stand before me, we'll settle it then."
"And if it's a trap?"
Bilgames's jaw clenched. "Then I'll tear down the walls of Uruk with my bare hands."
Enmebaragesi sighed. "Then I go with you. But know this, Bilgames — there's more to Dumuzid's fear than you understand. The gods are moving pieces you haven't yet seen."
The wind howled as they turned toward the path, the gods watching from unseen heights.
And somewhere in the storm-tossed sky, fate's threads began to tighten.