Silence.
"Do you realize how little sense that makes?" My voice cut through the silence, calm, colder than intended.
Kisaya didn't smile. She didn't even smirk. Instead, she stared back at me, her expression solemn. Her voice was low, steady, every syllable measured.
"Look at my face. My hands. My height." She spread her arms slowly, deliberately. "How could I have changed so much if it weren't true?"
I did look. Carefully this time.
Her hair was longer now, falling past her shoulders, darker than I remembered. Her face had changed too. She looked older, no longer the teenager I remembered, but not fully grown either. Her face had sharpened slightly, her features more defined. The softness in her eyes was gone, replaced by clarity and control.
Five years?
That couldn't be right.
"Think about it" she pressed. "Your situation clearly isn't normal."
Nothing about this felt normal.
Then I took a deep breath, even though I didn't need to, and everything changed.
The scent hit me instantly.
Thick. Sharp. The air was dense with it—raw, alive.
My head reeled.
Heat shot up from my chest, rising into my gums. My mouth ached. My whole body tensed.
It felt like pressure moving through me, fast, uncontrolled, alive in ways I didn't understand. I couldn't stop it. And deep inside, something responded.
Something hungry.
My eyes darted immediately to Kisaya's wound, to the dried blood flaking along her side. Dark, cracked, clinging to her skin. Something inside me pulled toward it.
My hand rose to grip my throat, instinct rather than necessity. The hunger wasn't familiar, but it felt natural, inevitable.
I swallowed, feeling the sharpness of my teeth, sharper than they'd ever been.
Kisaya stepped back, eyes wide. Was that fear in her expression?
"Eresh?"
The question hung in the air, trembling slightly. I lowered my hand slowly, holding on to a calm I wasn't sure I could keep.
"I'm fine" I muttered softly. "What… happened to me?"
Relief flashed briefly in her eyes. She exhaled, gathering her thoughts, and began to speak carefully.
"I don't know exactly. Five years ago, two of your guards returned to Uruk. They reported an encounter with the Children of the Guardian and... your death."
Her voice wavered slightly. There was tension in every word.
"We all believed you were gone. Me included."
Gone.
I had no memories of being dead.
"And yet… here I am" I murmured.
"Not exactly gone."
She shook her head slowly.
"No. But, I didn't think I'd ever see you again. That makes me happy."
She smiled, it was real.
But then her expression shifted, just slightly. A hint of concern crept into her voice.
"But… you've changed."
Her words resonated. Yes, different.
"You're afraid of me" I said quietly. Not accusing. Just stating a fact.
She hesitated.
"Do you think I'm dangerous?" I asked.
She took a step forward, almost without thinking. "No! That's not what I think. But…"
"You should keep your distance" I said, my voice quieter now, but harder.
"Until I know what I've become."
She swallowed visibly, hands tightening at her sides.
"I won't just walk away."
She paused. Her eyes flickered briefly. I could tell she didn't want to keep going. Finally, after a long, heavy silence, she continued:
"A few weeks ago, we started getting reports. A creature was draining the blood of anyone who entered this region: travelers, merchants… even chosens. Their bodies were found pale. Lifeless. So they sent me to neutralize it."
"That creature, Eresh… was you."
She added quickly, as if to make it clear.
"But it clearly wasn't you. You weren't conscious. You moved like an animal—violent, uncontrolled, strong."
Her words hung in the air.
Something twisted deep inside me.
I looked up, searching for something to hold onto. The sky above was full of stars. Too many. Too bright. Their sharp light cut through the dark, clearer than it should have been.
It felt wrong.
Slowly, I lowered my gaze back to her. The realization pressed down on my chest, heavier with every heartbeat I didn't have.
"That wound on your torso…" My voice faltered slightly, betraying a tremor I couldn't fully hide.
"Was it me?"
Kisaya nodded slowly, her lips pressing into a thin line.
"Yes. But don't worry" she quickly added, her tone softer, almost reassuring, as if trying to comfort herself as much as me. "I took an elixir from one of Enki's chosen. I've already healed."
I clenched my fists. Rage, frustration, confusion. They all blended into something cold, hard, unforgiving. The feeling grew sharper until I noticed a chill running down my hand, slipping along my fingers.
"Eresh!" Kisaya's voice snapped me back.
I looked down. My hand was clenched so tightly that my nails had broken the skin. Drops of blood fell onto the dirt, dark and still under the starlight.
Almost without thinking, I stared at the wound. The skin closed quickly, smooth and perfect as if the injury had never existed.
Seconds passed, and then it was gone entirely.
Disbelief surged through me, and I slowly flexed my fingers. Then, carefully controlling the tremble in my voice, I spoke again:
"…Kisaya. I don't remember anything. Still… I'm sorry."
Without hesitation, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me. No fear lingered in her embrace, only a steady, unshaken warmth.
"It's okay" she whispered, the words gentle, firm. "You clearly weren't in control."
But as she held me, her scent filled my senses—warm, real, unmistakably alive. I could smell the blood beneath her skin, close, steady. My gums started to ache. My teeth felt tight, almost ready to push forward. The urge hit hard, and I had to close my eyes to hold it back.
Hunger.
I wasn't going to breathe in again.
Just in case.
I held her with care, aware of how easily I could lose control.
"…My parents and Ennari. Are they okay?" My voice cracked slightly, betraying the deep vulnerability I'd hoped to mask.
As she moved away, a shadow passed over her face. Her eyes filled with something quiet and painful.
"So much has happened since you disappeared" she said, her voice tight.
"But your mother's fine. She doesn't leave the palace much these days, hardly even speaks to anyone…" Her hesitation grew, and a flicker of anguish crossed her expression before she continued. "Ennari left with Ishtal, by your father's orders, after her divine pact was sealed. And your father… he's alive. But he's imprisoned. In the dungeon beneath the palace."
I blinked.
What?
I stared at her, trying to process it all. Alive? Imprisoned?
What happened while I was gone?
Kisaya drew a breath, steadying herself.
"I know you have a lot of questions… but for now, just rest. I have something important to handle, something urgent. But I'll be back soon. I promise."
She turned without hesitation and grabbed the spear from the ground, one I hadn't even noticed.
Then she moved quickly, disappearing into the dark without a word.
I stayed silent, focused on the earth beneath me. On staying grounded. On holding together.
(Kisaya POV)
It's him. It's really him. Ereshgal... alive.
I smiled to myself as I ran, the gesture so unfamiliar it nearly hurt. But the pain felt good. Felt real. A reminder of something I'd thought was lost forever.
I wondered if he'd realized I'd cleaned the blood from his body while he was unconscious.
The memory caught me off guard. My cheeks warmed, and I forced my eyes back to the path ahead.
But then it came back, the moment he'd inhaled.
The image burned itself into my mind, vivid and unmistakable. His pupils had dilated instantly, and for a second, his eyes turned red, locking onto the spot where my wound had been, with the kind of focus I'd only ever seen in wild predators.
I'd stepped back without thinking.
I don't want him to think I'm afraid.
I wasn't afraid.
I wasn't.
But my body had moved before I could stop it.
And it wasn't a combat reflex. It was something older.
Deeper.
The kind of instinct that lives in the blood.
I forced myself to focus again. This wasn't the time to get lost in thoughts.
It's likely he saw all of it, everything I saw.
My pace quickened. No one could see him. No one could know.
Not until we understood what we were dealing with.
I spotted him earlier than I expected—too early.
Darek.
Was he waiting for me?
I didn't hesitate. Focused my energy into my fingertip and drew my first divine rune. As soon as it formed, I pushed the flow into my arms and legs.
My stance shifted, weight balanced.
Adrenaline surged.
My pulse quickened.
My pupils widened.
I raised my spear into position.
Every part of me shifted, becoming what I was trained to be: a weapon.
Ready to strike.
I reached his side and stared at him, for what felt like an eternity.
"What did you see?" My voice was clipped, precise, barely above a whisper, but it carried clearly through the night.
One wrong word, and he wouldn't leave this place alive.
Darek didn't flinch. He met my gaze calmly, expression unreadable beneath the moonlight.
"Enough"