The Call of Eternity

50 | AN ANCIENT, EXOTIC PLACE

Babylon, Late Autumn. Reign of Kadashman-Turgu, Year 8

Istara tightened her grip on the leather straps within the palanquin's interior and leaned forward, an ember of curiosity igniting as her camel descended the steep, rocky path toward a vast alluvial plain. Each turn granted her a precious glimpse of a distant city hulking against the horizon, its girth straddling a great river. Alongside the river, a strip of green cut a swathe through the arid land, burgeoning with fields similar to Egypt's, though they did not stretch nearly as far inland.

"Shall I tell you about Babylon?" Urhi-Teshub asked, looking up at Istara. When she nodded, his attention returned to the precarious, narrow path. "It is an ancient, exotic place," he said. "One which should not exist but for the inventiveness of its engineers thousands of years ago." He put his hand on the camel's rump, steadying himself as he stepped across several boulders. "The entire city sits on an alluvial plain made of clay--not the first choice one would make, considering the seasonal floods. And to make things worse, Babylon has almost no quarries. Instead, they conserve what stone they do have by baking mud-bricks strengthened by a thick, dark liquid called bitumen which only exists in these lands." He swept his arm outward, encompassing the city, lost once more to her view. "The whole of Babylon rests upon a foundation of these bricks, their strength able to withstand even the most devastating of seasonal floods." He paused to look up at her, a sudden look of uncertainty crossing his face. "Ah, perhaps I bore you with such talk."

"No," Istara answered, tightening her grip on the leather straps when the palanquin lurched backward, the camel's handler calling encouragement as the beast eased its way down a steep drop. "I would know more," she said, straining to hold herself upright against the extreme backward tilt of her seat. "It is a welcome distraction."

"Very well," Urhi-Teshub said, crouching to leap down the broken ledge. Istara eyed it as she rode on, noting its height, almost as high as her breasts.

"Good camel," she whispered, grateful she had not had to scramble down that sharp, precarious breach.

Dusting his hands together, Urhi-Teshub joined her again, just at the edge of her palanquin. He looked ahead, his gaze moving back and forth, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips, softening his harsh features. She envied him his view, all she could see was the face  of the sandstone cliff separating the plain from the desert, and on occasion, a glimpse of the pink-hued evening sky above.

"But their ingenious bricks are only the beginning of their abilities," her husband continued, not troubling to hide his admiration for their achievements. "They have stepped pyramids called ziqquratu, the largest--the Etemen'anki--is seven times the size of Teshub's temple in Tarhuntassa." He gestured with his hands, outlining the stepped shape of it, wide at the bottom, narrow at the top. "It is the residence of their god Marduk, and utterly dominates the skyline." He pointed. "It stands in the eastern city within a vast garden next to the royal citadel, every brick glazed with a colored tile of blue, white, or gold. It is a true wonder to behold." He stopped to let her camel make another turn around a tight bend.

Istara leaned forward, clutching the leather straps, hoping to catch another glimpse. Her palanquin tilted and for a heartbeat she caught sight of Babylon's enormous sprawl. It towered over the plain, its walls higher even than Tarhuntassa's. Brilliant bursts of light flashed along the ramparts, moving fast, a sight she hadn't seen since she had left Hatti's royal city--the movement of patrolling chariots, their gilt boxes reflecting the light of the lowering sun.

Across the dark, slow-moving waters of the Purattu River, the enormous bulk of a ziqquratu breached the dusky sky. Its pinnacle reached to the stars, and its polished tiles shimmered in the pink light of the sunset. Istara caught her breath. Egypt might be beautiful, filled with symmetry and perfection, but Babylon oozed antiquity, exotic secrets, and mystery. Perhaps this was why Baalat and Teshub wished to go to Babylon--she could not imagine a more fitting home for the once-gods.