(Ereshgal POV)
Everything around us fell into silence.
The noise of the street vanished, replaced by a heavy stillness that pressed in from all sides. Conversations died mid-sentence. Footsteps stopped. Even the air seemed to hold its breath.
No one could believe what they'd just heard. Faces were frozen in place, eyes wide, mouths half open.
All except the Eyes of Shamash… and Arisha.
The devotees looked stunned, probably because no one had ever challenged them like that. Arisha, on the other hand, had grabbed Darim, he wasn't even moving from fear. She held him tight and smiled at him, trying to calm him down.
"Go" I told Arisha. "I'll handle this."
Our eyes met. She looked surprised for a heartbeat, then nodded and turned to leave.
"Stop!" the same devotee whose wrist I'd grabbed shouted. His face had shifted from disbelief to anger.
But Arisha didn't listen. She kept walking. Another devotee stepped forward to block them. I moved, driving my fist into his stomach without even thinking about holding back.
The moment my fist connected, I felt my knuckles sink deep into his flesh. The sound he made wasn't even a scream, it was air tearing out of his lungs. His body folded around the impact before the force carried him backward, his feet lifting off the ground. He flew across the street and slammed into the wall with a dull, cracking sound, sliding down it before hitting the ground.
He didn't move at first. Then he coughed, a wet, choking sound, and blood spilled from his mouth.
Still alive.
Something burned in my throat, but I didn't care.
If I hadn't been so furious, I might've been shocked that I could send someone flying like that. But all I could see was Darim's small body going rigid. Arisha's hands shaking as she tried to keep him calm.
I turned back to the devotee still clutching the hand I'd grabbed earlier.
"Y-You… are you… a chosen?" he asked. The confidence he had before was gone.
I didn't answer, only stepped closer.
"W-What are you doing?" he asked again, voice tight. "It doesn't matter if you're a Chosen, if you hurt me, you'll suffer for it!" he rushed out.
I heard him, but it didn't matter. He was about to hurt Darim.
Once I stood in front of him, I grabbed his face and lifted him, my fingers slowly tightening.
W-What are you—?" he stammered, terror breaking his voice.
If I'd been able to see myself then, I would've noticed my eyes changing, gold bleeding into red.
But I wasn't looking at myself.
I didn't need to.
I felt it.
The heat behind my eyes, the shift, the hunger rising with it.
The way my vision sharpened around the edges like the world was suddenly made of glass and I was about to shatter it.
As my grip tightened, his screams rose into something raw and animal. My fingers sank deeper, tearing through skin as if it weren't there at all. Warm blood flooded over my hand. I felt resistance give way, then bone.
The burning in my throat flared violently, a sharp, desperate pull that demanded I drink. I pushed it down.
Forced it back.
My fingers closed further anyway.
His skull began to creak, a sickening, brittle sound. His screams broke into wet gasps as his body went limp, legs kicking uselessly in the air.
The other devotee didn't move. He stood there frozen, eyes locked on us, face drained of color. His body trembled, but his feet refused to obey. Fear had rooted him in place, leaving him only able to watch.
The one in my hand kept screaming—high, broken sounds that tore at his throat. I felt it beneath my fingers, the subtle shift, the warning creak of bone about to collapse.
"You're killing him."
A woman's voice rang out, instantly familiar.
It didn't come from the crowd. It came from behind me, quiet and steady, almost bored, as if it had been there the whole time.
I looked back.
Nadira.
Ishtal's bodyguard.
Her scarf covered her mouth like always. Her eyes didn't soften when they landed on me. She looked surprised when she saw me, but it passed quickly.
"He deserves it" I replied coldly.
Nadira narrowed her eyes. She was about to draw her weapons, then she closed her eyes and sighed, as if the whole scene was annoying her.
"He didn't do anything."
What?
He didn't do anything? If she'd been watching, she saw everything. How could she…
"You know as well as I do that he was about to—"
"He was about to" she interrupted. Her stare didn't move. "But he didn't."
My jaw clenched so hard it hurt. I looked back down at the devotee in my hand.
His face was drenched in blood where my fingers had dug in. His eyes were rolling. The scream had turned into wet choking sounds, like his throat couldn't decide whether to beg or vomit.
My fingers were still tightening.
I closed my eyes.
For a moment, I didn't hear anything else—just the soft, wet click of skin tearing, the frantic drum of his heart, the faint rush of blood beneath his skin. Killing him here would be too much trouble.
I released him, and heard the heavy thud of his body hitting the ground. He rolled once, choking, clutching his face. Blood poured through his fingers.
"Lady Nadira! Help!" he choked, his voice shredded. "He's insane, kill him!"
Nadira looked down at him, ice-cold. "He's a guest of Lord Ishtal."
The devotee fell silent instantly. The shift was so sudden it almost made me laugh. Then he looked at me. The fear on his face this time was unlike anything I'd seen before.
He forced himself upright, bowed his head. Sweat ran down his skin, mixing with the five bloody lines carved into his face.
It was incredible, his entire attitude changed in an instant.
That was… power.
"I'm deeply sorry, sir" he said with trembling fear, eyes squeezed shut. The other devotee immediately did the same.
They didn't apologize to Arisha or Darim. They apologized to the threat.
I was still angry. The urge hadn't faded, only tightened, coiled deep in my chest. But I knew it, killing him would only make things worse. Not because he didn't deserve it, he did. But because it would bring consequences I couldn't afford. So I swallowed it, let the moment pass.
I nodded once.
"Don't ever bother the woman and the child again" I said flatly.
"It won't happen again" he answered immediately.
They stood there, completely motionless. I was about to leave when Nadira spoke again.
"I need to speak with him."
The devotees understood and withdrew without a word, dragging their companion with them. His heartbeat was still there. Weak, but steady. He was only unconscious. Nadira stepped closer. The crowd didn't linger. People turned away, stepped back, and left one by one until the street was empty.
"All of this will be reported to lord Ishtal" she said without hesitation.
"And?" I replied, smiling at her.
"Tsk…" she clicked her tongue. "Monster." Nadira gave me one last look and disappeared.
Monster?
The word lingered as my gaze dropped to my hand, still slick with the devotee's blood. I swallowed as the urge surfaced. Even after feeding on animals, the sight of it stirred my thirst, pulling at something deep within me.
For a moment, the thought of tasting it crossed my mind.
No. I wasn't a monster. Turning away, I walked to a nearby well, drew water into a small container beside it, and plunged my hand into the water, scrubbing until the red faded and washed away.
As I did, the events replayed in my mind. Had I really sent a man flying with a single punch? Lifted another by the face and nearly crushed his skull? I knew I was stronger than any normal person, but knowing it and feeling it were two different things. I didn't know why I'd grabbed him by the face instead of striking again. All I knew was that I didn't want to look at him, only make him suffer. I didn't even think about it. I just let it happen.
It wasn't the first time I'd hurt someone, but this time I'd completely overwhelmed them.
It had felt… good.
Then my thoughts drifted back to them.
Were they okay? Should I go check on them?
Nadira knew they mattered to me. She'd tell Ishtal.
I made my way through the streets toward their home, a place I'd come to know well over the past few days. By the time I arrived, I could already hear them. Darim was laughing again, back to his usual self. He didn't understand how close things had come, how serious it had been.
Arisha did. Her heart was still racing, the fear slow to fade.
I stood outside for a moment, staring at the door. Should I knock? Or should I leave?
If I left now, Ari wouldn't be able to relax. Those devotees would stay in the back of her mind, every glance over her shoulder, every moment Darim was out of sight.
If I stayed… I risked dragging them into me.
I slipped one hand into my pocket. There it was. Then I raised the other, pulled back my hood, and knocked.
I felt Arisha's heart jolt the moment she heard the knock at the door. Footsteps followed, slow and cautious, as if she already feared what she might find. The door opened just a little. She looked up at me and froze. Her lips parted, closed, then parted again. She tried to speak, failed, tried once more. No sound came out.
Too many questions were probably racing through her mind. How it had ended. How I knew where she lived. And why someone she'd met only briefly a few days ago would go this far to help her.
I let out a low, quiet laugh.
"I came to tell you it's taken care of" I said softly. "They won't bother you anymore. They won't come after you for this."
She didn't answer at first. Closing her eyes, she let out a slow breath, like she'd been holding it since the moment Darim ran into that devotee.
"Thank you" she said quietly.
I nodded.
"Alright" I said. "Goodbye." Then I turned and left.
"Wait!"
Her fingers closed around my hand. I looked back. Her grip wasn't tight, but it was desperate, like she was grabbing a rope over a cliff.
"Do you want to stay for dinner?" she asked. "As thanks… for saving us."
"I…"
My voice caught.
I did want to stay. To sit at that table, to pretend—just for a moment—that this was normal. But was it the right thing? Or was it Akhem's will bleeding into mine, quietly guiding my steps, my choices?
Was this really me anymore?
"Come on" she said softly. "You're a friend of my husband. It wouldn't be wrong."
She smiled. And the smile… it was like someone pressed a knife into a wound I didn't know I still had.
I stared at her. Akhem inside me wanted to hug her. Kiss her. Tell her he'd come back.
That's what I felt in that moment.
It wasn't my love, but it lived inside me, real enough to make my hands shake
I nodded.
We went inside. There was a courtyard out front. Darim was playing there with a ball. The rooms were arranged around it.
"Darim!" Arisha called. "Come here!"
He turned and came running. "This is the man who helped us earlier" Arisha told him. "Say thank you."
"Thank you, sir!" Darim said with a wide grin.
He was missing a front tooth, probably a baby tooth that had fallen out. He looked proud of it, like it made him stronger. I smiled.
I ruffled his hair.
"It was nothing" I said. The motion came automatically, gentle and careful, a touch I didn't deserve to give.
I reached into my pocket.
"Here" I said, pulling out the small clay ox. "So you can play quietly instead of crashing into people." Darim barely heard the words. He snatched it up anyway and beamed, like I'd handed him gold.
"Thanks!" he shouted, then ran off, moving it along the walls like it was alive.
I watched him for a moment and smiled. He seemed… fine. Then I looked at Arisha.
She smiled. "Thank you" she said again.
"It's nothing" I repeated. But it wasn't. Not really, it was everything.
Was it right to give him that?
I'd bought it because of the memory I'd seen, Akhem's promise. That promise had never been kept.
So I kept it for him.
We moved to the kitchen area. She began cooking, moving through the small space with practiced ease. The sound of chopping, the crackle of fire, the soft hiss of oil filled the room.
I inhaled on purpose.
A smell that felt nostalgic, though I'd never eaten this food. And I never would.
"You know…" Arisha spoke quietly, her back still turned. "Back then… when you told us to go… your eyes were just like his. I think that's why I reacted so quickly."
There was sadness in her voice.
I stared at the floor, my fists clenched. Why… why did I have to kill him? None of this would've happened if I hadn't. I hadn't been in control. I didn't even remember it.
But it was still my hands.
My mouth.
My teeth.
"…are you okay?" Arisha asked.
"Yes" I said quickly, forcing a smile. "Sorry. I got distracted."
She went back to cooking, and an uneasy silence filled the room.
Darim's laughter filled the courtyard, but it didn't reach inside the kitchen properly. The space between Arisha and me grew heavier with every second. I stood there like a stranger in a home I didn't deserve.
"I should go" I said.
Arisha's hand paused above the pot.
She didn't turn fully, but her shoulders tightened.
"Already?" she asked softly. I nodded.
"Yes. I forgot I had… something to take care of."
If I stayed, I might start believing I could be part of this.
So I pulled my hood up and stepped into the street.