The Inconvenient Goddess

Here is the final chapter of The Inconvenient Goddess. Of Gods and Mortals is the next story of the Ancient Katie series.

After pacing to and fro and waiting for what seemed like a long time, Katie heard René’s distinctive shuffle coming down the path toward her. “René, I’m pregnant!” Katie exclaimed as she ran to him with her arms out.

Traveling went smoothly for the first thirty miles. The well-maintained road offered little impediment. Katie kept up small talk with René at first, but finally, she let her worries out. “René, I need to talk to you about Çitri,” she began. “Why, Katie?” “I know Çitri is very close to Queen Yuni who, I have learned, is plotting against me. I think you are being played.” “In what way?” René asked. “Yuni has made plans to steal my IUD. She believes it to be the source of my power. Has Çitri said anything to you?”

Emil, Dastur, and Çitri gathered in Yuni's chamber. "We must move tonight," the Queen began. "The Goddess is becoming restless in Nineveh. She is arranging a trip south to see the King. We must move now, we must be careful. King Tushratta cannot hear of this."

The next morning Rabea approached Katie with a worried look. “Ištar, there is something that is not right here, in Nineveh. I believe you are in danger from Yuni’s priests."

Meeting with Dastur, the Zoroastrian High Priest of Nineveh, Queen Yuni decides the best way to deal with Ishtar is to kidnap her while the goddess is on earth.

Çitri offered to take René through Nineveh so he could sharpen his driving skills. Now their two-horse chariot was in unprotected territory. Their helmets and armor were laying on the chariot floor behind them next to a blanket and picnic supplies.

René has a great time exploring metropolitan Nineveh while Katie worries anxiously about their predicament.

René quickly learned how to use his temple credit card. When the young men were full of food, smoke, and brew, they left the tavern and made their winding way back up the temple mount. “See you guys tomorrow.” Devi waved and headed off to the barracks. “It was great, bro, thanks for hanging.” René waved back while he and Cedat stumbled further up the hill. The front guard let them in, and they wandered towards Ištar’s quarters. Katie and Rabea looked up as Cedat fell across the threshold into Katie’s room. “Get up, go to bed, Cedat!” Rabea yelled in Sumerian, harsh enough to clear the alcohol shroud covering his mind. Cedat realized it was a smart idea to make a quick retreat. “Okay, goodnight, everyone,” Cedat said as he scurried away, followed by his scolding mother. “Goodnight, bro, I love you,” René called out. He turned to Katie. “Hey, Katie,” he said with a slur in his speech. “I just learned something. No, I learned more than one thing.” Katie smiled at René’s inebriated enthusiasm. René found alcohol somewhere. “What have you learned, dear atsilí? Come here, sit down, sit here René and tell me.” “A couple things. Oooph!” René said as he plopped down hard on the low bed. “First is, oh my goodness, you will not believe it. You’re famous, Nineveh is totally Ištar’s city.”

Following the Lalish River, the chariots drove through snow-covered hills toward Nineveh. Settling into a familiar routine, the horses functioned well as a unit quickly traveling the ten miles of steep hillsides before they gave way to open meadows. When the road widened, the chariot teams paired and continued the trip side-by-side.