Ereshkigal rested her back against the huluppu tree, more at ease than she had been in a long while. Thin slivers of a dawn sky began to shine through the branches, and she ran a hand along its bark as smooth as rain-worn rock. Even though she’d already taken all of the knowledge it had to give over a month ago, it made her feel strangely comforted to be near it. That and the tree did well enough for shelter. She still had no official place to rest her head save the caves and pockets in the rock, and even though a heavenly messenger had come bearing plans for a palace, Kigal wasn’t interested in any grand building—not if it was for her alone. No, she wouldn’t accept laying back in useless luxury unless all of Irkalla’s residents had a place of their own, too. Which she did not know how to
