« Ho, sublime goddess Ishtar! Despite your grandiose majesty, always helpful! »

The literature of the people of Uruk is pleasantly flattering towards me. I like this sort of admiration. However, in all honesty, the medium in which they write these wonders is not practical. People here write on clay! The invention of a more effective solution still seems beyond their reach. I wanted to give it a try, at first, out of respect. It's unnecessarily slow and complicated. In the end, I decided to raise silkworms for paper making instead.

Enlil and Anu object to me teaching the process. My colleagues prefer that we educate the people here on subjects that are immediately essential to their survival. Our action must remain as discreet as possible, otherwise their normal development would suffer, we could extinguish their innovative spirit. They must rediscover these methods for themselves.

Last month, Enki asked for a meeting. In his opinion, it would be easier to pretend that we are one big, beautiful family to humans. All Elohim who have decided to support the rebuilding effort are following a similar strategy, apparently. Better to say that our immortality and powers are hereditary than to explain every detail. Mankind has forgotten. It is better. We then spent a couple of weeks discussing hierarchy, if you can really call this hell a discussion. Here's how it works: our 'father' is supposed to have the upper hand. Our 'brothers' and 'sisters' are equals. On the contrary, 'sons' or 'daughters' are subordinate.

It's all a bluff, obviously, but at least that's straightforward. Officially, here I am, daughter of Enki, sister of Utu and mother of Nanaya. Unofficially, both Anu and Enlil consider themselves my bosses and believe they have authority over me. How charming they are to bicker as if I would really obey them! First, Anu thinks he has a word to say about everything since he used to be governor. The poor chap refuses to admit that Mû does not exist anymore. Lastly, Enlil imposes himself because he was a member of the climate engineers corps, whose expertise I am willing to accept. That said, our cheerful fellow has nothing of a leader.

With the notable exception of Enki, who was a knight under the Ahura Mazda, none of my partners have any military training. They are literally all civilians. None have ever operated in battle, but I do. The most annoying part of this story, frankly, is that I now have to call the worst bitc... pest in the world, Ereshkigal, my 'sister'. Dammit, I swear if she keeps calling me a 'doll', I'll slap her stupid skull so hard my palm will get carved on it! This brat looks down on me even though her former job was to watch over shrubs!

The lady's attitude is nothing unusual. I had the accidental pleasure to learn that few of my co-workers enjoy my company nor my suggestions. Women, in particular. You don't have to be a prodigy to know what causes such hostility: I am the only reinir of their group. All of my adopted 'family' come from hostile lands. They had promised that my nationality would not be held against me! Anyway, let's forget about it for now.

I guess you probably want to understand what my role is in our little community, don't you? What does the lovely Inanna do all day? Well, you should know that there is only one subject on which Anu, Enki and Enlil agree without a doubt: my work. I have the task of being a « passion keeper ». Let me simplify this pompous title: I am simultaneously goddess of war and love. A conflicting duty, as you can imagine, if not downright paradoxical.

Let's start with warfare. Conflicts are inevitable, they are part of everyday life. People argue, fight and, unfortunately, kill each other. My intervention channels all these violent impulses in a way that can be useful to a civilization's growth. A war breaks out? My task will be to translate this potential catastrophe into a breeding ground for a nation's progress or, at least, to prevent further deterioration of its status. So, rather than trying to force peace on people, something my kind knows will crush their will and lead them to apathy, we direct the flow of passions into a constructive impulse.

Conversely, if oppression takes hold, my duty is to bring discord in order to eradicate in the flames of war this nuisance from human existence. A part of my employment that I enjoy, as it tickles my rebellious streak to the core. Sometimes it's the golden ages that I'm tasked to extinguish. Why? Because 'growing up' and 'evolving' require a regular dose of suffering. A peaceful and abundant life leads to pride. Man considers himself invincible, a prodigy of intelligence, since why would he be so lucky otherwise? They quickly believe that the elementary rules of common sense no longer apply to them.

This path proves to be problematic. So I make sure that blood is still flowing, for it is better to have a slaughter of innocents, than to accept the risk of seeing an entire culture spontaneously ignite under its own arrogance. Practically speaking, my subordinates train soldiers, equip armies and sow the seeds of the storm, if necessary.

Anyway, let's talk about love now! My temples are above all dedicated to fertility and health. My priests practice medicine and oversee childbirth. All things that lead to giving birth are of my concern. My temple in Uruk, Eanna, is a place where people come to get married, seek marital advice or consult a pediatrician. Brides and grooms await my blessing before their first intercourse, so that it might be fruitful. Planning festivities is up to me, even if few are dedicated to myself. It is deliberate. I hate parties.

Nothing obliges me formally, but I do protect all prostitutes, who can count on my charity. They are allowed to work safely near my shrines. I also have a criminal justice mandate: all crimes related to blood or sex fall under my jurisdiction. My clergy assesses guilt and carries out sentences. Well, that pretty much sums up the bulk of it! I hope I have made it simple enough, at least.