• My wish has come true! My wish of money, pride, and shame. Now I can tell you about the demise of my once proud city, my once great city, my once horrid city. All of my life from being a babe and speaking in the tongue of the babe talk I have been protected by my angel, our angel, the angel Ishtar, from my birth she made it clear by embracing me and acting more passionate than my mother that she was my angel, sent to protect and love me, I had always treated her kindly, as she has always been there for me, her hair as golden as the wheat in the plains. Her skin as pale as the freshly woven linens in the markets, her eyes as red as the blood flowing from the freshly cut flesh of a goat. She told me from birth that I was always to follow her every word and do as she says if I wish for her to come to flesh and blood and soul to care for me and to love me. She was always gentle and she had brought me fortune within my decisions as a judge of the court of Lugalgirra. In my choices as a justice I have always consulted the angel in my decisions even though they have not always been the correct ones but the angel is the ultimate righteousness, for without war, love, and relations our race would not exist. 2. The angel told me in order for her resurrection in human for so that she may walk amongst us that I had to sacrifice the blood of others, only of pure blooded Babylonians, my fellow citizens, but she had told me that a few had been laughing at me and the ones that did will be sacrificed. The first one I sacrificed for my angel was the murder of a young boy, no older than 5 and I had his blood spilled and put into a flask so that my angel may have the blood for her resurrection for it is the blood she wanted, then the angel told me to blame a man and sentence him to death. Inside I laughed and I did the deed and was given his large home for it, I have no regrets and I was happy with my angel’s decision so I thanked her and she needed me to do another task, a task that would be the most righteous: I must Travel to Cyrus the Conqueror and have him conquer my great city so that there may be more blood for my angel and more riches, women, land, and power for myself. She promised me that after this she would be able to come to flesh and blood and continue her life as my bride, I hesitated; I could not bring my city to a fall. This city had been my home for all of my life and the home of my family for 3 generations, I loved many in this city but none more than my angel Ishtar. But she told me how they all were laughing behind my back for years and how the man whom had started this none more than my childhood friend, Nebuchadnezzar, how it was for my good, and that if I didn’t she would leave me. I cried, I wept like a child, I could not lose my angel, my angel was all I cared for, and I could not bear that loss. I left the city the next day on a claim that I was traveling to the empire of Asia but I actually was looking for King Cyrus of the Persian Empire to tell him about our great city and how it will be a noble addition to Persia. 3. Pushing on through the harsh dessert and wilderness with no intention of stopping for sleep, I travelled for 30 days and nights and had no food for 15 of those days, but I had my angel with me to keep me alive. She kept telling me of how she would be caring for me as my bride. It was enough to move the mountains, her words so beautiful like the nectar of fruits. So, I pressed on until I came to the great Persian army. They seized me and brought me to an audience with Cyrus, the one man whom has conquered so many countries and cities. I acted as if he was my own king and told him about my plan that I would execute inside the city walls and he offered me as much wealth, land, women, and power as I wanted. I wanted power, the power; I could have a temple built for my angel. I did as Ishtar said and agreed. I was then sent away with many fine treasures from slaves to exotic fruits and animals after describing my plan to the conqueror. I was wearing a grin on the entire journey home and was greeted like a rich man from all of the back stabbing bastards of my horrid city, they were like insects and I was the human, the Persian army the hand about to crush them all. I slept in cold, yet warming soft arms of my angel that night and then in the morning to the greatest traitor all, my childhood friend, Nebuchadnezzar, I greeted with him as I always did and he shared a lunch with me of fine meat and ale. I then told him about the coming harvest feast. I told him that our defenses are so strong. So strong that we could hold a feast of our own in the heart of the city for the Amelu, the most important people to our city, he hesitated but was convinced after I had him drink 6 more flasks of ale and was quite drunk. The angel then told me of the king’s plan to kill me at the feast so I hid a dagger in my finest robes that I was going to wear to the feast. I then waited for the night of the feast. 4. About 7 days and 6 nights later it was time for our feast. I waited until all the streets were vacant, when I left my home it was as if everyone had suddenly disappeared but I looked around and saw all the windows were lighted and heard the sound of joy, laughter. I paid a beggar to open the south gate because my angel had glared at him and had whispered to me that this man was no more than a fly, a nuisance, even to the insects of Babylon. I sent him with a note to the general telling him to execute this traitor to traitors I knew what he had to do. I then unlocked the south gate and went to the feast around an hour late, then I went to the feast and watched the king stuff himself like a swine before I heard the screams of a woman, which meant that they had arrived I quickly ran to the king and tried to calm him before telling him the last words he will hear “See you In hell you traitorous swine, may my Ishtar find mercy on your soul.” I then plunged my hidden dagger into his heart (rises up a bloodstained dagger and makes a stabbing motion) and ran towards my home so the Persian army may find me. My angel then told me that she had to leave me so that she may be resurrected. I asked why and she said it was because she needed to find the body of a beautiful woman to act as her vessel. I wept again for an hour until they found me. I was brought to Cyrus and was given my land and all of my promised goods. I had the head of that traitor Nebuchadnezzar hung on the wall of my new home and I had it all yet I still felt empty for one reason: it has been 31 days and 30 nights since I last saw my angel and I can’t live much longer without her. I need to share these pleasures with her but I can’t. I want to die but I can’t. I just miss my…my (falls onto his knees crying and it goes onto the next person) 5. My angel…my angel Ishtar told me to kill the child my angel told me to give that man death for a crime I committed. But when I need the angel, now…she is gone. I was always kind to her and now she leaves me, she is the one whom brought me my fortune, after all I am the one whom opened the gates and the one whom told them to feast in the center of the city, the one whom stabbed the king…and for all the riches, all because the angel told me to, and now I…I… (A bright light shines on the judge) MY angel! My angel! You have returned to me and for what? I have done all that you have told and now you can return to flesh and soul and bone so that we may be together! (Pauses and acts like he is listening to something) my blood? Is that is required for your resurrection? My blood? As my angel wishes I will follow I will spill my flesh and blood for your own flesh and blood my angel. (Grabs the dagger and laughs maniacally) Goodbye! Goodbye all of you bastards I will see you in hell’s pit! My wish has come true! (Laughs even harder as he stabs himself, falls on knees and twists the knife in his gut and stabbing his gut again before dying, Emphasis on his face still in a sick grin, curtain)