BROTHERS

From the trunk that had survived I

built a beautiful wooden throne for the goddess Ishtar, this as an apology for

not having been able to save the tree completely. He liked the throne very

much, so much so that he even forgot what had happened.

—Gilgamesh, do you want to marry me? —Ishtar asked, taking me by

surprise.

—What is that proposal about? —I was confused by his words.

"You are a beautiful, strong and wise man," he replied. Except

for your behavior and pride, I'm sure any woman would marry you.

—I appreciate your compliments, but I'm not interested.

—Wait... What? —He frowned.

—Every man who has passed through your heart ended up dead or ruined,

why would I want the same fate?

—How dare you?! —He got very angry.

"Goodbye, Ishtar," I said as I proceeded to leave the garden

and return to Uruk.

—This is not going to stay like this! I will kill you and your wild

brother! —I heard her scream from behind—. You don't know how great my fury is,

you bastard!

Ignoring her completely, I continued on my way back home. There I had

pending matters to resolve, such as facing Enkidu and Shamhat, and asking their

forgiveness for my behavior on the wedding day.

After taking a bath, I didn't even have time to rest and go in search of

Enkidu, because a subordinate interrupted me, telling me about another visit.

—My lord, you have a visitor.

—Wait! —I responded annoyed.

—It's your mother, Mrs. Ninsun.

-As?

"Getting into trouble again, you fool!" —I heard my mother

scream as she burst into the room very angry.

—What have I done now…? —I asked confused.

—How dare you provoke Ishtar?!

—That immature woman wanted to marry me, am I obliged to please her?

—I don't know what happened, but get ready! —he warned me to protect me

as he always has.

—Ishtar cannot kill me, mother.

—She doesn't, but remember that her father is Anu, king of all the gods.

She returned to the heavens enraged and ended up telling her father everything.

"I highly doubt that the great Anu would pay attention to such

nonsense," I said, trying to break the tension.

—That's right, he wouldn't get involved in matters as immature as love.

But she has asked for the Bull of Heaven, a creature so powerful it can

annihilate entire towns.

—And he gave it to you? —I asked, intrigued, since I didn't know the

existence of that beast.

—Not at first... However, Ishtar threatened to release all the deceased

from the underworld if her wish was not granted. Anu, knowing perfectly well

what her daughter can be capable of, accepted her request.

—When will it arrive? —I asked again.

"I suppose today or tomorrow, in any case, tell your comrade Enkidu

and get ready." His expression of fear frightened even me.

—I still haven't spoken to him since his wedding day. But I'll take care

of that bull.

—You don't understand! —he became angry again—. It is not for you,

Gilgamesh... It is for your kingdom, because everyone will perish if the bull

comes to attack them.

"I can only defeat him, mother," I said, trying to appear

confident, although deep down I was not very sure of my words.

—You can't, son! You have to tell Enkidu! I'm not even sure if the two

of you can defeat him, but there's no choice but to try.

—Okay... I'll talk to him.

"If you manage to get out of this battle alive, try not to get into

any more trouble," he said, disappearing into the air with his magic,

disappearing before my eyes.

I ordered my subordinates who were in the palace to search for Enkidu. I

wasn't even able to do it myself, because my pride was greater than my need.

—You still haven't found it? —I asked impatiently to Nimah, a young

servant in charge of serving drinks in the palace.

"My lord, they will arrive soon, I'm sure." This peculiar girl

always trembled when I spoke to her, she was so afraid of me that not even I

understood why she continued working for me, I suppose for fear of resigning.

"Why do you always tremble when you talk to me, Nimah?" I

asked. Do you think you'll ever have to sleep with me?

"No... My lord," she responded the same as always, terrified

and shaking like an earthquake.

I ended that awkward conversation, since the subordinates had arrived

with Enkidu at the palace.

—You abandon your supposed brother on his wedding day, you spend a long

time avoiding me so as not to face me, and now you look for me? —Exclaimed

Enkidu, somewhat annoyed. 

—Is everyone coming into my palace angry today? —So far this day, I only

had part of the fights.

"I don't understand..." he responded.

—Leave it! It doesn't matter. 

"Why have you sought me, Gilgamesh?"

"First of all, I wanted to apologize from the bottom of my heart

for what happened at the wedding," I said, surprising Enkidu, since it was

very rare for me to apologize so sincerely. I shouldn't have left, I shouldn't

have avoided you afterwards, true comrades don't do that, but I failed you in

every way.

"Don't worry... I'm surprised that you are able to apologize from

the bottom of your heart." His friendly smile had appeared again, like in

the old days.

—I also need your help.

—Well, I won't give it to you. You have sought me out after so long to

ask for help?! —He flatly refused. That's the most selfish thing you've ever

done.

—I wanted to apologize for a long time... However, I was never man

enough to do it, forgive me.

—Okay… What kind of help do you need? -asked.

—My mother came to the palace today to warn me, since I have angered

very powerful beings. It is a long story, but put more simply, I have offended

Ishtar, daughter of Anu.

-Oh really?! His mood suddenly changed. Of all the living beings you

could have disrespected, you do it to crazy Ishtar?!

—See, you yourself admit that she is crazy. That unbalanced woman wanted

to marry me, I rejected her, and now we have a problem...

—Are you going to attack us? —Enkidu asked.

—No... Ishtar's power is not enough to kill two demigods like us. My

mother came to warn me about a beast, a bull from the heavens, supposedly

capable of destroying entire kingdoms.

—When will he attack? —he asked again without even knowing the details

or the reason for the situation.

—I don't know, soon...

I invited him to have a glass of wine, so we could chat about all this

time we were apart. However, he seemed quite quiet, just drinking the wine, but

without much desire to have a conversation with me.

—I notice you're quite quiet, is something wrong? —I was getting tired

of that uncomfortable silence.

"No, I'm fine, calm down," he responded dryly.

—Fine, but if something happens to you, or you have something to tell

me, you know you can count on me.

-Can? Can I really, Gilgamesh? I don't know what to tell you...

—Do you see how something is happening to you? —I realized that he was

still thinking about my abandonment on his wedding day—. I already

apologized... I shouldn't have behaved like that.

"On the day we met, you yourself said that we will be brothers for

life, inseparable comrades who will face any battle or problem together,"

said Enkidu, reminding me again of having broken the rules of friendship.

"I already apologized, whether you want to forgive me or not is

your decision." He was already fed up with the matter, he just wanted

everything to be fixed.

—Don't worry, Gilgamesh, anyone can make mistakes. Your apologies are

not necessary either, just knowing that you want me by your side as a comrade

is enough for me.

—Thank you, Enkidu, I will never abandon you again.

We were chatting and laughing for several hours. I also had time to

explain everything that happened with Ishtar, laughing out loud at that strange

anecdote with the crazy goddess.

"You're the first man I know who will die for rejecting a

woman," he said jokingly, laughing all the time.

—What would you have done? Sleep with her? Now you would be one more of

her collection of ruined men.

—But since when does King Gilgamesh reject a woman?

"Since he met Ishtar," I replied, thus creating more humor in

the atmosphere.

We did not stop mocking the goddess, a fact that turned out to have

consequences. I don't know if his father Anu was listening to us at that moment

from the heavens, or it was simply a matter of chance, but just at that moment

we heard a loud roar in the city. Following this we heard many people screaming

in fear, as if something was attacking them.

—It has to be the beast! —I exclaimed as we both left in a hurry.

Upon opening the great doors of the palace, we realized the massive

destruction and dust that instilled panic throughout the city.

—There it is! —Enkidu shouted.

Turning my head in the direction indicated by it, I could see the great

bull of the heavens. A huge beast, almost three times larger than common bulls.

His eyes were a green color that shone brightly, his horns seemed to be made of

the purest gold, and his skin was a beautiful silver color.

—Can we really defeat him? —said Enkidu worried—. This beast gives me

even more chills than Humbaba.

We both stood frozen for a few seconds looking at the majestic bull. Its

power was so great that just by hitting the ground with its paws it caused

brief earthquakes. It attacked houses at high speed, destroying them instantly,

as its resistant skin seemed not to be affected by any material.

—Bring my axe! —I shouted to the subordinates—. And a spear for Enkidu!

"My brother, I want you to know that I never held a grudge against

you for that day, on the contrary, I needed to reconcile with you," said

Enkidu, touching my shoulder.

—Why do you always get sentimental before big battles? —I asked.

—Because death is blind, Gilgamesh, It has no principles or favorites.

Whether you are king, slave, rich or poor, this does not favor anyone, it only

appears to whoever it touches, and when it touches you there is no escape.

"Stop mentioning this nonsense, neither of us will die in this

battle," I reproached him.

—Maybe not this one, but it could be the next one—he returned to

negativizing that matter.

—Let's finish this! —I shouted, picking up my ax and he picked up the

sword that the subordinates had just brought us.

I rushed at high speed to attack the beast, I raised the ax with my

right hand while with my left I held one of its horns tightly, hitting it hard

right on the back of the head. We were both surprised after that powerful blow

of the axe, since the blow had not penetrated the bull's neck at all.

Enkidu proceeded to contribute to the battle with a quick attack,

however, this went very wrong, since the bull managed to stick one of its horns

right in his abdomen. I had enough time to go rescue him before he received

more damage, although the horn had already passed through his body.

-Are you OK?! —I asked alarmed—. You'll be fine!

—You're not the only demigod here, do you forget? —he responded, mocking

the harsh situation. I will be cured very soon.

—Let's defeat this beast! —I exclaimed to encourage his battle spirit—.

We will show the gods our strength and brotherhood!

-Careful! —Enkidu shouted.

When trying to help him, the bull took advantage of my carelessness to

make a powerful charge. He approached with such speed that he did not know

whether to try to stop him, or to take Enkidu in his arms and avoid him.

—Gilgamesh, react! —he shouted again.

With just two meters before the beast's attack reached us, I managed to

grab Enkidu's hand and dodge the attack. Unfortunately for my comrade, when I

stretched out my hand while he was still bleeding from the deep wound, the pain

multiplied considerably.

"I'll save this one for you," he said jokingly.

His wound had healed almost completely, because unlike human beings, we

demigods heal much faster. Maybe Enkidu was a savage created with the aim of

killing me, but the one who gave him life was the goddess Aruru, therefore,

this also makes him a demigod like me.

—Can you fight? —I asked him, worried about the situation.

"Yes, let's finish this..." he responded, getting up from the

ground.

We both grabbed our weapons and attacked the powerful bull again that

continued destroying everything in its path. Enkidu rushed in first to distract

him and I quickly understood his tactic. He had to take advantage of the

beast's distraction to attack it from behind. I had already tried the neck and

it didn't work, therefore, analyzing it carefully I realized that perhaps its

weakness was its horns, since it was what stood out the most in this one.

-Now! —Enkidu shouted, hoping that I would surprise the bull.

I put all the strength I had in my legs to make a strong jump, raised my

ax and with a side blow I managed to cut off the right horn. Quickly the bull

began to weaken, as if it had lost half of all its power. Apparently my

assumption was true, so without hesitation I proceeded to cut off the other

horn as well.

—It's getting weaker! exclaimed Enkidu. Finish it!

What a shame that such a powerful being has such a great weakness, I

thought. But I knew it was necessary to kill him immediately, because we

couldn't allow him to regain his strength. When I cut off its horns, its flesh

became very fragile, and unlike my previous attack against it, now my ax could

pierce it. I quickly ended his life, since I did not want to see such a strong

and majestic being suffer.

—The gods are going to punish us for this—Enkidu thought that killing

the bull was going to awaken the fury of the gods.

"We'll have to accept the consequences," I said with a sigh.

—Gilgamesh, how did you know that the horns were his weak point?

—I didn't know, I simply thought that since it was what stood out the

most in his body, perhaps it was also his greatest weakness.

We had to help rebuild the destroyed houses. Although I as king could

have simply ordered my subordinates to do it for you, the truth is that Enkidu

convinced me to help with him and all the people. I couldn't even believe what

I was doing, me, the king of Babylon, working side by side with other people.

There is no doubt that my comrade had a great impact on me, however, I would

soon be forced to continue my path of goodness without him.

The next morning, Enkidu appeared in despair at the palace, as if

something had tormented him all night.

—Gilgamesh, we have to talk!

—What is so urgent to wake me up so early? —I asked, still a little

sleepy.

—I had a terrible dream! —he responded.

—Very well, then go back to sleep! —I responded sarcastically—. Sleep a

little more, maybe you'll have another one.

—I'm serious, idiot!

—What is that dream that scares you so much? —I asked again.

"I could see a meeting of the three great gods," he answered.

Anu, Enlil and Shamash were planning my death.

—Maybe it means something else, aren't you the one who always gives a

good meaning to nightmares?

—Not this time, Gilgamesh... They were enraged by our actions, we killed

Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven, and I told you that there were going to be

consequences.

—And why you? It was I who finished them off—to me it didn't make sense

that if that were true, it would be Enkidu who died.

—I dreamed that they were planning to kill one of us as punishment, so

one would be dead and the other suffering. I believe that the god Shamash

preferred that you live in exchange for my death.

—You worry too much... It's just been a nightmare after the serious

injury you received, but don't worry, everything will be fine.

Who knew that nightmare was more than a simple dream...? Three days

after that conversation, Enkidu began to slowly fall ill. An illness will not

be able to destroy a demigod, we think. But as time passed, the disease grew

little by little until he was immobile. Every muscle moved brought intense

pain, every time he breathed it was more uncomfortable and every blink took

away his vision more.

"I'm going to die, my brother..." he told me while he was

dying in his bed.

—Don't say such barbaric things! —Just thinking about that possibility

felt my heart breaking into pieces.

—Cursed be the day that Aruru sent me to earth! Cursed be the day

Shamhat rescued me from the forest! —He began to scream desperately, although I

believe that nothing he said was on purpose or with bad intentions.

—Enkidu, why do you say such nonsense? —I asked, confused by his

attitude—. Aren't you glad you met Shamhat and me?

-Don't know! -He shouted again, completely losing his sanity. I don't

regret anything!

—Then don't say such painful atrocities! —I yelled at him to try to make

him wake up from his madness.

—I'm afraid, I don't want to die! What do you expect me to say?! -he

exclaimed-. Right now the fear inside me speaks, not my heart!

—It's okay... Just calm down, will you?

"I'm going to die... The gods have punished me..." He kept

repeating the same words over and over again.

Little by little his sanity gave way completely to despair. He could no

longer move a single muscle and was not only talking about his inevitable

death. Does he regret having met me? After all, I am entirely to blame for

this, I thought. I felt my heart slowly tearing apart as I looked at him in his

dying state. I knew that without him my life would fall off the cliff, because

nothing would be the same without his company, the best friend I ever had and

the only man worthy of considering him my brother.

"Thank you for everything, Gilgamesh... You were a true brother of

another blood to me, a true comrade and the greatest opponent I was lucky

enough to face," he whispered to me as his eyes slowly closed.

—Not Enkidu, please! —I started crying like a little child—. Let's fight

more battles together, eat more delicacies together, and have many more

adventures together!

—My brother, be a good king and put aside pride, it is not good at all.

Better try to empathize more with the person as I have always tried to tell

you.

"Shut up," I shouted! I didn't want to continue listening to

him, because I didn't feel able to bear this situation.

—Take care of my Shamhat, please, don't let any man abandon her again

like I'm doing now. I love you both, never forget it —were his last words

before closing his eyes completely and dying.

—Enkidu, wake up, please don't abandon me! —I screamed non-stop with my

eyes flooded with tears.

My mental balance completely collapsed when I saw my best friend dead.

Shamhat went to the bed to mourn him too. She was crying the entire time during

our talk, but she didn't dare speak to him so as not to break into pieces even

more than she had. I guess I also didn't want to see him suffer even more too.

"He is dead, Gilgamesh!" —he shouted at me, hitting me because

of the fury that consumed him—. All because of you! You were the one who caused

him to be awarded this punishment!

—He longed for battle just like I did!

—But not for it to end like this! You brought him into the conflict with

Ishtar! —he reproached me—. Who should have death is you, Gilgamesh, not him!

I let Shamhat take out all his anger on me, while I endured his insults,

curses and hits. My dear friend had died and my tears did not stop for even a

second. At that moment I realized how cruel death can be, and how right Enkidu

was, because not even we demigods are free from it.

I mourned his death for months, not even when Lugalbanda, my father,

died, had I suffered so much. I gave him a burial fit for a demigod and ordered

that our adventures be written and remembered for all history. In the center of

Uruk I built a huge golden statue in his honor, because to me, he was worth

more than all my riches. However, to be honest, deep down I knew that Enkidu

would never return, but I was not able to accept the fact that he was gone from

my life.