If I Were A Creator

Dawn breaks upon the city of Atrahasis, the dark sky bleeding glorious light as the sun rose from the horizon's depths. The farmers and sheperds awakened, moving to tend their crops and healthy livestock. Canes of wood and stone sickles were on their hands, for leading the herds and harvesting the ripe, golden stalks.

Soon, the fishermen, gatherers and craftsmen went to work. The fishermen carried their wooden traps, making a beeline to the recently erected docks that bordered on the once river Tisran, now a significant lake half the size of Atrahasis and eleven cubits deep at its center. During its time as a river, many fish travelled through this channel, but it was merely a channel and no fish truly resided within the river for more than a day.

(A cubit is an ancient method of measurement derived from half the length of a man's arm. A cubit has different values in the Nazar continent but the differences are only one centimeter or two centimeters at most. Atrahasis adopts the general cubit system, a single cubit measuring about 35 cm and measured through a stick.)

Now, as a wide but shallow lake, many fish resided within it. The water flowing from the main river constantly brought nutrients into the lake, allowing plants to settle at its floor and support an ecosystem. A year later, fish began to crowd the shallow lake and develop a thriving environment.

Two years afterwards, fishing has become a more important occupation in the city, as fish are almost ten times as common and the shallow water allow traps to capture much of them. Most of the city's construction materials came from clay, sand and earth from near the lake, causing it to gradually grow as time passes. With more projects abound, the lake is growing at a faster pace and so does its depth, allowing larger fish to be accommodated in a few years time.

Due to the need of irrigation for farming, the lake is connected with the fields through hundreds small channels a several inches wide and only two or three inches deep. To the fishermen and farmers, an unexpected boon arose from this. More nutrients flowed through the lake, the solid waste of plants becoming food to the lake's producers and providing more for a larger population.

In turn, a larger fish population developed and the fishermen are catching more and more fish. More fish meant more fish waste, which decomposes into fertilizers for the lake's plant life and the farming fields. This forms an almost perfectly efficient cycle of fertility, a condition extremely rare or impossible before the discovery of fertilizer or any form of pre-modern agriculture.

As the plants and the fish flourished, so did the trade. Surplus of food and incense were all sold in order to gain as much money as possible since Atrahasis still needs more workforce to tend the fields, craft tools and build the necessary constructions. Despite the ease of magic, workforce is still a requirement because so far, magic could only separate, mix and designate, not carry materials all the way.

So, Akka purchased thousands of laborers and slaves from the city of Tubal in the Kaguz region and expects her goods to arrive after six months. Her knowledge of the desert and the basic logistics she passively studied over the decade told her three months are needed to gather this amount of laborers and slaves, one month to prepare and arm for the long journey, while the last two months are for the journey itself. Based on a map she wrote when Athanasius was still here, the journey is almost a straight path through the arid desert, crossing over a thousand miles to reach Atrahasis from the city of Tubal.

While she waited, she and Saqan formulated new plans and structures to be built once the laborers arrive. To showcase the city's might and prosperity, Akka and her apprentice decided to make a grand city gate on the wall, opposite to Athanasius' shrine. The gate will be made of limestone, measuring 15 meters in height and 6 meters wide.

The gate is a thick and towering limestone rectangle with an arch carved into it. Flanking the arch on each side are a pair of pillars with an idol of Athanasius perched atop each square capital. The city's most prestigious artisans made sure that the two idols of the city's lord is as realistic as possible.

Aided by the earth mages, the work of the artisans neared perfection and it was hard to spot any flaw in their work. After completing the idols, they transitioned to beautifully carving the pillar bases with their blunt and primitive chisels. A full two weeks of effort bore fruit as the bases depicted the heavenly storms and the lord's dominion over them.

Small platforms with a few steps of stairs were melded with the 3m tall bases, acting as a place for the incense pots while a pair of braziers flanked the semicircle platform for lighting and burnt offerings. A line of words praising Athanasius and his prophet were carved around the arch, written in the local Nashr dialect.

Inside the arch, more carvings were chiseled upon the smoothened limestone, depicting the Nazar heaven in its perfect glory as described by the prophetess Akka. A vast city of majestic proportions with great castles, pyramids and temples as far as the eye could see. Shrubbery grew beside the pristine roads, giving the impression of an oasis within the desert.

The nazar are depicted flying above their abode, forming a circle that represents their eternal nature. Despite the incomplete description, the artisans deemed it sufficiently divine to awe visitors. Anyways, no one will see it till three months past.

Due to the sandstorm season, the city saw less merchants than usual and almost no visitors came. With the lack of large scale trade and no tourism, this is equivalent to winter as cities must stock up grain and water before the sandstorms block of almost all paths of travel. Luckily, the Kaguz region and Atrahasis' Quyon region only have three months of it, other regions generally have four or even six with the occasional storm assaulting the city.

This is one of the main reasons Atrahasis suffered military threats from the southern regions. Now, the tables are turned as they lost their own guardian gods and could not waste any effort in trying to claim the city when invaders are ready to seize theirs. Added by the sturdy wall, large size and magic users, attacking Atrahasis is unwise even at their peak.

Joint attacks are even more unlikely, the southern region is fraught with warfare and frequent conflicts between cities. It results in cities with great military strength but also less than stellar economy, since merchants prefer regions where their convoys do not have to worry about bloodthirsty armies lying in wait to steal supplies. That's why the Quyon region has the second largest amount of merchants in the known world.

The end of sandstorm season is marked by a three hour heavy shower after dawn. The sandstorms become fiercer than usual and heavy amounts of rainwater are mixed in, causing much of the desert to be deformed by hundreds of years of water erosion overnight. This is the main reason why convoys often use the stars and maps to discover their location instead of the terrain, as the desert's shape will change after this yearly season.

After the rain halts, many puddles form on the depressions of the ground. These pools of water would sometimes form temporary rivers that lasts a few months, where animals would get water from else than the biweekly rain. It would also trigger the resuscitation of animals like lungfish who curl up within the clay and wake up to small lakes and minor rivers.

An hour after the storm's end, the traders and travelers begin journeying once more. Helped by a map bought from the city of Kisag, whose now departed guardian bestowed them a map of the whole Quyon region hundreds of years past. It has not failed any traveler thus far, so the city's priests have found no reason in asking their guardian for an update.

It was not until a few days later that travelers and merchants were back in Atrahasis.

Their reaction to the new gate was as expected. Mouths agape, heads turned and convoys of men stopped to gaze upon the newly christened Gate of Heaven. The guards formed grins and their c.h.e.s.ts swelled with pride as they watched the crowds stare up in awe of the city's newest monument.

It took several minutes before the crowd started moving on, and every minute of it brought satisfaction to the stationed guards. Even the foreigners would have to admit that this wonder could only be surpassed by the Mountain Temple of Kigal in the northern Dur region, where savannas dominate most of the land. Only few had the luck to behold it and even fewer to enter its hallowed tunnels.

However, the vivid descriptions those rich and powerful visitors brought helped many to shape an accurate image within their minds. Then, the visitors entered the city and beheld a great city of magic. Once more, the city has surprised many of them with its recent decade of developments.

Columns lined the main street, bronze braziers atop their capitals, alight with the wonder of fire. The road through the verdant fields was finally paved with limestone, a project that took half a decade of work. Now, it was for the visitors to experience a smoother road with no mud or damp soil to trap their wheels, a great accomplishment in the more damp Quyon region, whose cities are built upon wet and fertile lands beside or near lasting oases.

The city has also underwent another dramatic change in the three months, the abodes of the rich now have two floors instead of one. Instead of purchasing more land, having two floors are starting to become a trend as it is cost effective and a good addition to their supposedly grand homes.

Soon, the traders and merchants begun the first round of selling their goods in the market while travellers admire the city's improvement over the years. Even with the high income from incense, there is no way that in ten years, a city state could become so large and powerful on its own. Atrahasis had no allies, only trading partners and acquaintances.

So its sudden rise to power was simply legendary. Because of it, many cities sent their spies to uncover the reason.

The spies came as p.r.o.s.t.i.t.u.t.es, merchants and even laborers, doing their work as they leech off the information they hear. It was said that the city's prosperity was because of magic, a gift from the gods that is taught to members of the clergy. Receiving further orders, the spies executed the infiltration of the clergy's ranks.

Luckily, none of them were chosen for the sorceror position because of various reasons. The p.r.o.s.t.i.t.u.t.e spies were denied because they abused incense for their carnal ways, an affront against Ishim, a patron god of the city. The merchants were denied because they lack trustworthiness and they would treat this divine art as no more than a bargaining chip for their own needs.

As for laborer spies, the clergy denied them because they failed to recite or learn the proper rituals and prayers for one to be a priest. So, they were fended off simply by the weakness of their disguises. Of course, when espionage failed, the more barbaric of rulers would attempt an attack.

Two weeks after the purchased laborers and slaves arrived, an army on the plateaus made its presence known at dawn. The army shouted savage warcries to the heavens, demanding blessing from the gods in this violent voyage to victory. Their numbers are large, easily reaching twenty thousand men.

They wore leather plates forged from the thick hides of buffaloes and held spears in their hands. Looking into the army, there are those who seem to be the army's leaders, almost a thousand men armed with crude bronze shields to protect themselves.

At the sight of the army, the stationed soldiers immediately sent their messengers to the city's rulers. They were told to hurry, as this army seemed to be in ready to assault. Seeing the messengers run through the streets, the citizens made way, knowing that messengers would only be sent for truly urgent matters.

City Temple Complex, Magic Chambers

Akka, wearing a gold ornamented white dress and Saq, wearing white robes, stood before a table in discussion. A large papyrus scroll lay upon the table, blueprints of the first militaristic invention by the Chosen.

"It could be used for us Chosen to dive into enemy ranks and wreak havoc." Said Saqan.

"However, the horses might scatter and if they do, we will lose the chosen. We may be far more powerful but we are useless within close range. I suggest armoring the horses and training them for years first before we use them for this." Argued Akka.

"Hmmm." Saqan rubbed his chin and thought of her words. Then, he continued, "Very well teacher, though it will lose considerable speed and take much more time to build, the chosen's safety will be put in priority." Saqan motioned to change the plans on the papyrus.

Suddenly, the messengers burst in, sweating and panting. Before the two chosen could speak, one of them shouted in alarm, "Invaders!"