Marduk

Babylon - 950 BC
The palace walls stretched over 100 meters - and yet! The screams and shouts of the subjects reached Nabu's ears. As usual, an uncomfortable feeling crept into him when he stepped in front of the crowd. He was never entirely sure whether they cheered him for liking him or whether he was just acting as their king. Still, he had his duties to do. His servants and soldiers smiled at him as he passed them. His goal was the balcony over which he could talk to all of his subjects. He had to fulfill this royal duty once a month. His subjects should know that their king was well and he did everything possible to improve the economy and well-being of the people of Babylonia. He didn't have much to say to them today, though. Babylonia, and especially the capital Babylon, was doing well. The traders made a great profit and the soldiers guarded the city walls with great caution. Nabu just wanted to wish them a good day and promise them to continue to take care of their well-being. Although he hadn't thought it possible, the cheering grew even bigger when he stepped onto the balcony. In order to keep calm, it was only necessary to raise his arms and the subjects fell silent. They respected their king. At that time it was a big exception. Most kings reacted their countries with an iron hand and dug fear among the people. Nabu loathed such a regime. His subjects should live freely and not be afraid of him or any enemies. Babylon was probably the most heavily guarded city on the continent. No enemy had dared to penetrate so far. Crime was also kept within limits. Nabu gave everyone a chance, provided they deserved it. Despite his 14 years of age, he had the talent for leading a country, and was thus one ahead of the Egyptian or Canaan kings, who were sometimes made king at the same age. He thanked his subjects for their trust and promised to continue doing his best. He kept talking, but soon couldn't believe his eyes anymore. With every word he spoke, several of his citizens disappeared. No sooner had he finished the last sentence, his subjects vanished into thin air. Even his soldiers and servants were gone. The picture around Nabu began to rotate and the king rudely awoke from his sleep. It took a while before he realized that his sleep had been interrupted on purpose. Someone had roused him, and was still doing so. When the person realized that Nabu was conscious again, he let go of him. Instead, he began with savage teachings. "You slept the whole class again, didn't you?" Admonished the man who was apparently Nabu's teacher. Nabu managed a sleepy smile."I dreamed," he replied, yawning. But that didn't seem to be the answer his teacher expected. "Oh Nabu, what should I do with you?" He sighed. Nabu found an apology, but it was hardly meant seriously. Adad's classes were easy to fall asleep; there was nothing that could be done about that. Adad tried to make his lessons more interesting, but Nabu was very demanding. For Adad it was on the one hand an honor to train the young future king, on the other hand a torture. Nabu hardly listened and only learned to a limited extent. "Nabu, one day you will be the ruler of Babylon. What do you think your subjects think of a ruler who cannot even tell the history of the country?" Adad snapped at his student. Nabu pressed his lips together. He did not tell Adad what he had dreamed of. This is not the first time he has dreamed this dream. Since he was little he was told that he would be the next king. At that time, Nabu had accepted this with a nod and a shrug. As he got older, he became more aware of the responsibility that he would have to face one day. At the moment his uncle ruled the country, but this one wouldn't live forever. If he died, or for some reason could no longer rule the country, it would be Nabu's turn to ascend the throne. Although Adad didn't believe it, Nabu felt ready to do so. It might well be that he wasn't interested in Adad teaching, but he always went with his uncle when he gave important speeches or just received ordinary citizens. His uncle was kind by nature. He received citizens of all walks of life and listened to their concerns. Mostly it was farmers who asked for some help with the field work. "I hope you slept in so we can go back to class." Adad said sternly. Nabu mumbled something of agreement, but decided not to really listen to Adad. His teacher turned back to the blackboard and Nabu looked towards the window. Then suddenly he was wide awake. He looked at Adad, who was busy writing a few sentences on the large papyrus that hung in front of him. Nabu wanted to take his chance and run away. Not that he had never done this before, but Adad looked even angrier this time. Nevertheless! Nabu was sure to go back to sleep when Adad started talking about his ancestors. In an unnoticed moment he got up and slipped like a shadow to the window. Adad still didn't notice anything of the supposed escape. Nabu climbed silently onto the ledge and looked down. The room where his classes took place was 100 meters above the ground, but it was easy to bypass it. He climbed along the narrow edge of the wall until he reached a depression. He jumped about three feet and landed on a wide balcony. The room that was hidden behind it was the library, in which Nabu also had to spend a considerable amount of time.He pushed aside the curtains and went inside. It was only morning and no one was in the spacious hall. So Nabu could cross it unnoticed and scurry out into the corridor. He ran down the long stairs, but stopped just before the entrance. The only thing in front of him and freedom was the palace guards. Nabu thought feverishly how he could overcome this obstacle. The main gate was the only entrance to the palace. In order to ward off intruders and spies, all windows were at least 20 meters high. So Nabu had to get past them. He already had the simplest plan. They wouldn't just let the Prince of Babylon pass by without questioning, but they would let an ordinary stable boy by. Nabu didn't have to do anything other than find a suitable chasm and tousle his hair a bit. With bated breath he marched past the guards, who gave him surprised looks but did not speak to him. When he left the palace behind, he decided to keep his clothes anyway. A resident of Babylon would never harm him, but he still did not want to be recognized. Adad had surely noticed his disappearance by now, but Nabu wanted at least to cover up the fact that he had snuck out of the palace. When he returned he would then claim to have gone back to his room. "Oh, the young prince! On the way all alone today?" Someone suddenly asked. Nabu winced. Startled, he looked around in all directions and saw a woman. It was Iddina, a saleswoman who sold all kinds of things. Nabu had met her several times. "How ... did you recognize me?" He asked, amazed. Iddina made a disparaging gesture. Who would I be if I didn't recognize our prince? ", she asked demanding. At first Nabu couldn't reply." Well, have you snuck out of the palace again? ", Iddina had to giggle a bit. Nabu scratched his head, embarrassed, and nodded." I won't tell you if someone asks. ", Iddina winked conspiratorially at the young prince. Nabu expressed his thanks and wanted to go on. Iddina, however, seemed to want to say something important." My prince! I'm sorry if the following sounds presumptuous but ... everyone has the right to be free, but you still remain the prince. At least you wanted the guards with you. If something happens to you, who should one day ... ", Iddina tried to find the right words. At first Nabu reacted a bit shocked, then he smiled gratefully at her." Your fear flatters you, but I can take care of myself. Also, Babylon is one of the safest cities in the world, so there is nothing to worry about. ", the prince soothed her quickly. Although Iddina nodded, Nabu felt that she still felt doubts. He decided, however, to leave her alone and move on."He didn't want to sacrifice too much time. The more time passed, the angrier Adad would be with him. But there was one more thing that Nabu wanted. Life in the palace was very lonely and the number of his friends was limited to Adad and his uncle. And of course Naid. Naid, however, everyone lived in the palace, still in its surroundings. It must have been two years since Naid and his father, a farmer, went to the royal council hall. Naid held back while his father spoke to Nabu's uncle. He was behind with the harvests and asked for more time. Usually, Nabu's uncle was kind and willing to answer the concerns of his citizens on such matters. Today, however, he seemed to have had a worse day. First he hit Naid's father, but then his son jumped in. "Nobody talks like that to father! Who do you think you are?" Nabu's uncle, who was known in Babylon as King Shamash-Mudammiq, wanted to trim him, but Nabu, who was also in the room, just giggled. He didn't know many people who revolted against his uncle. This Naid interested him. He persuaded his uncle not to be so stubborn, who finally gave in. That was also the beginning of Nabu's and Naid's friendship. However, the place where they met was limited to the palace. His uncle was always worried about his nephew and only rarely let him into town. And if necessary, Nabu had a whole bodyguard at once. But he found this measure useless. The citizens of Babylon knew and liked the young prince. Well, there were always some people who were against the king and wanted to use Nabu for their own purposes. However, this number of criminals was rare in Babylon. Nabu looked at the city walls and sighed. Up until now he had only been allowed to leave the capital once, and that only for a few days. His uncle had taken him for a ride. However, when Nabu had acted stupidly and fell off his horse, the return journey was started immediately. Nabu hadn't really hurt himself, but his uncle was tough. Nabu could understand him. After all, he