In a desert region between two rivers, Artemis and her troupe came across a group of gods and goddesses they had never heard of before. Long ago there had stood a civilization known as Sumer where these old gods were worshiped, but it had faded well before the time of Artemis.
The Sumerian gods and goddesses had grown bored watching the goings on in the human world where they were powerless to interfere, no longer having any believers. They gladly welcomed Artemis and her friends into their homes, all eagerly vying for the chance to exchange stories and get to know the newcomers. Artemis would be hard pressed to say how long they spent there, the time slipping away easily as it did for those who were immortal, but it must have been multiple human years. And despite all that time, when she eventually determined to leave, she realized that she had not yet met all of the Sumerian goddesses.
Ereshkigal, goddess of the dead, had not left the underworld in all the time Artemis had been visiting the other gods and goddesses. Artemis did not know if no one had told Ereshkigal of the visitors, or if she simply didn't want to see them. Still, it seemed rude to just leave without even saying hello, so Artemis set out toward the gates of the underworld. She left the rest of her troupe behind, so as to be less intrusive if the goddess of the dead truly didn't want to see her.
As she walked to the entrance to the underworld, she heard a voice calling from off the path. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Turning in the direction of the call, Artemis saw no one. "Who's there?" she asked. No answer came, so Artemis continued toward her destination.
A short time later, the voice came again, this time from somewhere behind Artemis. "Seriously, you should turn back."
Artemis whirled around, nocking an arrow and drawing her bow in one smooth motion, ready to demand answers from whoever was following her. Again, she saw no one. "Come out." Only silence answered her demand. "If you won't show yourself, then leave me be. I have no time for cryptic warnings from nobody."
Artemis had nearly reached her destination before the next disruption came. The path led to the entrance to a cave, and before she even set foot inside she could see that the back wall of the cave was taken up by a large set of gates. However, as she drew close to the cave's mouth, a large slide of rocks from above forced her to jump back. Looking up, Artemis saw a figure standing on an outcropping, clearly the source of the rock slide. The figure, who looked like neither a man nor a woman, leaned over to grin down at Artemis.
"What are you doing?" Artemis yelled, reaching to ready another arrow. "Who are you? Are you one of the gods or goddesses of Sumer?"
Before Artemis could take aim, the figure jumped down from their outcropping and landed among the stones at the cave entrance. "My name is Asushunamir. I'm not a god or a goddess, though I suppose you could call me a deity. And I'm doing you a favor. You shouldn't go in there. Ereshkigal really doesn't take kindly to guests."
Artemis recognized the voice from before and scowled. "I would think that she would have no difficulty turning away her own unwanted visitors, if that were the case."
Asushunamir laughed. "Oh, she wouldn't turn you away. You'd get in easy as anything. It's getting back out that's the problem. Would you like to hear what happened the last time someone went through those gates uninvited?"
Artemis narrowed her eyes. "Tell me."
Asushunamir sat back on a rock. "A long time ago, Inanna, the goddess of fertility, went down into Ereshkigal's realm. I don't know why. I wasn't around for that part, and Inanna's never told me. But Ereshkigal wouldn't let her leave. She took Inanna's powers at the gates, and syphoned her life force once she got through.
"It didn't take long for Enki, god of creation, to notice Inanna's absence. That's when he created yours truly. He sent me down to the underworld to fetch Inanna back.
"Ereshkigal was more welcoming to me than Inanna, luckily. I can be charming when I want, and she apparently found me attractive, which can make people foolish. We talked, and she drank, and I pretended to drink. I asked her to show me the water of life, and she had a pitcher brought to me. Then, when she fell asleep, I sprinkled the water on Inanna to revive her and we escaped together."
Artemis stared, wide-eyed, at the end of the person's tale. "Truly, Ereshkigal does not treat her guests well. Will you tell me, why do you not live among the gods and goddesses after having saved Inanna's life?"
Asushunamir smiled sadly. "I cannot live with the others. Ereshkigal awoke as Inanna and I escaped, and she cursed me just as the gates were closing behind us. I can find no home among the other deities of Sumer, nor the people, though they died out long ago anyway. I must live alone, on the edges of society. It's not so bad. Inanna visits me often, and I warn people away from the gates. Sometimes I throw unpleasant things through, which is fun, if petty."
Artemis stared at Asushunamir for a long moment. They kept a neutral expression on their face, as if they didn't care at all about their words, but Artemis could see the pain in their eyes. Being left in isolation for so long had hurt them deeply.
Artemis drew herself up to her full height. "It is unacceptable that you spend forever alone. You may join me and my huntresses. I am not a Sumerian goddess, and we spend very little time among society, so there's no reason your curse should prevent it."
Asushunamir looked shocked at the offer. "I'm not exactly a huntress," they pointed out.
Artemis waved a hand dismissively. "Hunter, then. Or hunt-person. What do I care about gender? Your story shows that you are clever and brave, and you saved me from an unpleasant fate. That is more than enough to earn you a place in my troupe."
A slow smile spread across Asushunamir's face, and they jumped to their feet. "Well, if you insist. I suppose anything is better than hanging out by this stupid cave forever." They gestured down the path the way Artemis had come. "After you, fearless leader."
Author's Note: The story of Inanna's Descent into the Underworld comes from Sumer in ancient Mesopotamia. The goddess Inanna goes into the underworld and becomes trapped there. Her reasons for going vary between versions. Sometimes she goes to revive her dead husband, sometimes to visit Ereshkigal, and sometimes no reason is given. I chose not to pin down why she went, since the story is being told by Asushunamir, who wouldn't have been around when Inanna was making up her mind to go. When the god Enki, who is the king of the Sumerian gods, realized that Inanna was missing, he created a genderless being called Asushunamir to go into the underworld and get her back. Asushunamir succeeds, but Ereshkigal curses them and people like them to be rejected by and live on the edges of society. Inanna gave them magical powers to thank them for saving her and apologize for them getting cursed. I decided Asushunamir would probably try to keep other living people from going into the underworld, since they were created and cursed to get Inanna out. Artemis isn't happy to leave Asushunamir alone forever as punishment for helping someone, so she lets them join her troupe even though she usually only accepts women.
Image: Khashkhamer Seal