Prologue: The Stars Fell
"And for you sinners there shall be no salvation
But upon you shall abide a curse
But for the elect there shall be light and joy and peace
And they shall inherit the earth"
-The Book of Enoch
***
Seven. It is a number that has been given great significance and meaning to those inclined to the most prominent scripture of this primitive age seven is a most holy number, seven days it took for all to come to be, seven days for the feast of Pesach, seven pillars supported the House of Wisdom, seven wonders are listed for the world, of which only the dull pyramids remain. Yes, seven is referred to as the number of completion and perfection.
Fitting then, that I should be of the seventh generation when counting from the cursed one, Cain. For I am Na'amah, and no woman, save perhaps one alone, has ever been as perfect in beauty and wit as I. I state this not as a crude boast but as fact, reader, these are my words and heed them well. For were it not for the prominence of my beloved mother it would be I who would reign the world of depravity, who would be the one whispering and spurring you into sensational acts to satisfy the shadow of your psyche. But think not that I dwell idle whilst She does all the manipulating, for I am the initiatrix, the whispers in the night, the wet dreams paired with nightmare, that takes your hand through the spheres of carnal terror and paralytic fear until you recognise it as home.
But enough of the now, I write this to give you the past. There are numerous clues and conflicting myths for the wise ones to learn the origins of my mother, but so few think to consider how I came to be, focused as they are upon Her. What led the Mother of Divination down the path of self-destructive harlotry? Well, ironically it is because of my skill in divination.
But I would begin my story at a feast, where I was already well on the way to my blissful damnation. My father, Lamech, the ruler of the mighty city of Enoch and the lands of Nod, had returned triumphant from some minor conflict against a rebellious clan of such meagre import that their name escapes me. They had thought to use guerilla warfare to account for their lesser numbers but failed to prepare for my father's mastery in the ways of violence. The flayed hides of their chieftains now decorated the great walls that had stood since Cain first founded the city.
Whilst the raucous merry-making went on in the great hall of the palace I was backstage, all nerves. I stood naked, with numerous attendants applying scented oils, paints and jewels. A number of them held an enormous lump of polished obsidian, what passed for a half-decent mirror in those times. I smiled as I beheld myself, it was not my looks that worried me for I had already gained the reputation for being the most beautiful woman in the world. The many worshippers who came to the temple referred to me as 'The Charmer', for my beauty lured in the masses better than any sermon.
"Remember the teachings of that old hag, slow your breathing, fear is but a barrier to greatness, heed it not." Chedipe, my oldest friend appeared, admiring me. She had already been made up, ready as one of my background dancers. Hailing from the one of the eastern kingdoms, her tanned body was painted with various serpents, covering the pale scars on her flank, with emerald eyes that did a poor job concealing her nipples and navel. A stark contrast to the sapphire stars that covered my own, complimenting my midnight hair and dark eyes.
Risking having to have my cosmetics redone, I leaned forward and kissed her. We were not lovers, but we had been together since we were but children. Assigned to me as my playmate and servant when I was but a fiery infant princess, we had played together, shared secrets together and grown up together. When it was discovered that father intended to me marry me off to some Atlantean prince, we fled together, with the indirect help of my mother, from the palace under the new moon to the grudgingly accepting arms of the high priestess. I think she would have sent me back to my furious father had my skill at divination not become clear. Recognising my visions as truth, the high priestess managed to endure the many threats and financial pressures placed on the temple by my father, until he fell into seething acceptance.
So in the temple I spent my adolescent years, learning how to dance and praise the gods, studied the various texts and performing rituals. I learned the effects of various herbs and the meditation methods required to bring about those parts of the mind locked to most. But as a princess I was forbidden from learning and practising the way of holy whoredom. Perhaps to you whose morals are so very different to those times would think me relieved. I was enraged! I wanted nothing kept secret from me, and as I watch Chedipe excel in the way of lust I explore myself in the bedchambers at night, fantasising now that my body had matured.
You understand how denying a toddler something causes them to desire it all the more, perhaps it is this that led me to become the demi-thing I am today. Lust was forbidden me where, as a princess I had always been denied nothing, as such I wanted it more than anything. Perhaps that was why, consciously unwittingly but maybe subconsciously willing, I broke the golden rule of divination. Outraged and aroused, I crept to one of the study chambers at night and, with a single candle, lit incense and filled a silver bowl with clear water to seek a vision of how to get my way. Instead of attaining answers from those aloof creatures of the higher echelons I gave a psychic shriek as my spirit suddenly plummeted into the forbidden spheres of the Lesser Palaces. The things I saw there...
"Your Reverence?"
Chedipe brought me out of my reverie, the old hag of a high priestess was gone now, that title passing over to me. Thinking back of what I saw that night had set my heart thumping and loins quivering. My anxiety rose again. I wondered to myself, would he see my twitching labia as I danced? Something stirred in the back of my mind and I felt my anxiety wash away in a wave of arousal. Let him see it! I am a holy whore and proud of it. In my mind I redesigned the various dance patterns to better display my heated state to the crowd. Let there be outrage and sensation this night! Let all lips utter my name in jealous disgust and secret yearning! Let them revere the perfect beauty that is me!