The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the earliest surviving works of literature in human history, inscribed as a poem in the Akkadian language on clay tablets c. 2100 BCE in ancient Mesopotamia. It tells the story of Gilgamesh, the ruthless god-king of the city of Uruk. As a check on his power, the goddess Aruru shapes a wild man out of water and clay and releases him in the woods where he lives as a beast among the animals. On hearing this, the sun-god sends a priestess of the sun temple to educate this beast and bring him into civilization. This is the story of the taming of the beast who would eventually take the name Enkidu and go on to befriend Gilgamesh.
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Shamhat stepped cautiously around the boulders to slowly approach the watering hole, her bare feet pressing through the pebbles with every step. She left the tools of her trade neatly wrapped in a satchel by her feet, waiting to be used on her return. Behind her lay the hiding spot, high above the water where she and the hunter had laid waiting three nights, watching every wild beast and creature that gathered at the watering hole. The hunter, now terrified, did not waste a breath to witness her as he turned around and fled in the other direction as fast as his feet would carry him. Shamhat's gaze was fixed straight in front of her as she stepped into the morning mist rising over the water. A herd of gazelle had appeared around one end of the watering hole, their heads bent down to the stream, occasionally rising up with their foot long antlers, looking for disturbances. Marking the middle of the herd was the beast.
He was stooped over his shoulder with his face in the stream, drinking from it like he was one with the herd, and yet his back and large shoulders were nearly bare, that of a man. Shamhat watched as he raised himself out of the water to sit high on his knees. His long hair reached down to his waist dripping with water. She watched him let out a yawn, his broad chest stretching, covered in matted hair all the way down to his belly and his groin, his sex hanging down beneath him. Shamhat carried herself tall, her face devoid of any expression and clear eyes mirroring the stream as she stepped into ankle-deep water, and yet she could feel her heart pounding against her chest. Her deep breaths matched a slow rhythm honed over long years of training in the arts of pleasure and control. She was still on one side of the water when the herd, as one, noticed her presence and looked up at her.
Shamhat now stood still with her goatskin robe wrapped around her in the morning breeze. The beast looked upon her and felt the same fear and disquiet as he had felt when he was near the hunter in earlier days, but he also sensed something different. The being in front of him was tall, yet not as tall as him. She had sharp features, and her hair, long to the waist like his own, was flowing free with the air. The world around them stood still as Shamhat and the beast looked at each other for many moments. And then, Shamhat's face lit up with a faint hint of a smile.
The gazelle herd turned around to dispersing, sensing impending danger. The beast, standing up to his full height, sensed it too, but a different urge was making him unable to move entirely. Shamhat maintained her distance, staying far out of reach of any sudden leap, and yet she allowed her fragrance to surround him. She raised her right hand to her chest and felt the cold metal of her brooch - bronze spiral encrusted with an agate gem - the heft of the spiral indicating her order in the temple of the sun, and the gem a recognition of her skill. The cold touch instantly filled her with strength as her body remembered the years of learning that fueled her abilities, and she felt assured of her task. Her eyes held his gaze as he gradually became oblivious to everything around him but her. A nimble flick of her finger pushed the brooch open. She raised her left hand to part her robe down the middle, and gently raised her shoulders. Lacking any support, the heavy cloth of the robe slid down her bare arms, back, and legs, till it lay puddled in the water by her feet.
The beast's eyes lowered from the intense expression on Shamhat's face, as he took in a long neck and sinewy shoulders. Her shapely arms were loose by her side ending in long fingers resting by her hips. She held her chest high - her clear, rounded breasts topped with light circles that pointed a shade sideways. Faint lines marked the shape of her taut belly and a smooth abdomen. Shamhat stood with one foot slightly ahead of the other, the tone of the muscles in her long calves and thighs hinting at her strength. Her legs were parted just enough to give the beast a glimpse of her bare loins. The beast felt his mouth run dry, and his palms sweat, and a beat in his sex with his member swelling outwards.
Seizing on her power in this silent fight, Shamhat raised her long arms to her sides and stepped forward so the beast would see that she was strong and formidable. She then stepped up to his body, where her flowery scents mixed with his earthy notes. Shamhat gently raised one hand and laid it on the side of his face, her lips letting out a soothing hum and words, but she knew speech was unknown to him. Her eyes locked with his, she used one finger of her other hand to trace a line from his shoulders, down his arm, until she held his large fingers in her own. She lifted his hand to her chest and pressed it there so he may feel her pulsing heart through her soft flesh. Shamhat felt a light twitch near her belly, and without breaking her gaze, knew of his arousal. She then withdrew her hands, and took slow steps backwards as she saw confusion form in his eyes. In one quick motion she twisted around started walking so the beast would now see her behind, her back, waist, and shapely bottom tensing with every step. She curved her long back and bent down to pick up her now wet robes, then raised herself in a sprint towards the boulders above the water.
