Chapter 50
May – 3,390 BC
Earth: Village of Assur
NINSIANNA
She led him to the second ring of the village, away from the bustle of merchants, to her parent's modest mud-brick home. While their house was larger than many in the village, now that she'd grown accustomed to the clean lines of Mikhail's sky canoe, the rammed dirt floor and cluttered shelves appeared shabby.
Mikhail crouched to fit beneath the doorway, grunting a muttered curse when he banged his wings upon the lintel. Bundles of herbs hung, drying, from the low ceiling, forcing him to stick his head between the ceiling joists. He hid his thoughts beneath an unreadable expression, but from the rustle of his feathers, she could almost feel his claustrophobia.
"These are Mama's medicines—" she yanked down the herbs that obs
