Thank you all for the wonderful reviews! A word of warning, though...this
chapter is going to be a little
shocking, but it will explain much...so please bear with me on this...it
will be getting a little less intense
several chapters from now...hope this enlightens you on the problems the
Medjai are facing...Enjoy!
CHAPTER 3
REVELATIONS FROM THE PAST
Rick stared through one of the parlor windows. Dusk was falling over the city of Cairo, and the Medjai continued their watch over their home. Even after being acquainted with the Medjai and their ways for some years now, it still amazed him how elusive they were on watch.
Rick kept looking through various windows in the house. He couldn't see even one of them; not one, and laughed to himself. "Our invisible guards," he said quietly.
Walking away from the window, he saw Evy coming down the stairs, book in hand. She headed for the kitchen to prepare the kettle for tea, and Rick followed her, wanting to take his mind off the situation. He came up behind his wife and gently embraced her. She appeared to be startled at first, but then relaxed in his comforting embrace.
"Rick, what are we going to do?" Evy asked, glancing up and slightly over her shoulder.
Rick looked down at her with a questioning expression. "We're gonna do just what the man said, and stay right here until they find out who did this."
Evy turned and firmly grabbed his arm, leaning forward to stare straight into his eyes. "I know you better than that," she replied. "Don't even think you are going to leave without me!"
"Evy, you need to stay here," said Rick, not surprised at all that Evy had guessed his real intentions. "Jonathan and Alex are supposed to arrive in a few days. You need to be here when they arrive, point blank, otherwise Jonathan is gonna get into some trouble, or for that matter, Alex. After all, he takes after you," he said chidingly.
As soon as he finished his last sentence, Rick frowned, remembering what Abdul-Khaaliq had said earlier that day. If they weren't in Egypt, then the Cairo Medjai would contact their London brothers. Fear started to rise up in his already over-stressed mind. The bad guys could have already gotten to his son and Jonathan, as the Medjai didn't really know who the enemy was. Or did they...
"Alex!" Rick and Evy said simultaneously. "Oh, Rick! What if..." She didn't get a chance to say more, as out of the darkness, under the back stairwell, they heard a familiar voice.
"Your son and brother are under close observation as we speak," the voice said. "Some of our London brothers embarked on the journey to make sure all stayed well with your family. If any attempts are made to harm them, I assure you, they will not succeed." With this said, Abdul- Khaaliq walked out from the shadows.
"You guys really know how to pop out of nowhere, don't ya," Rick said.
This provoked a small smile from Abdul-Khaaliq.
Evy approached him with a questioning look in her eyes. "Have you heard any word on who is responsible?' she asked.
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, but didn't elaborate on what he had found out.
"Out with it, buddy!" Rick said, with strained patience. "We're just as involved as you are, maybe even more."
Abdul-Khaaliq walked past them to gaze out the window over the sink. "I cannot tell you anything about them. It is something we do not speak of. Some things are better left unsaid. It is not my place, even if I was allowed to, but this I know, all will be revealed to you in time."
"Whoa," said Rick. "This has gotta be really bad. Aren't you one of Ardeth's chosen warriors?"
"Yes, I am," replied Abdul-Khaaliq.
"Well then, I believe you have a lot of responsibility, right?"
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, but was beginning to feel like he was falling into a trap.
"I believe you spoke of time, correct?" asked Rick.
Again, Abdul-Khaaliq nodded.
"Well, I don't know if you noticed, but I believe we might just run out of time if we don't get the lead out of our pants and start finding them!" Rick said, clearly frustrated with Abdul-Khaaliq's tight lip. "So out with it!"
Abdul-Khaaliq frowned at the odd manner of speech and continued to stare.
Evy approached him, trying to get some answers. "Please, at least tell us who they are. After all, Ardeth has been a dear friend of ours for quite some time now. We just wish to do anything we can for him," Evy said, trying desperately to reason with him.
Continuing to stare out the window, Abdul sighed with resignation. "There are those who feel threatened by our existence and there are those who were once part of us who seek revenge for the dishonor that they brought upon themselves. We have reason to believe there is a connection," he said, still staring through the window.
"You spoke of two separate groups of people," said Evy. "How can you even be sure it is either of them? It's common knowledge that the Tuareg are mortal enemies of the Medjai. Could it possibly have been them? After all, this was butchery, plain and simple, not an attack of stealth and cunning. What evidence do you-"
Rick cut her ramblings off. "Evy! Let the man finish, obviously he wasn't done. Tell us all you know," Rick requested, motioning for Abdul-Khaaliq to sit at the kitchen table as Evy prepared more tea.
They sat and waited for him to begin. Knowing that it would be futile to skirt the issue and Evelyn O'Connell's relentless pursuit of knowledge, Abdul hesitantly began the tale, hoping Ardeth would forgive him for breaking their rules on forbidden subjects.
"A long time ago, during the reign of Ardeth's grandfather, Yushua Bey, there was a warrior who despised the Chieftain. His name was Zouhir, and he was always trying to cause dissention among the tribe. You see, Zouhir didn't approve of Yushua's manner of handling foreigners coming into the Sahara or even Egypt itself. Yushua was more tolerant and merciful in his decisions concerning the fate of foreigners. Zouhir, on the other hand, was one who craved the spilling of blood. It seemed as though he gained great pleasure in killing. Yushua had admonished him many times for his merciless acts on the foreign men who came to loot and pillage." He paused to take a breath. "Make no mistake, my friends, Yushua did his sworn duty. Many times he had to kill in order to protect this world from the ancient evils that man was ignorant of. But first he would issue a warning, and if the intruders wouldn't comply or if they became aggressive, then he had no choice but to kill. But even in his methods of killing, it was swift and merciful. Zouhir was a chosen warrior, and as it is today, was in charge over various watches of forbidden areas."
Rick and Evy nodded, to show him they were following the story.
"Zouhir was never on watch when Yushua was," Abdul continued. "Yushua had heard many complaints from other warriors of his unnecessary brutality. Zouhir enjoyed killing, but enjoyed watching the men suffer slowly even more so. Yushua had exacted punishment on Zouhir several times for his brutal tactics, and finally, it seemed that Yushua had broken Zouhir's lust for torture. But one day, one of the warriors on Zouhir's watch came to the Chieftain in a state of great distress. His name was Koyan and was a young warrior of twenty. Koyan informed Yushua of Zouhir's newest bloodthirsty habit. When Yushua heard, he was so shocked and enraged, he told the young warrior to get some of the warriors from the watch group and to have them assemble in the Chieftain's tent. Yushua then questioned them of Zouhir's behavior. All were in agreement with Koyan and verified his allegations completely. Yushua, sickened and filled with disgust told his son and heir, Akhtar, Ardeth's father, to accompany them to Zouhir's tent. Akhtar was unaware of the new situation at this time, as he was preoccupied with the birth of his son and heir, Ardeth, who had been born that very day. Yushua, Akhtar, and the eight warriors proceeded to Zouhir's tent, which Yushua noticed was abnormally distant from all other tents. He had noticed the tent's distance before, but had thought Zouhir just wanted more privacy as he was having family problems, and didn't particularly like children. But now, he knew that wasn't the reason."
Abdul paused again, wishing he didn't have to relive in his mind what he was about to say. "Without asking for admittance, Yushua pulled back the tent flap and all entered. The first thing that they noticed, even before opening the flap, was the horrible stench emanating from within, a stench they were all too familiar with; that of rotting flesh. There was nothing strange in this room of the tent and they proceeded to a partitioned off room. Inside, they saw Zouhir sleeping. Still, they didn't observe anything unusual, so they proceeded to enter the back partitioned room. What they saw was beyond any of their imaginations. There were several rows of severed human heads, all in various states of decay." He sighed, noting the O'connell's horrified expressions.
"So repulsed by what they saw, Koyan ran out of the entrance and vomited, overcome by the stench and hideous sight. The sudden noise from the young warrior woke Zouhir. He didn't even get the chance to get up from his bed, because Akhtar grabbed him by the hair and dragged him outside and didn't stop until he had him in the middle of the camp. All the commotion roused the village to a state of alert. Quickly, all warriors formed a circle around the spectacle. With a wave of Yushua's hand, several warriors came forward. It took all the strength they had just to pull the enraged Akhtar off Zouhir. Yushua stood before Zouhir, seething with rage. Knowing well that Zouhir should be promptly put to death, he thought of those who would suffer because of his death. Weighing the ramifications of his decision, for the first time in his life, he was not sure his conclusion would be a wise one. He also knew of a few warriors who would challenge his sentence of death, if that would be the choice. With the exception of these few, all other warriors were fiercely loyal to the Chieftain. Yushua thought of Zouhir's father, Hydar, who was his honored first and dear friend for many years. He called for him; not realizing Hydar was standing behind him, and told Hydar he could not speak the sentence. Knowing Yushua's mind as his very own, Hydar understood the Chieftain's predicament. Standing tall and sure, Hydar told his son, Zouhir, that he would be spared execution, but would be banished; all ties to his family would be severed, he no longer existed. Zouhir didn't really care about the banishment. He didn't really care much about anything at all. For three years, he had already alienated himself from his family, friends, and fellow warriors. He didn't even share a tent with his wife and son. Such was his withdrawal from our people. As he left the village, he turned back to stare defiantly at the Chieftain and his father, Hydar. With indignation lacing his voice, Zouhir swore revenge on Yushua Bey's family, saying all generations of Bey's would suffer bitter anguish and death, by his hand. Then he turned to face Akhtar, and arrogantly congratulated him on the birth of his firstborn son and heir. Narrowing his eyes, and with a sadistic grin, he told Akhtar to enjoy his son while he could. Then he left, and no one has actually seen him since. Only his evil deeds speak of his presence."
Abdul-Khaaliq finally finished and grew silent, closing his eyes as he remembered the scene playing back in his mind. When all this had transpired, he was but a small boy of five. However, reliving it had opened old wounds; wounds he would rather have forgotten.
Rick and Evy sat dumbfounded following the startling revelation. Evy noticed that during the tale, it weighed so heavily on Abdul-Khaaliq's heart, that his voice became hoarse with emotion and he seemed quite humiliated with this sensitive disclosure.
Rick recovered first, after the startling discovery. "So, I take it, you think that this guy is responsible?" he asked, knowingly.
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, ruefully. Slowly, he rose, going back to stare thru the kitchen window. Night had fallen; the darkness had crept upon them as the tale told of the darkness of the evil Medjai's heart. It was as if they were somehow linked; the darkness of the night and the darkness of the evil one's soul.
"You said there were a few Medjai that were sympathetic to Zouhir. Whatever became of them?" she asked.
"They left our village shortly after Zouhir did," Abdul-Khaaliq replied, offering no more information.
"Abdul, if I may ask, what happened to his family? You know, his wife and son," Evy nervously asked.
"Hydar took care of his daughter-in-law and grandson. No fault or blame was ever placed on any of his remaining family. The Medjai do not disgrace a whole family because of a member's inappropriate behavior. However, they might as well, as the family is never the same again," he said, with downcast eyes.
"I can understand that, his son feeling the shame of what his father had done. I sure would have hated to have had him for a dad," Rick said with disgust.
"It was.....very difficult.....indeed," Abdul-Khaaliq said, shamefully.
Rick and Evy stared at each other, wide-eyed at the startling implication.
"Zouhir is YOUR father?!" Rick asked incredulously.
"WAS my father," Abdul-Khaaliq said, riddled with shame.
CHAPTER 3
REVELATIONS FROM THE PAST
Rick stared through one of the parlor windows. Dusk was falling over the city of Cairo, and the Medjai continued their watch over their home. Even after being acquainted with the Medjai and their ways for some years now, it still amazed him how elusive they were on watch.
Rick kept looking through various windows in the house. He couldn't see even one of them; not one, and laughed to himself. "Our invisible guards," he said quietly.
Walking away from the window, he saw Evy coming down the stairs, book in hand. She headed for the kitchen to prepare the kettle for tea, and Rick followed her, wanting to take his mind off the situation. He came up behind his wife and gently embraced her. She appeared to be startled at first, but then relaxed in his comforting embrace.
"Rick, what are we going to do?" Evy asked, glancing up and slightly over her shoulder.
Rick looked down at her with a questioning expression. "We're gonna do just what the man said, and stay right here until they find out who did this."
Evy turned and firmly grabbed his arm, leaning forward to stare straight into his eyes. "I know you better than that," she replied. "Don't even think you are going to leave without me!"
"Evy, you need to stay here," said Rick, not surprised at all that Evy had guessed his real intentions. "Jonathan and Alex are supposed to arrive in a few days. You need to be here when they arrive, point blank, otherwise Jonathan is gonna get into some trouble, or for that matter, Alex. After all, he takes after you," he said chidingly.
As soon as he finished his last sentence, Rick frowned, remembering what Abdul-Khaaliq had said earlier that day. If they weren't in Egypt, then the Cairo Medjai would contact their London brothers. Fear started to rise up in his already over-stressed mind. The bad guys could have already gotten to his son and Jonathan, as the Medjai didn't really know who the enemy was. Or did they...
"Alex!" Rick and Evy said simultaneously. "Oh, Rick! What if..." She didn't get a chance to say more, as out of the darkness, under the back stairwell, they heard a familiar voice.
"Your son and brother are under close observation as we speak," the voice said. "Some of our London brothers embarked on the journey to make sure all stayed well with your family. If any attempts are made to harm them, I assure you, they will not succeed." With this said, Abdul- Khaaliq walked out from the shadows.
"You guys really know how to pop out of nowhere, don't ya," Rick said.
This provoked a small smile from Abdul-Khaaliq.
Evy approached him with a questioning look in her eyes. "Have you heard any word on who is responsible?' she asked.
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, but didn't elaborate on what he had found out.
"Out with it, buddy!" Rick said, with strained patience. "We're just as involved as you are, maybe even more."
Abdul-Khaaliq walked past them to gaze out the window over the sink. "I cannot tell you anything about them. It is something we do not speak of. Some things are better left unsaid. It is not my place, even if I was allowed to, but this I know, all will be revealed to you in time."
"Whoa," said Rick. "This has gotta be really bad. Aren't you one of Ardeth's chosen warriors?"
"Yes, I am," replied Abdul-Khaaliq.
"Well then, I believe you have a lot of responsibility, right?"
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, but was beginning to feel like he was falling into a trap.
"I believe you spoke of time, correct?" asked Rick.
Again, Abdul-Khaaliq nodded.
"Well, I don't know if you noticed, but I believe we might just run out of time if we don't get the lead out of our pants and start finding them!" Rick said, clearly frustrated with Abdul-Khaaliq's tight lip. "So out with it!"
Abdul-Khaaliq frowned at the odd manner of speech and continued to stare.
Evy approached him, trying to get some answers. "Please, at least tell us who they are. After all, Ardeth has been a dear friend of ours for quite some time now. We just wish to do anything we can for him," Evy said, trying desperately to reason with him.
Continuing to stare out the window, Abdul sighed with resignation. "There are those who feel threatened by our existence and there are those who were once part of us who seek revenge for the dishonor that they brought upon themselves. We have reason to believe there is a connection," he said, still staring through the window.
"You spoke of two separate groups of people," said Evy. "How can you even be sure it is either of them? It's common knowledge that the Tuareg are mortal enemies of the Medjai. Could it possibly have been them? After all, this was butchery, plain and simple, not an attack of stealth and cunning. What evidence do you-"
Rick cut her ramblings off. "Evy! Let the man finish, obviously he wasn't done. Tell us all you know," Rick requested, motioning for Abdul-Khaaliq to sit at the kitchen table as Evy prepared more tea.
They sat and waited for him to begin. Knowing that it would be futile to skirt the issue and Evelyn O'Connell's relentless pursuit of knowledge, Abdul hesitantly began the tale, hoping Ardeth would forgive him for breaking their rules on forbidden subjects.
"A long time ago, during the reign of Ardeth's grandfather, Yushua Bey, there was a warrior who despised the Chieftain. His name was Zouhir, and he was always trying to cause dissention among the tribe. You see, Zouhir didn't approve of Yushua's manner of handling foreigners coming into the Sahara or even Egypt itself. Yushua was more tolerant and merciful in his decisions concerning the fate of foreigners. Zouhir, on the other hand, was one who craved the spilling of blood. It seemed as though he gained great pleasure in killing. Yushua had admonished him many times for his merciless acts on the foreign men who came to loot and pillage." He paused to take a breath. "Make no mistake, my friends, Yushua did his sworn duty. Many times he had to kill in order to protect this world from the ancient evils that man was ignorant of. But first he would issue a warning, and if the intruders wouldn't comply or if they became aggressive, then he had no choice but to kill. But even in his methods of killing, it was swift and merciful. Zouhir was a chosen warrior, and as it is today, was in charge over various watches of forbidden areas."
Rick and Evy nodded, to show him they were following the story.
"Zouhir was never on watch when Yushua was," Abdul continued. "Yushua had heard many complaints from other warriors of his unnecessary brutality. Zouhir enjoyed killing, but enjoyed watching the men suffer slowly even more so. Yushua had exacted punishment on Zouhir several times for his brutal tactics, and finally, it seemed that Yushua had broken Zouhir's lust for torture. But one day, one of the warriors on Zouhir's watch came to the Chieftain in a state of great distress. His name was Koyan and was a young warrior of twenty. Koyan informed Yushua of Zouhir's newest bloodthirsty habit. When Yushua heard, he was so shocked and enraged, he told the young warrior to get some of the warriors from the watch group and to have them assemble in the Chieftain's tent. Yushua then questioned them of Zouhir's behavior. All were in agreement with Koyan and verified his allegations completely. Yushua, sickened and filled with disgust told his son and heir, Akhtar, Ardeth's father, to accompany them to Zouhir's tent. Akhtar was unaware of the new situation at this time, as he was preoccupied with the birth of his son and heir, Ardeth, who had been born that very day. Yushua, Akhtar, and the eight warriors proceeded to Zouhir's tent, which Yushua noticed was abnormally distant from all other tents. He had noticed the tent's distance before, but had thought Zouhir just wanted more privacy as he was having family problems, and didn't particularly like children. But now, he knew that wasn't the reason."
Abdul paused again, wishing he didn't have to relive in his mind what he was about to say. "Without asking for admittance, Yushua pulled back the tent flap and all entered. The first thing that they noticed, even before opening the flap, was the horrible stench emanating from within, a stench they were all too familiar with; that of rotting flesh. There was nothing strange in this room of the tent and they proceeded to a partitioned off room. Inside, they saw Zouhir sleeping. Still, they didn't observe anything unusual, so they proceeded to enter the back partitioned room. What they saw was beyond any of their imaginations. There were several rows of severed human heads, all in various states of decay." He sighed, noting the O'connell's horrified expressions.
"So repulsed by what they saw, Koyan ran out of the entrance and vomited, overcome by the stench and hideous sight. The sudden noise from the young warrior woke Zouhir. He didn't even get the chance to get up from his bed, because Akhtar grabbed him by the hair and dragged him outside and didn't stop until he had him in the middle of the camp. All the commotion roused the village to a state of alert. Quickly, all warriors formed a circle around the spectacle. With a wave of Yushua's hand, several warriors came forward. It took all the strength they had just to pull the enraged Akhtar off Zouhir. Yushua stood before Zouhir, seething with rage. Knowing well that Zouhir should be promptly put to death, he thought of those who would suffer because of his death. Weighing the ramifications of his decision, for the first time in his life, he was not sure his conclusion would be a wise one. He also knew of a few warriors who would challenge his sentence of death, if that would be the choice. With the exception of these few, all other warriors were fiercely loyal to the Chieftain. Yushua thought of Zouhir's father, Hydar, who was his honored first and dear friend for many years. He called for him; not realizing Hydar was standing behind him, and told Hydar he could not speak the sentence. Knowing Yushua's mind as his very own, Hydar understood the Chieftain's predicament. Standing tall and sure, Hydar told his son, Zouhir, that he would be spared execution, but would be banished; all ties to his family would be severed, he no longer existed. Zouhir didn't really care about the banishment. He didn't really care much about anything at all. For three years, he had already alienated himself from his family, friends, and fellow warriors. He didn't even share a tent with his wife and son. Such was his withdrawal from our people. As he left the village, he turned back to stare defiantly at the Chieftain and his father, Hydar. With indignation lacing his voice, Zouhir swore revenge on Yushua Bey's family, saying all generations of Bey's would suffer bitter anguish and death, by his hand. Then he turned to face Akhtar, and arrogantly congratulated him on the birth of his firstborn son and heir. Narrowing his eyes, and with a sadistic grin, he told Akhtar to enjoy his son while he could. Then he left, and no one has actually seen him since. Only his evil deeds speak of his presence."
Abdul-Khaaliq finally finished and grew silent, closing his eyes as he remembered the scene playing back in his mind. When all this had transpired, he was but a small boy of five. However, reliving it had opened old wounds; wounds he would rather have forgotten.
Rick and Evy sat dumbfounded following the startling revelation. Evy noticed that during the tale, it weighed so heavily on Abdul-Khaaliq's heart, that his voice became hoarse with emotion and he seemed quite humiliated with this sensitive disclosure.
Rick recovered first, after the startling discovery. "So, I take it, you think that this guy is responsible?" he asked, knowingly.
Abdul-Khaaliq nodded, ruefully. Slowly, he rose, going back to stare thru the kitchen window. Night had fallen; the darkness had crept upon them as the tale told of the darkness of the evil Medjai's heart. It was as if they were somehow linked; the darkness of the night and the darkness of the evil one's soul.
"You said there were a few Medjai that were sympathetic to Zouhir. Whatever became of them?" she asked.
"They left our village shortly after Zouhir did," Abdul-Khaaliq replied, offering no more information.
"Abdul, if I may ask, what happened to his family? You know, his wife and son," Evy nervously asked.
"Hydar took care of his daughter-in-law and grandson. No fault or blame was ever placed on any of his remaining family. The Medjai do not disgrace a whole family because of a member's inappropriate behavior. However, they might as well, as the family is never the same again," he said, with downcast eyes.
"I can understand that, his son feeling the shame of what his father had done. I sure would have hated to have had him for a dad," Rick said with disgust.
"It was.....very difficult.....indeed," Abdul-Khaaliq said, shamefully.
Rick and Evy stared at each other, wide-eyed at the startling implication.
"Zouhir is YOUR father?!" Rick asked incredulously.
"WAS my father," Abdul-Khaaliq said, riddled with shame.