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The pigeon perches on the windowsill of my chambers high up in an isolated area. I stop playing with the knife in my hand before it sheds blood once again, as it is always capable of doing. I watch silently as the bird hops onto the cushions of my large bed and approaches me gingerly with a message in its mouth. Carefully, I take the message with one hand and place it in my lap. The bird hops away from me, ready to take flight, but I grab my knife and plunge it into the hopeless bird. The creature lay lifeless on the cushion I had also torn into and a growing stain of red changes to purple against the blue fabric.
When I wipe my hands and open the note, I expect to see a long letter of interest, but instead, I find only four words.
He heads for England.
Now what was this all about? I shift into a sitting position, careful not to wake up the sleeping figure of the concubine next to me. With the clap of my hands, two servants come to attend to me. One fits me into my robe while the other places sandals onto my feet.
I look at the note again. Who is heading for England and why? Why do they always bother me with nonsense about something that doesn't apply to me?
As the servants retreat, I grab one by the hand and tell him to send for Rashad, my advisor. The servant nods and heads for the door. But not before I give him a smack on his backside. The boy stiffens, but says nothing as he heads out. I chuckle and lay back down, grabbing the sleeping woman by her bare waist and running my hands along her bare chest. She makes gurgling noise and turns the other way. Such fun, such fun.
I hear footsteps approaching my chambers. Rashad must be coming. I get up, avoiding the blood stain and the dead bird. Sure enough, Rashad enters the room, and bows low. He mutters his greeting and stands up. The young man has changed a lot ever since I promised to take care of him. His curly black hair falls across his eyes in a mysterious way, and his strong straight nose and full lips look incredibly handsome. I sometimes wonder why he is still a bachelor. But there is the business of his eyes. They were not like most young men in this region. No, they were not even brown at all. They were dark blue. This was proof that he was not exactly what he seemed.
"You wanted to see me, Master?" he says in that voice of his.
I slide off the bed, making sure he sees the woman that was at my side. He does, but his gaze does not stay on her for long. His eyes shift to the dead bird.
"Do you know what to make of this letter?" I say, handing it to another servant that had been at my side. The servant gives it to him. He opens the letter and reads the four words. Then, he nods. "I was going to talk to you about this, Master," he says.
"Then what is it about? Speak quicker, young man!"
"This letter," he says calmly. "May have something to do with what we've been searching for."
"And what would that be?" I was loosing patience.
The boy murmurs his answer.
"What did you say?"
"The crystal," he says louder.
"What crystal?" I am confused. "I have a lot of crystals."
"The crystal that has power beyond our knowledge. The one that was in our hands, but has disappeared. That crystal!"
Oh.
Really?
"Ah, yes, that crystal." I say, pacing the room. "The crystal that has power beyond our knowledge, the crystal that we must retrieve at all costs." I twirl the knife in my hand. "And why do you think this letter will have anything to do with the crystal?"
"It may be heading somewhere in England. The man who had it last was seen boarding the Mary Elizabeth more than a week ago."
"And what does this have to do with it?"
"He was Rakshana."
I stop. The Rakshana. The despicable Rakshana that took so much from us, and slashed my reputation for five years. Now everything was coming back to me.
"Ah, yes," I say. "And this man, he was named…Ahmed, right?"
"Correct."
"And he was given responsibility of our crystal, therefore taking it to England and keeping it under his watch, am I correct?"
Rashad hesitates. "Well, on the way, he….lost it, Master."
"Lost it?" My knife slips, giving me a small cut on my thumb. I should be annoyed at this, but I am a little fascinated at seeing my own blood. "How did he lose it?"
"We do not know for sure."
"Then, if we don't know where it is, then how on earth can we find it?" The rise in my voice causes the woman to stir and moan on the bed.Rashad's face blanches, but he still holds my gaze with those blue eyes. He is about to speak, when one of the servants come in with Mozeen, the prophet.
Mozeen bows down and mutters his greeting. When the shrill decrepit old man gets up, he bursts out immediately. "My Master, I am your humble servant Mozeen and am here with interesting news!" he stops.
"Speak up!" I roar.
"The charts and the gods have spoken to me this morning as I woke up, to cry out your praises."
Rashad keeps his eyes on the near-sighted man and I find myself wishing that they were reverted once again on me.
"That man, Ahmed, from the brotherhood of the Rakshana is in England, but he bareth not the crystal—"
"Yes, yes, I know that part. Go on!"
"The crystal is in London, my Master. In the possession of an English woman."
The rest of us draw in breath.
"It waits there, wanting someone to claim it for their own!"
"Incredible," I murmur.
"Do you know where exactly it is?" says Rashad. Mozeen says nothing, for he stands there with a blank look on his face as if he were in a trance.
"No matter," I say. "Prepare my men. Make sure their horses are well fed, and their armor and weapons are polished. We have a long journey ahead of us."
Rashad nods, bows and heads out the door. The servant in charge of Mozeen bows for him, and escorts the elderly man out the door. There is silence in the room as I mull this over. The crystal will be mine once again. When we get to the place in London, I will spare no one. There is a soft sneeze behind me. I turn around and see the woman staring back at me. She has seen and heard the whole thing. I could end her life right now, but I think better of it. I grab the dead bird and toss it at her.
"Make me something to eat, woman," I say. She nods, collects her clothes and starts to head out the door.
Koda Khan is rude! And he killed an innocent bird! A pigeon!
I wonder what Rashad's physical appearance (save the blue eyes) reminds you of. Hint, hint.
Read and review, or else Khan will haunt you in your sleep, killing our beloved Kartik!
With all due respect and wishing everyone a very happy unbirthday (if it isn't your actual birthday),
Captain Corbin
