Chapter 29

Tunis

Ahmoud Hassan expertly attached the wires to the bomb and smiled. Another bomb… another martyr to the cause… another explosion. If he were lucky… many people would die this day. And while the authorities were focused on the explosion… he could safely rob a nearby currency exchange. Few if any would think the robbery was anything more than the result of lawlessness and confusion after the bombing. That it was the purpose of the bomb… no one but Hassan would know. With the money… part would go into his "retirement" fund… and the rest for more supplies… for more bombs… and to support the families of his little band of martyrs.

Hassan had learned decades ago… that only fools follow a cause blindly. He was more interested in obtaining wealth… but he could use the prevailing "cause" of the day to recruit fools to do the dying. The world was full of fools.

He was soldering another connection when he felt the immortal. Carefully he set the iron down and stepped to the shuttered window.

"What is it?" Iban asked.

Hassan could see three people standing on the street outside the apartment building… two men and a woman in a burka. All three were staring up at his window. "Curses," he said under his breath. This was not the time for a challenge. Yet he had a feeling these three would not go away. They would wait for him. With them watching him… his opportunity to rob the currency exchange would be lost. "Stay here… and don't touch anything." he snapped angrily at the boy. "I will return soon."

Ahmoud Hassan grabbed his cloak containing his sword and stormed down the rickety stairs and out onto the street. By the time he had gotten there… the three had retreated to a deserted alleyway. "I have no time for games," he mumbled to himself as he followed them.

Eventually they came to a small deserted square. They were waiting for him when he entered.

"You have very bad timing. Perhaps we could arrange to meet later. I have another engagement."

"The time is now and the place is here," the bearded man said. He waved an arm and the younger man moved off into the distance to keep watch.

"Very well… may I have the pleasure of your name?"

The bearded man chuckled. "Oh… I'm not the one challenging you… she is." He stepped back… amusement on his face.

"I am Ahmoud Hassan… I do not fight women."

The female lifted up the edge of the burka and removed it. "No… you prefer to murder women and children… those who cannot fight back. You are a coward and an unworthy opponent."

Hassan drew his scimitar and grinned. "And you are a child. They," he gestured at her two companions, "cannot help you in this. You are on your own… and you are only a woman." He licked his lips seeing the very beautiful katana she drew. His eyes widened… as it glittered in the afternoon sunlight. It would bring a great price. "When I take her head… do I have your word that you will not interfere and let me withdraw until I am recovered?" He called out to the others.

"If you can manage it," the bearded one said darkly.

Hassan raised his blade and assumed his stance… he feinted toward the woman a few times… trying to see her strengths… her weaknesses. She held the katana over her head and turned and shifted… her eyes focused on his every move. She made no false movements in reply to his feints. He smiled and lunged forward suddenly swinging the scimitar around to end this fight quickly.

Hassan was surprised that she shifted midway through his stroke… bringing the katana around to block his stroke. She immediately turned and sliced downward, her blade drawing first blood as it nicked his upper arm. He stepped back… already feeling it heal.

She was as still as stone… her eyes still focused on him… waiting for him. There was no fear in her face… there was nothing… just a blank look that observed him… and waited for him.

"You have some training… I give you that. But your stroke was weak… see… I am already healed." He indicated his arm, turning as he did so to twist his scimitar about and lunge toward her once more. This time her katana found his stomach… a shallow… though painful cut. She pulled back while he halted… staring at the blood dripping from his wound. He ran his free hand over the wound… already feeling it heal… but the small cuts were an annoyance. No one had ever cut him like that in a challenge! Of course… his challenges had been to those he found unworthy of the gift of immortality… those either too young or too old to be effective warriors.

"Do tell me your name woman… I would sing your praises when you are dead."

She said nothing, only continued to focus on him.

"You have trained her well," Hassan said to the bearded immortal. "Is this her first challenge? Is this why you and that boy… another of your students… keep watch?" Hassan noticed the woman glance at the bearded man. "Ahh…" that at least is the truth."

"Defeat her and I will tell you her name."

Hassan bowed, his wound healed. "Then come to me pretty one… let my blade kiss your throat and send you to Paradise!" He lunged forward one more time… his strokes falling fast and furious as he forced her to block them and step backward… towards the wall of one of the surrounding buildings. He smiled… his skill was beginning to tell.

She faltered and he raised his blade for the final stroke… only to suddenly find that her katana had sliced through his defenses one more time. Blood flowed freely. Ahmoud Hassan fell to his knees… darkness already beginning to cloud his vision. He had been defeated by a woman? He leaned forward on his hand and kness… tasting blood in his mouth.

"At least tell me your name," he said weakly.

"I am your death… I am the one who remains," she said evenly and sliced downward.

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By the time the quickening had died away, Duncan had gathered up the burka and recovered the shaking Alisaunne. "You did fine… you did just fine." He led her to the entrance where Ian waited. She raced into the boy's embrace and stood there sobbing while he kised her hair and murmured soft words of support into her ear. "We have to go," Duncan said harshly, his eyes raking over the surrounding windows of the deserted square, he handed her the heavy covering cloth of the burka. "Put this on again. We have to go now!"

Immediately she stood straight once more and pulled the burka over her head. Once hidden beneath it, she nodded. Duncan led the way… Alisaunne followed… and then Ian… as servant walked humbly behind her. They managed to leave the area without being stopped or questioned as residents wandered about wondering if another bomb had gone off. Duncan couldn't help smiling. It had all gone exactly as it should.

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Once they had returned to their compound, Alisaunne threw off the burka and paced back and forth in her loose white trousers and shirt. She felt excited and horrified at the same time. Duncan and Ian said little… and what they did say did not really make sense. She felt energized. She'd killed a man… but at the same time she'd bested him so easily. "Is it always like this?" she finally asked.

"Not always… but it was good challenge, you handled yourself well," Duncan finally said. "Did you see his life flash through you?"

"Yes… and you were right… He really did deserve death… He'd planned another bombing for this afternoon… at a crowded market. I could see his plans… He'd have sent a boy to set off the bomb and die… while he would have been blocks away… preparing to rob a business to line his own pockets." She stopped suddenly and seemed to stare blankly. "I killed him. I cut off his head and killed him!" Her voice rose as if she were struggling with the concept. "I killed him… and I enjoyed it."

Duncan stared at her. This was not the response he'd thought she would have. There was something dark and predatory about the way she said it. Had he made a mistake in forcing her to face this challenge?

Ian stepped up to her and held her still. "It's the high we all get." He pushed her dark hair away from her eyes and kissed her. "It will pass."

"I don't want it to pass… I want to feel like this always." Suddenly she kissed him harshly… almost biting his lips and thrusting her tongue roughly into his mouth. "Make love to me Ian…" she finally whispered into his ear as she pulled him with her toward the house. "I need you to love me now." She was all over him.

Duncan remained where he was in the deserted courtyard. "He knew the "high" that sometimes came after a quickening… and he also knew the "low." Alisaunne would still need him… There was still so much for her to learn. Duncan closed his eyes. Part of him urged that he pack his bags and go as he'd planned… get away from here… away from her… and part worried that he'd created a monster… one he was still responsible for. The young woman needed to know that killing was not the answer. She'd needed to know she could do it… but now he needed to teach her the other side of it all… the horror of it… and the guilt. He'd thought that would be her response… but it wasn't. One other thing worried Duncan. Next time… perhaps it would be him she would grab to assuage her lust. That thought both excited and worried him. Why did he so want her? He didn't love her… she was more like a niece… but he did want her… even more than he wanted to find Amanda.

Duncan backed toward the gate, then turned to leave the compound. He couldn't be here right now… he needed to be elsewhere… he needed to be with someone else… anyone else. Or he feared what he might do.

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As Duncan left the compound, he did not see the man in the Panama hat lurking in a nearby shadow. After Duncan had left, the man stared at the compound thoughtfully. It was only chance that he'd noticed the quickening… only chance that he seen this group leave the area. Were they all immortals? Surely that in itself was unusual. He needed to find out who they were… and get word to his superiors. Vacation was over… Tom Wheeler was back on the clock.